Sungai Jemaluang a hidden gem

If you love to fish bring your fishing rods to Sungai Jemaluang. It's a small clean river about 8km south of Mersing. It is not connected to a town and has good fishing according to villagers. If you do visit, be a good citizen and keep the area clean by picking up after your selves.

Organic Farms

Avocado tree at Iskandar Inn

Organic foods are not popular in Malaysia as in other parts of the world, but the change to more organic sustainable farming is coming. It comes from 'demand' and as a consumer you can ask, 'is this organic or pesticide free ?'

Already quite a bit of stuff in Mersing in grown organically which means no pesticides and the ground is free from poison (such as mercury from illegal gold mines) and other commercial chemical fertilizers.

I know its more expensive, but who wants to put chemicals and poisons into our own bodies.

For example, Gucharan our local dairy farmer, rears his cows in a sustainable and hormone free way.

The cows produce milk that is delicious and the tairu (yogurt) is some of the best to be found, as good as the best french yogurt and definitely much better than things like Yoplait.

Then there is the organic farm in Kluang, run by Zenxin, which grows organic fruits and vegetables. There is even a store there that sells their organic produce. Stop by when you drive from KL to Mersing through the Kluang road. Kahang is another town where organic farming is taking place. I have ot nconfirmed it yet but its seems they grow organic rice.

A friend's sister is involved in this positive movement on the Virgin Islands. Maybe we can learn from our distant cousins there, after all its another tropical paradise.

http://growvi.org/

Macam-macam goreng

Translation: things fried, or fried things.

One of my favourite places in and around Mersing is Penyabong, which is a small town centred around a jetty. A fishing town, you can purchase fresh fish straight from the boat at 4pm. The best part of going to Penyabong is the fresh macam-macam goreng. There's a small stall situated across the jetty owned by a boisterous Malay woman, who serves up a fried storm: fried crabs (ketam goreng), fried prawns on a skewer (head included, udang goreng), fried banana (pisang goreng), and fried fish cake (keropok lekor). You can purchase her dried keropok, and chilli sauce in a bottle.

Penyabong is located north of Mersing. The directions are convoluted, so ask for directions along the way. Penyabong is approximately 30 minutes drive away.