Banned!!

Marina Mahathir found more nonsense in Malaysia. Unspun added more meats on it.

The victim is now the devil-horn hair clip. (yes, hair clips for children)

This adds to the list of banned 'products' in Malaysia, which, Unspun summarized, include Inul (though she finally got to perform at the KBRI), Avril Lavigne, the sight of women's armpit on TV (what?), and more.

Well, it's not all that bad, actually. If it's an art, it seems people here are more receptive.

Like the recent Sloggi Art for Humanity in Sunway Lagoon. (photos from Bun Virus' flickr)


A bit of hypocrisy, eh? Or simply an irony? But life will be boring otherwise...

More pictures here.

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R-rated exhibition

Or NC-16, if there's such thing. Admission is free. No one under the age 16 is allowed. No short. No slippers. No photography.

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Speedtrapping

Last week I got pulled over on a police roadblock for speeding on a 80 km/h highway.

I think I drove at a little over 90 km/h. The second time in about six months at exactly the same place - just in front of the National Science Center in Mont Kiara / Damansara Heights area. I don't learn, I guess. But I have my reasons to rant about it.

First, it's a pretty straight three-lane highway with medium or low average traffic density. The limit should be at least 90 km/h. Nah. I'll never win with such argument.

Second, the traffic police should focus on other more important or critical violations (well, from my perspective). Like the Mat Rempit (illegal street racers) on the Penchala Link. It's extremely dangerous to other drivers, and is very noisy! Or double parking at Desa Sri Hartamas - just around the corner. (the double parking is horrendous - I'll try to take a picture of it)

Third, it was at 12:30 AM. I was on my way home from work. They didn't even check for DUI. They should focus on other more important or critical violations... oh, I've said it up there.

Most important of all, the only evidence the cop had was a piece of paper with handwritten notes of license plate number and the "speed". Mine was written 93. I didn't challenge, because I knew I was at fault, it was late, and I didn't know how Malaysian cops would react if challenged. I told him to write the ticket and not to bother to ask anything.

Handwritten note... it's a bit fishy, isn't it?

The previous pulling over was similar, though I asked the police how they knew how fast I was driving. He said they had camera.

I know there's no permanent traffic camera; I drive on the highway twice a day.

A non-permanent camera? Like what a friend said, that she saw someone squatting with camera on the road side. If so, how would the cameraman (radar-man), or the assistant, communicate the "catch" to the police? Handphone or walkie-talkie, I guess.

This also means that the distance has to be quite far between the radar and the roadblock. And also means the police don't really have any hard evidence (except the handwriting) at the time of pulling over.

So, I'd like to know two things.

One, what would happen if I insist that I don't drive over the speed limit.

Two, if there is, indeed a camera or radar that captures the speed and license plate, why would the police need a roadblock? Can't they just send the speeding ticket directly? (they did to me sometime ago, on the same highway but opposite direction.)

Or perhaps that way they can ask for bribes - like what they did on my first pulling over?

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Déjà vu

Since the first day of our arrival in Kuala Lumpur, about two-and-a-half years ago, both Tari and I share one (of our many) impressions of KL. We think that KL today (or at least part of it) is somewhat like Jakarta around the 80's and 90's - with today's technology.

Don't get me wrong - this is mostly positive impression.

When our relocation agent took us to the Central Market, it immediately reminded us to Blok M, especially the part next to Aldiron Plaza, where Bakmi Boy and shops selling custom plaques, stickers and shirts were located - near the bowling alley. Aldiron Plaza, by the way, rocked. I remember two or three music stores on the ground floor, some video rentals on the top floor, and of course Happy Days. Those were the happy days...
(photo from Yahoo! Travel)

We also think that traffic here is comparable to that of Jakarta in the early 90's - both from the perspectives of traffic jam or congestion, and also from the number of motorcycles. Oh how we thank God for this.

The on-going development, i.e. structural construction, is also similar, in one way or another. There is hardly any places in KL that passes the day without any construction - just like Jakarta during its booming period. Even development of commercial places in residential areas is happening - which I don't think is a good thing.

Nightlife seems to be around the ballpark. I ain't no club hopper - far from it; but even then I can clearly tell the difference from what my friends in Jakarta tell me (yeah, right). You know, it's like the era of Musro, Ori, Ebony, or Parrots in Jakarta. Or when Kemang was still under control. Or Studio East in Bandung. Ouch!

The recent arrest of HINDRAF's members was also quite identical to how freedom of speech was in Indonesia in the 80's. Even Taiping prison seems to serve the same function as Nusa Kambangan prison (well, they are both prisons).

I believe there are more that, being insensitive and ignorant, I overlooked. But my take is, if history is to repeat itself, these two neighboring countries have to learn from each other.

Malaysia can learn to not repeat the mistakes that Indonesia made - whatever they were. For Indonesia, having long term plan and vision (and execute them with less deviation) is probably one of the things to copy from Malaysia.

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Happy new year

Happy new year, everyone!

For the third time in a row, we spent the new year's eve in KL. This time, though, it wasn't in an apartment.

We celebrated the new year countdown at SouledOut, with its SoulStock theme night. We got companies too! Thirteen guests were joining us -- seven stayed in our place. Full house!

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On tex mex food in KL

Finally after more than two years in KL, we found a decent Tex-Mex food at Las Carretas in Damansara. It's been two Sundays in a row, and we've tried quite a few - Chimichanga, Quesadillas, Fajitas, and Nachos. And so far two Margaritas and a Boca Chica on the house. Good service.

Prior to this, it's been limited to Fajitas and Nachos from places like TGI Friday and Chilli's.

I'm not a big fan of Tex-Mex food, but it's one that I can easily take. Tortilla + salsa, I'm happy. Cheese nachos - great! (now I remember where all these fats came from).

Next - Taco, Enchiladas, and Burrito.

Yumm...

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Excellent tiramisu

Got a piece of tapau (take-away) of Alexis tiramisu for late dessert at home last weekend. And for breakfast the next morning. Yum!

Not a very healthy life, but I had a local version Roland Garros matches that night. Should've been a breakeven :)

Alexis makes one of the best tiramisu I've ever tasted. Highly recommended if you are visiting Kuala Lumpur, or if you live here but haven't tried it yet.

* Thanks to Mandy for letting me use the picture.

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Kill the messenger!

No one wants to deliver bad news. Particularly to the management. The urban legend is, they will kill the messenger.

That was the mission last Monday - for my boss and me. I was pretty close to having some all nighters. I got sick; probably hoping there would be some empathies to a sick-looking messenger. I broke several promises to the kids. The whole week was just unproductive.

We didn't get killed. In fact, I would consider it a good day as we managed to catch the flight in Singapore despite getting off the presentation just 45 minutes before the departure time. The cab driver was comparable to Queen Latifah in Taxi. I was the last getting into the plane. My boss ran faster than I did. I guess it's time to hit the treadmill.

Penang

So I decided to take the Friday off to Penang with the whole family. Despite the long, four-hour drive, we had a good time. Good food, good fun, and good rest. My third time to Penang, and I'm still amazed that an island of 293 square-kilometers has a 65-storey building. As a comparison, Jakarta's area is 661 square-kilometers and Wisma BNI 46 is 48-stories.

I was probably the only United fan in the hotel bar. I'm pretty sure I was the only one jumping when O'Shea scored the goal, and also the only one left watching the post-game analysis. Whatever, it was a good game - for United.

Fire incident

Got a call from our neighbor on Sunday morning - bitching that we were still sleeping in Penang. One of the units on the ground floor of our condo building was on fire. Everyone was evacuated through the stairs, at 2 AM. Except my Iranian neighbor who decided to keep on sleeping (probably there were some others).

The fire was extinguished without any fire trucks entering the complex. Apparently, everyone found out last night, the building entrance is too small for the fire trucks.

Additional checklist the next time we move: is the building entrance big enough for fire trucks?

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Here and there: roundabouts and traffic circles

Roundabouts are different from traffic circles. Since it confuses me, I'm just gonna use the term roundabout for both.

The number of roundabouts in Kuala Lumpur is much more than I've ever experienced or imagined. Especially the roundabouts without traffic lights. Not the one like in Jakarta's HI or Monas roundabout. (there are also traffic-light-less roundabouts in Jakarta, like at the intersection of Jalan Senopati and Jalan Rajasa.)

If I remember correctly, there's no roundabout in Ann Arbor, while only one in Durham.

Going to work, a 20-minute drive, I could pass one to four roundabouts in the past quarter of the drive only, depending on how the traffic on the highway that day. At busy times (like lunch hour or morning), these roundabouts are extremely problematic. Frustrating. Traffic is stuck around the island.

If this happens in KL, imagine how it will be in Jakarta.

Since the traffic-light-less roundabouts depend on the "yield" or "give way" sign, and in this part of the world most people don't really obey the sign, this type of roundabouts is not suitable anymore in high traffic areas.

Will traffic lights help? Perhaps a bit, to ensure less interruption to the circling traffic. But high traffic is high traffic, unless either the number of cars is reduced or the medium of cards is increased -- to reduce the density.

For now, I guess I should be thankful the traffic is comparatively not that bad.

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Water fountain vs. dark force

The water fountain has now been (or actually was) turned on! There are now more happy, motivated faces, I hope. Just before the Chinese New Year.

It didn't start very well, though. Only after half a day since it was turned on, the pump broke. And now still waiting for the replacement pump. I guess the dark force is much stronger than the chi... :)

(The real water fountain is not as nice as this one...)

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Water fountain = no more issues?

Business has been tough for the past year or so. Despite the initiatives we have accomplished, challenges keep coming like there is no tomorrow. It started with one supplier after another. Raw and packaging materials. Capacity. Equipment. Process. The list is quite long...

What's happened?

Because last year, water fountain on the entrance was stopped and dried, some colleagues claim. It took all the good luck away.

Really?

Feng shui tip 83 from fastfengshui.com says that moving water brings prosperity and good luck to the home. Water fountains and aquariums are great feng shui enhancements because they are at the same time soothing and energizing.

"The sound and motion of gurgling water activates chi and adds humidity to a dry room, helping to balance chi. Moving water gets things going when the chi has been stagnant for a while (think of ice melting in the spring). Use moving water cures anywhere you want to enhance water or wood energy."

Chi, by the way, is kind of life force or spiritual energy.

Back to the issue - will having the water fountain running back again take all the bad luck away?

I'm not sure. I've never been a fan of this kind of "old sayings"; always try to rationalize it. If it works, in this case, there's a high chance that it's because people are psychologically and mentally more positive, more determined.

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Schoolgirls competing to be No.1 in sex game

I've had tons of guests - family and friends - visiting since I moved to KL. Most who came to Malaysia for the first time usually shared this same impression: "Whoa!" They thought that life in Malaysia was so influenced and governed by Islamic practices, that, for example, there was no or only a few pubs and clubs around.

Well, not exactly. KL, especially, is just another city that shares all the goods and bads of typical big cities. (and frankly I like it for that)

Except, of course, if you live in Kota Baru, Kelantan, where women, working in retails and restaurants, who dress "sexily or indecently" could be fined up to RM 500.

So what about the schoolgirls?

It's a two-week old, or so, news I happened to read. I guess it might contribute to the "whoa!" impression. Perhaps JB, with its proximity to Singapore, has gotten the influence of swinging...

Here's the story from the Star:

A group of female students in a secondary school in Johor Baru are said to be competing among themselves to be the one with the highest number of one-night stands, Nanyang Siang Pau reported.

Each of the 10 students in the group, aged between 13 and 15 years old, would fork out between RM50 and RM100 to be in the game.

The student with the highest number of sex partners within a month would get a "reward", which ranged from between RM500 and RM1,000, said the report.

Usually, a student would need between 13 and 15 sex partners to claim the "reward".

It was learnt that the school had expelled some students involved in the activity, but the report added that it was still going on.

So next time JB instead of KL?

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New Year's Eve in KL

Another new year's eve celebration in KL. This time, though, it got closer to the twin towers. Still in an apartment, yet better food and champagne.

Late posting -- pictures just uploaded...

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Is KL (not) that safe?

I always thought that KL is a safe city. Not until a new expat at my work got beaten and robbed in his first couple of months in KL. Pretty bad. Unconscious for several hours until in the morning. He managed to drive by himself back to his place, and later was taken to the hospital. He needed several plastic surgeries.

What I thought was right. All articles I could find on the net claim KL is safe - from fairly safe to one of the safer cities in Southeast Asia. One even claims that violent crime is almost unheard of. However, some local colleagues do feel and complain about the increasing crimes in the city. One even said that he wouldn't walk by himself in the city center by himself today, as a comparison with what he'd done several years ago. I also got the feeling that some blame the increase in crimes to the increasing number of Indonesian workers in Malaysia. Yeah, right, blame in on the Indonesians when you have problems. What I think they fail to see is that when the city grows in population, it's harder to manage, and the crime will automatically go up as well. At least that's what I learned while playing Sim City.

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SOULed OUT

Happy new year!

I spent the new year nicely at my balcony. The view included fireworks from several locations in KL. The biggest one was from the city center (most probably from the KLCC - I don't bother to check). The closest one was from SOULed OUT, a quite funky restaurant near my place. In fact, it's the closest restaurant if I don't count the condo's canteen.

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Mont Kiara

So I completed the moving in to the new place in Mont Kiara. It's a nice area and looks safe for family living. Close to my daugther's school - within walking distance. The only downside is a lot of construction works are still going on. Petronas Twin Towers is the view from my unit, but it may last only for the next two years as there is a new condominium complex being constructed right on the way.


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mont Kiara, is a northern suburb of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is strategically located at the heart of Klang Valley. Mont Kiara is only a 15-minute drive to either Petaling Jaya or downtown Kuala Lumpur. Taman Tun Dr. Ismail is only 5 to 10 minutes drive via the Penchala Link tunnel on Sprint Expressway.

Mont Kiara is an extremely successful global condominium township with full broadband services for residential and business users - a first in Malaysia. Complemented by a resort office-retail complex, the strategically located Mont Kiara enclave in Bukit Kiara attracts a high expatriate population, representing more than 30 nationalities and particularly the Japanese and Korean who comprise almost half the total residential population. Mont Kiara, an area known for its large number of Korean expatriates, has recently seen a huge increase of Korean restaurants, retailers and groceries stores around the township area.

Mont Kiara is also close to an equestrian club, a golf club, a stadium, business centres with banking and other facilities, as well as a Japanese school about 15 minutes’ drive away.

Educational Institution

Served by two international schools, (American (Mont'Kiara International School), and British (Garden International School)).

Shopping

At Plaza Mont Kiara for Mont Kiara Funday (Sunday) 'Arts, Bric-a-Brac & Crafts' (ABC) Market launched in March 2000, showcases 100 exhibitor stalls spread over a 38,000 sq ft fountain courtyard in Plaza Mont Kiara. An innovative concept in its own right, the ABC Market epitomises the 'Made-in-Asia' dream featuring an amalgam of culture, arts and crafts where you can find antiques, books, vintage apparel, clothing, household decorative items, educational toys, children wears, crafts, jewellery, bags and shoes, potted plants, fruits, great asian food and lots more.

The daytime market is held every Sunday and has a most appealing open-air retail character. Shopping environment is made cooler with the jolly green shade sails and misty fans.

The ABC Market attracts a motley crowd of at least 3,000 people throughout the day. Operated by Sunrise Berhad, it serves mainly to promote Malaysian arts and crafts to the public, as well as provide an avenue for households to clear their collections, entrepreneurs to sell popular items and motor traders to hold their snazzy car exhibitions. Over the years the market has carved its niche as an integral part of the lifestyle in Plaza Mont'Kiara.

Night market called Fiesta Nite (Pasar Malam) at Plaza Mont Kiara delights crowds at the fountain courtyard every Thursday (6pm-10pm) night with something for everyone.

Throngs of after-six office workers from Plaza Mont Kiara and Desa Sri Hartamas as well as residents from the surrounding condominiums and nearby housing estates make their way to the market to walk, chit chat and shop around the courtyard for dinner.

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