Jakun Moments – Singapore Casinos

The word Jakun is used to described a country bumpkin or greenhorn who is amazed by seeing something new for the first time. The word somehow entered the vocabulary of both the Chinese and Malays. Jakuns are an actual orang asli tribe and it is derogatory and disrespectful towards the Jakuns to associate them with ignorance and for being unrefined and uncivilized. I think the word is usually used without malice and it has no replacement or perfect synonym.

I will begin a new series on self deprecating Jakun moments during travel. Me and Emily Lowe visited both the new casinos in Singapore – RWS and MBS when they opened in 2011. We two Jakuns went ‘”Wah” when we saw a Lamborghini offered as Jackpot prize. Can’t remember if this was Resorts World or Marina Bay Sands. I can remember I entered both and played wearing short dockers or cargo pants or khakis. We Jakuns thought only a long sleeve batik shirt or a clip-on necktie were compulsory after years of grounding in Genting.

#jakun #singapore #mbs #rws #lambo

Tioman Island

Sharon Teo (https://www.facebook.com/seaDevilyn) who shared her Fraser’s Hill pics for my feature recently has some great pics of Pulau Tioman too. I have covered all the three highland resorts of Genting, Fraser’s and Cameron’s. Use Site Search or Hotel Search at http://www.mycen.my/. Let’s go to the ocean.

Sharon works for a dive centre and dive shop in KL and as such is no stranger to Tioman. Tioman Island has many dive and snorkeling sites including those with shipwrecks. I remember the airport was scary with the turboprop plane banking dramatically to land. You can also travel by ferry from Mersing, Johor.

There are jungles, nature attractions and kampung life on the island to explore when not diving.

See hotels here: http://www.mycen.my/tioman-island-deals-finder/

#tioman #island #pulau #mersing #johor #malaysia #diving #sea #ocean #underwater #dive #resorts #mycenhotels

T&L’s Top 100 Hotels in the World – Oberoi

T&L’s Top 100 Hotels in the World.

Travel & Leisure Magazine and website (http://www.travelandleisure.com/) under TIME Inc has an annual list of The Top 100 Hotels in the World ranked with input from readers and savvy travelers.

This year’s list of the best 100 hotels include exclusive safari lodges, urban sanctuaries, and family-friendly beach resorts that they claimed will inspire some serious wanderlust.

We will look at some of the hotels that made the list that are available for booking at MyCen Hotels. Ranked at 84th is the The Oberoi Udaivilas Udaipur Hotel in the beautiful Lake City of India. On its grounds, is a twenty-acre wildlife sanctuary with deers and wild boars.

Book and see more of the hotel here: https://www.agoda.com/partners/partnersearch.aspx?cid=1775757&pcs=1&hid=111166

Pic from Agoda.com

#oberoi #udaipur #lakecity #india #luxuryhotel #myvenhotels #t&l #travel #travellust

Chuck Norris And The Dog

Burly temple president and community leader, Gurcharan Singh, was like Chuck Norris to me. Dogs walk away and children quiet down when he stares. The last temple priest ran away. He came to sit with me and chat when I ate.

We talked about the temple’s century old history,

I was nervous when I wanted to tell him that conservation of a heritage building is not about about flattening it and rebuilding from ground up. The truth is he is a gentle giant, He feeds the dog with leftover food but no meat. Meat is not allowed near the temple, he stressed. The kampung is much misunderstood too.

In seeking directions in my search or hunt, many Malay villagers from outside warned me about Kampung Singh’s aversion to outsiders. “Tidak campur” (do not mix), they cautioned me. I started to think they might be like an insular Amish community. In fact, outsiders were insular and ignorant. The inhabitants were warm and friendly when I engaged them.

See previous post Chapati in Kalumpang.

#sikh #punjabi #kampungsingh #gurdwara #sikhtemple #kalumpang #tanjungmalim #dog #chucknorris #vaisakhi

Chapati In Kalumpang

Chapati In Kalumpang.

I visited a small Gurdwara or Sikh Temple in Kampung Singh during Vaisakhi prayers. I like the gender neutral community spirit in which the women volunteered to cook at a little space at the temporary temple. I wanted to see the 100 year old temple but it was undergoing restoration.

Hot from the skillet or flat frying pan were chapatis. an unleavened flatbread, which is a staple food in North India. It is spelt as capati here. The very hospitable Punjabi community invited me, the mysterious stranger, to eat and I gladly did.

The little known and hard to find kampung is in Kalumpang near Tanjung Malim.

#sikh #punjabi #chapati #capati #kampungsingh #gurdwara #sikhtemple #kalumpang #tanjungmalim #ethnicfood #cooking #vaisakhi