When I spotted this fruit in the market, I left the stall I was standing at and zipped over to the neighboring stall where it was being sold, five-year-old in tow. I started asking the hawker about the fruit when the lady from the previous stall came over, carrying my crying three-year-old. She shot me […]
Category Archives: Nusantara
Eating around Kuching
Food is a fairly consistent topic here at BGP, but I’ve just run across a site that does it full time, based right here in Kuching! It is mum-mum::eat-eat, and if you are into Malaysian cuisine, you really should have a look. The pictures are great, and are all taken right in the restaurant. That […]
More Nasyid Translations
Continuing on with English translations from Hijjaz’s wonderful Pelita Hidup album, here is the next in the series, Kala Subuh:
Mata Hati
Hijjaz – Mata Hati Pandangan mata selalu menipu Pandangan akal selalu tersalah Pandangan nafsu selalu melulu Pandangan hati itu yang hakiki Kalau hati itu bersih The vision of the eye always lies The vision of the intellect always errs The vision of the ego always strays The vision of the heart will be true If […]
Pelita Hidup
One of my favorite Nasheed albums is called Pelita Hidup, by the Malaysian group Hijjaz. It is filled with beautiful duas, zikr, and nasheeds, very much a meditative album. Many of the songs deal with the certainty of death and the life of the grave. I’ve translated them and passed them on to Nasheed World. […]
Kuching in History
I picked up a great little book, a 50-year-old report done by two peninsular Malays as an undergraduate honors project. The reprinting, produced by UNIMAS, is titled “Life in the Malay Kampongs of Kuching, Fifty Years Ago”. It’s a real gem. The students were geographers, and so payed special attention to the landscape of the […]
Puteri Santubong
Mount Santubong is the subject of a local legend that was put to song. Brother Affendi kindly chased down the lyrics. I’ve supplied a translation for your reading pleasure. Puteri Santubong, Puteri Sejinjang, Penjaga gunung negeri Sarawak, Manis sik ada dapat dilawan, Anak dak dewa turun kayangan. Princess Santubong, Princess Sejinjang, Spirits of the mountain […]
Overeating
Tracking down new and exciting foods and eating them has been my principle preoccupation since arriving in Malaysia almost six months ago. But I’ve also been happy to find old comfort food from my childhood that was tough to get back in the States. I lived in India for four years as a kid, and […]