A peak at our culture

This post has been long overdue. It is the continuation of this one.

These are the traditional equipments used in paddy planting. We can hardly find these equioments nowadays,let alone see them in use. The functions has been replaced by modern equipment that are more efficient in terms of time and energy. Nevertheless, I consider myself very lucky because I have had several hand-on experience on them way back when I was a little kid (in primary school, if not mistaken) and my parents were still planting paddy.

The name of these unique equipments :-

L-R : "kikizapan" (literally translated as 'fan' or 'kipas' in Malay) and "ragus" (sorry, I don't know the translation for this one in English and Malay...hehe..) .



The "laadu" (again, I don't have the translation for this one) and "su'ud" (literally translated as "comb" or "sikat"). The ragus, laadu, and su'ud will need the help of a buffalo and a skilled farmer to function well.

The "inai-inai" (aunties) enjoying their friend's performance of the "kudian" (accordion). Seldom can we hear this type of instrument these days...well, except at Gaya Street every Sunday. There are a band of talented blind street musicians playing the accordion besides the guitar, harmonica and tamborines. And there can sing a variety of songs too. :)

The 2nd photo was the photo session showing lovely Kadazan ladies of different ages clad in traditional costume, "boludu" or "morudu". Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the costume got its name "boludu" from the type of the black cloth it was made of, which is velvet or "kain baldu" in Malay. "Why only got photo session for the ladies only?" Well, there were photo session for the guys too but I mistakenly deleted it from my camera. No discrimination involved ya...hehe...

There were two different "magagung" (beating of the 'gongs') sessions held. The first session was performed by the guys team and the second by the ladies. Bulih tahan kama tu inai-inai magagung..jangan main-main ah... :)

The "magagung" and Sumazau dance session.

Old cloth with the "koi'ing" (small bells) attached. These cloth were used by the "Bobohizan" (KadazanDusun high-priestess) during the "monogit (blessing/cleansing)" ceromony. I haven't seen this ceremony in a long time. I remember having seen it shown on TV few years back during the live telecast of the Tadau Kaamatan (Harvest Festival) celebration at the KadazanDusun Cultural Association (KDCA) building on 30 May.

In the first photo are other common accessories, the himpogot , tatangkong and pada'ang (sword).The second photo shows the siga (headgear) on the gandang (drum/gendang) besides the baa'di. Some antic brass pots and other decoratives in the third photo.

A close-up of the brass candle-holder and miniature "bakid" (2nd photo) and a few wooden canes with head carves to resemble a snake's head and a "suling" (flute/seruling) among them. The container which the canes are put inside is called "topukon" or "tajau", a large pot made of clay.

And these are random photos of Vanessa...having a closer look at the full set of "tagong" and "kulintangan". As a kid, nothing escapes her curiosity. She wants to look closer and touch everything new to her. :)

And this last photo is of a giant tortoise shell. The tortoise was my Uncle's pet. It died a few years ago and Uncle decided to keep its shell in memory of the tortoise. It makes a unique wall decoration, don't you think so? Okay, that round-up the tour to our KadazanDusun's traditional lifestyle and culture. Its not a comprehensive one but enough to give some info. :)

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Hello..people!

It’s been a while since my last post. But I am still alive. Sorry guys for the lack of update and not visiting your blog lately. One of reason of my absence is the interruption of internet services in our office. Yeah, I am using the company’s facilities but not to the extent of abusing the office hour ya…*wink* Oh, I do have Streamyx at home but my 'ancient' desktop rosak la pula…arrgh!

Let’s see, there are too many issues happening in our company these few months. Re-structuring is one of the main issues. The top management has resort to drastic cut-down in operation cost…forcing our main office and branches to move to the other subsidiary office. To make things worse, the management only gives one week notice to the staffs about the relocation. *headache* This re-structuring thingy has also caused a number of staffs losing their job especially the contract staffs like moi. Yes, I am going to be one of the thousands of unemployed in the country in two more weeks. I am having mix feelings on being unemployed.

Though Hubby said he is okay with it, I am still worried that it will burden Hubby for he will have to bear all the monthly installments of loans, utilities and the household expenses. On the other hand, another part of me can hardly wait for my last day of work! I found myself wishing that the last day will come quicker than it should be. I think I am excited to be a full time homemaker.

It’s quite a coincidence, all these happenings…my maid just went back to Indonesia for good and I am going to be out of job soon. This is sort of like a perfect opportunity for me to try being a full time homemaker! But seriously, am I really ready to become one? Well, I will never find out if I don’t give it a try, right? *smile* So, I am taking it one day at a time. Hopefully, everything will be fine.

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Of TV and food...

If you get a chance, would you like to be on TV? Well, I do. I don’t mean like being an actress or model or something…but just to be seen nationwide on TV would be enough. I’m not that desperate, okay. I am just curious. How would it feel to see myself on TV? Would I look different? Yeah...those sorts of things…hehe…

My wish would have came true last month if only I comply to RTM’s #1 rule of ‘Strictly no showing of legs”. I blew-up the chance of a lifetime by wearing a knee-length skirt that day. I could have worn long pants on that day if only I’ve known earlier of such a chance. Nobody to blame but myself..hehe… I didn’t ask further when Cousin A told us that there will be a group of West Malaysian coming during the gathering. I should have asked who they were… Oh, the prohibition also applies on the guys. Hehe...kesian la angkol-angkol / kazen mazen lelaki yang pakai seluar pendek…mau pigi magagung pun tida boleh. Punah harapan diorang mau masuk TV.

I only found out about them being RTM TV1 crew for their magazine-style program called Panorama. Uncle B (Mom’s big bro) house has been chosen by as the location for the shooting of a short documentary on our Kadazan Dusun traditional food and culture. There was no exact date on when this particular episode will be aired but according to the director, give or take, 3 months after the day of shooting. That means the episode will be scheduled to air sometime in July.

Okay, I hardly watch the shows on TV1. Why? Let’s just say that the shows on other channels are more interesting. (No offends). But for this particular episode, I’ll make an exemption. I am excited on the idea of watching familiar faces, people I know personally on TV.

These are some of our traditional food/dish that I have taken that day. Some of them are

rarely served nowadays.

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Outing at the beach

Vanessa has been pestering about playing with her new toy (a kite), since her dad presented it to her a week ago. It was an ‘ole-ole’ (souvenir) hubby brought back from his month long work in Terengganu. The little girl was fascinated with the bright colours of the kite, shaped like a fish.

Hubby’s around. The weather’s terrific. A perfect day to spend quality time at Tanjung Aru Beach. So off we went to the beach last Saturday. The trip was supposed to happen on the Easter Sunday but something came up that we had to postpone it. Nasib baik my little girl tida merajuk…hehe…

We purposely opted to go to the Third Beach as it was less crowded there. Easier to fly the kite without the worry of bumping to other people. For those who are not familiar with Tanjung Aru Beach, the beach is divided into three main sections, the First Beach (near Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort), Second Beach (the main beach where restaurants and food stalls are located) and the Third Beach.

This part of the beach is a bit secluded but accessible by car. Obviously, the bumpy road is not a problem since it has its fair share of visitors, families as well as bride & groom-to-be. There were two couples doing their wedding photoshoots that day. We stayed until the sunset was over. It has been a while since I last watch the sunset at Tanjung Aru Beach. The sight is as beautiful as ever. :) It is always a pleasure to watch the sun disappears below the horizon.

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Haven’t been blogging lately…

Hello, people! :) I am still alive and kicking! I haven’t updated my blog and visited yours for days. I am sorry my friends…jangan la marah atau kecil hati ye…I will visit you soon. *wink*

Last Monday, April 5th, Vanessa started her playschool. Since she is less manja with Hubby, we came to a mutual agreement that Hubby will accompany her on her first day. According to Hubby, it took Vanessa a few minutes to warm up with the teachers and the other kids. When I sneaked into her school half an hour later, Vanessa has already joined in the fun. Happily singing nursery rhymes and playing with her new friends. :) As advised by the teachers, Hubby and I left the school.

I called the school an hour later and was informed by her teacher that Vanessa cried for a few minutes when she realized that her dad was no longer there. But after they pujuk her, she stopped crying and resume her activities with her friends *relief* Hehe… We were worried that Vanessa might throw tantrums and we would have to stay with her through the day. Jadi sebagai langkah berjaga-jaga, Hubby took the day off.

Vanessa is still adjusting to her new routine of waking up early in the morning and wearing a uniform. She still cries when we drop her off every morning but so far, she seems to enjoy going to school. “Siok pigi sikul oh… ada nyanyi-nyanyi.…(o)gumu kawan (School’s fun…got singing…a lot of friends )” was her answer when asked about her day. Hopefully, school will continue to be fun for her. :)

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