We live in the Rice Bowl of Malaysia...and even in the city of Alor Star, paddy fields are a common sight. The scenery changes with the different stages of paddy planting.
On the last Saturday evening of the school hols, we decided to go cycling in the paddy fields...something we have not done for ages. The little one followed us, her brother too dug in his own world; being emo and all that!! Teenage version of the PMS?? The 2 bicyles had just gone to the shop in the morning for some minor repairs... talk about changing our lifestyles. With the petrol pump price at RM2.70 now, the bicycles will be seeing the road more often. Anyway, it's set to head upward still. Today's petrol price will seem relatively cheap by next month!
Our first stop at the irrigation canal. What caught my eye was a rather big crab trying to resurface and catch the small fish. This is the first time we've seen a crab here, at the paddy field.
I always like this time of the planting season cos everything is so green and alive. Kinda lends a vibrant touch to everything. The day was a little cloudy but it's good to see so much green. One does feel kinda alive with that sort of vibrance.
In some places the paddy is ripening, hence the golden hue. Everything will turn golden in a couple of weeks. This is kinda charming, the kampong seemingly untouched by the trappings of modernity. All over, you see these islands in the middle of the paddy field. That is why you have places named Pulau Nyior in Kedah. They are islands but in the paddy fields. Kinda interesting. And you have also have a place called Pantai Johor with no real beach. Wonder how they came up with names for a place those days of old.
Noticed the small pink and red pretty things I mentioned in one of my
earlier posts
Saw many more here. Curiousity got the bettter of us... we plucked one of the stalks and I mashed them up. They were all gooey...like egg yolks. They were actually eggs! Came back, did a search and came up with
golden apple snails.Those pretty pink things were actually snail eggs! They are actually pests... aiyah!!
Back to the paddy fields... water hyacinths grow wild and some were flowering. They are really quite beautiful.
At another section of the canal, water lilies grow unabated. In time to come, when the new planting season begins, the farmers will clear the canal again. The water level will be so low that you can actually walk into the canal. But it is a muddy place. Leeches abound!
We saw quite a lot of fish in the canal... one of these evenings, we'll try to bring a net to catch them.
A simply put together bridge to enable quick crossings. It's not meant for those faint hearted. One wrong step and you might actually end up in the canal.
All of us know that paddy fields are heavy users of all kinds fertilisers and pesticides-the unseen pollution; visible pollution .... where there is man, there is bound to be rubbish. You can find plastic bottles in the paddy fields!
It was an interesting cycling trip, one which our little one enjoyed immensely. We had to rush home as it started to drizzle but by the time we got back, it had stopped.
On the last Saturday evening of the school hols, we decided to go cycling in the paddy fields...something we have not done for ages. The little one followed us, her brother too dug in his own world; being emo and all that!! Teenage version of the PMS?? The 2 bicyles had just gone to the shop in the morning for some minor repairs... talk about changing our lifestyles. With the petrol pump price at RM2.70 now, the bicycles will be seeing the road more often. Anyway, it's set to head upward still. Today's petrol price will seem relatively cheap by next month!
Our first stop at the irrigation canal. What caught my eye was a rather big crab trying to resurface and catch the small fish. This is the first time we've seen a crab here, at the paddy field.
I always like this time of the planting season cos everything is so green and alive. Kinda lends a vibrant touch to everything. The day was a little cloudy but it's good to see so much green. One does feel kinda alive with that sort of vibrance. 
In some places the paddy is ripening, hence the golden hue. Everything will turn golden in a couple of weeks. This is kinda charming, the kampong seemingly untouched by the trappings of modernity. All over, you see these islands in the middle of the paddy field. That is why you have places named Pulau Nyior in Kedah. They are islands but in the paddy fields. Kinda interesting. And you have also have a place called Pantai Johor with no real beach. Wonder how they came up with names for a place those days of old.
Noticed the small pink and red pretty things I mentioned in one of my earlier posts
Saw many more here. Curiousity got the bettter of us... we plucked one of the stalks and I mashed them up. They were all gooey...like egg yolks. They were actually eggs! Came back, did a search and came up with golden apple snails.Those pretty pink things were actually snail eggs! They are actually pests... aiyah!!
Back to the paddy fields... water hyacinths grow wild and some were flowering. They are really quite beautiful.
At another section of the canal, water lilies grow unabated. In time to come, when the new planting season begins, the farmers will clear the canal again. The water level will be so low that you can actually walk into the canal. But it is a muddy place. Leeches abound!
We saw quite a lot of fish in the canal... one of these evenings, we'll try to bring a net to catch them. 
A simply put together bridge to enable quick crossings. It's not meant for those faint hearted. One wrong step and you might actually end up in the canal.
All of us know that paddy fields are heavy users of all kinds fertilisers and pesticides-the unseen pollution; visible pollution .... where there is man, there is bound to be rubbish. You can find plastic bottles in the paddy fields!
It was an interesting cycling trip, one which our little one enjoyed immensely. We had to rush home as it started to drizzle but by the time we got back, it had stopped.
2 comments:
ahhhh, so picturesque! Princess Rainbow is getting big!
u know those snails are considered a delicacy in some places??? :geli:
Yah! Don't you remember the 'ba-li-tong'? Those are also snail like wor? The French and their escargot too...
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