Exploring Miri

Breakfast

Lily, a school-mate from school days picked me up at 0845.  Thomas was in the car already and we headed out for a yumcha breakfast.

To my surprise, the food was excellent.  Yumcha in Kuching that I’ve tried in Kuching has usually been cheap and nasty.  Made to a price to serve the mass market.  Whereas in New Zealand and Australia it’s made for the discerning by chefs from Hong Kong and Canton.  The dumplings were packed with prawns or meat.

It was a very nice catch-up too.  I didn’t realise that Lily and Thomas went to primary school together, along with Susanna and Hong Tee who are now in Australia and Canada respectively.  It was a different school from mine.

Sightseeing

Lily drove us out of town for a bit of sightseeing.  First stop was Coco Cabana, a scenic spot by the sea where locals come for drinks in the evening.  I really liked the place!

Such a pity though … the large intricately-carved wooden building that could serve as a bar and function room seemed vacant.

The area is close to Miri’s modest marina.  It also serves as the embarkation point for crew working on some of the closer offshore oil rigs.

Continuing on, we drove past Tanjug Lobang (Brighton Beach) and then to Luak Bay.  Some on the mansions along the way were pretty hefty.  One on the hillside was like something out of the movies, similar to a home of the rich and famous in Hollywood.

At Luak Bay we walked a little and chatted.  It was nice to be a city that has a nice natural setting.  I’m going to recommend it to my brother Benny for his retirement.

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We were going to finish the day’s outing with a drink of Ais Kacang (shaved ice).  The first place wasn’t open yet.  And when we got to the second, it was another 30 mins wait.

Lily said we were nearby to this destitute lady that she’s been helping through an organisation.  It had been a while since she had checked-up on her due to the Covid-19 lockdown.  The lady was a nice, smiley and positive soul.

She was supporting four children, two of her own and two that she had picked up, abandoned by their parents.  She and her own children had been abandoned by her husband.  She works at food stalls in the evenings to support the household.  She doesn’t work during the day so she can shuttle the kids to school.  I was so pleased to hear that she values education, whereas some would send the kids to work as early-on as possible.

After our nice cool Ais Kacang, I got dropped off back at my hotel.

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Thomas wanted to take me bar-hopping with his brother-in-law, starting at 2015.  I felt a little tired and took a raincheck.  After a simple dinner at Penyet Ria across the road, I showered and was in bed by 2030.  I felt absolutely drained and fell asleep immediately.  It must have been the heat from the day’s excursion.