2011 in review...

another 360 degree transition in 2011. i started the year without knowing i’m gonna sit here in jebel ali, dubai. c’est la vie! i really didn’t expect any change in 2011. early of the year, i was still very much excited about my new found life in kl. i only wanted a smooth and easy life in kl and travel around asia as much as possible. i love being a kuala lumpurian. even in july, i still didn’t think of changing job or moving to a new environment (again).

in mid of july, i suddenly received calls and started interview sessions. i actually didn’t take it seriously. guess where was I when they called me for phone interview? i was at parkson, one-u with ah tong. surrounded by shoes while doing an interview for an engineering job, just weird! even after the interview, i didn’t expect myself to get the offer and not to say moving to middle east. somehow, here I am! not a bad thing and i love this place.

the changes from kl to dubai…
from the bad traffic of jalan tun razak to crazy drivers of sheikh zayed road
from the daily rain of kuala lumpur to the sunny desert life of dubai
from the stunning looking petronas twin towers to the world’s tallest burj khalifa
from the great pavilion to the exciting dubai mall
from exotic and exciting lunch exploration to self cooked lunch box
from gossiping in cantonese at work to learning indian english at work
from doing grocery at jusco maluri to crazy buying at spinney karama
from using rm to spending aed

beside the big transition (new job, new life and new environment), 2011 is actually quite a special year. why? i bought my first apartment. a small apartment at cheras. i did plan to move in around mid of 2012. i actually started planning on how i want my first apartment to be like. i guess for now, the renovation plan has be on hold. will i be able to execute it will be another story. it is actually a huge challenge for myself. i always have the care free kinda lifestyle. someone who has never mortgaged anything before and now, have to fork out 1500 rm every month. i did think i will have to cut down on beers and trips. but hey, now… i not only can pay the monthly installment, but can also have more beers and trips. gotta thanks myself for making such a huge decision (say yes to middle east, folks).

speaking of trips, where have i been in 2011? i only went to 5 trips in 4 countries and explored only 22 world heritage sites.

-phuket in june with colleagues (i should say, ex colleagues)
-sri lanka in early august with lim yeeyin, moon, kwai fun, wai leng, Sharon, ann and her man
-beijing, china in end of august with mom
-korea in end of september with sam and ryan
-sichuan, china in mid of november with lim yeeyin

china is such an interesting place to visit. so many to see and do over there. would love to visit china again in the future. i always wanna see the terracotta warriors with my own eyes. anyway, I believe 2012 will be another interesting years in my life. so many great places to explore. i will rock middle east.

well! i will be having a gathering on new year's eve with a few friends while counting down at burj khalifa. let's pray for a great year ahead. thanks 2011 and hello 2012.

You Are So Beautiful (Scent of a Woman OST)

our life is full of uninvited plans. some days will not be as what we have planned. instead of being unhappy about it, why not take it as a new experience and challenge it? life is actually beautiful and we should make full use of it. live like there's no tomorrow. everyday is a special day!

my feeling after watching korean drama, scent of a woman.

the 1st week

i landed at dubai a week ago. life started to get really interesting. i didnt expect myself to like this place. this place is giving more than what im asking for. with malls bigger than pavilion and klcc, this place cant go wrong. i actually feel like im in an european city more than in a middle eastern one. but sometimes, i do feel like im in india. there is more indians over here than the locals. the last 7 days, i have been eating a lot of basmati rice and curry.

i've started working! the office isnt as nice and comfy as technip kuala lumpur but it's offering something what technip wont be able to give. the office is just right next to the yard. means, i can see the real actions going on. im the only non-indian in pipeline section. is good to be the odd one sometimes. they gonna remember me for a long time.

guess what? i booked a trip a few days ago. crazy yeh? the 1st week just ended and i have already started planning trips. so many to do and see over here and dubai is in the middle of the world and emirates can just fly you to anywhere. the next few years gonna be very exciting and im so looking forward for it.

friends told me, life start at 30... yeh! they are so damn right! im enjoying every minute of it.

new life?

life can be very interesting. 18 months ago, i flew back to malaysia and was so excited to restart my life at kl. but 18 months later, i gave up my extremely easy and peaceful life at kl for middle east. i was quite doubt on my decision to move here. but yesterday, when i landed at the dubai international airport, i knew i must move forward. no more regret or upset...

a few days before taking my flight, i was so damn upset for leaving my parents at malaysia. but they are so damn understanding and encouraged me to take up this new role. my parents and sister are really important in my life. i will not be what i am right now without them. all the trusts and encouragements they had given me really shaped my life and my future. thanks mom, thanks dad, thanks sis!

everyone thinks that since i have stayed overseas for many years before, it wouldnt be so hard for me to leave malaysia again. oh well! you guys are wrong. i somehow got older and family became even more important in my life. when i left malaysia for the very first time, i was young and was so eager to see the world outside. this time is my third time leaving malaysia for a long stay. i'm still very excited about it but at the same time missing my family and friends in malaysia dearly.

speaking of my friends... fellas, i will surely go back to malaysia one day. for beer sessions, for expensive lunch/ dinner gatherings, for karaoke sessions, for retail therapies or for trips with you guys. be patient fellas, we will surely meet again.

oh well! all the best to you guys and myself...

bye bye technip!

the last 18 months have been one of the best periods in my life. a big thank to mr hood and technip for giving me an opportunity to be there. a special thank to all my buddies in technip for making the last 18 months a wonderful experience.

sometimes, goodbye just isnt that easy to say it out but i believe we gonna meet again.

Hyun Bin - That man (Eng sub)(Secret Garden OST)

I'm that man, do you know that?

sri lanka

i seldom travel more than once in a month but somehow in august this year, i explore sri lanka and china. while the beauty of sri lanka was still playing in my mind, i was forced to let it go and be mesmerized by the beauty of the middle kingdom. how did it happen? the answer is easy, cheap airfare from mas + continuous public holidays.

anyway, i will try to bring back the magic moments that was given to me by sri lanka and translate them into words. i have travelled many places before but none of them offered me like what sri lanka is able to give to travellers. sri lanka might be small but it isn’t short of interesting places to visit. in just a short span of 8 days, i was able to turn back times and seen the greatness of its ancient civilizations, enjoyed the best tea in the world, walked under the southern asian sun at the world renowned beach, spotted wild animals in a national park, paid tribute to buddhism, learned dutch colonialism and the best of all, shopped like nobody business in the bustling capital, colombo! yes! sri lanka is amazing!

sri lanka has 8 world heritage sites and i explored 6 of them. from the 6 of them, polonnaruwa is my favourite. when i was there, i felt like i have been transported by a time machine to ancient sri lanka. by looking at those ruined monuments, i was able to picture how great polonnaruwa was during its glorious days. besides polonnaruwa, other world heritage sites are worth visiting.

if i am a writer or a musician or having a job that requires me to have like 101 fresh ideas, i will definately soak myself 24/7 in the southern town, galle. the charming town is just so inspiring and relaxing. gosh, i do wish im there now sipping black ceylon tea, enjoying the gentle sea breeze touching my skin while looking at the sun sinking into the indian ocean.

before the trip, i didn’t expect myself to shop like a mad man in sri lanka. never before i bought so many things in a single trip! so people, if you are going to sri lanka, make sure you include budget for shopping and i am sure you wont regret it.

is sri lanka really worth to visit? By looking at the stunned faces of those who had seen the photographs i took over there, the answer is a sure yes. sri lanka has something for everyone. the only not so fantastic story is the food! wherever I went, there were only two things in the menu which were rice and curry and fried rice. coming from a country where menu can be ranged from Indian to baba nyonya, having just rice and curry three times a day is just not right. anyway, i survived.

the highlight of the trip was meeting my pen-friend for 15 years. however, these days we are more connected by the creation of mark zuckerberg, the facebook. meeting up for the very first time after exchanging letters for 15 years was so overwhelming. oh yeh lasanthi, thanks for the great dinner. let’s hope we will be able to see each again in the future.

to view the photos i took at sri lanka, click here!

the right decision?

sometimes, you have to make some tough decisions in life! some decisions will change your life forever and not necessary in a good way. some decisions will make you regret for your entire life. how many wrong decisions have i made? how many right decisions have i made? i didnt count and i dont have to. whatever decision made cant be changed. there isnt anything called time machine in our world. therefore, we have to absorb all the decisions made and be a better person in the future. i believe we will grow stronger each day. so, no regret!

in different period of life, we will meet different peoples, visit different places and enjoy different things. but, some peoples will always be there...

what is love?

for me,

love is a very expensive game! if you dont have a rich heart, dont ever touch it! you might not be losing a penny but others might be losing out a heart!

Baby It's Cold Outside!

it isnt cold outside...
and it gonna rain soon...
and i miss you dearly...

birthday celebrations 2011!

celebration 1
venue: seoul korea restaurant & bjorn cafe, taman danau desa
date: 19 february 2011

angus... thanks for the cake!

celebration 2
venue: lovain, pipeline dept & pavilion
date: 23 february 2011

thanks moon.... for the lovely breakfast!

my party.... all pipeliners were invited!

fellas.... thanks for the great dinner!

celebration 3
venue: quattro & alexis
date: 25 february 2011


thanks... moon, sharon, lee chin yang, lee pei yuen, wong kien fatt, yee wei, choy hong, angus, tong, ong phei shen and lawrence for the breakfast/ lunch/ dinner!

The Surprise!

2011?

the 1st month of 2011 almost comes to the end... im still quite puzzled on what i want in 2011. many aims and goals are juggling inside my brain. so far, 2011 has been very kind to me! these days, im waking up with smiles (and happiness)! have not had such feeling for ages! happiness alone isnt enough... i need to get more in 2011! what is more? my own place, perhaps? since i got back from uk last year, i have been wanting my own space. therefore, the 1st goal for 2011 is to get my own place. i dont need a luxury apartment or a big and spacious unit. a two bedrooms unit will be enough! already have few units in mind!

a better job with better salary? i was offered a very good pay job recently but many things stopped me from taking it. im not sure im making the right decision but im sure i wont regret it. im not done with technip... technip is the place where i can learn to be a better engineer. and of course, my beloved colleagues... i dont wanna leave you guys yet (at least for now)! i believe i will get similar opportunity in the future. for now, i belong to technip.

my travel plans for 2011! sri lanka, china and korea! just by picturing those places already enough to make me go wild and excited! now, im crossing my fingers and hope mr hood will approve all my leaves. for this year, i will not start any exploration until august. so, from now till august, i will make sure i save enough for all the trips. i will be going to beijing with mommy in end of august. she has been dreaming of walking along great wall for quite sometimes now and is time to make it happens. as for myself, i really wanna explore sichuan... hope i can make it happens in november.

as for my babe (my crv)! hope he can be healthy thru out 2011. daddy cannot spend so much on you. but i (daddy) promise to give you a makeover before end of the year. so, you have to behave well and not causing any problem for daddy, ok?

i also promised someone that i will buy less clothes and shoes this year! its just into fourth weeks of 2011 but i have already bought like more than 20 items included a pair of very expensive shoes (my 1st pair of tods). if my mommy checks on my wardrobe, i believe she gonna go insane and nag me like forever! i have like 5 pairs of new shoes and countless new pants and shirts. so, i believe i have enough new clothes for the rest of the year. hence, i will target to buy nothing at all for the next 5 months. you guys... stop asking me out for shopping. if i happen to be at a mall, do stop me from getting something!

all the best to you guys and myself in 2011!