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| Family photo taken in 1962 and 1964 at Simanggang Town (Now Sri Aman Town) |
The 1962 photo was in commemoration of birth of a new family member, the first girl Stella Wong. My mother looked happy with the first baby girl. Her happiness was right, decades later when she was serious ill, it was the daughters who took care of her (not the sons).
The second 1964 photo was a meaningful photo. It commemorate the birth of second daughter Evelyn Wong, it also celebrate the successful operation of Stella, then this is also a farewell photo.
Shortly after this photo, my brother Frankie and I were sent back to Kota Kinabalu to stay with the grandmother for 3 years. And I never return to visit Simanggang until 44 years later in 2008.
My childhood was grew up in a tranquil British Colonial Town Simanggang Town. My family album do not have a single photo of how the town looked like in those day. In the 1960s, only those wealthy can afford a camera.
And from the internet there are so few photos of this town that after several searches, I could only find 2 images of Simanggang in the 1960s (from Hugh Blackmer's web site). Then a couple more of the 1970s (from 長屋攝影社 ).
These are the two images:
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| Looking down toward the bazaar from Fort Alice (at the base of the radio tower) |
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| Simanggang in 1966, from the radio tower |
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Lupar River in 1970s. Looking down from Radio Tower on the hill opposite Alice Fort |
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| Simanggang in the 1970s. Looking down from Radio Tower |
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In 2012, I draw this 1960s impression of the Club House on the hill with children in front the club welcoming father Christmas Santa Claus descending from the sky (a helicopter). |
Engage with Nature
During my childhood years in Simanggang between 1960 - 1964 there was no TV, no Internet, no Smart phone. I spend most of my time engage with nature. The three most often things I gazed upon are : Sunset, River and Rainbow
If I ever to go back to Sri Aman again, I will look for these historical things in the town: the Old trees, my Old school and wooden houses.
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| Old trees, my Old school and wooden houses |
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