Terengganu: An Affordable Destination

Malaysia is among the top 10 most affordable destinations in the world where Europeans can go a long way with their Euros for a memorable holiday, according to the German-language Yahoo Travel Magazine. Well done Malaysia!

Terengganu, one of the states in Malaysia is also an affordable destination. Located in the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Terengganu has a beautiful 244 km long beach. Its white and sandy beaches were classified as superb beach. Majority of the Terengganu people stay along the coast where the towns flourish. The natural beach trees, casuarinas and coconut trees adorn the coastal beach.

 Terengganu has many interesting places to visit and Kuala Terengganu being the most populated city lies close the river mouth and the sea. There are many hotels here and the food too are superb. Many international events are taken place here: Monsoon Cup (yacht competition), Equestrian, and Arts Performance like Gamelan Music Festival.

You can plan your visit to Terengganu to experience the place, the food, the environment and the culture here. Your itinerary may take packages for 3 days 2 nights, 5 days and 4 nights and if you want to learn more you may stay for one month. Cheaper accommodation is available in the home stay or hostel. Home stay is mushrooming in Terengganu. Happy travelling.

Message to the Tourists: Beware of the Drug Smuggling

Many drug smugglers in the world now use the naive tourists to bring dangerous drug into the country. Some  tourists becomes mules to this syndicate. Malaysia is no exception. Malaysian law is very strict on this. If you were caught with the drug you will be severely punished and if the drug is more than a kilogram, if the court decided so, the punishment is death.

So, be careful with your bags. Always know what is in your bag. Never leave your luggage unattended and lock you luggage. If you need to go to the toilet, bring your luggage with you. Never trust people. If some one  you did not know ask you to keep his or her bags, do not entertain, say you are going off soon. Harsh? No, this is to protect you from unsuspected drug syndicate. I hope I do not frighten you. But it is important to be alert on this menace. Happy travelling.

Terengganu's Taxi: A Good Attempt to be Different

If you come to Terengganu, you will notice that Terengganu's taxi has a few colours that are different from other states. Airport taxi is blue and white in colour while the town taxi is yellow and black in colour.

 Blue and white airport taxi at the arrival hall.

Airport taxi is stationed at Sultan Mahmud Airport in Telaga Batin at the ground floor at the exit of the arrival hall. Before you get your taxi, you need to buy the coupon first at the counter which is located at the arrival hall. You can choose to rent the car or buy the coupon to go to your destination.

The taxi parking area waiting to ferry passengers to all places in Peninsular Malaysia.

For the local taxis, there are stationed in the town centre near the bus station. You have to be careful with the fare as some do not use the meter. Ask first before you go in. You can call the taxi to take you to the airport.

One interesting point to look at is the logo of the local taxi has a motto "Terengganu Hebat" (trans: the Mighty Terengganu? ). The motto is nice and if all the drivers follow rules and etiquette of good driving and play a good host, certainly more people are confident with their service. This will bring more business for them.

The motto: Terengganu Hebat, No Contraints but Opportunity...is written on the front doors.

Next time when you are in Terengganu, look for this taxi to bring you around. Happy travelling.

Ri-Yaz Heritage (Marina resort and Spa) Hotel, Pulau Duyong

Kuala Terengganu has a unique hotel located on Pulau Duyong. This hotel cum spa  has beautiful rooms  and commands good view. The 5-star hotel has a marina and host many events related to annual Monsoon Cup  Competition.

The hotel view from the south bank.

If you want to organize conferences, seminar, corporate dinner and entertainment, wedding reception, this hotel is the perfect venue. Any inquiry click at www.ri-yazheritage.com or 609-627888. Happy travelling.

Map of Terengganu

Kuala Terengganu, a Nice Waterfront City Not to be Missed

Kuala Terengganu is a city that is situated along the estuary of the Terengganu River. It also faces the South China Sea. Its evolution dated back some 200 years ago. Most settlements i.e. the inhabited areas were near the river and sea as these were the basic communication network in those days. This was actually reflected in their employment where they became fisherman.

Kuala Terengganu initial growth areas were at the north and south banks of the river. A lot of villages were formed. Kampung Tanjung, Kampung Ladang, Kampong Paya Bunga, Kampong Batas Baru, Kampong Kolam, Kampong Kedai Payang, Kampong Kedai Binjai, Kampong Nisan Empat, Kampong Banggol were some of the initial kampongs (all of them were located in the city centre of Kuala Terengganu now) were the earlier areas of settlements. Kampong China came in when the immigrants from China came and settled there.

Heritage island on the right.

A few bridges were constructed to connect Kampong China and the island.

One of the gates.

The island at night.

 The development of these kampongs continued with the development of brick and mortar shophouses in these areas during the post war periods especially after the 1930's. Rows of brick shophouses were constructed along the main roads especially in Kampong China, Banggol, and Kedai Payang.

In the 2000's , these areas experienced redevelopment replacing some of the old houses and some areas were subjected to urban renewal. 

The State government had come up with a concept of waterfront city and had started promoting Kuala Tertengganu as a Waterfront City. The government concentrated development of promenade along Balik Bukit with public park and lately it had created an island behind Kampong China and called it Pulau Warisan (Heritage Island). This Heritage Island is beautifully designed and now become an icon of Kuala Terengganu tourism.

If you are interested to visit this place, go to Pasar kedai Payang, you will surely notice this place. Happy travelling.

Pengkalan Gawi in the morning: A very calming atmosphere.

Pengkalan Gawi is located at the edge of Kenyir Lake in Terengganu. It is a gateway to explore the man-made lake with hundreds of island. There are many attractions to this lake: waterfalls, bird park, herbal garden, aquaculture, chalets and government rest house, fishing etc.



View from the lakeside.



Mist in the morning.



Mist seems to obscure the hills.



A calming Pengkalan Gawi.



Mature trees at Pengkalan Gawi.

If you are interested to experience this atmosphere, come in the morning to Pengkalan Gawi. You can either go through Kuala Berang or from Kuala Ping towards a new Kuala Berang-Gua Musang road. Happy travelling.



Sura Gate: Dungun's bustling urban area

Sura Gate is fast becoming an urban area for Dungun District. It is a new urban centre with many commercial establishments. It is 4km from Kuala Dungun, the old town centre. Sura Gate gets her name due the railway gate that open and close when the train which brought  iron ore from Bukit Besi to the port passes this area.

The area is just 500metres from Kuala Terengganu-Kuantan main road. So the development shifted here to take advantage of the main road. The banks and government office like Police and hospital are located  along this main road too.

There is a parallel beach road which links Kuala Dungun to far end until you reach the forest reserve near the Uitm campus. This road to me is a breath-taking since it is parallel to the sea coast with casuarina trees where you can see the sea.  Lots of food stall along this beach road. 

Next time you are in Kuala Dungun, visit Sura Gate for lunch and turn to the beach road to get a good view of the sea. I bet, you will like it. Happy travelling.

Bandar Al Muktafi Billah Shah: A gate way to interior Pasir Raja

Bandar Al Muktafi Billah Shah is a town situated in the interior of the Dungun District. In the early 1970's, this town was a forest. It was a planned town in the 1980's by the government of Malaysia to develop the interior region of Central Terengganu.

Formerly known as Durian Mas, it was later renamed as Bandar Al Muktafi Billah Shah in the 1980's. It is the headquarter of the Central Terengganu Development Authority (Ketengah). The town is modelled after the New Towns of Britain, however due to its agricultural economy, it cannot follow what was  practised in Britain.  The Central Terengganu Development Authority is the custodian of this town.

The town is close to the main road Jerangau Jabor. You can see this town when you travel this Jerangau Jabor road. It has public facilities like bank, hospital, police station, fire brigade office, mosque, hall, schools, shops, park and certainly residential areas. The main employment comes from the public sector where  they (public servants)  work in hospitals, schools, and government offices.

This town is  a gate way to Pasir Raja, an interior village bordering Terengganu and Pahang. Pasir Raja is really rural and has a few homestay for the public to enjoy the rich bio-diversity of the area. 

When you pass this township of Al Muktafi on your way to Kuantan or Kuala  Terengganu,  you will see miles and miles of oil palm plantation. Oil palm trees are planted for its oil which can be processed to make cooking oil, soap, margerine, and other products.

If you like to visit this town, you have to take the interior road Jerangau Jabor road. It is a mid way between Kuantan and Kuala Terengganu. Happy travelling.

Ramadan and Shawal in Terengganu: A Nice Activity to Experience

In this posting, I like to tell about how citizens of Terengganu  welcome the month of Ramadan (the muslim fasting month) and celebrating the first Shawal. In the month of Ramadan, Muslims in Terengganu were observing their fastings and pray solat terawih at local mosques.

Virtually all mosque holds program  breaking  of fast, congregational prayer, Quran recitation and Khatam Quran (finished reading the quran in a month), and qiamullail (praying at 3-4 am in the morning). Key mosques importing their imams from Saudi Arabia, Egypt or from Mahaad Tahfiz to lead the prayers. These imams recite Quran in their prayers and it will complete by end of Ramadan. "Majlis Menamat" (celebration of finishing the Quran recital 30 chapters) is normally done on the 17th Ramadan. This day is a public holiday in Terengganu.

Many people donate their food or money for the breaking of fast program. Some mosques offer take away rice porridge (bubur lambok) to the people.  Beside the mosque programs, the Ramadan Bazaar mushrooms. The bazaar sells variety of food, cakes, drinks etc. They are all located in the main residential areas or existing markets.

In this month too, ladies started to make kueh (candy, biscuits etc) to be used during the Raya celebration. Some even make business, selling kueh. The 30th day of fasting, people are busy buying and preparing for the day celebration of Hari Raya where there is no more fasting and everybody celebrates the first Shawal. The Terengganu folks prepared variety of food to serve their guests (neighbours and familiy and friends).on the day of Shawal.  So, the towns and cities will be jammed with traffic where people went on shopping spree to buy those ingredients or buy last minute on other items. 

At night of the Hari Raya eve, most houses are lit with oil lamp or colourful lights. This brings cheerfulness to the surrounding. Some even went further, burning the fire crackers and fireworks.

The next day, the first Shawal, the prayers are held at all mosques in the morning around 9 am.This time you can see many people flocking to the mosque (with children too). They came with beautiful new clothes. After the prayer, everybody escapes in thin air and the visiting family and friends start. By 10 am, the mosque will be deserted as everybody is visiting friends and families.

The first day of Raya is special. The mood is happiness and cheerfulness, meeting "lost" and "long time no see" friends and families. It is a hectic day if you want to visit all family and friend's  houses. You need to plan properly. This is the day when everybody has to end his fast.

The houses are really open. You can see people walk in groups and visit their neighbours and family members. Since you have to visit many houses, each visit is a very short visit. Some times you even do not bother to eat or drinks at their houses. However, this day most houses will have something to eat depending on the ability or capability of the owner. These include rice (of many types), pudding, ketupat (gluten), rendang, lemang (gluton), laksa, sate (grilled) and nasi himpit. The dried ones are biscuits, cakes and other tit-bits. This is quite a standard if you visit Terengganu homes at that time. 

Some houses even made official open house during Rari Raya period inviting friends and families. This is normally staggered during Shawal.

If you want to experience this episode, come to Terengganu during this time and you can appreciate better. I am sorry this episodes have no pictures. Happy travelling.

Turtle Sanctuaries: Terengganu has the most

Turtles are sea animals that are unique to Terengganu. From the past history, Terengganu is well known for turtle landing place due to its clean sandy beaches. The coast of Terengganu becomes popular to these turtles and they are willing to come and lay their eggs. Scientists had been  monitoring these turtles and they found these turtles travel very far (as far as Hawaii). Statistically, the arrival of turtles are declining despite the conservation efforts.

The Department of Fisheries has established  turtle management and conservation centres. They are located in Rantau Abang and Ma Daerah in Terengganu, Cherating in Pahang, Pengkalan Badak in Malacca, Pulau Tinggi in Johor, Segari in Perak and Kerachut in Penang. The one at Rantau Abang is accessible from the main road near Dungun in Terengganu.

The department also established 4 turtle sanctuaries (all in Terengganu). They Ma Daerah, Chagar Hutang (Redang), Che Keling (Redang), and Mak Kepit (also in Redang).

With the establishment of management and conservation centres and sanctuaries, it is hope issue pertaining to turtle can be resolved. If you are interested in this turtle conservation, you can visit these centres and sanctuaries. Happy travelling.

Marine Parks of Terengganu: Need to protect them at all cost

Marine parks in terengganu is governed by the Fisheries Act of 1985. These parks are located around 2-3 nautical miles off the oceanic islands in Terengganu. These parks have one of the best coral reefs in the world and they are beautiful too. The objective of the parks are to afford special protection to aquatic flora and fauna and protect the natural breeding grounds and habitat of aquatic life, allow for the natural regeneration of aquatic life, promote scientific study and research, preserve and enhance the pristine state and productivity and regulate recreational activities to avoid irreversible damage to its environment.

Those days, marine parks are under the jurisdiction of Fisheries department. now a new department , Marine Park Department is formed to manage and control these parks. 

All marine islands in Terengganu are gazetted as Marine Parks. They are Pulau Perhentian Kecil, Pulau Perhentian Besar, Pulau Susu Dara, Pulau Redang and surrounding islands, Pulau Kapas, and Pulau Tenggol. Key islands are actually Redang, Perhentian, Kapas and Tenggol.

Many tourists visited these islands and many involve themselves in activities like scuba diving, snorkelling etc. Now it is found that the reef conditions are in decline as a result of activities like water pollution, coastal reclamation, boat anchoring and ocean warming and coral bleaching.

If you are marine park scientist or love these islands, please help Terengganu and Malaysia to protect these  marine parks from deteriorating by educating visitors not to engage in activities that  are detrimental to the  sustainability of these marine parks. If you want to visit these parks, they are accessible from Kuala Besut (Perhentian), Kuala Terengganu (Redang), Marang  (Kapas) and Kuala Dungun (Tenggol). Happy travelling.

Road Side Tree: A Town Image Enhancer

Many towns and cities have trees of many varieties. Here in Kuala Trengganu, there many road side trees that are planted to enhance the beauty of the city. The trees include casuarinas, cinnamon iners (kayu manis), etc.

Casuarinas are lined making it looks cool and relax. This road is at Batu Buruk beach.

I found a good stretch of road side trees that has appeal  is along Jalan Sultan Mahmud at Kuala Ibai junction to the city centre.

Eating Places and Restaurants in Kuala Terengganu That Most Visitors Can Go

Which restaurants in Kuala Terengganu that I can go? For international tourists, you have choices to take your food or local food. Simple fast food like Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonald, PizzaHut are located in the city centre. Around Kuala Terengganu bus station, you can go to McDonald and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Secret Recipe and Japanese Sushi are located at Jalan Sultan Zainal Abidin next to Ming Hotel. and Hotel Tanjung Vista. There is another food court concentration where you take fast food. It is around Mydin Mall Hypermarket.

Secret Recipe outlet at Jalan Sultan Zainal Abidin.

The Japanese will have no problem. Sushi is here.

For the local food especially Malay food, all restaurants and stalls around the town centre sell or serve those food. For the Chinese food, a few restaurants in Kampong China offer the service. For the Indian food, try a few restaurants along Jalan Air Jernih.

For nasi beriani, try Al Maidah restaurants. It is located in Jalan Kamaruddin and in Permint Jaya. For simple western food and noodles and local food, try Norazila restaurants. It has a few locations. The one at Kuala Ibai junction and Permint Jaya are worth going.

Paradise Deluxe: More than 40 menus are served.

Chilada, the latest restaurant in the market.

For the Thai food, try Paradise Deluxe and Chilada. Paradise Duluxe is located at Jalan Bukit Besar near the Bukit Besar Primary School while Chilada is at Jalan Bukit Kechil near Saibasun Hypermarket. Both restaurants are airconditioned and also cater for groups.

Another restaurant that serves nasi dagang, nasi beriani, nasi himpit, nasi minyak is AZ Selera Timur located in Jalan Hiliran near Masjid Hiliran.

All these food outlets are within the city limits and close to places of interest. Happy travelling

Shahbandar Jetty Point, Kuala Terengganu: A Gateway to Redang Island

Shahbandar Jetty Point is a gateway to Redang Island. It is located  in front of Kuala Terengganu General Post Office and next to Shahbandar Square. There is a parking space for you to park your vehicles. This area was formerly Kuala Terengganu harbour. Now it is managed by the Marine Department. This jetty point is historic by nature due to its existence for many decades.

The jetty. Note: The ferry is parked by the jetty.

View of Pulau Duyong from the jetty.

The ferries that ply between this point and Redang Island have their own schedule, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. So choose the time that suit you most. I found there is not much seating areas for the public to relax while waiting for the departure. This is certainly uncomfortable to the patrons. Some walk to Bukit Puteri and around Touristic Information Centre.

The view from this jetty is quite good. You can see the waterfront of Pulau Duyong, the Monson Cup competition area. You also can see the Shahbandar Square. This area is part of the Kuala Terengganu tourist focus area.  Happy travelling.

Rumah Persatuan Sejarah Malaysia Cawangan Terengganu: A Heritage Building Not to be Missed

There is a unique building, located at Jalan Tok Lam, Kuala Terengganu, which houses Malaysia Historical Society Terengganu Branch office. The 2-storey building is a heritage building  recognised by Malaysia's Department of Heritage. The first floor is all timber. The column or pillar is concrete. The building is over 100 years old.

Historically, this building was privately owned. Then in 1937-1979 it was used as a Town Board office. When the Town Board was elevated to Municipal council status in 1979 (Local Government Act 1976), it shifted to another place. This building was vacated and in 1986, the building was handed over to the Historical Society.

The front of the building.

The public may not know why this building is special. It is special because of its age and  the special carvings on the concrete pillars, door, window and the staircases. The Department of Heritage did some renovation work to this building. During the renovation work recently, they found a buried old well at the basement. The well was then  revived to its original position.

The wall motif is beautiful and artistic.

The timber window with louvres, and the rich wood carving at the balcony.

The old well was restored.

The building now looks beautiful, blending the concrete building and the timber building side by side. It is yet to be open to the public. I was told the building has space for office, display area, and some shops on the ground floor. They have to make this building function like a museum or gallery including introduce some activities with the public.

If you are interested to visit, just walk to Jalan Tok Lam. It is about 100 metres from Shahbandar Square. Happy travelling.

Institut Al Quran Terengganu: A Life Long Learning Centre For the Public

Institut Al Quran Terengganu (also known as IQ Terengganu) was formerly Maahad Tahfiz (established in 1984) and in 2007 was renamed as Institut Al Quran Terengganu.

It is a learning institution to train students to become hafiz (those who can memorise the Quran). Beside that, the institute offers courses to the public during weekends. i.e. Friday and Saturday. The courses include the basic reading of Quran (Ulum), Tarranum , Calligraphy, Qiraat, Arabic language and others that relate to the teaching of Quran. It is a great institution that produces many students and also had benefitted the public who enrolled in the weekend classes.

The management office.

The signboard at the front wall.

The walkway linking the buildings.

This institute is located in Padang Midin, 7 km from the Kuala Terenganu city centre. It is facing the main road to Kuala Berang.  What I am telling you is that, there is a program that allows the public to participate. I call it a continuing educational program or life long learning centre.

So when you visit Kuala Terengganu on Friday morning, you will notice many people (the public) go to this institute to learn. It is part of the activity and has become a tradition and norm for Terengganu people in acquiring knowledge. Terengganu folks call it "Menadah Kitab".

If you are interested to enroll in the part-time weekend course, contact the management or for further information click http://iqt.terengganu.gov.my/    Happy travelling.

Kek Ang: A Terengganu Traditional Food That is Not a Cake

Recently I found a traditional Terengganu food by the name of Kek Ang being sold at Pasar Ramadan. Sounds like Chinese or English? Any way this food looks like laksam. The difference is that there is no ulam and its gravy is somewhat sweet.

Kek Ang and its gravy.

Kek Ang is made of flour dough and cut in pieces. Then the pieces were put in the boiling water. When they float, it is considered cook. Then drain it and cool it. For the gravy, the ingredients are coconut milk, grilled fish (without bones and pounded), onions, ginger, halba, a bit of salt and sugar (according to taste) and black pepper. Mix all of them, cook it until coconut milk thickens. Then, mix the pieces with the gravy, serve it hot. I found its gravy tastes like tupat sutong gravy due to its halba and coconut milk.

Some say there is another technique to cook the dough i.e. steam it. I do not know which method give a better taste. This Kek Ang is not found daily. If you wish to eat, it is better to order from those who can make it. Happy travelling.

Duku Terengganu: The sweet fruits that are sought after

Duku Terengganu is considered among the best breed in Malaysia. Traditionally, they are planted in the villages along the Terengganu river. The flood water brings large amount of silts to riverine villages. These silts supplied nutrients to the soil. Duku tree thrives well in the village vicinity where not much disturbance at its base and its surrounding.

Sample of good , sweet duku.

Duku fruit is light yellow in colour and round in shape. Its size is around 1.5 inches  in diameter. You can get  tons of duku fruits from a tree. Those days, people who owned duku trees are richer when the season comes. Lorries came in to bring the duku out from their orchards. They exported the duku to other regions as the demand was high.

Now duku is everywhere. When the season comes, the orchards are full of duku.  If   there is a glut., the price falls. You can buy duku fruits in the market with RM3 per kilo or less. Happy travelling.

Buah Semeta: Terengganu version of Mangoesteen

Mangoesteen (garcinia mangostana) or buah semeta as it is called in Terengganu, is the queen of the fruits. It is a seasonal fruit availaible not only in Terengganu but the whole of South East Asian countries. Its outer skin is dark blue black and the flesh is white and sweet. Its season is quite similar to durian. When you see durian, you too can see mangoesteen.

Mangoesteen, its white flesh is very sweet.

The scientists have found the xantones in the rind of the fruit which had vigorous phytonutrients with powerful nutritional properties. You can not eat the rind just like that. It has to be processed first. Traditional herbalists in Terengganu used to dry this rind and later boil it. It is consume like drinking tea for the treatment of high blood pressure and diabetes. Some companies around the world now are turning whole fruit  into juice.But they add other juices to this mangoesteen.

Mangoesteen trees in Terengganu are planted in the orchards with other fruit trees. Some are planted in the town parks for artistic appreciation.

If you want to taste Terengganu mangoesteen, come in May to July. But do not get frustrated if you do not find it as some season may produce less mangoesteen. Happy travelling. 

Durian: The Thorny Fruit With Strong Smell

Durian is a seasonal tropical fruit that has strong smell. Its skin is thorny and you must be careful when holding it. Durian can be found in all tropical countries especially in South East Asia  (Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Phillipines, Brunei, Singapore and Indonesia). It is also called the king of the fruit.

In Terengganu, durian are grown in the orchards close to forest as durian thrives well in the area with slope and rolling toporaphy. However, some durian are grown in the rural areas where people live. Its season normally in May till August.

Durian can vary in size.

Durian fruit come in different sizes. Its flesh is normally yellow or royal yellow in colour. Durian is also emit gas. Its taste is sweet or bitter sweet depending on its clones. During its season, durian is sold in markets all over Terengganu. You may find, it is also sold along the main road to attract the customers.

You need to open the durian fruit with big knive in order to get its flesh. Be careful not to hurt your hands. Once you open it, you can see the flesh which is yellow in colour. You may eat fresh and do not eat its seed unless you boil it first. Do not eat too much, if you have hypertension and diabetes. Durian has high sugar content.

After eating the fruit (flesh), it is a common to pour the plain water into the skin (which has mould of the flesh) and drink from it. Some say it can cool you down and less adour when you emit gas from your mouth. You can use this water to wash your hands. Durian also can be eaten with cooked gluten rice with coconut milk (they call it Pulut Durian with Santan).

If you are from the temperate climate countries or stayed in the air-conditioned room for too long, you will hate the durian due to its smell. That is why many hotels disallowed durian in their premises. Your nose dislike it. But once you nose had acclamatised with the climate here, you will like the smell.

The life span of the fruit varies. If you find the fruit is already cracked, it may signal its life span will end soon. The cracked fruit should be cheaper.

Well, durian flesh can be deep freeze in order to keep it fresh over long time. When you want to eat, just defrost it. In Terengganu, it is a tradition where the Terengganu folks who had excess durian will convert it into another by-product i.e. lempok and tempoyak. Its flesh can be made into lempok, a kind of sweet jam. The flesh (from many fruits) is cooked with sugar until it turns into brown paste or jam. This lempok can be eaten with bread or eat just like that.

Its flesh also can be turned into tempoyak, a kind of seasoning that you use when you boil your fish. Tempoyak is made by mixing durian flesh with the right amount of salt (keep it inside the bottle). It can last many months. When you boil your fish, you can add asam (like tamarine), cucumber, daun kesom (kesom leaf),  small chilli, onions, garlic, then you can take a few spoons of this tempoyak to make it tasty. Small chilli, onion, garlic must be pounded first. Once your fish is cooked with  these ingredients, a Malaysian dish is already made. It is called  Ikan Masak Tempoyak (Fish with Tempoyak).

If you want to taste Terengganu durian, come May to August, you will certainly find durian everywhere. Happy travelling.

Pasar Ramadan: Where You Can Find Varieties of Food and Dessert

Pasar Ramadan in Terengganu is a place where food, dessert and drinks are sold throughout the month of Ramadan. The clients are mostly locals. The locations  and the number of stalls are determined and fixed by the local authorities. The stalls are in good shaped and the cleanliness is supervised the local authorities. During Ramadan, there is a sudden surge or demand for this kind of market (evening market) as people want to buy food for breaking of fast. This is part of the tradition all over Terengganu. 

Pasar Ramadan

Pasar Ramadan at Shahbandar Square.

Pasar Ramadan  normally occupies a temporary site or adjacent to the existing markets. Almost all residential areas have this Pasar  Ramadan. It may occupy a car park, an open space or  part of the road  It normally open between 4.00pm until 8.00pm. By 3.00pm, the sellers will come with their food and kueh and it peaks at 6.00pm where patrons were seen coming from various places to buy the food. The breaking of fast is normally around 7.15pm depending on the locations. So, when the time to break the fast is near, you can see  less people  at these markets.  They had gone home to break their fast at their respective homes, relatives homes  or mosque etc. By 8.00pm, the sellers go home as there is no more buyers. At this time, local people are busy cleaning their kitchen and ready to pray  Isha' and Terawih at mosques.

Roti Boom (like Roti Prata) . It comes with chicken or beef curry.

Grilled Chicken

Chicken Rice already packed for the clients.

Vegetables, curry and others are sold here.

"Nasi Kerabu", a rice with kerabu, salted egg, solok lada and grilled chicken.

Drinks like soya is popular.

Traditional kueh

Seri Kaya, a sweet dessert. It is made of eggs, coconut milk and brown sugar.

Pasar Ramadan has demarcated sections according the the product sold. You may find variety of drinks, food, and kueh are being sold here. It has more variety of products than the normal night markets. Mind you, the price of food, drink or kueh may be a bit higher compare to normal days as everybody is trying his luck to get better income during this fasting month.

In Kuala Terengganu, Pasar Chabang Tiga, Pasar Bukit Besar and Shahbandar Square are the markets that people like to go because they have varieties of products sold. Happy travelling.

City Centre of Kuala Terengganu

City centre of Kuala Terengganu can be defined as the area bordered by Jalan Sultan Ismail (formerly known as Jalan Paya Bunga), and its eastern part of it. This means it includes Tanjung, Ladang, Paya Bunga, Kampung China and Kedai Payang. The concept changed every now and then. In the 1980's, the development of Padang Hiliran (2km west from the previous centre) has emerged and formed another city centre.

What I am going to tell you is that the old city centre is still vibrant. Dataran Shahbandar in Tanjung now is the venue of many state events. Pasar Kedai Payang and Bazaar Warisan are tourism icons. Jetty Shahbandar is the gateway to Redang Island. The commercial banks and government offices cluttered along Jalan Sultan Ismail. Well known hotels like Primula, Grand Continental or Mutiara (2-star) are located in the city centre. The new Paya Keladi shopping area and bus station are in the town centre.

 The old mosque known as Masjid Putih by the locals.

 Jalan Sultan Ismail where many banks and offices are located. This road is always busy during working days.

Kampong China.

City Hall building (light brown), view from Jalan Air Jernih.

The landscape garden at Padang Maziah near Dataran Shahbandar.

Apart from the ones that I had told you, some area  in the present city centre now is under redevelopment.  This is evidently true in case of Banggol where old shop houses were demolished  to make way for new development. Tanjung and Ladang will be redeveloped with better commercial and housing. The city centre is actually one of the heritage areas that we should keep.

Now there is a thinking to expand the city centre across the Terengganu river, to include the river front of Seberang Takir-Bukit Tumbuh. I welcome it. If the waterfront project was successfully implemented, Kuala Terengganu will become one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Well, if you like to explore the old city centre,  get a map and take a morning walk from Tanjung to Post Office, Kedai Payang, Kampung China and then proceed to Jalan Sultan Ismail until you reach Bulatan Ladang (Batu Bersurat Roundabout). This walk takes about two hours. Make sure you wear a good walking shoe. Happy travelling.

Jerteh: A Town with a New Identity

Jerteh is a town in the district of Besut, north of Terengganu bordering the state of Kelantan. Being an agricultural district, Jerteh town flourishs with the support of its population. In Besut, there are three small towns that have different function and located a few kilometres apart. Jerteh is a commercial centre. Kampung Raja (10 km from Jerteh) hosts government offices and Kuala Besut (4km from Kampong Raja), a gateway to Perhentian Islands. Kuala Besut has high population density. Should these three towns merge together, it can become a big city.

Jerteh being a commercial centre for Besut now seems to expand further south-west with the relocation of a bus station. The new landmark for Jerteh now is the new big mosque. The double-storey mosque is stylish, new design and high. It is visible from far.There is traditional building (timber building) near the old bus station  and is used as a surau. In front of the surau, I found the parking is unique. It  has a high roof. This parking space can be used for other purposes like exhibition centre, car sales, etc.

The new landmark.

The surau (small mosque) made of timber. It is a Terengganu architecture which is a heritage by itself.

The parking area has a high covered roof. It is the first of its kind in Besut.

The paddy or rice plantation which supply rice to Malaysians.

If you are interested to drop by this town, drive north from Kuala Terengganu to Jerteh. Normal drive will take two hours. On the way, before you reach Jerteh, you will see vast paddy fields. It is a like a big green carpet. Take pictures of this rice field because the next time you visit, you may not see this field again. Happy travelling.