Ramadhan 1429

Pejam celik pejam celik it's now already the last 10 days of Ramadhan. Have been busy renovating my house and buying stuff till it gave me headaches. Geeess moving to new house really costs lots of money. Huhu..Suprisingly I have not even done any shopping for the raya this year unlike before I don't even feel any urge of doing so this year. Spending the budget for the house instead and planning to move in somewhere in October or November. No point of buying new clothes if I'm not gonna wear it often. Guess i'll just wear my last year's DKNY shirt, Topman shirt & Calvin Klein jeans which I have only worn for less than 5 times...malas nak hantar to dry cleaning!!!Haha

August Snippets

It's already mid of August and time is flying fast. Will reach 26yo next week.huhu...

Still so many things that need to be done. After one settled, others would come and it had been really tiring for the past few weeks. Taking up some more projects at the office, need to expand my network as well as learning on a new business. It's also time to spend more money as my new house is already ready to be moved in...pening2...

Retail Therapy

It's already August and the Mega Sale has been around for quite some time but surprisingly this year my habits of shopping is no longer the same as previous years where the spirit is just lost. Have not been shopping 'gile- gile' for quite some time except this weekend but mostly nothing. Dont really feel buying new clothes etc. Guess my mind is more on my coming new house and the inflation these days so i'm saving the money for it. Still, i went to KLCC, One Utama, Midvalley, Ikano, Curve on Saturday and Sunday. Not doing the shopping for me but helping my friend looking for an attired to wear for the dinner that he's organizing next week. However, I ended up buying different things at British India...Bought quite a lot where it's impossible for me to carry had i went there all alone..hahaha...Spent some money as well at the PC Fair..gosh i really need to find more money!!!

An Incredible Love Story

An incredible love story has come out of China recently and managed to touch the world. It is a story of a man and an older woman who ran off to live and love each other in peace for over half a century.

The 70-year-old Chinese man who hand-carved over 6,000 stairs up a mountain for his 80-year-old wife has passed away in the cave which has been the couple's home for the last 50 years.

Over 50 years ago, Liu Guojiang a 19 year-old boy, fell in love with a 29 year-old widowed mother named Xu Chaoqin..

In a twist worthy of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, friends and relatives criticized the relationship because of the age difference and the fact that Xu already had children. At that time, it was unacceptable and immoral for a young man to love an older woman.. To avoid the market gossip and the scorn of their communities, the couple decided to elope and lived in a cave in Jiangjin County in Southern ChongQing Municipality.

In the beginning, life was harsh as hey had nothing, no electricity or even food. They had to eat grass and roots they found in the mountain, and Liu made a kerosene lamp that they used to light up their lives. Xu felt that she had tied Liu down and repeatedly asked him, 'Are you regretful? Liu always replied, 'As long as we are industrious, life will improve.' In the second year of living in the mountain, Liu began and continued for over 50 years, to hand-carve the steps so that his wife could get down the mountain easily .

Half a century later in 2001, a group of adventurers were exploring the forest and were surprised to find the elderly couple and the over 6,000 hand-carved steps. Liu MingSheng, one of their seven children said, 'My parents loved each other so much, they have lived in seclusion for over 50 years and never been apart a single day. He hand carved more than 6,000 steps over the years for my mother's convenience, although she doesn't go down the mountain that much.'

The couple had lived in peace for over 50 years until last week. Liu, now 72 years, returned from his daily farm work and collapsed. Xu sat and prayed with her husband as he passed away in her arms. So in love with Xu, was Liu, that no one was able to release the grip he had on his wife's hand even after he had passed away. 'You promised me you'll take care of me, you'll always be with me until the day I died, now you left before me, how am I going to live without you?' Xu spent days softly repeating this sentence and touching her husband's black coffin with tears rolling down her cheeks.

In 2006, their story became one of the top 10 love stories from China , collected by the Chinese Women Weekly. The local government has decided to preserve the love ladder and the place they lived as a museum, so this love story can live forever.

I'm back...

Finally after a few attempts of recovering my username and password, i managed to log in into this blogger's account. Have not been accessing my blog for a few months had almost caused me amnesia on the login process.

Was quite bz and also lazy all this while and therefore I lost interest on blogging. However, seems at this moment in the middle of the nite, I kinda get my mood and the groove back and so hopefully I will continue with the blog...

Elysyle Spa - Where East Meets West

On last Saturday, I've decided to try out the Elysyle Spa. Unplanned, Ezran & Anas also joined in after having our breakfast at the Old Town Kopitiam at Old Klang Road.

Elysyle Spa is a world-class fusion spa that combines Eastern and Western elements in its setting, ambience and therapies. It is the first in South East Asia to offer gemstone spa therapy and the first in Malaysia to provide Balneotherapy. With the 10,000 square feet of tranquil surroundingss, ELYSYLE Spa is dedicated to providing a renewing experience within an exclusive, professional environment which integrates advanced technology and natural sciences, accompanied by the warmth of the human touch.

Gemstone Spa

Balneotherapy

The seconds the lift door open, you'll be transported away from the maniac city lifestyle to experience a tranquil retreat. Greeting your arrival the moment u step out of the lift is a semi circular reception area with its bamboo decor, interesting beaded hanging and lightly scented atmosphere. Then, the spa assistant will come bringing bathroom slippers in a tray for you to slip out of your heels into the slippers and you will be lead up the curved pathway into a short passageway.

The corridor then opens up to a large area with its cosy ambience and exclusive decor together with little rivers that run around the perimeter of its marbled floor. The surroundings had elicited some 'oohs' and 'aahs' from the 3 of us and the promise of a totally balanced experience for our body, mind and soul can already be felt.

To express my experience in words are really hard, but all i can say this is the best spa among all the spas that I have experienced. You can just lay down listening to the sounds of birds chippering accompanied with a light music that would really make you relax and doze off. My treatment was supposed to be only for 2 hours but I've spent for almost 4 hours. Time really stops in here and you'll be treated as royalty.

I think I will be visiting again either this week and the next coming week. Also for members promotion till June, I'm enjoying a 30% discount for all treatments plus a free scalp massage (worth RM98) and Elysyle Signature Stone Spa (RM78). I managed to get the discounts for my 2 friends who are non members as well that day and we only paid RM145.53 each from supposed to be RM282.93. For 4 hours treatment, it's really worth everything...haha..

If anybody interested, don't hesitate to let me know so that I can help you to get the discount...

The Great FJ Benjamin Branded Sale

Went to the sale at Bangsar Village on the 2nd May (first day of sale) which was only for HSBC cardmembers. We arrived around 9.30am and there's already a very long queue. Gosh how people like to go to sale...haha...Queued for more than half an hour and then when it's opened, it took us another 15 minutes just to walk round and round the path to get inside..haha..

However i did not buy anything cos nothing was interesting to me. There were really old stocks for Raoul shirst which i've seen in the previous sale and the price was even much more expensive. I remembered before that I saw a shirt for only RM80 but here it was RM100..Guess only La Senza is worth the sale there as according to my friend, it was really cheap. As for Guess, Banana Republic, Gap, not really worth the sale to me...hehe

Spent less than half an hour inside and when we went out, to our surprise, there was still a long queue and even longer than before it's open which had now reached another floor below...haha

Antibiotik dan Kisahnya

Not sure who wrote this but just wanna share utk tatapan semua:



Subject: Antibiotik & Kisah nya

Assalamualaikum,

Ramai ibu bapa yang meminta saya menulis tentang antibiotik. Antibiotik menjadi subjek yang sangat penting di dalam bidang perubatan sehingga kini. Sejak ia dijumpai oleh saintis Perancis Alexander Fleming pada tahun 1928 (sebelum itu dijumpai oleh seorang pelajar perubatan dari German pd 1896 - tapi tak popular), penicillium yang merupakan produk dari sejenis kulat didapati berjaya membunuh pelbagai bakteria. Penicillin kemudiannya digunakan secara meluas ketika perang dunia ke 2 sebagai rawatan utama.

Sehingga kini berpuluh-puluh antibiotik d igunakan secara meluas diseluruh dunia. Antibiotik boleh dibahagikan kepada kesannya yang membunuh bakteria (bactericidal) atau kesan yang merencatkan aktiviti bakteria (bacteriostatic) . Kedua-duanya memberi kesan untuk melumpuhkan bakteria daripada merebak di dalam badan.

Sesuai dengan kesannya, antibiotik hanya berkesan untuk membunuh bakteria dan bukan virus. Virus biasanya menyebabkan batuk, sakit tekak, selsema dan sakit badan. 80% sakit tekak dan selsema adalah disebabkan virus. Virus biasanya akan hilang dengan sendirinya selama 7 hari hingga 14 hari walaupun tanpa penggunaan antibiotik.

Sebagai contoh - Denggi ialah sejenis virus, jadi tiada antibiotik apa pun di dalam dunia ini yang boleh membunuh virus denggi. Ia akan hilang dengan sendirinya selepas 10 hari, tetapi perawatan yang lain seperti mengawal hidrasi tubuh dan pemerhatian kadar platelet diperlukan. Kenapa tiada antibiotik digunakan untuk merawat denggi? Ya, kerana denggi ialah sejenis virus. (pandaaaii.. ... :) )

Sekiranya semua doktor memberikan antibiotik kepada pesakit yang mempunyai sakit tekak dan selsema, dan semua pesakit mengambilnya, ini bermakna 80% daripada antibiotik tadi yang tidak memberi apa-apa kesan kepada virus adalah satu pembaziran, sia-sia malah boleh mendatangkan bahaya kepada tubuh.

Kenapa Perlu Berhati-Hati Mengambil Antibiotik?

1. Antibiotik boleh menyebabkan alahan. Alahan boleh jadi sedikit seperti urticaria iaitu timbul ruam gegata di seluruh badan sehingga ke alahan yang teruk seperti kulit melecur dan sesak nafas.

2. Antibiotik mempunyai kesan sampingan. Antibiotik boleh menyebabkan kesan sampingan kecil seperti loya, pening, muntah dan cirit birit sehingga ke yang teruk seperti kerosakan buah pinggang, usus dan hati, pekak dan sawan. Steven Johnson Syndrome adalah satu kesan sampingan kepada beberapa jenis antibiotik berasaskan sulfa. Ia menyebabkan keadaan kulit seperti terbakar dan juga menyerang kawasan seperti mulut mata dan lidah. Kesan sampingan ini boleh membawa maut.

3. Antibiotik sebagai bom nuklear. Bukan semua bakteria di dalam badan adalah jahat. Bakteria baik di dalam usus sebagai contoh lactobacillus, memenuhi usus supaya bakteria jahat seperti Clostridium Difficile tidak dapat memenuhi ruang tersebut. Malah ada bakteria di usus yang boleh membantu penghadaman dan menghasilkan sejenis vitamin yang membantu manusia. Begitu juga contohnya dengan kawasan vagina wanita. Bakteria baik yang terbunuh boleh menyebabkan "candida", sejenis kulat senang membiak di kawasan itu.

Malangnya, antibiotik tidak mengenal musuh. Ia seperti sebuah BOM NUKLEAR. Kawan atau lawan, semuanya disapu, disembelih dan dibunuh dengan kejam. Pembunuhan beramai-ramai tanpa belas kasihan ini ternyata membawa padah. Selepas tiada lagi bakteria yang baik, maka bakteria yang jahat akan bermaharajalela. Jadilah episod cerita koboi bila sherif dah tak ada.

Antibiotik Seperti Harimau Hilang Taring

Apabila antibiotik diambil dan digunakan sewenang-wenangnya, maka Bakteria yang tidak terbunuh oleh antibiotik akan menjalani mutasi. Ia menjadi kebal dan semakin kuat. Bakteria ini akan membiak dan tersebar di kalangan manusia yang dekat dan jauh.

Apa yang berlaku, antibiotik yang sama apabila digunakan tidak lagi berfungsi seperti sebelumnya. Maka, doktor terpaksa menggunakan antibiotik yang lebih kuat kerana yang lama tidak berkesan. Kitaran ini akan menjadi lebih menakutkan. Antibiotik yang kuat ini pula digunakan sewenang-wenangnya. Maka apabila bakteria mula bermutasi dan menjadi kebal, antibiotik yang kuat tadi semakin hilang belangnya. Antibiotik yang lebih kuat lagi digunakan... ia akan berterusa n sehingga tiada lagi antibiotik yang berkesan terhadap manusia.

Kos Perubatan Meningkat

Semakin kuat antibiotik digunakan semakin mahal antibiotik tersebut. Anda yang kaya mungkin tak kisah dengan kos antibiotik yang meningkat sekarang. Tetapi buat yang susah, RM 60 untuk 7 biji Augmentin memang memeningkan kepala. Di hospital kos perbelanjaaan rawatan juga semakin meningkat. Ini kerana antibiotik yang kuat tidak mungkin berharga murah. Syarikat farmaseutikal terpaksa membelanjakan jutaan wang untuk menghasilkan antibiotik yang lebih kuat dan siapa yang harus membayar harga itu?

Kenapa Antibiotik Digunakan Sewenang-Wenangnya?

1. Sebelum menuding kesalahan kepada orang lain, lebih baik salahkan diri sendiri dahulu. Doktor seperti saya, kadangkala selalu memberikan antibiotik walaupun tidak perlu. Biasanya General Practioner (GP) di klinik-klinik swasta lebih suka melakukan demikian. Ada beberapa sebab...

a. Satunya mungkin tidak beberapa yakin kepada diagnosis yang dibuat. Terdapat garisan di antara jangkitan bakteria dan virus. Mungkin garisan itu sukar dibezakan untuk sesetengah pesakit.

b. Untuk mengelakkan secondary infection. Jangkitan bakteria di atas jangkitan virus yang sedia ada. (ini alasan yang baik bagi doktor untuk menjual antibiotik)

c. Menghindarkan persepsi buruk pesakit kepada doktor dan klinik. Kalau anda nak tahu, ada jenis pesakit yang mempunyai tanggapan buruk kepada doktor yang tak mahu memberikan antibiotik. "Apalah ini doktor, tarak bagi antibiot ik, next time tarak mau datang sini lagi". atau "ini klinik tak bagus, takda bagi antibiotik". Hilang seorang pelanggan...

d. Meningkatkan keuntungan dengan memberi antibiotik. Ya, jualan antibiotik boleh menguntungkan. Itu sebab ramai doktor swasta akan memberi antibiotik walaupun dengan sebab-sebab yang tidak logik.

2. Pesakit juga bersalah di dalam hal ini. Saya sudah banyak kali menceritakan ada ibu bapa yang terlalu menekan doktor untuk memberi antibiotik. Ada yang masam mencuka bila tak bagi antibiotik. Padahal anak tak ada demam pun, atau hanya sedikit selsema. Jikalau ibu bapa tahu betapa teruknya kesan Steven Johson Syndrome, sejenis lecuran kulit disebabkan alahan antibiotik pasti anda lebih berhati-hati.

"Anak saya takkan baik kalau tak diberi antibiotik". Ini adalah ayat cliche untuk ibu ayah yang selalu bagi anaknya antibiotik walaupun sedikit demam.

Cara Saya

Anda patut percaya, saya sendiri sebagai doktor, tak perna h memberi antibiotik kepada anak saya yang batuk, demm atau selsema selama seminggu. Saya akan memberinya ubat-ubat yang perlu sahaja, vitamin C tambahan, minum air kosong banyak dan makan banyak buah-buahan. Pada kebiasaannya, selepas seminggu batuk itu akan hilang.

Sekiranya selepas seminggu batuk, dengan adanya demam tinggi dan selsema, saya mungkin akan mulakan antibiotik yang paling rendah. Antibiotik mesti dihabiskan.

Perlu diberitahu di sini... Ubat antibiotik bukanlah ubat demam, atau selsema atau ubat sakit perut. Ia adalah untuk membunuh bakteria dan . Kalau demam, makan lah ubat demam dan kalau selsema makanlah ubat selsema. Antibiotik digunakan sekiranya terdapat jangkitan bakteria.

Doktor, Tolong Bagi Antibiotik Paling Kuat!

"Doktor, saya batuk dan sakit tekak, esok saya ada meeting. Boleh bagi saya antibiotik paling kuat supaya saya boleh pergi meeting esok".

Pertama sekali saya nak bagi tahu, Allah bagi kita sakit selain daripada ujian dan menghapuskan dosa, ialah untuk memberitahu kita yang badan kita ini perlukan rehat kerana bekerja terlalu kuat. Antibiotik tak boleh membantu anda mengembalikan kesihatan anda seperti sediakala sekiranya anda mengidap jangkitan. Berilah masa untuk badan anda berehat.

Kedua, untuk memberi antibiotik, perlu ada caranya. Mulakan dengan antibiotik yang tak beberapa kuat dahulu. Kemudian baru naik selangkah demi selangkah sekiranya tidak berkesan. Kalau kita nak bunuh seekor nyamuk, janganlah rumah hendak dibakar. Kalau nak bunuh bakteria yang tak beberapa kuat, jangan gunakan antibiotik yang paling kuat. Itu salah cara.

Tujuannya adalah untuk memastikan antibiotik yang paling kuat disimpan untuk menghadapi kuman yang sama ku at juga. Sekiranya kuman biasa pun dah menjadi kebal kepada antibiotik yang paling kuat, apabila tiba kuman yang paling kuat, tiada antibiotik lagi yang boleh digunakan. Bayangkan, tiada lagi ubat untuk membunuh bakteria... Sedikit luka di kaki pun boleh menyebabkan kematian. Kita seolah-olah kembali ke zaman sebelum Perang Dunia Kedua!!

Laziness Syndrome

Again the laziness sydrome is attacking & taken over me. I got tons of things to do but yet I've been wasting my time by not doing anything. Last weekend was also a waste.

On Saturday, spent the whole morning wondering in my room and after the Zuhur prayer, I went to pick up my friend Adam from Labuan at Maya Hotel who came to apply for his visa to United States and later headed to KLCC. Took our lunch at Madam Kwan's as I have not been dining there for quite some time. Again to my dismay, the food there has become a bit tasteless to me as compared to last time and this is my second visit to KLCC Madam Kwan's. I used to like to order Nasi Bojari there but I remembered that I loved the taste when I had it a few times in Madam Kwan's Midvalley. Some one must remind me in future not to spend my dime there anymore as I would only regret it later.Haha...Later for dinner, I just ordered Dominos pizza (which i was given a free gift for being a regular) & enjoyed it while watching Konsert AF.

The next day also I wasted the time again. Heated the pizza leftovers in the microwave and ate it in bed while online to the web with my laptop. Thought of going for shopping (which surprisingly I have not been doing for quite some time) but due to the tornados in my head, i just could not decide what to do. Went to lunch with Malcolm at Aladdin restaurant in Kelana Jaya and I went there again later for dinner my housemate Dr. Ardi. The place, which is a Chinese Muslim reastaurant is now my favourite dining place and the food there is very nice and affordable too...

And today, I'm still feeling the laziness and don't feel like doing anything at all. I think I should finish the new best seller The Secret book by Rhona Byrne to be self inspired to be more positive...haha

The 80's

Got this from forwarded message yesterday and when reading it, sweet memories really flash back....hehe

Budak2 yg lahir pd thn 80'an mesti ingat mase skola rendah dulu:>

- kat skola ade salesman jual buku cerita. ari ni bg list, esok mintak duit. beli walaupun cerita buku tu dah tau. salesman susu pon camtu gak.

- kat library, budak2 mmg baca buku tp just tengok gamba je. bile ade program Nilam, sebok semua nak pinjam buku.

- RMT kat skola mkn x best, tp yg berduit pon join RMT, x phm....

- pakai pensel box yg bole bukak dpn blkg, pastu ade sharpener kat tgh2 die.

- main lwn pemadam, syg nak guna utk padam. padahal itu fungsi sbnr, utk padam!

- pakai pembaris yg bergerigi, kat dlm ade air pastu ade bende berkilat dlm air tu.

- cikgu pakai pembaris kuning pjg. Ade pemegang kat tgh2 tp x penah nmpk cikgu pgg pon kat situ.

- bulu ayam jd ramping krn sering dijadikan rotan.

- time pendidikan seni, lukis sume boleh tp bile time kaler sume hampeh. ade gak buat anyaman pakai kertas warna, kolaj la, ape la...

- main game 2D. super contra, super mario, street fighter, sume pakai tape.

- jam tgn Boy London jd idaman, sbb bole tuka2 kaler ikut suhu n cuaca.

- takut BCG tp lepas inject poyo la pulak...

- balik skola beli JoJo xpon Dendang. Tora pon best gak. Beli se mata2 nak mainan, coklat die x mkn pon.

- Kasut berlampu kat tapak, yg iklan die kat tV bole tembak alien tu...

- Siri kartun; power rangers, ultraman, transformers, ninja turtles, Thundercats, maskman, Gaban dan mcm lg.

jgn lupe sume ni sbb zaman skrg budak2 x smpt lyn bende2 ni. kite akan sentiasa berubah, cume asal-usul kite yg permanent. huhu~

VIRGO MAN

Among of all the description about my zodiac, i like the below the most as it describes me almost 100% correct:

Time is precious for Virgo man and if you make him wait, he will consider that as an insult. He hates to hear criticism and hates to be criticize. If he is criticizing other people, then he must be influenced by other Zodiac. He is and he likes to be a perfectionist. He always think he is doing the right and appropriate thing , and often he thinks he makes no mistake. He is a bright guy and could accept comments if he thinks it can improve himself. He is the type who well adjusted to make changes.

He will spent money carefully and spent it worthwhile. He will only extravagant for his personnel pleasure only. He is quite romantic, a type of guy who can drive 100 miles just to tell you how much he misses you. If he does not care about you, he will not even spent a dime to call you locally. Long distant special low rate call is also out of the question.

He hates rough and crude people. His woman has to be clean and dress well. He inspects any thing in details beside being a perfectionist, so you could be lying in your bikini with a perfect figure and he can suddenly comments you about your big feet. If you gain 2 pounds , he may comments you are getting too fat. Before going out with this kind of guy, look at yourself head to toe in the mirror and ask yourself if you are really and entirely ready. Unless he dates a model, then he will have less comments.

He is neat and tidy, so his life always in a schedule, a fix time to lunch, the same time to go home. He is well knowledge about food and conscious about nutrition, so you won't see this guy eating a junk food, or strange and exotic food for sure.

You will see him in social events or party if only necessary. He is gifted with acting, so if he says he can not go out with you because he is sick, then you will belief him. He is a hard to please when it comes to what to eat, how to work, what kind of a woman to date. He always neat and tidy all the times, even if he is in the army, he will be the cleanest soldier in the camp. He likes to speak properly with no slang. He hates laziness and lazy people. He always act like a boring mature adults, but getting to know him , you will know he has his own charm.

He always see things clearly, so he is not the type to be blinded by love. He is a kind and cool guy, but if constantly irritate with rudeness, ignorant, or stupidity then he will show you that he is annoyed. You may see a guy in this Zodiac dress up in an old shirt and old Jean, but if you look carefully, you will see that his hair is neat and unconsciously he will touch his hair a lot. His desk is always neat and if he sees small scrap paper on the floor, he will pick it up or put it in the basket.

People may think he is selfish, because when he says "No", he really means it. Any favor asked , he will help but always in his own limit. The more he see faults in others, the less he wants people to see his. If you want him to change his faults, try to tell him gently or he could take it as an insult.

He wants love that comes with quality, so he only has a few loves in his life. Woman's trick will not work with him. If he breaks up with a woman, he will also try to avoid all her friends and her environments too. He is very picky and every breaking up, he will be double careful next time.

He can sweep woman with his charm, but he likes to keep his relationship like a friend. He likes a sincere self confident woman, neat and clean, perfect and tidy. A real two "P" , picky and perfectionist Zodiac.

Opening Up Possibilities

From wireline to wireless
Mankind we serve

From one 'Hello' to another
Our lives connect

From 'Apa Khabar?' to 'What's Up?'
Communication evolves

From one simple greeting
Time and space dissolve

From one connection to another
Races and cultures unify

From land, sea or air
Oceans bridged, continents linked

From the power of connections
Businesses flourish, relationships blossom

From one single touch
Immense possibilities unfold

From one single company
Everyday in so many ways
We're Opening Up Possibilities

A Morning with the CEO

As what has been in the news lately, the current TM Group CEO Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid Omar has been appointed to be the President/CEO of Maybank. He will be leaving somewhere in July or August and will be replaced by the current TM Malaysia Business CEO Dato' Zamzairani. In significant with the demerger, the current TM will be devided into 2 different companies which are called as TM (FixedCo) and TM International Berhad (RegionCo). Upon post demerger, TM will be a leading next generation communications provider in Malaysia with broadband growth potential while TMI will be a regional mobile operator with a unique portfolio of assets most of which are in the fast growing markets across Asia. And I do hope that this vision will be materialized as what it's targetted to be.

My department had the chance to have a session with Dato' Sri Wahid himself during our weekly Tuesday Morning Talk session and from this, we're able to get to know him much more on the personal aspects. Under his leadership, I have seen the positive transformation that TM has gone through despite all the sayings by the pessimists in TM itself. It is indeed a loss to the company losing him, but who knows his successor would be able to do even better perhaps. I think we'll just have to wait and see....

A Vanished Friend

While cleaning up my old diaries, I came across with a poem which I copied down for quite some time ago. Think of putting it in here so I won't lose it...

Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end,
Yet the days go by & weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone,
And I never see my old friend's face,
For life is a swift and terrible race,
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell,
And he rang mine but we were younger then,
And how we are busy, tired men,
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name,
"Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on Jim",
Just to show that I'm thinking of him,
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
As the distance between us grows and grows,
Around the corner, yet miles away,
"Here's a telegram, sir, Jim died today"
And that's what we get and deserved in the end,
Around the corner, a vanished friend...

Quarter Life Crisis

Don't know why but have been having dilemmas lately...question after question popped out on what do i wanna do with my life. All of sudden, i'm feeling tired with whatever I'm doing now. Bored of life, bored of current job... Some of my friends are going to do their post graduate which kinda triggering me that i should do the same. Tapi malasnya nak go through all the hassles...The course that i wanna do would cost 31K GBP for 18 months..huhu...malasnye nak cari2 sponsorships..

Then my house is about to be fully completed. Passed through it last Saturday and it seems like everything is ready. Just waiting for CF perhaps. More money will have to be spent later for the house....gotta find more money fast!!haha...

(My almost completed house)

Taman Tamadun Islam

During my last return to Terengganu in conjunction with the Chinese New Year holiday, the new Taman Tamadun Islam is opened to public and was officiated by our PM Pak Lah. Located at Pulau Wan Man which is just around 4km from Kuala Terengganu City (now bandaraya...hahah), it is now the latest tourist attraction to the state.

To visit the place was really a challenge to me as banyak kali tak jadi pergi cos too many people going there. Penuh dgn org especially outside Terengganu visitors. At this time during the so called perkampungan Hadhari there, free busses and boat ride were provided from various places inside the city.

Projek yang diilhamkan oleh Perdana Menteri, Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, menempatkan replika bangunan bercirikan seni bina Islam bersejarah yang terkenal sepanjang zaman. Projek tersebut dimajukan Perbadanan Memajukan Iktisad Negeri Terengganu (PMINT) dengan mengandungi 21 replika monumen Islam bersejarah dan sebuah pusat pameran yang memaparkan seni, seni bina dan teknologi Islam.

Selain itu, pusat perkahwinan dalam bentuk Istana Arab juga akan dibangunkan di taman itu manakala daya tarikan utamanya pula ialah sebuah masjid kristal terapung.

(With my mother & sister in front of the Masjid Kristal)

(Inside of the Masjid Kristal)

Masjid Kristal

Overall, the Masjid Kristal is kinda small. The interior is not as exclusive as the exterior. But I guess it's not going to be a centred place for prayers unless during occasional events on the island itself.

The majority parts at the garden is not yet ready. Mostly are still under construction. Kinda obvious that the opening has something to do with the upcoming election..hehe...

Currently, it is free entrance to go and see all the monuments of the mosque but later on a fee of RM30 will be charged.

(Eager visitors to see the monuments)

(Pattani Central Mosque)


(Xian Mosque)

(Sultan Omar Ali Saifudein Mosque, Brunei)

(Taj Mahal)

(Baitul Maqdis & a Mosque in Lahore, Pakistan)

(A mosque in Indonesia)

Shanghai - Hangzhou - Suzhou

On last December 2007, I had the chance to join the 4th Leadership Overseas Vacation of Elken (LOVE 4) to Shanghai, Hangzhou & Suzhou (5 days 4 nights). This is a free VVIP trip to the Elkenians who have worked to qualify themselves within the 6-month qualification period. Overall, around 1685 people has qualified for this trip and in order to take everyone there with the limited flights during the peak season, the overall duration of this campaign was from 3rd - 18th December 2007 with everyday flights checking in and checking out using 4 airlines companies.

As for my group, our flight was on 8th December evening leaving for Bangkok first and transitted to Shanghai. It was my first time using the Royal Orchid Thai Airways & I can say that the food was quite ok (Halal of course) and I really like the purple color haha. However, the service was not as good as MAS - slow skit menghantar makanan and agak not well coordinated. The most interesting part of Elken trip was that the pilot would specially welcome all the Elken qualifiers on board. You would definitely not going to get this treat by joining the normal trip. Haha...owh yaaa, and the Travel Agency appointed by Elken was Diners World Travel - most of friends said this is a first class corporate travel agency and from my oberservations, seems like it's true....hehe

The transit at Bangkok to Shanghai took approximately 3 hours and we arrived at Pudong Airport, Shanghai at roughly 6.15am (Lebih kurang mcm waktu 7.15am in Malaysia dah cerah dah). At the airport, we were greeted by the locals,specially organized by Elken and later introduced to our local tour guide named Kenneth despite our tour leader Kak Liza from Diners.

After some refreshments, we were taken for breakfast at a local Muslim restaurant in Shanghai suburbs before continuing our journey to Hangzhou which took around 2-3 hours to reach.

(With my upline Simpson after breakfast)

After the arrival to Hangzhou, we were straight away taken for lunch and had our Zuhur + Asar (jamak) prayer at the restaurant. In China, food would be quite an issue to Muslims, but for us, everything was well taken care of and we had a very lavish meal every time (more than 10 dishes per meal time).

Spent 2 days & 1 nite in Hangzhou. After the lunch, we went to Qianghe Road for shopping. The road is full souvenirs at a very2 cheap price. Bought the traditional shirt for Gala Dinner later at only RM50 (in KL mostly over RM200).

(At Qinghe Road)

Then, we visited Lei Fong Pagoda which is famous for White Snake Legend story. Already forgot what's the story about..haha..

( The famous West Lake from the top of Lei Fong Pagoda)

(The beautiful architecture at the top floor of the Lei Fong Pagoda)



(Jagung hitam yg dibeli kat bawah Pagoda...Tak sedap langsung..tawar!)

Later on, we were taken to watch a Song Dynasty show with a very fantastic perfomance and yet to see the same kind of show in Malaysia. To me it's even better than Phuket Fantasea although the place is not as grand as Fantasea. There were cultural show, music, acrobatic, real cannon shots and real rain & waterfall falling from the ceiling down to the stage! The VIP seats in front also keep on changing from the middle to the side etc. It's really2 interesting. If I can recall, our local tour guide said that the tickect was around Rm100++...

After the show, we had our dinner at a local muslim restaurant (different from the restaurant where we had our lunch) and then we were taken to Braim International Hotel Hangzhou for our first nite in China. Our luggages were already inside our rooms and on the bed, we can find some chocolates as a welcoming gift....

The next day, had our breakfast at the hotel,and then straight away checked out to proceed for a boat ride at the famous West Lake. The man made lake is really vast and the scenery of the gardens were really2 breathtaking...

(Posing on the boat hehe)



(With Kak Lara - a mother of 9 children!)



(At the beautiful West Lake Garden with Abg ???..hmm forgot his name already :P)

Then, visited the Tea Garden some where not too far from the West Lake. It was said that this place is the best quality of tea plantations in the world and most world prominent figures have come to visit this Tea Garden such as Queen Elizabeth and our Tun Dr Mahathir. We had a traditional tea ceremony and were explained on how the high quality of tea is produced. The best quality of tea here is the Grade A Green Tea which I bought for RM150 for the size of the biggest can of sardine! But, the quality difference is obvious and it's absolutely value of the money that we spent...

We then proceed to have our lunch at the same restaurant previous day and later on continued our journey to Suzhou, the city which is famous for the silk. Hangzhou is famous for it's breathtaking scenery of nature while Guangzhou is famous for the food. (I need to visit Guangzhou one day). The journey also took about 2-3 hours and when we reached Suzhou, the bus stopped at Shantang Water Village where we shopped shortly for sourvenirs while waiting for the Gala Dinner at the biggest Muslim restaurant in Suzhou. The Gala Dinner combined around 400 people of Elkenians at one time and we had to wear a Chinese Traditional Costume and perform a small group show during the dinner.

(At Gala Dinner - the middle front is Dr Amir (one of the top Pakar Bius in Malaysia)

Stayed in Suzhou for 2 nights at Holiday Inn Youlian Suzhou. Bukan duduk kat hotel2 biasa tau..hehe

On the next day, we went to the Silk Factory which Suzhou is famous for. The company however belongs to the communist party and Kenneth told us in order to know if a shop belongs to the communist, the salesgirls would not even smile at you. This is as eventhought they manage to close up a lot of sales, their pay would also be the same. So kalau nak, buy, kalau x, buybuy laa...hehe...The highly sold product here is the silk quilt where u can get around 450 RMB - 800 RMB here around RM200++ - RM400++. In Malaysia, the quilt would be sold almost RM1000 or more...The uniqueness of the silk quilt is that it would warm u up during the cold and vice versa during the hot season.

(At the Silk Factory...people bz shopping)

We then visited the Lion Forest Garden which is one of the preserved garden in the world. The garden used to be a house for a very rich family. Mmg mcm rumah bangsawan dlm cerita2 Cina lama dlm TV. It's very2 big and u can even get lost inside the house. It was said that the Emperor of China had came to this place 5 times and never managed to find a way out exploring the garden. The landscape are mostly built using river stones which were brought over from far far away...

(With Dr Murad)

(Group photo at the Lion Forest Garden)



(The amazing landscape inside the Garden)

(With Abg Harun, my sideline from JB)

At night, we were taken for a short shopping at Quangqian Road. One bad thing about China to me is the TOILET. Most of the toilet are yuckss... If u need to go, I would suggest u to look for McD or KFC and use their toilet. But, do bring your mineral water with you....hahaha...the toilets normally do not have water nor toilet paper!!!

(At Quangqian Road)

(Chinese Massage..It's good but I would still prefer the Thai Massage..hehe)

On the 3rd day at Suzhou, we went to a pearl factory before returning back to Shanghai. We were shown on how the pearls are cultivated and then shopped for pearls to bring back to friends and families in Malaysia. All the ladies and even men were busy buying pearls from less than RM100 up to thousands of ringgit. After all, all the Elkenians only had to use our money for shopping!!!

Back in Shanghai, we continued shopping at Tongyang Market (place to buy fake products) and Chenghuang Bazaar while waiting for the nightfall to have our Huangpu River Cruise. On the last night in China, we stayed at Best Western New Century Hotel Shanghai.

(With the friendly Kak Deebah & Dato' Daud)

(Posing in front of the Starbucks at Chenghuang Bazaar)

(At Chenghuang Bazaar)

(Huangpu River Cruise seeing the Shanghai old & modern buildings view)

(With Kenneth - our China local tour guide)

(At Shanghai International Airport)

(At Bangkok International Airport)

The uniqueness of Elkenians as compared to others, we are always like a family although not knowing each other. We sang, clapped and screamed inside the bus despite our background differences or from different groups of leaders. Even Kak Liza, our tour leader thought that everyone of us had known each other long before this trip when most of us met each other for the first time! That's the spirit of sharing and it never stops even though during the long hours of flight or while waiting for the transit - the spirit to learn from the top leaders never stops...

See u all in the next coming overseas trip to KunMing in middle 2008!!