Over the Merdeka Day Weekend, we received some visitors, two of which lived back at the Tenth Floor with us back in the day Cikma, Ayah Cik the Younger and Ciksu travelled to the north all the way from Kuala Lumpur to spend time with us. Also, Irfan had some questions about Steam to ask Ayah Cik. After an afternoon at Padang Besar where no padang besars could be found, we had dinner at the beach in Kuala Perlis, which for some reason I keep calling “Kuala Selangor” by mistake for no good reason. Maghrib prayers were performed at Masjid Kuala Perlis which was built over water off the town promenade. It was the first time I visited this mosque. Unfortunately it was low tide. The next day, despite all odds Ain succeeded in organising an excursion to Gua Kelam. It was a great morning with clear skies. Unfortunately, some […]
Continue readingTag Archives: Perlis
We have been living in the northern state of Perlis since the end of 2014. Here are some entries featuring the state.
A Return to Burger Republik
Because we sent some freelance proofreading work in the direction of the proprietor of Burger Republik, they invited us over for dinner on the house. I had the chicken kebab which was perfect and juicy. Especially the onions. Because onions! Ain had ordered a new item on their menu, the salmon. I thought the bean sprouts gave the fish a great taste and texture. Although I loved my kebab, I quickly wished I had ordered the salmon instead. But all is good, because we all share our food with each other anyway. Irfan had a “Broadway Burger”. But there was no photo of it, just this photo of Irfan devouring said burger. Because we found the selection of Burger Republik’s menu quite appetising, we shall return there!
Continue readingAtok and Opah’s April Visit
Atok and Opah visited us in Perlis once more, this time to help ensure all went well during the my last ever semester final examinations. If I make it through this, then I would have a Bachelor of English Studies degree. And in a position to do something with it. [[image:2015-atok-opah-april01.jpg::center:0]] We planned for a picnic at Gua Kelam, but rainfall overnight caused a change in plans so we went to Tasik Melati which appeared to be overrun by ants and water lettuce, although the lily pads were pretty neat. [[image:2015-atok-opah-april02.jpg::center:0]] However, after breakfast at Tasik Melati we found ourselves at Gua Kelam anyway because we travelled quite a bit past Sungai Batu Pahat northbound toward Kaki Bukit. [[image:2015-atok-opah-april03.jpg::center:0]] We enjoyed the greenery at the Gua Kelam Secret Garden on the other side of the cave tunnel where we finished off the leftover of our Tasik Melati breakfast. [[image:2015-atok-opah-april04.jpg::center:0]] There […]
Continue readingBrief Lives
When Irfan signed up for school here in a new state, I had no idea how he would adapt. Would there be older, wiser example students there? Will there be anyone in school that would inspire him? Back in Pandan Indah, the answer would be a solid no. Less than a week into the school year, Irfan had already found a close friend. Soon after we were all acquainted with his friend’s family. They live closer to school, in a housing area that we thought we would move in. His friend had an elder brother – a humble, smart, intelligent and witty teenager who received good grades at school with ample knowledge about computers and guitar-playing. He and Irfan’s classmate came over to the house and helped me try installing Linux Mint onto the new laptop. Needless to say, I was very impressed with this boy. However, after a two-year […]
Continue readingFinally TIme for a Breather and a Kitty
I have not been posting much because life in the last month or so has been very hectic. [[image:bettycat-arrives05.jpg:Betty loves Google+:center:0]] First, I was commissioned to proofread a doctorate student’s thesis from a neighbouring university. The work has – to put it simply – given me the desire to take a Master’s Degree once I’m done with this Bachelor’s Degree in English Studies, and perhaps if the opportunity opens up even a Doctor of Philosophy Degree eventually. What in? I have no idea just yet, but I am looking into Applied Linguistics. Perhaps I could integrate tabletop gaming into it somehow. Secondly, I began writing the assignment papers for this semester, which should be my final semester in this Bachelor of English Studies programme. I spent all weekends reading and writing for these assignments. Although some of them are freeform writing requiring no reading, most of them required me to […]
Continue readingBirthday Burgers
Ain and I couldn’t celebrate our recent birthdays during our birthdays for one reason or another. Then we both received some extra coin for doing some freelance work. So we all went for some cheeseburgers at Burger Republik, which I hope would not be appropriated into Burger Imperial at some point by Palpatine. It’s not too far from the house, just over a klick away en route from town. I have made an observation before that this town might have a higher density of burger joints in a single area than Kuala Lumpur. They also have chicken chop, which looked tantalising on the menu but they were not serving any today as the chef was called away for wedding food and beverages duty. Ain’s was a double beef patty and you could still order a triple. Mine was a mutton patty. Ain or course, would not touch mine. Irfan’s towering […]
Continue readingFirst Weekend of the Year
Our first weekend of the year was an eventful one. Irfan registered at his new secondary school, which was not far from the house. He would be able to ride a bicycle to it, once we buy one for him. He might be the tallest one in his class, but I might yet be surprised. He was not the only tall one in his class last year, and neither was I at his age, despite both our above average heights at our respective ages. Here, Irfan and his Ummi pose for a photo before we all drive out to school. The is quite nice. It looks very well kept. We shall soon discover how he would fare in this school. After the registration, we all went upstairs to get exercise books, badges, ties, school t-shirts and other such items. After trying out the tie for the first time which I […]
Continue readingFirst Entry From The North
Here we are at the northernmost part of the country, over a hundred klicks away from the nearest population centre which could be called a “city”. We live in a kampung, although not in a kampung house. There is a mango orchard less than fifty metres away. Beyond the mango orchard is a rice field. Between that rice field and another one a hundred times bigger than it is a canal with plenty of fish. A far cry from the city. I love the sound of insects at night, the patter of rain on the roof and on leaves of nearby flora, the immediate friendliness of neighbours. I don’t miss city traffic one bit. More to come.
Continue readingFinal Entry from the Tenth Floor
The blog is not headed anywhere. But the subtitle “View from the Tenth Floor” will be changed starting today as we will no longer be living on the tenth floor. The last two months has been a whirlwind of activity. I have accepted a job offer in Kangar and we’ll be moving there – five hundred klicks away – shortly. This has been a blessing, as we have been wanting to leave Kuala Lumpur for many, many years but there was nowhere to go, not without a job there to ground us and provide us security there. Now there is an opportunity for us to leave the city. A new job beckoned us. The visit to the Cave of Dramatic Lighting was the only hint of the upcoming change, during our prospecting trip to visit the new employer and workplace. We will be leaving behind the Tenth Floor with a […]
Continue readingCave of Dramatic Lighting
We visited Gua Kelam yesterday. Gua Kelam is officially translated as “Cave of Darkness” at the plaques we saw at the site. The cave is a tunnel that runs through a limestone hill for about 350 metres. Here are is photojournal of our visit. It had been a wet weekend with rainfall every day, aptly putting the “rain” in rainforest. Water was dripping from the leaves and roots and vines of the foliage above the entrance to the cave. In the 19th and early 20th century, Gua Kelam used to be a passage for tin miners to transport their ore from the mines to their staging area. According to the plaque, many miners perished during heavy rains when the river flooded the cave. The walkway that traversed the entire length of the cave began at the entrance. At first Irfan hesitated at the thought of travelling on a wooden walkway […]
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