Category: People

Getting A Smile From The Stoic Baker

Getting A Smile From The Stoic Baker.

The proprietor and original baker of the 70-year-old and famous Salahuddin Baker in JB is a pious and stern looking man who sat behind rows of fresh curry puffs, and with the sublime light from outside illuminating him. I asked him if I can do an environmental portrait since the scene had so much character.

I presented the portrait to him on a later trip and he cracked a very rare smile. Sharon helped me print and frame the picture in advance. Earlier, we presented a framed print to an Indian lady tailor who inspired the idea.

When I asked for permission to photograph her in her shop without walls and doors, she complained: ‘Every time a stranger photographed me, I never get to see any of the pictures”. Awww.

She, just like the baker, were surprised and happy. That made me happy too.

#jb #city #baker #salahuddin #portrait #documentaryphotography

The Joker Of Singapore And Jus Katira

Singapore is good at promoting foreign food or “hipterising” local food favourites such as nasi lemak’s conversion into a McD burger for National Day. At their Ramadan bazaars, I kept seeing a Katira drink that was a big hit. The crazy Chinese seller who looked like Batman’s Joker, assured me it is halal and showed me the MUIS logo which is similar in mileage to our JAKIM logo.

I thought he was a PRC (local racist and discriminatory slang word for workers from People’s Republic of China) but he is local since he kept using Hokkien (Fujian) expletives when I pushed him for an explanation of the unusual green drink.

What is Katira? It is Tragacanth gum from a shrub mostly found in Iran, Iraq and Western Asia. It is considered a herb and good for detoxing in the Middle East. I didn’t feel like trying after he called it “kapo nerg” or frog’s eggs or tadpoles. Thanks for your honesty, Sir. Wonderful Basil seed drink suffers the same. Finally, I saw one solitary stall selling it from a corner at TTDI’s bazaar this year. The Singapore stall was at Geylang Serai and local Malays loved Air Katira and Jus Katira.

#singapore #food #katira #ramadan #geylangserai

Give Thanks

Give Thanks.

I think it was 2004 and there were thousands of pilgrims at the holy site. I spoke to an anonymous Christian man from the Borneo state of Sabah. He told me he was grateful to one man, besides God. Taken aback, while standing next to a grotto, I asked him who? He said it was the owner and founder of budget airline AirAsia who allowed him and his family to make a pilgrimage from Sabah for the first time, for which it will otherwise be unaffordable to him, as in previously. The honest and simple man told me he is illiterate and didn’t know how to convey his appreciation to the correct person. By God’s will. he picked me out from the sea of crowd and came to the right person.

I conveyed what he said To Sir Tony Fernandes via Twitter @tonyfernandes immediately and Tony was quite pleased.

Remember to book or find your hotel at MyCen Hotels by searching for Penang or Bukit Mertajam from my site at http://www.mycen.my/
Picture of pilgrims congregating on the steps of the shrine in 2016.

St. Anne Church Of Bukit Mertajam, Penang on Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/St.AnneChurchBM/>
MyCen Hotels on Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/mycenhotels/>
Tony Fernandes on Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/tonyfernandes/>

#stanne #feast #bukitmertajam #penang #catholic #church #event #sabah #sabahan #airasia #mycenhotels

Pretty and Petite

I met these two strangers at St Anne’s church in Bukit Mertajam in 2004, I think. I wrote in a blog post captions as reproduced below. Fortunately, I always send by mail for Instagram posting and over the years, every post was archived in Gmail, including the attached pics.

“I thought these two petite lasses looked quite pretty with the warm sunset setting behind their tinted hair. So I asked the strangers if I could take a picture of them. Cousins Leow <@leowyh> (left) and Chin (right) <@mellisa_phei> graciously agreed. They are from Penang Island and were at the St Anne’s Church doing selfies as tourists. When I told them I might post their pic on Instagram, they launched their app and followed me on the spot. I did likewise. Haha. Geeks don’t exchange phone numbers”

I followed them on social media over the years and saw them grow. I hated Leow’s love affair with Snapchat filters and Boomerang antics but like Mellisa;s record of going to university in Taiwan. It was was like watching her lifestory unfolding. Leow is now @leow_bbbbb and Mellisa is at @mchinlife on Instagram,

The Feast of St Anne is on 21st July to 30th July this year at the St Anne Sanctuary in Bukit Mertajam. I usually stay in Penang island as the hotels in Bukit Mertajam were usually fully booked. Not unexpected when there are millions of pilgrims from the region. Facebook of St Anne’s Sanctuary BM 大山脚圣安纳堂

Book or find your hotel at MyCen Hotels http://www.mycen.my/ by searching for Penang or Bukit Mertajam from my site.

Rooms may already be tough to find from today, Not unexpected as the celebrations attract millions of pilgrims from the region. Next, I’ll post some pictures of the church from 2004, 2008. 2014 and 2016

#stanne #feast #bukitmertajam #penang #catholic #church #event

Dili, East Timor

My friend, Eric Wong a hobby currency note collector is looking for a piece of East Timor currency to complete his Asian collection.

I contacted academician and activist Ying Hooi who travels to East Timor frequently, She told me the budding new nation prefers to use US currency. That cannot bode well, just like Cambodia where everything is quoted in USD. Everything became more expensive not just for tourists but for local consumers as well, A worker and even street beggars will ask for “one dollah” for tips.

Update: Ying Hooi says Timor Leste has no own currency because they are a small economy, They currently have coins though. Eric may have shown us a colonial day note which should be more valuable.

Ying Hooi is seen here in the first picture on top of the hill where the statue of Cristo Rei of Dili (or Christ the King of Dili). Beautiful and model like Ying Hooi is sitting on a cliff overlooking the Savu Sea. She also shared a ground level shot of the popular landmark.Her pic of Tai besi Market of Dili is very interesting too. It was a beans seller. 4th pic is supposedly East Timor money from Eric;s Fb.

Timor-Leste, or East Timor had a long hard struggle to independence from Portugal in 1975 and was subsequently invaded and annexed by Indonesia until it was granted Independence in 2002..
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Find a hotel in Dili here: http://www.mycen.my/dili-hotel-deals-finder/

#dili #easttimor #timorleste #island #portugal #indonesia #maluku #islands #cristorei