Muar river cruise part I...

Ladies and gentlemen, without much further ado, as the title suggest...

You see, for me there's something mystical about the Muar river. After all it's the biggest and longest river in the southern parts of the Peninsular and I have spent a major part of my teenage years playing alongside its banks. But I've only been on the river cruising on a boat only 3 times my whole life! The first, if I'm not mistaken was some 10 years ago when the Muar river cruise was first started... The second I think was about 5 years ago or so when I was still a married man. Now I want to share some pictures of the 3rd cruise, made slightly over 2 weeks ago... Come!

Here is the yatch harbour next to the jetty seen in the previous picture. It is situated right at the immense mouth of the Muar river. If memory serves me right, works on it started sometime in 2002 and were completed early this year. But I have yet to see yatches mooring nearby... Then again I don't often come down to visit Muar nowadays although it is the town where I was born and grew up at...

On thing's for sure, they have gone a notch up or two in promoting tourism and the river cruise. Last time I remember, the boats used then were simple functional white. Now, it has a more classic look befitting a place for tourists... Especially one that is rich in history...

For information the Muar river has been featured in some prominent classic Malay literary pieces. In fact the Sulalatus Salatin (known also as the Sejarah Melayu or the Malay Annals) mentioned Muar as the place where the founder and first king of Melaka twice tried to set up new states but failed. Thus that's why he travelled furthered up north to open Melaka and this happened sometime 600 years ago!

Actually this picture was taken one afternoon while walking around Tanjung Emas (part of the southern tip of the Muar estuary). One look at this boat and I felt I must take a river cruise. And so I did 2 days later or so...

Now, this picture is taken just after embarking on the boat. You can see the second main mosque of Muar in it...

The boat starts to move along the much frequented parts of Tanjung Emas... The Muar town centre beckons...

And so, for the first time ever I had a view from the river of the Dataran Muar (literally translated as the Muar square) area built at Tanjung Emas and completed 3-4 years ago...

On the left, the Muar second mosque gets nearer...

And so all onboard just sit relaxed enjoying the view...

The original Muar main mosque built in the 1920s is now in full view...

Muar town centre getting nearer...

Oh... Next to the main mosque lies the Istana Hinggap (literally translated as the visiting palace) for Johor royals... Next...

The Bastion Santiago... Is it really worth keeping?

While on the subject of remains and symbols of Western imperialism, let me just talk a bit on this remains uncovered quite recently, just a few years ago about 100 metres or so from the gates of the A Famosa...

This is the Bastion Santiago, a portion of an old fort discovered just a few years ago...

See... It does look quite nice. Reminds me of the castle walls in mid-town Canterbury and some parts of England. But that is in England where the Western castles do belong. Now we are talking about Western forts in the Malay lands which are symbols of the downfall of the Malays...

A plaque nearby explained some history about this particular Western remains. Actually I did took a nice picture of the plaque where the writing could be read properly hence the excerpts below. Too bad while highlighting and then cropping certain parts, I accidently saved the cropping on top of the original picture... I should have saved it with a different name... And so the picture of the plaque above had to be taken from parts of another picture...

Read this excerpts yourself. If you can't view it properly, then right-click and open it in another window.

Now, I have no problem if the authorities wants to keep this place as a historic monument eventhough it is a symbol of Western conquest. It does look good and to me, we could share it with others. What bothers me (and some others too) is how the authorities planned to spend millions of Ringgit to REBUILT the fort in the name of tourism! Good Lord... It is already an insult that so many Malay monuments of old have been destroyed to make way for Western forts on Malay lands, now you want to rebuilt it too? Why not rebuilt the whole or at least part of the old Malay city? Why build symbols of the Malay downfall...

Ah... I might as well get off the subject before my blood boils. So long!

Up and around Bukit (the hill of) Melaka

OK... Here, I feel like sharing some pictures around Bukit (hill of) Melaka. Actually this place is officially known as Bukit St Paul, after a 16th Century (or was it 17th Century) Christian priest who was said to be instrumental in preaching that faith in the Malay lands. On top of the hill was built a church dedicated to him hence the name. But me being a Malay is of the opinion that this guy was a usurper. So let me just tell the story in my own strange way ya, here goes...

I think most Malaysians or those who have visited Melaka know this sight very well. At the foot of the hill in the picture is the remains of the fort built by the Portuguese after they conquered the city of Melaka in the 1511 AD. The fort is known as the A Famosa... On top is the church of St Paul...

At the other side of the foothill is the replica of Malay palace from the old days of the Melaka Sultanate. Too bad, it is not as well-known as the A Famosa which is a symbol of the downfall of the Malays...

True to its name, the A Famosa is so famous as to be touted as the most major tourist attraction in Melaka...

Next to it is a road called Jalan (street of) Istana (palace) leading to the Melaka Sultanate palace replica. Again, too bad it is not as famous as the A Famosa...

Just look at the number of people going through its gates to get up the hill...

Ah... And so the solid remains of Western colonialism stays on unshaken watching over the Malay lands...

Just look at the sight it commands. Just slightly over 10 years ago or so, I still remember the field seen in the picture as lying next to the beach and the Straits of Melaka. Now with the advent of time, plenty of land has been reclaimed to make way for development pushing up the shore by more than a kilometre further!

Inside the remains of the church of St. Paul, I took the chance to hang out the latest promotional poster for my "Berpetualang ke Aceh" book series...

There... Caught a potential fan already...

Here is the old bell tower of the church...

And here is a plaque explaining the history...

For a better read, you can right-click this picture and open it in another window...

I sit inside and spent some time breathing the air and feeling the aura and the atmosphere of this place...

Outside, I saw this statue of St. Paul. Frankly the first thought that came to my mind was to spit on it then bang it down with something but that would be hooliganism... Why am I so angry? Because I know it for a fact, this top of the hill was actually the spot where the original Melaka Sultanate palace was built. At the foothill was the main mosque and next to it was the royal cemetery. As a Malay Muslim (especially of old Malay royal descend), of course I feel angry knowing how this place was turned upside down so to make way for symbols of Western imperialism. So what happened then?

Well, I think plenty of historians (except those bigotted agents of Western thinking and puppets of colonialism) know that all symbols of Malay history was thorned down and rend asunder after the Portuguese managed to subdue the old Melaka city. Then, they need material to built their fort and guess what... The easiest way is to tear the Malay buildings including parts of the main mosque, palace, even tombstones and used to stones to built their fort. That should be enough reason to make me so angry... Angry too at St. Paul for being a symbol of that conquest and destruction of Malay values but I chose to be sane... Instead of defacing the statue in any way, I decided to pose along with my "Berpetualang ke Aceh" promotional poster!

Despite my early foul mood, I left the place on a brighter note. I might not be able to change history or replace the building up here with the original Malay palace but I still can try to tell as many people as possible the real significance of this place... That it is a reminder of Western imperialism and how strong its influence on the common mind once its fangs has set in... The warning and message. Don't fall into the trap once again! Enough...

The mystery of Gua Yunus (the cave of Yunus)

Greeting all! The last time I made a posting in this blogspot, I did mention it was made because the date then 13 November 2007 seemed auspicious (to me that is)... It is equivalent to 13/11/2007 and 131 is a number very dear to me for certain reasons.

Today might be the 23rd of November but in the Islamic calender, it is equivalent to 13 Zulkaedah 1428 Hijriah. Zulkaedah is the 11th month in the Islamic lunar calendar so you could also write it as 13/11/1428... Another 131 and thus the reason I feel like breaking the silence of the last 10 days with this new posting. Enjoy it!

On one side of Pulau Besar in Melaka right on the slopes of the beachside hill seen in the picture lies a certain unique place of much importance to the many visitors to the island who believe in many things magical and mystical...

But before that, one must pass through this stretch of beach which is my favourite place for swimming whenever in the island.

After the beach one must make a climb and trek across the slopes...

At the highest point along the trekking route to the unique place in question, one can climb on top a huge boulder and look down upon another huge boulder. Thus the view above...

Notice the bunch of bananas and what's one it? it seems there's some people who has done some prayers there albeit in an unIslamic way. Normally this sort of prayer where one use incense is done to invoke the spirits or some mystical force, the kind that might be able to assist you in some matters but could turn out to be evil and malicious in nature!

This is my friend Zaidi posing on the big boulder which lies at the highest point along this trek. Across the sea (actually the straits of Melaka) seen here lies the island of Sumatera in Indonesia. I believe this picture was taken facing the north-most tip of Sumatera which is in the province of Aceh, the land of my forefathers of yore...

This is the same view without Zaidi in it. I decided to included the picture with him in this posting because it happens to be 131th picture taken on the trip to and in Melaka made 3-4 November 2007... Remember, I have a "fetish" for the number 131?

Then we have to go down the boulder and down the slopes too...

And so we arrived at the this other big boulder... Notice the rope? It is the same boulder seen from on top the other boulder shown in a previous picture...

And next to the boulder lies this cave... A cave formed by some giant boulders heaped one upon another at certain angles.

Notice the green cloth in the picture with flower petals peppered on it? This signify that the spot is of high mystical signicance... The green denotes the connection with an older religious figure of saintly status...

So what's the story behind it? The locals call this place Gua (cave of) Yunus. They said, it is named after a great saintly person by the name of Yunus who used to medidate here, they just don't know when but it was a long long time ago.

So who is this Yunus? Whisper... Whisper... Let me tell you something which could be shocking.

In the holy Islamic book, the Al-Quran, there is mentioned the story of the Prophet Yunus who left his people after he got tired of their refusal to listen to him and follow his teachings. He decided to leave the country and hopped out on a boat. Ah... The story can be rather long so let me cut it short.

There was a big storm and he had to jump off ship. That's when he was swallowed by a big fish (some said it is a whale, in the Quran it is called the nun) and had to spent some time inside its belly before he was spitted out.

Do you recognise the story? Oh... In the bible, Yunus is known as Jonah. So is this the same Yunus who then arrived at Pulau Besar? Well, whisper... whisper... Some believe it is so. Gua Yunus was the place he meditated at after being spitted out by the big fish, before he returned to his country to continue preaching the right ways of God.

This is the view down from Gua Yunus. Perhaps the prophet Yunus or Jonah as he is popularly known in the Western world was indeed spitted out off the coast... And then he climbed up to rest and meditate at the cave...

This is a seaward view from inside the cave. Whoever this Yunus is, one thing's for sure. He enjoyed a superb view of the sea and the surroundings. This is already enough reason to consider this place as magical and mystical. Enough said!

Batu Belah (split stone) of Pulau Besar, Melaka

Dear readers... Today, 13th November 2007 or 13/11, it feels like an auspicious day to make my latest posting which will be the 131th here in this blogspot. So without much further ado, let me present... Something still on Pulau Besar in Melaka...

Right on top the highest peak in Pulau Besar, lies a certain mysterious place... A place highly-revered by those who believe in unseen forces and magical powers especially those who hails from the Silat, Malay martial arts fraternity...

One have to trek a bit into the jungle and up the hill for this... Believe me, it's worth the sweat... Definitely worth the trouble for those who believe in the supernatural. Even if you don't dig such things, consider the wonder that comes ahead as worth an adventure or two...

For there up on top of the hill lies a huge stone split into two! That itself is worth some time to look at. Wait until you know the story behind it...

Now, I might have gained a few pounds over the last few months but thank God, I could still fit into the split. Phew!

For adventurous souls like me, it is not enough to just see the split and fit into it. The huge boulder itself is awesome enough to invite one to climb and have a look from on top...

There...

I must say the split looks very funny from this angle... Looks like something you'd rather keep in your trousers.

Ooppss... Sorry...

Now, that's a much better (and sane) look down the split. One could even see the box put in front down there for well-wishers to contribute money. For what? Well, it's about the same reasoning as why people drop coins inside wells and then wish for something.

I did say I will tell the story behind the split isn't it? OK... Just a brief one ya...

In ancient times, this top of the hill at Pulau Besar is said to be THE place for warriors of old to practice their craft and martial arts. As it is, the island is known for supernatural beings and occurences for ages. Then, the warriors were said to be so powerful that they not only break woods and stones... They could break whole giant boulders just by a stroke of the hand!

The story goes that a certain warrior known as Panglima Lidah Hitam (The warrior with the black tounge) showed his prowess by upping the score. He split the stone seen here just using his tounge! Believe it or not, that's how the story goes!

So there, the 131th posting of this blogspot, a number that has a certain meaning to me... Cheers!

Liliputian midget in Pulau Besar, Melaka!

Look closely at the above picture... Very very closely. See anything funny?

Now, this picture was taken a week ago at Pulau Besar (literally translated as the big island) in Melaka... To be exact on November 4th 2007 at around 10am morning or so. The island is known for its so-called mystical attractions, mainly the tombs of saintly figures, ancient warriors and religious men (even women) believed to be well-endowned in magical powers. It is also believed to house many types of fairy-like creatures.

Me and a friend went circumventing around the island and snapped some pictures along the way for the sake of posturity. One can take a leisurely walk and went around the island in 2 hours time as it is quite compact despite it's name which could be translated as the big island... After all the term big does not always mean big in size but also big in stature and repute.

I took the above picture to signify that we have passed certain points while circumventing the island. We were then passing through some mangrove swamp facing the coast of mainland Melaka. Little did we realise what was in store when we return.

Look closely again... Can you see what we found when looking at the picture back in Kuala Lumpur. Still can't see it?

Let me help. See the figure within the circle marked in the picture above. Look closely and study...

Ta da!!! There... I blew the picture up. What does it look like to you?


And here is a much closer view. As close as we could get before it turns to a total blur...
Unfortunately, the picture taken using a cheap digital camera can't be blown up further without sacrifising its quality... Note how it looks like?
We were totally dumbfounded when we noticed this. Is this really a picture of a man walking? It does look like a typical Malay man wearing a green-coloured shirt with a piece of white clothes or the Malay kain samping (or kain pelikat?) worn across the shoulder and a skull-cap on top the head... Perhaps with a sword dangling out at his side too, at least that's what it looks like!
But if this is truly a man, that how could it be possible? This figure is only the size of an average leaf or so, perhaps slightly more than 6-inches tall.
Is this perhaps one of the creatures hinted in the famous English tale Gulliver's Travel? That of midget citizens from a land called Lilliput? Then again, the Malays do have legends about such midget-sized people... And Pulau Besar in Melaka being a much-touted mystical place could house some...
Skeptics could argue it's just a light-play on some leaves or such natural everyday object. Is it?

Now... This is the best I can do to make the picture any more visible using the programme Photoshop... I don't touch or doctor the picture in anyway. All I did was play with the lighting and contrast to make the figure stands out more against the background...

So you judge. Is this a genuine midget in Pulau Besar, Melaka or is it some sort of illusion cooked up by nature? Go figure...

A visit to my old haunt at The New Straits Times

Last week, I went to The New Straits Times group building in Bangsar to hand a copy of my latest book "Berpetualang ke Aceh: Sirih Pulang ke Gagang?" ("The trip to Aceh: The prodigal son returns?" or so) or BKA III to the Berita Harian literary section for review. It was a short stop as I had much to do that day. Only the next day did I went there again, this time spending a whole day to get a friend to help me with the graphics of a bunting I'm designing to promote the whole "Berpetualang ke Aceh" book series.

I took the opportunity to visit almost every section of the dailies The New Straits Times, Malay Mail, Berita Harian and Metro where many people still knew me from the old days. One of them suggested I visit my old haunt... The sixth floor of the building where, believe it or not, I used to spend almost 3 years bunking and sleeping on the floor while working as journalist! Hence the pictures here....

Now, much have changed since I left the company at the end of 2001... For one, the control over the company have changed hands a number of times but the essence is still the same... Those who work for the powers-that-be of the day control the place... It doesn't matter much who is or are actually at the helm... What matters are, do they work in the tandem with those who control the present national policy.

I don't care anymore who rules the company literally or not. Once, I was banished from the place... In fact I was banned from stepping foot within the confines of the office building by a former cabinet minister of yore who then become the most powerful editorial personality in Malaysia. Then again he was sacked a few years later when the country changed reins again...

What do concern me is the change of atmosphere at the work-place... Somehow much have changed... Perhaps the whole personality of the company!

For one, the floors have shifted. When I was still around, the 4th floor used to house the main editorial components of The New Straits Times paper and Berita Harian. It also houses the Malay Mail while Metro is at third.

Now, NST is in 2nd, Berita Harian 4th... Hmm... Funny, I've forgotten the exact location of the editorial floors of the two other dailies under the NST group.

Still, that's besides the matter. What troubles me is the interior decor which looks much sleeker than before... Sure, aesthetically, you could say it is much pleasing but somehow to me (and some of the guys still serving there too), it is just too plastic...

Instead of looking like a place for people of the press to juggle the importance out of the day's events for public consumption, it felt more like an advertising place... It doesn't feel like a place where people returned to and sort things out after finding news... It looks like a factory to manufacture news!

The full brunt of the change only occur to me when I went up the old haunt, the 6th floor where I have spent many nights within a period of 3 years snuggled inside a sleeping bag alone... Sure, the place, an open-air car-park looked much more developed with a Futsal court on it but the many slogans dished out on the walls say it all.... H.G. Wells (or was it Orson something)'s big brother have arrived full-time in Malaysia to keep an eye and determine what's news, what's not...

The testimony to that is the conspicuous absence of many senior journalists from the mainstream papers... Once upon a time, they can boldly argue with the upper editorial figures as to what makes the pages. Now, it's more like hear ye, hear ye... Follow the line or take the walk to oblivion like I did six years ago.

It didn't take a genius to figure out, this place is now under strict control... Of much bigger proportion than it ever was including during my days. Enough said....

Text for Views from on top a telecommunication tower in Muar...

OK... Two weeks ago I did say I will be telling the story for the posting titled Views from on top a telecommunication tower in Muar... . I'm sorry that it took longer than I thought before I could even say a few words on the matter... I was stuck with so much work regarding the release of my third book "Berpetualang ke Aceh: Sirih Pulang ke Gagang?" ("The trip to Aceh: The prodigal son returns?" or so) or BKA III. And whatever time I had in-between was either spent sleeping to get rid of the tiredness or travelling here and there to get the juices flowing... So let me just get this over with ya...

When I first posted the pictures, I was thinking of dissecting it into groups which explained what happened then... How I climbed from stage to stage of a certain telecommunication tour near my village in Muar and enjoyed a very refreshing perspective of the local geography especially that which concerns the winding Muar river...

What happened was the day before I took the pictures, I decided to take a long walk, about 5km or so around Bukit Treh and at the end of the walk then I saw this telecommunication tower which felt like it was calling out to me to take a climb and look around. It's just the time then was almost 7pm and I might not get a good view. So I decided to wait until the following day, a Friday... The day I decided to return to Kuala Lumpur after spending a week in Muar at my parents' place for the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration and holidays.

As it turn out, it rained quite long that Friday morning. The moment it stopped, I went on to start the climb only to find the ladder quite slippery while there was no safety column to save me should I slip and fall.

My God! I nearly quit after arriving at the first stage almost 30 feet above ground. You see, two days before I had quite a nasty fall at Tanjung Emas where I was teasing some monkeys... I jumped and immediately climbed a tree at point some 10 feet high before it snapped while my whole body was already up! So there I was falling straight to the grown on my back (ouch!) while the 8-inch thick and12 foot long section which broke fell down and hit my breast.

Honestly, I felt like I almost fainted. In fact I'm sure my heart stopped a beat or two and so was my breath. Strangely, my auto-pilot reaction was to throw aside the section that broke and immediately jumped backed up straight, the pain throbbing in my chest notwithstanding.

Back to the climb up the telecommunication tower. The memory of what happened in Tanjung Emas almost made me quit. By right, one should wear a safety harness to climb up the tower but I don't have one meaning I would fall straight down should I lose grip.

So there I was contemplating the next step action... Then I made the decision... If I quit, it's going to bug me the rest of my life or until I make a succesful climb at some other tower if not this one... So I decided to continue with a lot of caution and prayers...

The result is the pictures in Views from on top a telecommunication tower in Muar... . I believe from here on, the pictures taken from several angles should be able to explain itself. Enough ya!