Day 237 (26 Aug 2023) -Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre (TARRC), Brickendonbury, UK
DAY 237 (26 AUG 2023) – In the morning, I moved to a new hostel, about 7 kilometres from St Christopher’s Inn since this one was fully booked. Luckily, I managed to get a place to stay for the night when I arrived yesterday.
After sorting my accommodation, I rode my motorbike to the Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre (TARRC) in Brickendonbury, about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from London. The journey took me about an hour from my hostel.
The Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre (TARRC), originally known as the British Rubber Producers’ Research Association was formed in 1938. The centre carries out research into rubber and is wholly owned by the Malaysian Rubber Board and funded by the Malaysian government.
I attended the Malaysia Merdeka Carnival 2023 at the centre, a yearly event organized by the High Commission of Malaysia in London.
At the carnival, I had the opportunity to meet the High Commissioner of Malaysia to the UK, Datuk Zakri Jaafar. He was happy that I represented Malaysia in spreading the message on global warming. He wished me well on my journey in the spirit of “Malaysia Boleh” (Malaysia Can Do It!).
At the carnival, I met up with my friend Shariman, from Malaysia. Shariman lives in London with his wife and 2 children - a daughter who is married and a son who is in university. I have known Shariman for the last 4 years and he suggested that I attend the carnival.
I was surprised when Shariman’s family presented a mini cake decorated with the slogan “Our Earth, Our Home”, against the backdrop of the Malaysian flag! There was also a drawing of myself with my motorbike!
I met a lot of Malaysians, many who were residing in UK, including some of Shariman’s friends.
I also got to meet the team from “RotiKing”, the people behind the well-known restaurant specialising in Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine. The same team also runs the “Gopal’s Corner by Roti King”, a restaurant that serves Malaysian Tamil banana leaf cuisine in London.
Later, I happen to meet a team from the Tamil digital magazine, Thamarai.com” from UK. They were here to cover the event, and subsequently interviewed me, where I spoke about my world bike tour and objectives.
The atmosphere at the Malaysia Merdeka Carnival 2023 was very lively, fun, and full of celebration! It felt like being at Dataran Merdeka!
There were booths by various Malaysian agencies as well as stalls selling food, snacks and Malaysian-made products. There were song and dance performances, fun and games, including tug of war, and lots and lots of tasty Malaysian Food - Malay food, Indian food, Chinese food, you name it!
Shariman treated me to a packet of ‘nasi lemak’, Malaysia’s national dish. I also had ‘chicken satay’ (grilled meat served with peanut sauce), ‘Tou Foo Fah’ (soy bean pudding, a chinese sweet or savoury snack made with very tender tofu), ‘Goreng Pisang’ (fried banana fritters), ‘Cekodok’ (fried banana balls), and “Teh Tarik” (hot milk tea).
I also had some “Roti Dhal”, which was basically “Roti Canai” with “Dhal Curry”, freshly made by the guys from “Roti King”. Basically, I had a good feast, since I’ve missed much of the Malaysian food scene in the last 8 months!
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