Welcome back, Siti Zulaikha Foudzi

The determined - some say hungry - look that eight-time national women's champion Siti Zulaikha bt Foudzi was giving Nur Nabila bt Azman Hisham in the third round of the national women's chess championship yesterday. Nur Nabila herself is a five-time national women's champion. This epic struggle ended drawn. (This picture comes courtesy of Wanz Lily.)

As I write this, the fifth round of both the Malaysian closed championship and Malaysian women's closed championship are going on in Bangi, together with a new event, Malaysian challengers closed championship. Good of the Malaysian Chess Federation to introduce the above third-mentioned event for aspiring players who may feel the main events are too daunting for them. In any case, there is a rating ceiling of 1600 Elo points for the challengers event.

I see many familiar names, both the veterans and the young upstarts, among the participants of the Malaysian closed and the Malaysian women's closed events. But I am very pleasantly surprised by the return of our Woman International Master, Siti Zulaikha bt Foudzi, to the 64 squares. Fifteen long years, she has been away!

As far as I can remember, the last time that she sat at the chessboard was in October 2007 when she played in two Fide-registered classical chess tournaments in Macao. The first was an open Swiss event with 79 players while the second was an exclusive eight-player round-robin tournament that followed from the Swiss.

After those two events, Siti Zulaikha vanished from the chess scene while she pursued her studies and then ventured out into a career in medicine. The last I heard of her was that she was a medical officer in a government clinic in Kuching, Sarawak.

Siti Zulaikha first came to my notice in 1999 when she won the national women's chess champion. She went on to dominate women's chess in the country by retaining this title for seven more years until the 2006 championship. It was like she was a constant in Malaysian chess while other champions came and gone away. But even such constancy needs to end somehow and it ended for her in the 2007 national women's championship.

During these eight active years from 1999 till 2006, she attained the Woman International Master title. I had written in my chess column of 23 June 2006 that:

Her first was at the Commonwealth chess championship in Mumbai, India, way back in Apr 2003. From nine games, she scored the required four points. At that time, her notable opponents included woman grandmaster Ramaswamy Aarathie, international master Bakre Tejas and woman international master Swati Ghate.

Her second norm was at the world girls’ chess championship, also played in India, in Nov 2004. She played 13 games and achieved 7½ points against players such as woman grandmasters Anna Ushenina and Ekatyerina Korbut, and woman international masters Karavade Eesha, Tania Sachdev and Marties Benadorp.

Siti’s third norm was achieved at the Calvia Chess Olympiad two years ago where she obtained five points from nine games. In this event, she had played against woman grandmaster Eva Repkova, international master Lilit Mkrtchian and four woman international masters.

For good measure, Siti had also scored a norm at Turin where she scored 5½ points from nine games. Her opponents included woman grandmaster Zhao Xue, international master Svetlena Petrenko and six woman international masters.

Anyway, I am so glad that she has come back to chess. In this year's Malaysian women's chess championship, she is the natural first seed; her rating points are head and shoulders above the rest of the field. But whether she can play as well as before remains to be seen. The country has seen so many new potential players among the women and they will give her a run for her money, so to speak. No matter how the rest of the tournament goes, no matter the results, it is good to have her back. It will be good if she continues playing the occasional chess tournaments as long as time allows her.

Welcome back, Siti Zulaikha!

Breakfast meet

Had an enjoyable breakfast get-together yesterday yarning with several old schoolmates, spanning the Classes of 1969 to 1971, and including my former History teacher; the breakfast came courtesy of Mohd Bakke Salleh. His wife, who began teaching in Penang Free School much later than him, had finished her Form Six at the school in 1965, a year before most of us here entered Form One. So all of us at the table here are Old Frees.

Clockwise, from left, around the table: Khairuddin, Johnny Ooi and his wife, myself, Chye Chye, Sundaram, Andrew, Bakke, Shukor and Wahab.

Another picture for the road but without Sundaram who had to leave a wee bit too early

Mind the gap

Margaret McCollum, after the death of her Oswald
Laurence, sits on the bench waiting to hear this
recording that became one of London's most famous
"Mind the gap" announcements. 

I thought this story was absolutely heart-warming! In London, there's a woman who goes every day on the subway and sits on the dock just to listen to the announcement recorded by her husband in 1950.

In 2003, Oswald Laurence died leaving a huge void in Margaret McCollum's heart. So Margaret found this way to feel his presence closest. But after more than half a century, this voice was replaced by an empty electronic recording. 

Out of distress Margaret asked the London subway transport company for a cassette tape of the recording so that she could continue listening to her husband's voice at home.

But learning of the moving history, the company decided to restore the announcement in the only stop near the house where the woman lives, specifically at the Embankment stop of Northern Line. Today, all passengers here still listen to Oswald Laurence's voice and think that eternal love really exists.

Wonderful gesture by the authorities (Based on a post by Yasiru Lakshitha.)

Going bananas

How much colour can you extract from a bunch of bananas? Apparently a lot if you want to be creative enough with colour manipulation. I had bought a comb of bananas from a vendor several days ago. Unripe except for one banana with a yellow skin. Someone saw me buy the comb and asked what was so special about this singular yellow banana among its green brothers? "Nothing special," I answered, "I bought it because I wanted a small bunch; not a big bunch which my wife and I can't possibly finish by ourselves." 😄 This morning, I saw that almost half of the comb was already yellow and they struck a striking picture visually. Thus, out came the camera and this was the final picture than I can put together.

 

Heroes of the moment

It happened seven years ago. Today, I came across this old picture among my images on facebook. It was about a mountain guide - Ridwan was his name - who was carrying an injured boy on the back while descending Mount Kinabalu. The area had been hit by an earthquake on 5 June 2015 and the quake, measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale, had caused some 18 deaths (including a 30-year-old guide, Rubbi Sapinggi, from Kampung Kiau) and serious injuries among many climbers on that morning.

We would think that Malaysia was well insulated from the Pacific Ring of Fire and the typhoon zone but actually, not. Quite often, we are affected by the tail-end of typhoons that sweep across the Bay of Bengal or the South China Sea. Less often, we experience slight tremors from earthquakes that shake Sumatra or Mindanao. But there was an earthquake in Sabah itself in 2015. It occurred along a rather dormant fault line there which moved and released the energy within it. And anyway, Sabah is closer to the Ring of Fire than the peninsula.

Thus, at 7.15am on 5 June 2015, the fault line moved and shook the whole mountain. One of the Donkey Ears peaks at the summit broke off in the process. The huts and buildings at Laban Rata shook and suffered some damage. The trails on the mountain were damaged by the quake until rendered impassable to normal hikers. But the mountain guides knew the ins-and-outs of the mountain and they responded admirably to the situation. Guides like Ridwan went up the mountain several times to help bring down the dead and injured. 

Lynn Siang, a tour agency spokeswoman, characterised the mountain guides as heroes. "The main rescue work was done by the mountain guides," she had told CNN then. "On the path that was blocked by fallen rocks, the mountain guides had to tie a rope. When climbers crossed the ropes, they had to step on the shoulders of the guides -- the guides used their body as a cushion. They really have sacrificed a lot," Siang said, before evoking the name of the guide who didn't make it. "Rubbi -- he sacrificed a lot."

Today, the earthquake is only a memory but pictures such as this keep surfacing on my facebook on the anniversaries of my posting them. They are reminders of the times when tragedy struck the nation and unsung heroes like Ridwan and many, many others came to the fore as heroes of the day and then subsequently are forgotten again. Well not today as I salute them!

Cooking with (California) raisins

All this while, I've known raisins to be good only as a cinema snack. They were - and perhaps, still are - sold in small, conveniently packed boxes to cinema patrons. I remember buying them occasionally. And once in a very long while, I added raisins to my salad or breakfast cereal. Not often, mind you, but only when I crave some sweetness. But it never occurred to me that raisins could be added to everyday food as well. Not until a few days ago, that is, at a food demonstration by a Filipino chef, Jackie Ang Po. Suddenly, it dawned on me that the simple raisin was quite versatile. When added to food as an ingredient, dishes took a different dimension. Instead of sweetening food with sugar, why not substitute sugar with raisins? They could be added whole or they could be mashed into a paste before being added during the cooking process. 

Someone asked whether raisins could be safely consumed by Type II diabetics. And the reply was that the sweetness from raisins was much healthier and diabetics would certainly benefit from using this alternative to sugar in their diet. But I would still say that raisins are full of fructose and moderation should remain the order of the day if diabetics wish to prevent a sugar spike. Do continue keeping a personal check on the quantity consumed.

The food demonstration to promote California Raisins was sponsored by the Raisin Administrative Committee (RAC) which is a non-profit organisation with headquarters in Fresno, California. According to them, raisins provide flavour, texture and colour to a wide variety of products. Its natural sweetness allows sugar to be reduced in formulations and in bakery products, the high water binding capacity helps moisture to be retained. 

Chef Jackie was wonderfully knowledgeable about raisins but her culinary expertise shone through as she breezed through the four dishes that were featured in an accompanying recipe booklet which all the attendees received a copy. In her Metro Manila base, her pastry bakery, Fleur de Lys Patisserie, Inc, has been opened since 2001. Trained at the California Culinary Academy, her forte is pastry but here, she showed off her skills in other specialisations.

She started off by making a dessert known as Suman sa Lihiya which is a traditional Filipino rice cake made from glutinous rice. The Suman was served with a California Raisin coconut muscovado sauce and sliced mangoes, although she did say that durian could also be used as a replacement for the mango. The appetiser was prepared next and for this, Chef Jackie decided on a California Raisin shrimp beancurd roll. Paired up with the roll was a sweet and sour sauce made with pureed California Raisins as an ingredient. 

For the main, she prepared a pan-grilled California Raisin lemongrass turmeric chicken which she later garnished with garlic mashed potatoes and a Filipino raw papaya pickle known as atchara.  Her final offer was mooncake with California Raisin added to the filling. The recipe booklet mentioned either lotus or mung bean paste but I can't remember what she used as the filling in the demo. Anyway, Chef Jackie made two types: a snow skin version as well as the more traditional baked mooncake. 

Dumpling festival

We do this every year and I've written about it often. On the fifth day of the fifth Chinese lunar month, which coincides with today, we purchase vegetarian glutinous rice dumplings for worship of the home deities. This occasion is known as Goh Guek Chek or Fifth Month Festival. It's also known as the Dumpling Festival, and there's a sad and tragic story that goes with it. Most people have forgotten the tragedy and that's why, it is being celebrated today with joy and ravenous consumption of the dumpings. Click here to read the story.

Boston building, part 4

Another old picture of the Boston building at the corner of Penang Road and Prangin Road has come to my attention. As I haven't featured it before in this blog, it is very appropriate that I should show it now. As can be seen from the picture, Cathay and Odeon were advertising the screenings of Born Free and The Singing Nun in their respective cinemas. Both these films were released in 1966 and I would guess that it could be in late 1966 or early 1967 that they made their way to our local cinemas. To see earlier images of the Boston building on this blog, click on Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3. 

Part Three: Calamitous Christmas

Last December, I had written stories on the fateful days that followed the landing of the Japanese military on the shores of Kota Baru on the east coast of Malaya, concentrating on the early Penang experience of the war. From there and also from their other landings in southern Thailand where they met only token resistance from the Thais, the Japanese smashed their way down the peninsula, over-ran the positions of the British armed forces everywhere and captured Singapore on the eve of Chinese New Year in February 1942. 

In December 1961, The Straits Times newspaper in Singapore ran a five-part controversial serial called Eighty Days to Singapore to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1941 Japanese invasion. The serial was based on the report of General Arthur Percival (General Officer Commanding (Malaya)) and the memoirs of Japanese master tactician Colonel Tsuji Masanobu. 

From the 17 December 1961 issue of The Straits Times, David Baratham wrote the third part of his serial which I reproduce here:  

CALAMITOUS CHRISTMAS

South - and soon on to Johore

3,200 became prisoners: 2 explanations

ON TUESDAY, Dec 16, 1941, banner headlines told readers in Singapore: JAPANESE SUFFER BIG LOSSES IN KEDAH. But a well-phrased leading article emphasised that all was far from well - or well-informed - about the fighting in Malaya. The leader writer quoted the text of cryptic communiques issued to the newspaper over the last 36 hours. They were:

Fighting continues in Kedah; our forces in contact with the enemy in Kelantan; fighter aircraft are helping our troops in Kedah and Kuantan; no developments to report.

"Surely," the leader writer complained, "something more than that might have been told to the public."

And he reproached the B.B.C. for having broadcast: "The British High Command is confident and the position is well in hand."

He suggested, with understandable irritation, that if this really was the case, there should have been no need for withdrawals.

Appealing for more news, he concluded: "If it is good news, so much the better; and if it is bad, we can take it."

By a grim coincidence, the Cathay cinema was screening the film "Nothing But The Truth," and advertising "Air raid shelters for all our patrons."

KEY TO FAR EAST

The news was bad. The night after Sir Shenton Thomas had made his famous "Singapore must not fail ... it shall not fall" speech, a company of the Argylls and some F.M.S. Volunteer Forces armoured cars were driven back along the Grik road by advancing Japanese infantry and tanks.

The armour plating of the Marmon-Harrison cars was ineffective against the Japanese armour-piercing bullets. Casualties were heavy.

From this point, it becomes abundantly clear that General Percival's prime object was the defence of the Naval Base in Singapore.

But Sir Shenton stressed the security of the entire island, not merely the Naval Base, in the close of his speech to the Singapore Legislative Assembly.

"But let us always remember that we in this little country of Malaya are entrusted with the high privilege of defending Singapore, the key to the Far East."

Hadley Metcalfe, a journalist broadcasting from Singapore Radio told listeners why the fighting in Kedah was confused.

It was, he explained, because water and slush made it impossible in most places to dig trenches, or establish any line of defence.

He recalled meeting "cheerful evacuees" and the only complaint he said he got was that 15 cases of whiskey had been left behind in a club.

"I came back an optimist," he confessed, adding: "There is a tough time ahead of us, but the Japanese have not got the knockout punch we have."

On the following Monday, Dec 22, the defences were shifted back to Sungei Siput, across the River Perak.

A large slice of the Iskandar Bridge was blown up, and the pontoon bridge at Blanja was partly wrecked.

The Japanese plan to attack the rear end of the bridges and destroy the demolition wiring with light bombs was not put into effect in time.

FIRST DAY'S RAID

"The British Army," Col Tsuji claimed, "had blown up the bridges and abandoned several thousand Indian soldiers on the north bank.

"When fighting the Japanese army, it is the British army which excels in retreat."

In Singapore the affair of the evacuation of Europeans from Penang was given a somewhat heated airing.

Sir Shen Thomas assured the House that this had been done without his knowledge - or that of Mr SW Jones the Colonial Secretary, and he gave the assurance that any future yielding of districts would "entail a sufficient number of European civilians staying with the people to look after their needs, as far as they could, even though they might fall into enemy hands."

Mr Jones was evidently cross with the untidy people of Penang. He said that up to the time of the evacuation (Dec 16/17) the bodies of those killed in the first day's raid (Dec 10) had not been buried.

He said it was essential that water mains, gas mains, sewerage, electricity cables and transport should be maintained.

The Singapore Oriental and Electric Company politely invited subscribers to refrain "if possible" from making social calls from 10 a.m. to 11.30 a.m.

"Conditions in Singapore are fantastic," a journalist wrote on Dec 23.

MAPS OF SINGAPORE

"Scarcely a man, woman or child seems to realise that war today is only about 300 miles away to the north. Much of official Singapore, cloistered in empty, echoing offices, seems to have no knowledge, no more realisation of what is to come than the humblest coolie.

"Singapore has got to wake up quickly. We have been bombed already and we may be bombed again before the day is over; but we still have our minute papers and our usual channels. This is a disastrous state of affairs. It must stop."

This leader reflected the feelings of the Sydney Sun's special correspondent who, under the headline BLIMPS RULE IN MALAYA had protested that the press were not given reasonable access to the background picture of "the mightiest war drama ever staged east of Suez."

The Chartered Bank announced that their branches in Penang, Alor Star, Sitiawan and Taiping were closed for business for the moment.

A thousand volunteers were needed to help with the Defence Security Registration. No qualifications were required other than "ability to speak bazaar Malay, write English in a clear hand, understand simple instructions and have a desire to serve".

Demolishing extra rolling stock turned out to be a very difficult task. There was no time to build siding to park them, and so 13 loaded trains were routed to Malacca and bombed by the Royal Air Force.

The carriages, however, stood up to the bombing remarkably well and the raid was only partly successful.

One carriage or truck which escaped destruction contained a large consignment of maps of Singapore, urgently needed there, but never delivered.

Several engine drivers and conductors acted with great bravery and promptitude when their trains were attacked from the air.

Whenever and wherever possible, they would stop the train, help passengers out into the cover of the rubber trees or jungle, and render first aid.

The K.P.M. Line were still advertising regular sailings to Java and Sumatra, and "all other ports in the N.E. Indies."

Someone wanted to rent or buy a bungalow/house in the Tanglin/Holland Road district.

Quoting King George's speech made on Empire Day, 1940, Sir Robert Brooke Popham addressed community leaders: "Keep your hearts proud and your resolve unshaken....with God's help we shall not fail."

TALK ON THE RADIO

Retired in Australia after 33 years' service in the M.C.S., Sir Alexander Hall returned by air to help Sir Shenton Thomas.

Dato Onn bin Jaafar was appointed Information Officer for Johore State.

A European advertising agent executive was fined $250 for a black-out offence.

All British Europeans arriving in Singapore from upcountry were ordered to report to the Manpower Bureau, Empress Place.

Upcountry, the Japanese surveyed the Perak River, while as they approached it, said Col Tsuji, "appeared even more formidable, being more than 500 metres wide, fast flowing and of unknown depth."

At Ipoh, the Japanese suffered their first air raid by R.A.F. bombers. Their Christmas Day was spent in crossing the river.

In Singapore, Mr FD Bisseker, an evacuee from Penang, gave a long talk on the Singapore radio. He said that the three Japanese air raids "bombed Penang into impotency - and why? For the sad and true reason that the civilian population evaporated in a most amazing manner."

"Nobody," he continued, "is suggesting Singapore is doomed or anything so demoralisingly untrue, but we have got to save it - it is you who must act."

SCORCHED EARTH POLICY

A survivor from the Prince of Wales described how he had been sent to Penang to operate a ferryboat evacuating women and children to the mainland.

"Night came, and we hauled up our flags and carried on with the work. This continued every day and night.

"While waiting for opportunities to sneak our human cargo across to Butterworth, we were able to have a good view of the bombing and machinegunning of the civilians."

A stop press report from London said that a scorched earth policy had been carried out in Penang before the evacuation.

The Prai power station and the Penang tin smelting works were completely destroyed, the report claimed.

Another London report stated on Dec 23 that the Governor of Hong Kong was continuing to hurl defiance at the Japanese.

On Christmas Day, Hong Kong surrendered.

On the B.B.C. King George said: "Truly it is a stern and difficult time, but as the war widens, so shall our convictions deepen in the greatness of our cause."

On Singapore radio, Sir Shenton Thomas said: "I do know with all my heart that the King will give us encouragement and confidence and hope. And on that let us look forward to a happy and victorious New Year."

A Dutch East Indies paper said: "The crushing effect of the blows inflicted by the Netherlanders on the Japanese does its share in slowing up Japanese advances on Singapore."

The Singapore Theosophical Society made the only announcement of its sort in the press. It wished everyone a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Mr Duff Cooper became chairman of the War Council's Civil Defence Committee.

"Today." said the Free Press leader, "is Christmas Day, the strangest that most people in Malaya have ever experienced.

"There is no excuse for the traditional rejoicing - only the supreme need for hard and unrelenting toil."

The staffs of the water, electricity, gas and engineering departments, including sewage, were prohibited from being absent from work without prior consent.

UNDER ENEMY FIRE

The commanding officer of the Malay Regiment praised his troops' conduct under enemy fire and said the recent recruiting campaign was a great success.

General Gordon Bennet, the Australian commander, in a Christmas Day broadcast to Australia, said; "For months the Australian troops had been perfecting defences against the very tactics the Japanese employed .... even the gunners have a sideline.

"They have heard of the dislike the Japanese are showing to the point of a bayonet up north.

"So they are busy scrounging bayonets for their rifles just in case a few Japanese excursionists should come wandering around the batteries," but in a more realistic tone he added: "We have no illusions about the situation. We know that the fighting is going to be tough. But I could wish for no finer fighters to see it through."

The Chartered Bank announced that the following branches were being operated from Singapore - Penang, Alor Star, Sitiawan, Ipoh.

On Boxing Day, while Retter's band was playing at a dinner dance at the Adelphi Grill Room in Singapore, the troops were on the retreat southwards out of Ipoh.

Among the last to leave were Chinese and Eurasian telephone girls who had been handling military calls during dive bombing attacks.

The 12th Brigade Group continued withdrawing through the night of Dec 27 and took up a position south of Dipang. The 28th Battalion protected its right flank and placed defences in the Tapah Area.

On Dec 29, a Japanese attack was repulsed but the Divisional Commander of 12th Brigade Group ordered a withdrawal to Bidor.

The Japanese followed hard on their heels, their tanks demoralising the tired infantrymen. The bridge at Bidor was destroyed.

The Japanese reinforced their strength at Telok Anson by invaders operating on the lower reaches of the Perak River with boats and cycle patrols.

"Rose Force," initiated about a week earlier by General Percival from picked Australian volunteers, carried out several brilliantly successful raids west of the Perak River, ambushing one motor transport column and destroying lorries and staff cards, before withdrawing to Port Swettenham.

But they had to cease operations when their base ship, H.M.S. Kedah, was dive-bombed and sunk.

END OF AIR ATTACKS

Attacks were also made by the R.A.F. through seldom able to muster more than six machines at a time, making night raids on Sungei Patani aerodrome, where the Japanese were operating over 100 aircraft.

These attacks continued until the C-in-C Far East demanded full priority to be given to convoy protection work; this virtually meant the end of air counter-attacks against the Japanese in Malaya.

"Various alterations in top commanders, including Mr Duff Cooper's return to the United Kingdom," wrote General Percival, "had an unsettling effect and did make for continuity."

But the Far East War Council still functioned coherently enough to promulgate instructions to effect immediate evacuations of civilians from Malaya and Singapore, and to set up a joint service and civilian "Selection Board" with a Supreme Judge as chairman.

On New Year Day at the Kuala Kubu Road junction, the commander of the 11th Indian Division advised the risk of his inability to hold the Japanese any longer.

He was permitted to withdraw at his discretion by General Percival, who was touring Port Swettenham and Port Dickson, and who then returned to Singapore after arranging for "left behind" parties of Chinese to be trained in Singapore.

REMAIN WITH FAMILIES

On your he was faced with the problem of what to do about the F.M.S. Volunteer Force; many members had deserted, preferring to remain with their families instead of leaving them on the southward withdrawals.

Percival solved the dilemma of enforcing service or of releasing those wishing to leave by consenting to the latter.

In Singapore on Saturday, Dec 27, Mr John McDonald told listeners on Singapore radio that it would not be such a long war.

"We have a tough job ahead," he observed, "and perhaps an equally tough week or two which we can weather.

"That we can weather the storm I have not the least doubt whatever, and I believe that once the shock is behind us, we shall win very much faster than we now suspect."

A leading banking house announced its removal to London.

Mr Tan Kah Kee accepted Sir Shenton's invitation to mobilise the Chinese community. A leading article (Dec 27) said that with this and Indian civilian mobilisation, "Europeans, Eurasians, Malays and others will resolve that 'Singapore must not fall; it shall not fall'."

Singapore Girl Guides were busy making bandages, collecting salvage, helping in the blood transfusion section and working at a centre caring for babies lost in air raids.

FLOW OF GOOD NEWS

Women, said a lady's article, had not stopped dressing for dinner, but there were as many short as long frocks to be seen at the Christmas Eve dance at one hotel.

A leading Chungking newspaper urged an attack by British forces in Burma on Thailand to threaten the rear of the Japanese invaders in northern Malaya.

The Penang Straits Echo proprietor who had evacuated to Singapore described the achievements of the editor, Mr M Saravanamuttu, during the Japanese air raids as "an epic of journalism."

He described how the editor carried cooked food to the wardens during the bombing raids as well as ensuring that the paper came out.

"It was," he said, "a job for a giant."

His last editorial was headlined The Bloodbath of Penang.

Possibly the most remarkable announcement of all in the Singapore press was the following:

"European (British) desires post as office assistant. Permanent or temporary" which appeared on Dec 27, the date of the enactment of the Martial Law Ordinance.

As usual the B.B.C. maintained a flow of cheering news, stating that in the fighting now in progress in Perak, "wave after wave of Japanese infantry are being wiped out by the concentrated deadly fire of British and Imperial forces."

At the Singapore Tanglin Club, the committee decided to convert the ballroom into a dormitory for air raid refugees. They decided to leave the bar and billiard room intact for the present and not to establish a first aid post, as there was one at the nearby Goodwood Park Hotel.

BY SEA AND BY LAND

On Dec 28 all civilians in Singapore were ordered to register and carry identification cards; shelters for thousands were being dug by the Municipality.

Those building their own were told to telephone the Health Office if the walls or floor remained wet continuously.

Two Javanese were each fined $5 for roasting satay with an uncovered fire.

Ian Morrison of the Calcutta Statesman gave a concise description of the Japanese soldiers: "They are lightly dressed, they wear rubber shoes, and they are partial to climbing trees and sniping. The problem is to establish a position which cannot be attacked from the flank."

The Japanese master planners had been intrigued by the way the British appeared to be sending up reinforcements into Malaya, although it should have been clear that there was little hope of stopping the advance.

They also knew that Percival was desperately counting the days before substantial reinforcements were due to arrive to mid-January.

So they decided to press southwards as hard and fast as possible, by sea as well as on land.

They transported 40 boats, used in the Singapore landing, cross-country to Alor Star, adding 20 picked up in Penang, and embarked a whole battalion of infantry, engineers and mountain guns.

Celebrating New Year Eve at sea, these were machine-gunned by the R.A.F. Many were wounded but on Jan 4, the craft landed at Sungkai.

Then a "reckless action" by the Japanese Imperial Guards was to take over the craft, land at Morib, cut across to Kajang, and hold the main road south of Kuala Lumpur.

Mr Churchill was furious. He cabled Percival: "Control of the Western Coast passed to the Japanese army which did not have even one naval vessel there.

Churchill could not understand why the Royal Navy had not dealt with the small craft with destroyers or submarines.

All that Admiral Dudley Pound could suggest was that there were not enough aircraft, that Penang's denial tactics had failed, and that the Japanese must have been able to use vessels abandoned there.

It was at Kampar that the advancing Japanese met the strongest opposition so far. The eastern flank was 4,000ft high with steep sides, and the summit was screened by thick jungle.

The main road was close to its western slopes. To the north-west and the south was a large tin mining area, with rubber plantations in the south-west.

The mining area gave an excellent firing line for machineguns, and on New Year Eve the Gurkhas, at home fighting in the mountains, inflicted heavy losses on the enemy.

The Sikhs of the Punjab Regiment too, drove the Japanese out of a vital position and Col Tsuji, who said he spent New Year Eve being shelled in a small car, admitted that the issue was "in grave doubt."

Throughout that night and the next morning, a stream of Japanese wounded returned as best they could from the frontline.

This was the Japanese army's baptism in real jungle warfare. It was not to their liking, the men were not only exhausted they had, said Col Tsuji, "no life in their voices."

"Morale had never been lower."

At 9 p.m. on New Year Day, the battle for Kampar was as good as over. Then the Punjab Regiment withdrew to the Tapah-Bidor area, and the Ando Regiment went their way through swamps to attack rear positions with hand grenades.

While not far away, a Japanese battalion landed from vessels down the Perak River, and attacked and seized Kampar that evening.

South of the Perak border, two steamers and 12 landing craft threatened the coast at Kuala Selangor, but withdrew after one was sunk.

Despite this respite and driving back cavalry counter-attacks, the Japanese took Batang Berjuntai on Jan 6; a spectacular feature of the British denial policy in that area must have been the demolition of the Batu Arang coal mines at Rawang.

At the finale of the Battle of Kampar, Col Tsuji apologetically delivered a delayed order from the Japanese army commander to the commander of the Okata Regiment placing him under close arrest for 30 days - his punishment for having been responsible, as their superior officer, for the conduct of troops under his command - the Kobayashi Battalion - who had looted and committee rape on civilians in Penang.

By a coincidence, it seems that there was almost as much trouble with the top Japanese staff as must have been brewing at the same time between Percival and his colleagues.

To be continued....

Part One: The last weekend at a cabaret 
Part Two: December upcountry 

 

A sextuplet conjunction

Having missed the first round of closest conjunction between Jupiter and Mars yesterday morning through tiredness, I made it a point to wake up at 5.30am today just to set myself up to photograph these two planets together. What I wanted to achieve was to capture an image that included the four moons of Jupiter. What a sight that would be, wouldn't it, to have two planets and four moons together, right? 

Timing, weather, equipment and luck play important parts in this endeavour. The timing was right in this instance because I was sure that Jupiter's moon would be visible in the pictures, if my luck held. I was less confident with the weather although the forecast did not say rain in the morning. Clouds could come rolling in unannounced. I was even less sure with my equipment: the Olympus E-PL7. Sometimes, it performs superbly within limitations, and sometimes, it does not. And finally, luck. If you are not lucky, well, that's it. 

My first batch of images were, unfortunately, not good enough, despite mounting the camera on a tripod. I couldn't see the moons. It was not until my third batch of pictures that I managed to have two reasonably good frames to show off. Only two frames from 68 taken! Here is the better one, but it is still not as good as I had hoped for. Anyway, the moment has passed.

The four Galilean moons are, in order from the top, Callisto, Ganymede, Io and Europa. My last word on this conjunction is that seen with the naked eye - at least, with my own eyes - the two planets looked like one. They were so close together that to my bad eyesight, they looked like one merged point of light. But of course, the camera images tell a different story.  

Gunong Jerai in 2022

Finally, my wife and I had a most relaxing vacation at Gunong Jerai last month. It's one place that we have never been to together. I had visited the place way back during my bachelor days in 1982. After we married, we had tried going up that mountain once with friends, even gone to the extent of booking one of the bungalows there, but at the last moment our booking was cancelled because some government officials from Kedah wanted to use the place. After that incident, we said "forget it" to this place as there were other more accommodative hill destinations around the country.

But lately, some friends had told us how much they had enjoyed an overnight stay at the Gunong Jerai Hill Resort. We were intrigued. Would the place have changed since the last time we tried to stay there? I gave the hotel a call. Yes, there were rooms available and you could walk in anytime. No need to make reservations or bookings. This was during the Muslim month of Ramadan, mind you, or otherwise the place would be overrun by vacationers.

So we packed our bags and drove up to the hill resort (almost 1,000 metres above sea level). From the foot of the mountain till the hill resort, it was a journey of some 11 kilometres. A steady 30-minute climb uphill through many twists and turns along the route. But we made it without any difficulty. We asked for an upgrade to our room and was given an apartment unit which looked down onto the Kedah coastline and the padi fields around Yan town. Fabulous. (Note: Most pictures will appear at the end of this story.)

The hill resort covers some five acres or two hectares and it is possible to walk around the place freely. We noticed some day trippers around the place too. We decided to stop for tea at their café behind their reception area. We ordered some pastries and were delighted with them. They weren't too bad at all.

Like I mentioned earlier, this short sojourn up Gunong Jerai was meant to be a relaxation. And so it turned out to be. We spent about two hours on the balcony looking out to the coastline and islands as the sun gradually sank down. And all too soon it was time for dinner at their halal restaurant. Staff were very polite, waiting patiently to take our orders. Saw See ordered their chicken chop while I went for their mee rebus tulang which was described on their poster as their best selling item.

They weren't wrong on this point. The bowl was large and filled to the brim. In it was a huge chunk of bone with a lot of tender meat still dangling from it. This bowl of mee rebus was certainly worth every bit of the RM17 that we paid for it. It was quite a memorable dinner. Heartily recommended. But a word of caution: it's beef. So if anyone can't eat beef, I'm sorry....they'll have to order other food items from the menu.

Breakfast the next morning was also in the restaurant. Because it was the fasting month, there wasn't any buffet on offer. But we could order from their menu. Not many things to choose. Either a breakfast of nasi lemak or some localised Western breakfast, We plumbed for the Western breakfast of eggs, baked beans, ham, sausages and toasted bread. Not too bad, actually, although the bread came after we had finished out food. The kitchen's hiccup, maybe? Despite its simplicity, we quite enjoyed it.

Now, we have some two hours to kill before checking out from the resort. So what else could we do? Go visit the nearby waterfall, of course! We got the direction from the reception and went walking down the well-defined path until we could hear the water thundering down in the distance. Soon enough, we clambered over some rocks to reach the waterfall. But too bad we couldn't find the way down to the pool. We must have missed it. 

Looking at this waterfall, I wondered whether it was the same one that my friends and I had reached 40 years ago. Possibly, because there can't be too many waterfalls around the resort. All too soon, we had to head back to the apartment. By one o'clock, we were already on our way down the mountain. No doubt only a short vacation, but it was quite relaxing and done on our own terms.

Our accommodation. It was quite a spacious apartment, Very clean and well kept. Balcony gave a breath-taking view of the Andaman Sea and the padi fields around Yan. 

The bathroom was of the sunken type and may provide a small challenge to the more senior folks with mobility issues. However, there are railings to hold on.

We spent our time just sitting here and looking out ahead.

Enjoying the late setting sun and  and watching the last rays turn the sky into a brilliant orange

Another view of the setting sun, this time from inside the apartment

We stayed in one of these apartment blocks.

Other than the apartment blocks, these wonderful chalets are available for short stays. Other facilities here include a playground and two small pools.

The resort is officially 986 metres above sea level

The Kedah coastline at Yan comes with Bunting island in the background. The island is connected to the mainland by a short bridge. Many people claimed that the bridge is a white elephant, popular with anglers and nobody else. Actually, there are four islands sitting off the coast. Apart from Bunting, there are also Song Song, Telur and Bidan which couldn't be seen from the resort.

It's called the Simple Day Café. Very popular with day trippers to Gunong Jerai.

An exterior view of the café. The restaurant is located in the building on the right. That's where we went for dinner, breakfast and lunch.

My bowl of mee rebus tulang, one of the best selling items on the restaurant's menu. the serving is quite generous.

In my opinion, these three iconic pine trees is representative of the hill resort itself. They are magnificent against a brilliantly blue sky and can be enjoyed from the restaurant.

On a clear day, the padi fields of Yan stretch out for miles and miles. This cyclist is just one of many who come up to the resort grounds on a day trip.

The hill resort provides a camp site for anyone that wishes to stay outdoors. They'll have to register with the reception first. 

There's a botanical park at the hill resort but we did not explore it. Instead, we chose to walk down the well-trodden path to the Alor Naga waterfall. It's about a 20-minute easy walk one-way. Very difficult to lose one's way if everyone keeps to the walkway. Nevertheless, resort guests should inform the reception if they intend to visit the waterfall.

At the end of the 20-minute trek is the waterfall itself, but one will have to clamber through some gap in the boulders. 

I think it is possible to get to the pool below but I did not find the way. However, prudence should dictate that one should only go down there in a group of people; not when you come here alone or with just another person.

And lastly, before we left the hill resort, we spied some tourists going up this way to the mosque or masjid atop Gunong Jerai. It's a modern squarish building but capped by a dome.

Teachers' Day

Was invited by the Headmaster to a belated Hari Guru function at Penang Free School this morning. There were only a few guests there - the others being Penang Port chairman Syed Mohamed Aidid, some members of the Parents-Teachers Association, a few recently retired teachers from the school, Andrew Lim, Zahari Zachariah and Loh Lean Kang. The rest were the school's teachers. Thank you, Syed Sultan, for the invitation!

Moon, Jupiter and Mars conjunction

The things parents do for their kids. In my case, I was asked to be a human alarm clock. My son was to take a flight departing the Penang international airport at 8.30am and had wanted me to wake him up at 5.30am. "Don't worry," he assured me, "I have set other alarms to go off at this time too but I need you to be an additional alarm in case my other alarms fail me." Unfortunately, he does not live with his parents in Bukit Mertajam but preferred to stay on his own on the island. So like all good parents, I agreed to give him a telephone call at 5.30am. But first, I had to roll out of bed myself by 5.15am at the latest. 

The problem with me is that after I rouse myself up at this unearthly hour, it is normally impossible for me to go back to my warm bed. What to do under such circumstances? Why, go out and look at the sky, that's what!

The moment I looked eastwards, I was amazed to see the crescent moon to the right of Jupiter. I had forgotten all about this forthcoming conjunction! The wandering moon, getting thinner with each day, would be positioned close enough to Jupiter in the morning of the 25th of May. In addition, with the fainter Mars quite close by, the two planets and the moon formed a tight triangle in the eastern morning sky. Wow, what a sight indeed!

PS. There was a bonus too, When I digitally enhanced my pictures of this conjunction, the four Galilean moons of Jupiter showed up so clearly in a few of them. Io was almost touching the planet itself but not because it was going to fall into Jupiter. It's an optical illusion. A few minutes later, it would be transiting across the face of Jupiter and would be impossible for me to photograph it. So at this very moment, there were five moons and two planets in this picture. 

PS2. Mars and Jupiter would be closest together from our point of view on Sunday morning but it won't be anything as spectacularly bright as the Jupiter-Venus conjunction which was witnessed at dawn on the first of this month. But I hope that I can still wake up on Sunday to watch this natural phenomenon.