Macrobrachium rosenbergii ! Yup, you would have
scratched your head pronouncing this and probably asked “ What the hell is Ivan
talking about ? “ , right? Well, that is
the scientific name for giant freshwater prawns or udang galah in Bahasa
Melayu. Now, you get the picture?
“ Wanna go prawn fishing, Mr.Ivan?”
That was the question that was popped to me by my colleague, Firdaus as we sat
for small talk before starting our mortuaristic work in our office one solemn;
turning to brighter, Friday morning as weekend approaches. In fact, I asked
twice if he was sure and I was told that we needed to get small live prawns for
our endeavor in the night. Yes, you heard me right. The fishing will be done in
the night time. I immediately answered that I was game for night prawn fishing
on a Friday night. To be honest, I was excited. I knew that prawn fishing isn’t
easy while the harvest can be small if one doesn’t rent the sampan out in the
river. But I was ready for anything. It’s the Royal Rangers way la………
That day, I was busy calling my
brother, Liang if he could get some live prawns for me and when he said he will
do his best, I was excited as Liang usually delivers the goods nicely. True
enough he did while he added three ikan
ketutu or marble goby or soon hock
fish to his tank collection after scooping out small prawns for me at
nearby ponds and rivers. So, I asked
Firdaus enthusiastically of the time of pickup and place to go that night. The
venue was Kg.Jorak in Muar and the pickup time was by 7.30pm. That was set.
Anyway, looking for Firdaus place was
a nightmare for me as googlemaps brought me to a different place and after a
while, managed to get to his place. My sifu, Firdaus brought two rods &
reel and a small Banax bag – a far cry from my backpack and two rods &
reels too. We were off and throughout the journey, we talked of things that had
happened and general fellowship between two colleagues.
At about 9.30pm, we arrived at
Kg.Jorak and I was pleasantly surprised.
It was really a river side kampong with so much surprises like medan makan and
nice cement structure jetty. The kampong is rustic too with its sprawling
wooden jetty along the river. I love the simplicity of the place. We alighted
from the car and headed toward an elderly Chinese man who informed us that he
had been fishing for prawns for about an hour now but nothing to show so far.
He even joked and remarked that he might not have river prawns for his Maggi
mee treat that night. As we spoke on, we were told that there were plentiful of
sizeable river prawns years ago but pollution and indiscriminate rubbish
dumping had reared its ugly head in the river eco-system. The Chinese uncle
went on to lament about the lack of responsibility on the part of people to
take care of the river eco-system. Yeah, he was right in many ways – plastic
bottles, plastic bags, aluminium cans and floating tree debris fills the river.
It was starting to have high tide and we excused ourselves and got ourselves
ready for some prawn fishing.
Sitting on a wooden plank jetty, we
started fishing and it wasn’t long before Firdaus fish out a medium size ikan
baung ( catfish species or known as ‘pak suk kong” in Cantonese ) It was an ice
breaker that we needed and then it was frenzy pulling but we were just unlucky not
to get any prawns or fish. Yeah, the bites were there but I must admit , I
wasn’t competent to fish river prawns. I must admit that it needed a very
special skill and lots of patience to do prawn fishing as these prawns are
extremely good at stealing your bait away. Firdaus showed me the techniques to
prawn fishing and he lost a couple of fights to these smart prawns. There is
something very addictive about prawn fishing. They will pull your bait and
looked as though they would be stuck to your hook but when you actually lift
up, they are long gone making you look stumped and stupidified! Yeah, that was
how I felt that night but it was something exhilarating about the “prawn runs”
and “prawn pull”.
That night, we shared a lot relaxing
moments and laughters too. I guess, my sifu, Firdaus was more under pressure to
get some prawns….Pity him….but he is really good at the prawning as he took the
time to explain to me the characteristics of river prawns. We also had a good
time laughing at ourselves as we talked and fished as the night wore on.
Hours passed by and we eventually
moved from place to place as boat operators went out to do prawn fishing on
their own as a source of income for these fishermen. We met a few nice boat
operators who informed us that they would be going out to do their fishing. We
also met with a group of three local Muarian anglers who were just out for a
good time and they managed to get some prawns. As usual, the Hokkien dialect
profanities were widely and punctually articulated as these anglers missed the
prawns or fish at that area. All in all, it was a very relaxing night and cool
night for Firdaus and me.
We finally settled back to the first
place we started and it was here that my luck changed that night. I guess, I
must confessed that I prayed hard for the good Lord to supply me two prawns for
the night and yessiree, He provided me the two prawns – a male and a female
prawn. For the first prawn ( the female one ), it fought really good ( typical
nature of a female, I guess!!! No offence intended towards the ladies, please!
) and the sensation of pulling out a prawn from the river was absolutely
fabulous. It was like I had won the World Cup of patience, man! Yeah, it was
that good feeling inside. The minute I put the bait on the hook, I threw it out
near a sampan and then reeled in slowly and carefully. I set the rod down and
let the live bait the freedom to move a bit. Then it happened. The rod started
to bend a bit with some movements Then more slow movement and then slightly
more vigorous pulls. That’s when I lift up the rod and started reeling in. Lo
and behold, my effort was rewarded with a female prawn of the size of my palm
length as a reward! It was such a great feeling inside.
For the second catch, it was typically
the same but it did not move or at least that was what I thought. You see,
after hours of fishing, your eyes will start playing tricks with you under the
dimly lit atmosphere. Your mind will tend to tell you that the rod is moving or
bending. To me, I thought tiredness had crept to my entire brains and eyes when
I thought I saw the rod bend ever so lightly! I left it as it was and about 2
or 3 minutes later, I decided to check on my rod. So, I lifted it out and there
was another male prawn ( long pincers and blueish body to tail end ) at the end
of the line. Yippeeeeeee was all I could mutter at that moment. After some
snaps shot , I had the nasty experience of pulling out the prawn from the hook.
Firdaus had asked me to use the long scissors to remove the hook from the prawn
but being the idiot I am, I tried removing the hook with my stubby fingers.
Well, the pincers of the prawns clapsed and tightened at the fingers and they
do give quite a pinch, actually! They are a nuisance, I tell you. Somehow, I
managed to yank the hook off the prawn and placed the prawn in a container. I
must admit that I also “lembu” (stubborn and not listen to advice ) in a way!
Soon, it was time to go while we still
got some exciting bites that early morning. Yeah, it was already about 4.00am
when we cleaned up and left the place for home. All in all, it was a good night
of prawning and fellowship. I really love the moonlight rays across the river
while the chatters of the anglers in their Hokkien and Bahasa Melayu chats
together with the stillness of the nights makes it all such a great night. I
still would not be disappointed if I do not get any fish nor prawns that night.
The sheer calmness and beautiful setting was enough for an old fool like me to
enjoy……
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