The 'kacang-putih' man

For those of us who grew up in Kuching, the Sarawak Museum Garden is certain to be part of our childhood memory - the swings, the 'kacang putih' * man, the Royal Navy band rehearsing at the bandstand. Years later and many changes after, we still gravitate to this place of our memories as we did this Saturday afternoon before dinner at Ivy's.

The change is not for the better; the playground is dissected by a pompous Heroes Monument - no landscape architect worth his salt would have designed this so one suspects a politician must have done. Perhaps this is why I visit every so often; a sub-conscious need to ensure that enough of this place remains intact, along with my memories of it.

My Kuching skyline with the bottom half of the building cut off reminds me of old photographs taken with Instamatic cameras - often what the lens captures is not what is seen through the view-finder.

The porch of one of the small office buildings that line the driveway to the Museum

* roasted or steamed chick peas sold in rolled newspaper cones by (usually) Indian vendors