Jalan-jalan Cari Makan in Kelantan

We arrived in Tanah Merah train station at 7:28am Thursday morning. Went to Cec's parents' holiday house in Bukit Mas to have breakfast and to freshen up.




By 10am, we were already on our way to Kota Bharu (KB), driven by Kalmat (named after Karl Marx, but with a Kelantanese spelling). He has a lucrative business selling air tebu (sugar cane drink) in various markets in Kota Bharu, easily making RM60 per hour. The secret of his success is convenience. The small business owners in the markets (selling food items, textile and clothing) don't usually have the time to leave their shop (and their potential revenue) to go for a drink break. So Kalmat would go to them with the drinks. Who couldn't resist air tebu in a hot day?

We met Ayie (our matchmaker, if you remember) in Medan Selera Buluh Kubu for lunch. Freshly cooked Kelantanese style food is something not to be missed while in KB. After skipping rice several days while in Kuala Lumpur (KL), I spoiled myself with a heavy meal. There were deep fried ikan kerisik, gulai telur ikan, gulai kerabu, various ulam and pucuk, and of course, budu mixed with durian. Thank you Ayie, for lunch. Yummy, God help my tummy.

After lunch it was shopping time for the ladies. We opted for Pasar Lama MPKB because Cec and her mom have never been there. Kalmat was instantly recognized by the vendors there and they were asking him for air tebu. He skipped his business for the weekend because he wanted to take us around the town.

Cec's mom bought a few things at the market. The prices were cheaper but they preferred Pasar Buluh Kubu as it is not as cramped as Pasar Lama MPKB.

We stopped by Ayie's house for tea. He lives in Panchor, east of KB and not too far from the Pengkalan Chepa airport. His parents and siblings built four nice bungalows in the same compound. Properties in KB are not as expensive as in KL. That would be another reason I'd prefer to move to Kelantan. :)

We spent the night in Ketereh and the next day, we had nasi kerabu for breakfast with my parents in Pasir Mas. It was Friday, which is an off day in Kelantan, and the place was crowded. The nasi kerabu was not bad by any standards. At RM2.50 a plate with either grilled meat or chicken, it was a good deal.

At noon we attended Cec's relative's kenduri in Jerteh which was an hour drive from Bukit Mas. The place was not to far from Ayah Pin's compound, but we couldn't be bothered to have a photo visit because the day was simply too hot. A visit would have made an interesting blog entry, though.

My parents tagged along as my mom used to know Cec's grand aunt while she was growing up in Jelawat, Bachok. They served delicious gulai kawah and ayam goreng at the kenduri. Hmm, another challenging day for the tummy.

Cec's parents had to be back in Rembau for the wedding of Cec's second cousin. After sending them and Bakhtiar's family off at Tanah Merah train station, my parents and us proceeded to have dinner at the famous (to the Kelantanese, at least) Mee Kg. Pek. We went to one of their branches in Batu 11, Ketereh. Opened at 8pm, the restaurant was quickly flocked by hungry patrons. I think there are only two items on their menu: Mee Goreng and Mee Rebus. We all had mee rebus. It was easily the best mee I had in my life. Slurp!

Well, today we simply relaxed at home. Brought Cec to check out the weekly market in Pasar Ketereh, but we didn't buy anything. Our train from Pasir Mas station will be leaving at 6pm. In two hours, we'll be visiting my sister Mariah in Bunut Satok, which would be on our way to Pasir Mas. She's serving Kuih Katun and Lompat Tikam for tea. :)


Lompat Tikam


Kuih Katun

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