Rapid Development in Kroh-The end of its Golden Era?

In the last year, rapid development has taken place in this town which was well known for its natural beauty and cool weather. The developers are cutting away the oxygen lungs and clearing away forests on the hillsides. The weather has changed drastically in the past years, sometimes the hottest is even hotter than KL or other towns. 30 years ago we lived without fans. Now we need air-conditioning to get through most nights. 

Maybe the town planners think they are bringing development and job opportunities for people but what is Pengkalan Hulu without its natural beauty and cool weather? For some years, nature camps and seminars were famous here for gov and private sectors. Only because it was like a cheaper and easier access to a cool hillside town with hotspring and caves. But if all these natural gifts are not taken care of and appreciated, the attraction will be lost. Pengkalan Hulu will be just like any other random town we drive through in the rural areas without a second look. It will be sad if that happens.  

I dont know what possessed the local authority to approve another floating restaurant over the lake. I wonder where the wastes are being channeled through. It is disgusting to see grime and oily sediments floating by these restaurants. Some patrons just throw rubbish into the lake. As it is the lake water has become even unfit to be touched.

(both pics above from budak kroh facebook property of rembarber)

40-50, why even 30 years ago during my childhood, children plunged into the lake freely and frolicked in it for hours without having to worry about infections. The water was crystal clear. We even had regular water based carnivals here like they have been having for many many decades.

100 years ago, the lake was only water source for everyone. Though they have rechannelled the dirty drains from army camp and the school back into drains, still the main river from Tasek carries indiscriminate wastes.  Won't be a surprise if the lake is the reason for people to fall sick very regularly in Pengkalan Hulu mostly because of air borne and water borne allergens and lung infections takes ages to heal. And the mosquito situation is often out of hand. The Kesihatan workers do the occasional spraying here and there without covering the whole area so the insects just keep switching places.

What is the use of planting bunga raya all around town and wasting money on expensive flower pots, decorative fences and other useless decors when the basic thing is not done i.e. the upkeep and cleanliness.

This indiscriminate commercialization without wanting to keep up Pengkalan Hulu just shows someone in authority wanting to make a quick profit and are not bothered what happens to this beautiful town in the long run, maybe he or she is not even from here to be able to appreciate it. How truly disappointing. In this case, you got to appreciate what the europeans do to preserve their country sides, banning over development and setting strict rules.  Sigh..some people just dont get it. Very soon, Kroh will be just another rural town to drive through to get elsewhere.

Still, some of its blessings remain. Certain days, the magic just shines through, no matter what, that reminds you of its lost potential. Yet you try not to linger in the past and be thankful for what remains and hope somehow someone more responsible will come to preserve and care for what was given to us by God in the first place.

Respecting another person's work

Ever since i started this blog, i have come across some people who simply cut and paste my words and photos here to pass them off as theirs in their blogs and various forms, without having the decency to ask me for permission especially those trying to make money out of it. I dont appreciate such things and remember i have the original work with me. It is best advised to remove your copypaste job lest im in the mood to take you up on copyrights act. Thank you very much.

Sunsets in Pengkalan Hulu, (Kroh), Perak

My Kroh

It is human nature i think.. that life eventually comes around a full circle.

The initial wonderment of early years when you are running around gleefully chasing butterflies, peering into little ponds with tadpoles, counting the colours in that double rainbow after a shower, carries one of the best memories for many of us.

Then such childhood abandonment gives way a quickly increasing self consciousness and school, friends and future take hold of lives.

And just as swiftly you enter puberty and start liking real loud music and start thinking your parents are a weird lot out to spoilt every little fun you are having.

By late teens into twenties, you want to run your own life. You are sick of the old ways.. you want something new, modern, better, different. Big city life attracts you and as you enter a club for the first time, the thud of the music bead vibrates through your heart muscles and a thrill takes over (for which there is a very very real reason it seems). You seek the latest in everything, you want to do what the advertisers in tv, media and world in general tell you is the most trendiest, most glamorous, the 'in' thing to do with your lifestyle. You put urself up in the fast lane and you keep going, fast, faster and faster...

Time flies just as fast and you've reached your 30s and you begin to take stock a little. O..k... what hv i done so far.. ? But you need to keep going because they are commitments, bills and loans..face to keep up to..

 By 35.. you are dreading the demands and routines on yourself to maintain the lifestyle you have embarked on. By this age, the employment market expects a lot more from you than they when you were 21. You have deliver extra, put extra time and sacrifice a lot too.

By 40, you take a reality check! Is this all worth it? What do i want of my life 10 years down the road? You notice all the wrinkles on your skin and the creaking in your joints.. you dont think you can keep up the pace anymore. Is there a better option?

Which is what i am doing now. For me it is more than that.. i hv started feeling a deep set longing to settle down somewhere familiar, somewhere i feel i hv a connection and Kroh can be a strong pull for anyone for having had spent their childhood there.

 For me Kroh was a surrogate mother. She carried me in her bosom, protected me when i was a child running through the bushes, never ever i came across a snake, a scorpion or something unfortunate though the dangers were there!

I found moments of peace just walking around her lake even if it was clogged with lotus plants, or totally drained out of water. I had the most profound moments of my life in this little old place. In her i found my salvation.

The cool air, the morning mist, the quietness of the nights, the peace.  I need to return someday soon and im hoping i can make it soon. Enough of the city life for me, the meaninglessness, the madness, the rush.. the running around in circles. I just want to build a little house in a little land and surround myself with a nice little garden with herbs, vegetables and flowers, wake up to the chirp of birds in the trees. After all, isnt that all we seek in life.. peace and what better place to a peaceful little life, but in Kroh. And i want my children to be able to experience that.. so Kroh, here i come.. stay tuned for new updates!!!

p/s studies revealed the reason youngsters love clubbing with loud music and beat has got nothing to do with the music but the BEAT, the rhythmic beat actually triggers primordial memories of one being in the womb and listening to the mother's heartbeat.

Gerai Masakan Melayu-Warisan Selera, Jalan Air Panas

I absolutely heart Malay food, not the tomyam kacukan but the authentic kampung cooking. The deliciously fragrant herbs like serai, bunga kantan, daun kesum, daun kunyit..etc and drenched in thick coconut milk. I love the lemaks, the rendangs, the masak merah and the grilled stuffed fish in banana leaves. I love the pucuk paku, the ikan keli, the sweet sour pineapples, the pungent belacan and ikan masin...wow..it gets me drooling each time.

And right in the middle of Pengkalan Hulu town, i discovered a really gem of a food stall at the medan food court. The first stall on the right as you enter via the bakery entrance. I believe it is called Warisan Selera.





On weekdays and especially Fridays, the place will be crowded with government servants of all levels and the rest of the town. Their selection of dishes are awesome. You practically can get whatever you crave for. But you have to be early. You gotta be there by 12 to get to the prime selection. Food will disappear very fast.

Pricing is very competitive but for food using such fresh ingredients and that rich, you will willingly pay premium price anytime

My early school days in Kroh

Tadika with the Siamese teacher.m Practically babies and in the age of innocence.


Sekolah Kebangsaan Kroh. A bit wiser but still wide eyed and in wonderment.


Sekolah Menengah Tun Saban, Kroh. Reality is setting in, life is not all about rainbows and butterflies.

Belukar Semang, Pengkalan Hulu

Post Hari Raya Haji, we decided to take a long drive into Tasek and came across these nature's miracles. Perfect picnic spots, you call it. With these sceneries, what else can you wish for.

Restoran Huang Chao, Pengkalan Hulu

In the good old town of Pengkalan Hulu (Kroh)...


A new restaurant has come to sprout...


Ah Seng, an old ex classmate and his brother have decided to go all foodie with his brother..


What are friends for if you dont back one another up...and so we were there last week..


And mind it, the opinion is totally unprejudiced.. for the food was really good. A bubbling claypot of tofu and vegetables...


Mixed vege.. generously done..


Greens... how i like them.. lightly sauteed in garlic.


Big prawns in belacan sauce.. my favourite dish for the night..


Chicken is black soya sauce and dried red chillies..sauce was super moorish..


Good job Ah Seng ah!

Best Malay food stall in Pengkalan Hulu

Stay tuned for the bestest of Malay kampung food in Pengkalan Hulu. I am not kidding. Their ikan panggangs, rendangs and masak lemak-the best in the world! And im not getting paid to say this either!!! The most richest, aromatic using the best ingredients, they know their stuff! Im compiling pictures and info. Just a hint, it is at the medan selera near the bus station and right across the road from the bakery, look out for the lunch time crowd and a nice old gentleman, a retired policeman at the cashiers!

Restaurant Cheun Fong, Pengkalan Hulu

One of the few remaining original wooden shophouses in Pengkalan Hulu, weatherbeaten but still standing. The British requirement for high ceilings are evident in these old buildings but i always wondered why the attics though.

See the Siamese shop next door, well.. it was my kindergarten nearly 35 years ago. The old teacher still resides there, by the way.

Food preparations vary according to locations, period, that especially is Chinese food. While in KL for a mixed vege you might get a stir fry of cauliflower, broccoli, young corn, carrots, lettuce and some good quality seafood... in a small town you might just have to settle for a combination of basic mustard greens and chinese lettuce with occasional sad looking prawns past it's freshness dates camouflaged in heavily starched and MSG sauce, yes, rather dreary. And ask for Hokkein mee expecting to satisfy your craving for those big noodles version loaded with lard, crispy porkskin, seafood and work hei (fiery 'breath' of the wok that gives your food the smoky flavour) only to end up with the usual yellow mee off the packet version with a few miserable chicken or pork pieces thrown in lacking in all the good seasonings and special sauces yet having to pay premium price.

And no thanks to economic downturn when food serving portions (even KFC reduced its chicken piece sizes) started getting smaller and finally compromise on quality as well, I've had my share of bad experiences and i sort of gave up expecting too much after a while. Till i discovered there was some hope after all, in the form of this understated Chinese coffee shop called Restoran Chuen Fong located at the only traffic light junction in Pengkalan Hulu town, a stone throw away from Hotel Hilltowne.

Ah... finally .. a Hokkein mee worthy of its name.


Here is a chicken only version, but you can opt for the more luxurious pork and seafood version except i was abstaining from pork that day but sumptuous nevertheless. Load it up with their special belacan sauce, super kick lor. Make sure you ask for it.


Of course, you can't order Hokkein Mee and not have Kungfu Chow... that's the Cantonese Kuay Teow (fried noodles) swimming in egg sauce. As you can see, it is real egg sauce and not the watered down starchy version of some 'cheating' food outlets who thinks a customer can't make out the difference between an egg sauce and a tapioca sauce.


And some people,not me coz i really can't understand our Asian fixation on rice, but e.g. my kid and you know who you are can't survive without their daily intake of that starchy stuff. Yes, fried rice it is then. A small serving will do. The rice is done perfectly.


And what else to wash it all down, the oil and the cholestrol, but the good old Chinese Tea. There is also a good black soybean drink that i usually order, it is rich and refreshing. My tummy is satiated.

Note : The restaurant opens for business after 11am and closes at 11pm. Prices are very reasonable. The only minuspoint, the cook sometimes goes on leave for a few days every month.