Naturebug7: Reminishing the forgotten world of Jalan Ampas Studio.

On 19th october this year, my kids gave me a suprise present for my birthday..a book written by writer director Amir Muhammad entitled  '120 Malay Movies'. The book is a romp through the malay films tht was made in Singapore and Malaysia. It was a good and informative book regarding 120 malay movies tht was made during P Ramlee haydays which includes all the movies made by prominent studios of  Shaw Brothers' Malay Film Productions, Cathay Keris and Merdeka Studio from 1948 to 1972.

I was so touched and  thanked my children. Farez n Ellis,  for such a wonderful and thoughtful present,  ( they always  knew where my weak spots are!!) and immediately, the book began to fill up most of my free times every day especially during  lunch times or a few hours before bedtime. I would read the book slowly and took my time digesting the new interesting informations about all the malay movies produced from year to year eventhough there are some old ones which  i have  already read somewhere before. As i was reading about P Ramlee and the movies made in the 50s and 60s,  i had a sudden  overwhelming urge to find out  about what ever happened to Jalan Ampas Studio in Singapore, the original Malay Film Productions studio that was the only one shown  as part of the location for Seniman Bujang Lapuk which i've watched over numerous times.

Actually, I have met one of the greatest comedian of the Singapore era, S Shamsuddin about two years ago during the making of Astro Prima's comedy, TIGA MENANTU (2008) which was produced by
P Ramlee's old friend Cikgu Yusnor. I was so excited to meet and directing
him for the old singapore studio actors have always inspired me in my works
as a film maker. S Shamsuddin  still had his old smile when we met , but unfortunately, something was missing. He was more serious and his humurous funny look was all gone.  And being  80 years old made it harder for him to  remember his lines.But meeting and talking to  him about the good old studio days just made this one of the best TV drama i have ever directed. Beside S Shamsuddin, I've worked with  Aziz Sattar and Mat Sentol in the movie JIBON (1994), Kuswadinata in the TV Drama HARGA SEBUAH KEBEBASAN (1999) and Mustapha Maarof and Neng Yatimah in SETITIK PELUH SEBUTIR INTAN (2004). I've listened to their stories first hand about the old studio systems and many many more intimate stories but only now i realised i should go and visit the old  Malay Film Productions in Jalan Ampas or at least whatever is left of the studio.

Cikgu Yusnor, who still lives in Singapore once told me tht Jalan Ampas studio office is still there but  in a very sad condition. Well i didn't really care much about the conditions for as long as it is still there its fine with me.Anyway,  i better go before the whole place is demolished by the heartless Singapore government.  So, I've decided it was time to  travel with my wife, Gee and our kids to Singapore. For the first time we drove our small car to Singapore, thanks to my brother Najib, his wife Kak Asiah and his niece, whose husband happened to be a Singaporean.He was our unofficial tour guide and was glad to take us to Jalan Ampas eventhough he actually never really been to the studio himself.

       

We began our two cars  journey through the JB-Singapore causeway and after travelling for nearly an hour we reached Boon Teck Road. Now, this  road sounds familiar...Mmm..Boon Teck Road..yes, it was  where  the Shaw Brother's office used to be, if i am not mistaken. My excitement grew and a few metres away from Boon Teck Road , we suddenly saw the signage 'Jalan Ampas'..I tried to hide my excitement upon entering the road but my wife kept telling me tht my face was actually glowing!!!
 We managed to find the road  tht should now lead us to the studio. But unfortunately, as we look around all we could see was  a few factories and  condominium buildings..I began to wonder if the studio has already been demolished!!!

It was actually a frustrating feeling not to find the one famous building tht should be there.We took another turn and again we couldn't find it. I decided to ask around..a once famous building like this should not be so difficult to find. I could imagine how it supposed to look like during the time of  the movie Seniman Bujang Lapuk was shot which i have seen a thousand times!! We saw a chinese guard standing at a nearby factory He told us tht the building we were looking for was just infront of us a few metres away.  Even the factory tht he was guarding was part of the old studio which  has long been converted into a huge factory. From the look of it, the factory does resemble a large studio building...He then pointed us what  remained

to be  the old Shaw Brothers building.

 We were stunned..The buildings were actually hidden behind  a greenish  aluminium cover with a sign ' No Paking' (Yes, not Parking) No wonder we couldn't find it. We passed it twice and we still missed it!! I was sure there would be thousand of people coming to Singapore with one  intention,  just like us,  to find the famous studio and the only landmark available was a simple brick memorial signage located next to the entrance that stated in small print " Jalan Ampas, Shaw Movie Studio".

    

We excitedly peaked inside and saw the building. It was really in poor condition just like Cikgu Yusnor said but i was determined to go inside. We searched for a way to go in and found a small door which wasn't locked and  we opened it. WE looked around and were prepared for any hostility. I  realised then, that we were illegally  traspassing a private property and with just one call by anyone, we would all land  in Singapore jail
for traspassing. Well, my excitement diminised my fear and come what may, i was ready for anything.  i wouldn't want to go back home empty handed and wouldn't want to let an old aluminium gate stop me from going in!! . we just crashed in...there was nobody in sight so we decided to just start clicking our camera to the fullest.

 

Being inside the studio area was just undescribable. I saw one spot and tried to imagine A Rahim kicking his stool for no particular reason as in one of the scenes of  Seniman Bujang Lapuk at the entrance of the studio itself. Then I was imagining  P Ramlee, Suddin and Ajis standing looking at him in awe. I could also imagine the old Singh (te studio guard)  sitting at the entrance mumbling about the attitude of the malays. His words were  ringing in my head; " Baru orang mintak kerja, lu macam-macam cakap. Amacam lu punya bangsa boleh maju??Lu punya nasib lu makan, dia punya nasib dia makan, Apa salah makan sama-sama?' I just smiled to myself.

On the other side i could see in my head Ahmad Nesfu standing and saying, " Ini macam nak jadi Hang Tuah?', to an old  man who wished to be in the malay movie. As i walked further I saw a door that led to a room..Could this be the door Suddin entered to ask for a loan from Kemat Hassan in Seniman Bujang Lapuk? or was it where the new Haji Labu was mumbling in his office about how Haji Bakhil rejected  his marriage proposal to her daughter Manisa.....
" He made me drop my waterface!!!! Well, I don't know if I am going to hell  or to the heaven..."

I started to walk further in...I noticed the  Shaw Brothers logo is still there although the 's' has already faded out to show how old the building must be. I was told that it was built before World War 2 and was originally a biscuit factory. The Japanese occupation converted the factory into Japanese Propaganda film studio. Shanghai born Run Run Shaw and Runme Shaw then setup and rebuilt the studio facilities at the cost of $100,000 after the war to produce local movies with the name Malay Film Productions. They had actors, directors and crew under contract and paid regular salaries. At their peak, the actors  lived in designated areas, with their image and appearences tightly controled.You couldn't see any of them walking around in the markets or coffee shops. if you want to see them, pay for it and watch  them only in  theaters!!!




They are a few buildings still standing here eventhough you could hardly find anything relating to the old studio inside it except for three dustbins with Shaw Brothers logo which we noticed still lying there in one of the rooms. The rest are just old junks and stuff which could probably be the props of those days.



I suddenly saw a chinese man walking out from nowhere. He looked at us casually and disappeared behind one of the main buildings. I was suprised tht he didn't say anything. Maybe he had seen so many visitors like us tht our appearence  meant nothing to him anymore. I followed him and saw a few more chinese men who were repairing the  back wall of one of the building that was about to collapse. Now thts a good sign i thought.  This mean tht this building is not going to be demolished anytime soon. I read somewhere that the owner of this building is a malay film fan and she is such a sentimental person who has no heart to destroying such a historical building. Well, she could also be a smart chinese business woman who is waiting for the right timing for Singapore government to buy over at a high price for its historic value. Whatever the reasons, its good to know tht  the building is still there Hopefully the Singapore government could convert this place as a Malay film Museum to attract million of malay film fans all over Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. After all there is money to be made here.

As we were walking around this empty surrounding,  we noticed that the only stars around here are these strange looking chickens 'berjambul' walking around the studio.Even the chicken here are different and as glamorous as the stars tht used to reside here at one time or another!!!!!!
I walked out the studio and began reading  the simple remarks written on a brick signage;  " Jalan Ampas - Shaw Movie Studio' located beside the entrance of the building tht is now covered by yellow aluminium with the large red number 8 on it. It was sad tht the glorious days of Malay film industries had to end abruptedly in 1967 after producing many memorable films such as Ibu Mertua ku, Antara senyum dan Tangis, Aloha, Ali Baba Bujang Lapuk, Labu Labi, Sargeant Hassan, Panggilan Pulau, Raja Bersiung etc... I guessed with P Ramlee gone after Malaysia and Singapore went separate ways, the Malay Film Productions was never the same again after that. Even P Ramlee wasn't the same
P Ramlee after moving  to Kuala Lumpur. The movies he produced in KL could never match his Singapore movie years.



As we drove away from the old studio, my wife noticed me smiling from ear to ear. She realised tht somehow  i had fulfilled my dream of standing at the place where P Ramlee and other great actors and directors of the malay film productions such as Ahmad Nesfu, Ahmad Mahmod, Saadiah, Zaiton, Aziz Satar, S Shamsuddin used to walk, work, tell jokes and play.

I guess being at the old studio was the best trip to Singapore for me as i reminished the old forgotten world of movie making at Jalan Ampas studio. I hope the building will remain there for many years to come for the
die hard malay movie fans like me to come and get excited.

                                                            

Naturebug 5 : Scaling the Majestic Mount Kinabalu

In 2005, when i was asked to do a documentary about nature in Sabah, my first thought was it would be a great idea to scale Mount Kinabalu. A lot has been said about this mountain as one of the most accessable mountain in the world. Every day almost 200 climbers will climb this 4,095 metre mountain, from as young as 3 years old  to as old as 80 years of age. 

When we decided to climb the mountain, we were not actually prepared for the task. There was no proper exercise nor was there any training of whatsover. Actually, there was no time to do all that. We though, well, as long as there are people as old as 80 years tht are able to climb,  i don't see any possible reason why we couldn't do it...and we are definitely much younger!!!!. Boy, how wrong  could we be!!!

The mountains are sacred to the local,  that  is the Dusun people. Each year chickens are sacrificed as the peak of the mountain to appease the so-called spirit of the mountain.Actually, there are many stories that we heard related to various incident involving arrogant climbers who refused to abide to  the unwritten laws of the mountain. One was  a story about  a young american girl who came to climb the mountain. She boastfully  told everyone that she had climbed  Kilimanjaro and reached the peak of Everest and as for Kinabalu, it would be  just 'a walk in the park'. She refused to listen to any advice from the local guide known as Malim Gunung.She would go any where she liked and always on her own. Suddenly she was found missing in the middle of nowhere by her guide who immediately reported the incident to the authority.  She was actually missing for five days.... On the second day, a search party was immediately  formed to find her and a reward of RM10,000 was announced by her family to whoever manage to find her alive. All the Malim Gunung took part in the search but unfortunately, she was only found five days later, dead next to a ravine which was not far from the main trail. Some Malim Gunung admitted tht they had passed tht same track but found nothing !!!Locals believed that she was covered by the spirits of the mountain as not to be seen by anyone, as a lesson to anyone who disrespect the spirit of the mountain!!!!

So, do i believe in tht story? Actually i didn't know what to think at that time. I know the existance of the jinn as mentioned alongside Man in some of the verses in the Quran. So i guess it has to be true, more or less, Jinns are known to be everywhere and possibly on a mountain such as this. . And of course, it taught me and the boys a lesson to be very careful when climbing the mountain..
No boasting, please...Not to be over excited ( How could we? We were climbing the most famous  mountain in South East Asia) and always listen to the Malim Gunung,  your trusted guide.

Mount Kinabalu is located at Kundasang. Kundasang alone has the reputation of having the most impressive view i have ever seen. Kundasang  is actually  located at the   mountainous region of Crocker range with Mount Kinabalu being the highest. Today, Mont Kinabalu is within  Kinabalu Park;  a well protected area as one of the World Heritage Site.

Well, after paying for the registration, the insurance  and the service of one Malim Gunung, we started our journey going up the mountain using the track from Timpohan gate. Our tourist guide drove us there. We took along a supply of bread,  a few bottles of 100 plus and two canned of sardine. Not to mention two light weight Z1P sony video cameras (which were not so light as we reach the top later. ) I bought myself a walking stick for RM5 which i didn't really realised how useful the stick would be until   later as i went  along my journey to the top. 


There were  four of us and we  separated ourselves into  two groups; Farez and me; Zul, my other cameraman will go with the audioman, Wan. I knew i won't be as fast as Zul and Wan. Farez wanted to be with me so he could look after me if anything were to happen to his dad. oh how nice of him...As expected, I was the slowest among all with Farez holding one of the video camera. I was not being slow  on purpose but i planned to stop and shoot whatever i found interesting along the way;  like a number of some  pitcher plants which are known to be the species that are only found in Borneo, or some funny looking plants tht i have never seen before or just a cute mountain squirrel begging for food from  climbers resting at one of the stations. . Being a cameraman, Zul would shoot all the beautiful shots of sceneries and people coming up and down the mountains.

There were a number of Malaysians, mostly young enthusiastic teenagers, coming up and down in a group;  and many foreigners, young and old. They were just too fast for me. As we were going up, there were a few coming down and had experienced the peak already which i assumed have  so  much story to tell once they reached down.

I was amazed at some Dusun climbers who I met along the way. These people would  climb for the purpose of taking some foodstuff and heavy cooking gas container to the only restaurant up at Laban Rata.   Most would carry the weight  behind their back and  tied it around their heads. I would be in a moody state if i were to carry such a weight while walking upwards the moutains but no, NOT these Dusun people. I greeted them with the usual 'Aramaiti!!" which mean 'hi!' or 'hello' in the Sabahan Dusun language. They would look at me and smile and then repiled back, "Aramaiti!!' ( hello to u too!!). They would even stop for awhile to answer my questions, still with a broad smile on thier faces. They would  overtake me and disappeared within seconds to proceed to Laban Rata's rest point; which is 6 km away up to the mountain.As they walked passed me with the ridiculously heavy weight behind their back, i noticed their  legs were just  full of muscles! I honestly believe that these Dusun people have an exceptional superhuman strength of some kind! They are so fast tht they can reach Laban Rata in less than 4 hours and 3 hours back. If they feel like they have the energy, they would go for a second trip. Do u hear tht??? Second trip?? I was struggling with my first trip, and  that too without any baggage weight behind my back!!!! They are the real supermen in real life.

Another extrordinary people i met was our Malim Gunung. Couldn't remember the name of our Malim Gunung  though but i still remembered that he was always smiling and waited patiently everytime i stopped to rest or took some shots at some  trees or whatever i found interesting to shoot.  He could have been bored of me for being too slow. He was supposed to be behind us all the time to watch us going up but somehow, he would disappeared from our view and suddenly we found him sitting on a big rock smoking a cigarette while waiting for us to come up!!! Boy, was he fast!

We took a rest at one of the station point and took some food and drank our 100 plus to regain our strength. The weather was changing fast. It was getting colder and even the trees were diferent as we assended further up. I was slowly getting tired and my feet was killing me. My movement was getting slower and here i realized how i regret for NOT preparing myself coming up here.Our guide adviced us to walk up in a zig zag manner in order to save energy...I did what he said and i found out tht to be true. I was making more progress by doing so.But of course, it would look funny to walk like tht in a normal circumstances!

The worst part was the rain started to pour heavily and we had no shelter anywhere so we had to  continue climbing! We were getting so wet and I shivered my way up in exhausion as the path was getting steeper and more difficult. Only now, i realised i made the right decision to buy the walking stick.

Unlike other climbers we were not here for the purpose of climbing alone but  had to stop to record our journey on film!!  By the time we reached Laban Rata which is 3,272.7 metres above sea level it was already dark.  Man, i was really exhausted and couldn'tr walk anymore. We really need our rest before we continue our journey to the top.By this time, the air was thinning and we began to have difficulty breathing.

Next to Laban Rata is Gunting Lagadan, a small wooden hut with the basic neccesity in the form of  food, cooking utensils  and a comfortable place to rest and relax. The water was so cold that touching it after going to the toilet was the most dreadful thing to do!!

The next time we were to continue was at 4 am and the journey would be the toughest..We need to be there by 5.30am to get the sunrise shots which was to be the finest moment of them all and that was the highlight of climbing the mountain. The path is now more steeper, slippery and rocky.And the rain would make the journey a struggle.Oh did i mention tht it would be at 4 am? ..and literally you are walking in the dark.!

However by this time, I was having problem walking and it was so painful just to move my legs...Zul suggested that he and Wan went to the top without me so they could get a sunrise shots on time. With my condition, I would only slow them down. Meantime there were a lot of shots needed to be taken at Laban Rata and interviews to be conducted. I dreaded to have to let them go without me as  i really wanted to go up the peak of the mountain and witness the wonderful sunrise rays, rarely seen elsewhere.

By the time they started to move forward, Farez and i were resting  and later started to shoot some shots of climbers eating and resting at the restaurant. As Zul and Wan were shooting the sunrise, we managed to shoot some colorful species of flowers and plants that we couldn't get anywhere else around Laban Rata.

The sceneries from Laban Rata was just breathtaking. We could almost see the South  China  Sea on one side and the bright morning lights of Kota Kinabalu located a few hundred kilometres away!! What a wonderful view. I felt so small and insignificant in the  vast  creation of AlMighty Allah...

Later we interviewed an Argentinian  climber who made a few comments about his trip and even a chat with one of the Malim Gunung who provided us with  his version of the legend of Mount Kinabalu.

An hour later, Zul and Wan came back with nice shots of the sunrise which we viewed together at the restaurant. I felt envious tht i couldn't be there with them to shoot this glorious  sceneries of the sunrise but at the same time i was also glad becos going to the peak means that I couldn't spent time for other things which were relatively important to be recorded. It had to be a team effort in order to get everything done in a very very short time.

I asked Zul how would he describe the feeling to be 'on top of the world' and viewing the magnificent wonder of Allah's creation of the sun rises slowly from the west. Being a man of a few words, it took a while for him to answer me. He said,"It was just to difficult to describe. You have to be there to experience it yourself". Well, not the answer i was hoping to hear,  but at least i know it must be so great to not be able to find the right words to describe it.

Anyway, the food at the restaurant were outrageously  expensive. A nasi goreng plus a drink cost me RM25 for each person. It was not even as good as we would expect it to be. However, there was a pay-phone booth at the entrance of the restaurant and how i wish i could use it to call somebody to tell them " hi...we've made it here!!!".

We spent some time at Laban Rata and I really enjoyed  the precious moments we had up here although my knees was still hurting  as we walked slowly down to our vehicle awaiting us to take us to our resort at KinabaluPine Resort.  It only took us just 4 hours to reach down. However,  my only regret was i should have been more prepared as it wasn't easy climbing this mountain. Eventhough there are good trail along the way,  it is  very slippery and dangerous especially if it rains.

We reached down the station safely and spent a day resting at our rooms at the resort. We woke up the next day with muscle pain all over our body!!! Even moving a few steps was a painful struggle. We were laughing at each other when we saw how funny we were walking at tht time...in fact it took us a few days before we would fully recovered and walked like normal people again.

However, climbing Mt Kinabalu was an adventure of a lifetime. Maybe i'll go again to complete my unfullfilled mission of witnessing the glorious ray of sunrise on top o the mountain.  After all,. i've seen  older men at the age of 70 climbing and even over took me  the last time i climbed the mountain. But of course this time around, i will be more prepared.

Naturebug4- Bajau Laut, The Sea Gypsy

After leaving Kinabatangan,  we had the opportunity to visit Lahad Datu, located about a few hundred kilometres away from Sandakan. There was nothing much to talk about Lahad Datu except that it was a small town next to the Celebes Sea where the natives talk almost like the Indonesians, more Indonesian then Sabahan. Well, i might be wrong cause i am not really an expert regarding the Sabahan Malay tongue.

We stayed in one of the small hotels here in Lahad Datu. Infact i noticed that all hotels are small here and always within a row of shop houses. Our plan was actually to find anything interesting here to shoot for our TV programmes "Salam Dari Sabah". We went to the wet market and boy, were we suprised to see  the kind of fishes they have here  in this market. Celebes sea offers various types of fishes that i never thought existed.  I couldn't identify almost any of the fishes they have here.  The fish mongers were nice enough to smile at us  and each time they look at us they would say; " Dari mana..TV3???"  We just smiled back and said," Tidak, TV 1". Everytime we shoot at the various types of fishes, they would asked, "Bila mau tayang ini rancangan ?". Most of the time i couldn't anwer them because we ourselves didn't know when.


I asked a few people  if there was anything interesting here that i could shoot  for my programme and one man said; " Ada..Orang Bajau Laut". Mmm..This sound interesting. I asked again; "Orang bajau Laut??".
He answered me;"Yes, The boat people..they come and go as they please..very strange people"
.
Now i was getting excited and asked; "Where can I find them?. He showed me the way but cautioned me that they might have left. I thanked him and rushed to my car with Farez, Zul and Wan, and drove  to the location mentioned.

It didn't take very long to find these people. They lived in a make- shift long wooden boat that is  covered with canvas-like roof. They are a few boats consisting of a few families living together. I was somehow amazed to see these people. I kept telling myself  how could such people still exist  in our modern age. There were rumours that they are so used to be at  sea , they are afriad to be on land...and they are especially afraid of dogs!!!. The kids are known to be great swimmers and can be under water longer than anyone else. But i didn't come  to confirm this. I was more interested to understand  their way of life which obviously are so much different from ours.

I saw a few bajau laut kids playing at the seaside while  their mothers were busy cooking at one corner of the boat. From the size of the boat,  i couldn't imagine how people could  live, sleep, cook and rest in such a small place.I saw one lady busy hanging wet clothes to dry at one end of the boat. What about the men? I didn't see the men..

I approached the kids playing there. Most have  tanned skin and brownish hair.They were amazed at my camera as i was shooting them playing near their boats.. They looked  at me with curiousity. There were some sign of eagerness in their faces  to know about this stranger  but yet at the same time dared not approach me. I smiled and called them to look at my LCD screen  and played back the shots i had taken and showed them. They started to smile and began to come close to me. One cute girl laughed as she saw herself in the video. I guessed this was the first time they saw themselves in a video. I could see the excitement in their tanned faces.

I asked them where were the male adults  of the boats. One of the kids told me in  poor malay that his father was selling some fish and clams that he caught to the market. One said that his father was working at one of the restaurant to earn some money. And none of these kids go to any school as they had to travel with their parents and further more, they are not Malaysian. Infact they are the gypsy people of the pacific travelling from island to island between Philipines. Indonesia and Malaysia, making a living from catching fish and dried them out to the sun, beside collecting  clams and mussels. In other words,  they are a people without any citizenship!! ( Later I found out that there are many groups of Bajau Laut living and settled down in Samporna who are now Malaysians)

I asked them about their religion. One small boy spoke malay fluently and told me that they are muslims.He was really a smart boy as he answered my questions with ease.

I came back the next day and this time i brought along some canned drinks for each of the kids. They were so happy to accept it and even asked me to shoot them playing., which i happily did. I even showed them the playback on the LCD screen. They were so excited. The women in the boat just look at us and smiled. They might  be deprived from all the luxuries of the world, with No TV,  no radio,  no computers, no nothing and  at times i felt sad for them but most of the time, i realised that they do not need our kind of  luxuries.They have their kind of luxury...no debts to think about, no house rent to pay and no bills to settle. All they need are the love and  compassion of loved ones among the families and the will to survive at sea...and of course, having each other are the best luxury one could possess.
I had to go  to Tabin Wildlife Reserve for a few days to shoot some shots of wild elephants there. After  a few days, on the way back to Sandakan, i had the urge to go back and meet the Bajau kids again. How i missed their look and their innocent laughters. Unfortunately, by the time i reached  Lahad Datu, the whole families  had already gone to  new location, some where off the  islands of the celebes sea.

Meeting the sea gypsy  was one of the highlights of my adventure in Sabah  as i learned so much about them and their way of life  off the ocean of Celebes sea. Although i didn't find out whether they are afraid of dogs or could be under water longer then anyone else,  one thing for sure is that,  they are the citizen of the sea and without the sea there won't be any Bajau laut! A fresh new knowledge  that i couldn't get  in any school anywhere in the world.

My very first encounter with Nature...

The year was 1966..I was a 6 years old staying with my family  in a police family barrack in Johor Bahru. Those days a family of a low ranking police officer had to live in an impossibly small house and sharing  the whatever  room we have  with every member of the family. And there were 6 of us not including my dad and my mum!!! ( My youngest sister wasn't born yet..She was lucky!!) Even the toilets were somewhat terribly, as we had to share  toilets with the rest of the other families living in the same building!!

Somehow i never find our living condition that bad at tht time. Maybe becos i never live elsewhere before and was having the thought that other people were living  ridiculously the same way we did. Basically during this time having a car was somehow a very  rare thing. It was just too expensive for most people and of course being a low ranking police officer, my dad just couldn't afford to have one. If he wanted to take us anywhere he would  have to borrow someones car and only then we could go some where..Otherwise our world would only be within  the fences of the barrack.

We had an uncle who live outside these fences of the police barrack. He was a businessman who has a family of his own. The best part was he got a car and used to come to our house to take us for a drive. Everyone in the house was always happy if he drop by our house. After all, his wife was my dad's sister. During that time, if u got a car, u are filthy rich in our eyes!!!

One day he came to our house with the intention of taking my elder brother Najib and my elder sister Noi to stay for a night at his house. Everybody knew that he has a nice beautiful house where he lived with my auntie and his children. He loved to go hunting with his shotgun and in our house, he was a celebrity..
When he arrived i was so excited because I was having the crazy idea that  he would be taking me along for the trip. Unfortunately, i was just too young and he didn't want to take the risk of taking me. Except that i didn't know about this.
I told my mum of my intention of going and knowing me to be persistence, she just asked me to go and take a bath. After all, Pak Akop would never take anyone who is dirty and smelly. I was so happy and would do anything just to go with my uncle and join Najib and Noi. So, I happily undressed  myself and hit straight to the bathroom to get myself 'clean'!!

While in the shower, i heard the sound of the engine of my uncle's car. I said to myself;"Are they leaving me???'. I rushed out naked to see the living room empty and ran straight to the door only too find that Najib and Noi were already in the car with  my parents  standing waving them goodbye. I got the shock of my life..They were ACTUALLY leaving me..

I shouted and ran to the car . I didn't give a damn about me being naked at that time. I just ran to the car.  My uncle saw me and immediately moved his car away leaving me crying next to my dad...How could they do this to me. I was ready to go. Couldn't they just wait a few minutes for me??!! I felt betrayed and cried my heart out. My neigbours were looking at me standing  naked at the roadside. Some how i wasn't feeling awkward. . I guess being 6 years old gave me the right to be naked without having to feel shy about having my penis exposed to the sun! My dad said,"Ish, Tak malu..semua orang  tenguk..Sudah. Masuk rumah!". How could he be so heartless to see my situation. I was crushed with my uncles betrayal.!

When Najib and Noi came back two days later, they were telling us stories about travelling with my uncle and his family  to number of places and enjoyed picnicking with them. They had the best time of their lives.Man, how i wish I was there!!!

A few months had passed and one day,  my uncle dropped by to the house again. This time he cameby just to pick me up...just me... to his house. My dad asked me to take a shower...oh no..not that again. My uncle ensured me that he'll wait for me this time. And every few seconds  i was in the bathroom, i would listen if the engine of the car was running. Somehow it didn't.

I was ready in minutes...and i sat in his car just next to him. I was happy. He actually felt so bad that he left me the other day and promised me this time around, i would have a good time.

I went to his house and met with the rest of his family..but there was this cute girl sitting in one corner playing with her dolls. I never spoke to her and she never acknowledge my existence. She was always in her own fantasy world! And I was always surrounded by his brothers who treat me well..They even shared some of their favourite stuff with me.

 My uncle's  house was a big wooden house with many rooms. You could smell the woods and the breeze of the cold wind just made you fell so good. The living rooms were full with animal trophie on the wall. After all, he was a hunter and an avid one at that.

Later my uncle took me for a boat ride at a nearby river. This was how my uncle spent his free time...net fishing ...besides hunting. I thought now i knew how he got to be so rich...He caught his own fish...!!! Wow..I could do  that! We had fun traveling in his small wooden boat. I really had a good time and he made sure of it. I couldn't thank him enough for showing me that there are so many wonders outside the fences of the police barrack!

My uncle did more than that. He made me realised and appreciate the amazing wonders of nature. Since then i guess, i have always love nature and will always be for the rest of my life.Thank you Pak Akop!!

naturebug 3 : Kinabatangan River

A few years ago, i had the previllege of shooting a documentary about Kinabatangan river, the 2nd longest river in Malaysia. My initial plan was to capture some shots of  the great crocodile of Sabah rumoured to be more  vicious and bigger in size compared to the one in Semenanjung. After a day trip to Tuaran Crocodile farm to study about the habitat of crocodiles,  we traveled a few hundred kilometres away to Sandakan in order to find wild ones in Kinabatang river.

We reached Sukau,  a small village of orang sungai, located at the bank of this 350 miles long river.  Our boatman was ready to pick us up, the very next day for our first taste of adventure. There were only 4 of us, me; Farez, my son and assistant; Zul my cameraman and Wan the audioman. It was our first time here and was excited for the new experience.
           
We captured some shots of wild orangutan swinging  from tree to tree and some birds known as the Oriental Darter, diving into the water to catch some fish and i mean literally diving into the water!!!!It appeared with fish in its mouth and started to fly again....What a wonderful sight!!

This was also my first time to see in real life, the strange looking  Proboscis Monkeys with its bulging belly and big pinky round nose hanging on its face. I still have problems finding the real purpose of such a troublesome nose!! Somehow with its big belly,  the male monkeys seem to attract the ladies more. The bigger the belly the more ladies in its harem (Mmm....I wish i could do the same with mine!)

However after a few days of shooting we still found it hard to capture any shots of wild crocodiles. The rainy season  swelled  up the river and crocodiles would rarely be seen hanging around basking at the bank of the river as it would normally do during dry season. At times,  we had to bear with the rain pouring on us  as we usually get so  wet without any cover in the moving boat.   It was dissappointing from one day to another.

The rain was making the crocodiles more elusive and hard to find. On the fifth clear day, as   we were moving slowly inwards, we  found a baby crocodile basking on a tiny dead branch. We were so excited. Finally we realised our luck might change that day...And how true it was. As we moved along slowly, we suddenly saw  a 18 footer huge crocodile lying motionlessly at the bank of the river.It didn't realise we were moving  slowly nearer to it. My guessed  was it was  sleeping but as Zul was rolling his camera, it suddenly woke up and was startled to see us. In just a few seconds, it moved its body straight into the water and went underneath our boat. The strong splash of the water nearly turned  our boat over..But thank God it didn't! It just rocked side to side a few times. We saw small bubbles coming out from the water and we knew it was swimming  away from us...But we were happy to finally captured (even for a few seconds of shots ) of this monsterous creature that had eluded us for so long.

As we were traveling back we  saw a  12 years old  orang sungai  boy diving into the river and swimming happily just a few hundred metres away from  the crocodile we just captured on film!!. As we were watching him, i told Zul to roll his camera. The boy realised tht we were shooting at him, so he smiled and  waved to us. I was saying to myself, "Wow..This boy is swimming in a crocodile infested area!! Is he crazy or what!! Doesn't anyone here care???"

As it was late,  we decided to go back and rest. The next day we went to the village of this Orang Sungai and expresses our concerned to one elderly  representative  regarding the boy we saw swimming the day before.He was listening to me and was quiet for a few seconds before replying. As Zul was rolling his camera, he said;" I was born and raised in the village for all my  entire 64 years and alhamdulilah, there was NEVER any  case of  crocodile attacking  anyone in this kampung". We were stunned for a while in disbelief but he continued; "Yes, we often told the boys not to go swimming but you know, being boys, we can't stop them. We do live next to a river." Then he continued in a more serious tone, "  We have an unwritten agreement with the crocodiles.. We don't disturb them and they don't disturb us." I was speechless. He continued again ;" The crocodiles have all the food they want. Birds, fish, monkeys, river prawns and even monitor lizards.  They don't need to get into trouble by eating us", and he laughed.

We went back to our bed that night realising that we had gain a a new  knowledge that we couldn't get in any school anywhere in the world. An unwritten agreement between man and nature.  In Tuaran, each year a number of people  were  killed by  crocodles due to crocodile attack. Why... because Tuaran is just  30 km away from the bustling Kota Kinabalu. Human and its modern development have repeatedly  disturbed the habitat of crocodiles in Tuaran and they eventually fought back to ensure its survival in the world.

However, the situation is different  in Sukau, fortunately.  The area is still protected as a conservation area with animals living in harmony among each other, until human find a reason to change the agreement.  So i guess as long as human stays away,  there is no reason  for crocodiles  to retaliate. After all, they have  all the food they need from the 2nd longest river in Malaysia, the Kinabatangan river..

After that experience,  i began to look at nature in a new fresh prespective.

Naturebug 2- Gunung Ledang

Gunung ledang is located in Johor bordered to Melaka. I planned to shoot about Gunung Ledang as part of our nature programmes for Taman Negra Johor. But the main reason of shooting Gunung Ledang was the dissappointment after watching 'Putri Gunung Ledang-The movie' which was full of nonsense and confusing the audience for the misintrepretation of the legend that we knew all our lives. I was always been fascinated by the legend which was mentioned in the old 17th century manuscript of Hikayat Sejarah Melayu regarding  a princess of a bunian (fairies) living with her faithful followers on top of the mountain.The Sultan of Malacca at that time, presumably Sultan Mahmud, was so intrigued by the princess that he ordered Tun Mamat to form a party to climb and meet with the princess on behalf of the Sultan for a marriage proposal.
Unfortunately the story was wrongly intepreted in the movie where the princess was said to be originaly from Java and had an affair with Hang Tuah!!! Man what a load of @#xxx!!! All my life, i have never heard such an absurd story. Hang Tuah was supposed to be an old man at that time after serving two previous sultans  and didn't have enough strength for such a task. Infact half way through the journey, he asked Tun Mamat to go ahead without him  as he was too weak to continue.

Well, we got ourself a guide through Taman Negara Johor Gunung Ledang, who lead  us through  the tracks of to the mountain..He wasn't sure if this was the same track Tun Mamat and Hang Tuah used but we managed to go to a cave known as Gua Kambing tht is still use today by some silat organisations  to train silat members and was rumoured to be the place where Hang Tuah got his silat training,   6 centuries ago.

Along the way we arrived at the most difficut and steep terrain which is known as the KFC ( Killing Field Climb(?) ) where a rope is needed in order to help us going up..It was tough n dangerous. One wrong step will  drop you down to your  death!!!I assumed that this was the place where Hang Tuah told Tun Mamat that he no longer has the strength to go further. As we reached up after almost a 20 metres climb, we found ourselves on  a huge flat surface which  resemble a garden with  beautifiul green trees and a cold  windy wind blowing around us. Could this be the garden mentioned in Hikayat Sejarah Melayu???

In Hikayat Hang Tuah, Tun Mamat climbed the mountain alone after the rest of the party found it hard to continue further as the jouney was getting too tough ..According to the story,  Tun Mamat was so tired after a while and  fell asleep. When he woke up the next morning,  he realised that he was in a middle of a beautiul garden with trees and birds singing with the cold wind blowing to the sweet  melody of buluh perindu. Doesn't that sound like where i was at that time??

This was also the place where an old lady appeared and approached Tun Mamat. Tun Mamat told her of the offer made by the Sultan to marry the princess. Tun Mamat was then given a list of conditions as to see the sincerely of the Sultan. The conditions were too imposible for the sultan to meet and as they say...the rest was history!

Ater a few hours of climbing, and resting at 'the bunians garden',  we finally reached the top. It was one of the most beautiful scenery that i have ever seen..On a clear day you can even see the Strait of Melaka!!! They say that during the olden days, ships passing through the Strait of Melaka will look for  Gunung Ledang as  an important landmark to look for.

Well, i finally did the documentary that was shown on TV 1 RTM a few years ago. I was happy with the result although given time i could do more especially regarding the mystical wonders of Gunung Ledang!

thenaturebug

Hi,
I am a nature lover and spend a lot of time doing TV documentaries involving nature. So much so tht i started a TV production house a few years ago aimng at  producing good quality  nature programs here in Malaysia. As it is, I've been to Endau Rompin, Taman Negara Pahang, scale Mt Ledang. Mt Kinabalu  and explore the islands of  Mersing, and capture the nature of Sabah including  Sipadan Island . I may not yet have the skills and the luxury of time  as  those National Geography guys but i know i am already half way there. However being in Malaysia u couldn't afford just by doing nature programmes alone. So, up to date we have done some exercise programmes , fashion TV magazines and even cooking programmes just to keep going..

I like to share my passion with readers and  voice out my concerns and opinion as i go along....