hoot over booth

bila sebut pasal cuti,
orang sebut balik kampung
bila sebut balik kampung,
orang sebut pasal kena lalu Tol

mengenai TOL...
selalu kita dapati
kesibukan dan traffic jam kat tol ni
sebab proses pembayaran dan pengambilan tiket...

antara inisiatif yg diambil
oleh syarikat pengendali tol
adalah memperkenalkan konsep prepaid card
utk membayar tol,

malangnya, dulu..
setiap satu tol yang dikendalikan
oleh berlainan pemaju...
mempunyai prepaid card nye sendiri,
ada yg touch n go, ada fast trak,
apa macam-macam lagi nama...

ianya tidak memudahkan pengguna,
malahan akan menyebabkan dalam sebuah kereta tu,
ada empat lima macam kad nak bayar tol..

now, okay la sikit..
semua orang cuma perlu pakai Touch N' Go

kemudian, booth yg disediakan
untuk pengguna prepaid card ni
hanya dua atau tiga sahaja
daripada jumlah keseluruhan booth
yg sedia ada di disitu...

suka diingatkan bahawa konsep touch n go tu
untuk memudahkan pengguna,
dan seterusnya menghapuskan terus
sistem di mana
"mesti ada orang yang perlu duduk kat booth
hanya utk bagi tiket dan ambik duit"..

kenapa tidak, terus dan sekaligus,
jumlah booth tu diterbalikkan?

maksud saya, jumlah booth utk touch n go = 8,
manakala booth biasa 2, ataupun,
semua booth terus... touch n go..

pada pandangan saya,
(please correct me if i am wrong),
masyarakat di Malaysia ni,
selagi di bagi booth yang boleh pakai siling,
dia tidak akan nak pakai touch n go...

tapi jika, semua dah touch n go
or smart tag,
kita akan terpaksa pakai touch n go
or smart tag..

in average,
di Malaysia ni semua nak kena paksa, baru jalan..

sebab tu jugak,
banyak law kat Malaysia ni org tak ikut
dan pandang remeh,
sbb enforcement tak kuat,
tak de org atau tak cukup org
nak 'paksa' kita ikut law tu...

sebut je, law berkenaan apa
yg tak de kat Malaysia ni..

kita cuba ambil contoh Singapore,
sistem tol mereka memang dah lama
tak menggunakan cara booth ni...
semua nya scanning system
(lagi advance dari system smart tag PLUS),
so tak de masalah nak beratur nak ambik tiket,
dan kemudian nak kena queue up untuk bayar pulak
bila dah sampai tol destinasi..

memang betul,
nanti org akan kata, buat apa nak tiru org..
especially Singapore
yg asyik tipu kita pasal harga air..

namun, perlu diingat,
yang baik tetap baik, yg jahat tetap jahat..
apa salah nya kita tiru benda yg baik..??

lagipun, macam-macam bende kita boleh tiru
untuk kebaikan kita..

beli vcd 'tiru' tak pe lak..
hehehe...

and pretty sure, ada yang akan kata
alangkah bagusnya kalau sistem tol
dibuang ke longkang terus..
well, that's another topic altogether

who's the cartoon

been following the Jyllands-Posten’s cartoon issue,
very angry myself..

the Danish government still want to uphold
their too-proud-to-admit-it stance
while the Muslim countries demand
their rights to be honoured

out of the many newsprints
i like this particular newspaper's report
on this particular paragraph

"PM Rasmusssen of Denmark quoted as saying;
freedom of expression is the very foundation
of Danish democracy and the Danish government
has no means of influencing the press.

EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson
warned Saudi Arabia that it would seek action
from the World Trade Organisation
if Riyadh supported a boycott of Danish goods.

Mandelson told a Saudi official that
any boycott of Danish products
would be a boycott of the European Union.

The Saudi official said his government
had not encouraged the boycott."

hehehe.. very funny statements
i meant the EU's and Danish's

come on.....
you would tell on them???
it's so childish..
can't you stand and fight your own battle???

well, they never will and were anyway..

on another note,
this is not about freedom
this is about respect..

this also shows, one of the flaws
in total freedom...
people will lose respect over others
no control is another..

and i really have to applaud
the response by the Saudi’s official..
tit for tat, huh?

all we want is an official apology
and not to commit the same mistake
never ever again..
is that so much to ask for?

i quote from Wikipedia..
"The newspaper has apologised for offending Muslims,
but maintains its right to print whatever it likes."

you see, this is where i always
do not understand
and do not believe entirely
and always cynical to
the doctrines/principles of international human rights...
vis-à-vis it must be universal, inalienable and absolute

for the record, i do believe in rights..
just not the 'internationally'..

what i meant to say is.. among others..
how could one's right must be unconditionally
to be accepted by others?

we have almost 7 billion people populating the world
we are ALL DIFFERENT in nature
be it language, background, race, religion, etc
the variation goes on..

no way...
it could be International and Universal..

for example..
lets say.. the right to smoke in public

the smokers will say that
"it's my individual and human right to smoke,
whenever and wherever"

ever wonder what the non-smokers will say?
"whatever..."

Quote to Ponder

"only a fool will let him/herself to be bitten
by the same snake, at the same pit.. twice"

interstate 60

just finished watching
this movie on the local telly,
and it was a great one

i surely would recommend
if anyone want to watch it

will try to get the dvd copy too

it started kinda typical, very sketchy..
but after 10 minutes,
it got interesting, funny and better..
it makes you think, sigh, laugh...

in short, i'm glad that i decided to watch it
instead of the repeated Friends sit-com
i love it, it's now one of my favourite

***********************************************

Interstate 60
(2002)

Type: Features
Distributor: IDP Distribution

Rating: R (Adult Language/Sexual Situations)
Running Time: 117 Minutes

Starring: James Marsden, Gary Oldman, Christopher Lloyd
Directed by: Bob Gale

PLOT DESCRIPTION

At the beginning of Interstate 60,
Neal Oliver (James Mardsen) has more questions
about his future than answers.
Though he would rather pursue a career in art,
Neal debates whether or not he should
set his goals towards a law degree,
as his father would greatly prefer.

He has a girlfriend, but he wonders
if he should search for
the mysterious woman (Amy Smart)
who visits his nightly dreams
and inspires his artwork.

By the time his 23rd birthday roles around,
Neal is no closer to choosing his life's path.
He feels empty and unsatisfied,
despite lavish birthday gifts,
and wishes only for clarity
as he blows out the candles on his cake.

Rather than instant answers,
Neal is given the opportunity to take a journey
on a highway that doesn't exist on any map;
a highway where the past, present, and future converge.

Alongside him is One Wish Grant (Gary Oldman),
the immortal offspring
of a leprechaun and Cheyenne Indian,
who has the unique ability to grant wishes
to those he believes deserve them.

Thus begins Neal's surreal road trip
through the uncharted territories
of his own potential destiny.

Interstate 60 features a stellar cast
with supporting performances
and cameos from Kurt Russell, Michael J. Fox,
and Christopher Lloyd.

Bob Gale, co-writer/producer
of Used Cars, I Wanna Hold Your Hand,
and, most notably,
the Back to the Future trilogy, directs.

i don't want to be

By Gavin DeGraw

i don’t need to be anything other
than a prison guard’s son
i don’t need to be anything other
than a specialist’s son
i don’t have to be anyone other
than the birth of two souls in one
part of where i’m going
is knowing where i’m coming from

i don’t want to be anything other
than what i’ve been trying to be lately
all i have to do is think of me
and i'd be somebody

i’m tired of looking ‘round rooms
wondering what i gotta do
or who i’m supposed to be
i don’t want to be anything other than me

i’m surrounded by liars everywhere i turn
i’m surrounded by imposters everywhere i turn
i’m surrounded by identity crisis everywhere i turn
am i the only one to notice?
i can’t be the only one who’s learned

i don’t want to be anything other
than what i’ve been trying to be lately
all i have to do is think of me
and i'd be somebody

i’m tired of looking ‘round rooms
wondering what i gotta do
or who i’m supposed to be
i don’t want to be anything other than me

can i have everyone’s attention please
if you're not like this and that
you’re gonna have to leave

i came from the mountain, the crust of creation
my whole situation made from clay to stone
and now i’m telling everybody

i don’t want to be anything other
than what i’ve been trying to be lately
all i have to do is think of me
and i'd be somebody

i’m tired of looking ‘round rooms
wondering what i gotta do
or who i’m supposed to be
i don’t want to be anything other than me

i don’t want to be
i don’t want to be
i don’t want to be

careful and careless

malaysia tengah cuti panjang
chinese new year, awal muharram
hari wilayah, weekend lagii..

di musim cuti begini,
ramai yang balik kampung

sukalah saya ingin mengingatkan
sebelum meninggalkan rumah tu,
pastikan suis lampu, suis air
dan segala suis lagi telah pun di tutup,
pintu-pintu, tingkap-tingkap pun tertutup...
mana la tahu kan, musim cuti begini,..
macam-macam boleh terjadi..

bagi yang memandu,
pasti kan kenderaan anda dalam keadaan baik
bawalah dengan cermat, jangan terlalu laju,
dan janganlah terlalu perlahan pulak...
nak laju pun biarlah bertempat...
biar lambat sedikit, asal selamat...
beza 110km/sejam dengan 130km/sejam
cuma 20 minit je... bukannya 2 hari...

bagi yang menggunakan kenderaan awam,
pastikan beg pakaian, beg tangan,
beg berisi kuih dan segala jenis beg yang lain
ada disisi dan sering diawasi...
bersabar kalau ada yang berebut,
kuatkan perasaan dan tabahkan hati..

don't be careless
but don't be too careful either

just for laugh - 3

sepasang pengantin baru
mengalami gangguan kesihatan..

setelah diperiksa dengan teliti,
doktor memberitahu..
perkara itu disebabkan
oleh hubungan seks yang terlalu kerap...

"untuk sementara waktu ini..
anda berdua dinasihatkan
supaya menghadkan kegiatan seks,
sebaiknya dua kali saja seminggu sahaja..
untuk memudah melakukan hubungan ini
hanya pada hari tetentu sahaja..
dan untuk mudah ingat..
saya sarankan hari yang bermula dengan S..
iaitu Selasa dan Sabtu," saran doktor

akan tetapi pada malam ketiga berpuasa
dari membuat hubungan...
si suami tidak dapat lagi menahan nafsunya lalu...
mencumbui isterinya yang sedang tidur
sehingga isterinya terjaga...

"hari ini hari apa Bang?"
tanya si isteri.

"Sumaat."

anyonghosewo

i just remembered
the time i visited Korea
Seoul and Busan..
back in 2003 and 2004

Seoul is a very big city
with about 12 million population..
driving is easy since
diaorang ni memang obidient and tolerant..
jarang betul dengar bunyi hon
sebab marah or tak sabar..

cost of living memang mahal..
USD 1 is 1150 korean won..
imported goods pun mahal, buah-buahan jangan cakap..
satu potong tembikai is 1000 won...
nasi briayani ayam was 8000 won..
kereta diaorang are 90% hyundai, kia and daewoo..
90% jugak colour whether hitam or putih,
since for them, cars are wear and tear items..

subway ada 8 lines i think..
single rides cost around 600 to 800 won..
the sights of American G.I. are remotely at the Itaewon city
(part of Seuol) where they are stationed

imitation products,
selamba je jual kat depan departmental stores..
aku beli ginseng korea
yang memang terkenal dengan 'kepanasan' nye
dan few korean silk for my family..

ada this two areas, Dongdaemun and Namdaemun
yang kedai-kedai kat situ mostly bukak 24 hours..
yuppp... you pratically could sleep first,
then go shooping at 2 or 3 am in the wee morning hours..

memang ada orang makan anjing
dan memang dijual kat pasar..
tapi menurut the locals..
only one particular community yang pulun benda ni

kat hotel aku duduk tu, at that time
ada 5 engineer PROTON tengah attachment dengan LG,
untuk study and develop their technology
tobe transferred to our PROTON CITY kot
mostly young grads from UniPET, Tronoh..

point to note as well,
is the communication barrier
since Korean in general are lacking in English..
Govt also noted that and trying to improve it..
so far, the result could be seen
in the younger generation..

just for laugh - 2

Tongue Twisters

Peter bought a butter,
The butter Peter bought was bitter,
So Peter Bought A better butter,
To make the bitter butter better.

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck
if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
He would chuck, he would, as much as he could,
and chuck as much wood as a wood chuck would
if a woodchuck could chuck wood.

Which witch wished which wicked wish?

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers?
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

She sells sea shells by the sea shore.
The shells she sells are surely seashells.
So if she sells shells on the seashore,
I'm sure she sells seashore shells.

A flea and a fly flew up in a flue.
Said the flea, "Let us fly!"
Said the fly, "Let us flee!"
So they flew through a flaw in the flue.

Betty Botter had some butter,
But, she said, "this butter's bitter.
If I bake this bitter butter, it would make my batter bitter.
But a bit of better butter that would make my batter better.
So she bought a bit of butter,
better than her bitter butter,
And she baked it in her batter,
and the batter was not bitter.
So 'twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter.

A big black bug bit a big black bear,
made the big black bear bleed blood.

Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better.

A bitter biting bittern Bit a better brother bittern,
And the bitter better bittern Bit the bitter biter back.
And the bitter bittern, bitten, By the better bitten bittern,
Said: "I'm a bitter biter bit, alack!"

Mr. See owned a saw.
And Mr. Soar owned a seesaw.
Now See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw
Before Soar saw See,
Which made Soar sore.
Had Soar seen See's saw before See sawed Soar's seesaw,
See's saw would not have sawed Soar's seesaw.
So See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw.
But it was sad to see Soar so sore
Just because See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw!

Silly Sally swiftly shooed seven silly sheep.
The seven silly sheep Silly Sally shooed shilly-shallied south.
These sheep shouldn't sleep in a shack;
sheep should sleep in a sack.

just for laugh - 1

A UM graduate found himself
difficult to get a job.

He finally accepted the offer
to work with Taiping Zoo.

"What to do? It's better to work like this
than earning nothing...", mumbling to himself.

So since that day,
the IT grad started work acting as a monkey.
He has to wear monkey suit and mask,
chew nuts and eat bananas.

He has to climb trees too
and jump from one to another to attract visitors.

The zoo has since then enjoyed
tremendous business due
to the increase in visitors.

Unfortunately, one day when he was jumping
from the trees, he fell down into a crocodile pool!

"Oh my God...I'm going to die now" he thought,
as a hungry looking crocodile
swam steadily towards his direction.

In the middle of his struggle,
suddenly he heard a soft voice,
"Don't be afraid my friend... I'm from UKM".

financial assistance

last week, terbaca kisah di newspaper..
sekali lagi berulang,
pasal orang nak mintak bantuan kewangan
untuk rawatan kritikal / pembedahan..

ianya berkait la dengan
peruntukan RM100 juta setiap tahun (kalau tak silap la)..
untuk membiayai dan untuk diberikan kepada
(kalau cakap rakyat kang, macam parti politik lak.. kekeke)
pemohon.. (sedap sikit and baru la macam deal with gomen)..
yang memerlukan dan memohon..

sampai sekarang,
not many know...
what, who, where, why, when and how...
tentang bende ni

meaning..
macammana nak mohon,
siapa yang layak,
kat sapa nak mohon,
berapa lama,
apa yang boleh dipohon..
dan sebagainya...

antara sebabnya i brought this matter up..
adalah kerana masih terdapat hingga kini..
hampir setiap bulan at least..
ada orang yang sakit kritikal itu ini..
dipaparkan oleh media massa...

selain.. pernah mengalami sendiri bende ni
(few years back, one of my cousin's son, died...
while waiting for the application to be approved.
but, since kita ni jenis yang tawakkal dan redha
dan tak tau sangat time tu..
tentang apa itu birokrasi dan karenah birokrasi..
jadi kita pun tak ambik pot sangat)...

antara yang peliknya..
kenapa hanya sebahagian sahaja yang 'berjaya'
atau ingin dan telah dipaparkan oleh pihak media..
nasib pesakit-pesakit lain bagaimana?

sebelum ini ada diumumkan
(tak pasti sama ada masih diguna pakai atau tidak)..
bahawa mana-mana penderma
yang ingin menderma duit atau organ..
tidak boleh.. melakukannya untuk org tertentu
(seperti, pesakit/pemohon yg diperkenalkan oleh media)
melainkan, saudara-mara...

saya amat menyokong perkara ini pada dasarnya..

kerana, sebagai contoh,
kata la kes adik Ali bin Abu..
dipaparkan oleh Utusan
so, satu Malaysia tau..
then, ada la Ahmad bin Faizal,
berhajat ingin menderma duit atau organ kepada adik Ali..
so, syukurlah.. adik Ali pun mendapatkannya..
dan kita pun puji Ahmad bin Faizal..

tapi, bagaimana nasib adik Roslan bin Kassim,
Ah Chong Meng Seng atau Robert Ramasamy?..
yang tidak diwar-warkan oleh media
dan sedang menunggu 'queue' atau 'turn'
untuk mendapatkan penderma?

saya yakin dan percaya sekiranya,
tabung tersebut benar-benar digunakan,
diberitahu kepada umum tentang bagaimana hendak memohon
dan sebagainya...
tentunya.. akan makin berkurangan..
kisah-kisah sedih dan menyayat hati ini
di dada-dada akhbar..
dan kurang persoalan dan kemusyhkilan
daripada pesakit-pesakit dan keluarga sendiri..
dan masyarakat pun kurang la
menuduh itu dan ini..

come and visit

as usual.. every morning,
after checking what's on the tray
determining which is urgent and which is not
and plan my work and work my plan
i will open up my personal emails

for the last few weeks..
my mailing lists and yahoogroups
sedikit sepi and sunyi..
awal tahun kot, so semua sibuk,
plus bulan ni, banyak betul cuti..

apapun, dah lumrah,
kekadang tu takde mende sangat agaknya nak dibualkan..

mungkin juga, macam selalu..
semua orang ada cerita dan kisah kehidupan masing masing
yang perlu diteruskan dan diuruskan...

last Eidul Fitri
i when back home for holidays..

gembira campur sedih time balik cuti tempohari..
gembira sebab dapat jumpa kengkawan
sedih juga sebab tak dapat jumpa kengkawan..

sayang sebab tak sempat borak banyak ngan kawan-kawan..
kebanyakannya sempat celoteh dalam phone je..

tambahan lak.. balik cuti time raya..
banyak melawat sedara mara..

tak tau kenapa..
but, hati aku sedikit sayu..
tiap kali melihat wajah emak dan abah..
mungkin terpapar betapa penat dan letihnya mereka..
meniti usia tua..

adik aku yang paling bongsu, dapat result UPSR dia..
not that good.. so, most likely.. akan bersekolah biasa
bukan sekolah berasrama... menjadikan dia,
the only sibling yang tak bersekolah asrama
antara 4 orang adik-beradik aku..

sempat juga menenangkan dia...
after few days.. dia okay..
mula-mula tu.. dia sedih gak..
pressure and mengenangkan harapan mungkin...
but, aku kata kat dia..
'better' gak dia sekolah biasa dan dekat ngan umah..
dapat jaga mak ngan ayah..
sebab along ngan angah dan akak.. jauh...

adik aku yang nombor dua.. mungkin akan ke JB...
dia jadi restaurant manager..
restaurant jepun baru bukak kat sana...
dah rezeki dia kat sana..

adik pompuan aku lak...
akan ditempatkan di mana-mana hospital di malaysia..
tak lama lagi... dia tengah kursus pembantu farmasi..

adik aku yang sorang lagi.. baru abis SPM..
now lepak umah... dia Head Boy rupanya..
setau aku.. masa dia form 4... ada surat disiplin,
kata dia 'buli' budak junior...
badan dia memang besar dari aku..
tup tup.. form 5..
cikgu lantik dia jadi prefect and tarusss, head boy..
abah aku kata.. academics dia okay je..
ada harapan... insyaAllah...
dia ambik 13 subjects rasanya..
sekolah arab...

mak aku makin kurus...
effect sebab makan ubat cegah diabetik..
abah aku okay je..
cuma makin banyak ubannya.. dah 51 pun...
now, dah setahun..
dia tak perlu lagi ulang alik jauh
sebab, pejabat dia dah ada branch nearby..
so, dia dah ditukarkan ke situ.. 5 minit sampai opis...

apapun.. cabaran kehidupan tetap perlu dihadapi
dengan tabah dan kekuatan yang ada...
dan dengan izinNya...

who got it right - siri 3

di malaysia, kita juga mempunyai
sejumlah ramai pekerja asing..
dari sektor buruh kasar
hinggalah sebagai CEO syarikat..

and if we were to check,
the definition of expatriates
in the dictionary, among the many, it will read;
"One who has taken up residence in a foreign country."

golongan 'expats' ini..
kalau di UAE.. SEMUA pekerja asing..
akan disebut dan diberi ganti nama Expatriates..
tak kira la.. jika seseorang itu, adalah;
buruh kasar dari India dan Pakistan
jururawat dari Malaysia dan Sri Lanka
executive dari Japan dan Australia
juruterbang dari Britain dan Russia
pengurus syarikat dari US dan France
SEMUANYA adalah EXPATRIATES..


bagaimanapun,
apa yang berlaku di Malaysia..
dan di Singapore, dan beberapa lain lagi..
adalah agak pelik dan menarik
jika diimbas dan difikirkan..

di Malaysia, contohnya..
kalau buruh kasar dan pekerja di sektor
yang tak 'exclusive', dan datang dari negara
seperti Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan,
India, Philliphines, dan sewaktu dengannya
mereka akan dipanggil..
Pekerja Asing, Pendatang, dan sebagainya..

kalau mereka yang bekerja di sektor/zon
yang 'exotic dan exclusive..
dan datang dari negara, US, UK, Eropah
Japan, Korea, Singapore, Australia
dan sewaktu dengannya
mereka akan tergolong
dan baru la 'boleh' di panggil,
EXPATRIATES...

ianya, seolah-olah..
pekerja asing dari Bangladesh dan Indonesia ini
tidak layak dipanggil dan memohon taraf
sebagai EXPATRIATES..

tak silap nya..
di malaysia, ada satu majalah..
The Expatriate...
i bet, there is no column about
Indonesian or Bangladeshi workers' experience there..

even funny..
kita ada pekerja PATI - pendatang asing tanpa izin
dan 'PADI' agaknya - pendatang asing dengan izin..

well, itu je kali ni...
akan disambung lagi nanti..
nak gi Sembahyang Jumaat,
kena gi awal.. kalau tak nanti,
kena duduk kat luar, panas..
dengan the other EXPATS...
hehehe...

who got it right - siri 2

majlis pengkebumian..
president, sheikh atau orang besar-besar
di UAE ni, negara kedua terkaya di dunia
(selepas Saudi dan bersama Qatar)
hanya dalam keadaan sederhana..

kerandanya dibuat daripada papan,
kain menutup jenazah dan keranda juga,
hanyalah kain pelikat dan tikar plastik biasa..

tidak ada upacara perarakan jenazah,
jenazah hanya di bawa ke tanah perkuburan
menggunakan ambulan hospital sahaja..

perkuburan juga tidak dihiasi,
malahan tidak bertanda
dengan batu nisan marmar pun..

pendek kata nothing fancy..

ini juga boleh dilihat,
semasa pengkebumian Raja Fahd Saudi,
dan Amir Al Sabah Kuwait..

now, bandingkan dengan apa yang selalunya
dilakukan di Malaysia?

one may wonder,
dari BUDAYA manakah asalnya,
cara masyarakat yang BERAGAMA ISLAM kita
menguruskan jenazah, pengkebumian dan kubur..
terutamanya, apabila melibatkan
orang-orang kenamaan dan pembesar negeri..

who got it right - siri 1

di UAE, Qatar, Oman dan Bahrain
pada musim sejuk, akan bermula juga
musim Lumba Kuda dan Unta..

well.. it's not like our Lumba Kuda..
kat Serdang or Ipoh tu..
no betting is allowed, OFFICIALLY...

yang menarik adalah pasal Lumba Unta..
sebelum ini, i mean 2 years ago..
these countries had agreed to ban the hiring
of under-age boys as the camel jockeys..
due to immense internatinal pressure
i.e. ILO, WHO, WTO, etc..

the boys were used
for the same reason as in the horse race;
they are small and light..
so will make their camels go faster in the race..

now, no more..
so.. these kids..
who were 'kidnapped/smuggled' from India, Pakistan
or Bangladesh, when they were very very small in age..
have to be 'returned' to their native countries..

that created another problems;
finding the original families among others,
which finally led to these kids being put at
the orphanage or shelter home for the children...

the interesting fact is that..
the races still go on..

by substituting the jockeys..
with Robot Jockeys..
yupp.. you heard me right..
ROBOT that look like a kid..

common rules and sense

nak ambik gambar..
bangunan, orang or scenery kat UAE,
boleh but kena hati-hati gak..

especially, jangan terambik gambar..
bila ada local-Arab ladies lalu lalang...
banyak dah kes gaduh, kena marah
and dibawa ke balai polis, berkenaan isu ni..
kalau masa meeting ke.. nak ambik jugak,
kena mintak permission dulu..

constant learning process

di UAE.. penduduk boleh subscribe or own..
either to cable TV or satellite disc(s)..
for their home entertainment viewing..

cable starts at 70 dirham monthly
satellite starts at 600 dirham one-off..

UAE has about 6 free-to-view local channels too..
in english and arabic..

internet connection is good.. cheap... kot?
since, there is only one telco company to compare to..
ETISALAT..

dial-up internet rates..
is AED1.80 = RM1.85.. per hour..
DSL and broadband will cost,
minimum from AED 149 monthly for 256 kbps..

good news though.. next June..
they have allowed and gave license,
for a new/another local telco company,
to provide such services..
could expect better services and rates..

well.. as they say..
competition is always good for customers..
but, not for the businesses/companies..

censorship..
local free channels... do censored..
but differs..
some allow kissing scene..
some allow further.. while some not at all..

for cable TV... macam Astro kita..
always controversial..
nonetheless.. there is Star World/Movie
and other related to Star..
showing in Middle East..

but, for satellite... needless to say more..

internet censorship..
ETISALAT will block such websites and domains..
so, no need to worry..
about your kids (or even yourself) stumbling upon,
those kind of sites...

good system?
tepuk dada.. tanya selera and iman..

ni pasal naik gaji..
ealier this year..
the govt has raised
the local gomen servants' salaries..
25 percent... that's right...
and non-local gomen servants... gets 15 percent..

this also adds up
towards the inflation rate in UAE..
so far.. officially it's 3% - 5%..
however.. reports claimed that it's actually over 10%..

for the locals.. tak la rasa sangat..
but for the expats...
yang kerja buruh kasar and bergaji kecik..
memang teruk and hard knock life..

well..
as the opportunity cost in economics defines..
the increase in income,
has promote other/related price indexes,
to increase as well..

tak banyak..
but, yang paling ketara is sewa rumah..
has increase by at least.. 20%..
not directly linked though..
but, due to lack of supply..
not many choices available is the market too..
demand is high for accomodation really..

reports had predicted that.. by 2007..
when the under progress housing development completed,
it will regain its stability..

but, hey...
mana pernah harga rumah ..
akan turun balik.. ye dak?

at least that's the case in malaysia..

notwithstanding the above,
they do take Malaysia's experience as an example..

good bargain

now, in UAE.. and middle east..
and yang sewaktu dengannya..
dah masuk winter..

kat uae.. tak la sejuk sangat..
average between 15 - 25 celsius..
cebisan and serpihan,
tiupan angin sejuk mediterranian

di Dubai.. setiap tahun..
akan di adakan dan memang terkenal dengan
Dubai Sales Festival (DSF)..

sebulan je... selalunya.. mid jan to mid feb..
this year starts at 4 jan to 4 feb..

bukan la pelik sangat,
from what malaysia or other countries have..

but, one thing for sure yg berbeza..
from apa yang ada di KL..
is.. the precentage of discount during the sale..

for instance, branded items and products..
selalunya kat malaysia..
diskaun dia cuma until 30% je
but, in Dubai... during sale... up till 75%..
imagine..

musim sejuk macam ni gak..
ramai yang bertumpu and datang..
ye la... dah tak panas lagi..
golfing is nice (me not a golfer though)
shopping is good (me not a sale-freak too)

cumanya.. harga sewa bilik hotel.. perghhh...

for a standard room.. 4-star hotel..
kalau bulan biasa (pun memang tinggi dah)
is around 600 dirham = 620 ringgit = 180 dollars
during winter.. it will linger around
1000 dirham = 1030 ringgit = 300 dollars

tu baru 4-star..
bayangkan.. like Burj Al Arab Hotel..
yang the lowest category of room
is One Bedroom Suite...
bulan biasa.. it starts at USD 2000..

kenapa? tak percaya?
http://www.burj-al-arab.com/staying_with_us/

itu pun... akan fully booked..
rooms occupancy in Dubai..
selalunya.. average..
tak pernah turun from 90%..

early december... Ski Dome..
or Ski Dubai.. was opened..
yupp, 400-meter indoor-manmade-ski slope..
third of such in the world.. after US and Japan
if i'm not mistaken..
http://www.skidubai.ae/

together.. with the new mall..
Mall of the Emirates..
along with the Kempenski Hotel..

now, other than the 'routine ritual'..
of shopping spree... there is skiing plea..

hence, i better get to know
the how-what-when-hopplaass...

proud or pride

the cost of living
and standard of living in UAE,
especially Dubai
is higher than KL.. no doubt..

there is no income tax though..
the country could survive from the oil revenue alone..
which reserves.. still have another 200 years to go

Dubai.. is diversifying nevertheless...
to tourism, manufacturing and financial..
Dubai is branding itself.. as a Hub.. for the middle east..

the price of car..
has 4% tax added to its tag..
to name a few...
a Mercedes S350.. will cost you 230,000 dirham
a Toyota Prado.. cost you 120,000 dirham
a Hyundai Sonata.. costs 42,000 dirham
a Peugeot 307.. costs 48,000
a Hyundai Getz is 28,000

most of the locals... will drive those big 4wd..
like Land Cruiser, GMC, BMW X5, Murano, Porsche Cayenne..
sebab, the dessert terrain and livingstyle..

with all these big-type cars around..
even the 'usual' big car in Malaysia..
like Toyota Camry, Honda CRV or Kia Carnival
look smaller..

road condition is good...
no potholes for sure..

chinese shops is very very rare...
they couldn't beat the demand for
briyani and kebab and lamb...

welfare and social facilities are very good..
hospital kerajaan (yg untuk emiratis)..
is something like Pantai or SJMC or Assunta...
while.. private hospital (yg kena bayar)..
is something like our hospital kerajaan..

another thing...
as incentive and encouragement,
for the local men to marry the local women..
kalau local man kawin local woman..
untuk perkahwinan pertama..
the man will be getting..
70,000 dirham as a grant..
from the govt Marriage Fund

kos nak kawin bukan murah..
really good for the woman..

before i forget... in UAE..
ladies boleh driving.. boleh jalan sorang diri..
macam kat Malaysia.. plus... more privilleges...

unlike Saudi...
women could not drive
women could not go out from
their own house without muhrim..
but, Saudi has a lot of shopping malls
dedicated just for ladies.. NO MEN ALLOWED..

crime rates???..
very small... and almost unheard of..
but of late... increasing and worrying a bit...
along with the rising inflation and cost of living..
but, still much safer than KL.. that i could assure you..

again.. sad, but true..

contoh.. remember.. bila Julai to September je..
ramai Arabs yang datang Malaysia.. for holidays..
and banyak jugak kes.. curi la.. tipu.. etc.. on them..

sebab, among others... di UAE ni sebagai contoh..
kalau kita gi order makan,
and tinggalkan beg or handphone kat atas meja..
don't worry.. memang tak hilang

contoh lain.. kata la...
kita tertinggal barang kat kedai..
memang takde org akan ambik...
kalau ambik pun.. tuan kedai..
untuk tunggu tuannya datang balik ambik

'silapnya' .. these Arabs.. bila datang KL..
still 'applying' these habits and customs..
hence... being a 'skillful' malaysian...
banyak la kita dengar kes itu ini..

moral of the story;
DO NOT FORGET,
EVERYTIME YOU ARE IN A FOREIGN LAND,
YOU ARE A FOREIGNER...

higher and greener grass

there is 80% expatriates in the UAE..
they are mostly for they country's workforce..

UAE is a developing country..
with a HUGE, MASSIVE, OBSCENE, 'UNLIMITED' (so it seems)
amount of money to be spent..

most (98%) of the hard-labour..
are from the sub-continents i.e. India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan..
for about AED 500 - AED 800 per month..

NO EMIRATIS OF COURSE..

before i forget..
AED 1 (dirham) = RM (ringgit) 1.02

the locals..
will either only work
in public sectors or higher-salary jobs
or not at all..
their welfare and social security is good..

UAE has this thing call.. EMIRATISATION..
where, they will replace the expats.. with the locals
once they have the locals with the same expertise..

as for now.. still scarce and remote...
and that's why... there are still millions of expats needed
to fill up the workforce..
and plus.. remember... Arabs in general are pemalas and such..
so, the Asians are seen to be there only hardworking labour.

nevertheless... here's on salary..

for high-school leavers and diploma holders...
salary will start at 2500 dirham
for graduates... will start at 5000 dirham...

in short..
gaji between LOCAL AND EXPATS ARE DIFFERENT..
and also different BETWEEN EXPATS..

contoh... for the post of engineer.. fresh-graduate
kalau engineer tu local... 8,000 dirham
kalau engineer tu expat,
european mat salleh... maybe higher or the same
kalau engineer tu expat;
malaysian/australian/japanese and the like... rendah lagi
kalau engineer tu expat;
indian/pakistan/and the like... lagi le

sad, but true...

itu kalau fresh grad...
kalau with experience..
lagi la tinggi/tebal package dia

contoh.. for malaysians
(95% malaysian expats are with experience)

nurses... with 10 years pengalaman..
gaji diaorang ni.. 10,000 dirham sebulan..
rumah free, medical free..
tiket balik setahun sekali free...

pilots... with 7 years pengalaman
gaji... 25,000 dirham sebulan..
and plus all the package..

cost of living???
rumah memang mahal...
3 bilik apartment... 70,000 dirham setahun sewa
4 bilik apartment... 100,000 dirham setahun sewa
6 bilik villa.... 120,000 dirham setahun sewa..

barang-barang... okay la..
bahan mentah i.e. beras and others.. sama cam malaysia..
but imported from the sub-continent..
vis-a-vis.. beras basmati... sayur from india/pakistan

but... generally.. slightly mahal
inflation tinggi..
take McDonalds' meal for instance..
Happy Meal.. will cost.. 15 dirham..

for malaysians with the mentioned-package..
good deal?

faith and nature

on 4th january pagi...
UAE dikejutkan dengan berita kematian
Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai
he was 62... died while on visit in Australia..

so... seperti lazimnya..
berkabung 40 hari,
7 hari gomen sector cuti,
4 hari for private sector.

mana-mana local channels tv and radio..
akan hanya siar bacaan Al Quran,
sepanjang tempoh ni,
dan selang seli dengan berita je..
dan takkan ada acara keramaian dan hiburan..
yang ada pun akan dibatalkan...
termasuklah.. pembukaan Dubai Sale Festival..
yg sepatutnya hari tu..

adik Almarhum..
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
telah ditabalkan sebagai the new Ruler of Dubai,
Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE..
selama ni, beliau adalah Crown Prince
and also Minister of Defence..

kebiasaannya,..
Prime Minister adalah daripada Dubai..
President adalah daripada Abu Dhabi..
Almarhum was PM since 1990...

last November 2004..
was kematian the fisrt President
and Ruler of Abu Dhabi
Almarhum Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan..
he was 79.. president since 1971..
he was a legend and visionary leader..
macam Mahathir and Tunku Rahman and Razak la kiranya..
dia la yang buat UAE jadi macam hari ni..
well, actually.. it is the OIL....
but, without good management..
tak jadi jugak kan??

Almarhum Presiden Zayed,
telah diganti oleh anak beliau...
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan..
the eldest son from the first wife..
out of 4 wives and 19 sons..
anak perempuan tidak diketahui berapa.

berkabung?? sama macam di atas...

cumanya, kematian President ari tu,
lama lagi cutinya.. sebab bersambung dengan Raya Posa..
kali ni, pendek sikit.. sebab seraya dengan Raya Haji..

pendek tak pendek pun, here's the breakdown..

5 dan 6 Januari (Khamis dan Jumaat) - Cuti Hujung Minggu
4 hingga 10 Januari (Rabu hingga Selasa) - Cuti Berkabung
9 Januari (Isnin) - Cuti Hari Wukuf
10 dan 11 Januari (Selasa dan Rabu) - Cuti Hari Raya Haji
12 dan 13 Januari (Khamis dan Jumaat)- Cuti Hujung Minggu

keep it up

semenjak duduk negara Arab ni..
baru la and lebih lagi.. saya paham..
apa dan kenapa.. SABAR...
itu penting dan ditekankan dalam Islam

sebabnya.. in general..
memang diaorang ni tidak sabar, pemalas, insecure..
dan suka menyalahkan orang lain..

sebagai contoh..
di traffic light..
di saat lampu merah bertukar sahaja kepada hijau..
jika dalam 1 saat... (i mean it)
kenderaan dihadapan dia tak bergerak...
memang akan kena hon..

contoh lain...
perkataan 'PLEASE QUEUE UP' or beratur
di kaunter or di perhentian teksi...
memang tak wujud.. tak de..

baru la saya lebih paham juga..
bahawa kita kena bezakan..
apa itu Islam... apa itu Arab..

org Arab.. berpakaian jubah dan sebagainya..
first of all.. sebab itu adalah pakaian harian
dan pakaian turun temurun..
tak bermakna alim.. tak bermaksud ulama..

sama aje macam kita di malaysia.. di china
di UK.. di Sudan.. di Honduras.. di New Zealand..
ada yang baik, jahat, sederhana, religious, etc..

in UAE..
jubah lelaki.. dipanggil.. khandura
jubah wanita.. dipanggil.. abaya..

abaya.. dipakai ibarat.. trench-coat..
dipakai setiap kali nak keluar rumah..
di gantung di sudut belakang pintu
apabila berada di rumah..

khandura... ada yang pakai masuk bar/kalabul malami
doing their own 'business'.. as they wish..

keadaan pada malam hari..
adalah lebih meriah daripada siang hari..
sebab... malam lebih sejuk..
dan semua org (especially Arabs) akan buat urusan
pada malam hari..
siang hari.. depa berehat/tido..
petang after 2pm..
jangan la try buat appointment
or buat apa urusan or even telepon diaorang ni..
memang... tak'ban.. bukra.. (habis/selesai... esok)

but one thing.. yang saya suka..
on Friday... (weekend is Khamis and Jumaat)
most kedai.. akan tutup... sampai 3 petang baru bukak
so, Friday.. memang hari aman..

rolling

even though United Arab Emirates (Emiriyah Arab Bersatu)
has a federal ministries, federal law and such..
has a president as the head of the country
has a cabinet of ministers that runs the government
each states... has their own ruler.. their own Sheikh..

for example...
each states' police force.. is different
each states' law... supersedes the federal law..
in most cases

for instance...
road accidents in Abu Dhabi and Dubai

kalau di Dubai..
kalau ada kemalangan antara 2 kereta..
empunya kereta tersebut..
boleh mengubah kenderaan masing-masing ke tepi jalan..
sambil tunggu polis datang utk ambik report..
or boleh gi terus ke balai polis.. buat report
kalau empunya kenderaan tak ubah kenderaan..
dan mengganggu trafik.. dia boleh kena saman untuk itu..

kalau di Abu Dhabi..
kalau ada kemalangan antara 2 kereta..
empunya kereta tersebut..
TIDAK boleh mengubah kenderaan ke tepi jalan..
sambil tunggu polis datang utk ambik report..
dan tak boleh terus ke balai polis buat report..
kalau empunya kenderaan mengubah kenderaan..
report yang akan dibuat/diambil... akan INVALID..

mind-boggling??

independence from UK.. in 1971..
(not a commonwealth state though)

there is
no political parties..
no election

UAE... especially Dubai..
is the centre of attraction for tourists/people
from the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC)

because..
IT IS THE ONLY COUNTRY...
THAT IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE REST OF THE GCC...
vis-a-vis.. Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait..
and especially Saudi Arabia..

in short... as i had mentioned before..
di Dubai.. MACAM MACAM ADA... MACAM MACAM BOLEH..
i mean it...

before i forget...
traffic jam in Dubai... macam KL..
parking system in Dubai.. good..
traffic jam in Abu Dhabi.. macam.. KB or KT..
parking system in ABu Dhabi.. hmm..
bayangkan Pasar Malam Kampung Baru.. at all the time..

they are yet to have LRT/MRT.. by 2009..
Dubai has taxi and bus.. as public transportation..
Abu Dhabi has only taxi.. as public transport..

re-start

this is my second time staying abroad..
after my student's days...

memang ada perbezaan..
antara berada di luar negara,
untuk belajar dan bekerja..

being a student in UK
and a worker in UAE
do make up the different
in lifestyles and perspectives..

last September... genap setahun di UAE..

here's a bit of info that i wish to share..
all of which.. the following..
are just my own meandering experience and observation..

federation of United Arab Emirates comprised 7 states..
Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Fujairah, Ajman,
Umm-Al-Quwaim dan Ras-Al-Khaimah

all combined..
the country is only a bit smaller than Sarawak...
with Abu Dhabi being the largest state among all,
as big as Sabah.. and holds up 90% of the oil resources

population... 4.3 million
interestingly, less than 20% is bumiputra/local/emiratis
the rest (80%) are expatriates

1.5 million are from the sub-continents (India, Pakistan)
500k from Iran, Afghan, Oman, Yemen, Jordan, Palestin,
Egypt, Sudan and other Arabs..
200k are British, 250k are Filipinos, 100k Indons,
150k other Europeans, another 200k other Asians

1,400.. Malaysians... all professionals..
none hard/blue-labour workers

Dubai... macam KL... no.. macam Singapore..
pendek kata.. macam-macam ada..

Abu Dhabi.. macam... hmm...
Kota Bharu or Kuala Terenganu

Dubai.. has about 20%... in-progress..
new skyscrapers of the world..
(Beijing has the other 20%)

Dubai will have.. the tallest building in the world
700 meters... 200 floors..
Burj Dubai (Tower of Dubai).. by 2007..

after that.. they will have, yet,
another taller building
1 kilometer / miles (???).... not yet reveal
that's right... Al Burj (The Tower)..

Dubai is building.. 4 man-made islands..
The Palm Islands and The World Island..

Dubai is constructing.. the largest mall in the world..
as big as 50 football fields... Dubai Mall..

Dubai has the biggest man-made Ski-Dome..
Dubai will have the Largest Theme Park..

et cetera.. et cetera..

Abu Dhabi???.. not so much..
even though.. they have more money than Dubai..
they are progressing in their own pace..

Abu Dhabi will have their own development
and infrastructural projects....

before i forget... Abu Dhabi is the capital..

mind-boggling huh?..

well, in short...
ADA DUIT SEMUA JADI..

happy new year

selamat tahun baru.. 2006..

again, almost felt like to 'get rid'
of this blog altogether..
but, deep inside.. what the heck!!!...

comes the new year,
my style of writing will also change..
part of the new year resolution thingy..
i guess.. hehehe..

whatever.. life goes on..