The unknowns in everyday-life.

I'm sure most of you have seen this. You've seen it, touched it, tasted it, but have you heard of it?

What do you call this cute little thing?

Ji Dan Gao (Egg Kuih) ? o.O

But it's a Malay traditional snack. Should have a Malay name, isn't it?

Caught you speechless?

Well, well, this cute little kuih is called Bahulu.

Bahulu is a Malay traditional snack, and is a favourite among Malaysians of all ages. It comes in different shapes, but the popular ones are the goldfish and the button (the picture above). [on how to make Bahulu]

I'd been to a Malay wedding lunch this afternoon with my family - it's our neighbour's daughter getting married. And the lady sitting with us at the same table told me about the Bahulu.

This lady came all the way from Johor Bharu to Kuala Lumpur here, and she indeed seems friendly, and very traditional.

For chinese it would have been a chaos already among the parents and old folks, if we uses colour black and white as the theme for wedding. But obviously it's not the case for Malays.

The whole theme of the Malay wedding I went was in black and white - the tents were decorated with black and white fabrics, the tables were covered with white cloths, the flowers in the glasses placed on the tables were white, the close family members were wearing black and white baju kebaya and others (forgive me, I really did not study thoroughly in high school when it's the chapter of Traditional Costumes).

Certainly the Malays do not have an issue with grayscales, and maybe it's even a good colour for them.

So I had the lunch there, some rice, some veggies, some sambal, some daging, and that's it. We went back after eating with delicate fans as souvenirs - one would really wonder, why a Malay wedding would gives out Chinese-styled fans as souvenirs? Btw, it's China made and cheap LAH.

Maybe that's the reason.

The whole thing isn't such a bizarre event, but it kinda struck me, when I sudenly realized that I really don't know how to bersalam appropriately. I was feeling awkward the whole time I was there - not in place kind of feel.

We were the only Chinese family there when we arrived. So as I ate and watched these Malay people walking, talking, smiling around, I'm having a strange feeling - so I've been living among crowds of Malays for 20 years (we're one whole Malaysian family wat), but still they seem so near, yet so far.

I know them all along, but I never really get to know them deeper. How they talk, how they bersalam, how they eat, how they joke. Is it me being biased so I'm avoiding myself getting close? Or is it simply because they're so many, so near, and so normal in the background that I fail to notice their specialty?

Oh well, crapped too much again today. Thanks a lot for reading, please comment! :P