Chinese New Year 2009

Chinese New Year 2009....

Exact day...26th January 2009(Monday)...

Chinese New Year is one of the most important holidays for Chinese....

During Chinese New Year...family members and relatives gather together to celebrate this festive day....

We go around to visit(In mandarin : bai nien) relatives and friends during the Chinese New Year festive period....

Ang Paos(Red Packets - containing money) are distributed by married couples to children and non-married people during Chinese New Year...

Sound of fire crackers will be heard at many places during the Chinese New Year period...a sign to celebrate the festive event...

Houses will be decorated....

Ang Paos were hung on the plant....
Mandarin oranges are called "Gam" in cantonese... which have a similar sound as gold in cantonese..

Mandarin oranges is a common fruit seen in Chinese New Year...due to the similar sound as gold...

It is like buying gold - fruit version...to eat =)
Chinese New Year snacks are usually placed on tables for guests to eat...

There are various snacks that are only sold during Chinese New Year period...mostly are handmade by normal citizens....and then sold to the public for income....
This is what the ancient China money looks like...the coins hanging on it are the smaller valued currency...and the bottom boat-shaped figure(the actual size is smaller than this) is the larger valued currency....
Lantern decorations....
Plant decorations...
And more decorations...
While visiting my relatives... one of the familes were preparing to view partial solar eclipse(ri shi in mandarin - it is a period where the moon completely blocks the sun, but this is just a partial solar eclipse)....

They adjusted and prepared the telescope for this activity....

-The End-

Reunion Dinner

Reunion Dinner with my family and relatives on 23rd January 2009...

It is a tradition for chinese to have reunion dinner with relatives during Chinese New Year period...

We had our reunion dinner at brickfields, Kuala Lumpur...

Yes, my hometown is Kuala Lumpur...

For Chinese New Year period....we usually have "lou sang" a.k.a "yu sheng"....

Lets go more into the history of "yu sheng"....

Fishermen along the coast of Guangzhou traditionally celebrated Renri, the seventh day of the Chinese New Year, by feasting on their catches. This practice is believed to have started in Chaozhou and Shantou as far back as the Southern Song Dynasty.

In Malaya's colonial past, migrants imported this tradition; porridge stalls sold a raw fish dish which is believed to have originated in Jiangmen, Guangdong province that consisted of fish, turnip and carrot strips, which was served with condiments of oil, vinegar and sugar that were mixed in by customers.

The modern yu sheng dish originated in during Chinese New Year in 1964 in Lai Wah Restaurant and was invented by master chef Than Mui Kai (Tham Yu Kai, co-head chef of Lai Wah restaurant)as a symbol of prosperity and good health amongst the Chinese. Together with Lau Yoke Pui (co-head chef of Lai Wah Restaurant), Hooi Kok Wai (founder of Dragon-Phoenix Restaurant) and Sin Leong, Than Mui Kai was named as one of the Four Heavenly Culinary Kings of Singapore some 40 years ago for their Cantonese culinary prowess and ingenuity.

The tradition is still widely practiced till today and has since spread to many parts of Asia, although not practised as much as in Malaysia and Singapore.

The taste of the original raw fish dish was standardized with a special sauce using plum sauce, rice vinegar, kumquat paste and sesame oil, and the fish was served with carrots, chilli, turnips, limes, jellyfish, red pickled ginger, sun-dried oranges and other ingredients, turning this simple dish into an exquisite salad with 27 ingredients.

The original dish used raw mackerel, although in deference to the popular wishes of customers, salmon was later offered as an alternative due to the growing popularity of Salmon.

Since then, yu sheng has become a staple Chinese New Year dish in Malaysia as well as in Chinese communities in Singapore and is typically available only during this festive season.

Today, this dish is served as an appetizer to raise 'good luck' for the new year and is usually eaten on Renri, the seventh day of the Chinese New Year. In a celebration known as "lo hei" (Cantonese 撈起 or 捞起), families and friends gather around the table and, on cue, proceed to toss the shredded ingredients into the air with chopsticks while saying auspicious wishes out loud to mark the start of a prosperous new year and it's customary that the higher you toss, the greater your fortunes!

Typical ingredients include : fresh salmon, daikon (white radish), carrot, red pepper (capsicum), ginger, daun limau nipis (lime tree leaves), Chinese parsley, chopped peanuts, toasted sesame seeds, Chinese shrimp crackers (or fried dried shrimp), five spice powder. The dressing is made primarily from plum sauce.

This is yu sheng - before mixing up the ingredients...And now the process of mixing it up~ ^_^
The meals we had during the reunion dinner..fish, prawns, tofu, vegetables, eggs, and more...
I drank some red wine on that day...

Although excessive alcohol consumption has adverse health effects, epidemiological studies have consistently demonstrated that moderate consumption of alcohol and wine is statistically associated with a decrease in death due to cardiovascular events such as heart failure.

-The End-

SMK Sultan Abdul Samad Merentas Desa 2009

Last saturday, 17th January 2009....I visited SMK Sultan Abdul Samad...my ex-secondary school..

They were having Merentas Desa(Road Run) on that day....

Every year, secondary schools will have a day for Road Run - usually beginning of the year....to select the top few stamina runners of each school to participate in the district's marathon competition....

The form 3,4,5,Lower 6 and Upper 6 students gathered at the tapak perhimpunan(assembly ground).....
The form 1 and 2 students gathered at the basketball court....
Let the road run begin !!

My friend and I positioned at this location to put up arrow signs to guide the runners on which way to go...we are ex-quartermasters(Quartermaster club members - that helpout during sport activities of the school)...
There were some changes in school...

One of the changes was the guard house....renovated...
This was the guard house before it renovates...

Well...guess that is all for this post...nothing much....

-The End-

Square-1 and Mefferts Pyraminx arrived....

I received my order from Cubereak on 16th January 2009....

A Square-1(RM42)....a puzzle that can be turned into many non-square shapes...I am still figuring out how to solve it... =P

http://www.cube4you.com/126_White-Square-1.html
And a Mefferts Pyraminx(RM100)...the current best recommended pyraminx....

http://www.cube4you.com/330_Mefferts-Pyraminx-with-plastic-tiles.html

Cubefreak ordered it from cube4you.com ...

-The End-

Happy New Year (2009)

12.00am...1st January 2009.... Happy New Year everyone... may 2009 be a great year...forget the past and look forward to the future ^_^

As usual...countdown at home... =P

I was editing blog till time arrive...hahaha ^_^


-The End-

Membership Drive 2009

Membership Drive 2009....December 2008 till January 2009..

Every year, the 10th Petaling Scouts of SMK Sultan Abdul Samad will have a membership drive to promote scouts to the school...especially form 1 and new students....

For 10th Petaling Scouts...membership drive is organized by the form 4 scouts...

The preparation for membership drive usually starts early of december - 1 month before january... like building up gadgets, preparing presentations, permission letters to promote..and more..

When school reopens(january)...everything should be almost done or already done...the promotion takes place in the first few weeks of school...

Membership Drive 2009's gadget site(campsite - for display)....

The main entrance....gadgets are built by tying knots between mangroove wood(bakau)...jute ropes,raffia strings,nylon ropes and more.. are the materials used for tying...hardwork from scouts to build up the gadget... so please respect their hardwork =)Notice : DANGER ! Do not enter the campsite without permission from Form 4 Scouts ! hahaha...A tripod tower(a three-legged pyramid shaped gadget) to put up the Malaysia flag...Tents....we sleep in these during outdoor camps...and sometimes sleep in it during indoor camps(based on situation) too...2 tripod gadgets, 1 quadpod gadget(4 legged pyramid shape), and a "shortcut" hour-glass(X-shaped gadget, where the platform at the top part)..

There are these nylon ropes tied on the gadget and on an anchor(the wood stabbed into the ground)...they are used to stabilise(fixed to the position) the gadget...making it more stationary and safe for people to go up the gadget...
Suspension bridge...a bridge hanging in the air and tied to both ends of the gadgets...
This is how it looks like...trying to cross the suspension bridge...
Going up to the hour-glass...Talking about gadgets....this is an example of what scouts can do...

Malaysia book of records for the tallest man-made scout pioneering gadget in Malaysia...

By the Shiang Yang 219th Kinta Open Scout Troop of Perak....they built this gadget during the mid-year of 2008...I went for the camp to visit the gadget too...around 12~14 floors high - 40~43 metres if not mistaken...
The video presentation by the form 4 scouts of 10th Petaling Scouts Troop....



-The End-

Summit USJ

I went to Summit USJ on 29th December 2008...

The Malaysian cube forum have information that Summit USJ have a store that sells a lot of puzzles...

Since I was there...so I decided to look for the store...

And I finally found the store...it is at LG(Lower ground) floor...a normal stall....in front of MPH bookstore...
As usual....solve all the puzzles =P But I wasn't able to solve the megaminx last step...well..that was just my first attempt to solve a megaminx..(I never search for any solutions on how to solve a megaminx before...)..so it means a good start.... ^_^

The puzzles that I solved..from left to right : 3x3x3 jumbo cube, normal 3x3x3 cube, 2x2x2 cube, pyraminx, megaminx...
I decided to buy a 3x3x3 jumbo cube....RM10

So let's compare the size with a normal 3x3x3 cube...

Left : 3x3x3 Jumbo cube
Right : White old type A 3x3x3 cube(with Cubesmith stickers)

The size of the jumbo cube is around 3 times the size of a standard sized cube..

I bought it because it is unique...collection =P
I also decided to buy a megaminx...RM29....a 12-coloured puzzle...with 20 corners !

I failed to solve it on my 2nd attempt too...

Managed to solve it on my 3rd attempt...and solved 10+ times so far...*will solve more in the future*

So the fastest solve I achieved in that 10+ attempts is 7 mins 33.82 seconds...*it is not smooth, easy pops, and locks up a lot*
My new puzzle collection.... ^_^

Can you see the word? *I M NEU* =P

-The End-

Tanjung Sepat Trip

My relatives and my family went to Tanjung Sepat on 28th December 2008...It is somewhere near Klang...

Firstly, we paid a visit to Ganofarm Factory Outlet...
It is more like a tourist attraction...a mushroom showroom for tourist to visit...
Some facts on different kind of mushrooms....

Mushroom helps in various health problems of humans...mainly helping on blood circulations and more...
This is how they cultivate mushrooms...

A bottle filled with cotton wool and some other stuffs in it...(well I do not know much..)
A bundle of cotton wool stored behind of the showroom
Hmm...looks like sawdust...might be one of the stuffs inside the bottle...
The Ganofarm Factory Outlet is beside the beach...

Where there are lots of mangroove trees there...primary colonisers? =P

It is around morning-afternoon...the sea level have a low tide...allowing us to have a clear view of the mangroove trees....at this time of the day, land breeze occurs, wind blows from the land towards the sea....astronomy studies said that the low and high tides are due to the gravitational pull of the moon, causing changes to the sea level...
They also have a retail store there, for tourists to visit and buy their products...mushrooms and more...some health products too...
After visiting the Ganofarm Factory Outlet, we decided to go to a nearby beach...
Flying kites...the kite on the right is mine.. the one with the aeroplane shape... and the one on the left is my relative's...
After that, we decided to have dinner at a nearby restaurant...

On the way there, I saw cattles(cows) beside the road...local cows are brown in colour..different from overseas'...
We had our dinner at Bay Watch Restaurant...a seafood restaurant...
The dishes we ate...fishes, squids, prawns, vegetables, and some type of clam food...

-The End-

Singapore Open 2009 (Cube Competition)

The Singapore Open 2009 Cube Competition will be on 28th February till 1st March 2009...I registered for the competition and hope for the best....

This competition is the first official(international level) cube competition in Singapore...reachable distance for Malaysians and other nearby countries....it is also the nearest official competition for Malaysians to participate(there isn't any official competitions so close to Malaysia before - this is the first)..

An official cube competition is permitted by WCA(World Cube Association)...the rules and regulations of an official competition will be the same as WCA....a WCA Delegate will attend the official competition to make sure things work according to the WCA standard...participants that participated an official competition will have their solving speed ranked on the WCA ranking list (http://www.worldcubeassociation.org/results/regions.php)....

For more information about World Cube Association...
http://www.worldcubeassociation.org/index.php

The details of The Singapore Open 2009 Cube Competition...(in the picture below)

Here is the information - for those that could not load the picture above..

Date: Feb 28 - Mar 1, 2009Venue: SAFRA Toa Payoh

Address: 293 Lorong 6, Toa Payoh, Singapore 319387 (Map)

Main Events: Rubik's Cube, 2x2x2 Speedsolve, 4x4x4 Speedsolve, 5x5x5 Speedsolve, 3x3x3 One-handed

Side Events: Rubik's Magic, 3x3x3 Blindfolded, Megaminx, Pyraminx

Registration fee: FREE!

WCA Delegate: Anders Larsson (Sweden)

Regulations: Competitors must be familiar with the WCA Regulations. Keep in mind that the 2009 regulations may be finalized before this competition, so there may be changes from the 2008 regulations by this time.

Questions: If you have any questions or concerns, contact Eric Chung at rubiks_sg@hotmail.com.

For more information about The Singapore Open 2009 Cube Competition...

http://www.rubiks.com.sg/

or

http://www.worldcubeassociation.org/results/c.php?list=List+of+Registered+Competitiors&competitionId=SingaporeOpen2009

I hope more Malaysian cubers can participate in this competition....

-The End-

Survivor 08

Survivor 08 (10th Petaling Scout Camp)...4th December till 8th December 2008...but I went on the 6th till the 8th due to some other events that clash with the camp time...

I missed many activities of the camp...

On the 3rd day of Survivor 08, 6th December 2008, I arrived in the afternoon....everyone were out...they were having an activity named The Survival...something like Amazing Race...where you go around the city(Petaling Jaya) to perform tasks and more...

This is one of the tasks of The Survival...should be checking prices of some items I guess...I did not attend the activity, so I do not know much...this type of activity is to train scouts to know the way around - able to go around cities and learn to ask for directions and more(socialise)...

After The Survival...participants were gathered at school...
After that, the participants cooked dinner and fed themselves well....to train scouts to be more independent - cook for themselves...
Crime Night activity....CSI(Crime Scene Investigation)....

There was a murder case going on....participants need to search for clues to solve the mystery of the crime...
Participants questioning crime suspects....
The detectives(participants) were not able to solve the mystery...and a flashback to the actual time of the murder case was demonstrated by the seniors...
OBH activity....

Where participants were being awaken at night and blindfolded and lead to an unknown place... and sit at a spot for a certain period of time(usually 1 hour+)...this is to train the patience of scouts...
Seniors on duty to keep participants awake - participants are not allowed to sleep during the activity...
After the OBH activity, I went to sleep...

The next morning, I went to my uncle's wedding...and missed many activities...

I came back at night...where the BBQ night(A tradition activity for 10th Petaling Scouts) was almost over...but they left some food for me =)
After that, they had patrol presentation... there were 4 patrols....a patrol is a group of participants in a team...patrols have leader,assistant leader,quartermaster(incharge of equipments and more),timekeeper and more...

Patrol presentation is where each patrol have to prepare songs, claps, cheers, logo, flags, and more...to present their patrol to everyone...to let others know about their patrol..(like introduction)..this activity is able to train scouts to be more creative and improve their public speaking...
Drama act...

Participants have to come up with a drama act to present....to improve creativity and performing skills....
The next day - last day....

Time to pack up...
After that, Footdrill competition...

Footdrill competition a.k.a(also known as) marching competition...where participants have to present their marching skills and get graded by judges(seniors)....
Patrol leaders have to march out and salute(hormat) to the judge(senior) and report(laporkan diri) information(patrol leader's name, amount of patrol members, and being ready and set to perform the task set by the judge) to the judge...
Participants marching...patrol by patrol...

Marching is able to train patience, discipline, synchronisation, and stamina....
Troop leader activity...

Patrol leader or assistant patrol leader of each patrol is said to be acted as a troop leader of a troop....

Seniors will question the acting-troop leader on how he/she would do for a troop...and being questioned with lots of no-answer type of questions..

This is to train participants to be able to control their emotions, tolerance(resist scoldings), think rationally, and also patience....
The "fierce" seniors.... =P
Group photo of organizers and participants...some were not there(went back or doing some other things)....
Weeeee~~ ^_^

Yu Hong : I can fly~

Quek : I am superman !

Lingesh : Yo...I am the boss (look at my body guards) =P

-The End-