VDay + 8

OK, it's a week since that historic 12th General Election. What has happened since then? Here's a summary of the news that grabbed headlines:

1. Bowing out gracefully? Or not?
Disgraced heads of MCA, Gerakan and MIC declined cabinet posts, citing the need to concentrate on rebuilding their battered parties. All except, you-know-who...he's really still sleeping and in dreamland! Most gracious of the lot is Koh Tsu Koon; the worst, as expected is Samy Vellu. That guy doesn't know when to quit, now does he?

2. Of Chief Minister and Menteri Besars
Lim Guan Eng's elevation to the top post in Penang went smoothly. So did the appointment of the PAS Kedah Menteri Besar. A row in Perak: DAP (in this case the Central Committee) was against the wishes of the Sultan to appoint a PAS assemblyman as the Menteri Besar. Lim Kit Siang was bashed left, right and centre on MSM as well as cyberspace; common space finally prevailed - the swearing-in ceremony will be held tomorrow. As expected, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim was appointed Selangor Menteri Besar. A battle looms in Perlis, where Sleepyhead's choice Shahidan Kassim was snubbed by the Sultan, who has chosen another. Similar problem may be brewing in Terengganu, as Idris Jusoh's swearing-in ceremony had been postponed.

3. Burying secrets?
News of Selangor civil servants shredding secret documents caught headlines. Really, if there's nothing to hide...there's nothing to hide. Apparently Khir Toyo has got some skeletons in his closet. Let's wait for the outcome! And did he really sign a concession agreement with Puncak Niaga the day before the elections?

4. There is a God...
The Warlord of Klang dies of a heart attack. Fair justice and an omen, some people say. God has finally punished someone for his transgressions...too bad his family would have to live with the sins of the father. And what about his palace? Some say, turn it into a museum to showcase UMNO excesses...good idea, and would generate income for the state coffers!

5. Street protests not the Malaysian way?
Ha ha...this really takes the cake. A few months earlier, UMNO has come out condemning the street protests of BERSIH and HINDRAF - not the Malaysian way, they proclaimed then. So why the hell, the protests at Komtar on Friday? Because of the published reports (again of course in the MSM) of abolishing the NEP in Penang? Apparently, it is said that most of the protesters were not even from Penang!! That's UMNO for you...perhaps they should have been sprayed with chemically-laced water and tear-gassed! Now that would be fair justice!

6. Twists and turns
The forked-tongue of the MSM is all and sundry to see. But with five states under the Opposition, they have to be more careful; of course there's more targets, but they're lead by capable individuals. Even Bernama had to apologise for their 'misquoting' of Lim Guan Eng's NEP statement. Hey, an omission (I think, on purpose) of a few words - in this case - certain practises - brings about a abrupt change in meaning. I hope this buggers be brought to court and their pants sued off!

7. The end is near?
There has been constant speculation on the future of Mr. Sleepyhead. I think he knows that his time has finally come. The BN component parties may rally behind him (as a show of unity only-lah), but realistically the cracks are already showing. From the snubbing of his choices for Perlis Menteri Besar, to the most recent call of resignation by Mukhriz Mahathir, he must really have seen the writing on the wall. Unless he is really sleeping. Some say that he needs to appoint SIL as a minister before he leaves - that would probably hasten his departure. In any case, I'm sure UMNO will throw him out come the UMNO elections... Bow out gracefully or be humiliated out? That's his choice...

8. Economic worries
The stock market took a big hit of course, especially the Government-linked counters; and especially those with contracts and interests in the Opposition states. Worst hit is Equine Capital (PGCC, Patrick Badawi) whose mega project is likely to be under scrutiny; KPS and water related-stocks in Selangor, where the Pahang-Selangor interstate water-transfer project would now be under close scrutiny. Of course construction and property-related stocks in these states are under heavy pressure. Anyway I feel the local market will recover once all the political uncertainties have been cleared away. Hopefully, the increased transparency and crackdown on corruption (and abolishment of the NEP-practices) would prove to be the main investment-attracting changes this election would bring about!

So this is the tumultuous first week for Malaysia. Let's gear up for the second week!

Another Missing Child

Well, we haven't even found little Sharlinie yet, and now the police have another case on their hands! Personally I think this maybe a case of a runaway, as it is not that easy to kidnap an 11 year-old, but then again I could be wrong...

Again the nation's prayers are with the family...so over to you Polis Di-Raja Malaysia!

More Threats!

This article really makes my blood boil. It is evident some dungus in UMNO still do not want to face reality. You want to make a threat like that? I'm sure the blood of Penangites - of all races - will boil too...and will show these idiots the door the next election. Hoi, the people have spoken and not afraid of threats anymore! The more you push away, the more you will lose...

And oh, Mr. State Opposition...you wanna see what the Opposition can do? Let them win the elections and give them five years of the country's resources to do so...then we will see what they can do!

A New Malaysia...hopefully

Well, I guess Malaysians woke up to a shell-shocked government and Opposition - the former never expected to be hit so bad, the latter never expected to win so big. But that is the reality on 9th March 2008. The despised BN had lost their 2/3 majority, and also lost Penang, Kedah, Perak and Selangor to the loose coalition of DAP, PKR and PAS. While there is some sense of stability in the fact that BN would continue to form the government via a simple majority, observers and citizens are generally cautious on how the country would move on from her. Understandably, thanks to years of repeated brainwashing, the spectre of May 13 1969 weighs heavy on the thoughts of many. Do not worry. This time, we Malaysians as a whole have to much to lose to allow such senseless incident to happen. After all, history is man's greatest teacher!

Judging from the columns and reports in the mainstream media (propaganda machine of the government), the spin-doctors are scrambling to come up with credible reasons for the heavy slap in the face. Gerakan, MIC and MCA lost big-time; UMNO too lost credibility. The loss of Perak, Selangor and Perak were the least expected, though there were some rumours early last week that Kedah and Perlis might fall to the opposition. Selangor and Perak are surprising catches for the Opposition. The question is now how the Government, and foreign investors would react to the changed political landscape. Well, there will be the usual knee-jerk reaction but things would eventually stabilise.

How would I expect the Government to react? No different. It will be business as usual. They can ostracise one state like Kelantan...but to do the same to another four states, with one of them in the Malay heartland would be like digging their own political graves. I expect all projects and developments to carry on as planned, especially the NCER, lest more ammo is given to the Opposition four years down the road. Would Selangor and Perak be marginalised? Most definitely not. In my opinion, I expect even more effort be put in by the BN as well as the victorious Opposition to win the hearts of the populace in all five states - you can say we will have the best of both worlds.

The political future of Gerakan and MIC, and to a smaller extent MCA, is not so clear however. UMNO would be badly shaken up as well. They had not expected the swing in the Malay votes and had counted heavily on it to retain their 2/3 majority. Whether this would herald a more conciliatory UMNO or otherwise remains to be seen. One thing is clear for sure...there'll be big changes this year. I just hope that it is for the better.

I guess this is what you get when you treat Malaysians for fools. They keep blaming the rise in essential items, food etc. as being the cause of their loss. I opine that is not the case. It is the sheer arrogance of UMNO and timidity of its so-called comrades-in-arms that led to its defeat. It's simple: they have failed to tackle the basic problems that faced the country - corruption, crime, sheer wastage of taxpayers funds and loss of competitiveness - and instead thumbed their noses at the rakyat by acting roughshod over the BERSIH and HINDRAF gathering. Oi, Bodowi...we are not so stupid anymore! And we must of course congratulate the alternative media, such as the Internet, for the transmission of credible news! Without it, we would still be hearing and believing the lies as we had for many years!

One thing I'm very excited about though - once we Malaysians throw off the yoke of May 13, there is a possibility that the Opposition may give BN a run for their money at the next election. Once people see that Opposition gaining control of the states does not lead to chaos, BN would have lost their trump card they have used all these years. Of course this depends on how the Opposition does over the next five years - I believe they would not waste this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There is time for celebration. But they better get to work soon because there is so much work to be done.

But let's just savour this day a bit longer Malaysia...

Momentous Occasion

What a night...for the Opposition that is. At last count, they have retained Kelantan and wrested four other states: Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor!!! Such a result must be unthinkable and a pleasant surprise to many!

And they have done it: denied BN their 2/3 majority in the Parliament. UMNO, MCA and MIC lost big time - obviously MIC and MCA the worse of the three. A few cabinet ministers lost their seats; the Opposition big shots generally came out unscathed.

I certainly hope this heralds a new Malaysia. A better Malaysia for Malaysians.

Opposition Tide

There's no stopping it now. As of 11 p.m. tonight, the Opposition has taken Penang and Kedah, and retained Kelantan. A lot of big guns have fallen - including Kok Tsu Koon, Samy Vellu, Tan Chai Ho, Shahrizat and Zam Zam Alakazam... The Opposition leaders have generally won their seats.

So, now will BN listen?

Done

All it took was five minutes. The voting was done. No indelible ink. The serial number is still there...as if I care a damn. No surprises. More and more people were turning up at my polling centre - both young and old alike. But peaceful nonetheless.

Who did I vote for? I'm a young, urban, Chinese professional - that should answer the question, shouldn't it?

All Set!

The stage is set. Everybody seems to be raring to go. Today is the big day...the decision is in the hands of 10 million Malaysian voters.

Will we, the people, deny BN their 2/3 majority? Will we, the people, give enough votes to the Opposition to form the next government? Or will we, the people, cower meekly and surrender ourselves and our country to the rape and plunder of BN for another five years?

Tonight, we shall know the answer...

Shocker again!

Hot off the press!! Just a few months after declaring the use of indelible ink in Sturday's general election, comes this shocking declaration by the Election Comission: EC decides against indelible ink

If this doesn't give more ammo to the Opposition, I don't know what will! The Election Comission officials keep shooting themselves in the foot; after being praised for implementing such an action to ensure fair voting practices, retracting it citing such pathetic excuses could only damage it's already battered credibility!! After all, wasn't tax payer's money used to buy 47,000 bottles of the ink for use during the election? What are they gonna use it for? Fountain pens???

God, I wonder what is next?

Another Shocker!

Wow, the battle for hearts and minds of voters are really heating up!! Now comes another little piece of shocking news about the recently announced RM 350m Motorola investment in Penang!

A RM 1b contract in return for RM 350m reinvestment? Wonder where this people learn their arithmetic from? And of course, with the purported letter being dated Dec 3 2007, we all know that such decisions are obviously politically motivated! Well, at least it's Gerakan arm-twisting UMNO for a change!!

Malaysia Boleh!? Koh-Tsu Koon style?

Mind Boggling

God...imagine my surprise when I looked at the full page advertisement taken out by BN on the five Economic corridors...too bad I can't find a pic of it anywhere on the Net yet! Will have to go back and take it the old-fashioned way! But here's the gist of it:

IDR: RM 382b
NCER: RM 178b
ECER: RM 112b
SCORE: RM 334b
SDC: RM 105b

Hey don't need to take out your calculators...they even counted it for you: RM 1.1 trillion ringgit!! Another Malaysia Boleh! project by BN, but would most probably end up Malaysia Tak Boleh...

Finally, a little piece from a Little Bird...

Two Sides To A Story

And the BN claims that media reporting in this country is fair? Day in and day out, the mainstream media trumpets and blares the progress BN has brought and will bring, to this country. Come on, as if the discerning readers don't know that! While our country has progressed much, there is little to deny the fact that such progress has slowed to a snail's pace, if at all! So much for challenging the Tigers of Asia! Let's just make sure we don't get devoured in the increasingly competitive global savannah! Of course the Government will come out with a slew of only good news, from goodies dished out to the public to immediate approvals to requests that were denied for years - sometimes I feel the elections should be held every 2 years! Latest in this being none other than the sharp rise in GDP for 4Q 2007 - even the analysts were surprised at the strong showing! Personally I just wonder how much of it is true, and how much of it is fantasy!

So what of the opposition? Hmm, guess the only news worth reporting is bad news...maybe it's to reassure or more likely scare, the less discerning readers. The Opposition has little news space - perhaps 10% or so - the rest are all BN news. So how can the Government comment that only BN can govern this country and not the Opposition? Have they been given the opportunity? Please let all Malaysians know?

And please do not use Kelantan as an example...if BN rules Kelantan for 50 years I'm sure the development would still be marginal? Why? Because Kelantan has got no industry or natural resources!! And as much as BN wants to bring in development, they too will fail, despite their access to the country's coffers. There's this tendency to compare Kelantan and Terengganu: well there is a big difference though - Terengganu has got oil!! That makes a whole lot of difference - also let us not forget when PAS took over Terengganu briefly in 1999-2004, the government quickly denied the state government access to the petroleum royalties and denying us to see a chance of what could have been should the Opposition ruled a state! So let me ask again - who is to say that the Opposition can't rule?

Having said that, I do not believe the Opposition should attempt to topple BN this time around - they are too fragmented with their different manifestos, agendas and bickering. To deny Barisan their 2/3 majority is fine, but looks unlikely. There is just too much gerrymandering of the constituencies over the years to ensure that Barisan would retain control of the Parliament. Further more there would be the mis-use of postal votes, phantom voters etc. which the Elections Commissions is well-trained to ignore! At least no matter what they do, it is safe to say that Barisan would not repeat their performance of 2004 after an abject four years of Pak Lah rule...incidentally did he deliver on any of the promises made in his 2004 manifesto? Thye answer of course is overwhelmingly no! Perhaps the Opposition could bring the majority to 70-75% and anything less than that is a bonus!

However the Opposition's efforts are not helped much by the lack of funds and media attention; the only turf where they appear to be able to stand on their own seems to be in cyberspace. I guess you could say the increasingly only credible news is on sites such as Aliran, Harakah Daily, Malaysia Today and Malaysiakini. Seems that certain cyber-criminals have been tasked to bring down certain websites...without much success. Furthermore I believe the Opposition should not only talk about national issues, but also local issues as well - that is where the battle is and ultimately to be won. They should do their research prior to their speeches. And oh, the Opposition should also get some public-speaking consultants in to train their candidates to speak better!!

Come March 9 we will know how far the Opposition has come...but unfortunately not because of their own efforts but more of disappointment with the ruling coalition. What should happen after March 9? The three main Opposition parties should sit down and unite under a single banner; deliver on their promises, ensure that the BN do not have a free hand at amending laws/constitution as they have been doing; provide check-and-balance the disgruntled Malaysian voters want; create a shadow Cabinet (which has been conspicuously lacking for many a year) to show the Malaysian voters how they would handle the various issues compared to the government; and for Pete's sake, plan for the next election to give BN a run for their money!

I know where my vote lies this time around...I hope you know where yours are too!

Ceramah

Due to the continuous double-standards practiced by the mainstream media - come on, just open up the pages and see how much of the news is devoted to the Opposition...virtually nil, unless it paints them in bad light! - as usual they have resorted to the old tried and tested approach of ceramahs. Now this would create an opportunity for the police (aka BN henchmen) to not issue permits in the name of public safety (as they have oft done in the past)...but nowadays the hell with the police!

There was a ceramah near my place last Tuesday, coinciding with the weekly pasar malam and taking the opportunity of an increased crowd. As expected it was organised by the DAP with PKR joining in a bit later...the candidates contesting in my area (PJ Utara parliamentary seat as well as the state seats) came up and gave a few speeches. Initially the crowd was a bit hesitant and quiet...wouldn't you after seeing a few police cars around? But as the speeches wore on the atmosphere got cheerier. I guess there were no more than 200 people there at its peak but still it was a fair turnout for the organisers.

One thing though...I would have expected the DAP candidates to be more eloquent in their speeches, and also more versatile and varied in the issues. There's no point having four or five speakers but all talking about the same issues. Who knows, the crowd could have gotten bigger if more 'noise' was made!! Another thing is that these candidates do not seem to talk about the issues in the area of concern - it would have been more interesting if they had mixed the national and local issues up. And they could have made better use of the multimedia system that was made available, small as it was. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. What they put up was just a montage of soundless-pictures; hardly the attention-grabbing presentations I'd expected.

There was also some talk about Teresa Kok making an appearance, but when I left close to 10 p.m. she had not shown up. She probably didn't. And I don't think Tony Pua was there either. Which was a shame...since he is the candidate for PJ Utara!

Anyway it was my very first ceramah - so it was a good experience. Next would be the opportunity to hear the big guns speak, to experience the difference...but I wonder whether they will show up here any time soon? All in all, ceramahs being the only way to go for the Opposition, this was indeed a wasted opportunity in my opinion; they could have made a bigger impact! Perhaps they are expecting their Internet assault to come up trumps?

Mini-trip: Penang

Stayed overnight in Penang for my work trip on Monday; didn't quite like the idea of traveling four hours up and down the North-South Highway on the same day. Fortunately a friend of mine was kind enough to let me bunk in for the night at his place.

Well, was only in Penang for a few hours...even then at night so there's nothing much to see. My friend brought me to a few places to eat - I must say that Penang food appears to have deteriorated over the years...doesn't seem to taste as good as it used to be! But then again I'm not a food connoiseur...so I'll just leave the food comments as it is.

Penang drivers are as reputable as they are made out to be!! I can't remember how many times I've been honked at, flashed at or tailgated in that few brief hours. I can't imagine driving in Penang...I'd probably die of a brain haemorrhage first!

Curiously on Monday morning, we had breakfast at this market food court near his workplace; there was a visit by the BN candidate for that particular constituency. Of course not being a Penangite, I didn't have a clue who it was that came to shake my hand. Well, at least he could have introduced himself...and not say "I'm the BN candidate for this coinstituency". Sheesh, where has common courtesy gone?

Pathetic

This little piece sums up our judiciary system in a heart beat - pathetic!

You mean our courts actually allow a person to be wrongly jailed for four years, for something that should have been proven even before the trial takes place? And it takes four years for the courts to get proof that the rape victim is a virgin??!! What iis our country coming to?

Fortunately for the bozos there, it is probably a poor, uneducated person - otherwise I would love to see some fireworks being lit up to brighten my day!

Is Being Different So Bad?

I was always intrigued by the way society behaved. As individuals, we have always and I guess, will always be, pressured to conform to an accepted social norm. By far, this is for the safety of the individual, and preservation of the society as a whole - so it's a good thing; it's a necessary thing. Of course, if every individual decides to go his or her own way, then there will be chaos and ultimately lead to collapse of that society. But who or what dictates this social norm? Anthropologists would have much difficulty nailing it down; after all it's been passed down from time immemorial.

Lately, I've been more intrigued at the individuals society define as 'different'. I believe at some point of their lives, everybody would have this experience. Smarty-pants are different because majority of people are of average intelligence. Gays are different because they want to be with their own gender. As for me, my colleagues look at me differently because I have no intention to specialise...they just think it's not the natural order of things. Yeah, even when I'm asked when I'll be getting married (hey, first things first...need to a get a girlfriend first lar!) I usually give the reply I'm happily single - as expected I get these strange looks most of the time. What's up with society? Why do you want me to be like everyone else? Actually being different may not be such a bad thing. After all, in evolution - diversity is the spice of life!

Last Thursday night, after all the delay with my flight out of Kuching a friend called me out as I was approaching KL Sentral - being the noob at nightlife, we went to this 'alternative' (in his own words) bar in Bangsar. It's kind of a nice and cosy place; not too noisy and loud...enough to talk by comfortably. After a while he told me that the place is a sort of a gay hangout...and two guys together there can be construed to be partners. Wow...my first experience at a gay bar. But there wasn't that many people there - and I could only see one couple. Perhaps it was a weekday, and gays have to work the next day too you know.

By society's norms, gays are different. They are so different to the point that society has a different set of rules for them. What I do not understand is, is being gay so bad as it is made out to be? I'm sure there are a lot of good, hardworking, honest people out there, making the world a better place for you and I...and they are gays. But how does society treat them? Like pariahs... Try coming out and you'll be ostracised. You can't be a public figure and be gay at the same time. Isn't it sad? I wish that in the future, such differences would be respected and given their rightful dues.

I'm just making a point that being different is not a bad thing. I'm not talking about black-and-white issues here, like killers and murderers, robbers and rapers, child abusers and paedophiles - those are obviously wrong. There are a lot of grey areas in society where being different is so looked down at that it is just not right. Having said that, changes and acceptance would be difficult, unless society decides it to be so.

Society still has got a long way to go...let's hope the road for the different would less rocky in the future.

More Delays

Now I'm sitting outside Coffee Bean...after being called to the gate out of the blue; only to find out there we were just called to be there to standby in case a plane was available! And oh, the flight has been delayed twice again - first to 5.45 p.m. and after that to 6.00 p.m. I wonder, whether it is a coincidence that there is another flight to KL at 6.30 p.m.. I can almost bet my bottom dollar that both flights will be merged in the name of cost saving! I don't mind being delayed, but at least have the courtesy or dignity to inform the passengers, instead of making such attempts to save cost. We have other things to do as well...I could have seen another ten patients in this period!

Even after a two-hour delay, there is still not a word of apology from any MAS personnel, let alone providing some refreshements for an increasingly highly-irritated group. So this is what we call Malaysian service!

Edit: Fortunately for MAS, a flight from Miri, bearing the same flight number as mine has just arrived...so I guess I'll be flying off soon. But still, no apology...

Told You MAS sucks...

Grrr...here I am sitting at the Kuching International Airport Coffee Bean waiting for my flight back to KL. Guess what it's been delayed by about one hour; my second such delay in six months. Not even an apology or explanation about why the flight was delayed...just an unsmiling check-in counter lady saying 'flight delayed'. Yeah, not even a sorry. Is this how the new, revamped MAS is gonna move back into profitability? Bleaarghh...

One good thing though, I get to test my Eee PC! Yeah it's performing exceptionally so far. Thank god I got it...RM 1,300 well spent. Only thing is it tends to get a bit hot when it's in use and when it is being charged. And the touchpad is not that sensitive. But mild drawbacks compared to the advantages it offers. Great!

OK, back to Face-booking!

Face-hooked!

Yeah, yeah...I'm a self-confessed addict! Just is. No reasons why. Dunno why. It's just so damn addictive. I mean of course getting in contact with old classmates, colleagues, as well as meeting new people is fantastic, but the amount of applications it has is mind-boggling. Of course 90% of it is crap, but the remaining 10% will get you hooked...if you stay long enough!

My main addiction now is this app called (fluff)Friends...which is actually a pet adoption game: you pet the fluff (hey, that's what they call it!), feed it, give gifts and even race with other fluff owners to win prizes and munny. You can even decorate your fluff with backgrounds, mini fluffs etc. There are competitions too: the best (fluff)Art! Yeah, it sounds stupid but I'm having lots of fun with it. And so does a few thousand others!

The next is this Vampire/Zombie/Werewolf/Slayer app...basically you become one of the four, and try to get others to join your army; to move ahead, you fight others like you to get points. This one has got no prizes...just plain old point-gathering to pit yourself against your friends! Addictive too you know...

You might have read that I used to play this Pirates app...still great: you sail around gathering up booty and treasure, fight other pirates, and also get to trade booty or do monkey/parrot races at the tavern. Simple yet addictive game.

And the latest game app I've joined is Warbook - think I've entered it late, so it's kind of boring. Basically you are given a set amount of land and troops, and your hero is supposed to level up with crafty and judicious use of your resources. Of course the problem with starting late is that you are usually very fresh meat for others. So the going is painfully slow, but in a few weeks I think I'll have a lot of fun with it!

Have I used the word addictive once too often?

Then there's Boggle-like games, and a Scrabble derivative. Yeah I play both games too...problem with this Prolific (it used to be Bogglific, but there's a trademark infringement issue, hence change of name) is that you play against opponent(s) and the clock - I usually end up at the wrong end of the stick, mainly because I can watch the screen and type at the same time! Scrabulous is better for me, but the problem is the your opponents may use a word-generator against you; bummer!

There also flash games around...I actually enjoy playing Raiden here!

Then there are the more serious apps...like Fantasy Stock Exchange where you trade US stocks like you would in real-life; problem is the site has just undergone a maintenance - which created more problems than it solved! Anyway I'm using it to practice my buy-and-hold strategy. So far I'm just up a couple of K, but there's still a long time to go!

There of course other apps: for fun, sending pics, giving virtual gifts, buying and selling friends, quotes, - you name it you got it - there's just so much you can have fun with on Facebook. The are also groups you can join - though some are painfully stupid and time-wasting.

Think I've said enough...it's time to go back to Facebooking! Bye!

Another Trip

Yeah, I am again out of town! This time I'm in Kuching for four days; been here for the three days already. Instead of my usual place at Harbour View hotel, I've been put up instead in Somerset Kuching Gateway...can't call it an actual hotel cuz it's advertised as serviced apartments. Anyway the rooms are fine. My only grouse is that their cafe runs out of food by early or late afternoons. Two nights I've tried to get food there, only to be turned away. Sad...

You know it has been virtually raining non-stop since Monday. I've been told the weather has been wet for the last few weeks. A refreshing change, compared to the hot KL weather. Of course it brings about a little problem when I wanna grab some food. Fortunately there are some restaurants nearby. The first night I had to dash over to a Singapore Chcken Rice outlet - expectedly the fare was worse than mediocre. But it fills the tummy. Tonight I thought I'd try the Secret Recipe outlet: even at 7.30 p.m. I appear to be the only one there...apart from the off and on cake buyers. Food was OK, but a bit pricey. Anyway can't complain much now can I?

One advantage of staying at Somerset is the availability of free wi-fi...don't really know where it is coming from, since the hotel does not provide such services, and the speed is pathetic (actually it's TMNet hotspot I think, so go figure!) but again, can't complain as long I'm on the Internet highway! I find a great urge to stay connected...

Yesterday night a drug rep brought me over to the newly-opened The Spring shopping complex; I guess if you've seen the ones in KL, this one would look miniscule...and yeah it is. Anyway I think it's a bit of a shot-in-the-arm for the Kuching nightlife...just shows how pathetic Kuching is huh? Or perhaps I haven't been exposed to the real Kuching nightlife?

Anyway I'll be flying back tomorrow, and perhaps post a few pics here and there. Didn't really take much this time around. Maybe the next trip. Hopefully my trip back would be better than my trip here - on Monday morning, the flight was delayed almost one hour waiting for baggage for transit passengers!! And oh, those MAS meal boxes really suck...