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Interesting Visit

Written by Administrator
Sunday, 18 March 2007
Village houses The Mah-Meri Tribe Layon with a mask We have heard so much about the legendary Mahmeri tribe and their world class wood craftmenship. So much that we decided to visit their village and hope to see the craftmen at work. We set out early in the morning not wanting to get stuck in the morning rush hour and took the long ride to their village located south of Port Klang. In the map that we had, it showed a road passing Port Klang Westport into Carey Island. So we took the highway all the way heading straight to Westport. To our surprise the road to Westport is closed to outsiders with Custom clearance at the entrance. So enquiring around from the staffs at the entrance, we found out that we had missed a turn and that our map was wrong. The road to Westport ends in Westport. One of the staff said from Westport to Carey Island, the distance is very near but we would have to park the car and swim across. Naughty guy. Layon's grandson making a mask So a U turn we took to get back to the highway and headed for the junction to Banting. We stopped at a petrol kiosk further down the road to confirn that we are on the right track and heading the right direction. The staff at the petrol kiosk confirm that yes we are on the right road. She said further down we would see a roundabout with a sign that says Pulau Carey. As we continued It was raining throughout the journey ,so we were quite happy that when we finally reached the roundabout with the signage, it had already slowed to a light drizzle. Hungry as we had not taken any breakfast, we looked for a place to have breakfast. It was early in the morning and this is not in the city so there was not much choice for breakfast. We finally decided to stop by a rickety Malay stall by the road side just at the junction turning to Carey Island. We saw that there was quite a crowd there, so we felt the food shouldn't be too bad. The crowd there consist mostly of lorry drivers collecting goods from a ship jetty nearby. Mostly was carrying old discarded metals from Indonesia to be recycled here in Klang. We had Nasi Lemak in the stall and the rice was hot and fragrant. The chilly was not too spicy, suits my taste. The day was cold and the rice steaming hot... just had to have another plate. Unfinish Harimau berantai After the hearthy breakfast we headed straight to the village. There are 2 main Mahmeri villages in Pulau Carey. Kampung Bunbun and Kampung Judah (Sungai Kurau). Carey Island is not an island per se. The island is actually part of the Peninsular Mainland only that it is seperated by a river estuary flowing all round the land, therefore seperating it from the mainland, giving it the description of an island. The trip was about 90 plus kilometers after deducting our wrong turn. We finally reached Kampung Bumbun. It was still early and we could not see much movement in the village, so we decided to take a short trip to the seaside for a look see before coming back to the village. The seaside was not the type of beautiful summer vacation beach that you would dream off. With nothing there we headed back to the village. We met the Village head craft man Layon in Kampung Bumbun who showed us some of his craftwork. He did not have many there as he said his son have taken most of it to be displayed at the Malaysia Craft Festival in Kuala Lumpur . When we asked about the lack of finished products, he lamented that not many villages want to continue this art as it is hardwork and pays little. He mentioned that it takes about 2 weeks of continuous work and concentration to complete a piece. Whereas now, with the island being replanted with oil palm, most villages have resorted to working in the plantations where the pay is not as much but less tedious. Layon with his Father's mask The craftwork that made them famous is the "Harimau Berantai" or Chained Tiger which has intricate cravings, smooth waxed finish with interlinked rings on the Tigers paws.. unlike many other styles of wood work, theirs is made from a hard wood sourced from the riverside normally Mahogany tree( nyirih batu and nyirih bunga). With the jungles being replaced with plantations, he have found it harder and more difficult each day to find suitable size tree trunk to carry on his craft. the Harimau Berantai His son and grandson have taken up the trade but it won't be long before there are no more suitable trees to cut. This trade was handed down to him from his fathers and he showed us the mask that his father had made. It was precious to him and he is not parting with it no matter what the price. The man simple in life has traveled by invitation to many countries to show his skills and crafts. With the Malaysian Goverment pledging to help the Indigenous people of Malaysia we hope their future will look brighter and their crafts continue on to the future generations to come. Each piece is tediously hand crafted
Last Updated ( Monday, 26 November 2007 )