Dear reader, please head over to mondowoitripping.blogspot.com, for the latest essays on Botibas.
MONDOWOI TRIPPING
I have set up a new site on Blogger.com. Recently I have been writing about the origins and history of the Penampang Kadazan which I have done previously on this WordPress site i.e. Tuhun do Bangkaak. All my latest essays are published on the new site at https://mondowoitripping.blogspot.com/.
Looking for Old Grave Markers in a Makiang Cemetery in Tongod
Article by Henry Joplin Mosiun
15th February 2020 – At about 6am in the morning we departed Sandakan. Destination, Tongod. A seasoned photographer, graphic designer, welder and flat-earther Dennis Wong had been to Sandakan several years ago. Last year, 2019, we had gone on a trip together, traversed the Crocker Range via the Salt Trail, a 5 days hike from Tikolod in Tambunan to Inobong in Penampang. Due to my lacking in photography skills, I had asked Dennis to assist me on this brief trip.
The Kampong Bulod cemetery is shared by the Makiang communities of Bulod and Sumilad. It is situated almost 2 kilometres away south-east of the Tongod district office. After a quick breakfast at the Tongod Sedco, we headed to Kg. Kuala Tongod to meet up with Mr. Pantou, a makiang. On a previous visit to Tongod last year, i had met him and his grandson along the riverbanks of Sungai Milian, Ulu Kinabatangan. They informed me of a site which has some history among the locals there and is situated in Kg. Bulod. At the site in 1953, 2 indigenous tribes took an oath or ‘angkat sumpah’ to resolve a possibly 100 years old tribal conflict.
Pantou had agreed to bring us to the site. We got into his motor-powered prahu with our equipment. The river appeared to be shallow. “Tuhur!”, Pantou exclaimed whilst at time steering and pushing the boat with an oar at shallower parts. It seems every Makiang and Sinabu villager own a prahu. There was a slight drizzle of rain which made us a bit worried for the safety of our equipment. Thankfully no heavy downpour. The worst was yet to come. It was a short boat ride and in about 20 minutes or more we reached our destination.
The task of spotting old and ancient grave markers proved to be very difficult and tedious. The dense and thick undergrowth delayed movement. The floor is littered with dead brown leaves and covered in layers of decomposed plant matter. The first grave marker we found was a crudely carved wooden marker, slanted and showed signs of rot. Next to it, was a beluno tree, tall and huge, towering over the cemetery. Juluk was not an option. If it bore fruits, only the winds can bring them crashing down to the earth. May this beluno tree one day become a mountain as tall as Nabahu perhaps. Within the vicinity, there are many Polod trees growing. According to Pantou, the fruit and leaves of the polod are not edible and only wild boars consume them. However, the young palm heart or the Umbut Polod is edible and is used to produce Natok, a powdered form of the stem pith.
The highlight of the day was the discovery of a babandil partially covered in dirt. The babandil is a type of narrow-rimmed gong unlike the heavy and bossed tawak-tawak. This type of marker might indicate the person’s status and influence. Other markers found were river stones and single bilian poles. I cannot ascertain the age of the pagan grave markers but most probably some are at least 100 years old or less. Nowadays, the makiang community in Tongod are mainly christians. The christian graves are laid with cement and finished with ceramic tiles; and marked by crucifixes inscribed with details of the deceased. These are the modern age graves.
We were terror-stricken after discovering the area was tick infested. The usually calm and composed dennis seem disoriented; I and even for the local, Pantou, got somewhat fidgety by the presences of forest ticks. I could still taste last night’s beer and my mind was somewhat in disarray for fear of ticks as they are potential carriers of diseases.
It was common in former days for the construction of huts over graves to act as temporary shelters from rain and planting sharp bamboo stakes on the ground to hinder boars from damaging the grave. There was one grave that belonged to a woman, its bilian (ironwood) pillars still stand, and some tropical plants planted around it. This was the grave of a mamiau specialist, a babalian. These attractive foliages are commonly used by babalians in their rituals and berubat ceremony. In the olden days, when a person fell ill, a babalian was consulted. Demons and evil spirits are accused of being the main instigators for man’s misery, pain and suffering. A mamiau ceremony is conducted to rid the evil off the patient’s body and whilst the babalian performs the barunsai, a form of choral music which is also performed during the harvest celebration albeit for a different purpose.
Installed on the densely vegetated slope are 2 dilapidated bilian signposts are what remains of the 1953 settlement of a tribal dispute between the Rumanau and the Mangkaak. It can be seen along the steep path, as we hiked up from the sandy bank before reaching the cemetery. According to Pantou, initially a sign or plaque had been nailed to the bilian posts with a description of the event that took place there. There were also stones erected as monuments during the solemn event but has since been removed and quite possible stolen. This was the very site where 2 fowls were sacrificed each by the Rumanau and the Mangkaak after the bichara at Tongod. The 2 suku finally made their peace and ended the enmity.
We returned to the prahu and headed back to Kg. Kuala Tongod. The tick paranoia begins.-H.J. Mosiun
Video & Music by H.J. Mosiun
Photos by Dennis Wong
Objects of Curiosities Part 1
In this post, I would like to show some of the interesting objects I came across during trips to villages around Sabah. One can find interesting and rare objects around households in Sabah; most are family heirlooms and antiques.
Gayang and Dagger (Kg. Patau, Tambunan)
The owner of this sword claimed that this sword belonged to a warrior from Sugud in Penampang , killed in battle somewhere in Tambunan. This was part of the war booty his ancestor acquired.
The hilt of the sword is carved out from a deer’s antlers and has dayak-looking designs and motifs engraved onto it. Nowadays, the owner uses the gayang to cut grass. The knife next to the gayang was produced during the World War 2. This probably is a bayonet.
Keris Sundang (Kg. Tombulion, Kota Belud)
This keris has some interesting features. It has a heavy blade and is not as curved or crooked like the malayan keris. The hilt indicates that this weapon is a keris and was probably of Irranun or Suluk craftsmanship. The keris sundang had been in the family collection of the current owner who is a Tindal dusun, passed down from one generation to the next. One of his ancestor was a famous Tindal native chief in Tempassuk, Kota Belud.
This Brass Box, is a curious object which reminds me of the “Ark of Covenant” but a smaller version of it.
Ilang (St.Michael Church Penampang)
This sword is kept in a store room within the vicinity of the St.Michael Church Penampang. It was probably used in warfare before made into a ceremonial instrument used by the Bobohizan (dusun spiritualist) in rituals.
Short Ilang (Kg. Dabak-Kopimpinan, Putatan)
This short ilang or dagger is a ceremonial object and belonged to the late Bobohizan Nulian Imfuk.
Gayang and Bayonet (Kg. Nampasan, Penampang)
Here youngsters are showing some ‘pusaka’ of their ancestors. This gayang looks similar to the gayang in Patau although it seems to have gone through some modifications. The other is a long Japanese bayonet used during World War 2.
The Crow’s People
Article by Henry Joplin Mosiun
Tongod is the anthropologist’s playground. I am not one but like to flirt with the idea. My enthusiasm in tracing the obscure origins of the Kadazan of Penampang, have gotten me close to anthropology. There are a number of different groups of indigenous people inhabiting the vast area, each with its own unique language, culture and customs. The traditional settlements of the various suku (tribes) are located by riversides. Each tribe identify themselves to the river they occupy. The mangkaak and the gunatong associate their suku to the Malagatan river, a branch of the Kinabatangan. Tongod is not new to literature and has been extensively written about in journals and magazine since the late 1800s. It had been the backdrop of the onset of British exploration of North Borneo in unfamiliar territories, romanticized in the accounts of ardent explorers and anthropologists.
Tampulong Aju was born in 1935. He was born when North Borneo (Sabah) was under British control. Tampulong was the former headman of Kampong Tongodon in Tongod, a district known as the Heart of Sabah. Kampong Tongodon is located by the Telupid-Tongod Highway and is a mangkaak village. At the age of 28 in 1963, Tampulong was appointed the assistant headman. The year 1963 was the year Malaysia was formed when four entities merged to form the country; Malaya, Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak. In July 1983, the time Sabah was under the BERJAYA government, Tampulong was promoted to headman of Kampong Tongodon. He held the post for about 35 years and his appointment ended recently this year, 2019. He may well be the longest serving ketua kampong in Sabah, is versed in all matters concerning indigenous customs and customary laws; and is considered as one of the remaining custodian of the adat of the Mangkaak and Gunatong.
Tampulong survived World War 2 under Japanese colonization. Those who lived during that period would remember how difficult life was. Tampulong remembers how they had to sell rattan and damar to get money to buy salt and cloth. In those days, if cloth was not available, they would strip off the bark of the tarap tree. The tree bark would then be beaten and flatten to make loin cloth and jackets. Besides the bark of the tarap tree, the timbagan or pakangon another type of tree bark was also commonly used. Only mature trees which had reached a certain circumference by kampong standards, were selected to be stripped off its bark. Of the humiliating things Tampulong recalled, was how the villagers’ house became ‘bath houses’ for the japanese soldiers who ordered the villagers to bath them each time they came.
The discovery of the crow’s stone led to the Orang Malagatan’s self-naming, of which they adopted the name Mangkaak. Mangkaak (or bangkaak) is the dusun word to refer to crow. One day, while scouring a crow’s nests, it came to a shocking surprise when they found a strange looking stone in the crow’s nest. Feeling delighted upon the discovery, they brought the stone back to the village. The curious villagers wondered how could a peculiar stone possibly end up in the crow’s nest? Did it come out of the crow? As it turns out, the crow’s stone was a sharpening stone. The happy villagers brought out their farming tools and weapons from knives to parangs and in particular the vasoi to be sharpened to their finest. Such stones were regarded sophisticated in those days and sought after for its practicality. The mangkaak were only interested in the crow’s stone and not its eggs nor meat. The crow’s stone became somewhat of a symbol of the mangkaak. Unfortunately, that very stone had been lost; the stone that gave them their namesake. Crows are in fact fond of eating rocks and pebbles. Read about it here.
Tampulong’s wife took pride in showing-off the traditional mangkaak attire. All black with some intricate embroidery, patterns and designs similar to traditional costumes of other Austronesian people found in Vietnam, Taiwan, Philippines and Indonesia.
To consummate an agreement or contract between 2 or more parties, it is customary for the mangkaak to exchange items or objects e.g. gayang (sword), tandus (spear), vasoi (adze), tajau (earthen jar), babandil (a type of gong), gong and kulintangan (kettle sized gong). According to Tampulong, they are at least 33 types of items that can be used in the ratification of an agreement made in marriage and oath taking ceremonies.
The long standing dispute between 2 rival tribes, the mangkaak and the rumanau was settled in 1953. The oath taking ceremony took place in an area near the present day small town of Tongod. For the Betaru ceremony, a fowl was sacrificed and several items were presented and exchanged between the two. The event proceeded with a lot of drinking and merry making. Tampulong was 18 years old when he attended the solemn event with his father, Azu. Details on how peace was established between the mangkaak and the rumanau can be read here. Tampulong recalls there was merry making and about 100 jars of tapai ( a type of rice beer) were served during the ceremony.
There are 2 sides to every story. Whatever caused the enmity between the rumanau and mangkaak, cost lives. The war the men fought resulted in the lost of lives from each side including the lives of women and children. Most deaths went unreported while some that appeared in the British North Borneo Herald, embellished the notoriety and savagery of the tribes of Ulu Kinabatangan. It so happened, a rumanau man was passing a mangkaak village, an unusual object caught his attention. Curious, he entered the house unnoticed. The unusual object was actually a Kuron, molded out of clay which Tampulong likened to a cooking pot. On close inspection, the curious rumanau accidentally cracked and destroyed the kuron. The mangkaak men on discovering what had happened, were infuriated and murdered the rumanau man. This ignited the tribal conflict between the Orang Alab (rumanau) from Pinangah, and the mangkaak from Malagatan. This occurred long before the arrival of the Chartered Company.
The vasoi is the most valued of all items in the household of the mangkaak. It is actually an adze, similar to an axe but its blade is arched and perpendicular to its handle. The long and curved handle of the vasoi is carved out from a single piece of hardwood with the blade fastened and strapped to it with rattan strips. The blade is small and heavy and is made of iron. Its long handle, allows for powerful swings, held with both hands striking at the shin level. An exceptional cutting tool and predecessor to the contemporary adze, the vasoi was commonly used when making a lungun (coffin) and building a padau (boat). It can also be used to chop and fell trees. The vasoi is Tampulong’s prized possession and he is not willing to part with it when I asked him whether he would be interested in selling it off. He claims to be the only person within the mangkaak and gunatong communities, who own a vasoi, passed down through generations.
One day, the mangkaak people caught a bolinatong, a type of snake similar to the cobra. The bolinatong was cooked and the mangkaak had a feast. A small boy took a big chunk of the bolinatong meat and swallowed it. The boy choked and this got everyone on their feet. They shouted,”Nogulon ih bolinatong! Nogulon ih bolinatong!”. Luckily, the boy survived the ordeal. The boy had no name at that time of the incident. He was named bolinatong and would later grow up and form the gunatong tribe. ‘Gu’ from Gulon/Gulan (choked) and ‘Natong’ from Bolinatong.
I wondered if the mangkaak dusun were the same with the bangkaakon in Penampang, also known as ‘tuhun do bangkaak’ who are believed to have come from Kinabatangan. I shared my thoughts to Tampulong and he seem to think that they may be the same people. A long time ago, many mangkaaks moved out of the areas surrounding the Malagatan river due to an unknown illness that struct the villagers. They moved to the areas along the Labuk river also known as Livogu amongst dusuns. After some time, most of the mangkaaks return to Malagatan after the epidemic had died out. However, a large number of mangkaak and other people from other suku (tribe) had movd to other districts. Tampulong does not believe that all dusuns originated from a place called Nunuk Ragang, located in Tompios within the district of Ranau. The Nunuk Ragang origin story is maybe a bit overblown.
Love & the Ocean: A Watery Affair
Hibag
An ensemble of indigenous Tatana singers from Kampong Bundu Tara, Kuala Penyu performing the Hibag. The choral group was led by Native Chief George Pingguan. Recorded in 2005.
Botibas
Gongs are close-miked and each gong was recorded individually to 7 separate tracks and mixed. Recorded this year, 2019.
Botibas peformed by a group of youths from Kampong Terawi, Penampang on a set of bamboo gongs called togunggu. My good friend, Kiki (Hazizi) performed with the group. Recorded in 2005.
During a gong competition held on the 15th May 2005 at the Buhavan Square, Donggongon, Penampang. Botibas performed by Kampong Kuai.
Botibas performed by Kampong Terawi on the 15th May 2005.
Graffiti: Keningau
Street art in Keningau Town. Photos were taken in 2017 during an outstation trip to Pulowon, an area located under the district of Tongod accessed via Nabawan.
Dunsai
Here is an example of the dunsai performed during my grandfather’s lying in state. In this clip, the dunsai was performed in the absence of the wailing ladies.
The Salt Trail – The Blue Chapel of Kionop Part 2
1st March 2019
Malunggung Post Control to Pondok Tikolod
On the first day of the month of March, I woke up slightly after 6 in the morning. Felt a little groggy while on the way to the W.C. to empty bowels. I opted for the solitary loo located up a few flights of stairs, on a hill slope just behind the kitchen. No shower, just washed up. Boiled water at the kitchen and took longer to reach boiling point than usual. Had coffee, baked beans, bread and some potatoes for breakfast.
Our journey began at about 8am, we departed the Malunggung Post Control. Bade farewell to Dolzaen. Due to the dry season, there will not be much leech activity, Dolzaen gave us some assurance. Good for those who are squeamish about leeches or limatok in dusun. At the first crossing, I slipped on a wet rock. With a heavy pack, it was difficult to balance on wet and mossy rocks. With no second thoughts, we all waded in the shallow stream except for Kolinton. The off the beaten path before him seem to have been laid out there for him to grace it.
A few minutes in, we came across a fully bloomed rafflesia. It is not the most beautiful flower but it is the flower with the biggest bloom in the world. The parasitic plant emits a foul smell that attracts insects; the agents of pollination. It has a small life of 5 to 7 days.
We begun ascending the Crocker Range after a short break at the first stop, Pondok Tikolod. Steadily hiking up the steep slopes at a leisurely pace, I maintained a short stride on most uphill. It struck me, the key to not over exerting oneself when hiking up a steep hill with a heavy pack would be to lower the centre of gravity by shifting one’s own weight and of the backpack forward, by bending at the hips and leaning into the hill with body feeling almost parallel with the inclination. With the hips pushed out, it almost feels like a balancing act. For better support, use trekking poles or a walking stick. My backpack felt heavier than 15kg. Maybe too heavy for a long hike.
The trails are clearly marked and maintained by the staffs of the Taman Banjaran Crocker. I went ahead of the group but off and on hollered them via the walkie talkie (courtesy of the Wong brothers). I found it to be cumbersome to stop and take out the camera to take video footages along the trails. Maybe I should consider investing in an action camera like the Gopro Hero series.
Pondok Bolotikon to Pondok Malunggung
Just before reaching Pondok Malunggung, I crossed paths with a group that comprised of 2 local staffs of the park and a british Indian couple. The guide in charge was Dius and were on their way to Malunggung.
Within the vicinity of Pondok Malunggung, a few metres away from the hut was a glazed earthen jar positioned in an upside-down position. I was not able to measure the jar that day but it could have at least be 4 feet in height. I was told later at the end of the journey, by an officer at the Inobong Sub-station, that a village used to stand at the site of the jar but its villagers had moved out of the area not too long ago in the 1960s. The jar was left there because it was probably too heavy to carry. The jar was purposely placed in that position by the park’s staff so it may not hold stagnant water. It was not what I imagined it to be, a burial jar of some sort because it looked big enough to fit a corpse in it.
Pondok Ponobukan to Pondok Kionop
Kolinton reminded everyone via the walkie talkie to stop at the river for lunch at Pondok Kionop. I arrived first at the river and was welcomed by friendly bees attracted to my sweat. I however did not get stung. These were the kelulut bees or Tantadon, bees that produce the expensive kelulut honey such as those sold at the roadside market at Randagong, a village located by the Tambunan-Ranau road. A 1 litre bottle of kelulut honey can cost up to RM100.
Blue Chapel of Kionop
I did not count the number of times we crossed rivers and streams. The dry season have fortunately made it easier for us to cut across rivers as the low rainfall have made rivers shallow. Wading in the river cools the body temperature especially under the hot heat of the sun. I think we would all agree to this.
The low water level exposed a plethora of rocks and stones of all shapes and sizes. I must admit, I have a thing for curios and odd-looking stones; and I collect them. Along the way, we came across a rock that appeared artificially shaped, like a cutting tool. It occurred to me; the odd rock might have served as a marker placed there by someone, intended to caution the passer-by of something. Perhaps.
We plodded in the Kionop river, waded in its shallow and slow-moving currents, and hopped on dull looking stones. Kolinton moved towards a group of men not far off from where we were rested. It was late afternoon and I looked up at the slightly orange hued white sky. The sun had begun its descent towards the horizon. A cool breeze blew past. I realized we were surrounded by towering hills and mountains.
Kolinton returns. We picked up our bags and got out of the river. We walked for a few metres till we reached a clearing. Before us stood a blue-painted 2-storey wooden building. The structure is a chapel previously used by the villagers of Kionop. This was where we were to spend our night. Adjoining the chapel, is the kitchen area and adjacent to it, was a row of toilets cum shower.
The kitchen has all the insides of a typical kitchen. This kitchen however does not offer the luxury of a gas stove. Nevertheless, cooking was possible over open fire. A good supply of suduon or firewood had been provided for visitors and overstayers. It is not everyday you get to cook over an open fire. Something the urbanite will feel somewhat challenged. I was reminded of the primitive methods of lighting a fire I have witnessed by the Bongi and Lobu dusun. Very daunting task if one is impatient. It will take sheer will and determination to start a fire from scratch. I have never tried it myself and hopefully I never have to. Luckily for me, I had brought my own military-grade solid fuel tablets. All i needed was a lighter and voila! There were some vegetables grown in the compound of the chapel such as sayur manis and taro (or keladi).
We unpacked our bags and prepared our sleeping areas after Pat had swept the hall clean. Ate some mangosteen left for us by the previous party. Indomie, coffee and we sat throughout the evening until it turned to darkness.
The longish object, wrapped in newspaper and black plastic, that Kolinton had fitted to the side pocket of his backpack, was finally revealed. I first noticed it the day before. After much persuasion, Ali went along with Kolinton, who was armed with a harpoon, headlamp and scuba mask, to spear some fish at the river. Kolinton had promised us fish. I volunteered to cook because I wanted to eat. But not instant noodles!
Earlier that day on the way to Kionop, I plucked out the flower and fruit of the torch ginger which grew in abundance by riversides. The plant is known as topu in dusun and bunga kantan in malay. I was first introduced to the fruit of the topu by my Minokok friend while on a trip to Mt. Trusmadi via Sinua in Sook, Keningau. It is sour and can be eaten raw. A way to find out if the fruit is ready to be consumed, is by removing its pinkish outer layer, simply by scratching it off or dug out with the finger nails. If the outer layer cracks and breaks off easily, it has ripen. The white flesh and small seeds of the topu’s fruit resemble the dragon fruit. Sadly, the fruit I had with me, upon close inspection by Kolinton, was unripe.
While waiting for Kolinton and Ali to return, I prepared all the ingredients required for my dish. At about 9pm, the two are back with a pailful of fish, mainly sarawi a type of freshwater fish. Kolinton gave us about 5 to 6 fish. Most of that night’s catch were to be smoked while some to be made into pinongiyan. I have decided to cook my mother-in-law’s recipe. Fish soup with mango and bunga kantan cooked over open fire. Of course I improvised the recipe. For extra sourness, I added takob-akob a dusun spice which I had with me. The ripe mango provided by Dennis gave off a slight sweetness to the concoction. It was quite challenging cooking over open fire with the strong heat and smoke getting into the eyes. Dinner by candlelight.
Without going into much detail, after each fish had been scaled, gutted and cleaned, they are then split. The meticulous process is actually called kiting and involves removing the backbone of the fish, splitting it from the tail to the belly. Salt is then rubbed onto the body, flesh and cavity of the fish. Kolinton kept the stomach and innards of the smaller sized fish saying they tasted good when deep fried though a bit bitter. I guess he was saving that for later. The fish were then spread all over a steel mesh, elevated 3 to 4 ft above the hearth and left to smoke overnight. For the pinongiyan, the fish are rubbed and massaged with salt and pangi but are not smoked overnight. Kolinton and Ali slept in the kitchen whilst the rest of us in the chapel’s hall.
While trying to sleep, I could hear the creaking and squeaking of the wooden floor of the kitchen, and the faint sound of music coming from a smartphone. Kolinton busied himself that night with the whole fish preservation business. Someone had in fact placed an order for smoked fish. A little while later, the stillness of the night was abruptly broken by the sound of gunshots. The staccato of bullet fire was followed by a trail of echoes. Three shots were released likely by villagers hunting for bakas (wild boar) or tambang (deer).
The night went unperturbed and no clawing sounds were ever heard.
The Salt Trail – Purak Mato Part 1
28th February 2019
It was not long before Andau, Patricia (Pat) and Jerry arrived to pick me up from the airport. The plane touched down at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport slightly before 11 in the morning. Meeting Pat for the first time, Pat is from Miri and is a health inspector. We headed home, Maang. I still had other essentials to pack for the journey which I had sent to KK via bus days earlier. The package was collected by my father at the Inanam bus terminal. Arthur delivered another package a week earlier which I had sent to him.
After having lunch, the 4 of us left the house to buy rations for the trip. We decided to shop for groceries at the Chua Kah Seng supermarket in Millennium Plaza along the Penampang Bypass Highway. Bread, canned food, instant noodles, potatoes and etc. In total RM105.
After done packing everything into my backpack including cameras, field recorder, parang and etc, I had a change of heart about bringing my video tripod. Andau’s Q666 Zomei camera tripod is extremely light and foldable to a minimal size. The thought of carrying heavy loads up steep mountains and hills gave me butterflies in my stomach. I could not help but feel beaten, psychologically. The Zomei weighs less than half of the weight of my video tripod! Thankfully, the doctor did not mind sharing his tripod when not in use.
Just before 2pm, an Unser arrives. It was our transport to Tambunan that we had chartered. In the weeks leading up to the trip, Jerry had painstakingly planned and organized the course of the trip. He had taken the initiative to drive on the partially gravelled roads (bad roads) up to the Inobong Sub-station to inquire from the office there, important details and information crucial to the success of the trip. Jerry is truly the man of the hour. The adventurous Wong brothers’ prior experience have made them quite adept in the management of transportation and logistics.
Dennis arrives. We left for Donggongon just before 3pm to fetch the final member of the group. The thing that stood out were the dreadlocks. Buffalo soldier, dreadlock rasta… He introduced himself as Ali Gulu and like the Wong brothers, is also from Tambunan. He is no rasta but a dusun from Kampong Sunsuron.
Pekan Tambunan
Entrance to Tambunan Town
Between 4.30pm and 4.45pm, we reached Tambunan Town. Tambunan Town is located about 70 kilometres due south-east of Donggongon Town. Transportation fees cost RM28 per person. Andau, Pat and Jerry went and got their Adidas Kampongs at the Sabindo supermarket while I rushed over to the Petronas Petrol Station to use the W.C. Some final shopping, I bought garlic, ginger and chilies at the vegetable market. I had second thoughts about having barbequed buntut ayam that Andau bought. I was reminded of the time I was down with food poisoning after consuming grilled sayap ayam (chicken wings) bought from the same stall years ago when I was based at the Tambunan Village Recreational Centre in Kampong Karanaan.
Our transport to Malunggung had in fact arrived and was parked at the bus stop where we had disembarked earlier. A few minutes after 5pm, we departed Tambunan town in a black isuzu DMAX 3.0. Ali and Dennis sat out in the bucket of the 4WD with the bags. The 4WD makes a quick stop at a row of shops by the roadside at Kampong Nambayan for the smokers to stock up on ciggies. I have since quit the habit.
Jalan Tikolod
Road to Malunggung
After entering the junction onto Jalan Tikolod, we travelled for about 9.7 kilometres on undulating sealed roads before reaching the Malunggung Post Control around 6pm in the evening. Transportation fees cost about RM6.67 per person. There, we were welcomed by station master, Dolzaen. The first thing that caught my attention were the dusunic words Purak Mato, white-coloured alphabetical characters inscribed on a wooden signage nailed to the station master’s quarters. Purak Mato translates to Putih Mata in malay. There is a malay saying, ‘Biar putih tulang, Jangan putih mata’ which carries the meaningful ‘to rather face death than face humiliation’. It hit me as a final warning and caution to ponder about tomorrow. I hear the words ‘Yield’ thrumming in my head. Give it up while you still can. Perhaps Purak Mato could have referred to something else.
We let down our bags and prepared our ‘retiring spots’ in the office building, a single-storey split-level wooden structure. Jerry, Dennis and I picked our spots at the veranda. Little did I know that it was going to be chilly that night. Laid out my mat and my sleeping bag. The sleeping bag I had brought had been with my family since my brother and I were still in school. I was in Form 2 secondary school while the doctor was in Primary 5. I am now 38 years old and we’ve had the sleeping bag for at least 25 years. It has a bit of a weight when rolled unlike sleeping bags today are ultralight and are compressible.
Kolinton arrives wearing an orange-coloured Deuter backpack. His name is Stanley Vincent and he was to be our guide and friend in the next 5 days. Dolzaen briefed us on the facilities of the Post Control. The main kitchen is located just above the office building and is complete with various cookware and kitchen utensils; and provided with gas and a cooking stove. However, a RM2 fee is charged to whoever utilizes the kitchen. The Post Control is powered by a genset and is switched off at 10.30pm. I volunteered to cook dinner that evening.
That night’s dinner was ketupat rice (courtesy of Ali), boiled potatoes, canned curry chicken and chilies. I had purposely cooked more potatoes and the whole pack of ketupat rice for our tapau or bekalan, food for the long hike to Kionop. Before lights out, we divided the ration; and were administered with antimalarial tablets by the doctor.
I had a hard time trying to sleep. I guess I must have drunk too much coffee and perhaps the churning of excitement and anticipation kept me alert. It got really cold at around 3 or 4 in the wee hours of the morning, Jerry moved into the office to sleep.
under a bornean moon 