As 2009 has been a super year, I’m declaring 2010 as the Darus Year Of Adventure.

My hyperdrive engines are already roaring and my research into The Last Princess Of China, will once again take me to the Far East in February.

And not to mention the writing of Suleiman The Lion II  in addition to the making of Suleiman The Lion, 2010 is going to build on the momentum of 2009.

What a year 2009 has been, 3 things stand out above all :

Suleiman The Lion : The movie script that I have been talking (and actually, also doing) since January 7th 2006 finally gets completed with the printed script out on April 16th. And in August, the Perak State Government backed the project and finally on September 2nd, I travelled to Ipoh and got confirmation that the project is going to take off.

Jija : Okay, for those who really don’t know, (and I know most don’t) Jija is the name of my car, my beloved Perodua MyVi 1.3 SXi. She’s one fine girl and she apparently (like me) hates idling in traffic. She drinks petrol like crazy then. It’s quite odd but true. Finally, I got a car!

China : The adventure of a lifetime! For the first time, I’m the foreigner, not the local. Just me, my backpack and 10kg of various stuff. Pretty much on a “get-lost-and-find-my-way-back-somehow” mission. Travelled through Haikou, Hainan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen in Guangdong province. Can’t never forget this trip no matter what. China is a beautiful country with lots of charm and I’m going to be there again, hopefully in April 2010! Last but not the least, I want to say thank you to everyone I met, who befriended me and helped me during every step of the way. Yes, to the Chinese, the Hui’s, the Uighurs, the fellow Malaysians and even the Pakistanis, you’ve all made my China 2009 trip truly unforgettable.

And now as the Decade Of The Night recedes away into the pages of history, a new decade dawns with new adventures to pursue, new friends to make, new mountains to climb and new worlds to conquer! And as I said in my previous post : BRING IT ON!

man, it feels kinda nice to be back in SoCal. this place is starting to feel more and more like home to me… is that such a bad thing? i think not. anyways, aside from the dooty weather… i got to see my new place today and it’s definitely an upgrade from my place now. got myself an extra bathroom all to myself!! holla! can’t wait to move in… on another note, i gotta raise my car now. the drive way will murder my pipes before i even get out on the streets. sadness…

PLAY ME: “open wide, i know you’re thirsty!!”

had hotpot with my mama the other night cuz she had some leftover stuff… definitely warmed up my cold night

lunch for the following afternoon

finally got to see what my new place looks like… strangely enough, the house number is 212, which was also the same house number of our first owned house!! oh how i miss you 212 avalon drive…

on another note, i didn’t notice how pink my new place is until Race mentioned it to me… damn pink.

my dinky room… i feel like this room might even be a little smaller than my current one… sadness, but i’ll make it work somehow…

just dickin around in my dickies… hahaha yes! i wore them again! it’s been shitty weather lately and i don’t feel like opening a new pair of pants yet…

got stairs now!

our new living room x dining area x door to our outdoor patio. excited about those summer nights that i get to chill outside.

the kitchen is mos def smaller than my current one too, but i like it! leaves less room for my parents to dump hella shit on the counter -_- “take that, take that, take that…” – Diddy. oh, and gas stoves ftmfw

dong nguyen’s hainan chicken = bombombomb! but!… still doesn’t beat banana leaf…

i’ll keep dreamin….

clean!

mMmm…. Alice Goodwin

looool

LOOOOL played….

enjoy!!

With the Kopitiam-craze in Malaysia, this is actually the first “Kopitiam” to open in Banting. It is situated quite strategically in the heart of the busiest and oldest commercial centres in town. Finding it wouldn’t be hard, as you can refer to the map attached below.

View Larger Map

One of the most interesting thing about this particular cafe is the price. The food and beverages are so cheap, and the restaurant is so huge, you wonder if they actually make any money at all. For your information, there are many chinese businesspeople here in Banting who deal with gambling and lottery business, as well as smuggling. Therefore there are many businesses that act just as an establishment to avoid suspicion of the authorities. I’m not sure whether this is one of them.

However, I think charging such low prices for quality stuff is something like charity. You make money out of shady activities, and then you please the community. Hey, I’m OK with that!

The one thing you notice when you enter is that the restaurant took 2 shoplots combined, and it has an outdoor section and an indoor section. There are many power sockets available for you to charge your laptop as you surf, though you need to pay a flat rate of RM1 to use. The wireless Internet connection is speedy, and business has been gaining ground since the last time I paid a visit here! The restaurant has been at almost full capacity since my 2 recent visits this month. They have also introduced new creations into their menu.

I bumped into my former secondary school teacher, Mr Lim Meng Kooi here. He was meeting with his students to discuss a trip somewhere.

Although it says “No Alcohol. No Beef. No Pork”, it doesn’t mean that it’s 100% Halal. For those of you who don’t mind, I highly recommend you to try the drinks which should be halal anyway.

Christmas came early!

This is their “Creamy Nesnila”, which is a basically Nescafe with a touch of vanilla. It’s actually quite good. Price: RM2.50

They call this “Milo Choco Rich”, which is a mix of Milo and quality cocoa powder. It tastes better than Alicafe’s Oligococo, to be honest, and it won’t make you feel bloated like Oligococo. The frothy top makes it look really classy. Price: RM2.50

This is one of their older creations, “Chicken Chop with Emperor Noodles”. It’s quite plain to be honest, and rather too light on taste. Suitable for those who prefer light meals. Price: RM4.50

I saved the best for last. This is one of their latest creations, “Hainan Chicken Chop”. What’s special is the sauce. It is tomato-based sweet & sour sauce, with lots of onions and mixed vegetables. The side-dishes are typical. Traditionally, this sauce is used for pork-chops. I feel that it fits just great with chicken as well!

VERDICT

Uncle Yam Kopitiam offers perhaps some of the most unique food and beverages here in Banting, at an unbelievable average price of RM4.50 for food and RM2.50 for drinks. According to the certificate by the local authorities (Majlis Daerah Kuala Langat), this is a restaurant with Grade-A cleanliness. The washrooms are huge, clean and comfy. The wireless Internet connection is fast, since they change the password everyday to avoid unauthorized users outside of their premises. It is spacious, and you can have conversations comfortably here.

PROs: Quality, unique food; Clean premises; Spacious environment; Air-Conditioned; Fast Internet connection; Unbelievable prices.

CONs: Is this a non-profit restaurant???

so. i’ve done this before. and i quite liked the experience. it’s time to try it again. cooking all of the week’s meals in one go and chucking it in the freezer. i know lots of ppl that hate eating defrosted stuff,.. but i dont really care… as long as its not vegetables.. they just dont taste the same after they’re reheated. plus the whole idea is to save some time for other stuff during the week, save some money by doing stuff in bulk, and by not buying my lunch out every day.

so the two biggest factors are:

• continuing to cook interesting stuff (this was the reason why i gave it up last time)
• not getting bored before the end of the week.

the first point should be solved by the nature of writing this blog… it’s more of a journey.. discovery (of what exciting things you can put in freezer boxes).. .the second, well,.. from experience, as long as what i made was interesting in the first place, then by friday i’m still pretty happy to eat it.

so.. let’s get onto the recipes.

For dinners i chose hainanese chicken rice. my favourite dish in the whole world i think (even rick stein bigs it up in his latest asia cookbook). i cook an ok one. i mean it’s good, but it’s far from authentic… and i’ll never get authentic unless i take a really long plane trip.

for lunches.. i’m starting on a love affair with middle eastern food. i’ve always liked it, but lately i’ve found this place in paddington where the guy does the best fresh salads. all on a middle eastern bent.. he uses great ingredients, and even though it’s mostly vegetarian, i always feel full/satisfied. so really all i want to do is make the stuff he makes. it’ll save me a lot of cash. plus it’s good food to cook for people.

HAINAN CHICKEN RICE

For dinners i chose hainanese chicken rice. my favourite dish in the whole world i think (even rick stein bigs it up in his latest asia cookbook). i cook an ok one. i mean it’s good, but it’s far from authentic… and i’ll never get authentic unless i take a really long plane trip.

got a whole chicken from my local butcher (no more supermarket meat for the time being). it’s a big un. probably about 2kg. i dont have a pot deep enough to immerse it so the breast was sticking out of the water for the most part. in the water i put a pinch of salt, a couple of spring onions, peppercorns, big knob of ginger. i used to put in garlic, but it’s overkill.

boil it till it’s done. in restaurants it’s always “just done” but i’ve taken to overcooking it.

after taking it out of the pot and draining off all the water, i smother it in sesame oil and let it sit. then use the stock for the rice. i dont think you’re mean to use all the stock, but i did, and the rice turned out pretty salty. so might be a bit of struggle eating it. didnt taste the chicken,.. but the flavour is pretty predictable.

made the dipping sauce. normally i use lots of garlic,.. but i’ve pared that back too. so big knob of ginger, 4-5 spring onions. 2 large cloves of garlic. chop it all fine and fry it in lots of oil (this isnt a healthy dish).

chucked that all in my little plastic containers (btw i’m using these amazing containers called pureseal. they are watertight and by the looks of things will last years. none of those crappy rubber lids that lose their elasticity. no more leakage, you can microwave and freeze these things with no degradation. they’re expensive but they’re good). bob’s your uncle.

MEGADARRA

i’ve had a version of this in a tiny cafe in one of the back alleys off edgware road. it’s so well hidden that i would never have seen it if my normal (dodgy) pizza shop wasnt closed early that day. dudes are Egyptian,.. cant remember how i ended up chosing to eat this dish but it was an instant favourite.

now.. it might not be megadarra,.. i’ll have to go back and check. they put lots more toppings on it in the restaurant.. a tomato-paste type stuff, yoghurt… something that looked like mince but wasnt mince (i remember it being vegetarian), and these noodly things mixed in with the rice.

so yeah this is real basic. the recipes i used were here and here. the first recipe didnt look like enough fun so i mainly used the second.

first up, caramelized onions.  high intrinsic value, low cost (there’s a term for this that i forget). they make me happy. that cafe near work does a couple of salads with them and they are quality.

cut em up, put some butter on them and bung them in the oven. my oven’s so crap the light gas stopped half way through, and it’s not very hot,.. so it took about 2hrs for them to caramelize properly but it was worth it.

lentils. had a box of puy lentils hanging around. the first time i ever had them was at this cafe near work. i’ve always disliked lentils for that mealy, mushy consistency they get when they’re cooked. puy lentils are special. cook them right and they retain this rubbery kind of pop when you eat them. another really simple pleasure. AND they taste great – eating them doesnt feel so vegetarian e.g. neil’s (from the young ones) lentil casserole.

i overcooked mine. recipe says 1 cup lentils, 6 cups water, pinch salt. 25-30mins and i thought i’d wing it without a watch (note to self – get a watch). but failed. still, they held together and didnt go mushy.

rice. cooked up 1.5 cups. normal method. forgot the allspice and cumin so added it with about 20mins to go.

mixed it all together and it looks really authentic. taste is really nice too. little bit strong because of the butter in the onions. could probably hold back on that next time.

TABOULEH

followed this short recipe from chowhound thread. they say to soak the bulgur in cold water for 10mins then it’s ready. fell for that once. then decided to boil it and had much better success that way. got it with a little bit of bite to it. mixed in the olive oil, lemon juice and pepper while it cooled. finely ch0pped some onion. recipe says to add it in raw but i hate onion breath so i sauteed it quickly then added it. mixed it with the chopped parsley/mint (i didnt bother to measure the amounts.. just two big bunches). tastes great. could do with more salt,.. but because the megadarra is quite strong, thought i’d leave it as is.

for next time? – chop the parsley finer, and remove more of the stalks.

btw did i mention my camera is shite. i’m sick of crap electronics. nothing is ever in focus.

De pequeño (y de mayor un poco también) estaba muy pendiente a la fecha de caducidad de los yogures. Mas que por comerme algo en mal estado, me fijaba porque cuando, a mediados de abril, empezaban a llegar yogures a casa con fecha de caducidad del 30 de abril quería decir que por fin mi cumpleaños estaba al caer. Hoy he visto que todos los yogures que tengo en la nevera caducan después del día 19, fecha en que acaba mi periplo brasileño. También hay unos cuantos que caducan después del 22 de noviembre, cuando acabará este blog y empezará la vida difícil.

Parece inminente mi vuelta a Barcelona. Me quedan 15 días aquí, que son más de los que había pasado en Pipa en cada uno de mis otros viajes, pero ahora es inevitable ver la cuesta abajo. Aún me quedan cosas por hacer y tengo tiempo para ello. Me quedan playas por explorar y frutas por probar.

Esta mañana ha llovido bastante, y esta tarde otro poco. Esta lluvia me recuerda mucho a la de Hainan, una isla tropical de China donde pasé las vacaciones de verano con Miquel. Parece mentira que estando tan lejos un sitio del otro la tierra mojada huela igual.  He desayunado viendo caer los goterones en la pisicina. Hoy he preparado dos tostadas criminales con leche condensada y un litro de mejunje conseguido batiendo un buen trozo de melón, una papaya pequeña, el zumo de tres naranjas y un montón de hielo. Una vez me dijeron que por más que me empeñe todo lo que yo cocine acabará siendo de color naranja, y parece que es cierto. Ponga lo que ponga mis salsas son naranjas y mis mejunjes también.

Hoy un brasileño ha llegado andando a su propio funeral. Parece que el reconocimiento del cadáver no fue muy exhaustivo y el señor ha aparecido en la iglesia borracho y vivo. Esta vez la canción se ha hecho realidad porque no estaba muerto, no, estaba bebiendo caña. Yo voy a seguir con el rollo funerario y voy a empezar la quinta temporada de A dos metros bajo tierra ahora mismo.

Suena Ava, de Perry Blake. Una de mis canciones favoritas. Haríais bien comprando algo suyo. Fear is fine, fear is mine…

Intressant… Är den svenska journalistkåren fast besluten att krossa reseindustrin? Journalisterna nöjer sig inte med att sprida skräckhistorier om den rätt harmlösa svininfluensan och om världsekonomins läge. I AB är f.n. närvarande texten ”Semestern som dödar” den största rubriken. I Thailand är tydligen UV-strålningen 100 ggr högre än i Sverige. Hudcancerfallen ökar. Vill du sola, så åk till den kinesiska sol&bad-ön Hainan istället då. Vet inte om UV-strålningen är mycket lägre där. Den ligger i tropiskt klimat i alla fall.

Solbränna är förresten inte alltid snyggt. Och jag är heller ingen badfan. Men jag lider med reseindustrin just nu. Vad den inte får utstå. För svenskarna i stort tycks dock inget stoppa när det gäller sol&bad. Folk belånar sig, delar upp betalningen, pantsätter ägodelar. Allt för att kunna resa iväg. Året efter Sunamin var alla svenskar tillbaka i Thailand. Ett av journalisterna skapat negativt mediaflöde tycks inte kunna stoppa de mest primitiva krafterna hos svenskarna – längtan till solen och värmen!

Läs mer i FilmMedia Filmblogg om massmedia och om media i samhället postat under “samhällskritik”.

Filmmedia – Filmblogg

Au début du mois de mars, le 8 plus précisément, cinq navires chinois ont tenté d’intimider au sud de l’île de Hainan, le navire de surveillance l’USNS Impeccable. Les images prises par des soldats américains n’ont pu être vue que ces dernières semaines, diffusées sur Canal + lors de l’émission l“Effet Papillon” du 29 mars, on voit les bateaux chinois se rapprocher dangereusement du navire américain.

Incident diplomatique en vue

Alors que la France n’est plus en disgrâce avec Pékin, Washington a vu sa diplomatie mise à mal après la confrontation sino-américaine dans des eaux revendiquées par la Chine.

Dimanche 8 mars, des bateaux chinois ont “harcelé” selon le porte américain, l’Impeccable en mission dans les eaux internationales pour une mission de détection et d’enregistrement de bruits sous marin. Le lendemain, Robert Gibbs, porte parole de la Maison Blanche a annoncé que “l’équipage de l’USNS Impeccable a subi du harcèlement de la part des marins chinois qui auraient manœuvré de façon imprudente aux abords de l’embarcation américaine“.

Les États-Unis ont alors officiellement protesté auprès des autorités chinoises qui ont démentit toute attaque délibérée. Le département de la défense américaines a demandé à Pékin de respecter le droit international.

En réponse aux accusations du Pentagone, l’ambassade de Chine à Washington a déclaré, “La Chine ne peut accepter ces accusations sans fondement“.  Ma Zhaoxu, porte-parole du ministère des Affaires étrangères, a répondu que “Le navire américain Impeccable a rompu les lois et règlements internationaux et chinois“. Il a ajouté que la Chine avait formellement protestée auprès des États-Unis, demandant à Washington de “cesser immédiatement ces activités” et de  “prendre des mesures efficaces pour éviter des activités semblables à l’avenir“.

Une tension palpable

Quelques semaines après la visite de la secrétaire d’état, Hillary Clinton, venue en Chine pour renouer les relations militaires avec Pékin cette situation pose des questions sur le bien fondé de sa visite et les accords passés entre les deux pays. Hillary Clinton est venue renouer des relations avec la Chine après les frictions de novembre sur le dossier de la vente d’arme par les États-Unis à Taïwan, d’une valeur de 6,5 milliards de dollars (4,78 milliards d’euros).

Cet incident a été suivi par la publication d’un rapport, le 25 mars dernier, d’experts militaires américains pointant du doigt la puissance militaire de la Chine. Le porte-parole du ministère des Affaires étrangères a qualifié ce rapport de “grossière déformation de la réalité. Ce rapport publié par les Américains continue à jouer sur le faux argument de la menace militaire chinoise“.

D’ailleurs, Pékin a mis en cause Washington de s’être livré à des activités “illégales” d’espionnage dans sa “zone d’exclusion économique” (Hainan), le 8 mars. Notamment parce que ce document du Pentagone confirmait l’existence d’une nouvelle base navale chinoise. Cette dernière aurait selon ce même rapport été susceptible d’abriter une flotte chinoise de sous marins.

Les américains ont également émis des doutes vis à vis de la construction et la mise en service de technologies dans les domaines nucléaire, spatial et cybernétique, entre autres.

Paru sur Hautcourant.com

Nasi Hainam adalah MILIK Malaysia! kata menteri parawisata Malaysia, Ng Yen Yen. Selain itu mereka juga baru saja mengklaim Laksa, Chili Crab (Kepiting Cabe), Bakut Teh dan Coconut Cream Rice (Nasi Uduk? / Nasi Lemak?) juga milik Malaysia. Dan sebetulnya dari kemarin sudah banyak sekali makanan Asia Tenggara yang di klaim negara itu. Dan buat restoran masakan Cina diluar Malaysia, siap2 buat bayar loyalti ke pemerintah Malaysia dong ya? dan mungkin ada rencana mengklaim burger dan pizza juga kayaknya nanti mereka, wakaka..

Yg gua heran koq Noordin M Top ga di klaim sama mereka ya? =))

Sumber: Jakarta Post, Malaysian Insider, NKDS Blog

Berikut text yang dari Jakarta Post kalo males buka2 link:

Malaysia crabby over right to ‘hijacked’ recipes

The Associated Press , Kuala Lumpur | Thu, 09/17/2009 6:37 PM | World

Malaysia is starting a food fight with other countries to win bragging rights for producing some of Southeast Asia’s most beloved recipes, including chili crabs and coconut cream rice, a news report said Thursday.

“We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food,” The Star newspaper quoted Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen as saying while launching a campaign to promote the country’s cuisine.

The ministry is identifying signature recipes that it will declare as Malaysian, Ng said. She did not reveal how the government might counter others who claim ownership of those dishes, but added that details of its strategy will be announced later.

“Chili crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food,” Ng said. She mentioned other favorites such as “nasi lemak,” which is rice soaked with coconut cream, “laksa,” a spicy noodle soup, and “bak kut teh,” an ethnic Chinese pork rib stew.

Tourism ministry officials familiar with the campaign could not immediately be contacted.

Variations of the dishes Ng listed are available in several other Asian nations, particularly Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand and China.

Some creations, such as chicken rice, were introduced to Malaysia and Singapore by ethnic Chinese workers who settled here after leaving China a century ago.

Chili crab – a recipe of crabs stir-fried in tomato and chili-based sauces – could become a bone of contention. It is often associated with Singapore and is considered the city-state’s unofficial national dish.

Malaysia was recently embroiled in another cultural spat with a neighbor.

Indonesians held protests earlier this month accusing Malaysia of stealing a Balinese dance for a TV promotional campaign about Malaysia. It later turned out that Malaysia had nothing to do with the video, which had mistakenly described the dance as Malaysian. The video was broadcast on the Discovery Channel cable network, which apologized for the mistake.

The name 石靖 who is  alleged to be Jessica Shi Jing, an administrative assistant to a senior Electrolux executive in China shot up to become the most popular search term at the Baidu and Google search engines.There are different versions of her story, and it is hard to tell truth from fiction.

Some of these photographs are regular poses by the woman, either at work or leisure.Another more daring series featured the woman in bikini inside a room, Maybe a former-sexual love.

A 42-year-old American man named Robert Kugler had a photo album, which contained photographs of other women as well (use Google to search for “jessica_confidentially site:pbase.com” and click on the cache). Shi Jing was one of the girls, and those photographs were taken when they went on vacation together in Hainan. This photo album was broken into and the photographs were extracted and distributed so as to accumulate millions of viewings within a few days. There are other netizens who believe that the photographs came from Don Gadsen, the top man for Electrolux in China, and Robert Kugler is only a friend acting as the ’smokescreen.’

Zonaeuropa.com published a more indepth story about this matter:

The name 石靖 recently shot up to become the most popular search term at the Baidu and Google search engines.

Jessica Shi Jing is an administrative assistant to a senior Electrolux executive in China.  There are different versions of her story, and it is hard to tell truth from fiction. Some of these photographs are regular poses by the woman, either at work or leisure.

Another more daring series featured the woman in bikini inside a room.

And then there are the Category 3: Obscene photographs at Discuss.com.hk and any number of other websites.

The first version of the story was that Shi Jing published those photographs herself.  According to a blog post that is allegedly written by her: “Since my parents did not give me a pretty face, I could not become a model.  But that is still a dream of mine.  Therefore, I got a friend to take those photographs.  I don’t mind if there are consequences such that the photographs being disseminated across the Internet, or that it may give some new and perverse excitement to certain people.  I think that it is worth it.”  However, the blog has been deleted.  It is doubtful that Shi Jing wants to promote herself in that way, because her job position does not require her to become “red hot” through this type of exposure.  But in another purported blog post, she wrote: “I am willing to live with poisonous snakes.  This continues to give me courage and resist the discrimination in the world.  I am destined to follow my own path, even if it is a path with no return.”

The second version is that Electrolux is trying to become better known through hyping.  Indeed, Electrolux crashed into the top 10 search terms together with Shi Jing.  But this is not credible.  As an international brand, Electrolux could not conceivably choose negative publicity in order to increase brand awareness and recognition.  A variation of this version is that Electrolux seized the opportunity to hype this affair once it became known and Shi Jing was just an innocent victim caught in the Internet storm.  <Beijing Youth Daily> contacted Electrolux and was informed by the company public relation specialist that Shi Jing is the assistant to the manager of the home electronics division and she is presently on leave due to mental pressure.

The third version is that a 42-year-old American man named Robert Kugler had a photo album, which contained photographs of other women as well (use Google to search for “jessica_confidentially site:pbase.com” and click on the cache).  Shi Jing was one of the girls, and those photographs were taken when they went on vacation together in Hainan.  This photo album was broken into and the photographs were extracted and distributed so as to accumulate millions of viewings within a few days.  There are other netizens who believe that the photographs came from Don Gadsen, the top man for Electrolux in China, and Robert Kugler is only a friend acting as the ’smokescreen.’

There are many angry young people among the commentators. Here are some comments:

“The problem with Shi Jing is not that she posed nude, or she had intercourse with someone.  There are so many Japanese adult video girls, but why should any normal person scold them?  Shi Jing’s problem was that ’she wants to look aloof in front of her compatriots, but she acts like a dog in front of foreigners’.”

“Let us unite all our powers and find out the true identity of this foreigner.” (see 6park and Tianya)

As indicated already, this would not be too big a deal if this was just some photographs of an ordinary Chinese woman.  This case was dynamite because of two other factors: One, she works at an internationally renowned company.  Two, an American has been cavorting with Chinese women and that touches some nerves.

bron: www.xfxmb.com, www.zonaeuropa.com [around 24-8-2007]

I prepared this second Hainan post to be posted immediately after the last one, but was kinda delayed (by 2 and a half weeks) because I had to go to the airport to pick Alex & Xenia up (who were visiting), and subsequently holidaying around Malaysia. Which meant no time to go online!

Anyway, after whirlwind super-fast trips of Penang, Ipoh, Melaka, Pulau Perhentian & Taman Negara, I’ve just sent them off to the station; they’ll finish the rest of their holiday by themselves, and I will be sent to the airport myself (after all this sending of other people) to return to Glasgow late on tuesday night.

Back to the original content…

The huge tourist complex on Nanshan (南山) includes several resorts, dozens of temples and shrines, a huge mountain (hence the name) and some other stuff. It’s the southernmost part of China (hence the name again) and beyond that is the South China Sea and Vietnam.

Anyway, “huge tourist complex” means you have to pay for every single thing -  to enter the temple, to light up some incense, to do this, to do that…. According to the guide, the Chinese government invested millions to promote both local and international tourism for the island of Hainan, and especially on this “religious tourism” thingy in Nanshan. Perhaps I shouldn’t be so surprised then.

Just so you aren’t confused by the previous picture – this gigantic statue of a three-faced Goddess of Mercy GuanYin (a side representing wisdom, a side for compassion and a side for mercy) is built on a mini man-made island, and not on the main island.

And of course, it is almost a pre-resquisite to go over and hug her “feet” and pray for good luck and prosperity and peace and safety and whatever you may wish to pray for.

Models compete in New Silk Road contest in Sanya (in South China)

Contestants in the 17th New Silk Road Model Contest pose during an outdoor photo shoot in Sanya (simp三亚trad三亞), a coastal city in South China’s Hainan (海南) province, September 14, 2009. The final round of the contest, which includes the winners of previous rounds held in 14 different cities, will take place between September 11 and September 30 in Sanya. [Xinhua]

bron: www.chinadaily.com.cn

First off, I’m not so pleased with the photos from the trip. But anyhow, I’ll post some up anyway, just because there is a dearth in photos recently . It was my first ever time using my dad’s D80 though, so perhaps I get some slack cut…

I love looking out of the windows of anything – cars, planes, boats (ok maybe no windows on those), trains, buses, etc. Of course, I always have a book with me as well, but only reading or only looking out is boring on its own. Looking out of plans is the most challenging because most of the time it’s just blinding white light, but if you glance out every so often you might get something different.

The city of Sanya (三亚), Hainan’s second most populous city. Throughout the trip I was amazed at many things – from the good to the bad – and almost all of it could be found in this city. The thing I am left speechless the most is the “total tourist package”, a meticulously contrived spending sham glossed over by the merest, most threadbare hint of  marketing and packaging. Speaking to the guide about the mechanics of the tourist industry in China, I could only shake my head. I can’t stand the plants on the bottom right by the way.

Me

The pace of development is surreal in its speed, the frenetic pace taking on a comic effect that resembles one of those roadrunner cartoons, where buildings are forever chasing other buildings for height, square footage and garish, stupid features. Dilapidated shacks lie next to concrete monuments, much like shrines to an alien religion. (ok been reading too much JG Ballard)

Local Authorities Tout Sanya As The Hawaii Of China, Borrowing Elements From Destinations Like Phuket, Thailand and Cancun, Mexico

The Mandarin Oriental at Sanya

Recently we wrote on a number of domestic and foreign hoteliers flocking to China’s Hainan Island, long a tropical retreat for Chinese tourists and increasingly popular with foreign tourists as well. Today, the Wall Street Journal discusses the great potential this island holds for luxury hotels, and the continued growth that the island’s authorities see in the hotel and tourism sector. As Hainan’s tourism industry continues to internationalize and rival neighboring resort areas in Thailand, Vietnam and elsewhere, we are sure to hear about even more hotel chains holding Sanya in the same regard as Phuket, Cannes, Cancun and Grand Cayman.

As the Wall Street Journal points out, much of the growth in Hainan’s luxury tourism sector is coming from wealthy Chinese tourists, who see the island as an exotic getaway with all the amenities of world-class resorts without the passport or visa hassles. Hainan’s location, relatively close to China’s Special Administrative Regions of Macau and Hong Kong, and the country’s economic powerhouse of Guangdong province, make the trip to Sanya even that much easier for many of China’s luxury travelers.

Sanya had more than six million visitors last year, 12% more than in 2007 and about 30% more than in 2006, according to the tourism board. The city boasts of being China’s “forever tropical paradise” — a status many of the Chinese visitors, men and women both, celebrate with tropical garb that might stand as the island’s symbol: a loud floral shirt with matching knee-length shorts. For newly rich Chinese, the chance to indulge themselves at a five-star beach resort, while speaking their own language and enjoying familiar comfort food, is a powerful draw.

Ritz-Carlton spokeswoman Vivian Deuschl says the company chose Sanya “because there are few resort areas in China, and [Sanya] is seen by many in the travel industry as having much of the appeal Bali has had over the years, especially for affluent Asians.” The Mandarin Oriental Sanya is the only property the company manages in mainland China so far, though it’s developing projects in Guangzhou and Beijing; its Beijing hotel was to have opened this summer in the China Central Television tower that was ravaged by fire last February. “Sanya is a very, very tourism-oriented city, and a lot of the big (hotel) names are there,” says the Sanya resort’s spokeswoman, Rebecca Hui.

Sanya has proved popular with non-Chinese as well, notably from Russia, South Korea and Japan. Cruise lines added Sanya to their itineraries after the first phase of a passenger terminal, planned to be one of Asia’s biggest — and built on a manmade island created for that purpose — opened in 2007.

Visitors from outside China do have to work harder to get to Sanya. There are charter flights from Russia (charter flights from England were abandoned after six months for lack of profit), but the only cities outside the mainland with scheduled direct flights are Seoul and Hong Kong. And the weak global economy has pinched the flow of overseas visitors. The number of Korean visitors plummeted during South Korea’s recent economic woes. The Sanya Marriott Resort & Spa says its numbers of guests from Russia and the U.S. were each down more than 50% in the first quarter from a year earlier. But many hotels report a rise in Hong Kong visitors, for whom Sanya, just 600 kilometers away, is a reasonable minibreak destination in a tough economy. And the domestic travelers keep coming.

…

But aside from copious sand and sun, what else does China’s “forever tropical paradise” offer a visitor? Mr. Knaust of the Mandarin Oriental, which opened in January on a secluded, rocky beach just around a headland from Dadonghai, says Sanya “is not as culturally diverse as Bali.” The Mandarin’s solution is to offer as many as three different instructor-led activities each daylight hour — say, a choice of lessons in scuba, table tennis or cooking mango pudding.

With 11 restaurants and bars and a spa offering treatments ranging from golfer’s massage to “pore-refining” facials, the hotel aims to provides a self-contained experience. Each of its teak-paneled villas comes with butler service, a private infinity pool and a gazebo.

Qing Shui Bay Resort In Sanya Follows Previous Jumeirah Agreements In Shanghai, Guangzhou and Macau

Hainan Island, the "Hawaii of China," has become a popular tourist destination for mainland Chinese and non-Chinese alike, attracting many major luxury hoteliers in recent years

Reuters reports today that Dubai’s Jumeirah Group has just signed an agreement with Hong Kong-based Agile Property Holdings to manage the new Jumeirah Qing Shui Bay Resort in Sanya, Hainan province — the southern island known by many as the “Hawaii of China.”
The new beach resort will join a number of other luxury hotels in the area, including the Ritz-Carlton, Banyan Tree, Le Méridien and Mandarin Oriental, and will be comprised of a 250-room hotel and 50 private villas. The resort is slated to open in 2013.

Although specifics on the cost of the project have not yet been released, AME Info sheds some additional light on the new project:

Designed by WATG Architects and LTW Design, the luxury resort will comprise a 250 room hotel and 50 private villas. Guests will have access to Hainan Clearwater Bay’s 12-kilometre long beach of pure white sand, six restaurants and cafés, a waterfront conference centre, and Talise, Jumeirah’s signature spa. Guests will also enjoy the panoramic views from a spectacular off-shore point that is sure to be one of the defining landmarks of the resort.

Located one hour by plane from Hong Kong and 2.5 hours away from Shanghai, the greater Sanya area is the premier beach resort destination in China. Clearwater Bay – Qingshui Wan in Chinese – is one of the most exclusive beaches in the greater Sanya area and Jumeirah Qing Shui Bay Resort is planned to be the most luxurious and exclusive resort within the Agile Clearwater Bay development. The attractive waterfront location will be complemented by championship-quality golf courses surrounding the resort.

Commenting on the partnership, Mr Chen Zhuo Lin, Chairman of the Agile Group, said, ‘We are delighted to establish a partnership with Jumeirah, which is already well-known for Burj Al Arab, the icon of Dubai. We are honoured to be the first beach resort partner of Jumeirah in mainland China. Agile is committed to developing Hainan Clearwater Bay into a world-class, large-scale resort and residential community. Our cooperation with Jumeirah will add a new landmark to Hainan Clearwater Bay, while enhancing the quality of the entire project. This will enable us to come a step closer to achieving our goal: to become an international tourism and resort community,’ he added. ‘Both of our enterprises will strive for perfection in hotel management and achieve synergies with a view to developing Hainan Clearwater Bay into an integrated, large-scale international resort and residential community, thus maximising returns for shareholders and clients.’

電視新聞閃過出事酒店沙灘的片段，刮大風，海是這麼廣闊沖白頭浪，沙仍然是這樣幼細，天空不再泛藍沒有猛烈太陽也沒有白雲,灰灰的天。在同一個沙灘上我們一起吃午餐，沙拉，spring roll，聽海風曬太陽，你教我打沙灘排球告訴我你以前是沙灘排球校隊每天只期待放學打波去，你說我也很認真學的都不賴，你說假期沒有曬個黝黑朋友會取笑，我就告訴你這裡太陽比你的猛我幫你多塗太陽油 你滿身是汗還借意要抱我. 黃昏這兒見不到日落但晚上還是看到很多星星. 我由沙灘跑到泳池跳進去就游，你問我為何游的不錯卻怕， 不知道呀怕就怕不為什麼。我在水裡抬頭望星星很閃我記起我穿著同一條花粹連身裙在bali泳池跟他游水，我不敢說，我以為我可以以後都不再替起他你也會快樂。到底你還是說我不尊重你，沒有跟他畫清界線。我今日坐在電視前看這海吞噬兩條生命，我希望它也淹沒我們的回憶，好使在刷牙的他跟我可以再好好開始.

但我在想，或許我應該用英文寫這篇，有天輾轉你看了也明白，可憐的只是我記性好，我尊重你我只是分辨不了現實與回憶，停不了的閱讀記號罷了。

I’ve got a love/hate relationship with this place.

KK restaurant is based on Manukau Road, quite close to Alexandra Park. It’s hard to spot unless you know the place. And most Malaysians know or heard of the place. From outside it looks small, and you won’t be wrong to assume that. It is damn tiny.

Anyway, it has been a while since I’ve been to this place, so decided to give it a try. At 12pm on a Saturday, I was surprised to find a seat immediately, but was placed in a round table sharing with two couples. It’s weird but food was the priority, not comfort. The conditions were cramp, so don’t expect plenty of breathing space at KK restaurant.

A sample of the dishes below:

Hainanese Chicken Rice.

Nasi Lemak with Beef Rendang – served on Nasi Kerabu.

The chicken rice was $10, and the nasi lemak was $12. Both looked and tasted good. I’d say the KK Nasi Lemak had a lot of appeal because of the blue coloured rice (my favourite colour). The beef rendang was moist and tender – same goes for the chicken. The chilli side dish was very nice. Price-wise, I thought it’s pretty fair for the quality.

The place has two problems though (1) space and (2) customer service/attitude. I guess space in any popular Asian restaurant has a proportional relationship to its quality of food.  So, this was no exception, it is good so it’s cramp. Fair enough. If you don’t like being cooped up, I’d recommend the takeaway.

However, the customer service and attitude is a bit bad. It’s probably the thing that irks me about KK restaurant. The last time I was here, there was an older lady (perhaps the owner) who would often give you the “look” if you didn’t order more than one dish per head, as if we owed that much to her. Similarly, now there is a lady there as well who gives the “look” probably for similar reasons. On this occassion, she gave the “look” to a customer who asked for her order to be taken after waiting for quite a while. So, I guess there’s a similar conclusion, get the takeaway if you can’t stand the attitude.

My rating is based on many criterias, the food being very tasty and reasonably priced. However, the attitude needs some serious improvement because they are in the hospitality industry (and they are Malaysians!). My rating is 7/10.

In case you haven’t heard by now, Chinese action star Jackie Chan made a complete fool of himself at last weekend’s Boao Forum for Asia in Boao on China’s island province of Hainan. While participating as a panelist in one of the forum’s discussions entitled “Imagine Asia: Tapping into Asia’s Creative-Industry Potential,” the martial arts legend was asked about censorship in China (hardly a surprise considering that Chan’s latest film “Shinjuku Incident” was banned in China). Chan didn’t respond with the superior incisiveness one would expect from a speaker at a world-renowned international forum that draws current and former heads of state as guests and orators. Instead, Chan made a gross display of pandering to China’s authoritarian government, the Chinese Communist Party (CPC), in which he insulted Chinese the world over. He questioned the merits of freedom saying, “I’m not sure if it is good to have freedom or not [...] If you are too free, you are like the way Hong Kong is now. It’s very chaotic. Taiwan is also chaotic.” Then, as if he hadn’t fully expressed his allegiance to his CPC shepherd, Chan deepened his disgrace by stating, “I’m gradually beginning to feel that we Chinese need to be controlled. If we are not being controlled, we’ll just do what we want.”

Now I’m a big proponent of free speech, and I would never suggest that Mr. Chan not be allowed to speak his mind. However, I don’t think someone like him should be invited to speak at an event like the Boao Forum that deals with serious subjects of which his opinion is of no real value. Sure, Chan attended the forum under the guise of businessman. He is, after all, an entrepreneur and the Vice Chairman of the China Film Association, as was noted in the event program. But Chan is far from a world business leader, and any sort of substantive contributions he could make to discussions about the entertainment industry would be (and were as we saw) precluded by his interest in maintaining good relations with the CPC. Chan likes attention; he also likes doing business. Losing an audience and market like China by crossing the CPC is something Chan would never do. He is a spokesman for the government of Hong Kong, a major face of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, a huge donor to last spring’s Beichuan, Sichuan earthquake relief effort, and founder of two charitable organizations that operate in Hong Kong and mainland China. Clearly, Chan has invested a lot in his image as a patriot. Moreover, Chan has invested a great deal in his business ventures in China. He has a clothing line, restaurants, and fitness clubs to look out for. On top of all of this, Chan has his main business to protect: namely, filmmaking. China is a growing market for movies and Chan wants a piece of the action. Even with all of his patriotism he hasn’t been able to guarantee that all of his films will be shown in the mainland. So, when confronted with questions about censorship, arguably the single most important issue facing the Chinese entertainment industry today, how can anyone expect Chan not to parrot Communist drivel?

There is no excusing Chan’s comments–a fact the star may soon learn as he confronts outraged Chinese calling for boycotts against his films and live performances. He should be ashamed of having slandered his people in order to duck a sticky question and win favor with the CPC. However, the organizers of the Boao Forum should have used better judgment when selecting speakers for their event. Chan had no business speaking at the forum.

Hopefully some good comes of Chan’s reprehensible behavior. At the very least, the man ought to learn that he should be guided by morals, not the self-serving rhetoric of an authoritarian regime.

Was away to Cambodia and Hainan Island for volunteer work. Lead a group of TP students with their teachers to each country.