Birthday

I would never remember ever having my birthday celebrated in school. But every meal I had was a celebration of some sort.

But I remember having my first meal with a family in Limbang. I believe my father brought me to his Bisaya friend's home for that meal. For the first time I had fried mee din. Iban cooking at that time was very oil-less. Much of our food was just boiled in water and a little bit of salt. Any technology attempted would be the use of bamboo or pansur style of cooking.

Thus my first stir fry was a very significant moment in my life. It was also a great encounter with fried ikan bilis.

Can you ever remember falling in love with stir fried mee din with ikan bilis?

I was then a little boy of 12, fresh from the ulu where fish jumped in clear waters and drinking water was just a scoop from a mountain stream. Coming to a big town like Miri was more or less a culture shock.