GOASIAPLUS December 2017

Lost & Found
lost&Found
Francis
Yip always loses himself but somehow, finds his way back with lots
of juicy stories to share. Forgive him if he sparks a debate. Love him if he
unlocks hidden jewels. So heavenly, so travelicious with him!
www.franciswriter.com franciswriterAd
Traditional
Games
WORDS & PHOTOS BY
FRANCIS YIP
THE SURVIVING TRUTH
Have you ever played
“Ketingting” and “Batu
Seremban” before? If no,
you may be a millennial or born
in the internet era playing video
games instead of these loved
traditional games.
For myself, I grew up in the 70s
and played these games before.
The only electronic game I played
back then was the Nintendo’s
Game and Watch series featuring
Popeye and Olive Oyl. No iPad. No
tablet or PC. No online games.
But times have changed. Look
at the countless digital games
available today. Hence, it is no
surprise the young generation have
missed the fun of playing some of
these traditional ones:
WAU FLYING
Wau means kite in the Malay
language. This traditional game is
particularly popular in the states
of Kedah, Perlis and Kelantan
especially after the harvest of
paddy. There are competitions of
wau flying to see which wau is
the most beautiful and can fly the
highest. The famous Wau Bulan
comes in the shape of the crescent
at the tail. Today, wau flying
continues to be a popular pastime
in the rural areas.
SEPAK TAKRAW
Sepak takraw is undeniably one
of the most popular traditional
games. In fact, it is also played as
a medal sport in the Asian Games
and SEA Games. The ball is made
from rattan and has even become
a souvenir item for tourists who
treasure Malaysian handicrafts.
38 · WWW.GOASIAPLUS.COM
KETINGTING
Ketingting or Teng Teng is known
as airplane jumping. This is a
localized hopscotch game and
my top outdoor game. The game
uses a chalk-drawing diagramme
of squares from one to nine. Each
player will kick off by throwing a
stone at square one and he must
hop with one leg onto each square
until number nine and back. On
his way back, he must retrieve the
stone, all while staying in balance.
TIKAM-TIKAM
Kids love prizes. Tikam-tikam is a
game of chance which uses a big
board displaying a stack of mini ang
pow packets carrying the winning
prizes which include toys and junk
foods. As a kid, I secretly visited
the sundry shop to play this game
which costed only five cents per
pack. Come to think of it, although
the game is exciting, I should have
saved all my money in the piggy
bank instead.
CONGKAK
This is a mancala game and is often
considered as the game for girls.
The word “congkak” is believed to
originate from the old Malay word
“congak” which means “mental
calculation”. It involves two players
dropping marbles or red saga onto
the holes of the congkak board,
making sure one does not end on
an empty one.
LOMPAT GETAH
This game only uses rubber bands
to form the skipping rope. The
male players will try to outshine
one another to see who can jump
the highest. However, the girls can
choose to jump the rope and are
allowed to touch the rope.
BATU SEREMBAN
Known as five stones, this game
involves throwing and catching
a set of five pebbles, one or a
few pieces at a time. The game
becomes more complicated as
the player advances through the
stages. There is another option
called seven stones or batu tujuh.
There are many other traditional
games. While the internet and
video games are more popular
today, there is nothing more
precious than the memories of
playing these traditional games.
After all, old is gold.