Kampung Acheh used to be an isolated spot for my buddies and I to spend weekends. Thick mangrove swamp, mudskippers and crabs scuttling on the mud and sometimes, a hint of sea snakes making their way on the water. One corner of Kampung Acheh was what we used to call “Blackfoot County” on account of the occasional bodies of waters that dotted our journey from the red dirt towards the river. If you stepped on these large puddles (or small lakes) your foot will sink deep into the mud and when you pulled it out it would be all blackened by whatever that lurked under the mud. Sadly, the entire area is off limits to us these days. So here are some pictures from one of my forays there, with good friends Khoo Teng Hoe and Danny Lee.

As teenagers, my schoolbuds and I liked very much going on camping trips to the beaches and sometimes the islands near our hometown of Sitiawan. The most famous tourist spot is the Island of Pangkor, which according to lore translates as Island in Siamese. So what I was saying in effect was the Island of “Island” but let’s not go into that. This group of pictures documents the last time ever a bunch of us had the time to actually take an impromptu trip from the port of Lumut to Pangkor, and spent a great day there at Coral Beach. Someday I hope we’ll be able to do it again, albeit this time, with our wives and children.