The Kelantan river near Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga

Continued from The place called Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga on a fine sunny Friday morning.

Going out of the Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga I decided to check out the nearby Kelantan river.

A look downriver. The estuary should be 40 km by water from here.

A look across.

A check with Google Earth shows the river here is close to 400 meters wide.

Turning further anti-clockwise to look upriver...

The Kelantan river stays about this wide for a further 60 km to the south.

The place called Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga on a fine sunny Friday morning

Peace be upon you all. After leaving this blogspot unattended for almost a month  let me start making new postings. Continuing the stories of my trip to the East Coast 26 March - 4 April...

In the last article on the trip, Crossing the Terengganu river to Pulau Sekati made 24th April I mentioned how me and family rushed to a part of Kuala Terengganu just to get to an island accesible by a pedestrian/motorcyclist wooden bridge. The night was then spent in Jertih near the Kelantan state border before we entered the state then spent the following night in its capital city, Kota Bahru. The next morning, Friday 30th March is when this new story starts... by making a visit to a certain rural place some 25 km outside of the city...

The place is called Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga which could be loosely translated as the lowlands flower garden. It is associated with two olden Kelantanese legendary personalities, the old Kelantan kingdom female ruler Cik Siti Wan Kembang and her adopted daughter, the princess known as Puteri Saadong.

Here's bit of story on Cik Siti Kembang and how/why she decided to open Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga after having ruled from a number of locations.

This signboard says it happened about 300 years ago. But I understand it was actually close to 400 years ago...

Now let's take a walk inside.

You can see a lake, a rather elongated one.

I was told the lake was actually part of the nearby Kelantan river. It was probably a bend which became separated from the main body of water due to silting and such.

Most probably it was still part of the Kelantan river during Cik Siti Wan Kembang's time. Now let's look at other parts of the garden.

There's this hut for visitors.

Tables and makeshift chairs made in modern time of course.

Actually I've featured this place in the article The place called Taman Serendah Sekebun Bunga made a year ago.

But it was based on a visit to the East Coast made during rainy season end of 2010.

Thus then I never went further than this gate.

For reasons unclear, the parts after are made off-limits to the public.

This time I decided to explore as far as I can.

But I didn't find anything peculiar except the lake stretched for almost 200 metres long.

A group walk up Tanjung Tuan hill

Peace be upon you all. Just a story from a recent small trip...

Just over a week ago I attended a 3-day writing workshop on children's book held at a resort in Tanjung Tuan near Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan. The place has a hill with protected recreational forest. On the second day, Thursday I decided to take a walk up.

I have been to this forest and up the hill at least 3 times.

You can read some information on it by clicking at this picture or opening it in a new window.

I was joined by a number of workshop participants.

Surprisingly most of them were female!

What happened was at the end of a workshop session I made an announcement inviting the guys to join me for a climb up this hill in the evening.

Unexpectedly it was the girls who gave a resounding response and insisted on me leading. Well, I have no problem with that. You see I found the hill such an interesting and intriguing place that it would be a shame if anyone ever go to Tanjung Tuan without climbing it. For apart from the soothing greenery of the forest the hill has a light house with its original structure built during the time of Portugese rule of Melaka 500 years ago!

The view of the Straits of Melaka from the base of the light house is also a must see. If I'm not mistaken out of the 50 or so participants of the workshop only 5 have ever been to Tanjung Tuan before.

And among the 5 perhaps only 3 have been up this hill...

If I've counted correctly there were 16 participants who joined me for this walk. I am sure everyone enjoyed the view and surroundings.

There. Despite some of them getting tired the girls were in high spirit.

Time to return to the resort...

Crossing the Terengganu river to Pulau Sekati

Continued from Terengganu river near the state museum.

OK. The actual reason I went to the part of Terengganu river near the state museum was because I thought the wooden bridge to the island called Pulau Sekati is still there. I have been to the state museum or around it quite a number times but have yet to take the walk across the bridge...

Somehow for the last few weeks before this trip I felt a strong urge that should I go to Kuala Terengganu again I must make the walk to Pulau Sekati. Luckily my instincts pointed me to the right way to reach the bridge.

For the record I arrived this place at dusk. The data which came with these pictures say I started crossing at 7.17 pm. Here's a look downriver.

A look upriver. But this is not the main part of the river. Rather, it is a relatively narrow strait between the mainland and an island seen to the right.

Unlike Pulau Sekati, the said island is much smaller and uninhabited. The wooden bridge is made especially for locals to cross by motorcycle. There's not enough room and not enough strength I presume for a car to cross.

It is also convenient for pedestrians such as myself...

A look downriver as I went pass the smaller island.

Still quite a distance to cover.

A look upriver shows the straits formed by Pulau Sekati to the right and the smaller island to the left.

Getting closer...

And soon enough I was on Pulau Sekati. No need to elaborate more. :]

Terengganu river near the state museum

Continued from Views from the tower at Marang river estuary.

From Marang we headed to the city of Kuala Terengganu where I immediately rushed to the part of Terengganu river near the state museum.

A look downriver. The estuary of the river is about 5 km away.

A look across and you can see an island called Pulau Sekati.

I remember a few years ago there was a wooden bridge connecting the island to a path besides the state museum. The bridge has been dismantled and a new one built further upriver. You can vaguely see it in this picture.