A Malay Village is called 'Kampung'

A vanishing landscape is the typical Malay Village or kampung where coconut trees sway all around the houses and chickens runs all over the yard, the kampung will in the not too distant future be an endangered scenery...the old atap roof are already a thing of the past in most cases being replaced by zinc roofings.
A walkabout through a kampung in Balik Pulau would be like strolling through a ghetto area in Chicago but minus the threats of violence. This is more or less a modern day kampung with fancy cars parked in the yard and houses that could use better care.

What is unique about these kampungs is that they are surrounded by greenery and thus are protected from the heat of the noonday sun. The air is fresh from ample supply of oxygen unless it is pervaded by the stench of garbage or poor drainage system which is a common issue in most modern day kampungs.

Asked why this kind of broken down structure is still attatched to what seemed like a newly renovated house,the answer was that the owner has not given the permission to do so. Whatever that entails houses like these are another common sight when you take a walk looking for oddities.

To say the the Malays are not health concious is not true as it is said that cleanliness is the way to Godliness, but the landscape surrounding Malay houses today could use a lesson or two from the Japanese in the art lanscaping.

This may not be true of all kampungs in the countryhowever and especially the ones that are found along the East Coast of the Malay peninsula are more cared for than what is seen here. Then there are those cared for the sake of the tourism industry, the good looks and the homestay business. The true spirit of keeping the kampung character of beauty and rustic elegance is no more a part of the Malay culture as most or the younger generations have opted for city dwelling. Most of the time during the festive months such as the Ramadan you can see five or six fancy looking cars parked all over the yard surrounding a kampung house,those living in the citiies have returned thus the term 'Balik kampung.'

It is sad to witness the demise of a way of life although there is none to blame but 'progress'. The traditional wooden houses of the Malays are being replace by brick and mortar and the surrounding trees are being removed for a driveway or a parking lot, we are not no more helping to deter global warming, we are becoming the contributors. One reason that wooden houses are becoming a rarity is that cost wood materiaols have skyrocketted, and why, because of export as wood fetch high prices overseas. To live well eat well sleep well and shit well, we have deforested our rich landscapes to the point of no return; 'well' is, a very deep subject indeed!