US Couple's Condominium Raided

Another case of overzealous actions, this time by officials from the Kedah's Islamic Affairs Dept. Their routine vice prevention squad's raid was conducted on a US retired 60 plus couple holidaying on Langkawi Island. The raid was done at 2am and the officials demanded to see the "woman" that the man was with. Even when told that the lady was clad in sarong only and they are Christians, the officials insisted on seeing the woman, in humiliation.

In Malaysia, under the Islamic syariah law, a muslim person could not have close proximity with a non-muslim in an enclosed place and if caught, could be penalised. In this case, the officials didn't do a good check on who was in the room and raided their unit in the middle of the night.

Though this has happened almost 2 weeks ago (reported on 22 Oct, New Straits Times) the Tourism Minister said that investigation would be taken to find out what happened. Till today, as reported in The Star, both Kedah State Religious and Humanity Development Committee chairman Professor Datuk Wira Dr Othman Ishak and Kedah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said they will check on the matter with the state Religious Department to find out what really happened. It took 2 weeks to find out????

On behalf of their unwarranted actions, the general public has to apologise to the couple and assure the world that Malaysia is not what it seems to be reported.
Tags: Islam, Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia, Syariah Law, Sarong, Religious, Khalwat

HondaJet

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. has ventured into the aviation industry. Its HondaJet, experimental compact business jet equipped with Honda-developed HF118 jet engines, had successfully completed initial flight tests way back in 2003. Their research on compact business jets has started since 1986. HondaJet will be produced in the United States beginning in 2010 with a projected production volume of 70 jets per year with its pricing set at US$3.65 million for its standard configuration. The 7 or 8-seaters aircraft is equipped with a state-of-the-art Garmin G1000 glass cockpit system.

Click here to view HondaJet's introduction movie.
Tags: Jet, Honda, Honda Motor, HondaJet, Garmin

Weather in Khartoum

Somehow I did notice that sunset in Khartoum was much earlier in the last 1 week. True enough when I walked out to the car this morning to go to work, I could feel the winter breeze blowing nicely onto my skin. Yes, winter is setting in in Sudan now. This could be the same winter that I've experienced in year 2004 which was about the same timing. Saw the temperature reading in the car (external) that showed 25 celcius degree. Otherwise, at 8am plus, it could be hitting 34 celcius anytime. So, it was a drastic drop indeed. I felt a bit cold during 5am plus that prompted me to off the air-cond while maintaining the ceiling fan to provide some breeze.

This winter will go on till February. It will be colder at night and could drop to 19 celcius. Winter in Sudan? Sounds weird in the desert region but it does happen. It's going to be a real dry winter as I could feel that my back is getting itchy daily.
Tags: Journal, Diary, Life, Weather, Khartoum, Sudan

Medical Meccas

Bumrungrad International Hospital (left pic) in Bangkok, Asia's first internationally accredited hospital and one of the most modern and efficient medical facilities in the world. Last year the hospital treated 400,000 foreign patients—the highest of any hospital in the world—from more than 150 countries, for everything from heart disease to hip replacements to breast implants. The attraction: world-class medicine at developing-world prices. And patients get velvet-glove treatment redolent of a five-star hotel and limousine pick-ups from airport. (source: Newsweek)

Top 10 World Leaders:-
• Bumrungrad International Hospital in Bangkok
• Buchinger Clinic in Germany
• All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi
• The Fyodorov Clinics in Russia
• Denver Health in Colorado
• Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Massachusetts
• Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv
• Hôspital Edouard Herriot in Lyons
• Hospital for Tropical Diseases in London
• Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York
Tags: Hospital, Medical, Clinic, Health, Bumrungrad International Hospital, Bangkok, Buchinger Clinic, Germany, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, The Fyodorov Clinics, Russia, Denver Health, Colorado, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Massachusetts, Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Hospital Edouard Herriot, Lyons, Hospital for Tropical Diseases, London, Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York

Least Expensive City

Kuala Lumpur is the least expensive city in the world for Western tourists.
A survey of 71 cities worldwide by Swiss banking giant UBS found that Malaysia's capital has the most competitive prices when it comes to food, electronic goods, clothes, public transport, hotel rates and entertainment.

* A five-star hotel room in Kuala Lumpur costs an average US$150 (RM551) compared to with US$450 (RM1,647) for a similar room in New York. The most expensive is Tokyo, where the rate is US$510 (RM1,866).
* For a room in a two- or three-star hotel, the rate in Kuala Lumpur is about US$50 (RM183), compared with US$250 (RM915) in New York.
* It found that one only has to pay US$260 (RM951) for the package in Kuala Lumpur compared with US$920 (RM3,367) in New York. The most expensive city in this category is London where the cost is US$1,180 (RM4,318).
* Taxi fares in Kuala Lumpur are also one of the cheapest in the world at US$1.60 (RM5.88) for a 5km trip within the city. A similar trip in New York costs US$11.60 (RM42).
* Food prices in Kuala Lumpur are considerably lower than in other cities, with a three-course meal in a good restaurant costing US$12 (RM44) for one person. (Other sources: City Mayors: Economics)
Tags: UBS, Kuala Lumpur, Travel, Tourist, Hotel, Restaurant, Least Expensive, City Mayors, Economics

Parents' Headache .......

A boss wondered why one of his most valued employees had not phoned in sick one day. Having an urgent problem with one of the main computers, he dialed the employee's' home phone number and was greeted with a child's whisper.

Hello? Is your daddy home?" he asked.
Yes," whispered the small voice.
May I talk with him?"
The child whispered, "No."

Surprised and wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?"
"Yes."
"May I talk with her?"
Again the small voice whispered, "No."

Hoping there was somebody with whom he could leave a message, the boss asked, "Is anybody else there?"
"Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman."

Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked,
"May I speak with the policeman?"
"No, he's busy", whispered the child.
"Busy doing what?"
"Talking to Mommy and Daddy and the Fireman," came the whispered answer.

Growing more worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter through the ear piece on the phone, the boss asked, "What is that noise?"
"A hello-copper" answered the whispering voice.
"What is going on there?" demanded the boss, now truly apprehensive.
Again, whispering, the child answered, "The search team just landed the hello-copper."

Alarmed, concerned and a little frustrated the boss asked, "What are they searching for?"
Still whispering, the young voice replied with a muffled giggle,
"ME."
Tags: Jokes, Funny, Humor, Family, Fireman, Boss

Learn To Drive

You can have some fun here in learning how to park a car. Don't think that this game has no logic or doesn't help because what you do here will be repeated out in the car park too. Try your skills.

You can download the game here.
Tags: Funny, Skills, Car, Parking