Walking Down Memory Lane: Cheryl (Part 1)

When I was in Kuching, I met up with my best friend, Cheryl, whom I have known for 15 years.

Yours truly with childhood friend, Cheryl

We went out for a lim teh session after dinner one evening, just to catch up with each other. We last seen each other during Chinese New Year in Sibu and she's been so busy with her work ever since. As I was craving so badly for that particular drink I saw on someone's blog, we went to this place called Huising Hawker stall to talk cock.

The White Lady and the lady in white

Click over to my other blog to know more about the drink. Two thumbs up for the icy cold drink. 15 sticks of pork satay followed and some other things that ended up in my tummy to be digested, all in my other blog.

Anyway, back to Cheryl. We first known each other on the second day of school in Primary One, SRB St. Rita (all girls' school). Why second day? Well, simply because I knew no one on the first day of school and was minding my own business all day, even at the tuition in the afternoon but I noticed one girl in school uniform at the tuition class. As innocent as I could get then, I was wondering why she was in school uniform after school and why couldn't she just changed her clothes like everyone else.

I saw her again the next day at school and was surprised that we were classmates! I went, "Eii??? You were the one at the tuition yesterday afternoon right?" She smiled and said, "Ya hor, you were also at the tuition yesterday afternoon" and we became friends, best friends ever since.

We played together during recess, went to the canteen together, shared the food our moms packed for us during recess, went to the toilet together, copied each other's homework, went for our morning prayers together, etc. She was a bit plump and I was skinny like cicak back then but she sure ran faster than me! We played the usual games that kids our age played, i.e. the aeroplane, rope skipping, eagle and chicken, police and thief, dragon catch, ABC stop, etc and plump little Cheryl beat me in all the games.

Even in sports. We were both chosen to represent the whole Primary Two in long jump during Sports Day. You guessed it, she beat me in that again! LOL! She got the 7th position and I was not far behind. I was in the 8th position. I was not even a bit angry when she beat me in sports and games. I did not know the meaning of envy yet.

Food at the canteen back then were so cheap. We could get two packets Hiong Hiong Mee for 10 cents. That was when the sharing came in. As we were not given much pocket money back then because we usually brought something from home, one of us would go to the canteen and bought 2 packets of that Hiong Hiong Mee and gave one packet to the other. The following day, the other would do the same. I couldn't recall how it started but it seemed like an unwritten sharing among the two of us.

We were very good friends and the other classmates were so envious of us that some Iban girls started to call us lovers. LOL! We were so close that eventually our families got to know each other's family and became friends. Our moms shares their cooking and baking recipes and gardening skills, even until today - her mom specializes in baking biscuit and cakes while my mom specializes in making fruit jelly.

Cheryl and I practically grew up together. We were classmates since Primary One until Form Five. She's one of my friends that I've known all my life. She knows me inside out and vice versa. We know each other so well that when it comes to our personal flaws, we would just accept them as a part of ourselves which make us different from each other.

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On the side note:
OMG!!! I sounded like a lesbo in this post!

F-A-T, exhausted, 2 down 4 to go

Was having eating marathon ever since the plane touchdown at the Kuching Internatioal Airport until I left the cat city. Meow~

Had my first dinner at The Banquet. Ordered lamb chop but the portion was so little that I had my first Kolo Mee for supper a few hours later. The whole week when I was at the cat city, I had Kolo Mee for breakfast and supper EVERYDAY and I was not complaining. I was fed with pork, pork and more pork from the moment I opened my eyes till the moment I close my eyes but I was not complaining. In fact, I was thankful for that. Well, as a pork-deprived person, I'd swallow at anything containing pork, sinfully or not. And I felt a lot smarter after consuming those pork!

The very next morning after arriving, my first take on the Laksa that I've been craving for since god-knows-when was heavenly. I gorged down a bowl and a half of Laksa like no tomorrow and there were still rooms for some You Char Kuay dipped in kaya. Oh, I wish I have those pictures to post them up. I'll do it as soon as possible.

It has been 4 days since I left the land of head-hunters and I've been complaining ever since. I whined about missing Kolo Mee and Laksa less than 24 hours after I got here. Anyway, what I miss most are those homecooked dishes by Uncle Chong - Yong Taufu dipped in Auntie Chong's chilli sauce. Heaven! Also Grandma's Chicken Curry and Ginger Chicken as well as her chilli sauce. Double heaven!

Back to pork-deprived self after coming back to the jungle, I felt a lot stupider without pork. How the hell am I gonna pass the blardy exam without pork??? *wails*

Oh by the way, I survived through two papers for the past 2 consecutive days. I realized that I sent in 12 pages of bullshits for my Business Law paper which would only mean one thing: DIE! Seriously, I did not study for that paper at all and you know how law paper can be. I stared blankly at the paper for the first 10 minutes and then decided to be a law creator myself. Therefore, I created my own law, created the section under the specified act...and man, could I be a better crapper!

Then yesterday was the Computer Application for Management paper which I pressumed to be a piece of cake but it turned out that it was not. My notes looked easy with a picture of a computer and the names of its different parts like monitor, mouse, keyboard, CPU, etc. I thought something as easy would come out. Instead they asked to state 2 functions of the CPU, the 2 types of images, how to create a bitmap image, etc thing like that. I just did not know! I could answer the Internet part pretty easily because I use that everyday. Eg: Function of URL, list the Internet services, etc. I admit of being a computer illiterate, so sue me!

I need more pork for the remaining 4 papers!

Sibu: A gangland heaven

Sibu: A hotbed of gangsterism

Well, I blogged about this in my first few posts but when I flipped the New Straits Times just now, I saw a familiar face talking about something the I've blogged about a century ago. This fella:

Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing

This MP of Bintulu chose to speak out in the Parliament about how notorious the gangsters are in Sibu. The interview, conducted by NST's V. Vasudevan, exposed the reasons behind his decision to bring up the matter in the Parliament. Summore hor, this fella is not scared of being hunted by the gangster and also got balls to call for the chief police officer to be removed from Sarawak.

*standing ovation*

Q: You said gangsterism is flourishing in Sarawak. Why do you think this is happening?
A: I feel the police have failed to perform. If the police are performing, I don't think the gangsters can have a field day. Sibu is a small town, so don't tell me Special Branch is not picking up anything from the coffeeshops.
For example, when people go to report a crime involving gangsters to the police... before they have walked out of the station, the gangsters are calling to intimidate them and asking why they went to the police.
In some cases, when a vehicle gets stolen, the owner goes to the police station. While waiting to make his report, he gets a call from the gangster saying: "Anytime you can get your car back, but you have to pay."
Who is running the police station? Who controls the station? I can tell you that in Sarawak, this is happening in every police station.

[*clap clap clap* Yupe, it is true. just that nobody dares to bring this up fearing that the gangsters will hunt them down and burn their cars and houses. Police at my hometown are really useless wan lah, pakat with gangsters summore. And the gangsters always get away scott free. Sigh!]

Q: What must be done now to solve the problem of gangsterism?
A: I think drastic action must be taken.....bla bla bla...

[Again with the drastic action! What drastic action wor? We are never told what 'drastic action' that must be taken. Only the word 'drastic action' said. And I noticed that all those people also always use the word 'drastic action' and zon-zon yang sewaktu dengannya in almost every situation.]

Q: You have been outspoken. Are you not afraid that the gangsters will attack you? After all, your complaints in the parliament have got the Inspector-General of Police going to the state to investigate.
A: Put it this way. My father told me: "Since you have made up your mind to become a politician, you better think of what you need to do in the interest of the rakyat." I am prepared for the worst. A person only dies once.

[Wah! Now that's a good answer. If being asked similar question, a lot of other 'people' will try to change topic. Hmm...no, they don't even have the balls to bring this up in the parliament in the first place. Period! And that brought in the next question.]

Q: It appears that you are the only Sarawak MP who is concerned about this gangsterism problem. The others are either not bothered or don't share your view.
A: I can't answer on behalf of other Sarawak MPs. Maybe they have other priorities and want to raise those concerns in the Dewan Rakyat.

[Hmm...good question, good answer. True, they have other priorities and we are well aware of what they are. But in actuality, the right answer would be: They don't have the balls to do so and also scared shitless that they'll be burnt alive by the gangsters (kiasi mah!) Enough said. ]

The rest of the quite-long but interesting interview could be read HERE and another news on the issue HERE.

I really salute Datuk Seri for this. Not every politician is brave enough to speak out like he did. Sibu (the whole of Sarawak, for that matter) will be a better place to live in if politicians have the guts to speak up in Parliament regarding a lot of vital issues involving the rakyat instead of bickering at each other or making baseless commentaries (like: All bloggers are liars, unemployed housewives, etc) As a friend who always says: No guts, no glory!

We just want a safe and peaceful place to live in and the existence of the gangsters is not helping at all. We live in fear as to not offending them by all means. We vote for you to give us a safe neighbourhood to live in, not that we are asking for a paradise. Is it impossible? Hmm...I'm way over 21 and eligible to vote in the next general or any other election. Now I know which name to be kept in my To-vote-for list already. Heheh~!

Truth is, NOT BRINGING UP THE ISSUE DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE PROBLEM IS NOT THERE!

Do you know your root?

Well, I do. Even though not 100 percent.

I am from Sibu, a very ulu place in Sarawak where people there live on trees, ride elephants, hunt wildboar for food, wear loin clothes, use smoke signal because we don't have telephone (we use the DiGi yellowman molecule in the smoke to send the signal), take bath in the crocodile-infested river, swing from tree to tree to friends house, etc as mentioned in the travel brochures.

*rolls eyes*

Well, Sibu was named after the native rambutan because a lot of Buah Sibau (native rambutan in Iban Language) could be found in this place once upon a time. In the 19th century, Sarawak was infested with Chinese Kheh or Ming Nam business people. History comes to live when you witness the barter trade then. Oh, wait, it was the history! *slaps self*

Then in 1901, a Cina apek called Wong Nai Siong brought a troupe of Foochows from the mainland China to invade Sibu and claimed the landmark of the history of Sibu. This apek cina is from the Ming Ching District of Foochow City, China. He came to Sibu because he wanted to cabut from suffering the totalitarian government of Ching Dynasty back then. So, he sapu those who wanted to free themselves and run far far to Sibu.

He brought about 3 batches of Foochow people to Sibu which totalled up to more than 1100 people - some brought along akik inik laki bini engau anak (grandfather, grandmother, husband, wifey and kids in Iban). They worked here and most of them settled down. They opened up Sibu from a delta of the Rejang River and to cut the long-winded story short, transformed it into what it is today.

So, Sibu today has gone through a lot of changes and development thanks to the Sibu Municipal Council for their effort to make Sibu a great place to live in. Sibu has a lot of Foochows. Out of 10 people you randomly pick from the street in Sibu, 10 of them would be Foochow. LOL~!!! Even though there are a lot of Foochow dialect, two main Foochow dialects spoken in Sibu are: Ming Ching and Kutien. After living here for more than 2 decades, I still cannot distinguish which is which. Hahaha~!!! Because they sound the same to me.

Kutien: Ni kuo toi?
Ming Ching: Ni kuo tuong?
(Where are you going?)

Oh, and I'm half Foochow (from mom's side - she's Kutien Foochow) and not-so-proud to be one because Foochows in Sibu are LOUD, stingy, egoistic, etc. (Oh, I can condemn them because I'm half-Foochow. HAHAHA~!!! Don't like it? Sue me lor) Summore, Foochow businessmen in Sibu are filthy rich AND arrogant! They don't like new ideas and will make helluva lot of noise when forced to make changes. They will keep complaining and complaining until actions were taken. Therefore, human resource department in companies in Sibu are damn smart. They hire Malay girls as the operator in their complaint department which is a wise call because they could drive these arrogant people up the wall with their stupidity. Enough said!

Did I mention that Foochow businessmen are rich? Two cars per household is not enough. You can see a lot of fancy cars on the roads in Sibu even though no BMWs could make it to our shores. You can see the Milo tin Kancil, coffin-like Kenari, century-old Saga, modified Iswara, Xmas tree-look-alike Wira, Waja, Perdana, Gen2, Atos, Sonata, Getz, Corolla, Vios, Camry, Altis, Alvanza, Prado, Civic, Jazz, City, country, et cetera including ah beng-like modified Kancil or Kelisa with skirts, left wing, right wing, renewed exhaust, turbo engine, tinted glass, and blinking neon lights that put Christmas tree to shame, heavy mega bass stereo system which plays Jay Chow songs in techno version. (YUCKS~!)

Those are some of the interesting things you can find in Sibu. You name it, we have it. There are a lot more of Sibu for you to explore and discover. You will not be disappointed.

SIBU: The Infernal Affair

Well, my last post was a brief introduction about my little hometown SIBU. Here's the second part...

Another thing Sibu is famous for is PIRATED CD, VCD and also DVD! Name me a place in KL where you can find shops that sell pirated VCD like those in Sibu, I belanja makan for 1 month! In KL right, all VCD sellers load up their VCDs into a bag and go around selling the VCDs like direct selling pattern. So much different from Sibu VCD sellers. Sibu VCD sellers are all very the steady one, open huge huge shop and call it VCD Supermarket. They have everything you want - CD, VCD, DVD, PC Games, MP3, Computer Software, DVD-RW, CD-R, you name it, they have it! Where got such thing in KL? Even Low Yatt is a pale immitation of Sibu wan lar...Hmm! I think they scared the Bukit Aman police come and sapu everything all the time lor.

I also heard a lot of comments about Sibu, especially about its PAIKIA! Seriously, Sibu Paikia is notoriously powerful!!! From what I heard, they say, Sibu PAIKIA si beh steady wan...go and burn people's houses and cars, shoot people like shooting wild pigs (wild pigs very famous in Sibu one...remember the babi leg I mentioned earlier?) No kidding, man! They are always in the news. But the police cannot do anything, or rather close their eyes to everything. Some cases just went unsolved! Instead, the police have to cari makan with them, not to go against them! For the police, police punya nyawa also important mar, so better kerja sama with the paikia lor, if not, silap hari bulan, in the middle of the night their house or car or both kena burn down also don't know what happened!

I forgot to mention that the VCD business and the paikia are inter-related. You see, most pirated VCD supermarkets are owned by the paikias. And every time when the police sapu VCD shops in Sibu, it is generally known that it was only a routine mock up by the gangsters and the police. Pretend pretend only lah, for show only. If not the public will say that the police goyang kaki everyday doing nothing. Here, let me reveal the BEHIND THE SCENE of the mock routine episode. Before the authority sapu the shops, those involved already pakat earlier that they display all the out-of-date VCD which was not sold out one then let the police come and sapu all. A few weeks later, they put up all the new VCDs. One stone kill two birds...How very the clever!!

Sibu people, best in doing business AKA jo seng li! A lot of Sibu people in other states or maybe in other countries si beh rich one! No, they didn't kena jackpot or 4D lar. They sell VCD only! Summore hor, they are DAMN STINGY! When it comes to money matters, they'll think a lot and won't part with their precious money even they kena killed! In Sibu, you'll notice a lot of rich people dressed up in shabby clothes and drove 30-year-old car, mana jai when you go to his house hor, WAH! like palace!

Oh ya! One more thing about Sibu police officers, they are so damn hardworking! I don't know about police in other town or state but I'm right to say that Alor Setar has similar species of police officers especially their traffic mata. However, we ain't talking about Alor Setar, and the story about the encounter with the traffic mata in Alor Setar will have to wait till next time. Back to Sibu mata...these over-paid uniformed idiots are way over-hardworking especially when it comes to festive celebrations like Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, Hari Gawai, etc.They want to telan kopi-O mar. Salary not enough, so have to blackmail innocent road users so that can buy more liquor to celebrate Hari Whatever then end up in Male Medical Ward in hospital due to liver malfunction and kidney failure! They usually conduct illegal roadblocks at night, hiding behind some dark bush or corner and randomly stop cars and defame the driver of the offence that he/she doesn't even commit! Talking about creativity! Our police officers have it, to the very advanced level! Sometimes they make it as if there isn't any traffic light in front of you when there is. Sibu mata are SMARTASS!! They really apply the 'The law is dead, human is alive, law is written by human summore' concept and hence the brand new unwritten law saying that you shut them up by 'belanja' them minum kopi-O or else kena slap with whatever offence they could think of...

There, my friends, are some of the uniqueness of Sibu! You'll be amazed, I tell you! Come visit Sibu and you'll know what I mean. No regrets for sure!

SIBU: A Brief Introduction

THE STEREOTYPING

The Millenium Balls (or something like that) along the stretch of Sibu Gateway.

Every time when I mentioned that I am from Sibu, Sarawak, the person who asked would say something like: "Oh! So you are Foochow lah!" more like a conclusion rather than a question and started talking to me in Foochow, if he/she knows the dialect. This is one of the stereotypes that really annoyed me to the bone! Sometimes, or rather most of the time, West Malaysians are so ignorant about Sarawak! This irritates me as well. Therefore, let me enlighten you ignorant West Malaysians out there, not ALL Sibu people are Foochow but most Foochow people are originally from Sibu.

Have you studied the Venn Diagrams? Heard about the subset before? Sibu people are all Sarawakian but not all Sarawakian are Sibu people. Same theory applies. Get me? No? Go drown yourself in the teh-see-peng Rejang River then...

Brief Introduction

Sibu, the Swan City (not yet City status lah, TOWN only) of Sarawak (No, not because there are a lot of swan in Sibu, just a symbol) located at the riverbank of Batang Igan is a small town currently experiencing drastic development to achieve the Garden City concept by the year ....(I forgot already!) and hence the erection of countless landscaping all over the town area!!! It was useless because none of the Sibu folks appreciate them. Only waste our (taxpayers) money!

Anyway, here, everybody seems to know everybody else and everybody seems to somehow, somewhat related to everybody else (Freaky huh?) so just do NOT get married with someone from your own hometown to avoid mutated gene in the next generation! Besides, if you happen to produce X-Men, there will be chaos everywhere and everybody will tend to blame somebody else. So, by then, you better dig a hole and bury yourself alive...!

FOOD

KAMPUA MEE - trademark of Sibu delicacies

Sibu is famous for its KAMPUA MEE. It is a lot different from the Wantan Mee found almost everywhere in West Malaysia. The noodle is made without using so much of boric acid like those yellowish noodle in West Malaysia. NEVER EVER claim that you have been to Sibu if you haven't eaten our ever-famous Kampua! This mouth-watering delicacy is a MUST for those who step onto the land of Sibu.

The current hot plate on the menu of all restaurants and kopitiams in Sibu is CRAB!!! Ready-cooked crab at only RM13 per kilogram is so damn cheap like anything! And you can have your crab cooked however you like it to be - with egg or black pepper sauce or whatever to your taste.

There is a kopitiam near the bus terminal that even served something special: THE PHILIPPINES BABI LEG! No other place in Sibu served any better babi legs than that kopitiam. The roasted babi leg is simply to-die-for with its crunchy roasted skin and juicy, tender meat accompanied by the special aromatic sauce, satisfying with every bite!

Char Mee Sua (Fried Longevity Noodle)

Guess how much this huge plate of steamboat costs? Even my whole family (4 persons) with large appetite had difficulty finishing the whole thing!

Only RM30 for the whole family! Got seafood summore...What a bargain!

The Char Mee Sua and Steamboat can be found at the Ah Bui (Fatty) Kopitiam at Lanang Road. It's CHEAP and DELICIOUS!!! Even if you go to the Syabu Syabu Restaurant at Jalan Foochow there also won't get such a bargain lar (you can't bargain anyway...) Syabu Syabu is more high class than the normal kopitiam but it's not worth to have your meal there. Dahlah expensive, the food not nice summore. Budden got air-cond lor....Somehow, I still prefer the food quality!

The EMPEROR CHICKEN!

Long before your time, in the Southern province of China, only the EMPEROR get to eat this chicken. What's so special about it hor? Well, the chicken is marinated with the many Chinese herbs then wrapped in aluminium foil to enhance the juiciness and the taste of the chicken. Just looking at the pic already got me salivating!!! Yummmm!!!

From WEST to EAST

Mid semester break officially started on the 15th September 2006. With that, it meant anything related to assignments, exams, homeworks, etc is out of topic for as long as the duration of the holiday! Heheh! And with that also, it meant famine had officially struck Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) as every taukeh also took break. As a result, majority of those who didn't balik kampung had to depend on Maggi Mee to survive till 21st Sept. I was not one of them. To stay alive, I consumed this:

The Spirulina Cereal.
A substitution for a meal. Contains all the nutrient that are needed by our body per meal. It's aromatic smell even before you add boiling water (that means once you tear open the packet) is enough to make you crave for it. With no preservatives, no colourings, no sugar at all, this is a perfect meal for diabetics, obese and those who want to go on a diet without actually starving yourself to death to have the satay stick figure~! Alright, enough said.

Apart from that, drought had struck UUM a few days before the mid-semester break. I heard that the water crisis swept from UUM till Jitra or vice versa. This, thus, made it even harder to survive. The drought and famine had actually prompted me to get out of this place as fast as possible.

And hence, I forced myself to wake up 7 early 8 early in the morning to catch the scrap metal (HBR Bus) to Shahab Perdana Bus Terminal in Alor Star which was about 1 hour from UUM. From there, I took the 10.00am Triton bus to Kota Bharu, Kelantan. Well, to make the long, torturing, winding, bumpy, nauseating journey short, I arrived in Kota Bharu at 6.00pm where my friend (also coursemate) - Ong Shin Khai - picked me up.

With stiffed muscles all over my body, neck, cramped legs (for sitting too long), exhaustion, hunger (since I had not eaten anything that day), dizziness, the first place Ah Khai brought me to visit was the General Hospital! .............-_-
Nah, things were not that bad as you might be imagining~! I wasn't admitted to the hospital or something. We went there to visit someone. That's all.

As for dinner that night, I had:
Green Nasi Kerabu, BBQ Chicken Drumstick, Rojak, Char Kuey Teow, Logan Juice, ...
Went to the Noodle Station for a lim teh session an hour later with Ah Khai, Ah Long (another coursemate) and their friend.
With all that delicious food I swallowed, my marginal utility for that night was overflowed! Hahaha!!!