New Travel Blog

For some time I feel my Blog is like rojak, all mixed up with a thousand and one topics.But it'e time for me to focus on writing on an area dear to my heart - travels. So I have opened a new Blog entitled 'It's Never too Late' using travellerspoint. Please visit my new blog  zuraidaharahman.travellerspoint.com  and follow me wherever I go. I have tagged this blog into two - Local Travels and Overseas Travels. Please leave your comments and suggestion and I definitely appreciate it. I am writing in English to enable English speaking readers to read, follow and comment. I understand comments in English and Malay only. I have limited followers for this blog but I hope more people will be encouraged to follow me as I enjoy writing my experience, feelings, reactions and thoughts about places I visit and the people I meet. My English isn't great but I hope it is suffice to make people understand me. I am also learning on how to write to attract readers. I am not good in this. I find my children are better than me and write interesting description of whatever they want to share. I really love to share my travels to anybody who cares to read and hope I can get comments on what I should focus and write more on my travels. As a start, my first blog on travellerspoint is about Tasek Bera, a slightly different approach than the one I wrote in this blog.
I have traveled quite extensively locally and many places I would visit again and I would write sharing my experience in a different angle. For overseas trip, I treasure those experiences. I might not visit those places again but if I do repeat visit, it's for certain reasons. I am going to visit Nepal from 6- 11 October and Seychelles from 22 November - 2 December 2012. I am looking forward to share these places with my readers. 
Since I am new to travellerspoint, I am struggling on how to use it. I have problem uploading photos into the blog itself because most went into the photo gallery. But I am sure I will get the hang of it soon. For those who are familiar with it and know what to do, please email, comment or call me. I will be very thankful for any help.
Best of all if you follow me, it would be nice if you open a blog on travellerspoint yourself and I would be interested to read your experience no matter how small. All of us look at things in a different way.
My blog here will be more on my personal life. Thank you for those who have been following me and have left comments on topics that I wrote. I hope you and your friends will continue to follow my travels. I am excited to have more people reading my travels. Please spread the words around.
Let us enjoy sharing knowledge and experiences.

Fast cooking

Noted for being unfriendly in the kitchen, I find ways to spend as little time as possible cooking. Since I need to eat and eating out alone is a hassle, I have to cook or starve. So began my exploration of cooking with short cut procedure. Recipes for most cookbooks are tedious with a thousands ingredients which sometimes baffled me, especially in western cooking recipes. So I adjusted the recipe according to my taste. Not bad actually once the food goes to the mouth.
Yesterday I cooked spaghetti bolognese. The recipe was hopelessly confusing with ingredients which are foreign to me. So I made short cut - fast and good.
Here are the ingredients:
1 tomato - cut in cubes
A packet of minced meat
1 big onions - cut/slice
4 cloves of garlic - chopped
1 carrot - cut in cubes
4 strands celery leaves, chop. (I can't find celery in the market. So daun soup is good enough.
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 table spoon grated pamersen cheese - optional. Tak de tak pe.
A sprinkle of pepper and salt
1 small tin of tomato paste
3 tablespoons chilly sauce
1/2 table spoon dried chilly flakes -optional. (Simpan Domino chilly flakes!). Put more if you want it hot.

Method
1. Heat olive oil, put in garlic, add in onion. Stir. Add cubed carrots, Stir. Add chilli flake if you want it hot. Stir.
2. Put in minced meat, stir well and make sure it's not lumpy  Let it simmer to cook. Add in cubed tomato cubes. Stir well and add tomato paste, chilly sauce, salt and pepper.
3. Let the meat simmering to cook, adding water when necessary.
4 Meanwhile, boil spaghetti (about 1/4 packet if you're alone). When it's cooked, drain and put olive oil to prevent sticking.
5. When meat is cooked, add in celery leaves, stir and pour sauce in a serving bowl.
6. In a plate, put spaghetti, pour sauce and sprinkle pamersen cheese if you like and mix well. It's ready to eat. Enjoy you labour of love.

I had a good spaghetti ( I prefer angel hair) bolognese Malaysian style yesterday with left over for my lunch today. Cooking time was short alternating with watching TV and opening my laptop. That's the advantage when you have a small place with the kitchen within a step away from living space.
Maybe tomorrow I am going to cook ikan bawal masak asam pedas Melaka. Got to find daun kesom.

Are Laws and Bylaws useless?

I have seen how people blatantly disregard laws for their own ends, mostly due to selfishness and arrogance. My next door apartment owner DL2-4 is doing renovation with a Chinese contractor. According to apartment Bylaws, work on renovation is allowed on weekdays from 8 am to 5 pm and no work is allowed on weekends. I am a victim of selfishness and arrogance of contractor and owner of the next door apartment.
This issue started weeks ago. The contractor came to work on the renovation only on Saturdays and Sundays and lasted till late in the evening. Complained and telephone calls were made to the owner requesting them to follow the regulations. But the drilling and knocking went on driving me up the wall and putting me under great stress. I have been away from my apartment at weekends since a week before Raya, so the contractor had a field day doing what he wanted to do. Management and security didn't bother to check if there is no complaints.
Yesterday (Saturday 7 Sept 2012) I was back in my apartment and at 3pm the bastard contractor was back doing his work without any thought of other people's comfort. I talked to him again as nice as I can, explaining the regulation which applied to all condos and apartments everywhere. He promised to stop. But the moment I entered my apartment the knocking and drilling started. I tried to be patient but couldn't tolerate it and called Prabha, the manager to send his maintenance man to stop this bastard contractor from working. With a security guard, Shankar came to see him and again he promised he would stop. When the two guys left, the drilling and knocking began.
My frustration went beyond words. I called the police. The officer sounded irritated and angry when I asked for his name. I just wanted to say 'thank you and mentioned his name but unfortunately, I was misunderstood. Another hit on the face.
Half an hour later, the officer called and advised me to make a police report at the police station. Police can only take immediate action for 'gangguan ketenteraman' if it happened past midnight. He sounded relaxed and we began a conversation, explaining to him I wanted to say 'Terima kasih koporal....' the polite way of ending a conversation with a person. I apologised if I sounded inappropriate just now and he in turn apologised too if he sounded abrupt. He shared that the public often accused the officer in charge or the police for not taking action. Accusation like this is often done by the public, Indians especially, who expect the police to drop everything and attend to his complaints while he has to file the complaint first and contacted the policemen on duty. I understand how stressful our policemen are as I have interacted with them when supervising internship students. These unreasonable people will call the OCPD and complained mentioning the name of the officer who took the report, for not taking action.
Anyway, I am at a loss at what action to take. So why do we have to have laws if enforcing it is so difficult? No wonder this country is going to the dogs when there are so many arrogance people around and think for themselves only.

Tasek Bera, Pahang

After spending a few days for Aidilfitri with the families, I took the opportunity to go and visit Tasek Bera with sister-in-law (former) Kathy/Kak Nor from Adelaide from 27 - 29 August 2012. One way journey from Port Dickson was about 186 km but we took almost 4 hours to reach there as I drove slow and stopped a few places to rest and bought food and petai.
Arriving at Tasek Bera gave us such pleasant surprise. The tasik is so stunningly beautiful, so unique, and so mysterious, unlike the normal lakes we usually see everywhere. It was tranquil, serene, quiet and calm with the two of us as the only guests at the resort. We encountered a few people who went there to fish and returned to their homes when they were done.
Tasek Bera is included in Ramsar Convention treaty which was signed in 1971 in Ramsar city, Iran. Ramsar Convention was the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance. The mission of Ramsar is ' for the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local and national actions and international cooperation, as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world' (http://www.ramsar.org).
Tasek Bera (note: spelt as Tasek, NOT Tasik) is 35 km long and 20 km wide with lake water draining to Pahang river. It's the largest freshwater swamp in the Malay Peninsular which is rich in wildlife and vegetation. The ecosystem supports various animals and plants life and provide livelihood to the orang asli Semelai there.
Pockets of the lake are covered with pandanus plants, kercut grass, giant grass and many more plant species. To tour the lake you need a guide who will maneuver the boat expertly among the narrow growth of pandanus on the lake. Nature is playing it's role effectively to control the fast growth of the pandanus by burning it during dry and hot season. Imagine a fire bellowing up on top of a lake! The lake tour and the visit to Semelai village are the highlights of our visit. I also learned that the idea that the Semelai orang asli is poor is a myth. The government is taking care of them so well that they become vast landowners planted with rubber trees. A number have tertiary education but choose to live in their village earning a tidy income through rubber tapping. They drive big cars and own all the modern amenities but maintain their traditional way of living. There is a Semelai homestay too for the rugged who do not mind rough living with basic comfort.
I was really in awe of the lake, so different from the ones I have seen in different parts of the world. I have never known that the pandanus can bear fruits which look like buah cempedak and I saw a few when Ari, the guide, steered the boat through narrow opening to see the fruit (cannot be eaten). There is plenty of kercut grass grown which is expensive when sold in nurseries in KL. I am glad this area is protected or otherwise some greedy hands would bring lorries and tractors to harvest the kercut and other plants in the lake to sell in the cities.
Rose, Aris' wife and the cook, manager etc of Tasek Bera Resort cooked us ikan baung masak asam pedas. HHmmmmmm so delicious though I don't take fresh water fish but the gravy was superb!! She is really a good cook. Since the resort has limited rooms and only one chalet, advanced booking is necessary. We were lucky we went there during low season and rented the only chalet facing the fascinating lake for RM 140.00 a night but the chalet needs some repair and serious cleaning. Kak Nor and I felt so relaxed and blessed being able to see and enjoy the beauty and the magnificence of God's creation. Contact En. Aziz at 013-6231199 or 014-8447070. All telephone numbers in the website seemed not working anymore. I had to make calls to various departments before I got hold of En. Aziz.  The resort is managed by this nice husband and wife team but they need at least one more person to take care of the garden. Like many other places in Malaysia, abusing beautiful places is like an accepted practice. We were so disgusted with visitors who throw rubbish everywhere especially plastic bottles. Kak Nor and I took just a few minutes to collect the rubbish in 2 huge plastic bags. A signboard indicating charges for entering the resort and the lake was erected there but no sign of anybody collecting it and no checking. What a farce!! Level of awareness and responsibility to take care of the environment is so low among my fellow Malaysians, though many are educated. Unfortunately when they go to foreign countries like Singapore, they comply but in their own country they make a mockery of it. It's like, taking care of your neighbours house but shit on your own doorstep. Come on Malaysian government, be tough to teach these people a lesson.
Kak Nor and I stayed overnight in my apartment in Post Dickson and from there we drove towards Kuala Pilah taking the road to Bahau and to Kuantan. Don't go into Bahau town, follow the signage and go through Jempul to Kuantan and there will be a sign Tasek Bera. At the Tasek Bera entrance, there's a complex where you have to register and then be allowed to pass to Tasek Bera Resort and to the lake.
I definitely will go there again and bring my Japanese friend, Sashi, if she comes and visit again. I know she will love this place. For Malaysians who like to visit, to stay and to rave about foreign countries should make a point to visit and to learn and love their own country. Then only they will know the meaning of being a patriotic Malaysian.

The view of the jetty and lake from the restaurant. Good place to relax and enjoy the serene lake.

Arowana fish, a threatened specie, very expensive but forbidden to take back if caught. You have to throw it back to the lake for it to breed. But how many people would do this, I wonder? 280812

Kak Nor enjoying the gentle breeze of the lake during lake tour guided by Ari. 280812

Nature's way of control. The wild pandanus caught fire when it's hot and dry.  280812

Burnt pandanus. Imagine fire on the lake. 280812

The Semelai people catching fish 270812

Tasek Bera jetty from the lake. 280812

The jetty to the Semelai village by the lake. 280812

Semelai homestay- very basic.

Ownership of cars is common among the Semelai orang asli.

Kercut grass by the lakeside.

Kak Nor attempted to clear the rubbish thrown at the resort ground by stupid, irresponsible people. 280812

Helping to sweep the leaves from steps to the jetty. 289812

Kak Nor with the lady park rangers at Ramsar Centre. 290812

With sister-in-law, Kak Nor at the Ramsar  Visitors Centre. 290812

Gliding  through a narrow opening among the pandanus plants on the lake. 280812

Fruit of the pandanus or rasau. Not eatable 280812

Another basic homestay in the Semelai village near the jetty.

Tasek Bera in the morning with simmering morning sun. 290812

Seriously photographing the rasau fruit. 280812

The Tasek Bera jetty on calm waters.

At the balcony of the chalet overlooking the lake. 270812

Fascinating and haunting Tasek Bera from the chalet. 290812

Road map to Tasek Bera (from internet).

Personally, it's worth a visit though the road is narrow country road, far and lonely through oil palm plantations. I am glad I did it though many commented that there is nothing to see in Tasek Bera. This comment shows ignorance. But at the same time I am glad there are not many tourists. It would keep the place safe and intact.
I will visit again some day especially when I have foreign friends with me. I am sure Sashi, my Japanese friend would love this place.