Orang asli villages pulling in the tourists

Orang asli villages pulling in the tourists
BY Nik Naizi Husin
Friday August 25, 2006

MUADZAM SHAH: Visits to orang asli villages are so popular with foreign tourists they have been included in the itinerary for the homestay programmes here.

State Arts, Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Women’s Affairs Committee chairman Datuk Maznah Mazlan said the orang asli in Kampong Kedaik, Kampong Tanam and a few other surrounding villages still carried out traditional activities like fishing in ponds, streams and making blow pipes.

She said foreign tourists loved to follow the orang asli fishing or observe them making blowpipes and sometimes even tried to do it on their own.

She added that they loved the food they got during their stay here.

School children from Toyogawa Junior High School - who had participated in a homestay programme in Muadzam Shah in Pahang - trying to play the gamelan. On hand to help is state exco member Datuk Maznah Mazlan (in blue baju kurung).

“The lemang periuk kera (glutinous rice steamed in the monkey cup plant) is among some unique local food that is available in Muadzam Shah,” Maznah said on Tuesday after meeting 23 Japanese visitors who had participated in a homestay programme here recently.

The 18 students from Toyogawa Junior High School, aged between 11 and 16 years and accompanied by group leaders and officials lead by Masakatsu Maru, spent five days at the village.

Muadzam Shah homestay programme co-ordinator Abdul Khalib Abdullah said 11 “foster parents” had taken care of the group throug-hout their stay.

Abdul Khalib said the homestay programme started to get foreign tourists in 2001, attracting mainly repeat as well as new visitors from Japan. - The Star.

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