Tag: documentary photography

Laughter In The Rain

Saw this roadside stall at Ulu Slim on a wet evening. It was operated by a makcik trio. One makcik was too shy and declined to be photographed. Below is our conversation translated into English from Malay (for the benefit of international followers).

Me: Is that your house behind, makcik?

They: Yes. And do you know why we are selling food in front of our humble kampung house?

Me: So that you don’t have to use that shiny new car (wrapped up) to transport the food elsewhere?

They: OMG! Hahaha. No! So we don’t have to pay rent like those selling at the Ramadan bazaar in town. True or not?

Before I can answer they burst out laughing themselves. We started chatting like friends, talking about the cost of trading and life in the kampung. Love their great sense of humour and gregarious personality.

Since they were closing up, I bought almost all the remaining kuih for only RM 5. Yes, their overheads are lower and it is reflected in the price.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 125, f4, 1/60 sec.

The Goats Who Stare At Men

It is such a cool day and I asked the village goat:

“Know any place nearby where I can get a good sup kambing (mutton soup)?”

All I got was a long, blank stare 🙂 .

*Title inspired by the 2009 movie “The Men Who Stare at Goats” .

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f8, 1/125 sec.

Pit Stop

Is easy not to notice the flashing low fuel warning when you are driving on a country road with such breathtaking scenery. I pulled into an unbranded gas station at the kampung.

Petrol pump attendant Ahmad Burhani asked me if I want the fuel in a ketchup bottle, cooking oil bottle or a mineral water bottle. Only RON 95 grade is available and it starts at RM 2 per bottle.

Ahmad, who is autistic, makes a decent and honest living catering to local motorcyclists who find it inconvenient to ride all the way to town just to re-fill. His father buys the fuel for him.

The affable guy suggested I take all bottles, thinking I was planning to drive all the way to Pahang.

I didn’t even know the Orang Asli kampung and jungle trail can lead to Pahang. Another adventure for another day!

The petrol station’s security guard is a goose and it needs to go for anger management. It kept charging at my knee.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f5, 1/80 sec.

Searching for Captain Slim

I have been in Slim River town and surrounding areas, on and off, for the past three weeks. I wrongly presumed the town is named after a river that is slim and narrow. It wasn’t, it seems.

The river and town were named after the eponymous Captain Slim from the 19th century. The British explorer allegedly discovered the river by accident when he got lost.

There is not much info online, except the same info repeated everywhere as fact, when there are no citations or references.

How can someone who had a town and river named after him had no records? Maybe I was looking at the wrong places but is still odd.

Many British sailors would have kept detailed logs and diaries, even if the captain didn’t. Could this be a romantic anecdote morphed into an urban legend?

It is also quite strange as Slim River, the river, is shallow and rocky. Today, it is a white water rafting location, upstream. He’ll be lost today too, as the river is not on Google Map.

I decided to drive alongside the river and talk to village elders to see if they can recall anything they might have heard pass down from their ancestors.

If the good captain existed, and if he got off his boat at this juncture, he would have seen this amazing sight (minus the rails and gazebo).

This is the Ulu Slim hot springs I visited the other day. It is magical today as steam shot up high because of the downpour.

Surrounded by rolling hills and rainforests, this is one of the most beautiful natural sights in Malaysia. Slim River, the river, is about 50 meters behind me.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f11, 1/160 sec.