Mother's Day 2011; 8 May

As I lay on my bed reading today's news, I heard a knock on my bedroom door. I immediately knew it was Adin. Who else would come knocking on my door on a Sunday morning. He asked, "are you awake?" and I told him to come in.

He came to me and gave me a hug, wished me "Happy Mother's Day" and handed me a gift.





It's a jewellery box he made himself in school for an art project. Put together with his own two hands. It is not perfect but the best mother's day gift.

Adin, if you read this one day, I just want you to know that your imperfections make you a perfect person in my eyes.

Thank you for the gift.



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The Royal Wedding; 29 April 2011

I was moved almost to tears by the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton yesterday. It was indeed a fairytale wedding, like those shown in Disney movies. It was a celebration of 2 people in love joining together in holy matrimony. A tale of a girl who married her prince charming.... and the whole world celebrated with them.



Amidst the celebration, one person who was missed most was the bridegroom's mother, the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Indeed 29 April 2011 will be most memorable not just to the newly weds but to all who are great fans of Diana and the royal family.



"You look beautiful...."






It is a wedding every girl dreamed of.



The exquisite 8-tier wedding cake



The most awaited kiss on the balcony



The dinner reception


William and Catherine, I wish you joy and happiness; and may you both have a wonderful life together, forever.


*Pictures from various sources from the Internet

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A House which is soon to be Home

The long wait is now over.  This will be our new home soon.

What will it look like inside?

What will be the concept of the interior? 

Only time will tell... And time is something that we don't have the luxury of.

I would like to have a modern minimalist concept, with a touch of elegance. I hope that my other half shares my insight.

I hope this will be a new begining of my journey to the next decade of my life.

My first Firefly experience

Firefly.... a winged beetle, and commonly called fireflies or lightning bugs for their conspicuous crepuscular use of bioluminescence to attract mates or prey. Fireflies chemically produce a "cold light" from the lower abdomen which may be yellow, green, or pale red.

There's now an airline called Firefly that operates with small aircrafts based at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, Subang. It is not quite certain how the name of the airline was derived from this particular insect, but it is indeed convenient to fly from Subang compared to flying from KLIA or LCCT.

Dubbed "your community airline," I suppose now "everyone can fly" on Firefly.

The first experience I had flying with Firefly was quite pleasant. I'm impressed with the punctuality- which is currently lacking in 2 other airlines operating locally, MAS and AirAsia. I took an early morning flight from Subang to Alor Setar on July 3rd without any expectation or high hopes. The aircraft looked small from the airport waiting lounge and I was immediately hoping that I won't get claustrophobic.



The aircraft, seen from inside the waiting area.

On board, the interior was exactly like an express bus with 2 seats each on the right and left, plus a small aisle in the middle.

Being a small aircraft, the flight time is a bit longer. It took 1 hour to reach Alor Setar compared to the normal 45 minutes on a wide-body aircraft.

The interior was very Transnasional-ish, with ads placed on every available space on the aircraft!



Bank Islam ad on the back of the seat table



SP Setia ad on the luggage compartment door



SP Setia ad on the back of the headrest liner

On board, passengers were given biscuits, specially packed for Firefly and juice, served in a sad looking papercup with Firefly logo on it.

Returning to Subang from Alor Setar, the flight once again took off and arrived exactly on time.

They say the first impression matters. With the punctuality of the airline and convenient airport location, I'm willing to overlook the rest - the express-bus like interiors and also the misserable refreshments. However, the ticket price is another story altogether. I've booked Firefly once for my maid and managed to get a good deal for SBZ MES sector and back. But the last minute booking for SBZ AOR sector caused ticket price to be at par with the MAS price- which was not community community friendly one.

Well, I suposed you can't have it all...

Having said that, would I fly Firefly again? It's a definite YES!




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Location:Jalan Lapangan Terbang Subang,Subang,Malaysia

Cili Padi Sabah

Awesome and super pedas cili padi from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Served with the Chinese course at the IPOSC 2010 gala dinner.


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Location:Jalan Sutera Singkat,Kota Kinabalu,Malaysia

Malaysian Police

My car was stolen 2 years ago and when making police report the remark I received was, "Oh, dah lama tak ada kes macam ni di SS 18" (it has been quite some time since we last received report on such case). I don't think anything was done to recover the car until a few months after. The detective who handled my case then produced a report saying that the case was closed, for the insurance company to follow-up on the reimbursement.

Recently, the Selangor Police Chief's car was stolen. All efforts were made to recover the car only to find the car left by the roadside with a note saying "Sorry PDRM, silap sapu".

I wonder if the car was not left by the roadside, would the police be able to find it?

On another note, the recent case of a teenage boy who took his sister's car for a joyride and was shot by the police after being chased was quite disturbing.

This story was related to my soon-to-be-13 year old son. I asked him what are the lessons learned from this. His reply:
1. Playing pranks can get you killed.
2. Some policemen are incompetent.

I can't help but wonder, if a 13-year old has such negative impression of the Malaysian police force, what does the future hold for their generation?




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Shanghai, China; April 28 - May 5, 2010

Malaysia Boleh...?


I have never used this blog to post any grouses or anything that is politically linked.  But hey, this is my blog and I can write what I want!


I was recently at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, China and felt something amiss with the Malaysia pavilion and the organisation of Malaysia's participation in the Expo.   

Malaysia Pavlion at the World Expo 2010; Shanghai, China

1. The contractor of the booth is very questionable.  Other pavilions were designed and constructed by well known architects.  The interior of the Malaysia pavilion was designed by City Neon but the construction was carried out by Venturepharm Asia Sdn Bhd - a pharmaceutical company!
2. The Tropical Rainforest of Malaysia area was filled with fake plastic garden plants. Nothing real, unlike Singapore or New Zealand pavilions.
3. The elevator got stuck on the 1st day the expo opens.
4. The toilet on the ground floor has piping problem on he 1st day of the expo.
5. The tile of the stairs was chipped, 3 days into the expo.
6. The walls were peeling, 3 days into the expo.
7. Things promised and shown on the drawing were not there at the MPOC area - now rectified after day of endless pestering and emails with CC copies to many people.
8. The pavilion manager is the former SUSK (Setiausaha Sulit Kanan - Principal Private Secretary) of the current Tourism Minister and a part time staff of Tourism Malaysia Shanghai who is a fresh graduate Malaysian student is the the deputy pavilion manager.

Oh, and I didn't get my pass for the expo despite having sent the application more than 1 month before my departure to Shanghai.  I had to use Emergency pass to enter the expo.  I do not know where the incompetency lies - the expo bureau, that imposed an application period of 5 days for temporary pass and 20 days for 6-month pass; or Tourism Malaysia Shanghai that employ temporary staff who are Malaysian students to handle this matter.

I googled Venturepharm Asia Sdn Bhd and found this. So, go figure!  I do not support any political parties, but these are facts.

http://weechookeong.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/the-minister-of-tourism-why-venturepharm-asia-sdn-bhd-so-special/

Having said that, after visiting other pavilions, none others include commercial organisations.  They plainly showcased their countries along the expo theme - Better City, Better Life.

Another must read link on Malaysia pavilion:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expo_2010

I can't help but wonder, is this they call Malaysia Boleh?

Vulnerable in a Viva

Having no car is by far the most inconvenient experience that I have gone through. It felt like suddenly my freedom has been taken away; and there is this bubble inside of me wanting to burst and be free.

Meeting with an accident, having a huge dent on the right back passenger's door and major scratches on the right side of the car left me without a vehicle for about two weeks. Luckily, my cousin (who is also the elder sister I never had) came to the rescue and loaned me a car (bless her soul!). It is a Perodua Viva (better than nothing!), used by her maid, for running errands. And coincidently she is not around for 10 days (falls nicely in the picture).

Having driven a normal sedan and a 4 WD before, now temporarily driving a compact car, Viva nonetheless, left me with an almost nerve-wracking experience. The first time I drove the car on the highway, I became very agitated. I lost the sense of security which I always have whenever I drive my own car. I can't help feeling insecure whenever I am in the car as the body of the entire car seems hollow. The door seems easily dented. I felt that I am separated by only 2 sheets of soft metal from the sorrounding that includes larger vehicles like busses, lorries and not to mention other bigger cars when I am on the road. The car is not even equipped with airbags, when I am used to the comforting thoughts of having the dual airbags feature of my car. It was indeed a vulnerable feeling.

I also felt that that Malaysian drivers, especially those driving bigger cars, generally have near zero tolerance towards the smaller cars. Driving my own car, whenever I signaled to change lanes, others would make way and show on-road manners. However, when signaling in a Viva, I was ignored. Nobody bothered to give way or showed any courtesy on the road.

Viva's 650CC engine capacity also made me feel that the car is slow, therefore taking a longer time to reach the same destination compared to driving my own car.

I wonder why the car is made such that it lacks security features. I wonder why do people even buy the car? As a secondary car is perhaps OK but not as the main car. Price is indeed the main determining factor but why must the safety features be compromised? During my student days in the US, I knew a fellow student with a part-time job who could afford to purchase a brand new car, a Hyundai at USD 6,500. Here, is Malaysia a mere Viva cost RM 25,000. Comparing 1:1, it is indeed sad to note that we have to pay so much more for our basic neccessity. Yes, a car is a necessity in Malaysia, no more a luxury! I can't help but wonder if it is our system that made it such.

Driving the Viva for the past 3 days left me with a humbling experience. It makes me realised that if I am in need, there are others whose plights are worse than me. I am only temporarily inconvenienced and will get my car back soon. The damage on my car is covered by the insurance, not that I have to fork out money to pay for it.

I believe that this is a lesson from Allah swt for me to be thankful with what I have and the rezeki that I have been given. It is at anytime that all this can be taken away. Subhan'Allah...


Found this quote on the net:

Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough - Oprah Winfrey

This Is It

Michael Jackson's This Is It

MJ's This Is It movie premiered worldwide on 28 October. It was indeed a great opportunity to be among the first to watch the behind the scenes of the This Is It concert rehearsals.



Should it materialise, the concert would have been a phenomenon! It would have been THE concert of the century. Detailed attention was given to each and every song with nothing left unturned, MJ had lived up to perfection.

All the 26 songs that were supposed to be performed were given special treatment. Elaborated special effects and props were planned for each song. To list a few:
1. Thriller - with the 3D effect of the zombies, flying bride and groom zombies over the aisle, and MJ coming out of a the mechanical giant spider
2. They don't care about us - with a band of one hundred thousand armies generated by special effects
3. The way you make me feel - with the workers on the building construction site in the background
4. Smooth Criminal - with special classic black & white movie
5. Billie Jean - with a special designed bling jacket with 7.5 lb of Swarovski crytals and 60 lights
6. Earth Song - jungle scenes & bulldozer
7. Man in the mirror - MJ's all time favourite song

At 50, his movements were fluid and seemed effortless- he still had it in him. All the dance move were perfectly synchronised. He knew what he wanted for the concert- his final curtain call and knew his music well. Too well. He was a musical genius and unmatched at that.

To me, it was indeed an eye opener of the MJ whom many of us see as a weird dude.

I went to the premier of This Is It merely as an audience and came back a fan.

MJ, may you rest in peace.

The Premier of "Cuci the Musical"; 23 Oct 2009

When WR said, "oh, we are going to watch Cuci the Musical at Istana Budaya on Oct 23", I really thought that he was kidding but since it was an invitation, I went along. As I have not watched the movie before, I do not know what to expect. Having heard from a close source that the movie was not that great, I did not put much expectations on the musical theater.




Boy, was I wrong!
With a line-up of great talents like Afdlin Shauki, Hans Isaac, AC Mizal, Awie, Harith Iskandar, Vanida Imran, Adibah Noor and Ramli Hassan, the musical was indeed in a class of its own.

Although I thought the music was a bit too loud, drowning the songs, I really hope it would be improved in subsequent shows.

Since I did not watch the movie, I couldn't compare the musical with the movie. It is somehow good as theaters should not be compared with movies. Anyhow, the storyline is similar and the bottomline - good will always prevail.

The show was really entertaining. There was never a dull moment throughout the entire show. The actors, being all professionals, played their parts well and made the entire show almost flawless.

Great singing voice from Awie and Adibah Noor, makes this musical stands out from the rest. It is quite impressive to hear Vanida and Hans, who also shared their vocals in this production.

A must watch for Istana Budaya musical theater fans. And for those artsy fartsy freaks, this is a commercialised theater, so go figure!

As usual, managed to get autographs of the main casts

Cool Adibah Noor. Great voice, big talent (no pun intended)

Hans...

The Choreographer of Cuci the Musical, Stephen Rahman-Hughes

Backstage
AC Mizal

Hans' dressing room... Tak dapat bergambar dengan orangnya, pintu pun jadilah...

Caught Harith as he was leaving... too bad, must stop for photos. Hehe...

Finally...
Managed to catch Afdlin as we were leaving...

Also managed to catch Hans right before we left.

Commenting on his singing in the show, Hans said "I also didn't know I could sing. I was only telling a story". Well Hans, the story that comes from the heart is what makes Cuci the Musical meaningful. It also proves that anything is possible if you just believe...

Kudos to Hans and the team for a great show. I laughed and almost cried at the part where the brothers were torn apart by greed and the power-that-be.

Indeed "Cuci the Musical" is a must watch and worth every RM spent on the ticket!


Disclaimer: The comments on this blog entry represents my personal opinion, pictures posted on this page are from personal collections.

You know its almost Raya when...

Ayah brought back Baju Melayu for Adin and asked Adin to try it on with sampin, and trying to give Adin sampin tying lessons.

This is not the sampin for this baju though...

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!

Selamat Menyambut Hari Kemerdekaan ke-52

Photo from Hari Kemerdekaan ke-49; 2006 - Kuching, Sarawak


Merdekakah kita?

Ramadan 1430H

Pasar Ramadan

Ramadan with WR is not complete without trips to various Pasar Ramadan.

Pasar Ramadan Putrajaya @ Precint 2; 29 Aug 2009

Spoilt for Choice

Gulai Kawah Umbut Pisang

Going Western?

Rows of Nasi Ayam...

Baby Chakoi. Innovative...

httippu... Creative & Interesting

Pasar Ramadan Bentong, Pahang; 30 Aug 2009

Varieties of appetising lauk pauk

Why is tongkeng ayam so famous?

I like this signage. Nice...

Going glokal... Otak-otak Gombak in Bentong

Ramadan All Around

27 Years Too Late

A closer look

Can't help but noticed something that is such an eyesore. This banner is on the pedestrian overhead bridge on Persiaran Tujuan, in front SMK Subang Utama, connecting SS 18 & SS 19. The year shoud read 1430H.

Didn't anyone bother to check before it was sent for printing or placed for public viewing?

Ramadan 1430 H

Wishing everyone a blessed Ramadan...

Image from: http://www.nileclub.org/

Mid-Year School Holiday; 5-9 June 2009

Balik Kampung and the Scenic Drive Home

School holiday is here again and due to the current H1N1 scare, air travel is off limits. So we went back to basics and took a drive back to Alor Setar (Alog Setag) and came back to Subang Jaya via the scenic coastal route - Kelantan, Terengganu & Pahang. It took 2 days and 2 nights to get home with frequent stops along the road, as and when we fancy; but the whole trip was worth it!

The things we often took for granted...

Changlon & Alor Setar

Durian tree behind the house

Chempedak waiting to ripe

Rice field as far as the eyes could see...


What joy...

Muhairiz & Dania

Sights along Grik-Kroh route

An unidentified mountain along the highway, normally covered by curtain of clouds.

Gunung Reng, Batu Melintang, Jeli

Pantai Cahaya Bulan (PCB), Kota Bahru, Kelantan

The colourful PCB

Sun shining from behind

Adin's favourite... feeling the waves splashing on his feet

A subtle hint of colour coordination

Don't have to go to Turkey to shop in Istanbul... Just go to Kota Bahru.

Tok Bali

Tok Bali Bridge

Sup Belut (Eel soup) at Tok Bali... a delicacy? Indeed.
Just like Unagi in soup...

Terengganu

Pantai Bukit Keluang, Kuala Besut

Another scenic beach in Terengganu - Pantai Penarik, Setiu

As we enter Kuala Terengganu town center....

Pantai Kelulut... close to heart with fond memories...

A morning walk on the beach

Reminiscing...

Good Morning!

Sunsrise on Pantai Kelulut

Pantai Kuala Abang Revisited...

Finally, Burger King at Mesra Mall, Kerteh... Another of Adin's favourites


The Road Trip in Summary...
Approximate total distance: 1700 km