SITI NURHALIZA'S - SATU

Last Sunday I had the chance to attend Siti's long awaited concert at Istana Budaya. It is not that I am a die hard fans of her unlike the Siti Zoners, (Siti's Fan club) but I did go to her previous concerts before, be it in Bukit Jalil or in RTM, bought almost all of her CDs and DVDs ermm..ok ok I admit, I like her as a singer..she is a good singer vocally and in this area, its pretty hard to find her competitors. Well she gave me goose bumps with her voice, dude..and that its all that matters. Other than that I don't give a shit about her personal life. Knowing Siti and knowing Istana Budaya (and the ticket price that goes with it), I anticipated it to be a fabulous show and I was right. The overall concert was pretty damn good. Fantastic choices of songs, perfect delivery (as always), awesome gimmick, dances and outstanding props making the overall concept was just right...not too pretentious...not overly glamorous but had a class of its own...she was more at ease with the audience, confident and enjoying herself on stage. To me the most important thing was that I really enjoyed myself that night and personally, Siti is still the best singer in Malaysia.

Other significant audiences that night was Y.Bhg Tun Dr. Mahathir and wife, the Malaysian artistes and celebrities. The infamous Indonesian singers Kris Dayanti and Rossa were there too.

The opening act was from the talented singer Aizat...he belted out 3 songs but none of it was 'Kau Pergi', the song that can touched others with its lyrics and melody...sigh..

Next.., am looking forward to Anuar Zain's concert at the same place this Thursday.. I don't mind paying double the ticket price from Siti's as long as I can have a good seat (In case of Siti's...well...I had no choice since I was unable to secure one. From what I heard from a member in IB was that Datuk K had bought most of good seats to be given to his staffs, business partners and friends etc..). Dunno if that was true....

Thank you Siti...and yes I am a fan....period...

'MANA SETANGGINYA' - AN EPIC ADVENTURE

Since not many big budget theater production come our way in Malaysia, I don't want to miss watching this at Istana Budaya last saturday.

Based on National Laureate Datuk Noordin Hassan’s book ‘Mana Setangginya’, this production has been dubbed as a Malay ‘Lord of the Rings’. Well, I would not put it that way, but the set decoration, designs and special effects were quite extraordinary and extravagant.

Even though it was in Malay, it does not deal with malay culture, far from it. It was in the era of old civilisation i.e where the Book of Torah was concerned. The end of civilisation to be exact when greed's, corruption, betrayal invaded a religious society with rigid rules and structures and the arrival of other forces which challenges the status quo and the harmony of a society.

The pictures below tells the story of this epic adventure theater.

Azizah Mahzan gave her best performance as usual

Tony Eusoff as Yuda and Sabrina Ali as Iryam were good too

Another great performances

An expert from US were flown for this flying faeries scenes

The costumes were outrageously magnificent

The big monster eel destroying the village..


An outstanding performance, a standing ovation

BB 7th ANNIVERSARY - CHERATING 12-14 JUNE 09

A and I was invited to participate in the BB 7th Anniversary in Cherating from 12 - 14 June 2009. There were around 26 participants for the occasion including one each from US, Indonesia and Brunei.

At 3.00 a.m (12 June - Friday) all of us met at the designated meeting point i.e at BP station after the Gombak toll plaza and departed for Cherating. After having stopped at a few rest areas, we arrived in Cherating at 7.00 am. After having breakfast at a stall we then check in to our respective chalet to rest.

A few chalets were booked for the occasion

After lunch, the first activities for the day was to make a kite. Each team of 3 were given the material to make one. The team who can make the most creative kite and with the ability to fly will be the winner.

A's team, making their kite..

By 5.00pm each team marched to the beach to display their flying kite skill and out of 7 or 8 kites, only 2 or 3 managed to fly for a short distance. Failure to launch was due to either the kites were too heavy, wrong design and the most important reason, lack of strong wind. Nonetheless, that did not stop us from having fun especially when lewd comments were thrown on each other because of this while eating cheap ice-creams.

Time to fly..ermm yup the owner's
of the kite himself were too heavy, I think... hehehe

My team..the kite was for display only, ok?

The winner... a beautiful 3 tails kite..

Dinner were served at the resort and after that, a few of us went to a karoke place which is actually a small hall in the resort. Unfortunately, the person in charge of that place were unable to retrieve songs from the laptop and asked us for help. Using his expertise, A managed to solve the problem and we had our singing session with a surprising good sound system until 1.00 am.

The next day, after breakfast, all of us went to Kuantan town, stopping at a park near the sea. There we ate 'kropok lekor' and 'ice cendol'. We then went to town to buy salted fish.

ermm...I found the clue to where the shop is.... hehe

We also went to East Coast Mall, supposedly a new mall in Kuantan where A and I bought a few T-shirt and a bag for A's laptop. We went back at the resort at 4.00pm and had our late lunch there. By 5.30am we went to play volleyball at the beach.

That night was the highlight of the whole trip...it was BBQ seafood dinner and each of us had to dress to suit the theme of the night which was PIRATES OF THE EAST...

That was A, a samurai pirate, 2nd place best dress..

The winner was the guy in the checkered green shirt..

ermmmm...I do not until now figured out why the learned judges that night chose this guy...coz if I remembered correctly, the theme for the night was Pirate of the EAST and not Pirate of the WEST???..ermmm..lu fikirlah sendiri...oppsss

Unfair...I need to kill someone that nite, hehehe

We had 2 other games afterwards before wrapping up for the night...

The next day, after checking out of the resort, all of us went to Beserah, i.e to a restaurant name FICO. One of the BB's member treated us lunch for his birthday on that place.

Plenty of food...nice place......

One of the chiefs of FICO

After that we travelled back to KL, stopping at Genting Sempah rest area for dinner. After saying good byes to all the participants, A and I went back home.

As usual, it was always fun to be with the BB group. A and I would like to thank them for inviting us again for their anniversary....best of luck...cheers.....

Nope, I am not the DVD pirate...

SNIPPET

Watch your thoughts, they become words

Watch your words, they become actions

Watch your actions, they become habits

Watch your habits, they become character

Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny..........

Be kinder than necessary,

for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle

DO I LIKE BEING OLD?

Someone sent me this email. I don't know who wrote it but I like what I read and I would like to post it ....so here goes...

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly (opss not in that condition for quite sometime now). As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie (and lotsa ice-cream), , or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need (ermm buying that stupid boots and USB speakers and the list goes on), but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 & 70's (80's please...duran duran, nick kershaw, bonnie tyler, pat benater, cyndi lauper), and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love...I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.

They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things. Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car?(or jumped out of the window...waaaa) But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I have been blessed to have live long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face (make it go away Mr. Clarins, huhu). So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair turn silver.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day (if I fee like it)..

What do you think about the above statement?

KEDAH/PENANG TRIP 5 - 7 JUNE 2009

A and I had just got back from Cherating...we were there for 2 nights, attending BB 7th Anniversary. More on that will be posted later.

Before that, I had a family outing in Penang i.e my mum and my sister's family last week. Since A had to give a present to his friend's wedding in his hometown in Alor Setar, I decided to go there first before going to Penang.

On 5 June 2009 (Friday) A, using my car, picked my mum from my brother’s house in Shah Alam and then to my office to pick me. From there, using the north south highway, we went to A's hometown in Alor Setar. We reached A's house at 12.00am.

After having breakfast at A’s house and after going to A's friend to give her the wedding present, we went to Padang Besar to do a little bit of shopping. The last time I went to Padang Besar was ages ago…. I was pleasantly surprised that the shabby town I remembered before has now being transformed into a nice and well planned shopping area or complex.

By 2.00pm, from Padang Besar we went down to Penang and after crossing the bridge we stopped near Pulau Jerejak jetty while waiting for my sister's family arrival from KL. All of us then went to my niece condo in Queensbay.

With my fav nieces at Gold Coast Resort Condo,

you can see Penang Bridge from the balcony

Getting ready to get wet...

View from the pool - full moon and

Pulau Jerejak at the background

Night view from the balcony..with a next door condo..

At. 9.00pm, we went to the airport to pick my two other nephews and from there we went to Pan Mutiara Restaurant at Batu Maung, Penang most famous place for its fish head curry. I have read so much about this place in other people’s blogs so I was looking forward to eat here.

The best fish curry head I have ever tasted....simply delicious..

with such affordable price too..

The empty bowl hehe...nice ambiance too... a delightful dinner..

Next morning, all of us had a tour in my niece's working place..which is a factory actually.. The factory is in its final completion and will be fully operated by September this year. She is Head of Design in a manufacturing custom made industrial chips, the company itself is a subsidiary of one of the GLC's.

The interior designer of the factory, the younger sis...

We then had our lunch at a nasi kandar restaurant near KOMTAR. We then walked along Chowrasta Road, ate the famous cendol and ais kacang there before proceeding to Batu Ferenggi. While waiting for the stalls to open, we have our drinks at the Sunset Bistro.

Another cool place to chilled out...even in the hot weather...

A had a pleasant surprised... I know he enjoyed this...

Ready to fly..........

Up and awayyyyyyyy............

into the sun.......

Time to come down.... steady...steady..steady...

Opssssss not a perfect landing unlike in

Pattaya last year hehehe...ouchhh

Smiling...safe and sound, nothing's broken...

Sunset.........

Awesome view.......

Afterward, we went to buy a few DVDs, mostly TV series...had our seafood dinner at Bayan Lepas.. By 1.00 am, A and I were on our way back to KL. Actually, I really wanted to stay another day but I had an important meeting to attend too. We reached home at 4.30am, leaving me only 2 hours to sleep...peywai ooooooo...

JAKARTA/BANDUNG TRIP 15-19 MAY 2009 FINAL PART

18-19 May 2009 (Monday & Tuesday) - Day 4 & 5

8.00 am, like yesterday, we had our buffet breakfast at the hotel. Pak Yunus took over from Pak Tarmudzi as our driver as he had other matter to attend too. Since we need to exchange our money to Rupiahs, Pak Yunus suggested us to change it at Golden Money Changer (GMC) near Pasar Baru. He informed us that GMC gives the best rate as compared to others. Thinking that GMC will be like a normal money changer i.e. small and no need to queue, we were mistaken. Entering GMC was like entering a big bank with many customers. There, you will be given a number, have a seat and wait for your number to be called. Once called, you need to fill up a form, gave the money (mine RM and USD) and wait again to be called to complete the whole process which in all took about 20 minutes. Pak Yunus was right, do exchange your money in Bandung or Jakarta. The rate is much cheaper. (On that day the rate was RM298 for Rp1million as compared to RM340 for the same amount when I exchanged it in Malaysia).

Later, we went to Pasar Baru, a shopping complex, similar to Tanah Abang in Jakarta but smaller (5 storey building). Pak Yunus parked his MPV at 7th floor parking lot. Here, we spent for about 4 hours and most items that we bought were for our families especially the ladies i.e telekung, clothes, fabrics, Indonesian batiks, etc. I also made an arrangement with a tailor in one of the shops to tailor-made me two pair of trousers with a promise to deliver it at the hotel by 5 am tomorrow morning. Ajib bought lots and lots of laces fabric for his family. According to him, the price was cheap and I was told that the shops in Tanah Abang are the exporters of laces and fabrics to the high class fabric shops like Euro Moda in KL.

Ajib buying lotsa of laces

From Pasar baru, Pak Yunus then brought us to Nasi Padang house called Restoran Simpang Raya, the same concept like the restaurant we went in Jakarta.

Menu in the restaurant...

Afterward we went to Cibaduyut, a place well known for its locally made product of leather goods especially for its shoes. Rows and rows of shops selling from low to high quality leather goods can be found here. For me, I bought shoes, a big travelling bag and a belt.

We then went to Rumah Tas, a shop exclusively for handbags mostly of high class imitation bags. Spoilt for choice, I bought one for my sister, a latest design by Gucci, with less revealing logo as requested by my sister over the phone.

Next, we went to Rumah Mode and shopped again. I bought a few branded T-shirts. We then went to our last FO shop which was the Cascade where I bought more selected T-shirts and a beautiful door-mat.

A day shopping..we need to use the hotel's trolley
to bring all those to our room

Tired, we went back to our hotel and dined in ala-carte at the hotel and as a hotel guest we were given a 25% discount. Even tired, it took A untill 2.00am to pack neatly all the things we bought into 6 big bags.

Tomorrow will be our travelling day, back to KL via Jakarta. We had decided to hire Pak Yunus again for our trip to Jakarta instead of taking a bus after looking at the things we need to carry. Since our flight to KL from Jakarta will be at 8.00pm, we then have ample time to go to Mangga Dua, another shopping place in Jakarta.

19 May 2009 (Tuesday) Part 5.

Our last day in Bandung. Had breakfast at the hotel. Its already 8.00am and no news about the delivery of my trousers. I thought I had been cheated. To make matter worse, I have lost the receipt and I was unable to contact the tailor. I was quite disappointed. I called Pak Yunus and he suggested that we stop by at the shop and enquire about it before going to Jakarta.

We checked out from the hotel at 9.00am and went to Kartika Sari, one of the biggest bakery in Bandung. It offers a wide varieties of cookies, cakes, snacks. I bought a few packets of 'pisang molen' which is a baked pastry filled with banana and cheese. There, I received a call from the tailor saying that the dispatch boy did come to the hotel at 5.00am but cannot find the name listed as the hotel guest. It seemed that, I had given A's name on the receipt instead of mine but I had clearly mentioned the room number together with Ajib's hp number (Indonesian prepaid). Unfortunetely this other info were not given to the boy. We then headed back to the hotel and picked the trousers there.

Afterward, Pak Yunus drove us to Jakarta. We asked him to use the road via Puncak instead of the highway to view the uphill scenery.

View from Puncak..

Another view from Puncak
Yet another view at Puncak

On the route to Jakarta, there was a slight jammed due to an accident. We reached Mangga Dua area where huge blocks of shopping complexes are situated here in Jakarta at 2.00 pm. We entered one of the blocks which sells all sort of things, something like Sungai Wang Plaza but with smaller shops. We had only two hours to eat and shop there since we need to be at the airport not later than 6.00pm. We ate at the A&W inside the complex and then we started shopping using whatever balance left but taking into consideration the air port tax and payment for excess baggage, if any. Here, I bought a few Indonesian pirated music CDs at the cost of Rp6,000 each. I also bought locally made bamboo fans as souveniors for my office mates.

In front of Mangga Dua Shopping Complex

At 4.00pm, we went to the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. During check-in, to avoid paying for excess baggage of about RM100.00, each of us had to take 2 bags as hand luggage and the other 4 bags as check-in baggage.

Last minute repacking after our shopping spree at Mangga Dua

We had dinner in one of the Sudanese restaurant at the Airport. As scheduled, at 8.00pm, we flew from Jakarta and arrived at LCCT airport around 11.00pm (Malaysian time). We then took a bus to KL Sentral. There, A and I took a cab home whereas Ajib had his relative picking him up. By 2.00am, we reached our house.

Since this was our first trip to Jakarta and Bandung, I must say that it was a successful trip. It fulfilled our intention to see these two cities as tourist on our own even if not 100%. Unless and until you really want to come to Bandung to shop, we now know where to go and buy specific things at specific places. God willing, we might come again here next year, ermm a few interested parties have voiced their interest to asked us to bring them there...see how it goes........