Johor: Kukup I

When I was small, I once followed my eldest brother Seng to his high school classmate's house built on stilts over the water in Kukup. I still remember the freshness of the sweet-sour fish with chopped tomatoes, green peppers and oignons, and the taste of fried mussels which were carrying a slight taste of petrol.

This time, I went to this fishing village again with Mum, my sister Ping and third brother Leong's family on a package tour. The trip was organized by the Chinese High School staff. As there were eight from our family, we occupied a whole van while others took a bus.

Most bridge roads of the village were built with concrete.

We could still find the trace of the earlier material which was the wooden planks.

Ping told me that the house purchasers there were not allowed to take bank loans. I imagined some luxurious house owners must be extremely rich.

It took us about ten minutes' walk to reach our chalet which was deep inside the village.

It was a spatious residential house. Linked to the floating house was a colourful bridge for couples' datings or other small gatherings.

From our chalet, we could see the mudflats

and the sea.

The living room was immediately conquered by karaoke amateurs

while the terrace was preferred by mahjong players.

I was not interested in either activity. Let me take a nap first!