My maternal grandmother, who was 94 years of age, passed away in our family home at Nibong Tebal in the early morning of 17 December 2015.
I received a call from Lai Sim just the night before, alerting me to her high blood sugar and leg swelling with cough/breathlessness. I felt that her symptoms might be related to heart failure, and had advised Lai Sim to get grandmother checked by family doctor the next day. I did not expect my grandmother to leave us so suddenly the next morning.
My grandmother had been staying with us in our family home in Nibong Tebal since I was in primary school. Before that, she stayed with my maternal aunties in a rented house located just one street behind our house. After my aunties got married, she stayed briefly in Alor Star and Penang at my older uncle 大舅's and 4th Auntie 四姨's places respectivel; but her main base was still at our home in Nibong Tebal.
She was born and bred in Nibong Tebal. All her friends and gambling kakis are in Nibong Tebal. She liked the place very much. Hence, it was no surprise that she wished for the funeral to be held there when the time came.
I could never understand why - but she was not in talking terms with my grandfather as far as I could recall. My maternal grandfather stayed with his eldest son (my eldest uncle) in Alor Star. Hence, both my grandparents hardly met each other (unless my grandmother went to visit Alor Star, or my grandfather came over to Nibong Tebal for a short stay). Even when their paths clashed, they never talked to each other.
My grandmother was only a few years older than my father (not more that 10 years difference). She took care of herself very well and looked much younger than her actual age. Hence, there were times strangers had mistaken her as my father's wife!
I was one of the favourite grandsons (I don't think it is an exaggeration). She made sure that I was fed well during my early childhood days (my mother was helping out at my father's food stall). I still have fond memories of her brewing tonics such as 猪脑， 燕窝 for me.
After I went off to Singapore (pre-U till my graduation from medical school), and then away in US for 3 years (for my medical training), her memory of me gradually faded (particularly after my 3 years' absence). When I met up with her in an old folk home in Penang in year 2000, she could not recognise or remember me anymore. (She was bedridden and could talk in very soft and muddled words). She could still remember my other siblings though! (What a tragedy for me!) She moved in to stay at our family home some time after 2000. She was frail but was still quite alert, and able to consume blended food reasonably well (needed to be fed by maid).
The wake was held for 5 days in accordance with Buddhist rituals. It was quiet and solemn ritual, with three nights of chanting of Buddhist mantras (and not the elaborate Taosist rituals commonly employed by local residents).
Family members from near and far bid her a final farewell on 21 December. We will always remember her!
Tuesday, 22 December 2015
Thursday, 17 December 2015
Short trip to Melaka 马六甲之旅
December school holidays are traditionally reserved for family oversea trips.
However, this year, our original plan (Plan A) of 2 week free & easy trip to Tokyo and its surrounding mountains / ski resort had to be aborted due to various unforseen circumstances (CJ had to sit for supplementary Maths paper in the 3rd week of Dec, CY waiting for outcome of her intern application, CK might join his friends for tour).
Plan B for one week road trip to Kahang -- Semenyeh -- Melaka had to be dropped when CK finally confirmed he would be traveling with his ex-classmate to Tokyo instead.
In the end, I hastily arranged for a short trip to Melaka (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) instead. The last time my wife and I visited Melaka was over 20 years ago (when CY was still in her infancy). We thought it would be interesting to see how things have changed since then. We invited my brother-in-law, his wife and youngest child (WW) to come along with us (my wife, CJ and I). We opted for 2 nights stay in Melaka over the weekend, in order to savour the night market at Jonker Street which is only open for business on Friday/Sat night.
To my horror, I discovered that my PR re-entry permit had just expired 5 days earlier when I tried to cross the Tuas check-point. I was given options of either U-turning back to Singapore (to renew my re-entry permit), or pressing on with my journey to Melaka (but had to relinquish my PR status and apply for its re-instatement after my return to Singapore). I opted for the latter. All in all, it took us about 1 hour to clear Tuas check-point. Of course, the thoughts of losing my PR status, and hassles of applying for re-instatement of PR status haunted me for the next few hours. But what the hack, life went on.... (Fortunately, the process of applying for reinstatement of PR status was quite simple),
Day 1
After clearing Malaysian custom, we drove on and stopped over at 同心圆港式点心 @ Bukit Indah for breakfast. The tim-sum was quite delicious and reasonably priced.
Driving along the North-South Highway was a brisk. But, traffics were quite slow after exiting Air Keroh toll station. It took us 1/2 hour to drive from Air Keroh Toll station to Melaka town centre, and another 1 hour or so to filter through the narrow streets of Melaka town centre to our hotel (Cheng Ho Residence). To make matter worse, the hotel receptionist provided us with a wrong address to park our car (培丰2 instead of 培丰1小学)。I drove in full circle in the congested town centre, trailing the cars in front bumper to bumper, searching in vain for the venue. We drove back to the hotel exasperated and frustrated (after spending near 2 hours driving under the hot sun), and was re-directed by another hotel staff to the correct venue (which was only 1 minute driving distance away!).
We left Choa Chu Kang around 7.30am, and only settled down in our hotel rooms by 4 pm.
After resting for a short while, we went ouf for a late lunch at a peranakan restaurant nearby (taking a set meal for 5 persons). (The food was so-so, nothing to brag about though). (和记鸡饭团declined new customers. We were not sure if Jonker 88 served other food apart from Chendol/ Nyonya Salad).
After dinner, we went for Melake River Cruise, then strolled along Jonker Street (stopping at Jonker 88 for its over-rated Chendol, savouring local Laksa, Fried Kway Teow from the street hawkers, buying some local snacks/delicacies).
Jonker Street was packed with tourists, rubbing shoulders to shoulders. It was an interesting experience to see so many people strolling along the narrow road, stopping on-off to explore various merchandise on display by the stalls lining both sides of the street. Hawker food was definitely the main draw, in addition to some other local delicacies/snacks/cookies.
We retired back to our hotel by 10pm.
Day 2
After taking our breakfast, we went out to East meet West Restaurant to reserve Nyonya dumplings for take away the next day. Then, we snapped some photos along Melaka river, and accidentally came across a museum showcasing the turbulent experience of Chinese immigrants from South-East Asia who volunteered as mechanics 南洋华侨机工to build Burma highway that straddled from Yunnan to Northern Myanmar during World War II.
After that, we explored the highlights of Melaka town (all converged within 5-10 min walking distance from one another in the town centre):
Christ Church Melaka, Studthuys, Red Square, Queen Victoria's Fountain, A Famosa, St Paul's church/Hill, Sultanate Palace.
All these were completed within 2 hours or so.
We ate at Jonker 88 in late morning, saviouring its Nyonya laksa and ice kachang/passion fruits ice drink. The laksa was quite good!
Since we still had a lot time to spare after visiting the above places, we decided to venture to the Melaka suburb in search of Aunty Koh's Chendol (touted as the best of its kind in Malaysia, which only open from 11.30am - 1pm), Baba Charlie (famous for its Nyonya kueh) and Artificial Sand dune @ Kledang Beach.
GPS was quite useless in locating Baba Charlie. We had given up Baba Charlie, but somehow miraculously saw the signboard by the road side on our way back to Melaka after visiting the sand dune.
After buying the Nyonya kueh from Baba Charlie, we went back for late lunch at 和记鸡饭团。(chicken was quite tender, worth quequeing for). We went back for an afternoon siesta after that, before venturing out at night to Jonker Street again.
Day 3
We drove out to visit Sam Po Temple and Princess Hang Li Poh's well. The place was thronged with bus loads of tourists from Mainland China. It was quite entertaining to eave-drop on the commentaries by the local tour guides about the history of Sam Po Temple.
We visited the oldest temple 青云亭in Melaka before checking out from our hotel. We took our lunch at a local eating food stall (local noodles + pohpiah) before leaving Melaka town - it was surprisingly appetizing. Cheap and good!
We finally drove off from Melaka around 2 pm, and stopped over at Kluang Railway Station for a taste of the renowned Kluang Coffee/Bread. It was pouring heavily throughout the journey to Kluang/JB.
There was massive jam in Tuas checkpoint (after clearing Malaysian custom). It took us 3 hours to clear the jam, reaching home around 10pm +.
In brief, Melaka has certainly undergone a very successful facelift since my last visit decades ago. Kudos to the organizers who manage to create a unique Jonker Street experience, adding buzz and life to the town. It is as if Jonker Street has surreptiously overtaken the other historic sites as the "heart beat" of the UNESCO site. It is a place worth visiting for first timer.
However, this year, our original plan (Plan A) of 2 week free & easy trip to Tokyo and its surrounding mountains / ski resort had to be aborted due to various unforseen circumstances (CJ had to sit for supplementary Maths paper in the 3rd week of Dec, CY waiting for outcome of her intern application, CK might join his friends for tour).
Plan B for one week road trip to Kahang -- Semenyeh -- Melaka had to be dropped when CK finally confirmed he would be traveling with his ex-classmate to Tokyo instead.
In the end, I hastily arranged for a short trip to Melaka (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) instead. The last time my wife and I visited Melaka was over 20 years ago (when CY was still in her infancy). We thought it would be interesting to see how things have changed since then. We invited my brother-in-law, his wife and youngest child (WW) to come along with us (my wife, CJ and I). We opted for 2 nights stay in Melaka over the weekend, in order to savour the night market at Jonker Street which is only open for business on Friday/Sat night.
To my horror, I discovered that my PR re-entry permit had just expired 5 days earlier when I tried to cross the Tuas check-point. I was given options of either U-turning back to Singapore (to renew my re-entry permit), or pressing on with my journey to Melaka (but had to relinquish my PR status and apply for its re-instatement after my return to Singapore). I opted for the latter. All in all, it took us about 1 hour to clear Tuas check-point. Of course, the thoughts of losing my PR status, and hassles of applying for re-instatement of PR status haunted me for the next few hours. But what the hack, life went on.... (Fortunately, the process of applying for reinstatement of PR status was quite simple),
Day 1
After clearing Malaysian custom, we drove on and stopped over at 同心圆港式点心 @ Bukit Indah for breakfast. The tim-sum was quite delicious and reasonably priced.
Driving along the North-South Highway was a brisk. But, traffics were quite slow after exiting Air Keroh toll station. It took us 1/2 hour to drive from Air Keroh Toll station to Melaka town centre, and another 1 hour or so to filter through the narrow streets of Melaka town centre to our hotel (Cheng Ho Residence). To make matter worse, the hotel receptionist provided us with a wrong address to park our car (培丰2 instead of 培丰1小学)。I drove in full circle in the congested town centre, trailing the cars in front bumper to bumper, searching in vain for the venue. We drove back to the hotel exasperated and frustrated (after spending near 2 hours driving under the hot sun), and was re-directed by another hotel staff to the correct venue (which was only 1 minute driving distance away!).
Jonker Street before road closure for car
 |
| Cheng Ho Residence, our Hotel |
After dinner, we went for Melake River Cruise, then strolled along Jonker Street (stopping at Jonker 88 for its over-rated Chendol, savouring local Laksa, Fried Kway Teow from the street hawkers, buying some local snacks/delicacies).
Melaka River Cruise
 |
| Trishaw Ride |
 |
| Trishaw Ride |
Jonker Street was packed with tourists, rubbing shoulders to shoulders. It was an interesting experience to see so many people strolling along the narrow road, stopping on-off to explore various merchandise on display by the stalls lining both sides of the street. Hawker food was definitely the main draw, in addition to some other local delicacies/snacks/cookies.
JONKER STREET
 |
| In the evening around 6 pm |
 |
| Karaoke stage |
 |
| Hawker food @ road stalls |
We retired back to our hotel by 10pm.
Day 2
After taking our breakfast, we went out to East meet West Restaurant to reserve Nyonya dumplings for take away the next day. Then, we snapped some photos along Melaka river, and accidentally came across a museum showcasing the turbulent experience of Chinese immigrants from South-East Asia who volunteered as mechanics 南洋华侨机工to build Burma highway that straddled from Yunnan to Northern Myanmar during World War II.
Melaka River
Museum along Melaka River
After that, we explored the highlights of Melaka town (all converged within 5-10 min walking distance from one another in the town centre):
Christ Church Melaka, Studthuys, Red Square, Queen Victoria's Fountain, A Famosa, St Paul's church/Hill, Sultanate Palace.
 |
| Christ Church Melaka |
 |
| Queen Victoria's Fountain |
 |
| The Red Square / Studthuys |
 |
| St Paul's Church |
 |
| View of Menara Taming Sari from St Paul's Hill. Straits of Malacca in the far horizon. |
 |
| View from St Paul's Hill |
 |
| A Famosa (back view) |
 |
| A Famosa, front view |
 |
| A Famosa, view from inside |
 |
| Sultanate Palace |
All these were completed within 2 hours or so.
We ate at Jonker 88 in late morning, saviouring its Nyonya laksa and ice kachang/passion fruits ice drink. The laksa was quite good!
Since we still had a lot time to spare after visiting the above places, we decided to venture to the Melaka suburb in search of Aunty Koh's Chendol (touted as the best of its kind in Malaysia, which only open from 11.30am - 1pm), Baba Charlie (famous for its Nyonya kueh) and Artificial Sand dune @ Kledang Beach.
Aunty Koh's Chendol
Sand Dune @ Kledang Beach
After buying the Nyonya kueh from Baba Charlie, we went back for late lunch at 和记鸡饭团。(chicken was quite tender, worth quequeing for). We went back for an afternoon siesta after that, before venturing out at night to Jonker Street again.
 |
| 和记鸡饭团 |
Architectures of Malacca Town
View from inside our hotel
Day 3
We drove out to visit Sam Po Temple and Princess Hang Li Poh's well. The place was thronged with bus loads of tourists from Mainland China. It was quite entertaining to eave-drop on the commentaries by the local tour guides about the history of Sam Po Temple.
Sam Po Temple (in memory of Cheng Ho)
 |
| Cheng Ho Statue |
 |
| Princess Hang Li Poh's Well |
 |
| Antique sales along the road opposite our hotel |
KLUANG RAIL COFFEE
There was massive jam in Tuas checkpoint (after clearing Malaysian custom). It took us 3 hours to clear the jam, reaching home around 10pm +.
In brief, Melaka has certainly undergone a very successful facelift since my last visit decades ago. Kudos to the organizers who manage to create a unique Jonker Street experience, adding buzz and life to the town. It is as if Jonker Street has surreptiously overtaken the other historic sites as the "heart beat" of the UNESCO site. It is a place worth visiting for first timer.
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