I
was still sipping my Hazelnut infused coffee in a leisurely breakfast with my
mother and eldest sister when my telephone signaled an in-coming call.
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| At Amaya Food Gallery in Amari Johor Baru with His Excellency, The Ambassador Dr Peter Blomeyer |
My
next thought reassured me it was just too early in the day for it so I
dismissed all suspicions and accepted the call.
When
the lady introduced herself as Shirley from the Embassy of the Federal Republic
of Germany, I glanced at our wall clock that confirmed that it was already office
hours in Kuala Lumpur.
Shirley
told me that His Excellency, The Ambassador of Germany to Malaysia was new in
Malaysia and while he was in Johor to make a courtesy call on the Sultan of
Johor, it would be nice if he could also meet with the author of My Johor
Stories for an insight into the True Tales and Rich Heritage of Johor.
Meanwhile
I had already gleaned from photographs and information posted on Instagram and
Facebook about the Ambassador’s meet-up with the Johor Sultan, Government
agencies and various Non-Governmental Organisations in Johor.
I
was sure that the embassy would have done their homework and background checks on
me and I felt deeply humbled to be singled out from among the myriads of
Johoreans to meet with the Ambassador. Out of curiosity, I simply asked, “Why
me?”
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| My Johor Stories: True Tales, Real People, Rich Heritage went to No. 1 among MPH Non-Fiction Bestsellers |
It
did not occur to me (until much later) that I had met Sandra when she just
joined the team at Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) and over
coffee at a charming café, Flowers in the Window, I shared with her my insights
about Johor.
I
soon learnt that the Ambassador had a very busy schedule here and could
probably only avail a short time with me but I was happy to meet His Excellency
to introduce Johor to him with My Johor Stories.
In
an exchange of emails and telephone messages, an appointment was arranged for Evening
Coffee with the Ambassador at Amari Johor Baru, the hotel where he was staying
in Johor Baru.
Mindful
of arriving on time, I started my drive half an hour ahead but realised (too
late!) that I had failed to remember the road closures and detours to divert
traffic away from the vaccination center in the heart of the city.
After
inching through crawling one-way traffic in a bottleneck due to landscaping
work happening along Jalan Wong Ah Fook, I was relieved to arrive at the
entrance of the Amaya Food Gallery just ahead of the arrival of His Excellency,
The Ambassador of Germany to Malaysia, Dr Peter Blomeyer.
I
turned to look when the elevator bell sounded, “Ding!” and from photos that I
had seen of him, recognised the gentleman who walked across the lobby towards
me.
Aware
that there is a certain protocol to observe when meeting an ambassador, it
would be good to break-the-proverbial-ice from the outset as ours was an
informal meet-up.
As
soon as we exchanged greetings, with due respect, I asked if I should address
him with the honorific, “His Excellency” or “Ambassador” or “Doctor,” and he
replied without hesitation, “Call me Peter.”
Pleased
with this comfortable start, I pointed out that we were two “P” people because
our names started with the letter “P” and the Ambassador not only agreed but
added that we both had names that started with “Pe…”
As
we were welcomed into the Amaya Food Gallery and escorted to our table, the
Ambassador cordially invited me to join him for an early dinner.
(I
later learnt that his team in the embassy thought that he should only meet me
over coffee and then retire for the day as he had two more appointments the
next morning before leaving the city with another stopover in Kluang, on his
return to KL.)
With
coffee forgotten, we enjoyed an aperitif of the signature welcome drink served
by the café – a refreshing, chilled lemongrass soda.
I
did not hesitate to tell the Ambassador that I wished to share my experience
about meeting with him – it was not every day that I would sit down with an
ambassador – and sought his permission to take photographs, to which he kindly
agreed.
After
I formally welcomed the Ambassador to Johor and thanked him for his interest in
My Johor Stories, he shared a brief summary of the people he met and the
places he visited thus far as well as the appointments planned for the next
day.
It
was good to hear the familiar names and places in a list of Who’s Who in the
city at the various organisations and must-see sights that ranged from IRDA, Yayasan
Warisan Johor or Johor Heritage Foundation, the Johor Baru Chinese Heritage
Museum and the NGOs who are contributing towards the community and protecting
the environment.
In
addition to meeting with the various people in government and non-governmental
agencies, it was good to know that he also met with the German community living
in Johor Baru. (I had the pleasure of meeting some of them through the Rotary Club
and the International Women’s Association in Johor Baru.)
As
he shared about the people he met earlier that day, it dawned on me that he
hardly paused for a proper meal and was more than ready to have a relaxing dinner.
Ravi,
the serving staff at the café, was attentive yet unobtrusive when he topped up
our drinks, took our dinner order and served dishes to the table, while we
continued our conversation.
Having
read, Prince of Pirates by Carl A. Trocki, the Ambassador was well
versed with the history of the Temenggongs and the development of Johor and
Singapore from 1784 to 1885.
Armed
with this knowledge, we had a lively discussion about the people of Johor – the
rakyat fondly known as Bangsa Johor – who has a unique
relationship with the Johor Ruler.
The
Ambassador was familiar with our Pepper and Gambier heritage in Johor –
a story also published in my book, My Johor Stories: True Tales, Real
People, Rich Heritage – where Chinese planters in
Singapore and the Riau Islands were invited to open land in Johor for the cultivation
of these crops.
He was also familiar with the kangchu
land management system adopted by the Johor Ruler, that was introduced by Sir
Stamford Raffles in Singapore for pepper and gambier cultivation.
It
was an opportunity to share with him that when the Johor Ruler, Temenggong
Daeng Ibrahim, invited
the Chinese, Indians, Punjabi, and Arabs to settle here, these newcomers in
Johor were considered as welcomed guests and not immigrants.
I
pointed out that the harmonious relationship among the various communities in
Johor was reflected in Johor Baru’s Street of Harmony – the very street
where the hotel located – and named the locations of the places of worship of
the main race groups here.
I
also shared with the Ambassador about the benevolence of the Johor Ruler who
presented the Christian, Chinese, Indian and Sikh communities with the land to
build their places of worship located along the same street, which still stand
to this day.
Having
met the good people in the Johor Baru Chinese Association, the Ambassador was
familiar with the five main clans or dialect groups of the Chinese, made up of the
Teochew, Cantonese, Hokkien, Hakka and Hainan and how – after a period of anarchy
– they were united in a common place of worship.
Unlike
other Chinese temples which were named after their deities, this temple located
just across the road from the hotel, honoured the Johor Ruler by adopting a
name which included the state’s name in, Johor Old Temple.
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| My books are placed in the rooms and suites of the Amari Johor Baru |
This
hotel (and some other hotels!) know that guests liked to stay in a place with a
story and I was deeply honoured when they chose to place my books in their
better rooms and suites for the guests’ reading pleasure.
I shared
with the Ambassador about my unforgettable experience with guests, a couple who read My Johor Stories while staying with this hotel, and when I received their
email with comments and questions, I managed to meet with them at the Amari Johor Baru.
It
was most humbling to learn that they even went to the nearest MPH bookstore to
buy their own copies of my books and as a result of our meet-up, the gentleman –
a professional writer and journalist for the South China Morning Post –
published an interesting feature in the South China Morning Post dated 17
January 2020 that included his experience with My Johor Stories and
meeting me in Johor Baru.
When
the Ambassador said that he had a stopover at Kluang on his drive back to KL
the next day, I mentioned that My Johor Stories 2: Interesting Places and
Inspirational People, also featured stories about people in various Johor
towns like Kluang, Batu Pahat, Muar, Macap, Desaru, Pontian, Senai, Kulai and
Kelapa Sawit.
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| Presenting an autographed copy of my book to the Ambassador |
On
his way to Johor Baru, the Ambassador visited to Muar, the Royal Town of Bandar
Maharani, so I told him that one of the stories I will feature in Book Three of
My Johor Stories – a work-in-progress – was on how this Royal Town was named
after the third consort of Sultan Abu Bakar, Sultanah Fatimah, a Chinese lady.
His
telephone suddenly signaled a call and the Ambassador reached for his telephone
and politely excused himself to take the call from his wife.
He
spoke briefly in German and paused to say in English, “My daughter wants to speak
to you,” and turned his telephone around for me to have a video chat with his charming
eight-year-old.
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| Another view of the Ambassador receiving my book, My Johor Stories: True Tales, Real People, Rich Heritage |
Knowing
that they would enjoy the sun, sea and sand, I introduced the Ambassador to the
many attractions on the east of Johor at Desaru Coast and suggested that they
plan their next holiday here.
I
guessed the Ambassador may have yet to discover the interesting places to enjoy
in Desaru that ranged from an ostrich farm, a crocodile farm, a fruit farm to
the premium destination designed with international brand hotels and beach
resorts like the Hard Rock Hotel Desaru Coast, the Westin Desaru Coast Resort,
the Anantara Desaru Coast Resort & Villas and the One&Only Desaru Coast.
With
dinner done and the table cleared, dessert was served.
Time
had surely flown by as we chatted on a wide range of topics that included my grandfather
stories which Johoreans, both local and living abroad, can easily connect
with, our family’s link to the Wong family in Johor Baru and the way My Johor
Stories was connecting people to Johor.
These
and other exciting stories were documented in my book sequel, My Johor
Stories 2: Interesting Places and Inspirational People.
He
listened with interest as I told him about foreigners who read My Johor Stories,
wrote me and met me when then visited Johor Baru, and how uncanny it was when
we suddenly discovered that Richard Dunn’s grandfather, F.M. Still, and my
grandfather knew each other.
This,
I told him, was also shared in part of my 2019 TEDx Talk entitled, Connecting
People through My Johor Stories.
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| The Ambassador taking a closer look at My Johor Stories 2: Interesting Places and Inspirational People |
In
parting, the Ambassador gave me his best wishes as I worked on Book Three of My
Johor Stories, along with grateful thanks for gaining further insights into the
culture and heritage of Johor.
The
next morning while I was still at the breakfast table, my phone signaled a call
and it was Shirley who also put Sandra on the speaker-phone to ask me how my Coffee
with the Ambassador went.
I assured
them that it went very well but we did not have any coffee because he invited
me to dine with him. Thanks Shirley and Sandra, for the privilege of meeting
the Ambassador and for letting me share some insights with My Johor Stories.
