Saturday, March 27, 2010

Special Feature (3): Don't Let This Be the Last Year of the Tiger

The tiger is our national animal. Our heritage. But today only less than 500 of them remain in the wild. As Malaysians, we need to stand up and protect our heritage.
Speak to your children. Speak to your leaders. Everyone of us can make a difference.

For further information, please visit MYCAT (www.malayantiger.net), WWF Malaysia (www.wwf.org.my) and Department of Wildlife & National Parks (www.wildlife.gov.my)

每次说到老虎,总会想起中学时,参加学校到柔佛苏丹皇宫时所看到的老虎标本。那是当时某任苏丹的战利品,代表着那位苏丹的英明神武。苏丹已仙逝,化做尘土,反倒是战利品的皮毛却一直被保存下来。在那个年代,徒手或用简单的武器来战胜凶猛的野兽是需要智慧和勇气的。没有人会怜悯在血泊中挣扎求存的吃人大猫。不知道皇宫中的那只老虎是在活着或死后才被剥皮的。它被杀就只是为了表现出某人的厉害吗?由何时开始,在当年象征着王者之风的老虎,已被进化得更快的我们赶进穷巷,变成硕果谨存的动物。
记得在古装片里,什么山寨大王的坐椅每每都是一片虎皮。只要坐在虎皮上,你就好比是人群中的万兽之王,可以统撤群众。可怜这万兽之王,最后也敌不过枪弹,落得连子孙根都被人拿来当补品。
在各国都赶着搭上经济发展的列车时,我们都只想到只身的利益,变得市惠和自私。我们大量的砍伐树林,开发农地,建造牧场和住家。那么,从前住在森林里,包括老虎的动物,又得往哪儿去呢?
我自己并不特别喜爱老虎,只是觉得,每个生命都有活着的权利。如果不是非不得已,没有必要杀害任何生命吧!没有人的人生会因为有一颗虎牙而变得更尊贵。人性中的真善美才会让人的生命升华。
请大家高台贵手。



When i was in Secondary school, i joined the school trip and visited the Istana in Johor. I always remember the tiger sample that i saw. It was the belonging of one of the Sultans and it signified the courage and wisdom of the Sultan. The Sultan had passed away for years, giving His share to fertilise the earth, however, his works of bravery remains there. At those ages, it was not an easy tasks to hunt and kill a beast like this. Nobody would sympathised the loser tiger, that struggle in the pool of blood. The big cat, might even had it skins peel off before it breathed its last air. Its death was just to prove the capability of somebody. Since when, the tigers which are associated to the kings, have been drove into the dead angle by us human beings. There are not many of the tiger left now.
In the TV drama, sometimes we would see the leader of the bandits was sitting on the chair with tiger skins on top. People believed that, one will be the leader like the king of the jungle by seated on its skin. In the end, the poor King of the Jungle lost to the bullets, lost even its pennis to people who believed that, eating the tiger pennis will enhance the sexual ability of man.
Nowadays, most of the countries wanted to have hight GDP. Gradually, we all become selfish and care only about ourselves and look only at money. We clear the forest and made the land into agriculture used, animals farming or just to build house. Where can those animals, including tigers, that used to stay in the forest go?
I myself do not have special feelings to the tiger. I believed the old saying: Every lives have the rights to stay alive. Killing is not the way to move forward or to solve a problem. The teeth of the tiger will not make somebody's life to be better. Only the quality within ones could enhance someone's live.
Please let the tigers live.

Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Access to Pengerang (3): Via Tanjung Pengelih Jetty

I last went back home probably by April 2008, i returned home again on Xmas 2009. Many changes in the town since then. Even the jetty, the boat fees and the taxi fees are different now.



The new immigration complex is completed with modern male and female toilet. There is a room marking as nursing room as well, but unfortunately, it is used as the cleaner room instead.
There are proper seats for passengers waiting for the boat too.



The jetty to alight and board from the board is decorated and have a floating platform now. It seems like safer.



The marina is totally new. It wasn't there at the old jetty last time.
The speed boats, the new boat services, are anchored here.



To go back to Singapore, submit your passport at the first counter. The boat man will keep the passport for a while and when they collected enough passport, they will call you to collect your passport and every passenger will ask to queue up to pass through the immigration together.
The bumb boat leaves when there are 12 passengers, sometimes they ask you to top up the fare so that the boat can leave earlier. Eg. The current boat fee is RM 15 per person if there are 12 passengers. If they are only 10 passengers, the boat man will ask everyone whether they are willing to pay RM 3 in extra, which is RM 18 per person, so that the boat can leave without waiting for another 2 more passengers.
There are at least one boat leaving from Singapore/Tanjung Pengelih to Tanjung Pengelih/Singapore at 7am and 1pm. The boat fee from Singapore is SGD 8 per person and from Tanjung Pengelih is RM 15. But the fees from Tanjung Pengelih will become SGD 8 after 1pm. It means, the boat man will ask for Singapore dollars after 1pm.
The taxi fees from Sungai Rengit to Tanjung Pengelih is RM 20 per taxi or RM 5 per person. The taxi will move only when there are 4 passengers, or else you have to 'top up' the fare (包车).



This is the new office for the speed boat services from Tanjung Pengelih to Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, Singapore. They have a fixed schedule but the fare is rather expensive. My friend said, it takes only 20 minutes to arrive in Singapore.



The schedule and price of the speedboat.
It is a good option if you don't mind to pay.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Access to Pengerang (2): Via Sebana Golf Resort

Noted: i am currently at North America/ Europe, not likely to come back until next year. i do not intend to abandon this blog, but updating it can be tricky since i do not have the latest pictures or inputs. i would appreciate if someone is kind enough to share his/her pictures in Pengerang with me. Merci.




The marina of Sebana.
Many visitors do not know about the Ferry service between Sebana and Singapore Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal.
From Singapore Bedok or Tanah Merah MRT Station (i don't quite remember now, check SBS service), take shuttle bus to Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal.
Take note that, taxi will apply a surcharge like in Airport.
From Sebana to Sungai Rengit (the biggest town in Pengerang area), transportation can be tricky.
Somehow, you do need to arrange a pick up either with Sebana or local Sungai Rengit taxi driver. It probably costs you a steep RM 50 or so. (A 20 minutes drive.)



This is how the ferry looks like.
The ferry actually takes a detour towards Tanah Merah direction.
So eventhough the speed is definitely faster than the bump boat, but the journey time is around the same. An hour or so.
The Malaysian side immigration is easy and casual (the immigration is only for Sebana ferry passengers only), but the Singaporean side is kind of tedious.
Sometimes, there are long queue and Woodlands custom kind of immigration, due to Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal is also used by Indonesia-Singapore ferry services.



Since it is far from the town, the journey takes around the same time as the bump boat, more costly (far more) and possible of nuisance immigration, so why should someone takes a ferry?
The only reason for local like me to do so is: The ferry service is until late evening at 7pm and it got a fixed schedule.
So if you do not want to stay overnight at Pengerang and want to hang out until late evening (since the bump boat stops the service at around 3.30pm), then this can be your option.

http://www.sebanacove.com/ferry_service.htm



Sebana provide the best accommodation at Pengerang area. (In my personal opinion.)
Resort or hotel kind of room with facilities such as swimming pool, restaurant, sports ...
If you are willing to pay and do not intend to stay at a small RM 30 motel in Sungai Rengit, then you might want to check it out.

http://www.sebanacove.com/accommodation.htm



Not to forget, you can see many mangrove monkeys around the ferry areas.
Obviously somebody has been feeding them as they are not 'that' scared with human beings.
Please do not feed them, so that they won't grow to expect food and when they don't get it, they eventually attack people for food.
They have sources of natural food around, so don't worry about their diet.



Mangrove: source of food and breeding ground for many marine creatures such as fishes and crabs.
It is also the habitat for some mammals, such as monkey and reptiles, such as monitor lizard.