MyStory

I was born in 1952 and grew up in a kampong in the fifties and sixties. Recently, someone asked me what I missed most of the Singapore of old. There are so many things actually; but if I had to choose one thing, it would be the fish ponds. This is because many of my happiest childhood memories were centred around the fish ponds; for example, fishing and catching fighting fish.

I lived in a Chinese kampong called Lorong Kinchir, located near Lorong Chuan. Today, it would be where the present Central Expressway stands. In our kampong, there were many fish ponds. We called them ‘he ti’ in Hokkien (鱼池) or ‘yu tong’ in Cantonese (鱼塘). These ponds provided many hours of free entertainment for kampongs boys like me and my brothers and cousins.

Fishing was one of our favourite pastimes. Of course we did not have the fancy fishing rods and tackles that you buy nowadays. Ours were crude rods made from bamboo branches. We simply tie the nylon string with fish hook to one end and that’s it. In fact, sometimes, we don’t even use nylon strings but the cotton thread that my mother used for sewing.

For bait, we used earthworms which we dug with a changkol. We usually fished at our neighbour’s pond where there were many cheap tilapias. But there was a certain fenced off section where he bred expensive commercial fish for sale to the restaurants. We were not allowed to fish there. But boys being boys, one day, we decided to venture into this ‘forbidden territory’ and my cousin managed to catch a big one. I think it was a red tilapia. When our neighbour spotted us, he gave chase all the way until my uncle’s house. I cannot recall what punishment, if any that the kids suffered as a result of this daring raid.

To catch fighting fish, we used the ‘punki’ or rattan basket that construction labourers use to carry earth. First you have to locate a suitable site. We usually look for patches of grass or vegetation on the edge of the pond; like the one you see in the picture below. It’s strange how this instinct stays with you all your life. Every time I come across a lake or pond like this, my mind immediately asks; “Are there any fighting fishes here?”

Next you wade quietly to the knee-deep, murky water in front of the patch and plunge in the punki. Immediately, use one hand to beat around the grass to chase the fishes into your punki, whilst steadying it with the other hand. After that, you raise the punki in eager anticipation. What a thrill it was to see a brightly-coloured, struggling male fighting fish in your punki. However, we occasionally get a rude shock when we see a huge hairy spider scurrying around instead. And if we caught a less colourful females, we would toss it back into the pond.

The kind of fighting fish we caught were quite different from the ones you see in the aquariums. Those they sell in the aquariums are Siamese fighting fish with bigger, more elegant fins and tails. Ours had smaller fins and tail. They are called betta imbellis, so I learned.

We would put our precious catch in tin cans and bring them home and transfer them to glass Horlicks bottles together with some water plants, usually the hydrilla, and keep them in a dark area, such as (don’t laugh) under our beds, to let them regain their bright colours.

How do we feed them? We usually catch tubifex worms from the nearby Kallang River. We do this by running a metal wire through the sand. When the wire emerges, some worms will be found hanging to it. We have also seen men with big cans and nets catching tubifex worms for sale to aquariums. For your information, the Kallang River of yesteryears was quite filthy. Many kampong folks simply discard their dead pets and animals into it. Besides tubifex worms, we also feed our fighting fish with mosquito larvae. Those days, there were plenty of mosquito larvae in our drains. We simply used a spoon to scoop them up.

Then comes the cruel part where we would let our fishes fight by putting them into a bigger bottle. I am glad that kids nowadays are not so cruel.

Today Singapore is a modern metropolis and there are no more kampong fish ponds. Although I won’t go so far as to say that compared to kids of today, our childhood days were more fun; but certainly, I wish the kids of today, especially the boys could have a chance to experience the sheer joy of catching fighting fish from the ponds rather than buying them from the aquarium shops.

Article migrated from original My Story Portal 2007.
Author. Chunsee