Our First Friend
After a hasty breakfast in our hotel, we found our guide waiting patiently outside the lobby for us. On the dot, at 7am.
Eddie was a lanky and tanned guy, slightly shorter than me and wearing a bright orange tee. During the drive to the countryside, we broke the ice by chatting about his family background. He’s a Chinese Hakka who grew up in Georgetown, and he chose to set up his family here too.
Occasionally, Eddie pointed out significant landmarks and little quirks about Georgetown, such as how buildings are mostly built above the roads, which served as the one-and-only sewage system in the past. I marvelled at how Eddie controlled his manual car using the clutch, handbrake and gear. Since I started learning driving this year, I've developed a new-found respect towards manual car drivers.
The Bikes
Eddie parked the car and brought over two well-maintained vintage bicycles for us, with baskets at the front. He told us, it's interesting how the caucasians (with larger physiques) often lamented how the bikes were “kids size”, while asians found the same bikes “a little large” for their comparatively petite statures. By 8am, we were off on our vintage bikes! As we traversed through dirt paths and lush plantations, I indulged in the earthy countryside air — a rarity back home. I took every sight, and every sound of nature in a noise-free, exhaust-free rural environment.
The Route
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The Farm
The highlight of our tour was Saanen Dairy Goat Farm, where we were fortunate enough to arrive at the peak of the season to sample fresh durian off the tree. I was given a taste of one of their delectable Javanese bananas too. While we discussed the fascinating science of durian farming and the growing lucrativeness of the durian industry in Malaysia, a sudden gunshot sound reverberated across the hills.
“What was that sound?!”
“They’re shooting squirrels, which are viewed as the main pests in durian farms because they gnaw through the husks, creating small holes in durian and take a few bites of the fruit, resulting in the entire durian being thrown away. Accumulatively, this kind of damage to the farmers’ durians will reduce their harvest quite significantly.” Eddie explained.
“But I can’t imagine them being them very successful in their pest control efforts, given how small and quick these squirrels are.”
“Yes, they're very hard to catch. Squirrels are also extremely intelligent and can’t be killed so easily.”
The farm itself was rather small, with free admission. On the surface, it honestly seemed rather unexciting, but I quickly learnt not to judge a book by its cover. We were allowed to pick up stalks of grass to feed the goats though and step into the goats’ pen, which were well-maintained. There were other animals like chickens, rabbits, an ostrich, a deer and some dogs too.
I was especially impressed by the hospitality of the owner, who hand-picked a durian for us, and the generosity of Eddie, who treated us to both the durian (freshly harvested that very morning) and a bottle of homemade goat’s yoghurt.
At the end of the tour, we were conveniently dropped at Air Itam town for lunch upon request. We thanked Eddie for such an enjoyable, authentic kampong experience in Balik Pulau as we bade farewell. In order to sustain his rice-bowl in the tourism/agriculture industry within Penang, Eddie told us about his most recent endeavour of starting Love-UU farm in Balik Bulau. I promise to patronise his farm on our next visit.
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