Sekeping Serendah (May 2011)

This was a trip one year in the making.

Way back in the middle of 2010, a few of us were quite taken by the idea of spending one cell-phone less weekend in the privacy of a shed made of glass in the middle of the forest.

Sekeping Serendah is known for its minimal carbon footprint glass sheds, timber sheds and mud sheds, surrounded by orang asli (indigenous people) villages and lush green tropical forest. Running right through the sheds is a bubbling brook which provids the comforting sound of running water, similar to that of an electrified water installation at rich people's mansions.



The bubbling brook

We started our journey from Liz's house on Saturday morning at 11 a.m. sharp, after everyone, surprisingly, arrived punctually, (which, was a small miracle on its own considering our penchant for making each other wait, and an indication of better things to come that weekend) and made our way to the famed Lan Je Steam Fish Restaurant, Rawang, for lunch.

Following the advice of most other reviews of this restaurant, we ordered one steam fish each, plus some other dishes like vegetables ("Fu Yu Yau Mak"), tofu and sweet sour chicken, for sharing. We ordered the medium-sized fish though, as the usual smaller-sized fish wasn't on the menu that day, and for some of us, eating a whole fish was quite an ordeal.

Our journey continued after lunch, and after a stressful twenty minutes drive (for me) through Rawang Town, paying zen-like keen attention to the soulless female voice of our Garmin GPS and with a convoy of cars following me blindly behind, we were greeted by the gated and guarded compounds of Sekeping Serendah.


Artfully arranged rocks which greeted us upon reaching


The glass shed is a two-storied setup with walls mostly built with glass, and is equipped with beds and pillows (which gets damp at night), metal couches with cushions, basic kitchen utensils and nature right at your doorstep. The owners of the retreat were quite honest in their assessment of the sheds, and admitted that the sheds are intentionally kept basic and free from lavishness, "glorified tents" as described by them.

One of the two glass sheds we occupied

There really was nothing much to do at this beautiful retreat, except to enjoy the best that Mother Nature has to offer, which was quite impressive considering its close proximity to Kuala Lumpur city. We decided to explore around a little, first by dipping our feet into the cold waters of the swimming pool...



Ugly feet courtesy of KC. Ugly hand scratching butt courtesy of Andy


...then by dunking our entire body into the cascading waters at a fall nearby (five minutes by car, twenty minutes by foot)...

Do I hear wedding bells? Ethan & Lil, Mel & Lihow, Liz & KC & Me...

...while some "smart" people chose to pick on somebody twice their size.


Chronology of events - Blissfully unaware Ethan. Annoying Liz.
Vengeful Ethan. "My-legs-too-short-to-kick" regretful Liz.


We also took a short walk into the forest, right behind the our glass sheds.

Beautifully cemented walkway slabs so you can walk through the jungle,
 without getting your feet dirty.

The fire for the barbecue was started by six in the evening, right as the sun was about to set and the rain that had fallen a couple of hours ago begun to subside. We brought along a wide array of lovingly marinated lamb, chicken and pork chops as well as expertly cut capsicums, onions, mushrooms, inflammable marshmallows, and the likes.

View from the second floor of the Glass House.

The mini get-together also gave us a chance to remind ourselves of how old we already are, and to officially recognise this awareness of our deteriorating digestive systems, lowered alcohol tolerance and decreasing-metabolism-caused weight gain, we celebrated the May babies' birthdays.

Happy Birthday Lihow & Jean!

The following morning, we had an American themed breakfast of eggs, bacon strips, leftover BBQ chicken wings and Nescafe, whipped up by the "Father-Mother" couple of our little band of weekend warriors, Liz & KC.

Since we had a heavy breakfast, lunch was no longer part of our itinerary, and our short weekend getaway to Sekeping Serendah was concluded with each of our three cars headed for different direction, one towards Kepong, one back to Damansara and with me finding my way slowly back to Puchong.

An Ode To My College Friends

From left: (Top) KC, Shiun, Ethan, Andy
(Bottom) Liz, Lihow, Jean, Lilian, Sze Hoon

The end of the world came and went without any obvious signs of disruptions during our stay in Sekeping Serendah, except for the mosquitoes which were biting and sucking like there was no tomorrow. As life goes on busily for all of us, opportunities for college mates reunions like this seems to be interceded by longer and longer periods of inactivity.

So although not all of our closest and dearest college mates were able to make it this time, I for one am glad that this weekend happened, and I'll be looking forward to our next mini adventure (I heard it is a housewarming party, with special appearances from friends long thought lost in Singapore).

Till then!

Post-scripts

1. To view the pictures in a larger size, please click into the respective pictures.
2. For more information on Sekeping Serendah, please visit their website here http://www.serendah.com/home.html or leave me an enquiry in the comment section below.

The following is a replication of my review contributed to Trip Advisor which contains more detailed information than my musings above.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g298570-d677341-r110458173-Sekeping_Serendah_Retreat-Kuala_Lumpur_Wilayah_Persekutuan.html

Since there were 10 of us in the group, we booked 2 glass houses for a total or RM 1,300 (RM 600 per house - which is suppose to accomodate only 4 guests, and an additional RM 100 for 2 extra guests). We chose not to cater, and had BBQ for dinner, and cooked bacon and eggs for breakfast the following morning. BBQ utensils were fully provided, even new steel nets and charcoals, as well as 8 skewers per house.

1. What we loved about this trip:

• being surrounded by nature, fresh air and the comforting sound of a nearby brook.
• BBQ for dinner
• taking a dip in Serendah Falls (20 minutes walk from the Glass House)
• close proximity to the city (less than an hours drive away)
• no telephone reception means guest can just focus on family and friends who are present without the distraction of smartphones and internet.
• plenty of photo opportunities for photo enthusiasts.
• should try the popular steam fish at Lan Je Restaurant in Rawang Town, 20 minutes by car away from Sekeping Serendah retreat.

2. What can be improved

• the caretaker should provide a quick tour of the houses, especially the many electricity switches.
• greater care should be taken to keep the mattresses free from bed bugs. Many of us came away with bug bites that itch for days.

Constitutional Interpretations: Who Cares What Dead People Thought?

Just saw a video clip of Jon Stewart interviewing an American constitutional scholar and historian and part of the interview touched on the interpretation of the 14th amendment in the way the founding fathers intended for it to be interpreted.

I am no legal scholar myself, and I barely read anything that goes beyond 10 pages predominantly filled with drawn cartoons (2 if those pages consist of just words), so it is safe to say that I've not read any countries' constitution.

What I found strange though is our obsession with ensuring that the constitution or any other legal documents are interpreted as closely as possible to the intentions of a group of people who have been dead for decades or in some instances, hundreds of years ago.

Maybe an alternative strategy would be to disregard, to a certain extent, the intentions of the creators of such documents, people who lived in a different time under vastly different circumstances, and to focus on interpretations which are fair and equitable in our present day society.

Phuket Tales: A Tribute To Tour Guides

Back in 2009, I submitted an account of my Mount Kinabalu experience to The Star Newspaper, hoping to win a voucher from a beach side resort. I did not win the vouchers, but my submission was published nonetheless, in the newspaper, on 3 October 2009.

Julius and me, standing atop Mt. Kinabalu

The focus of my submission was of the crucial role played by our mountain guide, one Mr. Julius Dani, in us successfully reaching Low's Peak, the highest point of the mountain.

It was a tribute of sorts, and an expression of gratitude towards his assistance throughout our hike.
(The full length submission can be found at the following link http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2009/10/3/lifetravel/4827246&sec=lifetravel)

Having just recently returned from a short trip to Phuket, Thailand, an encounter with another guide, this time a sea canoe guide, prompted me to sit down and write another piece about the importance of these irreplaceable members of the tourism and hospitality industry.

We met JJ (short for Jarean Chanapon) of Sea Canoe (Thailand) Co Ltd. on board our escort boat for the Phang Nga Bay canoeing day trip. We had the whole boat to ourselves as it was low season for travellers, and my friends and I got to know JJ better as the day progressed.

JJ is fluent in English, which makes communication a breeze. Having spent the best part of the past two decades in Phuket (with the last nine years as a guide in Sea Canoe), he has clearly mastered the art of connecting with travellers from different walks of life.

Playing the perfect canoe guide was probably part of his job description, and he pulled this off with minimal effort. JJ cracked jokes and played photographer to the four of us, while providing commentaries regarding the many sea tunnels and lagoons that we paddled into.

JJ and Joe, our paddling guides for the day

It was, however, what he offered after the canoe trip that made him one of the more memorable tour guides that we have ever had. He had volunteered to show us around Phuket Island on his off days without asking for compensation beyond the fuel cost for his car.

The morning following our canoe trip, he showed up at our resort in Patong and brought us to an ATV ("All-Terrain-Vehicle") operator near Ao Por, north-east of Phuket Island, where we spent an hour joy-riding across muddy terrains, past sandy beaches and through the jungle.

We had lunch at a beach side restaurant which catered mostly to the locals, so much so that we were surprised to see a couple of westerners sitting at an adjacent table. Lunch included steamed fish, prawn, chicken and vegetables, with portions enough for all five of us, and cost only THB850 (approximately RM85). Contrast this to our dinner for four, the night before, at the tourist area of Patong street, where there were no prawn, no fish, and yet we were still charged THB990.

As the next day was Wesak, and our flight departing Phuket was scheduled at 9.45 pm, we had a full day to explore Phuket town. JJ continued playing host by driving us to various lookout points throughout the island (such as the Karon View Point), the Wat Chalong, the Big Buddha on Nakkerd Hills, elephant trekking, and another sumptuous and affordable lunch at Nai Yao Luktharn situated at a secluded part of Palai Beach.

By the end of our trip, lifetime-lasting friendships were well established among JJ and our little group of travellers. Before sending us back to our resort for our transfer to Phuket International Airport, we exchanged contact information and promises to keep in touch.

Andy, JJ and me at the Big Buddha site

So, to our dear friends, Mr. JJ and Mr. Julius, as well as the other guides that we have met from our many adventures (such as Eric from Mt. Kinabalu, Joe from Sea Canoe, and the unnamed elephant trainers), we thank you for making these trips memorable by your sheer presence and your willingness to ensure that we, the tourists, have the best time that we can possibly have.

Drawing Parallels Between The Beltway Sniper Attacks And The Bangsar Acid Attacks

In the autumn of 2002, during a three week sniper attack known as the "Beltway Sniper Attacks" which ultimately claimed the lifes of 10 victims, one John Allen Muhammad and his accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo randomly selected and shot people at various locations throughout the Washington Metropolitan Area and along Interstate 95 in Virginia.

The seemingly random pattern of the duo's selection of victims terrorised the residents of these areas.

The victims were shot dead while doing your everyday mundane activities, like mowing the lawn, reading a book on a bench,  and pumping gas at the gas station.

There were no warning shots. The murdered victims were not given a second chance. Such was the level of marksmanship of the killer that often, all it took was one bullet.

The recent acid attacks in and around Klang Valley seems to mirror the 2002 events that transpired in Washington, USA.

Similar to the Beltway attacks, there are no obvious connections between the 10 victims of these acid attacks. Rather, victims were targeted based on the perceived opportunity by these criminals.

Both attacks in the United States and Malaysia strikes at the very core of fear: Uncertainty and the possibility of winding up dead or critically injured in a split-second.

There is currently very little information that the police have released. Apart from claiming that the criminals are of dark complexion, usually works in pairs, and drives a small cc Honda or Yamaha motorcycle with a basket at the front, the police have been tight-lipped.

The police have also set up a special task force to probe the attacks, and anybody with information or observes suspicious behaviour around their vicinity is urged to contact the police at 03-90516222 or 03-90571086.

Although the country's crime index was recently reported to be on a down trend, high profile cases such as this continues to create doubt in the efficacy of the police force.

As a personal observation, which may not be entirely fair, I have came across quite a number of traffic police escorts for VVIP cars on the highway on my travels to Kuala Lumpur for work these past few weeks. One would think that solving the acid attacks would be high on the priority list, and any additional resources that is available should be used to track down these cowardly criminals, rather than as an escort to ensure that the VVIP get to their destination on time and without suffering through traffic congestions like us mere mortals do.

We have been lucky that, thus far, there hasn't been any fatalities from the acid attacks. However, do we need the body bags to pile up just like in Washington, before a sense of urgency is shown by those in uniform?

One prominent blogger have suggested investigative methods such as tracking the sale of acids in Klang Valley, which can only mean he watches a lot of procedural crime dramas like Bones or CSI.

For me, I take my cue from Batman. You go to the where the low-lifes mingle and you break a few fingers until you get the information or the lead that you need.  Alternatively, you round up all the Mat Rempits that you find and you  hang them over the high rise buildings one by one until someone admits to the crimes.

For my families and friends, I suggest the following steps to protect yourself from such attacks:

• Always bring two things when you step out: A bottle of water, and a bottle of acid. Obviously, the bottle of water should be used immediately in the event of an attack to rinse away any liquid that has made contact with your face, eyes and exposed skin. Not so obvious is the reason for the bottle of acid which you should quickly splash at the direction of the attacker so that he may get a taste of his own medicine. Of course, knowing which bottle contains which liquid is crucial, so make sure you label them.




Do Not Do Use Similar Bottles!


• Wear extra clothing. The less skin you show, the less open you are to such attacks. Maybe our friends from the Middle East countries have got this right.

• Wear your sunnies, even when there is no sun and people are giving you weird stares. At least if the unthinkable happens, you'll still have the ability to notice the stares that others give you. The celebrities wear them even when they are indoors, so why can't you? If you pair this suggestion with the above suggestion, your safety is almost 100% guaranteed.

• Walk in the opposite direction of the traffic flow to prevent you from being blindsided by an approaching motorcycle.
• And finally, be alert. If at any moment you don't feel safe, run like the wind. Again, ignore aforementioned weird stares.

John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were apprehended on October 24, 2002. In an operation that involved both the local police force and federal agencies, it still required the tip off by an alert public citizen to arrest both Muhammad and Malvo. Both criminals were charged and sentenced for terrorism activities, although connection was not proved to any established global terrorist groups. Their actual motive continues to be speculated, but the damage caused is very real.

With each passing day that we fail to nab the criminals behind these acid attack, I worry that it might further embolden them, which might lead to an escalating level of violence in their future attacks. So, please, keep an eye out. There is definitely someone somewhere who knows or suspects something. If you do, please report them to the police immediately, no matter how unlikely you may think it may seem.

MAKE BLUE THE NEW GREEN (A Plea For Ocean Conservation)

Note: I do not own the copyright of this image

The above is the lifeless carcass of a shark lying amongst the coral reefs it used to lord over.

This shark did not die of old age. It did not die of disease.

It died due to suffocation, from being deprived of the use of its fins.

It died because we continually refuse to acknowledge the ugly facts behind shark fin soup, a prized delicacy especially among the world's Chinese population.

Many of us know how the fining process works. The sharks' fins are mutilated by a hot metal blade. The fin-less sharks are then released back to the ocean, their fates sealed as they struggle to extract oxygen from the water, a task now impossible since they are no longer mobile, no longer able to swim without their fins.



Fins harvested for human consumption



We know that the fin itself is tasteless since it is just cartilage, and the soup's flavor is derived from the other ingredients.

We know that it has no proven medicinal benefits,

We know, and yet, words are so easily ignored and forgotten. That is why I started this post with a photo that I hope will leave an indelible and lasting bad taste on your tongue, an imagery that will make you pause the next time you are about to consume a spoonful of the the soup.

WildAid Organisation sums it up succinctly.

WHEN THE BUYING STOPS, THE KILLING CAN TOO.

Even if you are the only one, in a table of ten, who refuses to consume the soup, your actions will have made a difference. If you are in a position to decide what a thousand people eat in one night, please do consider the impact of your menu on the environment. If you are an elected official wielding policy making powers, do re-look at the legislation and economics behind the fishing industry to promote and guarantee sustainability.

If you are intrigued enough about the preservation of sharks and the ocean, please check out the book "Oceana" by Ted Danson and Michael D'Orso. It costs RM 119.00 at your local bookstores like Borders and MPH, and argues convincingly that while we may not be at the point of no return in terms of saving our oceans,  we are getting dangerously close to it. If you cannot afford to purchase the books, please at least spend some time reading the browsing copy that most bookstores have. You can also learn more from Oceana's website http://na.oceana.org/



Buy this, or read it for free at Borders

 If reading is not your thing, consider watching the following documentary.

A beautifully filmed  documentary

It's a film which opened up the eyes of many towards the cruel reality behind animals kept in captivity and forced to perform tricks to the delight of human beings, and for enriching the few enterprises that runs these shows.

By gaining such knowledge of the cruelty in a small town of Japan called Taiji, you would have already done a small part in the prevention of dolphin slaughtering. If you wish to do more, please visit http://www.thecovemovie.com/ or http://www.takepart.com/thecove.

I promise, you will be glad you did.

Let's not repeat the mistakes of those who have came before us. As our generation inherit the earth, do not forget the childhood ambitions that we used to have of saving the world and working for causes that actually matters. We are making great strides in living a green life. Let's start by adding some blue in it as well.

I AM...ER..ON MY WAY (The Concept Of Malaysian Timing)

AN Admission.

I AM A HYPOCRITE.

In fact, I am to hypocrisy what Michael Jordan is to basketball. I am the Jordan of hypocrisy.

Now that we have got that out of the way, I am, from this point onwards, free to criticize others, without reflecting on my own behavior, and comment on the growing phenomena of tardiness among the people I call my generation.

There is nothing I despise more than being made to wait (well, except for a diving cheating Barcelona FC).

It is worse especially if you yourself turned up later than the appointed time, only to find out that you are still the first one there, and hence, have to wait for the others to show up.

Case in point, at one particular dinner a couple of months ago that was attended by some of my friends and I. In all fairness, I shouldn't be as aggrieved as another friend of mine, who had the class to reach the restaurant a few minutes before I did. However, the rest of the group of my closest and dearest friends slowly trickled in with nary a reasonable excuse.

Resentment from being made to wait unjustifiably is multiplied when the waiting time involves monetary losses. The basketball training sessions that I've been participating for the past one month is a good example of time being of actual real value, since reservation of the court where trainings are held doesn't come cheap. The first 30 minutes of the training sessions are wasted waiting for everyone to arrive. Often, only 1 or 2 players will be at the court at the starting time.

This lackadaisical attitude towards punctuality has embedded itself so deeply into our society's consciousness that it has its own term, "Malaysian Time". Acceptance of this alternative concept of time is so widespread that those who still subscribe to the merits of punctuality, are questioned, and at times, ridiculed.

In one instance, a friend of mine, lets call her Y, had arranged to have dinner with her colleagues at a Chinese eatery nearby their office. They had agreed to meet at 6 in the evening, and Y, as usual, being the first to reach, found herself alone on a table meant for 10. As the minutes passed and other surrounding tables starts filling up with customers, Y had to sit steadfast, ignoring the stares of the waiters, who seemed to implore her to either order or leave the restaurant, as they were running low on tables with famished customers continuing to pour in.

Fourty-five minutes past the appointed time, Y got a call from one of her colleagues to inform her that they were just about to leave the office. Y's colleague even had the audacity to add insult to injury by asking Y, "Why did you turn up so early?"

Just imagining me being at the end of that conversation makes my blood boil.

Disrespecting time is not just limited to inconsequential functions like birthday parties or training sessions. In a major English daily recently, a letter to the editor written by a foreigner complained that in an annual national police event, the VIP of the event arrived almost an hour later than what was stated in the itinerary, proof that punctuality doesn't come bundled like a warranty with either a Petaling Street knock off or a RM 20,000 Omega watch.

The adult perpetrators of this pervasive and latent problem are setting a bad example for the younger generation. Parents who use their children as excuses for their own unpunctuality is driving the message to their kids that it is not important to be on time.

So, until society as a collective unit rejects the notion of “Malaysian Time”, I guess I just have to set the time on my Blackberry to 20 minutes slower, so I won’t need to be the ridiculed one sitting alone at the dining table (or, alternatively, I'll just resign to eating alone with a newspaper – those things are never late).

Osama Bin Laden - His Death & The 9/11 Attack

Where were you when you saw this image of unimaginable terror?

I remember watching the unfolding of these tragic sequence of events, thousands of miles away from what would be later known as Ground Zero, in the relative safety of my parent's home in Taman Soga, Batu Pahat. I remember the tears running down my face as I saw the smoke spewing from the buildings.

I was barely out of my teens then, and such an introduction to world politics and terrorism left me cold and sad. One could barely imagine the confusion and fear of those who perished in the attack, and those who suffered the consequences thereafter.

The events of 9/11, in some ways, changed the world permanently, while in other ways, further cemented the deep seated chasms between countries, religions, politics. The invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, the fall of the Taliban government, the hunt for Al Qaeda operatives and leaders, and the continuation of terrorist bombings such as in the London Underground and in the Madrid train systems all was to an extent influenced by the 9/11 attack. The Middle East Palestinian-Israel unrest have seen a certain measure of improvement in the peace process up till the fateful day. The so-perceived idealogical war between Islam and the Western continents was further exacerbated and terms like Islamaphobia and Infidels were thrust into everyday lingo.

Although Al-Qaeda have claimed responsibility (or some may say, take credit for) the attach, some have theorised that the attack was a conspiracy by the United States of America as an excuse to invade oil-rich countries or as a means for the Bush administration to gain political leverage in their re-election bid.

I choose not to focus on alternative theories, or whether or not there were gaps in the subsequent official investigation of the 9/11 attack issued by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States.

Instead, the one thing that refuses to fade away as memories often do, are the stories of human bravery and sad final goodbyes that slowly emerge after the attack.

Stories of how one of the victims who were working in the building made one final call to his mother, amidst all the smoke and confusion, and reassuring her that he is on his way out of the building, only to have the conversation cut short by reasons no one will ever know, or how the crew and passengers of the plane that crash landed in an open field in Pennsylvania tried to retake control of the plane from the hijackers, stuck with me throughout the decade that passed since 9/11.

The reason why I am writing this, is I just read President Obama of the USA have announced the death of Osama Bin Laden after a covert US Navy Seal operation in one of the suburbs of Islamabad, Pakistan.

Honestly, I have mix feelings about the death of someone who may just top Adolf Hitler as one of the few human beings who have changed the course of mankind by despicable acts of mass murder and terrorism. To be precise, I am not entirely sure as to why there was not effort to capture him alive and to try him in either a US court, or the International Court of Justice. Maybe there were attempts to not harm him in the extraction operation, or maybe the US government have learned their lesson from the charade that is the Saddam Hussein trial and his subsequent execution.

It would be foolhardy to think that with the death of Osama Bin Laden, we will finally be closer to world peace. Even as I write now, there are reports that various bases of American operations have increased their security levels in anticipation of possible retaliation from Al-Qaeda.

The least that I can hope for is that with his death, it may bring some closure to the families of the victims of the 9/11 attack.

Sharing this world of ours not only among human beings, but also with mother nature and her various animal inhabitants have proven to not be easy. Natural disasters such as the Japanese, New Zealand,Haiti and China earthquakes, the 2004 South Asian boxing day tsunami kills hundreds of thousands of people and causes devastation that takes decades to repair and rebuild. Avoidable man made conflicts such as the ongoing civil war in Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan and the unceasing fight between Israel and Palestine only adds to this toll on innocent human lives.

I pondered recently, if all the money, time and effort in the past 100 years that goes towards designing and manufacturing arms and weapons of mass destruction were instead channeled towards funding research in medicine and illness treatments, would we have cured cancer by now? Some of my friends weren't as hopeful as I am, and in our current global climate which favors killing each other in more and more methods and ways, and legitimising genocide by either executing genocide or turning a blind eye towards such atrocity, who can blame them for losing faith?

For an update on the death of Osama Bin Laden, please go to the following link

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-clemons/bin-laden-dead_b_856094.html