Land of Lions... and lambs

Few weeks back, my company provided an oppurtunity for me to get expose in the islands south of Malaysia and I must say, it was a good eye opener experience... both in work and in cultural!


Singapore is great, with their clean and systematic traffic and orderly fashion really make my heart at ease... as much as I hate to admit it, that bloody country really beats the hell out of my pathetic country, they just reported an inflation rate of 7.7% this year as of this month, and I'm really curious what Malaysia's number will come out to... note: Their economy rice in Chai Chee was just SGD2.50, try beat that number dollar to dollar.... and the current political situation in my country is a joke which deserve a standalone entry itself, sigh. Anyway as usual in Singapore there is bound to be shopping, shopping and more shopping.... so Orchard, Bugis and vivo city is the targets of choice.


The bulk of my time were spent in the huge island of Bintan which is a 1.5 hour ferry journey away from Tanah Merah ferry terminal, deployed at Lobam ferry terminal which near to the Bintan Industrial Estate (BIE). The ride wasn't so bad as I didn't feel dizzy or vomity, and clearing the Indonesia customs is a breeze, this is also the 1st time I have step into Indonesia soil ^^


The place resembles the period of time where human had yet to discover musket and uses sling as primary weapon, although the road had been incredibly paved with tar and portholes are still a rare thing, the amount of vehicle is low over here, and 95% of the vehicles here are SUVs like Avanza, Innova and in some rare cases, CRV, Feroza and Frontiers

The night life are pretty scary for foreigners here as there are no emergency payphone around, people retire to home early and you just don't trust people anymore after all the news you listen from all sorts of crime that could happen nowadays.


As seen in the picture, this is one of the most lively town around my area called "Prampanon", might not exactly spelled correctly but this is all there is, 1 street, with shops at both sides until the end of the road.

I forgot to mention that this part of the world is +0700 GMT, that means night comes early, and coupled with no entertainment, it is a really dreadful place to spend your life here, especially people at my age IMHO. But then again, one can actually save alot of money if he stays here just to pass time.


Food here on the other hand is wonderful, nearly every night we ate seafood here, and nearly every lunch we ate nasi goreng ayam. Many of my colleagues have constipation issue, while I have bowel problem every morning.... strange how my ever strong stomach have problem digesting the delicious food here, must take a mental note before flying to the country of stars and stripes..

Nevertheless, its consider ok for an island 3 times the size of Singapore and with just nearly 3 million population (as in contrast with Singapore's 4 million population), one would know why the government doesn't find the need to invest so much in this place, unlike Batam island which is just couple of clicks away, classifed as free trade zone and complete with lots of shopping mall and 'entertainments'

Bintan is generally an ok place, but one need to constantly get in touch back with civilization in order to remind yourself how the world is pacing, maybe thats the reason the people supporting this facility will constantly travel to and fro from Singapore... In a way its a healthy way of sustaining life and continuing the effort to keep one sane.

On the other hand, Singapore is even fabulous in food, their cheap and my stomach accepts their not so 'provoking' food with no problem... Haha. And I didn't know their night city is so vibrant, complete with the shot from the tallest hotel in Asia, it was facinating !

Isin't it pretty?

Pangkor trip 2008

On 12hb July 2008, 6 souls were gathered around the world to participate a joint exercise in Pangkor Island, off the shores of Lumut, Perak. There are multiple objectives for this trip, some treat it as a getaway, some wanna spend time with friends for an outing, and for some is to recharge mentally for the next coming challenge in life.
The gang basically consist of (from left): Alvino, Jeebs, Jocy, Keebs, Joyce, Neebs (Photo courtesy of Jeebs)
Not really sure why the picture is skewed to the right, probably due to high wind from the sea...

Anyway Pangkor is a real crappy place: Mediocre beach, pathetic tourist attaction site like the (Holland fort, big rock and.... that's about it!), very little chicks in bikini, road system is dangerous and alot of blind spot slope... luckily the total length of road in Pangkor is not that long, you can basically round the blardy island in less than 20 minutes, 15 if you had a good car.
The food is ok, can't expect much in a small island, having said that, price ain't that bad, seafood ain't that bad (thanks Alvino for the treat!)
But basically food in Pangkor lacks variety... imagine the first food we crave to eat once we get back to mainland is McD! Maybe we are becoming city slickers... But then again still those seafood I take from Koh Samui or Perhentian were not as bad as those in Pangkor.... And yeah, Pangkor doesn't have much ang mo, so probably that's why the situation is like this, at least its not expensive.

Luckily the weather was great over there: It was cloudy when we go snorkeling and sun bathing, it was raining on Monday morning, it was raining on Monday morning - How often do we find it raining in the morning especially on your off day? Nice!
And time flies pass the 3 days we were there, I think the reason time goes by so fast is because of the good company of friends, and of course partly due to the liquor. Once the bacardi entered my bloodstream, the lullaby already start singing in my head. Maybe that's why Alvino and Jocy cheated my money for those nights.

All in all, it was a great trip, better than Genting and much cheaper than Langkawi and cleaner than Port Dickson. so despite its patheticness of the place, it still worth remembering

Heck, even my PSP was having a good time in Pangkor. Seen here is the PSP crawl out of its pouch to had some sun bathing, backdrop is the sunset at the beach in Pangkor.





On a different note, I will be going to Singapore and Bintan Island next week for training, duration expected to be a week or so. Lets hope I get to see the beaches of Bintan and grab some pictures back for posting...

Feedback of Manhunt 2 [PSP]

For the record, my 1st gruesome game played so far is Manhunt 1, which is rigged for PS2 few years back... Now Rockstar games had released Manhunt 2 few months back, which was telling the story of 2 prisoner escapee in search of truth (as one had lost his memory).

The gameplay is based on a sneak and attack role and reward player if they sneak long enough behind an enemy's back with a gruesome kill based on the weapon in his hand. The idea is good and the gameplay is sufficiently long, story line is also as twisted as the 1st game.

This game actually had a tough time passing the European board of ratings during the time of launch but eventually got over it after Rockstar agrees to release a tone down version in their market, sissies... Anyway total game play is around 10 hours, with perfectionist player needed slightly more if they want to kill EVERYONE and in STYLE.

I would not recommend to buy this game in original disc as the replayability is seriously limited, and reward for replayability is no big deal. Would put a score of 7/10 for this.

My Wish List

1. PlayStation 3
2. LCD TV (32" and above) with <2ms>
3. Internet connection in Halaman [DONE]
4. Satellite channel service in Halaman
5. Water heater(s) in Halaman [DONE]
6. Pet dog - Pug
7. Fire a round of assault rifle (AK47 / M4A1 / Steyr Aug..etc) without dislocating shoulder [DONE]
8. Nissan Cefiro A31 with RB20DET / RB25DET
9. Her (Life ain't making it easy for me)
10. Kitchen cabinet + renovated dish wash area
11. Comfy 1x1m carpet [DONE]
12. Dolby Digital Pro Logic II (Yes I know I already have Pro Logic, but who don't want the best)
13. Active subwoofer (Yes I know I already have a passive one, active sounds more cool)
14. Double storey property with at least 1200 sq. ft. build up and can cater a minimum of 2 cars
15. PDA phone with GPS capable
16. Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 Front speakers
17. My 1st RM 1 Million (inclusive of asset and liquidation liabilities)
18. Race a complete lap round in Germany's Nürburgring (Yes, that's a freaking 22.8km race track)
19. Perform 3 stunts on board of a light commercial plane (Barrel roll, Split-S and a loop)
20. Visits at least 15 different countries before I die (must include US, Europe, East Europe, Russia, China, Australia, South America)
    

The leprosy that was not meant to be

2 weeks ago me and Jeebs went KL for a vacation trip, joining us was Alvino, Grace and Jocy... it was a great trip (at least for me coz I manage to learn a lesson or 2 regarding gambling and manage to cover my holiday fees), btw the game played was Bacarrat and it is strictly a luck game.

The game was introduced by my colleague and he had offered some pretty good advice on the way of betting and based on the odds that I had so far (7 win and 1 lose), I would say either lady luck was on my side or that the technique works. However the 1 lose that I have is also the biggest amount of $$$ i lost in my life in 1 bet. Darn....

So having played, slept, gayed in KL for 3 days, me and Jeebs got into Malaysia's most luxurious bus trip (KL - Penang), onboard a NICE bus. With on board entertainment and NL doing announcement before departure, during toilet break and after arrival, plus snacks served, it was the best bus trip I have ever taken for my life in Malaysia, it was also the most expensive trip I have ever taken in my life RM56 from KL to Penang. Sick.

So the trip was nice, but a day later when I got back, Jeebs told me that he had infected with small bumps on the under side of the arm, at first I don't give a damn as I just thought he had infected with STD on the trip in KL, probably slept at Alvino's bed or sit in the same toilet bowl as Alvino's.... anyway at night the nightmare begins.... my elbow begins to itch, and upon investigation, small bumps have appeared around my right and left elbow, which looks reddish and cute. I ignored it and slept the night away....

... only to find out that the bumps have spread towards my wrist, the itch also had increased in magnitude and this goes on for the whole day at work, this had made me ponder what illness I might be having and the word leprosy came to mind after Jeebs mentioned it on MSN... Took an early leave from office and went straight to doctor at Peace Clinic. Doctor said its just an allergy reaction due to irritant (possibly food or skin contact, need skin biopsy to confirm). So applied the skin cream and taken the itch medicine, 1 week later the rash had gone away, leaving the mark of healing on its wake.

Not reall that bad but it is very kill joy / potong stim if people saw it.

I had enough! Declaring war on LOTR: RotK

I had been searching high and low for this piece of crap and had hit a square wall all this while, so I am officially declaring war on "Lord of the Ring: Return of the King - 4 disc Special Extended DVD version"!!!!!! This blardy box set has eluded my radar for the past 6 months, and now I'm switching my active sonar to hunt this sunnava biatch. To make matter worse, the ones that I wanted is the 'cheaper' version, which tags at around RM30 to RM40 depending on the mood of the seller... The original goes for around RM169


The direct and indirect places I have tried to look for are as below (in chronological order):

HK Video, Penangwide - Don't have
Megamall, Penang - Don't have
Sunway Carnival - Don't have DVD shop
Bukit Jambul, Pg - Don't have
Desa Sri Hartamas (3 separate shops), KL - Don't have
Sungai Wang (multiple shops), KL - Don't have
SS2 dvd shop, KL - Don't have
Taman Danau Desa, KL - Don't have
Prangin Mall, Pg - 1 shop selling original, others don't have
ChangPing (常平), DongGuan (3 shops) - Don't have
One Stop Megamall, Pg - Don't have
City Square, JB - Don't have
Bras Basah, Sg - Don't have
Bugis, Sg - Don't have
Parkway Parade, Sg - Don't have
Orchard road (3 separate shops), Sg - Don't have (2 weeks ago he say still has -.-)

I have seen Episode 1 and Episode 2 box edition in some places but die also don't have Episode 3.

I will make this an open post until I found that pesky sunnava biatch. I swear I will chew the blardy box if I can get my hands on these 'ultra rare' item.

Fuck you J.R.R Tolkien for making my life miserable!

Note: Finally settle for an original box version at RM140 at Pacific Prai. Can finally close this chapter and mark the end of the bloody hunt. (3rd August 2008)

Petrol price increasing, tricks to save petrol

The news of no rise in petrol price in Malaysia until September 2008 is comforting indeed, especially for those driving 2.0litres and above, but one must not wait until desperate time to try desperate measures. I have experiment with a few techniques of petrol saving and below are 8 general advise that actually works on me.

Before that there are some terms we must know...

Efficient speed: The most efficient and cost saving speed your car should be. Naturally its 2000 to 2500 rpm for each car, at the last gear (so its around 80km/h for my 1.6 Deto)

Synthetic oil - Usually oil in the region of 0W/40 to 5W/40
Semi-synthetic oil - Usually oil in the region of 5W/30 to 15W/30
Mineral oil - Usually oil in the region of 20W/50 and above


1) Always estimate the traffic in front, look 4 or 5 cars in front and simultaneously monitor their brake light, relative speed and intention. This will make you know whether you should accelerate 10%? 20% or 50% to prevent un-necessary braking and maintain in your efficient speed.

2) If possible, use semi synthetic or fully synthetic oil on your engine. Coz these oil is less viscous, therefore less restriction on your engine, so if your engine can rev easier, the work to make your car move also will be lesser. Of course there are problems if you use these type of engine oil, example if your engine is old, or all the while has been using mineral oil... for those who buy new car / engine should remember this.

3) Make sure the tyre is inflated at the optimum pressure. Different tyre use different pressure, my Advan Neova pump at 33 coz its hard wall soft compound, my sister's Falken Ziex pump at 31 coz its soft wall hard compound. The optimum pressure will ensure minimum rolling resistance and prevent tyre damage (like wear faster on one side...etc). Check your tyre once every 2 week.

4) Air cond is for sissy. Try not to use air cond if possible, coz it will pull the compressor whenever you initiate it, and that's around 1 horsepower itself! Only use air cond if there is alot of ppl in your car, if the mirror begin to fog, if its hot, if its raining, if you like some cold air... other than that, don't use. This is where sunroof comes in handy... Of course the best is to remove the air cond belt, but that's for the extremist...

5) Service your car all the time, and when I say service, it doesn't mean changing engine oil and oil filter... clean your throttle body once every 2 year, make sure O2 sensor good condition, change transmission oil every 4 years, crap like that

6) Always find the shortest route to your destination... This might sound simplistic and straight forward but actually it isin't... The terms shortest route is refering to the LEAST jam route also. So imagine the highway is 3 lane and the left most lane is the least jam, go there! Then further down the road if the right most lane is the least jam, go there! You might ended up look like a prick but ultimately you save petrol, and that's all that matters

7) Never drive with emotion. Means no racing, no dragging, no zip zapping in a busy street, always keep a cool mind and this will ultimately prevent regretful moment. One of the reason 2007 F1 champion Kimi Raikkonen was nick named ice cool driver because he showed no emotion, and that helped him in minimizing mistakes, same goes to 500cc motorsport champion Valentino Rossi. One must be cool when it comes to driving because alot of things can happen at one time, and you need as much brain processing power to analyze what's happening

8) Step the accelerator slowly & accordingly. Again sounds like a pointless and simple advise, but actually it isn't. Each car has an optimum accelerate curve, one needs to find and familiarize with the accelerating speed. Usually its 20% throttle. Notice that sometimes when you're in 5th gear and if you step 60% or 30% its the same? Your car is just accelerating at a relatively same speed? This is due to the characteristic output of the engine, for commercial car, the engine was not designed for power, therefore if someone step more on the accelerator, it doesn't mean the engine will be able to produce the same power expectedly. The additional acceleration will only mean more fuel will be burnt un-necessarily while output the same result.

That is about the few main thing about saving petrol that I employ. It might not sound great but its a layman's point of view in the complicated world of automobile.

Sky is clearing up...

April was a bad month for me, besides from the relationship breakdown for me, I am also faced with the possibility that my youngest sister might fail her exam (again) and force us to waste more un-necessary expenses while not doing anything productive. There is also the fact that everyday I come back to my home and see its deplorable state with insect carcass everywhere, my life can't get anymore depressing than this...

However the time of low and down is over, now the moment of rejuvenation has come. Hahaha. After being recharged with my great holiday trip down in KL, I have found the reason of my existence again (probably not that serious but more or less so). Each people can be satisfied mentally, materially, physically, whatever... and I have found my share already.

The month of May marks the 1st time in my life that I was able to save money, even with the expenditure of the trip (after working for 5 years, there is NO single cents of saving and this has been a very sad thing indeed), so this itself is an achievement, coupled with the fact that my sister had passed all her diploma paper and may currently work towards her advance diploma, things is starting to pick up improvement.

Total expenditure of the household was analyzed and started to pave forward for a sustainable lifestyle, can't believe it took me so long to get it done... Done as it may, but its not fixed, I think the next few years of my life will evolve around money and investment, better start read up those books I bought...

Last saturday me and my sister were able to clean up the house and re-arrange some of the furniture, now it looks perfectly clean... And did a small celebration for my youngest sister on her passing in exam! We did it on TAO Japanese buffet, although the bill is not cheap and not everyone really sapu the food, everyone is happy and that's all that matters. One may be poor financially but might not so in happiness. And this week I am happy. Hahahah.

So bring it on babeh, I know you tried to bring me down but I will not succumb so easily :P