Kapok

I was at the park in my neck of the woods when I spotted patches of white fluff on the grass.

At first, I thought these were the sheddings of some white dog.

On closer inspection, I noticed a couple of weird red bugs on them. 

One even had a 'face' on its back!

A jogger at the park pointed to the tree above us and explained that the white fluff came from seed pods dangling from the tree.

I googled and look what I found!

Turned out, that huge tree was a kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra).

Fluffy fiber from the seed pod

Kapok is used as stuffing for pillows, mattresses, and upholstery, as insulation material, and as a substitute for absorbent cotton in surgery.

And the Hitler bug was actually a red cotton stainer.

Gallimaufry#11

Just a confused jumble of photos ...

Crepe ginger

Skywatch from my balcony

Malaysian street food — satay

Meat skewered and grilled over a charcoal fire

Served with a spicy dipping of peanut sauce, satay is perfect as a snack, starter or main course.

White carnation

Dinner

Suburban playground

ONE FROM THE SHOEBOX — PHOTOS THAT RARELY SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY

Yosemite National Park — Winter 1990

Batu Seremban/Fivestones

Growing up, we spent most of our weekends and holidays at Grandma's house where all the cousins would gather. Looking back, those times playing games with the cousins are my fondest memories of my childhood.

And one of our favourite games was Batu Seremban aka Fivestones, a traditional version of Knucklebones. Instead of bones or stones, we played the game with cloth bags filled with either rice, mung beans or sand. 

I used to think that the game was native to Malaysia until I discovered that it is found in various cultures worldwide.

The game has many variations in rules and names; for example, gonggi (Korea), otedama (Japan) and anjukal (India) ...

Have you played this game before?

What is it called in your corner of the world?

Pink

I love how the pink pops in these photos. No filter. No edit.

 The extreme brilliance of these carnations in the light of the mid-day sun was almost blinding. 

And in my flower-beds, I think,

Smile the carnation and the pink.

Rupert Brooke

Gallimaufry#10

Just a bunch of random photos from my corner of the world.

Bauhinia Kockiana

Daytime moon

Lunch —  Pad Nam Prik Pao Talay

The name is a bit of  a mouthful but this Thai stir-fry is really amazing. 

Recipe — https://spicepaw.com/2019/07/25/seafood-nam-prik-pao/

 

Koi pond in our condo — one of my favourite spots

Economy rice

Economy rice, as the name implies, is a cheap and fast meal option outside of home. Economy rice stalls typically consist of a case/table containing anywhere from 10-15 troughs of cooked food, including meat, vegetables, eggs and tofu dishes.

Here's how it works ...

You fill up a plate with white rice. Then you proceed to pile on as much or as little dishes as you want.  Next, you show the vendor your selections and they calculate the cost based on the number of dishes you have taken. 

The dishes are simple and affordable

That's how Malaysian students sustain themselves through college.

Two desert rose variants

Toll booths

Of Hairy Fruits and Stinky Beans...

Rambutan

The literal translation of rambutan from Malay is “hairy,” and as you can see, the fruit is covered in “hair.”

Langsat and rambutan

Langsat and stinky beans

A video about stink beans aka petai by Mark Wiens

Langsat and longan

It is easy to confuse longan with langsat.

Longan

Longan literally translates as "dragon's eye" in Cantonese. Also known as 'mata kucing' which means "cat's eye" in Malay, the fruit is native to South East Asia. The longan is so named because the fruit, when shelled, resembles an eyeball (the black seed shows through the translucent flesh like a pupil/iris). The seed is small, round and hard, and of an enamel-like, lacquered black. The fruit is edible, extremely sweet, juicy and succulent. It is also considered the poorer cousin of the lychee.

More about the jackfruit here — https://ofmiceandramen.blogspot.com/2013/03/jackfruit.html