29 Dec 2006 : 1 week left

Time flies.
Year 2007 is approaching.



PL will be reported to work on next Friday. Her maternity leave is going to end soon.

27 Dec 2006 : Big Quake in Taiwan

CC was having problem in connection in company. Ooopss.. How could a software company operate if the internet connection was having problem ?

Across the bridge, PL was having streamyx connection issue with MSN cut off from time to time.

Accordingly, the quake in Taiwan caused this interruption.

The star : Local Internet access to overseas websites came to a crawl Wednesday after international links were disrupted by the earthquake in southern Taiwan.

25 Dec 2006 : Merry Christmas

24 Dec 2006 : Christmas Eve

PL forgot it was Christmas Eve. Hmmm... it was common for a new mother ?

Despite entertaining the little one, PL was in the kitchen for 15 minutes making the Christmas Eve dinner. She got the idea when she bought the teppanyaki chicken in JJ. She stole some time to shop on her own while CC became the nanny for 2 hours. PL needed a break !

Well, we still needed to take turn to babysit the little one, instead of having the dinner together.

Merry Christmas !!

22 Dec 2006 : Windy day

There was no rain today. But the wind was blowing clothes away.
There was not a need to switch on the fan (yes, fan, not air-con) till noon.

Extracted this from thestar online :

Do's and don'ts during floods

DO'S

Think of safety first during a flood.

Take care when walking through shallow water.

Turn off electricity and gas supply when evacuating.

DON'TS

Don’t try to walk or drive through floodwater.

Don’t walk across bridges as they may collapse.

Never swim through fast flowing water.

Avoid contact with floodwater as it may be contaminated.

20 Dec 2006 : Terrible flood

The Star

Wednesday December 20, 2006

35cm of rain in just a day
Photo gallery
JOHOR BARU: Continuous rain over the past 24 hours caused rivers to burst their banks, spilling water into streets and villages, and bringing the state to a virtual standstill.

WATERLOGGED: Only the roofs of houses can be seen after Kampung Laut in Skudai became submerged in water yesterday.An estimated 9,000 people were forced to leave their homes following what has been regarded as the state’s highest rainfall in 100 years.

Sungai Segamat in Segamat, Sungai Skudai in Johor Baru and Sungai Mengkibol in Kluang were among five rivers whose waters overflowed.
At press time, 26 main roads were closed to traffic and nine cases of landslide had occurred.
So far, there has been no fatality because rescue teams managed to get the people to higher ground.
Mentri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman warned Johoreans to prepare for the worst as heavy rain was expected to continue until Friday.

Malacca was also not spared. Close to 200 people were evacuated in Jasin district, while a bridge in Durian Tunggal town had to be closed because the river overflowed.
As of 5pm yesterday, more than 3,700 people who vacated their houses in Johor Baru had been placed in 13 relief centres.
Johor Baru (North) OCPD Asst Comm Ruslan Hassan advised the people not to return home until the authorities give the all-clear.
“We had to rescue 29 people stranded on rooftops. These people ignored the danger and went home to salvage their stuff, but the water rose too fast,” said ACP Ruslan.

In Muar, more than 1,600 people were moved to nine relief centres. Flooded areas included Lenga, Pagoh, Gersik, Sagil, Bakri, Bukit Gambir, Tangkak, Sungai Mati, Kampung Batu 23, Gombang, Felda Maokil, Kampung Paya Redan, Kampung Paya Lempah, Kampung Paya Pulai and Kampung Teratai.
Muar police chief Asst Comm Mohd Nizar Mohd Ali reminded parents to keep a tight rein on their children and not let them play in the flood waters.
In Kluang, close to 3,000 people from 20 villages fled their homes, while 540 residents from Parit Raja in Batu Pahat and 170 people from Pontian had to seek shelter at relief centres.

“If water is channelled into the rivers, the low-lying areas of Parit Raja and Simpang Rengam could be inundated,” said Chong, who attributed the high rainfall to the North-East Monsoon.
Meanwhile, the Army has put seven brigades and 20 boats on standby.
An Army spokesman said the military would send in a Nuri helicopter for rescue operations if necessary.

State flood operations room:- 07-2254454

13 Dec 2006 : 2nd visit to Queensbay mall

Leaving boy with mom, PL rushed to Queensbay mall.

Another quick shopping on those necessities. And, another 5 pieces of Beard Papa's cream puff.

09 Dec 2006 : A visit to Queensbay Mall

PL & Yeow went to Queensbay Mall for a quick shopping.

There was a crowd but still tolerable. We did not need to queue up in a long line for any purchase.

PL bought the Beard's Papa cream puffs which was surprisingly yummy.

07 Dec 2006 : Heavy downpour

The day was hot. PL bathed three times today, just to got rid of the heat.
It was a relieved that the rain started to pour at 7.55pm.

Received a few calls : 2 wedding invitations on this Saturday & Sunday. Too bad, the time was not right that PL needed to consider on babysit the little monster. Yet, the youngest brother, Yeow would be back in town to see his little nephew.

PL bought mom a slow cooker. She gave away her slow cooker to one of her sisters.

06 Dec 2006 : A piece of news...

沿海地區天氣或惡化
updated:2006-12-06 12:58:58 MYT

（八打靈再也訊）最近在菲律賓造成嚴重災難的“榴槤”颳風，預料不會侵襲大馬，不過半島一些地區近幾天的天氣將會惡化，尤其吉蘭丹、登嘉樓、玻璃市、檳城和吉打沿海地區的居民，受促提高警惕。

氣象局發表文告說，上述颳風對海上作業的漁船、渡輪和鑽油台會帶來威脅。

文告說，上述4個州屬（除了檳城）近日也會下雨，同時偶爾有狂風暴雨。

上述氣候預料將隨著“榴槤”颳風週二（12月5日）晚上吹襲暹羅灣而產生，吉蘭丹和登嘉樓沿海地區將吹起時速60至70公里的海風，海浪高達6公尺。此現象預料會持續到本週四。

玻璃市、檳城和吉打的“榴槤“颳風的效應比較弱，海浪高達4公尺，並持續到12月8日（本週五）。 （星洲日報‧2006/12/06）

06 Dec 2006 : PL PG CC JB

PL & bb were in Pg. CC went back to work, leaving one of the cars in Pg.

Did not notice much changes of Pg. However, PL was eagerly looking for an opportunity to visit the newly opened Queensbay Mall.

After 1 month of lock-up, she finally stepped out from the house to do shopping at Giant & Parkson.

21 Nov 2006 : Sunny morning

Today, it is 21 Nov 2006. So fast. Time flies.

17 Nov 2006 : Sunny afternoon

A great day for laundry !
But, laundry was not done by PL for one month, but auntie. ;p

Rain started to pour last few evening. The cool breeze & fresh air created a cosy stay-home environment.

16 Nov 2006 : Another day,,,,

PL got used to having long leave without CC.

Normally it would be only 1-2 days the longest that PL stayed home alone. Although this time, we had a confinement lady, PL always felt empty without CC's company.

PL just realized she could watch variety shows in channel 8.

14 Nov 2006 : Maternity leave

It was bored for PL. But the life was getting busier to take over some of the confinement lady's task. Anyhow, PL still became the consultant cum advicer to the co-workers, subordinates & boss by getting infrequent phone calls & messages.

It was advisable to learn up the baby care skill before the end of confinement lady's service.

10 Nov 2006 : Acer 5550

Hong brought along the Acer Aspire5552 NWXCi when mom & he visited us.

PL love the notebook at the first sight. With RM2XXX, it is worthwhile to get all the basic features in this notebook.

Accoring to BC, this model is one of the most popular product in Hong's shop.

05 Nov 2006 : Guess who ?

25 Oct 2006 : raining .....

rain drops on roses....no roses... rain was pouring....starting 7pm....

The cold breeze enlightened the evening...

Wish the haze will be swept away....Now, most of the areas are with healthy API and only 7 with moderate API.

25 Oct 2006 : No API for ....

PL was updating her colleagues on API last evening.
Tried to call DOE as no update in website too, but no one picked up the phone.

So, she sms her co-workers : No API today. Will update tomolo.
She got a reply from one of them : Maybe, tomolo also no update.
She replied : Tried to call DOE, but no one pick up the phone.
He replied : This is Malaysia la, kawan...!

23 Oct 2006 : Shopping spree

PL could not stay at home for whole day.

After lunch, she went to get some toiletries and bb's items.

All together, she has watched 3 DVD together. Last Saturday, we got a good deal by getting 2 copies 8-in-1 DVD and 2 copies of single DVD.

CC was working. But hurray...he will be off too tomorrow. We could go to get our simple minicompo. PL could not find hers in PG because Yeow took PL's minicompo to KL.

22 Oct 2006 : Yummy

It should be 1 piece of chocolate cheese cake and 1 piece of banana cheese cake, but the later was in PL's stomach.

21 Oct 2006 : Fire crackers & delicious food

Nowadays, there is no difference if it is Deepavali, Raya or CNY.

Starting last evening, we could have mistaken CNY is around the corner with the "bang" of fire crackers.

Fire crackers and fireworks display has become Malaysian culture for any celebration.

This afternoon, we went to the buka puasa stall to see what we can get for our stomach.
We ended up with 3 piece of kuih, roti john and grilled chicken wing.

21 Oct 2006 : Happy Festival !

18 Oct 2006 : 3 years back...

3 years ago, on the same day, we were in Pg, tie knot officially.

We did not specially celebrate. PL was kind of tired.

CC accompanied PL to her departmental dinner at Tanjong Puteri. The Ramadan buffet food was neither delicious nor worth the money. We just filled up our empty stomach with whatever we could find as we were late. Most of the food was not refilled. It was 1 hour past the buka puasa. And some of the colleagues left before we arrived too.

16 Oct 2006 : Rain does not help....

The condition was bad this morning.

It was like a London morning.

The visibility was bad.

The API increased to 100 for JB areas and near to 100 in Pasir Gudang.

1. Drink more water
2. Reduce outdoor activities
3. Wear mask if go outdoor
4. Elderly & kids shall stay indoor
5. High risk personnel includes smokers, asthma patients and those have breathing difficulties

13 Oct 2006 : Raining...Hurray....

This evening, on the way back from plant, PL thought the haze was back.

It was the trucks that exhausted out those black smokes. Wondering why there were no enforcement on vehicle exhaust to reduce air pollution.

At 8.30pm, the rains started to pour. Heavy with strong wind.

10 Oct 2006 : Synergy

PL is having 3-day synergy meeting with various sites EHS personnel.

Yesterday, CC needed to accompany PL for late dinner as the meeting took whole day that PL needed to clear some tasks before coming back.

08 Oct 2006 : Haze is on the move

This morning, the sky was not so hazy.
At noon, the haze was gone in most of the places.

Haze on the move, won't stay for long
06 Oct 2006 Leslie Andres and Sheridan Mahavera

KUALA LUMPUR: The haze has spread to many parts of the nation, but officials are sticking by their guns that it will last only for a short period.

The Air Pollutant Index readings showed air quality in many areas had deteriorated yesterday, with more areas recording unhealthy levels than the previous day.

A Meteorological Services Department spokesman said initial estimates that the haze would only be around for a short period were accurate.

烟霾笼罩 2006/10/08 17:30:12

科学、工艺与革新部副部长拿督江作汉针对烟霾问题说，大马半岛预料会从10月8日晚起改吹西北风，风势不再把苏门答腊的烧芭灰烬和微粒吹来大马方向和制造烟霾，北马的烟霾状况在短期内将很快改善。

未来两、三天内，烟霾仍将继续笼罩中马和南马，但是情况会有所改善，能见度大约5公里左右。烟霾重锁中马区和南马，这些地区的烟霾现象是否能改善，都需视风向而定，这可能需要两、三天的时间。

大体上，昨天大马半岛西北和中马区的烟霾现象已经改善。尽管南马（如上所述柔佛）和东海岸（彭亨）仍然逃不了被烟霾笼罩的命运，今天早上南马和中马区的风向不定，低风由东南风改吹为西南风，以致南吡叻、雪兰莪、森美兰和马六甲等4州烟霾卷土重来。

07 Oct 2006 : Hazy hazy day

We started to feel uncomfort in throat. Tried to get into DOE website but it was down since 7.30pm ! The wish is rain & change of wind direction.

Hazy, hazier... hazardousKL,
Putrajaya and Sri Aman badly hit
07 Oct 2006Annie Freeda Cruez and R.S. Kamini

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians are fed up. Fed up with the acrid haze that has been choking many cities and towns around the country. And with the same litany of excuses offered by Indonesia and the authorities here for this unwelcome visitor every year.And here is another piece of bad news: The haze got worse yesterday with 14 areas, including Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, having unhealthy air quality and Sri Aman in the very unhealthy range.

The Meteorological Services Department said that the haze situation is likely to continue till tomorrow.

"The winds are expected to change, blowing from the northwest direction on Sunday night. The haze conditions over Peninsular Malaysia are expected to improve after Sunday," it said in a statement.

Kuala Lumpur reached 101 on the Air Pollutant Index, which considers a score of 101-200 to be unhealthy. The reading was 100 in Putrajaya. The reading in Kuala Selangor reached 160.

But this was nothing close to the levels reached in Sri Aman in Sarawak where the API reached the "very unhealthy" range of 221.

National Council of Women’s Organisations deputy president Ramani Gurusamy was annoyed and disappointed that nothing was being done to overcome the haze problem.

"My grandchildren, my friends’ children, even adults I know are ill and that upsets me a lot.

"I’m disappointed that every year, Malaysia and Indonesia play the blame game while no one makes an effort to end this problem," she said.

Jaya Abdullah, 58, said: "I was driving from Lumut to Klang and the haze was really bad. Just imagine the plight of people working in plantations and other outdoor jobs. It is terrible."

Women, Family and Community Development Ministry parliamentary secretary Datuk Chew Mei Fun cancelled a hike up Mount Kinabalu due to the haze.

"I don’t understand why the problem keeps popping up. We really have to find a way to solve this," she added.

Cloud-seeding operations were launched over Peninsular Malaysia in an attempt to clear the skies of smoke from forest fires in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, Deputy Education Minister Datuk Hon Choon Kim said all State Education Departments had been directed to stop outdoor activities if the API reaches between 201 and 300. Schools will be closed if the index reaches the 400 level.

02 Oct 2006 : Busy week

It would be a busy week for PL.

01 Oct 2006 : Vacant Possession handing over

30 Sept 2006 : Rest

Last 2 days, PL & her co-workers were busy with the US counterpart's visit.

We went for line tour to production floor, arranging a meeting with respective parties and lunch with her. The time schedule was shifted due to her change of mind from time to time. Luckily, we have a visitor from Penang plant that can accompany her. If not, we will need to ignore all our others routine & scheduled activities/tasks.

Today, we finally had a rest with no activities.

27 Sept 2006 : Prayer

Today, it was CC's mother 祭日.

The whole family gathered for the event.

As usual, 叔叔 steamed fish; Yin fried mushroom egg; Dad cooked a pot of soup; plus 2 plates of vegetable & other dishes bought.

26 Sept 2006 : Busy

Busy day.

24 Sept 2006 : Short cyberview trip

We had breakfast with Yeow, CLi & Yin at South City. The food was terrible. But we had a good time catching up.

After attending Kevin & Doreen wedding banquet last night, we stayed over the cyberview ville for one night. CC met his friends from NC, mostly who have come back to M'sia for good. PL only knew Kelly well & met some of them before. K & D will be flying back to NC after their Chinese wedding ceremony which will be held next 2 weeks.

Last afternoon, it was our 1st experience attending a Christian garden wedding.
"Too bad, I left my sudoku in the car." This was what in CC's mind when the pastors took up more than 30 minutes.
It was followed by 3 songs selected by the bride, D who is a Christian; recitation of vow; the exchange of ring; holy communion; & lastly the presentation of bride & groom.

Cocktail (actually fruit punch) were served before the guest began to proceed to ballroom for seating.

21 Sept 2006 : Cheong's farewell

KFC + Mee Hoon Goreng + Secret Recipe's Banana Chocolate

Good people leave due to better offer....ai....

17 Sept 2006 : busy weekend

Now, weekends are spent by us on shopping.

Weekdays are spent by PL on delegation & preparation for long leave at end of the year.

This morning, we went to both Giant & Carefour. Finally, we found a simple DIY wardrobe to place in 2nd room. PL queued up for the lucky draw. We ended up spending 1 hour plus lining up to 'play' the "wheel of fortune". The end result : 1 packet of soya bean, 1 pack of yam cookies, 1 pack of sotong, 1 pack of 2-in-1 coffee and 3 pieces of 5 real rewards point redeemed coupon.

In the mid of wondering when was our turn, 2 kids suddenly slipped in between us and the uncle who was lining in front of us. We were shocked of their behaviour. So, we informed the 2 kids that you should like up as what we did.

One of the kids did listen & go to line up. But another kid just ignored. When we saw his dad approached him, we told his dad he jumped queue. His dad felt embarrassed but said, "Only one piece only, let him be here." Then, he told his son, " Don't do it next time." What !!!

16 Sept 2006 : TH's

There was a news :

CEO: Disband InvestPenang
By K. SUTHAKAR

PENANG: InvestPenang, the state’s investment arm, should be disbanded as it has failed to support the setting up of factories by local and foreign small- and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs).
Making the call, Komag Inc out-going chief executive officer Datuk T.H. Tan said InvestPenang lacked power and co-ordination.
“It was a bad idea to set it up two years ago,” said Tan, the only Malaysian-born person to head a public-listed American company.
The presence of SMEs was vital to support the multinational companies operating in Penang, he said.
Komag, which makes thin-film media for disk drives, has invested RM3bil in Malaysia in the past 13 years and has facilities in Penang, Pasir Gudang and Kuching.
Tan said he was making the call based on his experience helping three SMEs – two local and one American – set up a factory in Penang in the last 30 months.
He said the role of the InvestPenang should be taken over by the Penang Development Corporation (PDC).
“The PDC employees should be given good bonuses based on the kinds of investments they attract.
“This will make them ‘tigers’ to attract the right investments,” he said at his farewell gathering with the press here yesterday.
Tan, 57, who joined Komag in 1989 and became its chief executive officer 10 years later, will retire in October.
He also issued a wake-up call to the state to address problems encountered by multinational companies intending to invest in Penang.
“The companies face unnecessary bureaucratic meddling,” he said.
On his retirement plans, Tan said he would become an advisory board member of a federal agency entrusted with attracting foreign investments.
When contacted, InvestPenang chief executive officer Wan Zailena Noordin said she was shocked by the criticism levelled at the organisation.
“I need to find out why he (Tan) is unhappy before commenting further,” she said.

PL's company held a farewell party for their CEO who is going to retire on 13th September, 2006.
He is originally a Malaysian who succeed in becoming a CEO of a US MNC. It should be the first in history. He was well respected. PL still remembered his famous statement : Employees are the most important asset of the company. It was also quoted in one of her MBA's project paper.

12 Sept 2006 : busy

Today, it was a busy day for PL.

Rushing here & there. And, nearly missed out some meetings due to the clash of time table.

CC arrived home earlier. We had porridge as PL did not feel hungry.

11 Sept 2006 : Just back from Pg

We took one day leave on last Friday for checkup.

This was the 1st time we took Air Asia. It was not a pleasant experience. We needed to rush to a nearby clinic to get a letter to certify PL could go on plane. We spent 15 minutes arguing with the counter, another 30 minutes to & fro from the so-called clinic.

To our surprise, the same thing did not happen when we travel back from Penang.

As usual, our mornings in Penang were food. Char Koay Teow, Chee Cheong Fan, Curry Mee, Koay Teow T'ng, etc. We also got the opportunities to pay a visit to the newly renovated Gurney Drive hawker center for dessert & pasembur. And, not forgetting mom's home cook dishes.

PL's insurance agent, WJ fetched us from the airport. Then, followed by 2 hours talk on new proposal. PL was sleepy that she took a shower after the dinner, leaving CC to listen to the "lecture".

This trip, PL met KEng, AB, TaiLou and relatives. And, we also got to catch up with WK in the airport prior leaving. CC also had a gathering with his forum gang.

Seemed like the pirated CD/VCD/DVD shops are going to have a hard time for several months in Penang too. We could not find those pirated CD/VCD/DVD so easily nowadays, same in Johor. I was wondering if this operation yields any positive impact. Why not the government focus on car theft, snatch theft, robbery and those severe criminal ?

06 Sept 2006 : Another week...

It was a fast week.

PL finally found the lyrics online.

04 Sept 2006 : Car Scratch...?

Not our car, but someone else.

Along the PG highway, PL drove along a narrow road due to 4 cars squeezing together. One Ford Ranger was at the left & Proton Wira was at right with our car in between. Suddenly the Proton Wira drove in a bit that our bumper scratched through the left door of the proton.

The driver was so upset. Our car did not have any scratch or sign of accident at all. And, the proton just had a very slight line which cannot be seen if not observant.

Worried on the incidents happened recently in Johor, PL asked the driver to meet later. The driver did not admit his own mistake.

CC managed to persuade the driver & came to agreement of 50:50 on the repair.

31 Aug 2006 : 第49屆馬來西亞國慶日

29 Aug 2006 : Impact of a rumour

MAD RUSH: Reacting to a speculative report on higher passport fees from Friday, thousands of applicants made a beeline for the Penang Immigration Department on Monday. - STARpic by K.T. Goh

28 Aug 2006 : Superman & Jay Chou

Sunday Star August 27, 2006

Emulate idols and heroes to woo the young

MCA leaders must copy the likes of Taiwanese pop star Jay Chou or even Superman if they want to attract younger members.

Selangor Youth delegate Wong Kok Fye, speaking on the debate on the opening address by Youth chief Datuk Liow Tiong Lai, said the party’s young membership recruitment drive must be realistic and appeal to the young.

Citing popular artistes like Jay Chou or even fictional heroes like Superman, Wong said 80% of young people know of them and many dream of being one of them.

Many of these idols, like Superman, are heroes who appear just in the nick of time during difficult periods, said Wong, adding that party leaders could learn from them if they want to appeal to young people.

He said the idea of having a membership drive to attract young members had been the talk of past MCA presidents and that it was now time to do it.

p/s : K5 is PL's ex-coursemate. He is in MCA, as we expected......

27 Aug 2006 : old collection

Taken this last month & this month. But did not record the date.
These 2 were CC's home cook dinner dishes.

27 Aug 2006 : Kangaroo & Crocodile

Have you tried kangaroo & crocodile meat before ? This morning, we tried it. Those 2 packs of meat were purchased in sydney airport.

The taste is really unpleasant. Difficult to swallow.

We left them in Tangkak for others to try when there is a chance to gather.

The weather was hot. Luckily, it was raining at ~3am that PL was able to sleep well for a few hours.

23 Aug 2006 : addicted

Reading 密 码.

21 Aug 2006 : Pray

Now, it is the 7th month in lunar calender, which is also known as ghost month.

We (PL & colleagues) held a prayer at 5.30pm today. Although some of us do not actually believe in praying, we joined the activity, helping in preparing the necessasity, setting up the altar, burning joss paper, etc. Luckily, a few of our colleagues are experienced in the praying sequence & steps. If not, it would be like last year, missing out those necessity.

This is the time we gather together & do something together.

19 Aug 2006 : EMS lead auditor training

PL went to KL for a 5-day course.
The participants were friendly. They roared in laughters with jokes and remembered the modules better with the shared experience. And, there were breakfast, morning break, lunch & afternoon break till their stomach nearly burst with good food. There was also a complimentary lunch in Hard Rock cafe. PL was staffed with buffet breakfast everyday too. She gained 0.20kg after the trip. Ha !

The remaining day was spent by shopping & meeting up with friends/brother residing in KL.
PL's favourite shopping venue was KLCC which is 10 min walk from Concorde.

Yeow met PL on the 1st evening she was in KL. This was the 1st time PL met her brother's girl friend. Yin, CC's sister also spent one night with PL in the hotel although both were too sleepy to chat much. The subsequent days were busy with shopping & meeting up except Thursday that PL needed to study for Friday's exam. PS, PS's hubby, K & their twins, feikoko/sw & their little son, kt & gladys, MS, MS's hubby & her 3 month bb girl - it was great to get in touch with old friends.

PL tried on Marco's Pizza at Petaling Jaya, opposite Kelana Jaya Putra station. Once stepped into the restaurant, PL knew why those couples with kids chose this venue. There was a playground and the decor was for kids !

And KL's night is always young. At 10pm, we can still see people hanging around at pubs, restaurants or mamak stall. KT brought PL to a taiwanese-style restaurant, Restoran The Frutti Stall , a branch in SS2. PL realized that it was the same that Yeow brought her at Jln Imbi.

After spending 5-6 days in KL, PL missed home. Anyhow, it was a business trip. Normally, business trip was not relaxed. Furthermore, there was an exam on Friday to qualify the participants as lead auditors. Today, her email was over storage limit with more than 450 emails ! The hotel was not equipped with broadband service !

CC had maggi mee for the whole week without PL ! He lost 1 kg. Poor CC...... One good thing is he recovered from sore throat.

13 Aug 2006 : Sound of Volcano

In paper, scientists collected the volcano activities and transformed them into music to monitor the activities.

http://grid.ct.infn.it/tungurahuasound/
http://grid.ct.infn.it/etnasound/page4/page8/etna.aif

07 Aug 2006 : Scrapbook

PL finished printing the trip photos.

Not knowing if it is worth to print at home or just send to photo shop. But PL put in some description, print into various sizes, and cut & paste.

The overview photo was uploaded. Interested ? Browse through the back dated blog. More details may or may not be written in the blog in later date. For the time being, photos tell the stories.

02 Aug 2006 : Back to reality

After spending 1 week in melbourne/sydney, we are back to reality.

We had a good time. Photos to be uploaded according to date later. Still arranging photo into the scrap book.

31 Jul 2006 : Australia Day 6 Sydney

We had a good sleep. One night was not sufficient to enjoy the large room. PL ate more than usual for breakfast - 2 bowls of cereal, 1 bowl of porridge, bacon and 2 glasses of juices; CC just had bread, bacon, mushroom and coffee.

Not losing any invaluable time, we strolled down the street to explore the "neighbourhood". Till now, we were not quite clear on the street. Market city, many streets, chinese garden, cockle bay and ..... we found the nougat in a shop at Chinatown ! We were wondering why those Australians were not aware of those nougat..... the fact is tourists buy nougat as souvenir but Australians seldom buy them as snack. PL got to try the Harry's pie while waiting at the lobby for the hotel transfer.

At noon, we departed to airport. The afternoon was spent playing in flight game & watching movies.

We touched down at around 8pm. We were supposed to check in the transit hotel but we cleared custom to get our luggage that we ended up in Concorde. We had roti canai & mee goreng as supper. Hmmm... at last, a taste of Malaysian food.

30 Jul 2006 : Australia Day 5 Sydney

We greeted the morning with not-enough-sleep look. PL saw a few red insects crawling on the pillow case. The tissue paper was stained with blood when PL pressed on the insects. We filed a complaint to receptionist after our breakfast.

The journey to blue mountain took about 2 hours. Several stops let us have a few stretches to avoid numb legs : Leura --> Echo Point --> Scenic World --> Govett's Leap --> Koala Park

We bought some rock sugar & nougat in Leura's candy shop, which situated opposite a dentist clinic ! The egg mushroom quiche was so delicious that PL almost left nothing for CC.

Why is the mountain blue in colour ? The reason behind is scientific. The eucalytus forest generates volatile oil. These vapors scatter light that seen in blue color (Raman's spectrum). From far, the mountain looks blue. The day before the blue mountain trip, there was a documentary program on forest fire caused by these vapour during draught.

As per recommended, we bought the valley return ticket to take the train down to the valley & back to the scenic world entrance via cable car. We chose the middle seat for the train ride because PL could not withstand too much shock. The incline railway is the steepest in the world accordingly. It was like standing on the legs when it passed the center of two rock walls. (415m descent will lead you through a cliff side tunnel into ancient rain forest.) We walked along the broadway leading to the cable car station. The broadway was made like an education pathway with the description on the local flora and history of the valley as a coal mine. As we were at the first 3-4 person lined up at the long queue, we had the opportunity to choose the best view of the valley in the cable car. It takes us on a 545 metre ride into (or out of) the World Heritage Listed rainforest of the Jamison valley.

On the way back, a stop at Govett's Leap allowed us to have a last view of Blue Mountain.

The last stop was at Koala Park. This time, all the animals were awoke. Ha.... PL was afraid to touch the wombat initially. After seeing a few people taking photo with this fierce looking animal, she laid her hand on its fury body & say "cheese". Surprisingly, wombat is a close relative of koala.

We were delighted to find that there were many koalas awaiting us at its trees. The worker was feeding a koala with it sitting on the railing that reachable by tourists. Well,,, it seemed to be unhappy when the eucalyptus leaves were removed. We snapped a few photos of those resting on the trees. There was one that wink at the camera flash.... Cute...! Something blinked into PL's brain when she had a close look at the koalas. Stitch (Yeah..Lilo & Stitch) might be a copy of koala.

Kangaroos were everywhere in the park, leaping around.

Other animals such as emu & peakock are of our least interest.

In order to get our collection, we requested the coach driver to drop us somewhere near to Hard Rock Cafe at Crown Street. We hopped off at Hyde Park.

Dinner was Vietnamese noodles again. We were too exhausted to explore any restaurants. We had a shock when we opened the hotel room door. The room was in a mess with the futon was turned over. CC came back from the receptionist with a new room key. Due to the bugs, our room was upgraded to executive suites - 2 rooms, 1 bathroom with jacuzzi & 1 small pantry !

29 Jul 2006 : Australia Day 4 Sydney

We noticed that our time in Sydney was limited. We only had 2-3 hour after we touched to get to the darling habour for the city tour. The hotel transfer was not arranged as smooth as in Melbourne.

PL complained the hotel room was stuffy, not enough air change. Due to limited time, we unpacked and walked to the destination. Yes, walk. We kind of do lots of walking as this is the way to stop at any spot to take photos & grab little items.

We do not have good impression on Sydney. It is too busy for us. And, the roads/streets are confusing.

Quick lunch came with chips, same as most of the western meal in Australia.
Along the route, the couch passed the city, bridge, Rose Bay, Double Bay, ,,,,,,City tour couch stopped at a few spots for photo taking. The Gap portraited a stunning view of Pacific Ocean and heads. The last stop was Bondi Beach. We only had 45 minutes stop there.

We requested driver to drop us off at Circular Quay. The Rocks are famous for its branded boutique. Across the quay, opera house was vivid in view.

We could not make up our mind what to eat for dinner. By the time we still discussed on dinner, we were near to our hotel. We came across a restaurant at first floor along the street. The only entrance was the lift at ground floor. A Korean lady pressed the lift button and invited us. Thus, we followed to take a look. Yeah... we ended up having Korean food. Hmmmm..... delicious...

PL felt uncomfortable with the bed.