Monday, May 16, 2011

A (kinda) Different Mothers' Day Picnic - Part 2

Not too far from Mama's village is a town called Sekinchan. It has a thriving fishing community as well as rice farming activities. Mama and Dad made a little detour just so we could be more adventurous. And I love it as I get to exercise my camera clicking paws more.

Mr State Rep, if I may say so, what's the idea behind this billboard? May I recommend my Dad to redesign your thingy?
As usual, we'll look see if there's any stray around. There was this black beauty at the market place. Looks like he's been hurt in the past. Hmmm....maybe he was hungry and wanted a taste of the really fresh fish and the fishmongers weren't too happy about it, eh? But kitty needs to eat.
Oh yes.....fish and fish everywhere....
The locals call this siput sedut (lit. trans: sucking snails????) coz you have to suck the shells to get the flesh out. Slimy stuff but yummy. Usually they're cooked in hot chili and coconut gravy, or stir fried with chili.
Aaaahhhh.....cuttle fish or squid....whatever it's called, I love it. It's so fresh that it's body (tube) seems translucent. This fresh, best grilled!
More fish...and crabs too...OK, so I loooove seafood.
Interesting building this is. It's a music school. I thought it's a giant keyboard.
Dilapidated fisherman house next to a swiftlet bungalow. Bird's nest is big business in this area.
There's a larger and proper fire brigade station in the area but this one is where the fire volunteers congregate - looks so rustic.
Fishing depot in the fishing village?
Colourful fish boxes at the fishing depot.
Another interesting building that used to be a movie theatre, I was told.
Hey birdy.....saw flocks of them near the fishing depot.
Another kind of birdy.....Mama forbids me from chittering at them! The birdies are bigger in size than me. They may think I'm their lunch instead.
Does this mean we are going to sleep here next time instead of Atuk's place?
We stopped by a roadside stall selling these delicious fruits....items for the picnic basket.
Look at how big that mango is!
Close up of the mango pile. They are all local fruits, from surrounding villages.
More and more mangoes, the brown tuber is what the locals call keladi (yam or taro).
Oh yesss! Local corns. I love them steamed, grilled or boiled. Or even cooked in sweet coconut milk....yummmmm...
The stall also sells steamed and boiled corns (see that big steamer at the front of stall).

Angelina's Notes:
1. Mama's village (or rather my maternal grandma's village) is called Kampung Sungai Sireh (literal translation: Betel Leaves River Village) in the Rice Bowl of the state of Selangor. The district is Kuala Selangor (Selangor Estuary) while the county is called Tanjung Karang (Coral Cape????). So, the address would be Kampung Sungai Sireh, Tanjung Karang, Selangor, Malaysia.
2. The main activity in this area is of course, rice planting. As Mama's village is also the location of a MARDI rice research station (MARDI - Malaysian Agricultural Research & Development Institute), the farmers here have become somewhat the guinea pigs. They get to be the first to plant a new variety, use new fertilizer or even new ways of planting and harvesting. Wayyyy ahead of other parts of the country.
3. Side activities - coconut, mango, corn, breadfruit, vegetables, cooking herbs like lemongrass and galangal, fresh water fish farming, sugarcane, cockle farming and sea fishing.
4. Latest craze - birds' nest production where humongous brick "caves" have been erected all over the place. These "caves" are where swiftlets come and build nests using their saliva as building materials. These nests are said to have certain medicinal properties and fetch very good prices. Hence the huge interests. But these "caves" are spoiling the landscape. You can see them dotting the rice fields. I'd use the term Sybaritic eyesore!
5. purrr.....meow!

29 comments:

rohaizahabas said...

Mama

Awat tak beli that sucking snailszzz untuk chek...kita cari kat pasar sini semalam ..tak dak laa....that jambu merah..mangga n jagung...wooo..best nya...

Best nya balik kampung...kita tak da kampung..kita balik kampung ja, first thing kita nampak ialah patung kaler emas ..cuba teka kat mana????

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Ezza,
Mama kata jom ikut kami balik kampung. Macam-macam boleh isi dalam van Uncle PA tu. Bukan jauh pun dari Klang tu.
Kita tahu patung kaler emas tu. Semalam baru je lalu. purrr....meow!

Pi Bani said...

Angelina tak mo bertanding jadi wakil rakyat? Boleh letak gambar besar-besar kat billboard....

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Pi,
Tak best jadi wakil rakyat. Kita nak terus jadi First Lady, boleh? Itu pasal nak kawin William dulu, ada harapan jadi Queen. purrr....meow!

Mr Puddy said...

Wow ! this is a big post and so many many things to see, But I just pay attention with fishy : )

That stray look so skinny ! and poor thing, he doesn't look healthy at all , I hope he have something to eat !

Thanks so much to vote for me ! and of course I can give you a big hug, Angelina : )

xoxo

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Mr Puddy,
I hope you paid attention to the birdies too. There were sooooo many of them. We have some chicken to that skinny fella. Poor thing. He was wounded, I think. Some humans are mean. There were so many fishy, why can't they share, eh? purrr....meow!

~CovertOperations78~ said...

What a great post with fascinating photos, Kitties! The MNS gang loves to do nature photography in Sekinchan, esp around paddy harvest season. Those birds -- I think the white one is a little egret and the flock of herons in the tree are black-crowned night herons.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

CO78,
Those are egrets and herons? Wait till I tell Brad. He'd love to chase them. Hey...let's arrange a special harvest photography session, eh? We can have a corn and mango party afterwards. purrr....meow!

Sandy said...

wow !!! What a fun trip ! I think that old movie theatre is abandoned because it's haunted, yea..it feels very ghostly >.< I agree with u , that billboard sucks hahaha , I think u should stop worrying about William, he's taken. Consider someone local instead ? Prince of... Kelantan or something? You still get to be a queen ^^

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Tante Sandy,
What? Prince of Kelantan? Manohara's ex? har har har no way!
Anyway, it was fun going back to the village. I'm glad it's not that far from the city so we can get the refresh and recharge sessions more often. purrr....meow!

Malay-Kadazan girl said...

Besarnya manga tu. Kalau jatuh dari pokok kena kepala boleh pengsan. I always enjoy driving through old town. Angelina kita ada jagung dah sekarang...hehehe...nnt balik rasa nak buka ladang jagung nnt singgah ya.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

MKG dear,
Yes. That mango is huge. Makan dua hari baru habis. Hari tu Mama buat bubur jagung....yummmm.....also, try masak lemak putih campur with kangkung and snake bean. Mama just pound some peppercorns and onions, ikan bilis if you like, mix in coconut milk, pinch of salt with the sliced jagung. Let it simmer and then add in kangkung and snake bean. yummm.... purrr...meow!

Cheqna said...

Should have brought back some sotong for me..fresh like that can make sotong sumbat (which you can't eat right? :-)

p/s ~ now I know your secret of posting..hehehe..

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Cheqna,
We did buy some sutong but we grilled it at Atuk's place. hehehe... Sutong sumbat pulut I can't eat but do you know of sutong sumbat otak-otak? That you must try and that I can eat. yummm.....purrr....meow!

CS said...

CAT
On June 11 I'll be attending a wedding at Simpang Sungei Sireh, Tanjung Karang. Am sure it's so near your Mama's kampong.

Pls ask your Mama whether she knows Haji Zaini (father of the bride).

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty CS,
Don't think she knows him. You see, Mama didn't grow up in that village. But we can ask our Atuk and Ucu if they know this chap. Not many relatives left in the village. Yunger generation lives in the city, older ones have departed from this world. purrr....meow!

CATachresis said...

A very colourful trip .... and fishy too! Makes Austin's felix-tuna-in-jelly seem rather mundane!

sybaritic eyesore! now there's a conundrum.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Carolyn,
Once in a while Austin should be fed fresh fish too. Mama would sometimes bring home live fish....har har har that would freak out everyone. A furraising episode alright. purrr....meow!

Cat and DOG Chat With Caren said...

your tours are always chock full of info! We all learn so much! I love that music school! Too cool!

Tamago said...

These fruits look so delicious! And displayed very neatly :-)
That black kitty looks so thin....I hope he can eat enough around there.

tireless mom said...

Angelina,

Aunty nak kirim buah mangga along Kuala Selangor Sabak Bernam road tu lah. Why didnt tell Aunty that you are going to that side of the country? If you buy the siput sedut pun ok. Boleh Aunty masak for Angelina siput sedut masak lemak cili api. Sodaappp, purrrr

Wan Sharif said...

Alahai sedapnya "mango" ..
Sesekali ada cerita balik kampong ni selera juga nak tengok gegambor nya.. Eish! mana gambor rumah Atuk...
Your Dad dok miss tuppat sutong ke?

jul said...

eh mcm tau tau jek...u citer psl fish , i plak blajar deboning of fish.

cat, u antar jek aunty free return flight ticket, am sure can do deboning fish 4 yr mama as much as a lorry full of fish heheheh

jul said...

jemput dtg umah kenduri hari Ahad ni (22 May, 2011) if u r still in M'sia

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Caren,
Mama used to write for travel publications...old habits die hard I guess. Must have rubbed off on me too. purrr...meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Tamago-san,
We've finished eating the whole lot that we bought. They are delicious.
We did ask the people operating the food stalls there to be generous and feed kitty. We also remind them it's a religious obligation. har har har *evil laughs* We'll check on him next time we're in the area. purrr...meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Yatt,
You know that my pawrents are impulsive travellers. Lagi 2 jam nak balik kampung baru bagitau anak-anak. Next time, I'll try to remember to tell you, OK? purrr...meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Ayoh Wang,
Marilah ikut balik kampung. Tak lama lagi padi masak tau. Makan nasi beras baru, ikan haruan or ikan keli panggang, sayur kangkung/pucuk ubi petik depan rumah....jangan jealous! purrr...meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Jul,
In Sydney takde prob, semua fishmonger boleh debone. Yang kat Malaysia takde service macam tu.
Kenduri apa? Kasilah address and further detail. Pagi tu Mama ada event dengan kawan2 dia, petang or malam bolehlah. purrr...meow!