Patriotism in Unity - The Name of The Game

Now that August month is here & in conjunction of the coming Merdeka (Independence Day) in 2 days time, the theme of the month is none other than unity. I mean what other theme is there to talk about besides unity? It has been 4 years since my last post about this topic, titled Merdeka & how much things has changed since.

Racist remarks, threats to people of other races, acts that showed disrespect to other religions/beliefs, all well publicized all over the medias over the past 4 years & it's still ongoing. Done not by ordinary people like u & me, but sadly by people holding prominent roles in the society, people who are supposed to be the role models for the society, people who are supposingly upholding the law. And the blame game goes on & on. I don't need to specifically mention any here since most of you, readers of this post are well savvy enough to know what's I'm talking about.

That's talking about the present. Speaking about future, looking at the youth & kids' behaviours today, we are bound to be worried about how can they help shape this country. U see children mixing only with other people of their own race in school canteen. Go to a mamak restaurant, u see groups segregated according to races. That's not all. Blame it on plain ignorance or lack of awareness or whatever, u see youths today (and matured adults too) don't really understand the culture / beliefs / practices of the other races. True story accounts, some people still cant differentiate a tosai, a capati & a poori. Some still don't understand why a Chinese can celebrate both Chinese New Year & Christmas. Some people think Deepavali is a celebration of Indian new year. Many people have never attend a Malay kenduri. Some people think dialects like Hokkien, Cantonese, Hakka are all the same besides Mandarin.

The point is, if we don't know the other customs & beliefs, how are we to know how to respect them? The rule in the corporate world is, if u don't know about a topic or don't know what to talk about, u keep your mouth shut. And here, u have some people (prominent ones at that) trying to be too smart by telling the public about their standings, without thinking of the consequences. Best part is, even if we try to follow other customs, we will get a certain look from them as if it's abnormal for us to do it. I still got stared at, whenever I use my hand to eat banana leaf rice. Many people are surprised when they know I can speak pretty good Malay.

Most recent news is about how an act of kindness shown by Raven Murugesan towards a Muslim cashier, has created a big buzz in the Net. Not undermining what Raven has done but during the time of our parents, what he has done is an usual random thing to do then & there's nothing to shout about really. Today, it's seems to be a BIG deal for a person to show kindness towards another person of other race. We just fail to understand that when we see a person beyond the colour of his/her skin, all we're looking is just another child of God. If we're to put one finger each from ourselves & that person & cut the fingers, what we're bound to see is only red coloured blood from both fingers. I've said this before in previous posts that if the Americans take centuries to accept a black as a president, then this young country of ours at 56 years old, has a long way to go to be able to progress as a nation for all.

We can complain for the whole day, telling about what's went wrong and have brainstorming session with the who's who on how to do better as a nation. Will things improve? Merdeka is not about who fly the most numbers of national flags or who hoist the flag the highest. Merdeka is not about having to stand up to Negaraku each time I go to cinema. Kee Thuan Chye hit the bull's eye in his blog when he said patriotism is what u carry in your heart - your love for your country, if u want to put it that way. It is something that make you decide you will fight to protect it, perhaps even die for it.

And it's not the question about what other should do to make things better but instead, it's about what can we do to make things better. Our forefathers has fought their lives for this country & it is us, who should be making efforts to preserve peace and unity in the country. We show the others how to become a better Malaysian by becoming one ourselves. A divine teaching said, life around us is a reflection of ourselves. And we change others by changing ourselves. And me? Life has never been better, having great friends from all walks of life and I truly thanked God for this. And these crazy, memorable experiences will definitely be shared with my children in future to inspire them to help create a better Malaysia.

The Akurians

Happy Merdeka everyone !!!!

Kota Kinabalu Bah !!

Continuing from previous posts of the climb to Kinabalu summit, we spent 2 days in the state capital before flying back to KL. It's already past 12 midnight by the time we finished dinner and shower. Slept soundly till next morning where we completely skipped breakfast to rest the tired bodies on the bed. The side effects? Not as bad as what I thought actually, not as claimed by some people that they're unable to walk for days. Only able to walk slowly & experiencing pains when walking up & down the stairs.

Because of our legs condition, resorted to visit & eat in places around the hotel vicinity only. The good news is Promenade Hotel is located in probably the best location in the city whereby foods & tourist attractions are pretty accessible by foot nearby. Took a cab ride to Suria Sabah shopping complex located nearby for window shopping.

One way to experience the local culture of a place is to visit the local market, which we did at Filipino night market located along the KK Waterfront. In one glance, the scene in the market just amazed u. U see unbelievably fresh seafood sold at unbelievably cheap price. Fresh vegetables from Kundasang sold as if they're for free. Imagine this, 1 bag consists of 10 pieces cucumbers costs only MYR 4.00 per bag. Multi racial people speaking to each other in local Malay accent. And all these happenings with the background of spectacular sunset scene. Besides the night market are the local handicraft market & dried seafood market.



Sunset at KK Waterfront

Fish market, u can see fishes delivered directly from boats to the stalls here

Fresh vegetables on sale. Notice the packed bags which are to be sold in bulks

Pearls sold at handicraft market

One reason of increasing repeat visitors to Kota Kinabalu is its famous fresh & cheap seafood. And to have the best seafood dinner with a reasonable price not necessarily need to be in a seafood restaurant with big aquarium. Few minutes walk away, makeshift restaurant stalls with "u pick, we cook" style, sprouted over a parking space. We got into this Seri 3 Rasa Seafood, displaying the largest choices of seafood I've ever seen on a single table. Fishes like seabass, trouts, pomfrets, groupers, all of them surprisingly are priced at fixed MYR 3.00/100 gram while others are also cheaply priced. Lobsters, are priced at MYR 15.00/100 gram while the rare jumbo-sized tiger prawns are priced higher but still cheaper by 40% I think than in KL.

We chose a coral trout fish (locally known as kerapu merah), big-sized prawns, squid & sayur pakis, local greens available only in Sabah to satisfy our hunger. A famous chef once said, when u use freshest seafood available, 70% of the work is already done. When we get it cooked with the simplest way, the natural texture & taste of the seafood will be enhanced. In this case, the seafood done the all the talking & not the chef. Price? MYR 85.00 for the food. No specific name for this place but all these stalls are located besides the Kota Kinabalu wet market along Jalan Tun Fuad Stephens. A definitely must-try place for all budget-conscious seafood lovers out there !!!!

Arrays of fishes & lobsters on display

Crabs, squids, crayfishes, prawns, cockles, mussels etc. U name it, u got it
 



Crunchy Sayur Pakis cooked in Belacan style, I can have this all by myself !!! 



Coral trout steamed to perfection in Thai sauce. Fantastico !!!

The next day, walked to the Kota Kinabalu biggest wet market & bought local Tenom coffee powders for souvenirs back home. A stone throw away from the wet market is the fish market. Was told that this is the place where fish mongers take their daily stocks & distribute them to multiple places around the city. Sneaked into the place, hoping to catch a glimpse of the so-called auction. Didn't got my wish granted but still manage to buy frozen fishes to be brought back to KL.

Scene at the Kota Kinabalu wet market. Clean & well organized stalls

Local fishermen segregating the catches of the day

Tip to be shared for those wanna pack the seafood back home. All packed seafood for airfreight need to be of frozen types. Malaysia Airlines allowed frozen seafood to be checked in but Air Asia only allowed them to be hand carried at maximum weight of 7 kilogramme per person. We flew home to KL in the evening, bringing home the sweet memories & hope of returning again. As a seafood lover, it's a sin to the Food God (if there's any) if I don't come back !!! Not forgetting of course, the other attractions yet to be visited like the islands, highland resorts & others. KK, I will be back !!!

A Peek Into Japanese Education System

Sharing with what I read from a Japanese source.

1 - Do you know that Japanese children clean their schools every day for a quarter of an hour with teachers, which... led to the emergence of a Japanese generation who is modest and keen on cleanliness.

2 - Do you know that any Japanese citizen who has a dog must carry bag and special bags to pick up dog droppings. Hygiene and their eagerness to address cleanliness is part of Japanese ethics.

3 - Do you know that in Japan students from the first to sixth primary year must learn ethics in dealing with people

4 - D you know that the Japanese even though one of the richest people in the world but they do not have servants. The parents are responsible for the house and children -

5 - Do you know that there is no examination from the first to the third primary level; because the goal of education is to instill concepts and character building, not just examination and indoctrination. -

6 - Do you know that if you go to a buffet restaurant in Japan you will notice people only eat as much as they need without any waste. No wasteful food.

7 - Do you know that the rate of delayed trains in Japan is about 7 seconds per year!! They appreciate the value of time, very punctual to minutes and seconds.

8 -. Do you know that children in schools brush their teeth (sterile) and clean their teeth after a meal at school; They maintain their health from an early age

9 - Do you know that students take half an hour to finish their meals to ensure right digestion When asked about this concern, they said: "These students are the future of Japan."

10 - Do you know that everybody in Japan will be taught & trained about practicing "kaizen" or what we called continous improvement in every stage of their educational & working life

All these above clearly show what can a good education system & guidance from parents do to empower & mould the children into spiritual-centered beings. Reflecting this with the current education system in the country, everybody know the root cause of the declining state of our education level. Its just the matter of whether the policymakers have the political will to make the changes for the betterment of the country. Nevertheless, Rome is not built in a day & it's all take one person to make a change. Look into life of Jesus Christ, Siddhartha Gautama, Confucius or Prophet Mohd. Make the change u want by changing ourselves first....