Supermarkets all over the world face the problem of shoplifting.
But in the Semenyih branch of Tesco near Kuala Lumpur it seems things have got so bad that even urinal flushes have to be kept under lock and key.
There must be a factory somewhere which produces lockable metal boxes for flush fittings. It’s a funny old world!
If you are looking for somewhere different to take the kids one afternoon you could consider Ostrich Wonderland Showfarm, near Semenyih in Selangor.
It’s really a commercial poultry farm whose core business is to raise exotic birds for meat but, as a sideline, it opens its doors to visitors.
Besides ostriches, they farm guinea-fowl, turkeys, chickens and geese.
Conditions for the birds seem pretty good. They have plenty of space to move around – definitely free range rather than battery. The ostriches are kept in large enclosed pens. I wonder whether the Malaysian climate suits them as their natural habitat is usually a lot more arid. I noticed that some of the ostriches had lost their tail feathers, giving them a plucked and oven-ready look!
Apart from the birds there are plenty of puppies roaming freely and they also have ponies, donkeys, rabbits and a couple of monkeys. The monkeys are chained to their perches, which seems unnecessarily cruel.
Admission is RM10 adult and RM5 for kids which is a bit steep but, for that, the owner shows you around his egg-incubators and explains how to rear ostriches.
You can buy frozen ostrich and guinea fowl meat here and maybe even an ostrich egg but you need to have a giant egg-cup if you want to have it boiled!
Address, contact number and opening hours are shown on these signs:
You can read more about the other animals on the farm in this post.
For updated admission prices and opening hours see here.
Just past Nottingham University’s modern Malaysia campus at Semenyih sits the small town of Broga on the Selangor – Negeri Sembilan border. Broga has a predominantly Chinese population who work mostly in agriculture, especially rubber tapping and fruit farming.
The town’s Si Na Tok temple is located on a low hill overlooking the attractive countryside. The temple is apparently famous among gamblers who go there to seek lucky numbers for their next punt. The area is developing into quite a tourist attraction. The temple itself has a number of statues in its grounds of Chinese zodiac signs, goddesses, bowls of fruit and so on.
On the crest of a neighbouring hill they have nearly completed construction of a giant Monkey King statue.
Linking the statue to the temple is an impressive new suspension bridge, for pedestrians only.
From here there is a good view of the fish farms where they produce the main ingredient for many of the popular restaurants nearby.
A few kilometers down the road is RabbitFunLand where children get the opportunity to pet and feed rabbits, ponies and goats. Families are then invited to have lunch in their restaurant where the main item on the menu is – you guessed it – rabbit!
We passed on the rabbit satay and had chicken claypot and ikan bakar (spicy grilled fish) instead. It was pretty good.
Immediately opposite RabbitFunLand is the path which leads up to Broga Hill.
This hill is unusual for this part of the world in that it is covered with grass but no trees which means you can get a good view. It is only about 400m high but, at a leisurely pace, it takes about an hour of sweaty climbing to reach the highest of its 3 levels.
It is quite a popular walk and the path is well defined. Most people go up at the crack of dawn to enjoy the sunrise, the clearer visibility and lower temperatures. Our family went up in the middle of the day – for the extra challenge (mad dogs and Englishmen)! I enjoyed the walk and might try to continue on to Gunung Tok Wan next time (since attempted – read about it here.)
