Fishing Villages

I visited a few fishing villages in Southern Perak state recently. Here are some photos taken there.

Big boats...

Small boats...

The nets…

A house in the fishing village…

A kid and his father…

The Battle of the Disneylands

(source)

In one of my old post dated January 18, 2009, I mentioned that Shanghai Disneyland, scheduled to open in 2013, could spell the doom of its counterpart in Hong Kong. The battle of the two theme parks highlights the infighting character so common among Chinese.

Then, on March 17, BusinessWeek Online also publish an article with the title Hong Kong Disneyland’s Future Is in Danger. According to this article, the Shanghai park could be as large as 800 hectares. By comparison, Hong Kong Disneyland is just 126 hectares, though it can still expand.

Shanghai Disneyland could kill Hong Kong Disneyland, but is the success of the former guaranteed? Some readers of the BusinessWeek article have already expressed their doubt. A reader who went by the nickname PaPaPeng, for example, wrote:

I have visited both Disneyland in Anaheim and Disney World in Orlando. Both are showing their age in attractions and in rides. As Chinese I don't see this Americana transplant taking root and thriving in China. Chinese are suckers for modern technology and thrills but not for the overhyped stuff dressed in Mickey Mouse suits.

Another reader, Chenleilili, wrote:

I am Shanghai citizen. I do not agree that Shanghai government would make concession for the building of Diseney park in Shanghai as done by HK government. In the past, almost all of the theme park imported from abroad failed to survive in Shanghai.

There is a possibility that Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Walt Disney all turn out to be losers in the Battle of the Disneylands / Battle of the Chinese.

Related posts:
Shanghai Disneyland - Bad News for Hong Kong?

揽住一齐死

The Memory Lane and Paddy Fields of Bali

Recently, I “re-publish” an old post of mine which shows the photos of Balinese volcanoes. Quite a few readers left comments on the post, saying that they too had been there. Well, I gather that Bali is a popular destination among Malaysian holidaymakers.

Somehow, I doubt many of you have been to this place, which I call the “Memory Lane”…

The Memory Lane is actually part of the Paddy Field Walk of Ubud, in Central Bali. If you follow package tour, you are unlikely to come here.

I have never bothered to visit the paddy fields in my own country. Ironically, it was in Bali that, for the first time in my life, I appreciated the beauty of a paddy field.

Calling Twitter Users

I still don’t get it. I can’t see the relevance of Twitter. If you are a Twitter user, please tell me what you think about it.

Twitter is often referred to as a ‘micro-blogging’ social networking site. Most people use it to tell their friends, or followers, what they are doing. For example, on one day blogger Lisa twittered, “I just got myself a 72-eyeshadow palette!! Yippie!!” On another occasion she complained that she was “very, very tired.”

You are probably aware that you can actually do the same thing with MSN, Yahoo! Messenger or Facebook. There are some differences, of course. With Twitter, you can read the past updates of a person. On Facebook, if you update your status, your past status is gone.

Another salient feature of Twitter is that communication is one way. You can, for example, “follow” Paris Hilton, but she is unlikely to follow you. (Unless, of course, you too are a celebrity.)

When Oscar Academy Awards were being delivered in Hollywood, BBC had life updates on both its own page and on Twitter. However, the story on its own page was more complete, coupled with photos. In the end, I just ignored the Twitter update.

I do see some uses of this micro-blogging service, but they are of little importance to me. So why Twitter? Please enlighten me. In particular, as an MBA student, I would like to know if Twitter can be a business tool.

英文教數理問題

馬來西亞前首相馬哈迪，為了要加強學生的數理水平，下令學校用英文教這兩個科目，但引起許多人不滿。他退休只後，反對聲音愈來愈強，最近還引發了街頭示威。

無獨有偶，香港也面對類似問題。香港於1997年回歸中國後，特區政府為了顯示愛國心，要將英文學校改為母語教學，不料學生家長強烈反對。香港作家陶傑做此評論：

母語教學，香港是一個自由的城市，本來沒有問題。一個蠢的政府，硬要插手管，『強制』許多學校由英語轉『母語』，就變得很討厭的問題。

一家學校用甚麼語來教學，不關政府的事，只要有市場，用孟加拉語有人願意排隊報名，也輪不到政府來管。

《老母大賤賣》

當董建華還是特區首長時，在一家以普通話教學的學校里，學生在老師的指導下學書法，揮筆寫下『聽董爺爺的話，做特區的好娃娃』。向來逢董必反的陶傑，又有話說了：

一百家中學保留英文教學，家長額手稱慶，因為他們知道，子女送進這些中學，絕不會被教導如何用中國書法寫『聽董爺爺的話，做特區的好娃娃』。

《家長的喜訊》

回到馬來西亞數理科問題，到底應該以英語還是母語教學，最好就是和陶傑所主張的那樣，由市場決定。如果家長支持英文教數理，那就延續現有的課程，反之就改回用馬來文、華文或淡米爾文。每一所學校各自做決定，不需要有統一政策，政府則扮演 facilitator 的角色。另外，政府也應當考慮讓以前的英校『復活』，如此一來，父母可有多一個選擇。實際上，大馬不少華人和印度人，在家中講英語為主。嚴格來說，英語才是他們的母語。

必須強調的是，教師不能以自身英文欠奉作為反對以英文教課的理由。身為老師，他們應該要活到老，學到老。如有必要，他們應當少開一、兩班補習班，用省下來的時間提升自己的英文和數理水平。

自2008年3月8日全國大選後，馬來西亞人都大談民主。讓父母決定數理科的媒介語，也算是『市場民主』。

Old Photos

[This post was first published on Aug 22, 2007. I re-publish it at the request of our brilliant young blogger, Kyh.]

Photos of volcanoes in Bali, taken way back in 2005...

You’ve Got Mail

Do you have e-mail fatigue? I do.

Everyday, in the office, I am bombarded with loads of e-mail, so much so that I don’t bother to read each and every of them in details. Quite often I only read the first paragraph.

Feeding the e-mail overload is a practice to “acknowledge e-mail”. Consider this case:

The boss sends an e-mail to April, May, June, Julius and Augustus, telling them that he would be off the following day. All the recipients click “Reply All”, enter “Noted”, and click the Send button.

So, there are six e-mails flying around.

My personal e-mail account is also flooded with messages, many of them come from Buddhist groups. Another case:

Buddhist Group A sends an e-mail to the secretary of Buddhist Group B. The mail is about the upcoming talks by a renowned monk. The secretary is so “compassionate” that she helps to forward it. I am in the mailing list of both groups, so I get two copies of the same e-mail.

I have asked these Buddhist groups to set up their web pages and update their activities from there. Somehow, the people responsible are still more comfortable with e-mail…

我与中国古典小说

在中国明代四大奇书和清代红楼梦中，我比较熟悉的，只有西游记。

三国演义和水浒传，中学时我都有看过，不过都是『节本』，现在印象已不太深刻。不过，三国中的某些情节，如三顾茅庐、草船借箭和关云长义释曹操，我倒是蛮清楚。至于金瓶梅，图书馆所收藏的『净本』，删除了有味情节，只看得我呵欠连连。红楼梦也不是我杯茶，看了几章就丢到一旁。

中国古典小说都有一个通病，就是人物太多，看得我不清楚谁是谁。水浒传里的一百零八条好汉，我现在记得的，用手指都算得出来。不过，西游记却是例外。西游记的主要人物，只有唐僧师徒四人，再加上如来佛和观世音菩萨，其他妖魔鬼怪，只在其中一两回登场，所以故事比较容易 follow。

中学时我是 science-minded 的，更喜欢看科幻小说和福尔摩斯。（不过我当时英文太差，只能看中文译本。）

许多人看三国，是为了学小说中的策略。但三国是明代写的，那时候的道德观，现在已过时。小说里的奸计，在今天不见得会被接受。女性们更应该阻止丈夫看三国，以免他们被『兄弟如手足，老婆如衣服』的观念荼毒。

我现在工作并读MBA，功课繁重，已很少看文学作品。念完MBA后，空闲时间多了，可能会阅读西洋文学。所以，短期内我应该是不会对红楼梦和四大奇书再提起兴趣了，不过或许会再看看老夫子水虎传。

水虎传比水浒传易看

Photoshoot - Feb 2009

She is lovely. She is friendly. She is also punctual, and never makes me wait

Sadly, she wears rings

Westerners and Chinese Food

When I worked in California several years ago, I frequented a few Chinese American restaurants. I noticed that Westerners who ate in the restaurants, more likely than not, ordered soda (soft drinks). I usually asked for tea.

Chinese food is oily, and tea is the antidote for oil. That’s why I preferred tea over soda. Tea made me feel better after I ate that dish of beef and broccoli or sweet-and-sour chicken. Westerners, while they liked Chinese food, somehow failed to see the “big picture”.

Further, Westerners usually insist on eating Chinese food with chopsticks. In Malaysia, I have seen Westerners struggling with chopsticks in Chinese restaurants, while Chinese Malaysians who sit next to them use spoons and forks.

But here is another problem. In this country, rice is often served in plates, not bowls. It is awkward to pick up rice from a plate using chopsticks. (The one exception is sticky rice.) A better way to eat is: rice comes in bowls. We hold the bowls near our mouths, and gently push the rice into our throats using the chopsticks.

Westerners try to show respect to Eastern culture, and I compliment them for doing so. Nonetheless, they don’t get it quite right.

P/S This blogger encourages Chinese Malaysians to use chopsticks.

Related post:
Chinese American Food

Test Call

The other day, I was chatting online with Kikey, the Malaysian blogger in London. It was 2.45 pm, or 6.45 am UK time. She told me that she was woken up by a call from Malaysia, but the caller apparently dialed a wrong number. “How could that be? UK numbers are so different?” she asked.

I was hardly surprised. I have been working in telecommunication industry for many years. We regularly make test calls to all over the world to check line quality.

Imagine this hypothetical case:

A relative of Kikey called her a day earlier. She was not happy as the line was too noisy, so she filed a complaint to Maxis, the mobile phone operator. The customer service officer of Maxis raised a “trouble ticket” (TT), and passed it to the engineer on duty. Further, there was a rule in Maxis which stated that all TT pertaining to customer complaints must be answered within 4 hours.

Kikey’s relative filed the complaint at 11 am. The engineer on duty did some troubleshooting. At 2 pm, or 6 am UK time, he reluctantly made a call to Kikey, and said, “Hello, may I speak to Katherine please? … Oops! Sorry, wrong number!” He hung up the phone, and breathed a sigh of relief, “After the troubleshooting, the line appears clear…”

So, if you receive a call from an unknown Philippines number, chances are it is another test call. Don’t yell at the caller for disturbing you, as he is merely doing his job, very reluctantly.

P/S Can any lenglui (pretty gals) please give me you mobile phone number? I want to make test calls to you

Gary Locke

华裔美国人朱棣文 Steven Chu 被委任為美国能源部长，全球华人都觉得沾上一份光荣。現在，另一位华人骆家辉 Gary Locke 也被点名为新任贸易部长，双喜临门。这是自北京奥运会之后，最令炎黄子孙振奋的新闻。但这位前华盛顿州州长有一段『黑暗史』，却是许多人所不知。

2001年，美国侦查机在南中国海（公海）上空对中国进行例常侦查，中方派出战机阻挠。不料两机在空中相撞，中国战机坠入海，机师当场丧命，美国侦察机则在海南岛做紧急降落。与此同时，在人命不值钱的中国，丧命的中国机师立即被捧为国家英雄。

美国机员被中国当局扣留。经过中美双方的谈判，北京答应释放他们。当美国机员回返他们在华盛顿州的空军基地时，骆家辉亲自到机场迎接他们，并表扬他们为保卫侦查机所作的『奇迹』。

什么话！？？这些美国侦查机队员盗取神洲的资料，是咱们炎黄子孙的敌人，身为华人的骆家辉居然去迎接他们！？？这样大逆不道的汉奸，应该给他万箭穿心，五马分尸，五雷灌顶，@#$%^。。。

不过，话说回来，骆家辉是美国人，不是中国公民。他是汉奸没关系，重要的是，他没出卖美国。

A Meme: How Do You Sleep At Night?

I rarely do meme. I am usually impatient of them. However, I have been tagged by Peter, my Dharma friend, lately. It’s a sleep meme. Since I have always wanted to write about this topic, I thought, “Why not?”

And here you go…

==== start of meme ====

(1) How do you sleep at night?

Is your sleep affected by the national angst? Do you drop off easily, as you always did? Or does it take a while to get to sleep?

Note: I suppose “the national angst” refers to the current economic situation.

Sleeping has always been a problem to me. I don’t fall asleep easily, and slightest sound could wake me up. Furthermore, I sleep with all the lights off. It is said that people with migraine are scared of light. Perhaps that explains why I like to “live in the dark”,

These days, I work full time and study MBA part time. Due to my busy lifestyle, I need to have good sleep, quality sleep…

(2) What strategies, if needed, do you use to get to sleep?

Pills? Sheep? Late night television show? And/or…?

Physical exercise, reiki, meditation… I avoid using computer at least 30 minutes before I go to bed. I also have a habit of drinking milk at night, but am not exactly sure if it helps.

Contrary to what Peter experiences, I find meditation effective in getting me a good sleep. Mentioning meditation, most people think of holy man sitting in cross-legged. I am no holy man, and I usually meditate in standing posture before going to bed. Standing meditation is more tiring. If I am tired, I will drop off more easily.

Despite all that are done, occasionally I still can’t fall asleep.

(3) Do you wake up in the middle of the night, plagued by obsessive thoughts?

I wake up for other reasons, but obsessive thoughts do prevent me from getting back to sleep.

(4) What strategies do you have to get back to sleep?

I am not going to gym in the middle of the night. Reiki is what I usually do. If I sense that I have ‘restless legs’, I know the problem is going to be serious. I would wake up and do some light reading. Not reading MBA lecture notes, though!

(5) Are your dreams affected?

Are they more anxious than before? Do they wake you up in a sweat? Or are they peaceful, innocent, undisturbed by the general malaise?

I guess my dreams are not yet affected by the general malaise, but then the worse of the economy is yet to come. The ‘L’ word is certainly something I dread very, very much.

==== end of meme ====

The rules of the meme are:

• Answer the questions
• Link back to the original meme
• Tag others to participate

Now, I would like to tag the following bloggers:

FoongPC

Lisa

Katherine 宝茹

Shingo T

Anyone interested

Okay, okay, this is absolutely voluntary.

Link:

Peter’s original meme