Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus

31st May 2008 Saturday

I took a stroll around Kenyalang. Not knowing this indented short walking walk turn up to be a half day of down the memory lane walk and discovered my home town is in the process of great changes.

9:00 AM I walked along Jalan Simpang Tige passing this former government building today turned to a campus of an Australian University with many international students from Asian and African countries. The nearby Spring Mall is a frequent place of these Universities students.

Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus is a branch campus of Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia.

This Sarawak campus opened in Kuching in 2000 in partnership between Swinburne Australia and the Sarawak government.

This was the former Sarawak State Office Complex
Swinburne Sarawak will be extensively developed into a city campus with a budget of RM110 million

The expanded campus will feature several custom-designed buildings to accommodate new courses and the increasing student population.

Construction started at the later half of 2005 and completion is expected in 2008. Upon completion, the campus has a capacity for 5,000 full-time students.

The above Google Earth image of Kuching downloaded in Aug 2008, but the actual image of the landscape was captured by setelite around 2005 at the time before The Spring Mall started construction.

Sarawak Islamic Centre

Sarawak Islamic Centre in Kuching will be opened to the public on 17th August 2008,

The is a unique architecture featuring a combination of the various ethnic identities, will be the first physical confluence of ethnic designs and matrices – underlying a bedrock of the true Islamic universality

10:00 AM As I turn toward Jalan Ong Thiang Swee I saw a blue roof top of a very unique building under construction. This is the new Sarawak Islamic Centre where the worker are still busy constructing. When this religious center open its doors in August to other faiths, the building will foster a better understanding and appreciation of each other’s belief systems.

Sarawak Islamic Centre Tel: (6) 082 420798 Fax: (6) 082 414809

Pusat Islam Sarawak or the Sarawak Islamic Centre is along Jalan Ong Tiang Swee in Kuching half kilometer from Swinburne University. Construction of the Centre began in 2003 with a budget allocation of RM2 million.

The Centre will become a resource centre for Muslim converts to get counseling as well as those of other religious background who are interested in the Islamic faith to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the religion.

With objective to create a proper understanding of Islam to have a peaceful and harmonious relationship with other religious groups


	Melanau is a race in Sarawak that speaks different dialects (like the Chinese race also speak different dialects)

Jalan Ong Tiang Swee 王长水路

RESCUE 911

Jabatan Pertahanan Awam Sarawak (Rescue 911)

Jabatan Pertahanan Awam Negeri SARAWAK
Tingkat 11, Bangunan Sultan Iskandar
Jalan Simpang Tiga, Peti Surat 1298
93726 KUCHING
Sarawak
TEL: 082-256685
FAX: 082-239455

PIBAKAT

( Pertubuhan bagi Ibubapa Kanak Kanak Keperluan Khas Sarawak )

Pibakat (SARAWAK SOCIETY FOR PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS). An NGO (non government organization)

Pibakat is an organization formed and run by the parents of children with special needs - children intellectually or physically challenged.

The premises is an old government bungalow at Jalan Bisaya off Jalan Ong Tiang Swee in Kuching. It is the headquarters and teaching centre for the children in Kuching.

Kuching has been declared “Garden City” by the State Government on the 21st July 2003 with the availability of abundant natural beauty within and out of the city.

At Jalan Ong Thien Swee I stumble another abandoned old government staff quarter. (Quarter No: 1) .

These early days government timber house are now been torn down to make way for new development. (unfortunately)

This chair at the balcony is exactly the same style we had when we had in our quarter many years ago. Except that the rottan seating was replaced plywood.

When I reach the junction of Jalan Ong Thien Swee, it is Batu 2 3/4, Jalan Rock Road. In those day, between this point (Batu 2 3/4) and 3rd Mile (Batu 3) were swampy bushes with a big stream water of tea color with where I came several time with bicycle to fish.. Today the stream could not be seen, the landscape completely changed.

These is a new huge office building the Wisma Hong.

Along Rock Road, there are 2 familiar weathered wooden houses still standing tall as fascinating portrait of life and times long since changed.

Both are located on the Western side of Rock Road. One before Rock Road Restaurant and after the restaurant. These two wooden are Classical-style of the 1950's of the middle class of those day (a small plot of land with fruits trees and a double story wooden building in the middle) It is the equal vent of today upper middle class who own a semi-detached double story house with a wide garage for two cars).

Today these type of classic disappeared one by one following a routing formula - the cline of the house owner would hand the property to a developer to develop the land in a more profitable way. The developers would usually build concrete double or multi story commercials building or residential houses with bank finance. And in return the land owner get partial of the new development such as a shop lot or a unit of the house.

Some of the old abandoned wooden houses still exist in Kuching are masterpieces of British Colonel wooden architecture. These area token of my environment where I once grew up.

The young generation live in terrace houses or apartments because land is in short supply and expensive. Those who have bungalow houses have probably either inherited them or pay for the house for most of their working lives.

The old Chinese tradition idea of permanent house and emphasis on the long-term land has gone challenged today. In this modern age, young generation routinely relocate their working location , selling their old house and buying a new one. Houses become "disposable" item like old shoe and out of fashion clothes.

This block of shop houses was build in the 1966-1967 and Rock Road Restaurant was among the first shops opened for business when the shop lot completed.

Started operations as a small shop selling kilo mee to the residents of the newly completed housing estate behind the shop block and the nearby Government quarters, this noodle restaurant has developed in the last 40 decades into today a double story seafood restaurant that occupied 3 shop lots famous for their fresh sea foods dishes.

One of the shop lot now occupied by this Seafood Restaurant was originally a sundry shop. When this sundry shop first open in the 1960s, the towkay (owner) frequently went from house to house to acutance with the neighborhood and to invite them to visit his newly opened shop. Our house was just 100 meters further down on the left. I was at home that day when he first made his first visit to the government quarters where we stay, he Chet chat with my mother in Hockien (or Teochew) mentioned he is opening up a shop and politely asked my mother to 'support' his 'seng-li' by buying from his shop.

My mother did, as she was the one who responsible in acquiring home rations. When ordering heavy item such as rice, the shop would provide delivery to our house through a young shop assistant using a bicycle. Those days rice were packed in 'guni sack' of about 100 kilogram. The 'guni sack' of rice would be placed on the bicycle's main frame bar and the shop boy would push this bicycle with rice on food to our house. There were couple of time the 'towkay' (shop owner) would delivery the rice by himself when shop boy was not available.

Bus stop shelter where I stand every schooldays morning 1966 to 1971. The shelter old design was green square shape. Today is replaces with a nicer circular shape blue shelter.



	1969 ? Batu Lintang Quarter No: 66

Valuable Photo preserving precious family memories.

To share our childhood memories with our own children with most precious photos.

A	The wooden platform over the drain we stood on in 1969 had long gone. The small wood plank in the photo is a replacement most probably placed by our old neighbor of the blue detach house as short cut to their back door.
B	The wooden government quarter we once stay in the 1960s was burned down less ten 10 years ago. The house location was behind the bushy tree B. This tree B is a new tree definitely not one of those trees during our time.
C	The drain C was wider with running water and small fishes. Some time the children would scoop up a few of these small fish and keep as pat for a few days. Today the drain is narrow with stagnant water and wild weed grown over the water bed.
D	Those day the PWD grass cutter would come regularly to trim the piece of field with mover. We play here sometimes.
E	The once mud drainage is now cemented. At the far end of drain E is a deep junction of 3 drains where big fishes were. There is a story to tell: When I was Form 1, I came a few time to place a fishing line to trap fish. I got one big 'lay-hu' about 1 kg in weight. I kept the fish in a washing basin in the bathroom. The next day the fish disappeared. I searched the bath room. The fish apparently jump off the basin. and the only way it could escape was the water drainage pipe which drain washing water to the drain downstairs. I quickly ran down stair to search along the drain. I was luck, The drain had not much water and the fish didn't escape too far down the drain. I brought the fish back to the washing basin but this time cover up with something. Father was wiser than me and certainly knew what to do best with the fish. That night, we had a 'Black Bean stewed fish' for dinner. Father cooked the fish to feed the a family of 7 hungry children. I eat and it was delicious.

Photo Above : Once the football field of the residents in Batu Lintang Government Quarters.

There is talk in Kuching that a commercial mall will be build on the land of this batu lintang government staff quarters.

Most quarters lying empty waiting for demolishing and residents to move. 50 years old trees facing the destiny of being cut down any time by a chain saw that takes less then a minutes. PWD is dismantling the quarter one by one.

But once upon a time my family members grew up in these government quarters tucked in between lush trees and mowed grass. An green environment planned and started during the early British era.

In 2005 November I visited the old location of quarter No: 117 and No: 66 and left some photographs. Click on the following links if you are interested :

House No: 117 - The house where Fook Shen was born in 1960 ?

House No: 66 - The house where Fook Vui was born in 1965

Photo below : The year 1972 when I left these tree along this section of Rock Road toward the quarter I stay was only about double my height, skinny, with few weak branches of leaves.

SATHYA SAI BABA CENTRE OF KUCHING
Jalan Batu Lintang (JKR Workshop is on the right)
Once was a simple shelter like Hindu Temple by the road side in the 1960s, today the small Hindu temple could not be seen but in the location is a building serving as Head Quarter of the Sai Baba in Sarawak

In 1959 I was Primary 1 in St. Paul Chinese School and each time I pass that location, the high pitch ringing sound of a bell from the Hindu small temple would caught my attention. There were a couple of old and tall trees then. Today the location has develop from a small Hindu altar with an Hindu Status to an local administration center of an International religious organization.

According to Wikipedia, Kuching was first settled by Hindu Indian traders. The Indian Tamil of the early days mostly live along Batu Lintang and Green Road. These two roads were the area where I grew up. The Indian is part of every day life in my childhood memories of the 1950s and 60s.

Perhaps because of this early encounter, I had no difficulty of living in Calcutta for 2 and a half years in the mid 1980s. That period of living and travel extensively in India became a 'fiction story' of my life that no one wants to believe including my family members.

SATHYA SAI BABA is an South Indian religious guru (leader) , and described by his followers as a Godman and a miracle worker.

On the left hand side of the Hindu Temple one upon a time was a small shed served as barber shop where I had my haircut often. And before this barber shop was a wooden sundry shop in the 1950s where my family member get their sundry items. Today both the sundry shop and barber shop of the 1960s has long gave way to the expansion of the road to highway. Some where beside the Batu Lintang Road is Japanese Cemetery of the WWII. In my next visit I find the location and have a look

On the right hand side is the P.W.D. workshop that has been there ever since.

Public Work Department building build in 1955 still remain as the Head Quarter at Jalan Batu Lintang.

PWD is one of the oldest administrations set up by the Brook reign.

Wisma Saberkas lies along Jalan Tun Haji Openg and Green Road.

Junction of the 4 main roads in Kuching : Jalan Tun Haji Openg, Rock Road, Green Road and Batu Lintang Road.

In the location of the rice mill in the 1960s is a commercial cum office building Wisma Saberkas. A major shopping centre for people in the area of Third Miles, Green Road and Batu Lintang.

Leading departmental store Nguikee offers a variety items of clothes, food, stationeries, etc at reasonable price. They house other stores too such as The Hush Puppies, Speedy, Cindy, Hongkong Noodles House and so on.

Above : Wisma Saberkas marked the Eastern end of Green Road where it junction with Batu Lintang Road and Rock Road.
Below : further down Green Road is St. Paul Chinese Primary School (SJK (C) St. Paul, Kuching )where I attended my primary 1 classes. Behind the school is another school the SK Catholic English. Both are Government Aided.

The building remain the original without changes since I left in 1960. My class room (Primary 1) was at the very end of the building. This building was rebuild from an old wooden house by Father Pang in the 1950s.

On July 17, 1952, Reverend Father Joachim Pang Shi Tsing from China arrived in Sarawak as a newly-ordained Catholic priest. As a missionary, Father Pang was also an educator and engineer — conducting classes, building new and renovating churches, chapels and schools in Kuching and Sibu.

This rebuild St Paul’s Primary School building was his earliest project was in 1953 during which he motorcycled around to raise funds. From then on, he continued building more churches, chapels and schools till his retirement several years ago. One and a half month after this photo, Father Pang passed away on July 13 at age of 86-year-old . He had served for more than half a century.

Father Pang was born on June 16, 1921, in Changchou, Province of Jilin, northeast China. At that time, the Vicar Apostolic of Kuching, Bishop John Vos, requested the church in China to send some Chinese priests to Sarawak. Father Pang chose Sarawak and on July 17, 1952, he arrived at St Joseph’s Church of Kuching.

Father Pang retired as rector of St Stephen’s Church on January 1, 2004 but continued serving in the parish until his failing health required him to be accommodated at St Peter’s rectory in Padungan for ease of medical attention. It was there that he passed away.

It was Tuesday, July 17 2006, exactly 55 years after his arrival, Sarawak Catholics laid to rest their “shepherd” at St Joseph’s Cathedral cemetery in Kuching.

This old Chinese cemetery attracted my great curiosity. Despite growing up in Batu Lintang Government Quarters, yet I have been not aware of a cemetery just 100 meters from the houses I once stay long before. Only till now when I walked pass I realize this almost 100 years old cemetery ever exist. In those years this cemetery was not well kept and the whole hill must be covered will tall wild grasses and bushes that one passing by may not notice that coveed by the tall grasses are tomb stones. Only once in a year during the 'Chin Ming' festival the ground was clear for and after that grasses and bushes grew fast to cover up the hill again till the next festival.

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Thursday, November 13, 2008 10:16:41 AM