olddog-samesame

DAY 1 – Touched down at Sibu Airport around 1:30PM. After a lunch of pian-pian hu (Sibu speciality rice pasta soup) and quick shower it was off to Bintulu. The road journey of 213km took about 3 hours. The winding trunk road with pot holes at long stretches was a challenging drive even during the day. The eyes have to be glued to the road at all time if you don’t want to wreck the car’s suspension or rupture a tire. Driving at night would truly be a nightmare unless you have perfect night vision. Thankfully we arrived at about 6:30PM which was already dark as the sun sets at around 6:00PM in East Malaysia. The Park City hotel is located at the estuary of the Bintulu River and next to the Water Front Park. Like most river in Sarawak, the river water is a dirty yellowish brown – quite similar to Miri’s popular teh-xi special . With rough sea and muddy river banks there is no idyllic beach to talk about. DAY 2 - Travelling along the new coastal road, the 200 odd km journey from Bintulu t

Another road trip up North and another encounter with the traffic cops. I drove up and down at least 10 times last year and no problem. Nothing. Zip. 6 months down the line and suddenly I became a cop magnet. It seems like all their laser guns are trained and locked on me with GPS. At every turn and corner I am being flagged down. Is it the car? Are the celestial stars unfavourably aligned that cause my luck to change? Or are the cops getting more crafty and cunning. The road block on the N-S highway last Friday was at the same spot - before the Tapah R&R. I saw on coming cars flashing some 30-40km away and slowed down to the speed limit. Despite that I was flagged down. Cop: “Selamat pagi Tuan, tunjuk lesen.” Me: “Apa kesalahan?” Cop: “Melebehi had laju.” Me: “Mana ada. Berapa laju?” Cop: “125 km/jam.” Me: “Dekat mana?” Cop: “Slim River. Boleh minta gambar di Balai Polis Tapah.” (Cop starts writing summon……….) Me: “Summon kena bayar berapa?” Cop: “Sudah lama RM300.” Me: “Wah…mahal

Artisans Pizza – Pantai Cenang A small pizza restaurant along the Cenang Beach painted red and decorated, complete with large lettering delivery phone numbers, like any other pizza outlet. We ordered Hungarian goulash, fish & chips and 4 cheezy pizza. Goulash comes with mashed potato, bread & beef stew and is a main dish by itself. The 4 cheezy pizza is simply out of this world for those who love cheese pizza. The generous topping with 4 different types of cheese blend well together. The texture is just right, not too runny and not overcooked & dry, just perfectly gluey to sink your teeth into…yum. The pizza is so good that we make a special detour for an early dinner on the way to the airport on the last day. Oriental Restaurant – Pantai Cenang A trendy and chic restaurant along the Cenang Beach. The simple rectangular white building has high ceiling and decorated with teak furniture, art pieces, water features, beautiful landscape and complete with subtle lighting. 5 s

Langkawi reminds me of Phuket. Geographically, there are many similarities. A hilly main island with beautiful beaches and surrounded by many smaller islands. Winding hilly roads crisscross the island linking the beaches and the main town. Then there are the tourist belts along the mains beaches lined with hotels, inns, eateries, restaurants, shops, spas and tour agencies. The only glaring difference is there is no pub in sight in Langkawi! A simple 3 stars hotel in Langkawi will cost anything from RM200+ a nite and most are fully booked with the start of the year end school holidays to the end of Feb 2008. Despite trying to book 2 weeks in advance, we ended up staying at 3 different hotels on the 3 nites we were there. Sunset Resort is a smallish boutique hotel along Pantai Tengah. The 40 odd units of semi-d chalets were laid perpendicular to the beach connected by a winding beautifully landscaped path leading from the small reception to the Dining pavilion fronting the sea. The small

On the way back from Kuala Kangsar, I decided to take the old trunk road going through Sungei Siput. Exiting from the town I was in an unfamiliar part of the country and was following the signboards to the Plus Highway. The signboard indicates left turn to join the highway. The trouble was, there are so many junctions before the actual turn and I turned one junction too soon only to realize it was the wrong one. To cut the story short, I was stuck in mid lane at a traffic light. And as luck would have it, up came a fat moustachioed traffic cop on a bike behind me. He stopped behind me, and I knew I had it this time. Sure enough I was told to pull to the side after the lights turned green. I winded down the window as he came up to me. Cop: “Tunjuk lesen.” (I showed him my driving license.) Cop: “Tahu kah ini kesalahan denda berat.” Me: “I nak balik KL lah. Ini papan tanda arahan salah....I pusing terlalu awal ..... kena pusing balik.” Cop: “Ini compaun mahal…. Mahu saya tulis…?” Me: “Se

The journey by car from USJ to the quaint little town of Kuala Kangsar, including toilet and coffee break at Tapah R&R should take about 3 hours under present circumstances i.e. with road widening works along major stretches of the highway all the way to Ipoh. The speed limit on these stretches is 60kph including sections where the road is reduced to a single lane. If one is to strictly follow the 110kph and 60kph speed limit and not commit any traffic offence, the journey will probably take 5 hours. Raikonen can probably cover the trip in 2.5 hours (i.e driving my car and not the Ferrari). With neither the luxury of time nor the patience since it is working day trip, it was one long tiring journey. To make matter worse it rained incessantly, alternating between light drizzle and heavy downpours the whole journey to and fro. On top of that, one has to be mentally alert to be on the constant lookout for traffic cops hiding behind bushes and under bridges. The whole country seems to

To have 100,000 courageous people marching through the streets in one of the most repressive country in the world is simply awe inspiring. The initial quiet protest of a few hundred saffron cladded monks in Yangon, Myanmar was hardly news worthy. However, in one short week the momentum and ground swell of the protest has surged to an incredible 100,000 people. People’s Power in Myanmar has reawaken and reached a crucial threshold. Are we witnessing the dawn of a new chapter in the history of Myanmar? What unfolds in the next few weeks will determine the fate of the nation. The students lead protest 19 years ago was brutally crushed. Crack down by the military junta had already started yesterday with 4 people reported killed. How much more blood will be spilled on the streets of Myanmar. How many more martyrs has to be sacrificed before the regime is brought to its knees by the sheer will of the people. History tells us that the indomitable spirit of the people cannot be repressed forev

Though not particularly crazy about football in general and EPL in particular (except for the World Cup), the news that the “Special One” was fired from Chelsea still struck a discordant note in my mind. Jose Mourinho is a brilliant, colourful young coach (in sharp contrast to MU’s mouldy Fergie). The results he achieved in 3 short years with Chelsea are irrefutable. Besides bringing Chelsea to the forefront of English Football, he has brought character and excitement to the dull EPL. Sacking him will go down as a grave mistake in the history of English football. In a 3rd World country like Malaysia, it is the politicians and monarchy that run the show in the FA. The criteria to held a high post is a sports body in not how much you know about the game but rather your political clout or how high is your pegging order up the hierarchy ladder. A good example in point was the recent non-contest election of KK the " son-in-law " to the post of deputy president in the FAM. Is ther

Most golfers in Malaysia were ecstatic when Astro added the Golf Channel to their service a few months back. The euphoria dissipated just as soon. The expectation that all major golfing events around the world will be shown live 24/7 did not materialise. Apparently the willingness of Astro to pay for the transmission rights plays a major part in the limited coverage we end up with. What is offered instead is a lot of reruns on golf instructions, some dated years back. Nevertheless, being new in Malaysia, any golf program will still generate some interest in the golfing fraternity. A few of my golf buddies even credited their better score for the day to watching the instructions on the Golf Channel. The trouble with most Malaysian golfers is the lack of golfing basics. Very few ever bother to take a single golf lesson from the pros. Most of these home bred, self taught middle aged golfers also have very inflated egos. Having read a “Golfing for Idiots” instruction book or two already ma

With a school going child in the house, the issue of giving something to the teachers always bothers me. It will not cross my mind in a million years that such a need arise, but with the wife it is a different kettle of fish all together. The beginning of each school year starts with the giving of diary and calendar, follows by oranges and cakes for CNY , pens and flowers on Teacher’s Day, moon cake for the Mid Autumn Festival, etc. etc. And teacher is not confined to the Form Teacher but includes the tuition teacher, the piano teacher, the day care centre teacher, the transporter, etc. etc. The very act of giving to teachers - is it a gift or bribe? Webster online dictionary defines GIFT as something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation and BRIBE as something that serves to induce or influence. The definitions and distinction between the 2 acts is very clear. Bearing gifts to relatives, close friends, colleagues or neighbors on special occasions is a l

A couple of weeks back, while driving around USJ10 Taipan and looking for a place to have dinner, we came across this new restaurant with a sign board offering the original “Under the Bridge” Klang Bak Kut Teh. We ventured in with great expectation to try out the new found place and were rather disappointed. The concoction tasted like any run off the mill BKT, not even on par with the fare sold by any of the BKT shops in SS15. So when informed by an East Malaysian residing in KL that he is taking visiting relatives to savour the famous BKT in Klang, we took the opportunity to tag along. The corner shop is located in Taman Berkley adjacent to a Guardian pharmacy and opposite the Alliance Bank. Our verdict – not bad but definitely not the Numero Uno. So the search for the real McCoy continues. We must have eaten at scores of BKT shops over the years. The closest to perfection (according the wife and I) is that sold by the BKT shop on the main road in Klang town centre. The corner shop lo

Air Asia touched down at Phuket Airport at 1:20PM on Sat 17 August 2007. The moment we stepped out of the arrival hall, the sky opened up to welcome us with a heavy down pour. A tout approached us on rental car. After some negotiation, got ourselves a good deal. A Toyota Vios for 48 hours at1800 Baht, much less than the official quoted rates. The return taxi fare to and fro from the airport alone would cost more than half the rental price and we have the convenience of own transport. Surely a good start although it rained all the way in the 45 minutes drive to Patong beach. Unfortunately the weather was crappy. The persistent intermittent rain continued right through to the early hours of Monday. Shopping at the street stalls was virtually out of question. So we hang around at the new shopping mall Jungceylon. Things sold were not particularly exciting and @ departmental store price. The petulant and whining daughter made the evening even more tiring. So we decided to return to the hot

I accidentally caught the movie showing over Channel 23 on Astro over the Merdeka weekend. I have not watched a Malay movie in donkey years. The refreshing inter ethnic romantic theme was a pleasant surprise. The story line does not even sounds plausible, for a young Malay school girl to fall in love with a VCD selling Ah Beng (copper head and all) but I was piqued enough to watch from the beginning to the end. In fact, I even stayed up to 1:00 AM to watch the sequel Gubra which was shown immediately after Sepet. Unfortunately, Gubra was not as good. The effort to promote multi ethnic understanding within Malaysia by this new generation director and producer is definitely laudable. 3 September 2007

MY PC KOed What a disaster. A few days back, my daughter accidentally unplugged the power supply while I was surfing the net. The damn thing blacked out and would not start up properly again - going in loops starting up the window cycle indefinitely in perpetual restart. My attempts with F8 and starting up in safe mood and all other available different combinations also failed to boot up the CPU. Shutting down and restarting repeatedly also failed to do the job. So the only option left was to call the computer guy. After 3 days and repeated calls to the computer wizard, he came back with the bad news. My hard disk had crashed. With that all the accumulated files, data, photographs saved over the years just disappeared forever. Duh!!!!!!! What an idiot. Why didn't I kept a back up copy in a CD. What's most agonizing is the lost of those irreplaceable family photographs taken over the years... including the most recent photographs taken in Phuket a few weeks back. Hmmm maybe that

The holiday trip to Trengganu on the 2nd weekend did not materialize because the mother had work commitment. With school reopening on Monday, time was running out to arrange Plan B. To placate the daughter from declaring this as the most boring holiday ever, I skipped work last Friday to take her to the PD beach. The morning at the beach turned out to be surprisingly pleasant and relaxing. Finding and collection sea shells along the beach are one of ML’s passions. We walked the whole length of the beach from the public area at the 9th Km to well beyond the former Ming Court hotel and back. We collected over 100 seashells big and small including common cockle shells and shinny fish scales. Her treasured collection would be washed and dried and to be showed off to her classmates. Frolicking in the water and floating on my back with gentle waves lapping against my body was extremely relaxing and therapeutic. I could even practise my yoga breathing exercises and meditation. The only draw b

The extended Ng family had a vegetarian dinner at a restaurant in USJ on 1 May Wesak Day, courtesy of Mom. Our dinner was a 8 course set dinner staring with imitation shark fin, followed by 4 seasons cold dish, fake sweet and sour meat dish, make belief buttered prawns, look alike fried fish, etc. It cannot be denied, the clever imitation of the dishes in terms of presentation and taste but the novelty edge tends to wear off after the first time. Why go for imitation seafood and meat dishes with lots of artificial seasoning, coloring and flavours when you can go to another restaurant for the real thing at the same price? It is a nice change to go vegetarian once in a while. Wesak day is definitely an appropriate day for the whole family to mark the occasion together with a vegetarian meal. But a feast full of wanton meat dishes is rather ironic as it some what negates the very essence of a vegetarian meal. Whether it is for health reasons, religious belief or a lifestyle choice a bona

CNY another milestone hurtling past. Christmas seems like yesterday already mid March. Months, years, decades flashes by like a high speed video Which button do you press to slow... to stop... to reverse... to erase... to rewrite... a more colorful chapter of your life. 13.3.2007

It is good to be back again after the long hiatus. Took me a while to access my own blog too. Imagine can't even remember my sign in name and password and then I need a google account... well all done and ready to start afresh. Reading through my own posting I was pleasantly surprised at how well I kept up with the 2006 new year resolutions. Most were achieved.....both yoga and golf are going along nicely.... and I am still below 66kg. My birthday just past.... another year older and hair getting grayer .. CNY is just round the corner.... time for more food, drink and merriment ... 1 long week off.....maybe work on my golf keeping handicap at 18 is within reach. 15.2.2007

The past 2 months was just crazy It was work, work and more work. I had never work harder in my working life There were a hundred phone calls to attend to, scores of meetings to conduct...... writing the endless minutes drag late into the nights and through the weekends. The craziness lasted 8 weeks and the tedious cycle finally came to an end and life is normal again.......... 15.2.2007