Cheng Beng

Today's the day that we go round to my grandparents' graves in observance of the Chinese Spring festival of Cheng Beng. But this year, there are only four of us because my daughter is still in KL and won't be back. She would be happy not to wake up at 5am, I'm sure! The actual date for this year's Cheng Beng is 4 Apr 2008 (not 5 Apr 2008) but this weekend - Saturday and Sunday - is the most convenient time for most people.

If you want to revisit what I wrote about Cheng Beng a year ago, you can click here.

Anyway this year, we arrived at the Batu Lanchang cemetery at 6.45am. Still dark but the place was already filled with like-minded people on their Cheng Beng duties. We managed to catch a glorious display of the brightening sky.


Also, I saw a plant which I had almost forgotten exists - the mimosa. I remember being fascinated with the plant during my schooldays at Westlands Primary School. The only plant I know that has an instant reflex action.


We also dropped by the Wat Onn Pin Bang. I think that's the name of the Siamese temple along Green Lane. The monks live simple lives and they go about their daily chores in the morning. It is quite unfortunate that the graveyard in this temple is very badly maintained. It looks almost abandoned and in fact, an uprooted tree fell and damaged quite a number of graves and it took more than two years before it was removed.