Unique copra drying house/barn in Kudat

According to a book 'The Hakkas of Sabah', there was constant reference to the innovative spirit of the early settlers who came from China to eke out a living from the rough tropical jungle.

One of the more unique creation of these hardy people was the structure built to dry their copra/coconuts. The structure was a 'long house', with roofs that can be completely opened. In hakka, it is known as a 'sai pang', literal translation simply means 'sunning/drying floor'. The roof can be immediately closed back if rain should comes suddenly, as it often did (or does) in Kudat. The lower ground floor was used for rearing pigs, chickens, or the ever useful, faithful and trusted water buffalo. (Maybe one day 1 will blog about a water buffalo that my grandfather used to have.)

These structures were apparently unique to the Hakkas of Kudat and have never been found in any other place or society in the world.

Unfortunately, there are not so many of such structures left since copra is no longer an industry that is sustainable. The rising importance of 'oil palm' has replaced most of the coconut plantations. Small scale coconut farms have all be sold to large companies that manage/own huge acreages of oil palm.

In a recent trip back to Kudat, I took pictures of one of these structures that is still in use.

Have a look.





In the olden days, the roofs that open up was thatched with attap material and not zinc sheets.

I remember a very long 'sai pang' in my maternal grandparents house in a coconut estate. There always seemed to be copra drying out in the sun on the upper deck. unfortunately, like most other 'sai pangs', it is no longer there...

Fuel Consumption

On a recent trip, after fueling up to full tank, the on board fuel consumption displayed an incredible range of 1000+km with the full tank. The car was cruising on auto cruise at slightly above 110kmph, and for the first time, showed this range.

Of course, the distance of 1000+ km was not achieved, but, is this something possible?

Land Rover LR4 "Pathological Liar" | Land Rover USA

In the 70s', the only type of vehicles that would be able to ferry passengers between Kudat and Kota Kinabalu during the monsoon season were the Land Rovers. In those days, these Landies were aluminum clad, ladder frame chassis, incredibly hard suspensions, and as basic as possible with very little hint of luxury.

These Landies would be required to ford swollen rivers, traverse slippery slopes and hopefully complete the journey in one go, without breakdown somewhere and all within 5-6 hours.

The new Land Rovers are as luxurious as theye could possibly be. And judging from the following commercial, safe to be in....

It's quite funny.... Have a laugh..

Mercedes-Benz.tv: ‚Drive&Seek' - The Movie

This Mercedes Benz commercial was obviously shot in Malaysia.

Question is why is it that in real life we do not have the following:

- traffic free roads on a banking day?
- such efficient police force?

See for yourself...