On the road to the East Coast

Monday, December 15, 2003
I'm leaving for the East Coast with Emry tomorrow morning, after an unavoidable delay. Our route, the same one we took a few weeks before Ramadan, will take us east along the Karak Highway until Karak, whereupon we turn off the Highway and head north.

After passing through Bentong, Raub and Kuala Lipis, its a straight drive to Gua Musang. From there, its a dash to Kota Baru, passing Kuala Krai and Machang. Hopefully, we'll arrive in KB before nightfall.

After a night or two in Kota Baru, we'll take the old coastal road south to Kuala Trengganu where, again, we may spend a night or two. From Kuala Trengganu we continue south along the old coastal road to Kuantan, where, again, we'll stay a night or two.

At each town, Emry has to visit his customers, hand-delivering quotations, invoices or collecting cheques so we're not quite certain how long we'll be staying at each. We'll be at each town for however long he takes to get the job done. I have an appointment in KL on Saturday evening which I'm keen not to miss, plus a concert recital lunchtime Sunday.

From Kuantan, its a drive home to Kuala Lumpur via Termerloh and Mentakab, transversing the Malay Peninsular at its widest.

Tuesday, December 16, 2003
I am impressed by how clean the Bentong District Hospital is--there are rubbish recepticles everywhere--even the public toilets are to be praised. The car park is beautifully landscaped with shade trees which harbour nesting starlings chirping happily.

Intrigued, though, by a sign with a photograph of two kittens which says "DILARANG MEMBUANG KUCHING DI KAWASAN HOSPITAL"--IT IS FORBIDDEN TO ABANDON CATS WITHIN THE HOSPITAL COMPOUND. I'm sure the sign is there for a reason; and that's a sad reflection on the local community. Another sign forbids smoking--Smokers will be fined $5,000 or face 2 years in jail.

Emry was feeling hungry so we stopped at Kedai Nasi Ayam Azri--Azri Chicken Rice Restaurant--in Kuala Lipis at 2.45 pm for him to have a late lunch. I wasn't hungry so I just used the toilet facilities, which was reasonably clean although the toilet didn't flush. A hole in the floor and a tap with a bucket and pail beneath it. Another 300 km to Kota Baru.

We did a combined prayer--jamak--for asar and zohor at a surau next to the Shell Petrol Station in Gua Musang, which literally means "Fox Cave." Evocative name for a place name. The surau appears to be a commercial venture--although you can pray for free, they'll charge you 50 cents if you need to have a shower. Gua Musang is our first stop in the state of Kelantan and Kelantanese entrepreneurship hits us in the face! Felt very restful and relaxed afterwards. Glad we stopped here. We also took on some petrol--$33 for 24 litres. 185 km to Kota Baru.

From 160 km to 102 km before Kota Baru, until we crossed a bridge in the District of South Kuala Krian, the road was crap with lots of shallow potholes. Night fell at 7 pm as we reached Kuala Krian, where traffic got a lot heavier and also a light drizzle fell upon us.

Dinner was a feast at Betty's Cafe about 500 m from the UiTM Machang campus. We had steamed rice together with Kerabu Belut (eel salad), Thai roast beef salad, an omelette, chicken with ginger and red Tom Yam soup. The eel itself was nothing to shout about--hard bones and not particularly tasty but the bunga kantan (a type of ginger flower) and the daun limau perut (kaffir lime leaves) in the salad made it taste really, really good. Betty's Cafe is an excellent place to bring a date, with its cosy attap-covered cabanas nestled between banyan (Ficus variegatus) trees giving a romantic atmosphere. Unfortunately, the single toilet didn't flush and stank a bit. You know you're in rural Malaysia when the toilet is a hole in the floor and it doesn't flush. And you get a tap with a bucket and a pail. Don't grimace!

Breakfast at the Crystal Lodge in Jalan Che Su in Kota Baru is the usual hotel spread with a choice of Malaysian dishes (nasi minyak, sambal ayam, dalca) and Western fare (toast, strawberry jam and real butter--not Flora, scrambled eggs and baked beans). I'm not one for a big breakfast, so its just two slices of toast with jam for me. Didn't even go for the tea or coffee provided. Just some air sirap bandung.

Wednesday, December 17, 2003
I had seen them before in Kota Baru, but never really noticed these well-coiffeured and made-up ladies sitting on stools at a street corner outside the finance company. Their tools of trade appear to be a calculator and a handphone. They were pawn brokers, accepting gold jewelry for cash. It's an unlikely scene, but Kelantan is full of surprises. You bump into the prettiest girls on the street--if it weren't for their petite stature, these Kelantanese maidens wouldn’t look out of place on the cover of Vogue or Cosmopolitan but never Playboy or Penthouse for Kelantan is a fundamentalist State where strict religious up-bringing is the norm. It's strictly a see, but no touch society.

In the late afternoon, we headed south from Kota Baru towards, our destination for the day, Kuala Trengganu. The road was narrow and for the most part, congested. It was slow going. Along the way, we saw enterprising street hawkers selling lemang (glutenuous rice mixed with coconut milk and cooked in bamboo stems) by the roadside, their fare looking like miniature cannons. There were also signs advertising other local delicacies, such as keropok losong (fish sausages), duck curry and sop gearbox special. I have no idea what the latter (special gearbox soup) was, but it sounded intriguing enough for me to want to try it. Unfortunately, it was still too early for dinner and these places had not opened.

About 75 km from Kuala Trengganu, we turned left towards Penarik to enjoy the coastal road which runs parallel to the white sandy beaches for which Trengganu is well-known. As we had done on our previous trip, we stopped at the next village along, at Kampung Bukit Chalok, where the beach was simply beautiful, with swaying palms and a cool brisk breeze was beating waves against the shore. At the warong or food stall by the beach diagonally opposite the Caltex Petrol Station, we ate two large fried sotong (squid) garnished with kerisik (fried scraped coconut flesh). It was sweet and delicious--but not quite as sweet as the lovely young lady who served us--Sanisah has two dimples that enhances her smile and compliments her dusky--from a lifetime by the sea--complexion beautifully.

Sanisah Mokhtar holds a degree in Microbiology from UPM and is finishing up her masters in Aquaculture from KUSTM. She's doing her dissertation on the breeding of the marbled goby (ikan hantu), a freshwater fish, which at $40 to $50 a kg, is highly regarded as a delicacy. Her mother owns the warong and Sanisah helps her mom out whenever time permits.

I feel very proud of Malaysians like Sanisah, coming from a humble fishing community background and studying hard. Knowledge not only empowers her; but also helps improve the socio-economic condition of her family and rural community. But at the same time, her knowledge has not gone to her head, she has not forgotten the importance of helping her mother at the warong, serving customers with her ever-so-charming smile and speaking proper English that is a little incongruent in a fishing village. When she finishes her masters, I'm sure she'll come back to her fishing village, helping her fellow villagers earn a steady income through breeding marbled gobies, even in the monsoon season, when it's too rough for the fishing boats to go out to sea. At 24, Sanisah's still single and, as soon as she completes her masters, will be seeking…

Thursday, December 18, 2003
Breakfast at the Yen Tim Midtown Hotel in Kuala Trengganu was a bit of a disappointment; certainly, there was less of a choice than at the Crystal Lodge in Kota Baru. There was nasi lemak with sambal, ikan bilis, peanuts and hard-boiled eggs. The rest were nothing special, nothing worth writing about, in any case.

The Internet Cafe was conveniently across the road from the Yen Tim Midtown Hotel but at $3 an hour, it's $1 more than the Internet Cafe in Kota Baru.

We were on the road again by 3 pm. The car park of the Kemaman District Hospital is in the blazing sun, with the half-grown green palms giving no shade to speak of. I doubt the green palms would have given any decent shade, even when fully grown. The public toilets at the hospital are reasonably clean--no stink and the flush works. However, its users are a bit ngok, preferring to throw their waste paper towels on the floor rather than the waste bins provided.

I was saddened to note that although it was 4 pm, the privatized canteen--run by Lie's Catering--was already closed. I could have done with some teh tarik and bubur kacang. Ah, well. But Emry consoled me--he knew of an excellent seafood restaurant in Balok (near Kuantan) called Mido Restoran that would satisfy my gourmet taste buds.

Stopped at a batik shop in Rantau Abang. I needed a long-sleeved batik shirt to wear on formal occasions as I don't have one or a baju Melayu either, for that matter. I asked for something my size in the cheapest material, preferably cotton. Unfortunately, nothing in cotton in my size, but there was a beautiful turquoise shirt in polyester for $65. I told the owner's husband that I was a poor student and he reduced the price to $50 just for me, provided I don't tell anyone.

Also got two pieces of hand-drawn batik for some lady friends. One had specifically requested a pastel piece and so I got her one in pastel shades of pink, yellow and orange. The other was mostly bright green for a dear young lady. She needs a bright colour to compliment her dusky complexion and that was just the right shade to do the job. (Later, when I told Maria I got her a piece of hand-drawn batik in green, she was delighted as green is her favourite colour.)

The proprietor soon joined us and she told me that she also owned the 8 chalets next door. She implored us to stay at her place the next time we dropped by. Rates start at $27 a night.

Later, at Marang, we passed warungs with signs that advertised sata or satar, which Emry described as a kind of otak-otak only found in this area. Apparently, it is sweeter than regular otak-otak and contained more kerisik and less fish. By the time I made up my mind to try some, there were no more warungs selling it. Just my luck, I suppose.

There is a stretch of road in Trengganu, before one crossed the border into Pahang that one can find roadside stalls selling nira. Nira is a fascinating drink. Mildly alcoholic, it is derived from the beaten flower of the coconut palm. One climbs the coconut palm, beats the flower to a pulp and places a container beneath it to collect the sweet sap that drips from the mashed flowers. Nira tastes of sugar-cane water. Because of the time taken (usually about three days) for sufficient sweet sap to collect in the container, it has fermented and is mildly alcoholic. Not as alcoholic as toddy, which is a decidedly disgusting concoction, but enough to give a mild buzz to its taste. I drank 500 ml with no apparent loss of my senses.

The mak ciks (little old ladies) who sell nira by the roadside also sell homemade vinegar made from nira and the sap of the nipah palm. The one derived from the nipah sap is pretty decent, but the one made from nira smells of strong toddy more than anything else.

Unfortunately, when we arrived in Balok at 4.30 pm, Mido Restoran was closed; the time being too late for lunch and too early for dinner. We both hadn't had lunch yet and our tummies were growling, so we stopped at the first decent-looking place. The only thing they served was nasi ayam (chicken rice). It didn't tickle my fancy but Emry went for it. It was a food court kind of a place with various hawkers supposed to be selling food and the landlord selling drinks. There was a sign advertising Yong Tau Foo but they'll only start selling their stuff in three days, I was informed. Fat lot of good that was. I settled for some toast with kaya (coconut jam) as well as some teh tarik.

Just as we had settled the bill and were about to leave another of the hawkers arrived. She sold nasi lemak, nasi minyak, and nasi dagang. The last item caught my fancy and I had a plate--for only $1.50. It was delicious, as tasty as the nasi dagang my mom makes. Nasi dagang is rice mixed with pulut (glutenous rice) and halba and served with a mild ikan tongkol (tuna) curry and pickles (mostly cucumber but also juliennes of carrot and sliced onions). It was delicious, and the best thing you could eat for $1.50 anywhere on the East Coast.

The Citiview Kuantan is the first hotel on this trip to have a proper bath-tub--the rest just had showers. It felt luxurious to soak away my aches and pains in the bath. Unfortunately, the water was merely warm and although I did my best, it wouldn't go beyond 30°C. Better than nothing, I suppose.

Friday, December 19, 2003
The toilet at the Petronas station in Jalan Teluk Sisek, opposite the Vistana Hotel in Kuantan, is by far the filthiest I had come across in the East Coast. It had no water, was dirty, and stinks to high heaven. The water closet and urinal both didn't flush. A peep into the ladies revealed that it was not much better.

Opposite the Citreon dealership along main road in Temerloh is an unassuming food court. One of the stalls, run by Mrs Heng for the past 18 years, sells the best grilled fish I have tasted in Malaysia, save Sabah. The fishes available are ikan pari (skate), ikan sebelah (sole), ikan kembong (mackerel), siakap (sea perch) and kerapu (garoupa). Tiger prawns and sotong (calamari) are also available. Mrs Heng dips the fresh fish into a marinade which is made from freshly ground red chilis and kunyit (a type of ginger) mixed with some rice flour. After thoroughly soaking the fish in the dip, she places it on a hotplate that has been covered with a layer of banana leaves and generously drizzled with cooking oil. Mrs Heng tells me that the secret of her cooking technique is to not cover the fish (except for the skate) or prawns at all. The calamari are covered for a few minutes only. Covering the fish, she tells me, would trap the steam and allow the fish to cook faster. However, this steams the fish, and it loses it crispy texture and grilled taste. (See my review of the Portuguese Ikan Bar of November 30, 2003. )

While its cooking, the fish is not smothered with sambal. In fact, nothing is added except for cooking oil. The fish is served with two condiments, a sambal belacan made from red chilis, belacan, vinegar and lime juice; and an air asam made from lime juice, tamarind juice, sugar, salt, bawang merah (shallots) and chili padi. The sole costs $10, the small skate $6 and the smallest serving of tiger prawns would set you back another $15. While not exactly the most disgusting toilet on the East Coast, the less said about their toilet, the better.

Mrs Heng informed me that her husband runs a similar grilled fish stall near the Maybank office 10 km away in Mentakab.