Balik Kampong - On The Way Home

This the house that Bapak built . Thanks to Sis Lili....she had the house repaired and gave it a new coat of paint . Bapak was not too keen initially but relented when a part of the ceiling on the first floor gave way .



So for the next two months , the house was in complete chaos and mess . I can imagine the hard work they put in , the stress , the daily attitude of the workers , plus my father's constant ' short fuse ' with everybody . A pain to one's state of mind both emotionally and physically . I went thru all that too when I had my house renovated recently ...only Bapak was not around to be the unofficial supervisor .

My Bapak...

Oh ya ....of all the colors ...why that particular color for the house ? According to Sis Lili , Bapak wanted the house to be in that color . Hmmmm....kind of look nice in this pix.

My Children at Penang Airport ...lost in their own world .

Balik kampong means going to the house that father built . Yes, the excitement to be home is there , on the other hand this trip left each one of us to be on our toes ..........precautions taken in light of this virus H1N1. ( Horlick one , Nescafe one ...new terms as coined in the kampung ) . I insisted my children to use the face masks at the airport and in the plane too . Of course I had to use it as well .

Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Surprised that the place was not that decorated for the Hari Raya celebrations .

At KLIA ...we browsed around while waiting for our next flight to Miri . My son Uzair joined us here ; his campus is about 10 km away from the airport . His friend helped to sent him ; a RM50 given for the minyak kereta because nothing is free and taken for granted . Now the family is complete .

I expected to see familiar faces on the way home .....there were none . Quite a disappointment .

Balik Kampong - Why ?

8 Syawal 1430H.......its not too late to wish a " Selamat Hari Raya " to all my readers ...whoever and wherever they may be . Thank you from the bottom of my heart for making a pit stop at this blog .


Alhamdullillah , as in past years I joined the usual exodus of the tens and thousands of the Malaysian population to " balik kampong " for the celebration . Only that for the past two years ...my balik kampong is not of jumping into my car and driving the odd 190 kilometers home from Bintulu to Miri . Now its hopping into airplanes and crossing the South China Sea from the peninsula to Borneo Island . I would be home in about 9 hours flat taking into account the time I set off for Penang Airport .

Nephews Sopian Bujang and Rozaimi Elwi
at my Aunt's house in Kuala Baram . I love this pix .

Its a Malaysian culture this Balik kampong thing . People would be leaving the city ; with roads leading out of the city to their respective hometowns . And its not only for Hari Raya ; the usual scenario is repeated for Chinese New Year , Deepavali and Gawai . The Malays are not the only group doing this ' Balik Kampong ' ....it goes out to the other races too ; an opportunity for one to get out of the city and spent the long holidays elsewhere .


Home Sweet Home . Nothing beats the vibrants of being home on this joyous occasion ...of meeting my brothers and their famlies and my sisters plus my dear father too . The feeling of being surrounded by family members , relatives and friends is one of pure happiness ; to meet them personally ...and not to talk over the phone or " SMSed " them or e- mail them . I am still in Malaysia and there is no reason not to be home .

3rd cousins ; son Amir ( left ) and Nasri Affendi
First Time Encounter

Father looked forward for us to be home ....and my children and myself looked forward to be there too . Busy me would be introducing my children to relatives and cousins ...to the sighs and exasperation from them .

Son Uzair and 2nd cousin Sheetel .
Both can't forget the incident on one particular Hari Raya ;
Sheetel fell into the backyard's drain when they were playing chase .

Well that didn't stop this old mother hen from forever fluttering and chuckling away ...anything to create memories for my children ...as such rare occsions of meeting and crossing paths with second and third cousins are indeed rare .

That's me ; at about 13 or 14 yrs old . Pix taken at our old house
146B Jalan Ungu , Miri .

I just need to be close to home for the Raya celebrations and its not difficult to balik kampong to meet love ones and friends . I had a wonderful and joyous Raya ...I hope everything goes well for you too .

A Lucky Person Indeed

A very good morning there . I must be a very lucky person today . I received a winning notifications in my mail....telling me I won 500 000 sterlings . Wow.....convert that to our Malaysian Ringgit ...and I am an instant millionaire . Too good to be true ............

Here's the mail :

Your e-mail address winning details:

Winning Batch No: CAT2/50/009

E- No: CAT2/E29/2-ND

AWARD NOTIFICATION

It is obvious that this notification will come to you as a surprise but please find time to read it carefully as we congratulate you over your success in the following official publication of results of the E-mail electronic online Sweepstakes organized by Microsoft® / Visa® Promotion Award Team and confirmed by our co-sponsor Msn® International, through their latest internet software (NO TICKETS WERE SOLD). This promotion was set-up to encourage the active users of the Internet Microsoft Windows.

Where in your email address emerged as one of the 50 online Winning emails in the 2nd category and therefore attracted a cash award of 500,000.00 GBP (Five Hundred Thousand pounds Sterling).

We write to officially notify you of this award and to advise you to contact the processing office immediately upon receipt of this message for more information concerning the verification, processing and eventual payment of the above prize to you.

CONTACT CLAIMS OFFICE:

Microsoft® / Visa® Promotion Department

Email: mcvteam@universia.es

Tel: +44 702 409 2969

Fax: +44 870 495 1617

Do e-mail the above Claims office at once with all the claims requirements below to avoid unnecessary delay.

PAYMENT PROCESSING FORM:

1. Full Name:

2. Address:

3. Nationality:

4. Date of Birth:

5. Occupation:

6. Sex:

7. Phone:

8. Fax:

An agent will get back to you from the claims office after proper verification for further instructions.

Congratulations once more and good luck.

Mrs. Joan Edward,

Secretary

Microsoft® / Visa® Promotion Award Team.



Scammers indeed ....all they want is a scan of my details . Like my son said ...." No joining ...No winning " .

I never did participate in any sweepstakes...so there !!