The fierce waves in Pontian

After we're done at south Pontian we next went to the main town at Pontian Kechil...

Like Kukup it is situated besides the Straits of Melaka but the town is much bigger...

From the sea-side one could see the Indonesian island of Karimun far towards the south...

Closer to the west lies the Malaysian island of Pulau Pisang.

We then headed towards another part of town...

This part also lies beside the waters but it has a number of foodstalls...

It is not far from the main bus station.

As I came in to park I noticed the waves here looked much fiercer...

This prompts me to have a closer look...

The waves were so fierce that it practically 'jump' into the land!

There, at last managed to catch a 'jump' in action...

Better still, I decided to tape the next ones on video. Later did I learned that such fierces waves came only in a period of one to two days every year. So there... for the record this is the 242nd article in this blogspot.

p/s : Correction made 7th July 2014. I was searching for the 424th article in this blogspot but had trouble finding it. After checking in detail list of articles this turns out to be the one. After reading through the article then I knew the cause of the trouble... I had pointed it out as the 242nd article. Sheessshhh... :]

The little town of Kukup

We next went to the little town of Kukup...

While the town consist of just a number of shops, it can be quite busy at times...

This is because here lies an international ferry terminal...

It is a main gateway for Indonesians to get into Malaysia via Johor...

Other than that Kukup is quite well-known for its fisheries...

Thus it has number of sea food restaurants with patrons coming also from Singapura...

The southernmost tip of mainland Asia...

Continued from Staying above the waves at Tanjung Piai

Just outside the resort which lies on stilts there are signboards leading to another interesting destination...

It is a national park...

... which is situated at a very unique position...


How unique? See what is engraved on the stone...

The information here should explain it all. The map on the stone should be able to give a visual verification as Peninsular Malaysia itself lies at the southernmost tip of mainland Asia, and Tanjung Piai in Pontian is the southernmost part of the Peninsular!

Staying above the waves at Tanjung Piai

As promised in Baby Al-Rasyid's own little adventure... let's start the supporting articles for the series currently running in the blogspot CATATAN SI MERAH SILU .

In CATATAN SI MERAH SILU I have explained how Al-Rasyid who was only 38 days old then was brought from our home at Bandar Tasik Puteri to Muar as a prelude to a coming planned journey to the south. Three days later the journey was official started as baby, mum and me visited place in the district of Batu Pahat before embarking on a night drive to Pontian. The story here started with what happened the following day. Look at the above picture... what can you tell about what we have been up to?

There, more walkways on stilts. What is this all about?

OK. Actually this is where we spent the night in Pontian, right inside this green building...

You see, these buildings are all part of a resort complex on stilts...

The resort lies above the waters of Tanjung Piai, at the southermost part of Pontian...

Look closely and you could see ships anchored off the southern harbours of the city-state of Singapura (again, excuse me for refusing to use the Anglicised name Singapore)...

This look back from the platfrom from the previous picture should give some idea as to how far this place lies from the mainland. Notice the radar tower in the background? It is used both to guide shipping and to guard the Malaysian border...

The green building where we spent the night lies halfway...

A look to the north-east shows the Johor port of Tanjung Pelepas. Sorry for not getting a clearer picture. Otherwise you could also see the bridge/second link which connects Johor to the island of Singapura.

Sains Johor upon reaching 40 reunion for batch 83-87...

Peace be upon you all. Today I would like to recount back a recent reunion held between my old school mates from Sekolah Menengah Sains Johor (Johor Secondary Science School). Come! :]

Friday night 1st of January 2010, 8 pm or so. Me, wife and our little baby arrived at the reunion venue where plenty of old friends were already waiting...

The reunion itself started at 6 pm. But me and wife got a number of things to settle first at our home. Besides the venue is 50 km away...

It's been a while since I met some of the guys. Some I did met at a family reunion held in Melaka 1 st May 2009 (see Reunion of SMSJ (Johor Science School) batch SPM 1987 in Melaka). But there were others I havent seen since leaving school in 1986!


As far as I could see, all of those present here left school after the SPM examinations at the end of 1987. I was among the few who had to leave earlier because of disciplinary problems.

Anyway we were all born in the year 1970. That is why this particular reunion is so special. Because in 2010 we are all going to be 40-years-old albeit at different times due to our different birthdates. Admittedly there are at least two who turned 40 on 1st Jan. But none of them were present because of certain obstructions. I understand one, Azmi Bachok @ Topoi has been stationed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for years. So he could not make it here.




Just in case anybody is wondering where this reunion was held. Perhaps the pix above could answer the question?





Yes, it was held at a petrol kiosk owned by our friend Sam who recently became a Haji along with his wife Raha (now Hajjah), also from the same school and batch...





Actually this was never planned to be a reunion. It's just that Sam has just returned from performing the Hajj in Mecca and so did another schoolmate Muzaffar with his family. Having enjoyed some sumptous lamb meals in Arabia, they asked some of us to join a dinner at one of the Arab restaurants in Cyberjaya back in Malaysia...






The invitation which was aired and discussed in our e-mail list got many interested. The number of those who would commit soon swelled pass 20 and it was decided Sam's petrol kiosk in Cheras would be the best place for everyone to meet and recall old times...

And so here's the final count. Let me try to list the names (or nicknames) of schoolmates who attended, from the top of my head ya...

1. Haji Sam

2. Haji Muzaffar

3. Adrian

4. Mamu

5. Amali

6. Shuhaimi

7. Lawi

8. Zaidi

9. Zul Mid

10. Saini Sintut

11. Azhar Kerang

12. Hafizi

13. Zafarin

14. Acul

15. Zaid

16. Faris

17. Jamil

18. Tajuddin

19. Boon Wah

20. Zulsafari

21. Mackay

22. Azreen

23. Lokman

24. Myself of course...

As for the girls they are...

1. Hajah Raha

2. Yana

3. Rozita

4. Aim

5. Nik Habsah

6. Foo Siang Mun

7. Hazlin

8. Nazirah

There... a total of 32 names. I hope I didn't miss anyone.

Anyway having 32 names listed for the upon reaching 40 reunion (it's not the 40th reunion ya... I don't think any of us has made any significant gathering for even 10 times) is indeed a superb achievement. Just compare to the family reunion held in Melaka on 1st May. That one was planned for months and we had a total of 20 names. This one was planned ad-hoc just about 2 weeks ago and we managed to have more than 30! Must be the blessings due to the Hajj...

Why, we even had a little jamming session with Sam, Boon Wah and me on the guitars. See the red electric guitar? That's my Washburn bought in 1992 during my UK days. Thanks to Adrian and Hazlin for also contributing to the vocals. For more pix (there' plenty of it) please check with our official cameraman, Adrian. He has already posted it in his facebook. Check the account Ad Rian. Cheers all! :]