The Batak People of Indonesia

Orang Batak is an ethnic group found in the Northern Sumatera Island of Indonesia. They are relatively known in Indonesia and can be found staying near Medan and also the Lake Toba.
I visited the settlement twice, first in 2004 and then again in 2007. I love Brastagi and this place is cool and have a lovely atmosphere to it. When I was there in 2004, I have the chance to witnessed a Batak wedding.
I love the atmosphere to it. As I was a visitor, they simply invited me to their wedding too. Its a party where all are invited to come!
Food was served with good helping but just that I am uncomfortable with how it was served! The food was served in a pail and you just dug from there! As I was eating, a lot of imagination runs through my mind!

For example, what do they use the pail for when they don't serve food?

But the occasion was a merry one! The bride and groom danced all morning just to pay respect to visitors and also family members!

Guess who are there, came in their best. One thing I learn about them apart from their hospitality is also that, they are good at balancing things on top of their head!

Indonesian have a lot of nice food. I love to be in Indonesia trying and tasting different foods with rich aromas and flavors too. I have the chance to taste home cook food when I visit Gunung Karo and it simply just awesome!
Their children are friendly too! They love people visiting them and will just crowd around you to play and they are not shy!

You asked them questions and they will raise their hand to answer! One thing I am sure, they are not like our own children back home, when you asked question, our children will just keep quite and look away!Adults too, they always gave their best to their guess and serve the best with little they have. I enjoyed the time when I was there with them as they invite me to their home and we chat as if we have known each other for years!
The Batak still live a life full of superstitious and this is a house where their witch doctors live! Its about 3 story high and when I was there, I have a peek inside only to see a scull hanging from the roof!

Cambodian - PoiPet & Battambung

I managed to travel to some part of Cambodai some years back. Together with some friends, we took a flight to Bangkok, make our way to Aranyaprathet, boarder town in Thailand, by bus, took tuktuk to Poipet, border of Cambodia. From there, we travel by truck to Battambung over in Cambodia. I must says, this is still the most adventurous journey we ever took and the whole journey took us 16 hours.
This is when we were waiting for the bus to depart from Bangkok
The next morning, we make our way to a local coffee shop to have our breakfast. I remember, i tried to order Milo for breakfast, but they don't have it. They only have 'ovelnine'...and I thought, heck...just take it la. When I was leaving the shop, I realise it's Ovaltine!
These two towns that we went, we found a lot of children who run around and lack of love. Everywhere we go, we catched the attentions of the children. Not because that we are foreigners, (mind you, they love foreigners because they bagged and steal from them) but because, we are there to offer them loves.
We are there just to play with them. We are they to hug them. That's all they need. Back at home, they don't feel the love because, they will be punished by their parents or caretakers, if they don't take home money! Young children are left with their elder siblings, and together, they go out to bagged. If they didn't returned home with enough money, they will be burned with cigarattes and caned too!

Besides that, we are there to help them to built school. It's really about hardwork of about a week, just building school from scratch! Yes, man will do the job. But the ladies who went with us, helps around too. We spend some time with the children! We play with them and teach them some stories too.

I took some pictures of them, here take a look!

He was having some insecurities and unlike other children, he will always be crying if he can't locate his sister! But he definately capture our attention.

I remember this boy who simply love to pose for me to capture his picture and take a look at his picture in the camera. He is so thin but he is simply happy that we are there to play with him.

By now, you should realise that their hair is brownish in colour! No, that's not their original colour and they don't die their hair!


Their hair is this colour because, they lack of nutrients and food! this girl lost so much hair and because they have not wash their hair for so long, that's is all harden and thus makes her hair stand.
Some ladies who lost thier husband during the civil war and during PolPot regime, continues to make ends meet by sewing. This is a community project runs by a local NGO.

I visited their villages too, and I find that their houses are just simply built from the leaves they collected and tree trunks they can find. FYI, in Cambodia, there are not many trees, because they have chopped it down to clear off the land mines. Many children and adults we met, are handicapped because they stepped on landmines.

Most places we visited, are just plain dusty and by the time we get back to our hotel, we are all cover in dirt and our clothes are reddish. Well, even our 'goldmines' are not gold, but red!Cars are commonly seen in the city and bigger towns, but in the village, carts pulled by donkey and horses are common sight. Everywhere we go, we can see them.

Definately, when we were there, we samples their local food.I tried the 'balut' but I forgot to take any pictures. Some of this, we saw and tasted there.
This is their local burger. I simply love this fishes. I love how it tasted, at least before I see how this is prepared! I shall not indulged you with the details though!
We still find this in Cambodia. this is an ancient iron which we have to filled with charcoals before ironing. I remember my Ah Ma (grandma) used to have one.
Before heading back home after this short exposure trip, we went around the town and market area. What can be a better area to understand the local economy and lifestyle of the people than the market. Here we can the local food and costume too.

Sea Gypsies

I have the privilege to visit one of the sea gypsies group, particularly the Mokens, last year over in Ranong, Thailand. They are people who lives on the sea, and they are more commonly known as sea nomads.

However, during the 2003 Tsunami which hit part of Asia, they too were affected. Nevertheless, none of them were killed because of their knowledge about the sea and their close relationship with the sea. Now, they are settled in few islands around Ranong, they need the help of us. Here are some of the pictures that I took while I spend about 5 days with them.
Before I went, I was very excited about the trip. Firstly, this will be the first trip that I make to Thailand after I moved to KL 7 years ago. Knowing that I will fly to Phuket, I am more that eager to go. After, I love the sea! And Sea nomad, where else they live!
However, we just plan this trip to be a normal exposure trip, spending our time with them from morning till evening and to see how they go through their life. From there, I can learn more about them, and actually how can we help them without disturbing their lifestyles.

Children there were the first to great us as we climb on to the jetty. We have to time ourselves right to get into this settlement. if we come in too early, we will have to walk in to the jetty through the mud. If we come in too late, the tide will be too hide and the sea will be very choppy.

However, on the first day that I am there, I am reduced to tears as I see the living conditions and the settlement.

This is the first sight that greated me when I am there. Debris and broken bottles were everywhere on the floors. Broken boats and wooden planks lying everywhere. Houses built of stilts looks like it will collapsed anytime.

Further in, we see more houses and signs that showed they actually live from the harvest they find from the sea.

However, about an hour later, we were asked to get back to the jetty. When I reach back, I only realise why. the worst has yet to come. The dirty place suddenly was turn into Venice look alike. After all, Venice was surrounded by water, but this place is far from it. Everything that lie around, floats and water is far from clear. Its milky and I don't even dare to step into the water. But suddenly, I can see little children in the water.

Facilities...basic amineties for this settlement in nearly 'zero'. After tracking for half hour, we reach to the peak of a small hill. Here we can see few wells being dug and powered by bicycle pump. This is an ingenious design since, all that it cost is human energy to draw water from the well. However, as I tasted the water, it's salty and smell funny. The village headman told me because the well is too low and too near to the sea.

Children here are oblivious to their living conditions. Once the tide comes in, they are happy to play in the water. Child as old as a year takes the water like fishes put into sea. I saw little boy, the most to be two years, jumping from their house veranda into the water. In my heart, I crunched. I wonder what will actually cut the boy, from wooden planks to broken bottles and sharp metal lying aroung.

The elder boys will head towards the jetty and this will be their bathing time. I look at the whole scene with a cry in my heart and feeling down thourghout the day. The don't realise what will actually they come in contact too in the dirty water. What more, about sickness that they will actually come down with. Turning my eyes away from the elder boys, I saw younger ones.
I question myself, does he knows about what he will face in the future? I suddenly felt how he will feel if he knows that we have so much yet we are complaining and he have none.

I scouted this two girls paddling on the make shift boats around the settlement, happy that now they can also float and play with others.

And yet, the eyes of this child capture my attention. Hopelessness. Rejected. Insecure. I asked myself, where does the future of this boy lies?
But, after all, they are still happy just to jump of the branches and head into the sea, not knowing what will catch them nor hit them when they touches it.

A year has passed, I have not forget about this community. I consistently prayed for them and remembering them. I ponder how can I help, in this age where I and most of you who read this think without the internet connection will actually makes us suffer. What more, I asked myself, if I am taken from my current condition and lives with them, where every day is a fight to survive. Electricity is a luxury! No, having food on the table is a luxury!

To learn more how you can help, email me khaichung@gmail.com.

You may go to http://www.projectmaje.org/ to learn about this community.

A new blog post

Well, this is my third blogs that I hope to maintain. I am an academician in the Biology field. Simply put it, some people says I am a geek or many will called me the 'orang asli' literally translated as original people or the aborigines. Not that I am one, but I do a lot of research about them. To others, I simply have 'permanent head damage'!

Well, through this blog, I hope to share with you some of the photos that I have taken throughout my field study in the past 5 years and more to come.