: : Christmas Celebration : :
My Christmas Celebration with family was a simple affair on Christmas Eve. However, at the end of it, it was a grand affair for the family. We love to get together during Christmas and get together to show off in our new clothes. We swap news of what has been happening since the last meet up (for me, it was a few weeks ago!!).
Well, we had the roast ham. We also had the traditional Kelabit Nuba’ Laya’ @ soft Bario Rice wrapped in banana leaf. Bario rice is very fragrant and similar to the Siamese Rice found in Thailand. The difference is that it is slightly more sticky although not as sticky as glutinous rice. The Bario rice is cooked until it’s very soft and then wrapped in banana leaf.
Wena : Yzara, want to share one portion?
Yzara : Huh! I can finish onelah. No need to share one.
Wena : …
Well. 🙂 The rice is very delicious and since it’s very soft, it gets digested very fast. One portion may seem a lot but if you eat that only, you’ll get hungry very fast!
We also had some roasted pumpkin (with the burnt sides removed) as well as some buttered vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower and something-like-miniature-cabbage-that-isn’t-brussel-sprouts). In the front, is the fried tapioca leaves, known in Kelabit as Udong Ubi. It is made from wild tapioca leaves that are pounded until it is completely smashed up to get the sticky sap out. The sap is not edible so needs to be removed. It is then boiled to remove the sap from the leaves. After that, the water is drained out and then it’s stir-fried with some garlic. My favourite vegetable dish. It’s a common vegetable dish amongst all the indigenous people of Sarawak. So far, there’s only one shop in Kuching town that I know that serves this. Most shops don’t prepare this dish as it is quite tedious to do it.
And, the Christmas Tree in the house. And I see a little handmade decoration I made a few years ago. Can you spot the little bead Cross? 🙂