The Rock Hostel in Kinabalu Park + The "Mountain Wild Durian"

The Mount Kinabalu;Laban Rata is visible here too; by the two dots of white spot.

This is the Rock Hostel we were staying before and after the climb.

The interior of the Rock Hostel.

Taste a bit like cempedak mixed durian ; cost only RM 5.00 per fruit.I was offered by a kind Chinese man to taste the fruit; i tasted 3 fruits,it was great ;very sweet!

See what kind of foot wear the porter is wearing!

The Porter uses an RM 8.oo rubber stud base shoe for their work.The male Porter could carry as much as 35 -40 kg load of baggage;wheres the female carries about 30 kg load.Due to raining season the baggage charges increased by RM 1.00 to RM 8.00 per kg.See that man who carries the long plank; He was paid RM 2.50/Kg to Layang-Layang;one way.

The porter uses a rubber stud base shoe for their foot wear; whereas we used a better and more comfort shoe but when come to stamina and strength; we are no where! So what if you are wearing a NIKE,NEW BALANCE OR ADIDAS but a cheap shoe like mine can do a good job too!

This Power shoe cost me RM 59.99.It is light and have a good grip on the slippery surface.

Malaysian Students Aboard

2008/11/27 Malaysian students abroad: The rich can afford the best, but what about the rest? MARIAM MOKHTAR, Ipoh

I WRITE in response to the report "The real reason prestigious Egyptian university rejected local students" -- (NST, Nov 21).

It was reported that our students were performing poorly consistently. Seventy per cent of Malaysians had failed their examinations, had taken 10 years to complete their four-year courses and had failed to grasp Arabic. This equates to 2,800 students.This was a big waste of resources if they had been sent on government scholarships. Even if it was privately funded, it is still an immeasurable loss. And the time lost can never be regained.

The problem does not lie with Al Azhar (a similar problem also confounds universities in the United States and Britain). The problem definitely does not lie with the students. It lies with our education system.We have to be honest with ourselves. Or rather, the government has to take stock of the situation and rectify this before we become a worldwide object of ridicule and rejection.

The bottom line is that our education system is failing our students.As an example, we are lulled into a sense of greatness when it is reported in the media that our students have scored several As and are, thus, declared scholarship material. Politicians thump their chests and proclaim that our education is world-class.Unfortunately, those who are in the know are aware that when it comes to communication, be it at interviews or informal discussions, or at writing essays, few of our students have a good grasp of language. They also have poor numerical and social skills.

Politicians and the well-to-do need not fear the inadequacies of our education system. They send their children abroad to study. Some of these politicians have benefited from the better education system of yesteryear but are unable or seem unwilling to extend the same privilege to the current population.Of the rich who were denied a good education in their youth, these people realise that to strive for improvement may mean getting an education abroad. They have the means to do so, but what about the rest of the population?So when will academicians and politicians take our interests to heart? If progress is to be made, we have to improve the education system now.

Beside Belly Dancing ; What about THai's Kick Boxing in Kelantan!??

Fatwa on yoga: What about belly dancing?

SO the National Fatwa Council has ruled against yoga for Muslims ("Yoga ban" -- New Sunday Times, Nov 23). The reasons seem clear.

Perhaps we should also look into tai chi. It may have hidden religious elements, perhaps borrowed from the rites of Shaolin monks? What about aerobic dancing? Probably no religious element there, but there may be a touch of hedonism. Then there is belly dancing. If done vigorously, it can have aerobic benefits. The gyrations should also help loosen tense muscles and promote flexibility.

Belly dancing also has an Arabic flavour, and that may make it somewhat acceptable. According to one former member of parliament, even RTM inadvertently played belly-dancing music when announcing breaking-of-fast times a long time ago.

Furthermore, some belly dancers wear veils. That should find favour with those who subscribe to this apparel over the normal head-covering. The rest of the costume is rather skimpy, but one can always wear a tracksuit over it.

Belly dancing should be performed by women among women away from the prying eyes of men. Men should avoid doing belly dancing as that may be considered effeminate behaviour.In short, if done under certain conditions, would not belly dancing be a suitable alternative to yoga?

Muaythai match in Bangkok,Thailand. Praying before the match.

A Ritual Dance of Homage (Wai Khru Ram Muay) is a must in Muay Thai ( THai Kick Boxing) in this picture you can see that this Thai boxer is praying during the Wai Kru before match. In fact kick boxing is included as one form of exercise in the slimming health centre nowadays.

my clothings,my gear and the energy bar during my expedition

Energy food bar from Australia @ Rm 9.00 for 4 bars in each packet.Taste nice and not too sweet at all;full of nuts and fibre.Easy to chew.For my last climb in 2002 ;i used a different brand-more like semi fluid form but taste awful and this time around i used this bar.

During the 1st phase of the climb;Packed lunch was provided;but i can't really ate any of the food in the packed lunch!Except the hard boiled egg.(Packed lunch: sandwiches x 2 big pcs,small chicken drum stick x 1 pc,karipuff x 1, and one hard boiled egg)too exhausted to even munch any solid food!! These energy bars were easy to consume during the "torture moment" during the climb.Solid food are barely easy to swallow.

The 2 nd phase climb usually starts at 2.30 am and you have to eat your snack (any light refreshment) before 2.30 am.Many of them took Milo,coffee,mee meggie or bread.But i only took 2 pcs of energy bar and plain water.

Things to bring/wear for the first phase of climb: from Timpohon gate to Laban Rata ;weather was about 11.2 degree C at Laban Rata(total distance is 8 Km) targeted time was 6 hours climb but i did it at 6.25 hours ( 9.15 am to about 3.30 pm )

A) wear a short pant with side pockets;

B) a small bottle of water;get your refill at every station along the way;

C) a tube of deep heat;

D) yoko yoko,-it really helps you to relieve your muscle ache;

E) Packets of glucose and cooking salt(separate packet)-at every station try to fill up the bottle and mix it together in the bottle...to replenish your lost body fluid;

F) Plastic beg to cover/ wrap up your dry clothes/belongings before you put them into your beg;

G) a small handy pack beg;

H) digital camera;

I) hand watch and a small compass;

J) spare batteries; and

K) Rain coat (with pants).

2 nd phase of climb; 2.30 am : from Laban Rata to Low's peak : weather was about 5 degree C ( total distance of 2.6 km) normally it is about 3 hours climb...and it depend very much on individual's performances and the weather.I took 3.5 hours!Just on time to see the sunraise!

A) face mask;

B) face mask -i used two layers;

C) muffler;

D) wind breaker;

E) water bottle;

F) glucose pac;

G) a pair of leather glove ;

H) spare batteries;

I) water proof jacket;

J) deep heat;

K) yoko yoko;

L) a small handy pack beg;

M) hand watch and a small compass;

N) wind breaker pant-i wore two pants!

0) plastic begs;

Never forget your Head lamp and a spare touch light!!

Should you need further explanation ; please do not hesitate to email me at waja_iii@hotmail.com

Mount KinaBalu - Here i Am agian!

Mount KinaBalu Expedition 21-23 November 2008

I CAME, I SAW AND I CONQUERED IT AGAIN FOR THE SECOND TIME...

Oh !! u really mean it?? Here i come....again...Mount Kinabalu Expedition-2nd time

Well well well;i was given another chance again (cos my colleague back out last minutes!!) to scale the Mount Kinabalu!!. Woh lau! Oh My dear, It was 6 years ago since my last venture there...Never ever dreamt i had a chance like this again! I took the challenge once again.Simply i CAN DO IT! At the age of 48;no big deal about it. Tomorrow will be our flight @0950 to KK and check in at Kinabalu Park later. Scheduled to reach Timpohon (Base camp) at about 0900 on 21/11/2008 to start the climb. This time around i felt a bit of "Kan Cheong"(Hokkien) cos there are 44 of us going on this expedition and i am one of the few who are considered as "experience"! (only one time before) Heavy responsibility huh! Woh See how lah...look at the group members...some are not that fit le! GOOD LUCK to me yeayeayea!!

I wanna tell U ....

Sunday November 9, 2008 Angkasawan denies being paid RM1.2mil for seminar appearances By JANE RITIKOS

PETALING JAYA: Angkasawan Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor who is embroiled in a controversy over claims that he has collected RM1.2mil in fees for talks has vehemently denied the allegations.

The Angkasawan, whose family has also come out in support of him, also denied that he had made appearances and given talks to 150 companies.

“I am a millionaire? I wish I were,” he said in reaction to a report claiming that he had made a total of RM1.2mil by charging RM8,000 per hour.

Dr Sheikh Muszaphar also denied making appearances at 150 corporate functions, saying that so far, he had given talks at 200 schools and less than 10 companies.

“The report is absolutely untrue,” he said in an interview yesterday. Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili said the ministry had not received any official complaint about the allegations made in a news portal.

Dr Ongkili said that if the allegations were true, a complaint could be lodged and the ministry would investigate.

He said the Government’s contracts with the two Angkasawan — the other is Dr Faiz Khaleed — expires on Dec 31, adding that under the contract, they were obliged to take part in all promotional programmes arranged by the ministry.

"anyone from a minority group can be a nation’s leader

Missing in action !! & Rugi kpd orang yg membiayainya!wai!! Saya dan rakan-rakan juga yg bayar cukai..Lu Tau??

The Higher Education Ministry has found that only one Malaysian, sponsored by a government-linked company, studying in Australia had "gone missing".

In a statement released yesterday, the ministry's media and corporate communications unit said the student, Norzarifah Kamarauzaman, had decided to quit her studies as she was no longer interested in the field she had taken up.It said Norzarifah had been studying at Curtin University in Perth for 31/2 years and needed only another six months to complete her degree in Geology."

The unit was responding to a report in the New Straits Times yesterday that seven students in Australia sponsored by the GLC had pulled a vanishing act.

Wisma Putra, Interpol and the Malaysian students club in Australia was prepared to fly the parents of these students to Australia to coax them to continue their studies.

These scholarships should have offered to bright and stable students who are interested in studying "rock & soil".A naturist minded character would be more suitable in this field;But why after studying for 3.5 years then only found dissatisfaction in the subject!?

In the first place do they understand well about this topic before taking up this "rock & soil" courses?? (should have "Mud" too ya?)These people are typical young punk who do not know how to appreciate the country aspiration and vision who wanted to cultivate more expert on this field.

If they still insist and fore go their studies after the counselling...they would be considered as one bunch of failures...I believe the parents' heart are shuttered right?Sad huh? My monies gone too !! u know??