Happy Lantern Festival

A year ago, I was celebrating my very first lantern festival in Northern Thailand. Didn't know the Thai also celebrate Lantern Festival like the Chinese.

Had a lot of good food, made plenty of new Thai friends.

And of course visited plenty of places where not many Malaysian would ever thought of visiting.

Happy Lantern Festival to all my Chinese friends no matter where you are. I am missing Thailand & looking forward to my a week break in November, celebrating Loy Kra Thong.

2009 Welcoming 2010

So here I am in Hong Kong on my first post of 2010. 2009 as a whole been a colorful one for me. I would not rate it as a fantastic year for me but overall it was a decent one.

Biggest decision in 2009, left my job and took the opportunity for a short project here in Hong Kong. At the time of this post, I am close to my 3 months stay here and in a way or two, it is a good experience. Many were skeptical about my decision to leave my position in a MNC but I also proved to many that life's much better outside here :)

Re-looking back 2009, it was a year where I traveled the most. Started the year with a trip with my primary schoolmates (our very first trip since form 5) to Langkawi. It was hell of a trip and we all felt young once again and how we miss those school days :)

After the Langkawi, I went to Perhentian Island in Terengganu with my college buddies. Enjoyed my time relaxing at the Bubu Island Resort with my 2 best friends forever and never I thought I can be holidaying with one of my ex-gf too. Guess I am too good as a man that none of my ex-es have a chance to get piss with me (praising myself) :p

Now, my first overseas trip was to Bali, Indonesia. I was there for a conference and this trip had been a controversial one as I am the one who decide on the Malaysian delegates there and I do not have to elaborate more on it. But overall it was a good trip because we were all placed in a 6-stars Ayana hotel and Bali is definitely one of my shortlisted countries to bring my the other half for wedding ceremony (so any girl interested? Pls apply within) kekeke...

After the Bali trips, I made few trips to various part of Thailand both on business & leisure. Been to Hat Yai, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Doi Tung & Mae Sai (The Golden Triangle). 2009 certainly a year where I got closer to Thailand, understanding their lifestyle & culture.

Soon after I am back from my Northern Thailand trip, I came to Hong Kong in the 2nd week of October to present. Celebrated my birthday, Christmas & welcomed 2010 here. Met up with a lot of Malaysian friends who visited here. Made a few nice local friends as well as expats who are here for work. Enjoyed working & had great food here but at times do feel lonely missing my friends back home.

So that was about where I went in 2009. So, how about relationship? No luck still, officially I did go after a girl but the she ain't interested in me though :( , unofficially, hmm...for me to know, for you to find out ;)

And 2009, I had a chance to experience the F1 from the paddock. And being a red devil myself, I went to the Manchester United friendly game here in Malaysia.

2009 - Family wise, I became an uncle to Nicholas Song (my nephew) :)

My youngest brother graduated as a civil engineer. Practically my parents can go for retirement :)

I had a new tattoo as well, a traditional Iban's 'Bunga Terung' on both sides of my shoulders but I have yet to take a good snap shot of it.

Misses a few weddings, birthday parties especially towards the end of 2009. To those who invited me, deeply apologized on that.

2009 overall, I found happiness in whatever I do. Money wise which I have not achieve much, I am happy with the turnout of 2009.

So 2010, what's installed? I will be back to Malaysia very soon. Just got the good news that I will be paid by my Malaysian client by next week and I will be flying off to Land of Smile this coming Thursday. Then after my short break in LOS, I will head back to KL to get some unfinished business done then back to Malacca to arrange some big thing.

See you guys soon!

Paradise, I Am Coming

The date is 7th January 2010. I am looking forward to it.

Land of Smiles, I am coming...

Final Day in Northern Thailand

What a lovely weather now in Hong Kong. A beautiful Saturday and before continuing on my life here in Hong Kong, I wanna finish up the posting on my recent trip to Northern Thailand. For easier track back, please check out here, here & here.

In brief, Northern Thailand population is mainly made of hill tribes people from Burma who came to Thailand to seek asylum during the civil war there. The Thai government recognized these people as the 2nd class citizen of Thailand which means they will not have the privilege like other Thai citizen to enjoy government subsidized benefits, for example education, etc.

Northern Thailand or the Golden Triangle was once best known for its notorious drugs production & dealing. In the past, those hill tribes who seek asylum in Thailand would grow poppy plants to make a living.

All this however change thanks to the royal presence when the late Princess Mother built the Doi Tung Villa. Thai has very strong passion on its monarchy, that is why it is very important for tourists and foreigners to know this point because unnecessary and unpleasant remarks about the monarchy will land them in hot soup. To stress again, never ever poke fun on Thai's monarchy, the King & the monk.

Ok now on the Doi Tung Villa, a summer palace on the slopes of Doi Tung near Pa Kluay Reservoir, which is now open to the public as a museum. The royal initiative also educated on new agricultural methods to stop slash and burn practices. Opium has now been replaced by crops such as, coffee, teak and various fruits. Thus the life of these hill tribes changed so whenever I asked them about the late Princess Mother, they will passionately described her in many good ways. The rest of the property, including the Mae Fah Luang Garden and Mae Fah Luang Arboretum, is also open to the public. Please note that no photograph is allowed inside the Doi Tung Royal Villa.

At the peak of Doi Tung, 1800m above sea level, Wat Phra That Doi Tung is built around the twin Lanna-style chedi. The chedi were renovated by famous Chiang Mai monk Khruba Siwichai early in the 20th century. What was captivating here to me, the two rows of temple bells, pilgrims bang on the usual row of temple bells to gain merit.

All in all, my this trip there had opened up my eyes in a lot of ways; Thai's culture, its way of living, its food and the home-stay in village had been a great experience for a city boy like me. God willing, I will love to visit it again during the Songkran festival. For those who are seeking advice on this area, do email me, I will try to assist as much as I can :)

As for me now, its my first week here in Hong Kong, the first few days always been exciting when you bump into a new place & new environment, but as time passes, I start to miss friends back home. In Hong Kong, long stay here is not easy, the moment you step out of your house, you start to burn a hole in your pocket so can guess that I most probably home most of the time, or perhaps just go around the neighborhood for a walk. I am currently home alone for a few days here. I am invited for a post mid-autumn celebration party tonight @ the Hong Kong International Airport World Trade Center, was there last night and the view was amazing, will try to snap more pictures & upload it to my Facebook.

Oh ya, not forgetting too, taking this opportunity to wish all my Hindu friends & readers a very happy Diwali, I am so gonna miss the food! Ciao!

Blogging From Thailand

Howdy peeps?

My current city now is Chiang Mai, Thailand. Quick update if you don't mind. I am not able to upload any photos as now because I am currently at some restaurant that provides internet service.

I won't be in Chiang Mai for long. Currently I am surfing while waiting for my bus to Chiang Rai, another 3-4 hours of ride. It's been a long day today since 6AM. Thanks to Roy Lim who fetched me all the way to KL Sentral.

From KL Sentral, I took the KLIA transit to Salak Tinggi before commuting via bus to LCCT. I would say the package is worth of it. The whole journey took me slightly less than an hour. Reached LCCT about 8ish. The flight was @ 1020hrs and reached Chiang Mai @ 1230hrs local time.

So, I guess I will be off from the blogosphere and internet world for at least a week because the internet facilities in Thailand are pretty poor.

So I would like to take this opportunity to wish every readers of mine a very happy Mid-Autumn day tomorrow ya! Enjoy the mooncakes, light up more tang-lungs.

And not forgetting too, let's pray for the victims of the earthquake that we Malaysian felt a couple of days ago. The death toll had since increase to an estimated 1,100 deaths. My prayers to them.

Gonna miss you all.

Hugs & Kisses!!!

The Plan

Well, I am unwell for the past 2 days ever since I am back from Genting to cover an LG event up there. Really hope for a speedy recovery as I am flying to Thailand this Friday for a week, then back here to Malaysia for few more days before flying off to Hong Kong (HKG) to spend my remaining days & months of 2009 there.

This will also be the very first time that I am out of the country for a long time and to be frank I am really anticipated about it. What I will miss most of course my family & friends here and not to mention the food here.

And to my brothers - Rim & Chong, don't worry I will be back!

What prompted me to do such decision to leave? Am I not worried leaving a stable job in LG and venturing into something that I am totally green about it? Yes, I am especially seeing my bank account decreasing day by day. But at 30, I looked at what I had achieved in LG, I told myself I had enough, I rather stay happy & healthy than to seek & fight for something that I do not foresee that I can achieve there. Happiness play a key role to my decision, and last I heard my junior who I had been working with close to 2 years leaving too! So to the public reading my blog, I should not talk much bout my ex-company, it does not require a genius to understand the culture and work-like there. Brother Jeremy, I wish you the best in your undertakings, been a pleasure to work with you.

So what's my plan next? Travel only? Nah... I am taking up a job of website revamping in HKG, submitted my quotation, been shortlisted and will still need to do my presentation to client and hopefully can beat the rest of competitors mainly from HKG. Should the project be awarded to me, I will be there to coordinate the implementation up to the execution stage.

Since it is the last quarter of 2009, HKG allows Malaysians to stay up to 90 days, meaning I can at the same time celebrate my X'mas & New Year there, an opportunity that I do not want to miss. I will also be meeting up friends in HKG & Macao (Josie & Sexy, see you people soon!). Plus, will have few friends visiting HKG during my stay there, Deric & Alan, see you guys there!

And this period will also be the best time for me to be a bit slimmer. I somehow lost weight each & every time I travel, the place I am staying in HKG will have all the facilities like gymnasium, swimming pool & jogging track. Must be disciplined enough to look better myself!

For those who want to contact me, sorry peeps, I will be suspending my maxis line before flying off but rest assured I will share with you guys my HKG number on facebook ya! And for friends who want me to help them buy stuff in HKG, email me and visit my other blog @ Shop With Mike, I will try my very best to get it for you all ya!

And cross fingers, hopefully I can spare time to visit China, got my China visa standby as well.

I shall be back in February 2010 just in time for Chinese New Year here. And what's the plan ahead? I am seeking a full-time employment job or perhaps a joint-venture in Bangkok, Thailand. Why Thailand you may ask? Well, it's complicated and remember earlier in my post I mentioned, happiness is the key.

Till then people, more updates on my travelogue!

So Here's The Updates

My blog has been in a very sorry state of late. It had been ignored for a bit and finally I have found time for it at least for now. Yes, resigned... DONE... so many would ask why you still serious about your job? I would like to let go totally but it would be nightmare for my clients, it is just not me to just to leave it to someone who totally has no idea what or how to manage the corporate clients.

For my clients who had been following my blog, rest assured, I will be at my best to service you all until my last day of employment. I will be serving my notice until early September. To be frank, I have not accept any offer put on the table. It does not mean I am being arrogant or ignorant about the whole economical situation. To me, the next move I would have make will be critical for my life, so therefore I am seeking a bigger role, bigger responsibility and of course a bigger pay.

Not too bad after all, I had 2 offers and now I believe your experiences sell. And your name sells as well. One from an automobile company and another is pharmaceutical company. Got a call today from Singapore for a role in a European MNC and another in Thailand (this is my choice perhaps).

And I just need to be a bit more patient with my current situation while serving my notice as I had come to encountering Tai Chi Masters internally. I believe in karma though and I guess I had made the best choice and decision in my almost a decade of employment. Time to move on and with offers pouring in, I believe I can excel and put my strength to bigger test in life.

So, health is also another reason I quit my current job. Friends & family knowing me, I spent quite a substantial amount of time in my work. Blood pressures and BMI numbers not being good to me, it's time to do something for myself. Something money can't buy, and that's my health. So, there will be badminton every Thursday now for me. Mountain biking on the weekend. And perhaps pick up my golfing real soon.

And travelling!!!! Yeap, back from back to back Indonesia & Thailand trips. I might be heading either Thailand or Hong Kong in September or October if there aren't any offer that can catch my attention. Before any readers having wrong assumptions of me heading to Thailand so often, well I am seeking for opportunities there, it is a country I would call it home if possible given the cost of living and the people in consideration. Some real sorry stories here had influenced my opinion of my born country. Teoh Beng Hock's case, ISA, etc... it just goes on and on...

And well... who knows I am in the road of finding my soul partner. I just felt all good things will follow suit soon. Just that this good feeling and I trust my feeling.

To my family and best buddies who had been concerned about my future, I am more worried than you all, with all the commitments I am having now. As a human, always aim higher and never stay in your comfort zone, that's me! That's Michael Song!

Signing off for now... shall be back with full strength ;)

Hatyai - Syiok!!!

Hey people, I am back. It felt a bit weird not being able to online for the past 4 days. To cut long story short, I was away for vacation with my family in Hatyai, Thailand since it is a long Raya break. And my apology to all Muslim readers, I take this opportunity to wish all Muslim friends a very happy Raya Aidilfitri.

How to get there?
Back to my trip, this time around, dad decided to go by bus. Hatyai had been a yearly destination for my parents during Raya break. This is my 2nd time there with my parents. Little do I know, now there is a daily direct bus from Melaka to Hatyai, saving all the hassle of driving there. Cost is about RM70/pax from Sentral Melaka up to Hatyai City Centre. For fellow Malaccan who needs more info, here is the number, KKKL Tour (06-2881399).



Where to stay?
I had been to Hatyai for a few times now, still our favourite hotel will be BP Grand Suite located along the busy Sanehanusorn Road mainly because of the location and the price. For a decent queen size bed, it cost RM80/night. There are many other hotels along this stretch, there are many new hotels in this area too.





Food & Beverages
I always love Thailand, whether it's Hatyai, Bangkok or Chiangmai because of the food. Everywhere you go, you see pork, very nice pork or "moo" in Thai. And not to mention too their chicken rice is very yummy, none of the joints in Malaysia that I know of that can beat the chicken rice here. So, if you are going Hatyai, chicken rice & bak kut teh is a MUST.







And also right opposite the BP Grand Suite, there is this fried kuey tiaw stall which only open late noon til late night. Highly recommended too.



As you walk around the busy street of Sanehanusorn, you can see a lot of stalls selling Thailand junk food. Try as much as you can. But price nowadays is not as cheap as 3 years back. Price very likely similar to KL rate but worth a go.



Do not forget the mango with glutinous rice, pineapples and coconuts.







Activities in Hatyai
Shopping - for ladies. Cheap imitation jerseys, fake Polo Ralph shirts. The most expensive boutique here is Lacoste followed by Nautica, both in Lee Garden. The girls commented the bra & the panty are cheap here. Few shopping malls in this stretch of road - Central, Odeon & Lee Garden. Tips: for discount on the street always offer 50% lower than the price quoted. As for in the shopping mall, go to Odeon, the promoters there can give discount if you sweet talk them to bed







As for guy like who does not fancy shopping, always can opt for a hair cut like I did during my trip. I had a hair cut & coloured my hair plus shampoo & washing - total cost about RM70. Where to get such rate in KL? Loreal somemore, don't play play.





Also massage - plenty of massages. Farking cheap making you feel like a fool paying double/triple the price back in Malaysia. Standard 1 hour 45 mins full traditional body massage cost only 240baht (appx RM24) and for foot massage 1 hour 30 mins 250baht (RM25). I had all of them and it's heaven. You can also walk in any saloon, get your nail cut (RM15), cleanse your ears (RM8), dead skin removal (RM15). Highly recommended - Apple Saloon (2 blocks away from BP Grand Suite). As for full body massage - go for Sakura.



Night life & activities
In Hatyai of course a lot of guys will be there to enjoy their escort services. For those who are not there for this, you can always go to pubs scattered around the Hatyai City. Their live bands are really good and interactive. There is one just below the Odeon Shopping Mall, and another one called Westside. For disco you can go to Paragon or Kiss Channel. The damage for alcohol here is much lower than in Malaysia. As draft beer is not that popular here, go for big bottled Heineken in any pub/disco you go. Price per bottle not more than RM15 and the waitress here are much friendlier and much fun to be with :)



I sang a song too.



Things you must know
Since my last trip there 2 years ago, a lot of changes now. Smoking is prohibited in most indoor area, this includes pubs, discos & restaurant even if they are not air conditioning joints. Good for non-smokers! And convenience stores or supermarts cannot sell alcohol drinks within a certain period of time. Good rules innit?

Bring an international adaptor for your phone & laptop charging. The currency rate at the time of my traveling period was RM1 = 9.80Baht



And big Heineken selling in Tops Supermart for RM6 per bottle. Damn!!!



That's about it all for Hatyai this time around. Come this November I will be going for 9-days free & easy Hong Kong, Macau & perhaps China trip. Life can be wonderful.

Happy weekend ahead!