Mulu National Park, Sarawak–Wind Cave

Two more caves were explored in the second day - the Wind Cave and the Clearwater Cave. Unlike the first day, the tour commenced with a boat ride along Melinau Paku River from the Park Jetty to the foothill of Wind Cave.

Melinau Paku River viewed from the air as the plane approached

the runway for landing.

Boat took us from the Park Jetty to the foothill of Wind Cave.

From there, we walked a flight of walkway and staircase towards the cave entrance. This cave in fact is part of the Clearwater Cave System. Though the cave is small, it contains a fair amount of interesting formations of stalactites and stalagmites, flowrocks, helitites and rock corals.

Staircase leading to the cave entrance.

Cave Entrance.

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One part of the cave passage is very narrow and barely wide enough for one person to pass through. The air current as it passes through this narrow passage gains speed and causes a windy sensation as one walks through it. This is why the cave is called The Wind Cave.

Narrow passageway.

This area is called The King's Chamber because of a stalagmite
that resembles the image of a king!.

Robust and safe walkway and staircase within the cave allow
visitors to move around with minimum risks.

Walking toward the cave mouth  after touring the cave.

Cave exit.

Mulu National Park, Sarawak - Lang Cave

Adjacent to the Deer Cave is the Lang Cave. Lang Cave however is a much much smaller cave compared to Deer Cave.

Though it is small, it is nevertheless compensated by the the extensive and peculiar formations of stalactites and stalagmites. They are truly amazing to behold.

This cave also contains worm traps made by the cave worms to catch small insects. These thread-liked strains suspended from the cave ceiling are made of sticky substance much like the spiderwebs. Unlike the glowworms we saw in Waitomo Glowworm Caves in NZ (Read here), they do not emit light.

The cave entrance as viewed from the inside.

Mulu National Park, Sarawak - Deer Cave

We drove 455 Km from home to Miri to attend the IDMC Conference held at the Meritz Hotel. It was my initial plan to drive to Kuching from Miri after the conference with overnight stops at Bintulu and Sibu. But after considering the 825 Km distance, uninteresting landscape coupled with a lack of attractive sites to explore in the towns along the route, we decided to consider exploring Mulu National Park instead. 

After talking to the travel agent, Brighton Travel & Tour introduced by the Hotel, we booked the 3D2N tour and the return plane ticket, Miri-Mulu there and then.

In Mulu National Park, we visited four caves, the one most interesting and memorable would be the Deer Cave. Deer Cave is said to have the largest cave passage in the world.

Deer Cave Opening.

Massive cave passage.

Water seeps through the soil above the cave and finally falls from

cave ceiling creating a sensation of "raining" inside the cave!

The guide was quick to draw our attention to the 
cave mouth which depicts the silhouette of  the 
image of "Abraham Lincoln"

Cave-in that happened long long time ago. 
Had the cave-in not happened, the cave 
passage would have been extended 
to much longer route!

The single most awesome experience would be sitting at the viewing platform to watch the bats flying out from the cave opening in the evening in groups of thousands and thousands. It was estimated that there are 2-3 million bats living in the cave and they consume around 15 tons of flying insects every night!

Never Say Die!

It's CNY season, my wife, being a good daughter made it a point to visit her mother in BP. She took a short break from her role as "confinement lady" for her new granddaughter, Olivia to make this trip which lasted a mere 48-hour duration. Still, we achieved much. We visited the matriarch, had a session of card game with my grandnephew & grandniece and attended a reunion lunch with a group of ex-convent girls.

The bus ride from Singapore to Batu Pahat on 29 January 2017 would have been smooth and fast if not because of the delay caused by the long queue of Chinese tourists waiting for clearance at the Malaysian Custom. We had to sit in the bus for an hour even though we were cleared within minutes at the counters reserved for Malaysians. The Singaporeans in our bus unfortunately had to queue with the Chinese tourists.

After that incident, the otherwise uneventful bus ride was somewhat spiced up by the live update of the epic clash of tennis giants, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the Australian Grand Final. I was sure that Nadal would clinch the title when he was leading 3-1 in the final 5th set. Then all of a sudden, good fortune was on Federer's side. He was then unstoppable and won the next five games to win 6-3. I dropped my jaw at the turn of event.

At age 35 and without winning a title since 2012, Federer's latest win proves he is truly the greatest among all tennis legends. His tenacity and "Never Say Die" spirit is indeed admirable!

The victor and the second best!

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At the CHIJ (Convent of Holy Infant Jesus) Batu Pahat reunion, the ladies were adamant that the odd man be invited to join their reunion lunch. My role was to be their photographer!

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The card game started with a loan of two bucks from my grandniece. In the end, I was back to zero. No gain no loss!

Passing the Baton Through Generations

As soon as I arrived at Sam and Rachel’s place from Changi Airport on 25.01.2017, I was immediately offered the privilege of holding my third grandchild for the very first time. She was exactly three weeks old that day - a tiny, precious bundle of life. It was an indescribable feeling to cuddle this little baby girl, the firstborn of Sam and Rachel.

Olivia, as she is named, was incredibly adorable - soft, warm, and so cuddle-friendly. As I held her close, many thoughts filled my mind. I paused for a moment and remembered that on this very same date, eleven years earlier, my father had passed away. The bittersweet symmetry of life and death struck me deeply. I couldn’t help but think how joyful he would have been to know that yet another great-grandchild had been born - a continuation of the family line.

There was a deep sense of satisfaction and quiet fulfillment within me, knowing that the "baton of life" passed on to me by my parents is now being handed over to the next generation - and now, even to a fourth. The Chinese characters 傳承 (chuan cheng), meaning passing on or inheritance, came to mind. These two words capture a concept that has long motivated the Chinese around the world to hold fast to their heritage, traditions, and identity across generations.

During the rest of my stay, I spent long, cherished moments cradling and cuddling baby Olivia - soaking in the quiet joy only a grandparent can truly understand.

As Donald A. Norberg once said,
"Surely, two of the most satisfying experiences in life must be those of being a grandchild or a grandparent."

Full Month Celebration.

Back to Home Town

As grandparents, watching kids grow and interacting with them is fascinating and rejuvenating. I last saw my granddaughter, Gracie some six months ago in July 2016. Since then, she has improved so much in language skill and dexterity. When she last visited KK in July 2015 (Read here) some one and half years ago, she tripped once when she rushed over the split-level drop between the Dining area and the Living hall of my house without realizing the drop. This time, I observed she sped across the same drop with ease and confidence without a moment of hesitation!

Away from hectic daily routine, my daughter and her family spent just over a week of leisure and relaxation in KK in January just before CNY. As expected, much of the time was spent in savoring some of our "Must-Eat" KK food.

Our only out-of-town excursion was a day trip to Desa Dairy Farm in Kundasang, Ranau. That was my first trip to area close to Mt.Kinabalu since the earthquake in June 2015.

As for Nathan, his stoutness is slowly ebbing, making way to becoming a taller and slenderer boy. This time, he needs much more urging to get into proper poise for photography! On another note, his readiness to help in chores like dish washing is indicative of his maturing to another level. His love for and knowledge about Lego and Transformers is phenomenal. One morning, I was surprised when he asked me to switch on the PC because he needed to "google" some information about Transformers. There is no doubt that he belongs to a new generation who would thrive in cyberspace!

At Nabalu with Mt. Kinabalu in the background hidden in thick cloud.

At Desa Dairy Farm.

Eating exclusively all for herself a whole cup of ice cream in
Desa Dairy Farm.

Gift of mini umbrella (Left)  and
a dip in the pool of Kinabalu Golf Club (Right).

At Uncle Gerry Recipe (Left) and Taliban Food Centre (Right).

Pre-CNY firework.

Pop Pop firecracker.

Chapter 25: Remembering My High School Chemistry Teacher - Chuah Eng Wah

Recently, I received a parcel from North Carolina, USA, sent by my former high school Math teacher, Edward Greenawald. Inside was a treasure - a large collection of black-and-white photographs taken during the 1960s, when he was teaching at Lok Yuk English Secondary School in Jesselton. Now in his seventies and still single, Edward probably decided to entrust me with the entire collection for safekeeping.

Among the photographs, one snapshot caught my eye. It was taken in the staff room, most likely around 1966, and in it I recognized my former Chemistry teacher, Mr. Chuah Eng Wah, who sadly passed away late last year.

News of his passing came as a surprise, though not entirely unexpected. I had last met him less than two years earlier, and at the time he appeared fit and healthy. It was only when I paid my final respects to his remains on 29.11.2016 at the funeral parlor that I learned of his long battle with prostate cancer, which had been diagnosed some five years earlier.

Back in our school days, he was always fondly addressed as “Mr. Chuah,” a title we continued to use even in later years, as we regarded him as our teacher for life. Mr. Chuah was not considered an outstanding teacher in the conventional sense. Having graduated from Taiwan, he spoke English with a distinct accent typical of Taiwanese-educated graduates. One of his most memorable classroom expressions was the phrase “Yes Not” - his way of seeking confirmation from students, a literal translation of the Chinese phrase "是不是?" While his English proficiency may not have been strong, he more than made up for it with his dedication, hard work, and kindness toward his students.

Teaching Staff of Lok Yuk Secondary School Likas 1966.
3rd from right is Chuah Eng Wah

Another photo taken at the staff room in 1966. Mr. Chuah is second

from right. Mr. Lo Vun Nyen at right was my Chinese teacher.

Mr. Tsen, 3rd from right was my Health Science teacher.

Teaching Staff of Lok Yuk Secondary School Likas 1969.
Back row 4th from right is Chuah Eng Wah

With eldest daughter of Chuah Eng Wah, Chuah Yuan San
taken on 29 Nov 2016 at the funeral parlour.

He was both my Form Teacher and Chemistry Teacher in Form 4 in 1968. I still have in my possession the Form 4 Report Card with the marks of the numerous subjects personally entered by him. Other than Chemistry, I was not considered good at most of the other subjects. I barely scrapped through my English and failed once in my Physics. But by God's grace, I passed my A Level and graduated later on as a Civil Engineer. In a way, the subject of Chemistry did have a bearing on my choice in pursuing an engineering degree eventually.

Fidel Castro (1926 - 2016)

Before 25 November 2016, Fidel Castro was probably the very last man on earth who rose to become a national leader through hard fought revolution. He belonged to a breed of politicians or more appropriately revolutionaries who through sheer personal conviction and skillful mobilization of the masses to change the history and destiny of Cuba. People of the likes, Stalin, Mao Zedong, Ho Chi Minh and even Nelson Mandela are all gone. The very last of such breed would likely be Xanana Gusmao of East Timor.

Almost all revolutionaries are controversial people and Fidel Castro was no exception. They are both loved and equally hated. It all depends on which side you belong. The bourgeoisie, many of whom were stripped of their wealth and power left Cuba for Miami in US celebrated his death. But the working class majority who were liberated and given the opportunity to share the nation's wealth wept for his passing.

Fidel Castro was an avowed adversary of US which to him is the embodiment of ultimate capitalism. He once said, "I find capitalism repugnant. It is filthy, it is gross, it is alienating, because it causes war, hypocrisy and competition". He claimed to have survived 634 assassination attempts and plots on his life, mainly from CIA and US-based Cuban exiles. He stayed in power for 49 years from 1959 until he ceded power to his brother Raul in 2008. He outlasted nine US presidents starting from Dwight Eisenhower to George W Bush.

He had hoped that the capitalist system in US would disappear one day but that did not happen in his life time. Instead he saw the virtual demise of communism in Soviet Union and Communist China. In the end he had to let his brother do the mending of tie with the US and he did live to see the re-establishment of diplomatic relation between his country and foe, the US.

Will there be another Castro is the future, probably not. Gone were the days when men were driven by political ideology to become revolutionaries. Today, we see many "war lords" fighting for economic gains and vengeful sectarian pursuits rather than grand scheme that aim to liberate the oppressed, the marginalized or the disadvantaged. The term, "a parliament of baboons" aptly describes the kind of politicians we have today!

Fidel Castro will be remembered as the little "David" who dared to stand up against the mighty neighbor "Goliah", the United State of America and survived. History will remember him both as a hero just as much as a villain!

A Stand for the Better

For the fifth time, on 17 November 2016, Malaysians dressed in YELLOW took to the streets of major cities across the nation to make a public stand on issues crucial to the health of the country and the well-being of future generations. Bersih 5 was a peaceful, democratic protest that called for Free and Fair Elections, the Right to Dissent, the Strengthening of Parliamentary Democracy, and the Empowerment of Sabah and Sarawak, among other demands for reform.

In Kota Kinabalu, at Ujana Rimba Tropika, we saw a heartening mix of familiar faces and new ones - people from different walks of life united by a shared concern for the nation’s direction.

The silence of many, however, was understandable. Some believed that protests would change nothing. Others were constrained by circumstances - civil servants, employees of government-linked companies (GLCs), or individuals bound by contracts with the government. Their absence was often not due to apathy, but to personal or professional risk.

What was most disappointing, though, was seeing individuals who had been very vocal in private - particularly in closed chat groups - now retreat into silence. These were the same people who frequently quoted powerful lines like “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” And yet, when the moment came to stand in solidarity, in broad daylight, and speak truth to power alongside others at Bersih 5, they were nowhere to be seen.

In such moments, the stark contrast is painfully clear: some are courageous enough to walk the talk, while others remain armchair warriors at best, or worse, grand performers who thrive on rhetoric but shy away from action.

With Gina in the middle, wife of Vincent Gadalon.

With Lam Kee Hing.

Top photo: With Joseph Wong (left) and Chua Tok Sing (middle).
Bottom left photo: With Peter Tsen.