Ah Kong's funeral
by Adrian

We made an impromptu trip back to Kuching for Ah Kong's (grandpa in Hokkien) funeral. He has been very close to Serene. I remembered her telling me he dropped and picked her up from school from kindy until secondary school (high school). She said Ah Kong is a very nice and respectable person. He can be comical and funny at times. There are times we laugh at his choice of words and stunts. Having met him myself, I completely agree with her. He has lived a good life surviving World War II and visited many interesting places around the world.

Ah Kong's portrait @ the living room

Flower wreaths from relatives and friends

Grandpa's old pictures

A truckload of wreaths heading to the cemetery

Hearse van carrying grandpa's coffin

Ah Kong @ church during his funeral service

Ah Kong at his final resting place

May you rest in peace Ah Kong . (1^st December 1913 - 7^th May 2011)

Fairy Cave, Bau


The Monsoon = rainy season is not an ideal time to go caving but this is an interesting limestone cave that Adrian photographed during our recent trip home. Fairy Cave is situated north of Bau in Sarawak. It was the center of the 19th Century gold rush and site of a bloody rebellion between Chinese and British rulers back in the days.

Fairy Cave has very unusual stalagmites and stalactites formations, thanks to the humid weather condition. Most caves in Malaysia date back to the Stone Age but some caves in my hometown are believed to be over 60 millions years old!

Why is it called Fairy Cave? Well, nobody could tell me why but my internet research revealed that the deity like stalagmites and stalactites attracted many Chinese Buddhist and Taoist devotees to the cave. This could be the reason for its name.

Get ready for photos galore!

Limestone formations in Fairy Cave

Stalactites

Looking out from inside the Cave

Platform and walkways

Going deeper into the limestone crevasses

Where stalagmites and stalactites meet

The little lighted hole at the bottom is the entrance. Hello!!! Echo!!!

Rock or cave climbing anyone?

He's actually quite high up come to think of it. Argh! Scary.

Bruno & Lizzie - two years later

Figo's empty sleeping quarters in my home was a sad reminder of how we lost him earlier last year. My Mom & Dad misses him very much. The ever loyal "son" who would follow his every step around the house and garden. But, life goes on and soon enough, Bruno established himself as the dominant male Dachshund in my parents' household :)

Like clock-work, Bruno and his sister, Lizzie would wake my parents up early in the morning and go to bed at 9 p.m. sharp. And, no, they do not need a clock to tell time. Wonderful isn't it? Of course, there is the occasional rat catching session that might allow them to be out for an extra hour or so.

Bruno's unmistakable style - paw up!

Lizzie's demure style

They love fresh, young coconut flesh from my garden

Bruno going at it

Lizzie's turn

Better than a coconut scrapper?

My Birthday Celebration


When we landed in Kuching, it was also my birthday :)

My Mom had ordered some special dishes from The Heritage - our favorite restaurant opened by the former chef and staff of Tsui Hua Lau. THL was the most popular place to go for a wedding, new moon and birthday celebration. These days, with Grandma confined to the home and Grandpa's weak eye-sight, it was difficult for us to have a meal outside. Kuching isn't a disable friendly city. Something which I hope will change in time to come.

Anyway, take a look at our little feast at home.

I was so tired and jet-lagged after the long journey yet this was no time to sleep over good food.

No birthday is complete without a cake. That's me and my grandparents.
Grandma never smiles for the camera but trust me. She's happy ;)

The Yaizu Boys

I've a morbid fascination with historical cemeteries and shrines. I've just discovered an 18th Century French burial ground near my apartment here in New Milford, but I'll leave that to another time. Today, I would like to share some photos of the forgotten Japanese Cemetery located at Batu Lintang Road, a 5 minute drive from my grandparents' house in Kuching, Sarawak.

This cemetery is hardly mentioned in local history. Since Japanese soldiers committed many unmentionable war atrocities and crimes against humanity during World War II, it is understandable that the locals aren't too interested in these deceased Japanese boys from the fishing village of Yaizu.



However, this is their story...



And, their final resting place...

Related links: Batu Lintang POW Camp

My husband's roots

Adrian must be wondering when I would write something about his Pa's hometown. Well, today is The Day. Pa will be coming to see us in 3 weeks. A 24 hour journey isn't easy for any traveler; and more so for a senior traveler. We'll see how bad his jet-lag is when he arrives on May 31st. Hopefully not too severe coz we have a fury of activities lined up for you, Pa :)

Adrian's grandfather was a pepper farmer in Serian. A large number of his relatives still live there with the exception of an uncle, two aunts & his Pa who moved down to Kuching City many moons ago.

A short paragraph about Serian for newbies:
Serian is a district in the Samarahan Division; about 40 miles/64 kms south-west from Kuching City. Agriculture is the main economic activity here. During the weekends, this town is bustling with locals going up to the Indonesian border of Tebedu to score some cheap Indonesian (West Kalimantan) crafts and produce.

When we're back in Kuching, we usually spend half a day on Sunday at Uncle Simon's coffee shop. Uncle Simon is the youngest in Pa's family.

One of our favorite thing to do is check-out the market nearby. Adrian is usually stuck at the osphronemus goramy stall for a while. Goramy?? Kaloi, lah! Such a fish enthusiast, he is.

Some of the typical stuff you see at the wet and dry market in Serian :)


For those of you who don't know what this contraption is (see below), it is a coconut grater. The coconut tree is also known as "the tree with a thousand purpose" or in Malay "pokok seribu guna". Coconut water makes a delightful thirst-quencher on a hot day. Grated coconut & coconut milk is commonly used in many local dishes and this machine preps the white flesh for cooking.

Plugged to an electrical socket, it grates the white flesh into fine "hairs" in seconds.

Scenes from my [early] childhood: Grandma or my maid, the late Ah Nee (Bless her soul!) sitting on a low bench type thing; grating away in the kitchen. A manual coconut grater! Yup, no such thing as an automated grater back in those "dark ages". Tip: manually grated coconut yields a fluffier finish than automatically grated ones. Better for Nyonya cakes like ondeh-ondeh.

This is how it looks like - I'm trying my best to draw it for y'all ;)

Manual grater vs. the automated one (see above)

Anyone still has this traditional coconut grater at home? I must remember to take a nice photo of it when I go back next time. I've used it many times when Ah Nee wasn't in the kitchen, hovering round by back in case I grate my own fingers. Those jagged edges - very, very sharp indeed! A lesson well-learned. Shhh....ok?!

Much Ado About Food

See Good Restaurant

Side-track post (non- NJ related) but lots of food pictures coming up!

One of the classic, all-time favorite place which my family often patronize is See Good Restaurant. No, it's not sea food mis-spelled. I've been coming to this place since they first opened in the mid-80s or so. One of their earlier locations was at the old Permata Sea Food Center. Some of you Generation Y & Zs might not even know where this place was since it was torn down to make way for the likes of Eagle's Nest, Cottage, Piccadilly Music Cafe, Goal!, etc. Anyway, they moved a couple of times before settling at a shop house behind the famous Tsui Hua Lau Restaurant off Ban Hock Road.

These days, my family hardly eat out due to my Grandma's immobility. But, who's to stop us from having See Good's yummy food, right? If there's a will, there's a way. So, when I was home last year, we had a few take-out/to-go See Good meals.

This post is for Mr. Kong but I doubt that he surfs the web. Nevertheless, a compliment to his restaurant's good cooking ;)

The following are my favorite food items from this very casual & laid-back restaurant.

Fresh water prawn soup (Tom Yum base)

Sweet & spicy crab *drool*

Kampung (free-range, village bred) chicken

Foo-chow noodles. In spite of what you think, you'll slurp the gravy dry in the end!

If you're salivating uncontrollably by now, just call See Good at (082) 251397. Don't go there on the 4th & 18th of every month because you'll be cooking your own meal. *snigger*



Lian June @ BDC

I discovered this place after my former co-worker recommended it to me. A Hakka owned & operated restaurant. Great place for double boiled/clay-pot dishes but I go there for something else ;)

Their butter-prawns are as good as Sarawak Club's. Well, I needed to find a replacement since the Club was still in ashes & black soot when I went back. Much progress has taken place after I left.

One of their signature dishes - ngo-hiang! Pork-minced roll.

This is the real lemon chicken ;)
(unlike the ones you get in your local American Chinese take-out place; no offense, but yuck!)

Anyway, I've satisfied my craving today. I hope you have too. If you can't have it physically, it's just as good looking at it. If you can't eat it, it's just as good smelling it. Beggars can't be choosers, I guess.

The Lost Files

I found a couple of lost/forgotten photo files from my trip back to Kuching recently. It's such a waste not to share, so here goes...

Part I: Nasi Padang, anyone???

If you speak Malay, you would translate "Nasi Padang" , literally, as field rice. Of course, this is not what it means and there's no English translation for it. It is believed that Nasi Padang originates from West Sumatra; from a place called Padang.


Nasi Padang isn't exactly Malay food but it is a unique Indonesian cuisine enjoyed by most people who appreciates robustly spicy & flavorful foods. Back in December, we had the opportunity of eating Nasi Padang at a new place recommended by my former co-worker.

This is the restaurant - Rasa Indah (Rasa means taste; Indah means beautiful in Malay).

First of all, choose whatever you want to eat e.g. beef rendang, chicken curry, fish curry, vegetables cooked in coconut milk, etc.

Unlike Chinese fast food/Chap Fun stores that pile everything on your rice, your selection is dished out and presented in individual plates. Fluffy white rice served in a woven basket (sorry, no photo).

This is what we ate.

Bottom row:
1. traditional ulam* (too bad they didn't have any kacang botol or winged beans that day)
2. paku or jungle fern cooked in coconut milk

*ulam = blanched or raw vegetables eaten with sambal or savory condiment

Middle row:
1. tempe with roasted peanuts & anchovies
2. chicken curry
3. jeruk kedondong* (pickled jew plum).

*Hokkien/Chinese people in Kuching have a rather interesting way of pronouncing kedondong as "bah-ko-long"...where on earth did that come from??? Cracks me up all the time. I'll save that genre for another post next time :)))

Top row: Udang galah masak lemak (large freshwater prawns cooked in spicy, coconut milk)

Best activity after a big Nasi Padang meal? Siesta, por favor!


Part II: Taiwanese luncheon at Ting's Noodle House


One of my favorite lunch time haunts during my working days in Kuching. Quick service and good food. Their icy jasmine green tea is refreshingly calming on days when one is stressed out from endless Council meetings and preparing Board Papers for the German shepherd. Eins, zwei, drei...schneller, schneller! Gone are those days. Pheew! No more haphazard eating and consuming Rolaids thereafter.

Drunken chicken. A great way to start off any meal. Cool, wine drenched melt-in-your mouth chicken pieces...


Dry (tai-nan?) noodles. I forgot to write down the proper name.


Taiwanese beef noodle soup - their signature dish.


Part III: Western fare at The Junk

The owner of this joint has 3 restaurants under his belt; all of them situated along Wayang Street. This is his first. His newest is Havana. I'm not sure if Havana is just a cigar lounge or do they also serve food and drinks???

Adrian & I normally stay away from Western Cuisine when we go back to Kuching. We tried the owner's second restaurant "Bla, Bla, Bla..." 2 years ago with a group of friends. Bla ... serves fusion food. It's great for big groups as the portion is huge.

Butter prawns from Bla, Bla, Bla. Other dishes include soft shell crabs, ostrich-roll...yummy!

Movie trivia: During our dinner at Bla, Bla, Bla we were honored with the owner's presence at our table for an after dinner drinking session. We were told that he catered for the cast & crew during the filming of THE SLEEPING DICTIONARY.

Cool! Funny how I didn't even know about this movie?! I wonder what Jessica Alba thought of his cooking. I've to check her out as an IBAN maiden.

Anyway, back to The Junk Restaurant.

I had their signature dish - lamb shank. It's still the same. Tender, very well seasoned...yum!

Adrian had the sirloin steak which was so-so. The sauce didn't even complement the meat. Too creamy!! Furthermore, they made a boo-boo. His request for "medium-well done" turned out rather rare. We asked the waiter to change it and the second one came back much better. Thumbs up for customer service. I still can't get over the sauce. Au jus would've been just fine.

This has turned out to be a rather long post for today. That's all from the lost files of Serenity. Happy reading!