An journey of a lifetime

Going to Mekah for the first time in 1966 to do the Haj was an experienced never to forget. As with most first timer, the first thing that strike me was the Grand mosque. The mosque is so big you can get lost inside it. You enter through one door and when you want to exit, you just couldn't find it anymore. It takes quite a while before you can find your bearing.
Then there's the Kaabah. Seeing it for the first time makes you feel just in awe of it. I don't know how to feel or think. It was there right in front of me. I have read about it, seen it in pictures and now I'm seeing it for real. Just unbelievable!
As usual, during the Haj, the holy city will be crowded with people so much so that most of the time I can hardly walk the streets because they were jam packed with people. After a few times, I found out that it was best to wait in the mosque for about an hour or so after prayers before leaving. By then, the streets would be less crowded.
As we were not provided with food then, I had a great time wandering around the holy city looking for food during meal times. The restaurants may be crowded but then, that's an experienced in itself.
I experienced many interesting things while performing the Haj the first time. It might take a whole book to write about them all. Who knows, some day I might just do that.

The Haj in Mekah

I have done the haj twice. The first time in 1996, I went alone. The second time, in 2003, I went with my wife.
On the first trip, I took the lowest package available, that was the Muasasah. Food was not provided. We had to find food ourselves. I stayed in a room with seven others. There were no beds. Instead, mattresses were provided. The room was just enough for the seven of us with the mattresses acting as the unofficial boundary.
On my second trip, I paid quite a sum and we had a room to ourselves, my wife and me. Food was also provided. Other than that, everything else was quite the same.
So you can say I have experienced both sides of the coin. Difficult to say which is better as both has its pros and cons. Anyway, I enjoyed both trips.

Assam Pedas of Melaka

The view from my hotel

I was in Melaka for an event on Thursday. Arrived there Wednesday evening and headed straight for the hotel. When in Melaka, besides the historical sites, the mind is always thinking of an assam pedas restaurant. After checking in and a short rest, I took a walked around the city looking for one. About an hour later I found one at a street corner. Its an open air stall with the chairs and tables placed by the roadside. But don't be deceived by the appearance. The assam pedas was one of the best I have ever tasted. Really was good.

The Grand Slam is still on

The French open is in the first week. Nadal has reached the third round and that means the grand slam challenge is still on! On present form, he should be able to defend his crown but you never know. He was beaten by Federer in Madrid but the clay courts were much faster. On the slower courts in Paris, he has no equal. Anyway, we'll wait and see.

Ninety minutes of misery

So MU didn't win the Euro cup. From all accounts, they were outplayed, outfoxed and outscored by Barcelona. Somehow on the night, nothing went right for them. Perhaps they should have played the way they Chelsea played Barcelona. Ever wondered why secret Messi was a non event in both the games again Chelsea? Or they got foxed by Barcelona when Messi played in a different position from usual, as said by the Barcelona manager? Anyway, its yesterday news already. Let's look forward to next season.

Birthday party at KL Bird park

This magnificent bird looking majestic atop the tree looking down on things
Hakimi entertaining the kids

More pictures at the birthday do

Enjoying the atmosphere
Food and more food

More pictures

Hakimi and his magic
Fatihah, Hanafi, Hafizia and a friend

Wedding scene

A kompang group strutting their stuff while the happy couple were on the dias
A band playing at another wedding.

Like father like son

They say children usually follow their parents. For example if the parents are politicians, more likely than not the children will also end up being a politician. If one of the parent is a doctor, chances are one of the children will also be a doctor. And so it goes for all the others. It rings true for me as well as my eldest son is an engineer, following in my footstep. As for me, my father was not an engineer and neither was my mother. But I follow my father in other ways, like his political inclination.

A season for wedding

The past few weeks have been real hectic. No, not because of my work but because of weddings. Every weekend there'll be at least two weddings to attend. Most of them are from my friends from university days whose children are tying the knot. A proud moment for them I'm sure. My time will come soon I suppose.

A love for football

I have been following the English football league since my school days. Those days there were no live telecast and no internet. Although the matches were played on Saturday, 3 pm, the earliest time I can get the results would be the next day i.e. on Sunday. I remember every Sunday morning when the season is on, I would eagerly cycle to the nearby shop to get my copy of the Sunday Times and straight away looked to the back pages for the results.
Later on, I discovered BBC world service where I could get live broadcast for the second half of a match. Whichever match they picked for the live broadcast, I would listen because at the same time, they would also give status update of the other matches. Although the broadcast would sometime come and go, perhaps because of my cheap radio, I was happy because at least I can get the news earlier than most other people who still depended on the Sunday papers.
When I continued my studies in England, that was a football dream come true. Now I'm in the thick of things, right there in the heart where the matches are played.

Playing catch up

Korea it seems has the fastest internet in the world. Japan is a close second. In Malaysia, Wi Max is slowly taking shape. Hopefully, in a years time, our internet will be a lot faster. It can be frustrating at times when the internet is too slow. Then again, if you think about the time when there was no internet, you wonder how we got by.

My reflection

Sometimes you wonder why people do what they do. Don't they know that it is wrong or it is not doing them any good? But they keep on doing it, wanting to believe against the truth, hoping against hope that what they are doing would not in any way harm them, now or in the future. When it finally dawn on them that it is actually going to harm them, it is usually too late. That's why at times, it is good to take a step backward in order to move two steps forward.

Keeping up with Bolts

After a long break, I have started jogging once again. Need to keep up with the healthy regime. I stopped jogging after I moved to Bangsar because by the time I clock out from work and make it to the Shah Alam lake, it is already almost 7 pm. It is just too late. However, the clock out time now is 15 minutes earlier and recently, I found a quick way to get to Shah Alam from Bangsar. By 5.50pm, I'm already there or thereabout. I jogged for a few minutes, do some exercise and afterward take a leisurely drive home. No traffic jam no nothing. I do this twice a week. Weekends, I swim. My body now feels lighter and I feel healthier. Hope this new routine will last.

Another prediction

The KLSE will hit 1200 in the next one month. It will then stay within the 1150 and 1250 range for quite a while before embarking on another upward journey. By year end, it will be knocking on the doors of 1500!

My PD days

I was in Port Dickson or PD for short Monday and Tuesday attending a program. These days driving to PD is a breeze. Eversince they completed the Seremban PD highway many years ago, driving to PD from KL is a pleasant one hour and a bit drive. I still remember the olds days when the road going to PD just after getting off the Seremban KL highway was long and winding. This was way back in 1982. I lived and worked there for about a year before being transfered to Klang. Since then, I have gone back to PD numerous times either for work or for holiday. As in other places, a lot have changed since.

Some predictions

My predictions on three sporting events that are going to take place soon. Here goes:

Man U will win the Euro cup
Nadal will win the French Open
Tiger will win the US Open

Let's see if I'm right!

Its a no brainer

Either go for dissolving the state assembly in Perak and possibly lose the state but have a fighting chance in the next election or prolong the agony of the rakyat in Perak and risk losing the country in the next election. That's the reality. To me, the choice is simple. Its a no brainer.

Champion again

Love them or hate them but they are champion again. A goalless home draw with Arsenal was enough to clinch the title for the 18th time for Man U. Nothing exciting about the game. Man U was being over cautious while Arsenal as usual played attractive football but failed to score.
So its three in the bag already for Man U. The big one in the shape of Barcelona is waiting in Rome at the end of the month. Let's see if they can bag this one as well.

Suddenly I am 52

Life moves so fast. I have been repeating this so many times simply because I feel it. Saturdays and Sundays go like a flash and suddenly it is Monday. Then, before I can even get over the blues, Tuesday is already on the horizon. I go to work, come back and hei! Its Friday. When the Beatles wrote the song called 'when I'm 64' I think they must be thinking that it was going to be a long long time before they would ever reached 64. Now, look at Paul. He is in the sixties! and I am 52!

Islam and the prayers

I bought a book recently called 'menjamak shalat tanpa halangan, boleh atau tidak' (Combining the prayers without any reason, can or cannot). The writer put in all the prophets saying(hadith) as found in sahih Bukhari, sahih Muslim and others on this subject for us to read. He also writes about the discussion among well known Islamic scholars such as Imam Shafie, Imam Malik and others on this subject.
The conclusion. Yes! We CAN.
I have been reading about this subject for a long time already and always believed that we indeed CAN. In fact, I have been practicing it every now and then. This book reinforced my believe.

Don't believe your lucky stars

Almost everyday I am getting unsolicited calls offering me all kind of things. Money, special cards, holidays etc. Most of the time I will just say no politely and they will understand. However, there are some that are persistent and will keep on calling.
I have also received my share of wins, through sms or calls. I remember one caller called me and said I have just won a car in a lucky draw. Another sms me with the news that I have just won rm 15,000. Yet another caller called to say that I have been selected to a special invitation that promises expensive gifts if I show up.
I knew off course that all these are just scams. They are trying to get your money through devious ways. Just ignore them and you'll be allright.
The trouble is they can come to your house while you are away and try to cheat your wife and children. It happened to my wife once. Although she was skeptical throughout, they can be very persistent and she almost took the bait. They wanted her to follow them to their shop in order for them to hand over the car that she has just 'won'. Luckilly she called me to say that she and one of our son were following them in her car to their shop to have a look and possibly collect the car. I told her to turn back immediately which she did. Otherwise, only God knows how much money they would have lost.

The home of Computers

Last Monday I was at Low Yat Plaza to repair my son and daughter's notebooks. Both has gone kaput recently. What really caught my attention was the number of shops there that are run by non Malaysians. Not sure if they own the shops as well but they are certainly running it. I didn't bother to count the exact number but must have been quite a few cause it really surprised me. Anyway, I walked into one of them and this man (must be from Bangladesh), took a look at the notebooks and said he will need about two hours. Sure enough, a bit more than two hours later, he had the notebooks repaired. Just hope they don't go kaput again.

The light gets darker

If Perak was a mess before, it is now in a hole so deep that the light gets overwhelm by the darkness. There is just no end to it. As said so many times by so many people already, a political problem cannot be solved by the courts. It has to be solved by politics and that means going back to the people. Don't know why it is so hard for the powers that be to understand! No! They understand it but simply refused to do it for obvious reason!

Its the dream final

MU vs Barcelona. The top two teams in Europe at the moment. What a dream final. Barcelona with all its attacking power against MU with all its guile and flexibility. Who will win? Depends on who hit form on that day. If messi finds his form and is at his irresistable best, then nobody can stop him. On the other hand, Ronaldo can score from all angles when at his best. Then there's Henry, Eto, Rooney, Tevez etc etc. Should be a very exciting game of open free flowing football, the kind we have come to expect from MU and Barca.

What a load of .........

What happened in Perak was a complete disgrace. Totally shameful. Just don't have the words to describe it. Whatever it is, the circus must end or we'll be the laughing stock of the world. Go back to the people!

High noon in Ipoh

Don't know just what will happen on 7th May in Ipoh. I dare not even guess! All I know is a drama is slowly unfolding with the outcome totally unpredictable. Will it get out of hand? Only God knows. I surely hope it won't but then with tension running high, heads might just give way to hearts. When will it all end?

Up, up and away

What a great day for the market. After about 7 months, the KLCI is now again above the 1000 points mark. In line with worldwide optimism about the economy, this rise is expected to continue, as will the other markets around the world. How far it will go is anybody's guess but I will stick my neck out and say, it will reach 1200 points in the very near future. Just watch it go!

A busy weekend

My wife and I at one of the event

We attended four events. Friday in Subang Jaya and Saturday in Paya Jaras, Taman Alam Budiman (new housing area along the Batu Arang road) and Sg Buloh. Luckilly I had with me this batik shirt that does not need ironing. In times like this, it is very handy cause I can just pick it up and wear. No problem. I bought the shirt many many years ago in K. Trengganu and it cost me only RM 10. Wish I had bought more.

Some things we can't do without

Meetings are necessary in any organisation. Without meetings, things cannot get going. But problems starts when meetings drag on too long. It gets worse if it is a monologue, meaning only one man is talking i.e. the chairman. It becomes useless if after the meeting, no action is done to execute whatever has been agreed at the meeting. Suffice to say, in my almost 30 years of working life, I have seen it all.

Grandfather tales

Lately I have been receiving wedding cards after wedding cards. So many of them. Normally, weddings are held when the schools are on holiday but these days, it seems that weddings are held all year round.
Most of the invitations I have been receiving are from friends during my bachelor days. Their sons or daughters are getting married. How time have passed. Only yesterday it seems when we were spending our bachelor days as university students in England. Suddenly we are husbands, then fathers and very soon, grandfathers! Unbelievable!

Highway right at the door

When I moved to Sg Buloh in December 2003, the Guthrie Corridor highway was still on the drawing board. Everyday in going and coming back from work, I had to go through the only way available. It means going through Sg Buloh town with all the traffic lights and having to compete with the many cars, motorcycles, bicycles, buses, lorries and even jaywalkers. It was one hell of a hassle. Just one minor accident and there'll be a massive jam.
When the Guthrie Corridor was finally completed about a year later, it was such a relief. The K.Selangor/Sg buloh interchange of the highway is just 2 minutes from my house. Going to work now is a pleasure because minutes after leaving my house, I'm already on the highway. No more hassle. An enjoyable drive, relaxing and no hurry. Its great!