GOLF IN KUCHING SARAWAK

I went to Kuching, Sarawak for golf from 27-29 Dec 07. This is the Damai Beach Golf Club (DBGC). The course lies next to the South China Sea and is therefore subject to the effects of weather. We couldn't finish our round there as the NE Monsoon accompanied us there and light was also failing.

This is one of the holes next to the South China Sea not played because we stopped at Hole 13. Holes 15-18 are especially nice as one plays next to the sea. DBGC is a 6,318m long par 72, course-rated 72.9 and slope-rated 129 from blue tees. Hole 11 has a water hazard with crocodiles lurking within. How exciting! We could have had a better round, weather permitting.

The staging area of DBGC. Mt Santubong in the background reminds me of the Bali Handara mountain backdrop. Ever mystical and alluring with its perennial cloud cover!

The clubhouse of the Sarawak Golf Club, the oldest club there. There are four nines separated into the Old and the New Courses. The new course, comprising the Santubong and Matang 9s, is a 6,118 m long par 72, course-rated 72.4 and slope-rated 129 from blue tees. We played there two days. Our first game was not so enjoyable because the fairways were soggy. Visitor weekend greens fees is 157 RM for 18 holes.

From one of the tee-boxes of the SGC.

Teh leaves the green disappointed after missing a short putt of a fairly difficult par 3.

A water hazard that adds difficulty to two fairways of the SGC.

The Kuching River is one of two that dissect Kuching. The other is the Santubong River.

Beautiful and elaborate temple eaves.

This is one of the two old temples in Kuching. The other was being renovated.

I don't know whether the building is lop-sided or I was. Tried as I might, I still caught it sloping to one side........

Sarawak Hainan Association Building.

A Kuching side-street that reminds me of Singapore's Chulia Street some 35 years past.

A reminder of Kuching's colonial past and the white Rajas.

Such lush greenery gives a serene feeling right in the heart of town.

A contrast between the old and the new. The building being erected across the river is the State Assembly Building.

Some of the stalls in a Kuching market. It is not something to be seen in somewhere more cosmopolitan.

This is the seafood centre a stone's throw away from the Holiday Inn, where we stayed. Dining is alfresco, the food is fresh and competition is stiff. We dined there two nights and our meals cost us circa 130 RM each, with fish, prawns, cockles and what have you thrown in.

This is fried oysters a la Kuching. In Singapore, you have to find the oysters, in Xiamen, there is too much oysters but in Kuching, the oysters are stuck onto the dough. I wonder how they do it - interesting!

This dish is a must try. The vegetable is called "paku" (nails) and is picked from a type of ferns. Some chilly and belacan are added - that's why it is sedap!