Again Anson

In less than 2 weeks, I was back in Teluk Intan again, this time round to settle some legal issues. Something leftover from my father's time. A messy affair where my late father's name was on the land deed of the ancestral home. Two other names were on the land deed, and my late father was just a proxy. After his death, the ownership transferred to my mother. Finally after decades, someone in the family decided to buy the land, and everyone agreed to sell (there was some drama before this). Since everything was in motion, I quickly fetched mum to Teluk Intan to settle the legalities. Definitely don't want things to drag to my generation. Arrived in Teluk Intan bright and early. We were so early, that we had time to have a bowl of curry noodles before the lawyer firm opened. The signing of the sales and purchase agreement was done in a jiffy. 

With the main objective achieved, we went to meet my aunt (my late father's sister-in-law) so that she could bring us to the ancestral home which was located along Jalan Pasar, right along the Perak River. Mum and I had not visited in decades. The wooden ancestral home that I remember from the old photographs wasn't there anymore. Termite damage had rendered it beyond repair, and today a single storey brick house stands there. From the entrance of the house right up to the river's edge was a cemetery of refrigerators and washing machines. Quite a sight. Beside it was a factory where baskets were woven from strips of bamboo. The baskets were those typically used at wet markets to transport vegetables. 

Spent some time talking with the distant relative, and during lulls in the conversation, I peered at the old family photos and antique furniture from the old house. Among the most memorable was the portrait of my great grandparents which portrayed him as a fifth rank official of the Qing Dynasty according to the silver pheasant badge on the robe. 

When we said our farewells, it had started to drizzle a little. During the short trip, mum also wanted to visit one of dad's sworn brothers (seven had left this world) over at Jalan Sithambaran Pillay. The drizzle had became a downpour the moment we were greeted by the elderly couple who were living at the wooden stilt house. We practically chatted underneath the house and once again I took the chance to look at the old photos scattered here and there. 

It was getting late, so we dropped my aunt back at her home prepared for the journey home. Recreated an old photo that mum took at Batu Tenggek when she was a young girl. The mounted stone is a war memorial with the following inscription:

 "At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them." 

~ For the Fallen, Laurence Binyon

And no visit to Teluk Intan is complete without eating at least one packet of the famous Anson Chu Cheong Fun from Liew Kee.