Is everything 'begheh' up there in the Keropoklekor land?

The recent news coming up from the Keropoklekor land is really alarming. New fetish in girls' used undies has resurfaced again after becoming quite unheard of for ages. this time around a local guy whom suspected high after presumably consuming addictive ketum drink was caught red-handed wearing girl's underwear himself. I bet the color must be pink. Girls always like pink.

Further investigation revealed he had been 'borrowing' thousand of used girls undies for his safekeeping and personal consumption for quite a while. Only God knows why he had this weird liking toward girl's private property. I am guessing by having those undies very close to him, this will give him some sort of unspeakable blasting and euphoric feminine sensation. Or perhaps this will make him to appreciate the fairer sex better. We will never know for sure. But anybody who is high on something (be it love, money, power, praise or FB for example) is very unpredictable by nature indeed.

Almost at the same time, under-age pregnancy is quite rampant in the Keropoklekor land. This is equally worrying. My theory are - either local schoolgirls are too fond for keropok lekor until they could not differentiate between the real delectable one from their male colleagues appendage or they are actually the victims who had lost their undies and have to get into the classroom bare-bottom, which presumably facilitates the process of popular hippies activity - the quickie. By no means it is not an isolated incident. From Kuala Brang to Besut and down to Kemamang you can hear babies crying in tandem with their very young mothers' weeping having no experience to wash the babies' poo.

Boys and girls of this Internet age are very creative, imaginative and full of fantasy. Testosterone level is at their peek too. Those fatal combination if not handled properly could be potentially disastrous. Imagine (not the bottomless schoolgirls) if this issue is not addressed properly or taken up seriously, the Keropoklekor land will soon turn into the Pregoland. I for sure don't want that to happen.

Having that in mind, I raced back to the Keropoklekor land last week in hoping that I could shed some light on the issues and uncover some untold mysteries. But the real answer couldn't be found anyway. Too much overindulgence with irresistible local cuisines,smingling with locals on several makan pulut occasions, continuous sun tanning in beautiful beaches, numerous visit to Pasor Kedai Payang and other smaller markets hunting for khasidah, plus other similar serious issues concerning conservation of local heritages at hand have taken a heavy toll to my brain cell thus impeding me to think wisely. This unsolved mysteries then command another visit back to my hometown anytime soon - not a quickie but a thorough investigation with more determination and clearer objectives.

Trengganu has changed so much since the past decades. Some welcome those changes with their heart and open hand (for monetary rewards of course) but some has shed tears trying to protect what is left for the next generation to rejoice and many left heartbroken in the end. As for myself, there is one thing that has never changed. My wonderful feeling toward my hometown still strongly remains, even though the landscape has changed so much and the old charm of the town himself has gone forever.

At the time of this writing, many more local heritages are being torn down and new eyesores are breathing their new ethereal life to hunt the true Awang and Semek of Ganukita for life. Having thought about it, my heart break into pieces. It is just too heartbreaking for words.

Inconsolable!!!

This is a real welcoming treat for me whenever I came back to my kampung. My mother's specialty - ayam kampung masak gulai. This is no ordinary gulai as the rempah was specially chosen and hand prepared by my mother. Her own secret recipe. Outdoor cooking with firewood added some unspeakable unique taste . The three ayam kampung were good courtesy from my younger brother's gok ayam (chicken run)

These colorful looking shoots from many edible plants littered around my father's house are a good compliment as masak sayur lemak putih to that gulai ayam. Apart from the omega three from ikang aya, these shoots provide all the minerals and vitamins for Ganukite brain to pronounce that extra G efficiently. Do you recognize any of them?

This food stall which has no name along Jalan Petani in Kuala Terengganu (close to Wisma Darul Iman) is only known as 'kedai berasap' for a very obvious reason. People from as far as Bukit Payong (by Ganukite standard, Bkt Payong is considered quite far) will queue just to get a taste on their special nasi kerabu daging panggang.

I went there for the first time after being campaigned by my little sister to have a go with the nasi kerabu. It was worth a visit really. The beef is really tender and juicy which made the whole dish very delicious. The eating experience was also very unique as while you are stuffing the delectable dish into your mouth, the sweet smelled smoke will arouse you taste bud and not to mention a free smoky perfume to your garment.

I like this fruit very much. Ganukite called it buah sto. After so many years the plant that grows in front of my father's house bear its fruit, only last week I got to taste its wonderful fruit.

The best way to eat this fruit is by dipping it with soy sauce (or specially prepared fish sauce). Pickled sto used to be my favorite too. Eating this fruit, one has to be very careful, as consuming the whole thing is very tempting. You can get serious constipation by doing so.

While hunting high and low for khasidah, I found another indigenous Ganukite delicacy. The star-shaped, yellowish delectable is know as 'Mas sejemput', another ingenious sugary version of Jala mas. My mom told me, in the old days bachelors were encouraged to eat this mas sejemput. I forgot to ask the reason behind this suggestion.

Another past time activity of my fellow countrymen. While waiting for the football kick-off later that evening, playing with kites in an open paddy field is very satisfying indeed. I missed the big interstate kite competition held in the open field close to my kampung two days earlier. This particular spot also reminded me of my toddlers days when we battled the neighboring villages with meriam buluh and meriam tanoh.

This is a must activity in our balik kampung itinerary - main pantai. My kids love the beaches so much they got heavily sun-burned. Their skin turn dark beyond recognition having spent many midday sunbathing and beach combing along the beautiful beaches of the Keropoklekor land.

Instead of a very clear warning on the Pantai Pandak beach, nobody seems to pay attention. Who cares anyway and who pay attention that much these days. People break the rules as we speak. The small one break small rules, the bigger one breaks the bigger rules. Actually I was very surprised to see this beach swarmed by so many visitors as previously this beach is almost unknown, even to yours truly.

This is another activities not to be missed - by my significant half so to speak. A batik shopping in an oven-like temperature of Pasar kedai payang will roast your wallet dry.

A new development actively taking shape at the back of Kampung cina. The sandy part was once used to be part of the Terengganu river. This new establishment when completed will block our view of Pulau duyong beauty (in the background). I hope the shop (shown here with the signboard, which used to sells sundries and frequented by my aunties in the 70s) won't be demolished by the local authority.

This is so far a real eyesore to me. Seeing this has really broken my heart. This particular place used to house many rows of shop lots that keep many fond memories. I think the town itself has lost it soul when the state government decided to destroy the old shop houses on this site last year. A town without a soul is meaningless as far as awang and semek concern.

The new Bazaar Warisan from the viewpoint of Pasor Kedai Payang side entrance (close to pasor ikang). Ironically, what warisan does the local authority is talking about when they themselves indiscriminately destroying the old local warisan every now and then?