Wednesday 17 December 2014

Sharing this....

 

RECOGNISE PALESTINE

1. Spain has decided to recognise Palestine. And now France and Ireland have also done likewise. There is even a suggestion that the European Union would do the same.

2. It is all long overdue. If the Europeans care to think, it is they who started the terrorism in the Middle East. If they care to admit, all these violence, killings, wars etc started when the Europeans created the state of Israel by seizing Arab Palestine. Before that terrorism did not plague the Middle East and the rest of the world. Now there are irregular terrorists and state terrorists.

3. To the Europeans Israel can do no wrong. They can massacre the Arabs. That is acceptable. For three Israelis killed a thousand Arabs must pay with their lives. A hundred thousand will have their houses destroyed. And humanitarian aid cannot be given to the victims. The Europeans by saying or doing nothing virtually agreed that the punishment is right.

4. There was a Palestinian state before Israel was created and recognised. Then Israel decreed there is no such thing as a Palestinian state. The Europeans agreed. They acknowledged there is no
Palestinian State, only a Palestinian Authority. And the United Nations, the creation of the Europeans derecognised Palestine as a state. And the state just vanished. And the frustrated Arabs resorted to the primitive weapons they had. They tie themselves with bombs. But mostly they kill other Arabs.

5. In “retaliation” the Israelis killed them with bombs and rockets dropped from the skies. The Israeli strategy is to out terrorise the terrorists. States are allowed to terrify people. Their terrifying acts do not constitute terrorism. It is to restore law and order. The Israelis are only retaliating.

6. But who is retaliating against whom. The Arabs kill three. The state of Israel and its democratically elected Government announced that it would teach the Arabs a lesson. They killed thousands, destroyed cities. This is Israeli retaliation. But the Arabs killed three people because their own stone-throwing children have been arrested and some shot and killed for throwing stones against bullet-proof tanks. Unable to do anything more they retaliate by killing three Israelis.

7. And so violence escalated as anger and frustration mount among the Arabs caused now by more Israeli settlements in Jerusalem. And the Europeans declare that the Arab/Jew war is a religious war. It is a religious war because Jerusalem Arabs killed four Jews praying in a Synagogue. Israeli forces have killed the Arabs involved, destroyed their houses and those of their extended families. And more destruction is promised.

8. When a Jew fired a machine gun killing dozens of Arabs praying in a mosque, that was not an act to provoke a religious war. When Jews build illegal settlement on Arab land and in Jerusalem that is not provocation. The Jews will claim and their Europeans allies on both sides of the Atlantic will agree it is just retaliation. It is double standards of the most blatant kind.

9. Truly Europeans are in a state of denial. They refused to acknowledge that they started the “terrorism” in the Middle East which is now spreading throughout the world.

10. Their refusal to admit that it is their need to solve the Jewish problem in Europe is what prompted them to agree to the setting up of Israel on Palestinian land. They refuse to admit that their unmitigated backing for Israeli crimes is what forced the beleaguered Palestinian Arabs to resort to unconventional means to regain the land stolen from them.

11. They refuse to admit that their refusal to recognise the state of Palestine at the behest of the Israelis is what aggravated the frustration, the anger and the escalating violence.

12. The decision to recognise Palestine comes late. It is brave of Spain. And now France and Ireland. Can Europe recognise and admit its role in destabilising the Middle East, in promoting terrorism by unashamedly supporting everything that Israel does, including international crimes? Can the European link their de-recognition of Palestine with the violent reactions of the Arabs?

13. I hope the Europeans will read this. They normally don’t. They only read about themselves as seen by themselves.

14. Tell me. Are all the things that I say here fabricated lies? Is there not an iota of truth? You condemn censorship. But aren’t you censoring all the news that come to you from non-European sources? Aren’t you lying to yourselves about yourselves?

15. You are powerful. You are influential. But you prefer to delude yourselves into thinking you are right; you are innocent. And because you delude yourself you continue to bring death and destruction all over the world.

16. So don’t read what others say. Read only what you write about yourself and about the rest of the world. Your ignorance will result in your continuing to endanger the world with the unfairness and injustice of your policies and actions.


Tuesday 14 October 2014

The Good Earth


I was delighted when Al-Manar wrote a post about The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck a famous noble prize winner author in his blog recently and with his permission I am writing a bit about my copy of The Good Earth

 I commented as follows on his posting...

Pakcik...I am delighted to let you know that this same copy of The Good Earth was in our house and I was in my early teens when I read it in the early seventies. It must have belonged to one of my older brothers who were all educated in English School then in the fifties. Pearl S. Buck has been one of my favourite authors since then and now I owned several more of her books. I was in Kinokuniya KLCC in 2009 as usual browsing for more books to read when I came upon The Good Earth in a glass case, without hesitating I bought it at a cost of RM60.17 and to imagine that it only cost you RM1.80 in the fifties! I would like to share here what Pearl S. Buck wrote on a page of the book I bought..."I am always glad when any of my books can be put into an inexpensive edition, because I like to think that any people who might wish to read them can do so. Surely books ought to be within the reach of everybody"...

 Have a nice day Pakcik and you bring a smile to my face mentioning Pearl S. Buck :)
Sun Sep 28, 03:39:00 pm

Al Manar responded back as follows...

Naniasda,

Take a picture of your RM60.17 book and put it side by side with my old RM 1.80 copy. You will write an interesting posting. Of course you have my permission to copy part of this posting. I said the same to puan Nhasobahseliman above. You both have a little interesting true story to post in your blog.

I wonder how that expensive book look like. I think I will tell my readers to order their copies from Pakcik! I will make 'private copies' of my old The Good Earth for about RM 10.00. After all my original copy is more than 60 years old, way past their copy right, I should imagine.

Living where I am I do not have access to good bookshops and book sales which are often held in KL. On the other hand I would be spending on books and books which are stored unread.

So I hope you will have a posting on the strange price of The Good Earth when the author has been long gone. Who benefits from that when it was the writer's wish to see her book in as many hands as possible at low price?
Sun Sep 28, 11:17:00 pm


This is a copy of Al-Manar's The Good Earth purchased on 13th March 1954 for $1.80! 

This is the edition that I bought in 2009 at a cost of RM60.17.  The price is kind of absurd but what choice do we have now when it comes to a good read.

Yes, it has been over 60 years when  the first edition of The Good Earth was published in 1931 and this is Pearl' second novel after East Wind, West Wind published in 1930, her first. It focuses on a Chinese woman, Kwei-lan, and the changes that she and her family undergo.  If I am not mistaken my elder sister bought this book in the seventies and like the original copy of The Good Earth it is nowhere to be found now. 

The Good Earth comes in a trilogy with Sons in the second volume and A House Divided in the third volume, both too cost me a bit of money but then I cannot have enough of Pearl S. Buck...

Postscript: Let it be known to anyone who reads this post and happen to know me personally and intend to borrow these books I am sorry I cannot fulfill that request...can't afford to lose more books which are not returned, if you are a book lover you will know what I mean....cheerio!

A link to Al-Manar's interesting posting on The Good Earth..http://almanar-nuri.blogspot.com/2014/09/books-over-theyears-part-1-pearl-s-buck.html





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Wednesday 2 July 2014

Counting 'Wan'.....to 10



My pride and joy at 20 months old can already count one to ten but for all the wrong reasons... his Ummi prompted him to say his whole name (Wan Ahmad Daiyan) and see what happened...

Friday 27 June 2014

Field Trip to Hat Yai Songkla Part 2

Baru ada mood nak update blog and this is the second part of the field trip to Hat Yai Songkla dedicated to Teh and Sunah...

Just post pictures taken at the Klong Hae Floating Market...if I am not mistaken this market only operates on Sundays.  Ada info berkaitan dengan penjualan makanan di sini tapi sudah tak ingatlah...kalau tak silap semua jenis makanan ini dijual tidak melebihi RM3.00 duit kita. 










All sort of goodies sold here fresh from the boats...











Caught my attention ATMs there are placed outside banks on the stairs and also along the pavements, no tight security whatever ....apa gamaknya yang akan berlaku kalaulah ATM di negara kita di letak di tempat public macam di Hat Yai ni!



Tuesday 20 May 2014

Bonding time with Cucu

Its been a while ....a few days in KB and a lot  of days in KL.  Been this way since early April but its worth it babysitting my only cucu and what else can a granny do just as she has done away with office life for good....help her kid look after her kid...


Honestly I cannot find the right time to update this blog anymore because at the same time someone else has the same idea and would just push away my hands from the keyboard and pound it the way he likes it ...hahaha.  Ideas on what to write vanishes when this 19 month old decided his ideas is more worth following or else little shrieks will pierce the atmosphere and its back to ABC and nursery rhymes for this old timer...

Monday 17 March 2014

Makanan Dok Jupo di KB

Gapo ni?  This question popped out of my mouth when a plate of this greenish squeamish look-alike alien eggs (it looked alien to me) was placed in front of me at an open air restaurant somewhere near the waterfront of Kota Kinabalu.  Later back at home while watching an episode of Island Feast with Peter Kuruvita and he was using exactly this alien eggs..oh now I know it is Sea Grapes, that's what Peter said...it can be found along the shores of islands. The taste is of course salty. 


Another new one for me...fried bananas with cheese on top...sedap wohhh! 


Still another new dish...siput entah nama apa.  This one eaten at the famous Gayang Seafood Restaurant , memang tak ada di KB!  





Lokan besar-besar di Saluk..


Dibakar atas api...



Tadaa...ini dia lokan bakar

Puding kelapa dalam buah nyior...cedok-cedok khabar-khabar habis!  Yang ni blana di KB but not inside buah nyior lah...



That's it some of the rarely consumed food  while vacationing in Sabah.

meanwhile ....where is the plane, the plane...ingatkan cerita Fantasy Island!

Friday 28 February 2014

No Mount Kinabalu...

The main purpose of choosing Sabah as our once in a blue moon family vacation is to view the spectacular majestic Gunung Kinabalu (there are other more famous majestic mountains elsewhere but we don't have the luxury to go elsewhere) and of course to sample the equally famous much talk-about seafood of Sabah....

but alas... this is the view that greeted us on a  wet early morning at Mount Kinabalu Heritage Resort & Spa in Kundasang, this hotel most possibly not a resort I presumed got lousy reviews from past guests. 



and what to expect when our journey to Kundasang was in this kind of weather?????


We checked-in in the late afternoon at the hotel  it was still drizzling and to my horror we have to climb flights of steps amid tall pine trees to reach the chalet.  Beg-beg kena angkut sendiri naik ke atas padanlah hotel ni dapat lousy reviews from past guests such as one of the reviews below;

We booked a chalet and it was terrible. Very expensive but you don't get anything for the money. There was no cabinet or shelf in the room. No space to put your clothes. On top of that, there is no hot water at all. Room was very run down and smelly. Chalets are very noisy. Staff is not friendly or helpful.
Even the food and drinks are very expensive.
The only good thing is to be out in the nature and the nice view.

Stayed September 2013, travelled as a couple

To reach the chalets we have to cross this swaying hanging bridge first before climbing the stairs.


 The tall pine trees with the mist surrounding them made me recall the Twilight Saga movie...can just imagine the vampires fleeting among these pine trees. 




The look-out balcony infront of the chalets...nothing interesting to view except for the foggy view

We stayed in two chalets and  I was given the government rate at RM160.00 per chalet (kita kerja gomen satu masa dulu, baru saja pencen), anyway it was not the peak season.   Menginap one night saja di sini, the hot shower was not working in the chalet I stayed and the water was ice cold!  Mula-mula masuk bilik tu I noticed there was a kind of animal droppings on the floor below the window...apa kah!  Nak telefon ke reception di bawah nun sana there is no telephone provided in the chalets, mujurnya masa check-in kita ambil extra bedding (kena caj lagi at RM70.00 per mattress) so when the staff came bearing the mattress complete with pillows and blankets we asked her to remove the droppings.  Her reaction was like...oh tak ada apa itu hanya kepompong rama-rama.  She came back later with a broom and dustpan and asked us to sweep it away....well so much for the hospitality haha...Memang sebijik macam review di atas...the chalets smelled musty and there's a lizard in the bathroom and I am so anti-lizards!!!  Maintenance chalet di sini memang ke laut....
 Beg-beg angkut sendiri naik dan turun tangga, chalet kami di paling atas sekali, kononnya tu get the best view of Mt. Kinabalu.

Sarapan sebelum tinggalkan resort ini, hendak sarapan di luar tak tau di mana kedai makan yang sesuai so isi perut di sini sajalah walaupun agak mahal.

The hotel rooms that got lousy reviews/complains.."funky smell, shower that doesnt quite work. dim lighting in the bathroom, the list goes on. One of the crappiest hotels I've ever stayed in. Surprised there wasn't any insects crawling around the room though! The room was massive however, but aged and just overall in dispair.
Stayed June 2012, travelled with family"

The management should buck up and upgrade  the facilities since the location is already superb with cool refreshing mountain air.

 A snapshot of the cloudy mountains

On the way back to Kota Kinabalu we made several stops...

The natural fish spa and the fishes here are big.  A lot of giggling from those in the water...memang geli sebab ikan-ikan tu slippery.

Cucu taking a dip too..

Kalu oghe Kelate kato...beghiok ikae ssini termasuk ado ikae keli saeko, mari manolah ikae keli tuh.

Bersih dan tenang Sungei Moroli

Singgah di Sabah Tea Garden sekejap
Not much going on here and I bought a book at the souvenir shop 'Land Below The Wind" by Agnes Newton Keith.  Her husband H.G. Keith was the Conservator of Forests and Director of Agriculture of North Borneo in the 1930s and her book depicted her Borneo experience and impressions of that time.  Makes good reading for me on the flight back.

It started to rain again when we reached Mount Kinabalu National Park.  The road going uphill to reach Timpohon Gate reminds me of the road leading to Boh Plantation in Sg. Palas.
 Walking in the rain...



Dah tak boleh menikmati pemandangan Gunung Kinabalu kita tengok gelagat tupai ni sahaja lah di Mount Kinabalu National Park.



Sunday 9 February 2014

Rumah Terbalik di Tamparuli, Desa Cattle Farm

A run through with pictures to places we go on the third day of our trip to Kota Kinabalu...

Tidak sahkan kalau tak singgah di Rumah Terbalik di Batu 21, Kampung Telibong, Jalan Tamparuli-Ranau.  

Ok we were there at Rumah Terbalik...boleh google baca blog lain nak tahu pasal rumah upside down ni.  Nothing spectacular to me ie...semua barang-barang dalam rumah tu diterbalikkan itu saja..gambar tidak benarkan diambil dalam rumah tu nanti kena denda RM100.00 dan gambar-gambar dalam kamera or handphone di 'delete'...well so much for that.

Our journey continue to another famous site with a famous song...Jambatan Tamparuli

The famous hanging Tamparuli Bridge...we have to cross the one-way traffic bridge below with swift running river below to reach the other side , I think this bridge will be under water if it floods.  

That's us on Tamparuli Bridge...takut nak jalan ke tengah-tengah, ada papan yang reput, dengan body extra large semua ni memang tidak disyorkan berjalan sampai ke seberang sana hehe..

Tengok keadaan jambatan walaupun di bawah papan itu ada dawai besi but no way jose I'm going to cross it all the way, nama lagi jambatan gantung dan dengan air sungai yang mengalir deras di bawah tu huhu...dasar penakut that's me!

 Our next stop...Desa Cattle (Sabah) Sdn Bhd...jalan masuk ke tempat ini amat tidak selesa, jonkang jongkit atas van..
The rain started on the way to this place...rugi yang amat sangat sebab ramai orang kata when it is sunny the place is like when you are in New Zealand...sedey sedey...

The view that we get to see on a rainy day...cian sungguh!

No cows were grazing on the wet field that day as they were all here, mungkin tunggu giliran nak perah susu ke hapa...

ini first time ke Ahmad Daiyan tengok cow in the flesh???

boleh tengok aktiviti perah susu pun jadiklah...

dan makan aiskrim vanilla yang lemak lagi berkrim...its not sweet though

a wet day at the Cattle Farm...


Daiyan's Giant Caterpillars (Part II)

                                      CEO of RapidKL's tweet inviting Daiyan to visit LRT depot...                          ...