Hail the Burmese in Sarawak Malaysia!
By Dr Maung Maung Nyo
When I was going to come to
I was afraid to be alone among stragglers
I thought I would drown in melancholia
I may not be able to stay more than a year.
(Entrance to Universiti Malaysia Sarawak Campus at Kota Samarahan
13 Miles away from the City of Kuching)
However, I have stayed here for ten years
Happy, healthy, hale and hearty as ever
Ever jolly, never sorry with family and friends
They made a small
(Drs MMN and NOM at the Vice-Chancellor Office at UNIMAS)
Yes, when I landed at the
A friend Kyaw Tin Hla popped up close
It was midnight, yet we went to Holiday Inn
It was hot and humid, but I felt cool and serene.
(Current Dean of Medicine Tan Sri Taha)
Dr Kyaw Tin Hla took care of me
From liaison thro lecture to laboratory
I became known to all in the medical faculty
Speaking, teaching and eating became easy.
(UNIMAS Medical Graduates Dancing Like Birds Escaping from a Cage)
Dr Soe Soe Nwe took care of my health
Besides cooking and culinary help
She and Kyaw Tin Hla make a great couple
They guided me on the road to my welfare.
(L to R: Drs Hla Myint, MMN, NOM and Maimie aka Dr Khin Soe Sein)
Drs Mie_Chit also are a friendly couple
They invited me for dinner for a double
They served roasted duck and “red label”
I was living in Kuching in a fable.
(Burmese Doctors at Dr Maung Win's Home: Sitting from L to R:
NOM, Yin Yin Nwe, San San Aye, Than Than Htwe; Standing from L to R:
MMN, Dughter, Ma Thidar, Daughter, Thidar's Father, Tin Win)
Dr Maung Win is a Burmese Muslim
He came as a private physician
He has been long in Kuching
His better half cooks amazing cuisine.
(L to R: Eisabai Nyo, MMN and Yupar Nyo while they were at INTI
College in Kuching for Two Years Each)
Our daughters enjoyed their stay here
They got their college education by INTI teachers
They hopped later to universities in
We’re glad they have graduated masters there.
(L to R: Yuapr Nyo M.Comp. Sc., M.Engg.Sc.(UNSW)
and EiSabai Nyo M.Comp.Sc., Australia)
We eat together, we shop together
More Burmese join the UNIMAS ever
The crowd become bigger and bigger
But, the
(Graduation Dinner for the UNIMAS Medical Graduates)
We visited Mulu cave and wondered
At Orang utan and their ancestors
Humans also shared those forefathers
It’s a lesson in humanitarianism for ever.
(Professors of UNIMAS conferring the MD Degree: Extreme Right
Professor Dr Maung Maung Nyo)
Burmese are fond of sharing meals
They invite you to eat and feel
At their home, work place or in their fields
Otherwise, they would send cooked meals.
(Burmese Professors at UNIMAS: L to R: A/P Dr Tin Win, A/P Dr
Hla Hla Myint, A/P Dr Nan Ommar (NOM), Professor Dr MMN)
Dr Maung Maung Ohn is a pious Buddhist
He is always absorbed in meditation mist
His wife cooks first class meat and fish
She sends food to us that can’t be finished!
(L to R: Drs MMN, Tin Win, Yin Yin Nwe (Mrs Tin Win), NOM,
Dr Ba Kyaw is a Myanmar Muslim
I shared some tinned drink with him
His wife cooked special spicy cuisine
I could not finish though I repeat eating.
( With the First Dean of the FMHS, UNIMAS: L to R:
A/P Dr Michael, Dear Prof. Syed, Prof. MMN, A/P Dr NOM)
Mrs Tin Win is also a good cook
She specializes in all food
She sends cooked meals to us often
We eat together with her husband.
Daily lunch is taken over by Dr Soe Lwins
They drive their car for regular lunch-ins
We eat together Kolo Mee or Byriani
Eating, speaking, teaching is an ecstasy.
(Expatriates at the faculty of Medicine: 2nd from L A/P NOM, 3rd from L
Dr Phyu Phyu Aung.4th from L Yin Yin Nwe alias Mrs Tin Win)
They send food more than we can eat
It was especially cooked as a treat
To mark my birthday, theirs or other occasions
Like Waso, Wakyut and house warming.
(The New Kuching International Airport at Night)
If no occasion to meet together
Burmese call to each other
They would exchange news, big or small,
The Nargis Cyclone was a great call.
(The New UNIMAS Buildings at Kot Samarahan in 2007)
Every Burmese is eager to hear
Diamond Jubilee or Diamond Wedding
First belongs to Rangoon Varsity and second to guessing!
(The UNIMAS started from this Humble Beginning at Kota Samarahan in 1995)
Kyaw Hein ordination evoked much interest
It uplifted the morale of the depressed
Buddhism gives poor people a beacon of light
They can console and content with their life.
(Kuching is the City of Cats; Cat Statues in the Centre of Town)
Still, my life in Kuching has been gratifying
It has been smooth and satisfying
Examination experiences are electrifying
Expatriates and excursions are also exhilarating
One gives you humor, the other give you languor
Both uplift your morale and manners
Hooray, Burmese in Sarawak Malaysia!
Dr Maung Maung Nyo
2.5..2009 (original)
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