KELONG LAUT
A kelong is a fish trap. This particular one is made out of a ring of bakau trees. Conveniently enclosed with a fishing net for catching fishes. We were told that it is also used to farm cockles. I thought in my head, “Yeah, killing two birds with one stone, huh??”
So, the quest for cockles began! Our first harvest was very small cockles and hermit crabs - about ½ inch in size. These were still growing, in the seabed muddy floor.
Bigger ones, the size of a golf ball came later that hour. We tried our hands on the cockle scoop. And man, was it heavy???The boatman said something in Hokkien which I didn't really understand but roughly translated into- a kilo of these cost 85 cents. A real bargin!
Their orange-yellow crunchy flesh tasted fabulously sweet despite its dirty shell and bloody interior. It is kind of like having a sunset in a shell. Many who didn’t eat were icked as we chow down a handful of these ocean-fresh shellfish.
We bathed in the sun for a while and exchanged stories of sea adventure and things alike. When we ferrying home, it was raining inland. There was a fractured rainbow up above the coast. I was at awe...
We took some photos and enjoyed the wind.
I sat on the upper deck of the boat and my face was salty from the high-blown sea breeze. It is immensely peaceful here.
That night, I turned 21 again! This time, a cake and Siaw Ling, who is also a January baby.
We got up early the next morning, had some breakfast and met up with the Malay villagers. We made our second boat trip to another kelong and had some good time harvesting MORE cockles from the tofu-like, black slush of the seabed.
We were like little people with huge orange life-jackets pushed all the way up to our necks. A real runny sight... funnier when we started to wade. Like dumb-asses, wey!
On our way back, playful seafaring gulls tailed our boats. I asked Pn. Halizah, why were the birds following us. She said that they are catching surfacing fishes as our boat disturbed the water. Hmmmm, very smart birds!
The rest of the day passed by very slowly. We left later that evening, driving through the green oil palm estate that stood as still as the day we came in. Passing the yellowing paddy fields, the fruiting stalks waved goodbye to us as we drove out. Or were they beckoning us to come back soon?
So, the quest for cockles began! Our first harvest was very small cockles and hermit crabs - about ½ inch in size. These were still growing, in the seabed muddy floor.
Bigger ones, the size of a golf ball came later that hour. We tried our hands on the cockle scoop. And man, was it heavy???The boatman said something in Hokkien which I didn't really understand but roughly translated into- a kilo of these cost 85 cents. A real bargin!
Their orange-yellow crunchy flesh tasted fabulously sweet despite its dirty shell and bloody interior. It is kind of like having a sunset in a shell. Many who didn’t eat were icked as we chow down a handful of these ocean-fresh shellfish.
We bathed in the sun for a while and exchanged stories of sea adventure and things alike. When we ferrying home, it was raining inland. There was a fractured rainbow up above the coast. I was at awe...
We took some photos and enjoyed the wind.
I sat on the upper deck of the boat and my face was salty from the high-blown sea breeze. It is immensely peaceful here.
That night, I turned 21 again! This time, a cake and Siaw Ling, who is also a January baby.
We got up early the next morning, had some breakfast and met up with the Malay villagers. We made our second boat trip to another kelong and had some good time harvesting MORE cockles from the tofu-like, black slush of the seabed.
We were like little people with huge orange life-jackets pushed all the way up to our necks. A real runny sight... funnier when we started to wade. Like dumb-asses, wey!
On our way back, playful seafaring gulls tailed our boats. I asked Pn. Halizah, why were the birds following us. She said that they are catching surfacing fishes as our boat disturbed the water. Hmmmm, very smart birds!
The rest of the day passed by very slowly. We left later that evening, driving through the green oil palm estate that stood as still as the day we came in. Passing the yellowing paddy fields, the fruiting stalks waved goodbye to us as we drove out. Or were they beckoning us to come back soon?
posted by ewing.leong at 4:32 PM
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