Sabun cap KAPAK..

Tak ramai yang tahu akan sabun berjenama ini...tapi sangat sinonim bagi mereka yang dilahirkan sekitar tahun 6oan. Setiap kali aku teringat akan sabun ini, terbayang wajah-wajah orang tua yang kukenali khasnya wajah arwah nenekku Hajjah Seri Banun dan arwah atokku iaitu bekas seorang penghulu yang paling handsome semasa zaman mudanya.....

Semasa aku bersekolah rendah, pernah kedua orang tuaku menghantar aku bersekolah di kampung di Parit Yusof (pertengahan bandar Batu Pahat dan Muar di Johor). Seingatku, umurku ketika itu dalam 7 tahun. Kedua arwah mak dan abah tinggal nun jauh di Kemaman Terengganu. Bayangkanlah bertapa rindunya aku kepada mereka tapi demi pelajaran dan masa depanku, mereka redho...dan aku rela dalam terpaksa....kesian!

Aku ditempatkan di rumah atok dan nenekku bersama abang, kakak dan sepupuku. Arwah nenek sangat garang dan tegas orangnya. Ketika itu, tiada kemudahan air paip di rumah, tiada jamban pam dan sebagainya. Air hujan perlu di takung dalam tempayan dan untuk ................(faham-faham sajalah), kena lakukannya di parit belakang rumah.....hahahhaha bukan tahu malu ketika itu! itu adalah kebiasaan ketika itu.

Tiba waktu mandi, bayangkan bertapa seksanya kami terpaksa menceduk air yang sangattttt sejukkkk dari tempayan. Air pulak adalah takungan air hujan. Lepas mandi penuh jentik-jentik atas tubuh badan kami...hahahha. Menggosok gigi adalah wajib tapi tiada ubat gigi....guna sabun mandilah! Sabun mandi bukanlah berjenama LUX atau yang sewaktu dengannya tapi sabun cap KAPAK! Sabun ini lembut dan berwarna hijau. Itulah sabun, itulah ubat gigi, itulah syampu dan itulah juga untuk mencuci pakaian kami. Hahahhaha...namun begitu, kami tetap wangi. Bayangkan keadaan rambut kami ketika itu...

Itu adalah cerita yang wajib kami ingatkan dan sebutkan berulang kali setiap kali bertemu sepupuku yang merupakan seorang warga Singapura kerana kedua ibubapanya merupakan orang sana. Kahwin pun dengan orang Singapura maka bermastautinlah dia di sana. Bagus juga...dapatlah aku tumpung rumahnya setiap kali ke pulau tersebut! Hingga kini kami amat rapat.....semuanya gara-gara kes sabun cap KAPAK!!! Boleh dikatakan yang sabun ini One Fits All!!!

Something for my neighbours(4)

KUALA SELANGOR?

......is a little coastal town located 60 kilometres northwest of Shah Alam.

.....is merely an hour's drive from our home.

.....this little town may not be large in size BUT has much to offer to all.


WHERE TO GO?


Bukit Malawati

has view overlooking the Straits of Malacca. Built in 1780's and lots of history behind it!



Kampung Kuantan Firefly Sanctuary

is one out of ONLY 2 places in the world that is habitat for the firefly! The other one is Amazon River is Brazil!

Nature Park

is where birds of migration breed and feed during winter season in their home country. Over 157 species od birds sighted here.

Pasir Penambang Wet Market

is famous for its exotic fresh seafood. Pasir Penambang Wet Market opened from 10am until evening.

Something for my neighbours (3)

Bukit Melawati Kuala Selangor, Kuala Selangor

Melawati Hill is located in the coastal town of Kuala Selangor, a 45-minute drive from Shah Alam. In the late 18th Century, the second Sultan of Selangor had a fortress constructed on Melawati Hill to protect the state from intruders.

The hill provided a vantage point to monitor ships in the Straits of Malacca. Even with a strategic hold, the Melawati Fort yielded to the Dutch cannons. It was again destroyed during the Selangor Civil War, when warring factions fought for tin-rich lands. All that remains of the fort now are its cannons, its original foundation stones and fabled execution block. The landscaped hill offers a panoramic view of the Selangor coastline.

Visitors will be delighted to watch the free-roaming Silverleaf Monkeys in the area. The adults are dark-haired with a tinge of silver, while the young ones are a bright orange. Gentle and adorable, they graciously wait for bread or fruits from visitors, unlike the mischievous Long Tail Macaques.

Something for my neighbours (2)

	Kuala Selangor Nature Park

Introduction

	View from the Main Hide across the brackish lakes

Kuala Selangor lies just 75 kilometres north-west of Kuala Lumpur, near the mouth of the Selangor River. In addition to it’s small-town charms there are many nearby attractions to suit the nature lover, including the Kuala Selangor Nature Park and the colonies of fireflies living along tributaries of the Selangor River.

Kuala Selangor

The Kuala Selangor Nature Park is managed by the Malaysian Nature Society, under a co-operative arrangement with the Selangor State Government. This coastal area was once dominated by mangroves, but since the construction of coastal bunds it now comprises a strip of remnant mangrove forests, mainly Avicennia sp., behind which are brackish lakes and ponds and a large area of secondary forest. In many respects the ecological history of the area is similar to Singapore’s own Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. Thus, familiar vertebrates such as mud skippers, mud lobsters and the Malayan Water Monitor can be seen from the bund and the mangrove boardwalks.

The endangered Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea -

During the migration season, between September and March, the lakes and ponds teem with shorebirds such as plovers, Greenshank, Redshank and various species of sandpiper travelling the migration route of the East-Asian Flyway. These very same birds may well stop at Sungei Buloh for a final meal of worms and molluscs before heading south to winter in the warmth of Australia.

One bird deserves a special mention – the Milky Stork. In conjunction with Zoo Negara, an active breeding program of this globally endangered species - less than 100 specimens are thought to exist - is being conducted in a specially constructed aviary next to the main lake. Visitors are not allowed inside the aviary, however the birds can clearly be seen nesting in the enclosure. It is hoped, upon release, these captive-bred storks will choose to make Kuala Selangor their permanent home.

Kuala Selangor Nature Park has over 200-hectares of immature secondary forest. Easy walks are possible along the well worn trails; where the sun streams through breaks in the canopy keep an eye open for lizards and skinks warming themselves, especially the Common Sun Skink. Familiar forest birds such as Woodpeckers, Bulbuls, Sunbirds and Malkohas can also be seen.

Something for my neighbours (1).

Kuala Selangor Firefly

Firefly, one of the fascinating beetle that abound in Malaysia at one time and is now fast disappearing due to the fast pace of development. Fortunately, there are still firefly to be seen in Kuala Selangor, about 90 minutes or so drive from Kuala Lumpur.

The two locations where visitors can go to are Kampung Kuantan and Kampung Bukit Belimbing in the district of Kuala Selangor. The mangrove trees called "berembang trees" by the local grow along the riverbanks of Kuala Selangor river. These are the trees where the fireflies or "kelip kelip" in the local language stay and feed on its leaves. During the day, they retreat to the grasses near the mangrove trees.

The entrance to Kampung Kuantan Fireflies Par

When night falls, the fireflies will feed on the nectar of the leaves and attract mates with their synchronised flashing green light. The thorax of the insect produces a green grow that flashes at a frequency of 1/3 Hz, or 3 flashes in one second. Each of the berembang tree has different groups of fireflies and each group has flashes that are synchronised.

The fireflies found here is from the "Pteroptye tener" species and is about 6cm in length. They have a lifespan of about 2-3 months.

The picture of a typical firefly found here

Cruising Along The River

The best time to visit the park is after nightfall at approximately 7:30pm to 7:45pm. It is also advisable to go when it is not full moon and not during raining evening. Usually the place is quite packed during the weekends hence try to go during weekdays. One should take note that once the kelip kelip has found its mate, the flashing would stop, usually by 11.00 pm. Make sure that you do not go too late as the park is opened from 7:30pm and closes at 10:30pm.

The non motorised canoe ride

My Vege Garden

Pernah dulu seorang penyanyi negara jiran kita iaitu Titiek Puspa dari Indonesia menyanyikan lagu Minah Gadis Dusun. Lagu ini menceritakan bagaimana seorang gadis yang berasal dari kampung ingin sangat merasai hidup di kota. Tugas gadis ini sebagaimana orang kampungnya yang lain ialah bercucuk tanam sayur-sayuran dan buah-buahan. Ini merupakan salah sebuah lagu yang aku minati.

Begitulah juga dalam relaiti hidup ini. Suatu hari aku mengunjungi rumah seorang teman rapat. Rumahnya jenis rumah teres sahaja. Yang mengagumkan aku ialah di sekeliling rumahnya dari depan sampai ke belakang(rumah hujung) ditanamnya pokok-pokok sayur seperti Tomato, Cili Besar, Cili Padi, Sawi, Pak Choy, Peria, Terung, Brocolli, Cauliflower dan sebagainya! Tergamam aku. Kawasan tanah yang terhad di hadapan rumahnya penuh ditanam dengan pokok sayur. Jadi sebahagian dari hiasan. Terasa ruginya aku jika tidak berbuat perkara yang sama.


Hasil dari bantuan sahabatku itu ialtu Halim, aku gantikan tanaman hiasan di halaman dan sekeliling rumahku yang sebesar berkangkang-kangkang kera itu dengan pokok sayur-sayuran. Hasilnya seperti gambar yang aku kepilkan bersama.


Sebenarnya, berbudi pada tanah, Insyaallah akan mendapat hasilnya. Kini sudah beberapa bulan keluargaku dapat merasakan hasil tanaman My Vege Garden sendiri. Rasanya jauh lebih manis kerana aku tidak menggunakan baja lain selain dari Baja Tahi Ayam yang telah diproses dan racunnya pun dibuat sendiri.
Oleh itu aku menyeru kepada semua sahabat kenalanku, marilah kita berkebun!