Rumah Cina Kelantan

Saturday March 24, 2007

A marriage of traditions

By LEONG SIOK HUI

The old Chinese houses of Kelantan are different from those elsewhere in that they are an interesting blend of Chinese and Malay influences.

Wee Ah Mek of Pasir Mas, Kelantan recalls her growing years in her village, Kampung Kasa, a Chinese settlement on the banks of Sungai Kelantan.

Taking a short stroll from her parent’s wooden house, she used to observe the daily bustle on the river – the “highway” of those times.

A unique abode: A typical Chinese house in Kg Kasa, Kelantan.

“I remember the Malay traders plying budu (fermented anchovy sauce), salted fish and ikan pekasam (fermented freshwater fish) as they travelled upriver in their wooden boats,” says Wee, 59, who still lives in Kasa.

“Even to get to Kota Baru (a 20-minute drive today), we needed to take the boat.”

Like many early Chinese settlers, the Chinese in Kasa were mostly farmers who reared pigs and grew vegetables. Some ventured to town and became shopkeepers, Wee adds.

A fifth-generation Chinese, Wee has only a vague idea about her family roots. According to historians, most of the early settlers hailed from China’s southern provinces of Fujian, Guangdong and Guanxi.

“My grandmother was born here and my mother still lives in the house her great grandfather built,” says Wee, a retired teacher.

Tebuk terus allow light and air in.

Today, what makes Kasa, like other early Chinese settlements in Kelantan, unique are its clusters of Chinese houses that are more than a century old. Some 4km north of Pasir Mas town, Kasa – along with two other villages, Tendong and Saka – constitute a settlement of about 600 residents. There are 50-odd Chinese settlements in Kelantan that were founded in the 1800s from Tumpat, Bachok to Gua Musang.

“I believe most of the early Chinese settlers preferred to live near the river because of its easy access since boats were the main mode of transport,” says Wee.

What makes it Chinese?

At first glance, the 15-odd old houses scattered along a leafy, tree-lined road next to the riverbank look like traditional Kelantanese Malay houses. On closer look, one notices that these houses are, in fact, an interesting blend of Chinese and Malay influences.

The serambi.

This new style was a departure from the practices of early immigrants in Straits Settlements like Malacca and Penang, who built their temples and clan houses according to “pure” Chinese models. Chinese houses are always firmly rooted to the ground, with the floors made from compacted mud or cement.

“I think houses on stilts are practical as the river gets flooded during the monsoon season,” explains Wee, who now lives with her family in a double-storey brick house

Some of these old houses were constructed from cengal (Balanocarpus heimii), a hardwood known for its durability, and stood on stilts and sported high-pitched roofs laid with clay tiles.

“The distinct curved roof ridge signifies their Chinese background and Chinese temple design influence. Roof design, traditionally, reflects the owner’s origin,” says design consultant Azzaha Ibrahim of Tumpat, Kelantan.

An architecture graduate from University Technology Malaysia (UTM), Azzaha has been researching traditional Kelantanese architecture for 11 years. His subjects include the wakaf (shelters), Chinese tokong(temples), mosques, and Malay and Chinese houses.

“What’s special about these curved ridges is that local craftsmen now lack the know-how to construct something similar,” says Azzaha, who did the blueprints for four vernacular Chinese houses in Kota Baru and Bachok, including a 120-year-old house in Tumpat.

Chinese houses have tree trunks as rafters.

Like the early East Coast Malay houses, the roofs of these houses are covered in singhorra tiles (clay tiles of Thai origin). A bad heat conductor, these handmade tiles keep the house cool and its irregular shapes allow air to flow through the gaps. But the wafer-thin tiles crumble easily and aren’t cheap. One shingle costs about RM1.50, and you need at least RM600 worth of tiles just to cover a small pavilion, Azzaha adds.

Another Chinese feature is the long, projecting eaves with roof “brackets” which transfer the weight of the roof onto the columns. These brackets are characteristic of traditional Chinese houses and temples in South-East Asia. And the roof runners are round (using a tree trunk) rather than square planks, as found in a traditional Malay house, Azzaha adds.

Basic layout

Similar to the typically rectangular plan of a traditional Chinese house, the Kasa house features a jemuran (outer covered veranda), which flanks a wooden or brick staircase. This leads to a wide serambi(covered veranda) that runs along the front of the house. From the veranda, you pass a doorway into the inner main hall, which also serves as a prayer space and is flanked by bedrooms.

The kitchen is usually an extension to the side of the main house.

“What I find interesting about these Chinese houses are its simple forms – the softly curved roof ridge, its sturdy proportions because it sits low on the stilts, and the sideway-view, which looks like a Malay house,” says Azzaha, 32.

Tiny windows in the panelled walls helped people in the olden days spot Japanese soldiers from afar.

“From the order of the spaces, you get an idea of the homeowner’s religious beliefs, protocols and way of life. For example, if you’re an acquaintance, you are greeted at the jemuran, while family and close friends occupy the serambi all day till bedtime,” explains Azzaha, who likes infusing traditional elements into his own designs.

While these Chinese homes always have a dedicated space for the prayer altar, a Malay house does not have a specific room for this.

The Malay elements

Teyun Tang Choon looking out a window.

One of the Kasa houses we dropped in at belonged to Teyun Tang Choon and his wife Ang Mek Leng, both in their 70s. Ang inherited the house from her father who was a tukang rumah (house builder). He built the house in 1941 with the help of a Malay craftsman. Her father, a “repository” of Kasa’s history, passed away four years ago at the age of 93.

Intricate carvings of floral designs above the house’s front wall panels (called jejala or sisip angin) allow the sun’s rays to filter into the house and for air to circulate and cool the interior – a distinct feature in traditional Malay houses. Such carvings usually indicate the owner’s financial status, Azzaha explains.

Like the Malay house, these houses were constructed using very few nails, mostly with timber panels being slotted into grooved frames.

The dinding janda berhias (two panels supported by one panel below) wall is similar to the Malay house but generally Chinese walls have bigger and thicker panels and are well proportioned in relation to the overall size of the house, Azzaha says.

Azzaha Ibrahim. — LEONG SIOK HUI, TAN LEE KUEN & SAZUKI EMBONG/The Star

All the Kasa houses sport a main door flanked by two tiny windows, a typical feature of traditional Chinese houses in China.

“During World War II and the Japanese Occupation, we would peek through the tiny windows and escape through the back door if we saw Japanese soldiers entering the front yard,” says Teyun.

Over the years, many Kasa residents have either renovated their houses, added extensions, or torn down the old structure and built brick houses. Some, though, dismantled their old house and moved it elsewhere, as one of Wee’s cousins did.

“People aren’t keen to preserve these old houses because it’s expensive to maintain. You need to change the wooden planks that have rotted away,” Wee sums up.

Researching these old Chinese houses has been an uphill task for Azzaha. Most people are either clueless or they give inconsistent information, Azzaha says.

“But these houses, their history and architecture, reflect how the Chinese and Malay communities used to live in harmony and were very well integrated,” say Azzaha.

“When the houses are gone, so too will that marriage of traditions.”

A blend of cultures

When the first Chinese settlers arrived in Kelantan hundreds of years ago, they found a colourful culture dominated by the Malays and Siamese. Naturally, the settlers adopted some of the local customs, language and clothing. Even their Hokkien dialect came to be sprinkled with Thai and Malay words.

“Like the Kelantanese Malays, the Chinese use pet names like Awang for boys, and Mek for girls in the family. Some Chinese actually use these names in their identity card, like Mek Su or Tan Awang,” says Wee Ah Mek of Pasir Mas, Kelantan.

Apart from being fluent in the Kelantanese dialect, the rural Chinese here also take up traditional Malay performing arts like wayang kulit anddikir barat, which are performed at Chinese temples during the birthday celebration of its patron God. They also enjoy traditional Malay pastimes like top-spinning and kite-flying.

“Though we live in a village surrounded by Malay villages, we don’t feel like we’re different from our Malay neighbours. Perhaps, the only difference is they don’t eat pork,” says Koh Gim Tat, 75, of Kg Pasir Parit in Pasir Mas district.

A fourth generation Chinese, Koh says her family initally settled in Kg Kasa before moving upstream. Traditionally, the rural settlers engaged in agriculture, planting padi, tobacco, fruits and such.

“If we hold a Chinese wedding, we would have a kenduri for our Malay friends the day before the Chinese banquet,” adds Koh. And like their Malay neighbours, the Chinese love delicacies like nasi berlauk, nasi ulam budu and nasi kerabu.

But as with the old Chinese houses that are beginning to fall apart or get torn down, the unique hybrid culture of Kelantan’s Chinese is slowly vanishing.

“Most parents send their kids to Chinese schools and the younger generation can hardly speak the Kelantanese dialect now,” says Wee. “The Chinese youth today just isn’t as well-integrated with the Malays as my generation used to be.”

Cina Kelantan

Saya begitu happy sekali kerana bertemu dengan artikel bergambar yang terpampar dalam blog www.hisommudin.wordpress tentang Keunikan Cina Natif Kelantan. Sebenarnya saya adalah dalam rangka mencari foto-foto Rumah Cina Kelantan, khususnya Rumah Tukang Emas Cina Kelantan, kerana sebenarnya saya telah mewarisi sebuah rumah kecil di Kedai Salor, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, 8 batu dari Bandar Kota Bharu, 4 batu dari Bandar Pasir Mas serta 10 batu dari Rantau Panjang-Sungei Golok di Thailand, tidak jauh dari tapak kota yang hilang, Kota Salor di Gertak Lembu. Rumah tersebut adalah rumah milik keluarga Cina Tukang Mas Kelantan yang telah tinggal di Kedai Salor sejak sebelum perang lagi. Ibu saya, arwah Hajjah Che Bunga Che Othman telah membeli rumah tersebut pada tahun 1991/92 apabila tukang emasnya meninggal dunia. Malangnya rumah tersebut telah diubah suai. Yang menariknya, sewaktu kanak2 saya masih ingat lagi, di mana saya menjejak kaki ke rumah tersebut beberapa kali, terutamanya ketika untuk menghantar emas untuk dicuci terutamanya ketika hari raya. Rumahnya dikelilingi dengan pagar buluh sasak diluar dan di lapisan dalamnya adalah pagar corrugated zink, bertangga hijau dan mempunyai kolah air berwarna hijau empat persegi. Rumahnya dipenuhi dengan dinding kembung, sama seperti rumah yang ada di dalam artikel ini, begitu juga dengan pintu kayunya yang bertombol Cina, berpalang di kakinya serta mempunyai dua jendela kecil yang berpalang dengan besi bulat yang kuat, atapnya dibuat dari atap Singgora. Pintu masuk ke rumahnya pula mempunyai palang di atas serta mempunyai bunga yang berlingkaran berwarna unggu. Dataran halaman depan rumah pula di penuhi dengan batu-batu sungai yang agak besar, jadi apabila kita masuk ke rumahnya, loceng terus berbunyi sambil anjingnya menyalak dan akan menghasilkan bunyi bila berjalan di atas batu2 tersebut.

Keunikan Cina Natif Kelantan

Published September 12, 2007 Umum 8 Comments

Ahad lalu, aku berkesempatan bertandang ke perkampungan Cina Natif Kelantan di Kg Pasir Parit, Bukit Panau, Tanah Merah. Rombongan disambut dengan ceria oleh tuan rumah Mek Keong, 74 tahun . Lawatan ini bagi meninjau dan melihat keunikan cina Kelantan yang berada dalam asakan dunia moden sekarang. Rombongan ini dibawa oleh Penghulu Yap Kok Seng sebagai “orang tengah” bagi kami.

Mek lebih mesra dipanggil “mak” ini menceritakan sejarah dan asal usul Cina Kelantan. Menurut beliau, kaum cina di Kelantan terbahagi kepada dua jenis. Pertama Cina Peranakan dan keduanya, Cina Bandar. Orang Melayu memanggil mereka Cina kampung, Cina Kelantan atau Orang Cina kita.

Bagi Cina di bandar, mereka dipanggil Cina benua atau Cina Bandar manakala masyarakat Thai di Kelantan menggelar mereka sebagai Cina Darat, Cina Kampung atau Cina Kelantan.

Cina Peranakan atau Cina Peribumi ini mempunyai ciri-ciri yang membezakan mereka dengan Cina bandar dan kaum tionghua yang biasa kita temui. Keunikan mereka ini wujud kerana berlakunya asimilasi budaya antara Cina, Melayu dan Siam.

Menurut huraian dalam Wikipedia, budaya mereka dibahagikan kepada dua iaitu “Fronstage” dan “Backstage”. Frontstage bermaksud pengamalan dan gelagat mereka di dalam masyarakat di luar rumah. Mereka bercakap dialek Kelantan sesama mereka, bercucuk tanam, berbual di anjung, memakai kain pelikat bagi lelaki, dan memakai kain batik bagi kaum wanita. Ada juga yang berkelubung kepala jika keluar rumah. Cina Peranakan ini juga memakan budu dan ulam-ulaman. Nama mereka juga menggunakan nama Melayu seperti Gan Awang, Tan Awang Besar, Lau Cheng San atau Che Hassan, Che Midah, Mek Su dan nama-nama lain mencerminkan bagaimana proses asimilasi telah merubah dan membentuk budaya tersendiri di kalangan masyarakat tempatan.

Manakala Backstage pula ialah gelagat dan budaya mereka jika berada dalam rumah. Ini bermaksud, mereka masih lagi mengekalkan budaya Cina seperti sembahyang, adat perkahwinan dan juga upacara pengkebumian. “Hisham, kalau demo nok tahu cara kaum Cino nok semaye, demo kelih lagu mano Cino Kelate semaye. Cino Bandar tu semaye dah guna shortcut doh, Kiro semaye hokk sebenar ialah sepertimano cina di kampung semaye”, ujar saudara Yap Kok Seng kepada aku. aku tersenyum…”rupanya sembahyang pun ada shortcut jugak ke?” jampuk aku dan diikuti dengan hilai ketawa semua yang ada.

Senibina yang ada seperti rumah asal Cina Peranakan Kelantan juga amat unik dan menarik. Rekabentuk, jenis kayu, malah ukiran yang dipahatkan adalah seni Melayu. Cuma tulisan kaligrafi Cina sahaja yang mempunyai ciri ke”Cina”an menghiasi ruang tamu dan anjung. Namun, kesenian dan kehalusan senibina ini kian mereput kerana tiada usaha pemuliharaan dilakukan, Menurut penghulu di mukim ini, sebenarnya Kuam Cina Peranak mempunyai persatuan yang ditubuhkan pada 1987. Antara cadangan yang dikemukakan kepada pihak kerajaan ialah mewujudkan sebuah Muzium Cina Peranakan Kelantan. Harapan mereka, semoga dengan wujudnya satu muzium khas boleh menjadi bahan tatapan generasi akan datang.

Menurut cerita “mak” ini, beliau juga mengatakan bahawa generasi pertama yang datang ke Tanah Melayu bermula di Kelantan, dan bukan di Melaka. Buktinya, terdapat sebuah patung lama Ma Chor Bew di tokong Sui Yek Khong di Pulai, Gua Musang. Patung ini yang dikesan berasal dari zaman Dinasti Ming yang memerintah Negeri China antara 1368 sehingga 1644.

Di Kelantan sahaja, ada 24 tokong dengan tokong tertua berusia 600 tahun dikesan di Kampung Pulai, Gua Musang, dan tokong 300 tahun di Kampung Tokong, Kemubu.

Aku melontarkan beberapa persoalan, bagaimana dengan generasi muda sekarang? Adakah mereka masih utuh dengan budaya generasi terdahulu? “Mak” merenung jauh sebelum member jawapan. “Generasi baru sekarang makin jauh dengan amalan generasi kami. Antara yang kian pupus ialah menari ronggeng, opera cina dan sebagainya. Anak muda sekarang tidak lagi suka pakai kain pelikat, makan sireh. Warisan kami akan pupus.” Ujar beliau dengan nada sebak.

Perbualan kami tamat di situ. Aku membuat kesimpulan bahawa, Cina Peranakan yang menebal dengan pengamalan budaya Cina Tradisonal juga terhakis dengan arus kemodenan. Selain dari serangan globalisasi, kepupusan budaya ini berlaku dengan beberapa faktor. Faktor penghijrahan ke Bandar dan perkahwinan campur turut menyumbang kepada kepupusan ini. Bagi, Kementerian Kebudayaan, Kesenian dan Warisan, intai-intailah ke Kelantan. Berilah perhatian dalam mengekalkan monument dan senibina unik ini di Kelantan. Mungkin pelaburan ini lebih tinggi nilainya daripada memberikan peruntukan berjuta ringgit dengan majlis tarian di Padang Merdeka!

 Responses to “Keunikan Cina Natif Kelantan”

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1. afanSeptember 19, 2007 at 3:09 am

   Great my fren. Pictures with thousand of words. Mcm mana la agaknya rupa orang lelaki cina pakai kain pelikat ye

   Reply
2. orang UKMSeptember 20, 2007 at 4:47 pm

   salam… menarik juga kisah tentang orang cina kampung di kelantan ni, anta boleh jadi wartawan nampak gayanya…
   pesanan buat mu : Selamat menyambut Ramadhan..

   Reply
3. LC FangOctober 13, 2007 at 11:29 pm

   Sejarah Cina Kelantan memang menarik, macam Melaka jugak di mana kain sarong dan pelikat cukup sinonim. Yang bezanya ialah Cina Kelantan mempunyai hubungan yang akrab dengan Melayu, tidak hairanlah ada antara mereka dipanggil dengan nama Melayu.Di kampung, rumah mereka sebijik macam rumah Melayu, tempat tokong yang kelihatan di luar rumah saja yang membezakannya. Tapi sayang, tinjauan anda tidak meliputi kegiatan budaya mereka, anda pasti kagum dan tidak percaya apabila melihat mereka berdikir barat,malah mempunyai tok dalang yang cukup gah dalam kumpulan pemain wayang kulit,juga pembuat patung atak wayang kulit. Namun, segala keunikan itu menuju kelupusan berikutan arus permodenan, tambahan pula tiada usaha terancang oleh kerajaan untuk memuliharanya. Saya tidak nampak sejauh mana Persatuan Peranakan Cina Kelantan boleh berbangga dengan keunikan yang diwarisi kerana ia jelas terhakis secara cukup ketara.

   Reply
4. sampunaOctober 31, 2007 at 11:30 am

   good research! sat ni jemput research pulaq peranakan Pulau Pinang ye!- i’m part peranakan!

   Reply
5. azrimiFebruary 20, 2008 at 9:00 pm

   kalau boleh ceritakan bagaimana proses asimilasi ni terjadi dikalangan orang cina di kelantan contohnya adakah melalui sektor ekonomi, politik ataupun pergaulan yang baik antara penduduk setempat.

   Reply
6. shukryMarch 7, 2008 at 10:26 pm

   salam ceria…
   keunikan masyarakat cina dikelantan ini memang tak dapat dinafikan… saya berasal dikawasan yangmana terdapat masyarakat cina di kelantan…keramahan dan kehidupan kami semua boleh dikatakan sama dalam aspek makanan, pakaian, pekkerjaan, mengisi masa lapang dan lain-lain. saya juga mempunyai ramai kawan darikalangan masyarakat cina kelantan ini bermula daripada zaman pra sekolah sehinggalah kini…main wau, menangkap ikan, pelihara burung puyuh menjadi kegemaran kami sewaktu kecil… walaupaun dari kaum yang berbeza namun kami tetap kawan yang baik….

   kepada mereka yang ingin datang ke kelantan tijaun dan dekatilah masyarakat ini untukl mendengar cara percakapan mereka dan keunikan masyarakat ini di kelantan… semoga kami dikelantan akan sentiasa berada dalam keadaan aman dan selesa selamanya….

   Reply
7. BEEMarch 17, 2008 at 10:58 am

   klo ade mase, dtg la ke kelantan lagi pastu tanye psl bahase plak..
   hehe..

   Reply
8. abemat011January 23, 2009 at 4:42 pm

   Tergerak juga nak bagi komen tentang Cina Kelantan ni. Jelas
   dan tepat sekali apa yang ditulis oleh penulis dan komen2 yang diberikan oleh rakan2 semua. Dari zaman budak hingga ke zaman tua masih kekal menjalani persahabatan. Si kawan saya tu sekarang dahjadi penulis/pengarang terkenal dan Prof di UPM. Kalau dia uction di Sabah di cari kawannya ini. Pesahabatan abadi. Selamat tahun baru Cina untuk kawan lamaku…Dr.lim swee Tin

   daripada
   abemat09
   Inanam
   Sabah

   Reply
9. zubin MohamadMay 26, 2009 at 11:05 pm

   Salam sejahtera, saya nak pinjam gambar dari blog ni untuk kajian, saya juga nak ambik tulisan dari blog ni, nanti kita linkkan kerana tulisan ni baik sekali untuk dikongsi bersama kawan2 saya. kebetulan kita baru saja ada buat event kat KB di Kampung Cina Kota Bharu dua minggu lalu. Kebetulan saya juga mendapat pusaka rumah Cina kelantan, tetapi cuma tinggal tapaknya saya bersama rangka rumah, saya cuba nak re-construct kembali. Mungkin saudara mereka juga sudah berada di mana2. Ibu saya yang juga seorang peniaga kecil membeli dan menjual barang kemas membeli rumah Cina kelantan kepunyaan seorang tukang emas di Kota Bharu sekitar tahun 1991/92.

Saraphine as proposed by www.robotbahaya.blogspot.com

Rabu lalu aku ke Mid Valley dengan sorang kaki wayang dari orang gomen(dulu dia nih journalist) skrang dah keje pr plak kat institusi pendidikan kewangan Islam. Nasib baik dia ada, dia yang mengajak dan mengingatkan aku. Thanks Saat for telling me that "all artist should watch this film", exactly, memang betul, apa part yang memang sayu, about seorang gaji di perancis sekitar tahun 1912 dirumah seorang kaya dan kebetulan ada tenant, org Jerman yang kemudiannya menjelaskan yang dia tidak akan kawin dengan seorang wanita. tetapi untuk sebuah filem yang menjelaskan zamannya, ia jelas sekali dengan bahasa yang berlapik. Ini sebuah filem yang boleh membincangkan isu-isu menarik tentang seorang struggling artis atau mungkin tentang mereka-mereka yang menjadi seniman dan sekali gus menceritakan tentang seorang wanita yang taksub dengan lukisannya tapi akhirnya menjadi gila kerana banyak yang dia sendiri tidak mengerti tentang kehidupan seorang seniman dari segi politik dan ekonominya. Filem ini juga mengisahkan tentang zaman, perang dunia, kepentingan ekonomi dalam seni serta kehidupan seorang homoseksual jerman yang terpaksa lari dan hidup di Perancis bersama kakaknya. Ini sebuah filem yang gelap, malah visualnya dimulakan dalam sebuah cinematography yang begitu gelap untuk jangka waktu yang lama, sehinggalah Sapahine mula melukis dengan hati yang terbuka dan penuh percaya diri.

Portugese; Melaka Invasion and Johor

Just now I received an email from a fellow researcher, who is mainly working on building conservation saying that she is interested to go to Johor Lama and Kota Batu, near there and the Kota was destroyed by the Portugese in the 16th Century, 1587, something that I have not heard of, but possible. I am sure we have a lot of stories and history regarding Portugese in Malacca in 1511 and so on. But strangely we have not discover about them, unlike the English, which we learned in school. In fact we also know so little about the Dutch other than their administration in Indonesia and how they traded Melaka and Singapore and Bengkulu to English. I myself have not even been to the Portugese settlement in Malacca. We probably know a little bit about their culture, like Jingling Nona and Joget and Keroncong are actually two performances that have strong Portugese influences. Faizal Tehrani in his novel 1515 touched a bit on Portugese, but it was a recreated history for his creative writing. So perhaps it is time for me to find out more about the Portugese colonialism or perhaps travel to Postugal, Lisbon.

While surfing on the net I stumbled into few interesting things in Portugal and Lisbon during June from www.portugal.com:

June 12 - 30, Lisboa– Festas da Cidade (Lisbon Festivities)

Being the birthplace of St. Anthony, Lisbon celebrates the saint’s birth during this period of time. In the historical centre, one can watch street entertainment ranging from theatre to popular music, classical and ethnic music, jazz, circus arts, mime, brass bands and traditional games. On the night of the 12th to the 13th, clubs and associations from the city’s different neighborhoods march down Avenida da Liberdade competing with one another in flashy, quick-stepping parades that include elaborate costumes, illuminated banners, and music. In the old districts of Lisbon, the streets become especially alive with lanterns, music, and crowds. In these parties – Arraiais – the people of Lisbon go to dance and eat sardines.

June 15 – July 31, Espinho, Festival de Música (Music Festival).

Many traditional Portuguese events and customs still regularly take place in the city of Lisbon, such as the Changing of the Republican Guard on the third Sunday of every month, which takes place outside of the Presidential Palace, in nearby Belém. Festival lovers will be pleased to find many seasonal festivals and similar events in Lisbon, which are at their biggest and most popular during the summer months.

Look out for the surfing at the European Wave Freestyle Funboard Championship, the Cascais International Sailing Week, and the Festival Super Rock (Superbock), which takes place at the Alvalade Stadium (Estádio José Alvalade), a giant stadium with a capacity of more than 50,000 people. Other prominent venues in Lisbon include the Coliseu dos Recreios on the Rua das Portas de Santo Antao, the Estadio da Luz (Football Stadium) on the Avenida Norton de Matos, and the modern the Estádio José Alvalade, which is located on the Rua Professor Fernando da Fonseca and opened relatively recently in 2003, being able to accommodate some 52,000 spectators.

But perhaps we should also get to know a little bit about Portugal and her history. In www.en.wikipedia.org.wiki.portugal found some history that could be related to what we are looking for or related history:

The land within the borders of today's Portuguese Republic has been continuously settled sinceprehistoric times. Some of the earliest civilizations include Lusitanians and Celtic societies. Incorporation into the Roman Republic dominions took place in the 2nd century BC. The region was ruled and colonized by Germanic peoples, such as the Suebi and the Visigoths, from the5th to the 8th century. From this era, some vestiges of the Alans were also found. The MuslimMoors arrived in the early 8th century and conquered the Christian Germanic kingdoms, eventually occupying most of the Iberian Peninsula. In the early 1100s, during the ChristianReconquista, Portugal appeared as a kingdom independent of its neighbour, the Kingdom of León and Galicia. In a little over a century, in 1249, Portugal would establish almost its entire modern-day borders by conquering territory from the Moors.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, with a global empire that included possessions in Africa,Asia, and South America, Portugal was one of the world's major economic, political, and cultural powers. In the 17th century, the Portuguese Restoration War between Portugal and Spain ended the sixty year period of the Iberian Union (1580–1640). The 1755 Lisbon earthquake and, in the19th century, armed conflicts with French and Spanish invading forces and the loss of its largest territorial possession abroad, Brazil, disrupted political stability and potential economic growth. After the Portuguese Colonial War and the Carnation Revolution coup d'état in 1974, the ruling regime was deposed in Lisbon and the country handed over its last overseas provinces in Africa. Portugal's last overseas territory, Macau, was handed over to China in 1999.

Throughout the 15th century, Portuguese explorers sailed the coast of Africa, establishing trading posts for several common types of tradable commodities at the time, ranging from gold to slaves, as they looked for a route to India and its spices, which were coveted in Europe. In 1498,Vasco da Gama finally reached India and brought economic prosperity to Portugal and its then population of one million residents.

Padrão dos Descobrimentos, a monument to the Portuguese Age of Discovery in Lisbon.

In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral, en route to India, discovered Brazil and claimed it for Portugal.^[8] Ten years later, Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Goa, in India, Ormuz in the Persian Strait, and Malacca, now a statein Malaysia. Thus, the Portuguese empire held dominion over commerce in the Indian Ocean and South Atlantic. The Portuguese sailors set out to reach Eastern Asia by sailing eastward from Europe landing in such places like Taiwan, Japan, the island of Timor, and it may also have been Portuguese sailors that were the first Europeans to discover Australia and even New Zealand.^[9]

Portugal's independence was interrupted between 1580 and 1640. Because the heirless King Sebastian died in battle in Morocco, Philip II of Spain claimed his throne and so became Philip I of Portugal. Although Portugal did not lose its formal independence, it was governed by the same monarch who governed Spain, briefly forming a union of kingdoms, as a personal union; in 1640, John IV spearheaded an uprising backed by disgruntled nobles and was proclaimed king. The Portuguese Restoration War between Portugal and Spain on the aftermath of the 1640 revolt, ended the sixty-year period of the Iberian Union under the House of Habsburg. This was the beginning of the House of Braganza, which was to reign in Portugal until 1910. On 1 November 1755, Lisbon, the largest city and capital of the Portuguese Empire, was strongly shaken by an earthquake which killed thousands and destroyed a large portion of the city.

An anachronistic map of the Portuguese Empire(1415–1999). Red - actual possessions; Olive - explorations; Orange - areas of influence and trade; Pink - claims of sovereignty; Green - trading posts; Blue - main sea explorations, routes and areas of inluence.

In the autumn of 1807 Napoleon moved French troops through its allied Spain to invade Portugal. From 1807 to 1811, British-Portuguese forces would successfully fight against theFrench invasion of Portugal.

Portugal began a slow but inexorable decline until the 20th century. This decline was hastened by the independence in 1822 of the country's largest colonial possession, Brazil. At the height of European colonialism in the 19th century, Portugal had a already lost its territory in South America and all but a few bases in Asia. During this phase, Portuguese colonialism focused on expanding its outposts in Africa into nation-sized territories to compete with other European powers there. Portuguese territories eventually included the modern nations of Cape Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, Guinea-Bissau, Angola, and Mozambique.

We should also look at Melaka(Malacca) history so that we could link them together.

In April 1511, Afonso de Albuquerque set sail from Goa to Malacca with a force of some 1200 men and seventeen or eighteen ships.^[2] They conquered the city on August 24, 1511. It became a strategic base forPortuguese expansion in the East Indies. Sultan Mahmud Shah, the last Sultan of Malacca took refuge in the hinterland, and made intermittent raids both by land and sea, causing considerable hardship for the Portuguese. In the meantime the Portuguese built the fort named A Famosa to defend Malacca (its gate is all that remains of the ruins at present). "In order to appease the King of Ayudhya" (Siam, whom had always intended in invading Malacca if not due to the latter's good relationship with the Ming Emperor, China) "the Portuguese sent up an ambassador, Duarte Fernandes, who was well received by Ramathibodi." in 1511.Finally in 1526, a large force of Portuguese ships, under the command of Pedro Mascarenhas, was sent to destroy Bintan, where Sultan Mahmud was based. Sultan Mahmud fled with his family across the Straits to Kampar in Sumatra, where he died two years later.

Maritime Museum, Malacca

It soon became clear that Portuguese control of Malacca did not mean they now controlled Asian trade that centred around it. Their Malaccan rule was severely hampered by administrative and economic difficulties.^[3]Rather than achieving their ambition of dominating Asian trade, the Portuguese had fundamentally disrupted the organisation of the network. The centralised port of exchange of Asian wealth exchange had now gone, as was a Malay state to police the Straits of Malacca that made it safe for commercial traffic. Trade was now scattered over a number of ports amongst bitter warfare in the Straits.^[3]

Ruins of Fort A Famosaattracted millions of tourists to Malacca every year

The Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier spent several months in Malacca in 1545, 1546 and 1549. In 1641 the Dutch defeated the Portuguese to capture Malacca with the help of the Sultan of Johore. The Dutch ruled Malacca from 1641 to 1795 but they were not interested in developing it as a trading centre, placing greater importance to Batavia (Jakarta) in Indonesia as their administrative centre. However they still built their landmark better known as the Stadthuys or Red Building.

Malacca was ceded to the British in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 in exchange for Bencoolen on Sumatra. From 1826 to 1946 Malacca was governed, first by the British East India Company and then as a Crown Colony. It formed part of the Straits Settlements, together withSingapore and Penang. After the dissolution of this crown colony, Malacca and Penang became part of theMalayan Union, which later became Malaysia. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php

Often also we heard of Alfonso:

Dom Afonso de Albuquerque; 1453, Alhandra - Goa, December 16, 1515) was a Portuguese fidalgo, or nobleman, a naval general officer whose military and administrative activities conquered and established the Portuguese colonial empire in the Indian ocean. Generally considered as a world conquest military genius by means of his successful strategy, he was created first Duke of Goa by king Manuel I of Portugal shortly before his death, being the first Portuguese duke not of the royal family, and the first Portuguese title landed overseas. He attempted to close all the Indian ocean naval passages to the Atlantic, Red Sea, Persian Gulf, and to the Pacific, transforming it into a Portuguese Mare Nostrum established over the Turkish power and their Muslim and Hindu allies. ^[1]

Born in Alhandra in the year of 1453,^[2] near Lisbon, Portugal, he was for some time known as The Great, The Caesar of the East, Lion of the Seas and as The Portuguese Mars. Through his father, Gonçalo de Albuquerque, Lord of Vila Verde dos Francos (married to Dona Leonor de Menezes), who held an important position at court, he was connected by remote illegitimate descent with the royal family of Portugal. He was educated in mathematics and classical Latin at the court of Afonso V of Portugal, and served ten years in North Africa, where he acquired military experience. He was present at Afonso V's conquest of Arzila and Tangier in Morocco in 1471.^[3] On his return he was appointedestribeiro-mor (chief equerry) to John II. He took part in the expedition against the Turkish invasion of Italy that culminated in a Christian victory in 1481.^[4] In 1489 he again served in North Africa.

Expeditions to the East

First Expedition, 1503-1504

In 1503 he set out on his first expedition to the East, which was to be the scene of his future triumphs. In company with his kinsman Francisco he sailed round the Cape of Good Hope to India, and succeeded in establishing the king of Cochin securely on his throne, obtaining in return for this service permission to build a Portuguese fort at Cochin, and thus laying the foundation of his country's empire in the East.

Operations in the Persian Gulf and Malabar, 1504-1508

Albuquerque returned home in July 1504, and was well received by King Manuel I of Portugal, who entrusted him with the command of a squadron of five vessels in the fleet of sixteen which sailed for India in 1506 under Tristão da Cunha. After a series of successful attacks on the Arab cities on the east coast of Africa, Albuquerque separated from Tristão, and sailed with his squadron against the island of Hormuz, in the Persian Gulf, which was then one of the chief centers of commerce in the East. He arrived on September 25, 1507, and soon obtained possession of the island, though he was unable to maintain his position for long. He was responsible for building the Fort of Our Lady of the Conception on Hormoz Island.^[5]

With his squadron increased by three vessels, he reached the Malabar coast at the end of 1508, and immediately made known the commission he had received from the king empowering him to supersede the governor Dom Francisco de Almeida. The latter, however, refused to recognize Albuquerque's credentials and cast him into prison, from which he was only released, after three months' confinement, on the arrival of the grand-marshal of Portugal with a large fleet, in November 1509.^[6] Almeida having returned home, Albuquerque speedily showed the energy and determination of his character. On this date he became the second viceroy of the State of India, a position he would hold until his death.^[7]

[edit]Operations in Goa and Malacca, 1510-1511

Afonso de Albuquerque

Albuquerque intended to dominate the Muslim world and control the spices' trading network.^[7] An unsuccessful attack upon Calicut (modern Kozhikode) in January 1510, in which the commander-in-chief received a severe wound, was immediately followed by the investment and capture of Goa. Albuquerque, finding himself unable to hold the town on his first occupation, abandoned it in August, to return with the reinforcements in November, when he obtained undisputed possession. In April 1511, he set sail from Goa to Malacca with a force of some 1200 men and seventeen or eighteen ships.^[8] He conquered Malacca by August 24, 1511 after a severe struggle throughout July. Albuquerque remained in Malacca until November 1511 preparing its defences against any Malay counterattack.^[8] He ordered the slaughter of all the Muslim population in an effort to reduce religious divergence hoping that it would force Hindus and Muslims to convert to Christianity.^[9] He also ordered the first Portuguese ships to sail east in search of the 'Spice Islands' of Maluku.^[8]

Various operations, 1512-1515

In 1512 he sailed for the coast of Malabar. On the voyage a violent storm arose, Albuquerque's vessel, theFlor De La Mar, which carried the treasure he had amassed in his conquests, was wrecked, and he himself barely escaped with his life.^[8] In September of the same year he arrived at Goa, where he quickly suppressed a serious revolt headed byIdalcan, and took such measures for the security and peace of the town that it became the most flourishing of the Portuguese settlements in India. Albuquerque had been for some time under orders from the home government to undertake an expedition to the Red Sea, in order to secure that channel of communication exclusively to Portugal. He accordingly laid siege to Aden in 1513, but was repulsed; and a voyage into the Red Sea, the first ever made by a European fleet, led to no substantial results. In order to destroy the power of Egypt, he is said to have entertained the idea of diverting the course of the Nile River and so rendering the whole country barren. His last warlike undertaking was a second attack upon Ormuz in 1515. The island yielded to him without resistance, and it remained in the possession of the Portuguese until 1622. Perhaps most tellingly, he intended to steal the body of the Prophet Muhammad, and hold it for ransom until all Muslims had left the Holy Land.

China expeditions, 1513

In early 1513, Jorge Álvares—sailing in a mission under Albuquerque—was allowed to land at Lintin Island in the Pearl River Delta of southernChina, and soon after Albuquerque sent Rafael Perestrello to southern China to seek out trade relations with the Ming Dynasty of China. In ships from Portuguese Malacca, Rafael sailed to Canton (Guangzhou) in 1513 and again from 1515–1516 to trade with Chinese merchants there. These ventures, along with those of Tomé Pires and Fernão Pires de Andrade, were the first direct European diplomatic and commercial ties to China. However, after the death of the Chinese Zhengde Emperor on April 19, 1521, conservative factions at court seeking to limit eunuch influence rejected the new Portuguese embassy, fought sea battles with the Portuguese around Tuen Mun, and Tomé was forced to write letters to Malacca stating that he and other ambassadors would not be released from prison in China until the Portuguese relinquished their control of Malacca and returned it to the deposed Sultan of Malacca (who was previously a Ming tributary vassal).^[10] Nonetheless, Portuguese relations with China became normalized again by the 1540s and in 1557 a permanent Portuguese base at Macau in southern China was established with consent from the Ming court.

Political downfall and last years

Albuquerque Monument on Afonso de Albuquerque Square in Lisbon (1902).

Albuquerque's career had a painful and ignominious close. He had several enemies at the Portuguese court who lost no opportunity of stirring up the jealousy of King Manuel against him, and his own injudicious and arbitrary conduct on several occasions served their end only too well. On his return from Ormuz, at the entrance of the harbour of Goa, he met a vessel from Europe bearing dispatches announcing that he was superseded by his personal enemy Lopo Soares de Albergaria. The blow was too much for him and he died at sea on December 16, 1515.^[11]

Before his death he wrote a letter to the king in dignified and affecting terms, vindicating his conduct and claiming for his son the honours and rewards that were justly due to himself. His body was buried at Goa in the Church of our Lady. The king of Portugal was convinced too late of his fidelity, and endeavoured to atone for the ingratitude with which he had treated him by heaping honours upon his natural son Brás de Albuquerque (1500—1580).^[12] In 1576, the latter published a selection from his father's papers under the title Commentarios do Grande Affonso d'Alboquerquewhich had been gathered in 1557.^[13]

An exquisite and expensive variety of mango, that he used to bring on his journeys to India, has been named in his honour, and is today sold throughout the world as Alphonso mangoes.^[14]

Interestingly, there is a writing on Portugese in Malacca by Abdul Aziz Zakaria from 1963. I wonder if this book is still available, time to check DBP library if not Arkib Negara.