Toy gun, Brunei version

I remember when I was still a kid, my brother and I used to make this toy gun. I think only some people in Sungai Liang know about this gun. The gun is made from a plank of wood, a nail, strong rubber band and a peg (sapit). For the ammo, we use pine tree seeds which can be found along the coast lines near by. But the pine seeds must have the attachment so that the peg can hold it in place. It is powered using elastic force from the rubber band. The purpose of the nail is to hold the rubber band in place.

You may asked me why we (Sungai Liang past youth) invented this toy gun (not really sure who actually come up with the idea)? Because there were no computer games, playstation and other source of entertainment around. So we come up with this. It is pretty fun, like paint ball these days (well obviously paint ball is million times better, but still good fun in that time). I remembered my bro managed to scratch his friend (because the pine seeds have some sharp edges). This is one of cool games we did and I want to share it to my fellow Bruneians.

Look at the youth these days eh. Ipod, psp, high tech phones and many more. I noticed not many more kids visiting houses randomly to collect green packet. Last time we used to crash houses, trying to make some money, not just get free food. I really missed those days. Now, I'm too old for green packet hehe.

Anyways, feel free to post your experience about any games that you come up with when you were a kid or any experience you wanna share.

thanks for reading

Ambuyat

Ambuyat is Bruneian Traditional dish which is made from sago. It is commonly consumed in the afternoon with other side dishes. Sago is extracted from rumbia tree after serveral processes. Sago powdered is mixed with room temperature water which allows it to dissolved then mixed with hot water which changes its texture.

Mix sago powder with 1 cup of water by add the water step by step. Mixing well to make sure all sago powder dissolved. Then add hot water(some say don't add the boiling water). So I am guessing the hot water should be about 95-97 C (few seconds after it boils). Add the hot water in slowly and stir at the same time. After a while, stop stiring but keep adding hot water until it stops moving (from the stirring). Then you mix it up so that everything is even. There you go, you have Ambuyat ready.

You will need a special joined wooden sticks called Candas to twirl around the Ambuyat. The you dip it in special sauce and swallow it (no need to chew). The sauces may made from anchovies, pasted (Belacan) and chilly mixed together. There are many other sauces available and Ambuyat goes well with "ikan bakar", pais, local vegetables like umbut, Lamiding, Pucuk ubi, etc.

One day, my manager (he's Portuguese Australian) asked me what is Bruneian cuisine or traditional dish. Straight away I answered Ambuyat. I explained to him what it is like and how to eat it. He asked if he can find it in Australia. Obviously, he has to come to Brunei to try it.

I heard one story, this Bruneian students going overseas (Im not sure how true is this story) and bring sago powder along with him/her. Anything that is white powder is obviously suspicious. So the customs asked him/her to prove that it is Ambuyat, Brunei traditional dish. Then he/she actually shown how to make it to them. Very embarrassing. Why don't they just taste the damn thing. They can tell it taste like starch. Funny story.

There are some restaurants offer Ambuyat in their menu. One of famous restaurant is Aminah Arif located in Kiulap and Jerudong. A must try traditional dish if you visit Brunei

Source: http://www.geocities.com/bruambuyat/sago_paste.htm

Brunei Traditional Games

Last time when I was a kid, we used to play traditional games like "kaki tiga" (the 3 slippers/feet). If you never heard of it, this is how we play it (maybe different to others). First you form 2 teams of 3 atleast. It is like cricket I guess. Instead of having wickets, we use 3 cheap slippers (we called it "slipar jepun"). This is how we played it last time.

First you arranged those slipers so that they stand like a pyramid. The objective is to knock down those slippers at a reasonable distance using a tennis ball, then arranged them back without being thrown out from the game. The protecting team will have to throw the ball to opposing team to kick them out. If the protecting team is able to know all opposing member teams, the win a point. If the opposing time manage to arrange those slippers back in order. You can design your own rules to make it more interesting but that is the concept of it.

Few days ago, we discussed about our past experience when we still kids, what games we played when we were at school. We played like marble balls (guli), "skupong" (dont know the english word for it, knocking pens of the table (haha lame but some even put leads on to make it heavier) and many more.

Today, check out the kids. ipods, handphones with cool softwares and games, psp and lots more. They have better entertainment than us 15 years ago haha. Can't really blame them.

Anyways, share your ideas about Brunei traditional games and sports, especially the uncommon ones that you may have created your selves or from others