Getting to Manufahi District

Getting to Manufahi District:
Same (pronounced Sah-meh) is the capital of the District of Manufahi and is easily accessible from Dili by the local bus, known as ‘bis’, which runs daily between Dili and Same, depending on inclement weather. At the time of travel, fares were $9 each way. To catch the bis from Same, go to the ‘terminal’ at the Same market. To catch the bis from Dili go to the Hali Laran market in Balide. The bis also stops anywhere along the route when flagged down and space is available.
Each bis has its own name, dashboard decorations and windscreen tinting. Some bis have their own sound systems where a mix of Timorese, Indonesian, Brazilian and Western pop music blares out of speakers.
Tips for travelling on the bis:

• Wear a headscarf or hat to avoid getting your hair covered in dust (like the pink teddy on the dashboard) and to cover your mouth from dust generated from oncoming traffic
• Take photos as the bis does not travel very fast and the scenery is magical
• Bring ear plugs if you don’t like loud music (ipods are useless!) or ask around for a bis that doesn’t have a sound system
• Keep an eye out for birds, such as eagles
• Take some medication if you suffer from travel sickness as the roads are long and winding
• Wear a warm jacket as it can get cold and windy, especially around Maubisse and Flecher
• Wear boots in case you need to jump out of the bis and walk up the hill through the mud

           
The drive from Dili to Same takes in views of mountains, casuarina forests covered in lichen and epiphytes, coffee plantations shaded by madre de cacao trees, rice fields in Aileu District and passing through the busy markets of Maubisse and Aileu. You might also see Timor ponies laden with goods to take to the market or tied along. The trip is about a 6 hour or more drive along winding and bumpy mountain roads going up from Dili into Maubisse and then down and around and up and down into Same, with an hour break for lunch in Maubisse or Aileu.
                              
MAF (www.maf.org.au) fly to Same as requested, landing on the airstrip at Ladiki, allowing NGOs to access remote areas of Timor-Leste and assisting those with medical emergencies to fly into Dili. The flight to Same takes about half an hour, but can take longer during inclement weather. The plane is a small one which can seat seven passengers and one in the front next to the pilot. The flight goes up, up and up over the mountainous terrain of Timor-Leste’s interior and onwards towards the South coast and then turns around and descends onto the grassed airstrip in Ladiki. The flight can be a bumpy one because of turbulence over the mountains and especially during heavy rain.
An aunt and a cousin accompanied me on the flight to Same and both had never been on a plane before. Hearing them retell their experience is always entertaining as the Timorese have a talent for storytelling and both commented on separate occasions about how the other did not cope very well with the flight. When my aunt spoke about her experience of flying over the clouds and being able to see everything clearly below, others would listen intently and laugh at her experience of being in a plane for the first time.
          
Same is a pretty town, as one Australian had said to me, and the journey there is also a pretty one! As another Australian said to me, you have to do the drive at least once!

Zero Tolerance

Zero Tolerance:
On Sunday, 16 July 2012, gun shots were heard throughout the night in Dili as the PNTL, national police force of Timor-Leste, declared a policy of zero tolerance.  It was later reported on the local and international news that police also used tear gas to disperse crowds.
A young mother of two from Becora, one of the Eastern suburbs in Dili, told me that she had spent the Sunday night taking refuge in an area of palm trees with her two young ones. It was sad to hear her say that her children had never heard gun shots before and so it was hard for her and for her family to get through the night. This was an eerie reminder of the violent 2006 crisis in which children who were born after 1999 were of a generation who had not known the sound of gunfire for seven years. There is yet to be a generation that has not heard  gunfire.
Live media telecasts of the leading party’s Congress sparked raw emotion as party members publicly denounced the opposition party. Again an eerie reminder of 2006 where a live telecast, twice, sparked violence. This time one male youth died in Hera, just east of Dili. His body was taken to the District of Viqueque to be buried and was widely televised and followed on facebook.
Trauma is still evident in Timor-Leste as public displays of emotion, particularly of grieving an unjust death, is common. Trauma is still evident when people flee their homes to seek shelter, rather than remaining in their homes.

Fuan Nabilan ba Matan A’at (in English)

Fuan Nabilan ba Matan A’at:
Fuan Nabilan Foundation ba Matan A’at (Shining Heart for the Blind Foundation) is a small NGO working with people who are blind or have impaired vision. Their office/residence is located in Nularan, Same Vila, across the road from the hospital.  The Foundation was originally founded in 2002 in Dili and was later relocated to Same in 2007. Joana Meluk, is the director, and her husband Joaquim da Costa Tavares, a volunteer at FN, teaches music to the students.

Left to right: Fernanda, Bela, Rita, Januario and Julio
FN has put out two CDs, Fuan Nabilan 1 and Fuan Nabilan 2 (which Januario is holding), with Fuan Nabilan 3 to follow next year! The third CD will be launched by a big concert in Same next year and other Timorese musicians will be invited to come and play. FN also had the honour of playing at the Natarbora Music Festival this year. Band members Julio, Bela, Rita and Januario play acoustic guitars and traditional drums and all songs are written by Joaquim.
FN also make dusters from raffia. Below is a photo of Fernanda making a colourful duster. Raffia is imported from Kupang and the members can make raffia dusters according to colour choice. Available colours are deep pink, yellow, blue and green.FN also has a program of integrating blind and visually impaired children into schools and two students Jakel and Ediana are attending local primary schools. Ediana is doing very well and achieving high marks at school!

Jakel and Ediana with ukueles, also used in traditional Timorese music

Two of the FN members also give therapeutic massages and foot reflexology. Julio and Bela were trained in Malaysia for a year and are very good at what they do! Bela lost her vision at the age of 3 after contracting conjunctivitis (matan mean). As she was living in the remote village of Rotuto her parents tried coconut oil and penicillin. Bela can locate and manipulate all the pressure points and is very good at getting knots out. Despite her small frame she is quite strong and also quite chatty. She goes home to see her family on the weekend and she can also go alone to kiosks. She is also a good singer.
For more information on Fuan Nabilan please contact Joana and Joaquim when in Timor-Leste or Friends of Same. Also go to http://fuannabilan.infoxchange.tl/ for more information. You can join the Fuan Nabilan group on facebook. To order the CDs please contact the Friends of Same www.friendsofsame.org or call into FN when visiting Same. To see a clip go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v+7Oj-WMbBXpw

Corrupção: O exemplo vindo de Timor (in Portuguese)

Corrupção: O exemplo vindo de Timor:

Paulo Morais [Opinião]

Corrupção: O exemplo vindo de Timor

[ Enquanto em Timor se condenam ministros, em Portugal faz-se pouco para combater a corrupção. ]

_________________________

por PAULO MORAIS

Fonte: http://rr.sapo.pt

Em Timor, a ministra da Justiça, Lúcia Lobato, foi condenada a cinco anos de prisão. Um exemplo para Portugal, onde a condenação de um ministro jamais seria possível. 

Suspeita de beneficiar construtores que financiavam o seu partido, a ministra foi suspensa, o Parlamento retirou-lhe a imunidade e foi julgada em menos de um mês. Mas não é este o único exemplo de combate militante à corrupção em Timor. Também o ministro da Administração Estatal, Arcanjo Leite, está a contas com a justiça. Sem contemplações. 

Além dum sistema judicial que aparentemente funciona, os timorenses querem aumentar a transparência do sistema. Criaram recentemente um portal da transparência, que permite aos cidadãos conherem as receitas e as despesas da responsabilidade do seu governo. A informação é a maior vacina para a corrupção. 

Os líderes políticos e até religiosos timorenses denunciam a corrupção, como ainda recentemente fez D. Basílio do Nascimento. Sem tibiezas, identificam o fenómeno, julgam os responsáveis, condenam-nos e prendem-nos. Sabem que o desenvolvimento do seu país depende deste combate. 

Curiosamente, na mesma semana, em Timor é condenado um ministro, enquanto um relatório europeu revela que o seu antigo colonizador, Portugal, está entre os países que menos se esforçam para combater a corrupção.

[11-06-2012]

Civil Society Defence and Security Monitor Requests Release of 2008 Report on Weapons Recovery | East Timor Law and Justice Bulletin

Civil Society Defence and Security Monitor Requests Release of 2008 Report on Weapons Recovery | East Timor Law and Justice Bulletin

Government provides financial support to 259 victims of gender-based violence | East Timor Law and Justice Bulletin

Government provides financial support to 259 victims of gender-based violence | East Timor Law and Justice Bulletin

ASEAN Youth Movement gathered in front of Parliament House

ASEAN Youth Movement accompanied with Community representatives, Friends of Burma, NGO-COD North, TACDB and TERRA, gathered in front of Parliament House and protested against Hatgyi dam construction on the Salween River in Karen state, Burma

Anwar to retire if he loses next polls - August 18, 2012

Anwar to retire if he loses next polls
August 18, 2012
He is however confident that Pakatan Rakyat will win in the next polls.
KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim plans to end his 30-year political career if he fails to unseat Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak at the next election, he said.
Anwar was once deputy prime minister in the Barisan Nasional government that has ruled Malaysia since independence...Expand this post »

Blog posting: It’s Umno’s work, says the real AnwarTeoh El Sen | August 18, 2012

Blog posting: It’s Umno’s work, says the real Anwar
Teoh El Sen | August 18, 2012
Minutes after Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim ended a live chat with the public on Google, hackers posted a message on his blog with an apology to Najib Tun Razak about his 'transgressions'
KUALA LUMPUR: A strange ‘Hari Raya apology message’  from Anwar Ibrahim to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak posted in the former’s blog...Expand this post »

NGOs Slam Activist Charges

NGOs Slam Activist Charges:
A consortium of more than 20 Cambodian human rights groups has condemned a court in the country’s capital for pursuing what they called “politically-motivated” charges against an outspoken human rights activist.

In a joint statement, the organizations such as Licadho and the Community Legal Education Center (CLEC) called the charges against Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) activist Chan Soveth the “decade’s most serious threat to human rights work in Cambodia.”

The municipal court in Phnom Penh recently summoned Chan Soveth to answer charges that he illegally aided a resident of Broma village in Kratie province’s Chhlong district involved in a mass occupation of land that triggered a security crackdown and bloody clashes in May.

The clashes occurred after some 1,000 village families refused a government order to vacate state land they had used for farming and which activists said had been awarded as a concession to Russian firm Casotim, which plans to set up a rubber plantation.

Authorities assert that villagers were planning to secede from Cambodia and create their own state and that Chan Soveth had assisted one of the “secessionist leaders” in violation of article 544 of the Penal Code.

The rights groups contend that there is no evidence that the recipient of assistance had committed such a crime and say that the authorities have only offered blanket allegations that the villagers had established a secessionist movement.

“With the absence of any credible underlying felony, Soveth’s assistance to a victim of land-grabbing—which falls firmly within ADHOC’s mandate—cannot and must not be criminalized,” the statement said.

“We … urge the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to maintain its independence in this case. We also call upon the executive branch to refrain from interfering with the judicial process.”

Chan Soveth himself has protested his innocence of any crime in assisting the villagers in their land dispute.

“I haven’t done anything like what they have accused me of. Honestly, I don’t know what to say about this accusation,” he told RFA’s Khmer service in an interview.

“As you already know, civil society groups are doing their normal work with this issue. If that results in such an allegation, then all those who work to protect human rights will be scared when they see the [authorities] doing this,” he said.

The activist said that if the court did its job independently and through due process, the charges against him would be dropped.

“Honestly, now I am very surprised and scared after seeing the warrant as [the court] never once asked me about the issue and simply accused me. I am so worried about this,” he said.

Attack on NGOs

Suon Bunsak, executive secretary of the Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee (CHRAC), called the charges against Chan Soveth “nothing short of an attempt to criminalize legitimate NGO activities.”

“Soveth’s summons represents the boldest attack against human rights work that we’ve seen in a decade,” he said.

The group of rights watchdogs noted that the summons was issued to Chan Soveth less than two weeks after a nationally-televised speech by Prime Minister Hun Sen during which he called on an unnamed NGO worker to “confess” for his role in assisting the Kratie villagers.

During the speech, Hun Sen asked his staff whether the NGO worker had been called for questioning and was informed that he had not been. The criminal case against Chan Soveth was opened only 48 hours after the prime minister’s speech, the joint statement said.

Chan Soveth’s summons follows the arrest of Association of Democrats leader Mam Sonando who has been accused of sparking the land revolt and the ensuing clashes in which in an innocent teenage girl was fatally shot by security forces.

Mam Sonando faces 30 years imprisonment if convicted on all charges.

Naly Pilorge, director of Licadho, called 2012 “the worst year for human rights in Cambodia in over a decade, by just about any measure.”

“We have seen increased violence, increased use of force by the authorities, an increase in killings, increased judicial intimidation, and now we see an attempt to criminalize legitimate human rights work,” Naly Pilorge said.

“This case threatens to destroy all remnants of Cambodia’s vibrant civil society – one of the last standing positive aspects of UNTAC’s legacy,” she said, referring to the UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia, which sought to restore the country’s government and legal system following the end of the Khmer Rouge era.

Chan Soveth must appear in court on Aug. 24 and, if convicted, faces one to three years imprisonment and a fine of U.S. $500 to U.S. $1,500.

Reported by RFA’s Khmer service and by Joshua Lipes. Translated By Taing Sarada and Sum Sok Ry. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

Freedom of Speech Roundup

Freedom of Speech Roundup:
In the weekly Freedom of Speech Roundup, Sampsonia Way presents some of the week’s top news on freedom of expression, journalists in danger, artists in exile, and banned literature.

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova of the band Pussy Riot, in custody at the Moscow Tagansky District Court. Tolokonnikova, along with bandmates Maria Alekhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich, was sentenced to two years in prison for a Febuary performance in a Russian Orthodox cathedral. Photo: Denis Bochkarev

This week, three members of the Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in prison. Julian Assange has been granted asylum from Ecuador, though Britain has refused to give him safe passage out of the country. In South Korea two twitter users have been the subject of presidential “retaliation” for their tweets, while in Malaysia a social media blackout was used to protest a recent amendment to the Malaysian Evidence Act 1950.
In other news, Mexican poet Javier Sicilia’s Caravan for Peace has kicked-off its month-long tour, and the Council of Europe foreign ministers has called for libel reform in Europe.
Follow the links below for these stories and more for the week of August 8-15, 2012.

Pussy Riot jailed for two years – live updates

The Guardian. Members of feminist punk band Pussy Riot have been sentenced to two years in jail over an anti-Putin protest at a Moscow cathedral. Follow the latest news and reaction here.

Korea Policing the Net. Twist? It’s South Korea.

The New York Times. A government critic who called the president a curse word on his Twitter account found it blocked. And a judge who wrote that the president was out to “screw” Internet users who challenged his authority was fired in what was widely seen as retaliation. Read more

In Syria, Wave of Deadly Attacks Against Journalists

Committee to Protect Journalists. Series of attacks against journalists in Syria over the past two weeks have included the killing of at least three journalists and the kidnapping of several others. Pro-government media have borne the brunt of the recent attacks. Read more

Malaysia: Blackout Protest Against Internet Censorship Legislation

Malaysia Star. On August 14, Malaysian netizens “blacked out” their activity on social media and other sites in protest against the second of two recent amendments made to the Malaysian Evidence Act 1950. Read here

A Postcard and Interview from Burma

The New Yorker. A reminder that the Burmese government has adopted more of the vocabulary of freedom than the spirit of it. Read here
DVB. An interview with Burma’s Union Solidarity and Development Party’s secretary and Lower House’s Banks and Monetary Development Committee chair Aung Thaung on the country’s reform process. Read the interview

Hear the Voices from Belarus

The Dissident Blog. Natallia Radzina, editor-in-chief at the independent news site charter97.org gives a report from the front lines, now that the digital domain plays an increasingly important role in the fight for freedom of speech. Read here

Mexican Activists Kick Off U.S. Caravan Calling for End of Drug War

Washington Post. The Caravan for Peace, organized by Mexican poet-turned-activist Javier Sicilia, whose son was killed by drug traffickers last year, kicked off a month-long, cross-country journey. Los Angeles was the first of around 20 stops for the peace caravan in its journey across the United States. Read more


At the Caravan for Peace families of victims from Mexico will tell the story of the human toll of the war on drugs. Here are some of the testimonies.

Wikileaks and Assange

Open Democracy. The WikiLeaks storm of 2010 seems to be spent. But as a symptom of what is happening to journalism, the WikiLeaks phenomenon carries profound significance, says Charlie Beckett. Read more
The Guardian. According to Mark Weisbrot, Ecuador is right to stand up to the US in granting Julian Assange asylum. Read more
Democracy Now. Britain is refusing to give Julian Assange safe passage out of the country, even though Ecuador has granted him political asylum. Britain has also threatened to raid the embassy in order to arrest Assange. In response Ecuador has asked the Organization of American States to hold a meeting Aug. 23 to discuss the diplomatic crisis. Read more

Why is Honduras So Violent?

Al Jazeera. Since Manuel Zelaya was ousted as president in 2009, Honduras has become one of the most dangerous countries for members of the media. Twenty two journalists have been killed in the country in the last two years. See the report

Egypt to try Journalists for Defaming, Insulting the President

CNN. Egyptian journalists Tawfiq Okasha and Islam Afifi will be tried for defaming and insulting President Mohamed Morsy. Is Morsy a step forward or back? Read more

Council of Europe foreign ministers call for libel reform

CPJ. After two Italian journalists were sentenced to four months in prison and fined 15,000 euros (US$18,500) for libel, the Committee of Ministers of the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe issued a declaration denouncing the abuse of libel laws and “libel tourism.” Read more

Two antigraft judges arrested for bribery in Central Java

Two antigraft judges arrested for bribery in Central Java: Investigators from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) have arrested two judges with the Semarang Corruption Court for allegedly accepting bribes from graft defendants.KPK deputy chairman ...

Flying from S’pore cheaper amid rising fares

Flying from S’pore cheaper amid rising fares: Amid the costly air fares charged by domestic airlines ahead of Idul Fitri, many people living in border areas, like Batam, Bintan and Karimun, have anticipated the matter by taking direct, and ...

Sects observe Idul Fitri earlier

Sects observe Idul Fitri earlier: Some Muslim minority sects across the country have already celebrated the first day of Idul Fitri on Friday and Saturday, in advance of the government's decision as to when the religious holiday ...

Jakartans enjoy ‘serene’ capital

Jakartans enjoy ‘serene’ capital: Deserted: Traffic on the normally busy Jl. HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta is extremely light on Saturday afternoon. More than five million Jakartans have left the capital to celebrate the first day ...

Govt sets Idul Fitri for Sunday

Govt sets Idul Fitri for Sunday: The first day of Idul Fitri, which marks the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadhan, will fall on Sunday, the Religious Affairs Ministry has announced.The decision was made after the ministry ...

Sleepless in Soekarno-Hatta Airport

Sleepless in Soekarno-Hatta Airport:
Hints and tips for spending the night at Jakarta Airport.

Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta Airport, a.k.a. Soetta, has many evening international arrivals and early morning domestic departures. For example:

International Arrivals | Domestic Departures

	TK67	Istanbul	18:20	|		Y6-851	Ambon	01:05
	QR670	Doha	22:05	|		RI92	Medan	04:30
	EK358	Dubai	22:30	|		JT34	Denpasar	04:30
	CX797	Hong Kong	22:50	|		JT776	Manado	05:00
	PR535	Manila	23:55	|		XN800	Sorong	05:00

Some visitors are therefore choosing to spend the night at Jakarta Airport.
This is not just to save money; with jet-lag and the time difference, tourists may not feel tired yet, especially if they slept on their flight.
Here are some choices for how to spend the night at Jakarta Airport.

Rest | Eat | Other Ideas

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Rest

Even with jet-lag, some people find it easy to sleep any time, anywhere.

The authoritative guide on the subject, the website Sleeping in Airports, gives a positive review of Jakarta Airport. Having said that, Jakarta Airport is 1 of 12 nominees for Sleeping in Airports' 2012 Award for the Worst Airport (i.e. most uncomfortable airport for sleeping) in Asia.
If you want to lie down, here are some suggestions:

• - Do it inside the secure area (i.e. after the security check), which is passengers and staff only. It is safer than the open/public-access areas.
• - Have your valuables in a place that cannot be accessed or at least not easily.
• - The inter-terminal bus may not operate very often overnight. Get to the right terminal first before relaxing. You can see which flights depart from which terminal here.
• - Take the eyemask and/or earplugs from your international flight with you; failing that, have your sunglasses ready.
• - Reconfirm your flight's departure time first; there may have been a last-minute schedule change.
• - Set an alarm on your watch or phone, so you don't miss your flight. Don't forget to set the local time first.

Alternately, Plan B is to book a room at a nearby hotel. Many of them include free airport transfers upon request.

Eat

If you have a severe case of the munchies or your domestic flight does not include food, the following restaurants are available:
As well as the usual assortment of burgers and fries, the Indonesian version of the Golden Arches also has fried chicken, rice and ice tea... but curiously no thick shakes. Open 24 hours in Terminal 2. Local rival A&W is also available during daylight hours in Terminal 1.
Japanese fast food chain mixes it up with a wide range of package meals for only a few dollars; it is the cheapest place to get a healthy cooked meal. We recommend the Beef Yakiniku, but it is also good for green tea and fruit juice. Open in Terminal 2.
Good not only for donuts and drinks, DD also does salad rolls called "Boston Sandwich". Branches are in Terminals 1 and 2 but are not open overnight, so best suited for breakfast.
Please note: Indonesian domestic flights do not have restrictions on liquids, so you can bring a drink with you. While AirAsia forbids its passengers bringing their own food/drinks on board (so they have to buy items from the AirAsia menu), personal experience is they do not enforce it.

Other Ideas

- Buy a local SIM card ("perdana") for your phone

This avoids potentially expensive roaming charges. Indonesian SIM cards require the user to register before using it, (in theory) to prevent the phone being used for crime; the shop assistant will help you with this, if you ask them nicely or give them a tip. The most popular pre-paid SIM card is Simpati.
- Visit the viewing/observation deck

Ironically, it is one of the few places where you definitely will not be stared at by others. Perfect if you want a bit of quiet/reflection time. The stairs to the deck are to the left of the entrance of Terminal 1A.
- Get some local currency

Some more remote destinations rarely accept credit cards and have few ATMs. As foreign banks charge per transaction, it is usually recommended to take the maximum amount: Rp1 250 000 ($US135) for ATMs that dispense Rp50 000 notes; Rp2 500 000 ($US270) for ATMs that dispense Rp100 000 notes. While ATMs can be found throughout the airport, the greatest concentration can be found in the Departures area (upstairs) in Terminal 2. Don't forget to set aside some money for airport tax later.
- Use the toilet facilities

Jakarta Airport was recently judged to have the second best airport toilets in the country. So, chances are they are nicer in Jakarta than at your destination. No showers, though.
- Get a free "tour" of the airport on the yellow inter-terminal bus

If you have little else to do, this passes the time in relative comfort.
Have you stayed overnight at Jakarta Airport? What did you do to pass the time? What activities would you recommend to others?
Sleepless in Soekarno-Hatta Airport is brought to you by Indonesia Matters, where you can book flights in Indonesia, and features listings of Indonesian hotels, like Kuta hotels, Sanur hotels, hotels in Jakarta and near Jakarta airport, and more.

Streetfood in Georgetown

Streetfood in Georgetown:
By Mike Aquino
No town in Malaysia can match Penang for its head-over-heels devotion to good food. Every Penangite is a natural foodie, with very strongly-held opinions on where you can get the tastiest char koay teow and which mamak (Indian) stall in Georgetown delivers the best value for your ringgit.
Blame Penang’s colonial history for the hotchpotch of flavours; Georgetown’s past as a British trading depot brought together a rich mix of ethnicities, allowing Indian, Malay, Chinese, Thai, and Arab communities to rub elbows, taste each other’s food, and come out the richer for it. Trade also opened access to a mind-boggling variety of ingredients, allowing cooks to improve on traditional recipes.

Ordering a meal at Gurney Drive, Penang. Pic: Tourism Malaysia.

These days, when the conversation turns to good eats, your average Penangite will mention one location first: Persiaran Gurney, or Gurney Drive, in Penang’s historic Georgetown district. A 1.5 kilometre-long esplanade on Georgetown’s northern end, Gurney Drive is famous for the hawker centre next to the roundabout.
This is an ideal place to start your Penang culinary journey. The place is packed with dozens of food stalls, each one generally dedicated to a single dish. Some of these stalls are family affairs, started long ago by an enterprising ancestor and staffed by the second or third generation. The hawkers are arranged around a foodcourt with tables and seats. The fun begins around 6-7pm and continues into the wee hours shutting down at 3am (weekdays) or 5am (weekends).
For something less hectic or more upscale wander the length of Gurney drive to try the other, classier cafes and restaurants facing the promenade. But say you’ve made your way to Gurney Drive, what Penang food should you try first? Allow us to make a few suggestions.
Char koay teow: the name of this calorific noodle dish translates to “stir-fried rice-cake strips”. To make char koay teow, flat rice noodles are drenched with soy sauce, chilli, shrimp paste, shelled cockles, bean sprouts, chopped Chinese chives, egg, pork lard croutons, and whole prawns, then stir-fried in pork fat.
If that sounds heart-clogging, that’s because it is: the high cholesterol and sodium content of char koay teow does not endear it to cardiologists, but the average Penangite laughs in the face of cardiac arrest, if only for the sake of a good helping served hot from the wok.
The dish’s origins lie among historic Georgetown’s coolies, for whom char koay teow was a delicious, affordable and energy-rich meal. Its ingredients were easy to come by – the adjacent sea is a rich source for cockles and shrimp. Its popularity continues in present-day Georgetown, where more expensive char koay teow come with giant-size prawns and other premium ingredients.

Line Clear Nasi Kandar in Penang. Pic: amrufm / Creative Commons.

Nasi kandar: the archetypal Penang rice meal combines the humble grain staple with assorted Indian-inspired side dishes which tend towards a surfeit of broth, gravy or curry. The point is to drown your rice before eating it, a practice known as “banjir” (flooding).
Nasi kandar takes its name from the days when Indian hawkers would sell rice meals from the street, bearing their wares on rattan baskets suspended from a yoke (kandar) that sat on the hawker’s shoulders. The menu has improved vastly from days when customers ate simple but hearty dishes like curry beef, hardboiled eggs, and okra. Today’s nasi kandar has a significantly improved repertoire with choices that include fried chicken, fish roe, squid, and curried spleen.
The best nasi kandar comes from stalls that have been serving the stuff for generations using the same recipe, staffed by cooks directly descended from the ambulant vendors from the old days.

Gurney Drive Hawker Centre, Penang. Pic: Tourism Malaysia.

Penang asam laksa: this is a hot, sour, and spicy bomb of a noodle dish! Thick rice noodles are drowned in a thick broth brewed in tamarind water with minced fish, onions, turmeric, prawn paste and chilli, with lemongrass to taste and Vietnamese coriander on top.
Asam laksa has no pork, making it a healthier noodle choice. Laksa is usually served with prawn paste on the side, and true aficionados think nothing of spooning it on liberally, but the smell takes getting used to.
The dish is very open to adaptation, too – walk around and you’ll encounter an asam laksa cooked in many different ways such as Malay-style, Chinese-style, or Thai-style (with coconut milk and lime), among others.

So what’ll it be? Whether you stay on Gurney Drive or wander deeper into Georgetown to explore other food outlets lining the historic streets, you’ll find rich pickings for the foodie determined to explore Penang’s variegated culinary landscape. Bon appétit!
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Author Bio
Mike Aquino

Mike Aquino is a writer, which means his office is anywhere he plugs in his laptop. He is based in Manila at the moment, but has had spells working as an advertising copywriter in Singapore and Malaysia. He is currently the guide in charge of About.com Southeast Asia Travel.
If you enjoyed this article and would like to find out more about travelling to Malaysia, please visit the Tourism Malaysia website

The Mooncake Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival in Malaysia

The Mooncake Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival in Malaysia:
By Joanne Lane
The Mooncake Festival in Kuala Lumpur is held in September, the eighth month of the year. Now before you think I’ve been eating too much mooncake or drinking too much moonshine, let me tell you why.
It’s simple. The Chinese New Year begins in February so September is not actually the ninth month on the Malaysian timetable. But whatever your calendar is, it’s a dazzling spectacle, especially at night when the city lights are complemented by the colourful paper lanterns of all shapes, sizes and colours displayed outside homes and shops or in street parades.

Incense coils are a common sight around Malaysia particularly in districts such as Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown. Pic: Joanne Lane

The festival is celebrated to signify the end of the harvesting season but it also celebrates the overthrow of the Mongol warlords in ancient China. Here we’ll have to take back in time to 1280 AD to explain. This is when the Mongols overthrew the Soong dynasty in China and imposed the Yuan dynasty in China.
Why is this important in Malaysia you may well ask? Well there are a lot of Chinese in Malaysia and until quite recently they were the largest ethnic group. Even though they aren’t any more, that honour belongs to the Malays themselves, Chinese festivals are celebrated with gusto. In fact in multi-ethnic Malaysia festivals of all traditions are celebrated including those of Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist and Christian origins.
Today lanterns form a big part of the celebration, as they are to remind the people of the time they used lanterns as their only source of light. Kids in particular love this aspect of the festival and are often seen roaming around with lanterns in the shape of animals. In Malaysia this particular event is often called the Lantern Parade. There are also lantern parades during the Chinese New Year celebrations, so if you see any such parade advertised just consider what time of year it is. If it’s around February it’s Chinese New Year, if not it could well be part of the Mooncake or Mid-Autumn Festival.
One of the best displays of Mooncake Festival lanterns is the Thean Hou Temple on Robson Hill. In 2011 a lantern parade was held at Central Market in Chinatown.
The best bit about the festival is of course what you get to eat. The round mooncakes are sweet or savoury and often given by younger Chinese to their seniors as an attempt to gain favour. Eating mooncakes in the market place is a delight; biting through crunchy pastry into red beans, ham or creamy egg yolk. Some are also sweet with chocolate and cinnamon flavours. Others have a distinctly Malaysian twist with pandan leaves and durian inside – eek some of you will no doubt say!

Mooncakes. Pic: misbehave, Flickr.

The best place to eat them in Kuala Lumpar is Jalan Petaling in Chinatown where eateries display them in brightly coloured boxes.
While you may not be surprised that mooncakes are round, their shape represents the unity of the family to the Chinese. So in Malaysia the Chinese celebrate the festival with family gatherings and prayers.
There’s some tradition to this. In Chinese Halika and Foochow families the oldest women lead the prayers at the moment when the full moon appears. Before you eat a mooncake they are first offered on altars to deities with the customary lighting of joss sticks, red candles and the burning of golden joss paper. Thirty minutes later the eating begins.

Another Chinese festival that is very popular around Malaysia is the Festival of the Hungry Ghost.
If you miss the Mooncake Festival this year, Malaysia has a wealth of public holidays and special holidays. There are 44 public holidays each year largely based on the Muslim calendar or the Hindu and Chinese calendars.

Guandi Temple in Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur. Pic: Joanne Lane.

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Author Bio
 Joanne Lane (Australia)
Joanne Lane is an Australian freelance photojournalist based in Brisbane. A love of writing from an early age led her to complete a university journalism degree in 1996 with the idea of pursuing sports journalism, but she soon found the constraints of the newsroom too much. The travel bug soon hit and Jo has now travelled to some 40 countries or more and lived in a few as well, writing and documenting her experiences for newspapers, magazines and online sources around the world. For more details, see www.visitedplanet.com.
If you enjoyed this article and would like to find out more about travelling to Malaysia, please visit the Tourism Malaysia website

Enjoying the hospitality of headhunters in Borneo

Enjoying the hospitality of headhunters in Borneo:
By Joanne Lane
Rumah Bundong is a 60 year-old, 50-door longhouse near Kapit in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. It is inhabited by about 40 families of Iban ethnicity, who are famed, amongst many things, for headhunting.
Yes that’s right—headhunting—and 40 families means there are a lot of them. Still, I’m encouraged to learn they ceased the practice around WWII because I’ve elected to stay with them for two nights and frankly I don’t want them getting any ideas.
When I first arrived at Rumah Bundong, one of the first things I saw were skulls swaying from rafters in front of the headman’s bilik (door). Whether it was a warning for unruly guests or a gruesome souvenir for tourists, who knows? In any case I soon took little notice of it because there were so many other things to take in.

Skulls hanging from the rafters at Rumah Bundong. Pic: Joanne Lane.

The longhouse was located about an hour’s bumpy drive from Kapit and across a suspension bridge; in many ways a dramatic arrival that added to the experience.
A ruai (verandah) connected the 100-metre long structure with doors leading to individual family areas. The verandah was a communal area where women dried grains, divided the fish catch, worked on handicrafts, minded children and chatted. The men also grouped together to smoke, mend fishing nets and carve hooks. There was a real sense of a close-knit community.
I was given accommodation for a fee with the headman, Tua Rumah Bundong Tajok, and his family. His married children lived with their own families in a series of rooms in the same quarters, while single members slept in the lounge or near the guest quarters – a loft above the living area.

The 100 metre long stretch of the Rumah Bundong longhouse. Pic: Joanne Lane.

There was electricity, a television, they had mobile phones and lived in basic but comfortable rooms. An outhouse was used for washing and toileting, but most people bathed down at the river.
Few in the family spoke English but it didn’t matter. The headman’s wife and daughters prepared delicious meals of meat and vegetables that we ate communally on the kitchen floor. It was wonderful to be included in family life and not treated differently and I dived into the bowls with everybody else.
The first day I spent playing with the headman’s grandchildren, bathing in the river and exploring to get a sense of the rhythms of the longhouse. Most people were farmers and spent the days working in the fields. There was also a school on site for younger children. In the afternoon the workers would return home and gather on the verandahs.
On the second day I accompanied the headman, some of his family and a dozen workers to their fields. We set out at dawn, walking for 30 minutes across hillsides and rivers to reach what appeared to be a series of burnt out, hilly paddocks.
It didn’t look too promising to me but I guessed they must have recently cleared them for replanting – the task for today. While we sat eating breakfast one of the older men, covered liberally in tattoos, produced a chicken and slit its throat. When he dipped the feathers in the blood and set them in a dish of food—perhaps to bless our work—visions of headhunting came to mind again.

The lunch time feast after a sweaty morning in the fields. Pic: Joanne Lane.

However it was soon clear the chicken was our lunch. The headman burnt its feathers in a fire and began to prepare it. Meanwhile the men started making holes in the ground with poles and the ladies trailed behind filling the pockets with rice seeds.
After watching for awhile I joined the women and was soon scratched, sweating and covered in ash. It was hard work. When we broke for lunch the women gave me a long sleeved shirt, pants and a conical farming hat for protection.
We feasted on chicken, rice and vegetables in a hut by a small stream. Before returning to the fields we all jumped in the water to cool off. As the midday sun came out in burning glory I wondered if I could bow out gracefully, but I didn’t want to let the side down.
By the time we were finished I realized I had earned my kudos and back at the longhouse was invited into homes, had food pressed on me and treated as part of the community.
On my final day a tour group visited the longhouse. Each was given a sip of tuak, rice wine, and food to eat and there was music and dancing. I was seated with the headman’s family throughout this and it seemed an acknowledgement I had become part of the family even just for those few days.
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Author Bio
Joanne Lane (Australia)
Joanne Lane is an Australian freelance photojournalist based in Brisbane. A love of writing from an early age led her to complete a university journalism degree in 1996 with the idea of pursuing sports journalism, but she soon found the constraints of the newsroom too much. The travel bug soon hit and Jo has now travelled to some 40 countries or more and lived in a few as well, writing and documenting her experiences for newspapers, magazines and online sources around the world. For more details, see www.visitedplanet.com.

 If you enjoyed this article and would like to find out more about travelling to Malaysia, please visit the Tourism Malaysia website