I think we tend to forget how small we are in the overall scheme of things and allow our false ego and pride to get in the way of our happiness and personal well being. We need to look at things from a bigger perspective and need to understand that there's more to meaning to life than just stepping over each other in order to get ahead. And for what? Its neither meaningful nor enriching. This is perfectly clear to me whenever I get on the water but on terra firma in the narrowly defined so called life of the working stiffs this can be a tard murky. Whatever! Have a great weekend!

Somewhere on a River @ Borneo Highlands, Kuching far far away from the rat race ...

Labels: Rantings

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"I surrender! Please Save Me!"

Labels: Corporate Life

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Long clouds in Kuching 26 June 2007

Labels: Corporate Life, Kuching Skies

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Freddy, Bong, FH2o, Steven, Chai, Nigel, Hua, Chong & Liew @ Bengoh put-in, 24 June 2007

Bong & Steven in high spirits.

Ah Hua and his group of outdoor trekking and 'dragon-boating' friends, Steven, Chow, Liew, Bong, Chai and Chong had already taken two of our customised kayaking trips previously. 'Customised' as in challenging and tough enough for these macho guys to break into a sweat!

Steven Chai getting a kick-start!

Chai and Liew in perfect tandem

But on this sunday they wanted a relatively 'easy' 5 hours plus trip from Bengoh to Kg. Git. But this does not deter Nigel, tough visitor from the UK who signed up in the last minute on the recommendation of his sister Sue who also incidentally had also done two of our kayaking trips. Nigel even opted for a single kayak unlike the the other slackers!

Ah Hua and his gang on the waters.Somehow food always tastes better in the great outdoors!

"Wat u wan, we ada one!" - including a shrimp caught by Chai with his bare hands and now in Goh's BIG mouth!

We had fun and Goh even coined a localised and 'malaysianised' slogan for the trip "Wat u wan, we ada one!" Figure that one out folks! And to the uninitiated it means - "Whatever you want on the trip - we've got it baby!"

Floating past a rocky outcrop somewhere near Giam, Borneo Highlands on a Sunday morning ...

Nigel Mills from the UK first time visitor to Kuching and lapping it up!

Labels: Kuching Kayaking

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Labels: Inspiration

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I received a number of excited phone calls and sms from friends just now urging me to go outside and take a look at the sun! Now!I did and saw a midday miracle of a rainbow halo around the sun.

I managed to take a few snaps against the glaring sun and could only marvel at it for about half an hour before it disappeared.
This really made my day.
Wow! What a Beautiful Friday.I trust that you manage to catch this midday miracle if you are in Kuching today!

Labels: Inspiration

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"Ordinary" Rainbow Clouds, Kuching.

Enjoy your ordinary miracle day, today! And don't let it slip away with too many boring meetings! *gulp*

Labels: About Life, Corporate Life

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A bra and a pair of knickers have been blamed for a flood and road collapse in County Durham.

Northumbrian Water said the underwear was flushed down a toilet and caused a blockage in a sewage pipe in Middleton-St-George, near Darlington.

Heavy rain, together with a build up of grease and fat, caused the pipe to burst and the road above to collapse.

The road will remain closed for days and Northumbrian Water estimates repairs will cost more than £15,000.

The company has now urged residents to think carefully about what they flush away.

'Offending items'

A spokeswoman said: "If the underwear had not been flushed down the toilet, this would not have happened. It was very irresponsible behaviour.

These pipes are not designed to carry bras and knickers Northumbrian Water spokeswoman

"When we dug down to inspect the damage, we found a bra and knickers had snagged itself across the nine-inch diameter of the pipe.

"There was also a heavy build-up of grease and fat, which contributed to the situation. We were forced to repair a 2m section of sewer and a 10m section of road was affected.

"These pipes are not designed to carry bras and knickers."

The spokeswoman said it was impossible to trace the owners of the underwear.

She added: "Unfortunately no-one wants to even touch the offending items. They will remain bagged for a time and then disposed of properly."

Labels: About Life

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When we first encountered it and from a distance, I thought it was a building on fire! It wasn't. But on closer examination and with an explanation from Mr. Sim it was a shed for the smoking of coconut meat or kernel of the coconut to make copra. It is more efficient than drying it out in the sun.

Copra can keep after smoking and are lighter to transport as most of the moisture are driven out in the smoking process. They are transported in gunny sacks by boats to the 'oil mills' in Kuching where coconut oil are extracted from the copra. The by-products after the oil has been extracted are used as animal fodder. The husks of the coconuts are used for burning to create the smoke. It is all very eco-friendly; except for the smokes of course but nothing quite as near threatening as the emissions from our more polluting urban industries.

Trust that you saw something new and learn something interesting over the weekend; be it smoking or otherwise ...

Labels: General

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Lonely Kuching Sunset Tree

Labels: Corporate Life

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I trust that you all received a better card than I did today .... *sigh*

Labels: About Life

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After a breakfast meeting, I was rushing to get myself a small backpack for my 'new' found pastime of cycling and I dropped by Times Square on the way to Sentral Station to catch the KLIA Express to KLIA. I was on the upper level when I heard some classical music coming from the atrium and went to take a look, to discover that the 1st KL International Dance Festival was being held there and ballroom dancing was on the cards. Captivated, I took a few snaps before I reluctantly hurried to do my last minute shopping. Pity there's no Cha-Cha or Tango for me!Irregardless of whether dancing is on the cards or not - have a Great Weekend!

Labels: General, Photography

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Read the bottom line , translated - "You must be MENTAL to try this!"

Someone in the office (with a bit of time on their hand) emailed me this (amongst other things ...) which perhaps could be the perfect slimming diet - you would not be able to stomach it! Yucky yuck yuck!

Frog Juice anyone? *puke*

Labels: Food, General

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Water level rose to knee-high around the Concorde Hotel's carpark - 11 June, 2007

Concorde Hotel carpark under water after three hours of rain in Kuala Lumpur - 11 June, 2007

Car owners trying to restart their cars that were stuck in Concorde Hotel's carpark which was flooded after three hours of rain in Kuala Lumpur. - 11 June, 2007

Labels: General

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On the 'beach' @ Sungai Sarawak Kiri, Borneo Highlands 24 May 2007

Labels: Kuching Kayaking

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I love children as they serve to remind us of the sweet innocence we once had and in a way sadly had lost along the way as we grow up.The beautiful innocence in being happy with the simple things and pleasures of life when less was more and the promise of a beautiful and perfect tomorrow was true.Does anyone of us missed being young and innocent once or even remembered it vaguely? Or have we grown cynical, bitter and weary as the years wear by?Perhaps these images of the kampong kids I snapped while cycling around Kg Tanju, Kg Beradek and Kg Beliong on sunday may serve to jolt some memories back to a time when we can still find the purity of life and that it was once truly beautiful and true ...Irregardless, I am glad I had my little camera with me and the privilege of encountering and to be able to capture such sweetness in a timely manner. They made my Sunday; and I trust that they made your day too. Have a productive week ahead which if not innocent may at least be sweet! Be Well.

Labels: About Life

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As usual, I was not thinking too much about it and foolishly smugly feeling safe in Kuala Lumpur until I checked into this four-stars hotel and saw their sign at the check-in reception counter ...

Labels: Travelling

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Reluctant wait

Waiting in the shade for the arrival of the boats

It's back to school for my children this morning but for these school girls at Kg Beradek; it was back to school yesterday as they have to travel first by a 45 minutes boat ride to Kg Golbit, Kuching and then by another 20 minutes bus ride from there to their boarding school at Kg Bako.

Back to school - by boats

So how did you children travel to school today?Down Sg Tungui heading for Kg Golbit, Kuching 10th June 2007

Labels: About Life, Explorations

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I'm off to Kuala Lumpur (again) later this morning and would be back in Kuching on Saturday evening with thoughts of Kg Beliong Sangkap where we plan to cycle and explore early on Sunday morning. With thoughts like that, no work or other pressures would bother me the slightest bit! Re-cycle this thought and have a great weekend ahead!Young malay mother shading her baby awaits to board the sampan at Kpg Tiang Api, 4th June'07

Labels: General, Travelling

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Off the beaten track @ Kg Beliong, 4th June 2007

We cycled for over 6 hours on and off the beaten tracks and even where there were no tracks! And we did it on simple single-speed (mine had 3 speed) second hand Japanese bicycles probably sold for scraps and which we bought at a bargain price of RM180/- each. To think that most 'serious' mountain bikers would likely be scoffing at us in their fancy 27-speed alloy frame mountain bikes costing upwards of RM3K or more! *gasp*We crossed over dozens of streams on these narrow wooden bridges

Anyway, whatever bikes they used; I would challenge them to be able to keep up with 67-year old Mr. Sim on whatever road or terrain - I couldn't! *sigh*Visiting Mr. Sim's eldest brother house at Kg Tanju and parking our bikes outsideMr. Sim looking across Batang Samarahan to Kg Beliong where he grew up as a child

Labels: Cycling, Explorations

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On the road to Beliong ...

Boarding the sampan to get across Batang Samarahan to Beliong

After crossing Batang Samarahan by ferry; we have to cross it once again, but this time by sampan and with our bicycles on it to get to Beliong – our destination to begin our cycling adventure and exploration.

Getting our bikes onto the sampan

Happy passengers on a sampan - Mr. Sim senior & junior (Khian Hui)

Beliong used to be a thriving small town in the heydays when the prices for coconuts products were high. But that was decades ago and sadly it’s more like a semi-deserted small village now. A single row of double storey wooden shophouse is the only structure that bears testament to its importance as the center for the coconuts trade and where a number of Chinese used to lived. Most of the former residents of Beliong had long left to find a better living elsewhere.

A single row of wooden shophouses in Beliong

The main and perhaps the only reason the Chinese come to Beliong these days is to visit the famous ‘Tokong Fuk Teck K’ung’ temple there. In fact they are building a new pagoda as an extension to it which is currently under construction.

Altars @ Tokong Fuk Teck K’ung, Beliong

Parking our bikes in the shade outside the temple's compound

As Sim senior and junior are Buddhists, we dropped by the temple for a short while to pray and asked for blessings and safe-passage for our cycling trip. Mr. Sim was born in Beliong but left when he was only 14 to find work in Kuching. He still has a 13 acres coconut plantation that he used to help his parents work on. Sadly the plantation had long been abandoned. Mr. Sim was a building carpenter before he retired and this trip back to Beliong is full of childhood memories and recollections for him. I was just as excited for him as he was about going back to his childhood place.

Fixing the loose chain with tools borrowed from the temple's caretaker

After the temple visit and a minor adjustment to Khian Hui’s bicycle whose chain had came off; we eagerly set out on our way to look for Mr Sim’s coconut plantation and old house. His last trip there was decades ago … and we were as excited as boy scouts on their first field trip!

Crossing our first bridge (this was the widest!) and we were well on our way!

Mr. Sim gives pause to reflect on life since he left Beliong at 14; and he had few regrets if any.

Labels: About Life, Cycling, Explorations

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Just enough room for 3 bicycles and 1 person in the back of the van

At the front of the ferry; eager to be the first to get off

After ‘stuffing’ our 3 bicycles into the back of my van, my 67-year old neighbor Mr. Sim, his son and me set off early on Monday morning from Tabuan Jaya Baru 1 to catch the ferry at Kota Samarahan about a half an hour drive away.

I'm so glad I bought the van as it is really coming in useful

The ferries (there were 2 of them) provided a vital service to get from Kota Samarahan to Asajaya on the other side of Batang Samarahan. The ferry service used to be free but RM1/- per vehicle is a bargain as the alternative land route is much longer but is necessary at times when the ferries cannot operate at low tides.

Pretty name, pretty morning ...

Sitting and waiting ...

After crossing the river, it’s another 20 minutes drive away before we turned off the main road to catch a sampan this time to get across the river to Beliong where we began our cycling adventures yesterday …

The 'other' Primrose as our path crossed/overlapped(?) mid-river

Labels: Cycling, Explorations

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"Look Mum - No Hands!"

Families that kayak together - have fun together!

2 British families who are living and working in KL are on holidays in Kuching for the first time and took the holiday package from CPH Travel Agency which includes our rainforest kayaking trip. They have teenage kids and like all teenagers they get bored easily and were reluctantly 'joining in the fun' with their parents who wanted to drag them away from televisions and computers.

See, even the parents can have fun!

But as soon as we got going, guess who were having the most fun along the way - so much so that they were dragging their feet when it was time to get out of the waters.

Climbing a hanging vine though more tiring, is a lot more fun than climbing stairs.

The Kelly and Slater families were most appreciative of the fun and adventures that they had and though not necessary; insisted and tipped us generously. We enjoyed it as much seeing other people sharing and having the same fun and sense of wonderment that we do.

Somethings are really larger in life than seen on television ...

Labels: Kuching Kayaking

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Some folks prefer to stand on their kayak instead of sitting on them (don't they realise that's why we call them 'sit-on-top') and choose to punt with their paddles instead of using them as, well paddles?

Whichever way, the two families from the UK had a great Gawai paddle today down at Borneo Highlands together with traveller Mark from New Zealand who enjoyed the tuak (rice wine) even more!

What a better way to end a kayaking trip than to pay my friends Liza & Lars at Kg Semadang a Selamat Gawai Dayak visit. Our kayaking guests from the UK and NZ enjoyed it too!

Labels: Kuching Kayaking

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Sun reflected on Sungai Sarawak Kiri @ Danu, 24 May 2007

Labels: General

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