Travel log Europe

 Zaans Schan, memang indah. ianya merupahan kawasan perindustrian dengan mesin utamanya adalah kincir dan tenaga utamanya adalah angin. Tapi bila permodenan mesin berlaku maka banyaklah kincir ini menjadi bahan tarikan perlancongan. Namun ada juga kincir yg masih berfungsi sebagai kilang.

Sememangnya kita tahu yang belanda mempunyai tanah di bawah aras laut. Jadi kincir merupakan pam air yang uung dalam menukarkan laut atau tasik kepada tanah pertanian.

A foreign student's story

 When I submitted a list of universities to apply to Mr. Bruce Brown, our academic coordinator, he said OMG, come on you can do better than this. I tell you what, I will apply some other schools for you. My selection was limited because my community college result was not that great. My dream to go to University of Washington at Seattle to study Aeronautical Engineering shattered by my poor result. Looking down the list I chose Tri State, Ole Miss, Miss State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma state.

By May 1990, some universities acceptance reached Mr. Brown's office. To my surprise I was accepted to the Iowa State University to study Aerospace Engineering. I push my panic button. I asked Mr. Brown. This cant be right. My major is Aeronautical and not Aerospace Engineering. The old man giggled. Son, some schools just call it differently but it is actually the same field. Don't worry about it and good luck. and next he already called another student.

By mid afternoon Mr. Brown had already put up a list on the notice board. There are more than 150 students graduated in May but none are going to ISU with me. Other Aeronautical students like Sarip goes to Oklahoma. Rafindee and Ambotang to Renslear, Engku to Missouri Rolla, Jasri to Syracuse, Chemical Engineering students mostly go to Kentucky. So here am I hoping for MUCIA program students to fly in the same flight to ISU. It was a worrying and a hearbeating experience for me who had never been out of my country before.

Iowa State Fishing Experience

 

After so long, fishing has been the main activity in this beautiful big river of Krubong Malaysia. The river is divided by a water control dam that supply water to a drinking water dam and river outflow. Krubong River is part of Melaka river thatdrains a basin of nearly 500 square miles. Flowing the densely populated state of Melaka , the Krubong sees more human use and development than any other river in Malaysia before it ends its flow in the Straits of Malacca.

The river cleaning initiatives makes it attractive to tourist enjoying the river cruise in melaka town. 

My son's first fishing lesson

It was 1998 and my son was 3 years old when he had his first fishing lesson.  He managed to to catch a small tilapia only to be released. It was at an old tin mine near Kuala Lumpur. Now the area developed into a recreation park. Fishing is no longer allowed by the city hall.

My village fish

Ikan Timah-taimah or Temakang -Kissing Gourami

This fish is very rare to find nowadays. Used to be in abundance new the buffalo holes or water canal.

This fish reminds me of Blue gill fish i used to catch near Story city lake, Iowa. It is located deep in the corn field.

The fishing renjer will scout the area every day checking on fishing licenses at size limit.

Types of fish in my Hometown-Melaka - Iowa State Fishing game

Before I came to Ames, Iowa to attend ISU, fishing has been my first love. That was why when i was in Ames, I also tried to find fishing places. In Iowa, my fishing was more focus on bluegill, bass, cat fish and carp. and finally that was one fish that I always caught at saylorville lake.

I never caught a pike before. In Malaysia for fresh water, I enjoyed catching the following:


Ikan Betuk- Anabas testudineus  Coutesy of Staronline

Some people also call this Puyu.  Among elderly this fish is to ward off evils. I used to fish this fish bamboo rods with  several lures such as night crawlers, ants egs mixed with flour, vegetable oil and latex (Most used by my villagers). However the best lure for me is Shrimp paste (Belacan as we called it here) mixed with flour. Most of the time we will go to padi field, water canal and river near my house.

Nowadays it is hard to find t in the wild as the wetland transformed into residential. Those days we can fish more than 100  a day. The price is RM5 per 100.

Betok, also popular aquarium pet fish. The older people believes that it can ward off the sleep spell used by thieves to break in just because never sleep.

Some of the best dish are: curry, coconut milk, sambal chlili paste and the most original will be indian cucumber acar with betuk.

Lukah-at krubong

Lukah is a traditional fish trap that is used by the malay to catch fish mainly in the small stream in the swampy wood. mainly made of bamboo blades that are tied in orderly manner around a wooden/rattan ring. The blades are fixed by using rattan skin. a conical section act as a one way entrance is fixxed at one end to trap fish, eels. The coomon fresh water fish such as lembat, puyu, sepat or haruan are common catches. When I was little, The swampy land near krubong river was the place my late grand pa will bring me to trap. In a day we will take out 10-15 kilos of lembat and belut from the gelam swamp. I will share you more on my exciting traditional fishing later.