sexy bikini

When the kids come by to the house, they are curious looking around, note that these kids live with very minimal procession, they are alway amazed by our staffs, mostly captured by technology and keep asking what games do we have in our smart phone or ipad, not only I rarely have things suitable for kids in my personal device, I also dislike hearing noisy of games, to divert her attention I show her a photo album, our marriage photo album, so that I can explain her the country where Valentin come from. They look with lot of question, who is this girl? who is this guy? what is he doing? ...... Then they came across photos of our beach brunch, they spotted the girls on bikini, quickly turn the page over, they said, "aren't they ashame wearing only underwear in public" I explain "Those are called bikini, is a kind of swim suit", "yes but still is just underwear"...
Same situation heppened when the kids came to the house, they don't knock or ask for permission before they go right inside, and saw me wearing only a singlet and no panties, they look at me curiously and one commented that I am too sexy, note that this girl is only 7 and she already wear veil to go to school, so what she means by sexy is not the literate meaning of it, but a polite way to say that I shouldn't be naked. So now I teached them to knock and wait for permission before they come in and I will go "dress up". I didn't want to shocked them with my sexiness, but over time they are getting used to it now, once I lend Umai my short pants to change when she spend a night at home, she said "Is so cooling, I wish I could wear these things at home but I can't..."

Abai

我们一直都是用陆路来到kinabatangan河，路到了河边的村庄-Sukau就终止了，kinabatangan河还继续往下游大概60公里（3小时船程）才到河口，然后分岔往左进入山打根海港，往右出Sulu海进入菲律宾的海域国界。下游途中还会经由两个没路到的河边的村庄，首先是离Sukau 35公里河长的Abai村，到了河口是Mumiang村，于是Abai就成了最与世隔绝的村庄，不只是没路可直达，而且河与陆路最近的两个接点,即Sandakan 和Sukau都至少要开上整小时的船。村里住着几十位多数前身为渔民的村民，由于河水越发污染，上游开发越来越多的油棕园流出的化肥料和农药都导致Kinabatangan的鱼产越来越少，我都怀疑村民还能从事什么来谋生，附近一所小学有两教师和十来个学生，他们念完小学若还要继续就必须到离村大半天行程镇上的寄宿中学。
而我介绍了这么多只是因为我和叮当打算去Abai再走一趟，再，是因为去年曾经从Sukau追大象群追到了Abai顺道下船随便绕了一圈没留下什么印象。而这趟我们想尝试从山打根海口进入，看看Kinabatangan的另一端。和几个朋友花了500rm租了一30加30马力十足的汽艇，从山打根海港出发，海洋上的晴空炙熱，但当船駛進了kinabatangan河，兩河岸便是綠林成蔭，忽然便有超塵脫俗之感。鹹淡水交界處混杂长了红树林和棕榈林，如nipa nipon, 朝逆流而上半小时后到了淡水處才渐渐出现了河岸森林。
开过Mumiang时我记得那里读过说第一批进入Kinabatangan河的是来采集灵芝燕窝的华商，就驻足于此村，而今天完全看不到华人留下过的痕迹，在这个马来西亚朝菲律宾方向的海口，倒是有一部份Sulu非法移民落脚，说到Sulu人，大马人到有点担心，因为年初在沙巴南部的Lahad Datu发生的Sulu武装人民和马来西亚警员对峙造成了死伤。

船开了一小时多到了Abai，在一片荒凉处忽然看见一个建得很好的码头，这就是我们这次来Abai的最大目的，来看地。。。

我们住在动物园里

有朋友到访sukau来找我，却因为叮当不在家没办法把那只有他能扛得动的五十公斤马达扛下河，于是没能用我们新卖的sampan木船载他们出游，只好让他们跟村里的民宿组的wildlife river cruises。知道一些游船队的向导并不是每个都积极，有的看见动物太远不兜路指示游客，有的只指示不加解说或解说肤浅，于是事后我让朋友告诉我他对行程的看法。
＂没太大惊喜＂我想这次向导也许不好
他又说＂开了很久的船在上遊有看见大象在洗澡＂
我惊讶的说他们好幸运而且向导也有尽责把他们带到那么远的bilit让他们能一睹这全世界仅此地才有的侏儒象
他回答＂就跟在动物园看的一样呀!＂
＂但那可是侏儒象吔!＂
＂意思是说它们比较小而已嘛＂
我无言以对。
没错在动物园也可以看到动物，而且可能看得更近，但sukau好比一座更巨大没设笼子篱笆的动物园，而我就住在动物园里。

The little Amazonian

Umai, one of the 9th kids from our neighbour, she is eleven, not yet a lady and too Amazonian to be called a girl. She became very quickly close to us when we first move in, so she come the most often amongs other kids to our house to play with us, or help us with all kind of dirty garden chores. She climb tree like a little monkey she love getting me all sort of strange fruits or insects as present, she brought us fishing in a hideen stream full of mosquitos and she will make fire to chase them away.

There was the time when I am alone in the jungle house and paranoid by some new visitors, a miny mouse and a giant gecko, so she told me these things are afraids of her and she want to come spend a night to acompany me, she brought with her a mouse trap and set it up with some oil palm seed. She arrived nearly night and she haven't had dinner, I told her she better dine with her family before coming here or else her mum wouldn't like it, she told me she is not hungry and never mind dinner, then I asked what she have had for lunch to make her so full, she said "porridge". I insisted on asking more cause I knew these strange kids don't eat, finally I learned that her family got no food for dinner today cause her step father have no income for some days. I was shocked, then how about 2 babies sisters? She said, "they got the milk from mama's nene.".... Although she keep insisting not to be hungry, when she eat at my place, she finished up her noodle, plus accepting all extra food I proposed, hot milo, biscute, fruits. I couldn't imagine how she would hold this empty stomach for all night and the whole next morning (cause I also learn that she don't usually have breakfast). I started to be angry about her unresponsible parents, they make kid, more kid, a lot of kids, she got 9, recently one new born, we sent her to the hospital far in town last month cause she can't pay taxis and she already pass the quota to give birth again in the village hospital, now she can't even feed them all but she keep making new baby. But these whole issues doesn't at all seems to borther Umai, she told me "it's just like puasa (Muslim fasting month).

 

Free lunch or starve

The Sukau villagers, represnt well most rural Malay villagers, are the people who live with whatever the nature give them, or whatever allah want them to have, "isahallah". At a surface this can sounds like a kind of philosophy for some people who live in the european standard of civilisation and seen poverty only from TV. But having the chance to experince living amongs them and see the reality deeper, what I finally learn behind this romantic capediem. atitute is also the atitute of being used to things only come easy or else never persue after anything, I would call it the "free lunch atitute or starve" atitute.

One example with the land, every Malay native (bumiputra) in the village own a few acres of land entitled to them from the government. In these land, most bigger tree are logged to build their house, whoever got outsider offer to do palm oil would be more than happier, except few do fruit plantation, most of the land are usually left unused, for yers... and for our project, those are the only land we can go after now, as a Malaysian but non native (or meanings non Malay or non minority) I have no right for free land, neither the right to buy one, I could buy one but only buy under someone else name who is a bumiputra, as we have no one trusted to this level, so we opt for renting.

Once we found an unused land that we like, when discussed with the owner for a rental price he demanded the price of 30% of our future implanted capital plus the profit of it... I think to myself, he might as well ask us to be his god parents, in chinese we said 衣食父母(food & clothes parents), describe the person who give you an living.

He then said, the land price have increased because of tourisme boom these pass years, I understand that this village used to be disserted, land worth nothing and suddently few investors came in, then people start to think that their free lunch arrive and they shall be rich now. then I told him, the value of the land increase with condition when there is investment or businness implantation in it, we are talking about less than 10 decents lodges bussiness implanted here since last 10 years, I don't deny that the land price did increased, like infaltion increase too, but not to the extends of the value of 30% of our future business.

He don't seems willing to settle for a reasonable rental price, so he will keep his unused land forever. Today 99% of the land in Sukau still remain unused, and meanwhile no new investors are coming in to Sukau except us. The value of the land is perhaps only a dream for them to turn rich overnight.

Elections

Chère famille, mes amis;

Toutes les 5 années, à peu près, ont lieux les élections nationales malaysiennes. C'est cet événement haut en couleurs que j'ai choisi de vous faire découvrir cette fois-ci en plongeant, comme à mon habitude, au coeur de l'action la plus palpitante. Une évolution notable c'est quand même glissée dans ces chroniques de l'extrême, je suis dorénavant protégé par une authentique James Bond girl, une amazone de charme, ma femme, Tikka.

Si je dis "à peu près" toutes les 5 années, c'est que la date est choisie par le parti en place. Ainsi, le Barisan National (BN), au pouvoir depuis l'indépendance (1957), a négligemment grignoter 6 mois, tardant à annoncer la date du retour aux urnes...

Le BN était, pour ainsi dire, le parti unique jusqu'à il y a 10 ans. Depuis, une certaine contestation tente de grandir mais c'est bien difficile face à un pouvoir omnipotent, qui confond allègrement ses fonds avec ceux de l'état et qui n'hésite pas à recourir à la force et à l'intimidation si nécessaire. C'est que le BN en distribue des "gula-gula" (sucreries) avant les élections! Réservoirs gratuits pour tout le village, moteur flambant pour les pêcheurs... Le pays tout entier est en travaux! Il faut finir telle route, réparer telle école...

Il faut aussi faire attention avec qui on discute... Ainsi Tikka, toujours prompte à hisser le drapeau rouge de la révolution a eu la bonne idée de jouter avec notre "futur" propriétaire... qui s'est révélé être le responsable de la campagne du BN local. Depuis il refuse de nous adresser la parole! Vous l'aurez compris, l'opposition se fait discrète dans les villages mais ça donne un certain goût de clandestinité, de lutte secrète qui n'est pas si désagréable... Nous faisons déjà partit du noyau dure de la résistance!

- Ici Sukau - pom pom pom pom
- Une larme de crocodile se cache au fond de mon thé glacé -
- pom pom pom pom

On votait hier: Devant l'école, le chef du village donne 100 Rm (2 - 3 jours de salaire) à chaque votant en leur faisant jurer de cocher BN. Cette pratique ne choque personne... On ne se demande pas d'où vient tant d'argent, pire, nos amis les plus "progressistes" regrettent bien que l'opposition ne fasse pas plus de voix mais que voulez-vous... elle ne donne pas d'argent!

Les résultats sont tombés: l'opposition est battue, la résistance est tombée. Ce ne sera pas pour cette fois encore. Pire, les scores ont l'air moins bon que la dernière fois. L'héroïsme n'y aura pas suffit. Alors on analyse méthodiquement. Le redécoupage des circonscriptions bien sûr, le transport des urnes toujours suspect, tout cet argent déversé et ces bus qui vont chercher les impotents jusqu'au coeur des campagnes...

L'heure est à l'amertume. Heureusement il y a une revanche dans 5 ans! A peu près...



jusque dans les plantation d'huile de palme...

bien à vous
depuis leur QG secret
Valentin et Tikka

Our chosen spot - Sukau

 

Sukau is a village located by the Kinabatangan River (Sungai Kinabatangan) in Sabah, eastern Malaysia, on the island of Borneo.
Kinabatangan is the second longest river in Malaysia, with a length of 560 kilometers from its headwaters in the mountains of southwest Sabah, to its outlet at the Sulu Sea, east of Sandakan.
Kinabatangan is known for its remarkable wildlife and fascinating habitats such as limestone caves at Gomantong hill, dryland dipterocarp forests, riverine forest, freshwater swamp forest, oxbow lakes and salty mangrove swamps near the coast.



 

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FLOOD ISSUE

The Kinabatangan River is the largest and longest river in the Malaysian state of Sabah. It has a main channel length of about 560 km, a catchment area of about 16,800 km² and covers almost 23% of the total land area of Sabah.

Mean annual rainfall in the catchment is between 2,500 mm and 3,000 mm. Flooding is common along the Kinabatangan, with major flood events causing serious damage to livelihoods and property in 1963, 1967, 1986, 1996 and 2000

2013 February 27    Water level recorded 10.47m   Worst hit: Kampung Litang and Kampung Tidong

2012 Jan 06            Water level recorded 8.5m

2011 April 12            Water level recorded 9.75m
2010 January 24     Water level recorded 11.4m-11.62   Worst hit: Kg Batu Putih, Kuamut and Bukit Garam
2009 February 09   Water level recorded 10.35m     Worst hit: Pangkalan Bukit Garam, Muhibbah, Kuamat and Danau Ria

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Some article:

http://www.wwf.org.my/about_wwf/what_we_do/freshwater_main/freshwater_conserving_river_basins/focus_areas/projects_irbm_for_kinabatangan_river_basin/kinabatangan_issues/

http://insightsabah.gov.my/article/read/159

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/1/25/nation/5539953&sec=nation

Endangered flore & fauna

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/sitefactsheet.php?id=16025