The vicissitudes of V-Dann's daily life (Uncensored)

1st message by G1 phone

2009-05-22T23:25:00.001+01:00

... otherwise also know as the HTC Touch smart phone. Writing this posting by using the push-slide QWERTY keyboard/pad. Although typing speed would be signoficantly lowered, it's the superior alternative when away from laptop of the bulkier desktop. Sending this posting now... after a long absent from blogging.

-DT

Le parole La Camisa Negra

2008-12-18T20:28:00.003Z

Video embedded

Juanes - La Camisa Negra (buena)

Le parole

* If you can't see the lyrics above from Facebook, visit my page for the original posting.

In case you haven't realized...

2008-10-04T23:59:00.002+01:00

... I haven't been blogging for a long time. I figured there isn't much to write about anymore. Moreover, I can hardly find any time to actually sit down and type away about daily events or highlights of the day. Upon wrapping up the last sentence, I am rather convinced that things happened the way they are and that is just life!

Blogging used to be a way of my life. It used to be a way for me to keep my friends in contact; up-to-date with what is happening in my surrounding; to lending an eye to my readers what I see and what I am experiencing as I journey through this path called 'the growing up life'. Well, I am done with that now. I did get into trouble a couple of times with what I have written but that was a long time ago. But this is not the reason why I am stopping now.

78% of my blog's traffic originates from seach engines (mainly Google [surprised?]) looking for "new bliss wallpaper" and a phone number "02072519028". The latter is the phone number of a phony and dodgy company called Executive Advertising (DS-Max -- Direct Selling to the Maximum or DS-Max) in which I was almost scammed. One can argue that 'almost' doesn't count, yeah..., but I don't want to find out definitively as I have got better things to do with my time. Plus, if a job offer can raise suspicions I'd say to you NOT to take the job. As for the new-bliss-wallpaper, I just don't get it with people's obsessions with it. The entire world is looking for it. It is the strangest phenomenon as my statistics showed me.

I am not gonna stop blogging and I don't think I can stop. There's just too much fun. Things have been slowing down and there is not much activities to blog anymore. If you look at my archives, you'll noticed the number of entries from year 2004 till today have decreased dramatically. I write because there is something to write about. I don't bitch. It does look like there isn't much to write about each passing year. This is, after all, the vicissitudes of my life so far. It is helluva roller-coaster ride!

The focus is on the sports, douche-bags

2008-08-15T09:46:00.001+01:00

Perhaps the party's decision to order a pretty 9-year-old girl to lip-synch the patriotic singing of another girl deemed insufficiently cute for the opening ceremony can be dismissed as a misguided quest for artistic perfection. Nor the manhandling of journalist by police -- as happened on Wednesday (Aug 13) during a small pro-Tibet demonstration -- an unusual event.

Indeed, it is an not an unusual event after recalling the standards set by Simon Cowell in every seasons of American Idol and X Factor. His attitude towards the not-so-good-looking girls are bluntly offensive and disrespectful even though the girl in question has the voice to make it to the penultimate stage of the contest. However, he certainly does know what a star-quality is made of and there is not even a shadow of doubt that he is able to find and pick up the most sparkling gem of all.

One (or many) of UK's newspapers questioned the party's decision, "Is she too ugly?". The comments were mostly ignorant and completely in breach for blatantly disregarding cultural background that is implicitly tied to the decision.

Words used in association to highlight the news, e.g. fake, scandal, cute girl forced to mime, banned, etc. in my opinion are all over-the-board harsh and unjustified. They were all from UK's newspapers. The person who entitled his/her article "...cute girl forced to mime after China banned..." has to be obtuse, retard, and stupendously ignorant. It was a very difficult CHOICE for Mr. Chen to make.

“The reason why little Peiyi was not chosen to appear was because we wanted to project the right image. The reason was for the national interest,” said Chen Qigang, the renowned contemporary composer and French citizen who directed the music for the opening ceremony.

“The child on camera should be flawless in image, internal feelings and expression. Lin Miaoke is excellent in those aspects but in terms of voice Yang Peiyi is perfect.” Chen is, nevertheless, operating on the same level of professional capacity as our Mr. Nasty Cowell. China has put up a spectacular show for the world to see and in pursuit showed over 3/4 of the world's population that a new economic super powerhouse dawns upon us. There are doubts that London 2012 Opening Ceremony or even hosts of future Olympics opening ceremony can top over what China has done.

Enough said. Team GB has not even gold medals (or just medals per se) to compare with the US, Germany, Italy, or China! However, they surely deserve abundant gold medals binge-drinkings, alcohol intoxication, and the sports of idiocy. This certain groups of British are definitely making a name for the English people -- by tarnishing and marring UK's global image with their undivided love for alcohol. It is understood why even the commentators at BBC for the Olympics are biased and prejudiced towards team China. Again, the focus is on the sports and team GB has even lost to Australia (biggest colony). I can only sigh in disbelieve and thinking 'What a bunch of douche-bag sore-losers.'

Ma Vacance En L'Égypte

2008-07-28T23:00:00.005+01:00

"Are you ready to go to Egypt?", HF asked just after we finished packing up.
Without an instance of hessitation, "Yesss!!", I answered with the most expected straight-faced alacrity. She was asking me the most obvious question; one for it is the place I've waited to visit for a very long time, and two, we're already packed up!!

Our recent trip to Messr (actual name for Egypt) was, apart from educational (bleh!), awesome! T'was phenomenal! Definitely extraordinary! My excitement was fueled by preconceptions of what Egypt was – one of the greatest, most complex ancient civilizations to exist on the surface of planet earth – and especially my inability to understand how great structures such as the pyramids on the Plateau of Giza were built. In addition to that, I stood in awe trying to appreciate the massive beauty of the pharaonic temples carved straight out of mountains or rocks, or both. Granites, dolomites, limestones, sedimentary stones, and sand stones were among the thousands of rocks used. There are halls after halls of colonnades (Karnak Temple) the width of up to four arms length, the height of at least 20m still stand erected complete with original (and restored) scenes with hieroglyphs illustrating the chronicles of the glory days of pharaohs. Egypt was one of the world's three most complex civilization to exist.

The city of Cairo is bustling with live, lights, culture, and of course, tourists. We arrived the city past midnight. As our van exited into the cloverleaf's bent, our guide alerted us pointing to the west. Behold, the great pyramids illuminated not too far on the horizon as silhouettes under the glowing moon. It was surely a breath-taking sight, even it was a short glimpse from afar.

We set off the visit the pyramids the next day -- early. Unexpectedly but not surprisingly, the heat outside felt like an oven at 220°C by 8 AM. It was so bright and the glare around was so intense that it was difficult to go about without shade. As for the locals, they use shades to shade themselves from being directly in the sun. They take advantage of shadow casts from walls, buildings, and trees or any inanimate objects that would offer any [open] shelter from the sun. Brilliantly simple!

The height of this ancient civilization peaked with my levels of expectations as well as enthusiasm and excitement. This is the one place I have longed to travel to. We traveled with TravelTalk Tours. We had an excellent tour guide, who goes by the nickname of Yuki, and our group of travelers was made up of young, vibrant, fun-loving, and interesting people. Majority of them are in their 20’s and most of them are Australians – don’t mess with Ozzies! It has been a great and memorable time not just on our part traveling, but also because of the people we traveled with.

Precautions

No trips are ever safe. If one has been to the city of Naples (Napoli), Italy, one should know that actual incidents there are more likely and real. Throughout Egypt, it is generally safe or safer than that of Naples.

There are, however, some precautions that are noteworthy. As long as you are

not an Egyptian;

do not live in Egypt;

do not ask anyone including police, guards, tourism police, strangers... anybody not belonging to your tour group for any favors nor receive anything from anybody else. Such favors can be as simple as taking photos for you. We (my partner and I) were led into a tiny enclosure in Saqqara thinking it was toilet. Apparently, it was not. It was more like a dead end with a stone to step on. HF got on that stone and crossed her arms on her shoulders. That man took his head-dress off to put on HF. I snapped a photo. We got out, he sent 2 men after us for tips. They followed us for at least a 100m before giving up.

So don't let your vacation be harassed by unnecessary people. If you're cash-strapped and don't mind being a philanthropist, you will only be stopped when a group of poor people ganged up on your straps and pockets. I'm not against giving money to the poor, but I just don't want any troubles when in foreign land.

Your tour guide would let you know if 'they' have been tipped. Amount to tip ranges from 10 EGP to 50 EGP. Sometimes it's hard to decline to tip, but you just gotta bite hard and say "La'a" ('No' in Arabic) through your teeth.

Suncream or sunblock lotion? You had better equip yourself with a good one. If you're fairer skin (as with most Caucasians are), you'll need it. If your darker skin, you won't need as much as our fairer counterpart. Personally, I think the stuffs that's been going on about skin cancer are all fear-mongering and total BS. I'm not asserting that skin cancer as a result of not using sun block is not true.

Photos (Part I)

My photojournal of L'Egypt

Saqqara: Standing on the steps where ancient Egyptian priests ascends to place offerings to their gods.

Camel stop: At long last, the perfect camel for the job!

The camel ride experience from one side of the Giza desert to the back of Khafre pyramid was an unforgettable one.

Ya'alaa! Heading towards the world famous ancient landmark visible from space-- the pyramids of Giza!

Look, camel is smiling too! What a great way to express that they too enjoyed having us!

And we kissed; camels are happy for us too!

And they kissed, too! We are happy for them! It's what we called a-picture-perfect!

An outstanding smile from the camels on such a beautiful day in Egypt!

On the hump.

HF's beast. This time her beast was much more tamed than the previous one in Santorini, Greece.

I have never seen anything like it before; [male] camel's genitalia are on the reverse side. Can't imagine? Dog's peepee pointing towards 'north', camel's towards south. That's the best shot I could get!

With the beast of the desert, after transporting us from the other side of Giza.

The base of the pyramid of Khufu, the largest pyramid of all after Cheops and Khafre.

Each of these base stones weighs at least 5 tons. Stones further away from the ground are lighter but no less than 1 ton each.
Putting the size of these stones in perspective, I stand at 5'10".

On the plateau of Giza, with Pyramid of Khufu as background

On the ground against The Great Sphinx; a body of a beast with a human head.

With the legendary Sphinx

What's for lunch in the middle of the desert on Giza plains? You have a choice of KFC or Pizza Hut!!

All packed up ready to leave Giza (Cairo) for Aswan by train

The El-Giza train station

With Qazi, a fellow ambitious traveler

The room of sleeper train, albeit tiny, provides comfortable rest. Dinner and breakfast served. Meals not very fantastic but if you can stomach it, you'll be kept away from near starvation

Arrived Aswan after nearly 15 hours train journey. Our train was delayed 2 hours

The sleeping car (train) locomotive. Don't expect high-tech modern looking electric-run train.

The frescos at the Aswan hotel.

Inside the tabernacle of Philae Temple

Previous conquests in Egypt left their mark on the walls, just as the way ancient Egyptians do with hieroglyphs. Here, the French, Ottomans, Germans, and various parts of Europes left evidences of their visits.

The papyrus paper making factory, Aswan

Volunteered and made my first sheet of papyrus paper. It was a very simple process

We stayed over in 3 cities – Cairo, Aswan, and Luxor. We also spent 2 nights on felucca boat along the Nile. The felucca experience has to be an unforgettable one and it’s only because we did nothing for 3 days 2 nights but just sailing from bank to bank along the river from Aswan to an small island near Daraw (24°23'10.94"N, 32°54'28.76"E). It’s a good size boat but there aren’t any toilet facilities onboard. When you need to go, just let the skipper know and he’ll bank up the felucca so you can bark up a tree/bush to relieve yourself. Nobody had the luxury of privacy offered by being confined within four walls. It was done wide open in the air and it couldn’t get any more ‘nature’ than that. It was back to Paleolithic period.

The felucca (sailing boat in Arabic) on the outset looks rather basic and simple in design. Its big mast with huge sail is propelled by winds sweeping along the Nile and steered by wooden rudder situated at the back of the boat. Little did we know that the felucca can be rowed without being propelled by winds. The oars, which are at least 20 feet long each, are strapped vertically to the felucca’s mast. After partying and drinking on an island along the Nile one night, the crew rowed us back silently and skillfully back to Daraw (24.39639, 32.927132) from 1AM to 7AM.
From this point, we visited the crocodile temple in Kom-Ombo, then to Idfu (Edfu), and finally arrived Luxor where we spent another 2 nights. In retrospect, we visited 10 pharaonic temples altogether and some of us, surprisingly, got bored after the 6th or 7th site visits. There could be a number of explanations: 1) It is too hot. From 09:30 to 18:00, temperature averages between 44 and 47 centigrade (we were there in June). You get dehydrated very fast in the heat. 2) Because the majority of us do not understand hieroglyphics, most temples appear to be similar. Therefore, a visit to the next temple, albeit belonging to a different pharaoh, wouldn’t be appreciated as much as the first two or three. The scenes inscribed on the walls of all temples tell a story. Fei and I almost lost interest in another temple visit.
Nevertheless, my favorite temple visits are Temple of Ramses (Abu Simbel), Karnak (Luxor), Valley of the Kings (Luxor), Temple of Hatshepsut (Valley of Queens, Luxor), and the Kom-Ombo.

Among the many things we noticed while visiting historical and archeological sites is the presence of white-uniformed guards. They are the AK-47 rifle wielding Tourism & Antiquities Police! I mean, Tourism Police with a big bad-nasty rifle slung over his shoulder?! “Excuse sir, ‘salamoilaikum! Uh, where is the toilet?”, a curious and lost tourist asked. “Don’t mess with me!!”, grabs his rifle, “Think I’m a fool?! Well, think again! Give me 10 Egyptian pounds I’ll tell you”. You pissed in your pants! Too late! It’s crazy to arm these TA Police with big rifles.

to be continued...

Photos (Part II)

What to wear in Egypt

2008-07-26T12:45:00.004+01:00

This is without doubt a concern for most travelers to Messr mainly because of the weather there (if traveling between March and October), and the country's predominant religious practices -- Islam. I will address as best as I can this concern to ensure that your travel will be as comfortable and pleasing as possible.

From my experience and observation, there is not much fuss or complication. The general rule in regards to what-to-wear is comfortable. Whatever that is comfortable to you. I have been advised that as long as you are in tourist spot(s), which I suspect you will be throughout most of your trip, you will be fine wearing anything that you would wear back at home or going out for shopping in the city.

For women/girls, tank-tops, halter tops, sleeveless, mini-skirt, bikini (pool side only), etc. are all OKAY. If you are not going to get a tan (maybe because you're an Asian?), a long sleeve shirt will do. It'd be interesting to know one has victoriously withstood the heat of Egypt without baring any flesh at all.

As for men, shorts or bermudas are fine. The main goal is to be as comfortable as you can while you try to enjoy your vacation in the dry heat. This general rule of thumb applies to women too.

It would help if one has a hat.

Places that you'll most likely visit are the following:
1. Cairo
2. Saqqara (or Sakkara), the Step pyramid
3. The pyramids of Giza
4. Up to 8 or 10 pharaonic temples from Abu Simbel to Edfu, including ones in Luxor

As long as you are with your travel guide and/or tour group, you can rely on the sense of security it indirectly offers.

Do take a note, however, not to ask anybody (who are local, including police men) to do you any favors. Favors such as taking photo of you, asking for directions (maybe to the toilet), etc. will normally warrant them asking you for tips. It's a poor nation out there and it's inevitable. Well, if you are cash-strapped and would not mind doing some charity work, the whole of Egypt (perhaps outside Cairo) would definitely appreciate philanthropists such as yourself. There are children as young as 5 years out already out there trying to make a living on tourist's money.

Finally, dress as you would in any summer European vacation. The fact that you are a foreigner/tourist in their city/country is already attracting sufficient attention. They do not expect you to cover up from head to toe exactly like some, if not all, of the locals do. Just enjoy!

The Iraq War was about Oil, all along

2008-07-08T11:23:00.001+01:00

As a supplement to this video posting, also read this article

Year 15 BPC

2008-06-30T09:14:00.002+01:00

I have read this article by Lucy Kellaway with much interest as I began to relate with every points mentioned. As far back as I could recall a year and half ago (while still at uni), I remember committing my time to live through the time of pre-modernization with electronics. I did not even last though 3 hours! Suffice to say that I, if not we as the general public living in this modern era, have become so dependent on electronic gadgets that I would be akin to a retarded fool wandering on the big streets in the city feeling completely lost without them.

Would you go back to the days of typewriter? Maybe you would but anyone can bet against you that you will not last more than a month (even a month's time is an optimistic assumption). Going down this way could mean a change in [a higher] lifestyle [to a lower one] altogether. It makes me wonder if our children one generation below (those born in the late 90's and beyond) would ever put up with primitive technology such as manual typewriters, filofax, diary pads, flip chart presentations, etc.

It's really something to think about...
Have a read at the article below.

Source: Financial Times, June 29 2008.
I am writing this column with a silver fountain pen. I had planned to bang it out on a manual typewriter, but I threw away my old Olivetti a long time ago and don’t know anyone who still has one.

Pen or Olivetti makes no difference: the point is not to write it on a computer. I have just started a 24-hour low-tech vigil to mark the stepping down of Bill Gates, who more than any other human being has made the modern office what it is. I wanted to celebrate his departure from full-time work at Microsoft by reminding myself of what life was like when windows were things that let the light in.

Last Tuesday afternoon, I composed an automatic e-mail reply that said: “Lucy Kellaway is in the office, but not on the computer. You can send me a letter, or ring, or visit me on the second floor.” Then I pressed Submit, but got a message saying: “Error. Database has too many unique field names. Ask administrator to compact database.” God, I hate computers.

I love them, too. I have no truck with the idea that they have frazzled our minds and shrunk our souls: most office workers seem to be doing perfectly well, as far as I can judge. Although I am addicted to e-mail, it’s quite under control. Twenty-four hours’ cold turkey would be no problem.

“I bet you £2 you’ll crack,” my daughter said when I told her about my plan. “Done,” I said.

That afternoon, I shut down my machine and turned off my BlackBerry. I cleared enough space on my desk for a lined pad of paper. I sat and looked at it. What am I supposed to do now, I wondered? Research my column, was the answer. But, without the internet, how does one find anything out? I became a journalist in the year 15 BPC (Before Personal Computers) and so I should remember, but I can’t.

Then I noticed that lots of people seemed to be coughing and squeaking on their chairs. Computers, it seems, make one deaf and, with the computer off, it was as if the power of hearing had returned to me. This wasn’t entirely a pleasure as the sounds of an open-plan office are better blotted out, especially if you are trying to concentrate.

Otherwise, though, I was finding concentrating fine. The problem was that, deprived of all the stimulation of the internet, I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be concentrating on. I looked longingly over a colleague’s shoulder and saw that he was reading something on the BBC website and writing an e-mail. His screen was busy; I just had a blank sheet of paper.

That evening, I went home early, feeling anxious about all the people who were surely trying to get in touch with me. At around 9pm, I snuck upstairs and quickly checked my e-mail, reasoning that, as I was at home, it didn’t count. This was a mistake: not only was there nothing interesting but also my daughter caught me at it and so I lost face . . . and £2.

The next day, I got in late, there being no hurry. The black screen on my computer looked like a death, but what had died was my job. I felt an impostor in the office, feebly jotting down some notes on a pad like a work experience person. I didn’t want to disturb colleagues as they were attached to screens, so must be working. I stared out of the window, fretting that my lunch might have been cancelled without my knowing. In fact it wasn’t, and I made it a long one and had some wine in the way we did in the BPC age.

Back in the office, feeling slightly tight, I wrote a thank you letter to my lunch host. An e-mail would have taken about one minute, but a traditional letter was quite a kerfuffle, involving a hunt for envelopes and paper and two phone calls, one to directory enquiries for the company phone number and one to the company for the address.

It took me 11 minutes all together, but I felt an unfamiliar stab of satisfaction when I was done and put the crisp envelope into the almost disused out-box.

Then I settled down with the fountain pen to write this. It was the biggest shock of all: writing with a pen involves thinking about what you want to say. On the computer, there is no need for this: I write any old thing in vast quantities, hoping that eventually I will write something I quite like.

On a computer, I write, then think. But the fountain pen forces one to do it the other way round, which is quicker but much harder. I am woefully out of practice.

But how many words had I done? How did we live without word count? I reread what I’d written and it seemed a bit amateurish, as if this was my first article ever. Still, a little earlier than usual, I was nearly done.

It had been a peaceful, if slightly lonely day. My phone had gone twice, both times the IT help desk trying to sort out the out-of-office e-mail problem from the day before. One person dropped by for a chat. I received no letters.

I had set out to see what work would be like without a computer. This, I discovered, was the wrong question. Work IS computers now. The two are the same thing. It may be technically possible to work without them but one has the feeling that one is in a wrong age or a wrong key.

Computers may make it hard to concentrate and they waste acres of time. But I don’t want to go back to the quieter life BPC.

I want to turn my computer on, copytype this article, check the word length, then see if anyone exciting has sent me a message.

Scamming is a job, too

2008-05-13T11:00:00.004+01:00

There have been several occasions where I have witnessed a person going from one person to another telling each one of them of his/her tradegic situation. One of the most common story is the lost of wallet/purse. Another variation to this is his/her car got stolen and do not have enough money to get back home. One way or another, the situation is usually the inability to "get back home". Hence, the person lamenting his/her story would go around asking for money to "help" him/her.

One of their 'successful' aspect to get people into believing that their story is true is their professionalism. It's shown in the their clean-cut nicely dressed 'professional'. They'd appear to you as a white-collar professional or a PhD. student, etc. (depending on location) to avoid looking dodgy. It is an important aspect as first impression always count! Imagine just the opposite -- clothed in patch-worked shirt, stained and unwashed, dirty ripped jeans, and unwashed and uncombed hair etc. (what I'd call a genuine beggar) -- asking for "spare change". 9 (maybe 8) out of 10 would just walk away without sparing any change. The stranger would appear to be just-off-work (hence, still dressed professionally) but coincidently has just-been-robbed and seeking help from people to "spare any monies" ranging from 2£ to 20£ for a train fare.

Below would normally be the typical conversation set. There be may other variations.

Stranger: Excuse me... Can you please help me?
*Hessitant, but first impression already got you*
You: Yeah? What is it?
S: I am not begging for money. My car was parked here while I attended a conference at the University of ... it has been stolen. I have reported to the police and these are the statements to proof that. I need to get back to London but I can't because...
Y: Oh?
S: Can you please help me? I need to get enough money for a train fare to [destination].
Y: Yeah, okay. How much?
S: Any amount will do. What ever you can give. I'd rrrrreally appreaciate it!
Y: There you go... I hope this is enough. Good luck!
S: Thank you so very much!

At this point, you either walk away or take out your wallet!

These people are scammers! There is no doubt about it! They are otherwise called panhandlers! I am writing this so that you be aware that these people are professional scammers out there to get your hard earned cash. They stories are obviously bullcrap and whatever [documentation] proof they can come up with can be cooked up at home. They, too, work 8 hours a day. Using simple calculations you can work out how much per-hour s/he is earning, and is probably more than what you earn working as a qualified solicitor-- tax-FREE!

By the time the panhandler approaches you, s/he would have approached enough people to have enough money to make a phone call back to either friends or family member(s)/relatives for such assistance. All he/she ever need is just 1£ or no more than 2£ to use the public phone! But no, because people are easily fooled by first impression and it is this gullibleness that these panhandlers are obliged to take advantage of! They live and work in that city where you'd run into one. So, the "train fare back home" is utterly and absolutely nonsense!

If that person in the dialogue above have gone to the police, it'd be hard for me to imagine that the police actually just left him in the city stranded and did nothing further to help the victim of the stolen car get back home! For all I know, that victim should still be sitting in the police station; probably waiting for a patrol car to send him off, or something!! Instead, he is out there asking people for money to help him get home! Although, to be bloody blatantly honest, I'd love to see how s/he react when I flag down a police officer. Panhandling is illegal!

Panhandling or scamming is a job too! They are making money out of your gullibleness! And it is unbelivably easy! It is ironic that one would give 'some' money to these scammers/panhandlers, who'd usually live a normal live outside of their "working hours", then to give to the really genuinely poor and homeless -- Big Issue sellers!

You have now been warned. The next time a person appears in suit & tie, be it a woman (gawdammit!!) or a man, telling you sob stories as described above, just walk away! However, I'd really hate the fact when if it was a really genuine case and I'd turned him/her down. Or if you really want to help, bring him/her to the police! I betcha s/he will walk away from you! Busted!

Here's another person's sentiment (click here), have a read.

Curving up

2008-04-10T12:31:00.002+01:00

This transition from life as a student embarking on a life long journey to a professional in the working class has literally been a roller-coaster ride. The emotional thrill rides of the ups and downs, false promises disguised in the name of business or professional ethics, and the daily repetitive mundane tasks almost had the better of me. However, it was the daily vicissitudes of job-hunting coupled with determination and a positive attitude that prevented me from surrendering. The past few months has not been much of a thrill ride at all to say the least. I hit the pits. I was in the trough of motivations. It was like I was heading straight to a hell hole with many deadly cockscrew twists.

Just when I think there is no end to the descend, the ride I am now experiencing is leveling up and it's going to be curving upwards. With no idea what to expect ahead on the ride up, I am certain to be enjoying every moment of it throughout. I would not have been able to pull myself through if not for those who have helped me, therefore, I would like to extend my gratitude to them (you know who you are!).

In times like what seems to be impossible or futileness and/or disappointment, I recognized the importance of staying calm under tension and embracing the fight-back spirit of determination. Never give up. Perhaps nothing is really impossible. It's just a matter of time.

Liability of Product Liability on Tobacco Products

2008-03-15T14:40:00.005Z

Fundamentally adhering to the rule of law and principles of law, I have also successfully employed methods and ideas from business points of view as well as explored the effects of economic policies implemented by government organisations to produce this conclusive report of Product Liability of Tobacco.

It was important to highlight the origins of trade and thereafter the evolution of government interventions via policies that serves to regulate the general activities of trade conducts, thereby upholding justice and therefore ensuring the sustainable business and trade that all seeks. In the latter instance, it would be the manufacturer and consumers of tobacco products.

You will need Acrobat Reader to preview my work.

1. Preface.pdf

2. Table of Contents.pdf

3. Conclusion.pdf

This report continuously integrate core principles of jurisprudence, business and trade, and government involvements through legislatures and [economic] policies. The question of "which would be the preferred outcome between levying additional taxes, which has the deterrent effects, on tobacco products or adding more warning labels on the effects of smoking tobacco, which has the effects of educating and informing the members of the public..." can be answered conclusively.

Danny Teok
BA (Economics), LL.B (Hons)

Facebook Song by: RhettandLink

2008-03-11T23:25:00.005Z

Lyrics

Goodbye Sam

2008-03-11T23:22:00.002Z

The funniest political song tribute to ex-president of MIC.

Political apathy

2008-03-07T00:12:00.007Z

It is General Election time for Malaysia. The country has seen and experienced many sordid events, mostly political, and yet some are still unsolved. They have most probably swept it under their rugs and prayed that Allah and the Internal Security Act 1960 will continue to keep it buried. We have been lied to. There is no transparency in this government.

It is election time. Have I casted my vote? Perhaps I should just admit that even if I had been a registered voter, I would not have voted. I am apathetic towards the politics of Malaysia. This decades old disposition is not an uncommon phenomenon and I do not believe I am alone on this. And no, I did not vote. I wanted to vote but it is too late. I would have voted for the opposition -- Democratic Action Party (DAP). But I know it would have not made any differences. The ballot boxes would eventually be breached and votes compromised and altered. The proposed used of the indelible ink to prevent fradulent votes to a fair and secured election has been scrapped on the eleventh hour. This recent decision has inevitably raised suspicions of many on the ulterior motives behind the decision.

I wish to uncover my thoughts on the general elections. People know who would best represent their interests and welfare and will, therefore, duly cast their votes to the appropriate party. However, the general elections of Malaysia can easily be mistaken to represent ethnic and racial groups, and not the holistic interests of the citizens of Malaysia. I feel broken of the fact that I cannot say otherwise to the following:

political leaders of Malaysia are corrupt

Malaysian Ministers all have their dirty agenda leached on the expense of common people

welfare and benefit policies are racially biased

ethnic Malays are overly dependent on the government that they have totally lost the ability and the will to compete

non-ethnic Malays are already looking over the horizons to move to greener pastures, where equality is recognized regardless, corruption-free, Islam extremist free, a place that recognises freedom of religion, information, speech, etc.
If you can add to this list, please leave a comment

There is one party that has always been in power, the Barisan National (National Front (in English)), since Independence Day year 1957. Decades after decades, the welfare of Malaysians seemed to have deteriorated to the point that many believe their country "holds no promises" for them. I couldn't agree further than that that the future of the country is rather bleak and far from economic and financial sustainabilty. I am advocating for a balance of power in political parties for the sake of the country's future and for the welfare of all citizens.

An Election for Malaysians? or For ethnic victory?

A complicated three-way tug-of-war is what I think it is. Or perhaps the rope of the tug-of-war in question has three ends (akin to the letter 'Y') where each end is being pulled by each ethnic race of Malaysia -- Malay (on the other end), Chinese, and Indians (each pulling their rope). The ethnic Chinese and Indians are being contested by not only the Malays, but also the said ISA 1960, [indirect] Islamic laws (usually extremists), population base of the ethnic Malays, biased benefits and privileges for the Malays, corrupted government bodies (majority of whom are ethnic Malays), and their religion. As for the record of the latter, there is nothing wrong with Islam as a religion and I do not have anything against the religion. However, I just do not agree with how Malaysia (the ethnic Malays) practices the religion -- chaotic extremist and/or over zealous but disguised in the name of modern secularism.

What this should be is an election for the general welfare and benefits for all members of the public who are citizens of Malaysia!! Policies and legislatives ought to be free from biasness of race, religion, and skin color! There ought to be a central ombudsman free from government intervention and influence and serves the purpose of and uphold virtousities of equality, justice, fairness, and competition! I cannot stress any further how important competition is for Malaysia and its people.

Nevertheless, I can't help but to think that the ethnic Malays have cheated and will continue to cheat in elections to stay in power. The non-Malays are not facing against giants, but bullies whose time in power will soon come to an end.

I am a Malaysian and I am apathetic towards the pathetic politics of Malaysia. If you hold the same view as I do here, leave your comments by copying and pasting the preceding sentence of this paragraph.

It would be difficult and complicated to explain the socio-political state of Malaysia to a non-Malaysian who has no prior knowledge of the Malaysian society, culture, and history.

Flabbergastered!

2008-03-06T00:20:00.003Z

Which is more impossible? Selling yourself? Or Being convinced that they should hire you?

There are undeniably similar traits between a door-to-door salesperson and a jobseeker. The former could have done 200 miles knocking from one door to another and if lucky enough would have made a couple of sales. That's like going to 1000 residential units and only 2 responded positively. In other words, only 0.002% success rate! And the latter, well, his/her 'sales' would have been effectively terminated upon a sale.

After been successfully complete and achieve two bachelors degree both in Economics and Law in Canada and the UK respectively, I still cannot understand how could anybody turn down a person with calibre such as I. With due respect, I am not trying to toot my horns here and think that employers should be coming and offer positions of seniority to me. I need a place where to start and only then they will see my worth.

I am particularly disappointed at how the recruitment processes could turn down any applications based on cover letters alone. Perhaps it is a fair game for them to play out this strategy to avoid wasting valuable time as there are many time-wasters (jobseekers who waste time of others) out there. But if only they could see that I stand out to be more competitive than all other graduate students with only one bachelors degree. It is clear that work experiences is valued over education in this labour market; and that education would only be an additional benefit/advantage. I am strongly of the opinion of the fact that this should have been the reversed.

I pray for strength and a miracle that someone out there can appreciate my qualifications. I mean, are there many who can think multi-laterally and at the same time unify core principles of business, economics, and legal knowledge?! Probably less than 25% of the world's population.

England's earthquake

2008-02-27T08:12:00.002Z

A 5.2 on the Ritcher scale earthquake was felt throughout England just last night (around 12:56 AM). I thought I felt something but I was not conscious to verify anything. I was fast asleep.

I have not experienced what a tremor is like. All would describe it as "deep and rumbling sound" and no one will ever know when the time-ticking bomb will unleash its horrors upon the land. Maybe I don't ever want to know what it is or feels like.

Yesterday, it was extremely windy. There was so much wind that even a mother pushing her child on the stroller was almost blown away. They were walking on the sidewalks when a sudden strong gush of wind displaced the straight path of both the mother and the stroller. It almost went off the side curb and into the road where vehicles were passing by.

Please be pray for peace for all England.
Comments on your experiences (if you're in the UK) welcomed.

Happy Chinese New Year

2008-02-07T13:36:00.000Z

I'll start off with traditions:
Gongxi Fa Cai! Happy New Year! 新春快乐！生体健康！事业成功！万事如意！
Please keep my red-packets for me and don't spend it! They're mine!

Seven years have come and gone and I have not celebrated this joyous festive season with my family members, including this year's. It is suppose to be a time with families and relatives, and friends alike. It is like Thanksgiving Day in the western culture where everybody makes it a point to go back to their hometown for a reunion dinner. It is why millions of people are stranded at train stations in Guangzhou and Shanghai (one of the many places). They were all going home for this ocassion. China has never snowed like it did recently for over 50 years. I read that one stranded man could not make it home to get married with his fiancé, and even if he got on the train later, he would have missed his wedding anyway. The festive season runs for 15 days.

Seven years I have been away from my country. I have been away from my hometown. I wish I could go back every year during this time. I wish we will do this more often in the near future. I wish all our dreams and wishes will come true as we begin to build our lives away from home, away from hometown.

I remember lion dances, the deftening explosions of red crackers (type of fireworks), wishes from everybody saying "Happy Chinese New Year", counting all the monies I received from red-packets, etc. I remember all.

Pray for me for a good year this year. It's the year of the Rat. Everything about the rat is round, which symbolises good returns. Enjoy your holidays!

For more information about Chinese New Year, log on to Wikipedia. I have contributed to many articles related to the festivity.

Photos shot on Feb 6, 2008 -- New Year's eve dinner.

Our Chinese New Year's Eve dinner. Roast duck was the main hightlight of the night. It was to go with pancake/wrap with duck sauce.

It took three days to prepare for the roasting of the duck. First 24 hours for thawing, and left to dry. After that, it was bathed with rice wine (Shaoshing) and salted. Left to dry for the next 24 hours. Then it was sent for a honey bath and left to dry before sending it to the oven. Leave a comment if you want to know the remaining steps.

Fish is a compulsory dish on Chinese New Year's eve dinner. It draws from the belief that there is a good start to everything as well as a good ending to all, which is homophonous from the Chinese idiom "有头有尾" (literal: there's head, there's tail).

The fish's head and tail must not be eaten and be left until the festive season is over (I'm not sure if that's okay) to reflect on the above belief.

We also had home-made Sweet BBQ Pork (叉烧肉), home-made pork's belly, and a secret good stuff. Everything homemade.

Sparkling wine and the auspicious bamboo. The sparkling wine pops as loud as a champagne. The drink was good!

The look of a devourer

A picture before messing ourselves up

The look of a food deprived man

Wish everybody who views this post a Happy Chinese New Year.

I can't wait, sorry. *Ducks leg in mouth*

Seven years have come and gone in a blink of an eye. I wonder what will life be seven more years from today.

Amelie les Crayons: Les jours de neige en ville

2008-02-04T16:54:00.001Z

J'adore sa voix! Très parfait! Je t'invite ecouter à la musique. Voilà!

Le parole

* If you can't see the lyrics above from Facebook, visit my page for the original posting.

Céline, merci beaucoup pour le parole!
A bientôt!

88 Ways to Know If You're Chinese

2008-02-04T12:09:00.000Z

Received a forwarded email from a friend. Found this to be rather interesting so, I have bold-faced each that applies to me as the truth and/or at least it's what I've been doing. Out of 88, only 65 applies to me, which means I may just be 73.8% Chinese! Here's the list:

1. You look like you are 18

2. You like to eat chicken feet.

3. You suck on fish heads and fish fins.

4. You have a Chinese knick-knack hanging on your rear view mirror.

5. You sing karaoke.

6. Your house is covered with tile.

7. Your kitchen is covered by a sticky film of grease.

8. Your stove is covered with aluminum foil.

9. You leave the plastic covers on your remote control.

10. You've never kissed your mom or dad.

11. You've never hugged your mom or dad.

12. Your unassisted vision is worse than 20/500.

13. You wear contacts, to avoid wearing your "coke bottle glasses".

14. You've worn glasses since you were in fifth grade.

15. Your hair sticks up when you wake up.

16. You'll haggle over something that is not negotiable.

17. You love to use coupons.

18. You drive around looking for the cheapest petrol.

19. You drive around for hours looking for the best parking space.

20. You take showers at night.

21. You avoid the non-free snacks in hotel rooms.

22. You don't mind squeezing 20 people into one motel room.

23. Most girls have more body hair than you, if you are male

24. You tap the table when someone pours tea for you

25. You say "Aiya!" and "Wah!" frequently.

26. You don't want to wear your seatbelt because it is uncomfortable

27. You love Las Vegas , slot machines, and blackjack

28. You unwrap Christmas gifts very carefully, so you can reuse thepaper.

29. You only buy Christmas cards after Christmas, when they are 50% off.

30. You have a vinyl tablecloth on your kitchen table.

31. You spit bones and other food scraps on the table. That's why you need the vinyl tablecloth.

32. You have stuff in the freezer since the beginning of time.

33. You use the dishwasher as a dish rack.

34. You have never used your dishwasher.

35. You keep a Thermos of hot water available at all times.

36. You eat all meals in the kitchen.

37. You save grocery bags, tin foil, and tin containers

38. You have a piano in your living room.

39. You pick your teeth at the dinner table (but you cover your mouth).

40. You twirl your pen around your fingers.

41. You hate to waste food

42. You have Tupperware in your fridge with three bites of rice or one leftover chicken wing

43. You don't own any real Tupperware - only a cupboard full of used but carefully rinsed margarine tubs, takeout containers, and jam jars.

44. You also use the jam jars as drinking glasses. (not me but I know tonnes of people who does this)

45. You have a collection of miniature shampoo bottles that you take every time you stay in a hotel.

46. You carry a stash of your own food whenever you travel (travel means any car ride longer than 15 minutes). These snacks are always dried and include dried plums, mango, ginger, and squid.

47. You wash your rice at least 2-3 times before cooking it.

48. Your dad thinks he can fix everything himself.

49. The dashboard of your Honda is covered by hundreds of small toys.

50. You don't use measuring cups.

51. You beat eggs with chopsticks.

52. You have a teacup with a cover on it

53. You always look phone numbers up in the! Phone book, since calling information (*69) costs 50 cents.

54. You only make long distance calls after 11pm.

55. If you are male, you clap at something funny and if you are female, you giggle whilst placing a hand over your mouth.

56. You like Chinese films in their original undubbed versions.

57. You love Chinese Martial Arts films

58. You've learnt some form of martial arts.

59. Shaolin actually means something to you.

60. You like congee with thousand-year-old eggs.

61. You prefer your shrimp with the heads and legs still attached.

62. You never call your parents just to say hi.

63. If you don't live at home, when your parents call, they ask if you've eaten, even if it's midnight.

64. When you're sick, your parents tell you not to eat fried foods or baked goods due to "yeet hay". (in Mandarin: 上火)

65. You know what "yeet hay" is.

66. You e-mail your Chinese friends at work, even though you only 10 feet apart.

67. You use a face cloth.

68. You starve yourself before going to all you can eat places.

69. You know someone who can get you a good deal on jewelry or electronics

70. You save your old Coke bottle glasses even though you're never going to use them again

71. You own your own meat cleaver and sharpen it

72. Your toothpaste tubes are all squeezed paper-thin.

73. You know what moon cakes are

74. When there is a sale on toilet paper, you buy 100 rolls and store them in your closet or in the bedroom of an adult child who has moved out.

75. Your parents know how to launch nasal projectiles.

76.You iron your our own shirts

77. You play a musical instrument.

78. Even if you're totally full, if someone says they're going to throw away the leftovers on the table, you'll finish them.

79. You've eaten a red bean popsicle.

80. You bring oranges (or other produce) with you as a gift when you visit people's homes.

81. You fight over who pays the dinner bill.

82. You majored in something practical like engineering medicine or law.

83. You live with your parents and you are 30 years old (and they prefer it that way). Or if you're married and 30 years old, you live in the apartment next door to your parents, or at least in the same neighborhood.

84. You don't tip more than 10% at a restaurant, and if you do, you tip Chinese delivery guys/waiters more.

85. You have acquired a taste for bitter melon.

86. You eat every last grain of rice in your bowl, but don't eat the last piece of food on the table.

87. You know why there are 88 reasons.

88. You see the truth in this and then send it to all your Chinese friends.

For those of you who don't already know why it is 88 or the number 8, well, here's a simple explanation. Eight is considered as a lucky number in the Chinese culture and communities. It is homophonous to the Chinese word 'prosperity'. There are many things in the culture that are considered to be auspicious, therefore, it will not be uncommon to see bizarre practices expressed in forms of decorations, ornaments, and symbolicisms. Perhaps the greater underlying reasons for most practices will always connote good luck, which will bring prosperity, therefore, surplus, long life, and good health, and so on and so forth.

Hence, it should not be surprising so as to raise another curious brow up when you spot a car with registration plate that reads with the numbers 2's and 8's.

Behind these practices also exist an established practices of taboos and superstitious beliefs. Sometimes one practice will conflict another. For example, it is a common practice to clean up or dust away one's home before Chinese New Year. All must be spick-and-span before welcoming the festive season. Such practice is a belief to dust away bad luck or any unwanted uncleanliness. But the year 28AD or 128AD, ... 1928, 2028... etc., I doubt the house will be cleaned. The contradicting belief would be such that one would sweep away all the good fortunes of that home.

Despite all that, they will never stop any Chinese from having a good time with plenty of good food over the festive season with many great companies of friends and lots of card games (gambling!) I take this opportunity to wish everybody a Happy Chinese New year, and Gong Xi Fa Cai.

Sure Lock Ad: A True Poo Story

2008-01-27T12:13:00.000Z

Must watch from start to end! Not sure if this falls under the blonde jokes category. Very hilarious!

If you prefer to view this in fullscreen, click here.

Hinder: Lips of an angel

2008-01-24T20:03:00.000Z

Found the lyrics of this song to be wonderful! Much of it relates to what I am going through with life at moment. Sweet song. Love it!

Lyrics

* If you can't see the lyrics above from Facebook, visit my page for the original posting.

Bah Kut Teh (肉骨茶)

2008-01-20T01:06:00.000Z

Just a couple of days back when I was at the city's grocery store, Morrisons, looking to grab a bottle of milk and some beef for curry later, I over heard 3 girls conversation at the butcher's department. They were arguing about which part of pork would be best for their dinner. They will be having "Bah Kut Teh". (For How to make Bah Kut Teh, scroll to bottom)

I couldn't help but to think of my hometown upon hearing one of them exclaiming "No, no, no... this one is good for Bah Kut Teh!" refuting the other two's choice of a pork steak. Every time I heard those three words was as though they have just pronounced my hometown -- Klang. They couldn't be from anywhere else but from Malaysia and most probably Subang or Petaling Jaya area. I know just from the way they spoke and their accents.

Being a little nosy as I was a little more amused at the commotion they were creating, I neared my cart pretended to be looking for pork. They must have just moved to Leeds as university students and already missing Malaysian food. HF and I have just returned from Malaysia and we had plenty. In fact, I didn't realize I had too much of Malaysia food (already fear of deprivation while still back home) that my pants size up'ed 2 size!! Horrified!! Absolutely gutted! Went through several episodes of self-denial.

Anyway, their drama was indeed peculiar in a funny way. All three of them wanted to make my hometown's most famous herbal pork [boned] soup and couldn't agree which pork cutting to use. They have repeatedly took different packs of pork off the refridgerator's shelves and put them back, and again. Each time one will say the one she picked is better. There I was still pretending, my searching hands settled on a pack of pork shank. I was telling myself, "Listen you three dungu's (idiots), this is the better meat substitute for your Bah Kut Teh's dinner. If you have a little more to pay, choose pork ribs! It's the best!"

I avoided looking like a retard & a busybody by not saying anything. But my smile (and an almost silent snigger) gave it all away. Their drama paused for a moment and one stole a glance at me and said in Cantonese to her friends, "Is he Malaysian? You think he understood us?"

Time to cart away! My identity was blown! Sighed and shook my head as I head off without any pork. My reconnaissance mission was over! My wish to tell them which pork that would best fit for the Bah Kut Teh quickly evolved into thinking WHEN am I going to make one for myself and HF!? Maybe next week would be perfect!

This is how you can make Bah Kut Teh from scratch. No cheating by using ready-made packs/sachets. It's easy! Remember, this is my recreation of Bah Kut Teh, which may or may not taste like that of my hometown's.
Assumptions:
1. No access to all necessary herbs
2. You are living outside of Malaysia, Singapore, and China.
3. You've been deprived of all the good food in Malaysia! You want to make some of your own.
4. For frack's sake, they're English pork. Pigs here are fed differently. (Pigs 101)
5. At least 2 litres (8 Cups) of water is used for the soup.

You'll need:
A
3-5 star anises

1 TBSP kay-zi 枸杞 (those Chinese herbs red seeds that are known to be good for the eyes)

1 cinnamon stick

2 tsp cloves

2 tsp cumin seeds (optional)

1 tsp Chinese peppers (花椒）

1 Ginseng root (optional; for the extra ummph! Never Tongkat Ali, please!)

1 roll bandage dressing (optional, but preferred)
3-5 big garlics (whole)
10-15 Chinese mushrooms
1 TBSP salt
1 tsp Chicken powder OR preferrably MSG
3 TBSP Dark Soy Sauce (老酱油)
2 TBSP Shaoxing Chinese Cooking Wine
1 Iceberg lettuce (optional)
Pork shank, AND/OR pork ribs (1-1.5kg or depending on your appetite) would be nice. Get those with bones in. Recommended.

Method

In large pot, fully immerse pork and bring to boil. Discard broth (cooked blood)

Fill up pot again so that pork are all submerged.

Unless you have teabag, insert all ingredients listed under "A" in bandage and tie up. This will be your herbal pack.

Insert garlics

Bring to boil then simmer for 2 hours.

Add in chicken powder/MSG, dark soy sauce, mushrooms and salt to taste.

Let stand for 4 hours on very low heat. For best result, remove from heat, leave it overnight (at least 12 hours). Reheat by bringing to boil. Add vegetables.

Serve with steam rice. Garnish with fried shallots. Adjust soup to taste with salt.

There's plenty of room for you to modify the taste to your likings. If you don't like my version, check out The Star's Kuali's version. Alternatively, you may replaced pork with [whole] chicken. Everything else are the same.

Enjoy!
Comments welcomed!

The Dangers of Blogging

2008-01-08T14:22:00.001Z

Bisikan Nurani

2007-12-05T12:54:00.001Z

Lautan kematian ombak
Tenang pantai tiada terusik
Begitulah tasik hatiku
Sejak kehadiranmu

Betapa aku hargai
Anugerah syurga di dunia
Doa kudus aku panjatkan
Semoga dirahmati

Telahpun ku syukuri
Di dalam hidup ini
Cinta suci kurniaan Ilahi

Kejernihan wajahmu
Sempurna pada pandanganku
Kau kirana
Keturunan terpilih
Disanjung serta dihormati
Kau permata
Kesederhanaanmu
Mengecap kekayaan dunia
Kau mestika
Ketaqwaan dirimu
Itu yang merantai jiwaku

Bukan aku memuji
Apalagi memuja
Salahkahku kagumi… perhiasan duniawi

Bisikan nuraniku
Engkaulah pilihanku
Akanku pertahankan
Amanah suci ini

The vicissitudes of V-Dann's daily life (Uncensored): Homecoming 2

2007-11-29T17:02:00.000Z

Filippo Brunelleschi

Florence's Attractions

New Look

2007-11-29T16:50:00.000Z

Ahh, what a refreshing make-over of my pet blog. Been over three years and pushing to the fourth year soon. The colors, predominantly blue contours, goes easy with the eyes for reading comfort. The heading of this blog seemed much more organised, finished with a picture of me, in Athens (Greece), then followed by a brief introduction of what Braindumpster is all about.

Homecoming 2

2007-11-21T00:26:00.000Z

Good news, I will be visiting home country again in December. This time HF will be coming with me. If I manage to drag her icy cold feet far enough, we'll be there till Jan 2, 2008. She'll be meeting my parents and family members for the first time, thus the cold numb feet.

This Time Last Year
...we were behaving like two lunatics running ecstatically and randomly on the streets in Florence (Italy) with a camera wielded in our hands snapping at everything we see. Being silly as we can get was perhaps about the only way to show that we were truly enjoying ourselves -- especially HF. If memory serves the better of me, I doubt we have not mimicked every statues and sculptures that we come across. While I tried not to be a HF's joy-killer, I couldn't help but to feel a little empty as I look at the sculptures. And obviously enough, that sculpture looked back at me, probably probing the million dollar question, "What do you know about me?"
"I have absolutely no clue, David! I just know 'that' (imagining pointing at 'that') is puny because all you need is just a leave to acquit you from public indecency."

We didn't have the luxury of time and money, and perhaps above all, knowledge as to spark a genuine interest to visit the museums. At the very least, I know HF doesn't have any. Time was spent exploring the city of Florence. We stumbled upon a street stretched over a bridge (Ponte Vecchio & Arno River) where jewelers ruled the streets. If it was night time, I bet the glitters from every hundreds of jeweler stores would be bright enough to illuminate the sidewalks of that street! Suddenly, HF was paralyzed torso down & neck up. Stuck at Ponte Vecchio, Italy's oldest and longest surviving stone bridge, it was also the longest agonizing moments I had to go through with HF who at the time seem to be hypnotized and enchanted by the glittering colors of gold, silver, and diamonds. She tried to convinced me that she was not the only one, and indeed, she was not the only one with torso and mental paralysis by acute golden sort of rays. Did I look surprise? I masked it, but I did enjoy myself nevertheless -- observing the behaviors of the paralysis captivating them by these jewelries. I wish to return to this place when I could afford a jewelry or two for my beloved one.

I, however, do have my fair share of paralysis too. But of magnificent structures and pizzas! We arrived at Florence's duomo megastructure -- Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore -- designed by Filippo Brunelleschi. It is an astounding structure and a landmark. Being there reminded me not only can we achieve great things in life, but also the impossible. I recalled the documentary I watched on discovery channel about Esref Armagan, a blind painter, who was right here on an experiment test to prove that he could draw Brunelleschi's dome with perspective. He was born blind. He passed the test. All he did was a couple of touches on Brunelleschi's six-sided dome structure. Sat down and began drawing. It was mind-boggling.

Filippo Brunelleschi's Basillica di Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence, Italy.

Golden sculptured panels of biblical stories (I think) on an entrance gate.

Hf and I before the 'wallpapered' duomo

Inside the duomo, the artworks of painters, sculptors, stonemasonry, etc were all out of the ordinary. Awesome! Just have to be there to absorb my statements.

The Trompe-l'œil of Niccolò da Tolentino, the famed condottiero.

Enchanted! Beyond-words beautiful frescos -- the interiors of the duomo.

...a closer look

While these ceiling frescos are not decorated with gold leafs and/or paints as did the doumo of Marco Polo in Venice, they are still as impressive!

At the end of our trip, I had to readjust the position of my head-neck to be forward looking. There were just too many to see. The ones in Sistine Chapel had the better of my neck! But it was fun!

When I first saw Duomo Fiore, it was late evening and we were looking for our hotel. The exterior of the duomo looked as though the entire structure was wallpapered with green bar strips. When we were there again the next morning, HF laughed at me right in my face, "So, wallpapered huh? Idiot!!" Great, I became the butt of the joke first thing in the morning!

Home made super-freaking-'solutely delicious original Italian Margheritta pizza, only available in Naples, home to professional Italian pickpockets and thieves. Thank God I still had enough spare change to afford this mouth-watering aromatic pizza!

Possibly traveling the Peninsula
This December we may be visiting Singapore, an island of Malaysia for either snorkling or scuuba diving, and Thailand. Looking forward to get together with family and friends once again.

The Simpsons in 300 Trailer

2007-11-12T21:01:00.000Z

My hero got featured yet again in another movie. There are many versions of this on YouTube however I find this version stands out from the rest.

iPhone

2007-11-09T14:19:00.000Z

The wait is over. Perhaps the most anticipated phone is finally manifesting itself today at O2 stores from 18:02. One's expected to pay £289.00 for the set and be contracted to at least a 35£ a month tariff.

It's definitely worth checking it out. I'll have to save up for two. I'm betting against all odds that its price will drop considering the time factor that affects all phones, and hacker's pledge to hack & unlock the phone.

Where did I hear a GooglePhone or gPhone will be out to hurt Apple's iPhone? Can't wait!

Bond Fire Night 2008

2007-11-08T12:24:00.000Z

This year yet again nobody can help themselves to burn effigies of sort to fuel the fire, at least it was the largest bonfire I have ever seen -- at Hyde Park, Leeds. As a matter of fact, nobody (apart from the organizers) would be allowed to do that in public places (except for I think the person who did it -- Guy Fawkes). By 7PM, the park was already jam-packed with people, mostly young people as the park is surrounded by student residentials. The crowd was great! There could easily be 20,000 people at the park then. It was at least 50m radius from the bonfire -- fenced. Guards and security personnels inside. Several fire extinguishers within the circle. Five blinding mercury spotlights around the circumference... made walking to a destination difficult -- silhouette effect.

The fireworks this time, compared to the ones displayed at Roundhay Park last year, was not, in my opinion, very impressive. In fact, and surprisingly, I felt bored watching the unsynchronized display. Every rockets that lit up the night sky were most probably store purchased. They were boring, unlively, too much noise, uncreative, and small. It seemed that the fireworks lacked the skillful handwork of professional pyrotechnics.

Even though the disappointing fireworks display was not the primary agenda of the night -- the bondfire was -- the organizers for the fireworks display could have at least and should have put more efforts in it because of their associative factor. People turn up at the bondfire also to watch the fireworks. Without it, the bondfire night would be lacking completeness. I feel they should be feeling a little ashame because there are people out there who have bought a bigger, better, single-use fireworks for his own amusements!

We should have gone to Roundhay Park for this night.

Since Bond Fire night is the only night of the year where fireworks display is a very real possibility, organizers should really get together to plan for the biggest night of all to commemorate what Guy Fawkes began -- England's biggest bondfire, and a competitive fireworks display. So big that they won't need those annoying blinding mercury spotlights anymore and would justify the 50m stand-off from the fire. So big that the entire city would thronged to the site with full anticipation to watch the best display ever. But I guess to burn down a city is never worth anything.

Almost scammed!

2007-10-30T10:40:00.000Z

If there are any reasons to be happy for a job-seeker that would be returning for a second stage of the interview process.

Executive Advertising (www.executive-advertising.com), otherwise known as Executive Advertising, Inc. based in Boston Massachusetts, was rather quick to wrap up my first round of interview, in Manchester, which lasted well under 10 minutes.

75% of the time was spent talking about what they do. How they have grown so big and expanding rapidly across the country -- a reasonable justification for a successful business (of scamming people by brainwashing!!) They used prominent brand names like Sky, Boots, Pizza Hut, etc. to show that their clients are big players in the market.

"Are you okay to interact with people face-to-face?", I was asked the question; to which I said on the level of preferences, of course, I'd dealing with people face-to-face!

As I walked away feeling like I was on top of the world, I was also quick to inform HF about the success of the first round of interview. I read their job description over and again not believing that I was going to be a candidate for a management training position. Well, having already two bachelor's degree (not tooting my own horn here) I thought the management training fits me well. Here's the job description, found on a job website:

GRADUATES, GRADUATES, GRADUATES!!!

TRAINEES, TRAINEES, TRAINEES!!!

CAREERS, CAREERS, CAREERS!!!

SEEKING: DIRECT MARKETING, DIRECT MARKETING MANAGERS, DIRECT MARKETING GRADUATE/TRAINEES

Are you a graduate searching for a career opportunity with a proven company? Still hunting for a position where hard work and ambition arerewarded instead of just seniority? Look no further!

Based in Manchester, Executive Advertising is a direct marketing company which specialize in the sports, home improvement, and telecommunication industries. Planning and executing promotions for our premier clients is our main focus. This year, our success with our portfolio has led us to increase our marketing and management teams. We value innovation, leadership, and a positive attitude. We offer career opportunities, competitive pay based on merit, a fun work environment, and paid training.

THE POSITIONS:
We are currently looking to fill entry-level Account Representative positions with career opportunities available in:

Promotional Marketing
Management Training

All positions are FULL TIME and ENTRY LEVEL. Advancement is based on performance, not seniority.

Executive Advertising develops a complete business solution targeted to our clients’ specifications, which makes our Account Representatives responsible for a wide variety of things, such as:

Teaching and training a team of marketing/sales/public relations experts to achieve a high-powered presence in the Manchester market.
Monitoring campaign and individual progress to ensure a steady stream of results.
Establishing relationships with local business owners to acquire new clients and strengthen our client’s presence in the market.
Communication of daily progress reports and maintaining established feed of information to and from our clients.
Execution of special promotions, test and target marketing, and brand management.
THE PERFECT CANDIDATE:
We are seeking individuals who enjoy working in a fast-paced environment. You must possess initiative, teamwork skills, and the ability to set and achieve goals. As our company is constantly expanding to national and international locations, we need people who are highly motivated and driven by the opportunity to financial and career growth.

TO APPLY:
Please send your CV to Jennifer Tanner at manchester@executive-advertising.com, or call 01612421780 and ask to speak to Jake Bradford. We are looking to fill all positions immediately. We apologize, but only those whom we wish to select for preliminary interviews will be contacted.

Thank you for your interest in Executive Advertising!

Feel free to visit our website @ www.executive-advertising.com.

All details and descriptions for the job sounds legitimate. Anyone will see it as the golden opportunity and would click-to-Apply right away. In fact, many people did and I was there (venue of the interview) to know.

Had I not took an interest to find out more about the company (their products, services, history, etc) last night, I would already be in Manchester for the second round of interview.

I began my search for, naturally, the company's name -- Executive Advertising. There was nothing much about the company and I began to be very curious. If ExecAd claimed to be as big as it claims to be, their histories (acts, profiles, deals with other businesses, news, etc) should be picked up and made traceable by search engines. I remember I was told,
"We've been around since 2001..."
If that was the case, I did a Whois search to find out about their website. Apparently, there were some discrepancies and I began to get very suspicious. First, the address of the registrant:
69 Wilson Street
First Floor,
Yukon Territory EC2A 2BB
Zimbabwe
1. Wilson Street... There are ten Wilson Streets all across United States.
2. Yukon Territory is in Canada.
3. EC2A 2BB refers to Islington, a part of central London, UK
4. Zimbabwe, is well one of Africa's country

It sure looked like an address on first glance. But this address points to nowhere, which translates to mean that the registrant does not want to be known/discovered.

Having discovered new information, I went back to their website to read their entire contents. I realized that the choice of words used were mostly ambiguous and unspecific. Reputable companies do not use ambiguous words. They will specify exactly their nature of business, how they are conducted, and choice of words are directly specific. But Executive Advertising's website was just the exact opposite.

Then I applied search filters filtering keywords like: jobs, leeds, manchester, -site:.co.uk, etc. and the first item to appear on the search outcome was DS-Max -- Direct Selling to the Maximum. Uncertain what has DS-Max has to do with Executive Advertising (I didn't even know what it was all about), I clicked into it. I was definitely in for a surprise!!

Executive Advertising (and I made sure the two terms referred to the company, and not some corporate position) is a real company that is out there to scam job-seekers by brainwashing them into believing they are doing something good for the company with the hopes of career progressions -- with hard work!. As far as I have read, the candidate will never progress. He will be going door-to-door selling discount coupons, shabby goods, while claiming that he's doing it on behalf of big company names (legitimizing his sale pitch).

There's a whole lot more about job scam stories on http://www.ripoffreport.com, a consumer website for which I am thankful. It has made aware there are giants out there to make you scapegoats. Searching for "Executive Advertising" + scam yielded more search results than just searching for "Executive Advertising".

I am, nevertheless, happy to have found out about such scams. I am not disappointed in any ways. I hope job-seekers alike will have the instinctive interest to find out more about the company they will be working for. As HF said, "If a company does not show an interest to know more about you, clearly the company is ONLY interested in what you can do for them!" The absence of such simple reciprocity is what raises suspicion.

Pressing on!

Caged-like

2007-10-09T13:02:00.000+01:00

There's nothing I can do to change what have been going on up in my head since I returned to Leeds on Sept 30. Somehow, rather perplexing, I finally found myself imprisoned in Leeds. Although my freedom space can be stretched to the city's span, I have only found myself circling in and around my 50 square foot apartment that sits on Leeds city centre's border.

The grocery store, Morrisons (I still can't spell its name correctly without referring to its plastic bags I usually use as [waste] bin bags), is conveniently located less than 600m away so that I could continue to stay alive. Everything I last saw here before I left for Kuala Lumpur has now been changed. A total make-over of the store that is, fortunately, not beyond recognition. I could just dart straight to the frozen food section and jet off back home to dump it in the microwave. That's meal! That's good enough to go on for another day. Another day of feeling trapped here in Leeds.

Again, I couldn't help to imagine everything accessible to me when I was back in my hometown. My sense of adventures have always kept me away from staying at home longer than 2 hours (after waking up). Traveling from town to town on my Mitsubishi's V6 Storm (pick-up truck) not only made me feel on top of everybody else (on the road) but also the very sense of freedom. My very same sense of adventure is still very much alive but I have gotta tame it and tune it down. There's nowhere to go anywhere further than both my legs will bring me. No wheels, unfortunately. It does actually feels like I've got an invisible hand (nothing to do with Adam Smith's theory), as that of an amputee who's trying to adjust to his new environment with one arm.

Despite the above, I've come to accept that my hiding-out lifestyle is temporal. I'm back here looking for employments. Usually this time of the year I would be in classrooms and lecture halls but not now. I'm done with university. I am behind my desk scouting job websites. It's hard to convince myself there's a purpose to this because the efforts put in always feels like a futile attempt as potential employers always appear as though they're out there to tear you down. Pulling myself through is a challenge. To make ends meet, I've got to take up this challenge and make myself proud.

Life is truly not a bed of roses. Student's life is definitely the bed of roses that I am now out of it, for now.

The Secret to a Lasting Marriage : Embrace Imperfection (Must read for married and unmarried people)

2007-10-04T09:43:00.000+01:00

Thanks to LYHV for this forwarded-mail, which I find quite insightful and perhaps useful to my current relationship with HF. I invite all to have a read.

When I was a little girl, my mom liked to make breakfast food
for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in
particular when she had made breakfast dinner after a long,
hard day at work.

On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs,
sausage and an extremely burned toast in front of my dad. I
remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet, all my dad did
was reached for his toast, smiled at my mom, and asked me how
my day was at school.

I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember
watching him smear butter and jelly on that toast and eat
every bite! When I got up from the table that evening, I
remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the
toast. And I'll never forget what he said: "Baby, I love
burned toast."

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked
him if he really liked his toast burned. He wrapped me in his
arms and said, "Debbie, your mommy put in a hard day at work
today and she's real tired. And besides, a little burnt toast
never hurt anyone!"

In bed that night, I thought about that scene at dinner...and
the kindness my daddy showed my mom. To this day, it's a
cherished memory from my childhood that I'll never forget. And
it's one that came to mind just recently when Jack and I sat
down to eat dinner.
I had arrived home late...as usual...and decided we would have
breakfast food for dinner. Some things never change, I
suppose!

To my amazement, I found the ingredients I needed, and quickly
began to cook eggs, turkey sausage, and buttered toast.
Thinking I had things under control, I glanced through the
mail for the day. It was only a few minutes later that I
remembered that I had forgotten to take the toast out of the
oven!

Now, had it been any other day -- and had we had more than two
pieces of bread in the entire house -- I would have started
all over , but it had been one of those days and I had just
used up the last two pieces of bread. So burnt toast it was!

As I set the plate down in front of Jack, I waited for a
comment about the toast. But all I got was a "Thank you!" I
watched as he ate bite by bite, all the time waiting for some
comment about the toast. But instead, all Jack said was,
"Babe, this is great. Thanks for cooking tonight. I know you
had a hard day."

As I took a bite of my charred toast that night, I thought
about my mom and dad...how burnt toast hadn't been a
deal-breaker for them. And I quietly thanked God for giving me
a marriage where burnt toast wasn't a deal-breaker either!

You know, life is full of imperfect things...and imperfect
people. I'm not the best housekeeper or cook. And you might be
surprised to find out that Jack isn't the perfect husband! He
likes to play his music too loud, he will always find a way to
avoid yard work, and he watches far too many sports. Believe
it or not, watching " Golf Academy" is not my idea of a great
night at home!

But somehow in the past 37 years Jack and I have learned to
accept the imperfections in each other. Over time, we have
stopped trying to make each other in our own mould and have
learned to celebrate our differences. You might say that we've
learned to love each other for who we really are!

For example, I like to take my time, I'm a perfectionist, and
I'm even-tempered. I tend to work too much and sleep too
little. Jack, on the other hand, is disciplined, studious, an
early riser, and is a marketer's dream consumer. I count
pennies and Jack could care less! Where he is strong, I am
weak, and vice versa.

And while you might say that Jack and I are opposites, we're
also very much alike. I can look at him and tell you what he's
thinking. I can predict his actions before he finalizes his
plans. On the other hand, he knows whether I'm troubled or not
the moment I enter a room.

We share the same goals. We love the same things. And we are
still best friends. We've travelled through many valleys and
enjoyed many mountaintops. And yet, at the same time, Jack and
I must work every minute of every day to make this thing
called "marriage" work!

What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept
each other's faults - and choosing to celebrate each other's
differences - is the one of the most important keys to
creating a healthy, growing, and lasting marriage
relationship.

And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to
take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your married
life and lay them at the feet of GOD. Because in the end, He's
the only One who will be able to give you a marriage where
burnt toast isn't a deal-breaker!

At a malay wedding

2007-10-04T00:12:00.001+01:00

生日快乐！

2007-09-27T18:34:00.000+01:00

今天9月28日我过我28岁的生日。
突然发现时间过了其实太快了！
也许不可能是个不好的事情。
有朋友和我家人的祝福，我年龄都不笑了，一定要努力的工作成功。

我最最最好的生日礼物就是得到了英国的签证on this day. 对我来说就是非常重要的时或礼物。
黄斐我很快就会回来了。

Shanghai Traffic Preview

2007-09-26T20:04:00.000+01:00

Referring to the second paragraph of my previous posting entitled "Shanghai", a video was especially made to illustrate just that. Before recording this video, I amuse myself by standing at the junction along Nanjing Road and Henan Road and watched every motorists' behaviors on the road.

To start with, for example, you'll first notice a cyclist (wearing red polo) ignored the traffic lights on his side and happily pedaled ahead while the road crossing this junction was still green. This is skill!

Then, when the light turns green, hordes and hordes of motor-cyclists revved up and jet by -- without helmets. The amount of cyclists and motorcyclists is a staggering number. Also take notice of sounds from just this video clip. Everybody is honking at one another -- and it's only normal. This is only one cross junction of Shanghai.

It's not that those without helmets are more prone to getting knocked down by another motorist, but the amount of motorists out there who are not abiding traffic rules. The attitude of crossing is more like when it's a clear way, go. It does not matter if it's either red, amber, or green. In a way, it tells me that these rules and pedestrian facilities are only for-show for those who doesn't drive anything bigger than a car. On the contrary, in Kuala Lumpur, pedestrians are complaining to the newspapers and the local municipals that our zebra-crossings and such are 'only for-show' for the motorists! Those with cars (and motorbikes) over here thinks they own the streets and think much less of those who are walking. And when one Malaysian driver honks at another, the honk is, more often than not, accompanied with a furious and irritated face or a cold stare. Personally, I think Malaysians have a long way before coming to terms with being courteous.

What is a honk for anyway?
1. "Heads up. I'm behind you. Make way" OR
2. "WTF! GET THE Frack outta my way!"

Point of inception

2007-09-25T19:34:00.001+01:00

I think I am going to start a little episodic story to put on here. It will probably be about...

... should I spoil it? Nah!

Shanghai Zoo

2007-09-24T19:59:00.000+01:00

HF and her best friend finally met again after three long years. I picked the venue for their meeting as I wanted to see some panda bears.

Shanghai

2007-09-23T17:49:00.000+01:00

I enjoyed beautiful sunny weather throughout my stay until the day I left Shanghai. It was CROWDED! In fact, it is over-the-top overcrowded with more than 20 million residents in it AND still expanding. I have yet to witness a large gap between people out on the streets nor indoors. It is probably already a known fact, however, to be among the crowd is just phenomenal! It was then I fully realized that traffic congestion situation such as bottle-necking, not only happens on motor/causeways for vehicles but also on pedestrian ways especially evident at the metro's escalator and entrance points AND ALSO in hypermarkets (Carrefour -- shopping cart congestion. Can you believe it?). Not that I was ignorant of this fact but, as mentioned, it was truly a phenomena to be there among the millions of people squeezing just to get on the escalator's steps. The stairways up would already be flooded with people by now. Even a street as broad as Nanjing Road (南京路), one has to zigzagged through to a destination. TWL was right, it is a good place for people-watching. I think it is the best place!

HDR Photo: The Shanghai Oriental Pearl Tower, Pudong.
Cover photo for this posting.

My lonely shadow stretches down at Lujiazhui Station (Line No#2)

Nanjing Road by day with lots of things to see and do. Lots of activities! It's Shanghai's landmark shopping street.

Nanjing Road by night still as crowded but ever so colorful with not just neon lightings, but also flooded with people from all over the world! It's Shanghai's landmark shopping street.

On the surface top and among the sea of people, there are countless and a variety of bikes ranging from pedaled-bicycles (trillions of them) to motor-powered bicycles (in thousands), scooters (billions of them) to motorbikes (in hundreds of thousands). None, and I meant NOBODY, ever wears safety helmets while riding. Not even the motorbikers. NOBODY seems to be abiding traffic rules. AND, the magical part of this phenomena is NOBODY ever gets run-over or even knocked down by anything!! Every vehicles that can honk will never hesitate to honk! The streets and roads could be an unsynchronized music lane; in fact, it is rightfully one for it'd be a dead metropolis otherwise -- like that Tuesday's early morning (a day after HF left).

The number of bikes parked could reach horizon's end and only two people are watching over this parkade! Yet many still dutifully parks here.

I began to think it'd be an abnormal sight if there exists a building with less than 5 floors in Shanghai unless it's a preserved building maybe for historic or cultural reasons, or a museum. Singapore is a concrete jungle but Shanghai is probably one that is a planetary-sized by comparison. They say it's like New York city, LA city, and Tokyo city. I have not been to any so I wouldn't know. Mexico city has a 20 million population but the number of skyscrapers in Shanghai would probably have easily outnumbered Mexico city. It was, for me, mind-boggling. More buildings are being built towering the skies as if a couple more is just not enough. It all almost seemed as though each is competing for the-tallest-building title. The Oriental Pearl (Shanghai's Radio and TV) tower has been belittled by Jinmao tower (金茂大厦) in 1998. It will soon be over-towered by the Shanghai World Financial Center, adjacent to it, upon completion in 2008. In fact, since September 14 2007, the Shanghai's super skyscraper WFC is officially the tallest structure in all of China. What's next?

Every square inch of the city's land is developed. If it is not buildings, there must be a park. If neither high-rise apartments/offices, then it must be transportation infrastructures. I thought elevated highways is the best logistics solution to most cities but I was wrong when I saw multi-tiered elevated causeways! Not single, double is a common sight, but three-to-five tiers above ground! I didn't think people over there needed umbrellas to stay in the shades just to avoid getting a tan. With buildings towering the skies and multi-leveled causeways all around the city, I was getting concerned not receiving my vitamin D from sun exposure and getting a tan! We were all in the shadows most of the time. By the way, being fair-skinned in East Asia is the ideal concept of beauty. The fairer you are (females), the more beautiful you are. Simple. Getting a tan is a no-no! I was out there looking to get a teeny-weeny-bit tan.

Look, a burried hydrant! Need I say more?

Even pedestrian bridges have multi-levels version!

HF and I at The Bund

Chenghuang Shopping district

Man lugging giant bags of recyclables -- wearing a shirt! Nice white-collar job!

HF and her parents with me

HF and I at Chenghuang Business district

I don't know why but I just like this place

The Chenghuang Business district is not a small area. This has been a handy reference!

classic Chinese wine flasks which has been around for more than a thousand years.

Don't know what it says. Just thought it'd make a great photo

Chenghuang SD's building styles.

The live ones at Shanghai's zoo, which we've been. We didn't take any of these pandabears home either.

The Old Street of Yu Garden grand entrance

In and around Yu Garden's Old Street

One of my favorite photo of the Old Street of Yu Garden

Fire department

Lanterns for Mid-autumn Festival

HF at her sanctuary meditating...

... and this was the result of her meditation. I had but to share everything.

While the never-ending astronomical heights concrete towers dominate the skylines with over 50 floors up, at ground level, there are comparatively phenomenal depths! Metros and subways are, of course, underground. But I'm referring to underground shops and stores that the collective size and depths of them all made me feel as though I was in an underground city or an underground shopping center! To top it off, they're complete with elevators and escalators! Tell me about scarcity of land! The Chinese would probably come out with the world's deepest tower on land. And if this caught on, we'll probably all dig to earth's core and live comfortably. Mind you, a nuclear winter is not too distant of a possibility. Great Wall is an amazing feat. Shouldn't be a problem create a habitable underground city.

Food and Culture
While The Schindler's List (240 items) is not a base of comparison for a list of food varieties, it'd probably give one an idea of the endless varieties of food one can get in China. Probably at least 10x longer. Perhaps one is familiar with a popular saying that the Chinese would cook/eat anything that walks/swims the earth and/or has its back facing the sky. Well, that and also anything from the sea. There's always a special Chinese sauce it and it's always the correct tasting one. You can never go wrong with Chinese! Maybe for the same reasons how the Chinese figured out acupunctural points. Or Chinese herbal medicines. Right now, I'm like how-the-frack do they do that?!

Many a times when I was brought to try out a new delight and I guess it was my mistake to instinctively find out what I was going to eat. It's only natural to do that especially in the land of Eat-anything. I'd dread to imagine that black-pepper she's shaking onto my hotdog are made from black spicy ants (probably a substitute to cut cost!). Of course, there is no such thing! But there's no stopping anybody from doing something close to this. It may have happened to me: HF mother bought me two lamb skewers (羊肉串) at a canopied hawkers lineup. I had wanted to have it again since HF and I had it in Wujiang Rd. I took my first bite on the lamb meat. It was hot. As I was masticating the meat, I began to realize it doesn't taste like lamb's meat! If you're a meat-eater, you can tell if it was beef, chicken meat, mutton, or lamb meat apart easily. I took another bite in. Not even close to lamb taste, nor beef, nor chicken. HF's mother tried a piece. She agreed with me. The meat do not taste like lamb meat. I threw the binned away. She pulled me away and said: "There have been a lot of people from other provinces came to Shanghai and do little businesses such as these. Not all have enough money. And it has been rumored that cat's meat has been used before in food joints like these." I was stunned to hear that! I stared at her with a blank face as i couldn't believe what I just heard -- I could have just had cat's meat!! Funnily, Nigel the black cat popped into my head but it didn't last long to be consumed.

Among other things, I noticed that Chinese people are extremely nice and friendly... perhaps only towards foreigners or non-Chinese. Bear in mind that this is only one point of view. However, I have seen some Caucasians that have been 'spoiled' by this norm that their needs and demands must be met first. I experienced a rather comedic situation. It was at Longyang SMT Station (龙阳路磁浮站). Nobody is allowed to the station's end for photo. I was already there, alone, when a security guard approached me saying,

"... this area is prohibited. If you want to take pictures, please go to the centre of the station", in his Shanghainese accented Mandarin.

I understood everything that was said but I pretended not to as I really wanted to get a couple of shots. I stammered in extremely broken Mandarin and resorted to using hand gestures to communicate my intentions of being here for only 5 minutes just for photos and will leave when the maglev train leaves. He scratched his head puzzled and confused struggling as he doesn't know how to respond in a language I'd understand. Soon, he nodded his head and hesitantly said "okay...!". I was in a restricted area and it was okay!! I know I was taking advantage but he could have insisted.

I did a lot of walking. I walked the length of the Century Avenue (世纪大道), which was like the Champs-Elysees of the East, about 3.2 kilometers, to the Jinmao tower. Back and forth the stretch of The Bund, about 2 kilometers, twice. I got to know the lights at The Bund shuts off at 10:45pm and there's nothing left to see by 11pm -- all lights will be out. The city needs to conserve energy. As usual, The Bund is always crowded. This was also the place I realized Shanghai's metro closes at 10:25pm! I was already too late to catch the last train back to Zhongshan Park. I walked about 4 kilometers on Nanjing Rd towards Zhongshan Park (westward) and by midnight, I flagged down a cab. It would have cost me 40元 from The Bund, but because I walked it cost me 28元.

Shanghai Science and Technology Centre

Century Avenue, Shanghai.

People's Square (人民广场)

It was overall a good trip. I had only wished HF did not have to go back to Leeds so soon. I could have been to more places rather than sticking in Pudong all the time.

When I returned to Kuala Lumpur, everything else here seemed dwarfed. Streets and sidewalks are empty -- where are all the pedestrians?! Felt as though I am in the ruins of my city -- where are all the super skyscrapers? I was getting too much sun tan now that I just wanna stay indoor. Shanghai is truly an international city. I like Shanghai.

Burdened

Photos
Alternatively, a photo-album style viewing here.

Always long queues for Kue-tie (fried dumplings)

In the line queuing to get a taste of what everybody is queuing up for

Reunion

2007-09-20T11:14:00.001+01:00

My year-long wish to travel to Shanghai has, well, finally been realized on Sept 6. I had wanted to visit HF's parents, who reside in Shanghai, since I had been back for almost 2 months. HF had to be back in Shanghai for her late grandfather's funeral. As much as I would like to make it with her at the funeral, there just wasn't time to sort out all necessary travel documents as that weekend coincided with a long weekend National Day holiday.

The wait
As soon as I obtained Chinese visitor visa, I just couldn't wait to see HF, who I have not seen since July 10. It was a midnight flight (MH 386) and I couldn't sleep throughout. Again, I couldn't believe that I will be face-to-face with HF sooner than I thought, even though for just four days.

After getting off at Zhongshan Park Station (中山公园地铁站) I waited for HF at the steps just in front of KFC. Since she's been back 4 days earlier than me, I was certain that she would have had a haircut or went to the hair saloon and/or got a new dress. It was supposed to be a 10-minute wait but 40 minutes had passed. She was not fasionably late but apparently, as I later learnt, she waited in another KFC branch on the other side of the road. I was waiting with a pink heart-shape cushion in arms to give it to her when we meet.

United
"Is she coming? It's been 30 minutes! Has she lost her way? How could she be lost in her hometown?", I asked. My anxious wait was over when she appeared in her new sleeveless turtleneck skyblue top with her dad. And sure enough, a new haircut and saloon-treated hair.

Despite of what has happened to her family, it was so good to see her again. My baggages were lugged away by her father to a cab. We had dinner together at her home on the first night. We ate out on the second night. HF had snake on Saturday. I was glad we spent lots of quality time together while in Shanghai as I knew we only had limited time before she leaves for Leeds on the following Monday (Sept 10). What struck me as a surprise was that HF was quick to depart from her mourning state of mind. She was back to her bubbly and cheerful self, like a little girl. I was like "OOkaaaayy..........", so I just took her as she was.

About the video above
Overcame with joy when I first saw you again in Shanghai after we've been apart for two months. Felt as though I was in love again. They don't need to know why I have chosen you. You don't need to know why I have remained with you. I just want to be with you.

This video marks both Huang Fei and I when we were in Shanghai. I went over for a visit and it upsets me to see her torn into pieces when she had to go back to England and leave me behind.

My visa application has been hindering me from going back to be reunited with her sooner.

The song is by Jay Chou (周杰伦) called 枫叶 and I believe it's correct translation is "Maple leaf". Because we have been traveling together, I intend to show how my travel was not really complete without her. Often I felt left out, like the maple leaf at the end of the video, which was the only leaf that turned red perhaps still waiting before falling with the rest. Among other things, there should have been two tea cups, two everything. The song silenced prematurely for a conversation and resumed with the words "I just wanna be with you" in Mandarin.

A different perspective

2007-09-19T17:53:00.000+01:00

An artist offers a different perspective of drawing. Some say it's perverted art, while others say it's very creative! I found it humorous.

Shanghai Maglev train

2007-09-15T05:45:00.000+01:00

My long-time obsession with trains was finally realized upon arrival in Shanghai when I embarked on my first ever maglev train ride. I have only discovered few days before leaving for Shanghai that they have high-speed maglev train! Upon arrival, I was so determined to get on it for a ride, even though HF has planned a rendezvous route for me -- by bus!

Single-way ticket costs 60¥. If not mistaken, you can get a 20% discount off the ticket's price if you can proof you've just landed (boarding pass or air ticket). 80¥ for a return trip.

I rode it twice!! It was a mind-blowing experience for me not only because it was my first time on a maglev train, but also because it traveled at 431 km/h for 2-3 minutes. Everything outside the train passed by in split seconds, especially the other train on the other track. It like like... try saying "Foooom!!" as fast as you could! that was how it sounded like when both train passes each other.

However, I was told that the local people do not use the SMT much. They say it is not worth paying for such a service -- expensive and inconvenient. There's a bus service that goes right to the departure hall (check-in counters) of PVG airport for only 20¥. On the other hand, the SMT stops at quite a distant whereby one would have to walk another 10 minutes (with baggages) to the departure hall.

Hmm, I just went for the experience! It was worth it! How else can I travel at 431 km/h on ground?! I can now proudly say that I have traveled on the Guinness World Record Magnetically Levitated train linking Shanghai's International Airport in Pudong to Shanghai's financial district in Longyang at the speed of 431 km/h!! On ground!

Arrived at Longyang SMT station

Can We Give Up Wheels?
Can we give up wheels? It is simply unimaginable for people who are used to the thinking of wheel-rail system. But someone had, indeed, a miraculous idea in his mind and made the idea a reality. In 1922, Mr. Hermann Kemper, a German scientist, boldy put forward an idea of electromagnetic levitation. After the whole plan was worked out, Mr. Kemper applied for a patent on maglev trains in 1934. A maglev train was born on Mr. Kemper's design draft.

Kemper's Idea
In fact, the principle of magnetic levitation is not abstruse at all. It uses the character that "two pieces of magnets [similar poles] repel each other and two different in nature (opposite poles) attract each other" to make the magnet produce a force to resist against earth's gravity. With mental perception, Mr. Kemper employed this into the railway transportation system to make trains suspend on the railway without relying on wheels.

This was only the first step made by Mr. Kemper. In his second step, Kemper spread out rotated synchronous motors, installed the rotating motors beneath the car and placed the stators and coils of motors on the whole line of track. Once the power is switched on, the train and the track ecame a complete linear electric motor.

Kempter's maglev train levitated on the track without the need of wheels. It means that Kemper's train ran lightly, cleverly avoiding the contradiction of wheel and rail.

Exhibition introducing and explaining how maglev principles and technology works.

A view from under the maglev track reveals the electromagnetic instruments that keeps the train floating. The vacumm distance between the train and the track is approximately 10mm.

Guinness World Record certificate pronouncing the record holding speed of 431 km/h. Japan will surpass this speed in near future but their maglev train systems are not yet in operation.

A closer view of the maglev train model.

The train model detailing the parts of the maglev train

The maglev track. It is friggin' expensive to build (a few million dollars per 100m).

Snake in a stomach

2007-09-15T03:13:00.000+01:00

Fear eerily crept from the tips of my fingers and toes gradually reaching the center of my body; my mind froze temporarily at sight of a 3 foot-long live snake, bagged up in a white sac, which was presented to us as the Chef's best selection! I was stunned then I started getting goosebumps in my seat each time the waiter comes in to our [private] dining room (at the restaurant) to serve our other dishes. I was afraid it could be the snake! Actually, it was very much of a mixed feeling of fear, excitement, and anticipation by the fact that it will be my first time having went against my moral-instinct on food -- Eating SNAKES!! It was last Saturday, Sept 8 2007.

It is, however, still a delicacy in most part of China! Despite that, I was told that not many restaurant dishes out snake and even if they do, it is often NOT on the menu for ordering. It must be requested either in advanced or when you step in the restaurant. It costs around 160元 to 290元 depending on the size and the type of the reptile you wish to have.

I was afraid, yet each time somebody knocks on the door my camera was ready for the waiter to present the dish! It was our night's specialty. HF wanted to have snake meat... O for the love of God, as she misses it much! After waited 30 minutes, another knock on the door and in came the waiter... with a small bowl in his hand. It was, I was informed, the snake's gall bladder (蛇胆: shédän) immersed in rice wine. While I shivered briefly and felt as though cold breeze had just gushed through me at the sight of it, everybody else was trying to convince everyone else not to be afraid as the snake's gall bladder is, supposedly, very nutritious and good for our eyes (sight)!

I should, my thoughts start running wild, have at least a hundreds of those IF what-they-say-was-true and so that I don't need to live through the traumatic phase of having to consider LASIK surgery. I am short-sighted, by the way. But that would mean having to feast on a hundred snakes when I am still seated there waiting with mixed anticipation for them to dish out the specialty! I shuddered the thoughts out and try to focus NOT to gulp down that gall bladder. It is a gall bladder for God's sake! Mind you, it's from a snake! What makes me think I would down it? Ah! I will admit to you soon.

Not long after there was another knock. THE SNAKE is served! At this time, I was like "oh my god! Oh my God! OH-MY-GAAAWD!! I can't believe I am here!"

The snake was... delicious!! There were no bones like you'd find having any fishes. At the end of it, I found myself 'playing' with the vertebrae of the snake!! It was hilarious yet seriously silly! The vertebrae of the snake was very strong and was not easy to be detached like that of fishes. Considering it was my first time eating snake, it was nonetheless quite delicious frankly speaking.

Now, when everyone's done with their fillets, I was next tempted to go for the bowl (the gall bladder) where nobody had the guts to take. I was only tempted because of this. Not because the gall bladder appeals to my appetite!! NO! It does not appeal to my appetite! I was there purely and only for the experience of it all and just because no one is having it, I don't think I'm going to let them influence me to forgo my experience that I can only have here in China. So, I gathered up my guts and balls to grab the bowl that everyone is giving the "Eeeeyeeeewww!!" look. Ironically, they are the ones who seemed to know best of how to, ahem, consume it!

"Just drink it! Just gulp it down! Pinch your nose and swallow it! Don't chew it... or you will spit everything out! It's very bitter!"

"Why don't you have it?", I offered.

"No, no! No thank you! You should try it", a shuddering response.

I did not even know what this (蛇胆) was then (because none were able to translate it into English). All I knew about this was that it was good for the eyes! In the video below, I was told it was the liver!! It was like telling a little boy that the worms in front of him is peanut-butter! When I had the bowl (gall bladder in it) in my hands and ready to down it just like the way everybody has been telling me so, I didn't even remember the name of it! To be perfectly honest, it was only because of the enticing aroma of the rice wine that made me tilt the bowl up at my lips and took everything in it down. It was such a thirst quencher!

And, NO, there was not a problem with me at all the next morning.

Below are photos of other dishes we had for the evening. They are not as special as the "main dish" of the evening, however, it does at the very least that there still remains some sanity in Chinese people when comes to culinary delights!

Seafood. This is between a lobster and a giant tiger prawn. No, it's not a mutant... I just don't know its name.

Some glutinous rice with pork steamed in bamboo. Absolutely delicious!

The variety of dishes for the evening. The aloe vera (front left) was very appetising!

The deep fried snake fillets. Trust me, they are delicious!

The skin of the snake! This stuff should be on every appetiser's menu of every restaurant! Good stuff! Chewy and tasty!.

HF and myself with our finished snake fillet. Look! I'm smiling!

To conclude this posting, it was a rather satisfying experience for all that I have been through that evening!! "Will I ever have snake again?" would probably be the biggest question at the moment. My answer to this question is definitely a resounding "YES!" ... but in the next 3 years or so. ;)

Cheng Huang Temple (城隍苗) and Yuyuan (豫园)

2007-09-11T11:35:00.001+01:00

Finally I can blog again by direct email to blogger from China! A backdoor access to blogger.com since China has cut off access to the site since January 2003. If you are living in China and wants to blog on blogger.com, you first need to have an account. Get someone to do that for you first. After that, you can start blogging by sending email to [username]@blogger.com and it will be published within 5-10 minutes.

Anyway, back to my travelogue.

Revisiting the scenic Chenghuang Temple was truly an amazing experience as i began to uncover its mysteries I may have missed on my first visit! More time was spent wondering around the beautifully crafted buildings and landscapes of the area. There is actually a place for worship for the Buddists called the Chenghuang Temple, which is adjacent to the Chenghuang Temple's premise. I did people-watching for a bit just observing the behaviors and reactions of tourists who have been there for their first time. I can't help to realize that the expressions on my face were not so different from any one of them from my first visit -- taken aback by the splendid architectures and the way it was landscaped!

I walked the zig-zagged bridge to a place called Huxin Ting (湖心亭) and sat down to have Xihu Longjing (西湖龙井) tea. The green tea was absolutely and fabulously good! Moreover, the interior decorations of the Huxin Ting was that of ancient Chinese style, mostly wooden. I was fully rested with the tea and the surrounding ambiance made it even better! Did I forget to mention that Huxin Ting the pavilion that is in the middle of a lake linked by the zig-zagged bridge?

Outside the Yuyuan (豫园)Garden, showing the Huxin Ting (湖心亭) where I stopped over for Xihu Longjing (西湖龙井)green tea. Photo by: Airunp

Next, I checked out the The Garden of Yuyuan (豫园), a historic site and truly a marvelous place to be! I could have gone in without a ticket by sticking myself closely among an Asian (Korean) tour group while the entrance guard counts the number of tickets given to him by the tour's guide with the number of heads that passes through the gate. I bought a ticket anyway. After I passed through the gate without a ticket, I kinda felt bad for the last person, whom eventually would not have found a ticket for him. It's only 40元 for an adult ticket.

In my opinion, the best times to go to the Yuyuan Garden is between July and September, and around 2PM or 3PM. Make sure you stay till sunsets to catch the beautiful colors of the setting sun and skies against the Garden. It's like an extremely picturesque paradise that can only exists in one's mind. Initially, I didn't think I would stay for long, but the Garden kept me inside for a good 4 over hours! There are a total of six part to the garden and each on of them is strikingly amazing! The son of a high-ranking government official built the garden all by himself to please his father. It was all built on private land and he spent nearly 20 years to create this garden, which is now considered as one of the four finest Chinese Gardens in the world.

The Magnolia trees as old as over 300 years old can be found in the garden. Gardens furnished with ancient Chinese furnitures from Ming Dynasty and decoratives are to be marveled at. It was even mind-blowing that a large part of the garden is surrounded by a dragon wall, with its head at the entrance to that part of the garden. Miniature bridges, lakes and ponds positioned in such perfect harmony with everything else (floras & decoratives), I was beyond impressed and taken aback and convinced by the fact that the mind behind this creative creation of the garden was truly a genius; and it is still a wonder today!

If you're visiting the garden on your own (not part of a tour group), chances are you may be approached by private tour guides specializing in the tour of the garden. They will introduce and tell you the history of the place for a fee of 100元. Look for Mr. Bao, an elderly retired man.

The ticket was definitely worth paying for! The garden was undeniably captivating!

Photos (click on photo to enlarge)

Enchanted!

Marveled and excited!

Yu Garden and Chenghuang Temple overlooking the pavilion at the centre of the lake.

A sight to behold, in my opinion.

Lo and Behold thy beauty of Yu Garden

Against Huxin Ting (湖心亭) where I rested and had tea.

The entrance of Yu Garden

One of the many wooden wall sculptures (??)

Panoramic view: The hall facing the entrance of Yu Garden.

Panoramic view: Another impressive hall named "The Yi Fang Boat" (亦舫)
It looks like a boat floating not on the water but on the land. You may feel that you are really on a boat moving along the shore.
The fences perimetering the hall features delicate patterns and the one the stood out is that of wave. I was taken by surprise at the creator's creativity.

The perimetering fence of The Yi Fang Boat, featuring wave patterns at the bottom hem of the fence (closest to the floor).

HDR Image: A path entrance west of The Yi Fang Boat leading to another hall.

HDR Image: Probably one of the most outstanding miniature lake and river. The 400 over years old Magnolia trees stand on the right side of the river bank.

Really impressive!

Panoramic shot: Captivated!
My body, mind, and soul were at peace. I just could not overstate enough about how harmonious this place is.
It is favorite place to be. This gobsmacking lake is located near the exit of the garden. I don't know what it's called probably because I did not hire a personal tour guide.

This part of the garden is walled-in by the entire length of a dragon -- from it's head to its tail. In other words, a master-crafted and/or sculpted wall detailing the scales of the dragon's body, it's head, and it's tail.

Harmony. I love this photo!

HDR Image: After visiting Yu Garden, I head off to Pudong to catch a nightshot of the Shanghai's Radio and TV Tower, near Lujiazui (陆家嘴) or Pudong area.

test test

2007-09-10T15:16:00.001+01:00

had to test out because there's no access to blogger.com from China's IP address. Does this work? I am doubtful it'll be posted, however, if it did, I can start blogging about my trip sooner than I thought! Pictures will come later!

Signing out: -dannyTeok/Shanghai

Lumut

2007-09-05T11:15:00.000+01:00

Just a couple of weeks back, I accepted Arthur's (AHDC) invitation to go to Lumut. It's a small booming and quiet town in the state of Perak, Malaysia, situated about 3.5 hours northwest of Kuala Lumpur. The town itself is not much of a tourist place but a neighboring island, Pangkor Island, is one of Malaysia's top 10 vacation islands. Lumut is rumored to be famed for its sunset view.

I drove my pickup truck, a Mitsubishi Storm V6, carrying some goods AHDC had to deliver to his company's factory site. We spent almost a third of the day, upon arrival, figuring out how to pry open the back portion of the truck to get his goods out. Apparently, I didn't have my key for it. It was like I have just lost my only key to open the trunk! AHDC found a long screwdriver at a shop, who initially thought we hijacked the truck, and it was finally opened! Had some good laughs at it! The drama involved was intense! Did a 'donut' turn on 4-wheels drive on a off-road terrain! Drove back and forth through a series of bumpy roads with deceiving potholes deep as though I've driven through a black hole! All these... just hoping the rough rides would magically open the back portion of the truck, where the goods were locked in!

Below are photos of us, still in Lumut, but getting ready to leave for Kuala Lumpur. Lumut has one of the nicest esplanades in the country, IMHO. It was a great day to be outside!

The sunset of Lumut, from our service apartment. This photo does not do the actual sunset justice.

Lumut, Perak.

Arthur and myself at the Lumut's Esplanade. We were friends since school days... when we were about 13 or 14 years old.

Arthur and his imaginative dolphin's tale.

The tail of a baby whale sculpture, Lumut's Esplanade. I'm wearing an engineer's outfit!

Lumut's Esplanade. My favorite self-portrait shot. Thanks to Arthur, who's also developing an interest in photography.

MIFC 2007

2007-09-05T11:08:00.001+01:00

There are the last few photos from the Opening Ceremony of the MIFC 2007, which I went with Srikanth. I recalled that it was Srikanth's first time wielding and operating a single-lens reflect camera, and to make matters even worse than he was already experiencing, I make him shoot on bulb mode. I think he was enjoying the show more than taking some shots for me.

Enjoy!

One of my many favorite shots that I turned this into a wallpaper!

Synchronised with awesome symphony tunes, the skies has literally turned into a garden of blooming flowers. This is definitely one of my favorite shots!

The Putrajaya's Government Administrative Building from the Putrajaya International Convention Centre after the opening ceremony of the Malaysia International Fireworks Competition 2007 (Aug 18 - Sept 2).
This is a composite image of different exposure levels.

Probable trip to Shanghai

2007-09-01T04:11:00.001+01:00

Since the British High Commission is currently reviewing my appeal for a visa, I won't be hearing from them for the next 4-6 weeks! Earlier this week, thoughts of visiting Shanghai crossed my mind and I have been thinking about going there for a vacation seriously. One of my main agenda was to visit HF's parents during my stay. I sought for a couple of people to sponsor a return flight ticket to Shanghai (PVG) and because Malaysia will be celebrating it's 50th years of Independence, it won't be till Monday before anyone is able to do anything.

To my surprised, I received a call from HF on Thursday's evening (11:03 GMT). She was crying on the other end. Not a word spoken. Still crying even after asking what's happened many, many times. Then the news broke out:
HF: Danny... my grandpa passed away!
ME: OMG! Oh no! How did that happened? Are you okay?

Obviously she wasn't okay but I was overcame with shock that my HF was wailing non-stop that I didn't have a split-second thought to know what i was asking.

HF: *just crying*
HF: The funeral will be on Sunday.
ME: I'm very sorry to hear that. Are you going back to Shanghai?
HF: I will go back on Sunday. I will see if I can have them postpone the funeral to Tuesday. Can you come too?

ME: Yeah! Of course, I will be there.

She has no idea of my plans to visit Shanghai to see her parents for a couple of weeks. My position at this moment would, according to Arthur, sound like the comedy-drama movie entitled "Four Weddings and a Funeral" staring Hugh Grant. It's "One Wedding and a Funeral" for me so far.

I feel very sorry to hear the demise of HF late grandfather. I still think I would go for a visit.

Malaysia International Fireworks Competition 2007

2007-08-22T05:48:00.000+01:00

Official Website: http://www.mifc.com.my
Venue: Putrajaya International Convention Centre

From the PICC overlooking the Bridge of Seri Gemilang just minutes before the fireworks commenced. Composite image of 3 different exposures.

My gears:
1. Canon EOS 400D
2. EF 17-40mm F/4.0L USM
3. EF 28-70mm F/2.8L USM
4. BG-E3
5. Tripod

From the PICC overlooking the Bridge of Seri Gemilang just minutes before the fireworks commenced.

Let the show begins! Seven rockets fired up to lit the sky and ushered in another 20 minutes of bright colors that painted the night skies of Putrajaya! The opening ceremony was a worthwhile watch!!

It was immediately followed by these fabulous six red rockets!

Single rocket waterfall? What a show! A memorable opening ceremony by Team Malaysia!

Attempted lomography. I am still uncertain if this qualifies for a lomography. This was shot on Bulb mode exposed on 2 scenes with 8 seconds on each scene.

Towards the finale of the opening ceremony!

Still here

2007-08-17T18:22:00.000+01:00

Looking back I have already spent 5 weeks away from Leeds! I was looking forward to return today, AUG 17, at 12:00noon on Malaysia Airlines MH04. At this time, I should be just over Acheh, Indonesia, probably heading towards Chennai, India and onward to London Heathrow airport!

My visa application was refused on grounds that were unfair. I am now required to go through their appeal process which will take up to 5 weeks, and that is how long I will continue to remain kept away from HF, my significant one. Heartaches, arguments, and disappointments crept up when she I broke the most anticipated news! I guess we learnt to deal with our emotions quickly to set them aside and focus more on what can be done to turn around the situation. I dread the day when I have to postpone my flight again as that would mean my birthday celebration will be without HF! I thought this time this year should be a greater celebration as I turn 28 years old this 28th September! They are good numbers in Chinese beliefs! If that have to happen, I would pay her way here to be with me on this occasion.

Malaccan weekend

2007-08-07T13:16:00.000+01:00

Finally, I have received all important documents from HF last Tuesday, July 31st. I couldn't wait till the next day to visit VFS-UK-MY to submit my applications. After 3 hours of waiting in line, it was my turn and I thank God the submission process went smoothly. However, my plans to go down to Singapore over the weekend had to be canceled as my passport, at the moment, is in the hands of the British High Commission. I decided to stopover in Malacca while my brother and my cousin went ahead to Singapore on Friday till Sunday.

I vaguely remembered I had been to Malacca about 10-12 years ago. Now that I have been back here again, it's a totally different place from what I can recall.

While jogging my memory, I recalled two water buffalos ploughing the land. They're concrete and tarmac now!

I have only been to 4 out of 7 or 8 main attractions in Malacca. Getting around was not too much of an inconvenience as most places are not too far from each other. However, because it was so hot (I got burn), most people opted for a trishaw ride (beca, in Malay). For 40 Ringgit (about 6£), you will be taken around Malacca city for an hour. You may stop and get back on as many times as you like! These trishaws even have their own stereo system on-board, perhaps to compete for passengers! They look most pretty at night when these guys flip their lights on.

Local favorite delicacies are Cendol, Asam Pedas, Gula Melaka, Dodol, etc. My favorite is the Asam Pedas (lit: Sour [&] Spicy), which is stingray cooked with sour & spicy soup that almost tastes like Thai's Tomyam soup. It's so good! I must bring HF here for this!

The weather throughout was, surprisingly, very good! There were no other better days to go out shooting photos! A group of college students stopped me and asked for my help. Apparently, they were more interested in the pictures I have shot rather than the usual "Excuse me, can you take picture for us? Please?", after noticing me wielding a camera with gigantic lens with a huge camera body! One approached and curiously asked, "Excuse me, Sir, are you a professional photographer?". Her tone of voice broke the ice but the fact that she was with the rest of her group, the ice was immediately broken. I couldn't help but to feel a little shy.

"I would really love to think of myself as one", I responded with the shyest smile I never known to have! Frankly speaking, I withheld my words of, "Yes, but not really. I'm only a part-time photographer. By the way, not everybody who holds a big camera means they are professional. But I guess you guys can be forgiven for thinking that I am a professional maybe because I was going around with my big-ass tripod and a big-ass camera that bears the brand Manfrotto and Canon respectively!"

The group of research students from Taylor's College, Subang Jaya SS/15.

They began to explain what they were doing and why they have approached me. I was glad to help. We were at the Malacca Sultanate Palace then and it was their last stop for the day (Sunday) before they head back to Kuala Lumpur! My brother picked me up not long after from Aldy's.

Enjoy the photos!

Panoramic view: Porta de Santiago and the A'Famosa Fortress by nightfall.

Porta in Portuguese refers to portal, which means gateway and true enough Prota de Santiago was indeed one of the four main gateway into the Portuguese fortress of A'Famosa. The leader of the Portuguese army that conquered Melaka in 1511, Alfonso de Albuquerque, started the construction of A'Famosa in 1512 from which they fended of attacks by the armies of the Sultan of Melaka and Acheh for well over a century.

The Portuguese used slave labour to construct this squarish fort surrounding Melaka Hill with walls 3 meters thick using parts from demolished palaces, royal mausoleums and mosques. A 40-meter high watchtower once stood in the Northwest corner of the fortress.

After the Dutch defeated the Portuguese in Melaka in 1651, they rebuilt and widen the fortress and put the mark of 'VOC' (Dutch East Indian Company) of the coat of arms of the Dutch soldier together with the year 1670.

This fort was nearly obliterated by the British who, in 1795, decided to destroy it for fear of it being used against them after Melaka handed back to the Dutch. In 1807, British under the Resident William Farquhar used gunpowder to blow up the fort, however, Sir Stamford Raffles and Lord Minto intervened and stopped his countrymen from totally demolishing this fort altogether. However, only Porta de Santiago was saved from the total demolishment.

The Porto de Santiago was gazetted as an old monument and historical site under he Antiquities Act 168/1976 on May 12, 1977.

Inside the ruin of Porta de Santiago, which is believed to be made by volcanic rocks.

"Captain! Enemy sighted!".

The ubiquitous colorful trishaws found only in Malacca. Mind you, some are packed with subwoofers and MP3 players so passengers can enjoy a hour of disco time while on the move!

My lunch for the day! I admire the presentation and thought Wagamama was nothing compared to this!

The Clock Tower.

Around the Stadhuys.

The Stadthuys, otherwise known as The Christ Church [of] Melaka or The Red Church (unofficial)

A beautiful mini garden around the Stadthuys.

Against the monument fountain erected to commemorate the late Queen Victoria (22 January 1901).

The Stadthuys, a 17th-century building was the seat of the Dutch administration and now houses a hisotry museam. Apparently, red is the dominant color in this part of town.

Featured in here is one of the many colorful trishaws against the west gateway of A'Famosa by nightfall. I didn't want to get in seated for a photo to avoid looking like a impy devil / ghost!

The Malacca Sultanate Palace, all constructed by wood without using a single nail. It is now a cultural musuem.

The Malacca Sultanate Palace garden.

The west Porta de Santiago, now only the remaining ruin of the formerly massive A'Famosa fortress, Malacca (Melaka).

Balairong Seri

This diorama shows the sitting arrangement of the King's Audience Hall. The King sits atop the royal dias. The 4 chief adviser were always seated close to the King. The Prime Minister and the prince were seated at foot of the dias to the left of the King and the administrative machinery sat along with the PM. The chiefs responsible for the security were seated to the right of the King. Two officials standing on both sides of the ruler, Bentara Kanan and Bentara Kiri, carrying the rulers ensignias, had the power to kill anyone who approaches the King without permission. the Audience were not allowed to carry weapons unless granded by the King.

Delegates from oversea were normally accorded special ceremony depending on the status of the King and country they represented. Delegates were brought in separately one by one based on the country he represented. Anyone found guilty of offence under the laws of Malacca is punishable by death had to be referred to the King. He may either confirm the sentence or may banish him for life.

The Audience Hall was also a place where the subjects who rendered good faithful or chivalrous services to the state were honoured. Sometimes even royal feasts were held in this Hall. Thus, the Audience Hall of the Sultanate era functioned as a multi-purpose hall that reflected the grandier of the administrative system, which was later adopted by few states of this Peninsula.

The St. Paul's Church that sits atop a hill on A'Famosa.

Home

2007-07-30T17:45:00.000+01:00

Food
Already three weeks in the Peninsula and the only thing I seems to enjoy doing the most is a favorite past-time most Malaysians enjoy-- eating round the clock! I paused to think that the English's Breakfast, Lunch, Tea, and dinner topped the list but after giving a second thought to that, I realized that it isn't so for the Malaysians.

I have been heads over heels for a typical Malay delicacy called "Nasi Lemak" (椰浆饭) since the day I landed. However, I had a 'taster' version of Nasi Lemak on flight which has effectively led me to a crave and now an addiction. For a week, I had Nasi Lemak with all sorts of other condiments for breakfast, lunch, post-lunch, "tea", dinner, and late supper! Mind you, there is even a "much later-supper", otherwise known as pre-breakfast! Since I will only be back for a short while, I didn't think I should be too mindful about my weight. They're all good food! ;) Believe me, Malaysia is a food haven!

In-flight's version of "Nasi Lemak" on Malaysian Airlines.

A typical Nasi Lemak by food hawkers with standard condiments such as fried anchovies, ground nuts, sambal chilli paste, cucumbers, and an egg (either hard-boiled or fried). I had an extra fried chicken for this.

Prawn Noodles! OMG! I didn't even had the time to think about fish and chips.

"Yee Mee" a kind of noodles with delicious soup served with fresh tiger prawns, vegetables, scallops, and some white meats. Very good!

Malay style fried noodles. Very, verrry good!

Desserts! These, however, are not the typical local desserts. Will show soon!

Desserts!

Welcome home to...

2007-07-12T15:16:00.000+01:00

Durians! The thorniest fruit with the strongest smell and taste ever in the fruit kingdom! At least I would like to think that my "Welcome Home" platters were these creamy delicious sweet desserts.

Look it up in Wikipedia if you don't already know what this is. But if you're not Malaysian, Thai, Cantonese, or Singaporean, you would most probably hate everything about this king of fruits!

**durian farts...!!**

So, I haven't visited curry houses yet nor had I had much curries. **pinches nose** However, the one thing I am trying to 'have' is a normal biological clock. Jetlag has left me **durian belched** totally restless! Just had 4 hours of sleep. The worst is probably trying to re-adjust to the humid heat here. I'm still having hard time trying to breathe properly. My brother and cousins advised that I will probably need a week to get used to the weather here.

I can't wait to have a walk-in freezer so I can live there till I get used to it! I sucked!

Deny, Deny, Deny

2007-07-05T16:13:00.000+01:00

Following what happened yesterday, my money has yet to be credited. It has caused a lot of inconveniences to me again since this morning. Not too good a day to start either.

I have lost no money nevertheless. I demanded compensation from the bank. The Counter Manager said there was nothing they can do. I fought and I fought hard. The argument soon escalated into something akin to a prisoner and the prison's warden. The Branch Manager finally decided to come out. Dawkes sat down, placed her reading glasses on the table, clasped her hands down and pretend to listen to me ranting on for 5 minutes. When I stopped, she just said: "I understand your frustration, Mr Teok. But there's nothing we can do." Deny! Deny! Deny!

My money is trapped in their system and my current balance is MINUS £1,230.00!! I can't even withdraw £10.00 from ATM.

Furious! Furious!

Where is my money?!

2007-07-04T21:30:00.000+01:00

£2600 disappeared from my account!! Fine! Here's my riposte: two fingers raised slightly apart at Flight Centre and Natwest Bank!

Despite of what has recently come to our attention -- having found out that I have go home in such a short notice -- what I discovered this morning shocked me to the point that I had to piece myself together from going into panic attack. I rose early and went to Flight Centre to secure what-they-found-to-be-the-cheapest flight available for July 10th, which was discussed over the phone last night with Sonya. I was ready to pay for it as I did not want to pay any more than 900£ for a ticket as the minute ticks away. I was assured by Flight Centre that all outbound flights to Asia on all airlines were ALL full and/or unavailable.

Just to be sure that I had the necessary funds to pay for my ticket, I stopped by to check my balance at my bank's ATM. To my horror, £2,621 DISAPPEARED from my account over night! Natwest was supposed to open its door at 09:00 to customers but it was not opened till 09:35. My horrors and shocks escalated by the fact that I could not see anyone in the bank about the sudden disappearance of my funds! I had absolutely NO idea who and how or what happened. I'd dread to imagine that I was at the time a victim of identity theft, which still is an all time high alert this year especially in England! The mini-statement spat out by the ATM only my balance of £320, instead of £2941! In the description, there were 3 transactions reading "POS", an abbreviation for Point-of-Sale, for the amount £873.90 each all on the same day July 3.

I know I have not spent any monies yesterday, at all! However, I did try to book the ticket with Sonya and attempted payment over the phone yesterday but all attempted payments did not go through for some strange reasons! This in effect meant that no monies were spent!

When the bank opened its doors, I enquired about the missing monies. They said my money is NOT "with" them! Then I asked where. They do not know! Nothing could be inferred from the 3 POS in the statement. Then I realized it could be Sonya.

I went back to Flight Centre and asked Sonya how much did she attempted to charge my card yesterday. She answered £873.90! I showed her the mini-statement and said to her,
"I thought you said the payments did not go through?! LOOK! THREE TIMES I was charged £873.90 each! It is no coincidence that this amounts up to £2621.70! Now I have got no money to pay for my ticket!"

"Danny, here are the receipts. They are all cancelled." I examined the receipts thoroughly and there are no doubts that they were all canceled or voided. That meant that my funds should not have moved from my account.

"So, where is my money?!"

"I don't know. We don't have your money. It's all been canceled. The payments did not go through. You have to check with your bank."

Furious as you can already imagine how I felt realizing that nobody knows where my money is, I barged back into the bank and demanded to know where my money is.

Sam S, the customer service advisor explained how the bank does not have my money. "If you return a good you purchased at a store, they will refund your money... as there is proof of payment. The money actually moved from one place to another...", she paused, "You must go back to Flight Centre and tell them to return your money. Obviously this shows that," looking at the three £873.90 transactions in my bank statement, "they have taken money from you".

Reluctantly, I went back to FC and this time I was determined NOT to leave FC until I get some answers no matter what it takes. £2600 was at stake! I felt robbed! Still, Sonya insisted that she nor FC has taken any monies from me! By this time, I had resorted to raising my voice and shouted at her and calling her names for her incompetencies. I demanded her to call Caroline, one of the bank manager, as I was overly furious and brimming with anger to go anywhere any more. I wasn't going to be pushed around for something that is not even my fault.

Apparently, as explained later by Caroline, the money is IN BETWEEN the bank and FC, just as I was running back and forth between these two god-forsaken place rime and over again early morning! They money is trapped in the bank system (computers) which was to be updated at midnight tonight. At this point my mind flashed a riposte: two fingers raised slightly apart. I demanded to that I WILL have access to my funds (even though it is not there) because I will not be able to fly back without a ticket AND I certainly do not want to pay extra just because I waited to pay the next day. Who knows tomorrow's flight ticket will cost me £1,200 for a return ticket!?

Whether my £2600 will appear by or on midnight tonight, I continue to wait. Perhaps tomorrow will be a better day to start.

Ethereal shine

2007-07-02T01:16:00.000+01:00

Believe me, pictures tells more than my words.
Date shot: from July 1 2007 23:40 to July 2 2007 at 00:23
Venue: My balcony, Leeds (LS2 8WH)

Gothic moon over Leeds

The illuminating power of the glowing ball of the night. Reminds me of a Scooby Doo episode about hunting down a werewolf prankster.

Hypnotized by night

Santorini

2007-07-01T20:53:00.000+01:00

As an addition to "My Greek Retreat" where it was about Athens, I shall attempt to continue to elaborate on the second part of my trip on Santorini Island. Some of the highlights in this part of the trip includes our daily dosage Pita Souvlaki and Greek salad, the colors of Santorini, the thousands of steps of Fira (Thira) and Oia (pronounced as Ee-ya), the pothole and the black cat, ATV exploration, and a Santorini wedding.

It is best to catch the first ferry leaving for Santorini early in the morning (around 7am- 7:20am) and be the first so you can occupy a couple of seats in Goody's, which is at the back of the ferry, to yourself. It will be a six hours journey so you may need the seats to sleep. Note that the seatings are divided into smoking and non-smoking section in this back part. There 4-6 people who laid out their sleeping bags on the top deck (sheltered) of the ferry and slept through the first 4 hours of the journey. They occupied seatings that would otherwise accommodate for 30 people. It's never wrong to be early!

The Blue Star ferry berthed at Pireas lefft for Paros, Naxos, Ios, and finally Thira, Santorini.

The Blue Star ferry.

The Blue Star ferry's mid deck.

First sight of our final destination where everybody has been waiting with full anticipation. All took their camera's out and started to snap away of this sight... including me.

Of Pita and Salad
Kebab stores/shops/kiosks where everywhere on the island and everything that Greeks eat seemed to be grilled. It didn't take long to realize that that could and would most likely the type of food consumed both here on the island and on mainland. However, I never leave my traveled destination without having tasted or experienced a piece (or a slice) of local culture. It may as well be food and/or tradition. This is what I would, usually, go after if it's reasonably priced. Perhaps this may not be the best way to discover a local culture but it is definitely the gold pot of experience that I could bag up as souvenir. After all, as I have always told myself and HF, there is absolutely no point in your travel if you deny yourself to the pleasures of enjoying what you could peculiarly enjoy only in that locality even though you could enjoy the similar experience elsewhere-- it would be different and you know you would not be as satisfied.

At this moment, I very well recalled the time when we were in Venice hunting down to the last narrow streets of Venice and crossed over many canal bridges that dominated the city on water just to have that very special Spaghetti made with squid sauce/ink, otherwise known as Spaghetti al Nero di Seppia.

Spaghetti with Squid's ink, an Italian cuisine, a Venice's specialty.

We had pita's and made Greek salad simply because we didn't want to blow our budget. If it was a honeymoon vacation, having pita and Greek salad would most probably not be a daily ordeal unless, of course, I was going to let my newly wed wifey to pick a fight on topics such as stinginess, penny-wise pound foolish, or the famous 'you don't love me enough'. I don't expect to have veal-sliced-for-you-on-your-plate kind of dinner every day either.

The colors of Santorini is, essentially, the colors of the flag of Greece -- blue and white. In and around the island, buildings are predominantly white whereas the color blue is, perhaps, a privileged color that are usually found painted on domes -- chapels and/or monasteries. There are only a handful of these buildings and, in my limited opinion, I think that is the reason why these white-buildings-blue-dome stands out.

To stand out in your photos, it is perhaps best to wear bright colors (red, sky blue, pink, etc. no yellow please) to contrast the bright glaring background over midday's sun.

Landmark colors of Santorini

Click here for more photos from Santorini.

Getting around

One stretch of the hundreds of steps of Fira.

Fira and Oia is a reasonably sized city on the island that one could explore from end-to-end within a day. You have to be averagely fit as there are hundreds of steps to climb and sloping pathways snaked throughout the city. But otherwise it is not too difficult to get around. I had a theory in which I proposed to HF that we will not get lost because there are no dead-ends and every paths are connected to each other. So, we deliberately "lost" ourselves in one of the pathways and continued on the uncharted paths which led on to another more obscured way. I was right. We ended up back to a main path and threaded back to tourist hotspots.

In Fira, the restaurants are stretched to the ends of a path, while discos and clubs are placed on another. Souvenir stores are similarly located on another stretch of road but they are all next to each other. Most hotels are facing the Caldera (volcano) as with some 'posh' restaurants, where diners are willing to pay for both their food and the view while waiting to watch the sunset of Santorini.

Donkey & Pothole
It was such a bright and beautiful day to begin with on the 6/06 and we were were excited about getting on the boat from the Old Port. Tickets were bought and we were all set to climb to the summit of the caldera, swim in the hot spring of the salty Mediterranean waters, and cool off with platters after platters of fresh seafood which HF have been salivating since she stepped foot on the island. Octopus seemed to be the only thing she talks about.

Silhouette effect with sunset from Fira on June 6.

As we descended the stairs towards Old Port, we let out excitement took over us as we have stadium-view of the entire beautiful scenery of the sea and micro islands. Well, taking pictures too. Six flights of stairs down and 10 minutes passed and we were told by people climbing up that there was going to be another 20 minutes before arriving at the bottom (where the Old Port is). Everything was going very well when my left foot took a dipping and wobbly fell into a 6 inch deep pothole, ankle in first as I descended another step down. It was analogous to deliberately twisting or dislocating your own limb. The force of gravity as I descended and "fell" into the not-supposed-to-be-a-further-six-inch-deep hole had the best of me. I thought I had dislocated, or worse fractured, my left foot. I thought I was okay but realized there I could not walk properly after 6 steps further as the pain got beyond excruciating and unbearable! Shock and trauma set in. Shortness of breath. Heart beat slowed that to the point where I thought it was ten beats per minute! Dizzy and thousands of cold needles like feelings felt in my head. HF pulled me to the side and sat me down on the donkey's poop-and-piss-ridden stinky steps. Didn't mind the skanky pungent any more than catching back my breath. Not so much of "fresh" oxygen though! But an air full of amonia oxide mixture come with bile cream of fibre (grass) wastes with distinct color that none could mistaken it for shit!

People passed by and witness my unfortunate mishap. Donkey "man" (the person who tendered to his donkey herd) passed us and did not even offer a sympathetic help. One stopped by and asked, "Donkey? Ten Euro! You two", as he pointed his finger at both me and HF and to the donkey he was to offer the ride. I said, "No, just ONE donkey. Me. One. Five Euro! One donkey!" He shook his head and raised his voice "No, no. You two. Donkey up! Ten Euro!"

We insisted that we only wanted ONE donkey for me as I could no longer walk the uneven and treacherous steps up. This donkey man walked away without regard. 15 Minutes later, the very same donkey man came to us and said, "You.. one donkey. Okay. Five Euro". I paid him and he helped me got onto one of his medium sized donkey. These donkey men are ever so persistent and pushy. When I was set to go up with his donkey, he looked at me and tried one last time, "She? Donkey? Five Euro? Donkey up!", he points upwards indicating we all should go back up to the donkey station with his donkey. We said no. So we started going up and he walked with my donkey reluctantly as though he has lost his bets on a roulette table.

We missed our rides to the volcano and other islands and the things we planned to do that day. At the Santorini Hospital was where HF was so convinced it was the black cat I played with last night that caused a bad (black) day, not just for me but for us all. I was not the only one with a twisted foot at the hospital. There were 2 others! The doctor advised that I should be able to walk again after 2 days (which will make it June 8). Fabulous! Rested for the remaining hours of day light and watched sunset from our room's balcony (silhouette pictures above).

The donkey HF was on took a very, very, very nasty beating on its ass and head till it bled.

Two days later, knowing how much this trip meant to HF, I tried to bear to pain of walking just to make it up for The Black Day. HF did everything on June 8 and had her donkey ride up from Old port. I was on the donkey again, but this time there was another nasty twist! I was on the last donkey of the entire herd. But this was not it. All donkeys were leashed with a 10ft leash (EXCEPT for HF's donkey), and the donkey in front of me had a VERY gassy stomach! Nevermind the 30 minutes stretch of steps up to the donkey station stank with poops and piss, I got farted right into and at my face by that donkey! (Because we're all ascending, the donkey in front of me is always higher than mine. So, the level of the donkey ass matched the level of my head). To make matters worst, it was a 20-minutes of non-stop fart at my face... and it left an AFTER TASTE on my face and especially on my lips! My t-shirt was all gassed up similar to how perfumes stays on your clothes.

As for HF, because he donkey was THE ONLY donkey that was not leashed, HF's 20 minutes ride up was a real drama! Her donkey, rather small or in fact, the smallest compared to the rests of the herd, was totally out of control. The donkey man of this herd had to come off from his donkey and beat the daylight out of HF's donkey just to keep it walking straight and in the organized manner as the rest of it's colleagues. For 20 minutes, HF was screaming and shouting for her life because the stubborn donkey swinged from wall to wall that HF had to lift her legs up to avoid getting bruised by the walls and rocks. She was two donkeys ahead of me and I saw the donkey bled from the beatings it took!

Look who's talking now? It's Black and White here. The cat's got to be the culprit.

It was an experience. I asked HF if she had enjoyed her ride to which I received no comments... because she was too busy laughing at me, which was good as it took her horror ride away from her mind. I smell of donkey fart, donkey poop, and donkey piss.

The Island with ATV
The next day, I bore the pain just because I did not want to stay back and regret another day. Slowly but surely, with the help of HF I limped up and down the slopes of Fira to the nearest rental shop for an ATV. HF, at this time, went paranoid about me not able to operate the ATV. I was so convinced that she had absolutely no idea what an ATV was. Having repeatedly told her it's like riding a motorcycle or a jetski, her never-ending worry never fail to break the otherwise silent air until after we hopped on it and I drove us away. She asked, "DANNNIIEEEEEEEE!!! How are you gonna stop?! Where's the pedal?!!!?" At this point, I thought a response like "Sorry baby... no pedals here! We ain't gonna stop!"

Look! This is how I bring the ATV to a stop, like brake-flaps on the wings of aircrafts. Welcome to The Black Beach of Kamari.

After the visiting the majestic Red Beach, near Akrotiri.

Touring around the island with a bandaged feet. South of Santorini.

The ride so smooth. It never came across to me how easy it was to maneuvre and operate the ATV, except that there was no reverse function. HF had to push at the front to back up the vehicle!! I only need to steer. ;) Poor girl! With it, we visited the Black Beach (Kamari), and the Red Beach (near Akrotiri). The former is a very beautiful beach consists of black volcanic rocks (pebbles), and the latter red volcanic rocks. They're just marvelous! They are both a majestic site that must not be missed! Both beaches are almost like a nude beach. We then toured around the island from the furthest south to the tip of the island of Oia. The landscapes of Santorini are, indeed, breath-taking! Especially on a beautiful day.

We called it a day after sunset in Oia. It was a bad day for a beautiful sunset as it was too foggy and cloudy. We bumped into Ace Gordon the photographer, a funny chap whom we first met at the ticket counter of Acropolis, Athens.

Sunset from Oia. Sunshade as a substitute filter.

A Santorini Wedding
They say it was like a dream to have a wedding in Santorini island. The sunset view with the occasion was beyond any words in any language to describe. HF has been ranting about this since we landed on the island. Imagine. Just imagine. I would say we were quite lucky to have actually witnessed one such occasion. It stumbled upon us in Fira on our last day in town when we did wish to see one wedding. Violà!

HF thought the groom was a Malaysian. I do not know and I cannot confirm that until I hear him speak. They walked the streets of Fira and down the steps to where their hotel is. That was also where they exchanged their vows and rings. I could only look at HF staring at them with a melting heart.

That's that now. We flew back to Leeds from Santorini airport -- the smallest airport we've ever been to.

Tomato Mozzarella

2007-06-30T23:40:00.000+01:00

Literally simply the best. Easy to make. It's what I had at Cafe de la Nuit in Arles, Provence. (Note: This is a recreation, not the left over from the Cafe).

All you need is just:
2 Tomatoes
1 Mozzarella ball
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp Oregano

Method:
1. Slice tomatoes and mozzarella cheese into slices as illustrated above.
2. Place tomatoes and mozzarella in alternate manner like that of sandwiches.
3. Pour evenly Olive oil
4. Spinkle oregano.
5. drool! take pictures. eat!

Enjoy!

Black cat superstitious

2007-06-29T09:02:00.000+01:00

Black cat superstitious beliefs are not uncommon across all cultures of the world. However, most of the superstitious beliefs surrounding black cats are usually that of an unfortunate one, except in the English culture where black cat is seen as good luck when it crosses one's path.

As with the rest of the world, it looks like I ran out of my luck. I am still baffled at the fact that it was such a convincing coincident that the day I almost broke my left ankle (badly twisted) in Fira, Santorini, it was June 6, six flights down the donkey steps from the main donkey station atop, and no, it did not cost me 6€, but 5€ for a six minute ride as opposed to a full 25-30 minutes.

X-ray of my left feet that cost me 6€. I left Santorini's hospital with a comforting good news -- no fractures and nothing serious. Just a moderate twist which will recover in 2-3 days.

Maybe it was all because I was not looking at the steps as I descended from the rocky and uneven steps. The scenery from such a height was too good to be missed before embarking on our ship to visit the Caldera volcano, to swim to the hotspring waters in the Mediterranean sea, and to enjoy fresh sea food like Octupus. Before I knew it, my left foot wobbled, slipped and fell into a 6 inch deep pothole ankle first. Initially, the pain was bearable and I gave little thought of it. As I attempted a couple more steps down I began to almost lost my breath. Felt weak. The pain has not manifested yet but I could see my left foot was shaking with my entire body in shock as my body enters into trauma. It was that bad. I leaned against the stone walls to catch my breath and when I felt better, I tried to walk again. This time the pain manifested to me in the most excruciating and nasty manner. Felt as though somebody has just put a bullet through the joint between my feet and tibia.

It did not strike me until HF said, "I told you to stay away from the Black cat last night! But you went on playing with it!"

Maybe she was right. But most of the time when I patting this unusual Black cat who was lurking around our room's balcony, I had Nigel in mind. "Unusual" because this Black cat does NOT 'meow!" as would with other cats, but 'rattles' as that of a rattle snake. It was 23:56 June 5 2007. I went into my room soon after 5 minutes and did not see it until 22:40 June 6 2007. It visited me again! It was as though its visit this time was to 'see' that a misfortune has befallen me. Eeriely, I quickly closed our room's door as I begin to get goosebumps crawling throughout my entire body! That was the last I saw that Black cat. Maybe it doesn't need to see me again now that I had bandages all wrapped around my left feet. Maybe, just maybe, it has to do with the scores of number six involved in this incident.

Do I believe in such superstitious?! Despite what has happened, I still do not believe in them but I would reasonably stay away from them. If the cat meows, then maybe it is okay. Throughout the remaining day in Santorini, I have seen many have also suffered a similar fate as mine as they struggle to advance forward by swinging to good foot forward using a pair crutches! I didn't need one.

French Croissant

2007-06-21T20:20:00.000+01:00

My very first extra crispy fresh from the oven French croissants! Extra crispy because it was a little over baked, but otherwise they really taste like croissants! The entire process from preparation to removing it from oven took me 28 hours! Preparation: 6-18 hours. Baking time: 23 minutes. Phew! They're worth it!

Phantasmagoria

2007-06-17T11:54:00.000+01:00

The dusk of yesterday left me speechless if I were to describe how beautiful it was. I was very compelled to grab my camera and start shooting. That was what I did.

The formation of the clouds combined with this natural surreal twilight of sunset in the west (my balcony is facing eastward) caused me to be hypnotized. Even HF, who is apathetic to such wonders of nature, let out an unexpected "Wow!".

The clouds everywhere in and around Leeds at this time, between 21:00 and 21:45, were extraordinarily unique and cannot be ignored. I have managed to capture and freeze its beauty in time for the enjoyment of all. I am sure there are others who have similarly capture this very scene at the same time as I did. Comments are welcomed.

NOTE: Click to enlarge images in a new window.

Panoramic view of the entire scene

The ethereal beauty of clouds against some notable apartments in Leeds at sunset.

Can't take my eyes off you.

Unreal twilight.

Beautiful cosmetic formation of clouds against the building behind Yorkshire Playhouse.

Amazing!

Special cloud formation that caught my attention. This flying-saucer look-alike cloud has, to me, a surrealistic smoothness. Very beautiful!

I am left speechless.

How to make Traditional Greek Salad

2007-06-13T23:19:00.000+01:00

The only thing I was determined to do after having had several traditional Greek salads while in Greece was to recreate it. They look so much more simpler than those served in some restaurants in England. The recreation is a success and is similar to the ones we had in Greece. It is absolutely delicious. Definitely a recommendation from me. Don't believe me? Try it!

Here's what you need.

2-4 Beef tomatoes; depending on size.
2 Red onions, sliced into semi-rings.
1 cucumber, thick quarts.
2/3 Cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
5-10 whole black olives; or any of your favorites.
200g Feta cheese, cut into slabs.
Oregano
2 Tbsp Lemon juice.
Pinch of salt (optional)

Preparation time: 7-10 minutes
Serves: 2-3 people

Methods
1. Prepare the vegetables. Wash them thoroughly. Cut them, illustrated (below).
2. Pour in olive oil, olives and lemon juice. Mix well with salad. If you like, sprinkle a pinch of salt in.
3. Dish out.
4. Place feta slabs on salad or on the side.
5. Sprinkle some oregano on the feta cheese (mmmmmhh!)
6. Enjoy!

The main ingredients to a delicious traditional Greek salad!

Cucumbers cut into quarters. Best if all your vege's are chilled.

The way to dice the tomatoes. Not too wide, not too narrow. Bite size cubes would be perfect!

All in.

There is no need to cube feta cheese. Just feta slabs. Break them into the size you wish with your fork or whatever utensils you use when having salads.

The finished product. Mmmm... cheese!

Greek Grills & Food

2007-06-12T23:37:00.000+01:00

WARNING: Not suitable for vegetarians!

We connected our flight in Amsterdam and I did not want to leave the land of many delightful Cheeses. It was, for a moment, a paradise for me -- just like Scrat who got sent to Nuts heaven in Ice Age 2: The Meltdown. in Amsterdam. As much as I regret I had to forsake my fictitious paradise and arrived at the land famed for only one cheese -- Feta cheese! Unbelievable! How can people survive by consuming only one type of cheese in their lifetime?! (just exaggeration)

Anyhoo... I digressed too far.
The Greeks seem to have almost everything they eat grilled. Tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, and what not are skewered with other meats to be placed on the grill. It's the perfect place for me... love grilled food! I thinking of purchasing a BBQ grill soon... this is what traveling has made me into.

"Everything else belongs to the government! But at least I know I belong to my wife"

Grilled squid, otherwise known as Greek style calamari. Must try.

Greek's traditional Moussaka (μουσακάς). It's very appetizing! Don't leave Greece without trying this.

Grilled succulent lamb meat. It's not just meat, it's Thomas Grill lamb meat!

Fava. It is absolutely delicious and a specialty of Santorini. Taste very much like the Indian's Dahl.

Grilled mussels with, uhh, tomato sauce? I'm not too sure but they are lovely! I know, everything is lovely at this point but the ARE really, really nice! Trust me!.

Grilling octopus! Yeah, it's OCTOPUS! Fresh from the Mediterranean Sea! It is a delicacy peculiar to Greece, but best from the islands.

Grilled little fishes. Looks like anchovies but they're not. We look into the waters (the Mediterranean sea) we actually saw these exact same fishes swimming in there while I was busy enjoying another piece in my hands!