Ewe Paik Leong enjoys the many attractions at Port Dickson that include an aquarium, museum, temples and an observatory all in a day
IN a spotlessly clean tank, three grotesque stone fish lurk at the bottom. It makes me recall eating steamed stonefish at a seafood restaurant in Sabah a few years ago. Since a stone fish doesn’t move much, its flesh is cottony firm and smooth.
The next tank contains rabbit fish, crowned with dorsal fins patterned after a Mohican haircut! A third tank houses small sharks resembling striped lizards.
Elsewhere there are crabs shaped like horseshoes, anemones and starfish clinging to glass walls, eels that looklike fluttering streamers, and corals resembling the human brain, overturned bowl and dried coconut husk. In other aquariums, baby green turtles and hawksbill turtles paddle their tiny flippers in bubbling waters exploring their surroundings.
I am not in Aquaria KLCC but shuffling from tank to tank at the Ornamental Fish Centre in Teluk Kemang, one of the top — yet lesser known — attractions in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan.
Operated by the Department of Fisheries, the centre has more 50 species of ornamental fish, 40 types of corals and other marine life. Free admission makes this spotamust-visit.
EARLIER FINDS
Earlier, I had stopped at Lukut Fort & Museum, perched on a hillock. Leg muscles aching after climbing a flight of steps, I stepped on flat ground on the hillock and a troop of chattering macaques greet me. Ahead, the ruins of the fort lay sprawled before me. It is rectangular with a stone wallor rather remnants of it, are all around me and a former moat which is now overgrown with grass. I walked over to an old well at one end of the fort but am unable to peer down it as it’s cordoned off with wooden stanchion posts.
Inside the nearby museum, there are ceramics, kitchen utensils, tin mining implements and information plaques.
According to a plaque, “Lukut Fort was built by Raja Jumaat by Raja Jafaar circa 1847 during the reign of the third Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Muhammad Shah. ”
On the grounds of the museum stand three old Portuguese cannons. Transported from Goa in the 16th century, they were cast in bronze and have stylised bird and flower petal motifs. My next stop was the apricot coloured Sree Durgai Ambal Temple which grabbed my attention as it is monochrome.
Stepping under its five-tiered gopuram, I entered a pillared hall.
The ceiling is decorated with colourful designs in concentric circles.
The pillars sport stylised floral and peacock-feather motifs and statutes of deities. According to a priest, rubber plantation workers founded this temple in the 1890s as a wooden shrine. He added that devotees sometimes hear the anklets of the goddess Durgai Ambal tinkling, denoting her presence. The goddess’s serene face surprised me as she is depicted with a ferocious fanged appearance at the Sri Thurgai Amman Temple in Rawang. Then I recalled reading somewhere that the goddess also manifests herself as a demon-battling warrior.
Further south, the Army Museum beckoned me with its armoured cars, pounder guns and aircraft within its compound.
Inside, a stroll in the dim corridors of the different galleries turned me into a time traveller as costumed mannequins, dioramas and weapons acquainted me with the armies of the Melaka sultanate, and those of the Portuguese, Dutch and Japanese administrators.
Then there is a replica of an underground tunnel that depicts the living conditions of the Communists during the Emergency.
On the front yard of the museum stands a cenotaph honouring our fallen heroes.
MAKAN TIME
Back to the present: From the Ornamental Fish Centre, I zip to Ayam Bakar Pasu Terlangkop opposite the Fire & Rescue Station. From the stall’s flower pots heated by charcoal comes my grilled chicken. It is accompanied by a mound of rice, tomato and cucumber slices, and two sauces.
The chicken skin is firm but not crunchy.
A peppery gust escapes when I sink my teeth into the meat, silky in texture, and in that moment, a smokey aroma of cumin and coriander is released.
The rice is perfect and the sauces add tartness and chilli heat, depending on the dip. The more chilli-hardy eater can go for ayam salai, keli salai and beef salai as add-ons.
Dessert brings me to PD Famous Cendul Coconut Shake Power in the outskirts of the town. The first sip of the coconut shake makes me raise my eyebrows in disapproval. A hint of vanilla from the ice cream whimpers under the onslaught of melting shaved ice at the bottom of the plastic cup, and there is nothing akin to a coconut flavour.
Cendul jagung saves the day. The corn delivers a sweet nutty blast that contrasts with the caramel taste of palm sugar for yin-yang balance.The al dente cendul slivers dance a happy tango with the crunchy corn.
Other fare sold here are assam pedas, mee bandung, laksa, nasi ayam (chicken ruce), mee soto, mee kari (curry noodles), pisang goreng cheese (banana fritters), tauhu sumbat and several varieties of cendul.
MAGIC MOMENTS
Next stop is Wan Loong Temple, which stands opposite a steamboat restaurant.
The temple has a two-tiered saddle shaped roof atop an archway, and statues of the Monkey God and Goddess of Mercy stand in its compound.
The pillars and eaves of the roof of the building’s roofsare bedecked with dragons and phoenixes.The tortoise and koi ponds do not interest me so I proceed to Sungei Menyala Edu-Ecotourism Centre to see the second oldest tree in the nation.
First, a visit to the Visitor Centre of the forest reserve reveals exhibits on the shamanistic practices of the Orang Asli and their jungle homes and tree bark textiles.
Then, I hike along a short trail — home to lurking leeches — which brings me to a jelutong tree stabbing the sky at more than 65metres high; its trunk has a circumference of over 25 metres.
Lo and behold! A massive hole in the gnarled trunk is big enough to house a Proton Perdana. Half-hidden in leafy foliage, macaques, squirrels and geckos peek at me discreetly when I trek back to the Visitor Centre. Naturalists who want to explore deeper into this 1,800-hectare forest reserve — which includes swamps — can stay in a dormitory or a VIP Room.
Windmill PD Farm, my next stop, reminds me of Farm In The City in Seri Kembangan— a fun place for kids. Guinea pigs, jungle fowls, rabbits, peacocks, cats, geese, goats and other furry creatures roam freely for visitors to pet, cuddle and kiss.
In the Antique House, there are relics from the 1950s such as sewing machines, telephones, typewriters, radios and whatnots. But what is a Haunted House of ghouls, skeletons and mummies doing here in a tourist spot meant for kids? It’s out of place! I scramble for the next attraction.
Which beach gives you the sea, the sands and views of the galaxy?
Only Port Dickson because it houses the Teluk Kemang Observatory. Located within Klana Beach Resort, it stands on a headland overlooking the Straits of Melaka.
In the foyer of the observatory, information plaques explain the history and development of Islamic astronomy and the pioneers in the field. Elsewhere, more plaques educate visitors on the planets, moon, sun and phenomena such as super moon and eclipse.
Yearly, local Islamic astronomers converge here to observe the heavens to determine the dates for the fasting month and celebration of Hari Raya Aidil Fitri.
My magic moment arrives. I look into the eyepiece of the telescope to see the sun. Great balls of fire! It glistens like a round glob of molten lava in appearance, with a few small dark and white spots. A flaring reddish ring surrounds the sphere which actually consists of gases.
As I cast my gaze to the panoramic view of the shoreline, I decide to come again in the evening to peek at Saturn, Uranus and Mars. In the distance near the coast, I see the Dickson Dragon! A brightly-coloured trimaran — a three-hulled vessel compared to a catamaran which is two-hulled — is onacruise. I whip out my mobile phone to search for its contact number to book a sunset cruise as a finale to my visit.
TRAVEL FILE
ORNAMENTAL FISH CENTRE
WHERE Batu 7, Jalan Pantai, Teluk Kemang, Port Dickson
TEL 06-662 1089
HOURS 9am to 5pm daily
SUNGEI MENYALA EDU ECO-TOURISM
WHERE Jalan Sua Betong, Si Rusa, Port Dickson
TEL 06-646 3917/06-646 3886
TELUK KEMANG OBSERVATORY
WHERE No. 8, Jalan Pantai, Port Dickson
TEL 06-648 7888
HOURS3pm to 5pm, 10.30pm to midnight daily
PICTURES BY EWE PAIK LEONG