A classic moment to end 2009!
This morning we had a Press Conference with YB Datuk Seri Utama Dr Rais Yatim -announcing our new offering to the public ; Creative Industry Fund (CIF). Frankly, the PC was the longest PC (duration) I've ever attended since I joined the organization. But it was a session with full of information, precise and detailed. Since the offering is still new, the media did post some critical questions such as the interest rate, processing TAT and eligibility. Replies were solely answered by the Minister. I l kinda like the way he answered - straight to the point and precise - giving no room for the press to question further. A set of skill and knowledge that perhaps may be acquired from experience and an art of language.
Frankly this is something different for the Bank... but a fresh good start though for 2010.
As for the industry ... an opportunity to be grabbed to enrich the local content. Hopefully the Indon movies or drama will be reduced in order to give ways to our local creative people to expose their expertise and produce more home grown products!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
God is Great.
Sometimes, you have to act 'cool' even though there's a 'tsunami' inside you...
Sometimes you have to act 'brave' even though you know that you are the most 'coward' person among your friends... dengar cerita pasal hantu jer (belum tengok lagi) dah kecut..
But that's life...
There was a tsunami inside me yesterday... I had to cool myself down, silently...
How? Makan bubur kat Kak Mah Tomyam!
This is not new actually... This is what I have been facing... trying to control...
Sometimes I managed to control.. Sometimes I did not.
I didn't expect the tsunami to continue... but yes it continues till this morning...
God is Great. This is one of the tests..
Sometimes you have to act 'brave' even though you know that you are the most 'coward' person among your friends... dengar cerita pasal hantu jer (belum tengok lagi) dah kecut..
But that's life...
There was a tsunami inside me yesterday... I had to cool myself down, silently...
How? Makan bubur kat Kak Mah Tomyam!
This is not new actually... This is what I have been facing... trying to control...
Sometimes I managed to control.. Sometimes I did not.
I didn't expect the tsunami to continue... but yes it continues till this morning...
God is Great. This is one of the tests..
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
'Amazing' - How did they do it?
I am sure you guys read this....
There's a saying 'When there's a WILL, there's always a WAY'.
Unfortunately, the will and the way are now being questioned.
But how did they do it?
A question of integrity?
I don't have the answer... Do you??
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Do you know your family roots?
Last weekend I had the opportunity to spend a night at my late grandfather's old house, located at Limbungan, Melaka. Its not that 'old' actually since the old house has an extension to a new modern look house. A small yet cozy enough for my late grandmother, spending her entire life until she passed away 3 years back.
That nite, my father showed us a book that dictates all the happenings in our family since 1824. I am sure some of you guys have heard of 'Hijrat Keluarga'. It was first written in Jawi. I had a bit of a hard time to read it out loud at first until my father took over. Words were written denoting happenings within the family especially occasions like marriage, birth and death.
The 'book' - Buku Hijrat Beranak, Kematian, Perkahwinan dan lain-lain.
This Hijrat was written on the happenings in 1824 ... It was said the whole Singapore was in fire in 1824... My great great grandfather was just about to crawl when this happened...
This patch was written on my birth....
"12 Rabiulakhir 1387 Hijrah, bersamaan 20 Julai 1967, jam 11.15 pagi, cunda Hamidah Mohd Noah (my mum) telah selamat melahirkan seorang anak perempuan di rumah Jalan Maxwell Kuala Lumpur. Kanak2 itu telah diberi nama Arida Ariffin. Moga2 Allah panjangkan umurnya dan murahkan rezekinya yang Halal."
- Abdul Manan bin Abdul Latif, 30 - 7- 67.
My birth was relatively recorded in that book. So do my other siblings'!
That nite we finally talked about our great grand fathers and our roots. That book clearly stated that my family was originated from Singapore. According to my father, some patches of the stories narrated to him attested that we were connected to Munsyi Abdullah. Unfortunately I must say that there was no written evidence to substantiate this...
I found this about Munsyi Abdullah on the net ....
Munshi Abdullah a.k.a Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir (b. 1797, Kampong Pali, Malacca - d. October 1854, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia), son of Sheikh Abdul Kadir d. 1820 Malacca). With a very strict Muslim upbringing and scholarly education, Abdullah's abilities made him a language teacher and interpreter proficient in Arabic, Tamil, Hindustani, English and Malay.
Sometime after June 1819, Abdullah came to Singapore to make a living as an interpreter. He taught Malay to Indian soldiers, British and American missionaries, and on occasion, was private secretary to Raffles.
Abdullah was the first Malay writer to depart from the traditional Malay literary style by writing in the colloquial language. Unlike courtly writing, it was realistic and lively, incorporating many Malay idioms and proverbs.
Despite Abdullah's obscurities, misrepresentations of fact and occasional solecisms in his books on his literary and pilgrimage to Mecca, Munshi Abdullah became the first local Malay to have his works published, and thus has gained the title of being the "Father of modern Malay Literature", his writings remain an inspiration for modern Malay literature. His diary was brought back by a friend after Abdullah died, and so his last journey was published posthumously. Munshi Abdullah Avenue is named after him.
Actually, whether or not we are related to Munsyi Abdullah is not an issue...
I am proud to have found that book.. at least I know who my ancestors were.
We plan to continue the Hijrat..
Thanks to my late grandfather Abdul Manan Abdul Latif for the effort to document everything in writing... He passed away in early 80s.. and just like Munsyi Abdullah he was not burried here in Malaysia... but in Mecca, instead!
That nite, my father showed us a book that dictates all the happenings in our family since 1824. I am sure some of you guys have heard of 'Hijrat Keluarga'. It was first written in Jawi. I had a bit of a hard time to read it out loud at first until my father took over. Words were written denoting happenings within the family especially occasions like marriage, birth and death.
The 'book' - Buku Hijrat Beranak, Kematian, Perkahwinan dan lain-lain.
This Hijrat was written on the happenings in 1824 ... It was said the whole Singapore was in fire in 1824... My great great grandfather was just about to crawl when this happened...
This patch was written on my birth....
"12 Rabiulakhir 1387 Hijrah, bersamaan 20 Julai 1967, jam 11.15 pagi, cunda Hamidah Mohd Noah (my mum) telah selamat melahirkan seorang anak perempuan di rumah Jalan Maxwell Kuala Lumpur. Kanak2 itu telah diberi nama Arida Ariffin. Moga2 Allah panjangkan umurnya dan murahkan rezekinya yang Halal."
- Abdul Manan bin Abdul Latif, 30 - 7- 67.
My birth was relatively recorded in that book. So do my other siblings'!
That nite we finally talked about our great grand fathers and our roots. That book clearly stated that my family was originated from Singapore. According to my father, some patches of the stories narrated to him attested that we were connected to Munsyi Abdullah. Unfortunately I must say that there was no written evidence to substantiate this...
I found this about Munsyi Abdullah on the net ....
Munshi Abdullah a.k.a Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir (b. 1797, Kampong Pali, Malacca - d. October 1854, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia), son of Sheikh Abdul Kadir d. 1820 Malacca). With a very strict Muslim upbringing and scholarly education, Abdullah's abilities made him a language teacher and interpreter proficient in Arabic, Tamil, Hindustani, English and Malay.
Sometime after June 1819, Abdullah came to Singapore to make a living as an interpreter. He taught Malay to Indian soldiers, British and American missionaries, and on occasion, was private secretary to Raffles.
Abdullah was the first Malay writer to depart from the traditional Malay literary style by writing in the colloquial language. Unlike courtly writing, it was realistic and lively, incorporating many Malay idioms and proverbs.
Despite Abdullah's obscurities, misrepresentations of fact and occasional solecisms in his books on his literary and pilgrimage to Mecca, Munshi Abdullah became the first local Malay to have his works published, and thus has gained the title of being the "Father of modern Malay Literature", his writings remain an inspiration for modern Malay literature. His diary was brought back by a friend after Abdullah died, and so his last journey was published posthumously. Munshi Abdullah Avenue is named after him.
Actually, whether or not we are related to Munsyi Abdullah is not an issue...
I am proud to have found that book.. at least I know who my ancestors were.
We plan to continue the Hijrat..
Thanks to my late grandfather Abdul Manan Abdul Latif for the effort to document everything in writing... He passed away in early 80s.. and just like Munsyi Abdullah he was not burried here in Malaysia... but in Mecca, instead!
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Ladies in action!
I've played bowling before but just for fun. Last week, at first I thought I would 'missed' joining the gals (Puspanita of coz) bowling after the DR exercise. Then gotto know the game was held in the evening at 2.30 pm. I rushed to Alamanda Bowling Alley... with Amir.
The other agencies (under MOF - AG, Treasury, BNM, BSN, JPPH, Hasil, EPF and Customs) were already there. There were 3 categories - the VIP's (all the Datins), the Committees's (each agency sent a rep) and team (all agency sent one team).
Datin Linda was a good player. I noticed that she has her own gear - the shoes and the ball too. Lat was our rep in the Committee category. If it wasnt because of the DR, I must have volunteered myself to play... The team (As,Mashitah and 2 other gals ... I couldn't remember their names but they played well - gals, give a big round of applause to yourself!!).
The game commenced around 3.00 pm and they had 3 rounds of game. I went to watch Datin, Lat and the team performed and threw the balls. As they 'strike' ''' Neney and I yelled out and cheered them!
The game ended at 6.30 pm and am proud to say that Datin Linda was announced the 2nd place (you go Datin!!), while Datin Yang (from BNM) was announced the player with the most balls went to the drain :). It was fun though. Our team didnt win any of the top rank place. But they did play with a good team spirit.
What can I say? Thanks gals... for spending your time to be part of the game.
I found this on the net .... Bowling is an anaerobic type of physical exercise, similar to walking with free weights. Bowling helps in burning calories and works muscle groups not usually exercised. The flexing and stretching in bowling works tendons, joints, ligaments, and muscles in the arms and promotes weight loss. Apart from the physical benefits it also has psycho-social benefits, strengthening friendships or creating new ones in groups.
Must do this more often!
Some pics during the game.
The gals with Datin Linda (2nd from right and Pn Azian; extreme right)
Merancang strategi...
Eating time while waiting for the result...
Datin Linda and Puan Sri Hayati (Pengerusi Puspanita MOF).
The other agencies (under MOF - AG, Treasury, BNM, BSN, JPPH, Hasil, EPF and Customs) were already there. There were 3 categories - the VIP's (all the Datins), the Committees's (each agency sent a rep) and team (all agency sent one team).
Datin Linda was a good player. I noticed that she has her own gear - the shoes and the ball too. Lat was our rep in the Committee category. If it wasnt because of the DR, I must have volunteered myself to play... The team (As,Mashitah and 2 other gals ... I couldn't remember their names but they played well - gals, give a big round of applause to yourself!!).
The game commenced around 3.00 pm and they had 3 rounds of game. I went to watch Datin, Lat and the team performed and threw the balls. As they 'strike' ''' Neney and I yelled out and cheered them!
The game ended at 6.30 pm and am proud to say that Datin Linda was announced the 2nd place (you go Datin!!), while Datin Yang (from BNM) was announced the player with the most balls went to the drain :). It was fun though. Our team didnt win any of the top rank place. But they did play with a good team spirit.
What can I say? Thanks gals... for spending your time to be part of the game.
I found this on the net .... Bowling is an anaerobic type of physical exercise, similar to walking with free weights. Bowling helps in burning calories and works muscle groups not usually exercised. The flexing and stretching in bowling works tendons, joints, ligaments, and muscles in the arms and promotes weight loss. Apart from the physical benefits it also has psycho-social benefits, strengthening friendships or creating new ones in groups.
Must do this more often!
Some pics during the game.
The gals with Datin Linda (2nd from right and Pn Azian; extreme right)
Merancang strategi...
Eating time while waiting for the result...
Datin Linda and Puan Sri Hayati (Pengerusi Puspanita MOF).
Mission Accomplished!
Hubby and I have been trying to persuade our one and only lil' precious Amir to have a hair cut. Weird right? Today, we decided by hook or by crook he must have his hair cut!
We went to Manisha's...at Saujana Prima. Luckily there was no customer at all. Hubby grab and held him tight. I had to hold his hands while the 'baiya' (barber la!) cut his hair. It was a 'horrifying' 15 minutes ... as Amir was actually moving his head up and down left and right... He yelled and cried. All sorts of excuses came from his mouth.. "sakit, tangan Amir sakit, telinga Amir ada darah, mak tolong Amir and many more... :)" I tried to 'calm' him down
but to no avail.
Finally, this is the result.
We personally think that he is cuter with the new hair style. Tidy and neater...
To compare before and after the hair cut....
The hair cut cost merely RM6.00 but I think the 'baiya' had a very hard time to control the customer... Maybe Amir was his first experience...
To the 'baiya' thanks anyway! and see you again in 6 months time :)
These pics were taken on 12 Dec at Alamanda. He was playing some dinasour game..
Look at his hair... He looked 'messy'... and 'old'??
This is the new hair style. I think he looks cute ...
We went to Manisha's...at Saujana Prima. Luckily there was no customer at all. Hubby grab and held him tight. I had to hold his hands while the 'baiya' (barber la!) cut his hair. It was a 'horrifying' 15 minutes ... as Amir was actually moving his head up and down left and right... He yelled and cried. All sorts of excuses came from his mouth.. "sakit, tangan Amir sakit, telinga Amir ada darah, mak tolong Amir and many more... :)" I tried to 'calm' him down
but to no avail.
Finally, this is the result.
We personally think that he is cuter with the new hair style. Tidy and neater...
To compare before and after the hair cut....
The hair cut cost merely RM6.00 but I think the 'baiya' had a very hard time to control the customer... Maybe Amir was his first experience...
To the 'baiya' thanks anyway! and see you again in 6 months time :)
These pics were taken on 12 Dec at Alamanda. He was playing some dinasour game..
Look at his hair... He looked 'messy'... and 'old'??
This is the new hair style. I think he looks cute ...
Monday, December 14, 2009
... and you call this a DISASTER
It was 11.40 pm when I received a call from MJ, my Boss. It was a call to be at the Learning Centre. A gentle reminder from MJ - to attend the midnight meeting at 12.00 am for the CMT to declare the disaster and proceed with BCP.
I could barely opened my eyes. Made a point to sms Eddy. My message was simple - CAll Tree activated. This is a simulaton. Less than minutes after that I received another message. It was MJ - requesting me to inform Jay. Obviously Jay is not picking up his phone.
Finally, I got up at 3.00 am and smsed Jay as well as Kama to be at Bangi at 4.00 am. We met at the Guard House and proceed to PKB. Saw Mr Goh and handed over the Notices to Stakeholders. It was 'cheating' actually. I got to know the scenario of the simulation and prepared before hand. Well, at least this could save me time to print at PKB. It takes me less than 10 minutes to draft the notices but it was a long queue if you were to print. I guess the CMT should take into consideration the fact that printer is also considered as a main requirement during this exercise.
It was 5.30 am when the CMT had a second meeting. I joined the meeting .. and what a relief the systems were successfully restored at PKB and they need another half an hour to fall back the system at the HQ and the main state branches.
At this point, KAma was already fallen asleep. I understood that he was from SabakBernam and reached KL around 11.00 pm. It was lucky me when Pn Azian suddenly instructed us to disperse. It was then merely a technical conversion. Overall the simulation was a success.
I went back home at 6.10 am after smsing MJ that Pn Azian had endorsed the completion of the simulation exercise. Arriving home, I saw Amir running towards the door... He must be looking for me..
I continued my sleep....
Believe it or not at 1.00 pm plus the next morning, I got a call from En Rahmat- the last person on the Call Tree list... He is supposed to report to the Learning Centre @ Alternate Site that he got the message. ... (unfortunately he said that he lost the number !!!) But that was after 13 hours the Call Tree was activated! If this were to be a real Disaster... En Rahmat, you are fired!
I could barely opened my eyes. Made a point to sms Eddy. My message was simple - CAll Tree activated. This is a simulaton. Less than minutes after that I received another message. It was MJ - requesting me to inform Jay. Obviously Jay is not picking up his phone.
Finally, I got up at 3.00 am and smsed Jay as well as Kama to be at Bangi at 4.00 am. We met at the Guard House and proceed to PKB. Saw Mr Goh and handed over the Notices to Stakeholders. It was 'cheating' actually. I got to know the scenario of the simulation and prepared before hand. Well, at least this could save me time to print at PKB. It takes me less than 10 minutes to draft the notices but it was a long queue if you were to print. I guess the CMT should take into consideration the fact that printer is also considered as a main requirement during this exercise.
It was 5.30 am when the CMT had a second meeting. I joined the meeting .. and what a relief the systems were successfully restored at PKB and they need another half an hour to fall back the system at the HQ and the main state branches.
At this point, KAma was already fallen asleep. I understood that he was from SabakBernam and reached KL around 11.00 pm. It was lucky me when Pn Azian suddenly instructed us to disperse. It was then merely a technical conversion. Overall the simulation was a success.
I went back home at 6.10 am after smsing MJ that Pn Azian had endorsed the completion of the simulation exercise. Arriving home, I saw Amir running towards the door... He must be looking for me..
I continued my sleep....
Believe it or not at 1.00 pm plus the next morning, I got a call from En Rahmat- the last person on the Call Tree list... He is supposed to report to the Learning Centre @ Alternate Site that he got the message. ... (unfortunately he said that he lost the number !!!) But that was after 13 hours the Call Tree was activated! If this were to be a real Disaster... En Rahmat, you are fired!
A point to ponder?
Recently I had the opportunity to attend quite a number of trainings. I treasure trainings a lot! Its an opportunity not to be missed to empower yourself to be more efficient in whatever field that you involved or messed in!
Last month I was at Social Media Boot Camp. Looking at the name of the training I wonder what was it all about. Spent a bit of my hectic schedule to find out on the same. It was actually on the new media that has been going round for quite some time. Why I said it was quite some time because I knew about this new media which is now known as Social Media last 2 years, when I was with CAT@ VirtualMalaysia.Com. The whole thing is actually on Internet Marketing.
It was more of a refresher course to me. The SEO, the pay per click, keyword etc ... Thanks to my ex-CEO (I better named him :) En Rohizam Md Yusoff (I still remember the spelling of his name! Some ppl spelt his name wrongly!) for giving me the golden opportunity to enhance my knowledge in IT. However, the knowledge is not pretty practicable in this organization. I believe skepticle is still the major reason that hinder some ppl to get 'associated' with Internet Marketing. Maybe its the industry that I involved in today is a bit different from before.
Holistic .... that would be my impression towards Internet Marketing @ Social Media. I believe if the organization plans to run a campaign via this medium, it would be successfully measured. However, without having an expert to run this, it would be quite hassle and tedious. All you need is to have ppl who likes to surf, creative and with analytical mind. Besides, budget would be one of the contributing factor to get it done with 'flying colors'.
I personally think if the current organization plans to run a campaign on branding, this would be the possible medium....
Last month I was at Social Media Boot Camp. Looking at the name of the training I wonder what was it all about. Spent a bit of my hectic schedule to find out on the same. It was actually on the new media that has been going round for quite some time. Why I said it was quite some time because I knew about this new media which is now known as Social Media last 2 years, when I was with CAT@ VirtualMalaysia.Com. The whole thing is actually on Internet Marketing.
It was more of a refresher course to me. The SEO, the pay per click, keyword etc ... Thanks to my ex-CEO (I better named him :) En Rohizam Md Yusoff (I still remember the spelling of his name! Some ppl spelt his name wrongly!) for giving me the golden opportunity to enhance my knowledge in IT. However, the knowledge is not pretty practicable in this organization. I believe skepticle is still the major reason that hinder some ppl to get 'associated' with Internet Marketing. Maybe its the industry that I involved in today is a bit different from before.
Holistic .... that would be my impression towards Internet Marketing @ Social Media. I believe if the organization plans to run a campaign via this medium, it would be successfully measured. However, without having an expert to run this, it would be quite hassle and tedious. All you need is to have ppl who likes to surf, creative and with analytical mind. Besides, budget would be one of the contributing factor to get it done with 'flying colors'.
I personally think if the current organization plans to run a campaign on branding, this would be the possible medium....
Saturday, December 12, 2009
So, you think you are so good?
Saya sengaja memberi topik ini di dalam Bahasa Inggeris kerana kalau diterjemah di dalam Bahasa Malaysia, bahasanya agak kurang enak dan manis untuk didengar.
Saya berpeluang untuk mengikuti kursus 'Memperkasakan Bahasa Malaysia di Media Cetak' anjuran Dewan Bahasa & Pustaka selama 2 hari bermula pada 8-9 Disember 2009. Rata-rata, peserta kursus adalah dari agensi kerajaan. Pada mulanya saya agak kekok untuk bertutur di dalam Bahasa Malaysia sepanjang hari. Apabila disoal oleh Penceramah saya tercari-cari perkataan yang sesuai di dalam Bahasa Malaysia. Sungguh memalukan sekali! Saya perhatikan peserta-peserta lain tidak menghadapi masalah seperti saya .... Jauh di sudut hati saya berharap saya tidak akan disoal lagi kerana saya pasti akan menjawab di dalam Bahasa Inggeris!
Fenomena ini adalah biasa dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia. Pada umumnya, kita mementingkan Bahasa Inggeris kerana Bahasa ini merupakan Bahasa komunikasi antarabangsa. Tetapi, apakah langkah-langkah yang telah kita lakukan untuk memartabatkan Bahasa Ibunda kita sendiri?
Kursus 2 hari ini, sebenarnya telah 'membuka mata dan minda' saya sebagai seorang Melayu. Saya bukanlah seorang yang amat fasih berkomunikasi di dalam Bahasa Inggeris tetapi, di dalam pergaulan seharian, Bahasa Inggeris telah dicampuradukkan dengan Bahasa Malaysia sehingga pada suatu ketika, saya berpendapat Bahasa Malaysia tidak perlu diajar kepada orang Melayu. Pendekatan saya sebenarnya adalah tidak benar kerana, apabila mengikuti kursus ini, saya dapati penulisan di dalam Bahasa Malaysia yang saya selalu lakukan mempunyai kesalahan-kesalahan dari segi teknikal bahasa. Saya lupa apa itu subjek dan predikat. Saya tidak maklum apa itu kata hubung dan apa yang dimaksudkan dengan kata majmuk. Tetapi saya amat mengenali 'verb', adjective, noun, pronouns dan lain-lain...
Walaupun saya selalu membuat laporan terutamanya Kenyataan Pengerusi untuk Laporan Tahunan, saya tidak maklum bahawa setiap laporan sebegini hendaklah ditulis dalam bentuk ayat pasif. Setelah mempelajari dan mendalami beberapa teknik sepanjang 2 hari kursus, saya kini dapat mengenalpasti kesalahan-kesalahan teknikal yang selama ini saya yakin adalah betul dan tepat.
Saya ingin mengambil kesempatan ini untuk mengucapkan syabas kepada DBP; terutamanya Prof. Norizah dan Munsyi Selina. Percaya atau tidak Puan Selina adalah Munsyi bukan Melayu dan saya amat terpegun dengan kefasihan serta kewibawaan beliau untuk terus memartabatkan penggunaan Bahasa Malaysia dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia tanpa mengira bangsa dan agama.
Saya berpeluang untuk mengikuti kursus 'Memperkasakan Bahasa Malaysia di Media Cetak' anjuran Dewan Bahasa & Pustaka selama 2 hari bermula pada 8-9 Disember 2009. Rata-rata, peserta kursus adalah dari agensi kerajaan. Pada mulanya saya agak kekok untuk bertutur di dalam Bahasa Malaysia sepanjang hari. Apabila disoal oleh Penceramah saya tercari-cari perkataan yang sesuai di dalam Bahasa Malaysia. Sungguh memalukan sekali! Saya perhatikan peserta-peserta lain tidak menghadapi masalah seperti saya .... Jauh di sudut hati saya berharap saya tidak akan disoal lagi kerana saya pasti akan menjawab di dalam Bahasa Inggeris!
Fenomena ini adalah biasa dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia. Pada umumnya, kita mementingkan Bahasa Inggeris kerana Bahasa ini merupakan Bahasa komunikasi antarabangsa. Tetapi, apakah langkah-langkah yang telah kita lakukan untuk memartabatkan Bahasa Ibunda kita sendiri?
Kursus 2 hari ini, sebenarnya telah 'membuka mata dan minda' saya sebagai seorang Melayu. Saya bukanlah seorang yang amat fasih berkomunikasi di dalam Bahasa Inggeris tetapi, di dalam pergaulan seharian, Bahasa Inggeris telah dicampuradukkan dengan Bahasa Malaysia sehingga pada suatu ketika, saya berpendapat Bahasa Malaysia tidak perlu diajar kepada orang Melayu. Pendekatan saya sebenarnya adalah tidak benar kerana, apabila mengikuti kursus ini, saya dapati penulisan di dalam Bahasa Malaysia yang saya selalu lakukan mempunyai kesalahan-kesalahan dari segi teknikal bahasa. Saya lupa apa itu subjek dan predikat. Saya tidak maklum apa itu kata hubung dan apa yang dimaksudkan dengan kata majmuk. Tetapi saya amat mengenali 'verb', adjective, noun, pronouns dan lain-lain...
Walaupun saya selalu membuat laporan terutamanya Kenyataan Pengerusi untuk Laporan Tahunan, saya tidak maklum bahawa setiap laporan sebegini hendaklah ditulis dalam bentuk ayat pasif. Setelah mempelajari dan mendalami beberapa teknik sepanjang 2 hari kursus, saya kini dapat mengenalpasti kesalahan-kesalahan teknikal yang selama ini saya yakin adalah betul dan tepat.
Saya ingin mengambil kesempatan ini untuk mengucapkan syabas kepada DBP; terutamanya Prof. Norizah dan Munsyi Selina. Percaya atau tidak Puan Selina adalah Munsyi bukan Melayu dan saya amat terpegun dengan kefasihan serta kewibawaan beliau untuk terus memartabatkan penggunaan Bahasa Malaysia dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia tanpa mengira bangsa dan agama.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Malaysia is one of the most sought after travel destinations ... how far is it true?
I always thought vacation within Malaysia is an advantage. Not until we experienced it ourselves...
Bukit Merah Laketown Resort (BMLR) has been chosen as the family's annual vacation. The kids were excited looking forward for the water and theme park of coz. But not the parents actually.... My nieces and nephews are 'crazy' when it comes to water. We, parents always have a very tough time to persuade them to come out from the pool.
So we decided to have 'an educational vacation' for them this time round. We reached Suria Aptm, BMLR around 2.00 pm. It was a 'ritual' for the kids to first deep themselves in the pool. The pool was convenient. I took Amir to the 'adult' pool as the cousins were there and did not want him to miss all the fun.
That night, after maghrib, we traveled from BMLR heading to Taiping Night Safari. Car park was charged at RM2.00. For 9 adults and 6 kids, we had to pay around RM200 for the entry tickets. Surprisingly, the visitors (most of them are locals; noticed from the faces and language conversed). There were nearly 300 ppl when we arrived. We waited about an hour... nothing happened. We the got to know that they provide 6 trams and each tram can merely occupy 24 pax. But since we have been in the queue, we had to follow the flow and We wait for another 1 1/2 hour to be in the tram.
And can you just imagine, after a long 'sweet' waiting in the queue (about to board the tram)... a group of people from the entrance walked to 'our tram' ... looks like they were in the midst of hijacking our tram! My brother then gave a big 'shout' - barely a connotation "hello... we have been waiting like crazy.. what the f*** are you ppl jumping the queue". At this point, ppl along my queue were also yelling and shouting at that group.... Finally, that group was 'advised' by the mgmt ofc to wait for their turn....
We were in the tram for 40 minutes. The tigers, lions, rhinos and many others were 'cageless'... No camera with flash was allowed as this might distract the animals. I think the night safari is a good initiative. It would be good also to have other breeds of animals kept in the zoo. A good tourist point. Perhaps that night was a bit special not only for the kids but also to us .... I would suggest the relevant dept or ministry to upgrade the services especially to provide more trams... During school holidays this kinda place is attacked by the tourists locally and internationally. So as to have convenient kiosks selling food and drinks...
The kids had fun that night despite the 'never ending' waiting...
The next morning, we decided to go to Maxwell Hill. I couldn't remember if I have ever been to Maxwell Hill. Even though we reached early in the morning, we were 'deprived' to be on top of the hill. Reason being, all drivers were on leave and no one was able to drive the Pajero. Is this a norm? The front office at Maxwell Hill greeted us with an expression "Do not disturb, Please find your own way to get on top"....
The relevant Ministry should take this incident seriously. Are the international tourists facing similar experience? While some people is running high and low to ensure that Malaysia is listed as one of the top tourism spots internationally, some ppl perhaps do not 'aware' that they are ruining all the efforts ...
We then took a combo package to Orang Utan Island, Eco Park and Reptile Farm. The Orang Utan Island was actually a rehabilitation centre for orang utans - an initiative of Emkay Land to safeguard these species. We were 'introduced' to Adam, Sonia, Nafsiah and Mike ; the eldest. This is almost like a csr initiative of Emkay... a good deed though!
All in all the vacation was really good. It was the moments spent with parents, siblings, spouse and children treasured the most. But come to think of the 'incidents' that we encountered at the Night Safari and Maxwell Hill, I was a bit bewildered. I read everywhere that Malaysia is one of the most sought after travel destinations... that Malaysia is full of warm ppl... they greet you with smile... they are kind people... Unfortunately some of them are not! Nicely written on articles but to some extend not in actual fact...
The relevant Ministry is putting their heads together to think tank into promoting the country.
Monies were spent and channeled to the relevant parties to increase the number of tourists' arrival.. and this is what they got in return! (Sighhhhh....)
Some pictures taken during the vacation
The pool ....
The Night Safari Entrance
The Maxwell Hill Mgmt Office - looks 'green' but a bit 'dull' ....
The transporters up to Maxwell Hill. Unfortunately, no drivers were around to take us up to the hill
Durian party ... a sign of confusion after what happened...
Amir ... approaching the entrance of Orang Utan Rehab Centre at Bukit Merah.
Bukit Merah Laketown Resort (BMLR) has been chosen as the family's annual vacation. The kids were excited looking forward for the water and theme park of coz. But not the parents actually.... My nieces and nephews are 'crazy' when it comes to water. We, parents always have a very tough time to persuade them to come out from the pool.
So we decided to have 'an educational vacation' for them this time round. We reached Suria Aptm, BMLR around 2.00 pm. It was a 'ritual' for the kids to first deep themselves in the pool. The pool was convenient. I took Amir to the 'adult' pool as the cousins were there and did not want him to miss all the fun.
That night, after maghrib, we traveled from BMLR heading to Taiping Night Safari. Car park was charged at RM2.00. For 9 adults and 6 kids, we had to pay around RM200 for the entry tickets. Surprisingly, the visitors (most of them are locals; noticed from the faces and language conversed). There were nearly 300 ppl when we arrived. We waited about an hour... nothing happened. We the got to know that they provide 6 trams and each tram can merely occupy 24 pax. But since we have been in the queue, we had to follow the flow and We wait for another 1 1/2 hour to be in the tram.
And can you just imagine, after a long 'sweet' waiting in the queue (about to board the tram)... a group of people from the entrance walked to 'our tram' ... looks like they were in the midst of hijacking our tram! My brother then gave a big 'shout' - barely a connotation "hello... we have been waiting like crazy.. what the f*** are you ppl jumping the queue". At this point, ppl along my queue were also yelling and shouting at that group.... Finally, that group was 'advised' by the mgmt ofc to wait for their turn....
We were in the tram for 40 minutes. The tigers, lions, rhinos and many others were 'cageless'... No camera with flash was allowed as this might distract the animals. I think the night safari is a good initiative. It would be good also to have other breeds of animals kept in the zoo. A good tourist point. Perhaps that night was a bit special not only for the kids but also to us .... I would suggest the relevant dept or ministry to upgrade the services especially to provide more trams... During school holidays this kinda place is attacked by the tourists locally and internationally. So as to have convenient kiosks selling food and drinks...
The kids had fun that night despite the 'never ending' waiting...
The next morning, we decided to go to Maxwell Hill. I couldn't remember if I have ever been to Maxwell Hill. Even though we reached early in the morning, we were 'deprived' to be on top of the hill. Reason being, all drivers were on leave and no one was able to drive the Pajero. Is this a norm? The front office at Maxwell Hill greeted us with an expression "Do not disturb, Please find your own way to get on top"....
The relevant Ministry should take this incident seriously. Are the international tourists facing similar experience? While some people is running high and low to ensure that Malaysia is listed as one of the top tourism spots internationally, some ppl perhaps do not 'aware' that they are ruining all the efforts ...
We then took a combo package to Orang Utan Island, Eco Park and Reptile Farm. The Orang Utan Island was actually a rehabilitation centre for orang utans - an initiative of Emkay Land to safeguard these species. We were 'introduced' to Adam, Sonia, Nafsiah and Mike ; the eldest. This is almost like a csr initiative of Emkay... a good deed though!
All in all the vacation was really good. It was the moments spent with parents, siblings, spouse and children treasured the most. But come to think of the 'incidents' that we encountered at the Night Safari and Maxwell Hill, I was a bit bewildered. I read everywhere that Malaysia is one of the most sought after travel destinations... that Malaysia is full of warm ppl... they greet you with smile... they are kind people... Unfortunately some of them are not! Nicely written on articles but to some extend not in actual fact...
The relevant Ministry is putting their heads together to think tank into promoting the country.
Monies were spent and channeled to the relevant parties to increase the number of tourists' arrival.. and this is what they got in return! (Sighhhhh....)
Some pictures taken during the vacation
The pool ....
The Night Safari Entrance
The Maxwell Hill Mgmt Office - looks 'green' but a bit 'dull' ....
The transporters up to Maxwell Hill. Unfortunately, no drivers were around to take us up to the hill
Durian party ... a sign of confusion after what happened...
Amir ... approaching the entrance of Orang Utan Rehab Centre at Bukit Merah.
Directions, forecast and targets ... 2010
Been very busy lately. Jiji is away for 2 weeks - on leadership training. I really hope she enjoyed her training... One thing for sure I know she would love the places .... Hong Kong, Acheh and Medan. As for me here, life is a bit hectic. Too many things to handle at one time. A bit tired though... last week I had to attend the Branch Managers Conference (BMC). My first experience ever since I joined the Bank. The opening remarks by the CEO was really inspiring. Obviously, directions, forecast and targets are set and further discussed among the managers.
Looks like the target is achievable .. (if you were to share the tasks between the ppl in HQ and the ppl from the network of branches throughout Malaysia). Image is one of the most stressed points during the conference. Yup... I guess that's the most crucial part. Our dept is liaising with the media on any letters, 'allegations' and complaints from the customers and the public at large.
CE3's presentation was the highlight during the opening.... With Ricky Martin's performance and Freedom's 'togetherness' song, everyone sang along....
That night, we had the usual badminton tournament between the managers from HQ and the branches. I was paired with MJ, my Boss. Our opponent was a actually a pair of ex-Bank players. Soooo, yaaa we lose our game. But it was a tough fight though in a very good team spirit. In the end, we (HQ) still won! SOme pics taken during the conference and tournament.
I'm looking forward for my block leave next week. The first few days, MIL, FIL and SIL will be spending time with us. And after that I plan to have a second round vacation with the family.... place? dunno yet...
Looks like the target is achievable .. (if you were to share the tasks between the ppl in HQ and the ppl from the network of branches throughout Malaysia). Image is one of the most stressed points during the conference. Yup... I guess that's the most crucial part. Our dept is liaising with the media on any letters, 'allegations' and complaints from the customers and the public at large.
CE3's presentation was the highlight during the opening.... With Ricky Martin's performance and Freedom's 'togetherness' song, everyone sang along....
That night, we had the usual badminton tournament between the managers from HQ and the branches. I was paired with MJ, my Boss. Our opponent was a actually a pair of ex-Bank players. Soooo, yaaa we lose our game. But it was a tough fight though in a very good team spirit. In the end, we (HQ) still won! SOme pics taken during the conference and tournament.
I'm looking forward for my block leave next week. The first few days, MIL, FIL and SIL will be spending time with us. And after that I plan to have a second round vacation with the family.... place? dunno yet...
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