LMT100 Unit 4 notes

Reading Activity 1

Read the text below and answer all the questions that follow.
1 “Are we there yet?” I ask in Malay between gasping breaths, while looking for
a flat surface to take a short rest on. The Orang Asli guide in front turns
around, flashes a bemused grin and shakes his head. The elderly man, whom
we call Pak Cik Syam, is insanely fit and muscular. He leaps over roots on the
ground like an Olympian. The sight of a twenty-something city boy struggling
to hike a hill might be laughable to him. The media are on an expedition
organised by Tourism Kelantan to hunt for the rare rafflesia at Kampung Ladoi
in the Kuala Betis Orang Asli settlement of Gua Musang, Kelantan. A glimpse
of the bloom is not guaranteed, though.

2 “If luck is on our side, we might be able to see the rafflesia. It blooms for three
days only before it starts to decompose,” our guide explains.

3 “Two hours of an extremely bumpy ride on a 4WD up a dirt road and then this
strenuous climb… I better see that darn flower,” I think.

4 “The rafflesia is like a pregnant lady,” Pak Cik Syam offers this bit of trivia as
we make our way down the mountain. The flowering process, according to
him, takes about nine months – much like a human pregnancy.

5 A dozen mosquito bites and several mumbled curses later, we finally chance
upon a rafflesia that is in full bloom. The sight of the flower – especially when
you factor in the hellish hike – is glorious. And as luck will have it, there are
many seedlings within the area. While going up has been a challenge, the
descent is the unnerving part of the expedition. There are no branches or tree
trunks to hold on to. At times, I am crawling on the ground to steady myself.

6 But then again, you do not have to be extremely fit to go on this expedition.
Our entourage comprises a miscellaneous bunch: photographers lugging
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heavy equipment, a group from Tourism Malaysia (some of whom are

possibly Awie fanboys as they were humming his songs often), who squeal
with delight when we pass a stream, and an asthmatic female travel writer,
among others. Despite the arduous adventure, everyone makes it back safe
and sound. Naturally, all I want to do after the hike is to take a cold shower
and a long nap. This is why the pristine Kampung Redip in Pos Hau is such a
welcome sight. The Orang Asli settlement – which doubles up as a village
homestay site – is about 20 minutes’ drive from Kampung Ladoi. Lush rolling
green hills envelop the area and a crystal-clear stream runs through the
village. It is a haven after the long journey.

7 “You will be sleeping by the bank of a river tonight,” the village president,
Razali Ayeh, says when he passes my chalet keys to me. Constructed out of
bamboo shoots and dry leaves, the property can look scary from the outside to
those who are accustomed to city comforts.

8 Step inside, though, and the interior is actually very cosy despite its basic
furnishings. Two simple mattresses are placed side by side on the floor with
two power sockets above them. My initial fears of bathing at a communal
shower disappear when I spot the spacious bathroom. I am really looking
forward to bedtime with the sound of the flowing river lulling me to sleep.

9 That is, until a Facebook friend commented that my accommodation for the
night looks like something out of a famous Thai horror movie, Nang Nak.
There are 12 chalets at Kampung Redip and they cost between RM50 and
RM70 a night, depending on the size of the unit.

10 “The chalets are built and operated by the families here and the neighbouring
settlements. That is why no two units look the same. It is also why the
interiors are all different,” Razali explains. Guests have the option of setting up
tents at the designated camp site.

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LMT100 Unit 4 notes

11 Located about 56 kilometres away from the town of Gua Musang, the village
has become more accessible in recent years. The dirt road has been evened
out and several bridges have been built across the many creeks found
enroute to the settlement. Tourism Kelantan officer Muhammad Faiz Ismail
says the infrastructure upgrades have been done to improve the flow of
visitors to the village. And if it is up to villager Pak Ahmad, the more visitors
the merrier.

12 “We like to invite people here and make more friends,” the elderly man tells
me as the rest of my travelling companions take a dip at the nearby Leurew
Waterfall.

13 “If possible, we would like to see Westerners at our village, too, so that we can
converse with them in English and share with them our culture,” Pak Ahmad
adds.

14 An insight into the culture of the Temiar tribe is definitely something that tops
my itinerary at Kampung Redip. From cooking demonstrations to the
traditional Sewang performance, there is much to learn here. The Sewang
performance incorporates solo singing, the playing of musical instruments and
all-round merry-making.

15 Truly, it is the warm hospitality of the villagers that makes my stay at Kampung
Redip a special one. The fact that both Kampung Redip and Kampung Ladoi
are located on high ground does not mean that they were not affected by the
devastating flood in 2014. Whenever you speak to the Kelantanese here,
they still talk about this unfortunate incident.

16 “The flood was like a festival,” our 4WD driver relates on our way down to the
Gua Musang town. “Speedboats and ambulances were dispatched from other

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states and there was a lot of personnel trying to evacuate people,” he adds, as
we pass hilly land that has been cleared for plantations. Access to the villages
was cut off and helicopters were used to distribute essentials.

17 Remnants of the disaster are still visible today. Destroyed wooden homes and
bridges can be seen everywhere, as we drive past the old Gua Musang KTMB
train station to the Ethnobotany Park. Fortunately for the forestry research and
recreational centre, the venue was relatively unaffected.

18 Today, the place – which is managed by the Southern Kelantan Development

Board (Kesedar) – houses a herbal park and holds activities such as abseiling,
flying fox and rock climbing. Meanwhile, the Swee Nyet Kong temple – which
the locals call Tokong Mek – in Pulai (about 15 kilometres from Gua Musang)
is still recovering from the floods. A suspension bridge that linked the main
temple to the cave temple opposite it was destroyed back then. Visitors will
have to take a longer route today.

19 The main temple is still an absolutely beautiful venue, though. A calming water
feature lends a sense of *Zen to the main altar. However, it is the nearby cave
temple that takes my breath away. It takes 165 flight of steps to reach the top.
But the view from above of both the surrounding lake and the green foliage –
much like the rafflesia – is so worth the climb.

Source: http://www.star2.com/travel/malaysia/2016/09/17/live-the-life-of-the-
orang-asli-in-kampung-redip-kelantan/#GRLAUBo6av1ETB3q.99
Glossary:

*Zen – enlightenment, freedom of worries, calmness (Buddhist philosophy)

Section A

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LMT100 Unit 4 notes

Match the words in Column A to their meanings in Column B as they are used
in the passage.
Column A Column B
e.g. bemused (paragraph 1) : puzzled
1. rare (paragraph 1) : uncommon
used to
2. glimpse (paragraph 1) : quick look talk
said quietly
3. decompose (paragraph 2) : rot unimportant
4. trivia (paragraph 4) : information information
puzzled
5. mumbled (paragraph 5) : said quietly quick look
6. hellish (paragraph 5) : very difficult rot
very difficult
7. entourage (paragraph 6) : group group
8. accustomed to (paragraph 7) : used to villages
first
9. initial (paragraph 8) : first vegetation
10. settlements (paragraph 10) : villages destructive
small streams
11. creeks (paragraph 11) : small streams sent
12. converse (paragraph 13) : talk holy
uncommon
13. devastating (paragraph 15) : destructive
14. dispatched (paragraph 16) : sent
15. foliage (paragraph 19) :vegetation

Section B
State what the following words or phrases refer to in the text.
e.g. It (paragraph 2) : The rafflesia

1. whom (paragraph 6) : A group from Tourism Malaysia

2. he (paragraph 7) : the village president, Razali Ayeh

3. they (paragraph 9) : the 12 chalets

4. here (paragraph 12) : Kampung Redip

5. it (paragraph 18) : The main temple

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Section C
Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer, e.g. A if A is the answer.

1. It is difficult to find the rafflesia in full bloom because

I. it only lasts for three days.2
II. the access to its habitat has been cut off.
III. it is hard to climb the mountain where it is found. 5
IV. most of the rafflesia seedlings were destroyed by the flood in 2014.
A. I and II C. I and III
B. II and IV D. III and IV

2. The chalet might seem frightening to some people because

A. it has a spacious bathroom.
B. it is located near the riverbank.
C. of the sound of the nearby river.
D. it is made from bamboo shoots and dry leaves. 7

3. The Orang Asli’s chalets are

i. all the same.
ii. built along the river.
iii. operated by a group of companies.
iv. rented out at different rates based on their size.
A. I and II C. II and IV
B. II and III D. III and IV

4. Which of the following statements about the Sewang performance is FALSE?

A. People enjoy themselves during the performance.
B. Solo singing is one of the elements of the performance.
C. The traditional performance includes cooking demonstrations.
D. Solo singing during the performance is accompanied by music.

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LMT100 Unit 4 notes

Section D
Answer the following questions.

1. Why does Pak Cik Syam compare the rafflesia to a pregnant lady? P4

2. Why is the writer so happy to see Kg.Redip in Pos Hau?

i. to take a cold shower
ii. to have a long nap
iii. lush rolling greenhills
iv. he sees crystal clear stream
v. the journey was long

3. Why does the 4WD driver say the flood was like a “festival’?
i. during the flood, it was very busy
ii. during the flood, it was very noisy
iii. during the flood, there were a lot of people

4. The writer enjoys visiting the Swee Nyet Kang Temple because of:
i. its calming water feature
ii. the view from above of the surrounding lake
iii. the view from above the green foliage