BSB, Good Night!

Bandar Seri Begawan, May 14th 2012

Such a relief it was to find the shops around Le Gallery Hotel back in sight. I went to a mini mart to buy the cheapest mineral water I could find. 1 BND for a 1500 ml bottle. Too bad, unlike in Singapore, tap water in Brunei can't be drunk.

There were few restaurants around but most of them were already clearing up. They were in the midst of putting the chairs and table in. It was not yet nine. Isn't the night still young?

I hurried to a still opened restaurant. There were 2 men eating while chatting with ease. I judged that this restaurant must stay opened until the night grows older. The martabak-man in front of the restaurant had already cleaned up, though.

On the menu there was a wider variety of kwee tiaw and mee (noodle) than in my country's. One thing caught my eyes: "Kweetiauw Bandung". Bandung is the city where I was born. But "Bandung" here surely mustn't mean a city's name. I asked the waitress, in Indonesian which is close to Malay, "Kwee Tiaw Bandung itu seperti apa?"

"Kwee tiaw with gravy," she answered in Malay.

"Eh? What's the difference with this one?" I pointed on the item "Kwee Tiaw Kuah" on the menu which means "Kwee Tiaw with gravy" also.

"This one is called 'Kwee Tiaw Bandung'. This one is called 'Kwee Tiaw Kuah'," was her answer.

"The difference?"

"The names are different."

"I understand the names are different. But what's different with the content?"

"Errr..." she sighed. She called another waiter, but seemed to be more than just a waiter. He explained to me very clearly about the differences between the two. Kwee Tiaw Kuah's gravy is watery and Kwee Tiaw Bandung's gravy is more sauce-like.

Being sentimental about my birthplace, I picked up Kwee Tiaww Bandung. Here it is. It simply would be Kwee Tiaw Siram in my country, I suppose. 4 BND it was, including a glass of plain water with a big jar standing next to it for free refill. Not too badlah.

It was here that I learned when you say "suam", in Malay it means "not cold not hot". In Indonesian it's also the same, but we don't use this word regarding to beverages. And then when you say "sejuk", for instance "teh sejuk", it means "ice tea".