Abdul Rashid bin Mohd Yusope 1931-2009 (14) Pusat Latihan Guru, Alor Setar, Kedah 1964-1967

1. GES, Jasin, Melaka 1953-1954
2. Pej. Pel., Melaka 1955
3. High School, Melaka 1956-1957
4. Pej. Pel., Melaka 1958
5. Parlimen, KL 1959
6. S.M. Gajah Berang, Melaka 1960-1961
7. Kirkby College 1962-1963
8. Sek. Lanjutan, Jasin, Melaka 1963
9. Pusat Latihan Guru, Alor Setar, Kedah 1964-May 1967


From Malacca, Bapak transferred to Pusat Latihan Guru in Alor Setar, Kedah. I don't recall how we moved. I probably slept throughout the transfer.

We left Malacca in 1963 and went to live in Alor Setar, Kedah. When we first arrived in Alor Setar, we stayed at the race course at Jalan Maxwell. I remember asking Mak where we were and I remember she replied Maxwell, and I asked her who Maxwell was. She said he was a white man. We ate a lot of good food at the race course. There were no races when we stayed there.

We first moved out of the race course to a double-storey terraced house. Our next door neighbour was a Chinese family, who slaughtered and fried clotted chicken blood.

We then moved to a single-storey terraced house in Alor Merah, or Telok Wan Jah. There were rattan furniture, our bunk beds and a medium fridge, where Bapak kept colourfull wrapped sweets.

Playing at home in Alor Merah/Telok Wan Jah, Kedah. Siblings from left: Faridah, Rabi'ah, Farid, and Amin.

We then moved to a Government bungalow at 56 Jalan Day. It was a huge brick and wood building on gigantic stilts/columns.

Bapak bought a green Renault with a Penang number plate. It was parked beneath the house by the staircase.

Our house had a large living-room, an inner living-room/dining room, master bedroom with en suite toilet and an enclosed verandah near the tall mulberry tree. We six children had 6 beds in a large bedroom with en suite toilet. Every bed had to have a mosquito net, a pillow and a blanket. There was an enclosed verandah too, but nobody slept there. There was a small kitchen in the main house. Cleaning prawns, chicken, fish etc had to be done outside the main house at a brick wall (toilet?) that had a tap. The 2 geese would come and bite us. One goose bit my bottom!

The servants quarters were in a separate adjoining single-storey building on ground level. There was a big bee hive in one of the rooms in the servants' quarters. We called some men to bring down the bee hive and enjoyed fresh honey.

In the living-room watching TV. From left: Amin, aunty, aunty, Sharifah (Pah), Faridah (me), and Nenek Inche. At rear are Mak Bedah, Abang Sharif and Mak.

 

Ready to go mengaji. From left: Abang Sharif, Faridah, Rabi'ah, and Sharifah.

Siblings ready to go mengaji.

I'm running to the car after mengaji.

Rabi'ah Abdul Rashid That even happened at Jalan Day in Kedah. I didn't go for my ngaji class that evening. And at night I didn't pull down the mosquito net (kelambu nyamuk). Suddenly my bed was pushed up by evil spirit, giggling and it went towards the bedroom door, still giggling. When I opened my eyes, Bapak's room was lit, seen from the top of trellis pattern on the bedroom wall.

I only found out from Abang (passed away 2017) lately that that house was haunted. I didn't ask any further details from him. Rugilah! Didn't hear from his side.

Hari Raya Aidilfitri. We had F&N orange. Siblings from left: Farid, Sharif, Rabi'ah, Amin, Faridah, and Sharifah.

I'm learning to ride the bicycle by holding on to a stick to balance.

Bapak taught at Pusat Latihan Guru in Alor Setar, Kedah. It was adjacent to Sultan Abdul Hamid College and shared the same inroad from the main road. The place was called Day Training Centre (which I recall).

Mak taught at Sultanah Asma Secondary School.

I was not in school yet in 1964 (6 years old). I attended Sultanah Asma Primary School in 1965. Both the schools were adjacent and shared the school hall. I would walk and visit to see my Mak to ask for coins to buy food at the canteen. However, I hardly met her at school because she was just too busy teaching and doing administrative work.

Mak then transferred to another new secondary school. She took care of the Home Science component for the Cambridge Exams (LCE or MCE). Then Malaysia took over LCE/MCE and we didn't have to depend on England for those exams. It was an important point in our educational history.

When we lived in Alor Setar, and my parents worked in Alor Setar, my parents came to know and met (Tun) Dr Mahathir and (Tun) Dr Siti Hasmah. They had clinics in Alor Setar. Mak said she went to their clinics. When we were supposed to transfer to Sabah in April/May 1967 (I was in Std. 3A), Mak had obtained vaccinations from a clinic. Her health record book contained Dr Siti Hasmah's signature and chop.

It was in Alor Setar that I came to know about Tok Ali Kedah and Nenek Endon and family. They lived in a lovely brand new kampung house, which was a new housing scheme. I remember we visited the family and Nenek Endon taught my mother about keladi and a type of keladi gatal. She also showed us how she stored rice in a traditional rice bin. I remember her eldest daughter Habsah got married (I waited in the car).

It was in Alor Setar too that I was allowed to study the Quran (Std. 1-3). My eldest brother Abang Sharif, my elder sister Pah, myself and my younger sister Rabi went to learn the Quran at a wooden house in the middle of the paddy field, close to my primary school, Sultanah Asma Primary School. The Quran teacher's house grounds is now the Al-Bukhary University or the Souq, if I recall the location correctly.

We didn't live long in Kedah. We were on the move again in May 1967 (during the height of the Vietnam War). We went to Sabah.