Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Day 4 - Mon 11 Jun 07 (Bintulu)
In the morning, we visited the Bintulu Edible Oils company. The manager gave us a talk on the advantages and disadvantages of the variety of oil, covering on saturated, mono unsaturated, poly unsaturated fats and so on. Our own conclusion was that our virgin olive oil should be used as is and not for frying etc.
After the talk, we went for half an hour of shopping at the town centre. We bought lots of belachan and pepper. Later, we checked out of our hotel and went for a final big sumptuous lunch in Bintulu. We also celebrated the birthdays of five June babies, the youngest being 15 (the pianist) and the oldest is in his 70s (the Resident Conductor). We made them share their joy through music (singing their favorite pieces). :)
We boarded the Air Asia flight back to Kuching, and our guide took us out for another nice dinner before we returned to the airport for our flight to JB. Unfortunately, the flight was delayed for 1.5 hrs and we were given meal vouchers from the airline for our supper.
We finally departed at around 11 +pm, arrived at JB at 1+ am, and we reached home at 2.30 am. We spent alot of time on the road, but it was worth the trip and gave us opportunity to get to know one another better, and to achieve our mission.
After the talk, we went for half an hour of shopping at the town centre. We bought lots of belachan and pepper. Later, we checked out of our hotel and went for a final big sumptuous lunch in Bintulu. We also celebrated the birthdays of five June babies, the youngest being 15 (the pianist) and the oldest is in his 70s (the Resident Conductor). We made them share their joy through music (singing their favorite pieces). :)
We boarded the Air Asia flight back to Kuching, and our guide took us out for another nice dinner before we returned to the airport for our flight to JB. Unfortunately, the flight was delayed for 1.5 hrs and we were given meal vouchers from the airline for our supper.
We finally departed at around 11 +pm, arrived at JB at 1+ am, and we reached home at 2.30 am. We spent alot of time on the road, but it was worth the trip and gave us opportunity to get to know one another better, and to achieve our mission.
Penseur 12:53 AM
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Day 3 - Sun 10 Jun 07 (Bintulu)
We had to leave the hotel early for 9 am Service at Emmanuel Methodist Church. The church buildings we have visited so far looked modern and impressive. We presented 2 song items before Rev Khoo spoke on Psalms 33.
When we were ready to leave the church, the coach had broken down and it was raining heavily. The church very quickly garnered the help of their members to ferry us back to the hotel using their private vehicles. After unloading our stuff, they again ferried us to the lunch venue. The rain had stopped and the bus was repaired by the time we were done with our lunch. How blessed we were!
After lunch, we were very fortunate to have a special private visit to a longhouse (called rumah panjang) of the Iban tribe arranged by the church. The Iban or Sea Dayaks were the largest of the tribal groups in Sarawak who lived along the coastal belt. The Iban tribe were formerly head-hunters who were quite competitive in the pursuit of their trophies. However, the majority of them are now Christian and continue to observe both Christian and traditional ceremonies.
The longhouse we visited contained 48 houses, 50+ families and 300+ members. The back of the longhouse is a typical river for easy access for fishing and laundry etc. Some of the interiors have modern appliances like TV and refrigerators. We were welcomed with rice wine or tuak (reserved for special occasions), variety of snacks and drinks. Fortunately, we were pre-warned not to get ourselves intoxicated as we will have to oblige to the hospitality of all the houses we visit once we accept an offer. The community entertained us with traditional songs and dance (ngajat). The Iban music is very percussion-oriented.
After the visit, we returned to the hotel to freshen up, went out for dinner before going to Gloria Methodist for the evening Mandarin Service. This time we rendered 2 Mandarin songs.
We gathered at the meeting room when we returned to the hotel. As it was our final night in Sarawak, we had a longer time of open and honest sharing of our experiences and to express our appreciation for one another.
When we were ready to leave the church, the coach had broken down and it was raining heavily. The church very quickly garnered the help of their members to ferry us back to the hotel using their private vehicles. After unloading our stuff, they again ferried us to the lunch venue. The rain had stopped and the bus was repaired by the time we were done with our lunch. How blessed we were!
After lunch, we were very fortunate to have a special private visit to a longhouse (called rumah panjang) of the Iban tribe arranged by the church. The Iban or Sea Dayaks were the largest of the tribal groups in Sarawak who lived along the coastal belt. The Iban tribe were formerly head-hunters who were quite competitive in the pursuit of their trophies. However, the majority of them are now Christian and continue to observe both Christian and traditional ceremonies.
The longhouse we visited contained 48 houses, 50+ families and 300+ members. The back of the longhouse is a typical river for easy access for fishing and laundry etc. Some of the interiors have modern appliances like TV and refrigerators. We were welcomed with rice wine or tuak (reserved for special occasions), variety of snacks and drinks. Fortunately, we were pre-warned not to get ourselves intoxicated as we will have to oblige to the hospitality of all the houses we visit once we accept an offer. The community entertained us with traditional songs and dance (ngajat). The Iban music is very percussion-oriented.After the visit, we returned to the hotel to freshen up, went out for dinner before going to Gloria Methodist for the evening Mandarin Service. This time we rendered 2 Mandarin songs.
We gathered at the meeting room when we returned to the hotel. As it was our final night in Sarawak, we had a longer time of open and honest sharing of our experiences and to express our appreciation for one another.
Penseur 12:52 AM
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Day 2 - Sat 9 Jun 07 (Bintulu)
The next day, we gathered at the hotel lobby after breakfast and headed for Eng Kwang Methodist Church (EKMC) for our rehearsal. At the church, we had to do a little warm up physical exercise led by PP before commencing our practice.
After the rehearsal, we had another sumptuous 8-course Chinese lunch in a different restaurant. Part of the course was a special local vegetable dish stir-fry with belachan. Sarawak is known for its pineapple, pepper, belachan and durian. We got to try all except the durian as it was not in season.
The next item on our itinerary was a visit around Bintulu town and the Methodist Book Centre (MBC). Our purpose for this trip was to raise funds for the upgrading works of the MBC. VOP has embraced this verse in Acts 20:35 ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ and indeed we ourselves have been blessed through this ministry.
After the visit, we returned to our hotel to rest and prepare for our evening concert. We were back at EKMC at 6 pm, had a short rehearsal, had our huge packet dinner and put on our costume for the 7.30 pm concert.
After the rehearsal, we had another sumptuous 8-course Chinese lunch in a different restaurant. Part of the course was a special local vegetable dish stir-fry with belachan. Sarawak is known for its pineapple, pepper, belachan and durian. We got to try all except the durian as it was not in season.
The next item on our itinerary was a visit around Bintulu town and the Methodist Book Centre (MBC). Our purpose for this trip was to raise funds for the upgrading works of the MBC. VOP has embraced this verse in Acts 20:35 ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ and indeed we ourselves have been blessed through this ministry.After the visit, we returned to our hotel to rest and prepare for our evening concert. We were back at EKMC at 6 pm, had a short rehearsal, had our huge packet dinner and put on our costume for the 7.30 pm concert.
Half of the songs that we sang were Chinese songs. Our small ensemble also presented 3 songs to a full house crowd. Amongst the audience were local reporters who took lots of pictures of our performance. We were subsequently featured in a full page article on the local Chinese Newspaper that Monday. Good that the media was there to reach out to those who did not attend the concert. And hopefully we have accomplished our mission to raise enough funds for the MBC.
We enjoyed supper lovingly prepared by the very hospitable church members after the concert. There were home made yam cakes and variety of kuehs. We then returned to the hotel and after changing to our comfortable wear, gathered at a meeting room for our vesper. This time we had a longer session, with the sharing of the night’s performance and our upcoming projects.
We enjoyed supper lovingly prepared by the very hospitable church members after the concert. There were home made yam cakes and variety of kuehs. We then returned to the hotel and after changing to our comfortable wear, gathered at a meeting room for our vesper. This time we had a longer session, with the sharing of the night’s performance and our upcoming projects.
Penseur 12:51 AM
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Day 1 - Fri 8 Jun 07 (Bintulu)
The much anticipated trip finally came. Our 30+ members troupe gathered at GCMC at 8.45 am and after a briefing, boarded the coach bound for Senai Airport in JB. It was a pleasant ride to the airport, and for some reasons we did not have to bring our luggages down at the Malaysia checkpoint. A few caring ladies prepared home-made rice dumplings and we were able to enjoy a nice breakfast on board the bus.As we had arrived early at the small airport for the flight to Kuching, we sat down for another light meal at the cafeteria. The food was rather disappointing though. Our MH flight departed at 12.45 pm and we arrived in Kuching at 2.10 pm. The travel agent Colin met us at Kuching airport and helped to check us in as a group.
Our next leg of the trip was from Kuching to Bintulu on Air Asia. We had to walk to the plane which was refuelling away from the gate, and there were no seats allocation but on a first-come-first-serve basis. We arrived at our final destination at 5 pm. Again, we had to climb down the mobile stairways onto the runway and walk to the Gate. It was drizzling at that time but the airline staff were ready with red umbrellas to shelter the passengers.
After checking into Park City Everly Hotel, we had an hour to freshen up before the coach came to fetch us to our dinner venue. We were entertained by leaders from the Methodist Council of Churches. The 8-course Chinese meal were delicious.
When we returned from dinner, we gathered by the poolside (in the dark and covered in haze) and had a brief time of devotion. We had to use our mobile phones as torchlights to read the song sheets but the unison of our singing rang through the place. It was a wonderful and meaningful start to the trip.
Penseur 12:50 AM
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