20081124: Passports in Malaysia

Is travelling a hassle nowadays in this modern age?

Marco Polo didn't need any visas or passports during his days. Neither did Cheng Ho or Parameswara. Columbus and Light definitely braved the seven seas in their heydays without such documentation.

It's only modernisation and colonisation that led to the birth of immigration. Though, traces of it have been found since the ancient Hebrew days.

WIth this "modern" problem, one can't even book an online flight ticket if your expiry date of the passport is less than 6 months away. Is this a conspiracy or what?

It's a Monday morning. Government departments normally start at 8am, but this one is hardworking. They start as early as 730am.

The location is found in a nook within the Sri Rampai enclave in Setapak area.

Where the heck is this? Hush hush, it's quite isolated from the masses, distinguishing it from other immigration departments due to its new location.

View Larger Map

Cleanliness of the neighbourhood vicinity is not really a top priority for the community there, thus it's no wonder, not many people know of it.

The curent premise is barely 2 years old, after shifting from the ever flooding area of Wilayah Complex, downtown near Campbell Road (It's Jalan Dang Wangi now, for those born post Merdeka!) Flood levels reach up to 2 metres in the basement car park. No wonder records go missing!

In line with our computerisation initiatives in the country, the department has forged ahead with loads of technological gadgets. You can now renew your passport from an automated kiosk. The only condition? Ensure that it's working! Cool acronym (no pun intended!) KIPPAS (which sounds like FAN, translated from Malay)

In true MALAYSIA BOLEH spirit, it is FAULTY. And no technician was seen to be fixing it in the 2 hours I was present.

So, no one ever doubts the tried and tested methods of yesteryear. You can still renew or apply for passports the old fashioned way. Just bring a copy of your current IC and 2 pasport size colour photos and fill in a form (which you can download from the website in PDF format) and print out both sides. That's all the documentation that is required.

The Immigration's neighbour, Mr WONG has been churning out polaroid mug shots for the department for the last 25 years. Now he starts his shop with his spouse as early as 630am! Due to "powers that be",  the computerisation projects do not link to the Inland Registration Department (a.k.a. I.C. Dept) As a result you are "forced" to take NEW photos every 5 years (the normal renewal period) for the photos. One would have thought that they could SHARE the photo with the IC Dept. Perhaps it's just a minor side income for Mr WONG and the rest of the competitors around the area.

At RM 10 a pop for 4 photos, printed from his trusty Epson printer (with a complimentary copy of a photocopied IC), the business is very brisk. The Photo Shop can yield up to 700 pass ports a day. Talk about lucrative revenue!

So upon confirmation of your documents, you will be given a queue number from counter #1. The first no of the day managed to collect the passport in half an hour! Quite a record!

All payments are by CASH only at counter #8. So at RM 300 a pop for a measly 32 pages (double that for 64), imagine the collossal daily takings! No worries or agreements with credit card companies.

Assuming an average of 500 passports, at the minimum, the kitty holds 150,000 daily. With 5 day working days, that's a good 3 quarters of a MILLION per week.

Multiply that by about 10 branches, and you have 7.5 million a week. Discounting all the tremendous no of holidays we have in this country, say they work only 40 weeks out of the 52 annualy, that's a hefty 300 million per annum. Just printing paper cards with chips!

Patience for the result can be overcome by having breakfast at nearby premises. You have to option of either Mamak stuff or Non-halal Chinese stuff. I opted for the latter

Kedai Kopi

Pork noodles

Hot Barley

When your number is called, you will proceed to either booth 17 or 18. Sign a form, and your spanking new passport is given to you, with a defunct OLD passport for your memoirs!

Happy travelling, now that Uncle Tony is offering CHEAP FLIGHTS to UK!

20081114 Suncon Alumni Reunion 2008 in Dubai

Believe it or not, we were meeting, more than 6,000km away from home.
Friends from all occupation levels (from Sr QS to Project Managers) from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah, congregated at the Deira City Centre, before detouring to the final destination, i.e. CHINESE RED HOUSE for some Authentic Chinese food!
Some of whom, I've lost touch for the past 3 years. Totally elated to meet everyone, who's basically all online now, and GPS savvy (with an iPhone user in the pack too!)

Photos here: cc FACEBOOK

BubbleShare: Share photos - Craft Ideas


Kudos to the group leader, Patrick who led us safely to a sumptious lunch.

If anyone wants the original 10 MEGAPIXEL versions, just drop me an email.

20081112: Stuck in the Dubai Desert!

Our desert quest in Dubai begins after a 90 minute drive from Abu Dhabi!


Our trusty 4 wheel drive vehicle! A standard 2.5 litre Nissan Xtrail (only about RM 70,000 here!)

Discovering some familiar hoof patterns en-route, we noticed that the single humped herd was near by.

We explored further, and lo and behold, our discovery was made.

We then took a break under the fabled GHAF tree in the Arabian desert (somewhere in Dubai, UAE actually) to have a quick roast chicken sandwich lunch.


The 4 wheel drive trek went almost awry when the Xtrail got stuck in the desert today!


Amazingly, like an Angel descending from the heavens, a local dude was passing through in his Manual SUZUKI and assisted us in lifting out our woes!


After this grueling escapade, our attention turned to a new discovery in the desert.
Were these new plants sprouting out of the desert?

Nope, these were golf tees! The accessory to support your BALLS whilst you are driving.


Going home, we finally met up with a baby Oryx.

It was a bit shy, and sped away from us.


The final journey took us past a large camel farm along the highway.

Note: All photos taken on a Panasonic Lumix FZ28 which almost obtained 5 / 5 stars.
Read review here. The photos were not retouched in any manner. Only scaled down to 2 Megapixels from the original 10 Megapixels, and my Overlay trademark applied on the bottom right corner.

20080916: Superb Lego models

Since I was a kid, I've always been fascinated with LEGO. This is the only "toy" that is still MADE IN DENMARK. The current high value fo the Euro doesn't help much in increasing its market share in the Malaysian shores.

However, over the past year, a few models have really caught my eye, and if any good samaritan would like to present a gift for this years Christmas, please add these to your shopping basket.

10181: Eiffel Tower (RM 1,300) / USD 200

Batmobile: 7784 (RM 530) Ebay prices here

8275: Motorised Bulldozer: (RM 900) YouTube action

20080908: More Hybrid Headaches

Unless I failed my Standard ONE Mathematics, I can't really arrive at a figure that tallies with the purported "target price" by high end analysts from OSK in today's Star newspaper which anticipates that the Civic Hybrid will be about RM 120k down from the current 160k!

Here's my MATH:
ACTUAL Value: (A) = 63,205.12
100% import duty: (B = A*100%) = 63,205.12
50% excise duty: (C = A*50%) = 31,602.56
Selling price: (D = A+B+C) = 158,012.80

So, how on earth did they come up with 120k? If that were the ACTUAL value, then the Selling price would have been = RM 300k!

Even fellas like Premier Hybrid Cars Sdn Bhd "feel" that it would be about only 5% less than the CONVENTIONAL 1.8l model at RM 113k!

I don't mind booking one for about RM 65-70k. But if the profit margin is going to be about 100% then it's going to be ridiculous.
From further analysis, there are no more than a dozen HYBRID car manufacturers in the world as can be seen here.
From this "clean" dozen, only a third has the potential to make its inroads into our shores.
All these are from the Japanese camp, being: Honda, Mazda, Nissan and Toyota.
The rest are mostly Americans and I strongly doubt they will create Right-Hand drive versions.
Since the government is only providing concessions to vehicles with 2 litres and below, the Lexus 400rh doesn't make the cut due to its gargantuan 4 litre engine. So much for luxury 4WD.

The USD pricing for the "4 heavenly gods" can be seen from the following links:
Honda Civic, Mazda Tribute, Nissan Altima and Toyota Prius.

I would strongly invite any person who can use a calculator to prove my calculation wrong!

20080829: 29 AUGUST 2008: BUDGET DAY

My wish list drafted on 6th June this year, did not FULLY make it.

However, items # 3, 17 & 19 actually came true in line with the 

National Energy Plan

* Exemption of import duty and sales tax on solar photovoltaic system equipment, import duty and sales tax on intermediate goods such as High Efficiency Motors and insulation materials; sales tax on locally manufactured solar heating system equipment; sales tax on locally manufactured energy efficient consumers goods such as refrigerators, air-conditioners, lightings, fans and televisions; and 100% import duty and 50% excise duty on new hybrid CBU cars, with engine capacity below 2,000 cc, be given to franchise importers. This exemption is given for a period of two years to prepare for the local assembly of such cars

MY POSTING on 06 JUNE 2008.

With all the BILLIONS Saved from fuel subsidies, the following 21 policies will be introduced.

1. 50% Cuts for income tax for those with taxable income of RM 150,000 or less
2. 50% Cuts for tolls at bottleneck toll booths (E.g. Sunway) and smart tags to be tax deductible to reduce congestions at toll booths (which burns unnecessary fuel)
3. ABOLISHMENT of any import duties for all forms of HYBRID vehicles (Give me my Civic Hybrid at RM 69k!!!)
4. Zero Road tax for Hybrid and NGV vehicles
5. Reduced insurance premiums for all SAFE vehicles with 2 airbags or more and those which meet NCAP 4 star and above
6. Full income tax rebates for installation of NGV engines
7. Full income tax rebates for installation of Streamyx of 1 Mb/s and above to promote SOHO activities, thus reducing transportation requirements
8. Full income tax rebates for membership fees of health clubs to promote physical activities and healthy lifestyle
9. Full income tax rebates for installation of solar panels in all homes and business establishments
10. All housing estates to have recycling bins installed.
11. Higher road tax for vehicles 2.5 litres and above, running on petrol
12. Govt to increase medical checkup tax rebates from RM 500 to 1000 to include cancer scans and dental care
13. Govt to give tax rebates to ALL petrol stations who install NGV pumps
14. Govt to give tax rebates to ALL companies involved in solar farms and associated and related activities
15. Govt to give tax rebates to ALL developers who adopt GREEN buildings meeting global standards
16. Govt to give tax rebates to ALL developers who include LRT infrastructure with feeder bus facilities in their new township developments (E.g. ALL Singapore HDB Towns!)
17. Govt to give tax rebates to ALL companies dealing in R&D in Biofuels & Solar technologies
18. Govt to convert and upgrade all current diesel supplies to meet EURO4 standards
19. Govt to proceed with Damansara and Puchong LRT extensions
20. Govt to sign MoU with Singapore Road transport authority to implement their advanced transportation system (which is about 20 years ahead of ours!) - to further study upgrade from LRT to MRT status
21. Govt to ban FOOD wastage from shopping malls and hotels who throw away food not sold at end of day. E.g. Jusco and 5 star hotels that have lavish buffets. Food to be distributed to all staff FOC to reduce food price burden.

Let's see what happens!

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Petrol prices in Singapore and HK are higher than here, but they are more productive economically! WHY? Anyone care to comment and debate?

20080808: Beijing Olympics

The 3 hour opening ceremony commenced at 8pm (GMT+8) on a warm and humid evening in Beijing, China. Thie spectacular event was attended by over 91,000 attendees from various walks of life in the "Bird's Nest"

Performance repertoires included Lang Lang and Sarah Brightman, together with Liu Han.

The retired Chinese gymnastics Olympian, Li Ning, was carried through the air to light the Olympic cauldron.

Excellent photography footage can be found from Boston & National Geographic, Chicago tribune here , here and here

20080605: Petrol in Malaysia up to RM 2.70 / litre

Soaring costs are inevitable.
Increment of 72 sen / litre = 37.5%

This has ballooned my average monthly fuel costs by about RM150, based on my current driving patterns.

Let's see how the 2009 budget will be. Slash in income taxes?

Here's a photo of the previous price per litre which was RM 1.92 for nostalgic purposes

20080603: The Thais are smart!

They have to be smart!
They have excellent food!
They have the best rice in the world!
They have a tourism hospitality competence level of at least a decade ahead of us!
They have the best car manufacturers in the world, selling quality cars at low prices!
They are the only ASEAN country which has never been colonised by any western power!


And now, we know that their EDUCATION SYSTEM even teaches Bahasa Malaysia!


How else would they understand this signboard, right?

20080531: Klang Valley Property

Visited a few spots in Bandar Kinrara today.
What a convoluted place?
BK 1 to 3 is on one side of the highway (LDP) and the newer ones, BK 4 to 9, are on the opposite side.
Worst still is the darn highway (LDP) which FORCES you to WASTE 10km of precious FUEL to make a U-turn to return back to the same spot (at Giant Hypermart!)
Talk about SMART Highway planners! Definitely not environmentally friendly!

So, what was on offer?
First, a crummy 4 year old Semi-D in BK6! Looked like a sty to me! Reason for sale?Migration! Asking for 720k ono. Anyone know the Vice-President of Marketing and Communications, McDonald’s Restaurants, Malaysia?
Second Semi-D in BK4. Aging Malay family! Terrible architecture from a decade back which puts a fat 1 foot circular diameter column RIGHT in your face, as you enter the main door. And to make matters worse, one lousy car park in the porch. Asking for 560k ono.
Thirdly, a new semi-guarded corner lot 22x75 asking for a RIDICULOUS 700k!
Brand new, no occupants since CF from 1 year back! Facing main road, so quite noisy!
Fourthly, visited a nicely renovated house back in BK4. Owners want to "migrate" again. Shall visit the house this weekend and await the results.

So, back to the Classified Ads in the Star, and look what I found!

Bungalow lots at 36 psf. Only Caveat is that it is leasehold!

20080529: ASSTRO / AS400

The #2 richest man in Malaysia… and yet the database is *expletive* up!

Just some thoughts on this GOLD card swap fiasco, I finally got the replacement card, and it DIDN'T WORK!

I called us ASSTRO 3 nights in a row, the final one having to wait for about 10 minutes. Luckily I had my Bluetooth headset tethered to my ear! I couldn't imagine those poor souls who use a conventional phone and had the patience of a nun!

The conclusion. My card is functioning, but my SECOND Philips decoder, which was replaced for a ridiculour RM 169, is considered "wonky" and thus justifies a visit by the technican, who will charge another RM 50 for the visit!

I then got a call today form ASSTRO to confirm the technician's visit. I told them, OK, call me first. When they wanted to confirm my address, that was the STRANGE part, as they still had the OLD address, whilst, they were already happily sending the monthly bills to my current abode! What gives? A not talking to B? IT Support not using iSync?

To make this inconsistent database issue funnier, which happened just about 1 hour later, the credit card company (from a developed country) I visited, STILL had the SAME OLD address in the AS/400 system, whilst all the latest bills are sent to my CORRECT and CURRENT address!

I bet you that they are not using FileMaker Pro!

So much for the MSC & IT Multimedia corridor! Basic stuff like customers' addresses couldn't even be put in place properly!

RIDICULOUS!

20080501: May 2008

Happy May and Mother's Day.

Sadly, Labour day is not celebrated or recognised in the Middle East!

20080523: RICH = FINANCIAL WEALTH

In the eyes of Forbes Magazine, this is the criteria

So are you one of them?
If not, then look here if your are still in the list

20080502: Naza Group founder dies at 54 in Long Beach, California, USA

Tan Sri S.M. Nasimuddin S.M. Amin, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of the Naza Group, passed away of lung cancer in California at 1.15am (Malaysian time).

More info here. So this ends the fate of a star result of the NEP!
Is this fated? Earning billions, but not healthy enough to enjoy it into the evergreen years?
Is this because of ONE person given the chance by ANOTHER to get more profits PER car than the original car manufacturer?
THINK about it!

So from an AP related timeline perspective, for 2008:

March - Kak Pidah (Aunty Raffy) is out

May - Nasimuddin is out

Sometime in the near future: REALISTIC prices for cars in Malaysia? Look east perhaps? Middle East?

Can my Honda Hybrid finally be a realistic RM 58,000 rather than RM 158,000? (OK, Langkawian's get to enjoy and save the environment at RM 100k!) I doubt Honda Japan gets RM 100,000 for each 1.3 litre car they sell. f they do, then US / UK MBA programmes can "terbang layang-layang!"NOt
Note: US SRP = US$ 22,600 (or RM 72,320 at 3.20)

My final word of advice to young budding entrepreneurs. Profit all you can in this world of material wealth. But never forget to give back to mother nature and your community.

Pain is felt more intensely via silent curses as compared to physical hurt.

20080419: Cars in Malaysia are cheap!

Just spotted these UNREGISTERED CAR Ads in the S**R newspaper today: All currency in RM thousands

( US Approx Equivalent @ RM 3.20 )

Aston Martin VIZ?? (v12 I think) 6.0l, 6 speed, paddle shift - 2005 / 6: 1,400 (438) [012-268-6337 / 019-222 9886]

Bentley Flying Spur Twin Turbo, 552hp, Black / Beige - 2006: 1,550 (485) [012-268-6337 / 012-207 6229]

Ferrari 360 Modena V8, Red / beige leather interior - 2001: 999 (312) [012-297-5538 / 019-270-1513]

Lamborghini Gallardo 5.0l, V10, 500hp - 2005: 1,490 (466) [012-207-6229 / 019 270-1513]

Porsche C2S UK Spec dark blue / beige interior - 2005: 750 (234) [012-285-7205 / 019-320-7207]

TOTAL Cost = RM 6,189,000 (USD 1,934,000 / UK 986,103)

Noticed any similarities in the mobile phone numbers?

Sad thing is that if got money now, still can't get my Lancer GT with Paddle shifts!

Current UK prices for the above (NEW) are: (GBP '000) Exchange rate at: RM 6.27622 to the pound.

Aston Martin DB9 V12 5.9l: 114

Bentley Continental Flying Spur: 118

Ferrari 360 Modena 2001: (Out of production). Cheapest is now a 2 door 430 coupe at 139

Lamborghini Gallardo: 126 (Spyder at 136)

Porsche (997 or 911?) C2S: 132

TOTAL 629K pounds. The Unregistered ones above at 986k means the difference is 357k GBP!

SO, our Government makes LOADS of money from transportation!

20080326: Madonna's new album announced

The world's top Diva is at it again. After a successful year from her Confessions Tour (The DVD which can be sold in Dubai, but not Malaysia!), she had the energy to release another album, just in time before her 50th birthday this year!

Mark your calendar for April 28th for the launch of HARD CANDY. Sweet name indeed for her 11th studio album (no pun intended!). The will be Maddy's last album from WARNER Bros Records. American fans will only get it a day later on the 29th!




This will be sold in 2 versions, a Standard and a DELUXE version.
If you use iTunes (which I strongly recommend), you can get to purchase FIRST single out NOW, i.e. 4 Minutes. This track was done in collaboration with Justin Timberlake and Timbaland.

The track listing for the Standard version (US$ 11.99) are as follows:

1. Candy Shop
Written by: Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes

2. 4 Minutes
Written by: Madonna and Justin Timberlake
Produced by: Timbaland
Background Vocals by: Justin Timberlake

3. Give It 2 Me
Written by: Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes

4. Heartbeat
Written by: Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes

5. Miles Away
Written by: Madonna and Justin Timberlake
Produced by: Timbaland

6. She’s Not Me
Written by: Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes

7. Incredible
Written by: Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes

8. Beat Goes On
Written by: Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes

9. Dance Tonight
Written by: Madonna and Justin Timberlake
Produced by: Timbaland
Background Vocals by: Justin Timberlake

10. Spanish Lessons
Written by Madonna and Pharrell Williams
Produced by: the Neptunes

11. Devil Wouldn’t Recognize You
Written by: Madonna and Justin
Produced by: Timbaland
Co-Produced by : Danja
Background Vocals by: Justin Timberlake

12. Voices
Written by: Madonna and Justin Timberlake
Produced by Danja
Co-Produced by: Timbaland
Background Vocal: Justin Timberlake

The DELUXE version (US$ 13.99) will get you the following 3 additional tracks

13. 4 Minutes (Remix)
14. 4 Minutes (Remix 2)
15. Secret Bonus (Remix)

Both versions will come with a Digital Booklet AND another bonus track if purchased from the iTunes Music Store.
The bonus track is: Ring My Bell (Non-Album Track) [Exclusive] - Pre-Order Only


One of life's lessons which I have learnt from Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone some 2 decades back was the answer to this relevant question posed by her:

Do you know why most people don't get what they want in life?
It's because they DIDN'T ASK FOR IT!

20080318: New Malaysian Cabinet is out (revised)

Yay! Aunty Raffie is OUT! Does this mean the END of AP?
Uncle Sam is also out, so have to make ends meet with the new Works Minister, crucial if you are to attend the CIDB Awards 2008!

Here's the new line up sorted by 26 Ministries in a LOGICAL alphabetical order (unlike other sites which just copy & paste), after the PM's Dept.:

Prime Minister (PM)
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi

Deputy Prime Minister (DPM)
Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak

Ministers in the Prime Minister's Department
Tan Sri Bernard Dompok
Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz
Datuk Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim (resigned 20080915)
Datuk Amirsham Abdul Aziz

Deputy Ministers in the Prime Minister's Department
Datuk Johari Baharom
Datuk Dr Mashitah Ibrahim
Datuk K. Devamany
Datuk Hassan Malik

1 1 Agriculture and Agro-based Industry
1 2 Minister - Datuk Mustapa Mohamed
1 3 Deputy - Datin Paduka Rohani Abdul Karim

2 1 Defence
2 2 Minister - Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (DPM - swapped with PM w.e.f 2008-09-22)

2 3 Deputy - Datuk Wira Abu Seman Yusop

3 1 Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs
3 2 Minister - Datuk Shahrir Samad
3 3 Deputy - Jelaing Mersat

4 1 Education
4 2 Minister - Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein
4 3 Deputies - Datuk Wee Ka Siong, Datuk Razali Ismail

5 1 Energy, Water and Communications
5 2 Minister - Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor
5 3 Deputy - Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum

6 1 Entrepreneurial and Cooperative Development
6 2 Minister - Datuk Noh Omar
6 3 Deputy - Datuk Saiffuddin Abdullah

7 1 Finance
7 2 Minister - Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak (DPM - swapped with PM w.e.f.  2008-09-22)

7 3 Second Finance Minister - Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop

7 4 Deputies - Datuk Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah, Datuk Kong Cho Ha

8 1 Foreign Affairs
8 2 Minister - Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim
8 3 Deputy - Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri (Kudat MP) replacing Tengku Azlan Abu Bakar (vacant from 2008-03-27 til 04-21)

9 1 Federal Territory
9 2 Minister - Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique
9 3 Deputy - M. Saravanan

10 1 Health
10 2 Minister - Datuk Liow Tiong Lai
10 3 Deputy - Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad

11 1 Higher Education
11 2 Minister - Datuk Khaled Nordin
11 3 Deputies - Khoo Kok Choong, Datuk Idris Harun

12 1 Housing and Local Government
12 2 Minister - Datuk Ong Ka Chuan
12 3 Deputies - Datuk Robert Lau , Datuk Hamzah Zainuddin

13 1 Human Resources
13 2 Minister - Datuk S. Subramaniam
13 3 Deputy- Datuk Noraini Ahmad

14 1 Information
14 2 Minister - Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek
14 3 Deputy - Datuk Tan Lian Hoe

15 1 Internal Security and Home Affairs
15 2 Minister - Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar
15 3 Deputies - Datuk Chor Chee Heong, Senator Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh "

16 1 International Trade and Industry (Kak Pidah is out!)
16 2 Minister - Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin
16 3 Deputies - Loh Wei Keong, Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan

17 1 National Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage
17 2 Minister - Datuk Shafie Apdal
17 3 Deputy - Datuk Teng Boon Soon

18 1 Natural Resources and Environment
18 2 Minister - Datuk Douglas Unggah Embas
18 3 Deputy - Datuk Maznah Mazlan, (Muadzam Shah MP), a Pahang assemblyman and executive council member, replacing Datuk Abu Ghapur Salleh (who resigned on 2008-03-26)

19 1 Plantation Industries and Commodities
19 2 Minister - Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui
19 3 Deputy - Senator A. Kohilan

20 1 Rural and Regional Development
20 2 Minister - Tan Sri Muhammad Muhd Taib
20 3 Deputy - Tan Sri Joseph Kurup

21 1 Science, Technology and Innovation
21 2 Minister - Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili
21 3 Deputy - Fadilah Yusof

22 1 Tourism
22 2 Minister - Datuk Azalina Othman
22 3 Deputy - Datuk Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Abu Taib

23 1 Transport
23 2 Minister - Datuk Ong Tee Keat
23 3 Deputy - Datuk Seri Lajim Ukin (Beaufort MP) replacing Anifah Aman (who declined 2008-03-08 and vacant until 04-21)

24 1 Women, Family and Community Development
24 2 Minister - Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen
24 3 Deputy - Noriah Kasnon

25 1 Works Minister (Samy is out!)
25 2 Minister - Datuk Mohd Zin Mohamad
25 3 Deputy - Datuk Yong Khoon Seng

26 1 Youth and Sports
26 2 Minister - Datuk Ismail Sabri Yaacob
26 3 Deputy - Wee Jack Seng

20080308: Malaysian Election Day

What a gruelling day! After departing Dubai the day before at 6pm to transit in Manama, Bahrain, the flight was delayed 2 hours. After the prompt departure at 1030pm on Gulf Air GF 280, the captain announced that there were technical problems and had to U-turn. So there we were, over 200 Malaysians, stuck in Manama, overnight, missing the elections!
So much for maintenance crew for the Airbus A340! The flight was delayed until 8am, and we didn't reach back to KL until 915pm! We didn't even get any compensation or hotel rooms! All we got was a late night chicken rice supper in the airport restaurant, some coffee breaks and an appalling breakfast. Rest was offered by the way of blankets, and we slept on the floor!

20080221: Abu Dhabi here I come

My final day in Doha, rushing around in the left hand drive Proton Waja!
Boarded Qatar Airways to AUH (the airport code for Abu Dhabi).
Flight was quite punctual and arrived in a cool evening of 15C!
Immigration was the easiest by far, as the airport is miniscule compared to Dubai!
Went through immigration in 5 minutes, asI was in the front of the queue! Unbelievable!
Stayed at the company villa in Khalifah City. Humungous in size!
After the heavy lunch at Ponderosa, Doha, I managed to skip dinner and went straight to bed after a nice warm "CEDOK" style shower / bath to catch up on all the much needed missed rest!

Photos soon!

20080219: Off to Doha again

Middle East. Is this in my blood?
Anyway, back here for a couple of days in a much calmer weather!
Cool breeze of 18C with sunny skies.
Had a few sandstorms too!
Managed to use the MAS Business lounge for the penultimate time before my Qatar Airways Silver Card expires by the end of this month! In fact, the Qatari buggers have downgraded me to Burgundy!
I need another 5 return flights before they can reinstate my Silver Status.
Well, all good things must come to an end, as they say!

20080211: Last day of CNY

Today is the last day of my week long holidays!
Back to work tomorrow!

Managed to clean up some filing though!

20080210: Fo Guang Shan Temple visit

Finally visited this colourful spot in Kuala Langat, Selangor, after meandering through all the trunk roads in Kelang!

Website here in Mandarin.

Loads of beautiful photos taken. Had a vegetarian dinner there.

Photos soon!

20080208: CNY Day 2 - I AM ON TV

The moment of truth has arrived.

I am appearing on National TV (together with my wife)!

As usual, there was a mix-up! Supposed to appear at 830pm on RTM2, but was changed to 9pm slot on RTM 1 for an hour.
The 4 segment documentary kicked off with the Reunion dinner part.
My interview lasted under 30 seconds!




The FULL Episode is below: (11 minutes 26 seconds)

20080207: CNY Day 1

YEAR OF THE RAT

Happy Chinese New Year to all my friends and family celebrating this Lunar new year of the Rodent, marking the first animal to mark the dozen Chinese Zodiac variations.

Had the annual photo ritual at home, this time using FOR THE FIRST TIME, my DIGITAL SLR!

Had lunch in Putra Heights at a good friend's new home before visiting the in-laws in the late afternoon.

Photos soon.

20080206: CNY Eve

Had the day off. Company compulsory leave.
Managed to meet my realtor at the property unit to finalise sale of my aging apartment amongst the "slums" of Francis YEOH's enclave!
How a property such as Andalucia can command RM 400k in such a terrible area, is beyond anybody's understanding!

Had a scrumptious Chinese lunch at Overseas, Seri Petaling before meeting up with an old friend to pass over a gift from Dubai!

Dinner was at home (obviously) as it is Reunion Dinner night!

Photos to follow.

20080204: The Body aches!

Back to work. The whole body is responding to all the acidic release throughout the blood system, after the Saturday intensive massage, wrecking every sensitive nerve in its path! This led to major aches, as usual a I had to head over to the OUG Doctor for the spinal ache. Some Chinese medication was prescribed, and I had to stick to the regime to remedy the ailment! Ouch!

20080203: Dad's birthday dinner

An afternoon to Midvalley Shopping centre was meant to obtain presents for Dad.
A wireless Door Bell was picked off the rack in Jusco.
Upon returning home and testing, it was deemed faulty, and had to visit Jusco again!
Everyone was looking forward to Dad Birthday dinner, held at Overseas, Jalan Imbi.
Small gathering of one table. Food was the usual top notch Chinese fare.
Dad got another surprise present though. Something that our Malaysian shores don't carry. One that I had to gather all the way from Doha, Qatar. And even that, I had to search through over 20 shops to get it!

20080202 : Toast 8, Office 2008 and Leopard day

Life is usual today, with another half day in the office. It's back to work to the Glenmarie HQ.
Lots to be done in the afternoon. Managed to check on my Sime property, whilst visiting a good old Macuser friend who stays a few doors away. Had a quick lunch in the nearby coffee shop. Great Kway Teow Kung Fu style, something heavily missed whilst in the Middle East. This is much better than the High Tea I missed at the Crowne Plaza hotel (hosted by a notable Land Banking entity in town)
Sime UEP, are never short of property launches and showcases, befitting their title of the being under the world's largest property owner, Sime Darby. A quick hour visit to 7 different homes under the banner of Putra Avenue. I still prefer my original purchase, which is ABOVE the highway!
After a pitstop to my secret friend's home, within the vicinity, to pass him a long delayed gift from the Middle East (Dubai, to be exact), the long journey across the Subang Jaya enclave to reach Damansara Perdana on the other side of the state ensued. The Tropicana pitstop for more eclectic magazine pickups had to take a raincheck due to time constraints.
A brief and strenous visit up the condominium to collect my new Apple collection resulted in a errorneous online transaction via Maybank2u.
This collection added another 6 nitsto my tally of over 40 now. The new members are a few G3 Clamshell iBooks, a rare Colour Classic and a NeXT subwoofer set.
After this investment, it was time to calm the mind, rushing to the RSGC for the 180 hour massage session. A quick sprint through the tolled Kiara Tunnel allowed a punctual arrival at the waiting hands of the masseur at Jalan Tun Razak.
The aching muscles was further soothed out by lounging in the barber's chair, to receive a much needed hair cut. Not that there was much to be clipped, but neat and tidiness had to be taken into consideration, with the Chinese New Year around the corner!

20080201: Back from Doha

February is here, marking heralding another month of the famous LEAP YEAR.
Yup, for those on a payroll, you will have to endure another 24 hours prior to your paycheck receipt. Alas, this happens only once in 4 years.
Statistically,

As for me, I'm not too concerned, as I was not born on that RARE date.
What matters most is that I'm back in Kuala Lumpur. Home sweet home!

Was met by Dad after a long delayed luggage arrival at the airport and a 28 minute train journey to KL Sentral. Note the new Mercedes taxi in town
A short trip to the RSC for Malaysian Chicken Rice was next on the menu. Major white smoke emanated from the Straits Settlement Building, which housed one of my major legal benefactors. It turned out that mosquito fogging was underway. What a wierd time to conduct this exercise, at about 3pm! (Thats a NO-NO for those who wish to have fogging done!)
Reached home after the sumptious meal.
Retirement on the bed was the next agenda.

20080131: Final Day in Doha

Leaving Doha again, after a 4 day stint to submit the final tender.
However, this has been postponed to 21st February again!
Checked in at the Business class lane with 25kg only!
Managed to use the Silver Lounge for the final time!
Took a nice long shower in the mens!
Had some lousy soup before boarding the plane!


More photos soon!

20080115: Return to KL from Doha

Yahoo,
Time to escape the freezing weather of Doha, which recently dipped to 9 C!
Left the apartment after a quick bite (leftover spinach pasta) and hailed a cab to the aiport. As we alighted the taxi, rain began to fall. Fortunately, had the Charles Jourdan jacket on me which provided adequate cranial cover, beofre my flu got any worse

Managed to go through customs and check-in without a hitch. No luck with plug points and Wifi connectivity in the Doha departure lounge.

Plane departure was delayed 40 mins due to traffic and thick fog.
Arrived in Manama in the afternoon. The stuffy nose was getting worse! Found the departure gate (31) for our connecting flight back to KL, as we transitted for the next 4 hours.
Feeling hungry, we proceeded to Chilli's restaurant, which fortunately took credit card payment. Price were typically higher than KL (but hey, it's the Mid east!) and there's a 12% service charge (not as bad as the KL (10 + 5!) or UK's terrible 17.5% VAT!
Managed a nice Well Done Old Timer burger complete with the chip substitute of fine mashed potatoes. Downed it with unlimited refills of Lipton tea whilst enjoying a DVD of a concert.
Then, the departure gate changed to 12A at the last minute!

Rushed over the other side of the terminal to find loads of people waiting in the over capacity lounge, which had people standing room only.
Fortunately, after 10 minutes of patience, the bus arrived to whisk us off to our Airbus A340 in waiting!
Seats were cramped in a 2-4-2 configuration, in which I took a window seat.
Food was only served 100 minutes later! I am happy I had my fair dosage of food at Chilli's 5 hours earlier!
Watched 3 movies, Rush Hour 3 with the ever hilarious Jackie CHAN showing his antics in Gay Paree and then the last bits of Nanny.
Finally, watched Death Sentence with Kevin Bacon in one of his most action packed films to date. Kelly Preston who played his wife, has really matured since her "hey" days 15 years back!
After a gruelling quarter day (yes, 6 hours of aching joints), we settled down in KLIA! Home sweet home!

Best news is that it is MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO day today!

20080104: Qatar Exxon Mobil Open - TENNIS

That's the great thing about a first world Islamic country!
Cheap petrol (RM 0.72/litre), cheap cars (Nissan Xterra Made in USA, 4WD at RM 90k!)

and also CHARITY Tennis tickets! Unbelievable!

Just queued up earlier (actually NO queue at all) at 10am to collect FREE tickets for the Semi-Finals in the afternoon.
The match kicked off punctually at 4pm and lasted until 930pm after 2 Semi-final Single matches and 1 Doubles final!

Loads of photos here!

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Match 2 & 3 pending upload

20080103: Malaysian Embassy, Doha - OPEN HOUSE

Yes, that famous, Rumah terbuka!

All the Malaysians will be there because of FREE MAKAN!
I did my fair share of providing charity by donating RM10 to the FLOOD VICTIMS in Malaysia. Let's hope the funds reach them!

Met up with old friends and made new ones too!

Loads of delicious photos here!

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20080101: Happy New Year from Doha - VILLAGGIO MALL

Nothing much happened over here. No fireworks, nada, zilch!

Boring as ever.

Managed to visit the Villaggio Mall, for a lousy Hardee's Mushroom burger lunch, next to the Khalifa Stadium though!

Photos here:

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20080101 Villaggio Mall Doha

What a way to spend the new year day lunch. Burger set meal at about RM20!

This newly completed shopping mall with heavy Italian themes, is in Doha, Qatar.

For those who experienced the Asian Games in Doha, back in 2006, who know that it's right next to the stadium.

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20071228: Doha sights & Corniche

Finally, you get to see some sights of Doha, and the beautiful Corniche.


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20071225: Doha Apartment and views

So, it's Xmas and we get to capture some shots of the Adam apartment in Doha.

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20071222: Doha Internet connection

A quick view of the apartment broadband performance.

20071222: Winter Solstice has arrived

The time of the TONG YUEN is here again!
This year, I cannot relish it back home in Malaysia, as I am stuck in the Winter of the Middle East in Doha, Qatar.
I have however found a couple of links for the recipes here and here.

My favourite is the latter one.
The history of the festival can be found here.

If you can't bother jumping to that link, here is a summary:
"The Winter Festival, or Dong Zhi falls on the twelfth day of the eleventh lunar month. It coincides with the Winter Solstice when the sun is at its southernmost point, above the Tropic of
Capricorn - two or three days before Christmas and ten days before the New Year in the Gregorian Calendar. This festival marks the turning point between winter and spring, daylight and darkness. Days begin to gain hours as the sun retraces its path northwards."

20071221: Sunset in Doha

SO what does the dusk bring, when the sun sets so early during the winter months at 4:55pm?

Take a look here:
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20071220: Qatar, Doha, City Centre, Shanghai Garden

Lunch Buffet here at QR39/pax or add QR10 for the dinner buffet.
Met up with some old chums and had a jolly good time.
The food variety was fair, and my only grouse was the lack of Chinese tea in the menu.

Amongst the food served were:

1. 2 types of starchy soup, including corn soup
2. Deep fried Belt fish
3. Prawns in tomato sauce (best of the lot)
4. Stir fried crabs
5. Stewed beef with bamboo shoots
6. Lemon Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken, Kung Pao Chicken
7. Shiu Mai dumplings
8. Beancurd with mushrooms
9. Fried noodles
10. Fried rice
11. White rice
12. Cold Chinese appetisers (like gizzards, blood, etc.)
13. Oily Chinese salad
14. Western salad
15. Dumplings
16. Savoury desserts and pastries
17. Agar Agar jelly
18. Fresh fruits (grapes and oranges)
19. Free flow of cold soft drinks (no water provided)

Photos pending

20071219: Fish Market, Corniche, Doha

Went for a quick sandwich breakfast before driving over to the Corniche in the Mitsubishi Lancer (fortunately it's on automatic transmission)
Loads of fishermen selling their fresh catch of the day here.
They come in their motorboats to the steps on the Corniche, lay out a canvas sheet and dump all their produce from the ice box.

Visited on both 19th & 20th December, during the Eid Festival.



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20071218: Back to Doha, Qatar after 18 months!

Off to KLIA again on the ERL using a return ticket, paid with Diners Club.
Managed to use the free KLIA Wifi for a few emails prior to departure.
Lunch was only served at 2pm (Malaysian time) 1hr 50mins after the takeoff.
First time encountered a faulty WC on the Airbus A340 with a 2-4-2 configuration.
Food was fair with 1 lunch and 1 refreshment served prior to touchdown in Manama, Bahrain.
Managed to squeeze in 3 in-flight movies on the pathetic 6 inch LCD.
Watched: Shortcut to Happiness (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Bourne Ultimatum (Julia Stiles) and Stardust (Claire Danes). Yeah, I only noted the female stars!
Landed in Manama about 3pm (Manama time) Transited for 90 minutes before boarding GF514 at Gate 16 for Doha at 5pm. The departure lounge has a Chilli's outlet. More expensive though!
Detected a few Wifi base stations but couldn't connect. Managed to get a 3 pin plug point to charge the notebook until 95% charged status.

Arrived safely in Doha at 545pm on the Airbus A320 (3-3 config) with only a serving of orange juice and a pack of tidbits prepacked in England!
Immigration was swift with the renovated terminal building. Entry for Malaysians is now QR100 providing a 1 month visa.
Was fetched by my new colleague here in his patriotic left hand drive grey Waja.
Scooted off to the Adam Residences apartment. Located at: Lat: 25.2825° Lon: 51.5417°

Nice cosy place nestled on the 5th floor, with a small 20 m pool at the Mezzanine level. After settling in and introduce to 2 new buddies, we went downstairs to catch some grub for dinner. As the nearby Kebab shop was already patronised earlier, the only other option was the Indian restaurant next door, unless you wanted to exercise your appetite another block away.
So the Rolex restaurant provided us with some good food and of course, I took my fresh mango juice.
After tucking in to a QR 44 meal for 3 (which is reasonable, considering the amount we took), we strolled back to the apartment within 5 minutes!
Took a nice warm shower and checked some email! Luckily the apartment has got broadband! Very convenient! Speed ranges from 1 Kb/s to 70Kb/s depending on what time you log in!
Note that the time difference of 5 hours took it's toll on my sanity, and I had to get into bed (super single size) by 1030pm! Good nite!

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20071209: PC Fair, Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre

Last PC fair of the year!

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20071208: Le Meridien, Kuala Lumpur

Just a brief breather and short weekend stint at Le Meridien KL.
Shots of the room and a great buffet dinner at the Latest Recipe restaurant.

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20071126: Finally back from Dubai

After a hectic week of project management, buffet lunches and car tyre replacements, I'm back again in my homeland of Kuala Lumpur.

Check out the pictures here:

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20071117: Back to Dubai - for a week

So tonight starts my journey again, back to a cooler Dubai for a week stint!

Journey begins at KL Sentral, took the ERL, checked in at Emirates counter at 1030pm. Got seat 47A, departing from gate C12 at 2:10am! Yawn!

20071110: Vacation in Port Dickson - Disaster and nightmare

A short 3 night stint in our local timeshare package, at the Legend Water Chalets from 7th to 10th November 2007.

Somehow, the happiness was short lived after a terrible THEFT incident! So much for Visit Malaysia Year!

After breakfast on Friday morning, Jessica and I returned directly to our room, as I felt a bit uncomfortable and nauseous.

I took a couple of Panadols and rested until the afternoon, when we decided to have a stroll along the beach. I then searched for my NORTH FACE sling bag, which I then noticed that it was missing. I was definitely not in the car, as I checked there already.

So, the security was alerted and a full report was lodged. We were also escorted by the courteous security officer from the hotel to the Police Station.
All the normal procedures were adhered to including making a graphic report to the sergeant in charge.
His table had 3 thick stacks of files of unsolved cases, each about a foot tall! Talk about small town, but high crime.
According to the sergeant, there is a syndicate roaming around the hotels, targeting tourists (like me!)

My wife, Jessica, then made a comment, which I was unaware of, and this is the THRILLER!

According to her, when I was away to grab some food, some guy tapped her on her right shoulder and alerted her that she had dropped some money.
Not thinking too much, the "notes" were picked up. It turned out to be 2 sheets of FOLDED money.
This was 1 YUAN each. Current street value of the 2 Yuan = slightly under RM 1!
The strange part was, why on earth would we have dropped Chinese money in a Malaysian resort?
Yes, it is true that we recently returned from China, but the strange part is that China is NOW using COINS for all their 1 Yuan denominations. The notes picked up were dated 1999!
Is this a "trick" to fool the victim?
It is suspected that when Jessica picked the notes up, the accomplice would have snatched my bag without her notice!
The security guard mentioned the possibility of "jampi" or "some form of hypnotism" to the extent that:

• She didn't tell me about this incident until the police report at night
• She didn't notice anyone taking my bag
• I didn't notice that my bag was missing
• I felt uncomfortable after the breakfast, leading to forgetfulness

It is up to you to believe such folklore, but this was most shocking to us.

What irritated us even more, was the fact that millions was spent on the structure of the hotel, but no budget was appropriated for security cameras!
Would you believe it, they DO NOT have CCTVs in the lobby areas!

So this daymare took a good 4 hours out of us, spanning from tea time to dinner time.
We then returned to the hotel to await the arrival of the investigating officer. We met up with his entourage, after we made our way out to dinner, with the intention of trying out seafood at SEAVIEW restaurant, just 5 minutes away from the hotel. When we reached the restaurant, we got a call to return back to the hotel immediately.
This was a blessing in disguise, as if we did not returned, we would have been slaughtered by the SEAVIEW restaurant with their exorbitant prices!

After describing the entire incident again to the team, we then investigated the in-house dinner buffet, which we agreed in unison to dine!
At RM 55 nett, you get a plethora of seafood including crab, squid, fish, scallop cakes, smoked salmon, Japanese sushi, with salmon, beef, veal, chicken, sharksfins soup, seafood soup with clams, mussels, prawns,
vegetables, rice, etc.

It was a no brainer.

Anyway, part of the contents in the sling bag that was stolen is as follows:

1. Sony Ericsson K610i grey mobile phone (with my name sticker on the rear)
2. My Celcom 3G SIM card (which I have cancelled)
3. My Diners Club card (which I have cancelled also)
4. My Le Meridien Member card
5. MyKad! (Drats! another fine!)
6. Legend Worldwide Member card
7. Alliance Bank ATM card
8. Public Bank ATM card
9. Vegetarian restaurant member card
   
10. My Toshiba 1 Gb thumbdrive
11. My spare 1 Gb MicroSD card with SD adapter
12. My mini tripod

Pictures HERE!

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