Jason (left) and CJ with police reports, hoping justice for Chee Gaik Yap

We just lodged police reports on the 2th July 2013 at the Balai Polis Tengkera Melaka, in hoping that justice will be done for the rape-murder of Chee Gaik Yap.

victim Chee Gaik Yap

Seven years ago, Chee Gaik Yap, a marketing executive and Universiti Utara Malaysia graduate, was believed to have been tailed by her assailant while jogging in the neighbourhood of Taman Ria Jaya in Sungai Petani.

She was kidnapped, raped and killed before her body was dumped at the housing estate.

The suspect was arrested and released on police bail, he then fled to Australia for six years to escape investigations. He was ambushed and detained at the KLIA upon returning to Malaysia last year.

He was charged for murder (not rape!?). Few days ago, the suspect was acquitted and walked out from the court as a free man, as the victim’s grieved father attempted to jump off the court building after the ruling. Luckily the pressmen managed to stop him.

It was confirmed that his semen was an evidence after he was arrested.

Why can’t he be convicted even though there’s evidence (the suspect’s semen)?

Why was he charged with only murder but not for rape?

Our lodging of police report was relatively easy and it took us only 30 minutes. The front desk officers of Balai Polis Tengkera Melaka was being very helpful.

In our reports, we demand Polis Diraja Malaysia to take further action into the investigation:

Saya hendak Polis Diraja Malaysia
(a) Menyiasat adakah Chee Gaik Yap dirogol oleh suspek Shahril Jaafar.
(b) Menyiasat siapakah orang ketiga di mana air maninya juga dijumpai di dalam kemaluan Chee Gaik Yap.
(c) Menyiasat adakah Chee Gaik Yap diseksa ataupun dicederakan oleh suspek Shahril Jaafar dan sekumpulan orang sampai mati.
(d) Mengambil tindakan yang sewajarnya dengan segera.

Make your police report, it can be done in any police station at anytime, and send a copy to reportcheegaikyap@gmail.com to draw more awareness.

Get more info from https://www.facebook.com/JusticeForCGY

We hope justice could be done.

– by jason and cj

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dining area

Melaka, the Historical State of Malaysia is a must visit travel destination for all tourists who visit to Malaysia. We, at Homestay de Melaka is here to provide you a clean, comfortable, feel like home accommodation which is situated at the heart of Melaka town.

Our homestay units in Mahkota Hotel have the following advantages :-

● 2 bedroom apartment (city view at 15th floor)
● nice scenery at night
● air-conditioned bedroom
● fully furnished with refrigerator
● walking distance to historical sites (A Famosa Fort, Clock Tower, Stadhuys, Dutch Square, Jonker Street, Chinatown, etc.)
● next to Mahkota Parade shopping mall
● next to Dataran Pahlawan shopping mall
● walking distance to entertainment outlet (Arena club, Movida club & Overtime club, the Jetty)

Give us a call at +60196690168 (Jason) and we will be looking to serve so that you will have a pleasant visit to Melaka, the Historical City of Malaysia!

living room

double bedroom

twin bedroom

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Stephen Tang at Jason's house

The day when my friend, Stephen Tang played the song, Ni Zhi Dao Wo Zai Deng Ni Ma (“Do you know I am waiting for you?” in Chinese) with the piano at Jason’s house, he then continued to perform another song with beautiful melody taught by Pastor John he met long ago.

Although Stephen later told us that he did not know the name of the song, he loved its rhythm, a fast yet sort of a mystical beat. Even Jason was interested to learn to play it; he stood next to Stephen and watched how Stephen’s fingers fluttering across the keys.

I recorded the play and share with friends here in juesatta. Stephen promised to play the song Shang Hai Tan, a well-known TV series theme song back in 80s, so I hope I have a chance to record the next play and share again.

Thanks to Stephen for performing such a beautiful melody. May all beings be happy.

The post A beautiful melody – piano performance by Stephen Tang appeared first on juesatta (CJ Photography).

Stephen Tang at Jason's house

The song, Ni Zhi Dao Wo Zai Deng Ni Ma (“Do you know I am waiting for you?” in Chinese) is a classic and was a very popular song back in late 80s. This song was originally written and sung by Zhang Hong Liang (张洪量). And it was so popular that many other singers have covered it such as Teresa Teng, Jacky Cheung, Leng Yu, and Anthony Lun.

Last week my friend, Stephen Tang and I went to Jason’s place, and Stephen was attracted to Jason’s piano in the living hall. He told us he could play some songs but we doubted. Stephen said to us that the same thing happened to his partner Pei-Ching; she thought it was a joke.

“Let me practise for 10 minutes and I shall remember how to play.” Stephen said while warming up his fingers and slowly sat by the piano, which he had not played for a decade.

As soon as the melody reached our ears, Stephen touched us as beautifully as he touched the keys of the piano. What further amazed us was he played without the piano scores. Stephen continued to present some songs wonderfully as we requested.

It’s always nice and fun to go for a tea chat with Stephen as he is a funny and straight forward friend. And to prove to Pei-Ching, I recorded Stephen’s play, Ni Zhi Dao Wo Zai Deng Ni Ma.

May all beings be happy.

The post Ni Zhi Dao Wo Zai Deng Ni Ma (妳知道我在等你吗) – by Stephen Tang appeared first on juesatta (CJ Photography).

Eye to Eye optical shop in Dataran Pahlawan. From left: Danny, Henry, and Jaron

Early last month of July, Henry Lee invited me to get a staff photo of the optical shop, Eye to Eye in Dataran Pahlawan where he works in as a memento. I happily agreed to help him and apart from taking the group photo, I made a request to snap some photos of the optical products available in the shop such as Gucci, Guess, Tag Heuer, Ray Ban, and many more brands which I couldn’t even recall.

Other than that, I didn’t forget to snap my favorite glasses, Oakley Livestrong Jawbone special edition. It’s really stylist and sporty and I fall for it after I saw my friend, Jason owning one. It’s really cool-looking when Jason puts it on. Besides, Jason helped the cancer patients when he bought this pair of glasses as Oakley donates $20 USD to the Lance Armstrong Foundation which helps in the fight against cancer on every sale of Oakley Livestrong series. Unfortunately it’s too expensive for me to get one.

Speaking of Henry, he is always being helpful and faithful to friends. It’s nice hanging out with Henry as he has good sense of humor and always tells jokes, however sometimes ‘rated’. We are friends since our childhood and we also studied in the same secondary school together. Our family know each other for long too; during the old days, my grandpa owned a watch and clock store in the old street of Bunga Raya and next to one of the oldest optical shops in Melaka, Kong Wah optical shop which owned by Henry’s family. Henry probably has his father gene of being a sociable person and a good businessman.

Having a friend like Henry puts a smile on my face every day. Thanks to Henry and I hope that our friendship will continue to grow and be mutually rewarding for many years to come. May everyone be happy. Sharing a few shots I took on that day:

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Baba Pongteh by Jason

When we speak of Nyonya dishes we are first to think of Nyonya Pongteh. It is basically chicken (ayam in Malay) or pork (babi in Malay) or both, with potatoes and mushroom braised in soybean paste.

If you google for Pongteh recipe on the web, there are heaps of result coming out. However, I tried a few web recipes and did not get the taste expected. The real Pongteh is always made by the authentic Baba (refers to male) and Nyonya (refers to female) folks.

2 months ago, Jason’s mother invited my mother and me to their place and to learn how to cook Pongteh and also for a lunch together. Jason’s mom was guiding and supervising us. Jason was interested in learning too so he did the cooking most of the time while I was helping him to prepare the ingredients.

What I could remember is, about 300g-500g of pork was cooked in water (to remove the strong taste of pork), cooled and cut into pieces. Another 300g-500g of chicken was cut. Ratio 1:1 of shallots and garlic were peeled and chopped, then fried with oil. A few table spoons of Cow brand soybean paste were added to the wok followed by the pork and chicken. Then the Pongteh was fried until we got a strong flavour and the gravy was thick. After that, a bit of water was added and salt, sugar, soy sauce, dark soy sauce were added to taste.

I didn’t take down any notes of the Pongteh we learned to cook; rather I enjoyed eating than cooking. And regrettably I didn’t take any shot of the final product of Pongteh because I couldn’t wait to eat when it was served. It was really delicious. Besides Pongteh, there were other Nyonya dishes cooked by Jason’s mother. They tasted not so different from those I had in Nyonya restaurants, yet as yummy.

Thanks to Jason and his mother for inviting us to their place and teaching me how to cook Pongteh. I would call the Pongteh I had at Jason’s place, the Baba Pongteh, as Jason the Baba cooked it. Below are some of the shots I took while I had time:

Jason was taking cooking notes from his mother

Everthing was ready to go

Frying shallots and garlics

Pork was cooked in water and left aside after cutting

Jason kept on frying

Ta-dah! It was almost done

'Finalising' the Pongteh

Share some shots of other items I took at Jason’s place:

Homemade keropok ikan (fish crackers in Malay)

Another view of the keropok ikan

福 (luck in Chinese, read as "fu") on the wall

Chinese teapot and cups set

English tea cups on the shelf

An expensive ingredient, buah keluak used for Nyonya cuisine

An old water tank with the Chinese character of 福 (luck)

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“传说明朝时一年的农历新年，倭寇在福建沿海一带，杀人放火，抢夺财物，乡民扶老携幼逃命。 乡民在黑夜中逃到一处偏僻郊野时，眼见倭寇就要追上，大家感到万分惊恐，突然前面出现一大片蔗林，乡民便逃入蔗林躲避，避过倭寇，逃过鬼门关。这天正是大年初九，逃出生天的乡民都认为这是天公救命，于是每年的大年初九凌晨便祭拜天公，以谢救命之恩。而拜甘蔗也具有不忘蔗林藏身救命之恩。”

“另一传说是，古时有一名孟将军，他到某个地方，只要喝了当地的水，就会讲当地的话，他就以这门本事辨别汉人。 可是他到了福建，手下竟然拿了外省的水给他喝，结果他一直不懂讲福建话。他便以为福建人不是汉人，就下令大开杀戒，福建人枉死无数。到了大年初九那天，从外省运来的水喝光了，孟将军才喝到福建的水，会讲起福建话，这时他才知道杀错人，马上下令封刀。而福建人认为这是天公所赐，让他们逃过大劫，便在初九凌晨拜天公谢恩。”

前两天是农历正月初八，也福建人的新年。我、Wee-Peng和Jason到访了Jason的两个伯母的家和Murphy的家去见识福建人的拜天公。同时我们也见识到了峇峇福建人为拜天公准备功夫的细腻。

Two days ago (Sunday midnight) was the 8th day of the first month of lunar calendar. On the 9th day, it would be the celebration known to the Hokkiens as ‘Bai Tian Gong’, which literally means ‘praying the Heaven God’.

During a Chinese New year of the Ming Dynasty, there was a bandit raid in the province of Hokkien. These intruders however robbed and burned down villages, attacked and killed the villagers. The people of the villages were in fear and escaped from their burnt villages during the night.

Some of the villagers then hid themselves among the sugarcane fields. Needless to say, those villagers prayed to Heaven God (Tian Gong)  for salvation during their hideout. The pursuing intruders spent many days trying to locate and hunt them but to no avail. On the ninth day of that Chinese New Year, they finally gave up and returned to their region.

The Hokkiens then happily emerged from the sugar cane fields, and praising the blessings of the celestial deities and owing gratitude to the sugarcane plants for saving them from destruction. Thus, in all Hokkien celebrations, the sugarcane plant is given prominence.

Realizing that it was also the 9th Day of the Chinese New Year and coincidentally the birthday of Heaven God, they decided to make votive offerings and prayers to the Jade Emperor for their salvation. There are many version of the Hokkiens’ Bai Tian Gong stories. Whichever it is, the hokkiens believe that our life and prosperity are granted by the Heaven God.

On the eve of the 9th day, a pair of sugarcane plants are used by the Hokkiens usually placed one on each side of the offering table or  the front door of the house. The pair of the sugarcane symbolises unity, cooperation and strength. The sugarcane itself is a symbol of harmony and a token which can bring good and ‘sweet’ results. The very straightness of the sugarcane stem also ensures that the Hokkiens can become a clan of honest and sincere people.

Three family houses I visited together with Jason and Wee-Peng, two of my best friends on the eve of Bai Tian Gong festival. The first two houses we visited were the family of Jason’s aunties, and the last house we went was my best friend, Murphy’s house. Jason comes from a Baba-and-Nyonya family so the prayers of Tian Gong for them is a grant event of the year. The celebration they held for the past few years I visisted were so unique and special. Each of the table setup and the offerings, the preparation were carefully done and also involved a lot of manpower. 

Share the photos I have taken:

First house:

Traditional Chinese family lanterns hanging on the house of the first Baba family I visited for Bai Tian Gong

The Bai Tian Gong table setup of the first Baba-and-Nyonya family

Chinese joss paper folded nicely in shape and hanging everywhere of the house

These folded Chinese joss papers would be burnt as an offering to Tian Gong

Second house:

One of Jason's aunties was praying and praising the blessing of Tian Gong

Four lucky digits arranged with mandirin oranges given by the performers of the lion dance we missed out

Another four digits given, Chinese believes "8" is a lucky number and symbolises prosperity

Each of the offerings was equisite and nicely prepared

Candles were lightened

Friends and relatives gathered for this cheerful moment

Another set of Chinese family lanterns hanging on the second house we visited

Each of the dishes or offerings made symbolises something good and lucky

The beautiful offering on the hexagonal wooden box in the center is called Chanab and is usually made from papaya and preserved cherries.

The wide view of the table

Third house (Murphy’s family):

Another prayer of Bai Tian Gong at the house of Murphy

The not-so-complicated setup yet still seemed complicated

Thanks to Jason for bringing me to his aunties’ houses for the Bai Tian Gong celebration and also thanks to Murphy for inviting us to his place. There are many procedures to follow for the Bai Tian Gong prayers. We have to be grateful this tradition is inherited to today’s generation. It’s a very meaningful celebration as showing gratitude of the Tian Gong’s blessing is virtue and it teaches the young generation not to forget the kindness of the elders and others who have helped them.

The post 拜天宫 – 福建人的新年 (Bai Tian Gong celebration – the Hokkiens’ New Year) appeared first on juesatta (CJ Photography).

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