This is also where people catch boat rides to Sumatra, Indonesia. A shot of the surrounding environs... All looks a bit 'ulu' no?
This be a picture of myself on the pier...
And some shots of the boat which would take us to Pulau Ketam...
A shot of Pulau Ketam as we approach as well as a pictures of the pier that greets us immediately after we disembark. I can't remember how long the trip lasts but I think it is around half-an-hour. Not all that long...
Pulau Ketam is a rustic settlement which started when some Chinese fisherman decided to build a house on the island so that they could stay there after fishing for crabs. The settlement grew and in its heyday, comprised more than 20,000 residents. As is the case in recent times with most communities in more far-flung areas, however, the population has now shrunk to around 4,000 as more and more residents prefer to live closer to the major cities with all their amenities. Still, as we shall see later, the island is pretty self-sufficient, with a hospital, primary and secondary schools, banks and numerous shops selling anything from basic necessities to luxuries.
But I get ahead of myself. To get a comprehensive look round the island, one would almost certainly need to rent bikes, which are readily available in the central area just past the jetty. These are pics of my friend and I on our respective rides... Notice how I have changed out from my office clothes...
Most of the houses on Pulau Ketam are built on stilts, which makes me surmise that at high tide, these abodes which would be surrounded by water. One can only imagine what a sight that would be. Notice how narrow the pathways are, however. So heaven be with you should you not be able to control your bike well or encounter an unexpected wobble...
I must say that there are quite a lot of sloping narrow bridges on the island and so cycling around, especially on a hot day, could be hard work. That is why some people later told us that the best time to tour around would be in the evening (which would mean having to stay overnight as I believe there are not night ferries... As these pictures would show, the exertions took a toll on my friend far more than on me.
There were shops all around the island so that residents would not need to go all the way to the town square to get their groceries....
And even a bakery where bread was baked fresh....
For delivery, as we would later find out, to the outlet in the town square...
There were also schools - two primary and one secondary, if I remember correctly...
This was the fire station...
The archway to a temple...
And some other random shots of sights on the island community...
This was some unused, uninhabited space... I was wondering if this presented a real estate opportunity....
Until I found that it did not come with an adjoining toilet...
Which I was quite curious about anyway... I mean, how many of us have ever seen the view looking down from one these things, so...
I was just about to give you guys a close up picture but something started splashing violently at the bottom so away I ran... Anyhow, moving on....
This was the town centre.... Sort of like the CBD.... As it was the weekend, most of the commercial buildings were understandably closed.
The marketplace was busy though, with stalls selling fresh food and various different shops selling various different things.
And these are some shots of the fishing enclave at one corner of the island, which was where we went next...
This is the Information Technology centre...
And this is the police station....
All in all, it was an eye-opener, not just for the sights which one is unlikely to find anymore in Singapore but also for the atmosphere. The locals seem less hurried and are exceedingly polite, always taking extra care to give us very precise directions and telling us places of interest. Perhaps it is because they know tourists are the lifeblood of the island's economy but more likely it is because they are less afflicted by the rigours and stresses of city life.
And it seems that this laid-back, relaxed attitude permeates the island and all that call the place home...
Cute right? I may actually have patted them but I was not so sure where they may have been lying earlier... Somewhere like there?
Maybe if I come back again, I'll spend the night at one of the several hotels found near the jetty. But on this trip, I had to get back to KL as I wanted to be at Bukit Bintang to catch the Champions League Final...
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