Gabbing Gebangites

Aishah, Mak Dia, Y, Raudz,Noreez, Rafthah and CK

Yesterday, I decided to give myself a treat just because. So I figured, wouldn't it be nice to see my lepak gang again. Noreez was on leave, and Raudz conveniently took time off from work to squeeze in a job interview just before joining us. CK and Y welcomed the idea enthusiastically. Rafthah finally managed to tear herself away from her hectic job. Our designated party planner suggested that we meet up at Sweet Secrets(sure or not?).Luckily Noreez arranged to meet me at the interchange, otherwise I might get lost, considering the fact that I am an incurable kancheong wreck when it comes to taking public transportation. My sense of direction is a laugh too. Good thing Aishah enjoyed the bus and MRT rides. We went straight to Secret Recipe. I do remember she had said that we were to meet at Sweet Secrets. Imagine if I were to be left to my own devices, Argentina will hear me cry while I comb the entire 3rd floor looking for a nonexistent delicatessen. CK on the other hand had to walk around blindly looking for Sweet Secrets with a kid in tow. Poor darling. Isn't it very telling how Secret Recipe in Singapore is not yet a household name? Thumbs up for the floor manager, for being very hospitable.

Mini Gebangites

While the Mak-mak Budak and Bakal Mak Budak engaged in serious schmoozing parley, the little ones had a little ngobrol moments of their own. CK brought children's activity books and pencils to amuse the girls while the olders girls share a little tete-a-tete. It is inspiring how composed, calm and collected Y remain despite Aishah terrorizing her. CK is right, I need to be firmer with Aishah. What is a mother to do? Must go and do field study, and watch CK at at home lah laidet.

Dara Pingitan bersama Mak Bonda

Everyone seemed to have a lot to tell, we were jabbering jumping topic to topic effortlessly. Halfway through, I realized Raudz and Rafthah spoke the least. Aiyo, next time must let other people talk, Nazrah. In hindsight, there were stuff that Noreez , CK and Raudz brought up that I need to follow up in an email soon.

Sugar and Spice and All Things Nice

I am wondering what is CK's secret to parenting. Y is such a darling at the table. In fact throughout the meetup, she did not give much trouble at all. Unlike my own adrenaline machine, in below picture, who demands her own way of doing things.

Sundae Slayer

I should have know that Aishah was not interested in the sundae, she just wanted the M&Ms. Sheesh. Some sticky moments occured which is normal everytime Aishah is near food. Lucky for me, supermom CK knew what to do when it happens. I maintained my shameless blurrness. So much to learn from CK.

Raudz@ Soo Nar Tee

Soo Nar Tee and her charge

Y seems to be really attached to Raudz, which is wonderful to see.Wonder what Aishah was up to?Doing sticker artwork on the restaurant chair if not hiding under the table.

Gebang goodies from Noreez, Nurul and CK (Thank you)

It is always Christmas when the gebangites meet. But I must insist, not for the lack of grace of course, that the next time we meet, no expensive gifts please.

What's next?

Great World Nasi Padang jadi ka?

My Precious Boys

Some of you know that I spend a lot of time at the inlaws especially on days that I just can't deal with the Bukit Timah of laundry that needs to be folded. What do I do? Pack up an overnite bag and Tampines, here we come. You must also know that CA's parents are superbly enthusiastic when it comes to extrinsically motivating me to eat and eat and eat. Both of them are great cooks and really know how to enjoy food. That's why I absolutely love them. Another reason that keeps me going back mid-week and every weekend is this.

Abang Izz Irfan and Baby Izz Harris with Pak Long

Now, tell me, who is going to let me have their senduk? Or how does it work again? I want to make rotiBOY!!!! Getting broody again, aren't we? Must be the rainy season.

Map to Heaven

Muwor Part 2 :Bandar Maharani

Tauke Wah San Kopitiam, established since 1931

To top off our lavish lunch, we washed down a cup of molten orgasmic experience christened Kopi 434 by the Kopi Merchants of Muar. It was buttery, mildly sweetened, yet it has enough kao factor to set your eyeballs up to heaven. I was ooh aah-ing like nobody's business, it sounded almost inappropriate according to kopitiam etiquette. The approving look from the tauke allowed me to just let go and let the kopi take me to parallel realms.

The icing on the cake was that everything totaled up to just RM8. Tauke happy, me happy.

Mamak Cendol and Rojak

A few steps from the kopitiam is a makeshift stall that sells cendol and rojak. We were too stuffed to sample any. I later learned from Lollies that the mamak makes the best rojak and cendol. Aiyooo...rugi.

We drove around that little town, I could not help but noticed the remnants of past glory. A rundown cafe complete with a renaissance balcony, perfect setting for a Romeo and Juliet play, aptly named Paris Cafe. An old majestic hotel that might well be where uppercrusts of yesteryear had a ball. The Customs Building is a pretty sight too. Moorish accents here and there, with a little romanesque influence. It has the look of a church actually, but the dome made it look like a mosque.Save for the ugly modern windows they installed, it's magnificent.

I wonder who ordered the glass windows and the awnings?

A few rounds along Jalan Sulaiman and Jalan Abdullah, I noticed that there is a clan-ish aura about the whole place. Like it's been taken care of by a secret society whereby things are done in a certain way, administered by an authority more powerful than the local administration. I am quick at detecting all these things. Lollies happily gave me a little bit of background and I read a bit here and there.

Muar has a colorful history. During the early Hindu empire Majapahit period, Muar is one of its states. Hindu fortuneseekers traveled here in search of gold. The Ortelius map records that Muar was already significantly populated by the 14th century. Not only it was established as a fortalenza for the Portuguese against attacks fro Aceh it was a trading port. Maybe Kakteh has some info about the romantic take on Muar based on Hikayat Malim Dewa-dewa Deman, in search of the Muar princess, Puteri Bongsu. Interestingly enough, my paternal ancestors also dwelled here. Oh you know the Malay vikings from Sulawesi.

As far as the Melaka empire is concerned, Muar proves to be a favourite hideout for the royal family. After Parameswara, the founder of Melaka, murdered the Temasek Sultan, he seeked asylum in Muar and built a fort in Pagoh.

Sultan Iskandar of Temasek also exiled to Muar when he was defeated by Majapahit, building his own Kota Buruk fort at Biawak Busuk. Muar continued to be a famous getaway for the Sultans that one of them chose it as his final resting place. Sultan Alauddin Riayat Syah I's mausoleum can still be found till today. Funny story about the cause of his death, some said he was stabbed by a pin. He must have been gangrenously diabetic, due to all that cendol mamak huh? Some said he was white blooded, like Mahsuri. Dunno..

If I remember correctly, a few of the Sultans' wives were from these regions. So you can say that Muar, is home to many a fallen(in love and in war) Sultan. Even Sultan Mahmud fled to Muar when the Portuguese attacked in 1511.

The father of modern Johor, Maharaja Abu Bakar also had a wife from Muar, hence the name, Bandar Maharani. It was recorded that he planted an azimat, or talisman at Tangga Batu when he officially opened the town, if you are keen on excavating the ancient relic, dig somewhere near the makan place near Muar Bus Station. This place continued to flourish with the influx of migrant traders seeking fortune here. The polarization of races was apparent during the British reign where the Malays stayed in the kampung, leaving the Arabs, Chinese and Indians who did business in town. Naturally there were chambers of commerce, secret societies of mafioso calibre that kept the town in order. If you look closely, you will notice that even the Coffee Merchants has a serious gang going on. We are talking about the coffee cartel. Serious enough to send shivers down your spine, if you are in the commodity business that is.

You will notice that the hustle and bustle down here reminds one of Chinatown, accentuated by architecture that is typical of shophouses found in antique and rustic business districts all over Malaysia. Sadly, conservation of historical buildings here leaves much to be desired. Fortunately, you will sense that the locals are not in a hurry to modernize Muar because of its rich sense of history.

Singaporeans should checkout the upscale kopitiams here, it really puts Yakun to shame. Trust the 434 connoissuers to hypnotize you with the superb coffee, while you soak in the ambience of pseudo-Shanghai glory. The town is also dotted with Portuguese and Dutch influence here and there. And the people seems to be naturally friendly and happening. The girls also have a distinct moon-shaped features on their faces that is so serenely soothing to look at. That must be why Sultans love them huh? It is Bandar Maharani after all.

Muwor Part 1: Mee Bandung

I have a confession to make.

As much as I would like to go on a serious diet (because I obviously need to lose at least 20 lbs to fit into La Perla without holding my breath and/or turning off the lights), I have a problem with compulsive overeating.

Okaylah, let's just put it this way, I am passionate about food, what to do? Or is that an understatement? As you may have noticed, my attempts to lose weight is fraudulent. My love affair with food is so out of control, any talk of going on a diet is a merely a guilt trip that follows a bingeing episode. If I fast, I'd start seeing floating desserts and the only books I would read are recipe books. But there are days like today, I'd just keep to a liquid diet, to detox the junk.

So happens that last Friday I was fasting, and in between chats and emails about jeng jeng jeng and Enigma De'grip (Atiza, check this out!!!), Anedra mentioned that she'd be in Muar for a family function.

You see, it's a bit like the Pavlovian classical conditioning, I am operationalized to react like those salivating dogs, not to bells or metronomes but to names of places and the food they are famous for. Muar reminds me of Mee Bandung Abu Bakar, the same way La Cappuccina, San Gimignano reminds me of wild mushroom and basil risotto. Kangar reminds me of Laksa Belut and the list goes on and on.

So since CA was on leave for Chu Sok, Korean Harvest Festival, I'd rather not let him tinker with the fishtank on my time. My negotiation skills won me a trip to Muar, on the quest for my mee bandung. Woo Hoo! We had Song Pyon , a Korean traditional dish normally served with other Chu Sok delicacies during Thanksgiving, but we ate them like kueh koci for breakfast. Sacrilege to a 3000 years old Korean tradition. Heh.

Rice cakes with lotus seed, mung beans and peanut paste centre

These babies are made in preparation for Chu Sok in autumn

and can be kept through winter.

I enjoyed the drive up through small kampungs, with views of lush foliage and farm animals as we took the jalan lama. Jalan Abdullah was easy to track as I remember my trips there with Pakwe when he was making his rounds collecting rents back when I was a wee one. Right there, next to Klinik Ho, is Wah San kopitiam. The place is exactly how I remembered it, lively with cheeky banter. You come in, and somebody would yell,

" Haaaa, dia dah datang!!!", as if they were really expecting you.

I find that the shop is more spacious now. The ambience is not pretentious, once you step in, you'd feel like you've just entered a place where everyone knows your name (play the tune of "Cheers" in your head please). We ordered 2 bowls of mee bandung, a mild mee mamak and 10 sticks of chicken satay. Unfortunately they ran out of beef and mutton. It was a little before noon and they ran out? I find that utterly strange. So we slurped the lip-smackingly delicious concoction of mee kuning, fresh shrimp, bits and pieces of beef and lungs, fried tau kwa,sprouts, greens, and egg in an amber colored gravy.

The stove is definitely not for the fainthearted, all that caked

reminders of mee bandung from the past cooked together

with your fresh bowl. Maybe that's the trade secret

Pakcik Mee Rebus who took the trouble to clean up his joint

before I was allowed to capture him at work

The masterpiece

But I could not get over the fact that they had not enough satay for me. Hairan bin takjub. Until a shiny, black kereta kebal double parked right in front of the shop and out came a broody character I found very charming in a rogue-ish kinda way, he then picked up packets after packets of cooked satay. That explains the shortage problem. However, he looked especially familiar. I could not place where I have seen his face, but when I peered over to scan the face of that J to the LO-esque lady in the passenger seat, my heart played an African beat. I just knew it was her. So I waved frantically like a mad woman hoping that she would recognize me. She was a bit hesitant to wind down her glass screen and before you know it, she was right there in front of me, J-Lo in kebaya moden, fragrant and bejewelled. The next thing I knew we were locked in a bear hug and she rattled on like a bullet train, telling me how late she was for that kenduri, while I stood there gawking at how beautiful she is, mersmerized and almost speechless. You can bet how spooked our husbands were at the display of such familiarity and intimacy, considering Anedra and I have never met before. Incidently, Kakteh sms-ed moments before that passing me Andera's number, I had left it at home by accident. How strangely the universe works. The Grand Design brought all of us kindred spirits reunited in the strangest of circumstances. Isn't this symptomatic of a Yaya sisterhood?

By the stroke of sheer chance, I am not sore at all about the satay. That brief encounter with the person I have learnt to love through blogs and especially at Ely's Kedai Kopi, is priceless.

P.S: Anedra, I'd be so mad if you are still going on a diet, YOU DON'T NEED TO!

Gendang gendut tali kecapi

P.S : Rotidua, bukan saja percik kat tudung, lipstick pun sengaja kita padam supaya tak bercampur perisa mee bandung.