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A trip to Raman's orchard in Gombak, 9-9-2012

An email from my friend Keong. Was I interested to join a trip to Gombak? An orang asli friend of him, Raman, had an orchard there and would give demonstrations of several traditional skills. And also we would learn the knots needed to properly handle flysheets and hammocks.

Yes, I was, so early Sunday morning I drove to Gombak, where I met Keong and his group. We crossed the Gombak river, passed under the Karak highway, and reached the orchard in about twenty minutes.

What an idyllic place, a real garden of Eden! Raman's dream is to make this orchard a kind of cultural museum where traditional skills are preserved. He showed us how to build a temporary shelter, how to cut bamboo in the correct way, and explained the working of traps. He also gave a demonstration how to "weave" palm fronds.

In the second part of the program Paul showed us various knots, suitable for setting up a hammock and a flysheet. And he used a fire bow to make fire, quite impressive.

In the meantime Raman's wife had been busy in the kitchen, preparing BBQ chicken and rice in bamboo.

After enjoying a tasty lunch, we walked back to "civilisation"

Are you interested? You can contact Keong through his informative website Outdoor Gear in Malaysia