Doing a little charity with the Puma 4x4 Club Malaysia

Start off the new year, my family and I joined the members of the Puma 4x4 Club Malaysia in doing a little charity for the needy and the unfortunate. Now, while not going off-road deep into the untamed wilderness (like the time we went to Sungai Mas 2 years ago), the club occasionally engage in acts of kindness such as donating food, clothing and other essentials to charity. Funding comes from the collection of annual membership fees as well as donations from both members and non-members.

In case you were wondering, you don' t actually need to own a 4x4 to be a member of the Puma 4x4 Club, as you can hitch a ride with one of the other cars if there's a vacant seat! :)

We gathered at the clubhouse in Malim, Melaka on a fine Sunday morning. My good friend and former colleague, Jackson Goh (now happily retired), was already on the scene, all geared up and rearing to go. Not long afterwards, the Club President, Tan Poh Heng (a.k.a. "Lau Tar") arrived as well. Eventually, all participants of our convoy arrived, and we set off towards our first destination - the Melaka Salvatorian Home.

The Salvatorian Home was an orphanage, which was run by Sister Mary Soon and Jane Pui. There were a number of children from various races here. Earlier, Jackson did write to them to inform them of our good intentions, and asked if there was anything in particular on their "wish list". There was the essential food stuff (Koko Krunch Cornflakes, Ribena, Biscuits, Tuna Mayo), stuff to keep the place running (toilet rolls, Dish washing liquid), school bags for the kids and 2 standing fans (which we helped assemble).

After spending some time with the kids there, we set off to our next destination, the Happiness Center for the Mentally Disabled Children (PKKTA Bahagia), which was situated roughly half an hour's drive away, at Klebang.

Although I had driven along the main road just in front of the Happiness Center many times, I never knew of it's existence, as it was about 200 meters off along one of the smaller roads just beside a large condominium. I feel a little sad to note that if no one even knew they were there, chances of receiving aid and donations would be quite slim.

There was a sign here that was a real eye-opener. I was a little skeptical at first, but after walking through the single-storey bungalow house, I believe that this figure was justified. While it may seem like a standard house from the outside, the interior was fully loaded with beds for the inhabitants. Even in the main hall, there were already 3 or 4 beds, and each room had just as many. Not all of them were children - there were a few elder inhabitants as well. Some of them had families, but due to the difficulty in raising them on their own, they were placed here and visited occasionally (on weekends, holidays).

By then, it was getting close to noon, so we headed on to our final destination - the Handicapped and Mentally Disabled Children Love Center.

Another place just off a road that I have traveled along many, many times before. Situated deep into a housing estate, the corner lot had a big compound which was lined with many chairs for the inhabitants. Just as at the other two locations before, we were also greeted with smiles and I could feel the warmth of their gratitude as we dropped off some much needed supplies.

Having gone long with the Puma 4x4 Club, me and my family could see the donations were given out, and who were their recipients. There are many unfortunate people in this world, and though you may read about it and see it on TV (or read it in an online blog post, such as this one), nothing compares to a first hand account. Definitely more meaningful and engaging then, say, putting RM10 into a charity donation box.

If any of you out there would like to donate or offer assistance to any of the 3 charities mentioned above, their contact information is given below:-

Please don't be mean and spare the spam / crank-calls!

8GCC Annual Dinner 2011 at Saloma Bistro

Time flies when you're having fun - and even when you're drowning in a sea of endless work. At least while I'm still in the first quarter of 2011, here's a short post about the recent annual dinner of the 8th Generation Civic Club (or 8GCC for short), held at the Saloma Bistro in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

A short recap of 8GCC's previous annual dinners:-

• 1st Annual Dinner - 23 Jun 2007 - The Ivy, Asian Heritage Row
• 2nd Annual Dinner - 11 Oct 2008 - Republic, Sunway Pyramid
• 3rd Annual Dinner - 31 Oct 2009 - Rama V (Fine Thai Dining Cuisine)
• 4th Annual Dinner - 8 Jan 2011 - Saloma Bistro, Kuala Lumpur

Well, it looks like 2010 was a busy year for all of us, as the 4th *annual* dinner actually took place in 2011. Looks like there should be one more dinner later this year, as theoretically 2011 should be the year for the 5th annual dinner.

Now, anyone who has driven in KL would know that GPS assistance would be minimal, due to the tight and twisted network of roads that permeated our capital city. Besides, with detours as a result of ongoing construction projects, as well as the SMART tunnel (which goes underground, essentially cutting off the satellite signal) could have proven challenging in the worst case scenario.

Fortunately, I did not travel alone - as I joined Bro Fendi (Afryna) and Osman. Together, our three-car convoy made it right on time at the Saloma Bistro, at the heart of the city.

Looking around, besides the fact that there were probably around 80 to 100 Honda Civics, the KL tower and Petronas twin towers were visible, not far away from our location.

There were a few familiar faces and old acquaintences, like Bro Kenneth (Netken), Phyrus, Mike (former club president) and White Wizard. Finally met up with Bro Estima too. Unfortunately, this year, I did not manage to catch up with Desmond and Leon, though.

As you can imagine, a buffet-style dinner for such a huge crowd resulted in a long, long line of hungry people. But then, there was probably no better way to serve so many people and still offer a variety of food, while keeping the price (due to service charges) down.

No 8GCC event would be complete without the usual *auto show*, which this time round was divided into Type-R and Non-Type-R categories. Just looking at some of these cars, it's amazing to note the extent of which some people will go to in modifying and customizing their rides. Though there was not really much variation among the cars (after all, a FD1 looks like an FD2, and worse still, practically all Type-R's were white), there were some, like the owner of the "Ayumi" Civic, who went beyond the typical civic modder.

We arrived fairly early - with plenty of light, it was easy to capture the details on some of the rides on display. As night falls, the cars did not fade into darkness, as on came the neon lights and LED, which transformed the parking lot into a light-and-sound show!

And of course, there were 4 hired models (in red and white attire, not to be confused with the rest of the participants) to help complete the night (what would a full-fledged car event be without models?).

Well, after the dinner, since my two convoy-mates weren't staying the night in KL, the three of us headed back home (Melaka was just ~2 hours away). Even at that late hour, KL traffic was still bustling, but once we hit the Sungai Besi toll plaza, it was smooth all the way home.

It was another successful event pulled off by the 8GCC committee (mostly those from the Central Region, who found it most convenient logistically). Though my old-time / core Melaka team were no longer by my side (Takashi, Hanne, Nick, Ah Wei and Kenjiez), I felt happy to still be a part of 8GCC culture....

More photos HERE

Offsite meeting in the "Land of Cats"

Some time ago, by a stroke of good fortune, it was decided that our team would hold this next offsite meeting in Kuching, Sarawak. The name of the city, Kuching, in the Malay language, literally meant Cat. That's right. The feline creature that is Garfield, Felix, Tom and famed catcher of mice.


I eagerly looked forward to the trip, as it would be my very first time to the state of Sarawak. I've been to East Malaysia before, on several occasions, but always to the other end (the one with the famous tall mountain, of which I have yet to successfully ascend to the summit).
As there wasn't yet a "functional" airport in the vicinity (that would really have made things much easier), our entourage left for the LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) where our flight via budget airlines (AirAsia) awaits. Our choice was the most "politically correct" in appearance - my experience was that the other local airline carrier could offer a competitively-priced package too....

 
L-R : Moey (standing), Chong SC (sitting), KT Kong, Dr G, Me, Thye and Chan

After arriving at the Kuching Airport, and going for a late lunch, we proceeded to the Sarawak Cultural Village for a short tour, and managed to catch the cultural show performance.

 
Steven at the entrance of the Sarawak cultural village

 
Thye about to cross a "bridge"

The next day, it was meeting time, as you might expect, the parts that were boring aren't worth mentioning here. While the parts that were exciting are *company confidential*, so I can't mention here either...! :)

 
L-R (standing) : KT Kong, Cheng, Law CK, Yeo EK, Chan, Clement, KS, Mr Wee, Thye, Dr G, Chong SC and NK
L-R (front row) : Vivien, CC Tan, Me, Moey

 
Vivien gazing off into the distance....

 
Group shot at night, with the multi-skilled crew of the cruise boat

 

Thankfully, at the end of the day, we went out for a river cruise along the Sarawak River. Managed to enjoy the peaceful and relaxing ride, and also a live performance by the crew of the river boat.

 
Happy birthday, tooo, yoooou!!!

On the last day of our offsite meeting, we brought in the birthday cake for our good friend and colleague, Jackson (what a coincidence!). Talk about combining events....

It was time to go home, but on the way, we stopped by a wet market to pick up some green souvenirs. I'm not really experience in marketing, so I passed on this time, while seasoned "aunties" like Chong SC took to the market like a duck to water...!

 
Purchasing or Marketing?

In my brief time on the streets of Kuching, I managed to pick up some t-shirts for my kids, as well as the famous black and white peppers that were the local produce. Also, famous here was the "Tebaloi" which is a Melanau biscuit / cracker. And finally, the Sarawak multi-layered cakes too. And of course, Sarawak coffee powder!

Too bad one of my good friends, Lo CT, wasn't around. Since she's FROM Kuching, I'm sure she could have taken me to try some Kuching Laksa, which somehow we missed during this 3 day trip. Ah, well....

At the end of the day, on AirAsia again, we arrived back at our rendezvous point, dead tired but happy to have achieved our company objectives. And, at the same time, grateful to have been able to enjoy the majestic beauty of that little city in East Malaysia, the "land of Cats", Kuching...! :)

A family trip to Penang to see the Venerable Pa-Auk Tawya Sayadaw

Last year end, my family and I journeyed to Penang with the intention to see Pa-Auk Sayadaw, more formally known as "Venerable Pa-Auk Tawya Sayadaw". Pa-Auk Sayadaw (also known as the Venerable Sayadaw Ashin Acinna, is a Buddhist monk from a Theravada Buddhist Monastery (Pa-Auk Tawya Forest Monastery) in Myanmar.

Incidentally, Sayadaw is a Burmese honorific title which means "respected teacher". A respected teacher indeed, Sayadaw Pa-Auk is well renowned from here to as far west as the United States. A link here to a US-based website : http://www.paauk.org/index.html

It was an uneventful drive to Penang, taking me a little over 5 hours to arrive, traveling at speeds limited by heavy traffic (notably after Damansara and at Juru) and of course, legislation. The sky was cloudy all the way, with sporadic light showers that spared us from the heat of the usually blazing sun.


After putting up a night at an in-law's place, the next morning we went to the Nandaka Vihara Meditation Society, to offer some "Dana" to a group of visiting Buddhist monks. There were many devotees too. Unfortunately, on that day, the renowned Pa-Auk Sayadaw did not come to the hall to receive the afternoon Dana with the rest of the monks. I didn't manage to find out why, but I was told he'd be conducting a meditation session that night, and give a dhamma talk on the following one.

The Nandaka Vihara Meditation Society was situated somewhere off the main roads near Bukit Mertajam. An ideal place for meditation, serene due to its seclusion. Unfortunately, that made finding the way there a little tricky, even with a GPS. Fortunately, my in-laws were well versed with the lay of the land, so I only needed to use my GPS to lock down the exact co-ordinates, in case I needed to find my way back there on my own some day. Here's the map:-

Nandaka Vihara - N5 21.365 E100 29.695
Trail begins at - N5 21.313 E100 29.477

Well, it was surprising to see a huge crowd turn out for both days, bringing offerings of food and robes for the monks. Note that monks generally do not directly accept money, since they have renounced the material world, so donations to the temple are usually passed to their assistants (called Kapiahs).

On the second day, Pa-Auk Sayadaw indeed came down to the main hall, which was just as packed with devotees as the day before. While the rest of the Bhikkus ate after offerings of Dana, Pa-Auk Sayadaw returned to his hillside Kutti (monk's quarters) which was situated deeper into the Nandaka Vihara Meditation Society grounds.

Devotees hiked up the gentle sloping hillside to Pa-Auk Sayadaw's Kutti, and made offerings of Dana here, as Pa-Auk Sayadaw did not join the main congregation in the hall below. Incidentally, monks only take food at the *right time* which is between sunrise and before noon. This is in accordance to the Sixth Precept. Normally, lay persons like us can try to observe Five Precepts, while Eight, Ten and beyond are for those who are well into Buddhism.

It was a great opportunity to participate in this event. It was well worth it to me and my family (for those who are spiritually-inclined), in spite of having to drive over 500 kilometers to the Northern Malaysian state of Penang. Luckily Bukit Mertajam was on the mainland, as traffic over the Penang Bridge could often be heavy and unpredictable.

Sahdu, sadhu, sadhu!