This year my family did not celebrate Gawai as we have moved to Kajang, Spend our holidays in Cameron Highlands...
So this Gawai there were no Palauing....
No Drinks
No fish
No Panggang Pork (Pictures from Nadai Nama Nama)
Exterp from Charles[CHARLES Fri 24 May 2002 (C) Britong Noodle News (BNN)]
Yes, those were the days. Thereafter, sometimes I miss Gawai, sometimes Christmas. Most of the time I miss both. Oh..., absence really makes the heart grow fonder. Last year I went back to the kampung for Gawai 'en famille'. The eating, drinking, house visiting and other merry-making were really enjoyable. But I was 'frust' when the cultural showcase that I promised the kids did not materialise - I told them that there would be non-stop gong-beating, berejanging grandmas who would give us grundungs like Santa Claus and many hanging skulls on the altar adorned with the old Sarawak flags and Baginda Kwin's portrait. Where have all the rituals gone? Maybe I was expecting too much, or trying to recreate the dogone days from a child's perspective of a bigger world.
WHAT FOOD OR DRINKS SHOUD WE SERVE DURING GAWAI TIME?
Well, since there is no such thing as a dry Gawai (or a buih-less JNP), then what is Gawai without chap langkau, chap apek, Tiger, Orang Jepun and Vat 69? But, if dry is what you want, then so be it. Let's get the mathematics straight - a bottle of Johnnie Walker (not the smuggled or duty not paid one) will get you many cartons of 7UP or Coca-Cola, enough to serve all the guests. And a kilogram of white pig's meat is equivalent to biscuits and cakes for half of your guests, minus the Milo. Calculate the savings yourself.
Also, chicken, pork and pekasams of any species were the compulsory menu for Gawai. Just one small problem though - some may not be that halal so will cause a bit of a problem for some of the guests. But, even if you go all the way to ensure their halality there is no guarantee that the food will be touched.
Conclusion - most of the gawai expenditure goes to food and drink. Thus it would be nice if we just use the cheaper ones. Furthermore, the ones we traditionally serve are not good for our health and safety - intoxicating, cause vomitting, affecting driving concentration, high-cholesterol, cancer-causing, etc. Replace with prahok or udang gagau. That's the advice you get if you ask a medical doctor or a religious adviser. But for us, we just want to know one thing - will we get the kicks and have a good time??
Exterp from Charles[CHARLES Fri 24 May 2002 (C) Britong Noodle News (BNN)]
Yes, those were the days. Thereafter, sometimes I miss Gawai, sometimes Christmas. Most of the time I miss both. Oh..., absence really makes the heart grow fonder. Last year I went back to the kampung for Gawai 'en famille'. The eating, drinking, house visiting and other merry-making were really enjoyable. But I was 'frust' when the cultural showcase that I promised the kids did not materialise - I told them that there would be non-stop gong-beating, berejanging grandmas who would give us grundungs like Santa Claus and many hanging skulls on the altar adorned with the old Sarawak flags and Baginda Kwin's portrait. Where have all the rituals gone? Maybe I was expecting too much, or trying to recreate the dogone days from a child's perspective of a bigger world.
WHAT FOOD OR DRINKS SHOUD WE SERVE DURING GAWAI TIME?
Well, since there is no such thing as a dry Gawai (or a buih-less JNP), then what is Gawai without chap langkau, chap apek, Tiger, Orang Jepun and Vat 69? But, if dry is what you want, then so be it. Let's get the mathematics straight - a bottle of Johnnie Walker (not the smuggled or duty not paid one) will get you many cartons of 7UP or Coca-Cola, enough to serve all the guests. And a kilogram of white pig's meat is equivalent to biscuits and cakes for half of your guests, minus the Milo. Calculate the savings yourself.
Also, chicken, pork and pekasams of any species were the compulsory menu for Gawai. Just one small problem though - some may not be that halal so will cause a bit of a problem for some of the guests. But, even if you go all the way to ensure their halality there is no guarantee that the food will be touched.
Conclusion - most of the gawai expenditure goes to food and drink. Thus it would be nice if we just use the cheaper ones. Furthermore, the ones we traditionally serve are not good for our health and safety - intoxicating, cause vomitting, affecting driving concentration, high-cholesterol, cancer-causing, etc. Replace with prahok or udang gagau. That's the advice you get if you ask a medical doctor or a religious adviser. But for us, we just want to know one thing - will we get the kicks and have a good time??
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