me and mom were talking vividly about our hari raya trip to perak when we heard screams from two doors away. when we realised that it was our indian neighbour, we continued with the topic of freshwater fish and some eatable green plants from the jungle. not that we were being ignorant or a bad neighbour, it was just not the first time.
so the jungle is within spitting distance from my sister's backyard. boil some water, throw some weird looking plants, eat it with a pinch of sambal. 1000 times better than medium-well steak from TGI. err, maybe just 100 times.
mom don't really like fish. me, i'd prefer that barely-showered-and-bearded creature. however, the freshwater fish served for lunch that day was exceptional. i can't remember the name though we were made to understand that the fish is only seasonally-available and the only place to find it is sg perak. price? myr30 per kilo. no salt, no oil, no seasoning. straight to the grill. taste? 4 stars from a non-freshwater fish eater.
the whole 3 days was fantastic. i've never been to a real kampung, let alone having one to call my own, for hari raya. one funny incident, i was watching a kung fu movie when i felt something cold and wet between my toes. reality check, cold and wet are reptiles. that was when i saw a leech (leech, right?) bloated with blood, sucking on my toe. "just let it be. it'll fall by itself once it decided it had enough". had enough? of my blood, dammit!! and i had to wrap my feet with kleenex as it won't stop bleeding till morning. thanks buddy.
mom was so happy to finally be in perak for this hari raya. and all of us were genuinely happy too. i guess all of us made her happy throughout the trip. our own idea of an ideal mother's day.
