Wanton noodles

Our last weekend in Malaysia was quite eventful. First, my talk to students at University Malaya went really well. Though I couldn't finish presenting all I had intended, I think I covered the main points. Immediately after my talk, I picked up Brian from the bus terminal (he was arriving from Singapore). My good friend, Pari, was very generous in letting me use her car for the day. That Friday evening itself, we drove with my sister to Ipoh to visit my parents.

As our visit coincided with Malaysia's General Elections, traffic on the freeways was very heavy. The drive took four hours when it usually takes less than three. Needless to say there was a lot of excitement as well as anxiety in the air with the impending change in government. We were all glued to our tv set till late at night as we cheered the wins of the Opposition Coalition. (Below is a banner by the Opposition Party - Democratic Action Party) As Malaysian politics is too complex to be discussed here, if you are interested, you can check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysian_general_election,_2008Another highlight of this visit was breakfasts at my uncle's (dad's younger half-brother) wanton noodle stall (and no, my uncle's not wanton, he's a decent guy). Many of you know what wantons are. Well, wanton noodles are just blanched noodles drizzled with soysauce and oil and served with wanton (and sometimes topped with sliced Chinese barbecue pork). Since Brian loves wanton noodles (as does my best friend, Fong) we decided it was time to pay my uncle a visit.

He and his wife serve up one of the best wanton noodles we've had (and I'm not saying this because we're related!). His stall is famous for its seafood-meat dumplings (suikow) and humongous wantons (served in delicious pork broth). On top of that, he makes his own barbecue pork every day (unlike other stalls which buy them wholesale). If you're ever visiting Ipoh, let me know and I'll let you know where to find my uncle! And, oh, interestingly enough, his two sisters in Penang are also in the hawker food business. One also runs a wanton noodle stall and another a sweet hot Chinese desserts stall. She was featured in a food guide program on tv recently and apparently since then, her business has been roaring!

Meanwhile, here are some pixs from our trip.