Class Discussion - East Malaysia

Sabah and Sarawak is located at the east of Malaysia. Malaysian called there as East Malaysia. And the place that I grow up is Selangor which is located at west of Malaysia, also known as West Malaysia. The main economic is come from West Malaysia.

The above is the flag for Sabah and following with Sarawak. 

In today class, we had discuss what we had know about the East Malaysia. But most of us not really know deeply about it. We just know they are located and East Malaysia and covered with all jungle. This knowledge is what we had learn in our primary and secondary school. 

But I knew a little bit about the lifestyle because of my friend. Every time I worked when my semester break, I know a lot of friend from different state, different race, different cultural and different religion. As we know that Malaysia is a multi-cultural country, we have the ability to know many cultural when we are young. But I'm so surprise that the lifestyle at East Malaysia are different from us. 

As I know from my friend who came here to work, he told me that people in West Malaysia are selfish. Anything that happened around they will just walk away and ignore the incident. The example that gave from my friend is like rob. People in West Malaysia will just ignore the incident, but people in Eat Malaysia will coming out and help to catch the robbery. Every single house in East Malaysia are helping each other and will have communication everyday. But in West Malaysia, people are busy in the life, busy to work, busy to study, they live in their own life and not communicate with other. They just stay in the own circle. Many of the West Malaysia maybe not knowing the neighbour after staying long time. I feel that people is East Malaysia are more human touch than West Malaysia. 

Other than that, we can see the restaurant in Sabah and Sarawak sitting with different races. The Malay can get inside Chinese restaurant as long as they do not having any non-halal food. Not like the restaurant in West Malaysia, people will feel weird when seeing Malay having meals in Chinese restaurant. Because Chinese restaurant always served with the non-halal ingredient. 

There also have two main race group in East Malaysia, which is Kadazan that mostly located at Sabah, and Iban that mostly located at Sarawak.

The costume of Iban is more on colourful.

The costume of Kadazan is more on black. 

I feel that people in East Malaysia are most unity than West Malaysia. And I will make a chance to visit East Malaysia in future. 

Chinese New Year

It's the last day of the Chinese New Year. I'm writing the post to share the happiness and how I celebrate my Chinese New Year. Every year almost the same, my family will going back to hometown which is Langkap, Perak. Not much people know about this place because it's a rural area. People here mostly worked as a farmer. The signature view when getting inside my dad's hometown, we can see a huge paddy field. 

Every year, we will going back to my grandma's house to have our reunion dinner. My daddy's family is a big family. He have 5 brothers and 4 sisters which now all becoming my uncles and aunty. My grandpa is already passed away when my dad was young. So I didn't see him before. My grandma need to wait all of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren coming back only can have the reunion dinner. It is a traditional for my family. But the reunion dinner just include son's and family, daughter need to wait until Chor 2 which is the second day of Chinese New year only can coming back. After the reunion dinner, Grandma and uncle will gave us Angpao. My little cousins and nephews will playing the fireworks. 

In Chor 2, we will going back to my mom side grandmother house, which is located at Teluk Intan, Perak. The distance between my grandma and grandmother house just 20 to 30 minutes. This day also my grandmother's birthday, we will celebrate with her in Chinese restaurant. 

Chor 3, we will going back to grandma's house again to meet my aunty and other cousins. My aunties will prepare Red Vinasse Chicken Mee Suah - 红酒鸡汤面线 for us. This is a traditional food for my cultural. Because I'm a Fu Zhou people. Every family of my grandma's children must learn to cook this to make sure this recipe won't lost in future. The red vinasse also handmade my ourselves. My grandma teaches all people from making red vinasse until how to cook. 

 

After the short gathering at hometown, we will back to KL on Chor 4. Then we will going to Tian Hou Gong for pray. 

  Family photo for this year.

 Line up to make a wish for this year. 

My mom very enjoy her new year. XD

In Chor 7, is a human birthday - 人日. My family will celebrate together in restaurant. And here come our first Lou Shang.

With Big Chopstick.

Then in Chor 8 night, we will celebrate for the Bai Tian Gong - 拜天公 at my Daddy's friends house. It's a Hokkien festival, and my mom is Hokien-lang. There also have firework after praying. 

It's also a small gathering with my childhood friends. I know my daddy's friends family since young. 

 

In Chor 11, I'm going to Pavillion have my reunion lunch with my childhood friends. 

Here's the end. And this is how i spent my time during the Chinese New Year. Wish everyone stay healthy and happily in this year. Gong Xi Fa Chai 

Galeri Petronas - Tanahairku

It's our first field trip for this semester. Our class is going to Petronas Gallery which located in KLCC. We depart from Sungai Long on 10am by bus.

Leave from the school.

 Here we are - Petronas Gallery. 

 Today we came here for the #tanahairku exhibition. This exhibition is about Two Decades of Bringing Malaysians Together exhibition that features PETRONAS TV commercials, webfilms, print ads and on ground activations which has a unifying values to bring Malaysians together.

There are three section of the exhibition that I liked the most.

These three section represent my childhood time in between 7 to 17 years old. The first picture is waiting bus at bus station. As my parents are working, so I took the bus going and back from my secondary school. I still remember there's a lot of different school bus parked around the bus station, and lots of stalls selling junk food, fruits, and snack around. The second picture makes me remember my primary school.

Paper file, exercise book, and the steel pencil box, are the must have things to bring to the school. At my time since primary school, that time is around 1998 - 2003, there still do not have any pencil case made by cloth and zip, but is made by steel or plastic box. Beside with the brown color desk and chair that made by wood also a signature things that inside the primary school at that time. In todays, when I'm going back to school, I can't see this kind of desk and chair anymore. The last two pictures is "Draw Out The Childhood Dreams", this section made me think back to my kindergarden. Teachers always asked us to draw things that in our mind.

In my childhood time, there's do not have much electronic entertainment. What I do is cycling, drawing, playing hide and seek, chasing little chic as my house is in the kampung. But nowadays, kids just stick with that electronic devices, playing games, watching movies and cartoon using Ipad, tablets, TV, playstation. And todays world is dangerous, most of the parents do not let their children take public transport, they scared kidnap happen to their child. Kids nowadays cannot feel the freedom that I had in my childhood time. So i feel this 3 section is the most meaningful and memorable for me in this exhibition.

There is many sections of the exhibition use objects from the past to evoke a sense of nostalgia in the audience. The object that held some nostalgia significance for me is tricycle. Tricycle is significant to me is because my grandfather is a tricyclist in Teluk Intan, Perak. When I was still young, I remember that my grandpa going out to work with his tricycle. After his work, he will come back and bring me and my brother going to the nearby grocery shop to buy some sweets for us. Sometime, me and my brother also will play around the tricycle when it was parked outside the house.

Lastly, is some photo section to bring you around the exhibition with me.

Together our journey continues in our TANAHAIR.

Time Capsule

Time Capsule is a box o container that store object that represent current culture or with memories. A time capsule is being created that will include items contributed by young people from all over the world. This time capsule will only be opened in the year 2120. Each country can contribute only 10 items to this global time capsule project. 

As a Malaysian, I have the opportunity to propose contributing 1 item to this time capsule. I will be informed via email if my items is selected. And if I am still alive in 2120, I will be invited to the time capsule opening event.

The item that I choose to contribute is a bamboo fan.

 

I choose bamboo fan to contribute to the global time capsule project is because I feel that bamboo art craft is 1 of the Malaysia cultural. There have a lot of bamboo products that are handmade in Malaysia.

There also have people selling bamboo products in shop or beside the road.  

 

The reason for me to choose bamboo fan among these bamboo products is because bamboo fan is being use when people barbecue satay. Satay is 1 of  our country signature food. It is a dish of marinated, bite-size pieces of meat, skewered, barbecued, and usually served with a pent-flavored dipping sauce.

The bamboo fan that keep in the time capsule will remind the people in year 2120 that remember the bamboo cultural in Malaysia and also the signature food - Satay.

Besides, in year 2120 with the high technology, people will forget what is a fan that can bring cool without electricity and just using with hand. Bamboo fan will let the future generation know how it's function. These are all the reason that I choose bamboo fan as the item to contribute in the global time capsule.