Bazaar Ramadan ala Langkawi

During the month of Ramadan, food bazaars sprout up everywhere to whet the appetite after a sunrise to sunset fast. This is a much sought after commercial activity, well organised by local authorities with issuance of temporary food vendor licenses in designated areas of easy accessibility. Daily clean up services are built into the system. It certainly gives an opportunity to boost livelihood as many food outlets are closed in the daytime during the fasting month.

Kuah in Langkawi must surely be credited for one of the better bazaars serving up a host of mouthwatering local favourites, some freshly cooked on site. By 3 pm, stalls start setting up woks and are busy preparing the fare for the day. The crowd trickles in around 4 o'clock and builds up to a frenzy by 6 pm as people rush from work to bungkus food for breaking of fast at home. A complete menu of appetisers, main meals, dessert and drinks are available.

A photoblog of yummy delights . . . enjoy!

Woks of curries cooked on the site

Smouldering BBQ & satay

Chicken-on-the-spit

Dessert galore



Sata - a variety of otak otak; Tapai pulut - kosher grog?

Roti jala - net pancake

Ikan panggang - Grilled fish

Malaysian version of Churros; Malaysian tempura (cucur udang)

Steaming mee goreng

Putu mayam; pulut

Sugar cane & coconuts

Sunset . . . and a well earned break fast.

Deja Vu

Zaid sends in letter of resignation!

Asked to stay on, and take two weeks leave. . .

He said " I'm not tired. I am disappointed!"

My partner and Zaid at 2007 Melbourne Formula One - happier times

DEJA VU!

I did the same when I found I was not only banging my head against the wall, running on the spot and finally jogging backwards quick time!

EMPATHY!

Important policies to formulate, programs to implement. Under qualified staff with poor analytical and communication skills. MMSAT halted in its tracks at a whim, new Bills against all odds, lack of commitment from upper echelons, hampers galore for Raya, inappropriate staff development, poor human resource management, questionable asset management, internal non compliance etcetera.

DISAPPOINTMENT & DISGUST!

Instead of serious problem solving and timely decision-making,

there was a lot of standing around . . .






. . . a lot of sitting around . . .

. . . at round and square table meetings

. . . and eating around . . .


. . . and . . .?

Malaysian Beach Resorts

After watching America's Best Resort Hotels on the Travel & Living channel, our A list resorts are just as enticing at a fraction of the cost. Our seaside-themed get-aways this year took us from Tanjong Jara Resort in Dungun to Pangkor Laut Resort and The Andaman in Langkawi.

Tanjong Jara and Pangkor Laut offer a 3-day 2-night package with the YTL Platinum card ranging from RM 600 to RM 800 full board per head. A really good deal for the quality of accomodation and great food served.

In both, the mood and ambiance are earthy and romantic whilst the architecture is ethnic Asian with a colonial feel. Peace and quiet abound and is the best medicine for the recently retired, honeymooners or just to get away from the madding crowd.

The strong points of Tanjong Jara are the elegant beach front pool area; the maitre d' of the main restaurant, Ann, who whips up a tasty local menu of fresh seafood for dinner; and the airy foyer to catch up on emails and blogs.

Pangkor Laut Resort is a cut above with more of the same luxury. An hour's boat ride across the open sea can turn out to be quite a bumpy ride. A long jetty leads to paradise which stretches from the bay and up the rainforest hill slopes. Villas are artfully nestled between trees and each have a view of the sea. If you are partial to bathing under the stars, sun or in full view of the monkeys, the outdoor bathing pool would please you to no end.

The ultimate in decadence is to have peacocks, peahens, friendly horn bills strolling by as you sip your afternoon tea.

The wild life doesn't end there. You are bound to come across a monitor lizard or two as well as a tree full of fruit bats just next to the jacuzzi.

As you float in and out of a nap in the huge comfy lounge sofas, the infinity pool appears to merge with the stilted chalets in the bay.

Even the beach is swept of leaves and debris daily.

The dining concept is definitely fusion.

My favourite spot is the library, set in a veranda with two large four-poster beds complete with plush cushions surrounded by teak bookcases filled with books.

The Andaman in Langkawi is next to the famous Datai, and run by the same management group. It is the poorer cousin of Datai but has its own charm, especially when 50% off room rates are offered during low season.

Because of location, it is less crowded than the popular resorts in Pantai Cenang or Kuah. It gets an A for the steep roads leading to the resort and Datai which are just the thing for a challenging morning walk to work off those inches around the belly.

And nothing can beat the great sunsets.

Post Script: The VI Spirit

After 38 years since our last meeting, I now have a closer glimpse of what went on under that stern demeanour. Trepidation and awe had melted to understanding and fondness for a man who once ruled with an iron fist. Recollecting the fear instilled by him those days, I never heard his words of wisdom uttered in Assembly, as I probably was wondering if the 'Blue Shirts' would pick me up for a skirt too short or heels too high. Those days, 'they' were deemed the extension Muru.

One may ask, does terror enable learning? It maybe discipline to the teacher but it is reflected as terror to the student. Perhaps in this day and age of Generation Y, small doses of challenge discipline, or shall we call it challenge, is preferred. We as parents have contributed our fare share of overindulgence of our children to make them what they are. Today's' kids would not survive a Muru era I think.

Listening to him now (as a fully grown adult or a senior citizen as he addressed us that night) as he justified his harsh actions in the name of discipline, one could not but respect the man for his candour and fortitude. His sense of humour, when shared, is endearing. It is no wonder then, of the closely knitted friendships established even after students left school. Mellowed with experience and wisdom, it only seems natural that he choose to document his thoughts on Malaysian education, past, present and future in a book as obviously his passion for quality in education still occupies a large part of his life.

He surmised that although pass rates and the numbers of A's achieved by individual students' had increased since the 70's, the end product seemed to be somewhat wanting. Having been a teacher of Pathology at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya since the eighties, I echo this sentiment. As a direct result of the changes in language policy in schools and universities, there had been a gradual but definite deterioration in the ability of students' to communicate effectively, in any language for that matter. Changing trends in assessment methodology where multiple-choice questions are favoured over open-ended questions are commonly blamed or even worse lowering the pass mark. This, however, should not be the case if quality assurance measures are in place and upheld by all. What about the commitment of teachers and students alike?

Mr Murugasu invited contributions from Old Boys about a subject close to their hearts, "What is the VI spirit?" Being privy to a reliable source, I relate a true story about a concerned Old Boys Association of School S, that raised the issue of deteriorating standards in academic and sports performance to the MOE. Based on an extensive survey conducted by the OBA, feedback from students, teachers and old boys revealed that the drop in performance over the years was due to poor leadership by a spate of close-minded HM's and a small band of like-minded teachers where religious instruction and activities were overemphasised at the expense of academic excellence and sports. In addition, residential facilities were found to be in a deplorable state with overcrowding and basically health/fire-hazards waiting to happen. How horrifying is that? And to think it went on for all that time unchecked. The matter was investigated by MOE. The errant HM and teachers were replaced and a major review of selection of HM's for residential schools was initiated. Now that's a show of spirit!