For posterity, my two cents worth - The War in Ukraine.

 Russia's Ras-Putin has thrown down his gauntlet into the faces of the so called Ukraine's western allies and the rest of the free world and even now the Russian army is making their invasion of the Ukraine a bloody reality. The agony and misery that is being unleashed upon yet another peaceful nation will be devastating, from the worms that crawl underground to the birds that take flight into the skies and fishes that seek shelter amidst streams and rivers, nothing will be spared and Ukrainian cities will be laid to rubles like the cities those in Syria and Yemen and other war torn nations today. Of the people? Well what can we say except may God have mercy for what is to come. After two World Wars, humanity has yet to learn the meaning of what is Peace. Mankind is bound and determined for self destruction all in the name of sovereignty and hegemony. This time around it is also to fulfill one man's over inflated ego. A man who is bound and determined to be written into the history books if there be anymore history left to be written or read, as the hand that lit the flames; Rus-Putin.

"Gregory Rasputin Rasputin was born in 1872 and died in 1916 and he was to be one of the central figures in Russia's modern history…" 

 The shame of it all falls upon the Western Alliances specifically the NATO countries that had mad all of rhetoric about standing by Ukraine come what may. Sanctions are made to cripple the Russian economy as though Putin had not prepared for this event when he set his plans in motion. Then there is China and Iran, countries that has been under threats of sanctions by the same Western Nations, these countries stand by Russia if and when needed and China especially will not allow for the Soviet Union to be put under too much economic pressure without stepping in to tip the balance. Putin has seen to that his country will not stand alone in this conflict. Ukraine is Putin's punishment of the West over the years of disdain if not threatening treatment that the country had received since the cold war. Putin is warrior by nature, an ex KGB officer who rose in rank through being fearless and smart, he is not a power hungry mad man, Putin is playing with consequences of wielding absolute power; how far or how near can he push before all hell breaks looses.

The most effective deterrent towards checking Putin's war over Ukraine is the Russian people themselves. Many are against the war and many are being arrested for voicing their anguish over the matter. For the Russian ordinary men and women war is no more an option as the country had suffered untold miseries is the two World Wars and the most recent wars in Chechnya and Afghanistan had proven. The Russians love their children too, no matter how justified Putin may feel, the Russian will rise out of sheer collective conscience and stop his lust for hegemony and killing in the name of Mother Russia. #russia,#ukraine,#putin,#nato,zelensky 

      

My Friend Ben.

 

Another trip with my friend Ben Rongen who is a Austrlian and originally from Holland. Ben is one of a kind who has seen and done more than his share of living. From being a registered nurse to a wreckage diver with all sorts of mini adventures in between in his lifelong career in Life. Ben has been living for twenty eight years in Malaysia and presently married to a Chinese lady, Joan Cheong who is in her own a well established designer and a consultant in human resources management. They live in Penang where Ben has his collection of Chinese ceramic wares recovered from 400 year old sunken vessel off the Terengganu coast, in the South China Sea.

 Raised in Australia, Ben told FMT that he first came to Malaysia in 1994 and ran a successful production house in Kuala Lumpur for 15 years.

His typical work day included producing corporate documentaries and television commercials as well as programmes.

“But I was slowly yearning to break out from the usual work. I wanted to document a more fascinating subject, especially on history,” he says.

And that’s how he chanced upon famed Swedish marine archaeologist Sten Sjostrand who worked on ancient shipwrecks in the South China Sea.

“When I approached him, he had already discovered seven other shipwrecks on the East Coast of Malaysia while working together with the National Museum of Malaysia.”

Excited to embark on a new project, Rongen joined Sjostrand and his bold crew to document their journey. That was in 2002.

And then something truly fascinating happened. Six months into the documentary, Sjostrand and his team discovered yet another shipwreck, this one located near Tenggol Island, Terengganu. = FMT.( Free Malaysia Today).

A trip to Pulau Kapas is a must, Ben insisted when we first got to know one another. Kapas Island off the coast of Marang in Terengganu was one of his favorite places to hang out when not working and so if all goes according to plan we will be driving to the East Coast sometime in the early month of March. Our first trip together was to visit my former hunting ground at Lintang Organic Farm in Belantik, Sik, Kedah and we had a good time getting to know one another. 

“I may be 65 but I’m still very fit – I dive!” he chuckles, saying that he is hoping to see the day where he may finally travel again to explore and unearth the many other shipwrecks in Malaysia."

If you wish to own a beautiful piece of history, check out Kraak Creation’s Facebook page for Rongen’s beautiful works of art. #benrongen,#karakcreations,#pulaukapas,#stensjostrand

We drove the Volvo into the Sunset.

 Took a Sunday drive with my friend Ben Rongen in his Volvo we ended up in Balik Pulau as they say here on the other side of the Island. Drove along the new express road am ore confused now on where we were at one point. Ben retorted at the city landscape in the distance , "Another Hong Kong look alike!" No chance of stopping for a selfie along the scenic drive...will take getting used to. 

 We made it to Balik Pulau eventually and managed to catch the sunset at Malindo Point (beach) . 

I paid homage to the setting sun...

The Lord's Glory is in the Sunset...

Ikh dinasiratulmustakin...Lead me O'Lord through the straight and narrow path that leads me to You. 

I stand in homage before You my Lord in the presence of Your Light and Splendor that no picture taken could do justice to Your Presence being there before You, Alhamdullilah! 

Thank you Ben! for making it happen.

Ressurecting Awi's Yellow House! -2

 My daughter suggested that I look into the upgrading of the Yellow House myself or at least in the supervisory capacity of getting things moving. Not a bad idea come to think of it if I can overcome the family hurdles that would stand in my way. Only Puan Rohani, Awi's wife's blessings can clear any family obstruction as she is the Patriarch of the family. I need also to convince the one man who is capable to do the physical work and that is Awi's brother, Hashim or real name Wan Noordin. Hashim has been a craftsman for as long as his career has been. He was part of the boat building and has constructed his own floating house. Hashim has got a strong work ethics and commitment to whatever he put his mind to. He also has the respect of most of the locals especially his peers and can drum up help if and when needed in order to resurrect the Yellow House to better than what it was. Hashim is his own way has a sentimental attachment to the Yellow House as not only reminds him of his elder brother but also to keep the surrounding area pristine and attractive as it used to be. This he has expressed to me when I visited him at his workshop.

It would allbe a matter of trust and the willingness to see things happen for the better instead of letting what is an icon go to rot because of negligence.

I would be willing to work with Hashim on this but it will have to be with some measure of assurance that no one will decide to step in and hijack the project when half way done for any reason ans this can only be assured by Puan Rohani. Perhaps another visit to Pulau Duyong and sit with her on the matter would be the next step.

Hashim is a model boat builder on top of working on actual boats when these were being build at the boat yard. Not many is left today with the knowledge of building the traditional Malay sailing boats that were used for trading between countries along the eastern seaboard of the South China Seas. Just how to convince the Lady of the house and her children the idea is the next issue that is if I choose to take on my daughter's suggestion.  #awiyellowhouse,#pulau duyong, #rohanilonguet  
     

My Trip to The East Coast - Touching bases. -1

  I have taken a break from posting my Blog for the last two weeks simply because...I took a trip to the East Coast to visit my siblings and friends there. I needed to take a break from routine here with my two children and the cats which have multiplied to six from one since I left. hence an added dimension to my existence which should prove challenging with my son Karim getting a scooter for himself, a gift from his boss and we will be getting new car soon when it is available in stock. We are buying a car that has run out of stock! Life's details! One as to run through each and every pot holes in order to get to the final destination and sometimes taking a tumble or two to wake up to the reality that one seeks but the journey never really ends until the curtain falls and the curtain will finally fall. 

Arriving at the Kuala Terengganu bus terminal after 7-8 hours trip from Georgetown I realized that I had RM15 in my wallet and I felt like I was truly on the road again like when I was in my younger days except in this town on the East Coast I have family and friends I can call upon. I grew up in this town sice I was twelve having moved from Penang which is on the West Coast to live with my immediate family for I was adopted an raised by my uncle and aunties since birth. I was a teenager when I first arrived in K.Tr and started my secondary education six mile from where the old town was sometime in 1962 The town now has changed no doubt some for the better while others well, what can  I say...development...progress...growth, and I am growing old.  Sparing the details I made my way north about an hour's drive to the small town Setiu where my sister is staying next door to her daughter to be close to her granddaughters both the houses were newly constructed and the owners perhaps lives or work somewhere else. Setiu is a flood prone area and it still is the monsoon season and so although the rainy season is relatively dry it started to rain a few days after my arrival and one day I had to use an optional road one day due to flooding.

I stayed with my nephew Mohammad Rafi and his family at their bakery home. I felt most welcome and at home with them especially my nephew's wife who was originally from Islamabad in India. She can cook and I was treated to her best dishes with the chappatis being my favorite. I mostly became an observer to a week of living with them feeling the hardships and the closeness of the siblings as they face the day to day routine of life. I have a tremendous respect and admiration for my nephew for having raised his family despite  both his legs are being infected by a gangrene type of flesh eating germ leaving an large open wound on both legs at the ankle and this has lasted for more than twenty years. There seem to be no cure for it and every night I watched him clean the wounds with chemical soap and water and wrap them up with gauze after the process. A very religious Muslim, his forehead is bruised darkened by the thousands of times touching his head to the prayer rug when in prostration. An avert reader he is well informed and can carry out conversations on practically any subject. Rafi is over fifty now and has six children and he inherited a bakery that was his father's and has handed it down to a few of his children. The eldest daughter is an architect and the second is on her way to becoming a lawyer. The eldest boy will most probably take over the bakery business when Rafi retires. The bakery has an odd name to it, it is called Kedai Roti Israil, or Israil'sBakery. Most customers wondered about it but Israil happened to be Rafi's Father's name and has nothing to do with the State of Israel.

 

Most of my friends I was able to catch up with were busy with their daily routine to afford me much attention and it was understandable so. I was able to drop by Pulau Duyong and pay my respect to my late friend's wife of Awi of Awi's Yellow House and had a short chat with Puan Rohani as she is locally known had a dentist appointment. Originally from France where upon arrival at Duyong sometime in 1971 she met and married my friend Awi, son of the village Imam, an uneducated kampung boy much feared by most for his fierce and aggressiveness. Christine Rohani Longuet as her French last name is had arrived in Duyong to build a sailing boat according to the local boat makers of  Duyong with the intention of sailing the boat round the globe. Upon completion of her first boat she set sail north east along the coast of the South China Sea, however the Vietnam War errupted and put a halt to her trip. She then returned to Duyong and m time married Awi or whose real name was Wan Othman the village imam's eldest son. Their relationship was fueled by the love for boats and sailing and the lure of local culture and environment. Puan Rohani is still working on the cultural history of Pulau Duyong and its  decadence over time when I met her, and she noted that change and development has just about torn the whole village fabric asunder. She has been instrumental in setting up the local library and the Duyong Cultural and Information Center among other activities and is still pursuing her interest and research in local horticulture of herbs and so forth. Now in her late 70s, Puan Rohani Longuet is still very much alive and active doing what she loves best about life, she is to me the living cultural historian of the Pulau Duyong and keeper of its maritime history especially in the local art of boat building.

The French Lady who left her home and family to take on the wild side of life in Pulau Duyong, Terengganu, where she spent the rest of her life dedicated to raising the environmental as well as cultural consciousness of the locals.

The Yellow House was a place of meeting of great minds, minds that came to rest and recuperate, miinds that sought the peace and quiet of a rustic beauty as only such place can afford.

Mrs. Mariam 

Mr. and Mrs Boyo, well I only know them by this name, were among the most frequent visitors to the Yellow House. 

My concern however is for the sorely needed of upgrading the Yellow House which is now left in a state of disrepair and it is a matter of time before the whole structure will collapse into the river that it is build upon. Awi's Yellow House is an iconic chalet setting that was built by its original owner to give the visitors a taste of what living on a river feels like. 

  The Yellow House was built on the bank of the Terengganu River located among the mangrove swamp. It was meant to be a rest house for boat builders and owners who came from all over the world and later turned into a quiet retreat for writers and musicians, back packers who seek the tranquility and quietude to replenish their creative spirit. The Yellow House was frequented by the more road hardened back packers and travelers who came from all over the world and sharing their wisdom and knowledge with the fellow kind at this rustic setting. 

My friend Awi was in his own way as charismatic as his wife and a very hard worker committed to what he did and the Yellow House was his pride and joy. Better known as Aboh among the kids, my two children included, Awi was what folklore heroes were made of for he could be meaner than the devil and loving and caring by nature depending on the circumstances. I was fortunate to be able to spend almost three years of my life hanging out with him at the Yellow House.