Crocs and kek lapis in Kg Boyan

                                   

	By Badrolhisham Bidin, June 5, 2011 Those from Peninsular Malaysia will inevitably have two questions when they arrive at Kampung Boyan, a village in the heart of Kuching, Sarawak.
	The first is how an Indonesian village, as the name suggests, came to be located there.
	And the next: "Where are the crocodiles?" The village is, after all, located by the banks of Sungai Sarawak, which is said to be crocodile infested.
	To both these questions, villager Muhammad Taha, 83, would answer: "That's all in the past."
	He says only Malays live in the village now. These days, Kampung Boyan is more famous for its kek lapis - a Sarawak delicacy - and Fort Margherita, built by the Rajah of Sarawak Charles Brooke in 1879. The old fort, which is walking distance from the settlement, is a well-known landmark and monument in Sarawak.
	Built in the style of an English castle, it was designed to protect Kuching from pirate attacks.
	It was turned into a Police Museum in 1971 before being handed over to the Sarawak state government. Now, it is a famous tourist attraction in Kuching.
	Muhammad says the village could have been founded by the Bawean - an Indonesian ethnic group - a long time ago.
	However, when Brooke became the Rajah, he decided to place the Malays in the village, while the Chinese were given land across the river.
	"But as far as I can remember, there has never been an Indonesian villager. Sometimes, first-time visitors would ask whether we were Baweans."
	Many Kampung Boyan villagers will converge for dinner or supper at two food courts at the village riverfront which is also a good place to watch boats sail by.
	Tourists, especially those from Peninsular Malaysia, will make it a point to visit the village, accessible via a one-minute boat ride from Kuching, to look for the delicious kek lapis Sarawak.
	As almost everyone in the village claims to be a kek lapis expert, Muhammad advises tourists to be careful in making their selection.
	Tourists are also attracted to the village due to another popular delicacy - fresh or salted ikan terubok (herring).
	He also fondly speaks of the boat operators, catering to the villagers who want to go to the other side of the river.
	"The fare used to be two sen and it was later increased to five sen for a one-way trip. Now, it is 50 sen. But tourists are used to giving the operators RM1 per trip.
	"It is a dying profession. As you can see, old men are paddling across the river. The new generation refuses to take up the job."
	Asked if there are crocodiles in the river facing the village, his friend, Ismail Dahan said there had been no sightings for a long time.
	"When we were young, we used to swim across the river for fun. We were never disturbed by crocodiles. Even the latrines were all lined up beside the riverbank in the 1960s and 70s.
	"Of course, our parents would scare us with horror stories of crocodiles lurking in the water, but boys will be boys. That was back then."
	Ismail, however, remembers coming face-to-face with crocodiles in Batu Kawa, a few kilometres away from the village.
	He says he was collecting sand by the river with his grandmother to be sold to middlemen.
	"My grandmother told me to ignore the creatures and continue collecting sand. I was relieved when the crocodiles just yawned and watched us."
	Ismail says there are about 100 houses in the village. Since the houses are built on slopes, their cars are parked along the main road, near the river.
	A walk around the village will reveal that the villagers are a friendly bunch of people.
	Don't be surprised if you are invited in for a cup of tea.

The brave water of Terengganu

By Munifah Alwi , July 31, 2011

Back in the days when Kuala Terengganu was a regional trading hub, the Air Berani beach on Pulau Perhentian was the only place where ships could get fresh water supply when they took shelter from the monsoon on the island.

A natural freshwater spring just metres from the lapping waves on the beach would always remain amazingly fresh, without the slightest hint of salinity.

Such was the reputation of the spring in providing fresh water so near to the seaside that locals named the beach Air Berani, which literally means "brave water".

Nowadays, the spring has been walled up, but it has stayed true to its name, brave ly spouting freshwater as if challenging the sea to turn it saline.

It is even brave enough in the face of droughts as locals said the spring would never stop flowing even if there was no rain for months.

Located on the southern side of Pulau Perhentian Besar, the beach was the preferred place for ships to escape the strong monsoon winds as it is situated in a cove.

D’Lagoon Perhentian Chalets and Restau rant manager Abdul Razak Mohd Nor, 42, said the existence of the freshwater spring was a relief for sailors.

"As the south western and north eastern monsoon could last for months, a reliable fresh water supply was vital to en sure that they could wait out the strong winds and choppy waters during the season." he said.

He said nobody knows when the spring was discovered.

"I was told that the spring was mentioned in the records of Chinese adventurer Admi ral Cheng Ho in the 15th cen tury." he said.

A report found on the Internet claimed there was an abun dance of prawns in a pool nearby.

And when they were fished out and fried, the prawns would still be alive. Those who caught the prawns would, therefore,back return the crea tures to the pool.

Although ships no longer stop at Air Berani to get their water supply, the beach is set to become popular again, but this time as a tourist desti nation.

State Health, Unity and Con sumer Affairs Committee chairman and Kuala Besut as semblyman Dr Abdul Rahman Mokhtar said the state gov ernment had allocated RM300,000 to build proper tourism in frastructure at the beach.

"The unique freshwater spring has brought about an recorded increasing number of tourists every year and we want to ensure that it is properly de veloped as a tourist attraction in Terengganu." he said.

Abdul Rahman said Air Berani had historical importance as Pulau Perhentian (Stopover Island), got its name from mer chants who stopped there to escape the monsoon.

"It is an integral part of Pulau Perhentian history." he said.

He saidRahman added that the suitability of the island as a stopover point made Pulau Perhentian famous as the sailors told their counterparts in other countries about its existence.

Abdul He said the islanders be lieved that the spring water had magical powers.

"The old folk here said the water from the spring can neutralise sea water.

"If we add a glass of water from the spring to a glass of sea water, none of the salty taste will remain." he said.

He said in the olden days, merchants would add the wa ter from Air Berani with sea water if they ran out of water during their voyage.

Abdul Rahman said there were al so those who believed that the spring water could grant them their wish to meet a life part ner.

"Some people claim that drinking the spring water can help childless couples con ceive." he said.

As it emerges as a new tourist attraction, Air Berani may yet again become well- known across the globe

The town that coal built

	By Shanti Gunaratnam July 24, 2011
	BATU Arang, a sleepy hollow that sits just outside Rawang, was once a bustling coal mining town. It exported coal all over the world, rivaling perhaps Newcastle in Australia, currently the largest coal exporter in the world.
	But today, though coal can still be found in Batu Arang, no one mines it anymore.
	The small town of more than 12,000 residents was also once famous for brick manufacturing until the kilns ceased operations.
	Long-time resident, Richard Thang See Ong, says Batu Arang was "built on coal and sits on coal".
	"It all started in 1910 when coal was discovered and three years later, a British coal miner, John Archibald Russell, set up Malayan Collieries Ltd to mine coal in this town.
	"Batu Arang became internationally famous for its coal, which was exported all over the world by the British as it was used to fuel trains and ships.
	"World War II and the arrival of the Japanese changed things."
	The British left and coal mining suffered during the Japanese occupation.
	Many of the people of Batu Arang were Chinese, who came from mainland China, to work in the open cast coal mines. There was also a large number of Indians working at the railways. There were only a few Malay families.
	"When the Japanese surrendered, the British came back and it was back to the good old days of coal mining for another decade or so," Thang added.
	In 1960, coal mining took a beating when people started to use diesel and petrol to fuel ships and trains.
	The lacklustre coal prices forced the British to close the mines and leave Batu Arang.
	The town, during its coal mining heyday, had its own airstrip. Railway lines linking the town, Kuala Lumpur, Port Dickson and Port Klang were dismantled in the 1970s.
	Batu Arang was also the biggest town then after Kuala Lumpur because it then had a population of more than 40,000.
	Today, many parts of the town are still very much how the British had left it. There are many old colonial houses, some well maintained, others run-down.
	Time appears to be at a standstill in Batu Arang. One can still see what's left of the open cast mines. There are also some tunnels, but they are off limits to the public.
	Coffeeshops, which used to serve the British, are still standing, with ownership passed down from father to son to grandson.
	The schools and quarters that were built by the coal mining companies for their staff and children are still there, too.
	Now, visitors still sometimes make their way to the town. There are many fruit farms there and their gates are open to tourists keen to sample local fruits.
	Watersports are held at the coal mining ponds. Many events are being planned for 2013 when Batu Arang celebrates its centennial.
	"This town does have a lot to offer. In its heyday, it had 13 mining sites," says Thang.
	In 1966, many Hindus thronged to Batu Arang when a statue of Lord Lingeshwara apparently emerged from one of the coal mining ponds there.
	"The statue first emerged for a few minutes on an evening in April, 1966. This happened for a few days. Everyone wanted to know why the statue kept coming out of the water. Some even took photographs of the statue.
	"After that, no one saw the statue again. A temple was built near where the statue emerged. Now, the temple is no longer there."
	One of the main pastimes of townfolk is chit-chatting over a cuppa at Teck Cheong Loong kopitiam. The shop is famous for its home-made butter cakes, toasted and steamed bread served with butter and kaya, and freshly brewed coffee.
	The kopitiam is run by the third generation of the Wong family.
	Wong Soon Guat, 77, who had lived all his life in Batu Arang and runs the kopitiam with his two siblings, says the butter cakes he makes every day is based on a recipe that was passed down by one of the coffeeshop's employees, who has since passed on.
	"In those days, British coal miners used to have their coffee and tea here and we served the cake and bread together with the beverages. The kaya is made by my sister, Sui Mui."
	"Many of the patrons are children of those who settled here during the coal mining years. Every day, we make five to six cakes to cater to these regular customers."