My Travel Blogs

My Nikon D7000

2011-09-18T20:28:00.003+08:00

It's been more than 6 months since I sold off my Canon 450D along with the kit lens 18-55mm for RM 1500. That was a bargain price because I bought the camera for about RM 3200++ when it was officially launch back in April 2008.

The reason for selling my 450D is that I've grown tired with problems haunting it. The back focus spoils some of my shots and I had to sell it and jump ship to 'NIKON'.

I've bought the D7000 body in KL back in the month of August. I paired it with Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II VC LD IF lens that I ordered through an online store in Kuching. The lens price is RM 16xx and warranty from Futuromic Malaysia for 2 years. The best thing is that the price is cheaper than most KL shops!!

The website is ClickCamera and I highly recommended that you check it out!

Nikon D7000

The sheer fun in taking photos has never disappointed me with a Nikon in your hand!

New Year New Ride!

2011-05-18T00:42:00.001+08:00

I've been wanted to buy a new car since the beginning of 2010. I wasn't sure what brand I will be buying. It was decided on the day that I sat in a Toyota Vios 1.5 G spec that belongs to my colleague's.

I soon fell in love with the car's design and stylish interior. It just made me feel eager to own this car in 2011.

It was a week after Chinese New Year and while I'm still enjoying my 10 days leave.

Below is the chronology of events in getting my brand new ride.

Test Drive - 9 February 2011

Booking - 11 February 2011 (Medium Silver Metallic G Spec)

The happiest day happens on Wednesday 16 Mac 2011 when I took a half day leave to get my new ride.

After signing the release form, I was then happily driving my new ride home. :D

Driving an automatic transmission feels a bit awkward at first because I'm used to manual transmission.

It took me about 1 month to get the feel and confidence of driving an automatic.

My previous car which is a Proton Iswara 1.3 is still around and used by my family members.

Finally, my left leg can rest from the torture and cramp of stepping on the clutch now. :P

Enjoy the Vios 2010 presentation below.

R.I.P. Michael Jackson: The Greatest of All Time

2009-06-26T18:22:00.003+08:00

It was a shock to the world and myself when I accidentally read this news in Yahoo.

I couldn't believe that he had died way ahead of his time. I believed that the world would not be same if he didn't show us his passion in his songs and dances.

You will be remembered as the Legendary "King of POP".

2008 Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix

2008-06-24T17:34:00.029+08:00

It has been 4 years since I last visited Sepang to watch F1 race. This time it was a bit more special because it's the 10th Edition for Sepang to host this prestigious race event.

Wasting no time, I managed to book myself a pair of grandstand tickets.

The normal price for F grandstand was RM850.00 per person for 3 days, but due to online promotion for the 10th Edition, the ticket price was slashed to RM410.00. That's what I called a bargain!! I booked two since my friend was also interested to come along.

The catch is that you can't choose your seating location. Bummer!! I'm lucky that my seating are quite OK and can see the start/finish grid.

The online promotion tickets comes with some extra goodies. It included items listed below;

Ticket & Lanyard.

10th anniversary cap.

Radio pouch.

Radio for listening to the live commentaries by Martin Brundle and James Allen.

Left view of the welcome center.

Right view of the welcome center.

The welcome center entrance.

Sauber Petronas F1 car.

Ferrari supporter.

Ferrari flag.

Shops selling F1 merchandise.

Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld in an autograph session.

Leaving the stage to get ready for the race.

Great view of turn 15.

Starting grid and pit lane.

The view of turn 6.

Watch the formation lap video.

Kimi Raikkonen charging in P1.

Massa's car spun and is out of the race on lap 30.

Massa's car being towed to pit.

Kimi Raikkonen won the race from 2nd on the grid. It could have been a Ferrari 1-2 finish if Felippe Massa didn't spun out on lap 30.

Overall, this has been an unforgettable race and I hope that Sepang will always be on the F1 calendars.

Honda F1 Roadshow at 1 Utama

2008-03-25T20:58:00.016+08:00

Chris and I was going to The Curve/Ikea via 1 Utama on Friday morning when we came upon the Honda F1 roadshow in the shopping mall.

The RA107 on display was last year car.

Some technical data on the RA107. The drivers for the team are Jenson Button and Ruben Barrichello.

A shot from far with Chris admiring the Honda machine.

Another shot from the side.

Front angle of the car. You can see the nose cone and the front wings.

Another front angle shot.

The car livery was designed towards the green earth and black color is the space. You can see the air intake at the top and side pods.

Look at those slick huge tyres. :)

A closer look at the rear wing and brake light. The team members name was printed on both sides of the wing.

From the label if read properly, it appears that I cannot touch the label sticker but I can touch the car instead. Hahaha...

You can also visit the sponsor of the car livery website at myearthdream.com. Luckily it was not sponsored by mywetdreams.com. Hahaha...

Honda RA807E engine.

The engine in closer look. It weighs around 95kg.

No roadshow is complete without pitbabes.

This babe is probably looking for her car keys. :)

There were 3 of them but I managed to take this while they were chit chatting. Should see them in real life instead.

Coaching & Counselling Skills for Supervisors

2007-10-26T13:32:00.000+08:00

The whole unit of "Post Project Customercare" (PPC) attended the "Coaching and Counselling skills for Supervisors" at Merdeka Palace. It was a 3 day course starting from 22nd - 24th October 2007. The whole course was exciting and full of activities. You will never get bored because we were drilled to be involved in the coaching session.

The most interesting session was the personality and profiling exercise.
I was categorized under the "Peacock" type and a person with very high VISUAL skills. Dianne even mentioned to us that we like to look at pretty girls :D. It would be gay not to look at pretty girls.

Coaching Session

Performing the coaching session while being supervised by Dr. Dianne Tsen.

Brainstorming session.

Geraldine having a session with the technicians group.

Spying on the other team members from another table.

Ricky Voon discussing on something.

Bon Appetite!!

Buffet lunch were provided during the whole course. Aurora Court was our battle ground for ransacking the foods. We all had a very sumptuous lunch.

ASU Team.

Persistently waiting in line.

Spaghetti and potatoes.

Chicken and beef cuisines.

Steamed fish and mixed vegetables.

Going for second round.

It's my turn to ransack.

This is what I had on the first day.

Sweet Corn Soup.

Cakes!!

More Cakes!!

Some More Cakes!!!

Too many cakes!!! Lost count but gain extra KILO. :P

Trip to Macau - Day 2

2007-09-21T13:07:00.001+08:00

On the second day, we made our journey south. To the island of Taipa.

We took bus No. 11 to go there. The trip took only 15 minutes to reach one of the tourist spots. The main attraction to go there is try out the foods plus Venetian Macau.

Reaching Venetian Macau. The view is from the back of Venetian.

I'm now in Venice. Really!!

No need to travel to Venice to see the canal and gondola, Venetian Macau got it all.

A replica of St. Mark's Square in Venetian.

We were tricked into believing that we're already in Venice minus the pigeons!!

The hand painted sky ceiling is just so real. You'll believe it's the real sky at first!!

The man in white in white clothing is some sort of live statue. To see him in action, drop any amount of money on the floor and watch he changes his postures and actions. You're not supposed to consider this guy as money changer though.

I wonder if he can accept "Hell's Note". I got plenty of those back home. :P

P/S: The guy wearing the black shirt in the background is also a statue. To see him in action, offer him food. Hahaha...

The ceiling in the center of the Venetian. Some says that the ceiling are pure gold.

Take the escalator down and you've reached the Venetian Casino.

The casino here are so classy. They provide FREE mineral water, chinese tea, orange juice etc around the clock. If you're bored, can can hangout at the bar and see the stage show performance.

This ceiling mural is located above the Venetian reception.

This ball sculpture is said to be made fom pure gold.

The long hallway is leading to the suites, shopping center and restaurants. If you're lost, look for the people wearing the black and white stripe shirt and red scarf.

Pork Chop Burger. One of the popular food in Macau. The kopitiam was full with people by the time we reached there.

The pork chop was deep fried and later slapped between their hand made bread.

Arghh!!! Rows of delicious egg tarts. We ordered 4 egg tarts for our tea break.

Looks can be deceiving. It looks like a nomal egg tart selling in Kuching.

After you've taken the first bite, you'll be surprised by how soft and moist the egg tarts are. The egg white are seen still dripping from the center. DELICIOUS!!

Trip to Macau - Day 1

2007-09-21T12:59:00.000+08:00

I've been MIA for some time due to my my trip to Macau. It's a wonderful trip to fill up one's stomach and feast your eyes on the cultures of Macanese.

Feels like you don't wanna come back after having such a wonderful holiday. Wish I can strike Jackpot so I can retire early and travel all over the world. Hahaha. 8-D

Here are some pics that we took.

A busy street in Macau. On our way to Ruins of St. Paul

The most popular tourist attraction. Ruins of St. Paul Cathederal.

A statue symbolizing peace. Perhaps I'm wrong. The real meaning is that the ladies here are more daring to give the men flowers. Totally the opposite way around. Hahaha...

Part of downtown area in Macau.

A shot from the top of Museum of Macau.

Museum of Macau

At the entrance Museum of Macau

The Sands Macau Hotel Casino with the "Lotus Flower In Full Bloom" at Lotus Square.

Goddess Kuan Yin by the seaside.

Me in front of the popular Casino Lisboa.

Casino Lisboa is much more beautiful at nite.

Another view of Casino Lisboa.

Grand Lisboa is the new casino opposite Casino Lisboa. It features a round sphere with led lights sorrounding it. Should see it in live action.

Bukit Aup

2007-08-20T19:39:00.001+08:00

Andrew & I made a short trip to visit Bukit Aup. I was told that the place was made famous by the reality TV show 'Explorace' that was shown in TV3 last year.

Arriving there, my impression was the hill is only meant for climbing activities. I was surprised that it actually looks like a park with lots of stair to the hill top. Quite a nice place to bring the family for jogging etc...

On top of the hill, you can see Sibu town from afar.

View of the fish lake.

The view from the top.

Another view of the fish lake.

Suspension bridge.

Suspension bridge over the fish lake.

Cameron Highland!?

A flower on a big tree.

Paramount Hotel

2007-08-20T19:15:00.000+08:00

I had to travel again to Sibu last week from 13 Aug to 18 Aug to conduct user training at Land & Survey.

I will not be staying at RH due to the hotel was fully booked. Dunno if that is true as being told by the travel clerk personnel.

I have been thrown into Paramount Hotel. This blog update is just to share with you my experiences.
Some of my complains:

NO remote for TV.
NO STAR movies, HBO, CINEMAX. Mostly got pirate satellite channel.
NO booklet or room service informations provided.
NO feedback form provided.
NO swimming pool.
Room size not up to standard.
Hotel area prone for snatch thief.

For a rate of RM98.00 per nite. This will be my first and the last for staying in this hotel.

Room 901. Paramount Hotel Dressing Table

View from the front entrance

View from the bed side

The bed

The main entrance.

Airport Escapade!!

2007-07-31T13:08:00.000+08:00

Tan Sri, Yang and I ransacked a new cafeteria lately.

NO, we didn't rob the place but simply enjoying our tea break at StarBucks which had opened in Kuching Airport recently. This is the only place that reminds us of KL.

StarBucks @ KIA.

Yang and Tan Sri.

The killer pose from Tan Sri.

The StarBucks front view.

Can't wait to taste it!!

Starbucks® Azuki Frappuccino® Blended Cream. It's a bit too sweet.

About Azuki:

Azuki is Japanese for red bean, which is
packed with B vitamins, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium and zinc copper.
Azuki is also low in sodium, making it a natural diureti.
Read More

Blue Berry Muffin.

Banana Muffin.

This is what Yang ordered. He likes ROUND shape thingy!!

Free Wi-Fi will be provided in the near future as mentioned by their friendly staff.

Another branch will be opening soon at The Spring. Can't wait to pay another visit and use my HSBC card to get 10x points.

Thanks to Tan Sri for the treat.

Negarakuku

2007-07-19T21:20:00.000+08:00

Enjoy Negarakuku.

Thanks to Chris for the link. :D

SAINS 15th Anniversary Dinner

2007-07-18T00:00:00.000+08:00

SAINS celebrated it's 15th birthday tonite.

The 15th anniversary dinner was hosted at Crowne Plaza. The guest of honours that nite was the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Ministers, Head of Departments, technical partners and SAINS customers.

The dinner started at 7:30PM with the arrival of guests.

Yang , Tan Sri and I went to the dinner together in Tan Sri's Avanza. When we arrived there, guests have started to register themselves at the reception table. We were lucky to be given free seating.

I've skip lunch just to prepare myself to ransack all the food that nite.

I sat at table 48 with some colleagues.

The stage and hall decorations

Arrival of the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister around 8:35 PM.

The table deco & menu.

Menu

River Palace Cold Cuts Combinations
Shitake Mushrooms Veloute with Hazelnut
Deep-fried Boneless Chicken with Shredded Mango
Steamed Seasonal Fish "Thai" Style
Buttered Prawns with Oats
Wok-fried Three varieties Vegetables with Roasted Almond flakes
Fried Rice with Dry Scallop, Chicken & Mushroom in Lotus Leaf
Pumpkin Puff

The arrival of foods. Bon Appetite!!

River Palace Cold Cuts Combinations

Shitake Mushrooms Veloute with Hazelnut

Deep-fried Boneless Chicken with Shredded Mango

Steamed Seasonal Fish "Thai" Style

Buttered Prawns with Oats

Wok-fried Three varieties Vegetables with Roasted Almond flakes

Fried Rice with Dry Scallop, Chicken & Mushroom in Lotus Leaf

Pumpkin Puff

HSBC Birthday Gift

2007-07-17T12:00:00.000+08:00

I received a letter from HSBC and it was a birthday card plus a gift certificate. It was an OSIM uSparkle Toothbrush worth RM 65.00. It's battery powered of course and luckily it comes with 2 battery.

I had to endure the sales lady torment for 20 minutes talking on their products before getting the toothbrush.

Thanks HSBC. :)

The gift certificate

The uSparkle Toothbrush

Happy Birthday!!

2007-07-09T13:10:00.000+08:00

I had an early birthday celebration on Sunday with my family. It was just a simple lunch.

My sister recommended the Golden Phoenix Seafood Restaurant at BDC.

Once we've sat down, I noticed that there were no soy sauce or even sliced chili provided. There was not even a toothpick provided!!!

This is what we ordered.

Buttered prawn. Looks nice but the prawn was not fresh.

Sea cucumber soup. I cannot see even any sea cucumber in the soup. The portion is too small.

Sweet and sour chicken. No comment.

Mixed vegetables. Just OK.

Egg tofu in hot plate. Not what I had in mind.

Since it's my mum's treat, can't really complain too much in front of them.

The toilet is the worst I've seen. Looks like it has never been maintained. No liquid soap, hand drier and even tissue. Arggh!!!

When I went to pay the bills using credit card, the cashier said that their machine is having some problem and I have to use cash. Yeah rite!!

This restaurant SUCKS!!

I will never ever go or even recommend this restaurant to anyone.

Memories

2007-07-01T20:00:00.000+08:00

Memories is located at Jln. Lapangan Terbang BDC shops lots. Based on recommendation from Bernard, both of us went to indulge on their western cuisine for dinner.

This my dinner at Memories. The chicken chop was served with black pepper sauce. The meat was cooked perfectly and has good portions. Cost only RM10.00.

We ordered the Mushroom Chicken Soup that cost RM4.00. The soup was not thick enough. Otherwise it would be delicious.

Secret Recipe

2007-07-01T16:00:00.000+08:00

Had a gathering on Sunday afternoon with Ben Then, Shirlyn and Bernard.

We meet up at Secret Recipe to catch up with each others since we seldom met due to our work.

I ordered the Marble Cheese. It was delicious. Yummy!!

Iced Blended Mocha Espresso

This is what Bernard ordered. White Chocolate Macadamia Nuts Cake. It's much bigger than mine. Scary!! Hehe..

The only drawback with this restaturant is the lack of attentiveness from the server. We requested to pay the bill and the waiter gave us the menu instead. WTH!! I hope this business will stay long in Kuching.

Cool Lime Chicken

2007-06-27T12:40:00.000+08:00

Had lunch with Bernard at Pizza Hut 3rd Mile on Wednesday.

I tried the Cool Lime Chicken. Got lots of mayo, topped with chicken sausages and a bit of lime juice. Yummy!!

Mr. Ho Fine Food

2007-06-22T12:03:00.000+08:00

Yang, Bernard and I went to Mr. Ho Fine Food for lunch in Crown Square on Friday.

This restaurant served mostly local and western food ranging from Laksa to Spaghetti. Lots of mouth watering varieties from the menu. Some of thier meats and ingredients are imported.

They have a wide selection of imported stuff from Australia and they have a mini bar too.

The place was quite packed and some tables have already been booked. Luckily we're able to find a table.

Yang ordered the Laksa while Bernard and I both ordered the mixed grill.

As for the drink, I ordered Ice Lemon Tea. They prepare the sugar syrup separately in a jar. You just pour the syrup according to the level of sweetness that you prefer.

This is the Laksa.

This is the Mixed Grill. Bon Appetite!

These pictures is making me hungry again. :D

22 Degree Sun Halo

2007-06-22T12:00:00.000+08:00

Something happen in the sky on Friday 22/06/2007.

I saw a lot of people look up to the sky as if they saw Superman. Yeah Right!! :)

After being informed by my colleague, there was something different with the sun on that day.

This phenomenon is called the 22 Degree Sun Halo. WOW!!

Pictures courtesy of Yang.

Pizza Hut Sensasi Delight

2007-06-12T09:42:00.000+08:00

Pizza Hut recently launched a new campaign to replace their Lunch Express. It's called the "Sensasi Delight".

Pricing starts from RM 7.35 per person.

You can choose from Sensasi Delight Pizza, Pasta or Rice.

The reason why it's a bit cheaper is because they only give 2 breadstix.

This picture is making me hungry again. For this round, I've ordered the the Classic Masala.

Taken with my K810i at 3MP enhanced with PhotoFix™.

Sony Ericsson K810i

2007-05-30T13:45:00.000+08:00

IT's finally here!!!

The long awaited K810i has been released in the mid of May worldwide. Looking at the specs, it has the same features just like K800i.

I plan to get K800i but decided to decided to wait for the K810i instead after SE announced them on 6 February 2007. It was worth the wait.

Of course, the main attraction is the design of K810i to give it a classy look such as chrome rounded buttons.

Comes in two colors. Noble Blue and Golden Ivory.

RH Hotel Sibu

2007-05-07T18:43:00.000+08:00

During my last trip to Sibu, I had the privilege to stay at the newest hotel in town called RH Hotel. It was previously known as Everly Hotel Sibu. The hotel still remains true to the Everly standards despite the change of management.

5 star Hotel, free WiFi, 15 satellite channels to choose from such as Star Movies, MTV, ESPN, Star AEC, NHK, etc. You're being spoilt with the many choices. I can only wish that the TV is 24" instead of 17".

Enough with the talking, I am posting some pics to share with you guys that didn't manage to join me.

This is the views that I can see from room 816 . The view is quite spectacular. All the rooms have large windows. The tinted glass was not dark enough that you can see an underwear being hang near the window & it's not mine. Hahaha...

Sibu Town facing the Rajang river.

Sibu Town facing Premier and Tanahmas hotel.

HSBC

Northern Sibu town.

This is the view of my room. Simple yet Elegant.

I was given the Deluxe room since they've run out of the Superior. Lucky!!

The TV and dressing table.

The closet. Iron and the ironingboard are provided. They even throw in an electronic safe. Nice!!

The best hotel must have clean bathrooms. Overall impress with the cleanliness.

Complimentary Tea & Coffee making facility.

The soap and other amenities are packed in carton paper. Shampoo, lotion and foam bath are provided as standards.

The toilet comes with an auto cleaner. Just twist the valve and just let it spray your a**. No more hands. Hahaha..

The bath tub is ready for me.

Swimming Pool Area.

Kid's and Adult Swimming pool. The hotel guests can easily see(peep) you from their room.

The swimming pool is quite small and only 1.3M deep.

Travelling to Sibu

2007-04-28T16:36:00.001+08:00

I am on travelling to Sibu starting from 20 April. I will come back to
Kuching on 1 May 2007.
Will update my blog until my return.
Ciao...

I will be back...(Terminator@Arnold Schwarzenegger)

Excursion to Melaka

2007-04-12T10:44:00.000+08:00

Bernard & I made an excursion on Sunday to Melaka. It was a 2 hour trip from KL to Melaka using express bus.

We arrived at the Melaka Sentral around 12 noon. We later took the local bus to go to Jonker street. Once we're there, we reached among one of the famous landmark, Christ Church Melaka.

Christ Church Melaka

Many beca or "Trishaw". Ride per hour was RM40.

Queen Victoria Fountain

Lunch - Famous Chicken Rice Ball

We stop here to refill our stomach. It's a very popular chicken rice shop at Jonker street. It even display the banner of an Astro VJ promoting their chicken rice.

This is the Melaka Chicken Rice Ball. The rice is molded in rounded shape. Looks like kuih melaka. Very tasty.

The A'Famosa view from St. Paul's hill.

Finally arrived at the A'Famosa fort.

A'Famosa's cannon.

Museum "Istana Kesultanan Melaka"

Dinner - Satay Celup

I was intrigued by Bernard to go and try their famous satay celup. It was the first time I ever heard of such food. We seek and we finally found the shop. There were many people standing outside waiting for their turn. I was surprised as to what is so special about Satay Celup. Read on....

Capitol Satay Restaurant. Famous for its' "Satay Celup". Ignore the guy that is facing the camera:-P

Always full of people wanting to eat the Satay Celup.

50 cents per stick.

You will be spoilt for the many choices they offers.

This is the Satay Celup. You dunk the satay in the pot with satay sauce and later..

you makan it. So Clever...

We're considered lucky as we manage to get on the express bus back to KL at 10PM. Fuhh!!