@mick's

Renewing Passport in Malaysia

2012-12-04T14:11:00.001+08:00

Went to the new Jabatan Imigresen in Plaza Glomac Kelana Jaya with my family to get our passport renewed.

The office is opened from 7:30am so got there earlier at 7:10am. Was the 2nd in the queue. The queue built up to about 12 people by 7:20am.

We were greeted by a guy, who operates a small photo stall just next door, asking if we need our passport photo taken. As we already have the photo, I turned him down.

Actually, there is a photo booth in the department itself costing RM10 for 4 photos. Photocopying facilities is also available at the stated charges. But getting all this done prior will save a lot of waiting time.

While queueing up, I noticed that everyone else got this guy to take their pic and they all came back with the passport application forms filled by this guy. Not bad at all for this kind of service. So wifey went to asked the guy for the form and he gave some forms to her. I was frantically trying to complete the forms but couldn't manage to complete before the doors opened on the dot at 7:30am. The officer will only issue the queue number on completed forms. So by the time I completed the forms, I was already #16 in the queue. So lesson learnt is to get the forms earlier and complete it rather than getting the forms from the counter.

About 8 counters were open for the verification process and we only had to wait for about 20 minutes for our turn. After getting our forms verified, we waited for our turn to do the payment. Our turn came at around 8:20am. After payment, we had breakfast at the nasi kandar joint next door. Went back to the immigration office at about 9:20am and our passports were already waiting for us. It's all over in 2 hours. I must congratulate this department and the staff for their friendliness and efficiency.

Alternatively, for those 18 years old and above, you can use one of these e-machines for the passport renewal. No need to fill any forms. Just walk in, scan your passport then hand over your photo and cash. Then wait for about 1 hour to collect your passport.

Application for renewal online is also efficient with one guy, whom applied online, coming in at about 7:45am and collected his passport at about 8:15am.

Hope everyone will have the same pleasant experience and the Immigration department can maintain and keep up the good work.

Cheers!

Lau & Macey

2012-11-30T16:20:00.001+08:00

celebrating the newly weds

Himpunan Hijau 1125

2012-11-30T16:11:00.002+08:00

Some 20,000 protesters gathered at the Dataran Merdeka on the 25th November 2012 to pressure the Malaysian government to stop the controversial Lynas rare earth plant in Gebeng, Kuantan. This gathering also marked the end of the 13-day walk of 300KM from Kuantan to Kuala Lumpur led by Himpunan Hijau chairman Wong Tat. Here are some of my shots to share

the Objective is to protest against the operation of Lynas, a rare earth refinery set up in Gebeng.

DBKL blocked off Dataran Merdeka on that day

with the excuse that the upgrading works may injure the public

manned by DBKL officers and police

but that did not stop the Rakyat to march towards Dataran. The arrival of the main group at Maju Junction.

Proceeding to Dataran

The rain did not dampen the spirits.

Brothers in Arms marching towards Dataran.

No way through to Dataran.

Wong Tat addressing the crowd at the edge of the barrier set up by DBKL

Wong Tat reading the notice from DBKL saying that the assembly at Dataran is illegal and thus the organisers will be investigated.

Brothers all the way from Baram joining in.

Wong Tat declaring the march a success.

Part of the crowd gathering at the edge of the barrier set up at Dataran.

All this for the hope of ensuring Malaysia continues to be a safe place for future generations.

Cheers.

Edward & Vivian

2012-11-02T21:15:00.001+08:00

Archilles Formula Drift 2012

2012-09-14T21:55:00.003+08:00

it was a damn hot day but all the sun burn and sweat were worth it

Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2012

2012-09-14T20:05:00.002+08:00

covered this year's StanChart KL Marathon

got there early

Baby Shoot

2012-09-14T19:59:00.000+08:00

shot a cute little girl

F1 Malaysian GP 2012

2012-09-14T19:52:00.002+08:00

had a fun day at Sepang

Rally APRC/MRC Johor Leg July 2012

2012-09-14T19:46:00.002+08:00

had the opportunity to cover this leg in Johor and was an exciting day at the estate.

Milky Way

2012-08-04T15:32:00.001+08:00

went to Sekinchan recently in hope to get some clear sky to shoot the Milky Way. there were some heavy light pollution and clouds setting. here are some pics taken amongst the light pollution and clouds.

a fish eye view

the milky way on one side and thunderstorm on the other side

in all, quite satisfied with my first time capture.

cheers!

My version of Bersih 3.0 428

2012-06-15T20:40:00.001+08:00

finally couldn't resist and joined in the call for fair and clean election in Malaysia on the 28th April 2012. here is my humble capture of the event.

Macro DIY Ring Diffuser

2012-01-02T20:19:00.004+08:00

I ventured into macro and made a diffuser based on the ring flash effects. It is a very simple set up comprising of a 270EX1 flash, a PE bowl and some aluminium foil.

This is what my set up with the 100mm LIS looks like

The results :

Hope you like my cheapman's setup for macro lighting ;)

Pesta Tanglung USJ and Hari Malaysia Celebration

2011-09-17T12:32:00.008+08:00

The 2011 Malaysia Day and Mid-Autumn festival were celebrated auspiciously in USJ.

The lions welcoming the guests

Some of the performers for the night

goodie bags give away

Singing Neagaraku with Subang Jaya ADUN YB hannah Yeoh

and then raising of the Malaysian and selangor flags

The guests braving the drizzle to watch the performances and celebrate the festival

The drummers kick off the performance

There is also a riddle competition

Preparing for the lantern parade

the YBs taking the lead in the lantern parade

while some stayed back to play

The YBs cutting of the mooncake to mark the Mid-Autumn festival

A colourfully decorated trishaw giving free fun rides to the kids

It was a colourful event and kudos to the organisers. Looking forward to next year's celebration.

Faces Magazine at @ALIVE KL

2011-09-09T20:35:00.003+08:00

Was the OP for the Faces Magazines appreciation nightout at @ALIVE, KL.

The venue with a band from Thailand entertaning the crowd.

Reserved for the guests.

Filling in the lucky draw forms.

Funny posings with the sponsor

the beautiful angels.

try to beat that

hey, cool dude

I'm a Virgin :p

a sporting couple

Lay Min & Meng Wai

2011-05-14T14:16:00.002+08:00

Kian Lee & Kelly Feb2011

2011-03-19T17:11:00.003+08:00

Thaipusam at Batu Caves

2011-01-25T19:17:00.008+08:00

had the oppportunity to join in the Thaipusam festival at Batu Caves. this year was more chocablock with people than last year. it was really bumper to bumper of people.

here are some pics to share.

Devotees carrying milk for offering

Up the flight of 272 steps

A view from up there

and it's just chocablock of people inside the cave

A devotee shaving her head

A cigar and some black doggie

The hooks fit for fishing of 50kg fish

A Kavadi bearer spinning and dancing away

Can you please pass me another one of those hooks?

Even the Monkey God came to town
Can you get a good shot of me?

Getting too close for comfort

ala Superman.......ouch!
Agony

and some cheeky onlookers

All in all, it was a very interesting event and will be there again next year for some more shooting :)

cheers!

Promoting Breastfeeding - The Best Milk In The World

2011-01-06T07:29:00.004+08:00

Breast milk is the ideal food for newborns and infants. It gives infants all the nutrients they need for healthy development. It contains antibodies that help protect infants from common childhood illnesses.

Breastfeeding also benefits mothers. It reduces risks of breast and ovarian cancer later in life, helps women return to their pre-pregnancy weight faster, and lowers rates of obesity.

Happy Breastfeeding :)

Sunrise at Angkor Wat

2010-12-25T13:05:00.005+08:00

Witnessed a wonderful sunrise at Angkor Wat.

At 5:23am, Mr. Moon was shining through from the west side.

At 5.40am, the camera captures a blue sky and some reddish spots.

At 6.01am, the blueish sky is gone and turned dull grey.

At 6.04am, the red sky brigthens up.

At 6.07am, the red sky becomes apparent with some yellow light shining through.

At 6.08am, a very beautiful reddish with yellowish sky.

Cheers!

Oktoberfest 2010

2010-12-14T19:38:00.006+08:00

This year Oktoberfest enters its 200th year celebration. To many of my friends, Oktoberfest is about beer and only beer but as I saw it, there is more to it :)

The main entrance.............

A bird's eye view of the venue. It registered 1 million visitors in the first 3 days and I contributed to that statistics :)

Ok, it's about the beer.......

.....but there is also the fantastically delicious bratwurst.

One of the beer tents.

Don't know what you call this but it's serving lots of beer and paddling.

Of course got souveniers on sale.

And it's a theme park in there with rides that will make you puke all the beers and bratwursts out.........:o:o

Just look at how high that thing is?!!

and not forgetting the beauties :D
Until next time..............

Cheers!

Sponsor A Child To School 2011

2010-12-13T21:17:00.008+08:00

Thanks to the many many generous donors and volunteers for making these kids so happy. Here are some pics of the kids that we sponsored from the Orang Asli Village in Port Klang and also from Sepang.

A) Orang Asli kids from Port Klang

Trying out the shoe size

Happy faces :)

B) At Sepang

Setting up and arranging the goodies - school uniforms, shoes&socks, bags etc

Sepang councillor (middle)

some more happy faces :)

passing the drinks around

Thankx again to all donors and volunteers.

Cheers!

Volkswagen Street Party - Changkat Bukit Bintang Oct10

2010-11-03T05:28:00.005+08:00

Covered the VW Street Party celebration recently at Changkat Bukit Bintang in conjuction of the launch of 3 new models.

There were performances by the local artists and also from The Veronicas and Leona Lewis. Some photos to share here ;)

My photog pass :)

Here comes the first of the 3 models.

The MCs playing to the crowd.

Party revellers dressed up to celebrate Halloween night as well.

Leona Lewis giving a magnificent performance.

The Veronicas with a lively performance.

Cheers!

Dachau Concentration Camp

2010-10-28T07:04:00.007+08:00

The Dachau concentration camp was the first regulator camp set up and served as the prototype and model for the others that followed.

The Arbeit Macht Frei gate welcomes you!

Looking out from one of the windows inside the building

The bullwhip bench with the original bull whip

The arrival hall where prisoners are given a shower.

A view of the prisoner cells from the outside.....and the inside

with everything kept to the bare minimum.

A special prayers cell for the VIPs.

One of the watch tower at the perimeters

with electric fencing.

One of the chapels

The Jewish memorial site

This part is the most grimmish of the whole camp.

The crematorium.

The gas chamber or better known as the gas shower room.

All this are just a fence away from the lush and green forest.

Cheers!

Europe Trip Part 1 - Paris

2010-10-06T06:54:00.013+08:00

spent a few days in Europe, Paris, Munich and Salzburg in particular. was lucky as the skies turned for the better during that week with blue skies and cooling weather.

sharing some photos of this part 1 of the series.

travelling on Lufthansa with message chair.

it was the start of autumn with nice weather.

the first place that i went was the LV flagship store in Champs Elysee..........queue was like 30 people 15 minutes to closing time!! The reason - well, it is cheaper, much cheaper due to the currency exchange and VAT refund for tourists.

walking further down the road was Arc de Triumph. May be this was what NYY had in mind when she signed to built the arcs in Botanical garden in Penang :p

the city is so diversed that it makes very interesting street photography

this was cropped then painted and framed from an original shot of an apartment

the original Statue of Liberty on the Seine River

and the magnificient Eiffel tower

with the light show on. the lights will flicker for 5 minutes every hour.

with the moon shining on Eiffel

took some shots of the Louvre with its reflection

next was the Notre Dame.

from the back

love the details so much

hope you've enjoyed this short virtual trip and Part 2 - Munich coming up.

Cheers!

Dog Obedient Event PJ 2010

2010-09-14T07:28:00.007+08:00

took some snap shots of the event recently. it is amazing to see how much TLC given to these cuties.

one of the challenges...................to see how well they can follow instructions.

..........stay

some of the beauties

and cuties

some grooming before the fashion show parade

.......one happy family

"yeap, that's right. i'm cuter than you"taking a well deserved rest after a long day's work
and a must have

Cheers!