Koleksi Pantun Perlis II: Pekan

Cuaca redup hendak ke Kangar,
         Ikut ke Bukit Besi Hangit;
Seumur hidup tak pernah dengar,
         Kononnya hujan naik ke langit.

Bulan mengambang terlihat di Arau,
         Singgah membeli roti bergula;
Abang jangan banyak bergurau,
         Adik menanti bagai nak gila.

Pekan Sehari di Simpang Empat,
         Jual udang kepala titi;
Puas kucari tak juga dapat,
         Tak patut nak bujang sampai ke mati.

Padang Besar sempadan negeri,
         Banyak terdapat jualan barang;
Sudah tersasar badanku ini,
         Hidup merempat di rantau orang.  

Dipetik dari Bukit Lagi Bintang Berkarang oleh Wan Khazim
Editor Umum Muhammad Haji Salleh (Siri Pantun Nusantara)
Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia (2006). Ex Libris CNB 1539

The Penang Librarians' Group

Once upon a time in the early 1990's, there was a number of librarians in Pulau Pinang who came together to form an informal group, the Penang Librarians Group. It was decided that an informal group would not be too tied down to any association rules/regulations/constitutions. So it was that this group was made up of members from the various libraries of the University (Sains Malaysia), the public libraries, the special libraries, the college & school libraries, etc (end of thinking capacity!)

It was an interesting group - we met to welcome new librarians to PP, to bid farewell to anyone leaving, to celebrate occasions as and when we could.

A Farewell do for Penelope before she left for Sabah

Best of all we arranged visits to each other's libraries and also to other libraries out of PP.
The visit to the Maktab Rendah Sains MARA in Balik Pulau was also combined with a visit to a nutmeg factory in the area. How cool was that? In turn we visited a few other libraries in the island and Seberang (Mainland PP).

Fresh nutmegs (below) & mace (above)
at a Balik Pulau factory (CNB 199..)

Then we spread our wings (or rather we spent some money on a chartered bus) and ventured further to the North - to Kedah and Perlis, to visit libraries ++ (i.e. plus sites of interest and plus sites of history). So it was that in Sintok, Kedah, we visited the very newly built Universiti Utara Malaysia Library.

The PLG at UUM, Sintok (1991)

With the UUM Serials Librarian in front of the Library (1991)

A Librarian's nightmare - books on the floor. The shelves were
unfortunately delayed in coming to the new Library (CNB 1991)

In Alor Star it was the Kedah Public Library, and later the very historic Bujang Valley. Did we go to Bukit Kayu Hitam? I do not have any photos but we probably did, because it sure is a 'place of interest'. Shopping is an interest, right? And people have been shopping since waaay back, so there is also a bit of history there!

Posing with the State Librarian at the Kedah Public Library

"The Bujang Valley or Lembah Bujang is a sprawling historical complex and has an area of approx. 224 sq km. Situated near Merbok, Kedah, between Gunung Jerai in the North and Muda River in the south, it is the richest archaelogical site in Malaysia."

A Bujang Valley candi complex

With HAR at the same site

In Perlis, it was the Public Library in Kangar. Oh dear, if this sounds like a boring library report, sorry.... But I did warn you about writing of events past as I glean through my old diaries before throwing them out. (I'm dejunking, remember?)

With Perlis Public Librarian & Foyziah, USM

The Children's section of the Perlis Public Library

7.17pm

Kuala Perlis Discovered

Picturesque Kuala Perlis (CNB)

Perlis, our northernmost state, is also our smallest (800 sq km), but our most delicious mangoes - Harumanis - comes from here. The little coastal town of Kuala Perlis, the second largest settlement (after its capital Kangar) can be an interesting visit. We were there a few years ago and found it quite charming, really. Our accomodation was at a hotel near the ferry jetty and we walked around the little town stopping by the shops to talk with the friendly locals. Of course it was a bonus that my schoolteacher niece WH and family lives here, so we had a 'local' to show us around then. Apart from the 'kampung air' visit where we had laksa perlis for breakfast, WH also took us around the local markets and shops, and the surrounding bright green padi fields that abound. Its great to discover and experience our own backyard 'gems' and have an interesting cuti-cuti Malaysia!

B in front of the Kuala Perlis-Pulau Langkawi Ferry
Services Jetty (CNB)

With a most friendly shopkeeper in town (BB)

Fishing boats at anchor (CNB)

The Jabatan Perikanan (Fisheries Department) had also just built a new jetty for the fishing boats to land their catch. We strolled along from the jetties to the older part of town where we traversed a wooden footbridge to what I would consider the 'kampung air' of Kuala Perlis. Although interesting here, the high tides obviously brought about a lot of flotsam (read: rubbish).

The (then) new fishermen's jetty in the background (CNB)

Fish fry - soon to be fodder. Mind the flies that swarm in
the gazillions! (CNB)

Workers manning the 'fish fry for fodder' area (CNB)

B & 'kampung air' folks, footbridge in the background, left (CNB)

Delicious laksa Perlis (CNB)

Laksa Perlis is the local speciality, and believe me the locals here have their laksa at anytime of day - for breakfast, lunch and dinner! We had our laksa for breakfast at a house in the 'kampung air' that was also a small factory making ... you guessed it right - laksa, of course! And we had our laksa complemented with spera (currypuffs) that had fillings of prawn sambal kelapa - yummy! For our lunch and dinner meals we had the freshest seafood ever. After all Kuala Perlis is a coastal town and food from the seas and oceans is the best thing to enjoy.

Enjoying our laksa perlis and spera breakfast (WH)

Hands up for the verdant jungles and luscious green
padi fields of Perlis (CNB)

The fruit section of the local pasar tani (CNB)

Mantis prawns we bought, cooked & ate (BB)

I spotted these racks of fish being dried, just behind the
 pasar tani (CNB)

B, WH & family at the Kuala Perlis seafront (CNB)

Note: Other places of interest in Perlis include Kangar (the capital), Arau (the royal town), Wang Kelian (Perlis State Park and Sunday Market), Gua Kelam at Kaki Bukit, Bukit Ayer (Rimba Herba), Bintong (Snake & Reptile Farm), and Padang Besar (if you like shopping at border towns).

2004