what talk you ?

Cold Storage ...

2011-01-03T02:34:00.002+08:00

This might just be the final blog entry here. Might. You just can't tell for sure.

Over the past year, as work picked up a notch (or a few, really), it's been nothing short of a major struggle for me to even post one entry up. It was a good 2010, but boy it was tough as well - the good came after a lot of hard grind. 2011 promises more of the same!

I find time for short postings on Facebook, or Twitter, but blogging is altogether a different proposition.

Thus, with a heavy heart, I'm putting this on cold storage. It's not the last entry, but it won't be very frequent that you'll see me here.

You can still follow bits of my life on flickr, just look up here. Or if you know me, drop me a mail and we can stay in touch with Facebook.

Avoiding Elephants in Sri Lanka …

2010-02-19T18:49:00.001+08:00

For today’s blog, I’m really going to switch gears and start documenting stories from my travels instead.

I’ve realised in my conversations that I do have a lot of stories to tell – some lighthearted, others serious, and some, even hard to believe. So I think it’s a great deal of material I have to work with, and it’s not hard to produce something out for the neglected, suffering blog.

My recent trip to Colombo, Sri Lanka is my 2nd ever there. The first time I went to Sri Lanka, it was still at the height of the insurgency – the Tamil Tigers have only acquired DIY planes and actually bombed the Colombo Airport the morning I was first supposed to leave for Colombo.

This time around, the hardest part about going to Sri Lanka was that it happened just prior to the Chinese New Year break, so the flights had to be timed properly unless I had a desire to spend Chinese New Year away from my family !

Anyways … one of Colombo’s main thoroughfare is Galle Road, which runs along the waterfront. Galle Road extends from one end near the Presidential Secretariat, through the main financial and commercial districts in the capital.

Along much of Galle Road is a promenade romantically called Galle Face Green. One day, having a little time to knock off after my speaking engagement was over, I decided to take a walk along Galle Face Green.

I was staying at the Hilton, but I decided to put my bag down at the Galle Face Hotel, the oldest hotel east of the Suez Canal, and start my walk from there. From the Galle Face Hotel, it was a short walk, Galle Face Green practically starts where the Galle Face Hotel ends !

The first 10 minutes of my walk was peaceful, and unobstructed … but halfway through my walk, this man came right up to me, looked at my expensive looking D90, and tried to strike a conversation with me.

“Sir, I know you. You are from the hotel, no?”

Nope, I’m not. But I decided to play along, just to see what’s it all about. “Yup, Galle Face … great hotel”

“I am barman at the hotel, sir … I remember you.”

Wow … must be really drunk last night. I don’t remember drinking, and I don’t remember being inside the Galle Face Hotel until about 20 minutes ago when I put my bag inside one of my colleagues’ room.

He went on telling me about this amazing festival with 40 elephants that is happening just in about 15 minutes’ time, and coincidentally was just around the corner. And then how lucky I would be to be able to photograph the festival, and how fantastically lucky it is for me that he’s on his way there too.

Would I mind sharing a tuk-tuk with him? He can be my guide …

Man … this must be one of the oldest tricks in the books. I was hit with this the first time I went overseas on a work assignment in Bangkok, and got big time scammed then. Whatever made this guy think I’m THAT stupid.

He actually stopped a tuk-tuk, told the driver to go to the Elephant Festival, and really tried to get me in. I made up some story about meeting someone at the Hilton, on the other end of the walk, and saw him off.

I thought … well … that’s the end of that. But seriously, I underestimated the rampancy of the problem.

Within 30 seconds, someone else came, and tried to strike another conversation of the same nature, this time, he even spoke Malay with me when he learnt I’m from Malaysia. Another time? No way …

So, this time, he asked me which hotel I stayed at, and I just made an answer up – The Taj. And, oh, what a coincidence, he was a cook there – I was the guy at the buffet last night, right ?

This is sounding familiar …

Temple Festival, 40 Elephants, once a year, lucky day in Buddhist Calendar …

This time, I decided to get inquisitive – where’s the festival? Which temple? Why 40 elephants? How come my Sri Lankan friends told me the festival is tomorrow? You know, red herrings to throw him off …

It worked … this guys understood that I got the conversation before. And wisely, he just walked away without answering my last question …

I got approached another 2 times by people trying to scam me in a similar fashion … and both times, getting tired of being harassed, I told them both that just moments ago, another two of their friends came and tried to make me part with my money in the same way, and both times, I found out they were lying and that there is no such Elephant Festival, so please stop trying to trick me, and please tell the other scammers in the area to stop bothering me.

If I had been foolish enough to board any of those tuk tuks, apparently, they would drive me to some temple somewhere, where nothing would be happening, and I’d be then promised another place where there would be some great things to photograph and see, and be taken on a merry-go-round around Colombo, while expected to pay the tuk-tuk fare. Sometimes, they would even drive people to gemstone shops or other shops in hope of earning some commission should their victim decide to purchase some overpriced goods.

It happened to me once in Bangkok, in the year 1999, when I was still a naive traveler, on my first overseas trip for work. Once bitten, forever suspicious !

I love Colombo, Sri Lanka. The people who hosted me were absolutely great, gracious hosts who showed us the world famous Sri Lankan hospitality, the spicy, but interesting food. I’ll remember Sri Lanka for that, but remember, if you go to Galle Face Green, remember to avoid the elephants !

My new camera

2010-01-24T03:13:00.001+08:00

Losing things feel sucky. It really feels bad to lose a prized possession, because we all develop attachments to things we like. In some ways, I hate myself for losing my Nikon D80. But in some other ways, I can’t help but to tell myself that it wasn’t my own fault.

Earlier this week, on Monday, I lost my beloved Nikon D80 camera. You wouldn’t believe it if I told you, but I lost it in Kuala Lumpur International Airport, while using the men’s room.

I hung it on the door (inside the cubicle, mind you), turned away from the door for around 30 seconds or so, no more than a minute, and it’s gone. The whole camera and its bag.

Well, I hope the new owner will rot in hell and see some spectacular calamity befall himself (or herself). No point here being nice or diplomatic and hide my true feelings.

The really sucky thing about losing a camera in a airport is that it casts a dark cloud over your entire trip, and since you have a flight to catch, there isn’t too much you can do. I’m sure the person (or persons) responsible for this have been doing this for a very long time, and I’m not the first, nor last person to have this fate befall me. That’s why I hope for some spectacular calamity to befall this person (or persons). That’s probably the only way to stop them from ever striking again.

Anyways, today, I reluctantly bought a new camera. A Nikon D90. I didn’t want to buy a D300s because I didn’t need all the extra features, and I also like the D90 because of its familiarity. In some ways, it’s like getting a straight replacement for my camera.

I hope it’ll be a long, loving relationship, and this time, despite my own reservations about the safety of KLIA, I’m determined to still bring it on trips. The bad guys shouldn’t scare me from traveling with my camera again – if that happens, they win big time. I’ll be more careful, and even in the privacy of my own toilet cubicle, it seems that a camera can never leave my reach !

Going Places

2010-01-15T01:53:00.001+08:00

Travel has been a pretty common fixture in my life for the past few years, until the combo of a collapsing economy and working for a company that didn’t quite have the funds to let me travel around made me slow down a little later last year.

Well, seems like things are picking up again where I am here. Just yesterday, I returned from a good trip to Bangkok. I think I did a decent job there since I’ve been asked to return again, and work on some tough accounts. I think you need to have some measure of confidence gained in you before people let you go to the tough customers.

Next week, I will be in Philippines, hoping to also make that same impression on the team there. I will also take the opportunity to meet some of my colleagues from my previous career stop. It should be a very interesting trip indeed. Only thing missing is not knowing where to get lechons …

And in early February, I am slated to feature in Tech.Ed 2010 in Sri Lanka. This is really exciting. I have only been to one Tech.Ed previously – in Kuala Lumpur, and it’s a massive industry event – basically a gathering of the entire IT world as one knows it. So, this is really interesting, and I look forward to my 2nd trip to Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Later on in March, I’ll be heading out to Seattle, USA once more. This time, I’ll be in Tech Ready 10, the Microsoft’s own internal version of Tech.Ed, and I look forward to renewing my acquaintances with some old friends, and to meet some of my colleagues whom I’ve worked with only virtually previously.

And finally, I will take a break in Hong Kong in April. By then, I”m pretty sure I’ll be needing one. What an eventful year this is turning out to be, well, at least from the outlook point of view.

I hope to be sharing some of my stories from these travels and trips, and post some photos too.

Now that I have finally seemed to work myself into the rhythm of working in my new role here, I think I’ll have a bit more time for photography and flickr. I’ve neglected those passions these past few months due to my new job, but now that I’ve gotten the hang of things, I really look forward to renewing my postings actively.

This year, good or bad, it seems like I’ll be going places !

2010 … with a real bang

2010-01-08T01:13:00.001+08:00

Here’s the first post of 2010 – I hope it won’t be the last. If this week is any indication of how my year is going to be like, then this will herald long periods of silence on this blog between posts.

My work will take me traveling again very shortly. I have 3 days in Bangkok next week, another 5 days in Manila thereafter, and early in February, I will be a speaker at Tech.Ed in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It’s going to be massively exciting !

Today at work, the enormity of the task before me really hit home. This is going to be a very challenging period, and I’m relishing it.

In my previous jobs, I was more the doer, the person getting things done. I executed projects as a Project Manager, written codes as a developer, and presented demos and fancy chart pack as a presales consultant. But this time around … I’m going to take the bull by the horn. I will be running a business like its my own.

In some ways, this is scary – I mean – there are always going to be things that will keep me awake at night. But then again, what’s life if you don’t take on ever bigger challenges.

I think I’ve already got a blueprint in my mind on how I want to have my tasks and goals accomplished. In my own mind, the hard part is the execution, where every little detail will matter.

On a more personal note – I’m suddenly thinking about trying out the MAS Flight Simulator. For 60,000 Enrich Miles, you can get 1 hour of flying time in a Flight Simulator … I’m really tempted. After all, using the Enrich Miles to redeem flight is really silly … you get the flight for free, but not the taxes and the fuel surcharge, yadda yadda, etc etc … like I once got 2 return flights to Bangkok for free, only to be slapped by over RM700 of taxes and surcharges. Perhaps my flight sim redemption will be more worthy !

Last post from 2009

2009-12-31T01:56:00.001+08:00

First of all, let me say I’m quite sorry there has been a lot of silence in this blog for the past few months. If only you knew the hectic pace of life, the worries keeping me awake, the running around I’ve had, and all the changes that had happen. Well, I suppose I could have blogged about all of those, but life’s priorities shifts with time, and with circumstances.

Let me begin by saying that this has been at best, a year of dreams being realized, and at worst, a year when dreams were also destroyed.

2009 saw some pretty depressing things happening to our economy, and to the global financial situation. Working for a foreign company, I nearly felt the full force of the dip in economy – my company filed for Chapter 11. That immediately cast a really dark shadow over my working situation.

Uncertainty, anger, frustration and ultimately, despair of the situation resulted. I really wanted to motivate myself to greater heights with the company, but it wasn’t to be. Working for a company in Chapter 11 is like driving on a busy highway whilst stuck in reverse gear.

I had a lot of dreams with the company – it wasn’t to be. And since I put so much prominence on what I do, it goes without saying that I felt like it was a huge setback.

On a more personal note, aside from work, my dreams for 2009 materialized. I was able to achieve my childhood goal of visiting Cambodia’s famed Angkor temples. Walking amongst the ruins of perhaps the greatest religious monuments ever built was electric.

Other notable happenings in 2009 included my losing 10kgs through a disciplined regime of dietary changes and regular workouts. I know I wouldn’t be growing any younger – it’s time to start caring for my body. It’s the responsible thing to do for my loved ones.

I also took a trip to Bali with The Girl Friend. This was one trip I’ve always wanted to do. It was again, fulfilling on so many levels – being able to explore Bali again is a joy. But being able to share it with her makes it all the more sweeter. We came to know each other because of Bali related chatter.

And finally, I made a job switch that I thought was not possible to me any more. 10 years ago, I was interviewed and accepted to work for a technology giant. Due to reasons beyond my own control, I wasn’t able to accept that position. I’ve always wondered if there would be a day again when I get a second chance to work for this company that I’ve always admired.

I was nearly in tears when I heard the news that I was accepted. I am now doubly motivated to do well here, and I think there’s something electric about working for a company that you admire.

In reality, 2009 had its ups and downs. I will choose to remember the downs, and take those as lessons for a rainy day, when I’m sure I will need to call upon those lessons to take me through them with less pain, and perhaps more hindsight. And I will choose to remember the ups, and take those joys as motivations and memories that will energize me to scale to a higher plane in 2010.

To anyone who still reads this blog, thanks ! Your blog-friendship is much appreciated. A very Happy New Year to you, and a very successful year ahead !

Angkor Adventures: Dinner while appreciating Apsara's !

2009-07-04T14:34:00.001+08:00

After having what can only be described as a splendid first day of sight seeing at Angkor, marveling the beautiful temples at various temples around the Angkor UNESCO World Heritage park, we just had to tick off another item on the must do list - Apsara dance !

Once we were done with the sunset at Bakheng, Sukkung was nice enough to drop us back at the hotel so that we could freshen up before taking us to a restaurant to watch an Apsara performance !

Apsara dances were once reserved for royalties only, and was so treasured that when the Thai defeated the Khmers in the 15th century, they didn't just take all the treasures - they even took a troupe of Apsara dancers back to Ayutthaya.

As a dance, it was nearly wiped out during the dark years of the Khmer Rouge rule, and was only revived when a princess from the royal family, who had learnt it, revived it - combining her own learnings with research into ancient texts and carvings.

It is only the last decade or so that Apsara dance has been reintroduced to the public. Nowadays, as tourists flock to Siem Reap, there are Apsara dances in many restaurants and dance halls.

We ended up in one such restaurant, which served buffet dinner (USD 12, not inclusive of drinks). The whole place was quite packed with tourists, and served a very international fare - western, Thai, Viet and Cambodian food were all available.

And as you might imagine, there were a host of filler dances before we even got to the Apsara dance. A few filler dances, some of which bear a striking resemblance to Thai dances, filled the time before the main draw appeared on stage.

Apsara dance is graceful, and I'm very glad I managed to watch it. I'm not sure if this is the best performance there is of the art form, but it was full of graceful movements, with subtle hand and body gestures played out to communicate the story line (of course, we understood very little of it).

The costumes were brilliant as well, and I can well understand now why bas reliefs of Apsaras fill the walls of many temples !

I'll let photos do the talking here :)

Elaborate costumes ...

That's the principle dancer ...

This is how court entertainment was like back in the old days ...

Dancers striking a pose in unison !

This is the most famous Apsara pose, but I have no idea what it means ...

And finally, a look at the costumes from the back !

Next up - a grand circuitry of temples !

Angkor Adventures: Completing the Small Circuit

2009-06-14T17:51:00.001+08:00

Continuing from our previous post, where we spent the morning admiring sunrise at Angkor Wat, and then dropping our jaws at Angkor Tom. This next part will chronicle the rest of the day.

For the benefit of our friends - the temples of Angkor is spread over a very large area - most of the famous ones just north of the present day town of Siem Reap, but a lot others are all over an area a few hundred kms square.

The essentials of Angkor can be experiencing through a journey on the Small circuit - a clockwise route starting at Angkor Wat, traversing northward to Angkor Thom, then eastward to Ta Phrom, and then completing the circuit looking at smaller temples, gradually turning south and westward and ending the day at Phnom Bakheng, just north west of Angkor Wat, where you can try your luck at a sunset view. This is called the Small circuit loop. There is a Grand circuit, which extends the route further eastward, and covers a different set of temples - we'll cover those the next day instead.

Moving on from Angkor Thom after lunch, we depart through the Victory Gate (the second Eastern gate at Angkor Thom), and find ourselves at the small temples of Chau Say Tevoda, and Thomannon, just across the road from each other. Both are small temples, built in the 12th century, and of similar styles. Visit the recently restored Chau Say Tevoda first - you can see clearly where they have been restored by the Chinese team. In my opinion, it was quite poorly done, but then, time will tell. Then, walk across the road to admire the better restored Thomannon - check out the lintel carvings there.

Moving on, we passed the stone bridge which used to span the Siem Reap river - today, the river has, over thousands of years, changed its course, making the bridge look strangely out of place - the river is now a few hundred meters further to the east. Not long after, we reached the imposing Ta Keo.

Being told that there are no carvings, and because Tyko was worried of the really imposing looking steps, we decided not to make the climb up Ta Keo, and would instead, just walk around its walls - which wasn't such a bad thing, after all. I would have liked to climb it, but heck, we'll be climbing quite a few temples over the next few days still, one less is ok. It's a temple that was never completed - historical records suggests that construction was stopped when it was struck by lightning - which was then considered an extremely unlucky omen.

Next, here's where a driver / guide comes in useful. We wanted to go to Ta Phrom first to see the majestic trees growing over the temple ruins, but Sukkong, our guide, suggested to us to visit the broadly similar Banteay Kdei first - so that we can see how the temple should look like, minus the forest invasion!

Banteay Kdei is often overlooked in favor of the largely similar Ta Phrom, especially short of time. A beautiful temple largely in ruins due to what conservators believe as poor materials and over ambitious expansions - it was renovated many times and extended. And herein lies the beauty of the temple - atmospheric ruins, coupled with the usual great carvings you find elsewhere in the Angkor ruins. And it really gives you a good idea of how the temples will look like minus all the trees growing on top of it over the centuries as the jungle reclaims the temples after they were abandoned.

That whet our appetite for Ta Phrom, and we're quite happy to head there, after a short trip across the street to take a quick look at Srah Srang, the Royal Bath, a small reservoir of water. We just had a quick peek because we knew we'd be back tomorrow for the sunrise view. This is the site of our only encounter with a rude vendor.

When visiting Angkor, you should not be surprised to find young child peddlers trying to sell you everything from bracelets to cold drinks, but what you'll quickly find is that they are all largely very polite, and once you enter temple compounds, they will leave you alone. Here at Srah Srang, we came across a child peddler who actually accused us of lying - she was upset we said we might drink at her stall and ended up not having a drink. We quickly shrugged that incident off, promising ourselves not to even say anything the next time we're approached.

Next off, the jungle temple itself, Ta Phrom. Ta Phrom is quite a beauty - similar to Banteay Kdei, but was left on purpose by the Angkor conservators the way the found it. Basically, most Angkor temples were 'discovered' with jungle reclaiming much of it in the late 19th century. For purpose of conservation, most had the jungle removed so that they can be conserved, and what you see today are the temples minus most of the trees and overgrowth. However, Ta Phrom was left mostly alone, so you can get a good sense of how the temples of Angkor would have looked like minus all the clearings.

The temple itself is very beautiful, with beautiful carvings very much intact all over, and with ruins on the outside and inside. I don't know about you, but I seem to think that the disorganized chaos of befallen Ta Phrom beautiful. It's almost like nature has taken over and decided to decorate the temple with trees.

Take your time in this temple, it's quite easy to get lost in the ruins, and I think that's the beauty. We went in without any plans or any knowledge of the layout. All we did was to wander around, and try and cover as much of the ground as possible. There are surprises at every turn, and do take in the sights, and not get caught trying to just take photographs.

While the famous 'Lara Croft' tree takes a lot of attention, and can be a maddening mix of photo snapping tourists and gawking spectators, if you venture a bit , there are plenty of trees and photo opportunities elsewhere in Ta Phrom. While the tour buses do come, it's not hard to avoid them, since they are always in a hurry, and will quite efficiently horde tourists from one sight to another without really doing justice to the place.

I learnt to just avoid them by being totally random, just walking away whenever you encounter a big group, and you'll be rewarded by your own piece of Ta Phrom. We spent a lot of time here, because there are just so many spectacular sights here - gigantic trees supported on crumbling temples - in some cases, the temples themselves are supported by the roots of the very trees which grow on them.

After Ta Phrom, we had a bit of time on our hand, so Sukkung had us visit Preah Khan. Already quite templed out for the day, we just went in to have a cursory look, knowing that we'll be back the next day anyways. So, more on Preah Khan on a future post then.

After our temple visits, we wind down the day with a visit to Bakheng. Bakheng, or Phnom Bakheng (Bakheng hill), is the site of the first of the Angkor temples near Siem Reap, built on top of a hill. A 20 minute hike took us up to the hill, where more climbing ensued before we reached the top tier of Bakheng. There, you have vantage point - after all, it is the highest point around the whole area - you can see Angkor Wat to the southeast, and you can can see the sun setting over the West Baray, a huge reservoir dating back to Angkorian time.

As luck had it, due to the start of the rainy season, heavy clouds at the horizon made sunset muted. We waited for a while, and despite some promising breaks in the clouds, ultimately, we left without seeing any of the brilliant sunsets we have heard of. Having said that, it was still a great day out in Angkor.

Also, I overheard this classic bimbo line at Bakheng, while a group of American teenagers arrived at the top of the temple, when I was already there, waiting for sunset to arrive. One of the teenagers asked her friend aloud: "Do they have sunsets everyday, or does it only happen on special occasions?"

I don't know about sunsets, but I happen to think of my visit to Angkor so far as a special occasion, something I'll cherish and remember for a long time yet.

Angkor Adventures: Sunrise over Angkor Wat & Glorious Angkor Thom !

2009-06-06T14:31:00.001+08:00

After touching down in Siem Reap, and experiencing a sunset at Angkor Wat, we settled down for the night after dinner at the great Dragon Soup Restaurant at Old Market, followed by some great ice cream at Blue Pumpkin.

Next morning, at around 5am, our driver, Sukkong, was waiting for us at the lobby, ready to take us out for our sunrise experience at Angkor Wat.

A short 15 minute drive takes us to Angkor Wat. We took our time, and took lots of photos of the temple from the various vantage points. Being the start of the rainy season, the crowd was 'thinner' (looks very crowded to me, but was told it's at least 5-6 times more crowded in the peak seasons), and the sunrise wasn't so good (which I agree, since it was cloudy, making those dramatic colors muted).

Spending the next hour or so there, Tyko and I managed to sneak in plenty of photos - while the sunrise itself wasn't the spectacle I think many would expect, just the experience of starting a new day at this ancient temple did it for me. If you seek, you shall find quiet corners where you can enjoy the experience minus noisy Asian tourists ...

After having our share of photos and having soaked enough of the Angkor atmosphere, we returned to the hotel for breakfast to refuel ourselves for the full day ahead !

After breakfast, we headed past Angkor Wat, to the fabled walled city of Angkor Thom.

If Angkor Wat is majestic due to its soaring towers and symmetrical construction, Angkor Thom is famous for it's many different attractions - the South Gate - the terraces - various temples within, and of course - Bayon, the ultimate expression of egomaniac.

First up, the famous South Gate. Being a walled city, Angkor Thom has 5 gates which were gateways to the city - the South Gate is the best preserved, and invariably, part of every tourist itinerary. Scenes from the Churning of the Ocean of Milk were replayed at the causeway leading to the gate, and the gate soars high into the sky, with faces of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara facing the four compass points.

After that, we were dropped at the north end of Angkor Thom, where we explored Terrace of the Leper King, Terrace of the Elephants, Phimeanakas and Baphuon before we made our way to Bayon.

Terrace of the Leper King is a beautiful mound with walls filled with sandstone carvings on the outer and hidden inner wall. Walk to the side, and you'll find the hidden wall within - the carvings there are much nicer ! Perhaps because the carvings on the inner was weren't as exposed, they are in better state of preservation - you really need to check this out, best in the late morning when the sun is higher up to give some light ...

Right next to it, Terrace of the Elephants is a 300m terrace with near life size elephant carvings. The beauty of these carvings is the little surprises - after the initial wow of seeing elephants carved into bricks, you really enjoy finding geese, crocodiles, and other animals. Also notable are the many garudas sculpted onto the walls of the terrace. The two terraces makes up what is know as part of the Victory Square.

Baphuon, sometimes called the world's largest puzzle - is a temple under restoration - most parts of it is closed - but do check out the 200m long causeway (restored), which leads to it from the main road. While most of it is under restoration, you should still check it out - the portions that are open have some interesting carvings, and it's quite atmospheric walking around pieces of dismantled temple.

All the dismantled pieces show restoration in progress - the majority of temples are restored using a method called anastylosis, where each piece of the temple is taken apart, analysed, and then put together like a huge 3D jigsaw puzzle - precisely what Baphuon is.

And finally, we reached Bayon itself - where 54 soaring towers at the central sanctuary, each with 4 faces of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara gazing upon visitors. The result - the famous Bayon smile - all 216 of them! And it's no coincidence too that the faces look a lot like King Jayavarman VII who built it ...

I find it hard to imagine what Bayon really might mean - creative genius, inflated ego of a Devaraja? The soaring towers are sometimes said to represent the 54 districts in the ancient Khmer empire, and with an inscription found in one of the bas relief carvings reading "The King will seek out those in hiding", those faces were probably meant to show that the King is omnipresent, there is nowhere anyone can hide from his steely gaze.

Regardless, today, it is a favorite amongst the tourists, and it's hard to find a time when there aren't any tourists posing with the Bayon smile, or trying to walk across your line of sight when you are posing for a photo. Still, visit in the morning or mid afternoon (before the sun disappear behind the tree line) is best, when sunlight is softer and brings into view most of the Bayon smiley faces :)

While there, check out the carvings along the walls surrounding the temple as well. We missed a bit of this during this trip, which meant we came back on our last day ... more on that later :)

After Bayon, we took lunch nearby (forget about stall No. 19 - food isn't too good, and a bit pricier - although the price is the norm for areas around the temples of Angkor). A short respite later, we went onwards to complete the small circuit in the afternoon ... please join me in the next post as I venture into the famous Ta Phrom (tree temple), and other beautiful temples ...

And you can find more photos here on my Facebook page ...

Next stop - the rest of the small circuit ...

Angkor Adventures: Angkor Wat at Sunset

2009-06-04T00:02:00.001+08:00

Continuing from the previous post, where I talked about arrival in Siem Reap, and a bit on the town, plus the Angkor National Museum. After

The Tara Angkor hotel is around 15 minutes from the Angkor ticket booths. We had the hotel bellboy help us negotiate with a tuk tuk driver to take us to firstly, buy the pass, then go to Angkor Wat for the sunset experience, then take us back to Old Market for dinner. The bellboy helped us negotiate a $7 deal, which we thought was great !

Departing at 4.45 pm, we arrived at Angkor Wat way before sunset, so we had some time to explore.

My first view of the beautifully symmetrical towers of Angkor Wat from the tuk tuk as we approached the western gate gave me the chills. I was so touched to finally make a childhood dream come true !

Angkor Wat is a bit of an Angkorian anomaly. Angkor temples, both Hindu or Buddhists, face the East, to catch the morning sun, thus symbolising life. Angkor Wat on the other hand, faces west. Historians believe this is because the temple is built as a funerary temple for Suriavarman II - dedicated to him as a state temple while he was living, and as his mausoleum after his death.

Walking the causeway that takes us across the moat, I nearly burst out in happy tears. You can't see the 5 central towers while on the causeway, blocked by the Western Gopura (entrance gateway), so the sense of anticipation is heightened.

When I finally got a chance to peek through the final sets of doors at the western gopura at the golden peaks of Angkor Wat, I found my moment of peace and serenity. I have made one of my earliest wishes come true :)

Provision at least 1.5 hours for your sunset trip - excluding travel between your hotel. This will give you enough time to walk through the sights, take plenty of photos, and not feel so rushed to not be able to enjoy your Angkor Wat experience.

Angkor Wat is one monumental temple best visited multiple times - since like Ayer's Rock in Australia, it has a very different dynamic and feel at different times of the day.

During sunset, the towers will light up, basking in the golden rays of the setting sun on the western horizon. This is when you will be able to see the whole temple and its 5 towers glowing in soft sunlight.

During sunrise, the sun rises behind Angkor Wat in the east. This means you get the dramatic silhouette of the temple instead, with sometimes dramatic red skies in the background. More on Angkor Wat sunrise in my next post.

And you visit Angkor Wat in the afternoon, so that you can enjoy the bas-reliefs (carvings) on the walls in the relative cool of the shade, and taking opportunity of late afternoon sun to light up the carvings. You can then stay on to enjoy yet another Angkor Wat sunset :) ... I'll share my experience on this in a later post ;)

Anyways, Angkor Wat during sunset in magical. While walking on the causeway from the western gopura, you will notice two ponds on either side of the causeway - the best photo ops are right there, to take the temple reflecting on either of those pools. Also, by moving away from the causeway, you get to see all 5 Angkor Wat towers. If you approach directly, you will just get to see 3 towers, since the front left and right towers will obscure the rear towers.

Anyways, let's just enjoy photos and let them do the talking :) ... more of them here.

Next Post - Angkor Wat Sunrise & Angkor Thom

Angkor Adventures: Touching down at Siem Reap

2009-06-01T01:46:00.000+08:00

Picking up from my previous post, on 20th May, Tyko and myself found ourselves on a flight to Siem Reap, home to the world famous Angkor monuments.

Quick facts - Siem Reap is a landlocked town located in a province also called Siem Reap in Cambodia. It has an international airport, and is today a town built around the tourists who flock to the Angkor monuments. There are hotels for every budget, transportation options from bicycles to 9 seater vans, food for every tastes, and enough to occupy you for a while. You'll want for nothing ...

If you're flying in from the south, check out the large body of water - Tonle Sap lake, which should come in view on your final descent - it swells to a humongous 16,000 km2 size in the rainy season! Photo on the left shows the lake at the start of the rainy season, before it swells to its fullest - but you can already see floating villages and what appears to be fish farms on the lake already - these floating villages would normally be at the edge of the lake during the dry season !

Arrival at the airport was simple and straight forward, without any fuss. Immediately after clearing immigration and customs, we got ourselves a taxi to the hotel.

We found ourselves a hotel through TripAdvisor, and booked it via Expedia. The Tara Angkor Hotel is great - 3 star price, 4 star rating, 5 star service. I truly recommend it to anyone wanting a bit of comfort in Angkor, but without paying the big bucks for it.

The rooms are clean, with your towels changed twice daily. It has a swimming pool, small gym, a restaurant, free wifi at the lobby area (it's not free in the rooms though), pleasant staff members - all of whom speak perfect english and a good location just 2km from Old Market, and just 4km or so to the temples of Angkor.

Check in was simple, and although we arrived really early, by 9am, before our check-in time, they had rooms available, so they let us into our room already. Godsent ! We decided some shuteye would be great, considering the early hour of our flight.

After that, we decided to venture out to the Old Market area. This is the center of Siem Reap's present day universe - you will find everything you need here - from restaurants, souvenir stalls, pubs, spas to pharmacies. It's not a very big area - the market itself is an interesting walk, but the streets surrounding it - Pub Street, The Alley, and Blue Pumpkin street are the ones where you'll find yourself exploring more.

After a great lunch at the Khmer Kitchen, we ventured to the Angkor National Museum. Angkor National Museum is a private venture, but it has access to some of the best artifacts from the Angkor Conservatory, and if you're trying to make sense of what you're about to see in the following days at the temples of Angkor, then you should plan on spending at least 2-3 hours there. A mix of interactive, multimedia displays coupled with beautiful artifacts will give you a crash course in Angkor appreciation. Cameras not allowed, so no photos from the inside. =( ... Would have loved to take some photos, but then again, if they let us take photos, we would never be out of the museum in time for our next stop ...

We finished the museum tour in time to catch a tuk tuk to the Angkor ticket booth. Here's the deal - you need to buy a pass to access the temples of Angkor. The pass comes in 1 day ($20), 3 days ($40) and 7 days ($60) validity, and must be used on consecutive days. If you buy the pass after 5pm, the pass will be valid from the following day - and you'll get free entrance for the day.

Our hotel bellboy negotiated a tuk tuk that would take us to the ticket booth, then take us to Angkor Wat to view the sunset, and then take us to the Old Market area after that for dinner - for $7. Good to have the locals bargain for us ...

The pass purchase itself was painless and fast. Pay up, have your digital photo taken, and you're done - in under 3 minutes.

Next stop - Angkor Wat sunset !

More photos can be found here !

Walking back in time ... Siem Reap / Angkor Wat

2009-05-30T00:50:00.001+08:00

Sometime last year, over a Yahoo IM conversation, me and my regular travel buddy decided that we really needed to go on a trip again. Between Luang Prabang and Siem Reap, we decided that perhaps Siem Reap would be the better choice.

Foolishly getting ourselves a flight at the end of May, we later discovered that it's really ... the start of the rainy season! Gasp!

Cutting a very long story short before your attention span expires, we did a lot of research, read up forums, gathered intelligence from other previous explorers, and put together a plan to enjoy Siem Reap to its fullest!

On 20th May, we both took off from the Kuala Lumpur Low Cost Carrier Terminal on AK280 to Siem Reap.

The following posts chronicle our little step back in time. I hope that it'll inspire some of you who've never considered visiting the Angkor Wat monuments to at least think about it.

The combination of great people - always smiling, ever friendly; astonishing food - blending Thai spicy and nous with Vietnamese subtlety; laid back town atmosphere with plenty to do if you want plenty to do, or little to do if you choose not to do anything - in combination with the often breath-taking monuments of Angkor made this a trip of a lifetime.

In my short 5 days and 4 nights (more like 4 days and 4 nights due to the flight schedules), I found a new appreciation for the master builders of South East Asia. Somewhere in Siem Reap, while fulfilling a childhood dream, I've found myself a little piece of history. :)

I will, over the next few days and weeks, publish more accounts of our trip, and share some of my experiences. Hope you'll like it !

Moz: Where is he now ?

2009-05-11T13:38:00.002+08:00

It's been a very long while since I last posted anything useful, interesting, or worth reading here on this blog.

Is it because I've gotten so busy with life that I have no time for blogging? No, not really. Since my workplace has been stuck in a semi bit of rut (no thanks to those free spending Americans who charge everything to their credit cards), in fact, work has been drying up a bit. But just a wee bit, and you know, bosses find ways to occupy you, and it's not good if you're continuously free anyways ... it makes you a little susceptible.

So, it's not work then.

Well, is it that nothing interesting has been happening? No, not that too. Since last year, I've stopped blogging about a lot of my trips, and my own personal discoveries, etc. Trips I thought were interesting that I never really blogged about included my trips to Sydney and Hunter Valley in Australia, my own little trip to Cameron Highlands in August and December last year, my Penang and Langkawi trips, my drives to Sekinchan, Melaka and Tanjung Tuan ... quite a bit has happened, and I've clocked in a bit of miles too. So, you know, I've been out and about ...

So, what is it then ?

I guess a bit of Facebook to blame, a bit of blog fatigue, and a bit of lack of blogosphere friends anymore. I notice a lot of my blogger friends have now migrated to using Facebook as a means to 'blog' ... it's more interactive anyways.

So I am still thinking if it will be a good idea to keep up the blog. I really want to, but I might turn this into one where I just blog about my trips and adventures ... just so that I have a place to properly write about where I've been, what I've learnt, and one day, when memories fail me, maybe it'll be useful - just maybe - who knows if Blogger would be around for that long anyways !

On a more personal note, I've made myself a personal challenge of losing enough fat so that my BMI reading will suggest I'm within a healthy range by the time I holiday in Bali later this year. I've allowed myself plenty of time, and I've finally found enough discipline to force myself into a healthier lifestyle. The story so far is that I've just about 2kgs short of my personal target ... so it's getting there. I've lost around 7 so far ... so, it's been doing well ! I hope to be well and truly at my target weight by the time I'm in Bali, hopefully, having the vacation of a life time !

In the meantime, I won't promise more blog entries, knowing fully well that for whatever reasons, they may not be forthcoming. But if I will blog soon, my thoughts are that I'll just be putting in entries on my little travels - far and near. And those should keep me happy for the time being !

Moz's doodle on recession ...

2009-03-04T15:13:00.001+08:00

I've been talking to loved ones about the possibility of recession since end 2007 ... the signs were there, and for a while, the powers to be managed to postpone the recession, but now, it looks like it's hit hard, and like a wildfire burning through woods which hadn't had any controlled burn, it's burning harder and more intense than we all can remember.

It's real, it will hit us, it will affect you and me in some ways.

So, before I forget, I forced myself to write about my own plan for handling my finances during a recession ...

# Unlike some of them really lucky people, most of us will have finite resources. Live within your means. And always save up for a rainy day. We all know it'll rain someday, so why wait till it's already pouring before you do something ?

# Keep enough cash to weather your own worst case scenario. If you think the longest you will go without a job or income is 6 months, then save up so that you can pass 6 months comfortably without income. But at all times, have at least enough to live off for 3 months !

# Part of the reason why we're in this mess right now is because of the overuse of credit in the US. Don't let history repeat itself. Use credit card sparingly - it's an unsecured loan - it's like spending money you don't have ! You'll need to pay up eventually ...

# If you have credit card debts, pay up if you can, if you can't, talk to someone who can help you make a plan to clear it all off. Banks are businesses - they don't give you credit card if they don't think they can make money off you !

# If you still need the convenience of plastic, get a debit card. Then you can't spend like there's no tomorrow, because you're depleting your bank account the moment you swipe it !

# Pay off other debts if you have the means to. Having less liabilities is always a good thing!

# Even in good times, you will do well to remember that your health is the single most important thing you have in possession. In the bad times, health is even more important - you can't afford to fall sick, and you can't afford to pay expensive medical bills.

# In good times and in bad, remember your loved ones. They are the reason you work hard. So, don't do stupid things like drive dangerously, drink excessively, or act irresponsibly. You are obliged to live well for them. And most stupid things have expensive consequences too.

# Workout often. In good times and bad, this is your stress reliever. And less stress is a very good thing !

# Buy a medical card or medical insurance. You'll find one handy. And those your company gives you don't count ! Better have one in case the company isn't around, or if they decide to remove your umbrella when it rains (if you know what I mean).

# If you don't need it, don't buy it. And when I said need, that means if your life will no longer function normally, then you need it. That's my definition of need. Expensive shirts, that extra pair of shoe, that designer pen, that new f/2.8 lens, the 2 month trip to Nepal & Tibet, those all don't count as needs. Those are nice to have.

# All food, no matter how heavenly, will enter at one end and leave at the other. Once in your tummy, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference. Eat sensibly, and forgo those expensive places where you will end up paying for the ambiance and also for the waiter who waits exclusively on your table.

# Eat simple food. Enjoy the simple pleasure of just eating. My parents grew up without ever chilling out at a coffee joint charging RM12 for an exotic coffee. And they're just fine - in fact, their generation has less diseases ... no harm going back to boiled veggies and simple stir fry dish. It's ok ..

# We've all got used to traveling to foreign lands with exotic names to get a 'holiday' or a 'break'. Perhaps you can see that Malaysia is a foreign land with an exotic name to many people ... try and go local too ... save some $$$ and help the locals for a change !

# Unless you carry a job title starting with 'Chief', you have very little control over many things in the company, so stop worrying about them, and stop gossiping about them as well. Do your job, do it well, and make yourself useful at work. In a downturn, you'll be surprised how many apple polishers are quickly rooted out.

# Appreciate what you have, and try and see the glass as being half full. It does your mind wonders ...

# If you have money, do your research, and invest. The recession is a good time to pick up some discounted investments ... but do it with a view of the long term. Expect no returns in the immediate future.

# Be flexible, and swallow your pride if you have to. If all 6 billion people on earth have ego just as big as yours, this planet is not big enough for us all !

This list can grow or shrink over time ... this is just a capture of my mind of my own little action plan if I find the big R hit me badly ... anything else anyone wants to add to this ?

** taken from my own FB notes **

Here we go, yet once more ...

2009-01-02T18:09:00.007+08:00

What did I do on 1st Jan 2009? Nothing unusual - there were no wild celebrations, no countdown parties, no resolutions, no partying ... I think age does that to people ... done it once, done it all ... it's just the start of yet another day, really. And if we didn't live in a world of western influence, it would have been just another day, you know. The Chinese Lunar calendar says that the new year is still nearly a month away ! =P

I did have a little drink myself in my room, just because there's a lot of liquor there I haven't touched for a long time now.

2008 was a great ride ... here's a short recollection of the things I want to remember from 2008 ...

Releasing turtles into the South China Sea

This trip nearly didn't happen ... and I don't quite remember why already ... but boy, was I glad I went anyways! The feeling of releasing precious little turtle hatchlings into the sea ... I think I caught of glimpse of the feeling a parent will feel when they put their child at school on the first day of schooling. There's pride, mixed up with some uncertainty, with a prayer thrown into the equation. It's a nice feeling, really.

The food is quite good too - look out for Pak Su's restaurant in Kuantan - and just order crabs - and lobsters if you don't have budgetary contraints!

Taking a boat ride in the storm from Penang to Langkawi

[Sorry, no photo for this section, was busy hanging on for dear life in the boat !]

Alicia and I had this short trip to Penang and Langkawi, and the plan was to drive to Penang, then to take a ferry over to Langkawi. The weather wasn't supposed to be bad that time of the year, but we didn't really factor in the global warming situation - cyclone Nargis hit Myanmmar just days before. When we boarded the ferry, we didn't know we were going to be in for the worst boat rides of our lives. Nearly from the start of the journey, the boat was rocked side to side in the stormy seas. An Arab couple on the boat who had prepared themselves for a smooth, comfy rides (with Pringles and other snacks) found themselves hogging the rubbish bin instead, furiously throwing up. When the boat crew started handing out vomit bags, it really hit home how stormy it really is.

Alicia slept through the whole ordeal, while I peeked around from time to time. Once, the boat rocked so far (or the storms surged so high), a school of fish actually slammed into the window next to our seats. We were both really pleased to be back on terra firma in Langkawi, as is, I presume, the rest of the boat !

Penang & Langkawi !!

Finally took Alicia to Penang & Langkawi ! We enjoyed the food (three cheers to Char Kway Teow & Assam Laksa), walked the historic Georgetown, visited the hills in Penang, and then drove around in a ricketty Proton Wira around Langkawi ... food is great, scenery excellent, the experience - simply unforgettable.

One thing's for sure, we'll be back! Penang for the food and the history, and Langkawi for the natural beauty. Just don't make me take a boat to Langkawi anymore !

Hong Kong Meet

I met a whole bunch of my peers in Hong Kong, part of a leadership programme meeting. My job takes me travelling to a lot of places, but I normally meet customers and other technical people. They're all great, and I am thankful for that experience, but meeting people in the company who're all in the same leadership development program is such an eye opener.

It's great to learn that corporate giants are humans in the end, and that there isn't really a substitute for hard work, common sense and decency. It made me feel a lot better about my own ambitions, that it won't necessarily turn me into some cold corporate monster !

I definately felt re-energized after this meet!

Sydney !

Spent nearly a month in Sydney - and got reacquainted to its sights and sounds. This time, I decided to venture further, and also visited Hunter Valley as well. It's always good to be back in Australia. I really consider Australia a home away from home after my uni days there.

Other honorable mentions:

The Cameron Highland vacations was quite good too - I just had to over do it by going twice - and the experience we had on our second trip wasn't all that good. Someone explain to me again why did I pay high prices for hotel rooms when the whole place was choking with traffic and school holiday crowd?

My decision to put together a workout plan and to stick to it is starting to pay off. I'm definitely feeling more energetic. This means better concentration at work, and better all round personal life too.

I've always voted, so voting on 8rd March wasn't a big deal in that sense. But when I cast my vote that day, I did it with hope. I could sense the quiet discontent, and I decided to vote with a clear mind instead of with fear. I hate to say this, but previously, my votes have been swayed with fear - certain people have always told me if I voted differently, the whole country will descend into chaos. Well, it looks like it's going to descend into chaos no matter how I voted, so I might as well try out something new. I am still feeling good about it !

In 2009, I decide that I will put my own health as my first priority. I realised in the past year that I am not that young anymore, and I definately can feel the body giving me messages, telling me to look after it better. You know, it's cliched - but there is but only one me. Better look after that me better. In a way, it's my responsibility to the ones I love - I'd hate to see them suffer because I'm not in good health !

Photo rescue mission

2008-12-05T22:54:00.002+08:00

I don't know what went to my head today - I looked at my old photos - those during my college and uni days.

Stored all these years in cheap photo albums, I don't think they will survive for much longer if I don't do something about it. So, I'm going to scan my photos so that I can store them digitally, just like all my more current photos.

It's hard to imagine that just around 8 years ago, I was still clicking away on film cameras. In those days, an Olympus mju was probably the most sought after camera for the young crowd like me (yes, I was young once upon a time).

As I turn the pages, the memory of my younger days flashed before me. I recall friends long forgotten, and newly rediscovered (Facebook is the best thing since sliced bread, I think). I remember those days when I was wondering if I should pay 2.50 for a Snickers bar ... because I had only 5 in my pockets ! I recall those times when a holiday means I could walk a little longer in the mall.

I know realise these photos are really important to me. One day, when memory fails me, I'll need to look at them to remind me of myself.

So, busy work days or not, I'll work towards digitizing as many of my photos as I possibly can !

Maybe then, I can show some of you the days when I had green hair !

The world has changed, hasn't it ?

2008-11-17T13:21:00.003+08:00

Since my last posting, more than a month back, the world has changed, for better or for worse ...

I've been back from Sydney, and haven't travelled since. The global financial crisis meant travels have been restricted for us ... so it's working behind a desk and from home.

A black man has become the president elect of the US of A. Man, that day seemed impossible not that long ago ...

I took a holiday in Kuantan & Cherating. I needed a break, bad economy or no bad economy.

How about a big round of applause for AirAsia's free ticket promotions? I've grabbed a couple of free flights.

I absolutely love how this new James Bond is turning out to be. All action ... yeah !

I'm really busy, no, not really posting anything at all on this blog. But believe me, once the busy is away (if at all it will be), I will have regular service resume !

Lately, I've been putting up all my photos on Facebook, but I can't help but think that I should get an account in Flickr and post them there instead. I dunno, I guess there's only so much money to go around, and there are so many things I wanna do that requires money ... there's never enough, is there ?

I hope this next round of financial crisis won't hurt us all that badly. However, I can't help but think that the combination of bad news, low consumer confidence, and the contagion effect will eventually reach our shores. And the longer we deny it, the worse off we could be. On my part, I'm bracing for it, and have decided to cut out all non-essential spending. So, lenses and camera accessories are off.

How will the world have changed by the time the next post is up ?

Ta ...

2008-10-11T06:28:00.003+08:00

See you again in a bit ;)

My eyes have opened to the world.

Hope to be back soon to visit you again, Sydney =)

Down Under Trail

2008-10-07T13:08:00.003+08:00

Trail status so far:

Hunter Valley
Middle Gardens, Royal Botanical Gardens
All over Sydney
All over North Sydney
Belgian Beer Cafe, Cammeray
Greath Northern Cafe, Chatswood
Ku-rin-gai Chase National Park

Personal status so far:

Missing YOU very dearly

Howdy

2008-09-21T03:05:00.002+08:00

=)

Sydney is in sight. Will be there in a little over 24 hours ! How about that ???

Let down ...

2008-09-20T00:11:00.002+08:00

If there was a day when I felt like the whole world let me down, it was today ...

Sometimes, I think I set my expectations very high, both of myself, and for the people around me. Perhaps I'm setting myself up for major disappointment.

It's taken a very long time for me to learn this, but I've realised that while you shouldn't do upon others what you don't want them to do to you, you can't do what upon others what you want them to do to you. I waited patiently today for nothing. I wasted time, didn't do gym, didn't watch TV, didn't go out. Maybe I shouldn't do that anymore.

Anyways, I had trouble all round today, and nowhere to turn to let it all out. I'm really frustrated. Perhaps I should make more friends.

I have so little time for myself. I shouldn't spend those little time waiting or moping. Anyone for a game of golf ?

BRB - Down Under

2008-09-18T18:19:00.003+08:00

I'll be away from Malaysia for the next few weeks. I hope to return home to a less messy country.

In the meantime, while I'll miss sunshine very much every day, I'll be looking forward to renewing my ties with what can be arguably called my 3rd home, maybe even 2nd home. I've actually calculated that I've spent more time in Australia compared to every other country except Malaysia.

This time around, I'll try and do Hunter Valley, failing which I'll try to do the Grand Canyon hike in the Blue Mountains. And of course, there's the Manly-Spit walk and Doyle's at Watson's Bay.

One thing I absolutely love about Australia is the almost unending variety of outdoor activity.

Ah ... springtime in Sydney ! Hopefully, it'll be spring cleaning in Putrajaya as well.

Glad to get a small break ...

2008-09-12T00:41:00.003+08:00

I looked at my calendar today ... and I nearly died.

And these don't even count my time at customer place, travel between meetings, and actual work that needs to be done.

Perhaps I should have just died. How do I find the time to even do work, with schedules like the last two days in that snapshot? I'll be spending more time just being in meetings and calls !

"I forgot to switch off the lights ..."

2008-09-11T14:06:00.002+08:00

This morning, my dad forgot to switch off his car's headlights, resulting in the car's battery bring totally drained.

We tried to jump start it with my car's battery, but it didn't work, and I had had to get someone from a auto repair shop nearby to come and fix the problem.

I just realised today again, that my dad is aging. It would probably be more common from now on to have him forget a thing or two. And it must hurt him to see us all help him out. He's a proud man who used to be able to do everything on his own.

You know, one day, we're all going to be old, and we'll all need help every now and then. I'm not sure I'll enjoy it, but I sure do hope that my children would handle me better than how I sometimes handle situations with my own parents.

My dad has done so much for me, putting in hours of backbreaking labor to make every dollar and cent that we children spent, sometimes unwisely. In a sense, we were able to punch above our weight because we had parents who support us, and gave their everything into making our dreams possible.

I'm sorry that I don't always handle situations in the perfect way, dad. I know you mean well, and I know I should be a more grateful son. After all, everything I am, I owe it to you.

Happy Birthday, Malaysia

2008-08-31T03:27:00.002+08:00

"You're not young anymore, act like an adult." - Mum, on my birthdays when I was young.

50+1. Quite an age to be. Past the half century mark. In human terms, this would be really a momentous occasion.

This year, I feel non of the good feelings I do whenever 31st August comes about. I don't know how to explain it, but the truth is, my pride of being a Malaysian is no more. It's sad for me to say this, but everything I love about Malaysia is weighed down and overshadowed by all the things I don't like about Malaysia.

I'm a squatter in my own land. I pay taxes, I abide by the laws. Yet, I'm not getting full respect as a fellow Malaysian from many of my other fellow countrymen. In their eyes, I'm a pendatang, an immigrant. Sometimes, naturalised Indonesians get accorded better things that I do.

I got the grades, but didn't get the university place.
I pay the taxes, but I get non of the assistance.
I contribute to the nation, but I don't see the nation extending a welcoming hand back to me when I need it.
When I'm rich, I must be a cheat - I can't be getting rich without cheating.
When I'm poor, I'm the wrong ethnic group - I don't deserve help.
When I work hard, I am a threat.
When I do well, I am a threat.
I get turned away from meetings because of my skin color.

Hasn't it occured to you all, that I'm not your problem?
You are your own problem.
If you are such a superior ethnic group, why is it that you need the most help?

I just want to have my place under the Malaysian sun.
I want to work hard, play hard, and enjoy the fruits of my labor.
I want to be treated fairly, to be recognized as a Malaysian.
But I know.
I know it is one request too much.

I have a hard enough time making ends meet, I don't need more obstacles and barriers put in place to hold me back.

I have decided today, on my 32nd birthday, that there is no place for me under the Malaysian sun.

The world is flat, my home is where my heart is, where open arms welcome me.
My heart is not here. I'll be somewhere else, in a place I can really call home.

Happy Birthday to me.
Happy Birthday, Malaysia.

To be or not to be ...

2008-08-16T01:21:00.002+08:00

To be or not to be ...

Darned if I do ... Darned if I don't.

Sometimes, questions with just two answer choices are the hardest to choose. Because you have to choose one or the other. It's so black and white. No middle ground. No shades of grey.

Wouldn't want anyone else to be in my shoes now ...

Moz does Jakarta

2008-08-13T00:27:00.005+08:00

I don't know why, but after all these while, I felt like doing a travel entry, so here I am ...

I'm currently in Jakarta, putting up at the very nice JW Marriot. Here are pictures of my most visited hotel for the year :P

The room at JW Marriot. Quite nice, and well appointed.

I had my check-in done in my room now, thanks to my new Marriot Silver status ;)

I had a visitor from India with me, so tonight, I decided to go out for some different food, rather than stay around the same area I always eat out at.

So, with Hunady, my local colleague, we went out venturing to Sate Khas Senayan. I'll let the photos do the talking ! Don't blame me if you get hungry looking at the photos, ok ?!

So, we went out to Sate Khas Senayan !! Yeah, it's a chain, but the food is still good. This one is at Menteng, a central Jakarta district, home to the famous and rich people.

My colleagues trying to figure out what to order ...

Someone looks very happy that the food has arrived !

The flying fish, gureme goreng, is a signature dish here ... looks like the ones they make at the Sundanese Restaurant at KLCC, but tastes much better =)

While this dish (I forgot the name), is made of egg tofu, omelette, and bean sprouts. Nice alternative to gado-gado !

But really, this is why we came ! The chicken sate, served over a bowl with charcoal under it ! Simply delicious. It's not the same as kajang sate in Malaysia, so it's not really possible to compare.

Shaken, but not stirred.

2008-08-05T23:21:00.003+08:00

Some of you who know me, and read my constantly update status on Facebook could be forgiven for thinking that I've suddenly turned into a women's right activist today. Rest assured I have not.

Originally, I had planned to post about my travels to Hong Kong, and some photos from other trips, but I think this is more important to blog.

I was shaken today, witnessing an assault in front of my very eyes. I don't want to give out any details, except that it was in the public, and that it was a case of a husband assaulting his wife, with hundreds, if not thousands of witnesses.

I was shocked, and I had no idea what to do. I shouted to ask for someone to make a police report. Many other bystanders intervened and stopped any further assault. Now I know what it means when people say that things happen so quickly they didn't have the time to think and react properly. I had brain freeze for a while, and I had no idea what to do, and how to act.

The rest of my day was badly affected - I couldn't really work after that. I didn't realize something like this would affect me that badly, but somehow it did.

I can't fathom why a man would beat his wife, so it's even harder for me to understand how they not only can beat their wife, but they can beat them in the public, with all those people watching.

If the man thinks he's going to solve whatever problems he's trying to solve, he can't be more wrong. He's just making it worse, and he's making more problems. It becomes a downward spiral, if it isn't one already. If he hasn't already driven a final wedge in the relationship, I guess he just did.

A real man handles problems like a man - he thinks, acts and solves it like an adult. He will be realistic, rational, and objective. Violence doesn't solve problems - it is a problem itself, and only adds to whatever other problem already bogging one down.

We all have our down moments, and we all have rage within us. Sometimes, we do feel like taking things into our own hands. But if everyone does that, there would be anarchy in society. It'll be law of the jungle when that happens. We're adults. We shouldn't act like little children throwing tantrums when we don't get what we want !

A real man doesn't resolve family issues by beating his wife. That's what a weak man does - resort to violence. A weak man is one who can't use his charm and wits, or logic and reasoning to reach a positive, mutually acceptable conclusion.

I don't want to act like I'm an angel, but now that I've witness domestic violence / assault, you'll bet I'll step up to help people whom I know are in situations which could deteriorate into violence. I think I should stop being indifferent, and start being a friend.

I am shaken, but I thank many of my colleagues, and my beloved girlfriend for their support - at least they listened to me, and let me vent out my stress. And for that, I'm thankful.

Awakening ...

2008-07-14T07:39:00.002+08:00

Let's get this out of the way - this ain't a book review. Got that clear ?

On my somewhat long flight to Manila today (it feels longer than the 3 hours and 40 minutes, maybe it's the turbulence), I finally finished the book "The World is Flat" by Thomas L Friedman. This well research, thoughtful book talks about globalization, which I find essential read for someone like me.

The book covers globalization, the enabling factors, the resulting impact to the world, and how individuals, companies, and nations can cope with, and use it to their advantage.

In it, I found the most profound statement. I quote:

I like the way a U.S. diplomat in China put it to me in the spring of 2004: " China right now in doing titillation, not privatization. Reform here is translucent - and sometimes it is quite titillating, because you can see the shapes moving behind the screen - but it is not transparent. [The government still just gives] the information [about the economy] to a few companies and designated interest groups." Why only translucent? I asked. He answered, "Because if you are fully transparent, what do you do with the feedback? They don't know how to deal with that question. They cannot deal [yet] with the results of transparency."

In a way, that sentence almost describes Malaysia, doesn't it?

Is there reform? Isn't there reform? We're not transparent. Our government isn't courageous enough to be transparent even when they know they should. Because they know they can't deal with it. That's why it's always translucent.

Just give them the rakyat some glimpses of reform, but make it translucent, and tell them it's transparent. They've never seen transparent anyways, how would they know ?

And if you tell them enough times, they'll believe you. That's how I think the Malaysian BN government used to think.

Well, in this age of the flat world, where Internet enables news to be created by anyone, we the rakyat can choose whom to listen to, and via what media. Which is why we switch off the TV, and boycott the newspapers. We turn to news sites we trust.

The book also mentioned one thing close to my heart - education. I always felt Malaysia can do better with more talent, and the right environment and governance, together with education, will lead us to higher planes of achievements.

Ireland turned around from being left behind in the 60s, to currently being the 2nd richest nation in EU (believe it - they are), in less than 1 generation through government reforms, and education excellence. I really think we can learn from Ireland - how they reversed brain drain, attracted real and lasting investments, and attracted top talents to Ireland.

Somehow ... today, I feel ... awake. I wonder why ?

Voice: Gone

2008-07-06T00:49:00.002+08:00

Lost my voice while in Hong Kong ... it's back now, but I'm not really my usual voluble self.

Enjoyed myself in Hong Kong. Learnt so much this week, I'm going to put this down as one of the best trainings I've ever had. Anyone one you who want to learn how to have those tough conversations should pick up this book called "Crucial Conversations". It's seriously good, maybe a bit dry, but the contents could transform the way you communicate !

Hong Kong weather was great ... so I did manage a number of good photos ! Expect that soon ...

Now, excuse me while I get some sleep, and hopefully I'll get my voice back tomorrow ...

Checklist for next weeks

2008-06-24T11:56:00.003+08:00

Luggage - check
Credit Cards - check
Camera - check
Tripod - check
Octopus Card - check
Shopping List - check
Walking Map - check
MTR Map - check
Olympic venues list - check

I'm going Hong Kong. Then I'll go Beijing. =)

Travel times are here again ! =)

No, no shopping requests entertained. I've got enough from my sunshine and family already =(

Hopefully, there will be photos. And blog entries.

Downtime

2008-06-19T15:45:00.002+08:00

Yesterday, I had a double shot of expresso from the coffee machine at work.

Immediately after that, till around 4am in the morning, I was a constant visitor to the toilet. It wasn't fun.

And this morning, I woke up to a bit of a fever too.

Sometimes, the body just tells you that a downtime is required.

And when that happens, you listen.

Heavenly ...

2008-06-11T21:42:00.004+08:00

Other than my vacation in Penang and Langkawi, I hadn't had a full 8 hours of sleep until yesterday night. Maybe it's the comfortable beds in JW Marriot Jakarta. Or maybe it's just time I got a lucky break at work.

Sometimes, we just go so fast, we forget that downtime is a part of the normal cycle. We work hard, we should play hard and sleep very hard too.

What's different? A very experienced friend told me, it's not what I do. It's what I don't do. Amazing how much time I can save by delegating small pieces of work every now and then. And even more amazing, I can save so much time simply by not looking at emails every 15 minutes.

Anyways, I'm working real hard now, trying to make sure I get a second night of full sleep.

Oh, and I finally updated my photoblog.

How now brown cow ? Oil price naik kow kow ...

2008-06-05T21:57:00.003+08:00

It wasn't unexpected. It wasn't like a bolt of lightning suddenly on a fine sunny day. It wasn't like your girlfriend coming up to you and told you her period stopped. It's not like that at all.

We all knew it was going to happen. We all expected it to happen. And when it happened, after all the waiting with bated breath, obviously, we're all angry. I can see fists knuckling, and faces turn stoic when the news that oil price was increasing quite dramatically filtered into the office.

For something that we've waited for so long to happen, the reaction was somewhat of a mystery to me. I expected Malaysians to queue the petrol stations and cause jams. I expected many of them to blog (like me). I know many will ponder about Petronas money. And I know many will accuse the government of turning its back on all Malaysians in their hour of need.

What I didn't expect was the instant knee jerk reaction. My economy rice some days before, consisting of a modest portion of rice, a chicken dish, and two portions of vegetables, cost me RM3.50. Today, the same dish is RM6.00. "Cost of electricity and fuel up", the uncle repeated again and again to everyone in the queue today.

I'm sure loads of other small traders will take advantage and increase prices. Or reduce portions. Either way, my ringgit will do less for me now. Not like it was doing a whole lot for me.

We have the lowest fuel price in ASEAN (except Indonesia and Brunei, the other 2 major oil producing nations in ASEAN).

But we have the most number of tolled roads anywhere I know of. Someone, correct me if I'm wrong.

We have really expensive cars. We're subsidising Proton as well in that sense, aren't we? Why aren't those subsidies lifted?

As a middle class Malaysian, I get nothing in terms of tax breaks that is considered special.

We have the nicest government buildings with the shittiest service provided inside. Nice buildings costs a lot, counts for nothing, and can't hide that fact that the counter services are probably on par only with 3rd world nations.

We have corruption blatantly going on (Port Klang Free Trade Zone, MITI Building, all the highway consessions, all those gravy trains). Corruption is a hidden cost. It's public money that is unaccounted for.

And above all this, the essential infrastructure and services remain at a very poor state. Our public schools, the public health care system, the universities, the public transportation systems, the utilities and local government services.

I want to be balanced in my criticism. I realise the market price for oil has increased astronomically. I realise that the subsidy bill is no longer affordable. There isn't one thing that the government can do about it.

However, the timing of the fuel price increase, the way the government managed the public's expectations, the message to all of us that we need to be austere and adapt to a new reality in life, and the speed of the announcement, in my opinion, was badly done.

The public was alerted earlier that it would be August before any real change is in place. But it happened overnight. This probably indicates how seriously short of money the government is that it can't even wait for 2 more months.

The public's expectations have not been managed properly as well. No denying all Malaysians have foreseen the price increase, but the quantum, and the speed caught many people out. I believe an announcement earlier, plus some advance warning, perhaps up to a week, would have created a better situation.

The worst part of it all is how we're asked to manage our lifestyles with increased fuel and electricity prices.

Would the PM and his government leaders lead the way by using less police escorts around our jammed streets to feel our pain, being stuck in the jam, burning expensive oil because we don't have a good public transportation system?

Would the PM and his government lead measures to reduce all the kenduri's and majlis makan malam's organised with tax payer money ?

Would the PM and his government commit to reducing fuel and electricity expenses at their respective department's premises to save tax payer money?

Would the PM and his government actually use our public transportation system to feel the pain instead of just giving lip service about improving public transportation?

I am committed to making changes in my life to adapt to the new oil prices and their impact. I am preparing to welcome a new government any time now.

Just back from another trip ...

2008-05-31T00:50:00.002+08:00

Sometimes, I wonder about my job, and how it relates to my life. And how it's true for everyone else.

I had this conversation with my cab driver in Ho Chi Minh City. We were talking about how Vietnam, while rapidly developing, is still a very difficult country to live in. Vietnamese live a hard life, he says.

I just answered my 40th phone call that day, and I told him - working in the city means more money, but you work all the time. And working the land means you may not have as much money, but you have much more time to yourself and your family. Some have that choice to make. Some don't.

That's my life now described. My decisions led me to this path now, where in exchange for career betterment, I have now less time for the things I like. Things that I missed doing.

I haven't been posting any new photos because I haven't really been photographing.
I haven't gone hiking for a while now.
I haven't gotten 8 hours of sleep for a few months too.
I haven't been able to see the sunset for many months now, except during my vacation.
I really miss going to gym.
And yes, I miss blogging too.
And yes, I miss commenting on my blogpal's blogs.

I hope I'll learn to manage my time better. I really miss a lot of things ...

La-la-la-langkawi ...

2008-05-21T02:09:00.003+08:00

Being in Penang, so close to the Islands of Legend, Langkawi, we obviously couldn't resist the temptation of dropping by to just sample what Langkawi has to offer.

It really got off to a bad start - there was a storm not long after leaving port in Penang, and the boat was rocking quite terribly - causing all of the people around us (except us) to throw up at one point or another. Good thing The Girlfriend fell asleep. I guess if you think you will get seasick, the best thing to do is to sleep. You can't be seasick if you're not awake, you know.

Anyways, reaching Langkawi 3 hours later, we were not the only people who're glad to be on dry land. I quickly rented a Proton Wira about to break apart. For RM60 per day, it's probably the worst bit of business I've done - words fail me here, because you have to experience the car to understand how bad it was. The shaking was so bad, it had to be measured with the Richter scale everytime we have to put the car in idle. And the fuel meter always shows Empty. And there are parts falling everywhere.

We stayed at the Mutiara Burau Bay - which I highly recommend - it's hidden away, quiet, and has a nice beach. No complaints about it. Food can be found nearby at the Telaga Harbour Park.

The weather didn't really co-operate, so we did the next best thing - we drove about the island. We basically saw every major beach there was to see - Pantai Cenang, Pantai Tengah, Tanjung Rhu, Datai Bay, Pantai Kok. The drives were amazing and relaxing - little traffic, and smooth most of the ways.

We ate in restaurants recommended by the guide books, and just took it easy.

When the rain fell unabashed, we simply went indoors, taking our time in Underwater World Langkawi. Penguins are seriously cute, I promise you. Try to coincide your visit with the feeding times, and also take the time to watch the 3D show. It's cool =)

We also saw the waterfalls at Telaga Tujuh and Temurun. And of course, we took the Langkawi Cable Car. Too bad the weather turned bad at the top of Mt Mat Chinchang, which meant we had to forgo the boardwalk. Well, that and the fact that there's basically nothing but mist to look at up there.

The rains basically meant we had to give up snorkelling or island hopping plans. And I also decided against doing any mangrove tours or kayaking. I don't like spending time at sea during unpredictable weather.

Anyways, Langkawi is a great place to go to for a short break in a natural setting. It's got it all - beaches, tropical rain forests, slower pace of life.

Good thing for us, the ferry ride back to Penang was smooth sailing in good weather. The time I spent on the ferry deck, just enjoying the breeze and appreciating the sunset was godsent.

Langkawi is great. Too bad the weather didn't turn out how I expected it to. But that just means that we'll definately be back for another trip !

Slow down, chill out, eat well !

2008-05-18T16:11:00.003+08:00

Some days back, the Girlfriend and I, we decided that life was too stressful. And we thought that driving a few hundred kms to the north, staying there a few nights, and just wander about looking for good food would be a good way to wind down and destress =)

So, on we went to Penang.

Food is obviously the main attraction of Penang to us Malaysians. Few Malaysians would challenge Penang's place as the food capital of the country.

But don't forget that there are plenty of other things to do between meals to burn away your calories =)

The day we arrived, we just took it easy, and tried out Lebuh Keng Kwee's famous Teochew Chendul, the irresistable Durian Ice Kacang at Kek Seng Coffeeshop, and went nuts with Chev at Gurney Drive and New Lane trying all sorts of hawker food. It's a foodie's paradise !

We wandered about Georgetown one day, discovering the Heritage Trail. And then we immersed ourselves with the Cheong Fatt Tze mansion. And then I showed girlfriend that there is an End Of The World indeed ... and we settled for a Ship-ly dinner. Not content, we even went on to sample what is probably the best Murtabak in this glorious land called Malaysia !

And on yet another day, we ventured to the hills of Penang, scaling the dizzying heights of Penang Hill, and paying homage to the temple that the Kek Lok Si is ! And of course, what is a visit to the hills without a pit stop at the Air Itam market for the Asam Laksa? Or indeed, the sublime afternoon tea at David Brown's at Strawberry Hill?

And of course, we simply had to try out the divine Char Koay Teow at Lebuh Kimberly. Cooked in oil immersed in seafood ... the subtle flavors of Char Koay Teow only a true Penang hawker can create were all teased out, dancing and mesmerizing our undeserving tastebuds.

And obviously, you can't leave Penang without trying the Char Koay Teow at Lorong Selamat! And wash it down with some of the famous Peanut Ice Kacang, no less =)

Simply unbeatable ... only Penang can boast so much good food, so many things to see and enjoy, and so much relaxation in an urban setting ! =D

There is a pulse !!!

2008-05-18T02:40:00.002+08:00

Ok ... I'm back.

Still adjusting to being really busy. Still not used to very little sleep, and lots of work.

Traveling to places often. And just back from a holiday (which I intend to blog about this long weekend).

Just did a digital photography workshop as well =). Hope people will like it !

Disappointed that a last minute trip to Shanghai didn't work out. But looking forward to the rest I'll get because I won't have to fly !

And yeah, I'll put some photos on the photoblog.

BTW, Iron Man rocks. If you haven't seen it yet, what are you waiting for ??

May-day ! May-day !! =)

2008-05-01T09:47:00.004+08:00

Alright. Hands up now those who realised that April was a busy month for me?

Right. That wasn't too hard to see, was it? 2 blog posts in an entire month? Gee. Something's gone terribly wrong.

I'm quite happy no one has taken the initiative to call the police and filed a missing person's report. It means if this blog slowly slips into oblivion, it'll be ok :). Of course, it wouldn't slowly slip into oblivion. With me, it'll either slip really quickly into oblivion, or not go anywhere at all.

What happened in the month of April to have kept me so busy?

Adjusting to the level of work. Adjusting to all the new programs I am participating in. Just plain lazy sometimes. A regional conference. And a week long adventure in Jakarta.

May has always been vacation month for me. And for the 3rd year in a row, May will be Cuti Cuti Malaysia month ! =)

This month, I'll head up to the Pearl of the Orient, and then reacquaint myself with the 99 islands in the Archipelago of Legend. It should be cool, spending time looking for a dot in the map, getting lost in traffic, and hopefully, doing next to nothing as well from time to time ! Sounds like fun to me !

Since it's holiday week. I'll hopefully blog a few more times and put some pictures too :). You never know.

At least there are all these pending tags I'll need to work on.

Hanging in ...

2008-04-11T00:24:00.004+08:00

Sometimes, life throws you curve balls. Real curve balls. Not the occasional curving minimally ball. We're talking balls that can swing off the continent before coming back towards you kinda curve ball.

While my eyes burn painfully, I can't fall asleep. There are so many things to worry about. There are so many things I have to do. So many things I need to finish. So many things pending. So many worries to look into. I could use some support. I could really have used some tonight, but it wasn't to be.

The kind of stress levels I'm at now, I'm surprised I haven't turned back to the bottle. Or got myself into some deep funk. I would have done that a few years ago. Perhaps it's a testament to maturity, perhaps it's just realisation dawning that those things don't solve problems. Or release stress. But it's getting desperately despairing now.

Yesterday, I destressed by taking self potraits. Today, I have nothing to fall back to. One stressful phone call followed by another. Work isn't personal. Work is simply work. It piles. It gathers momentum. It requires your every attention to detail, but it comes to you with careless abandon.

Maybe tomorrow, I'll read this and think - "You silly boy ... how could you even think of this ?" - but right now, just walking away from it all isn't such a bad idea. Even dying doesn't appear to be all that bad, seriously. But I'm probably right - it's probably a really terrible idea a tired, sleep deprived mind throws out to self preserve.

I just remembered why I used to turn to the bottle in the past, even when I knew the things I know today. It's simply the convenient thing to do. It was easy. It was simple. It wasn't too hard to get drunk. The brain doesn't function after that, and your problems go away for that little while. Just a little while.

Anyways, I've been quite sober for a really long time now. The new mentality of tackling problems head on might need to change - I think I just realised I can' solve all the problems in the world. I'll just have to pick the ones that are important and work on them.

And of course, there are real reasons life is worth it. You're one.

Oh well. Here, I'm putting this burden down. I'm imagining that I'm taking a huge boulder off my shoulders.

And yeah, if ever anything were to happen to me, I wanna use this picture I took of myself yesterday as my potrait. Seriously.

Busy just gets busier

2008-04-01T10:34:00.002+08:00

I bought myself a Blackberry. And that's just because busy is getting busier.

Having a Blackberry device frees me up for a bit more mobility without tying me up to a laptop.

It's quite funny - once upon the time, it was considered a liberating experience to get yourself a laptop ! Suddenly you can work from home ... no more getting stuck to the workstation !!! I remember the first laptop I had - it's a heavy Toshiba with enough weight to help you build very nice shoulder muscles.

Then, you can download your emails via dial-up connections. Then you disconnect, then you answer all the emails offline, and you dial-up again, then you send all your emails.

One day, my neighhbour showed me his broadband connection. And since then, I've had broadband (and all its ups and downs, and all the high blood pressure risks that came along with it), and I've never looked back. At first, I have wired broadband at home - I need to sit 3 feet from the ADSL modem because that's how long the cable is.

Then, one day, my company gave me a home wireless router to try out. And since then, I've been running a wireless network at home. It gives me the ability to move about the house and still be connected online - of course, I have to bring my laptop with me.

Granted my laptop is very light, but it's still a bit of a bummer. I can't really put my laptop on my lap when I'm in the washroom. Of course, you really don't wanna have to work or do anything online when you're doing some more serious business, if you dig what I'm saying.

So, enter my Blackberry. This simply means that I get to be online even more often, and I'm going to be more connected. Bad? No, I think not. Everytime I've added more connectivity to my life, I've been fearful that I'll loose out on more of the better things in life.

But the contrary has happened - I didn't need to be in the office all the time, I can work from home where it's reasonable. And I didn't need to be connected at all times. I can do simple tasks on the move whenever those work comes in, and that means I don't have to sit at one place for a long time to clear my work.

I hope that busy getting busier isn't going to mean I'll lose touch with all good things in life.

Ten years to start with ...

2008-03-24T07:43:00.003+08:00

I started my work life ten years ago, on March 23 1998. It's so much like the literal blink of an eye ! Without much drama, the first decade of working has passed me by.

I must say that if you've told me ten years back I'll be doing what I do now, I'll probably laugh at your face and tell you to pull the other leg too. No way I'd think I'll be doing this. I wouldn't have believed I'd be even in this line I'm in !!!

Not bad for ten years of working - it's afforded me down payment for my current house, it's given me my current car, it's helped my parents live a more stable life, it's seen me traveling all over the globe and it's helped put some sense into my head.

I'm thankful for the opportunities I've been given, I will continue to work hard so that I can get lucky. And when luck comes my way, I'll work even harder to make the best of it. I have been taught early on in my work life by some very good friends of mine that you create luck by working hard - and your reward for luck is hard work.

As I write this, I am humbled by the experience of work, but at the same time thankful for what it has provided me with. There are plenty of ups, and equally as many downs. Sometimes, it feels like a major grind when the only constant in your entire work life is hard work. However, whenever I step back to assess what little I've been able to achieve, I think I stand before you a better person now than ten years past - and that's all that matters.

Nowadays, we young turks (I hope no one takes offense that I'm calling myself a young turk still) get so much opportunities, it'll be a crying shame if we don't embrace it and use them for personal advancement. To my bosses, past and present, I want to thank you all for your patience and kind coaching. Each of you have left in me some lessons that will stay with me for a long time yet.

Ten years is a long time, ten years is a short time. Ten years is but a blink, ten years is an eternity. Ten years is past, I hope for a better next ten years.

Top Ten New Cabinet Surprises

2008-03-19T00:06:00.005+08:00

Well, in the aftermath of a historic General Elections, the new Malaysian cabinet was revealed earlier yesterday. Besides the expected down sizing, there were a few obvious surprises. However, not many media pundit pointed out the real surprises.

So, as a community service to Malaysians at large, I'm going to point out the Top Ten New Cabinet Surprises :

What? Only 2 Finance Ministers?

No Special Adviser with Full Ministerial ranking to advise on how to stay awake ? Disappointing !

Many were relieved to hear that Mawi wasn't appointed as Minister to boost popularity amongst young voters.

How the PM steadfastly refused to rename the Energy, Water and Communications Ministry as the Earth, Wind and Fire Ministry despite impassioned pleas from the other cabinet members.

Samy's toupee wasn't appointed even as a deputy minister ! How can ??!??

To try and connect with younger voters, the PM now starts each sentence with : "Yo, Dawg !"

In yet another effort to appeal to younger voters, a new cabinet post is created to look for all the missing Edison Chen photos.

What happened to the Minister in the PM Department In-Charge of Searching for Hidden Cameras?

To keep BN relevant, Malaysians will vote out a cabinet member each week ... opps ... that's American Idol. Wrong channel ... :P

Where's Kementerian Mat Rempit ?

So, there you go people ... the Top Ten New Cabinet Surprises ! Now, let's sit back, relax and see how the country either fall apart spectacularly or improves dramatically in the next few years !

Even less time for this now ...

2008-03-17T17:50:00.003+08:00

"Congratulations ..."

With that email, the realisation hit me that now, more than ever, I'm going to have less and less time for personal things.

Sometimes, it's strange how people ask for things without thinking about what it means. I guess sometimes, you ask for it without understanding that everything you get, you have to give up something too. It's an equilibrium - a way things balances themselves out.

Getting more salary usually means you get more work. Getting more staff usually means you have more responsibility. I guess it's good for me - I have wanted it, and now I've got it.

I'll be on a 12 month program now, hopefully at the end of which I'll have better things in store for myself in terms of career. At my age, if it doesn't happen soon, it won't happen. I'm just happy to be given a stab at it.

So, here's to putting my heads down and concentrating on doing a good job for the next 12 months !

Enough !

2008-03-09T12:08:00.003+08:00

I'm glad I voted.

I'm happy with change. The only constant in change anyways.

You had your run, you failed us. Now let others give it a go.

The people should not be afraid of the government. The government should be afraid of the people !

You asked for 5 years. We have given you that 5 years. Now show us all you can do something better. Else you know, change will come again.

Ironic isn't it, my 400th blog post will be on such a momentous ocassion !

Woohooo !!!! Sawadee Krub ... !

2008-03-06T01:38:00.003+08:00

Sawadee Krab !!!

Ow khao neau ma muang krab !!

=)

Will be in Bangkok next week. Hope to catch up with some really dear friends from those days when Bangkok was home to me.

In my heart, Bangkok is always a second home. I'd like to see if I can meet up with Dee and Nuclear ... hope to see how they are now. And to reminisce the older days. And get some coffee at Black Canyon. I miss Black Canyon Coffee. And funky colored Toyota cabs ... who wants a shocking pink cab ?

I miss the water splashes in Songkran. I miss the wais when I pay my food bills. I miss the randomness of Chatuchak. I miss the walk from Chitlom to Siam Square. I miss the noise in Chinatown. I miss the small meals they call lunch.

I miss Bangkok.

I'm so glad I'm getting a fix of Bangkok, even for a few days.

With power, comes responsibility

2008-03-04T11:47:00.004+08:00

With power, comes responsibility.

Those are the famous words Peter Parker, aka Spiderman utters all the time.

We are responsible for the government we vote for. No use berating the fact after that we have a system that rots us from inside.

Last week, while I was driving around, I realised what choices do to you. When parking was hard to find, just any spot would do. When there were plenty of spots, I became picky - this spot wasn't aligned in the wrong way, that one wasn't close enough to the lift, and the other one didn't have any shade.

Choices can be hard to make. But I will make my choice. And come what may, I won't regret it.

I can't guarantee myself if I vote one way or the other my future will be better. No one can. Promises are easier made than kept. And things aren't always what they seem.

My investment manager tells me that past performance cannot be used as the sole basis of future performance indication. Meaning: Don't look back and use it to predict the future.

We had our good times. Now we're moving into an era of increased collaboration and openness, where competition will squeeze us from every possible angle. And here we are happily practising the divide and conquer politics we accuse our former British masters of practicing.

We see roads tarred up before elections and by elections. All our developments fast track around election time, and just die down to their normal leisurely pace thereafters. We do improve, but if our pace of improvement is slower compared to the people we're competing against - Singapore, Hong Kong - the other economies I think we should benchmark ourselves against - wouldn't that really mean we're not improving at all?

Bottomline: I have made my choice. I will not regret it. I will take responsibility for it. I will stand up for my believe.

Shamelessly plugging again ...

2008-03-01T12:13:00.003+08:00

Just added a new post on my photoblog. It's a series on a very intersting cloud formation I chanced upon while flying over Java island. The last photo is what I consider a once in a lifetime sort of photo.

Do visit it and give your comments.

Jakarta

2008-02-25T20:36:00.003+08:00

I'm in Jakarta now.

I'm travelling again. Again.

This morning, I met another frequent traveller in the airport. He's going to retire from traveling soon.

I wonder when will I ever get to do that, you know, stop traveling on my job.

The thing is, if I don't travel, I feel trapped. Bored. Lack of challenge. So I guess, I'll be traveling for at least a bit more. There's so much of the world I haven't seen.

Sometimes, when you travel, you feel a sense of homeliness when you return home. In some very unusual case, you get that feeling when you return to the same hotel. I felt the same homeliness today returning to JW Marriot here in Jakarta. Maybe it's because the rooms are all the same layout. And maybe it's because the power adaptors all sparkle when you plug them in.

Gong Xi Gong Xi !!!

2008-02-16T02:11:00.004+08:00

A few days ago, a few special guests visited my office.

A pair of really playful and cute Southern Lions !!! The building management of the office where we were located arranged for lion dance performance to visit all the offices in the whole complex !

Woot !!! Not only did they come in to scare away all the bad stuffs and bring us good luck in the office reception ...

They went everywhere to each table !! We played a small token angpow and a mandarin orange on each of our desks, and it went around to collect the angpow, bless our workplace, and peel open the mandarin oranges.

In between, the lions even found a bit of time to chat up some gals. It's Valentine's Day after all !

But what I found seriously funny ... were the lions visiting and dancing in our server room !!!! Never in a million years !!! Yeah !!! Make sure you scare those switches and routers into not failing us for the whole year, ya ??

Here's the lion blessing my table (and collecting an angpow from me too).

The aftermath of blessing at my workspace. Heheehe ... I photoshopped away some things from the board, and also my name plate ... sorry folks !

I like lion dance ! Here's to a Happy Chinese New Year to one and all ! Hopefully, the lions would bring me plenty of good luck this year !

Gong Xi Fa Cai !!!

Shameless Plug: Photoblog

2008-02-10T15:19:00.000+08:00

It's Chinese New Year, the only time of the year when I really slow down and do nothing. So, during this relaxing period of downtime, I've been taking the opportunity to tweak my photoblog a little bit.

In line with my new post on my small and humble collection of Crystals, I've come to realise that it's quite a bad experience scrolling up and down the page to see photos and then to read about it. Therefore, I've made a small change - using Javascript to implement a photo gallery whenever I need to show a collection of photos instead of just one photo individually.

I'll appreciate it loads if you all jump over there and have a look at my handiwork (I coded the Javascript from scratch), and let me know how I can improve you experience even further ! There are some small browser cross compatibility problems - readers on Firefox will see the intro text over and over again. I'm working on that and I hope to solve it soon.

Users who have subscribed to the RSS feed might find some funny Javascript turn up instead. I'm still trying to hack around Blogger to get rid of that bit of code. I apologise if you found ocipala text instead of useful words.

Some of you know I've been a mineral / crystal collector for sometime now. Although no longer actively collecting, I still pick up nice pieces when the opportunity presents itself.

And my crystals make very good macro photography subjects ! If you're wondering how big they are - most of my crystals are quite small. Look at the last photo and you'll understand better. ;)

So, thus my shameless plug on this blog !!! What are you waiting for ? Jump over !

Gong Xi Fa Cai !

2008-02-06T10:21:00.001+08:00

It's that time of the year again !!! It's Chinese New Year !

To all friends, enjoy your Chinese New Year with family and friends, but remember to drink responsibly, drive safely, and to gamble within limits. Too much of anything can be bad !

To all rats, since this is the year of the rat, you will enjoy the following benefits:

Lab rats will be able to do experiment on the scientists one day each week
There will be no operations against rats in SS2 and Gurney Drive for the entire year
For this year only, instead of saying "Rats !" every time something goes wrong, I'll say "Hello Kitty !" instead.
MBPJ will be handing out leftover food to rats in the entire PJ area.
The most popular noodle dish this year would be Lor See Fun !
For children born in the year of the rat, they have the option to put a picture of Mickey Mouse on their MyKad !
Just this year only, they'll remove the statue of that eagle in Langkawi and replace with a rat statue.
Tour agencies are encouraged to take tourists out to see the rats running about in the streets of KL.
I will decorate all the mouse traps in my house with paper cuttings, and use lokam as baits.
Cheese makers to donate half of all the cheese they made to mice.

HAPPY RATTY CHINESE NEW YEAR !

Jumping from one place to another !

2008-01-31T16:22:00.000+08:00

It's just been a busy period for me, jumping from one place to another.

All that's been happening is a blur - I wake up, get to work, come home, chat with Girlfriend a bit, then work a bit more, and then go to sleep and repeat the process all over again. It's quite monotonous, and I'm hoping to break it a little bit.

I'll be back at the gym next week, hopefully, to break into some sweat and work myself back into a more streamlined shape. Right now, I'm so out of shape, those airport security scanning devices identify me as 'Unknown'. It's embarrassing.

On the work front, I've been nominated to join a year long project that will double my work load, and increase the amount of time I spend staring into blank spaces and computer screens. I guess it'll be good for me if I'm selected, although I'm pretty sure most people will see less of me. But it's a great program where only a few people get selected into, so I hope I'll get it.

No travels so far, but after Chinese New Year, I expect myself to help MAS achieve it's RM1 billion profit targets. Of course, those bloody lunch boxes they're giving us helps them loads. I hate the lunch boxes - cold sandwich and chocolate filled cereals isn't my idea of lunch. Or dinner. Or whatever. Gimme back my hot meals anytime !

And funnily enough, it sounds like Chinese New Year, it looks like Chinese New Year, but I'm not sure if it's Chinese New Year ! This year, the atmosphere isn't there, for some funny reason. Probably because I've been immersed with so much work that it's just impossible to feel festive. Anyways, I'm planning to get some new clothes - hopefully that will jump start my Chinese New Year festive moods. If that doesn't work, I'll start eating Kuaci-s (melon seeds) and blast Chinese New Year songs at home. Those are fail proof, but it does very little to foster neighbourly love.

And this year, there is no plan to go anywhere ! I'm not even taking a lot of leave, just a day. I'm planning on saving up my holiday for a longer vacation.

Gee, I seem to write rubbish when I don't blog too often ... ok ... no more rants. I'm done. Happy Chinese New Year !

Trip Report: Zhouzhuang

2008-01-20T14:47:00.000+08:00

I've been putting this entry off for a few weeks now, but unless I do it now, I'll probably never be doing it.

To refresh our collective memories, I was in China for a few weeks in 2007, and so far, I've blogged about being in Beijing's Forbidden City and Beihai Park, my travels to Mutianyu section of the Great Wall of China, and my marvelling of Shanghai.

This report is about my visit to the water village of Zhouzhuang in Suzhou. Shanghai is located on the lower reaches of the Yangtze Delta, also called the Jiangnan (江南) in Chinese. This area is peppered with canals and waterways, and is where the province of Jiangsu is located. Jiangsu's most famous area is Suzhou (苏州).

Anyways, cutting the geography lesson short, Suzhou is where you'll find a lot of water villages. And to cut the story even shorter (I can see some readers tearing their hair our with impatience now) ... I visited one of them, Zhouzuang (周庄) while I was in Shanghai.

It's a half day trip from Shanghai, but I'd really recommend you to break from the normal touristy itinerary, and go early in the morning before the tourists spoil your experience. Even better is going during the winter, when the place is half deserted (according to my tour guide).

Ok, no more babbles ... I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking now.

Zhouzhuang is a small village now fully commercialized - there are shops everywhere. But what's really cool is you can take a boat ride around the place, and you can pay the boatmen to sing the native songs to serenade you while you are taken on your boat ride. However, we didn't make the boat ride, although it was actually included in the price for the tour I took. Why ? Just look at the next picture ...

The place was actually over run by tourists. The newly rich Chinese are taking vacations now .. this is a photo of the famous Twin Bridges. These bridges were subjects of a famous painting called "Memory of Hometown" by the late Chen Yifei, an American based Chinese artist, which made Zhouzhuang famous. As you can see, it's impossible to photograph without getting any humans in the picture. Sigh ...

It got so crowded some of the Americans in my tour group asked our guide to take us away from the main streets where the Chinese tourists were, so he took us into some really small lane by a minor waterway. And that's when I really started enjoying the place. It's really nice to find unobstructed waterways, and be able to see the locals doing what they do, you know, locals doing their laundry, or going about their card games.

The water's actually quite clean, you can see the bottom of the canal (which isn't very deep to start with). And being on the small street means we could take our time and wander around, peeking into the living rooms of the locals, hoping to glimpse into their lives.

Unfortunately, this being a half day trip, the day was over way too soon. Next time I come, I'll make sure I spend at least a day and will definately NOT be in a tour group. I want to be able to spend as much time as I want in spots that I like here.

Suzhou is a place full of mulberry trees. Mulberry trees are important because the silkworms feed on their leafs. Silkworms are important because without them there is no silk.

Suzhou has been a central city in China's silk industry through the ages, so you know what it means, don't you? It means that eventhough we're really late, the tour bus still had to make a totally gratuitous stop at the local silk factory, where we were shown the way to make and process silk into the finished product.

And guess what? My mum will not be proud of me. I'm the only one in the tour group who left the shop empty handed. =P

Penang !

2008-01-18T01:03:00.000+08:00

Just got back from the pearl of the orient, Penang. Work carried me there for a few days, but the passion for food sustained me !

Had lots of good food, met up with Chev, took some really cool photos, and can't wait to go back. Thanks, Chev - you've been the perfect host !

Over a nice cuppa green tea latte, and some funky frappe, we had a really nice conversation. And of course, Chev can't resist showing me her new toy, the ASUS EE PC. Ee ... I so jealous !

And yeah, I saw a rainbow for the first time this year ! And on a sunny day too, how about that?

Wait for the photos on the photoblog ! Should be out within a day or two at most. I don't know if its me, but crumbling facade and wildly uncoordinated color schemes make good photos !

Feedback - my photoblog

2008-01-11T14:04:00.000+08:00

After relooking at my photoblog, Moz Takes Pictures (http://mozphotos.blogspot.com), I've found the hits to be quite low, so I'm not quite sure what I should do. It's a personal hobby I like a lot, photography, and I am keen to keep the blog up, and not have to close it.

On the one hand, I really like the concept, and want to see it continue, but on the other hand, I am not happy with the outcome so far.

I guess if I were to be honest, I guess I'm not getting hits because I haven't been putting up photos very frequently, and I haven't been very prolific in sounding out about the blog too. I guess as little time as I have, I'd really have to pull up my socks and do better in terms of putting photos out there.

But I'd like to hear from anyone who has some ideas on how I can spruce things up. I mean, I'd like to hear what you like, what you don't like, and how I can make your experience better when you visit my photo blog. I'd appreciate greatly any feedback.

What the heck ...

2008-01-07T18:56:00.000+08:00

Gee, 2008 seemed to start with a bang ! - literally. There's enough material for a whole year's worth of poking fun at the politicians who run Bolehland.

I think this pantun would be something a certain former minister might be penning this very moment ...

Oh my love, Angelina,
Mari kita ke Hotel Katerina,
Disana kita boleh bersuka ria,
Gembira bersama boleh berzina ...

Oh my love, Angelina,
Jumpa nanti di Hotel Katerina,
Kita bersua dibilik yang sama,
Dan jangan lupa bawa kamera !

Dedicated to a certain former minister ... =P

Good one, 2007 !

2007-12-31T10:53:00.000+08:00

Dear readers,

It's quite inevitable that I'll write one more post for the year on the last day of 2007 ... sort of a personal report card for my own keepsake when my own memory bank fails me eventually someday in the future. Somehow, for all the great year that 2007 was, this will be one of the few tangible bit of memory that I'll have to show for it.

2007 was a great travel year, but yet, most of the travel really took place in the 2nd half of it, and it felt like I was constantly on the move during the last 3 months of it.

I went far and traveled to parts of the world I've always wanted to see for myself. So, what left really deep impressions on me this year ?

I'll have to pick out a few overseas trip:

Sydney, Australia

Going to Australia is always good and fun. Of course, fun is one thing, meeting up with friends is another. Despite what some people say about Australians being less than friendly, I found myself making new friends and renewing acquaintances in Sydney this year. I'd like to thank May and my friends Darren, his young and vibrant family, and Kelen for their hospitality.

This trip's important because of the things about people that I learnt. Sometimes, small lessons take you very far. Most things you can buy have expiry dates. Friendships last forever.

China

Visiting 5 cities in the Greater China region in a matter of weeks on business is no small matter. I just had to see China for myself, to understand the history, and to see the future. Seeing China for myself, I have no reasons to doubt that this is the future, and I will have to learn from today to deal with that future. Like it or not, there is little stopping the Chinese march forward.

Of course, having some good food, great company, and making some new friends in China didn't hurt !

Bangkok, Thailand

Having the Girlfriend around this year had been a real joy ! None more so than when we went for a walkabout in Bangkok ! This being her first real overseas trips to a foreign land, I was quite happy for her that she did enjoy herself !

Food - GREAT !
Sights - GREAT !
Shopping - GREAT !

Ups and downs, highs and lows ... it happened all this year ... I can't wait for the next years !

I hope to continue with my travels, to take more photographs, and hopefully, I'll be able to post them to share with you all as well !

Happy New Year 2008 !

Sincerely,
Moz

Merry Christmas ... wherever you are ...

2007-12-24T01:37:00.000+08:00

I'm not of Christian faith, but I do appreciate the public holiday, so there you have it ... Merry Christmas, and A Happy New Year too !

I'll be in Hanoi immediately after Christmas, so we'll see how that's like ! =P

If I don't get a chance to roundup the year, I'd like to just say a word of sincere thanks to all of you who've made 2007 a meaningful year of learning, friendship and love. Just like I believe everyday is a new beginning, every year is a new chance to turn the leave as well.

Personally, there is nothing I'd change from 2007 even if I could. Through the ups and downs, I think my soul has survived rejuvenated, and believing that we're all good on the inside, after all.

The body's not an engine, you know ...

2007-12-18T21:59:00.000+08:00

In my mind, as I go about my daily routine, I never think for a second that I'm getting old. Well, I'm not old ... I'm just 31.

But sometimes, I forget that the body is not an engine, really. Just the other day, when in Singapore, a colleague was telling me he thinks that I have a lot of energy, for all the travelling I've been doing. Well, yesterday night, I hit the wall ... the body just refused to do anything unless I sleep ... so sleep I did. The first 8 hour sleep session in a while ...

I was just counting my passport, and I've made 27 overseas trip this year, and will be making another 2 more trips before the year's out ... that's going to be 29 overseas trip this year that I'll be making, and that translates to around 1 overseas trip every 12 days ... if you average it out !

I think I'll have to take steps to rest myself better, to better make use of the travelling time I have. Perhaps I should start sleeping instead of gazing out of the window on flights. Maybe it'll be good to start sleeping early no matter where I am.

While travelling has been great, travelling as much as I do creates some unique problems. Not least is that fact that since I'm mostly around only over weekends, I try to squeeze in as much as I can during the weekends. This usually means I have stressed out weekends. I haven't had a single decent go at photographing bugs at home since September.

Sigh ... I need to take stock of my own lifestyle, and reconcile it with my love for the job, and for the travelling that comes with it. Maybe the end of the year couldn't come soon enough !

Trip Report: Shanghai

2007-12-15T12:02:00.000+08:00

Let's see ... my China trip started in Beijing, where I visited the Forbidden City once more, Beihai Park, and walked the Great Wall section at Mutianyu.

Beijing may be the capital, but the commercial heart of China is Shanghai, my next destination. I was quite keen to try and put a finger on the pulse of the Chinese economy in Shanghai, just to understand for myself what the hype is all about ...

As usual, I'll let the pictures do most of the talking on my little excursions while in Shanghai.

The City God of Shanghai, incidentally, happens to be ... would you have guessed it ... the God of Prosperity. No wonder Shanghainese are so rich ... I happened to stumble upon its temple while taking a little walk around the Old section of Shanghai ..

China may be communists, but there certainly isn't any shortage of worshippers everywhere I went into ...

For folks like me who isn't really into shopping, this part of Shanghai, the Yuyuan Gardens, and Shanghai Old Street would definately be the place to visit. The famous 9 Zig-Zag bridge is within the compound of the Yuyuan Gardens.

Yuyuan is a beautiful Chinese garden, formerly owned by an administrator in the city. There are plenty of ponds, lanscaped terraces, and loads of water. Shanghai is located in a region called Zhiangnan (literal: River's South), which is the lower reaches of the Yangtze River delta. There are many rivers and lakes in this area, and thus, water is a prominent feature of gardens here.

Shanghai Old Street is a street lined with antiques and souvenir stores of all sorts. It's not a very pedestrian friendly place, but it's worth a visit just to feel the vibe of the whole place. The old hutong style buildings are restored and renovated into a touristy road full of shops.

Inside Yuyuan, there are some very famous shops selling food, and I chanced upon this one ... the queue itself is at least 45 minutes long all day long, so you just have to be patient ...

And here's what the queue is all about ... Shanghai Xiao Long Bao, the famous dumplings with crab meat and crab roe. This shop was selling a dozen dumplings for 16 yuans (RM8). Not bad, though the skin's a bit on the thick side.

Good news is that Yuyuan and Shanghai Old Street is literally next to each other, so you don't really need any transportation between the two places.

Not far from the Yuyuan and Shanghai Old Stree, just around 15 minutes by taxi, is the world famous Shanghai Bund. It's a riverside esplanade by the Huangpu river. You've gotta come here for the lights and sights at night. Pictures don't do it justice ! It's such an overwhelming sensory experience !

The lights come on at around 7.30 in the evening, so don't be a jakun like me and turn up at 6pm, and just wait and wait and wait for the lights. Also, lights go off around 10pm on weekdays, and a little later on weekends, so don't turn up too late as well !

Was the wait worth it? Oh yeah ... the lights came on to reveal the world famous Bund facades, and you also get the view of Puxi, across the river, where all the skyscrapers are. The only blip is that the weather was quite hazy, and it was very, very, chilly as well. To think that I actually had an ice cream outdoors =P

And not far from the Bund, just a 10 minute walk, is Nanjing Dong Lu (Nanjing East Road), the famous pedestrian shopping strip in Shanghai. Not a shopping person, I just walked around admiring the neon signs, and stayed long enough to get myself some Olympic souvenirs - something my father told me not to come home without !

Another place worthy of a visit is Xintiandi, a posh entertainment area in the style of Bangsar. Xintiandi is right behind my office =). Formerly an area within the French concessionaire, it features pubs, restaurants and chill out places housed in former colonial buildings.

What I found really cool was walking in the narrow lanes amongst the old facade, and discovering pubs with minimalist designs, or restaurants that won't look out of place in Paris or New York inside. And the food's pretty decent as well !

And that's my walkabout in Shanghai ! What's there not to like ? From the little alleys (that aren't touristy) to the tourist traps of Yuyuan Garden and Shanghai Old Street, there's something for everyone. Like everywhere else in China, there are so many domestic tourists you sometimes feel crowded and sick of it all. Try to be early to avoid crowds, and if you can't, why not just enjoy it ? Just be prepared to be asked to help take lots of photos, especially if you carry a big camera like me ...

And oh, on a totally unrelated note =) ... I registered my 10,000th shutter count on my D80 in Shanghai, taking this nondescript photo.

Trip Report: Mutianyu Great Wall

2007-12-06T01:36:00.000+08:00

While in Beijing, I bumped into some Malaysian colleagues, attending some training. They asked me to join them for a visit to the Mutianyu Great Wall, and I gladly accepted. I mean ... it was either that, or I'd have to roam Beijing on my own. Better roam in a group instead :P

As usual, I'll let the pictures take center stage ... and provide some commentaries on the side ..

Picture above copied from www.micktravels.com. This is the map of Mutianyu, the Great Wall section I visited. It is one of the better sections of Great Wall to visit, since it's still quite close to Beijing, but it's not as infested with tourists compared to Badaling Great Wall, the other Great Wall section near Beijing.

Mutianyu is also in a much better state of preservation, and has better scenery. Plus, you avoid the Great Wall of Tourists that is ever present in the Badaling section. Really.

The tour, part of a package from the hotel, costs RMB300, and includes the bus ride, a compulsory visit to a handicraft factory (omnipresent in all Chinese tour packages), entrance fees, and an English speaking tour guide. It's a half day tour. Tour group was small (around 20 of us), so it was really cool. Plus, Leo "Don't Call Me Loo", our guide, is a stand up comedian. He's got great jokes about American politicians.

We stopped off just before reaching the Great Wall for a toilet break, plus we're all hearded into this really nifty handicraft factory. I'm not complaining, but I would have liked more time on the Great Wall instead !

One reason why Mutianyu doesn't get as much visitor is that there isn't a highway connecting Mutianyu to Beijing. You really get off the highway after 2/3 of the way, and travel on country roads. The first glimpses of the Great Wall appears some 20 minutes before we get to the entrance of the Cable Car ride.

That's right folks, you have a choice of hiking up, or taking the cable car. On our tour, the cable car is included. However, what I didn't know was that it didn't include lunch, and there's a pretty steep hike up to the cable car station in the first place. And of course, you get souvenir stores lining the way up to the station !

The first glimpse of the Great Wall was pure bliss. I had never imagined the landscape to be so rugged, and the wall in such a good condition. I guess they must have spent a lot restoring it.

Late autumn is a great time to visit, when the leaves turn into all hues of red, and the air is cool. Mutianyu is quite famous for its autumn foliage, and supposedly, it's got the best vegetation cover amongst the sections of the Great Wall open to tourists. That's right, folks, not all parts of the Great Wall is open ...

Leo kept reminding us that the Great Wall wasn't made with tourists in mind - it was a wall of defense when it was built. Some sections were really steep, and more than once, I was so engrossed taking photos and missed steps, nearly tumbling down sections of the Great Wall ! Be really careful, and take plenty of water with you.

It's winding, it's steep, but it's breathtaking, and it's a great hike in the autumn air. A few of us walked the whole section, while some just stayed in a few sections and took it easy. Either ways, it's quite an experience !

Me, I walked it all ... except one steep section, which I missed due to lack of time. It's the steep slopy part in the picture before this ... I didn't get to walk that part ! =(

The cable car is a life saver ... would have been really hard getting up and down otherwise. Still, there are other ways to get up and down the Mutianyu Great Wall. There's a ski lift to take you up if you can't afford the cable car. And there's a toboggan (yes ... toboggan) for you coming down if you can't afford even the ski lift ! Talk about choices !

On the way back, I had first hand look at the Great Chinese Traffic System during traffic jams. A few dozen miles short of Beijing on our way back ... I realised that there were cars going in the wrong direction on our lane in the highway .... It wasn't long before I realised that the cars were actually turning back because there was a jam ahead !!!

It's crazy !!! Cars were just going in the wrong direction !!! And look at the picture above ... the police didn't even bother ... you can spot a police van in the middle of the picture. Only in China ...

And I also learnt one thing: why Chinese cars won't ever sell overseas. Try telling your car salesman you want to buy a BJ6516B1DWA-5 model. =P

How do I live without you ?

2007-12-03T14:52:00.000+08:00

I always thought that bad things happen during thunderstorms only in the movies.

You know, like when they have a scene where a bad guy is about to do a bad thing to the heroine or a woman ... and the the scene cuts to a that of a thunderstorm, with lightning and all that shebang, and after that, the scene cuts back to one of the heroine or woman crying.

It is supposed to be fiction only ! How can it happen to me ?

My broadband access worked fine ... only to die in a thunderstorm !!! How can ??

Basically, lightning must have struck around my house ... because besides blowing all the fuses at home, even some surge protected equipment, such as the wireless modem and the AC adapter for the DSL modem were all blown out as well ...

*sigh* ... no Internet until I replace the broken stuffs ...

T-Minus 10 Days !!!!

2007-11-26T15:47:00.000+08:00

10 more days !!! How good is that !!!

10 more days !!!

Sawasdeekrab !!! Tom Yum Goong ! Tom Kha Gai !! Pad Thai !!

Chatuchak ! Siam Square ! Suam Lum !!!

Wat Phra Keow ! Wat Pho ?! hehehehe ... Wat Arun !!!

10 more days !!?!!!!!!11111one1!

I No Likey ...

2007-11-24T15:01:00.000+08:00

The ocassional doctor tagged me to write about 10 things that I hate ... so here goes ... and no, it's not a Top 10 list ...

Being stuck in traffic jams caused by police roadblocks that has nothing to do with escaped fugitives, armed robberies, major accidents or incidents, significant events (Merdeka, New Year's Day, etc). Especially the ones where they start the roadblocks a few days before anything's even supposed to happen.

Bad service in any restaurants where a service tax is imposed. If I'm taxed for service, I demand service ! I don't have a choice of not paying, so I better get the service. I prefer tipping ... it's at my discretion whether I pay or not, based on how happy I was with the service !

Being told that the price of 'something' is still low compared to other countries every time there is a price increase. Get real, if I compare that way, we're expensive compared to many nations ... even before any price increase !

Busybody, Malaysian driver style. Accident on another side of the road will always cause as much, if not even more, traffic congestion on the other side !

Chinese wedding dinner receptions in KL. If it says on the invitation it'll start at 7.00 pm, plan to arrive at 8.15 pm when they are going to consider serving dinner.

The global phenomenon where white skin is treated as superior to other skin colors. It's like what Chen calls Kulitfication, but subtler. It's like when in Vietnam, how ragged, badly dressed western backpackers are treated better than better dressed Malaysian backpackers on the basis of our skin color alone.

People dragging me into meaningless meetings simply because they want a show of numbers. Waste of my good time !

People turning up for my meetings simply to sleep and to eat the tidbits. If you're turning up for my meetings, you're expected to contribute. I should stop serving fruit platters and tidbits at my meetings!

Explaining something over, and over, and over, and over, again. Some people just don't get it. It's such a waste of good time.

Waiting. I hate long, unjustified waits. I hate waiting in a queue when a few other counters remain unopened. I hate waiting when someone could have done their job better, but just can't be bothered to. I hate waiting when it could have been avoided - see my 1st no likey item.

Trip Report: Beihai Park

2007-11-21T14:01:00.000+08:00

After leaving the Forbidden City, I waited for a taxi to take me to my next target ... The Temple of Heaven. But after flagging down a few taxis ... all of them told me that the Temple of Heaven is under such heavy renovation it won't make sense for me to go.

If one driver said so, I'd say bullshit. If two drivers said so, I'd be thinking there's a conspiracy. But with 4 drivers saying the same thing, maybe there's truth in it ... so I actually changed my plans, and walked around the vincinity of the Forbidden City, up to the Wanchun pavillion, and also to Beihai Park.

As usual, I'll let the photos do most of the talking.

First destination: Wanchun Pavillion. This is a sightseeing view on top of a man made hill. You see, the man made hill, built to cover the ruined palaces of the Mongols who were defeated by the Ming Dynasty. The Forbidden Palace was built by the Ming rulers at a new site, because they thought the old Mongol palace site was a bit too small.

All that huffing and puffing up the hill to get to the Wanchun Pavillion rewards you with this view of Beijing. It's just about as high as you can get, since Beijing is a flat plain, with no natural mountain or hills ...

The Emperor was out to greet visitors. Really. Notice yellow leaves in background. Autumn is here !!!! Yaaay !

After catching my breath and taking a short rest, it was time to go visit Beihai Park, just next to the Forbidden Palace.

Beihai Park is one huge park - it used to be an imperial garden, enjoyed only by the Emporer and his closest family. It is capped by the spectacular White Pagoda (also called White Dagoba by some Chinese !). The Pagoda is built at the site where Kublai Khan received Marco Polo.

What is really cool about Beihai Park is that it's not like the Forbidden City - it has plenty of open spaces, and it's got loads of greeneries - a sight for a sore eye. I think there needs to be more gardens like these in Beijing - which is usually a place of buildings, buildings and buildings. And not forgetting the sandstorms in summer.

And of course, gardens is where you get to see people relaxing. I managed to catch some calligraphy lesson from this gentleman here who was kind enough to share some tips with anyone who is willing to listen. This is the art of water calligraphy, where people just write on the street with a huge brush and water (instead of ink).

Trip Report: Forbidden City

2007-11-19T11:35:00.000+08:00

My "teacher" asked my to write a report about my recent trips wor ... so I start by writing this one on Beijing's Forbidden City lor, hor ?

Firstly, this isn't my first trip to Beijing. I've been there previously, but it was so rushed, I hadn't had much time to explore the sights of the city. Read about that previous trip here.

This time around, I had a bit more time, arriving on Saturday morning. The MAS flight to Beijing is at such a bad time that when I arrived, it was just 6 am ... and the hotel had no room for me at all. So, I just grabbed my camera, took a map, and finished off what I didn't get to finish the last time around - the Forbidden City, also known as the Imperial Palace.

My last trip there was rushed, and I didn't even had the time to finish all the sights, so this time, I am not going to let the chance pass me by !

I'll let the pictures describe the Forbidden City, rather than bore you all to sleep with words.

Autumn in Forbidden City means you get loads of Mandarin oranges fruits. In fact, they're all over Beijing!

First thing you do is buy an entrance ticket. Don't be stingy ... the ticket is around RM30, and you have the option of also renting an audio guide, which wirelessly detects where you are and plays out audio commentary. It serves as a really cool map - not just showing you the layout of the place, but where you've been to, so you don't end up walking the same place twice !

First stop is the Jing Sui River ... just outside the Meridian Gate. When I was last here in summer 2006, it was dirty, murky and smelled a little unpleasant. None of that now ! It's much nicer. Must be the Olympics ...

It's from this audio guide that I learnt about these little figurines on the roofs. The more figurines on a building's roof, the more important the building is ! Only 1 building in whole of ancient China can have 11figurines. And all buildings have odd number of figurines ! Ah ... see teacher, I learnt something new !

Of course, then I started venturing inside, seeing all the sights that most tour guides will want to show to their tourists. But the problem is ... these sights are overcrowded !

If you look carefully at the picture above, you will realise that there are TOO many people ! Just like all other places in China ..

It was then that I decided to go to places I've not seen in my previous trip, either because there wasn't enough time, or because they were paying sections. You see, it's quite morose ... but you sometimes have to pay again in the Forbidden City to visit some of the areas. In this case, I visited the Nine Dragon Screen Wall, which was very peaceful and quiet ... until some Malaysian tourist group came in and spoilt it all .. ! =(

Anyways ... this time, I visited some of the exhibits in there. The Forbidden Palace is now a museum, so many of the buildings actually hosts exhibitions.

And besides that, there are some unusual parts of the Forbidden Palace I haven't yet visited, such as the "Crystal Palace", an unfinished western style palace the last Emperor of China was building when money ran out due to wars, etc.

Of course, I had to visit the old favorite, even though it was totally crowded. I had to brave a crowd of old ladies from Foochow who nearly tore my shirt off and were shouting at the top of their voice asking me to move away so that they can see the throne. It's madness out there ... their tour guide actually apologized to me after that.

What was really satisfying for me was being able to visit the Forbidden City at my own pace and leisure, taking as much time as I wanted, or skipping places that didn't interest me. The audio guide made it easy enough, and tour guides, while nice, would not have been necessary, not when there's an audio guide anyways. Next time in Beijing, I probably won't stop by here, unless all the renovations have been completed, that is. I still have not been able to see the Hall of Supreme Harmony due to renovations - it was under renovation in May 06, it's still being renovated now ! =(

Anyways ... last but not least ... if you do visit the Forbidden City, please remember the important announcement above ;)

Before and after ...

2007-11-15T13:04:00.000+08:00

Before lots of travel ...

KL

After lots of travel ...

KL -> Tokyo -> KL -> Beijing -> Shanghai -> Hong Kong -> Taipei -> Hong Kong -> Guangzhou -> Hong Kong -> KL -> Manila -> KL -> Jakarta -> KL

All of that in about a month ... *faints dramatically*

Yup ... still around ...

2007-11-13T02:57:00.000+08:00

After all the travelling, and all the flying about ... I'm back on terra firma. Last week I was in sweaty Manila, doing some work, and staying in the tourist belt area for the first time.

I'll be staying in Makati next time around ... Manila Bay is nice ... but not nice enough ! More on that in a later blog.

Work has pretty much taken over life at this point of time, so apologies for the infrequent update.

I have plenty of material to blog on, having returned from a tour of the Far East. But really ... even for a short update like this, I only have the time at 3 am !

*tsk tsk*

Back to work ...

12,000 kms later ...

2007-11-04T18:40:00.000+08:00

I've been travelling loads lately, and some of you who've been following my blog the past few weeks would have noticed that.

By straight line distance, I've travelled around 12,000 kms. But of course, if we consider all the taxi-ing the planes do when they reach an airport, and how many times I've been taken for a ride by taxi drivers, I've obviously travelled much more than that.

First stop was to Beijing, where there was the Forbidden City revisited, as well as the Great Wall, amongst others.

Next stop - Shanghai - home to the famous Bund. However, I found the Yuyuan Gardens nicer, as was Zhouzhuang, which was nice, but unfortunately, infested with tourists like me.

After scrambling through the haze (also called a fog by the Chinese government), I managed to reach Taipei via Hong Kong.

And from Taipei, I went on to Guangzhou via Hong Kong (again). You see, these politicians think that they are making a really strong statement by not letting direct air traffic go from China to Taiwan. Amazingly, due to the timing, I didn't even manage ONE photo in Taipei.

And finally, I stayed a night in Hong Kong before coming home.

It was one heck of an eye opener - and the food wasn't that bad too. Highlight would be how I've eaten Shanghai crabs 3 times during the trip !!! On the final stop, in Hong Kong, I actually had the most expensive meal ever in my life !!! Good thing someone belanja ... =)

I'll blog about this trip, as well as the previous Japan trip too, very, very, soon once I stop all these travel mumbo jumbo.

Burping AGAIN in Tokyo

2007-10-31T21:47:00.000+08:00

Since some of you had some not so nice words to say about my post on Midori Sushi in Tokyo, I flew in to Tokyo to eat there again, and took this picture.

Now you know what I'm talking about ... See if you can spot anything in that picture you would normally find in Malaysia. This is the smaller sushi platter, there is a much bigger one that would have even more !

Now you know what I was talking about then ...

There's sea eel (not river eel), sea urchin, caviar with shrimp, octopus, cuttlefish, scallop, crabstick, fish and toro (fatty tuna) sushis. And of course, some tuna roll as well ...

Now, where is Moz ?

2007-10-27T02:00:00.000+08:00

Here's a hint ...

Not enough ? Here's one more.

Still not enough? Ok ... last one. If this one's not good enough, you really need help.

Autumn, again, like Beijing, is the best time to visit Shanghai. The weather in autumn is more conducive for touring about, while it's also the season for Shanghai Crabs !!!! =) ... and of course I had some !!!! super yummilicious !!! If you look closer, it's even got a little seal on it's claw - that carries a serial number, and a seal that it's the original Yangcheng Lake crabs, from Suzhou ! =)

Guess where I was today ?

2007-10-21T19:31:00.000+08:00

Here's a hint ...

Clearly, autumn is the best time to visit ... air is clean(er), sky is visible (and blue), and no sand storms from the Gobi desert. I like !

This section I visited today is the Mutianyu section, less crowded with visitors, and in a better state of conservation compared to the ones you'll find in Badaling.

A few more photos in my photoblog at http://mozphotos.blogspot.com.

Tokyo: Hachiko advises the feuding doggies !

2007-10-18T00:32:00.000+08:00

Today, I'll show you one of the must see sights of Tokyo - the Shibuya area.

Shibuya Commuter Train Station is the 3rd busiest train interchange in Tokyo, and it's one of the best shopping areas in Tokyo as well, more so if you are looking for Ah Beng and Ah Lian clothes, accessories, and to people watch. It's also where you'll find a very yummy sushi place called Midori (it's in Shibuya Mark City).

It's also where you find the world's busiest scrambe interchange ... scramble interchange meaning a street crossing where all the vehicle traffic is stopped for pedestrian crossing, resulting in a mad scramble across the street. When I visited it, it was on a public holiday, during non rush hour, and yet, it felt like half of the population of Tokyo was crossing the street as the same time as I was !

One of the other attractions in the Shibuya area is the statue of Hachiko. Hachiko is a Japanese dog who used to send off his master, a professor in a university in Tokyo, every morning at the door, and then wait for the master to return at the Shibuya station every evening.

One day, the master died of a heart attack at work, and never came home from work. However, Hachiko, the loyal doggie, waited for his master everyday in the evening for another 10 years, when he himself died and went to doggie heaven. *touched*

The local people were so touched, they erected a statue in honor of the loyal dog.

Today, the entrance to the Shibuya station where Hachiko used to wait for his master (and where the statue is), is called the Hachiko exit, and it is a favorite meeting point for Tokyo people.

Where the Hachiko statue stands today, ironically, is one of the most famous meeting points in Tokyo. It's a given that when you meet at Shibuya station or the area around it, you will meet up at the Hachiko statue.

When I was there in Shibuya, Hachiko recognised me, and told me to bring this important message to Liucas and Dom Dom :

"Make love, not war. It matters not who farted or who is hamsap". None will be even half as loyal as Hachiko, because I suspect the moment the master / mistress stop feeding Liucas & Dom Dom, they would just find a new master / mistress !

The greatest doggie of all time has ~~spoken~~ barked.

The adrenaline is still rushing thru me ..

2007-10-14T02:30:00.000+08:00

Just back from Tokyo. It's a wonderfully strange experience.

Met at least 200 people, collected at least 200 business cards, but shook only 3 or 4 hands. Apparently, Japanese don't really shake hands.

The fare for all the train rides I took from hotel to work is less than the ONE taxi ride fare I took from train station to hotel.

There are 17 train / subway lines in Tokyo, with at least 3 different types of ticketing systems ( JR, Tokyo Underground, Toei & private lines)

Shinjuku station handles an average of 3.6 million passengers per day !!!

At the famous Shibuya 6 way crossing, during peak hours, up to 5,000 people cross the streets during a single traffic stop.

Now I know why they serve you ginger when you order sushi. Guess why ?

A meal at lunch is around 1600 yen. That meal at dinner time is 6600 yen. *scratches head*

When they say there's a vending machine selling everything, they're right. When's the last time you bought insurance at a vending machine?

More doodles later ...

Burping in Tokyo

2007-10-11T00:24:00.000+08:00

Just a short update.

I have not made the trip to the revered Daiwa Sushi, supposed to be the mecca of all sushi eaters yet. This is the famous shop in the Tsukiji Market, where they hold daily tuna auctions (which is off limits to tourists like me anyways).

But today, I made the trip to Midori Sushi in Shibuya. Midori is an above average sushi place, not quite Daiwa's stature, but not bad at all. Everything is fresh, and the prices are good. And even at 9.30 pm when we left, there were still at least 10 people in the queue waiting to get into the place. We endured a 45 minute wait in a queue that was at least 30 long.

I ordered the dish pictured here. The 2940 yen one ... they changed some items to give us fresh buys. But it's .... delicious !

It's so good I think I can faint dramatically with pleasure ... it's ... yummylicious. There's fatty tuna sushi, shellfish sushi, octopus sushi, sea eel sushi, cuttlefish tentacle sushi, big shrimp sushi, crab leg sushi, abalone sushi, salmon egg roe sushi, uni sushi, fish roe on kelp sushi ...

If you guys don't see those sushi items most of the time in Malaysia, that's because salmon sushi is considered ... normal ... not outstanding. Try and order some fatty tuna sushi ... *burp* ...

No pictures =P ... just great memories.

Yatttaaaa !!!

2007-10-07T21:41:00.000+08:00

I was scared stiff before I came. Excited, sure, but scared stiff as well about visiting Tokyo.

It's one of those places which had this gigantic reputation that just made everything else before it look miniscule.

I'm too lazy to blog about everything that happened today, but I'd just like to share with you a couple of Tokyo facts.

The first two facts, I'll let the pictures explain. Japan is a contrast of ultra modern, and tradition preserved.

Walking along the Meiji-jingu shrine, this couple became the center of all the tourists' frenzied camera clicking during their shinto wedding ceremony and photoshoot.

And barely 10 minutes away from the shrine, just by the Harajuku station, I found the infamous Harajuku cosplay crowd. I can't say I'm a fan, but I admire them for their courage - or foolishness - it's a matter of perspective. Again, the tourists just went crazy !

The next one is that expensive it need not be. I spent only around 5000 yen today - all inclusive except the hotel, which the company is footing, and the airport limousine bus, which is 3000 yen. 5000 yen included lunch, all the transportation and drinks all day long. It took me from Meguro to Harajuku, then to Shinjuku, Ueno, Asakusa, Tokyo, Ginza and back to Meguro. That's 5 more places than I thought I could reach with my budget ! 5000 yen is around RM150. It isn't all that bad. If you take away my higher end dinner, I just spent 2200 yen, around RM70 !

More to come later !

Hait !

2007-10-03T09:58:00.000+08:00

Konichiwa ! Wakarimasen!

Shinjuku !
Tsukiji Market ?
Akihabara !
Jingu-bashi?

Arigato ...

Ginza?
Roppongi desu ka ... ?
Akasaka? Akasuka?
Oh ... Senso-ji ?

What? 24400 Yen from airport to hotel ... ???!!??!? 24400 Yen = RM 700 !!!!!???!!?!

SUSHI ! SASHIMI !?!!? =)

Warm Sake !!!????!!! *nearly orgasmic delight !!*

Paradox

2007-09-27T01:24:00.000+08:00

This trip's been all about contrasts.

Staying in upscale hotels, presenting in world class office facilities, dining in the finest restaurants, getting trapped in traffic on some of the widest boulevards in this region.

And then, you look out the window of the upscale hotel to see signs of poverty in the dirt covered ramshackle homes.

And taking a break from the presentation, you see from the pantry, kids not even old enough to attend pre-school begging for money on the roads below.

On my way out from one of my dinners, we took a shortcut which passed through some of the narrowest streets, lined with the same ramshackle homes I saw earlier.

This city, like many other I've been to, is all a big paradox. World class office towers stands towering over poverty stricken neighbourhoods, where houses look like they'll barely stand when the wind picks up.

Whenever we had to duck out of the wide boulevards, we inevitably end up in dirt roads where 2 cars are not supposed to be on it at the same time.

Oh, and yes. While I've been working my arse off the past couple of days, how can you explain I actually put on weight ?

Collecting more frequent flyer points ...

2007-09-23T23:46:00.000+08:00

I'll be in the land of gado gado, where people address me as Pak or Bapak next week.

Interesting to see how it'll be like when it's Ramadhan. Would I be getting dates for dinner starters ?

Last time I was there, I lost my phone cover. Maybe it's still outside the departure hall? Or maybe it'll be in the taxi. Hopefully get the same taxi again.

I still think nasi padang is over-rated. But can't resist trying.

I'm hoping they'll let me drink some water as I talk next week. Because for 3 days, my job will be to talk and talk and talk and talk.

I'll promise to blog at least once there.

Would you do it ... ?

2007-09-18T17:36:00.000+08:00

I was seated alone at my lunch table, finishing my food when I was approached by this old woman.

Her face betrayed the tough times she' been through, wrinkled and tanned. Her hair frayed, yet not really unkempt. She gave me a toothy grin, and stretched out her hand, holding an empty plastic cup with some loose change in there.

She rattled it a little, and asked me for a donation.

I politely refuse, as I do always.

And she walked off to the next table, where she repeated her routine. It must be a very monotonous job, with a very high probability of rejection.

It set me off thinking ... one day, if I ever lose it all, would I ever be able to beg for a living?

Would I have to change my mindset? Would I have to accept the blow to my personal ego? I seriously can't see myself begging, but you never say never, do you?

What sort of disaster would make me beg instead of work? What sort of personal disaster would make you beg for a living? I'd much rather be a sweeper in McDonald's than be a beggar, but that's me.

See, in my psyche, there's never been an alternative to working. Need money? Work. Want better life? Work. Want to get better in life? Work.

I'm sure all beggars would choose to work if they can get work. Or would they? I'm pretty sure there's something to do here in Malaysia if you want to do it. Or am I wrong? Am I naive to think that you'll always be able to find a job?

I can't help but wonder, what's her life like when she's not begging? What was it like before she started to beg? What made her do this? Does she not have an alternative?

Retro: Mum in Bangkok !

2007-09-17T22:58:00.000+08:00

I'll be posting some of my own favorite (or important) entries (and there aren't many of them), from my previous blog to this one. Most of that blog is about my life abroad, mostly in Singapore in 2004, and then Bangkok in 2005 - that blog predates this current blog.

As a start, this is my favorite memory from Bangkok - taking my mum for a short holiday during Chinese New Year !

Some editing has been done to the original entry, mostly grammatical ones.

Originally posted on Tuesday, 15 February 2005

Mum posing with a mural depicting Hanuman (Monkey King) transforming his mouth into a cave for Rama to sleep, all this while they were being shot with sleeping darts by the evil army. It's her favorite mural in Wat Phra Keow.

I brought my mum out here to wild wild Bangkok over the Chinese New Year holidays because i think she really deserved a break. this is a woman who doesn't have holidays, really.

Here, she went to all the usual suspects - Siam Square area, Chit Lom shopping areas, MBK, Chatuchak, Grand Palace, Temple of Emerald Buddha, Wat Po, Wat Arun, Royal Barge Musuem and Suam Lum night market. How did I cram all these iteneries into just 2.5 days?

Mum has amazing physical fitness for a person her age. She outwalked a particular Mr Taylor - mum actually walked the entire Grand Palace, Temple of Emerald Buddha and then walked over to Wat Po, where she again, walked the entire place. And all this on a single bottle of mineral water. Go mum!

She also tried plenty of Thai food as well, ranging from Thai vegetarian food to Tom Yum noodles. She liked the mango with sticky rice as well as Pad Thai. Great - I'm happy she had a good time.

Posing with the famous reclining Buddha in Wat Po.

We spent considerable amount of shopping times looking for a particular shopping bag I had bought my sister in an earlier trip. However, we couldn't find that. Of course, we did get her some t shirts instead from Chatuchak. And mom got herself 3 very nice shirts.

And of course, we have some little souvenirs. I am really hoping she will like it. And that she enjoyed the trip.

Little bit of update ...

2007-09-08T11:35:00.000+08:00

These are busy times for me. Both at work and in my own personal time, there are just so many things happening, it's both fulfilling and dizzying at the same time. It's a bit like juggling with really sharp things ... it demands concentration, if you do it well, the audience will applaud and appreciate your skills. If you do it badly, you could end up with some very ugly scars.

Some of you may know I have another blog (other than the photo blog, that is). Well, most of you won't. Anyways, that blog is shutting down soon - it's turning into a pay-only site, and I don't like pay only sites - as if there's not enough ad revenue to go around !

So, I'm now in the process of moving posts that mean a lot to me from that blog into this one. I've done the backup, but there's more to it than just copy and paste. It's not a Ctrl+c and Ctrl+v thing, moving sites.

One thing about reading that other blog all over again is that somewhere in those blog entries, is the history of my digital photography journey ! There are so many great memories ! You will soon see some of those blog entries moved over here, as soon as I make them ready, I'll point it out to all of you, so that you can see what I was like before I was here, before I became the Mozilla Monster you all know (or don't know).

It was also about a time when I was grappling my way through work life, so it's been doubly satisfactory for me to read up on my own journey through those formative career years !

It'll take time to get those posts over here, so keep coming back to check on what's up. In the meantime, I've posted some photos from that other blog over at my photo blog. The first series is called Bali Sunset. Do hop over to have a look !

Hanoi, Hanoi ..

2007-09-03T14:28:00.000+08:00

Recently, I visited Vietnam again, and while I didn't have any time to take in the sights in Ho Chi Minh City, I did rekindle my liking for Hanoi ... I've visited Hanoi previously in December 2006 on holiday, and a few times since on business.

I really didn't have any time to do any touristy thing, this being a business trip, but I did find a couple of hours of time to stretch the legs a little bit, walking around the spiritual heart of Hanoi, Hoan Kiem Lake and the Old Quarters.

As usual, I'm letting the photos do the talking ...

The beautiful Turtle Tower is situated on a small island in the middle of Hoan Kiem Lake. In the mornings and the evenings, you'll see masses of Hanoi residents congregating around the lake, either relaxing, or doing workouts.

When in Hanoi, you must Hang Gai (Jalan Jalan in Cantonese). In the Old Quarters, streets are named after the merchandise sold on that street in the past. Hang Gai now is the main touristy thoroughfare selling silk and souvenirs, and home to many a tailors, but in the past, it sold Hemp (Gai). So, Hang Gai means Hemp Goods.

Relaxing at Hoan Kiem after work ...

The hauntingly beautiful Opera House, conveniently situated next to my hotel =)

My verdict for Hanoi is clear ... =) ... if you sit near the front of the plane, look out the window before takeoff ... the ground crew has to remove some pin from the aircraft, and give the all clear signal ... which is what I've photographed ..

Macha ... satu lagi !!!

2007-08-31T09:38:00.000+08:00

It's birthday time !!!! Gosh, time passes really quickly, doesn't it? More so when one is having fun !!!

My past year had been full of fun and surprises, so I'm really convinced it won't be a bad thing to have another year full of good things !

Happy Birthday to me ! 31 isn't such a bad age to be !

What was really cool about the past year ?

I found my sunshine, that's definately tops! I call her sunshine because she exudes warmth, and gives you that great fuzzy feeling you get when you walk in the soft glow of the morning sun !

Again, the travel has been great. I think of all things, I discovered Hanoi, which I really liked ! It's impossible not to like it if you are a traveller looking for 'retro' places.

My parent's continued good health ! Dad retired ! And he's now a home-maker of sorts ! It's really cool to see him do his gardening. It's time to take a well deserved rest, dad.

And not least, you, my small group of readers and blogpals. Considering the fact that I haven't written a single Top Ten list for a very long time now, I'm surprise anyone still peeks in, but you do peek in ! =)

Thanks everyone for your wishes. Personally, I'm wishing for another good year ahead - whatever good means.

Merdeka, anyone ?

2007-08-31T00:10:00.000+08:00

Finally, Malaysia is 50. All hail the great nation !

But seriously, who are we kidding?

Sometimes, when I gaze out of taxi windows in faraway lands while rushing to airports, I do feel thankful for the home I have, the life I enjoy, and all the good things that have turned out in my life. It must be a blessing to be a Malaysian when you are surrounded by poverty in a foreign nation.

But as I reflect on what it means to Malaysia to be 50, I think it's not the achievements that will stand out. In my mind, what we have not achieved speaks louder about Malaysia.

Stand back, reflect, think for a moment. Despite the Twin Towers. Despite the grandeur of Putrajaya. Despite all the great infrastructure projects.

I really don't want to make a list of our failings here, so I'll just say that I think we as a nation look great from the outside, but is rotten at the core. I can understand why my peers are so willing to flock to other countries in a heartbeat.

I spent some time overseas recently, and while I was away in another country, usually labeled by Malaysian government as racist, I learnt the true meaning of multiculturalism. I understood what acceptance is. And I understood how that's different from tolerance.

And I can't say I see a lot of it in Malaysia, despite our constant trumpet blowing about how multi cultural we are, and how great the integration is.

I can really rant on forever, but I really have this to say: it's been 50 years, and we've all turned out alright. But imagine what we can achieve if we free ourselves from this self imposed malaise and be a more progressive nation that is not afraid to leave the past, and look forward to a future that belongs to all Malaysians.

Happy Merdeka.

Back to Bondi

2007-08-22T23:21:00.000+08:00

One of the best things to do in Sydney is taking short walks along the many coastal areas, or hikes along their many National Parks.

I revisited the Bondi-Coogee walk this year with Little Miss May and here colleague this year last Saturday. You can read Little Miss May's rendition of events here, while my previous hike is journaled here.

While the weather could have been a lot nicer (at least it was dry), it was still one heck of a good walk !

Little Miss May and me took the bus from Circular Quay to North Bondi .. where we met up with Juca, her Brazilian colleague. If all Brazilians are like him, I think the whole country will be cool !

On the southern end of Bondi is the iconic Bondi Iceberg ...

The Eastern Beaches Coastal Walk is the official name of the walk from Bondi to Coogee, and it takes you thru Bondi, Tamarama, Bronte, Gordon Bay, Clovelly to Coogee.

We stopped often to admire the views. Seen here are my walk mates admiring a cliff full of white blossoms ...

Pounding waves at Tamarama beach, the first beach along the walk after Bondi.

That day, there were a number of life guard trainings, and this was one such training. They were practicing how to rescue someone into a boat, and it was quite an interesting watch, especially since the waves weren't exactly genteel, you know. The record rescue in Bondi was 280 on a single day ... imagine that ... the life guards pulled 280 people in a single day from the water !!!

Nice clouds ... it was sunny when we started the walk, but it turned really windy and cloudy towards the end ... and by the time we got to Coogee, I was feeling the cold ...

We had lunch at Bronte, where May ordered this mouth watering Egg Benedict with Smoked Salmon. Heavenly, don't you agree ?

The lovely Clovelly Bowling Club has great ocean views ... if you need to find a great place to learn lawn bowl (yawn), this will be it ...

It was nothing short of a superb walk, cold as it was at some times. I really want to thank Little Miss May for being such a nice host, and to her Brazilian colleague Juca ! It's people like you who make walks interesting and worth the while, even on dreary, cold days. You guys ROCK !

Blog Plug: Do visit my new photoblog at mozphotos.blogspot.com, I'll be putting in some more Sydney and Bondi photos in the coming days. Thanks ...

The heart of Sydney ...

2007-08-13T21:46:00.000+08:00

I'm now in Sydney !!!

Flew in on Saturday night, and touched down on Sunday morning. When I arrived, I was greeted by a really nice, warm winter day, 21 celcius, I hear.

Since I can't get a room in the hotel until 2 pm (and I was there by 9.20 am already), I decided to just head down to the city, with camera in hand.

And I'll let the pictures do the talking !!!

I started off here, at the Rocks Weekend Market ...

Then I went here, to the Rocks waterfront, where old warehouses now have some of the best waterfront views, with some of the best restaurants in town as well !

And then, following along Circular Quay, I ended up here, naturally, at the Sydney Opera House.

And met up with this guy here, one of the duo of didgeridoo street performers, whose music blends with techno beats pretty well, really ...

And moved on to say G'Day to the many birds that hover all around the waterfront.

Before squinting to find this fella at the Botanical Gardens, right next to the Opera House ..

And then for the highlight of the day !!!! I met up with Little Miss May !!!! Woooohoooo ~~!!! It's great to see Sydney the way a Sydneysider does, and better still, one who has Malaysian roots.

And what better way to celebrate the coming together of Malaysians overseas than by ... going for lunch ?? In a small restaurant without the frills, but with great food, just like Malaysians would back home !!!??

It was a greeeeeeeat day for me !! Thanks for the enjoyable company !

We went walking along the Sydney CBD from Circular Quay down to Chinatown, via the more scenic route, which passes through Pyrmont Bridge, then thru Darling Harbour.

And then had some very nice Stirfry Chinese Noodles here ... helped down with some very unusual Siu Loong Bao. You have to try the food here. No kidding.

And then we headed back to Darling Harbour, where we sat on the Harbour Steps at ate some really nice Gelato while the chilly wind sent shivers down me spine. That's Darling Harbour as seen from Pyrmont Bridge.

And then, finally, we ended where I started ... QVB. I really wanted to go take some sunset photos from Mrs Macquarie's Chair in the Botanical Gardens, but really, both of us were a little tired from all that walking ... so we settled for a little Hyde Park walk, which was really pleasant.

QVB's a beauty, isn't it ?

I think I'm loving Sydney ...

Here we go again ...

2007-08-06T08:13:00.000+08:00

To me, one perk of my current job is the travel I get to do. Life's too short to spend cooped up in the office, or even within the same place or country.

I personally believe that humans have a spirit ingrained within us to travel and discover. Our basic curiosity takes us to places we've never been, to try food we're not familiar with, to discover cultures beyond our own.

Today marks the start of a road journey that will take me to between 8 to 11 cities in the next 2 months or so. This week, I'm headed to Singapore.

Somewhere within that time, I hope that I'll still find the time to see you blow out your birthday cake, and get your scroll for those 4 years of toil, while I realize the adventure I'm looking forward to.

While driving here today, my dad was telling me how he used to cycle 5 miles to attend school, because grandpa couldn't afford the 9 ringgit train fare for a school term's worth of train rides from Malim Nawar to Kampar. In our generation, we've both come very far from that.

I live a charmed life, and for that, I feel blessed and good. Remind me to think about my dad's daily toil to attend school whenever I feel short of inspiration.

So, to the blogpals who see my comments thinning, it's really because I only have time to read your blogs nowadays. I'm still hanging around, but with time coming at a premium, I can't comment on every blog I come across ..

Just like that ...

2007-08-02T14:55:00.000+08:00

Some poor gentlemen just collapsed and died outside Dunkin' Donuts here in PBD, opposite my office. Despite some foreigner's best effort to revive the person, and despite the ambulance coming quite quickly, the gentlemen is now laying dead on the pavement, waiting to be picked up by the police.

There's a sizeable crowd around the poor gentlemen, who is now covered with some newspaper, and cordoned off with a few traffic cones.

Condolences to his family.

Life is fragile like that ...

I'm renewing my vow to spend life with vigor and to enjoy all the things I want to do, love all the people who means a lot to me, and to never have to regret not doing anything because I didn't make the time to do it. Time to buy a flash for the camera and start chasing bugs, perhaps. Time to take my dad for a vacation too.

Sometimes, we need a bit of jolt to reiterate the messages that are all around us.

Eh ... what's that ... ?

2007-07-28T00:18:00.000+08:00

Now that Dad has retired, he's spending a lot of time doing some of the things he loves best.

Gardening is one such thing - it's funny ... he's never been a great gardener when he was young ... all he ever does it help mum carry pots from point A to point B. But over the years, he's proven to be a great green finger ! Anyone familiar with the Kuan Yin temple in Taman Bukit Kuchai can drop by and see some of his handy work ! He and a few friends garden there on the weekends !!!!

Can you see it ? Click to see a better pic.

Anyways ... we have this bit of land opposite our house, which isn't developed. Dad puts many of the flowering plants there because mum doesn't like too many flowers within the house compound - messy, she says.

Today, while doing his early morning gardening ... he came across ...

It's about the same thickness of the pagar's wire mesh ... very thin and small ...

Gosh ... we call it a 'Green Bamboo Snake' in chinese, not sure what it's called in English.

It's so small you can't see it at first against the green background. And I really had to move very, very, close to get a picture. I was using my full 135mm zoom ... and was only 2, 3 feet away when taking most of the pictures.

Dad was getting freaked out. He doesn't take risks, and is quite averse to all sorts of things. He kept telling at me from across the road to be careful, and to keep my distance, reminding me that even the crocodile hunter didn't have a good ending. :P

Nice snake, no ?

Manila Makan & Shop Place: Tiendesitas

2007-07-25T18:11:00.000+08:00

Having been to Manila many times, and usually just sticking to the safe and tested formula of Greenbelt, Landmark and Glorietta Malls in Makati for my shopping and makan, I've never really ventured anywhere outside of that ... until this past trip.

I needed to stay really close to the office, and thus, was based out of Ortigas City, in Pasig, instead of Makati.

For the uninformed, Manila is not one city. It's a metropolitan with many cities within. Makati is one. Pasig is another.

Our local Pinoy seafood meals. Garlic fried rice, spicy prawns and steam tilapia.

This time, for makan and shopping, I discovered ... Tiendesitas ! Wikipedia link here.

The name means "collection of little shops", and is like a small scale Chatuchak / Lumpini night market of Bangkok. It has sections for food, antiques, souveniers, furniture, clothing, accessories, you know ... just name it, it's probably there.

And just like Lumpini in Bangkok, there is live band show at night ! Not bad at all ...

Shops mostly closed by the time I left ... but to the Bangkok faithful, doesn't it remind you of Lumpini Night Market ?

I was having an informal meeting with a customer there for dinner, and we settled on some local seafood at a stall called Fat Butchie's. It's seriously not bad at all ... !

Fat Butchie's !

If you ever drop by Manila, you should really go visit Tiendesitas. A word though ... it's open from 12 noon to 12 midnight, and toilets are located in Comfort Zones. You've been warned !

Ordering what we want ...

*** Photos are of terrible quality because it's taken with my old, outdated, ought to be replaced mobile phone, You are strongly discouraged from suing me if you suffer eyesight problems after looking at them. I know a lawyer very, very, well ***

While going through the phone, I discovered there were some other photos in there ... so might as well publish it, although it has nothing to do with this post altogether !

Jalan Gasing sees a fair share of accidents ! I know the driver is ok, sitting by the road behind the car. This is near Catholic High School, where there is a sharpish bend. Don't speed lah peeps ...

If you have difficulty finding parking in Bangkok, the reason is because there is no parking. Here, you look for prarking instead !!! LOL !!!

Where to makan in Ho Chi Minh City ?

2007-07-20T22:32:00.000+08:00

Traveling is tiring, but there are perks of being always on the go. I mean, how many people can claim to have eaten real Vietnamese food in Vietnam? I mean, Vietnam kitchen in 1U doesn't count! It's not in Vietnam mah !

My room service lunch - which is pretty good !

Last week, when in Ho Chi Minh City, I had a chance to try out the highly rated Quan An Ngon ("Delicious" in Vietnamese).

Nah ... address also give ... don't miss out !

Verdict: Good. Must. Eat. There. Every. Time. I. Go. To. Ho. Chi. Minh. City. Must. Try. Everything.

It's always full of people, both tourists and locals. In fact, there were more locals. That's always a good sign !

View of part of the restaurant from the 2nd floor. This is where you sit on low chairs, traditional Viet style.

They are a little like Marche - there are many stalls in the restaurant, each offering different specialities from all over Vietnam. But unlike Marche, where you walk around and order what you want, you order off the menu. Try out the noodles from Hue !

Starters.

It's cheap - around 3-8 USD per person if you don't pop wine bottles ... and the atmosphere is decent as well. And you really don't need to take Vietnamese food with wine anyways ...

My noodle main course. It tastes much better than it looks.

I'm definitely giving this place a thumbs up, and will visit again !

Manila Manila ...

2007-07-17T15:27:00.000+08:00

Got a call on Sunday. On a plane on Monday. Meeting a customer in Manila on Tuesday morning.

That is what global business means. Singapore Airlines e-ticketing totally rocks !!! That's why I was happier flying thru Singapore than going direct from KL to Manila. Well, actually, I can't even be on MAS if I wanted to - no flight.

And if they had flights, I would still have to take Singapore Airlines because they offer better rates. Which beats me - why would it be cheaper to fly from KL to Singapore, then to Manila ? And not directly from KL to Manila?

Hmmmmm ... how to help MAS ?

I packed in such a hurry I forgot to bring my belt. Thank goodness my pants don't fall down without my belt.

Photos to follow if I have time !!

Kelip Kelip Kampung Kuantan

2007-07-15T12:27:00.000+08:00

It's sometimes surprising how little we treasure the little things we have in our own backyards, really.

Yesterday, Girlfriend and I took a road trip to Kuala Selangor to see the famous fireflies in Kampung Kuantan. I've been there like ... I don't know ... at least 10 times. But Girlfriend haven't been there before, so it makes a good trip ! I think a road trip every 2 weeks is not a bad idea, considering the many places one can go to from KL.

We took off from PJ at around 4pm, taking the old trunk road from Kepong, through Sungai Buloh and Ijok to Kuala Selangor. The roads are now much better compared to a few years back - must be something to do with a certain by election in Ijok some months back. ~~Buy~~ By Elections are not always a bad thing, I guess.

Pasir Penambang is just down the road from Kuala Selangor town, a few minutes over the bridge from town. Go towards the end of the road, where you will find seafood restaurants over the water, on stilts. And go early to get the sunset view =)

The roads were so good we arrived early. Having nothing to do, we went to Pasir Penambang, which is just another 20 minutes away from the Kampung Kuantan fireflies colonies for seafood dinner.

Dinner was by the riverside, with a sweeping view of the river and the mangroves opposite, lighted by a nice sunset. The world ain't that bad after all.

3 crabs for less than RM30. We ordered the black pepper crab, which turned out great.

She is a crab lover, so we just had to order some crab. Topped with some vege and some Thai style steamed fish, the dinner was great - around RM30 per person ...

Finally, after dinner, we went to Kampung Kuantan to see the fireflies. Well, the place had been definately spruced up - it's now got a really nice jetty, with proper toilets and landscaped surroundings. The fare has remained at RM40 a boat (4 person max per boat). But no more orange juice or mineral water - they previously provided some drinks with the fare !

There is already a queue by the time we reached the jetty where we board sampans to see the fireflies. The tour starts at 8pm, and last boat leaves at 11pm. Bring insect repellents - mosquitos aplenty just before dusk.

The good news is, there are still lots of fireflies along the river here at Kampung Kuantan. Apparently, whatever dam they were building upstream at the Sungai Selangor (Selangor River) had little ill effect on the fireflies. So that's good. =)

We ended the night by going for durian supper at Kepong's Durian Street. =) ... hehehe ... apparently, cholesterol is not a factor !

Go - if you're stressed out - take a road trip - don't just shop in KL/PJ/Damansara/Mid Valley - there's so much more to Malaysia !!! In the past few weeks', me and Girlfriend had visited places that feels a billion miles from the hectic pace of KL - all within an hour or two from KL itself ! You owe it to yourself to make the best of the natural beauty there is near our doorstep !

Never been so busy before ...

2007-07-07T22:02:00.000+08:00

Do you ever work, work, work and work and still have lots of work left on your in tray?

I've had one of those weeks when it was just running from one job to another, just doing things over and over and over and over again.

In addition to the generally large but not lethal volume of work, there were sporadic cases of firefighting, outbreaks of meetings which were energy sapping but ultimately non productive, sudden unexpected work dropping onto the in tray, and working with people who no understand engrish, but think understand you have to their point first time they say point to you.

Take that, then multiply that by around 3. That was my week.

Good news is - I feel appreciated at work. And that means a lot to me.

Bad news is - no bad news. What? Not happy there's no bad news? Maybe you can jump out of your window and break a leg. That would be bad news.

Totally unrelated picture of how they paint buildings in Hanoi. Just happened to be in the same SD card where the other pictures are, so I thought it's nice to share =)

Next week, and in the coming weeks, there will be travel. But for next week, I'm keeping the D80 home. No need to bring the heavy gun out for a business trip. It's too heavy, anyways.

And speaking of the D80, I was loaned with a device which measures air humidity. I put it overnight in my camera bag, which is placed in what I thought was a dry part of my wardrobe, which had a Thirsty Hippo inside .... and the humidity level was 60% .... !!!!! Too high !!!

In my mind, flashes of lens infecting fungus crept up, and I wasn't able to sleep well on Wednesday night, thinking of the fungi colonies that must be setting foot on my lens. So, on Thursday, I marched to the camera shop and carried home a dry cabinet.

Now, I can regulate the humidity ... so hopefully, my lens will be spared the dreaded fungus attack.

As mentioned earlier, I'll be on the road again next week !!!! Guess where to ?? This place is famous for a certain kind of noodle ... and I can still get Coke in glass bottles ...

Speaking of photography, thanks to all who've been dropping by my photoblog. Love you all !