No fetish for heritage here, and yet…
4 min read
I was looking out of a window in the longhouse when a local resident asked if I could spot the ancient stone mound, called a perupun in the local language, whic...
In the shelter of family trees
4 min read
The intimacy of the questions used to surprise me, but I have now become accustomed to being asked who my adoptive parents are or husband is. It’s not inq...
The Jacks of all trades of Ba Kelalan
4 min read
Looking up at the high roofs of Ba Kelalan’s many churches – with their exposed rafters forming intricate patterns – it doesn’t seem pos...
Getting to know Malaysia, one trip at a time
4 min read
On a Friday afternoon, photographer Chok Yen Hau was at the market in Wakaf Che Yeh near Kota Bharu. It was his first ever trip to Kelantan. Entranced by the co...
Taking freedom with the press
4 min read
“Here, the young people operate the old machines, and the old operate the new machines,” said Ee Soon Wei, with a deadpan expression that hid his am...
The letter in English: Ipoh’s place on the Sun Yat-Sen trail
5 min read
It all began with a letter written in English. The unusual choice of language intrigued Chan Sue Meng when she came across it among the musty papers kept by her...
Through the eyes of a refugee child
5 min read
When Universiti Malaya anthropology lecturer Kamal Solhaimi Fadzil began his project last year, he was not sure it would get anywhere. It seemed a tough job, an...
Gerakbudaya – A book-based cultural movement
4 min read
“That’s my boss,” Chong Ton Sin said when he caught me glancing at the Che Guevara poster on the wall of his office. Actually, there were two...
A Muslim woman answers the call to travel
4 min read
The Haj pilgrimage is familiar to most Malaysians who would have seen photographs of the millions of Muslims who make their way to Mecca to pay homage. But how...
Where there’s a will, there can be light
4 min read
It is a cold evening, not unusual for the hamlet of Long Rusu where the temperature often falls below 20°C after the sun sets. Mountain weather is chilly an...
Christmas in the mountains of Sarawak
3 min read
Shopping malls nowadays may be decorating for Christmas as early in the year as possible, but they are not alone in their enthusiasm! Christmas also comes very...
Towards Healthier Rural Living, One Solar-powered Water Filtering System at a Time
4 min read
It began as a final year assignment for engineering student Ganesh Muren. He had to work on a project to showcase what he had learned during his years at Inti C...