Nang Chong Stories : Going to the Lido Cinema

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An early morning boat ride to Sibu was significant if one wanted to watch a movie. My grandmother, cousins and I would plan to watch the ten o'clock morning movie, have lunch and then return by the last motor launch, which would leave Sibu town at 2 p.m. The Sin Hai Huong was the last boat to leave as it would berth quite near our uncle's jetty. Boats travelling further down the Rajang River would leave by 12 or by 1. This was because no boat would be able to travel safely after night fall. If a boat left at 2 in Sibu, it might not reach Sarikei by 6 p.m. after letting off travellers mid way. Boats to Binatang and Sarikei had to leave by 12 noon.

Getting to the cinema early was important because we did not want to be disappointed. My cousin would rush to get the tickets to make sure that we all had seats. Usually Grandma would buy 2 tickets and take in 3 children and the door man would not mind. Grandma was a familiar old friend of his.

I would spend a bit of money to buy the "hammered" bbq sotong, as seen in the photos.

Grandma would bring us to the coffee shop in the same building as the Lido Cinema. Called Liu Huong, the coffee shop had a nice Towkay Neo who was a widow and every one knew that she was a kind lady. So an old lady like my grandmother sitting at the coffee table with three kids was quite a positive scenario.

Grandma would order a kopi-o and some noodles for us to share. Her favourite was noodle soup or Ching Tong Mien.

We would all enjoy ice cold  sweet or syrupy water served in a Magnolia bottle which was only 10 cents a bottle. It was heavenly to us and definitely a luxury.

Grandma would never order satay for us even though a Malay uncle would be selling satay from his little box outside the coffee shop.

Remembering all these I actually cannot figure out when it was that I had my first stick of satay. But I will always eat my bbq sotong, dipped in sweet and watery chilli sauce.