Hong Kong Hols in Pictures

Cold Crab Teochew Style


In Lam Kwai Fong


In Tomorrowland Disneyland


May, Betty (long time friend) and Andrew

A short holiday is better than none, so we all set out for a 4 nights
4 days short trip to Hong Kong. I hadn't visited the place in like 9 years or so
and was taken aback when my long time friend based there,Betty told me that it was
populated by 8.5 million residents and citizens. The first impressions are normally the lasting ones so here they are in order of sequence of impression and rating :

1. Crowded and Cramped (-)
2. Small Time Disneyland (the roller coasters are for 4 - 5 year olds) (-)
3. GREAT food and Shopping for anything branded (+++)
4. Sloping streets full of people, no FASHIONABLE people (depends)
5. Fast Pace of Living (depends)
6. Excellent MTR EXCEPT why they can't link Tsim Sha Tsui to East Tsim Sha Tsui is
a mystery to me. (+++)
7. First Class airport and probably Seaport too (+++)
8. Service standard ; slightly lower than Singapore's - which is AWFUL ! (---)

I Like Hong Kong.Its so in your face,so brazenly materialistic,fashionable and with an attitude to living life.

United Sinking of America

Cartoon Courtesy of Non- Sequitor Cartoon Strip

Question for the Day
1.How do you get a small fortune (Say S$ 1 Million) in this Uncertain Economic
Market ?

2. First you start with a Big Fortune. (S$ 10 Million).

Loo Kwong - 1st Marathon in 5 hr 20 minutes

My long time friend and running khaki, Loo Kwong completed the Standard Chartered Marathon on December 7th, his 1st, in 5 hours and 20 minutes.

Congratulations !

Detroits' Big 3 in Big Trouble Again - a Case of Too Little Too Late ?

The CEOs of Chrysler, Ford and General Motors during the grilling by Congressmen


Production Operator


One of the Hundreds of Suppliers to the Big 3 - Seaway Bolt Company


One of GM's Basic Cars


Chevy Volt - GM's first Electric Car


Chevy Camarro, Hoping to be a Bestseller Again ?

Everybody and his mother has an opinion on whether the Federal Government's bailout loan of US$ 25B
to the Big Three car companies will really make a difference to them surviving this Global Financial Crisis. One camp is the compassionate one which says " Save them, look at the downside, if they go, they will cause a total of 1 million jobs lost and maybe hundreds if not thousands of co-related companies from direct vendors to indirect suppliers like the towns and cities where the Big 3 have their factories, the shops,restaurants,newspaper vendors, ice-cream parlors etc. etc. will all take a hit, as far as business is concerned"

The opposing view held by several economists and which I favour (right or wrong) is this ; let the capitalist forces decide. If businesses all follow the rules of revenue generation and profit creation then those companies which suffer years after years of losses and always requiring money to shore up capital are firstly not taking care of their shareholders and key investors.To make matters worse, the big 3 car companies were known mainly for making petrol guzzling SUVs, huge MPVs and were very slow to focus on the future trends of Green manufacturing such as the EURO standards of carbon monoxide emissions (EURO IV and now V),something which the European makes were onto since signing the Kyoto Protocol in 1992 to cut Greenhouse Gas emissions (3 gases are carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and CFC gases like R13 and R23). The US has always rejected the implementing of the protocol citing China's increase in Carbon emissions as the reason. The point here is that the US is the biggest emitter of Greenhouse Gases on a per country basis since the 2nd world War,2 x times more than any developing country !. Another key point is that China has signed and ratified the Kyoto Treaty while the US of A has NOT! One need look no further than the current US President to realise that the whole issue is about oil and a country overly dependent on oil for energy and the President whose family is in the oil business is a symbiotic relationship.

"You buy the big gas guzzlers, I ensure the gas stays cheap, everyone is happy, XXXrew.. the rest of the world "

Then came 2008 and the oil prices spiked tremendously to a high of almost US$ 150 per barrel.So what happened, everybody and their mother started switching to smaller, greener (hybrids like the Toyota Prius) and even taking public transport. The Big 3 saw their sales plumment, along with the collapse of their SUV and MPV markets.So they go cap in hand, to plead the US Congress for a bailout of US$ 35 B. The same old story and excuses abound.

The reason that, the failure of these companies will result in x numbers of jobs and lives in jeopardy due to the financial fallout. OK, now Congress has approved US$ 25 Billion to give them an extension,again for how long ? One certainly hopes they have the products for the new generation and expectations of car owners which is so obvious :

a) Fuel Economy - We owners don't want to be highjacked by the oil barons again and again
b) Greener Cars - Lower CO emissions which pass the latest EURO V standards
c) Reliable Cars - People still prefer Japanese cars due to their perceived reliability

My only viewpoint is that THE BIG 3 HAD IT COMING. If they had difficulties making consistent profits during the so called boom years after September 11 2001, they will have even more difficulties NOW. Good Luck to Them !! If they go under, so be it. BITE THE BULLET.

Goodbye ACS (J) Building

Time to Say Goodbye, pic shows Andrew.

The ACS (Junior) Building at Peck Hay Road (off Clemeceau Avenue North) will be torn down as part of the Ministry of Environment's and the School's efforts to revitalise all school's facilities and amenities. Although it is an improvement for the better, I am saddened that the building where many of my 2 Boys happiest memories from 2000 to 2008 will be gone forever, and that the Old Boys 'collective experiences' will forever be remembered in old photos and in digital blogs and cyberspace.


Banner at the Entrance

The relentless pursuit of 'Development' and in the name of 'Progress'has yet again claimed another victim. I am not an Old Boy of Anglo-Chinese School (Junior) but I always feel a tinge of nostalgia and pride whenever I pass by Upper Serangoon Road and Woodsville Road, where my Alma Mater, St. Andrew's School still is standing with all its dimpled pink walls (yes) and clock tower still standing.



The grand Old Lady

I will one day bring my Boys to St Andrew's School and will beam with pride and possibly some mischieviousness say, "I had my schooling experience here, this is MY school ! I had alot of fun and caning here !!"


View from the Playground



The foyer where the principals used to give his/her briefings


Some last postings in the canteen

Topless in Europe - Life in the Fast Lane

This photo was taken in June 1997, the year the first signs of the Asian Financial Crisis was starting to hit. The COE (Certificate of Entitlement) in Singapore that year was hovering around S$ 50,000 after having hit a record high of in excess of S$ 100,000 (!). I was in Germany for the agents' Worldwide Sales Conference for a week and my then business partner booked the Mercedes Benz SLK 420 convertible to rent for 3 days for a (then) reasonable sum of S$ 1,200 (about S$ 400 per day after converting from Deutchmarks). Petrol costs on the other hand, were another matter altogether ! Price per litre of petrol was hovering around DM 2 (S$ 2.00) per litre in France and DM 1.70 (S$ 1.70) for Germany.

To drive a luxury car in Europe is frankly one of us guys' pleasures and to drive a convertible at 240 km/hr on the Autobahn - there are no speed limits except for a few stretches near the big cities like Frankfurt, Cologne or Munich, is really something to be experienced. The Germans really DO appreciate and understand the mechanics and decades of technology advancement of the car (this is the country which produced the first petrol fired vehicle - Daimler) and the weather during spring / summer is perfect for this land tourer with the top down. Showy, YES but then LIFE is to be savoured within ones means isn't it ?

There is nothing quite like it over in this part of the world, firstly because of the humidity in S.E.Asia,and secondly there is NO WAY one can get by driving in Singapore or Malaysian highways at 240 km/hr without worrying when the 'Uncle Sam' (traffic police) is going to pounce on you.

Escape from Bangkok 26 - 27 November

This is the 'Escape from Bangkok' my own version which happened just 2 days ago. I was on a business trip from 24th to 26th November visiting our customer Ford Mazda in Chonburi (South East of Bangkok). On the 25th Wednesday, while we were returning to Bangkok, I noticed scores of cars, buses.MPVs and Carry Pickups with hundreds if not thousands of yellow clad PAD (People's Alliance for Democracy) supporters heading to Suvhanabhum on the opposite direction of the highway to 'welcome' the Prime Minister Somchai back from the APEC meeting held in Peru.They had had their hazard lights on and had received word to assemble and ultimately take over the main International airport at Suvhanabhum. Their objective was to raise worldwide awareness about the 'puppet' Government of Mr. Somchai which was a front for the ousted Thaksin Shinawatra.



Tawatchai,my Sales Manager for Thailand had confirmed that this action was the final act for the PAD people who want to bring down the Thai Government by demonstrations and using force if necessary to achieve their aims. By now, the world's news agencies and press corp had taken notice and street fights and gun battles plus home made bombs were being thrown in the vicinity of the Main International Airport at Suvhanabhum. According to reports there were gun battles with DAAD or the pro-Government groups who were wearing red T-shirts and by 8.20pm the PAD had occupied the airport departure terminal and terrified tourists and working airport staff were all caught in the crossfire literally.

We returned to downtown Bangkok where it seeemed to be a different world, everything was peaceful and my Malaysian Project Manager Kannan and I met with Ricky, my friend with AEI and we went out for dinner in downtown Rachadaphisek Road. Soon we heard news that the airport was overrun wth PAD protestors and all incoming flights after 9pm were
diverted to other airports such as Chiangmai and Phuket. Not long after,Tawatchai informed me that International airport
was closed. Our initial reaction was 'so what' and we were quite nonplussed and it did not sink in that there would be many thousands of people,business people,tourists, students who would be stuck in Bangkok. We continued having drinks near our hotel and went to bed thinking of the day ahead.

On Wednesday morning 26th, we saw on the news the worst had happened and that the entire airport had been shut and that there were rumours that the 2nd airport, Don Muang would also be shut due to protestors 'disrupting the operations'. During breakfast, we sat down and considered our options

a) wait and see
b) drive down to Had Yai and cross the border and head for Penang. Drive time : 15 - 20 hours at least.
c) drive to Chiang Mai which was 780 km away where there was a SilkAir flight out of Chiang Mai every day.

After some checking, I decided for option c) and smsed my travel agent Joanne, to check seat status. Amazingly there were still seats availabe ! So I got her to reserve a total of 4 seats in a metter of 15 minutes out from Chiang Mai on Thursday 27th morning - my birthday.

We left at 11.00am on Wednesday morning in 2 cars, Tawatchai's car and Ricky rented a driver (for Baht 9,000 or S$ 380) and stopped for lunch at a shopping center mid-way and drove non-stop all the way to Chiang Mai. Along the way, I had concerned friends (THANKS ! Looi,Betty and James) smsing me about the situation and even updates about some fighting and someone had been killed near Chiang Mai. The total distance travelled was almost 800 km in 1 day and time of travel was 9 hours approximately.


On the way to Chiang Mai

Finally at 8pm, we arrived at Chiang Mai and we headed for the airport. Security was tight, there was an army post at the entrance and several soldiers around. We spoke to the airport manager who assured us that things were "OK" and flights were going in and out BUT all flights to and from Bangkok and Don Muang were cancelled. I wanted to check-in our luggage and get a boarding pass but the check-in counters were all closed. Tawatchai, who was familiar with Chiang Mai booked us all in at the new Dome Serviced Apartments for 700 Baht (S$ 30 only!). This is a very good quality service apartment, brand new, with a clean bed, TV and aircon.


Dinner at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar

We headed out for dinner at the ChiangMai night bazaar and did a bit of last minute shopping.Amazingly Chiang Mai seems like a different country and everything there seemed so peaceful and plenty of tourists and locals appeared unaffected by all that had happened in the capital. I was reminded that the North part of Thailand was 'Thaksin country' so the protestors would be very foolish to attempt to close the last airport open. There was news that one protestor was shot dead near Chiang Mai and I sensed that there was heightened tension as I saw police even coming to our Apartments. By 11p, we all were exhausted and headed back to the Apartment.

27th November morning, I had a short 30 minute run along the main canal of Chiang Mai to take in the sights. I normally bring my running shoes so I put them to good use this time. We headed for the airport and thankfully, our last minute premium tickets were accepted and boarding passes issued. There was the first signs of other travellers (maybe 20) who had also made the trip up north but I think quite a number were turned away because they could not confirm new flight bookings out of Thailand because the airport in Chiang Mai could not be contacted. I guess I did the right thing by confirming the flight via my travel agent and that she was a trusted friend of mine. THANKS Joanne of Comet Travel.


At the Departure Lounge in Chiang Mai

The final 2 hours passed quickly, and I was greeted by birthday smses and calls from my family and friends.The SilkAir flight left at 11.30 am and I had a quick look at our passengers beside us, almost all, were holiday makers except for us 4 and perhaps 10 more passengers who looked like they had come to Chiang Mai from Bangkok.


Freedom Flight MI 701 Silk Air at 11.25 am

We arrived back in Singapore at 3.30pm and celebrated our 'Escape'. My thoughts are with the many thousands of stranded tourists and businesspeople still stuck in Thailand.