REMINISCENCES

The Bugis and Makassar ethnic groups in South Sulawesi are including two of the few ethnics in Indonesia who has a tradition of writing. Letters or script used by the Bugis people since hundreds of years ago is the Lontara script which in itself is named "uki Ugi'sulapa eppa'" (Dr. Mukhlis Paeni in Nusantara Manuscript Catalogue). Makassar tribe also has its own letter, called script 'jangang jangang' which resemble the original form of the bird / poultry so-called 'jangang jangang'. In further developments jangang-jangang script is rarely used and the Uki Sulapa Eppa is more frequently used for both Bugis and Makassar writing systeem.

According to historians, the script lontara 'Uki sulapa eppa' and 'jangan jangan' script are both derived characters from the Indian's Sanskrit. A lot of Bugis ancient manuscripts stored in the Library and Archives of South Sulawesi, consisting of a variety of characters, namely lontara Bugis, lontara jangang-jangang script, 'serang' script (written language of the Bugis and Makassar using the Arabic script), and the original Arabic especially for religious manuscripts. Some of those manuscripts are already difficult to read, both the original manuscript or its microfilm. This is because the manuscripts are already too old and very fragile manuscript, the ink used has also been seep into the paper, there are also a lot pages missing or torn.

In the Regional Library and Archive of South Sulawesi is preserved the ancient Bugis manuscripts written on palm leaves. The manuscript is in the form of palm leaf roll. According to the experts this manuscript was written by using a kind of nail to scratch the letter on the palm leaves carefully due to the the nature of palm leaves are easily torn. After one piece of writing, then dusted with black powder so that the writing visible and clearly legible. When a strand was finished then connected with the previous piece by stitching using a needle and thread. When a manuscript is considered finished, and then pieces of palm leaves are rolled up and made the rolls for easy reading. How to read the manuscript? In a position sitting cross-legged with hands palm leaf rollers rotating rolls. Usually accompanied by ritual (ceremony) small.

The number of manuscripts lontara 'Bugis, Makassar and Mandar stored in the Regional Library and Archive of South Sulawesi is 4049 manuscripts. Those manuscripts have all been microfilmed. Researchers or students who need the manuscripts will only access the microfilmed manuscripts. Original manuscript has been inaccessible, because of the nature of the paper which is already very fragile. The original manuscript is usually only for display at an exhibition. The results of this lontara manuscript microfilm can be read on the screen of Microfilm reader.

Various topics written on Bugis manuscripts such as astrological 'kutika' which mentions about the good days and bad days to perform marriages, rising new home (home of the Bugis and Makassar ancient form of houses on stilts), beginning the day working the fields, and other forecasts. The using of herbal is written in the manuscript lontara pabbura'. Various types of mixed and herbaceous plants used to treat certain diseases. There's also called lontara Baddili 'Lompo ie lontara manuscript that discusses the strategies of war and weapons. Another manuscript, talks about different ways of farming called lontara 'Paggalung, tasauf tale story, Syech Yusuf's teachings, religious manuscripts, sex education (lontara akkalaibinengeng), disposition of animals, genealogy (Lontara Pangoriseng), Lontara' alloping- loping which is lontara who investigated the procedures for sailing and fishing. There is also lontara 'pattaungeng which is a diary of the ancient Bugis and others (Rumpakna Bone, translation by Drs. Muhammad Salim 1991).

Literary works of Bugis usually consists poetic literature such as the epic I La Galigo, Tolo ', Meongpalo, Sure' Selleyang, Ugi Elong. While lontara 'which consists of example sentences concatenated lontara saga, story, tasauf, and other religious lontara. The number of letters from the lontara type array is different. Elong Ugi usually consists of three lines each number of letters (lontara ') his or syllables in the Latin alphabet 8', 7 and 6. Sometimes only two rows but the number of letters should be 21. The Tolo ', Menrurana, and Meongpalo is composed of lines that connect connect array consisting of eight syllables or 8 letters of Bugis. I La Galigo and Sure 'Selleyang have amount of lines of 5, 5, 5 or 10, 10, 10.

It is unfortunate that the younger generation seems uninterested in examining the manuscript or lontara Bugis Makassar. In fact, lontara 'Bugis and Makassar is one aspect of local culture containing noble cultural values ​​of the nation. Without attempts to preserve the manuscript lontara Bugis and Makassar it is feared that the Bugis and Makassar younger generation will lose their identity and works of literature will be extinct.

Tinabo Island is one of the Takabonerate islands in the District
Selayar. I visited this island in during the event 2009 Takabonerate expedition . This island actually uninhabited, but by the government has been built cottages for environmentalists, particularly for the conservation of coral reefs. Tinabo island most often visited by researchers, students, nature lovers, divers, and
other observers of coral reefs.

The beauty of this island is hard to describe with words. I can only say that this is the most beautiful island I've been to. Clean white sand and very smooth. The sand is really white, not cream or yellow or light brown as in Bulukumba Bira beach, or Kuta beach in Bali. The island is small and you can surrounded in just minutes, not until one hours. Here the beauty of coral reefs can also be witnessed without the need to dive, because all there is around the island, and under the pier. Coral reefs
is planted, nurtured and preserved by the nature lovers. I myself for the first time saw the new the beauty of the coral reefs here. Not just the colorful coral reefs, but also colorful small fish are also many here and can be seen with the naked eye swam among the leaves of marine plants and coral reefs. Really amazing.

This island is preserved its beauty perhaps because it is situated quite far from inhabited island such as Rajuni. Not far from the island Tinabo this, there are also other uninhabited islands about one or two kilometers, where coconuts grow amid a hedge shrubs, similar to the wallpaper image on my computer screen. Pulau Rajuni is inhabited islands and the nearest island from Tinabo. Islanders of Rajuni island mostly Bugis people of Sinjai. Island Rajuni is also very beautiful, but because it was uninhabited, though not many, so marine life is not as good as the one on the island of Tinabo.

Picture: personal collections and from kiki108multiply.com

On the weekend, I sometimes spent my weekend at La Perouse, southern part of Sydney. La Perouse is a suburb in south-eastern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. La Perouse is located about 14 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Randwick.



The La Perouse peninsula is the northern headland of Botany Bay. It is notable for its old military outpost at Bare Island and the Botany Bay National Park. Congwong Bay Beach, Little Congwong Beach, and the beach at Frenchmans Bay provide protected swimming areas in Botany Bay. La Perouse is one of few Sydney suburbs with a French title, another being Sans Souci. Kurnell is located opposite, on the southern headland of Botany Bay.



La Perouse was named after the French navigator Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse (1741-88), who landed on the northern shore of Botany Bay west of Bare Island in January 1788. La Pérouse’s two ships sailed to New South Wales after some of his men had been attacked and killed in the Navigator Islands (Samoa). La Pérouse arrived off Botany Bay on 24 January just six days after Captain Arthur Phillip (1738-1814) had anchored just east of Bare Island, in H.M. Armed Tender Supply. On 26 January 1788, as Arthur Phillip was moving the First Fleet around to Port Jackson after finding Botany Bay unsuitable for a Settlement, La Pérouse was sailing into Botany Bay,anchoring there just eight days after the British had.

Visitors can learn about the indigenous significance of the area from the Aboriginal people of the area, with boomerang-throwing demonstrations often held on weekends and Aboriginal guided tours operating from Yarra Bay House during the week. Aboriginal artefacts are produced and sold by locals. An outdoor reptile show is also a well-known tourist attraction in the pit, at The Loop, on Sunday afternoons. The reptile shows were begun by George Cann in the early 1920s and the tradition has been continued by members of the Cann family ever since.

La Perouse has a few cafes and restaurants around the historic precinct, close to Frenchmans Bay.

SOURCE: wikipedia
Photo: personal collection and google.com

The Petronas Twin Towers (Malay: Menara Berkembar Petronas) (also known as the Petronas Towers or just Twin Towers[clarification needed]), in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were the world's tallest buildings from 1998 to 2004, when their height was surpassed by Taipei 101. The towers remain the tallest twin buildings in the world.

The Petronas Twin Towers were the tallest buildings in the world until Taipei 101 was completed in 2004, as measured to the top of their structural components (spires, but not antennas). Spires are considered integral parts of the architectural design of buildings, to which changes would substantially change the appearance and design of the building, whereas antennas may be added or removed without such consequences. The Petronas Twin Towers remain the tallest twin buildings in the world.

Source: wikipedia
Photo: personal collection

We were visiting this site on February 2010. We were just taking pictures, enjoy Teh Tarik and buying some souvenirs. No time to climb up to the cave. Batu Caves is a limestone hill, which has a series of caves and cave temples, located in Gombak district, 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) north of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It takes its name from the Sungai Batu or Batu River, which flows past the hill. Batu Caves is also the name of the nearby village.

The cave is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, dedicated to Lord Murugan. It is the focal point of Hindu festival of Thaipusam in Malaysia. The limestone forming Batu Caves is said to be around 400 million years old. Some of the cave entrances were used as shelters by the indigenous Temuan people (a tribe of Orang Asli).

As early as 1860, Chinese settlers began excavating guano for fertilising their vegetable patches. However, they became famous only after the limestone hills were recorded by colonial authorities including Daly and Syers as well as American Naturalist, William Hornaday in 1878.

Batu Caves was promoted as a place of worship by K. Thamboosamy Pillai, an Indian trader. He was inspired by the 'vel'-shaped entrance of the main cave and was inspired to dedicate a temple to Lord Muruga within the caves.

In 1891, Pillai, who also founded the Sri Mahamariamman Temple, Kuala Lumpur, installed the murti (consecrated statue) of Sri Subramania Swamy in what is today known as the Temple Cave. Since 1892, the Thaipusam festival in the Tamil month of Thai (which falls in late January/early February) has been celebrated there.

Wooden steps up to the Temple Cave were built in 1920 and have since been replaced by 272 concrete steps. Of the various cave temples that comprise the site, the largest and best known is the Temple or Cathedral Cave, so named because it houses several Hindu shrines beneath its 100 m vaulted ceiling.

Rising almost 100 m above the ground, Batu Caves temple complex consists of three main caves and a few smaller ones. The biggest, referred to as Cathedral Cave or Temple Cave, has a 100 m-high ceiling, and features ornate Hindu shrines. To reach it, visitors have to climb a steep flight of 272 steps.

At the base of the hill are two more cave temples, Art Gallery Cave and Museum Cave, both of which are full of Hindu statues and paintings. This complex was renovated and opened as the Cave Villa in 2008. Many of the shrines relate the story of Lord Murugan's victory over the demon Soorapadam. An audio tour is available to visitors.

The Ramayana Cave is situated to the extreme left as one faces the sheer wall of the hill. On the way to the Ramayana Cave, there is a 50-foot (15 m) tall murti of Hanuman and a temple dedicated to Hanuman, the noble monkey devotee and aide of Lord Rama. The consecration ceremony of the temple was held in November 2001.

The Ramayana Cave depicts the story of Rama in a chronicle manner quite effectively. The cave is well lit and allows the visitor to stroll leisurely viewing the depictions along the irregular walls of the cave. One might experience the feeling that one is strolling through the giant intestines of the mighty demon, Kumbhakarann, brother of King Ravana of Lanka.

A 42.7m (132 feet high) high statue of Lord Muruga was unveiled in January 2006, having taken 3 years to construct. It is the tallest Lord Muruga statue in the world.

SOURCE: wikipedia
Picture: personal collection

International Students Services (ISS) at the University of New South Wales Sydney, organized a trip to Thredbo Village Snowy Mountain on the winter breaks 2002. We all were having fun that time. We were staying at Jindabyne hotel next to the lake that time. Thredbo Village Popular skiing destination and starting point for the walk to the top of Mount Kosciuszko. Unlike the other locations in the Kosciuszko area, Thredbo Village is legitimately an all year resort. This delightful township, located below the snowline on the Alpine Way 97 km from Cooma, 498 km from Sydney and 1370 m above sea level, is as close as Australia will ever get to a genuine alpine settlement. The chalets, the narrow winding streets, the skiing and bracing 'mountain walks' ambience all contribute to a feeling that this is like no other town in Australia.

Thredbo came into existence as the Thredbo gold diggings in the 1860s and while the river bed wasn't lined with nuggets (as it was at Kiandra) the miners persisted until the 1930s. In the 1950s, as the Alpine Way was built, more and more skiers came to the area to ski the slopes of Crackenback. The village slowly developed so that now it is one of the most attractive locations in the mountains.
Snow and summer activities.

Thredbo has a reputation as a ski resort (and not always a brilliant one as the snow is prone to run out before the slope does - although the acquisition of snow making equipment should remove these problems) the local businesses have made a concerted effort to make the summer attractions as interesting as the winter ones. The village boasts a golf course, tennis courts, mountain bicycling facilities, horse riding, and for the really adventurous, paragliding from Crackenback Mountain.

For the less adventurous, or even the passer by, a summer trip on the ski lift is a must. It rises 595 metres from the valley floor over some dramatic scenery and at the top (where there's a restaurant) the views over the valleys and the ranges of the Snowy Mountains are spectacular. For those determined to reach the top of the continent the walk to the top of Mount Kosciuszko is a pleasant 12 km (6 km each way) and usually takes around 4-6 hours. This is not a difficult walk. On New Years Day 2000, when we bravely made the journey to the top of the continent,we were beaten by a one-legged man.

The walk from the ski lift is not difficult. In fact, in order to protect the alpine flora, the National Parks and Wildlife Service have built metal walkways which make the walk even easier than it already is. National Parks have published a 37 page booklet titled Beyond the Snow Gums: The Alpine Area - Kosciuszko National Park which provides detailed information on the walk. The Information Centre, located near the ski lifts, also has locally produced brochure which outlines a number of walks in the area including some easy ones around the village as well as a number on the mountain tops.

SOURCE: www.smh.com.au/travel
Picture: personal collection

The beauty of Centennial Park in winter. Sometimes in the afternoon, my friend and I were jogging around this park. It's not too far from my apartment in Kingsford. Centennial Park is a large public, urban park that occupies 220 hectares in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Centennial Park is located 4 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Randwick.

Centennial Park is also a small residential suburb, on the western fringe of the parkland, which is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney. The government began plans for a celebratory park in 1886 and passed an Act of Parliament in the following year. Some of the grandiose plans for the area, such as a museum and a national convention building, never eventuated.

Centennial Park was dedicated by Sir Henry Parkes in January 1888 to celebrate the first 100 years of European settlement in Australia and described by him as 'emphatically the people's park'. The Governor-General, Lord Hopetoun dedicated the park 'to the people of New South Wales forever'.

Centennial Park is the largest of the three parks that make up Centennial Parklands. It is 2.20 square kilometres in area, originally swampland, known as Lachlan Swamps and is located adjacent to another large public space, Moore Park. It is administered by the Centennial Park & Moore Park Trust, a NSW Government agency whose responsibilities cover low-lying wetlands, ornamental lakes, pine and native forests, expanses of grass, to playing fields, a golf course, tennis and netball courts and the Entertainment Quarter at nearby Moore Park. It is one of Australia's most famous parks and is listed on the Register of the National Estate.

The Federation Monument, which consists of the Commonwealth Stone (1901) and the Federation Pavilion (1988), is significant as the site of the official ceremony to mark the Federation of Australia and the inauguration of the Commonwealth of Australia on 1 January 1901.

Grand Drive is the circular main road through the park. It runs for 3.8km and is part of the Sydney Marathon course, which was used in the 2000 Summer Olympics. The drive is separated into five concentric circles, with the outer track used for cycling or rollerblading, fourth largest for car driving, third for car parking and many trees, the second is a paved pathway for walking, also used for running, the smallest being a dirt track for horseriding. Ranger's cottage, designed by Walter Liberty Vernon, an example of the Federation Bungalow style

Source: wikipedia
Picture: personal collection