Monday, June 30, 2008

Wildlife in the Garden


On Saturday afternoon I spotted this little snake going across our drive just as I was trying to get the kids into the car to pick up Donncha. It quickly headed into a bush and we got our gardener, Somnuk to flush it out. I dislike killing innocent animals so we got a broom and Somnuk started pushing it towards the front gate. It was only then we realised it was a baby cobra as it tried to put up a fight. Anyway Somnuk got it safely over the road and it disappeared into the jungle. Touch wood that's the last we see of it and its kind.

Belated Birthday Greetings..


to Grandad Paul McCarthy who celebrated his birthday middle of last week and to Donncha's brother Sean whose birthday was yesterday. With lots of love from all of us.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Only a week before the holidays!!


This week Iman and her peers proudly received certificates from their Reception teachers. Next week will be the last week of term and we all greatly welcome the summer break. In August Iman will be going to Year 1 and Jack will start Kindy.


Friday, June 27, 2008

Meeting the Penan of Borneo


On Wednesday this week I had an opportunity to travel to the Malaysian town of Limbang to meet with a group of Penan residing there. I went with a group of JIS students who are doing some comminuty work with the Penan as part of their activity week. The JIS community has this year been raising funds - the Penan make unique baskets and JIS has been helping them sell these - and collecting food for this particular Penan community. My nephew Hazim was part of this group so myself and his mum Hanna decided to check it out for ourselves.

The Penan are one of the few remaining nomadic tribes of the rainforest and I think the only nomadic hunter gatherer people of Borneo. Most of the communities are within the Malaysian state of Sarawak. Very sadly the Sarawak rainforest in the last 20 years has diminished through intensive state backed logging. The majority of the Penan communities have lost their traditional way of lives and have been forced into settlements. I don't know enough about the communities but I can only assume that some are better off than others.

The group of people we met in Limbang are from various longhouses around the Limbang area. The local authorities have provided them with a what I can best describe as a dilapidated house that houses up to 100 men, women and children. The house serves as a half-way house for the Penan whilst they are seeking medical care from the local hospital. Hanna had gone a day ahead of me and had described the place but when I got there the state of their living conditions shocked and saddened me.

This is the front 0f the house and there are two big rooms and a smaller one in the side.


This is the inside of one of the bigger rooms. Up to ten families live in here. They eat, sleep and cook in the same area. I did not take pictures of the back of the house which has open air rooms with a basic roof and canvas sheets as walls. Plus there is one bathroom between them. Why all so appalling? It's all very political because of the Penans' constant resistance to deforestation and as a result they are marginalized by the Malaysian government and often denied of their basic rights.

So how could JIS help? Basically the kids were taken there to see how they could improve their living conditions. With the B$700 they raised the kids bought lino, mattresses, improved the "open air" rooms by fixing the canvas using wooden frames giving them better security in their temporary shelter. We had also brought food, clothing and toys. On my arrival I as taken aside by an elder gentleman (actually the man with the fantastic bangles) that they are from different longhouses and when bringing food it is important to divide it up. He said on ocassions food has not been distributed properly and taken by one group. I suppose it is naive for us to assume that they are one people and will divide the charity. It is only human nature to look out for oneself. Which brings me to the topic of handouts. It is clear that the people residing here were used to handouts. Some of the men do casual labour and the more older women make baskets to sell (and Hanna and I bought some beautiful ones) but it was clear that the younger ones relied on charity. I hope that this was only because they are marooned in a town where they are not particularly welcome and that back "home" they are able to live off the land. (The roads to the lognhouses - logging roads - are currently closed due to the rainy reason and many are unable to go home).
 

For more information on the Penan, check out the following websites.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Post Birthday Greetings to Gaby

I was invited to a dinner on tuesday night to celebrate Gaby's birthday. It was a fantastic evening amongst friends and food was superb. The steak was up there with the steak Donncha and I had in Mortons Singapore last month. Look forward to going back to Deals again for that mouth-watering steak. Thanks Gaby and Hans for a great evening.

With Bettina and Gaby

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Hariz' Birthday


Hariz turned 6 over the weekend and cut his Spiderman cake at a pre-arranged Jerudong Park picnic with his year group. And despite the rainstorm at the start, the kids had a blast on the rides - the few that are still there and working.




Thursday, June 19, 2008

Our little reader

Ayden is showing great interest in books. Yesterday afternoon he parked himself and Iman's pink stool by the bookshelf and with all seriousness pulled out a book and started "reading". 



I really should get him a blue stool!

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Pictures from the hash

Yesterday evening we were back to the site where a large chunk of the jungle has disappeared. It's a real shame to loose such beautiful jungle especially one with well established trails but nevertheless last night's run of in and out of jungle and open space was a very challenging one and thoroughly enjoyable.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Superheroes Are Back

Jack is currently going through a superheroes phase and Ayden won't be left out. He was also very adamant that his whale swim hat be part of the outfit.



This morning they were happy to pose for me and Jack did some of his "hai....ya...." poses complete wth the sounds.


The heroes then proceeded to terrorize poor Pepper!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Sunday Roast

Sundays for us is usually lunch out and most of the time the Yacht Club. Yesterday was a nice change to have a proper sunday roast - a leg of lamb and it turned out beautifully. 


I had stuck in whole pieces of garlic in the leg and stuck in sprigs of dry rosemary. Donncha did a great job with the carving.

Jack is turning out to be a real meat boy and tucked in before we sat down.

And even the kittens enjoyed the leftovers!

Friday, June 13, 2008

Iman's Second Assembly


Iman's Reception year successfully performed their second assembly today in front of the Junior School. Iman did well on her set lines and at the end even posed a question to the audience and chose a fellow pupil to answer it. She was our star and needless to say, we were very proud! 

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Jerudong Fish Market


Last Friday Iman's year had a trip to the fish market down the road. It was mid morning and the morning catch was just in. Prawns looked good so I went for a kilo. For our readers in Europe and beyond - that morning it was B$10 a kilo, equivalent to 5 euro / 3 pounds stg!

And this catch looked very fresh

Iman, Timothee and Nina holding out prawns 

Monday, June 09, 2008

Aboard Manaia


Here are the pictures from our first "cruise" on Manaia. Though we had minor engine problems it was a great day out and the kids loved it. We look forward to going out again once the two skippers get to know the boat better. For more on the afternoon check out the Doolan family blog.




Friday, June 06, 2008

Introducing Manaia

Brunei is a wonderful little corner of the world and we are now beginning to really appreciate the outdoor life offered here. Maria as you know has been 'hashing' now for some time and we've now taken a share in a boat with Brian and Cath which will allow us to explore Brunei from the many waterways available.

The boat was recently rebuilt by an expat here in Brunei and he has had to sell the boat as he's now been offered a good career move. Good for him and Good for us !

I've also included a picture of the boat before he started. Looking forward to posting pictures of us on the water !

Wednesday, June 04, 2008

The Sharing Bag

It's Iman's turn to bring in the sharing bag - the children take it in turns to take the bag home and bring something into school to share with friends. Today Iman is bringing in our blog address so here's a big WELCOME TO RECEPTION ALLIGATOR - we hope you all enjoy our blog.

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

A Day at Singapore Zoo


With a full day ahead of us before our evening flights yesterday,  we took away all temptations to spend the day shopping and instead took the kids to the zoo. This is our third visit to the zoo with the kids and it's always a great day out with so much to see and do. Unfortunately time was not on our side and we did not see all the animals on the kids' list. The zoo is continually expanding and are currently building a new children's play area complete with water area - we look forward to that next year.

One of the first enclosures we came to was the white tiger family - this is one of my favorites

Beside the kangaroo enclosure Hariz spotted this little snake on a leaf

We caught the elephant show which the the kids loved


The highlight of the day (and probably the whole Singapore trip) was the elephant ride. Jack was really chuffed as he refused to go on it last year and has been talking about it since. And Ayden got upset when he saw everyone else up there without him!

Sunday, June 01, 2008

Hazim's Birthday


Cousin Hazim celebrated his birthday here in Singapore a few days ago. The one to watch on this short clip is Ayden.