Thank you for 4 eventful years !

With cousin Gerard in Kuala Lumpur 2009

      May 1st 2008 was the first time I started this blog. The title Seize the Day (not original I must admit,but meaningful to me) was an obvious choice. Since then, there have been almost 25,000 page views, yes the Blog counter is off some 8 thousand, but the kind people at Blogger have a tracking software on the total number of pageviews plus where and how many eyeballs per post.

     Interestingly, my main readers are from North America, and I have a total of 9 followers. These people routinely read my blog for entertainment and curiosity I guess, so somewhere out there are people who know alot about me, and I, nothing or next to nothing about them.

      In the 4 years since I started my blog, both my beloved parents passed away. My father, Geoffrey Abisheganaden on 20th September 2010 and my mother Anna Abisheganaden on 8th January 2011. I used the blog to express my sorrow and also inform those friends and family who are thousands of kilometers about their passing. My uncles Paul,Felix and auntie Terry also passed on. On a brighter note, I completed 2 more marathons in 2010 and 2011 respectively and learnt a whole new sport and lifestyle, skiing, these 4 to 5 years.  In addiion, I relearnt my piano last year (2011) and wonders of wonders, I joined this cult association called Facebook !  In reality, it should be called Wastebook, as a lot of idle time (as if I have alot of it ! ) is spent reading and looking at friends activities and posting of mine.

    Travel wise, I have visited 8 countries to add to the list, such as Egypt, Hungary, France, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, China (including Hong Kong), India and I am still very happy to say that Singapore is the best place to live for ME. I hope in the next 4 years to add to that list, so must visit countries such as Russia, Czech Republic, Taiwan, New Zealand, Lithuania, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Peru and Argentina.

      My business has expanded quite a bit, and we are offering test services now, rather than just distributing of industrial equipment. We have business in 5 countries and our partners are mainly from Asia. I am confident that the Asian century will be one of great accomplishment for my company, its partners and the employees.
    
    My boys are both teenagers now, 18 and 15 by the end of this year. Finally I will be approaching the big 5 - 0 (half century mark) by this year end and I sincerely hope that I have spent my time productively and give back to society and the people who matter most to me, my wife, my family, true friends and my supporter customers.

Carpe Diem !!!   Seize the Day !!!

    

Friends are the 'family' you choose for life

                                                       Wing Sun, Andrew,Noel and Wing Onn in Dec 2009

                                                                Mohammad Ali Mosque, Egypt

      We all have friends, some claim to have thousands, as evidenced in their Facebook profiles, while some have but a few. I can claim to have a group of perhaps 20 friends from all walks of life who I can really call 'true friends' as they will be there through the good as well as the bad times.

     When we are young, we are not as discerning as when we are middle aged. So we make friends like we drink cans of Coca Cola, not knowing that some may eventually be unhealthy for you.

     However, family is all important, as is the good values one has learnt walking through life.Honesty, Patience, Compassion, Focus and Hard Work are some values. Standing true to your Friends is also another golden value.Easy to make a friend but very hard to help them when the time does come. Money or the lack of it will always test the true meaning of 'lending a helping hand'.

     Even Simon Peter in the Bible betrayed Jesus when he was questioned about his relationship with Jesus. 

I love Paris in the Sprintime

The Arc de Triomphe taken from Avenue Champs Ely'see

       2 over years ago, my wife and I took a 8 day trip to Europe, 4 to Paris and 4 to Budapest. It was late Spring and the weather was perfect in Paris. Sunny, a little breezy and that crisp freshness in the air. 

May is into fashion, so we visited all the branded name shops along Avenue Champs Ely'see and Georges  V. The strange (well probably not strange to the Parisians) thing is now most of the buyers, say 80 pecent are by women is from Asia, particularly China and South East Asia. So there will be a some Chinese or Vietnamese Chinese (2nd generation, their parents migrated perhaps 30 - 40 years ago)  sales personnel attending to us. So, the sales people would be a mix of Asians, some French people (I am guessing) and some very handsome males (obviously gay) serving us. Paris is the gay capital of Europe, as San Francisco is the gay capital of USA. 

May, myself and some guy who happened to be in the picture,

Jardin au Tuileries (Tuileries Gardens)

 The city's infrastructure is rapidly crumbling, sad to say, as can be seen by the aging Metro, the horrible traffic jams and poor road maintenance. However, the city has a fascinating charm and joie de vrie (joy of life) to it. Parisians and the visitors love it for its playfulness, their not too serious outlook and their every changing fashion, which makes it a must visit destination for fashionistas the world over from Sydney to Shanghai to Sao Paolo. May enjoyed the visit so much that she went again last year for 6 days with her girlfriend to learn some French cooking, plus enjoy a wine tour. 

        

    With the airfares staying as affordable as they are (about S$ 1,300 for a return economy class ticket on Air France) and the 'cheap' EURO (compared to our strong Singapore dollar), I dare say we will want to visit Paris soon. 

      

    Cest la Vie.    

River Nile - River of Life

                                                                  Sunset at the Nile

      This was taken in December 2009, at Luxor along the river Nile. You can see the felucca's (sailing boats) berthed by the riverside and a cruiseship moving Southwards. The picture is quite beautiful and many thousands of years ago, the Egyptians lived (like today) along the River Nile, thus creating many gods and beliefs for their existence.

Statues of Amenhotep III by the Nile 

The reason for this belief was that in the very old days (5000 years before Christ was born), there was no technology like irrigation, and water retention tanks and the like. So in summer, the Nile would oevrflow its banks after the rainy winter and spring, and the land would be full of minerals from the river and hence be fertile for growing crops and feeding their farm animals. So life in Egypt and lower Africa depended very much on the river Nile to give it fertility and hence Life. They would pray to their pagan gods for good weather the following season, and give animal sacrifices etc. Such were the practices of the day then.

Simple Concrete and Mud Houses flanking the Nile

    The Nile is still a great source of minerals and nowadays, Tourism. Many cruise ships ply the Nile taking tourists from the world over to places like Luxor, Kom Ombo, Philae, Aswan, and up north to Cairo and even Alexandria. It is certainly a river of great importance and prominence.

Cruise ship run by Movenpick group of companies (Switzerland) 

    I call it the River of Life.

Target : Lose 5 kg by this year end

     Thats me just 3 - 4 years ago (2008) when my wife bought me a nice Zegna shirt, which showed off the lithe frame I used to have. Since then, my weight has increased about 1kg a year. Many people make excuses like "Oh its the middle age spread", that means that your basic metabolism slows down thus making it diffcult to burn off excess calories, for the same dietary input. You may eat the same portions, but the weight just goes up. The additional weight does my heart and lungs no favours, so the more lightweight I am the better it is for me. 

So my goal this year, is to break 70 kg. I am 74 kg now, and I will do it by sheer willpower, exercise and less snacking.

    I have done this before in 2002 - 2005 and I was weighing a slender (to me 66 - 67 kg). I felt energetic and motivated, running 10 - 14 km 4 - 5 times a week, waking up at 5 am and hitting the road. It was a tremendous feeling after the run, all sweaty, and then going for a nice cool bath or dip in the pool. I literally seized the day back then for 5 years or so. 

    The feeling of being so alive is wonderful. 

Egypt 2009 ; Will I be able to go there again ?

With the family outside the Valley of  the Kings

     The trip to Egypt in 2009 had an almost magical feel to it. We were transported from modern metropolis Singapore to a five thousands year old civilisation which believed in hundreds of gods representing the Sun, Moon, Earth, Underworld, Next World, all living things. All of these beliefs never stood the test of time - 5000 years. Now the major religions are Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism though these are still at most 2000 odd years old.

      The trip was coordinated by the established travel agent Commonwealth Travel Company, and our tour guide was a competent lady from Singapore, named Anna Chan. We did our first part of the 9 day tour living inside a cruise ship for 4 days travelling down the famed river Nile, the longest river in Africa. It has spawned thousands of colonies along its lenght and many TV series and motion pictures have filmed its glory.

     The recent Arab Spring in 2011 has overthrown the long time president Hosni Mubarak, and now the country is in the throes of electing a competent Government though the signs of the country stabilising is not there. Many traders are moaning the loss of the lucrative Tourist trade when many millions of people would flock to Egypt to see the cradle of ancient civilisation and how the people in those days lived and died. A fascinating country to visit as well as a fascinating old world culture where the kings of those time, the Pharoahs, were more interested in the afterlife or death than in ruling their Kingdom. That is why you see the Pyramids of Giza, outside Cairo which are built for the then Kings of the superpower of the day, 5000 - 1000 years ago.

    It almost defies belief, that primitive people had the modern technology to build such engineering marvels that have withstood the test of time.  Many have speculated that there were alien 'friends' who helped in the design and fabircation, as the angle of the pyramids are set at 33 deg from the horizontal throughout, something which is near impossible, unless one has the latest field instruments - again something which is very difficult for the mind to conceive.

     The people those days rode by donkey, as is reported in the Bible too. Till today, the donkey and the horse is still used as a means of transportation ! 

Good things never lose their application I guess.   

   

 

Mustafa Shopping Center - 24 Hours Non Stop 365 days a year

This photo of Mustafa Centre is courtesy of TripAdvisor

                                                Selling Everything to Everyone


       Located at 145 Syed Alwi Road off Serangoon Road, I took my visitor from India, Sanjeev Kumar to Mustafa's to get a feel of how a Mega Shopping Center is like. 'It' is in fact 2 huge buildings spanning the entire stretch of Syed Alwi Road with shopping from Basement 2 to 2nd floor, so 4 floors in total.

       Owned by Mr. Mohammad Mustafa Shamsuddin, he was a trader who built his business following his father's death when he was just 17 years old. His original shop was at High Street where there are some remaining shops from the old days. The High Street was the place to go for shopping in the 50s and 60s. I was just born then, but I remember my parents brining me to Robinson's Department Store - the only major department store in Raffles Place when I was about 1 and a half years of age. High Street was the neighbouring shoopping place. Things were much simpler then. I will put up some photos of that time in future posts.

      Anyway, during this trip, we checked out the Gold Department (an entire Basement 1 is devoted to this). Many Indians who are working here like to buy gold, at $ 67.20 per gram, and $710 per 10 grams. Bangles, chains, bracelets, pendants, necklaces you name it, Mustafa has them. In addition, according to Sanjeev, the variety and craftsmanship of the gold products are far wider and superior to what many Indians can find at home. Price when converted to rupees is basically the same, however if the Indian family is working here, the earning capacity is far higher than in India, so it makes sense for them to cart some home to give to their families and loved ones.

     So, there is a pharmacy, travel agent, hotel, car showroom ( I heard but didn't see), restaurants, cafes, health food store (GNC), massive supermarket with (for example) 50 brands of perfumes, sports goods, Indian traditional wear (saris), electronics, children's section, electronics, cameras, PCs, laptops, TVs, household goods, you name it, there is some variant of it being sold at Mustafa.

     What I didn't like was the service (in your face take it or leave it), and the prices are practically the same prices one gets from downtown electronics, department stores, and supermarkets. It only offers the convenience and perhaps massive variety of household products and 24 hour shopping. Go during the morning (say 8 - 10 am) when the road is less bustling, car park lots by the roadside are plentiful and the small shops nearby are not blasting one Hindi hit after another.

     I will not fancy shopping there at 3 am in the morning. The area is located near a  notoriously  red light district. So the people milling around will not be the family and business types.



  

Life is like playing Sudoku

     Living life is like playing a game of Sudoku. For those new to the game, it is all about filling out 9 squares with numbers ranging from 1 to 9 with no repetitions in any square or line, horizontal or vertical. Once you have 2 of the same numbers on any line (except diagonal), you have made a mistake.

     Its very easy to learn, but like most things in life, very difficult to master. I have been playing Sudoku for almost 10 years if I can recall. So after playing for alomost 10 years I thought I could do practically any Sudoku,having ,mastered the techniques of elimination, Gwendolin's thread in the forest, pairs and finally just counting numbers. I was wrong. So practice does make one very adept at the game, but like life, you get thrown a 'curve ball' and all of a sudden, you are stuck at a game and wondering what ever happened to your sense of logic, or even couting skills.

     So my conclusion for Sudoku ? Play the game, but sometimes, we get stumped and are thrown down unceremoniously to the basic beginner level every once in a while, just like Snakes and Ladders.

Siyeong jetty - having fresh catch of the day, barely cooked

This video was taken just a week ago at Siyeong jetty, when the fishermen have come in with their catch, most of the fish would be displayed at the jettyside and the people will go to the jetty and choose their catch of the day. Many would eat it sashimi style, that is, raw. The prawns and shellfish will be washed and cleaned, perhaps boiled, and then eaten with the vinegared sweet spicy sauce, or just with some soya bean sauce and wasabi (horse radish). In a previous post, my host Paul, my colleague Sean and myself had the sashimi fish Korean style. It was an unforgettable experience.

12 Apr 2012 Myeong Dong Street 10, Seoul

Myeong Dong Street 10 

Walking Street with hundreds of small shops 

A must visit place is Myeong Dong Street 10 in Seoul. We requested our host Paul to drop us there, and he obliged by sending us to Nam Demoon area, which is basically like a night market area or 'pasar malam' which sells everything from toursist souvenirs, to Korean ginseng, to KPop memorabilia to fake Tshirts, ties and bags. Not very classy but my colleague Sean and I had a decent time shopping. 

After buying our obligatory take home things such as ginseng, chocolates and KPop memorabilia, we had a lovely dinner along the roadside costing us a princely US$ 50. We thought we were ripped off but the next day our host told us that in Seoul, a simple dish cooked even in a small dining hall costs Won 10000 or US$ 10.00. As we had ordered 5 dishes, the bill rightfully came to US$ 50. In addition, we both enjoyed the Korean Soju or rice wine.

On weekends it gets really crowded with tourists and locals

As we were walking back to the taxi stand, I remembered that the Myeong Dong Street 10 was nearby and so we ended up at the more famous Orchard Road style street with all the brand names and small cosmetic shops selling many brands ranging from SK II, to the Korean OIPE skin care line. I was quite amazed that the Korean men, also take good care of their skin, as can be seen by their TV, KPop and movie stars. I was quite influenced by the apparent discipline in facial hygiene that before I returned, I bought several after shave lotions as well as a famous brand's, Kiehls'  dermotological skin mosituriser. 

Shops selling the latest KPop offerings, CDs,DVDs, Posters, Mugs, you name it

So, coming to the end of a very nice work cum relaxing visit to S.Korea, my impression of the country is that watch our world, S. Korea culture and products are coming soon to a store near you !   They are already world famous brand names in our countries such as LG, Samsung, Kia, Hyundai, Sangyeong. This is only the tip ot the iceberg. Wait 5 more years and sea what other things they will dominate in.

My guess it will be in the music, drama soapies, and a cheap travel destination.

Korean style Sashimi ; Woogong Port

There are literally about a hundred stalls all selling the freshest live seafood, the fish are kept alive barely in tanks with pumped -in oxygen

Fresh from a recent trip to Korea last week, our host Paul, was kind enough to bring us to have lunch at Siheon City's famous Woogong Port, where on weekdays, there are hundreds of small stalls selling live seafood. 'No big deal' - I thought. I was wrong. The multitude of shops all sell the live fish and shellfish, just caught that morning and displayed for immediate eating. Yes, immediate eating. Sashimi sraight off from the tank !! Welcome to Sashimi Korean style.

After taking our orders, the stallholders get to work expertly slicing off the skin and bones

Korea was a Japanese colony for many years, and one of the popular eating habits which they copied form the Japanese was the fine art of eating raw and fresh fish. Hence 'wher" (Korean for sashimi) is extremely popular in the seaside towns such as Siheon. In fact, the very first day we arrived, Paul brought us to eat the fresh seafood from the restaurant and one dish in particular was the barely alive octopus. The legs were still moving on the plate while we ate them !

                           The task is done in a matter of minutes under these expert hands

Anyway, after the skilled hands of the stallholders finished, the meat was placed on a bed of radish and we were instructed to go to the nearby sitdown restaurant to enjoy our meal. It was in my opinion, one of the most tasty sashimi I have ever eaten in my life. There was little need for the light soya sauce or even the wasabi, the meat was so tender and fresh that it tasted like some very fine sponge with no sea smell or flavour.

        Stalllady boss instructs us to bring the sashimi to the sitdown restaurant nearby

The whole cost of 3 fish ?  Plus a hot and sour steamboat soup when we couldn't stomach any more fresh food ?   An unbelieveably low price of US$ 30.00 in total. Just US$ 10.00 per person. A meal in any of the fine restaurants in Seoul would set us back around US$ 300 or US$ 100 each person easily.

Its time for the freshest sashimi on the planet.

After 4 trips and many dinners, lunches on tour, in ski resorts, I can finally say that I have tasted the BEST Korean dish (apart from the Korean BBQ, BiBimBap, Ginseng Chicken soup, Fried Chicken and countless of nice things) so far.

I am looking forward to more trips to Korea in the near future, for work,play and for exquisite dining.

Seize the Day. 

Train - Save me San Francisco

Really cool video from Youtube from one of the coolest bands around. The look on his face at 3 : 20 says it all.


Cest la Vie !  Thats Life !

The Cars I have driven over the last 20 years (1996 - 2005)

Side view of the Toyota Harrier 

        In 1994, I started my first business with 2 friends from University. Times were hard, and we worked long hours, and we made do with little then. My eldest boy Noel was born in 1994, and my business was slowly but surely growing. In 1996, I decided that as a small businessman, I could finally afford a Mercedes, do after doing my sums and looking around in the newspapapers, found, a 190E (2 litre) Special which was selling for about S$ 90,000 (if I recall correctly). The car was about 2 years old. 

    It was white, and was the baby of the E class series then.  I had a young child, another kid on the way, and things were looking good. That was in 1996. In June 1997, I remember, I went to Germany for the Worldwide Sales training of my then principal, and they asked something about the 'Asian economic 'flu'. ASEAN was riding on a strong economic wave, and people were making alot of money from the stock market and also property, so we said, "No problem, its only some problem in Thailand". Little did we know that 6 months from June in Jan 2008, was the start of the Asian Financial Crisis.

      After a good 10 - 15 years of solid economic growth (1982 - 1997), S.E. Asia was touted as the 'darling' of investors worldwide, and modernity had come to all the cities. People were flush with cash and took excess credit to buy things that they never had. Countries did the same things too borrowing more than they could afford to finance their infrastructures and coffers. We all know what happened next, Asian currencies went spiralling and bouncing up and down from the Financial Crisis.

     I drove the Merc through all of it, thick and thin. It was fairly reliable, servicing costs were reasonable, and I made several trips with the family and friends to Malacca. In 1997, my second boy Andrew was born. So the Merc was a reliable workhorse for me. After 2000 (4 years after I bought it), it showed signs of age, and servicing became more common. I had an unforgettable battery failure in 1999 at Orchard Link (going on to Orchard Road), where the 2 lanes became only 1 lane, after my car battery died on me. It may have caused me the most unforgettable stress in a long while, as my car breakdown had caused a massive traffic jam, and many drivers drove by and gave me glaring looks !!

      I finally sold the car in 2002, after I realised that the old car (8 years) was costing me a lot in terms of service. Every 2 months there was some problem or other, so it was time for a change. 

      That would be my Nissan Sunny. Ever dependable and really a workhorse.      

The cars I have driven over the years (1987-1996)

       The time has come, again for me to change my car. I have driven the 2 latest models of the Toyota Harrier  and can safely say that the Japanese marques that I have driven over the last 20 odd years are far more reliable that the European marques. 

        My first car was the Alpha Romeo 33 TI (black in colour) was bought brand new in 1987. Although it looked cool for a (then) young guy like me, it was fine to drive for the first 3 years. The problems started surfacing after 3 years or 60,000 km. There were electrical fuses which blew very often, there was almost overheating of the radiator, and even the power windows died on me. On top of that, I foolishly chose a black colour car which everybody knows absorbs heat. (Black body radiator, and black hole remember ?)  So some of my friends from Germany, like Frank and his family, were ecstatic when I first drove the 'performance' car, but the heat,the non-cooling aircon and the non-power steering for the 1.5 L car took its toll on my guests. After one ride in my sports car, the Europeans were begging to sit in a cooler car !

          The 'plus' points for the car was that it was in the 'sports' category, TI meaning something injection, and had 4 horizontally opposed cylinders which made it quite powerful. I was contemplating the Mazda 3 sports series, and decided then on the 33 because it had a solid feel to it, the road handling was excellent (Italy's roads are like winding for hundreds of miles around mountains, and near the coast, so one wrong move and your car goes over the cliff literally, so road holding was very good. On top of that, the gear shift, was quite a challenge, plus the 3 (yes 3) pedals, for those who don't drive or have never driven a manual car, the clutch, brake and accelerator pedals were positioned very close to each other, giving the shortest reaction time for the driver to accelerate, brake and change gear.  It was a dream to drive it for the first 2 years or so. I drove it for a full 6 years, and decided that enough was enough. The front drive shaft was falling apart and I sold it with some relief in 1993. 

            My second car, was a Honda Civic bought in 1993. I bought it from  a friend for $ 93,000, and truth be told, it wasn't as 'sexy' as the 33 TI, but it was so reliable. I recall I had '0' issues driving this car. It was less powerful that the 33 TI, but the reliability gave me a real 'peace of mind'. I only had to send the car for servicing maybe every six months or so. It was far cheaper than the 33 TI to maintain, and it was sparkling grey in colour.  The transmission was automatic, so it was a brainless brake and accelerated control, plus there was power steering, a God send for a 1.6 L car. I have had only good memories of driving the Honda Civic and sold it with some regret in 1996, after  I started my first new business, had a family and things seemed to be going well. So I decided to upgrade. 

          That, in itself is another story. 

These men have nothing, except a positive attitude and a hope that tomorrow is a better day

To market, to the factory, anywhere but here 

          Recently, my business had a setback which could have made many people shy away from continuing, but I have a strong will and positive attitude to turn the setback into the perfect opportunity. We came into this world with nothing, except our intelligence which God bestowed upon us, our physical and mental capacities, and life experiences. However, what many successful people have is the "I can do it" spirit which means "never say die".

          If these young Indian men, who are sitting on a cart going to market with nothing but a hope and a prayer, why should I worry or be unhappy with my position in life ? Take the new opportunities with both hands and make ourselves into the NEXT BIG THING.

          Never lose sight of my goals, despite the setbacks, I will get there !! 

How do you tell if a stall or a restaurant serves good tasting and value for money food ?

By the length of its queue of course ! 

           I have reached the age where I feel that life is too short to be drinking cheap wine, eating lousy and fast food and wasting precious time on pandering to other people's expectations. Food, which is tasty, should also (ideally) contain as little pork fat, ghee (animal fat), butter, and as little reused cooking oils as possible. It should also have some fibre, and offer as lean a cut of meat as possible offering protein, calcium and some carbohydrates. As little processed food, like nitrites, sodium phospates and preservatives as possible.


          Also, I try to eat everything in moderation, and drink as many as 10 glasses of water per day.


          Nutrients would be from fresh fruit and vegetables, plus my daily dose of health supplments.


           That would leave me with steamed fish, fresh fruits, muesli, and certain high end restautants which  cost up to $50 per person just for 1 meal !  I am joking of course. I do enjoy hawker food, but have abstained totally from the following due to the high amounts of fats and oils :


a) Char kway teow
b) Oyster omelette
c) Mutton soup (Soup Kambing)
d)  Most lab dishes 
e) Curries (limited to perhaps 1 x a month)
f) Fast food like KFC, Old Chang Kee, Macdonalds, and Buger King


        As I approach the big 5 - 0, I think, a complete overhaul of my eating preferences and dietary habits are due. 


        Health is indeed wealth. Seize the Day. Carpe Diem.  

Easter Sunday - a misnomer or wrong choice of title

Today is the day Christians around the world celebrate the ascension of Jesus Christ from the dead. He was crucified on a Friday (Good Friday), for no apparent reason by the Roman occupiers of Israel and died, entombed. 


On the Sunday, 2 disciples and Mary Magdelene went to the tomb to clean it, to their amazement, the tomb door made of solid rock was moved aside and the wrappings around his body were strewn inside.


He appeared in front of many people people before he went up to Heaven, and that is why Christians around the world celebrate his rebirth or Resurrection. So in actual fact, it is called Resurrection Sunday. 


Easter happens to be a pagan (no religion) festival which occurs at the start of each Spring,parents hide the chocolate eggs for their kids to find  and enjoy. It was a convenient way to coincide Easter with Resurrection Sunday, as it as easier to pronounce I guess.   

Budapest visit 3 years ago

Tibor and Tunde

In June 2009, my wife and I visited Budapest on the invitation of our friend Tibor Csombordi, who is the boss of the company Amtest, Hungary. It was after our 4 days visit to Paris, and Budapest was raining, unfortunately. We arrived by Maglev Air, the national airline, and were picked up at the airport by our friends. 

                                                                   Chain Bridge  

 Our hosts, Tibor and Tunde, were wonderful guides and they brought us to St.Anne's      church in downtown Budapest, and later to the Chain Bridge overlooking the Danube river. Hungary is fast developing and they have many lovely places to visit, such as Lake Balaton,the downtown Budapest market and up to the Buda castle.

Budapest or Buda - Pes! is so called, because, the rich nobles lived on the high point on the south of the river, called Buda, while the poorer people lived by the river's edge, or Pes!,

Signs of the 1967 uprising, when Hungary was part of the USSR, and the holes were caused by  machine guns

In 1967 there was a Spring Uprising in Hungary, which was bloodily put down by the Soviets as Hungary was part of the then USSR which has now been broken up into many undependent countries. The memories of that uprising are still fresh, as many Hungarians still hold on to their Communist beliefs even though it has been almost 20 years since the breakup of the Soviet Union.

                   

Vietnam 37 years after the Vietnam War

Kannan outside the Basillica, modeled after the Notre Dame in France

          This is a revisit of Ho Chi Minh city, which I did with my colleague Kannan last year, sometime in May if I recall correctly. This was the 2nd visit for me, and I noticed that while the traffic was just as horrible as the first time around, there was evidence of more high end cars such as the Porsches and Mercedes Sports cabriolets.


          The country has developed very quickly after the 1997 Asian Crisis, whereby the Military Government has allowed lassaisz faire business to operate in a free market fashion.There are many tourist attractions in and around Ho Chi Minh city, such as the Banh Tenh market, the Cu Chi Tunnels which housed the Freedom Fighters or Viet Cong, the monuments celebrating Marxism and the Reunification Palace (see below).

The people of Vietnam are a proud people, and history will show that they won the war against the major superpower of the day, USA, against superior technology, firepower,chemical weaponry and sometimes downright genocide. As stated so eloquently by Marlon Brando in his epic Apocalypse Now, he said something to this effect :


" the side which can embrace the horrors of the war will win "


        War is dirty, horrific and tragic. Whoever can break through the psychological barrier of sanity and embrace or accept the insanity of the deeds done, even though their are many Rules of Engagement during war, as stated in the Geneva Convention, will ultimately prevail.


         After my last visit to Ho Chi Minh, and visiting the Vietnam War Museum, viewing the horrific torture chambers and prisons which the US army had and illtreated the Vietcong, all in the name of 'freedom and democracy', I had a major paradigm shift, or an 'Ah Ha !' moment.


         In the name of freedom and democracy,there are countries controlling other smaller ones for their ultimate political,social or business agendas. Its never about 'democrary' or 'freedom', unfortunately. 


        Look at the USA, it is technically bankrupt, its leaders are chosen from bipartisan parties either the Republican or the Democrat Party, and the leaders have to make good on the promises they gave to their backers who funded them during the election run-up. Is this a good thing ?  Definately not. They may even push though populist policies which seem good for the short run, and in the long run bankrupt the country.


       The USA is a dangerous and degenerating place, in certain states, it is legal to bear arms or carry weapons to protect oneself, in the name of freedom. So if everyone is packing a weapon, what happens when a heated argument occurs, or when someone loses his cool, or snaps ? There are many cases of young teenagers killing dozens of schoolmates, senseless, all in the name of Freedom. Remember Virginia Tech, the Asian schoolboy with a crazy attitude, and went out to massacre close to 30 students. Do you see anything remotely similar in any other 'less free' country ??


        Gangs still rule in many cities, homeless people are everywhere, there are Tent Cities, Food Kitchens, Occupy Main Street, jobless MBA graduates, entire neighbourhoods burned down by the banks who have reposessed the entire block and not finding any buyers, decided to tear down everything, and leave the ground bare, else, there will be destitute people breaking in and squatting. The amount of people moving in a downward spiral runs into the tens of millions, generations after generations have lesser and lesser oportunities of breaking out of the poverty cycle. What is wrong with this society ? 


Plenty   - see above. 


         Vietnam is still run by communist leaders. People are generally happy, there is little or no beggars in the city. There is enough food to feed everyone, it is safe to walk the streets at night. People are generally happy, prosperity is coming to the citites. What is wrong with this system ?   30 odd years later ?


Nothing.    


Do not believe what you read in the popular 'news'. Who is running it and what are their agendas ?? Think carefully.


     
  
   
          

Sensei Chia's birthday celebration - after strenuous 1 1/2hr workout

Our  chief instructor, Sensei Chia K.F. recently had a birthday on 31st March. So, I decided to buy him a small cake and drinks to celebrate the occasion after the class on 1st April. No joke ! Here are the pictures of the happy occasion, although there are only 20+ trainees here, the total dojo size is about 50 when you add the people who come only occasionally. There are about 200 members, and most have dropped out or stopped for work, travel, family or age related reasons. For a 15 year old club, this is not too bad a record, and  I hope we can expand the club far and wide within Singapore.

BHAG - Set a Big Hairy Audacious Goal ;

We have only on chance around the block called 'Life' so, why sit back and just do the bare minimum ? Maybe the reason is "fear". Fear of failure and making a fool about oneself. A good friend called Jane put this very clearly to me yesterday. "The only thing to fear about is fear itself". What exactly does this mean ?   When you are fearful, you are worried about the consequence, such as looking bad, potential injury and even possible death. So, if you can face the fact of losing face, where people laugh hysterically at you, where you have succumbed to a torn muscle, or broke a bone, where you have even cheated death. Then you ask yourself. I have been through it all !! What else is there to fear ????

     Go out and do something worthwhile with you life. Set a Big Hairy Audacious Goal as said so eloquently by Mr. Sim Wong Hoo (CEO of Creative Technology, the little company that captured the Sound in the PC world). 

      Set yourself a BHAG,break it down to smaller parts, and just do it !!!  You will be shocked at once you have achieved it. 

      Fear is nothing to be fearful. Who dares wins BIG. 

Friends - cultivate your hobbies early, plan to do things for life

            


 A good friend of mine reminded me yesterday that the well-off people are more 'kiasi' meaning scared to die when they are at the end of life. Why ? Because they have worked so hard to achieve all the material trappings that life has to give, beautiful houses, boats, planes, cars, holidays, that they never
want to let go.

         Compare that with the homeless, down and out, poor people. When you have nothing, what are you afraid of losing ? We came into this world, naked, with nothing. We leave this world, also with nothing.
Yet, the world is driven by businesses, and building empires that enrich the leaders of the 1st World. How wrong a focus we have in life !!

        The leader Alexander the Great, when we found out that he was dying, made strict instructions to his subordinates that his casket must show him with his hands open and face up. Why ? So to tell every one, that he left with nothing. This great conquerer of much of the European and Asian world. On the other hand, the Egyptian pharoahs, were so obsessed with their riches and things on earth, that they built for decades pyramids which would house all their many earthly treasures, including killing their many wives and concubines plus have thousands of  slaves put to death together with them so that they could serve their master in the afterlife.

        I think, all of these practices are works of people who have lost their direction in life, thinking only of their magnificence and glorious existence, megalomaniac, or requiring a pychiatrist to bring them back to the real world.

      Belief in a religion would help all of us adjust to the light speed of progress in this world, work would give us a sense of purpose, having a family would teach us sacrifice, and impart a  sense of responsibility and selflessness, and plan to have hobbies as well as make the effort to give back, however little you can, to the less fortunate.

       I am blessed to have wonderful parents, a supportive wife, and 2 heirs. I am most appreciative of my position in life. I have a number of hobbies, and finally, I want to give back, because at the end of the day, what matters is not so much what you achieve for yourself, but what good you can do to enrich the lives of others.

      Seize the day, friends and readers of this blog.

TEDx Inspiring Women of 2011 - Tan Le ; Australian of the Year

      This video was taken in December 2011 featuring the most inspiring women in the Technology, Entertainment and Design field worldwide. Tan Le was 4 years old when she was one of the many thousands of 'boat people' fleeing Vietnam during the divisive war from 1963 - 1975. Her short 10 minute speech moved many to tears, as her family of 3 women, grandmother, mother and her overcame all adversities, working terribly hard for years to eke out a living, and to improve their impoverished lives.
      When you have adversity thrown into your face -  what do you do ?  

1. Say, its fated ?   My response - Bullshxxx. Life is a sequence of totally random events, good for some, 
    bad for others, and making the most of your life is up to you. Good, bad, wonderful,tragic, ecstatic,
    never to be forgotten or painful. This is life.

2. Back down and hide and lie low ?

3. Make the best of the circumstance. When Life throws you lemons make lemonade.

    Carpe Diem. We go around the block only once. Whether you want to stroll, run, ride, drive,fly or crawl  is up to one person, YOU.
 

Taking the Great Leap Forward

         When you run your own business, you know one thing for certain. No one owes you anything. You need to go out and secure the orders and bring food to the table to not only yourself but also to the staff reporting to you.

          Its never easy, and there are many scary parts, managing cash flow, reporting profits year on year or if there is a loss one year, double up efforts to turn around the business else, it will go one way only after that  - down. Howeverer, if the lucky breaks come and you are in the right place and at the right time with the correct strategy, you will be rewarded magnificently - far, far more than all the rest of your cohort who went out and worked for an employer as they would also run the risk of being retrenched, and in the later years, would be in difficult positions to get rehired, due to their age. I personally know of 3 friends who 'made it big' amassing more than US$ 20 million each in assets so far  and they are all businessmen.

      One is my business partner, the other 2 are my university classmates who never excelled academically, but came out and started their own businesses early and were able to ride the events management (read managing of Trade Shows) and money markets respectively.

        I have never regretted my decision to setup my own business and encountered one breakup in my previous company in 2002, a  'failure' in the sense that the partners who went into the business never felt that through all the sacrifices put in, the monetary rewards were satisfying. We were struggling because of an outdated model, so I decided to leave and setup my own 'show'. 100% by myself, with no bank loan, or partners, just my life experience and a strong desire to succeed much more than before.

       "Failure is the mother of success. If you haven't tasted extreme failure, how can you savour success to its sweetest taste ?'

        Seize the Day my friends. Savour Life and Go out there are make something of your Life.
 

Goodbye and God Bless - Henry Tan 1963 - 2012

    More than a week ago I received the sad news that Henry Tan, an ex-business partner and friend of mine, suddenly passed away, in China. Henry and I go back more than 20 years already, and I first met him when he was an engineering assistant at the (then) Siemens factory in Batu Berendam in Malacca.

    A brilliant technical person, Henry could reverse engineer many relaibility and failure analysis products and add new software features to develop his own brand. He set up his own manufacturing company IHS as well as several other companies dealing in software and trading. I admired Henry's knowhow in almost every test equipment he used, and when I started my fledgling business in 2003, I knew that the ideal person to tie up in Malaysia was Henry. He pushed the business hard and we had some major successes in Malaysian companies such as Infineon Malacca and Qimonda Senai.

     However, in 2005, with a new Singapore partner, we decided to part ways amicably and remained occasionally in touch at Trade Shows and at customer locations. He went on to represent other FA products but scaled down his manufacturing, focussing on complete turnkey projects in new semicon setups in countries like China and even in the Middle East.

     A workaholic, Henry will be best remembered by me as a staunch Christian and was able to separate friendship decisions from business decisions. He was the pillar of his family, and left behind his wife Charity and 3 daughters.

     God be with you,  Rest in Peace , Henry.