3rd-7th Oct 2012
Houses of Worship Technologies - Asia 2012
It was an interesting 5 days attending the sessions and at the same time catching up with some friends in Singapore. Have to admit that the exhibition was more interesting than the workshops for us. Checking out the latest technologies and possibilities for DUMC's upgrade, live streaming as well as the phase 2 project. The possibilities are just endless (if you have unlimited budget). Plus, some stuff may cost us more back in Malaysia.
We also had the opportunity to meet Steven Yeoh, technical director from Hope Church, Singapore. They recently moved into a new premise within a mall (Textile Centre) and have done up the place with lots of thoughts in regards to audio, visual and lighting acoustic treatment. We were definitely impressed with their equipments but more impressed with how the place was done with so much input by Steven at the planning stage. Basically, AV design was priority for the place.
We stayed with the salvation army throughout the conference. A small decent apartment for 4 of us.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Dive Perhentian!
21st-23rd Sep 2012
My 6th Dive Trip
Was a last minute decision to join Sam on this trip. I have been wanting to check out Perhentian Island. So I was right, the journey there was a long one but since we slept through the night, it was bearable. The trip cost us RM500 without boat transfer and food. Together with the chartered bus, it cost us more than expected. Accommodation at Bubu Long Beach was quite decent with twin sharing, air-cond and water heater. Strangely, the organisers never shared the bills/receipt of the trip.
Diving was ok. Visiblity was average and the sites we went weren't too spectacular. The journey back was quite torturing. Felt that my whole Sunday was totally wasted. We started our journey after breakfast. I envy 2 of our divers who were from Singapore cause they took a flight back. They got home by 12pm. We got home at 12am!
After the trip, I realized there was an interesting Vietnamese wreck nearby (darn!). Moral of the story, always do your own research of a trip.
My 6th Dive Trip
Was a last minute decision to join Sam on this trip. I have been wanting to check out Perhentian Island. So I was right, the journey there was a long one but since we slept through the night, it was bearable. The trip cost us RM500 without boat transfer and food. Together with the chartered bus, it cost us more than expected. Accommodation at Bubu Long Beach was quite decent with twin sharing, air-cond and water heater. Strangely, the organisers never shared the bills/receipt of the trip.
Diving was ok. Visiblity was average and the sites we went weren't too spectacular. The journey back was quite torturing. Felt that my whole Sunday was totally wasted. We started our journey after breakfast. I envy 2 of our divers who were from Singapore cause they took a flight back. They got home by 12pm. We got home at 12am!
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Dew Crew Retreat 2012
16th-18th Sep 2012
Dew Crew took a simple retreat this year… what else better than an eating trip. Once again, we went to Ipoh and stayed at the same place and of course ate a lot. We need to do something to justify this eating next year. Lol.
Other than eating, we did took lots of photos at Gunung Lang and Kellie's Castle.
Dew Crew took a simple retreat this year… what else better than an eating trip. Once again, we went to Ipoh and stayed at the same place and of course ate a lot. We need to do something to justify this eating next year. Lol.
Other than eating, we did took lots of photos at Gunung Lang and Kellie's Castle.
Sunday, September 09, 2012
Legoland Malaysia
There has been lots of hype about the opening of Asia's first Legoland here in Malaysia. When the opportunity came for a free entry, who would have refused? Somehow, it gave many people the idea that it was very much like a theme park. But like the name, it is Legoland.
The place was not entirely open to the public yet. There was still a few days to go and therefore some of the rides were not available during my visit. There wasn't as many rides as I expected. The whole place had Legos everywhere though. Pretty cool for Lego fans.
From that visit, I conclude (at the moment) the place is targeting at younger children (some of the boat and car rides are more for the age of 8 and below or people who admire the work of lego and just want to take lots of photos. My friends and I completed almost every activity available in less than half a day.
The water park will be ready in a few years. Looking forward to that.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
My First Tattoo
I could still remember I wanted to get a tattoo and eyebrow piercing when I was in college and I asked Jee Ing to accompany me to Sungei Wang and a few other places to check it out. In the end, I didn't. Simply because I was too afraid I couldn't get a job after that. I could get a tattoo then but wasn't too sure what I would want on my body permanently.
So, here I am, more than 10 years later and I still want to get a tattoo! Haha. So I figured I will!
Called up an old friend who is a tattoo artist. Dropped by and got it done in 15 mins. The pain was wayyyyy over exaggerated. It is nothing compared to pimple extraction. I was told this could be addictive. I have a feeling so. ;-)
So, here I am, more than 10 years later and I still want to get a tattoo! Haha. So I figured I will!
Called up an old friend who is a tattoo artist. Dropped by and got it done in 15 mins. The pain was wayyyyy over exaggerated. It is nothing compared to pimple extraction. I was told this could be addictive. I have a feeling so. ;-)
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Dive Sipadan with SWV!
19th-23rd July 2012
Dive Mabul, Kapalai, Sipadan! My 5th Dive Trip
It is a 15 months of planning (and savings) for this trip to be possible.
Had been looking forward for this for so long. The ultimate dive site of Malaysia. We stayed on Sipadan Water Village on Mabul Island for this 5D4N trip.
It all started in the wee hour of the morning for the 7am flight. Here's how the journey to SWV is like for us.
50min taxi ride from PJ to LCCT
2 hours and 50mins flight from LCCT to Tawau
2 hours van ride from Tawau airport to Semporna Jetty.
1 hour boat ride from Semporna Jetty to SWV.
*whew* Glad SWV arranged decent transport for us. It was a real long journey. After our briefing and lunch, we checked into our rooms and got ready for our check out dive. Honestly, the traveling very much exhausted most of us but seriously, the sight of the place makes it so worth it. The water was so inviting!
It was a great dive experience with Dive Masters - Fauzy, Ramily and Niger. Saw so many firsts - Giant Mantis Prawn, Lion Fish, Sweet Lips, Ghost Pipe Fish, Cuttle Fish, Giant Frog Fish, Clown Trigger Fish (Robocop), School of Barracuda, Grey Shark, White Tip Shark, Black Tip Shark, Nurse Shark, School of Jack Fish, Red Fire Goby, Gigantic Grouper, Large Parrot Bumphead, Giant Moray Eel, Baby Spotted Sweet Lips and Mandarin Fish.
Probably the only thing that was disappointing was that we had to abandon Barracuda Point for our dawn dive.
The old film underwater cam (SeaLife Reefmaster RC SL515) wasn't great but at least I had some photos underwater.
One thing for sure, I'll be back!
Dive Mabul, Kapalai, Sipadan! My 5th Dive Trip
It is a 15 months of planning (and savings) for this trip to be possible.
Had been looking forward for this for so long. The ultimate dive site of Malaysia. We stayed on Sipadan Water Village on Mabul Island for this 5D4N trip.
It all started in the wee hour of the morning for the 7am flight. Here's how the journey to SWV is like for us.
50min taxi ride from PJ to LCCT
2 hours and 50mins flight from LCCT to Tawau
2 hours van ride from Tawau airport to Semporna Jetty.
1 hour boat ride from Semporna Jetty to SWV.
*whew* Glad SWV arranged decent transport for us. It was a real long journey. After our briefing and lunch, we checked into our rooms and got ready for our check out dive. Honestly, the traveling very much exhausted most of us but seriously, the sight of the place makes it so worth it. The water was so inviting!
It was a great dive experience with Dive Masters - Fauzy, Ramily and Niger. Saw so many firsts - Giant Mantis Prawn, Lion Fish, Sweet Lips, Ghost Pipe Fish, Cuttle Fish, Giant Frog Fish, Clown Trigger Fish (Robocop), School of Barracuda, Grey Shark, White Tip Shark, Black Tip Shark, Nurse Shark, School of Jack Fish, Red Fire Goby, Gigantic Grouper, Large Parrot Bumphead, Giant Moray Eel, Baby Spotted Sweet Lips and Mandarin Fish.
Probably the only thing that was disappointing was that we had to abandon Barracuda Point for our dawn dive.
The old film underwater cam (SeaLife Reefmaster RC SL515) wasn't great but at least I had some photos underwater.
One thing for sure, I'll be back!
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Jacky Cheung 1/2 Century Tour
12th May 2012
He wrote a song in dedication to Lydia Sum of her influence in his life. Dancers dressed in costume with mascot and large balloons were pretty cute. After all that, he toned down and came to a smaller lower stage to the audience and did a little Jazz session with his pianist and double bass. He was a little disappointed at the response of the crowd after the 1st song, well you don't expect everyone to know how to appreciate Jazz. Haha, but the crowd continued to encouraged him as his following Jazz songs were jazzed up version of his popular songs. It was pretty nice, as he puts it, he could see the faces of this sitting near him, and this is just something he enjoys doing. Normally he does only 1 song, but somehow one lead to another and yea, it was nice, gives a nice touch to familiar songs.
I have always dream of attending Jacky Cheung's concerts. So watching him live is a dream come true. Think I sound like a fangirl… because I am.
Since I bought numbered seats, there is no need to rushed to Stadium Merdeka like my previous concerts. It was a magnificent sight. The stadium was absolutely packed. Don't think any other event would have such a crowd. Staring at the 3 large LED projection, I remember a tech supplier once mentioned Jacky Cheung's concerts rents the most equipment - 100 moving heads - this was at least 4 years ago.
At 8.30pm, the lights dimmed and the crowd roared, video playback started and the crowd went crazy (hey, no opening act!) Dancers with umbrella dancing and suddenly…YAY, Jacky appears on an elevated platform. As he tap dance, the visual of water splashes on the LED screen behind him was just timed perfectly. The video playback was a love story specially designed for his live concerts to communicate the message of his songs even better. The video stars Shu Qi.
After a few dance number, he headed to the swing with one of the dancer and they kinda flew. The swing was lifted up to the video projection of the moon behind. Very nice! Next, the screen suddenly seem to have disappeared and Jacky appeared on an upper level of another stage. After a few songs, the stage he was standing on started to tilt from 90 degrees to an angle he could just walked on to an elevated platform. Amazing! What come next made everyone realized in awe that as it flips over 180 degree, it is actually the same LED screen we saw in the beginning of the concert! Nice.
He wrote a song in dedication to Lydia Sum of her influence in his life. Dancers dressed in costume with mascot and large balloons were pretty cute. After all that, he toned down and came to a smaller lower stage to the audience and did a little Jazz session with his pianist and double bass. He was a little disappointed at the response of the crowd after the 1st song, well you don't expect everyone to know how to appreciate Jazz. Haha, but the crowd continued to encouraged him as his following Jazz songs were jazzed up version of his popular songs. It was pretty nice, as he puts it, he could see the faces of this sitting near him, and this is just something he enjoys doing. Normally he does only 1 song, but somehow one lead to another and yea, it was nice, gives a nice touch to familiar songs.
After that he returned to fast paced songs (he claims to have seen people yawning) that he…or he used to have danced very well before. Remember that he ended one song with a split and that really got the crowd screaming. I am little jealous that he can still perform a split at his age. Then there was a little chopper that appeared midway of the songs and it flew like the swing earlier. It was spectacular with fireworks and laser lights. Truly a great show. It was nice to hear him interact like how he wants us to remember his dancing because he wasn't sure when will he be back and if he could still dance that way. Throughout the concert, he repeatedly apologize for his performance in December 2011. Apparently he was unwell (during the 4 consecutive nights concerts) I am truly impressed by his spirit of excellence and the energy. At 11.30pm, he asked to confirm that the audience was not working the next day because he wanted to sing more songs….We ended around 12.10pm That was a solid 3 hours and 40 minutes concert with very short interval for costumer change. Salute this guy and his voice never fails to deliver each song perfectly.
Technically, I thought the band and Jacky sounded amazing. Great job sound engineers! I sat at the very extreme side of the stadium and everything just sounded great! Vocals and instruments was very crisp and clear. Video playback was done very well and middle and side screen video mixing was really good. Lighting effects was impressive as it changes from one scene to another.
Saturday, March 03, 2012
Take a break - Langkawi
25th - 28th February 2012
Probably the most impromptu flight tickets I bought. Just 2 weeks before the trip. Needed to take a break before moving to a new department. Managed to drag Tee Hui with me.
It was fun just driving around Langkawi in our little rented Viva. Practically went around the island and tired ourselves! We visited the 7 Wells (Telaga Tujuh), cable car to Mount Mat Cincang, The Datai, Black Sand Beach and feasted in Kuah Town. It was a really hot during the day and rainy at night. We had nice walk on Cenang Beach and chilled at the Oasis Bar and Restaurant - where they served pretty decent juices. Enjoyed chilling at The Loaf in Perdana Quay too. We actually hung out there twice!
The last time I was in Langkawi was with my mum in 2000. Won a free ticket with accommodation then. This time, since we were paying, we went for a budget place - Casa Fina. Couldn't find my ideal beachfront. This accommodation is still rather new. Hope they continue to maintain the place well as I could see light stains here and there. It is very strategically located, just walking distance to Cenang beach and right across from the Underwater World with many shops and restaurants around.
It was a good 3.5 days. Wish it was longer.
Probably the most impromptu flight tickets I bought. Just 2 weeks before the trip. Needed to take a break before moving to a new department. Managed to drag Tee Hui with me.
It was fun just driving around Langkawi in our little rented Viva. Practically went around the island and tired ourselves! We visited the 7 Wells (Telaga Tujuh), cable car to Mount Mat Cincang, The Datai, Black Sand Beach and feasted in Kuah Town. It was a really hot during the day and rainy at night. We had nice walk on Cenang Beach and chilled at the Oasis Bar and Restaurant - where they served pretty decent juices. Enjoyed chilling at The Loaf in Perdana Quay too. We actually hung out there twice!
The last time I was in Langkawi was with my mum in 2000. Won a free ticket with accommodation then. This time, since we were paying, we went for a budget place - Casa Fina. Couldn't find my ideal beachfront. This accommodation is still rather new. Hope they continue to maintain the place well as I could see light stains here and there. It is very strategically located, just walking distance to Cenang beach and right across from the Underwater World with many shops and restaurants around.
It was a good 3.5 days. Wish it was longer.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Padang Dive & Surf Trip
15th - 18th December 2011
Never planned for 3 dive trips a year. But this was a great deal. Buy 3 FOC 1. And this is in a foreign country (ok, it's just an hour flight, something like flying to Penang). Sounded cool so we signed up. Never expected to dive international water so soon!
It was a pretty early flight for all of us - Tee Hui, Sam, Scott, Soo and myself. Arrived in Padang and it was raining! Was a little concern of the visibility. We met Bob, our friendly guide for our trip. He owns and runs Star Ocean Scuba & Surf with his "boss" wife Dewi.
We checked in to Nature's Inn early and unpacked! Ready to dive! We were welcome by Brown and Goldie! Brown was afraid of us till the day we left. But Goldie was just big and playful. The bunk beds were probably the most comfortable I ever had on a dive trip so far (I'm the budget kind).
First thing first… FOOD! OMG, so much to try and everything just looked delicious.
It was about an hour boat ride to the nearest dive site. This place is rather new for divers. As far as I could see, we were the only divers around. So Bob had the liberty to name the site himself. The water was pretty choppy… OK, worse than I thought. A little puking made me feel better. But once in the water, I feel better than ever. Visibility was great and every site was beautiful, untouched - quite different from Malaysia. The only thing that looked the same was the moray eel. Most of the sites we went were wall dives. My highlight for the trip was probably the coral fans and sighting the nurse shark… 2 meter long and 2 of them together. Think they were residents there. Pretty much ignored us until the cameras came. Yea, and I didn't have a camera.Got the photo below from Soo. Our packed lunch was delicious too, but my seasick was just untimely.
The food was just excellent. Bob took us to different places and have to say, the winning dish MUST be Satay Babi. Best pork satay I every had. And the cucumber pickel was perfect. The Ikan Bakar was excellent too. For drinks, the must try are Alpokat (Avacado juice with chocolate) and Terung Pirus (some kind of pink fruit) Can you see how thick the juice was? No water added!
We extended our stay to go on a day trip to the catch a view of the active volcanic mountain. Unfortunately for us, it was cloudy. But we did visited some tourist area in Bukit Tinggi like Japanese Tunnel and the Zoo (?).
Our last activity day was our discover surfing session. With only 1 layer of sun block, we braved the waves and sun for more than 3 hours. Didn't feel a thing. We surf and surf and try to stand on the surf board as long as we can. We didn't want to stop! But stomach was getting a little hungry. When we returned to rest, I was shocked when I looked into the mirror. I have never seen myself so burned in my entire life. It was BAD. And the silly thing was we forgot to put sun block behind our legs. All of us were burned terribly and sitting down was a challenge (for a good few weeks as our skin started to peel). Another silly thing was we booked massage that night. It was supposed to be relaxing but with all the burns, it was a painful one. Great memorable trip.
Must go Padang again! Thanks Bob and Dewi for your hospitality.
All the dated photographs were shot by Soo and Scott and occasionally Bob.
Never planned for 3 dive trips a year. But this was a great deal. Buy 3 FOC 1. And this is in a foreign country (ok, it's just an hour flight, something like flying to Penang). Sounded cool so we signed up. Never expected to dive international water so soon!
It was a pretty early flight for all of us - Tee Hui, Sam, Scott, Soo and myself. Arrived in Padang and it was raining! Was a little concern of the visibility. We met Bob, our friendly guide for our trip. He owns and runs Star Ocean Scuba & Surf with his "
We checked in to Nature's Inn early and unpacked! Ready to dive! We were welcome by Brown and Goldie! Brown was afraid of us till the day we left. But Goldie was just big and playful. The bunk beds were probably the most comfortable I ever had on a dive trip so far (I'm the budget kind).
First thing first… FOOD! OMG, so much to try and everything just looked delicious.
It was about an hour boat ride to the nearest dive site. This place is rather new for divers. As far as I could see, we were the only divers around. So Bob had the liberty to name the site himself. The water was pretty choppy… OK, worse than I thought. A little puking made me feel better. But once in the water, I feel better than ever. Visibility was great and every site was beautiful, untouched - quite different from Malaysia. The only thing that looked the same was the moray eel. Most of the sites we went were wall dives. My highlight for the trip was probably the coral fans and sighting the nurse shark… 2 meter long and 2 of them together. Think they were residents there. Pretty much ignored us until the cameras came. Yea, and I didn't have a camera.Got the photo below from Soo. Our packed lunch was delicious too, but my seasick was just untimely.
The food was just excellent. Bob took us to different places and have to say, the winning dish MUST be Satay Babi. Best pork satay I every had. And the cucumber pickel was perfect. The Ikan Bakar was excellent too. For drinks, the must try are Alpokat (Avacado juice with chocolate) and Terung Pirus (some kind of pink fruit) Can you see how thick the juice was? No water added!
We extended our stay to go on a day trip to the catch a view of the active volcanic mountain. Unfortunately for us, it was cloudy. But we did visited some tourist area in Bukit Tinggi like Japanese Tunnel and the Zoo (?).
Our last activity day was our discover surfing session. With only 1 layer of sun block, we braved the waves and sun for more than 3 hours. Didn't feel a thing. We surf and surf and try to stand on the surf board as long as we can. We didn't want to stop! But stomach was getting a little hungry. When we returned to rest, I was shocked when I looked into the mirror. I have never seen myself so burned in my entire life. It was BAD. And the silly thing was we forgot to put sun block behind our legs. All of us were burned terribly and sitting down was a challenge (for a good few weeks as our skin started to peel). Another silly thing was we booked massage that night. It was supposed to be relaxing but with all the burns, it was a painful one. Great memorable trip.
Must go Padang again! Thanks Bob and Dewi for your hospitality.
All the dated photographs were shot by Soo and Scott and occasionally Bob.
Monday, November 28, 2011
Getaway to Awanmulan
24th - 26th November 2011
A group of colleagues wanted to take little retreat. So off we went to this place called Awanmulan (Mulan's Clouds) within the Pantai Hills Orchard Resort in Jelebu. Followed someone's GPS and we lost our way. Google map worked a little better. By the time we arrived, it was getting dark (and we were the 1st group!). After a call clarifying if we were still on the correct road, we reached. There weren't any signboard because, well, it is an orchard and the houses were all private property and they just came up with the name not too long ago.
The Teng family built their own home and another part as a guesthouse house for family friends. We booked most of the rooms that 2 night, so we very much had the whole place to ourselves. We entered Teratak Bonda and was just in awed. The beautiful structure was made of wood and had a very tree house (a big one) feel to it. The kitchen faces the lush greenery and as the clouds surrounds the place, it felt really serene. The huge deck with hammocks was just prefect. We had a welcome party - Daniel and friends. They were really friendly, and they knew their boundaries.
We had a quick tour before deciding on room assignments. The girls got the larger, newer units below the deck. :) Every unit was spacious and beautifully designed and some were equipped with kitchenette. Some of the bathroom walls were adorned with colored glass bottle and some, you get a very outdoor feel.
Oh, and check out the swimming pool! Awesome! Don't worry about 3G, the family has got wifi for us. Nice for those who can't stand not being connected on fb and twitter. Some of the girls and I took up the Sunrise room. And I had my bed pushed right up to the edge to get a real feel of sleeping "next" to nature. And the name didn't fail. Check out the sunrise photo below. That was the sight that greeted me in the morning.
Had a little chat with Uncle Teng. Told us a little about his background and about building Awanmulan. Most of the window panes and doors were bought over from old traditional homes that was going to be demolished. And part of the pool deck was made of old telephone post. He decided to leave the wood as it is instead of filling up the holes and chopping them to the exact length. As original as it can be!
Zee helped planned a trekking for our group - which some within the group just couldn't cope with. We turned back instead of finishing the trail. Guide said we were just too slow. Most of our food were catered and Zee helped us with BBQ. Of course we did a little cooking - instant noodles! Haha. We ate so much, we finished most of the snacks we bought - which was A LOT.
It was a refreshing trip. Will be back again. Simply a great place to chill. Just pray I don't bump into a group like mine, we were pretty loud till wee hours in the morning. :-p
A group of colleagues wanted to take little retreat. So off we went to this place called Awanmulan (Mulan's Clouds) within the Pantai Hills Orchard Resort in Jelebu. Followed someone's GPS and we lost our way. Google map worked a little better. By the time we arrived, it was getting dark (and we were the 1st group!). After a call clarifying if we were still on the correct road, we reached. There weren't any signboard because, well, it is an orchard and the houses were all private property and they just came up with the name not too long ago.
The Teng family built their own home and another part as a guesthouse house for family friends. We booked most of the rooms that 2 night, so we very much had the whole place to ourselves. We entered Teratak Bonda and was just in awed. The beautiful structure was made of wood and had a very tree house (a big one) feel to it. The kitchen faces the lush greenery and as the clouds surrounds the place, it felt really serene. The huge deck with hammocks was just prefect. We had a welcome party - Daniel and friends. They were really friendly, and they knew their boundaries.
We had a quick tour before deciding on room assignments. The girls got the larger, newer units below the deck. :) Every unit was spacious and beautifully designed and some were equipped with kitchenette. Some of the bathroom walls were adorned with colored glass bottle and some, you get a very outdoor feel.
Oh, and check out the swimming pool! Awesome! Don't worry about 3G, the family has got wifi for us. Nice for those who can't stand not being connected on fb and twitter. Some of the girls and I took up the Sunrise room. And I had my bed pushed right up to the edge to get a real feel of sleeping "next" to nature. And the name didn't fail. Check out the sunrise photo below. That was the sight that greeted me in the morning.
Had a little chat with Uncle Teng. Told us a little about his background and about building Awanmulan. Most of the window panes and doors were bought over from old traditional homes that was going to be demolished. And part of the pool deck was made of old telephone post. He decided to leave the wood as it is instead of filling up the holes and chopping them to the exact length. As original as it can be!
Zee helped planned a trekking for our group - which some within the group just couldn't cope with. We turned back instead of finishing the trail. Guide said we were just too slow. Most of our food were catered and Zee helped us with BBQ. Of course we did a little cooking - instant noodles! Haha. We ate so much, we finished most of the snacks we bought - which was A LOT.
It was a refreshing trip. Will be back again. Simply a great place to chill. Just pray I don't bump into a group like mine, we were pretty loud till wee hours in the morning. :-p
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Short Cameron Trip
5th - 6th November 2011
Seriously, it was great to go away with a few cool colleagues. A rather short trip but a little fresh air in the mountain is great. We stayed at the Crown Imperial Court right near the night market. It was a 3 bedroom apartment that can accomodate 9. A little to big but nice to have lots of space! Haha.
We splurge a little with tea at the Smokehouse. Oh my, don't think I'll go there again. But the place was really nice and cozy.
Seriously, it was great to go away with a few cool colleagues. A rather short trip but a little fresh air in the mountain is great. We stayed at the Crown Imperial Court right near the night market. It was a 3 bedroom apartment that can accomodate 9. A little to big but nice to have lots of space! Haha.
We splurge a little with tea at the Smokehouse. Oh my, don't think I'll go there again. But the place was really nice and cozy.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Tioman Island @ East Divers Tioman
8th - 11th July 2011
My 1st trip to Tioman Island. We started our journey pretty late with all of us coming from work and different directions. It seemed like a pretty long drive to Hotel Seri Malaysia. Lots of dark winding road towards our accommodation for the night. Soo, Sam, Theng Theng and myself was to meet Adam nearby our Seri Malaysia. It was then that we realized our car trunk was broken into during our dinner near my house. It was definitely heart breaking to find out 2 bags were taken. We went to 2 different police station and stayed up to 4am to make the reports.
Day 1
2 dives
The next morning, we went back to the station to collect the report and thank God we managed to get Sam's contact lenses. We took our ferry from Tanjung Gemuk. The ride wasn't the most enjoyable thing. It was 2 hours and the ferry was packed full. Plus, the ferry stopped at multiple jetty on the island! We reached Tekek Jetty and our "taxi" took us on a 5mins ride to East Divers Tioman. There, we met our divemaster for the next few days - Keat. Considering the amount of sleep we had, we managed 2 dives on the 1st day. Glad that the incident didn't spoil it all.
Day 2
3 dives + 1 night dive
I had my 1st photo with a green turtle! I also buddied with Chris, a swiss guy who usually dives in lakes. One of the things we didn't do during my 1st night dive was experiencing the glowing plankton. Glad we saw it this time.
Day 3
2 dives
We did the right thing to extend our trip by another day. It was just another 2 more dives but a lot more relaxing and less rush. We took the challenge at a more demanding, less visited site where the surface waves were stronger but the sight was just beeaaautiful.
Day 4
As usual, the packing and saying goodbye is hard. Don't know when is the next time I'll see the underwater world. We went for a predinner then dinner then suddenly something adventurous came to mind - supper Beef Bah Kut Teh in Malacca. The supposingly 30mins drive ended up more than 3 hours. :-p Yup, we were adventurous.
It was a great trip where we met new friends like Hendrix, Sly, Claris, May, Steve and Cindy. Tioman is a huge island. Probably many more sites to explore next time. :)
My 1st trip to Tioman Island. We started our journey pretty late with all of us coming from work and different directions. It seemed like a pretty long drive to Hotel Seri Malaysia. Lots of dark winding road towards our accommodation for the night. Soo, Sam, Theng Theng and myself was to meet Adam nearby our Seri Malaysia. It was then that we realized our car trunk was broken into during our dinner near my house. It was definitely heart breaking to find out 2 bags were taken. We went to 2 different police station and stayed up to 4am to make the reports.
Day 1
2 dives
The next morning, we went back to the station to collect the report and thank God we managed to get Sam's contact lenses. We took our ferry from Tanjung Gemuk. The ride wasn't the most enjoyable thing. It was 2 hours and the ferry was packed full. Plus, the ferry stopped at multiple jetty on the island! We reached Tekek Jetty and our "taxi" took us on a 5mins ride to East Divers Tioman. There, we met our divemaster for the next few days - Keat. Considering the amount of sleep we had, we managed 2 dives on the 1st day. Glad that the incident didn't spoil it all.
Photo by Sly & Soo
Day 2
3 dives + 1 night dive
I had my 1st photo with a green turtle! I also buddied with Chris, a swiss guy who usually dives in lakes. One of the things we didn't do during my 1st night dive was experiencing the glowing plankton. Glad we saw it this time.
Photo by Sly
Day 3
2 dives
We did the right thing to extend our trip by another day. It was just another 2 more dives but a lot more relaxing and less rush. We took the challenge at a more demanding, less visited site where the surface waves were stronger but the sight was just beeaaautiful.
Day 4
As usual, the packing and saying goodbye is hard. Don't know when is the next time I'll see the underwater world. We went for a predinner then dinner then suddenly something adventurous came to mind - supper Beef Bah Kut Teh in Malacca. The supposingly 30mins drive ended up more than 3 hours. :-p Yup, we were adventurous.
It was a great trip where we met new friends like Hendrix, Sly, Claris, May, Steve and Cindy. Tioman is a huge island. Probably many more sites to explore next time. :)
Thursday, June 09, 2011
CG Retreat cum Missions Project
3rd – 7th June 2011
It was a great rush to the airport! In the end, Michelle, Albert, Aaron, Jamie and myself made it to KLIA rather early. We met Alex & Grace for supper in Kuching. Peter & Sharon, our wonderful host not only opened their house to 8 us but drove us around in 2 cars throughout our stay.
The next day, we took a ride to Anah Rais Longhouse to take some shots of their lifestyle. We also went to Semengoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Reserve to see Orang Utan feeding. We were very blessed that 8 of them came for feeding. The last one that came was a huge one called Ritchie. The others seemed to run away when he came. Guess he is the boss! Marilyn finally joined us after that - after working on her road show event. We went to the "pasar" to check out the local stuff.
On Sunday and we separated into 2 groups to do some recording. I went to Christ Baptist Church’s Iban Service. Knowing out little understanding of the language, Pastor threw in quite a bit of English to help us. Oh, and somewhere in the middle of the sermon, I became a “prop” for an illustration. His advice was never go to sleep with a barrier between husband & wife after an argument. It was an emotional time for the church after the sermon when pastor told them to go around and seek reconciliation.
We proceed to Convenent Fellowship Centre after to join the other group for a few more testimony recording. It was rather tiring especially more for Grace as it was after a full day wedding shoot the day before. So we watched Xmen that night!
The next day, we went to a village to record more testimonies. By the last day we were pretty tired out. A number of us went for a nice good massage before heading back home! In between all that, glad I managed to squeeze some time to meet up with Andrea. We haven't catch up since we both left our previous job.
My highlight of the trip is definitely the faith testimony of these people.
It was a great rush to the airport! In the end, Michelle, Albert, Aaron, Jamie and myself made it to KLIA rather early. We met Alex & Grace for supper in Kuching. Peter & Sharon, our wonderful host not only opened their house to 8 us but drove us around in 2 cars throughout our stay.
The next day, we took a ride to Anah Rais Longhouse to take some shots of their lifestyle. We also went to Semengoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Reserve to see Orang Utan feeding. We were very blessed that 8 of them came for feeding. The last one that came was a huge one called Ritchie. The others seemed to run away when he came. Guess he is the boss! Marilyn finally joined us after that - after working on her road show event. We went to the "pasar" to check out the local stuff.
On Sunday and we separated into 2 groups to do some recording. I went to Christ Baptist Church’s Iban Service. Knowing out little understanding of the language, Pastor threw in quite a bit of English to help us. Oh, and somewhere in the middle of the sermon, I became a “prop” for an illustration. His advice was never go to sleep with a barrier between husband & wife after an argument. It was an emotional time for the church after the sermon when pastor told them to go around and seek reconciliation.
We proceed to Convenent Fellowship Centre after to join the other group for a few more testimony recording. It was rather tiring especially more for Grace as it was after a full day wedding shoot the day before. So we watched Xmen that night!
The next day, we went to a village to record more testimonies. By the last day we were pretty tired out. A number of us went for a nice good massage before heading back home! In between all that, glad I managed to squeeze some time to meet up with Andrea. We haven't catch up since we both left our previous job.
My highlight of the trip is definitely the faith testimony of these people.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Dew Crew Retreat 2011
15th – 17th May 2011
Morib
After our recent trip to Morib for a getaway, we proposed the same place for retreat. It was a nice eating trip and enjoying each other's company. A good time of sharing, playing monopoly deal, silly ice breaker games & making silly videos of ourselves. We laugh so hard till we tear. We swam at night and the pool water was surprisingly warm!
Since our retreat should always include a team building activity, we got a group from Laser Tag Malaysia to bring the game to us! The game was conducted within Impiana Morib Hotel compound. It was really fun for all of us as we like paintball but some really can’t take the pain. With Laser Tag, we really enjoyed the game - hiding, shooting and conquering. My only problem was that it was really difficult to aim as you don’t know where your shot reaches. It is probably more fun in their iCity facility where you can see where your laser line is. We ran a lot and was already tired out by the 3rd game.
We will so definitely do this again!
Photo below was taken at the Jugra hill lighthouse.
Morib
After our recent trip to Morib for a getaway, we proposed the same place for retreat. It was a nice eating trip and enjoying each other's company. A good time of sharing, playing monopoly deal, silly ice breaker games & making silly videos of ourselves. We laugh so hard till we tear. We swam at night and the pool water was surprisingly warm!
Since our retreat should always include a team building activity, we got a group from Laser Tag Malaysia to bring the game to us! The game was conducted within Impiana Morib Hotel compound. It was really fun for all of us as we like paintball but some really can’t take the pain. With Laser Tag, we really enjoyed the game - hiding, shooting and conquering. My only problem was that it was really difficult to aim as you don’t know where your shot reaches. It is probably more fun in their iCity facility where you can see where your laser line is. We ran a lot and was already tired out by the 3rd game.
We will so definitely do this again!
Photo below was taken at the Jugra hill lighthouse.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Hat Yai
23rd – 25th April 2011
This is one random trip that my friends and I booked spontaneously. Since I’ve never been there, and most of us are a little stressed up, I thought let’s just go! We stayed at Lee Gardens Plaza Hotel. The elevator stinks, the room stinks and the lobby stinks. Will never stay there again, there are plenty more pleasant hotels nearby. But it is very convenient with shopping complexes just next door.
Shopping for stuff like mangoes, dried mangoes, cashew nuts are much more reasonable than back home. But a challenge to carry them back. Oh Swensen’s ice cream is MUCH cheaper there too. Yes, yes, how can I forget the beers.
The city is dusty but the food was great - definitely need to get a little further from the hotels as those too near ALWAYS overcharge tourist. We got around a lot with the “tuk-tuk” local taxis. It is challenging for me as other than Thai, the locals only speak hokkien. I can understand the dialect but totally can’t speak it. Wished my family spoke more dialects.
This is one random trip that my friends and I booked spontaneously. Since I’ve never been there, and most of us are a little stressed up, I thought let’s just go! We stayed at Lee Gardens Plaza Hotel. The elevator stinks, the room stinks and the lobby stinks. Will never stay there again, there are plenty more pleasant hotels nearby. But it is very convenient with shopping complexes just next door.
Shopping for stuff like mangoes, dried mangoes, cashew nuts are much more reasonable than back home. But a challenge to carry them back. Oh Swensen’s ice cream is MUCH cheaper there too. Yes, yes, how can I forget the beers.
The city is dusty but the food was great - definitely need to get a little further from the hotels as those too near ALWAYS overcharge tourist. We got around a lot with the “tuk-tuk” local taxis. It is challenging for me as other than Thai, the locals only speak hokkien. I can understand the dialect but totally can’t speak it. Wished my family spoke more dialects.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Dive Trip 2
15th – 18th April 2011
Advanced Certification!
Can’t believe it’s been almost 9 months since my 1st dive. I was very determined to do a second dive last year but I changed job and being so new in the role, there was never a suitable time to take leave.
This trip, I gathered people and ensure it was a slightly longer trip than last year. It’s Tenggol Island again but there is just so much to explore there! Together with my buddy Tee Hui, I got Sam, Mark, Karen and Sakti on this trip. We also met Douglas and Chee Wai who were doing their advanced certification with us.
We were delayed on our journey there so we reached pretty late at Mayang Sari, Dungun.
2 Dives
When we reached the island, we were separated by leisure divers and those taking the advanced certification. And the comedy begins. Funny story 1: Douglas descended with his snorkel! Yea, guess he thought he didn’t need air until he started to drink some water. Funny story 2: Chee Wai fell asleep drinking milk! That was a classic sight, would have been a great photo to post but we didn’t manage to take in time.
Day 2
3 Dives + 1 Night Dive
Sam was suppose to perform out of air with any one of us and she chose Chee Wai under water. To everyone’s surprise, she tapped him on the shoulder and he took a slight look and swam away! Ever since that, he is dubbed the runaway-buddy. Apparently he didn't see anyone. Haha. Guess the only thing he saw were these beautiful "Christmas trees".
After a few dives I feel I have so much better control of movements underwater. Happiness. Diving with current was interesting. You practically get pushed pretty far even with minimum movement. When we did night dive, it wasn’t as scary as I thought. Torch lights very much lighted up the whole place. But we MUST have another funny story so... Chee Wai was out of air within a few minutes after descending. He showed his pressure level going up and down as he inhale and exhale. Of course with our instructor Soo’s expertise, he found Chee Wai’s tank not fully opened. During this dive, we saw a very rarely spotted flat worm! It’s beautiful!
It was a tiring day! So we slept pretty early. Half way through the night, someone started speaking in teochew! I thought it was a one off and soon it became almost conversational. :-p I found my buddy sleep talking.
Day 3
3 Dives
It was our 1st deep dive to a ship wreck! Before I know it, Soo was pointing to my right and there was it, a ship wreck. It’s really cool as many type of fish just swims around it. Did any of us experienced nitrogen narcosis? Nope. We were even emotional and heart broken when Soo said we failed. As we ascend to do our safety stop, we took some photos. Chee Wai passed his camera to Soo and somehow he didn’t loop the holder on his hand. We watched as the camera floated up and Soo not realizing it told Chee Wai to stay when he attempt to swim up to get it. It was only after Soo tried to use his camera that he realised it was missing! Thank God we found the camera floating nearby.
On our 2nd dive, we were all a little down as we wanted to attempt another deep dive the next morning to pass our certification but Soo said there wasn’t sufficient time. He had to rub it in by telling us he has never failed so many candidates at one trip before. Sigh. We saw a lot of fish on this dive – huge batfish and angel fish and was chasing after them to take photos.
Before our 3rd dive, he finally broke the news. It was another one of his con joke and we ALL fell for it. Sigh, that’s our instructor. I get to launch the sausage for our safety stop. Haha. Yes I am excited about every little thing I learned.
That night, my buddy spoke in her sleep again, this time in English... and coincidently Chee Wai got up to use the washroom. I'm sure he was pretty shocked!
Day 4
Saying goodbye to the staff and Tenggol island is hard. On our boat ride back to mainland, we were stopped by marine police. How embarrassing! Most of us naughty folks were not wearing life jackets. We got away with a warning. :-p
Advanced Certification!
Can’t believe it’s been almost 9 months since my 1st dive. I was very determined to do a second dive last year but I changed job and being so new in the role, there was never a suitable time to take leave.
This trip, I gathered people and ensure it was a slightly longer trip than last year. It’s Tenggol Island again but there is just so much to explore there! Together with my buddy Tee Hui, I got Sam, Mark, Karen and Sakti on this trip. We also met Douglas and Chee Wai who were doing their advanced certification with us.
We were delayed on our journey there so we reached pretty late at Mayang Sari, Dungun.
Photo by Soo
Day 12 Dives
When we reached the island, we were separated by leisure divers and those taking the advanced certification. And the comedy begins. Funny story 1: Douglas descended with his snorkel! Yea, guess he thought he didn’t need air until he started to drink some water. Funny story 2: Chee Wai fell asleep drinking milk! That was a classic sight, would have been a great photo to post but we didn’t manage to take in time.
Day 2
3 Dives + 1 Night Dive
Sam was suppose to perform out of air with any one of us and she chose Chee Wai under water. To everyone’s surprise, she tapped him on the shoulder and he took a slight look and swam away! Ever since that, he is dubbed the runaway-buddy. Apparently he didn't see anyone. Haha. Guess the only thing he saw were these beautiful "Christmas trees".
Photo by Soo
After a few dives I feel I have so much better control of movements underwater. Happiness. Diving with current was interesting. You practically get pushed pretty far even with minimum movement. When we did night dive, it wasn’t as scary as I thought. Torch lights very much lighted up the whole place. But we MUST have another funny story so... Chee Wai was out of air within a few minutes after descending. He showed his pressure level going up and down as he inhale and exhale. Of course with our instructor Soo’s expertise, he found Chee Wai’s tank not fully opened. During this dive, we saw a very rarely spotted flat worm! It’s beautiful!
Photo by Chee Wai
It was a tiring day! So we slept pretty early. Half way through the night, someone started speaking in teochew! I thought it was a one off and soon it became almost conversational. :-p I found my buddy sleep talking.
Day 3
3 Dives
It was our 1st deep dive to a ship wreck! Before I know it, Soo was pointing to my right and there was it, a ship wreck. It’s really cool as many type of fish just swims around it. Did any of us experienced nitrogen narcosis? Nope. We were even emotional and heart broken when Soo said we failed. As we ascend to do our safety stop, we took some photos. Chee Wai passed his camera to Soo and somehow he didn’t loop the holder on his hand. We watched as the camera floated up and Soo not realizing it told Chee Wai to stay when he attempt to swim up to get it. It was only after Soo tried to use his camera that he realised it was missing! Thank God we found the camera floating nearby.
On our 2nd dive, we were all a little down as we wanted to attempt another deep dive the next morning to pass our certification but Soo said there wasn’t sufficient time. He had to rub it in by telling us he has never failed so many candidates at one trip before. Sigh. We saw a lot of fish on this dive – huge batfish and angel fish and was chasing after them to take photos.
Before our 3rd dive, he finally broke the news. It was another one of his con joke and we ALL fell for it. Sigh, that’s our instructor. I get to launch the sausage for our safety stop. Haha. Yes I am excited about every little thing I learned.
That night, my buddy spoke in her sleep again, this time in English... and coincidently Chee Wai got up to use the washroom. I'm sure he was pretty shocked!
Day 4
Saying goodbye to the staff and Tenggol island is hard. On our boat ride back to mainland, we were stopped by marine police. How embarrassing! Most of us naughty folks were not wearing life jackets. We got away with a warning. :-p
Monday, March 21, 2011
Charge Up! Conference 2011
17th – 20th March 2011
It’s our annual church geek gathering! :-p
No no no, it’s the cool bunch gathering! We had great sharing by Choon Ean, Grace, Alex, Louis, Kee Sitt and lots of other industry experts. This year, I had small part. I get to share on how we use our digital mixer M7CL for stage monitoring. ;-)
Still amazed at how much sweat and tears put in by the team. It is incredible how you all function well even after all the sleepless nights. Salute!
2012 is our Sabbath year, so we won’t be having a Charge Up! Conference. Instead, the Livewire! team will take a break for Sabbath Summit. There will be Bolt Youth Media Camp though. Dates TBC.
No no no, it’s the cool bunch gathering! We had great sharing by Choon Ean, Grace, Alex, Louis, Kee Sitt and lots of other industry experts. This year, I had small part. I get to share on how we use our digital mixer M7CL for stage monitoring. ;-)
Still amazed at how much sweat and tears put in by the team. It is incredible how you all function well even after all the sleepless nights. Salute!
2012 is our Sabbath year, so we won’t be having a Charge Up! Conference. Instead, the Livewire! team will take a break for Sabbath Summit. There will be Bolt Youth Media Camp though. Dates TBC.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Sales Conference 2011
Team Building at Hard Rock Penang
18th – 20th February 2011
Almost the whole company as well as our contract staff get to go for this trip. Glad everyone get to enjoy the place. It’s a pretty hotel. The ground floor rooms opens to the pool. We had a number of team building games and that was fun. We were a noisy large group. Hope we didn’t spoil it for the other guests.
Love all details of music on door handles, room names, posters photos all over the hotel. Hey, it’s Hard Rock Hotel!
18th – 20th February 2011
Almost the whole company as well as our contract staff get to go for this trip. Glad everyone get to enjoy the place. It’s a pretty hotel. The ground floor rooms opens to the pool. We had a number of team building games and that was fun. We were a noisy large group. Hope we didn’t spoil it for the other guests.
Love all details of music on door handles, room names, posters photos all over the hotel. Hey, it’s Hard Rock Hotel!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Getaway at Morib
13th – 15th February 2011
This was a last minute planned get away since Sam and Chin Yee booked the accommodation but Fui Ping had some urgent things to get done. Thought that a break would be great since I haven’t had much rest lately, well, ever since I started this new job, it’s been a little crazy.
We stayed at the chalets in Impian Morib Hotel. The place was surprisingly well maintained. The place was clean and very quiet indeed considering it was a long weekend. It was great caused we practically had the whole place to ourselves. We didn’t do much but watch movie and ate lots of seafood.
But do take note, although it is beach front, I personally won’t advice anyone swimming there. The water is really filthy.
It is still one relaxing-lazy trip!
This was a last minute planned get away since Sam and Chin Yee booked the accommodation but Fui Ping had some urgent things to get done. Thought that a break would be great since I haven’t had much rest lately, well, ever since I started this new job, it’s been a little crazy.
We stayed at the chalets in Impian Morib Hotel. The place was surprisingly well maintained. The place was clean and very quiet indeed considering it was a long weekend. It was great caused we practically had the whole place to ourselves. We didn’t do much but watch movie and ate lots of seafood.
But do take note, although it is beach front, I personally won’t advice anyone swimming there. The water is really filthy.
It is still one relaxing-lazy trip!
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