First Spaceport Is Ready

You have heard of airport but what about a spaceport.

The world's first commercial spaceport is being built in near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico state and it has been named Spaceport America. It's owned by the state, built at a cost of US$198 million and it's runway is about two miles long.

Yes, that's the name of the place where the spaceport is located haha.

As of now, the only people that have gone up to space at this point of time are the astronauts and the too wealthy cum whom you know people.

But with this spaceport being made available, the reality of flying up to the space is becoming a dream come true for those who has it. Has what? You must be loaded as well as it won't come any cheaper just to have a seat on a 'spaceship' of such nature.

Of course, you need a spacecraft to fly you up from the spaceport too. A company that is eagerly waiting to launch their spaceship? spacecraft? spaceflight? whatever you call it is Virgin Galatic ("VG"). VG, a space tourism company, will be obtaining their spacecrafts from the Spaceship Company ("SC"), partly owned by the Virgin Group, which has been testing their spacecraft since 2004.

SC's spacecraft by the name of SpaceshipTwo is undergoing massive rocket testings to prepare for its maiden flight in nine to eighteen months' time.

VG will be the main anchor tenant at Spaceport America.

The person linked to all this space ventures is none other than Sir Richard Branson.

If you are really keen to be part of this historic space trip, you can register your name with SpaceShipTwo. In order to fly, you have to make a deposit with them. Of course, otherwise any Tom, Dick and Harry will be applying for it and not turning up on that day itself.

Although it's becoming a reality, it will only be a dream come true for the millionaires around the world. According to Forbes, there are about 10 million, I'm referring to the US$1 million cash, millionaires in the world today.

Hmmmmm that's a large market but if not wrong, a lot of them are quite old and not fit to board such flight. I don't mind becoming a proxy to fly on your behalf.

Related post - The Spaceship Company
Tags: Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, Spaceport America, Virgin Galatic,  Spaceship Company, Virgin Group, SpaceShipTwo, Sir Richard Branson

Complete & Finished

People say there is no difference between COMPLETE & FINISHED....

But there is.

When you marry the right one, you are COMPLETE...

And when you marry the wrong one, you are FINISHED.....

And when the right one catches you with the wrong one, you

are...

COMPLETELY FINISHED !!!!!!!!!
Tags: Funny, Humour, Complete, Finished

Everything Is Getting Less

Our communication - Wireless

Our phones - Cordless

Our cooking - Flameless

Our food - Fatless

Our desserts - Sugarless

Our labour - Effortless

Our relations - Fruitless

Our attitude - Careless

Our feelings - Heartless

Our politicians - Shameless

Our government - Useless

Our education - Thoughtless

Our mistakes - Countless

Our arguments - Baseless

Our youth - Jobless

Our boss - Brainless

Our needs - Endless

Our situation - Hopeless

Our salaries - Getting Worthless
Tags: Less, Lesser, Humour, Funny

Lesser Payouts For Your Big Small Lotteries

Looks like the economy is hitting Malaysia deep in the pocket, not only of the general public but corporate giants as well.

Cash loaded companies that are into the lottery business are reducing the payouts for the winners' purse effective 15 December 2010. No Christmas bonuses for you.

Not one company but three had obtained approval from the Ministry of Finance. It looks like your RM1 is worthed lesser now.

The Sports Toto-4 Digit Big Game, Sarawak Turf and Equestrian Club-1+3 Digit Big Game and Magnum-4 Digit Big Game are the usual big timers in the local scene's lottery game. Will this affect the players' decision in reducing their betting stakes or stopping eventually? Don't think so.

People who have been buying will continue to harbour the hope of becoming richer or even becoming a multi-millionaire. I know of a person who will somehow hit top prizes a few times in a year and I have heard of people who have not hit any single prizes at all.

There was this funny part where a friend was reading the back pages of the newspaper, apparently looking at the lotteries' results. Out of a sudden, he gave a loud shrieked and shouted "Aiyoh, my car registration number came out as the top prize". I took a look at the newspaper and indeed it was.

So, I asked him "Which number did you buy this time or you reversed your registration number instead?"
His response "That's the thing, I didn't buy this time!"

Some people are like that. What are you complaining about when you didn't do it? I thought he bought other numbers at higher stakes and eventually not a single dollar was placed. Talk about complaining.

Wasting my time talking to him about it ........ kept on mumbling on the wasted chance lah, this lah, that lah, if lah, should have lah. Anyway, wasted actually otherwise the meal that we were having would have been on him.

Hello friend, thinking about it, you should have bought it lah! If you have bought it I would have gotten a free meal.

Reading: BToto, BAssets, Magnum get MoF nod to reduce prize pay-outs - The Edge
Tags: Lottery, Betting, 4 Ekor, 4D, Sports Toto, Big Small, Berjaya Toto, Magnum, Sarawak Turf and Equestrian Club

Recognised Sexy Structure In Malaysia

Malaysia has one structure that has been recognised as one of the Top 10 sexiest buildings in the world and that is our Penang Bridge. The informal selection was made by members and editors in travel website VirtualTourist.com's forum.

The Penang Bridge came out as number nine in the listing. The other chosen sexy buildings are as follows:-
1) Quadracci Pavilion, Milwaukee Museum of Modern Art; Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Its description lies somewhere between a glorious yacht, a graceful dove, and a modern dancer. Be sure to catch the Pavilion's Burke Brise Soleil at the beginning and end of the day when its wings open and close.

2) Absolute World Towers; Mississauga, Canada
The supermodel of modern architecture, the twisting Mississauga towers have probably grown tired of hearing the compliments.

3) Sonneveld House; Rotterdam, The Netherlands
The strong, silent type, Sonneveld House was way ahead of its time when it was built in the early 30s. Aside from its clean lines and modernist design, the home also contained a bell system to contact household help, telephone system, and highly daring color combinations.

4) Casa Batlló; Barcelona, Spain
Gaudi's curvy masterpiece is made all the more amazing when one realizes this sensuous building was completed over 100 years ago.

5) Sydney Opera House; Sydney, Australia
It was opened in the era of polyester and bad hair but this structure has always been timeless.

6) Millau Viaduct (Viaduc de Millau); Millau, France
In a land where beauty is everywhere, the competition for the sexy title is fierce. Simple but stunning, this structure's clean lines and an intimidating scale only add its undeniable magnetism.

7) Zwinger; Dresden, Germany
The oldest building on our list, Zwinger, which was heavily influenced by Versailles, was all but destroyed in the Second World War. Painstakingly restored, it was the building's power, imposing facade, and largesse that put it on our list.

8) Walt Disney Concert Hall; Los Angeles, California
Now that the controversy has died down Angelenos can't imagine their city without the shimmering panels that gleam like diamonds in the strong California sun. The building is especially vibrant now that its dazzling and vivacious new music director, Gustavo Dudamel, has taken the reigns.

9) Penang Bridge; Malaysia
As slinky as a screen siren, this particular choice is almost more sculpture than bridge. Slithering across the water to connect the island of Penang with the Malaysian mainland, the bridge is also known for its annual marathon.

10) Fallingwater; Mill Run, Pennsylvania
Having been featured on the cover of no less than Time magazine, Fallingwater remains just as mythic and legendary as its creator, the iconic Frank Lloyd Wright. Built for the Kaufman family of Kaufman's department store, the gutsy house is situated on top of a waterfall, not merely with a view of it as the family first anticipated.

I have seen items 5 and 9 only. Loooooooong way to go in my travelling. How come buildings in Istanbul were not favoured?

(The above had been extracted from Reuters Life)
Tags: Quadracci Pavilion, Absolute World Towers, Sonneveld House, Casa Batlló, Sydney Opera House, Millau Viaduct, Zwinger, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Penang Bridge, Fallingwater

Malaysian Brains in Melbourne

Extracted from Anilnetto.com

Happened in Melbourne, Australia.

10 Nov 2010
1. Arrived early at hospital, so decided to walk down the street to check out an expensive shop by famous Melbourne-based designer. Was pleasantly (but sadly) surprised to learn the ‘local designer’ was a Malaysian whose entire family migrated from Malaysia!

2. Went back to hospital. Was registered by a loud receptionist who was Malaysian whose family migrated from Malaysia!

3. 20-30 minutes wait later, was seen by a specialist (endocrinologist) who studied at Melbourne Uni and then migrated to Melbourne… from Kuala Lumpur! (Oh btw, since this was public hospital, this Malaysian endocrinologist was also teaching/supervising an Australian medical student while she was consulting me).

4. Referred for thyroid biopsy. They booked me in for Monday (only five days later).

15 Nov 2010
Thyroid biopsy wasn’t nice, but the surgeon was very friendly and made me feel assured. I recognised the accent again, so as I did for others above, I asked… The surgeon was from Johor Bahru!!! From my observation of conversations, this ex-Malaysian was obviously senior and well-respected, and was using my procedure to teach an Aussie medical student!

Public hospitals will never be of 5-star luxury, but my 100%-free-of-charge experience thus far has been more than acceptable. But I am very disturbed (!!!) by the series of expert EX-MALAYSIANS treating me in Melbourne! Receptionist, Doctor Surgeon, all Malaysians! What the…!

I’ve heard and ranted about brain drain, but to experience it so real and personally was disturbing…
Tags: Brain Drain, Melbourne, Ex-Malaysian, Endocrinologist, Surgeon

Another Port In Danger?

We have seen and read about the RM12.5 billion fiasco that happened with the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) project that was governed by the Port Klang Authority (PKA). Until today, even after the submission of the full audit report by PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services Sdn Bhd, nothing has been unearthed. PKA even placed a maximum two weeks viewing opportunity for the public to read the audit report via their website. Wonder why?

There goes our taxpayers money and we won't get to see the root of the problem unless the people being charged dare to reveal what had happened actually.

All these happened right under the nose of the Ministry of Transportation. It is also partly due to the non-appointment of professionals from the related port industry but people linked with various politicial party. When there is a guy with thirty three years of experience that you can hired / maintain to obtain his professional input / feedback, his contract was not renewed in the end. Why?

Now, the Ministry of Transport has decided to try their luck again at another port. This time it is with the Penang Port Commission (PPC).

PPC's chairmanship is now being helmed by the former Minister of Health, Dr. Chua Soi Lek. What does a medical doctor knows about managing a port? This is really absurd. It doesn't matter whether the chairman comes from Penang or other part of Malaysia, just as long as he/she is a reputable and capable of managing a port authority.

PPC's role of being a regulatory authority is similar with PKA. What PKA has done is totally unchecked even though it was under the ministry which reports to the cabinet. What is in PPC's plans in days to come?

Rumour is abound that a local tycoon is in the midst of buying up Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) of which the operations of the port and ferry services were privatised to PPSB. PPSB is under the purview of the Ministry of Finance. See how complicated it is with our government's method of running the country's transportation business. Is PPC going to disapprove this idea or planning to smoothen the sale of PPSB to this local tycoon?

Why sell to this local tycoon only and why not at an open tender? The Penang state government has now indicated their interest to acquire PPSB from the federal government. Will the federal government listen to this state government offer or will proceed with a sale at a much lower price to the well connected local tycoon?

We wait and see.
Tags: Port Klang Free Zone, PKFZ, Port Klang Authority, PKA, Penang Port Commission, Penang Port Sdn Bhd, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Finance

Wall Street Modus Operandi?

If you have difficulty understanding the current world financial situation, the following should help ...

Once upon a time in a village in India, a man announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10.

The villagers seeing there were many monkeys around, went out to the forest and started catching them.

The man bought thousands at $10, but, as the supply started to diminish, the villagers stopped their efforts. The man further announced that he would now buy at $20. This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again.

Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms. The offer rate increased to $25 and the supply of monkeys became so little that it was an effort to even see a monkey, let alone catch it!

The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at $50! However, since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would now act as buyer, on his behalf.

In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers: 'Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at $35 and when he returns from the city, you can sell them back to him for $50.'

The villagers squeezed together their savings and bought all the monkeys.

Then they never saw the man or his assistant again, only monkeys everywhere! Welcome to Wall Street.
Tags: Wall Street, Humour, Funny, Monkey, Villagers

Is Your Earning Above The Poverty Line?

The government has regarded that a person could be living in poverty if his/her monthly earning is less than RM720.

And the sad part is, even acknowledged by the Ministry of Human Resources, about 34% of Malaysian employees are earning below the poverty figure of RM720. This group of people are estimated to be earning less than RM700 per month.

Can I say that, unfortunately, the government has greater plans for a 100 storey building and massive annual budget of around RM4 billion to beef up our defence (who are we going against?) instead.

What we are seeing here is that our nation has at least 34% of its population living in poverty. That's a big number. Officially, our population is 28.25 million and this works out to about 9.6 million Malaysians are in poverty. So, every three Malaysians you see on the street, one of them is living under poverty.

If Malaysia's labour force is estimated to be 11.561 million as at Sept 2010, it means to say that only 1.956 million of the labour force are paid above RM700 per month. Of this 1.956 million labour force, how many of them are earning less than RM3,000 per month, where it is also considered as low income.

That's a huge population for the government to push us up to become a high income nation. I know we can but when?

With huge leaks happening in all ministries, government departments and agencies and even at private entities level, all I can say is that a lot of prayers are required for this nation's leaders to buck up and many to be shipped out.

With this going on, the Talent Corporation that has been set up to retain Malaysian talents (in order for them not to think about emigrating overseas) and to encourage the return of many Malaysians who have been working overseas to our nation, all efforts will go down the drain for sure. I wonder how much has been paid to "consultants" who have been advising the relevant government departments on those marvellous ideas.

Just on Wednesday morning, a chief invigilator for the SPM examination in announced loudly telling the chinese and indians students to go back to their motherland of China and India when she can't control them. You call that a smart idea to keep the school going kids quiet? Why are we seeing such people coming from the teaching profession? That's because the government is not firm and not doing anything about it as it's being repeated again and again by many government servants.

That's the by-product of the current government's attitude towards the public. On one hand you have plans for retaining and wooing Malaysians plus the grand Economic Transformation Programme to be achieved by year 2020 but sadly on the other hand, nothing is done to ensure all government staff or even the public are buying the idea. Not to say it can't be done but so many things have to be undone first before the intended can be done.

Are we really for it (as in high income nation) or just no action talk only (NATO)?
Tags: Poverty Line, Labour Force, Talent Corporation, Low Income, High Income Nation, Economic Transformation Programme

Scandals Involving World Cups 2018 & 2022

In my blogpost of 18 May 2010 entitled "Is World Cup 2010 Fixed?", I have read elsewhere and put it that the World Cup 2010 could be fixed and that Spain will advance all the way to the finals. Exactly what was being predicted and Spain won eventually!

Recently, the Sunday Times reporters went undercover and approached a number of FIFA committee members to gain advantage for a certain country (the reporters assumed the representation for USA) in the upcoming voting day on 2 December 2010 for the right to host the World Cup 2018 and World Cup 2022.

Unfortunately, the undercover reporters secretly recorded two of the conversations and I think FIFA's top officials are in a daze in handling this awkward situation.

Al Jazeera news clip for your viewing on the reported scam -


Two of those recorded conversations involved Amos Adamu of Nigeria and Reynald Temarii of Tahiti. It has been shown that both of them are willing to 'sell' their votes in return for some financial rewards.

Amos personally requested for £500,000 and Reynald requested for £1.5 million but to benefit a sports academy. Both have been suspended by FIFA for 3 years and 1 year respectivelt coupled with a fine of 10,000 Swiss Francs and 5,000 Swiss Francs accordingly. Suspension only? I would have kicked them out indefinitely as there was hard rock evidence.

The best part is Temarii has told the undercover reporters that two other bidding countries have approached him too withto figures of between £10 million to £12 million. Now, who could be the other two countries??????

In other words, there are lots of lobbyists out there hunting down those FIFA executive committee members (22 of them to be precise but minus 2 now) who have the voting rights right now up to 2 December 2010. The right to host the World Cup will involve billions of dollars and the spin-offs it could create in a particular country's economy during the World Cup month. What is £10 million compared to the billions to come?

I thought all this vote buying scandals happen during political elections but it's really a disease that even football is not spared.

FIFA has suspended four more officials after their names have been named in Sunday Times' investigation of the scandal. They are as follows:-
1. Slim Aloulou - FIFA dispute resolution chamber (suspended 2 yrs; fined £6,300)
2. Ahongalu Fusimalohi - General Secretary of Tonga Football Association (suspended3 yrs; fined £6,300)
3. Amadou Diakite - FIFA referees committee (suspended 3 yrs; fined £6,300)
4. Ismail Bhamjee - Honorary member of Confederation of African Football (suspended 4yrs; fined £6,300)

Another two persons named are former FIFA executives, namely Michel Zen-Ruffinen (former FIFA General Secretary) and Michel Bacchini (former FIFA tournament director) where punishments would be meted out in due course. These two fellas' crime were that they were able to tell the undercover reporters who amongst the 22 FIFA executive committee members that could be approached.
All these fellas are holding influential positions and they could have manipulated previous World Cups without us knowing.
Now, you tell me who's gonna win the bid to host the two World Cups? Russia has been rumoured to host the World Cup 2018 since May 2010, before the start of the World Cup 2010.

Who are the bidders for the World Cup 2018?
1. Belgium & Netherlands
2. England
3. Russia
4. Portugal & Spain

Who are the bidders for the World Cup 2022?
1. Australia
2. Japan
3. Qatar
4. South Korea
5. United States

You just never know that they may as well decide who will win the World Cup 2014 to be held in Brazil. Your guess is as good as mine.

Related post - Is World Cup 2010 Fixed?
Tags: Football, Soccer, World Cup 2018, World Cup 2022, FIFA, Sunday Times, Amos Adamu, Reynald Temarii, Voting Scandal, Bribery, World Cup Votes, FIFA Suspension

Time To Buy A House Without Downpayment?

In the recent 2011 budget as tabled by the prime minister, the public (applicable to first time house buyers only) will be able to purchase houses valued at RM220,000 and below without putting up downpayment for it and will be able to obtain a 100% housing loan for the full purchase price.

Another condition to be met is that the household income must be less than RM3,000 or less. I presume that whoever is (be it individual or joint applicants) applying for the housing loan must not be commanding a total gross income of more than RM3,000 per month.

Let's do some calculations here with the above assumptions.

The current base lending rate is 6.3% ("BLR"). Some banks are currently fighting each other for customers by offering good housing loan packages where some offered BLR minus 2.2% (or even more) with zero entry cost (with no other cost involved). Say:-

*Housing loan of RM100,000 at BLR minus 2.2% for 20 yrs; monthly payment of RM612
*Housing loan of RM160,000 at BLR minus 2.2% for 20 yrs; monthly payment of RM979
*Housing loan of RM220,000 at BLR minus 2.2% for 20 yrs; monthly payment of RM1,346

There could be a few obstacles along the way.

You must bear in mind that a bank may only grant you the housing loan provided that your total loan with any other banks do not exceed 30% - 40% of your monthly gross income. So, at an income level of RM3,000 you may not even qualify for a house that cost RM220,000 as the monthly payment would have exceeded the 40% threshold level unless the bank sees you fit to take up the housing loan. You may have to extend the loan tenure instead. Yeah, be a slave to the bank for a longer period.

Not forgetting that a salary of RM3,000 may have a nett take home pay of RM2,500 only after deducting your EPF, SOCSO and taxes. I have blogged about "Salary of RM3,000 Is Considered Low Income" and to survive on RM3,000 is not easy unless you sacrifice lots of stuff.

What do you have to sacrifice or what are the stuff that you may not be able to enjoy if you take up either one of the abovesaid housing loan calculation? You may just have to read this blogpost of mine that is quite factual in a comical sense- "How to Survive With Your Salary?"

Now, if you are having a nett take home pay of RM2,500 and your housing loan monthly payment is RM1,346, it means to say that you have a balance of RM1,154 to pay for the remaining expenses of yours. What about savings for your any emergency cases?

Therefore, the idea as proposed in the budget is not beneficial to the public at all. At the surface, it sounded so nice "No downpayment for houses costing RM220,000 and below". After computing the actual figures, those fellas who take up such loans will just have to scrape through in their life. Of course, the above are based on assumptions and you may suffer in the initial first few years upon obtaining that housing loan. The question is "Can you manage?".

The government is just proposing something which you may have to weigh it for yourself in the end. If you were not careful in your financial planning, this budget proposal is actually going to cause bankruptcy or financial burden to many people.
Tags: Bankruptcy, Financial Burden, Housing Loan, Base Lending Rate

Contract Law In Malaysia

Legal issue on Contract Law in Malaysia - good for us to know.

This is something I like to share with you from one of the seminars conducted recently. Please do circulate this blogpost if you find this informative. It was conducted by A/P Catherine Tay on Legal Issues in E-commerce.

Notice that most of the time, the receipt / invoice you received from the merchant carries this exclusion clause or similarly worded statement: "Goods sold are not returnable" or "No refund once sold".

The thing that I have learnt from her is that as long as your good is purchased for HOME USE and not for business (i.e. to be resold), the above exclusion clause is VOID.

That means, as long as the good is defective, regardless of what is worded, you CAN get back all your money spent. You do not have to accept a repair on the good or an exchange. You CAN ask for a refund. AND you are LEGALLY right and entitled to! What a relevation!!

And most of the time the merchant will refuse to return you your money.

Her advice? From her own experience (and no less than 7 and all successful), she will threaten the merchant with four words: "SEE YOU IN COURT!"

The court here refers to the Small Claims Tribunal Court.

However, you don't have to tell them what court! All you have to pay is RM10.00 admin fee and the loser (the merchant) will have to refund you the money PLUS the admin fee!

She shared this with us because she felt that even educated people are cowed by such unfair wordings (which includes her jaded friends who are not lawyers).

Please try not to let the merchant fleece you the next time you have a defective good.

I know where to file this. On the 16th floor of Putra Place (the mall opposite Putra World Trade Centre). The form cost RM5.00. The Tribunal will settle within 2 months period.

Tribunal Tuntutan Pengguna Malaysia ("TTPM")
Tingkat 16, Putra Place
100, Jalan Putra
50622 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-40492300 / 40424181
Fax: 03-40424259
Tags: Contract Law, Tribunal Tuntutan Pengguna Malaysia, TTPM, Small Claims Tribunal Court, Putra Place

Is Language Important?

Going about in my daily work and we saw this signboard.
The signboard has already mentioned that it's the wrong (salah) langues school for you to attend. Don't say that you have not been warned. Salah means wrong in the malay language, Malaysia's national language.

Anyway, they should have standardised the proper language. Langues is a french word for languages but then they should have used école (in langue française) instead of the word school. Well, this is a language school, not a grammar school.

To improve on your grammar, you would have to attend another school as highlighted in my previous blogpost.
Tags: Language School, Grammar School, French Language, Langue Française

Malaysian Talent in Food

My mom has been a good cook for the family when we were still young. She's retired now and we don't cook dinner during the weekdays lately as we order home cooked dishes from another family. Saves time.

My mom do agree that somehow men are seen to be the best cook around as you seldom see top chefs in hotels helmed by ladies. Moreover, TV shows seldom show a lady being a top chef either. Maybe we haven't caught the right show that shows a lady top chef yet.

However, there are two Malaysian guys who have made it into the top listing of well known restaurants now. Their restaurants have been listed in the Michelin Guide which is based in France. It's really a coveted honour for a restaurant to be listed in the Michelin Guide which is the Who's Who in the food / cuisine industry.

The first Malaysian-owned restaurant to have gained that honour is Kai Mayfair restaurant, operated by Bernard Yeoh with its head chef being Alex Chow, in London. His restaurant earned the highly rated Michelin star (only a maximum of three stars are awarded to each restaurant) back in 2009. His restaurant has been recognised again in the Michelin Guide Great Britain 2010.

Kai Mayfair is basically a chinese restaurant and Bernard Yeoh's wish is to offer something different in the Cantonese dishes which will also enable the public to have a better culinary understanding of a variety of chinese dishes.

Besides the Michelin Guide star rating, Kai Mayfair was voted the Best Chinese Restaurant in London by Harden’s Restaurant Guide (Britain) in 2009. From 2002 to 2005, Kai Mayfair was recognised as the Best Chinese Restaurant in Britain in a survey organised by Zagat Survey.

The second Malaysian-owned restaurant to have earned this prestigious rating is based in New York itself. The owner, Michael Bong and wife Kathy, operates the Laut restaurant since 2008. The restaurant has been listed in the Michelin Guide New York City 2011. Both of these owners are chefs themselves.

The restaurant serves Malaysia's staple food, favourite dishes from Malacca and Thai dishes as well. You can even order online which you can either pick it up later or have it delivered to your doorstep. Their main aim is to expose the Americans to the nation of Malaysia and its unique cuisine.

The owners own a Japanese restaurant by the name of Mizu Sushi which is also located in New York. In recognition of Michael Bong's efforts, he was awarded the Master Chef award by the Governor of Malacca last year.

It's not easy to obtain the Michelin Guide's recognition as the Food Inspector will come in unnoticed or as a spy. Not only that, you have to monitor your food quality, ambience, service, etec in order to maintain the star rating for the following year. Just when I thought food industry was easy.

If you so happend to be in London or New York, don't miss the chance of meeting up with these Malaysians owners in the two said restaurants.

Reading: AsiaOne and Star articles on the above restaurants
Tags: Bernard Yeoh, Alex Chow, Kai Mayfair, London, Michael Bong, Kathy Bong, Laut, Mizu Sushi, New York, Michelin Guide, Chef, Cook, Malaysian Cuisine, Malaysian Dishes, Malaysian Restaurant, Chinese Restaurant

Is Grammar or Spelling More Important?

Noticed the signboard as below while on the road. It was an advertising signboard for a grammar school. My colleague commented this - "For grammar, you can register at this school but for spelling, I think you better register at another school."

Didn't get the picture?

Won't be listing down the name of the school in this blogpost. A picture is more powerful than a thousand words.

Reason being, I was traced via my blog when I posted a funny comment about the name of a business entity that existed in Sudan here. That company's legal personnel actually emailed me where he requested me to delete the name of their company (based in Turkey) from my blogpost or face a legal letter.

Not that the company was well known but how in the world did they bumped into my blog (of course I didn't ask how they found my blog).
Tags: Grammar School, English School, Spelling

Yemeni Dish in Sudan

Went hunting for lunch and we thought of a Yemeni dish.










Their cooking method is unique where they will put the briyani rice, lamband chicken meat into a pot.

Thereafter, it will lowered down into an underground oven. A steel lid will then cover the hole and the dishes would be "cooked" for the next three hours to get the perfect taste.









The mixture of lamb and chicken meat on a trolley.











Up come the briyani rice.
















The aroma of the briyani rice was superb.















This was another oven that was being prepared to cook the next batch of meat.

They use traditional method - burning wood it is.












We ordered a tray of briyani rice with lamb meat for three persons.

The greeny stuff on the next tray is actually chilli. You take a bite of the fresh chilli if you want some spicy taste.










The lamb meat was really excellent as it's so tender.

The briyani rice is very soft and it will melt immediately in your mouth.







Got the owner to take this picture the second time but still blur. Never mind lah.

The owner joked with us that we are not supposed to open this kind of restaurant back in Malaysia, after taking all these pictures of his shop, without having him as a partner.



This lunch was so heavy. Burped two hours later and I could still feel the same aroma. Fantastic meal indeed.
Tags: Briyani Rice, Lamb, Chicken, Yemeni Dish

Hotel Guests Thrown Out

Nowadays, people are recording their experiences or events on the spot at well known websites such as facebook, blogs, related websites or even twit about it.

There was this couple who was travelling in Blackpool, England and they checked into Golden Beach Hotel located at New South Promenade. This couple wasn't happy with the hotel's service and wrote some negative review in TripAdvisor. This is a website where you get to read lots of personal reviews on worldwide hotels by hotel guests from all walks of life.

When you key in "The Golden Beach Hotel" in TripAdvisor's United Kingdom's category, you can read the reviews on this particular hotel. Out of 166 reviews, 60% of the hotel guests who had been there do not recommend this hotel. Wow, that's a really bad review. Not surprising for this couple to have done the same.

Lo and behold, the hotel manager somehow got to know about that negative remarks and decided to kick the couple out of the hotel immediately.

This couple had just stayed for one in their 3 days / 2 nights package and was not offered any refund then. The hotel manager called the police and requested the couple to move out accordingly.

Does a hotel has the right to kick their hotel guests out on the spot? If you had been creating disturbances that have affected other hotel guests and kept doing it even after warnings then I would understand the kicking out process. But kicked out due to some online remarks?

Moral of the story - don't post your review when you are still using their facilities. Take the necessary pictures, jot down the bad event(s) and then post it after your holidays or events.

Reading: Man thrown out of hotel for writing review - The Gazette
Tags: The Golden Beach Hotel, New South Promenade, Blackpool, England, TripAdvisor, Hotel Review

So What If I'm Wrong

Something is really wrong with our system in Malaysia. Imagine if you are caught doing something bad which is very wrong in the eyes of many people, you can still go scot free.

This is as far as I can tell from what I have read so far lately:-

Sex-drugs teacher who sold stimulants transferred to another school
Can you believe that the disciplinary teacher himself was caught selling sex enhancement products that included drugs, gels and pills. And his punishment after being reported was just being transferred to another school located somewhere else.

Why transfer him?

So that he can continue his side business in another school?


10 Pahang cops probed over syabu theft
The court has released 10 policemen for being suspects in the 40kg of syabu theft. The syabu drug was kept in the police station and it can disappear just like that.

The 10 policemen had their pay increment and promotion frozen only.

Why no arrest?

Who else to arrest the policemen?


Syndicates threaten new Port Klang Immigration officers
20 new immigration officers were threatened by syndicates (as believed by the government) when their motor vehicles were damaged maybe in retaliation for the transfer of some officers out from the Port Klang base.

A few officers were arrested earlier as they were believed to be involved in the smuggling of humans .......tsk tsk. Is this where the Indonesians are entering Malaysia illegally?


Officers in cahoots with illegal traders to be weeded out
A wildlife department director was transferred from Penang to another state. But will this action weed out illegal wildlife traders? What's the root cause?

Why transfer him?

So that he can allow the wildlife animals to be traded in another state?


These employers are really lenient.
Tags: Sex Drug Teacher, Sex Enhancement, Syabu Theft, Illegal Wildlife Trader, Immigration Officer

Bomb Threat in Mid Air

Imagine that you hear this over the plane's annoucement while still airborne in the air:-

"This is your captain speaking, we have just received a message from the ground and we thought that the passengers should be made aware of it too. Please don't be startled by what I'm going to tell you. We wish to remind all passengers to remain in their seat and my crew will certainly address all issues as much as we can.

The air traffic controller in Singapore has informed us that our plane may be carrying a bomb as an anonymous caller has identified our plane to the authorities.

We are looking to land at the nearest airport and we assure you of our best efforts in ensuring that you will land safely."

This may not be the exact words from the captain as different airlines may have standard wordings to mention when faced with different circumstances. But a message of such magnitude, passengers will definitely freak out no matter how carefully and softly it was presented.

If I was inside the plane, the thoughts of your family members and loved ones will come across your mind.

If you come from a religious background, you will tend to pray for journey mercy so that your plane will land safely.

I wonder if any passenger from that Singapore Airlines SQ61 plane, on the Houston-Moscow-Singapore sector, who may have twit, fb or even blog about what had happened inside the plane. Or were the passengers kept in the dark about a bomb threat throughout the journey till they landed safely?

If the message was brought to the attention of the passengers, I wonder were they informed of which airport that they are landing.

At first, the nearest airport was in Delhi, where the runway could fit the size of a
Boeing 777-300 ER. But the Delhi air traffic disallowed their landing and the pilots were forced to look for an alternative.

Reason for being disallowed - the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games were in progress. What?

You mean to say the lives of 225 passengers and 39 crew on board were not important that they should receive immediate rescue despite a bomb threat being lodged. What is this air traffic controllers in Delhi are thinking about? They are so worried that if a plane was to explode at their airport, it will give India a bad name or that it will threaten the peaceful atmosphere of Delhi that is hosting an international event. This is really too much.

The plane was forced to look for an alternative landing spot and it was Kolkata, an airport which was three hours away. Wow, I really want to know what was the passengers' reactions if they had actually been informed of the bomb threat earlier (while nearby Delhi) and having to sit on a ticking time bomb for another three hours before you can be saved.

I would say that this air traffic practise is totally wrong. The people in those air traffic controls could have made a major mistake and the "victims" families would have lost a family member for a reason that is so ridiculous.

Thank God it was a hoax but it should have been taken seriously.

Reading: Flight 3 hours in air despite bomb alert - The Times of India
Tags: Singapore Airlines, SQ61, Air Passengers, Airplane Bomb Threat, Delhi, Kolkata

Free Gifts At Petrol Stations

I guess the blogpost title would have gotten your attention to click and read this blogpost.

Yes, there are free gifts indeed but it doesn't come that free after all. You should know by now that nothing comes free nowadays.

A local petroleum company has issued a circular to all of its petrol station operators / dealers in Malaysia warning all petrol station operators to be aware of such syndicates that are offering free gifts to motor vehicle owners while they are busy filling up their motor vehicles at the petrol pump areas.

The syndicates will have their ways / methods and the followings have been identified after some investigations:-

1. Free gifts such as key chains, small sized dolls, flipflops, etc. will be offered to motor vehicle owners.

2. It was found that such gifts are fitted with a tiny tracking / monitoring device that will emit a signal to the syndicates of your whereabouts just like what we have always seen in the movies. The syndicates will be able to track your house and office easily and monitor your movements before they act devilish i.e. to rob your house (if not what else).

3. Syndicates will move in to offer such free gifts by choosing their targets randomly.

The circular didn't mention the particular time of "attack by syndicates" but I suspect that in order to escape the eyes of the petrol station operators, they may move in during peak period when the petrol station is full of customers / motor vehicles. But who knows, maybe it's also a good time when the petrol station is empty especially from midnight to 6.00 am.

The petrol station operators of this particular petroleum company have been adviced to monitor such activities and to report such activities to the relevant authorities upon confirmed sighting.

Therefore, all Malaysians - please take heed of the warning! This is not a hoax and I wonder why (to my current knowledge) this was not highlighted to the general public by the mainstream media.

Whatever warnings are given, there are still some gullible fellas out there that will fall for these syndicates. Beware!
Tags: Local Petroleum Company, Petrol Station Dealers, Petrol Station Operators, Tracking Device, Monitoring Device, Free Gifts

Unnecessary Payment to Astro?

It was reported in the Star newspapers that a company related to Astro i.e. Measat Broadcast Network Systems Sdn Bhd and another company, Tele System Electronic (M) Sdn Bhd have been sued by AV Asia Sdn Bhd.

Reason for the legal suit brought up by AV Asia - that AV Asia's technology in reducing the existing problem of rain fade (a situation where the satellite transmission suffers interruptions during rain) was somehow used for the benefit of another company i.e. Tele System. Tele System has subsequently produced the satellite dishes purportedly catering for the Astro B.yond's HD channels.

In reading the news article, I saw the following para:-

"AV Asia also alleged that Measat withheld information from its Astro B.yond customers - who bought a new decoder and a new satellite dish for a monthly payment of RM20 to receive HD programmes - that they did not need to install the new dish to receive the programmes."

What did Measat hide from us (the customers)? That we do not require a new dish actually and therefore, the extra RM20 supposedly for the dish and decoder need not be paid?

This is what I want to know being a Astro B.yond customer!
Tags: Astro, Measat Broadcast Network Systems Sdn Bhd, Tele System Electronic (M) Sdn Bhd, AV Asia Sdn Bhd, Rain Fade, Satellite Transmission, Astro B.yond, HD Channels

Office To Monitor Toilet Usage

I have heard of offices monitoring internet usage or the websites that you frequent, the number of coffee or cigarette breaks that you are taking, time spent on reading newspapers in a corner or even the time taken for your lunch hour.

What if your office starts to monitor your toilet usage?

Monitoring is one aspect but if the office was to impose a maximum number of minutes that you are allowed to be in the toilet, what would your reaction be?

It seems that two companies in China are reported to be doing just that. They imposed a maximum 400 minutes of toilet usage per employee per month.

Say, you work 22 days a month and that would be 18 minutes are allowed for each day of work. Would that be sufficient? Pray that you don't get stomach upset during office hours otherwise you could run out of time allocated for that month.

I don't think it's sufficient for me as at times I may take up to 15 minutes for emergency stomach ache. That leaves me 5 minutes for the rest of the day haha.

And if you exceed the allocated 400 minutes per month, you'll be fined as follows:-
1) Between 400 and 449 minutes - formally warned & penalised 1 yuan per minute.
2) Between 450 and 499 minutes - formally warned & penalised 1 yuan per minute and fined 50 yuan.
3) Above 500 minutes - given one major demerit, fined 100 yuan and warned.

I guess most of the ladies may exceed the allocated 400 minutes. Am I correct to say that?

Now, how do they monitor it? They have installed video cameras along the walkway to the toilets and there will be a human behind those monitor screens recording each and everyone's timing for the whole month.

To ensure that the minutes are accounted for, each worker was given a 3G mobile phone to track their whereabouts too. Waaaah, this is too much. No doubt you get a free mobile but I guess your calls are monitored as well. Cheap mobiles in China I supposed.

Do you think it's a good measure to implement this method of ensuring top production by employees?

(Picture sourced from bbs.163.com)
Tags: Toilet Usage, 3G Mobile Phone

Do You Know Where Are You Going To?

Billy Graham is now 91 years old with Parkinson's disease.

In January 2000, leaders in Charlotte, North Carolina, invited their favorite son, Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honor.

Billy initially hesitated to accept the invitation because he struggles with Parkinson's disease. But the Charlotte leaders said, 'We don't expect a major address. Just come and let us honor you.' So he agreed..

After wonderful things were said about him, Dr. Graham stepped to the rostrum, looked at the crowd, and said, 'I'm reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honored by Time magazine as the Man of the Century.

Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of every passenger. When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket. He couldn't find his ticket, so he reached in his trouser pockets. It wasn't there, so he looked in his briefcase but couldn't find it.

Then he looked in the seat beside him. He still couldn't find it. The conductor said, 'Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. We all know who you are. I'm sure you bought a ticket. Don't worry about it.'

Einstein nodded appreciatively. The conductor continued down the aisle punching tickets. As he was ready to move to the next car, he turned around and saw the great physicist down on his hands and knees looking under his seat for his ticket.

The conductor rushed back and said, 'Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don't worry, I know who you are no problem. You don't need a ticket. I'm sure you bought one.'

Einstein looked at him and said, 'Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don't know is where I'm going.'

Having said that Billy Graham continued, 'See the suit I'm wearing? It's a brand new suit. My children, and my grandchildren are telling me I've gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious.

So I went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and one more occasion.

You know what that occasion is? This is the suit in which I'll be buried. But when you hear I'm dead, I don't want you to immediately remember the suit I'm wearing.
I want you to remember this: I not only know who I am ... I also know where I'm going.'

"Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point."
Tags: Billy Graham, Parkinson's Disease, Albert Einstein, Life Without God

The 99 Club

A very apt article depicting the rat race that all of us are involved in our day to day life. Please read and if you happen to be a member of this 'elite club, then quit this club today itself and give an opportunity for happiness and pPeace of mind to enter your life. It is really worth a try.

Once upon a time, there lived a King who, despite his luxurious lifestyle, was neither happy nor content.

One day, the King came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. This fascinated the King; why was he, the Supreme Ruler of the Land, unhappy and gloomy, while a lowly servant had so much joy. The King asked the servant, 'Why are you so happy?'

The man replied, 'Your Majesty, I am nothing but a servant, but my family and I don't need too much - just a roof over our heads and warm food to fill our tummies.'

The king was not satisfied with that reply. Later in the day, he sought the advice of his most trusted advisor.

After hearing the King's woes and the servant's' story, the advisor said, 'Your Majesty, I believe that the servant has not been made part of The 99 Club.'

'The 99 Club? And what exactly is that?' the King inquired.

The advisor replied, 'Your Majesty, to truly know what The 99 Club is, place 99 Gold coins in a bag and leave it at this servant's doorstep.'

When the servant saw the bag, he took it into his house. When he opened the bag, he let out a great shout of joy... So many gold coins!

He began to count them. After several counts, he was at last convinced that there were 99 coins. He wondered, 'What could've happened to that last gold coin? Surely, no one would leave 99 coins!' He looked everywhere he could, but that final coin was elusive. Finally, exhausted he decided that he was going to have to work harder than ever to earn that gold coin and complete his collection.

From that day, the servant's life was changed. He was overworked, horribly grumpy, and castigated his family for not helping him make that 100th gold coin. He stopped singing while he worked.

Witnessing this drastic transformation, the King was puzzled. When he sought his advisor's help, the advisor said, 'Your Majesty, the servant has now officially joined The 99 Club.'

He continued, 'The 99 Club is a name given to those people who have enough to be happy but are never contented, because they're always yearning and striving for that extra 1 saying to themselves: 'Let me get that one final thing and then I will be happy for life.'

We can be happy, even with very little in our lives, but the minute we're given something bigger and better, we want even more! We lose our sleep, our happiness, we hurt the people around us; all these as a price for our growing needs and desires.

That's The 99 Club.
Tags: The 99 Club, Never Contented

Keep Cleaning For How Long?

While walking through the Happy Garden pasar malam, nature's call came knocking. Slipped into a nearby coffee shop's loo for a quick relief.

Noticed the sign requesting me to keep cleaning the toilet hahaha. Spent some time cleaning the toilet thereafter.

Excuse me Sir (referring to owner of coffee shop), when I can stop cleaning? (after cleaning it for 30 minutes)

Tags: Nature's Call, Loo, Coffee Shop, Happy Garden, Pasar Malam

Broga Hill Climb I

Broga Hill, here I come to conquer. Went with my youth group (I think it was 24 of us). This hill is located somewhere in Semenyih. Don't ask me where but we drove on the Cheras - Kajang highway and reached this destination.

We reached the foothill by 5.15am and I thought we were early. There were a number of motor vehicles before our three vans. The place is total darkness if you off your torchlight. We started our ascend immediately to catch the sunrise. The bad thing was a drizzle happened earlier and the climb was made harder with all the slippery ground.

My friend said those were the panther's eyes ..... phew, I thought it was a tiger.















The early morning scene where many people are still dreaming at their best.










That's it, I'm almost up there until one of the youth told me that's only Level 1.

How many levels are there? Four!

Almost fainted. Moral of the story - ask for details before you join the climb next time.

As I was accompanying two other youth who were not fit way behind, I could see light by the time I arrived at Level 1.






The scenery at Level 1.












We continued our climb up to Level 2.











At Level 3, you are supposed to climb this rock up to Level 4. There was a rope for you to pull yourself up.

Hmmmmmmm pulling my whole body up? Hopefully I don't fall back.











This is Level 4, the peak of Broga Hill or Bukit Broga. There was so little space and people are everywhere. No space to walk.

At this point of time, one of the youth asked me this question - "Uncle, are you involved in sports?"

I answered "Yeah, why?"

Youth continued "No wonder and I can see that you are quite fit in reaching the peak. Those in the middle age and above may find it hard to climb at all"

So, was that a compliment?
Tags: Broga Hill, Bukit Broga, Semenyih

Broga Hill Climb II

My proof for being up in Bukit Broga. What a tiring effort.















When it was time to descend, we were in the traffic jam at the rope climbing part.










You just have to follow the crowd as you descend unless you decide to roll down.










What a scenery.












The descend back to Level 1's peak.
















My best take for the photo. Managed to capture the mist hovering amongst the hilly range. This picture made me hunger for a proper DSLR.








The real descend. One of the youth fell twice and another has a leg cramp.

Me? Reached the foothill safely.













This is where we rested and had our breakfast in Semenyih town. This Kang Master Chef Restaurant was situated nearby the Semenyih Sentral.
Tags: Broga Hill, Bukit Broga, Semenyih, Kang Master Chef Restaurant