A Traditional Village House

This is a miniature of a typical village house standing on stilts so that it is raised above the ground. I saw it placed in the concourse of the main railway station in Kuala Lumpur.

There is a flight of steps leading to a small verandah.

At the side of the steps is an urn which traditionally stores water.  A visitor usually scoops water from this urn to wash his feet before entering the house. He leaves his footwear at the bottom of the steps.

On a mat is a tray with ‘ketupat’ cases and a wooden board game.

  The ketupat cases are woven from leaves.

  They are often used as decorative items during the Hari Raya Adilfitri festival.

When not used as decor, they are filled with compressed boiled rice .

 Ketupat is usually served with satay (grilled spicy chicken pieces on skewers accompanied with a rich peanut sauce).  This is a traditional dish very popular with locals and tourists. It is a favorite food when there are parties.

The wooden board with holes is a traditional game that is played by girls.  It is known as ‘congkat’.

Nowadays such village houses are only found in the rural areas far away from the cities. Many of them have been replaced by modern brick buildings when development catches up. Those with thatched roofs are very few and far in between.

Yummy Sea Food

These food are par for the tourists who come to visit the Land Below The Wind. Each evening, before the sun goes down, the restaurant is swamped by hordes of tourists as well as locals. The supply simply cannot meet the demand and we notice that the crabs are getting smaller in size. They just don't have the luxury of time to grow to their usual size which can be pretty big. These are cooked in salted egg yolk , bird's eye chili and curry leaves.  Mmmm...simply delicious.

 The scallops are also a favorite, especially when cooked in a sweet and sour sauce.

 This vegetable is only found in the Land Below The Wind and can be cooked in different ways. Here we asked for it to be stirfried with garlic. The shoots must be young and crunchy. If the plant is a bit old, the stems will be hard and chewy, not nice to eat. Some like to have it fried with prawn paste and chili which is very pungent but appetising.

There are other types of shells, clams, cray fish and lobster.  Some varieties of fish can be very very expensive especially when they are still swimming in the aquariums. Such fresh fish is usually eaten steamed.
If you haven't visited the Land Below The Wind, you ought to, not only for the food but also for the lovely beaches.