Sunday, October 11, 2009

Hariraya Openhouse by the Sea








An invitation to a hariraya openhouse reception at Tanjung Agas, Port Dickson, was too much to resist. The name of the place,
Desa Balqis, was so romantic and it triggered in my mind several wishful dreams that I thought the old noggin was already incapable of conjuring. Legend has it that Puteri Balqis was a Princess who ruled over a prosperous kingdom but fearing that her country might be attacked by Nabi Sulaiman paid him a visit to ascertain how big the latter's kingdom and how powerful he was.
The Prophet amazed her by ordering a Jin ( a powerful spiritual being) to bring over the Princess' castle to his kingdom, made some modifications to enhance its beauty, and presented it to her. Did she marry him? The legend did not give an answer but I
believe she did since he knew what could please her the most!

My wife and I arrived at the resort hideout in the evening of 10 Okt., taking the Pedas-Linggi route to avoid going through Port Dickson and Bagan Pinang, where BN and PAS were preparing for a showdown. I heard the traffic jam was terrible down there and some trouble was brewing. By-election has become a war-zone these days. Desa Balqis turned out to be a 3-acre resort area located between the road and a beautiful sandy beach, artistically landscaped with three challets and a 'surau' built from unwanted traditional Malay houses. The beautiful wooden challets equipped with all the modern utilities showed how some of the many traiditonal Malay houses left to rot by the young people who inherited them, can be salvaged and turned into fitting accommodations for tourists and holiday-makers ( see pic). Encik Annuar, the CEO of Multilift Holdings who owns the place, must be congratulated for his novel ideas.

Without doubt the reception which was to begin at 8 pm, began much earlier with guests crowding by the steps leading to the seaside, enjoying the view while there was still a lot of sunlight. They were ships in the sea (see pic) queing for entry to the
PD port. Guests started attacking the food some allready spread out under the specially erected shed, while others were still
simmering in the pots or roasting by the fire, including a whole lamb. When we were invited to the table and begin the chomp-chomp megathon although it was not the official starting time yet, I did not resist. The drive from KL had indeed been
sharpening the appetite and so many guests were already plowing into the succulent spread.

When night fell and the lights were switched on, the place turned into a kind of fairyland. White and multicoloured lights glimmered and dazzled the eyes, highlighted further by the blue background lighting which surrounded us. Spiritted and lively hariraya songs compete with the cool breeze to thrill us, while the scrumptious food tickled out tastebuds. And look around. Hohoho....film and tv personalities were around too, being entertained by the hosts and interviewed by the Press. VIPS keep coming as the night thickened and the crowd grew bigger and bigger. The DJ-MC while dishing out moody evergreens befitting the oaccasion kept wishing everyone welcome , complete with the roar of helicopter engine and the wailing of car sirens to announce the arrival of the VIPS. At one point there was even a salutation fanfare by trumpeters like in a real royal ceremony. At about 9.30 pm there was a burst of colourful fireworks to bring the reception to its climax, as some karaoke singing and live interviews were held. Oh, there was a brief blackout at the reception area although the lights in the challets were still on, suggesting that there must be a supplementary source of power supply around. The organizers have not left anything at all to chance.

What can I say to this hariraya openhouse reception! The food supply seemed endless, the facilities beyond expectation, the
entertainment casual and most amusing, and the hosts most gracious. We left unwillingly for to drive back to KL on a full stomoch was quite a challenge. Especially since my wife who chose to drive had her baby grandaughter clinging to her neck while driving. I didn't volunteeer to take over for a don't like a a backseat driver giving me orders.

5 comments:

rambomadonna said...

Norzah, you know I am till now still amaze by the story of Solomon and Balqis. In the Holy Bible, she was simply known as the Queen of Sheba, no name. Whereas in the Holy Quran ... the Land of Sheba is called Saa'ba, and the Queen is known as Balqis. In both the holy books, the story main revolve around Solomon's wisdom ... huh how not so romantic and male chauvinistic.

Based on my findings and research, apparently this land of Saaba exist in Africa and the people living there, you know lah look so African. There also have a kitab that detail out what happened between Solomon and Balqis, like how he seduce her with his charms. But in the 3 books, I would conclude that, Solomon was not mesmerised by her beauty but her passion to learn and inquisitive mind. There was thing writing of "the union of 2 people under the star" .. phewwwww HOT stud jugak Solomon nie opppsss ... Forgive me Lord hehehe

The have a child, and that child jadi penerus Kerajaan Saaba hari ini. But wat I am most interested was, why Balqis left Solomon. Some writings said, Solomon menegah Balqis to return to Saaba but hmmm hati wanita ini berkata, perhaps dia kecewa on Solomon's marriage to an Eqypgtian princess. Huhuhu ...

Is it expensive, this resort? Mcm nak try visit. BTW, tak vote ke at Batang Pinang election?

norzah said...

U punya research bukan main lagi, J. Bible dan Quran selari mengenai cite Solomon ( Nabi Sulaiman) dan Puteri Saaba tu. Nabi tentulah hebat semuanya..takleh kata chauvinistic kerana memang takde nabi wanita.Tapi semua isteri nabi insan istimewa belaka, dapat mengkagumkan nabi. Org biasa takleh kahwin janda nabi tau? Kalau Balqis lari balik ke Sheba kenalah membujang je...

Desa Balqis belum pun dibuka kepada pelancung tapi u can ask my wife kalau nak try tinggal sana. Maybe boleh dapat complimentary je.

Tentang Bagan Pinang ( hey u tukar namanya ya?), I bukan berdaftar di sana. BN menang gak walaupun
letak culprit politik wang sebagai calun. I respect MCA kerana berani menolak manusia-manusia tercela sb pemimpin. Macam tulah kalau nak bersihkan parti.

rambomadonna said...

I hampir nak blogkan my opinion on MCA EGM semalam but memandangkan politics ni not my cup of tea so I blog benda lain jer lah. Yes, I so agree ... lebih-lebih lagi mcm fourth power (heheh sebab Sino-native)like me kan. Honestly, kalau Obama pun boleh kerja dengan Hillary, apa salah Dato' Seri Ong TK work with Dato' Seri Chua S.L. The general election has shown rakyat loose confident in MCA, now these two leaders mcm expand the gap. Furthermore, Dato' Chua's "performance" very good wat hahahaa ... oppsss!

norzah said...

U r last comment about Dr Chua reminds of of what the Thais (allegedly) said about Clinton and the scandal he faced. I think their ( Dr C and C) exploit is less harmful than Isa's. In any case I've a great respect for the man who owns up to whatever he does.

Hey, there're lots of human=interest aspects in politics which your sharp scrutiny but generous heart could explore and extemporize on. Some comments that u hear from bloggers are too crude and naughty. Yet some people are damn good when they're naughty, right? ho ho ho.

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