Random blogs on Malaysian politics

I cannot believe that this Mohammad Taib is back in the scene. He was the former MB who forgot to declare a huge sum of money in an Australian airport years back. His excuse - he could not read English well and therefore could not understand the signboard. What a scumbag. And the sleeping Prime Minister has decided to make him a Senator this time around.

The federal Opposition should thank Pak Lah. At the rate BN is going, they will loose even more.

***

What a joke on the Sunday papers to read that the Terengganu bunch from BN is now going to boycott the swearing in of the new MB. Just because the palace did not appoint their suggested guy, they want a boycott. Aren't that disrespectful to the royalty? They condemned Lim Kit Siang when he called for a boycott. Lim Kit Siang was stupid to have said that. Now, it is BN's turn. I sure hope they be all made persona non grata for the state of Terengganu.

What goes around comes around.

***

And it is now BN's turn to worry about defection of the MPs to the opposition. Years back, PBS (who was against BN back then) lost the state of Sabah when one of their exco members defected to BN. BN celebrated it. Now, BN is calling to amend the constitution to prevent party hopping. BN says party hopping is unfair, unethical. What a joke.

Firstly, BN still wants to amend the constitution as and when they like. They haven't learn their lesson from the elections 2 weeks ago. The good news is, they want to amend it to their liking. To their advantage.

Secondly, always remember... what goes around comes around.

Saturday nite out

I was out with two very pretty gals last nite, for dinner - and only dinner. One of them, C, is my good friend - and introduced her still available 'Grade A' gal to me. Both of them are pretty and more importantly, friendly with good personalities.

To start off with, I was nearly late. Had to pick up C - she stays near UH. Good thing I could still remember the short cut across University Malaya, so, I am able to use the NPE Highway, drive across UM and pick C up. I found that way by chance. Federal Highway is way to conjested, especially when it is raining.

As for food, it was good northern Indian Food. We ate at The Passage Through India, along Jalan Tun Razak. The restaurant is after Time Dot Com building, just before the Kuwait Embassy. I feel that it's one of the best place to have Indian food. Strangely, I was introduced to this place by one of my German visitors. We ordered many dishes, my favourite being the Rogan Josht, or mutton curry. Curries here are spicy but not chilly hot. Both the gals enjoyed the food too. Pricec is very reasonable. We ate alot, only for RM 200. Nice atmosphere and parking is readily available and it's free! Highly recommended place.

I sure hope to meet up with the 'Grade A' gal again.

I cannot believe it...

I discovered the pleasure of an 'illicit' joy today. I am now a happy human trader. There is this feature on Facebook which allows me to see and buy friends. The whole problem is, I get more imaginary credit for giving away 'human' whom I own. So, I now have this grand plan. Buy up all the cheap ones, for L$1, and just give them away to my friends. I have no idea who I have 'purchased'. As they say, it is nothing personal, just business.

A rather unethical game. Purchasing unknown persons, at a very low cost, and giving it away to friends for more credits.

Having said that, I have no bloody idea what am I going to do with all the imaginary credit. Great eh?

Now, it is funny...

Looking back, it is sure funny now. However, when it happens, it could have been a murder case. Then again, the I am sure the judge would understand.

When I was in Germany, one of the Director's Personal Assistants (PA) called me. Bad enough I received the call on my personal phone, which meant that I had to pay for the call. The conversation when something like this:

Caller: Hello. Is this Wally?
Me: Yes, speaking.
Caller: I am Cindy. Donny is looking for a NotSure agreement.
Me: I am sorry, but I am in Germany now. Could you ask Pound?
Caller: Are you sure you are in Germany?

What the... am I sure I am in Germany? Of course I am. How can I be not sure? Could I have landed in the wrong country? Or accidentally walked to France? I wonder what was she thinking about.

Today, I asked M about a vendor. It's a new vendor for a brand new task.

Me: Who did the translation for this advert?
M: Oh, the usual vendors.

Who the heck exactly are the 'usual vendor'? This is our first time doing translation work on an advertisement. You know what? When I pointed this out to her, very gently, she got upset at me, for asking for specifics. What the ...

M has already resigned from QQQ. At this point, I told her that I wish her new boss all the best.

Another staff, N, is equally slow.

Me: When will you complete your task?
N: I started yesterday.

What the ... I asked when will she complete it, and she answers "started yesterday". Sadly, N has yet to resign. Think I must help her update her resume or something like that.

Terrible colleagues I have. Most of them are conspiring to drive each other up the wall, or out of the window. But it is worth a laugh now.

Pics!

Well, here are some pics of my latest trip to Germany.

Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) has to be one of my favourite airports. It has a great selection of shops and prices are very reasonable - especially liquor, cigarettes and perfume. Lots of restaurants, from high end to low end. Duty free is good - ciggies are only RM 45 per carton (less than EUR 10). In case you are wondering, I do not smoke. The only place I've seen with slightly cheaper ciggies is Singapore Airport.

I have no idea what this building is, but it is in Hannover, Germany. This pic turned out very nice. It was taken on my Nokia 6800. After I arrived, I've decided to walk around a bit. I try not to sleep during the day, otherwise, it would take a long time to get over the jetlag. Got over mine in less than 24 hours upon arrival. Sweet. :)

I had my first Magnum Yogurt in Munich, 2 years ago. I fell in love with it at first bite. Yummy. Every since then, I have been craving for this ice cream. Strangely, they do not have this flavour in Malaysia. It's not very sweet and it's frozen yogurt!

Hannover Hbf (main train station). A good landmark to meet someone in Hannover. However, if you want to shop, there is a Kaufland (I think that's how it is spelt), just behind Etap Hotel. Etap Hotel is on the left, after back exit of Hannover Hbf. Pic is the front. Don't be deceived by this picture. The skies were clear, but it was rather cold - at about zero degrees Celsius. Cold for a Malaysia, where the sun practically shines every day and the average temperature is 24 degrees C.

Was in Hamburg for a day trip. One of the few cities in Germany with a lake. A very nice place, more happening than Frankfurt. And yes, there's a lot of good seafood and a red light district. Not that I was spending much time with the gals!

Here are two pictures of my hotel room in Steigenberger Hotel. A welcomed changed indeed. It was luxury compared to my room at Etap Hotel. The large LCD TV as a nice to have but unfortunately most programmes were in German, I think. Deco was nice. Bed was very comfortable. Oh, if only I could share the room with H. I am sure we would have enjoyed the room, and each other!

Curiously, I cannot remember where did I take the picture below. Was it in Frankfurt or Hamburg? Hmmm. I have a terrible memory.

This is the first installation of pics. More to come, of my other trips event perhaps. Got some very nice pics to share. Most of them are not that great, but one always gets one or two good photos.

Safety Trips when Travelling

I have been very fortunate to be able to study in Australia and during my stay there, I did pick up a lot of streetwise tips. Till this day, I still treassure the experience and the knowledge. In Australia, the government gives out a lot of safety tips. Sadly, they are not so readily available in Malaysia. Here's something I would like to share with all. I am sure it is not a complete list, but at least the ones I've experienced. If you have good tips, please drop me a line or a comment. I shall include it with acknowledgements!

Most cities are very safe during the day, but things can be very different at night. So, do take care and travel safe.

• Travel by train is common. Usually, it is very safe. But it can be dangerous at night. So, when travelling at night, please use the carriage / coach closest to the driver. That's the safest.
• Always note the last train. Don't miss it - unexpectedly at least.
• Train stations usually attract a lot homeless, drunks and drug addicts at night. If possible, don't hang around train stations after 'dark', or when it is quiet. Homeless are harmless. Drunks usually want some money for drinks or at worse, puke. Drug addicts can resort to robbing you. The worse kind is when they threaten someone with a used syringe, which can be HIV tainted.
• If you enter a toilet and you notice blue lights - that means the area is a haunt for drug addicts. Ironically, blue light toilets are relatively safe. Why? For drug addicts to inject drugs, they need to find their veins. Veins are green. Under blue light, green veins do not show up. So, authorities deliberately puts blue light in toilets to prevent addicts from 'shooting up'. This means, the area has drug addicts. Now, the toilets are safe because there won't be any used syringes. But what's outside, druggies waiting to rob someone, is another story. So, know what the blue light means. It does not mean that the town council supports funky toilets!
• When using toilets, be on the look out for used syringes. Accidental contact will cause more mental sufferings than anything else!
• Chinatowns are great during the day. But when it is dark, it is usually not a good place to be. I don't know why. Chinatowns usually have the most drug deals, illegal prostitution, counterfeit goods - you name it, you get it. I have been offered 'ice' in Chinatown Montreal during the day. So, avoid Chinatowns if you can. And if you must know, I am not racist - I am of Chinese decent! This just happens to be a fact. I've been to enough in Vancouver, Montreal, Melbourne, Sydney and of course, KL. At night, it is not a good place to be. If a drug deal goes wrong they might just shoot each other with you in between! Oh yeah, it does not mean that all places with Chinese is unsafe. I have noted - it is just the place that they label Chinatown is bad. Take KL - most of KL is OK but when it comes to Petaling Street - just be careful. What's near (back streets of) Petaling Street can even be worse! Other areas are perfectly fine. No idea why. Just an observation. Another observation - it's not just the Chinese in chinatown that's giving chinatown a bad name. Chinatown, to me, is like the UN's local office for criminals.
• Always keep money in different places - wallet and bag. Don't put all your eggs in one wallet.
• If you must hide money in your shoe, please ensure that it will not end up as very expensive paper mache.
• Try to use a credit card (with chip) at all times. If your card is stolen, you just have to report it. It will then be Visa's or MasterCard's problem. No worries.
• If your credit card is stolen, report it immediately!
• There are places that cards are cloned. Malaysia use to be infamous for it. Therefore, try to get your credit card provider to issue a credit card with a smart card (it has a chip). The chip makes it very difficult to clone. All cards issued in Malaysia has a chip now. No prizes if you can figure out why.
• When you use your card, use it wisely. Don't let it get out of sight.
• Inform your credit card centre BEFORE you travel. You don't want them to bar your card when you are about to impress a pretty Austrian gal with an expensive dinner. No smart. It has happened to many of my colleagues - spending too much money on international calls just to ask the banks in KL to approve their transactions.
• Carry minimum amount of cash. But have spare for emergencies! For Malaysians, Mayban ATM cards actually work overseas. Just enable the overseas use in any ATM in Malaysia. They also offer very good rates, but there is a fee of RM 12 per transaction. It's good if you take out an equivalent of RM 1500 per transaction - works out cheaper than money exchange. I've used it in Bangkok, USA, Canada, Germany and France. It all works! Remember - they cannot steal what you do not have.
• Keep spare change and a small amount of money in a separate pocket. Don't take out your entire wallet to pay for a EUR 5 beer. Don't advertise how much you have.
• Please, do NOT advertise that you are a tourist. Try not to take a photograph of everything. Do take photos, at tourist places - like in Petronas Towers in KL. But please do not take photographs of a train approaching in a subway. Everyone will know you are a tourist. You might as well have a sign that says "rob me".
• Also, don't open up your map and read it in full view of others. Don't tell everyone you do not know your way! Read it in a shop. Or fold it into a smaller piece. Or make a summary of directions- where to turn left, etc. Be discreet.
• Know the emergency phone number. Every country is different. It's 911 is USA, 999 in Malaysia, 000 in Australia. For mobile phones, it is a universal 112. Remember it.
• Note the consulate's / embassy's phone number in the country. Maxis usually sends the number when you start 'roaming'. Keep it!
• Keep a copy of your passport / travel documents / ID with you. If you loose your passport, at least you have a copy of it. Imagine if you end up in your own embassy, and when they ask you for your passport number, you have to answer " I do not know". Don't laugh. This actually happened to my colleague. Not funny!
• Ensure someone at home has a copy of your travel documents and travel itinerary. If it is private, put it in a seal envelope, with instructions to open only in an emergency.
• Never ever leave anything in your coat pocket. In cold countries, everyone wears a coat. Some call it jacket, whatever. When we enter a warm place, such as a restaurant, we tend to remove the coat. And there are people who targets only coats. Even the coat is right behind you, hung on your chair, someone will still try to empty it. So, do NOT place anything in the coat - including the pockets. I had a colleague who lost the coat, plus passport, wallet, phones and keys. He couldn't get into his own hotel room - he didn't have any ID left on him. Ended up the night in a German police station. Not fun - although the police was very kind to let him spend the night there. It was snowing outside, so, he better not complain the chair was hard!
• If possible, do NOT hail a taxi from the roadside. Instead, call the cab company, to ask for a cab. Tell them were you are, and where you want to go. Give them your name (keep it simple, just first or last only - never the full name!). Ask them for the cab number. When your cab shows up, make sure the number is right. In some places, they cannot give you the cab number before hand. If that's the case, when the cab shows up, ask them *who* has asked for the cab. They should be able to reply you with your name. This will weed out bogus cab drivers. In addition, the cab company has a record of who went where and who picked up who. The cab drivers won't try anything funny - at least they will think twice.
• If you do not know the number for the cab company, ask the hotel or restaurant or bar to help you make the call. Just tip that guy. He will be happy to help you.
• Give the impression that someone knows where you are at all times - sms your boyfriend or girlfriend, or both. Or pretend to SMS / text message. Bad guys prefer to target someone who has no one to come look for them when the victim is in trouble.
• Never ever stop to give spare change, do charity. If you must do charity, do it in a proper place. Helping a beggar is not a good idea. That's usually the first step to being mugged. He can always run off with you entire wallet.
• Or, he will lure you away from your group. Let's say you walk around with a group of friends. Someone wants to rob you. In a group, he will be bashed up for trying to rob you. The best way is to lure you away. Offer you gals. Or ask you for spare change. When you stop, your group moves away, doesn't know you have stopped. That's when trouble starts. Be smart. If you want to do charity, go to a church, temple or the Red Cross. Not in the middle of the night, in the middle of a street that is new to you.
• If you are being rob, just give them what they want. Not worth fighting.
• If you loose your passport to a pick pocket - the best is go to the local police station about 24 hours later. Most of the time, it will find its way there. I have a sneaky suspicion the police somehow have a hand in it. Someone gets the money. The police doesn't want to be stuck with a bunch of sobbing tourists. Get the idea?
• Be prepared for the eventuality that you end up in your destination in Africa while your bags ended up in Austria for a skiing trip. Bags do go astray. Labels bags - but do it smartly. Have a spare change of clothes in your hand carry bags. At least a spare change of underwear if you must travel light!
• Do NOT put your full name, address and phone number on your bags. Put your initials. Think about it scenario. I am a scumbag, to cheat a tourist. I gets his details from his bag. I approach him. Hello Mr. XYZ. (I know his full name from from the bag). You have an emergency back at home (and I know his address). Please follow me, the scumbag. Imagine - that would be dangerous. Just put your name (initials) and phone number. Or put your office address. Why tell everyone that your house is bloody empty and you are on vacation?
• Lock your bags. I never worry about that they take out. I worry a lot about what they put in. Drug trafficking is a capital offence in Malaysia. Imagine if you end up being an unknowing drug mule. No fun.
• Check the bags for tamper the second you get them. Complain like mad, to the airline, if something is wrong.
• This is not so much about safely, but more on comfy. Book your darn seats when you book your air ticket. Imagine if you are a pretty gal - do you want to end up stuck to a window seat beside a guy like me? Book an aisle seat. Or a window seat - some people like windows seats. I just prefer aisle.
• As usual, beware of pick pockets. Nothing new here.
• Keep mobile phones fully charged at all times - or recharge them every night. It would be your life saver - or saving someone else's life.
• And please, don't bloody drain the battery of the mobile / cell phone by listening to MP3s, playing porn or games! A phone is a phone. Period. A dead 3G phone during an emergency is as good as a one's shoe when it comes to emergency communications.
• Keep a flash light around, even a small one LED one. A mobile phone is a good emergency light source too, but see previous point.
• A lighter is good too, but naked flames are dangerous. Airport security might have a issue too.
• Lastly, if something is too good to be true, it probably is! So, don't be greedy!

My trip to Germany

Oh my, what a trip it has been. This post shall be a summary of the trip - more details a lot later.
It was an adventure, almost like that in India, for me. The last time I was in Frankfurt, it was an adventure too.

Many years ago, I was on transit in Frankfurt. The air ticket was arranged by the same old PA (Personal Assistant) who gave me an extra day in Frankfurt this time. Not the brightest PA. Back then, the final destination was Graz, Austria. She only booked flights up to Frankfurt and told us (I was travelling with another lady engineer) to get connecting flights Graz when we are at Frankfurt airport. It was a disaster. We found out that the cheapest tickets (we had to fly one way - our travel was Kuala Lumpur to Singapore to Frankfurt (transit) to Graz to Marseilles (transit) to Paris) - was EUR 1000 per person. This worked out to be RM 10000 for the both of us. Where the heck were we to find RM 10000 on a cold morning in Frankfurt airport?

Thankfully, the Lufthansa staff took pity on us, manage to scrape together RM 10000 and got our tickets. Mind you, the initial offer was more than RM 20000 for the both of us, before Lufthansa gave us a discount. Apparently, for one way tickets, only business class tickets were sold! Cheap tickets are available in EU, but only with advance booking - not tickets on the spot.

Anyway, back to my latest trip. When the flight landed, we were greeted by a message, in German, which sounded like " ... airport strike, ... no bags, ... delay getting of the plane...". Rob came to mind immediately. More on Rob later. There was a full strike by the ground crew. All passengers were worried not getting their bags. Thankfully, MAS manage to employ some other ground crew (Lufthansa was on strike) and we got our bags an hour late. Sadly, some other passengers left the airport after believing rumours that bags will only be offloaded the next day. How could that be true? The MAS plane had to leave for Malaysia 6 hours later. The bags must leave the plane before that!

The result of the strike. All were sitting around, awaiting for luggage.

I then got myself on a Inter City Express (ICE) from Frankfurt to Hannover. Good grief! The bloody thing was full to the brim - it reminded me of a very high tech version of the mini bus. Mini buses use to service Kuala Lumpur and they were packed like sardines. Ended up standing for 3 hours. Not a bad thing to do after sitting for 12 hours on a plane. Being a bloody idiot, I got down at Hannover Masse instead of Hannover HBf. One station too early. Had to drag my luggage and catch another train. Not smart!

Finally, I arrived at Etap Hotel, where I spent about five nights. A budget hotel which has all the basics. Nothing fancy. Because of peak demand, the rates were EUR 140 per night. Normally, it would have been a EUR 45 room. Basic and clean. However, I must warn readers that when my colleagues were there last year, two laptops were stolen. No idea who did it. Maybe they did not lock their doors properly. Other laptops in other rooms were OK. In any case, I took along a lock for my laptop. Better be safe than sorry.

Etap hotel revising the rates when the exhibition was over. When I was there, the rates were EUR 120 per nite. Now, it is happy EUR 43 per nite. Simple demand and supply.

Made my way back to Frankfurt after my stay in Hannover - managed to squeeze in a day trip to Hamburg. Hamburg's a very nice city - full of life. This time, I got smarter - booked a seat on the ICE. The bad news was, there was a train strike. However, thanks for Rob, I got myself on one of the confirmed trains - trains that will run even the strike is on. Talk about German efficiency. Unfortunately, when the train reached Frankfurt HBf (main station), there was a long announcement in German. A fellow passenger was kind enough to translate it to me, saying that the train suffered some technical error and passengers need to find an alternative train. Being me, I summarized the situation in a simple "Kaput" for him. He had a good laugh. Frankly, if they announced train kaput, I would have understood. Kaput is the German word for "koyak" (in Malay)! So, the adventure continues - searching for another train which was in good order and not on strike.

I then checked in to a Steigenberger Hotel, near the Frankfurt airport. Good grief. It took me 45 minutes to queue at check-in. When my turn came, the room which I booked for was not available. Jokers sold it to someone else. But, they offered me an upgrade to a very luxurious Executive Room. After 5 days in a budget hotel, this is like a palace. Very cool deco. Comfy beds. Very nice bathrooms. A huge LCD TV. Reasonably cheap high speed Internet access. A very welcome change indeed. But there was a price to pay. The room was in the executive tower. Had a different room number from the 'normal' rooms. I did plan to dress very casually in jeans and all for my stay at the hotel, excluding formal business meetings. I was rather shy. Had to dress in something better. Don't want to look like a bum staying in the Executive Tower. Anyway, I think I still look like half a bum but bad luck, I've done my share.

The weather in Frankfurt was rotten for the two days I was there. Turned sunny on the day I left. What more can I say. Guess my trips to Frankfurt has been nothing but adventures - since my first trip there.

On yes, and now, the juicy bits. Who sat next to me on my flights? When I was there, I sat next to a German chap - about my age, perhaps younger, very friendly. Don't think I was very friendly because I was dead tired after work. Wasn't rude, but just slept all the way! As usual, my ass started to hurt after we flew past India. That's another 7 hours before Germany!

On the way back - oh yes - the best thing happened. Always my dream - and it came true. In the waiting lounge, I saw this very cute gal. Later found out she's from Indonesia. Long hair, slim. Sweet smile too. I boarded the plane first. And a few minutes later, guess who sat next to me? Yes, this sweet young thing. I took the aisle seat and she took the window seat. We exchanged smiles and looked at each other. Then, we both realise that the seats in the centre of the plane, (row of 5 seats in the centre), were all empty. Smart gal. She made a dash for one of them. Smiled at me. I was very happy too. For one reason or another, there were about 80 empty seats.

So, the seat to get, is an empty seat next to you. A pretty gal would be good, but nothing beats an empty seat. Bet you, that pretty gal had exactly the same feelings! Don't get me wrong. I love to have friends, mix around but when I am on board a plane, in economy class, sitting for 12 hours - I rather be really comfortable. No point having the sweetest young thing and being darn uncomfortable. Of course, if I had a sweet young thing back in the executive room in Steigenberger, it would have been a very different story.

Wind of Change

Well well, what a welcome back from Germany. Such interested general elections results for Malaysia. Here's some of my thoughts on the general elections...

We were in Germany, all excited with the results. It was indeed a shock. BN has lost a couple of states. Big win for the 'opposition'. But we all concluded that it was for the better. BN could no longer do as it wishes.

***

Big news today, Umno members had an illegal street protest in Penang. Wow! Back in the days when the Opposition had illegal street protest, they were jailed and sometimes locked up under ISA - jailed without trial that is. So, is the Federal Government about to jail their own bunch for illegal protest? A protest WITHOUT police permit? This if fun to watch.

Now UMNO know what it is like to be the opposition.

***
NEP. BN is just confused. There are people against the NEP but it is not because of race or because they don't want the Malays to progress. Here are some questions:

Where the leaky pipes episodes sponsored by a NEP contractor?
How about the uncompleted collapsed building in Kedah? Also by NEP?
Or the bridge, which also collapsed in Kedah? Yet another NEP product?

Hello! It is time to wake up! It has nothing to do with race. It has to do with sheer incompetency. If they don't wake up, I guess they will be the Opposition by 2012.

***
Heavens knows why they are calling DAP the opposition in Penang. Bad luck, they are now the ruling party and BN is the Opposition. Looks like BN and all its controlled media are still badly confused.

***
Based on a report on The Star, BN managed only 51% of the vote, which is far less than 60% of the seats in Parliament they control. Guess the message is clear. They are very close to be shown the door. And yet, they still do not have a clue what they have done wrong.

The fact is rather simple. What bothers people the most is something close to home. Town councils. And since we have no say over our town councillors, the next best thing is to boot the state government out. That's exactly what happened.

No one cares if KLCC has the tallest towers. But I would be swearing and cursing if they took away the field and built bloody shop lots there. That's what they've tried to do many times. And the good news - we kicked Lee Hwa Beng's ass! He was the state exco member. Every few months, there would be a new application to build something on the field. Come on! No means no. How many times can the residents protests? Better solve these problem once and for all, for the next five years at least!

***
The best news from this elections - Malaysians have shown that they are a matured bunch. Based on statistics, voting was not done based on race. Voting was also not done based on the number of wasteful banners and posters one puts up. Voting was not done based on the impressive advertisements on newspapers. Not on empty promises.

Voting was done to send a message. Loud and clear. And it was done!

***
Nett nett, it is a good wake up call. Most Malaysians are worried - wow, change of government. To be honest, most countries - Australia, UK, USA, change governments every so often. This is indeed a big step forward for Malaysia. I dare say - this is something Singaporeans have yet to achieve. A level of maturity equivalent to developed countries. This is truly Malaysia Boleh!

If it is not for last minute, nothing gets done

It is now 8.00am Malaysian time. My flight is in about 14 hours from now. I am right here, sitting in the office, updating my blog and my suitcase is still empty. Officially, I finish work at 5.30pm, so, I suppose I will have to sneak hope early to pack.

Germany is rather cold now, but I sure hope it is not snowing. That would not be fun. Yet to locate my gloves, I am taking it a long, just in case. The biggest dilemma is to decide what to take and what not to take. I prefer to travel with absolute minimum items from home. Only one or two pairs of shoes - best if they are fairly old shoes, that I could discard before returning home. Why? I need the space to do my shopping! I've discarded at least 4 pair of shoes while travelling - after purchasing a new pair that is. Oh, I am a guy, but I do some shopping for myself and for my dear sister.

In need badly of a new wallet, perhaps a new pair of shoes. Speaking of shoes. I could remember a trip to San Francisco. I had to purchase a new pair of shoes before travelling (bad timing for that trip, the old pair could not survive just for one more trip!). I got myself a Hush Puppy, for about RM 380 - which is rather expensive in Malaysia. Sadly, I threw it away after one trip - the soles were so thin. It is not comfortable at all and it was such a pain. I prefer European, American and Australian shoes, nothing too expensive (at most USD 120 a pair) and yet, so comfortable. So, to all the Malaysians travelling overseas - do consider getting shoes!

I will still have to print out some documents for my business meetings. Last night, I had a brilliant idea. Instead of just printing marketing stuff for Nible2, I have to print out some marketing stuff for myself. Yes, you got it right, my resume! As the saying goes, if you get lemons, make lemonade.

Cannot help but to wonder who will be the fellow passenger next to me tonight. I do not expect a sexy supermodel (like ChillyLady), but hey, at least someone who's not annoying. I have had my fair share of drama on flights - kids, mothers with kids, families yelling at each other, air sick passengers and once, a medical situation just a few seats away. The best of the lot was a Malaysian guy next to me on business class from Mumbai to Kuala Lumpur. When he sat next to me, he told me how much he was looking forward to enjoy all the liquor and the wine. He was pretty much boasting about his alcohol consumption. Was I worried flying with a drunk? Heck no. The next I knew, he was fast asleep and snoring! Didn't mind that chap at all.

More updates on my trip later. Got to pay some bills before I get stuck with work.

Short Restaurant Reviews

Here are a couple of short reviews on restaurants:

Yesterday nite, I was in The Gardens, Mid Valley with H. No no, no sex. Just some good food a a movie - Charlie Wilson's War. Ok, it is the wrong subject, but what the heck, this is my personal blog.

The cinema, which I have been to a couple of times, GSC at The Gardens is indeed a very lovely cinema. Only with Premier and Gold Class. Worth the extra money, no queues and yeah, I get to hug H. The seats are great. Lots of food too, which one can order and they will deliver it to the seats. Only complaint - GSC, please note, - the place is freezing. Good excuse to hug a gal! Then again, I don't need excuses for hugging H. Sadly, business isn't too good, still very empty. I don't think GSC is doing enough promotion. How about free upgrades for some customers at GSC Mid Valley? Just like airlines, travellers do get free upgrades.

The movie, well, rather meaningful. But censorship was heavy. No good. All in all, I would only rate it about 6 out of 10. It is based on real life, on how the USA supported Afghans and in the screwed up the end game. The supported the Afghans during the war against Russia. When Russia left, the Afghans were abandoned. Well, the results are clear - look at Afghanistan today. Terrorrist, narcotics and largely poor.

Back to food, dinner with H was at Gurney Drive, The Gardens. BTW, The Gardens is part of Mid Valley, Kuala Lumpur. Gurney Drive offers various Penang 'street food' or hawker food. We had a 'mee suah' ( a noodle in hot soup, with chicken and chinese herbs), one 'fried kuay teow', and satay. Food wise, it was great! Smelt good, tasted good but being typical Malaysian food - not the most healthy. Price wise, I would say it is a bit expensive for hawker food, but the ambience is great. I would term it as a high class collection of hawker food. Will I return - definately. Out of 10, I would give it a 7.5. Worth a visit!

Above - mee goreng mamak at Gurney Drive. And the delicious satay, below!

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Was doing my filing and I saw a receipt from my trip to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah a few months ago. I was there with H, and we did put the bed to good use, to say the least. It's a good place to be on holidays. Back to my restaurant review, one of the best seafood has to be the restaurant on Manukan Island. Manukan Island is in the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine park, a protected area. Great place for the sea, snorkling, etc. I would prefer to dine, as usual. Took H there mid day, by speed boat - which was a fun ride! The restaurant there served the best seafood and it was definately worth every cent. No rip off! We had prawns, satay, crabs, fish and squid. All for about RM 100 only, including drinks! Value for money, great food, outdoor dining by the sea! Out of 10, definately a score of 9. Good service too!

Manukan Island - the beach!

For travellers to Kota Kinabalu (KK), Manukan Island is a good place to stay - only down side is, water supply is short. With the exception of drinking water, all is salty. But hey, I don't mind. It's fun and we do not get that often!

In KK, there are tonnes of over-rated, expensive, rip-off seafood restaurant. How to spot them? If they are in a nice place with a huge neon sign, well, that's the first sign (no pun intended). A good place to eat is at the Kedai Kopi Fatt Kee. It's on the ground floor, Number 28, Jalan Bakau, Jalan Pantai intersection, KK. It is a typical chinese restaurant. Lots of good food, fairly healthy (not a lot of oil). We had a fish - deep fried, sweet and sour prawns, one claypot tauhu and a vegetable. Food was delicious. Too much to eat (we had to rest a bit before we started our sexercise). The bill - oh, RM 48.83 - which works out to be 10 euros or about USD 15 - for two. No tips required. Rating - 7 out of 10. And yes, I will definately be back there when I am in KK!



This is sabah. A very nice place to be. Still natural. At night, fire flies are aplenty.


And here, a picture of sexy H. Hmmmm... don't I miss her. She's not on the menu!
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Paddington House of Pancakes - I was there with H about 4 weeks ago. We were walking around, wondering what to have for brunch. Not the typical American style pancakes - where they load you with a stack of no less than 6 pancakes - and good grief, they taste good but I can never finish half of it! We had a Tenderloin, a Tuscany salad and H took a Ham and Cheese Crep. Food is fantastic. A wide variety on the menu. Serves are just nice - not too large, not too small. Don't want to over-eat! Very tasty. I would summarize it as a refreshing change. Something different. Something for every taste bud. Definately will return to try other offerings on the menu. Costs only about RM 100. Very reasonable. Rating - about 6.9 out of 10. All in all, one of the better places to dine (for Western food) at Mid Valley or The Gardens. I have to say - service was only reasonably good. I would rate service at no more than 5 out of 10.