Rice Culture and Us Malaysians

On our way home from our latest Perlis trip, we made a detour to Muzium Padi at Gunung Keriang, Alor Star.  My youngest was there with the eldest sister and father sometimes back while I was at a meeting in Alor Star.  "It's a must see," she came back all excited.

We complied and made the trip part of our travel package this time.  The signage by the Kangar-Alor Star Highway showed Muzium Padi and Pusat Akuatik.  I was thinking more of a water centre, assuming something was done to the padi fields as an added attraction.  Lo and behold, it is indeed an Aquatic Sports Centre.  However, the place looked pretty neglected with no life detected.  The fencing was overgrown with weeds.  Could be an aquatic centre for snakes and monitor lizards.  What a waste of such a great facility.  I wonder why it was built far away from the population centre.  Kids should be able to just cycle to the place to make full use of it.

Surprised us too that there was also a signage directing us to Alor Star Science Centre.  The place was dead silent too when we arrive except for a few cleaners sweeping the area around the ticket counter.  Checking with them, the place is indeed open to public.  Seemed that we were the earliest birds to arrive.  Too bad I was down with a terrible fever and recking cough.  Told my kids to go ahead with the father while I downed two Panadols, have the hubby parked the car in a shaded area and went to sleep instead.  They spent close to two hours there.  Must be pretty exciting.  Seemed that it's a mini version of KLCC Petronas Science Centre.  I reserve my comment here I've never been to either.  By the time they came out from the place I was pretty recovered and spent my time walking the grounds of the centre.  They have DIY sort of displays in the ground too.  I strongly recommend families with children in tow to have this centre in their travel schedule.  Guided tours would be good for visitors to fully benefit from the facility.

Our next stop was the Muzium Padi.  Indeed it is a must stop.  The whole rice culture and history is all there for those with time to spare to benefit, especially the younger generation.  For those of my generation, it would serve as a romantic reminiscence of yesteryears.  I captured a pantun series that was on poster display that tell how close the rice culture is with our Malaysian life.

Buat apa kepok di ladang
Kalau tidak berisi padi
Buat apa berambut panjang
Kalau tidak berani mati

Pagi-pagi pergi ke ladang
Buat menyemai si benih padi
Tinggi-tinggi si Gunung Ledang
Tinggi lagi hajat di hati

Penat saya menanam padi
Nanas juga di tanam orang
Puas saya menanam budi
Emas juga dipandang orang

Dari mana punai melayang
Dari sawah turun ke padi
Dari mana datangnya sayang
Dari mata terus ke hati

Kalau masanya bertanam padi
Padi di bendang padi di huma
Bukan bangsanya ditanam budi
Kalau ditanam terbuang cuma

Kalau padi katakan padi
Jangan kami tertampi-tampi
Kalau jadi katakan jadi
Jangan kami ternanti-nanti

Dari mana hendak ke mana
Tinggi rumput darinya padi
Bulan mana tahun mana
Dapat kita berjumpa lagi

Siapa kata padi tak lenggok
Padi Senggora di makan belibis
Siapa kata hati tak mabuk
Didengar suara rupa tak kelih

Going through the various rice variety samples grown the world over, a KL variety grown in Papua New Guinea caught my eyes.  This looked very much like our Improved Mahsuri.  Must have been taken out from the country somehow.  Or it could be through an ex-change program of sort.

Another thing that caught my eyes was the Bahasa Kerbau/Cattle Language poster.  The buffalo (kerbau) and cattle (lembu) in some states had been our rice field work horse way before the tractors and combine harvesters came into the scene.  The farmers use certain language means to work the animals.

Haih - direct the animal to move
Chah / Paling chah - direct the animal to move to the right
Sok / Paling sok - direct the animal to move to the left
Diam - direct the animal to stop
Serot - direct the animal to move backwards

In Kelantan I remember my  great grandpa using terms as chi-chi and no-no.  The cattle were smarter than me then.  Even now I still could not make sense of those words, yet the fields got ploughed and levelled for the padi crop to flourish.  Their genetic pool could do NFC some good.

The circling screen of the Muzium Padi tower giving an overview

of the rice culture from field preparation to harvest
and a preview of the padi culture community

These are great educational places to be while in Kedah.  I do wish there be more publicity by the agencies concerned or the state government.  They should do what Perak state had been doing the past year.  Perak was doing a great job publicising places in the state.