Farewell 2012

It is almost 4 years for me now of living and working in UAE. When I first accepted the offer to work here I told myself that at least I must do this for 5 years. That period is running so fast that I still dont think that I will be ready to think about going back to Malaysia by next year.

In fact I am arranging to bring my family to live with me in Dubai starting 2013. Naturally this plan would mean I that I need to stay longer in Dubai. Seriously once my family is with me I will not have any issue whatsoever to live and work in UAE until retirement age. I like Dubai and I made many friends here and some of them are considered brothers to me.

However I have many good and close friends who decided to go back to Malaysia for one reason or another.. Some of them have to make the decision because they had no other choice.

This week will be the last week for a good friend of mine. I have a close group of friends with whom I hangaout with almost everyday, mostly during lunch and dinner time. We call our group as Dewan Sendat since the most popular topic we like to talk about are foods and nice restaurants in our cities. Two friends in Dewan Sendat had left early of this year. Now another one is going.

It is a bit of sad news to see friends leaving me in this city although we are heavily connected through blackberry messenger and facebook.

I wish my friend a better career and life in Malaysia. Hopefully he will have his rezeki again in Dubai.

In a long term

I know it has been ages since i last posted in this blog. I guess I am a facebook addict nowadays. But I am trying to limit my activity in facebook. It may get you be carried away with 'like', comment, adding, poking, and browsing on peoples' pictures for hours.

It has been almost 4 years of living alone in UAE. It has been an exciting adventure but sometimes it could get very lonely and discouraging. It is not easy to live 6000 km away from a beautiful wife and a cute boy.

My wife and I decided that our marriage life should not continue to go like this. Recently we celebrated our 7th anniversary and suddenly we realised that out of 7 years of marriage, we lived together only for 3 years. Before something happened and get too late, I need to improve this situation.

So, my wife and I agree to do this. By next year my family will move to Dubai and stay with me forever. I am very excited now. This plan alone is what motivates me to face my days at the moment.

In the meantime, life goes on. There are a lot of changes in my life since the last posting in this blog. I am a Harley biker now and you could read my biking life in the other blog. I made a lot of friends and I have several groups which I keep in touch daily. This city and country is where I call home now. And I look forward to have my family back to make the term 'home' perfect.

"The family is heaven in a heartless world"
Christopher Lasch (American historian 1932-1994)

New Lease of Life

OK I just want to share a happy news with you all. After years of dreaming, watching, surfing, contemplating, imagining, disappointment, observing, envying....I finally got one for myself. Only god knows how grateful and happy I am right now.

I have been writing about it secretly all this while. But I think the time has come for me to share the adventure of up and down with "it" with you friends and strangers of my blog.

It's called Ringo !


Check out THIS link.

1 malaysia or 1% ?

Four wheels move the body.  Two wheels move the soul.

January Thought

It is common for peoples to plan their new year resolution when the month of January comes. In fact the most popular one is the resolution to go to the gym. I can proudly say that I no longer need to declare the gym resolution as I have been constantly going to the gym nowadays. So it is my lifestyle already babehhh...!

But I seriously think I should work my ass out to fulfill these resolutions before another January for the sake of my mental sanity:

1) Buy a harley and ride it

2) Save tons of money

UAE Dirham

Someday it could be me on that bike

So let's work on it and make it happen !

Just Do It !

My gym coach

Exploring Urdun

Ruins of Jerash

I had a blast year end celebration with family in December 2010 ! This time we complete the year with a short trip to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Unlike Dubai or UAE, Jordan (or Urdun in Arabic) is a very old country sitting on a crossroads of various ancient civilisation. It has been inhabited by men for more than 1000 years since the stone age world. There were a lot of traces of civilisation, religions and empires here from Roman Byzantine, Umayyad, Abassid, Fatimid, Ottoman, British until the current dynasty of Bani Hashim (decendant of the Prophet Muhammad's tribe).

We flew to Amman on December 12th 2010 (which was a National Day of UAE) vide FlyDubai airline which is a budget airline similar to Air Asia. For traveling and accommodation we used the service of a travel agency in Amman called Jordan Direct Tour. They quoted me USD665 per person for 5 days including different 3 stars hotels, a car and a dedicated driver. It was worth the price and I really recommend Jordan Direct Tour for a family or group tour in Jordan. Absolutely hassle free. But take note that the quote price may vary according to season, hotel and places to visit.

Legionnaires of Jerash

Here is my travel itinerary prepared by JD Tour:

Itinerary Day 1 (Thursday, 02/12/2010), Arrival Amman Upon arrival, a member of our staff will meet you at Queen Alia International Airport for assistance with customs and immigration procedures. Day 2 (Friday, 03/12/2010), Amman/ Madaba/ Mount Nebo/ Dead Sea/ Amman Breakfast. Morning departure to visit the Christian town of Madaba, "The City of Mosaics" and take a detour to Mount Nebo, the site of endearing monastery. Depart to the Dead Sea, the lowest point on the surface of the earth for a swim in its warm salty waters. Free time at leisure including Entrance fees and lunch at the Dead Sea Spa Hotel. Then transfer back to Amman. Overnight at the hotel. Day 3 (Saturday, 04/12/2010), Amman/ Petra visit Breakfast. Transfer via the desert highway for a full day visit of Petra. The visit of the ancient Nabatean Capital starts on horseback, followed by a walk through the Siq, a long narrow fissure between two overhanging cliffs. The tour then proceeds to gradually unfold the mysteries of the Red Rose City. Overnight at the hotel in Petra. Day 4 (Sunday, 05/12/2010), Petra/ Wadi Rum/ Amman Breakfast. Transfer south to the enchanting desert of Wadi Rum, Jordan's largest desert and one of the most spectacular desert landscapes in the world. Jeep Tour inside the Wadi and transfer back to Amman. Overnight at the hotel. Day 5 (Monday, 06/12/2010), Amman/ Jerash/ Departure Breakfast. Proceed north to visit the Graeco-Roman city of Jerash; one of the most preserved in the Middle East. Transfer back to Amman. Transfer to QAIA assistance with formalities and departure.

Sight-seeing in Wadi Rum

We did exactly what was planned in the itinerary. In fact when I first saw the itinerary suggested by JD Tour I got kiasu and tried to squeeze in a few other places not mentioned in the itinerary like Village of Ajloun, Kerak (for Crusader's Castle) and Beida (an extension of Petra). However they explained that if I include in those places, it will affect the timing to visit the more important places suggested by them. I thought they should know better than me and so finally I just agreed with the itinerary. It turned out to be a very well organised trip ! So for a trip of 5 days in Jordan, try the itinerary above.

My wife and I had our different favourite places during the trip. I enjoyed the sightseeing trip in Petra which reminded me of the Indiana Jones movie and several other Hollywood movies shot at Petra, the latest one being the Transformer 2. My wife likes her relaxing dip in Dead Sea where we float so easily as if our bones were made of styrofoam. We covered our faces and bodies with free Dead Sea mud for about 3 hours and we almost missed our lunch..

The weather in December was a lot colder than Dubai. It was around 15 - 17 degrees celcius and very dry. We were lucky(unlucky?) that we didnt get any rain during our trip. I remember the coldest weather was during our one night stay in Petra. It was cold and windy, I could hear my bones were rattling ! Luckily I heeded to my friend's advice to bring gloves and warm jacket.

On the third day I met my colleague El-Ghul who coincidentally was back in Jordan for the weekend. He came picked me up from the hotel and we drove around town using his dad's antique car. He came with his sister who has long migrated to Australia. So both myself and El-Ghul's sister became tourists in Amman that night. We hung out at a chic bar in a trendy street near the First Circle in Amman. El Ghul told me that the First Circle is the first roundabout in Amman and was where all the development of modern day Amman started. There were a lot of roundabouts (called circles by locals) and hills in Amman. The whole city is built on hill tops. But to me the most memorable circle was the Fourth Circle because that was where El-Ghul's suddenly stop whilst ascending a hill on the way back to my hotel. The car ran out of gas ! But we were quickly rescued by El-Ghul's friend within half an hour and the city trip was completed with a bit of fun memory.

So that was the short of it..enjoy the pictures.

Amman Colloseum

The Treasury Building, Petra

..a view from the Sig (like the shot in Indiana Jones movie scene)

An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in.

A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves..

Bill Vaughan

(American columnist, 1915 - 1977)

This Time I 'Unskirted' Her

The 4 of us..

Last weekend I officially started my winter activities by joining the first desert offroad trip. Normally I join my usual group doing laid back slow paced drive to a picnic spot in a desert but this time it was different. And I found out about this during the trip itself...:-)

The 'super fine' sand dunes

For this trip I invited 3 other friends to join me. After some effortless suggestion, Jumper, Shajil and Helmey agreed to come with me riding as passengers in my Nitro. We were on the way to meet the rest of the group behind a petrol station when the adventure began. I was the first person who got stuck in the sand and it was only on the way to the meeting point ! My car climbed its way out of the delicate sands in less than 10 minutes after some push by my friends.

Nevertheless I was not discouraged by that moment though I felt embarrassed a bit. During the briefing I was introduced by the organiser to a group of marshalls who will accompany us. These men are seasoned offroaders from the Lion Desert Club. I checked out their vehicles and it was obvious that these guys were hardcore. So I made a mental note that this trip was going to be different from my previous ones.


The route was from Kalba to Al Awir desert which was approximately 20 kilometres one way. There were 4 vehicles driven by newbies like me and 4 vehicles by the marshalls. We were taught on how to handle a climb on steep sand dunes of more than 3 metres high and descent from it. I learned about the steering technique to avoid rolling from a hill as well as various methods to rescue a car from a sinking situation. It was a trip full of tips and information. The most interesting part was that we learned all the techniques hands-on and on real situations. All of the newbies got stuck several times that day !

oucchhh !

But the most tragedic one was my Nitro when I first hit my front bumper a bit rough against the sand during a descent and hit it again whilst maneuvering a slope. My front bumper detached from its mount after the second hit. I was not really surprised when it happened but it was not a pleasant feeling to watch the first injury I did to my Nitro.

Hmmm..

Naked Nitro !

I must say it was the best offroad trip so far. I got the thrill and adventure that I was looking for...with a price. Fortunately the price I paid was only AED350 at a small workshop in Umm Ramool the day after. Now my Nitro is back to its usual shape and ready to hit the sand again.

I hope I got lucky the next time.

Leave sooner, drive slower, live longer.

It's the SONS Season Again !

Jax and his Dyna

To anyone who watches FX Network series called Sons of Anarchy, I know what you do every Tuesday since September. I have been following this drama since the past Season 1 (2008) and Season 2 (2009). Now the Sons are back for Season 3 in 2010 ! Although I did not subscribe to FX Network channel but thanks to Isohunt torrent website uploaders, I get to download all aired episodes of Season 3 every week.

This drama is all about the life and struggle of the members of a bikers' club called Sons of Anarchy with the authorities, its own members and other villains. The Sons of Anarchy is also nicknamed SAMCRO (Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club of Redwood Original). The SAMCRO's mother chapter is set in a US town called Charming in the State of California (I found out that this place does not exist in California). The stories centered around a few characters in SAMCRO namely Jackson "Jax" Teller (Vice President), Clarence "Clay" Morrow (President), Gemma Teller Morrow (Prez's Old Lady), Tara Knowles (VP's Old Lady), Alex "Tig" Trager (Sergeant at Arms), Robert "Bobby" Munson (Secretary), Filib "Chibs" Telford, Harry "Opie" Winston, Carlos "Juice" Ortiz, Piermont "Piney" Winston (Opie's dad), Chief Wayne Unser (local Sheriff Head), Happy, Jimmy O (IRA dealer), Agent June Stahl (ATF Agent) and other interesting characters.

Similar to other episode drama, you got hooked if you follow every episode week by week. So I don't want to summarise this drama here. It will be too long. You can read the synopsis anywhere in the internet. Just google it.

L-R: Clay, Jax and Kozik

What is interesting about this drama is, all human elements showed in this drama is played by bad-ass biker characters and I am looking and understanding their actions and decisions from their points of view.

I have all the episodes in Season 1 and Season 2 and now collecting episodes in Season 3. I just downloaded Episode 5 last night. Today is Tuesday, so enjoy the Episode 6, Season 3 guys. SAMCRO rules !!

"When you talk to your boss, you let him know if I find out he's been lying about my son, I'm gonna track him down. I'm gonna beat the truth out of him. And then I'm gonna let Chibs cut him from ear to ear.."

Jax
Episode 4, Season 3