MENJEMPUT RAKAN SPEDA DARI SEBERANG

PORT KLANG

Tanggal 1hb Mei, 2004, aku punyai tugas menunggu 4 rakan-rakan speda dari seberang melawat Malaysia. Mereka berasal dari Duri, Sumatra. Nama tempatnya agak "tajam" tapi yang datang adalah disebaliknya. Aku mengenali salah seorang dari mereka, Bapak Ardiman, melalui internet. Walau digelar "bapak", orangnya lebih muda pada Bapak Ramli (iaitu saya). Beliau banyak membantu memberi maklumat semasa aku berspeda solo di Padang, Sumatera bulan November 2007. Baru kali ini aku akan bertemu dengan beliau dan rakan-rakan speda lain.

Sebagaimana dijanji, aku tiba dijeti pelabuhan Port Klang jam 5.30 ptg untuk menunggu ketibaan mereka. Aku diberitahu kapal bakal tiba dalam masa setengah jam. Untuk menghabiskan masa, aku ke jeti pelabuhan Pulau Ketam, terletak disebelah. Aku pun tidak pernah berkunjung ke Pulau Ketam. Teringin juga hendak kesana. Mungkin ketam dipulau ini lebih enak dan murah. Tapi aku tidak akan mengajak rakan-rakan ku dari PGM untuk ke Pulau Ketam. PGM bukan satu persatuan ala politik. Ianya adalah Persatuan Gaut Malaysia!!!!

Boat feri ke Pulau Ketam adalah sama bentuk dengan feri laju di sungai-sungai Sarawak. Ramai juga aku nampak penggemar-penggemar memancing yang baru pulang dari memancing. Berapa banyak ikan yang diperolehi aku tidak tahu kerana kotak simpanan ikan ditutup rapat-rapat. Ah, tak mengapa. Inikan hobi masing-masing. Tapi awas "dong" (tumpang bahasa Indon sikit), jangan bawa pulang ikan bawal dan bilang sama ibu Ikan bawal ini hasil pancing. Kok nanti ada perang besar dirumah dan tali kail jadi penjerut lehir bapak-bapak kalian!

Aku nampak dua kapal dari Indonesia mendekati jeti. Yang dihadapan dari Tg Balai sementara yang dibelakang dari Dumai. Rakan speda ku datang dari Dumai. Ini bererti kapal Dumai mesti menunggu sehingga kapal Tg Balai memuntahkan passenger dahulu. Ditambah dengan pemeriksaan immigrasi dan muatan feri Tg Balai yang melebehi 100 penumpang, kawan-kawan speda ku terpaksa "terkurung" dalam boat hampir 2 jam.

Penungguan agak memenatkan kerana air-cond dalam boat sudah dimatikan. Harga disel kan sudah naik melambong. Apabila giliran boat dari Dumai tiba, aku nampak 4 speda diatas boat bersama banyak muatan-muatan lain. Speda dan barang-barang lain sudah pun diturunkan tetapi penumpang tetap terkurung diatas boat.

Dari jauh aku sudah nampak jejaka yang berupa Bapak Ardiman. Pastinya beliau tidak tahu yang aku sudah tahu siapa dia. Heh...heh...

Waduh, lama sekali menunggu. Matahari pun sudah terbenam.

Akhirnya dapatlah juga ke-empat empat wira speda dari seberang menjejaki kaki ke Pelabuhan Klang.

Dan kerana masanya sudah agak terlewat, aku terus membawa mereka kerumah untuk jamuan Nasi Kerabu.

Esoknya kami mempunyai acara speda di Putrajaya.

PEDRO SAYS : "I'LL WAIT"

Someone is coming home for holidays. There's happiness in the air. There are things a-plenty to do - friends to meet, stories to catch up, gossips (forbids), foods to be spoilt to, Euros to spend (Do I Need It?), Laps to tackle in the pool to burn the extra extra calory intakes, fly back to Kota Baru to meet grandma, etc, etc, etc. Whoa...2 weeks will be too short with the To Do List mounting up.

So, when is my Mimi coming back ah?

I'm so sad and missing my dear Mimi

I'm waiting...and I'll wait by my favorite spot at the balcony for my Mimi

IT'S ALL HISTORY NOW

Two days prior to the election, I “Firefly” back to Kota Bharu, albeit a 2-hour delay. Reminds me of the early days of Air Asia when planes were scarce. Arriving at noon, it was perfect time for Nasi Kerabu at my sis’s place in Peng Chepa. My mother was there too, hale and hearty and of high spirit. Alhamdulillah. Just another reason for my regular trip home.

On the way to my sis’s place, banners in the mother tongue of the Kelantanese were everywhere. Barisan Nasional (BN) was going all out to capture the only state it had not yet won.

"For the sake of our future" BN said.

"Don't promise if you cannot deliver" boldy said BN

Resisting with all its might is PAS. It was to me, a David vs Goliath - the might and muscle of BN against the inner toughness of PAS, backed by its spiritual leader, Tok Guru. Of course, it’s all history now!

This was Battle Royale.

BN started the first salvo with the war cry “PADE DOH 18”, launched by enthusiatic BN Kelantanese probably somewhere in KL, led by a non-Kelantanese. In the media, there was no report of a counter attack by PAS.

On the ground in Kelantan however, things were different.

So, here I was, back in Kota Bharu wanting to experience the “war” in my birth state. Both BN and PAS were wooing the Kelantanese “di perantauan” to return. Free passage were offered. I paid for my own trip. And I paid for my wife too.

BN promised big. Awang Adek was already “appointed” Mentri Besar in anticipation of a big win. We all know the result. It’s all history now!

Pointing a finger towards the sky, Anuar Musa only asked for one vote for Kelantan

PAS claimed that when Anuar points towards the sky, he could only point to the “BULAN” and not to the “DACING”. And PAS gladly obliged Anuar with the Satu Undi that he asked for.

Such are the lighter sides. Of course, it’s all history now!

I suspect PAS had read, and read, and read and applied “Sun Tze Art of War”. PAS was prepared to defend its turf at all cost. For a start, PAS had stolen some war machines from MINDEF.

A green helicopter was on standby, and can only remained on standby and will not fly. It looked rather vintage, so it must have been stolen from the Mindef Muzeum!

Another tank guarded Jalan Morat with the "Tank Commander" waving a flag in one hand and a rifle in the other hand, hanging by strings to create motion as the wind blew. Bijok..bijok. Ambo tabek spring!

A huge green tank was strategically located along a road in Kota Bharu, with its machine gun and bullets ready to fire.

Up close, the machine gun could be used for firewood to cook my all time favorite Nasi Kerabu. The bullets, nicely tied with rafia strings would make a great decorative item for groups of people in the hinterland of some remote countries.

Behold, PAS also had a bunker in anticipation of a BN “attack”. It’s at the stronghold of PAS candidate, HJ Takiyuddin in Bunut Payung , his nest or “sare”. The bunker was armed to the teeth.

PAS had the multi-purpose machinegun-cum-grenade launcher. This machine gun is serious stuff. It cannot convert to firewood, but can double as “ejuh” (exhaust pipe). Its red grenade launcher would be useful as rear blinkers for night cycling. Thus, true to its name, this is a real multi-purpose machine gun!

And Hj Takiyuddin has employed a mercenary to help fight the war. Fresh from his highly successful combat duties in Burma in Rambo 4, Nik Rambo was flown in straight from there. Up above the bunker, he was on a 24-hour duty overlooking Jalan Bunut Payung. He looked a lot slimmer though and must have missed his budu when he was fighting in Burma. His trademark long hair is now covered ala Yasser Arafat, with sunglass to avoid recognition and BLUE uniform to further confuse BN. Nik Rambo however retained his awesome Bow and Arrow tipped with another blinker.....I mean... grenade, but now colored green.

BN on the other hand prefered the great white shark, aptly renamed the Great Blue Shark to comply to BN’s color scheme. With it’s jaws and razor-sharp teeth looking menacingly in Jalan Peng Chepa, Jaws also glitters at night. Sadly though, a day after the election, PAS was enjoying Sharks Fin Soup in celebrating their victory and It’s all history now!

I have to mention here that Tok Guru was and remained a telling factor for PAS’ success in Kelantan. No matter what was said or promised by BN, Tok Guru’s way of life had always become a symbol of peace of mind and heart. The promise of a new stadium, a grand bazaar, oil reserves off Bachok, etc, etc were all “hardwares” that meant little to the Kelantanese majority.

Tok Guru moved deeper into the “software” – the heart and soul of Kelantanese. Banners of Tok Guru in solitary loneliness offering his hands in prayers pricks the conscience of most Kelantanese.

And when he invited Kelantanese to sembahyang hajat and pray for PAS victory, the whole stadium was three-quarter filled by 3.30 a.m. Men and women, young and old came. Cars triple parked and there were no emotions for blocked cars which lasted till 8 a.m. All emotions were in the stadium, praying to fight the massive onslaught. Of-course, it’s all history now!

Come election day, I moved around observing the polling. I noticed a young Chinese couple in PAS’ tent.

Was it by coincidence too that this Chinese old man was wearing a batek-like green round neck? I didn’t ask him.

In Kg Terbak in Tumpat where the Siamese community lives, both parties was also wooing the Siamese community with their banners.

The war is now officially over. BN and PAS had fought a great battle. The victors would cherish the moments while the losers would have to lick their wounds and get ready for another battle.

My hope would be for both "enemies" to now continue and live in harmony.

IT'S ALL HISTORY NOW!

HARI PENAMAAN CALON (NOMINATION DAY)

24 FEB 2008 - NOMINATION DAY

Politics is not in my blood. And if I continue with my cycling activities, cholesterols and diabetics and a host of other toxins will also not be in my blood! Anyway, politics in Malaysia is without bloodshed, inspite of how aggressive one political party had displayed its readiness for "war". At its worst, we had water canons spraying some itchy chemicals.

There are however, seriousness in the way the supporters of 2 political parties went about for a show of strength. This was nomination day for Subang Jaya. Two parties would be at war here - Barisan Nasional and Parti Keadilan Rakyat. PKR was not prepared to battle with tanks, but their defacto leader was on their banner - A New Dawn for Malaysia was PKR's battle cry.

And YOUR VOICE IS YOUR CHOICE - Suara Anda Pilihan Anda, and you can visit the website too. (Shouldn't he be contesting in Kelantan?)



Puteri UMNO in their colorful pink colors were there too. Once they matured, their pink colors will turn red......

....just like their mothers, Wanita UMNO, in their more matured red sarong and tudung.



There were also some outstanding individual supporters. Dont play play



Yeah, dont play play!



But you girl, what are you doing here? You should go and play.



At the end of it all, the gatherings were very peaceful. The police were prepared but their skills of crowd control were not required.


The "winner" for the day belonged to Anak Kembara. The weather was hot. Hunger and thirst are univeral, irrespective which party you support. And Anak Kembara need not kembara looking for customers. And even if Anak Kembara has no license to operate, the local authority will "close one eye" for now and you don't have to be in Malacca!




And thank you for the mineral water

SIMPLE STORIES

We had Tony Fernadez's plane to catch at 3pm and we had half a day to do a quick run to Tumpat to visit a newly-born "cucu saudara", buy our keropok lekor and head back to Pasar Siti Khatijah for my boss' last minute shopping of beras Nasi Dagang, Nise (Gula Melaka) and several Kelantanese "must buy" items.

As a faithful driver, I had to kill time while my boss did her shopping. What could I do?

Well, observe people going about doing their daily activities. The very first person I bumped into was Pua Chu Ke (Kelantanese version).

Pua Chu Ke was coming out from Pasar Siti Khadijah carrying what looked like PISGOR. He happened to be a local Pua Chu Ke. If you are an Indon, you will know what's PISGOR.

Next I saw a cycling buddy, well not exactly a buddy la....but I always have a soft spot for anyone with like minds!

Then I turned my attention to this taxi. Kelantanese called the beca a "teksi". By the way, Kelantanese have used English words for a long time. As a kid I've heard fishermen spoke about "PLEWENG" and "EJUH", two important parts of an engine. PLEWENG is Flywheel. EJUH is exhaust (pipe).

Back to this beca. It was certainly over-decorated. The only view offered to the passenger would be left and right. Right would have the passenger viewing the poor beca man huffing and puffing to carry you. More huff and more puff if you, the passenger, is over-caloried. If you know what I mean! Maybe that was the beca man's intention. After all, JPJ have no fixed metre charge ruling . So hopefully you pay by emotion!

On a more seious note, the becas had seen their days. The beca peddlars are all in the late 50s or early 60s. They would have clocked kilometres that would put our national cyclists way behind. The fact that they could carry on pedalling passengers and goods at such age is by itself a miracle, necessitated by economic poverty.

And TESCO is in town, occupying a sizeable area at the new river-bank development along Sungai Kelantan where the Sultan Yahya Petra bridge spanned the river.

And MYDIN said they are going to build their biggest superstore in Kelantan. After all, Kota Bharu was their place of birth.

I was almost amused by this MPKB signboard MEDAN SELERA BULUH KUBU. Below it was stated 'DULUNYA PASAR MALAM PARIT DALAM". I'm sure DULUNYA BUKAN PASAR MALAM DALAM PARIT".....

FIRE FLYZING TO KOTA BHARU

9th January 2008

There was absolutely no rush, no queue, no chaos and no jostling for seats. The numbered and assigned seats were not even necessary. That's Fire Flyz. What a relief and a change from the hustle and bustle. Plus, it's only ten minutes to the airport from my house in Subang Jaya, and it costs as much as a bus fare from KL to Kota Bharu.

I was going home to my roots in Kota Bharu to visit my mother, the good daughter-in-law (of my mother) accompanying me. We decided to try out Fire Fly. Having tried it, I'm "fired" and I'll "fly" where they fly. Okay it's a Fokker 50. It flies on propellers and a passenger joked that flying in it is "panas" because the "kipas" is outside. Ha...ha...very funny. But I liked it. And I can still load in my bicycle in its stomach, though I didn't bring it along this time around. But now my plans are cooking.

Chat up the two friendly stewardesses, Barbara and Seha. While we are too familiar with the red uniform of "you know la which airline", the white and orange is a pleasant change too, soothing and not so garang.








I would have returned via Fire Fly too but with only 1 flight a day and leaving Kota Bharu at 8am, my trip would not have been "berbaloi" or worthwhile.





Within an hour, Fire Fly touched down and I was glad to balek kampong and visit my mom and add a few thousand calories along the way. That's the exciting part of balek kampong too.



Mom was waiting at my brother's place and we were happy to see her in good health and more importantly in good spirit. She was in KL for about 2 months before going back to KB before Hari Raya Haji. This time around, she would probably stay in KB longer than usual. I would make it a point to Fire Fly back very regularly to visit her. Occasionally, I'll cycle back to KB, on a one-way journey, Fire Flying back to KL or vice versa.