Views of Sunset

Towards the end of December, the skies at my farm exhibited wonderful colours of the sunset. The top picture is a view looking West and below it is the view from outside my chalet towards a South -West direction.

Morning Mist

This is the view of the Kemena River very early in the morning, around 7.30 am with the morning mist having a light cover over the river. The small river craft to the right is called ' kapel tambang' which ferries the Kampung Jepak folks to work to the town proper everyday.
An adult is charged RM.50 per crossing. Ahead of the 'kapel tambang' is a small ferry that carries the kampung folks who ride motorycles to work. This morning the river is at low tide.


On the way out of my farm the other day, I was met by a heavy cover of morning mist though the time was about 7.00 am. The above view is taken before reaching the Kemena Bridge.

Bamboo for cooking vessel

These bamboo culms( stem) are from a species of bamboo normally cut for use as cooking vessel.

The kind of food that is stuffed inside these young bamboo stems are like glutinous rice, chicken meat or fish. At the Bintulu tamu yesterday I saw them being sold at RM 1 a piece.

In the hot and humid tropical rainforest of Bintulu , bamboos are a very important forest resource. The ways of using bamboo are very much left to imagination. Bamboos are used to build all parts of a house except the roof, where thatched palm leaves are the preference. There are made into suspension bridges, scaffoldings to reach dizzly heights to harvest bird's nest on the ceiling of caves, river rafts, furniture, handicrafts ( e.g. coin box,baskets,table mats,chopsticks, walking sticks, etc) and young bamboo buds are eaten as vegetables, so called ' bamboo shoots'. Bamboos are the tallest of all grasses, reaching 30 meters and more. And as seen in Chinese movies you can jump and run on top of bamboo trees to execute your kung fu kicks:)))

Edible Seeds of the 'Cempedak'

I had a fun time climbing the 'cempedak' tree today. The 'cempedak' fruit( artocarpus integer) is very much akin to the jackfruit( artocarpus heterophyllus). There are at least 5 trees that are fruiting profusely at my farm currently. The cempedak fruit is consumed in three main ways. In the above picture, its yellowish flesh which has a soft, custard-like texture can be eaten fresh. It can also be boiled with coconut milk and sugar to make 'dodol'. On the right of the picture, the seeds of the cempedak have been boiled and are ready to be eaten, preferably with honey. In Sarawak and therefore Bintulu for that matter, the fruiting season for cempedak is between the months of November right till February every year.

Silhouettes in Sunset

It was a beautiful sunset that appeared over at my farm this evening. Very inspiring and breathtaking. The above view is from my verandah , looking South-West.

A Typical December

This year December is without doubt the wettest month of Bintulu. As I face the closing days of the year here I would like to post this picture of a view from my computer table of a typical December day. Sitting behind this huge window, I blog and get in touch with the wide wide world. Well, staying in a farm has its merits. The evergreen wash of colours over the fields is kind to the eyes.The abundance of oxygen that exudes the daily air from the tons of leaves are nature's gift to a healthy lung. The multitudes of wildlife become my companion and give much moral support to the projects that get stranded due to the heavy rains. We cannot push nature to the extremes and living in my eco-farm is like learning to live in harmony with nature. The song of the birds delights my senses as much as my spirit. The presence of wildlife jolts my soul to nature's joy of living. And the quietness of night gives me comfort after the bustle of daylight . Another day to celebrate with the rise of dawn.

Speed boats by Bintulu's river

Just the other day while passing the Kampung Baru village, I saw these twin-powered 200 horsepower speed boats moored by the Sebiew river,Bintulu. These boats are normally used to go offshore by timber merchants or traders to inspect their logs before loading into foreign timber ships that are anchored about 10 - 15 km off Bintulu coast. They are also rented by tourists and deep sea fishing enthusiasts to offshore fishing spots some 75-100 km away to sea. Tourists use them to cruise the Bintulu coastline or to upriver for outboard riding.