:: e-Think ::

this is sexyyy!

2007-09-06T15:52:00.000+02:00

50 cent feat Justin Timberlake - She Wants It

JT makes it sexy hehe :P

Chorus (JT):

Baby it's a new age, bit like my new craze
Let's get together maybe we can start a new phase
The smokes got the club all hazy, spotlights don't do you justice baby
Why don't you come over here, you got me saying

Aayooh
I'm tired of using technology, why don't you sit down on top of me
Aayooh
I'm tired of using technology, I need you right in front of me

2x Ooh, she wants it, uh uh, she wants it
Ooh, she wants it, (soo), I got to give it to her

Ungu - Sejauh mungkin

2007-09-06T15:31:00.000+02:00

No I am not sad lol At least not anymore. I made a very big mistake during my KL trip. Maybe that's karma. What goes around comes around :) Having your heart broken seriously hurts especially when you did not see it coming.

Worst if you end up with a guy who can be so cold hearted. Prolly he finds it cool or simply dun realise it lol

What was i thinking?

lelah hati yang tak kau lihat andai saja
dapat kau rasa kan letihnya jiwaku karna sifatmu

indah cinta yang kau berikan kini tiada
lagi kudapatkan teduhnya jiwa

baiknya kupergi
tinggalkan dirimu
sejauh mungkin
untuk melupakan

indah cinta yang kau berikan kini tiada
lagi kudapatkan teduhnya jiwa

baiknya kupergi
tinggalkan dirimu
sejauh mungkin
untuk melupakan
dirimu yang slalu
tak pedulikan ku
yang mencintaimu
yang menyayangimu

bila saat nanti aku jauh
kuharap kau mengerti
kuharap kau sadari

baiknya kupergi
tinggalkan dirimu
sejauh mungkin
untuk melupakan
dirimu yang slalu
tak pedulikan ku
yang mencintaimu
yang menyayangimu

Holiday in Brunei, KL & Bangkok

2007-09-03T21:26:00.001+02:00

It has been a while since i last updated my blog. I have been busy....holiday-ing kekeke I was in Brunei for 4 weeks, extended my stay from 23rd to 27th. I wish i didnt have to leave.

My holiday was the best everrrrr....except that i ended up with a bad fever for almost a week. Imagine spending your final days in Brunei on your bed? lol. I was in KL for more than a week and spent one weekend in Bangkok from 17th-19th. I booked a hotel/apartment which was quite far from the main shopping center but it was worth the price. 2 rooms apartment, 1 king bed and 2 single beds, 2 bathrooms, 1 living room and i kitchen with dining room for ~5000 baht per night! Due to that, I could not afford to go shopping haha Breakfast was C though as the food lack salt :( lol.

THE CONCERTS

The first KL Trip was only for the Ungu concert. That was definitely the best concert ever! 30 RM only! OK, i went twice to KL but it was worth it. My brother planned to rent a new apartment so that we can save hotel costs lol. For the second trip, i went to watch Gwen Stefani. It could have been more fun if we were allowed to bring in our camera or camcorder :( Gwen was 30 mins late and the concert finished before 11 but the show was great!! I almost lost my voice hahaha I think i was stressed out and since no one knew me, I just went crazy that night lol. The guy next to me who was at first malu2 came out of his shell in the end haha That was fun!

Anyway, i will post some pics some other time. Most of the holiday pics in KL and Bangkok are with my brother. The wedding pics in Brunei were not burned properly in the CD. I ended up getting a blank CD erksssssssssss!

Ok this is long enough. Nite2. Cheersssssss!

Ungu & Gwen Stefani's Concerts in KL

2007-07-27T23:45:00.001+02:00

Despite what happened today, I still have the upcoming Ungu and Gwen concert in Kuala Lumpur to cheer me up. Looking forward to 9th and 21st August!

Pray for me that everything goes well...no matter what the outcome will be, hopefully it will be a positive one :) Amin. Ofcourse i didn't mean the concerts :p

Have u ever.....

2007-07-27T20:50:00.000+02:00

.....felt so happy and so good about life, everything was flowing smoothly and u r soooo looking forward to start new.................. then suddenly everything just stumbled into pieces. The problem is however caused by someone else. Oh well... always look at the positive side.

There is hope.... there will always be hope :)

Majlis Hari Keputeraan KDYMM Yang ke 61

2007-07-25T22:12:00.000+02:00

English: His Majesty's 61st Birthday Celebration in Hotel Maritim, Berlin

Some pics from the event.

The pics are not so clear. Apologize about that.

I hate moving out!

2007-07-25T22:00:00.000+02:00

It is so much of a hassle! The worst thing that can happen is that you don't know where to start. My brother said "throw a piece of paper...anywhere in your home and ....start from there" lol. I am 50% done with cleaning the kitchen and just 20% with the living+bedroom. Oh did i mention that my flight to Brunei is next Friday? lols. I hope I will finish everything by then :)

So far...i have packed 2 large boxes of BOOKS and 2 large plastics of old clothings which i will either throw or donate. I need to buy new boxes. The old ones are almost kaputt. On Sunday, I will paint the walls in the kitchen. If that works out and there are some paint left, I prolly will paint the living room too. Tight schedule eh?

Anyway, i should go to bed and dream of home. Cheers.

Perfect Stranger

2007-07-07T16:35:00.001+02:00

Rating: 4/10 - OK I admit, Bruce Willis was hot with his sweet talk and sex scenes (ok i never find him hot lols). It's such a shame that two of the best Hollywood actors & actresses acted in this "E" rated movie. Perfect Stranger tries to make u confused or twist the story a bit but it failed. There is no climax in this movie. Full stop.

Happiest woman in the world?

2007-07-07T16:18:00.000+02:00

You Can Be The Happiest Woman in the World : A Treasure Chest of Reminders (Dr. A'id al-Qarni)

I don't usually read these kind of books lols but i received it as a birthday gift from a dear friend in Brunei. I was surprised to receive the big package last Thursday (after my exam) and honestly, that was very sweet of him :) Finally found a guy who remembers my birthday and surprised me with the gifts (who isn't? lol.) but things are complicated. Anyway, I haven't read the book yet, just browsed it through and it looks interesting. The book is thin and contains short articles or advices. I'll definitely read it after the exam.

Being 24

2007-07-01T18:34:00.000+02:00

I received my first birthday greeting on 2nd July (Brunei time) from the guy whom i have been trying to avoid all this while hehe ironic yet sweet. I will be 24 tomorrow and I am honestly nervous about it. Gosh time does fly fast! Most of my friends are already working or doing their Master and me.... I am still in Germany. I am tired of people asking me "when are u going home?". Seriously.

A fren is always worried about being single (no serious relationship) at this age. To be honest, the marriage issue never disturbs me until she came along with questions like "why are u so relax about this?" lols. Ofcourse i think about it once in a while but in this century, career comes first. At least i believe that way. I am honestly tired of having someone just to fill the gap and my free time. So yes, i do hope the right guy will come along :)

But like i said, my goals come first. I am not yet satisfied so before i settle down, I would like to achieve something first career wise. But first, i MUST pass all exams this semester and graduate! Pray for me. Amin.

1408 (2007) and watch online!

2007-06-29T20:25:00.002+02:00

Scroll down for the links.

Synopsis: Mike Enslin (John Cusack) is a guy who stubbornly refuses to believe in the paranormal. In fact, he's written two bestselling books debunking myths and rumored hauntings. His latest subject is a hotel room in New York City with a dark and infamous past. However, in his determination to prove that 1408 is not haunted, Enslin may just stumble into a real-life ghost story.

What I think?: This movie really gave me creep! There are a lot of suspense and twists, almost made me dissapointed at one point when i thought that was the ending but nooo, the horror continues! The ending really gave me goosebump... overall a should watch movie, preferrably at the cinema! haha It just makes me think now whether the whole thing was real or just his (John Cusack) illusions. It seems like the hotel management was part of the whole thing since they kept on persuading him to check out. But in any case, John Cusack really played his role and I enjoyed it! Can't wait for the DVD release!

Edited: Links are now active again. Please click the link to watch the videos. They are automatically set to full screen.

Part 1 & 2
Part 3

Part 4

Note: I am not the uploader of these videos.

Just some thoughts for today

2007-06-28T19:21:00.000+02:00

I was reading Reader's Digest last week and there were two short articles that made me laugh and a tip for students:

1) A tourist in China was looking for an elevator in a shopping mall and she finally saw a sign "For your convenience, there is an elevator for you located in China" ok~~ that's really convenient hahaha

2) An old patient was given a plastic cup for urine test by a nurse. He went to the toilet, peed and returned to the nurse. The cup was empty! He returned the cup to the nurse and said, "I do not need this, there's a toilet available" lols!

Yes these happened in real life!

3) And there's also an article about studying while listening to classical music does help to make learning more effective. I think it's true. I tried just now and it makes me feel more relax than this morning. I was freaked out earlier cause I just found out that I have two exams next week and another 2 on the 10th of July. God please save me :/

Chris Daughtry - Home

2007-06-28T19:12:00.000+02:00

August is getting closer. Listening to this song reminds me home :( The uncertainty of me going home or staying do hurt a bit but first thing first... i must pass all my exams :)

I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm not running from.
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old
So I'm going home.
Well I'm going home.

The miles are getting longer, it seems,
The closer I get to you.
I've not always been the best man or friend for you.
But your love, remains true.
And I don't know why.
You always seem to give me another try.

Chorus

Be careful what you wish for,
'Cause you just might get it all.
You just might get it all,
And then some you don't want.
Be careful what you wish for,
'Cause you just might get it all.
You just might get it all, yeah.

Oh, well I'm going home,
Back to the place where I belong,
And where your love has always been enough for me.
I'm not running from.
No, I think you got me all wrong.
I don't regret this life I chose for me.
But these places and these faces are getting old.
I said these places and these faces are getting old.
So I'm going home.
I'm going home

Schwetzingen: I'm back!

2007-06-26T20:59:00.000+02:00

This is the fake mosque built in Schwetzingen Garten. The brief history: The king built different types of garten in his castle area including English, Turkish and Greek Garten. You will need a minimum of 2 hrs to walk around his garten. Imagine that!

Serunding weekkkkkkkkk

2007-06-26T20:38:00.000+02:00

My family have sent me a package of Brunei food including 2 packs of serunding. My friend's mum gave me another 3 lols So that makes 5! I was only kidding when i said i want serunding.

For those of you who don't know: Serunding is a type of dried meat (Brunei style) cooked with special herbs and spices. It's normally served during Eid Festival and they are a bit pricy. But ofcourse, serunding is still my favourite!!

I just finished half today. It's kind of addictive! So if u are living in/near Reutlingen and want to have a try, you can contact me haha Ofcourse i'm kidding :p

All worth it!

2007-06-20T21:09:00.000+02:00

I had been busy preparing for my Entrepreneurship presentation which was held today. Yesterday i ate at a chinese restaurant and i got a Fortune biscuit (?), it states that "Your knowledge saves you from a misfortune". I am not superstitious but i was really hoping it is a sign of good luck and it was!! The presentation went well and the Prof. (one of the challenges Prof. ever!) found it interesting. The paper was on "Real estate investment in China: Risks Analysis and Management". I almost went crazy working on this project because my team partner is the total opposite of me lol. But i learnt a lot from her.

Time to rest. Cheers.

What u can find in ebay

2007-06-16T10:48:00.000+02:00

Cheap Taxi Ride to Airport? Find it in ebay lol

Long Tuesday

2007-06-12T19:11:00.001+02:00

Quote of the day: "Stay committed to your decisions, but stay flexible in your approach." Tom Robbins

It has been a long day today. I wanted to do so many things actually but only managed to get a few things done. Dissapointing. Shortly after i updated the blog last night, the landlady came to explain what happened earlier when i was not at home. She was so worried. The pipe needs to be repaired. The carpet needs to be removed if it does not dry up soon. Now part of my wall is ripped off and hell no, i am not going to repair that. I hope she won't give me the invoice *heart beating faster* lol.

So the plumber came today to fix the water pipe (if i understood correctly, water for the heater in the house) which the electrician drilled yesterday by mistake. No wonder the carpet was wet. It was so noisy and soooooooo warmm at home. My bro in KL called as i needed advice. Then i went out because the heat was unbearable. Sat in the park, went to the nearby printing shop and bind the term paper. Then i requested the embassy to call me back and discuss about some issues. The discussion honestly made me a bit confused so i went straight to town and did some window shopping. Leather jacket 50% discount! Found my size but.......

By 4.30 I was ready to go home. The plumber was not there. Oh thank god. He was wearing his shoes in my room and my carpet is dirty :( I need to take a nap....blame the weather lols

Broodies Gathering Video

2007-06-11T18:09:00.000+02:00

I was free last sunday lol. The paper for Entrepreneurship is finish and was ready to be printed out. So i used my free time to make this video and met a friend in the afternoon. It was nice indeed.

Today i created a To-Do list for the next 2 mths. I realised there is sooo much to do in such a little time but i have mentioned all these earlier haha. The electrician came this morning to repair the lamp. When i returned, the lights were fixed. The electric box was replaced. The wires were also new. But part of the wall was a bit damaged arghhh. Honestly, I am quite nervous about the invoice which they will send in the next few days. I hope the service won't cost much! When it comes to service, everything is costly in Germany. So before you start complaining about life in Brunei, stop because remember this....you are very lucky....very lucky indeed :)

Visit Brunei 2008 Part 3

2007-06-06T22:22:00.000+02:00

Find new reasons to smile .... and laugh... :)

Taken from the Brunei Tourism DVD... love it!

Honestly, makes me homesick lol

Another long Wednesday

2007-06-06T21:23:00.000+02:00

I came to the university before 8am. Met a friend in the bus. She was late half an hour for class. Funny thing is, she walked with a normal pace to the faculty haha. I understand. For this Außenhandelfinanzierung (Foreign Trade Financing) class, it is seriously difficult to understand what the Professor is saying. Trust me, i've been there lol. The ironic thing is... he speaks perfect standard german! But from one semester to another, the complains from the international students are always the same.

While waiting for the project partner, I sat in front of the secretary's office and read my Investition's (Investment) notes. Then suddenly I heard Iris (secretary) saying "Guten Morgen Hafizah, wie geht's dir?" Honestly, i was still in the process of waking up so i just said i'm fine. Full stop. Then she said "Ein bisschen gestressed gel" (a little bit stressed out right?) You see, GEstressed is not even a german word lol.

There are so many things that need to be done before flying back to Brunei. Half of me is reluctant to leave... the other is sooooo excitedddd!! I am also nervous about things: presentation for Entrepreneurship, passing all exams, painting the rooms, closing contracts, abmelden from Bürgeramt (cant think of the translation lol), contacting the shipping company to arrange trunk, packing etc........OMG!!! Actually, it's not the presentation that i'm nervous about but it's the professor! I hope he won't attack me with questions because he just did this afternoon lol.

I finished working with the partner at 8pm. Suddenly realised my precious N70 was not in my bag nor on the table! I panic but luckily i found it....*fuhhhh*. I was tired and losing my "handy" is not something i can handle at the end of the day :)

Anyway, i should get some sleep. Tomorrow is another long day. Cheers.

Germany without Broodies part 2

2007-05-30T08:37:00.000+02:00

As mentioned above, we had picnic the next day. OK, we girls were seriously late haha we woke up late and so, we finished cooking around 3pm. Didn't expect cooking the fried rice would take such a long time. Azmi was pissed off i guess so he went home. Guess what, we were already on the way to the spot when he left!! Actually we could have arrived 15mins earlier if we didn't lose our way hehe.

We played a few games which we used to play when we were kids haha We really caught the germans' attentions!! It's amazing how we never felt tired before. But now that we are older haha running here and there is really tiring!! After the picnic we had a drink at one of our favourite cafes. My camera ran out of battery so no pics for that one.

Overall, i miss the rest of the broodies. There are seven of us left; one in Bonn, one in Bremen, 3 in Mannheim, 1 in Ludwigs and me in RT. Ops there's also one in Berlin hahaha So if all of us are leaving in summer, there will be 1-2 left. errrkkkssss.

Usually i will make a video after every gathering but i will make one when i'm not busy. Cheers.

Germany without Broodies

2007-05-30T08:03:00.000+02:00

OK Reutlingen is bad enough....being the only Bruneian here lol

Last weekend we had a farewell dinner and Picnic the next day. It was pretty cool except that on Saturday there was a marathon in Mannheim & Ludwigshafen so most of the transportation were cancelled! Imagine that on our big night! So we were half an hour late and luckily, the waiter did not give away our seats to other customers. Well, the restaurant was half empty anyway...which is not normal on a Saturday night. Due to the inconvenient transportation, only half of us came. Yuly and Arif gave up, Mallie and Mus walked from town center....that took them more than 30mins walk! Dinner went great :) After dinner we hang out at Mapin and watched AF clips of the final concert. lol. Yes apparently we are fans of AF esp. Mallie :p

Act Global, Think Locally

2007-05-06T03:23:00.000+02:00

HSBC: Local Knowledge is Important

These are HSBC ads shown during my Management class last Friday. I would just like to share since I am very interested in cultural differences issues. it is always important to learn about a specific country's culture first before flying there to where you want to do business or study :)

Being nice may sometimes mean a different thing. In China or for Chinese in general, emptying your plate is not a polite thing to do. It means the food is not enough and you want more. In Brunei, UK or elsewhere, it is just the opposite. Hence, never leave your food untouched or your plate/bowl empty because for Chinese this is considered impolite. Even if the food is not delicious, just eat some and always leave some.

Germans are very cautious about almost everything and they take things quite seriously. In France, it is just the opposite. lol. I doubt hit-and-run accidents crime rate is higher in Germany than in France. So don't drive fancy cars in France. haha.

In Japanese culture, exchanging gift is normal and often expected. In the above case, for every hole you score when playing golf, you will have to present a gift to everyone you play with. In America (i think), you will just have to treat them a drink. Quite Expensive eh? ;)

Funny DHL Ad in Korea

Incase you don't understand the commercial: the gf basically delivered a kiss instead of normal package and the postman finally delivered it to the bf! They deliver everything and everywhere! LMAO!

Little Britain

2007-05-05T06:02:00.000+02:00

One of my favourite scenes from Little Britain

Topic: Cravings
Mary (Indian): Fish and chips (loud and clear)
Margarett: Sorry, say again?

After repeating twice and still could not understand what Mary said, she then came to the conclusion "Maybe some sort of dish we seldom find here" and wrote on the board "Curry" that was hilarious! lols I salute Mary for being so sporting! In every episode, everytime she speaks, only Margaret couldn't understand her haha

Hey c'mon... it's Little Britain! They got all different types of jokes there.... from gay to political jokes! You just need to keep an open mind ;)

Disturbing Incident at Sungai Wang Plaza

2007-05-03T03:58:00.000+02:00

My brother gave me this link an hour ago. It's really disturbing to see these videos which happened at one of the major shopping complex in Kuala Lumpur: Sungai Wang. This guy is apparently the third victim and based on the viewers comments, this case already hits the news headline in Malaysia. I believe the buyer is an Indonesian or another foreigner of Malay origin. He was bargaining the price but when he said "No, no thanks", the seller immediately slapped his face and continued hitting him. Hopefully the seller already lost his job. I was also informed such behaviour is normal in Petaling Street especially when dealing with Chinese sellers. Never bargain or even ask about the prices if you have no intention to buy. The least that could happen to you is being yelled at by the sellers or shop attendants.

if you wish to watch more, type in "sg wang hp" at youtube. I tried to google this but the news article has been deleted. erksss.

Many believed these Chinese are not born Malaysians as you can normally differentiate the way they behave. However, the most important thing is that this type of sick behaviour or unacceptable business practise should stop before it becomes a big political or social issue! This is definitely not the way to treat customers no matter if they are locals or foreigners. No one has the right to hit or slap others as they wish. This could not only damage the image of Sungai Wang Mall or DiGi - one of the leading mobile service provider in Malaysia, it could also lead to increase in racism and hatred towards the Chinese. The Government will then have to improve the relationships between all races all over again.

People say, Indians and Chinese cannot do business together. Why? Chinese want to save and Indians love to bargain! Based on this video, I cannot doubt this statement. No matter what race, traders have to be well-educated. To do business means to have patience. We are not kings in the world we live in.

Kedayan Platoon Singer

2007-05-02T21:19:00.000+02:00

Param param

I am sure most of you are aware of this Platoon singer who seemed to be bullied by the officer to sing some songs, recorded using their mobile phones and later passed on to others throughout Brunei then worst, posted at YouTube! Ring a bell? It was a joke but ............... surprisingly he was then invited to a recording studio!!

FYI Kedayan language is a spoken dialect in Brunei.

Original video:

I had to laugh because that was rather unexpected lol. He obviously can sing and he is very spontaneous. I guess many girls would want to date him..... not me!

I quoted this from Mapin's comment in our forum: "eh tapi mcm lawa jua suara ya ah. =\ lols!!! tepikat ku eh suara ya ah." (translation: but his voice is not bad lols! i am attracted to it .)" haha.

There has been an increasing no. of recording companies in Brunei and greater efforts have been made to attract and find talented singers. However, many locals especially the older generation have criticized these companies badly on their efforts to develop the entertainment business in Brunei. If the gov't (i heard during MOE meeting in Frankfurt 2 years ago) is trying to develop and improve the drama or perhaps movie industry, why can't we all be more optimistic about the whole entertainment industry? Ofcourse it is easily understood that we need more engineers, lawyers, doctors and more doctors, economists, consultants etc for Brunei's economy. That's why the terms "international market" and "creative promotion" are created. I really find it rather ironic when those people who oppose such idea actually watch Akademi Fantasia every Saturday night ;)

Anuar Zain - Perpisahan

2007-04-30T15:34:00.000+02:00

I have been searching for the live performance of the song "Perpisahan" by Anuar Zain.... finally found it at YouTube! His live performance at the AIM 14. "Perpisahan" is one of the best touching love songs ever and Anuar did a superb performance! Not to mention his new hair lol. Loved it!

The Seeds - Rahsia Hati (Lyrics and Video)

2007-04-30T14:20:00.000+02:00

Today is sunny and warm. Couldn't concentrate to study or do my research work so i created this video lol.

New single from Local Bruneian Band The Seeds - Rahsia Hati. All clips are taken from "CINTA The Movie". Enjoy!

Lyrics to Rahsia Hati:

Entah bila mulanya kita
Semesra begini
Dulunya tidak begitu
Ku selamba saja

Tapi kini
Ku sendiri
Yang tidak pasti
Sampai bilakah
Kemesraan ini terjalin
Tanpa ikatan

Belum sempat mekar di hati
Layu berguguran di kelopak
Tak sempat ku cium harumnya
Berterbangan di hembus bayu

Ke mana hendak ku bawa
Sekeping hatiku ini
Mungkinkah aku bermimpi

Kerna selama ini
Telah tersusun rapi
Lafaz kata yang terpendam di hati
Biarkanlah berlalu
Hanya aku yang tahu
Tak usah dikenang
Biarkan menjadi
Rahsia hati

Ke mana hendak ku bawa
Sekeping hatiku ini
Mungkinkah aku bermimpi

Kerna selama ini
Telah tersusun rapi
Lafaz kata yang terpendam di hati
Biarkanlah berlalu
Hanya aku yang tahu
Tak usah dikenang
Biarkan menjadi
Rahsia hati

My nieces and nephews

2007-04-25T08:08:00.000+02:00

My sis sent me these pics yesterday through MSN...makes me miss home :\

Our Dora with the sexy lips pose haha!

The one with scarf is not my niece lol. The baby is the new born from last Raya 2006 (?), i forgot to ask his name. omg. I was already back in Germany by then.

The birthday partyyyy

This was how the birthday boy looks like when i first & last met him last year.

And my two favourite nephews.

Ops i ter-forgot lol. This is ofcourse the princess at home ^_^
Too bad i can't fly home to celebrate our bdays in July :(

Miss the big family :)

The No Asshole Rule Book

2007-04-24T20:51:00.000+02:00

I have been spending most of my time in the library lately... because home only reminds me of the World War 3.5 in Brunei. I don't really spend my 4-7 hours working, the truth is... i just need to be away from home.

Anyway, as i enter the library, i saw this new book "The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't" by Robert I. Sutton on the shelf. Yes ofcourse it caught my attention. I haven't finished reading it but even in the first twenty pages, the book was totally hilarious.

It simply describes how a potential asshole in your workplace behaves and how crucial it is not to have these type of people in an organization as they can easily damage others by abusing them psychologically if not physical. He even classified these assholes as the temporary and the permanent ones. I need to finish reading the book to find out more.

The Dirty Dozen
common everyday actions that assholes use:

personal insults
invading ones personal territory
uninvited physical contact
threats and intimidation, both verbal and nonverbal
"sarcastic jokes" and teasing used as insult delivery systems
withering e-mail flames
status slaps intended to humiliate their victims
public shaming or "status degradation rituals"
rude interruptions
two-faced attacks
dirty looks
treating people as if they are invisible

For example: if your boss continuously swears or shout at you or fires employees for small reasons (e.g not bringing his breakfast on time) or crumbles your work and throw them on the floor infront of your colleagues and later ask you to pick them one by one and throw in the dustbin, they are the perfect candidates to be assholes in the workplace.

So if you are experiencing at least one of the 12 treatments, you should buy and read this book! lol.

Dead Forum

2007-04-23T21:15:00.001+02:00

......... except our Spamming, Gossip and Mengumpat (talking bad about others) Forums lol. I guess everyone else is busy with UNI or moving out to UK and Brunei. I haven't visited...erm i mean hung out with the rest of the Bruneians in Mannheim since ermmm i lost track. Maybe i should. Soon before everyone leaves Germany. I miss them actually especially the noiseeeeee! :p

Lazy Sunday

2007-04-21T17:18:00.000+02:00

Finally it's weekend. I've had a longggg weekkk since i last updated my blog.

I was reading Brudirect News last night and there were a few news about RBA. The first one was about the lucky winners of Business class tickets to HKG, BKK and Ho Chi Minh City handed personally by the acting VP Abd. Nasir Hj Bolhassan. I'm not sure if this is the same guy but back in 2004 when i did my 6 months internship with RBA in Germany, i once had lunch with him during one of his EU visits. I still remember him say that RBA would need locals who can speak German or any other foreign language for that matter. I believe they REALLY do. Have i ever thought to work with RBA? ;)

Frankly speaking, travelling has always been my first love and hence working with RBA was one of the best experience ever. Despite the workload, it was nevertheless fun because i got the chance to travel and met some important people.

Then there was an article about female Bruneian pilots and the first was the sister of my ex-classmate in MS. That used to be hugeee back then. I wonder where he is and what he is doing now. I think he's the only one who is totally MIA. I just hope he's doing fine :)

Oh btw, Farid Kamil came to AF Concert last night... he's soooo cuteee but Hans Isaac is more yummyy kekeke

Man & Woman of the Year

2007-04-10T21:26:00.000+02:00

Let's start with the Woman of the Year

She must have been quite in a hurry lols!

Man of the Year Award goes to....

No wonder women murder their husbands lol! *knock on wood, knock on wood*

The top 10 of Men of the year can be found at the following link: Click Here

Me and Men's work

2007-04-10T20:37:00.000+02:00

I wanted to do some charity work for the landlady today. I bought some new light bulbs to replace the old ones which were already "kaputt" since i moved in. My friends called them disco lights because they look weird.

Note: Pictures were taken with N70 after the whole charity work. They are quite blurry and dark (reason is below).

Replacing was as simple as ABC and everything went fine UNTIL i started to adjust the bulb so it would shine towards my bed.

Then oooopppssiiieeee all the lights went out!!! OK it didn't affect the whole apartment since my laptop was still on. I thought maybe i could switch something back on in the electric box but i seriously had no clue. Everything looked ok. Then i tried replacing two of the bulbs again just to see if they work but no!! OMG! I do not like this lols. I think I will have to call an electrician to check. Hopefully they won't charge much. Better yet, i hope i didn't damage the whole wire erksssssssss!

If i continue to damage things, I'm not even sure if i could save enough money to fly back to Brunei :(

That's why people say, no matter what you do, always start with Bismillah ;)

CINTA The Movie

2007-04-08T06:36:00.000+02:00

Cinta means Love. This movie is the Malay version of the English movie "Love Actually" (2003).

It was really my Lucky Friday after stumbling onto CINTA in YouTube. Since its release, i have been looking forward to watch the movie. It was beyond my expectation. CINTA was in fact, the best Malaysian movie in 2006. It's not perfect but it is still beautiful. I believe CINTA could easily "reached" and "touched" the audience because it reflects reality. Watching the movie will surely give u goosebumps, happy, warm and sad feeling and it is definitely a must watch movie so go out there and buy the DVD if you haven't watched it yet :)

And for those who are abroad who have no access to buying the DVD, feel free to watch it at YouTube.

CLICK THE LINK TO WATCH THE MOVIE

CINTA part 1 & part 2

Note: I am not incharge of uploading the movies.

Non-malay speakers are also welcomed to watch the movie. English subtitles are provided in the movie. Enjoy!

"Kadang-kadang orang yang paling kita sayang adalah orang yang paling susah untuk kita sayang"
"Sometimes the one that we love most is the one that is most difficult for us to love."
How true is that? :)

Guidelines for business etiquette

2007-04-05T07:29:00.000+02:00

I found this site to be very useful especially for government or business negotiators. Many of us forget the importance of getting to know the cultural background of our friends or clients/business partners before dealing with them overseas.

In this site, you will find guidelines for business (or general) etiquettes abroad for many different countries. Ofcourse, Brunei is not listed. Maybe not yet ;)

Go to this site: http://www.executiveplanet.com/index.php?title=Main_Page

Click on each country for guidelines.

Changing our mindset

2007-04-05T03:41:00.000+02:00

Students, parents throng careers fair PARENTS were especially anxious to help their children find employment at the the Careers & Higher Education Expo 2007 at the Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Complex yesterday. At a section of the fair Royal Brunei Airlines personal assistant, Adib, remarked that some of the parents "registered for their children" as recruits for traffic assistants and cabin crew. (Quoted from Brunei Times)

More info about Brunei's state of economy can be found at this link: BruneiResources
_________________________________________________________________

I can't really say if the statement above is just news or has a little bit of "read between the lines" criticisms. In my opinion, young bruneians should stand up n change! Ok, maybe change is not easy. IF I were an employer, I would prefer my candidates to have full confidence of themselves. Could this be one of the reasons why there is still a high rate of unemployment in the country? Now now, please do not put the entire blame on foreigners (ok maybe up to a certain extent, since their salaries are lower, so blame the private sector too lol. If only minimum wage level is introduced in Brunei.)

Let me digress a bit.

This reminds me of Saudi Arabia (SA) which also has a high percentage of foreign workers in the country. In the early 1970s, a SA diplomat showed photos of goats rummaging among piles of refuse to John Perkins, an american economist who was put incharge to construct a development plan for SA. Mr Perkins asked "Why goats?" and the diplomat argued "No self-respecting Saudi would ever collect trash," he said. The goats were later replaced by american garbage disposal companies to clean up the waste (included in the development plan).

His statement somehow made me reflect back at our Bruneian community, whom many years ago would have preferred not to do any "low standard" jobs. Some still do but alhamdulillah, this has changed a bit. Unemployment is a serious economic disease. Government's involvement is therefore crucial to make those unemployed to acquire the skills needed in a specific industry (for e.g. in construction). You won't get a manager position with a PMB qualification straight away. So change your mindset and think.

Pictures of my neighbourhood

2007-04-03T16:54:00.000+02:00

Before i continue, fyi I am studying, living and surviving in a small German town. I lied in my Profile. erks. hehe :p

I didn't have class today so i decided to go out and buy groceries. I honestly prefer walking. It would just take me 5-10mins to reach the nearest "kedai runcit" (small shop), so why not? :) Along the way i saw one of my neighbours building a private playground for his children. Isn't that sweet? His wooden selfmade seesaw reminds me of my childhood everytime i look at it.

I took some pics of sceneries just for fun. Nothing much to take. I will have to wait until summer ;) Oh btw, there are bigggg (taller than a normal human being) animal statues in town. Maybe when i have time...i will also take some pictures of those. For the mean time, enjoy!

In the local news

2007-04-02T21:52:00.000+02:00

The important news can be read at the SPIEGEL (Mirror in english) International website.

Germany's New Superstar!!

Quoted from SPIEGEL International:

Berlin's favorite polar baby has finally made his first appearance for the public. Cute Knut wooed an excited audience of children, zoo visitors and journalists at Berlin Zoo Friday.

I searched for the meaning of Knut and i found out that it is a typical Scandinavian name. For those of you who do not know where Scandinavia is, don't be shy because i didn't know as well. I heard the term a lotttt in class but never bothered to google. So in wikipedia i found this definition:

Geographically the Scandinavian Peninsula includes what is today mainland Sweden and mainland Norway. A small part of north-western Finland is sometimes also considered part of the peninsula. There you go!

Quoted from the article: No More Monster Bunnies for North Korea

The fate of 12 German giant rabbits delivered to North Korea is in doubt. The breeder who sent them suspects they have been eaten by top officials rather than used to set up a bunny farm. Berlin's North Korean embassy denies the allegation.

OMG! These rabbits are not the normal small ones which you can easily hit and run lol to show you how big they are....

I have never seen these type of rabbits. They must have tasted reallllyyy good! Poor rabbits.

Worldculturenet.com

2007-04-02T08:50:00.000+02:00

My article was chosen!

Please click for bigger image.

Thank you to WorlcultureNet.com. I really appreciate it. :)

As the author mentioned, pls check out the articles at the following links: Why Asians Don't Speak Up? Part 1 & Part 2

The Seeds feat. Maria - Kau Tetap Milikku (Video n Lyrics)

2007-04-02T07:46:00.000+02:00

Heard this song on Kfm. Although on an international level, this song is not Top of the Chart but i still love it. Introducing our local singer The Seeds & Maria.

For those of you who have been googling the lyrics for this song :p

Tak pernah ku terfikir
Terlintas akan terjadi
Semuanya... suratan Ilahi
Andai kau mendengarkan
Bisikan suara hatiku
Dapatkah kau memahami....?
Tak daya untukku melupakan
Telah terpahat dilubuk hatiku
Dan inginku nyatakan
ku cinta padamu...

Seluas langit terbentang
Sedalam hamparan lautan
Begitulah kasihku padamu
Seindah palu irama
Selembut gemalai tari
Membuai jiwa penuh persona
Tiada yang dapat memisahkan
Hanya takdir penentu suratan
Tak usah kau ragu
Ku jua menyintai dirimu

Namun semua itu hanyalah khayalan
Dirimu dan diriku
Tak kan mungkin kan bersatu
Andai ku sedari
Sedari dulu

Takkan ku cuba hampiri
Dirimu walau berkali
Ku cuba tuk melenyapkan
Bayangan wajahmu dan kenangan lalu
Dirimu tetap di hatiku
Kaulah yang satu
Untuk ku
Kau tetap milik ku

Khas buat someone ahakz! Enjoy listening! ;)

Mobile Phone GPS Tracking Site

2007-04-02T06:47:00.000+02:00

I found this site while surfing. Thanks to anakbrunei for the great site.

This is very very cool. I managed to track down my friend in Mecca right now and another in Brisbane. Coolness!! Visit the site at Mobile Phone Tracking.

The top 10 April Fool!

2007-04-01T02:54:00.000+02:00

#1: The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest

In 1957 the respected BBC news show Panorama announced that thanks to a very mild winter and the virtual elimination of the dreaded spaghetti weevil, Swiss farmers were enjoying a bumper spaghetti crop. It accompanied this announcement with footage of Swiss peasants pulling strands of spaghetti down from trees. Huge numbers of viewers were taken in, and many called up wanting to know how they could grow their own spaghetti trees. To this question, the BBC diplomatically replied that they should "place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best." Check out the actual broadcast archived on the BBC's website (You need the RealVideo player installed to see it, and it usually loads very slowly).

#2: Sidd Finch (1985)
#3: Instant Color TV (1962)
#4: The Taco Liberty Bell (1996)
#5: San Serriffe (1997)

#6: Nixon for President (1992)

#7: Alabama Changes the Value of Pi (1998)
#8: The Left-Handed Whopper (1998)
#9: Hotheaded Naked Ice Borers (1995)

#10: Planetary Alignment Decreases Gravity (1976)

Fo further infos, please click the following link: Top 10 April Fool

Euphoria Blossom CK & Homesickness

2007-03-31T21:01:00.000+02:00

For those who love sweet smell... this perfume is definitely worth every penny. I finally got mine today! ;)

OK that's the good part. The bad: I am officially homesick :( I was watching today's Diary Akademi Fantasia 5. In this season, Astro brought a "mum-figure" called Tok Wan for the students so they won't miss their mum so badly. So ok i do miss mum. Oh sugar. My microphone is kaputt so i can't use my Skype just yet. I miss home. I terribly do.

Why Asian Don't Speak Up? (Part 2)

2007-03-31T18:09:00.000+02:00

Continuation... Why Asians Don't Speak Up? (Part 1)

We normally do not say no directly. This is considered rude. If a person says "I'll think about it." or "Yes, but...", this normally means NO. So be prepared to get a rejection by email, phone call or sms. As we are indirect, you could even receive a long email but if you read again and again, you know it only means no. We do this because we do not want the other person to lose face.

We usually make friends, do project or business together ONLY if we have the trust, good relationship and we believe that we can work together as an in-group. Without these elements, the result would be negative red. So relationships come first and once we trust, it's hard to break it. Remember this when you want to invest/negotiate in Asia.
This also explains "why you won't be left alone" if you live in Asia. Employers would even treat you like a family member. They will invite you to meals, bring you out, play sport together, call you just to know how you are doing etc

If you invite your friends for dinner/lunch and they are quiet, it is okay. This is not a bad thing or insult especially if you cannot stand silence. For us, you being there is enough and hence, talking is not so important.

The above only explains one aspect of cutural dimensions. Maybe i will write more next time. Hopefully, you can understand more now. Thanks for reading.

Why Asians Don't Speak Up? (Part 1)

2007-03-31T17:55:00.000+02:00

Back in Brunei, i never noticed this as an issue because everyone acts the same way. You usually do not know how to describe your own culture and values until you see what other people do and have the chance to compare. Being in Germany, we all have encountered some problems when dealing with the locals and other foreigners. Hence, it is always crucial to understand. Cultural differences should not lead you to make false judgements.

I once had an experience where an American lecturer tried to encourage students to speak up. She said, if we don't... it will badly influence our grades. Ofcourse, this method was not very effective. She was also very prejudice where she favored only those who were very outspoken. We usually felt uncomfortable in her class because keeping quiet was a serious crime.

If you haven't read any books about international cultures, here is a summary on why we behave such way:

We are born and raised with one principle: Speaking up or talking back to parents, family, teachers, manager etc is considered to be impolite. Where parents in the western countries encourage their kids to express their opinions, it is not normally the case in East.
To speak up, be direct and express opinions straight to the face is considered to be good and honest in most western countries. In Asia, however, bad statements will make the listener lose face. The impact is a lot worse if you do it in public.

An Iranian student was very upset after she received an email from her professor asking her "why did you ask silly questions in the class?". It's not surprising if she stops asking questions altogether. In general, we all need to be very careful when working with people especially those who do not have the same cultural background.

One way to encourage your students/subordinates to speak up is to put them into smaller groups and have one person as the group's representative. This is one effective way to have results. It does not matter where you are - whether you work locally or sent to one of the Asian countries.

To be continued... Why Asians don't Speak Up? (Part 2)

Mirwana - Aku Tanpa CintaMu

2007-03-29T19:16:00.000+02:00

Telah ku mungkiri janjiku lagi
Walau seribu kali
Ku ulang sendiri
Aku takkan tempuh lagi
Apakah kau terima cintaku lagi
Setelah ku berpaling
Dari pandanganMu
Yang kabur kerna jahilnya aku

Mengapa cintaMu tak pernah hadir
Subur dalam jiwaku
Agarku tetap bahagia
Tanpa cintaku tetaplah Kau di sana
Aku tanpa cintaMu
Bagai layang-layang terputus talinya

repeat 1

Masihkah ada sekelumit belas
Mengemis kasihMu Tuhan
Untukku berpaut dan bersandar
Aku di sini kan tetap terus mencuba
Untuk beroleh cintaMu
Walau ranjaunya menusuk pedih

This song kalau kita betul2 hayati boleh rasa sedih and insaf :) Jangan tah ketawa nah :p

Suriname

2007-03-29T17:43:00.000+02:00

Ever heard of a country called Suriname?

I was reading a book today for tomorrow's discussion in class and in a countries-survey, i came aross the word Suriname. I never heard of it actually so i googled it just to find out about it's location. Here are 10 quick facts about Suriname:

Located in northern Southern America.
Gained independance from the Netherland on 25. November 1975.
The smallest sovereign state in terms of area and population (around 440,000) in South America.
Used to be under the Dutch Colony.
Used to have a system of slave labor until 1863. After the abolishment, labourers were imported from the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia) and India.
The country is made up of 10 districts (Brunei only 4).
Economy - mainly denominated by the bauxite industry (aluminium ore) which accounts for more than 15% of the GDP and 70% of export earnings.
Demographics - its population is made up of several ethnics group including East Indians, Javanese, Africans, Chinese including Europeans.
Religion - Hindu, Islam, Christian.
Language - official language is Dutch, own language is Sranan Tongo.

Here are some photos of Suriname:

If you are interested to read more (i do mean Suriname and not the image on the left), please click this link: Wikipedia - Suriname or Here

Pusat Ehsan Special Tribute Video

2007-03-28T20:11:00.000+02:00

Dedicated to the beautiful and special people in Brunei and worldwide

Credit goes to Borgkingkong for the video :)

Music: Adibah Noor - Istimewa (Special)

This video is so beautiful.... *sigh* Created to increase people's awareness of "Pusat Ehsan".

Interest, Brunei's future King & Names.

2007-03-28T18:28:00.000+02:00

News of the week

(image taken from Brudirect.com)

Bandar Seri Begawan - A 47-year-old Chinese man got the shock of his life when $90,000 in cash he had kept inside a small wardrobe in his bedroom went missing recently. More

My comment: Local Veterans should be given briefings about the importance of saving money in banks and financial institutions। If that $90K is saved in TAIB, i wonder how much interest could the old guy earn... oh well, lesson learnt!

Today I just found out that i need to re-elect 2 more electives!! The electives that I am currently taking is not included in the list of acknowledged electives. I can't seem to decide what to take! So i need to think it over again later. Luckily it's just the end March so I still have time to catch up. I hope my life is better this year. Don't we all hope so ;) Im guessing this is way better than losing 90K in one night erks

His Majesty's new Grandson

(image taken from Brudirect.com)

Daulat Tuanku!! (Hail to the King!) In this case, our future King YTM Pengiran Muda Abdul Muntaqim :) Born on the 17th of March 2007 at 3.50pm. Congratulations to HRH Crown Prince & his wife! Bruneians should be happy to know that the future of our monarchy is secured. My children and grandchildren will live during his reign InsyaAllah. Let us all pray that he will grow up to be a great King & Warrior! (ok, this part is the side effect after watching "300" lols)

Al-Muntaqim means "Yang Memiliki Mutlak sifat Maha Penyiksa" or in English "The Avenger". As Muslims, it is always better to give arabic names to our sons and daughters. For the sons, one of the 99 names of Allah could/should be chosen. We muslims believe that our sons would be more blessed if he has one of God's name. It's up to you to think of it as ridiculous but personally, arabic name sounds better. FYI my name means "The Protector". So if you are interested, please check out this link for the list of Asmaaul Husna (99 Names of Allah)

Visit Brunei 2008 (2)

2007-03-17T01:16:00.000+01:00

Royal Brunei Holiday Report

I am seriously speechless. What a beautiful travel documentary on Brunei! I loved it!

More short clips like these should be posted on streaming TV such as Youtube. Make it featured! There are millions of visitors each day and i think it does not cost a penny...yet ;) Keep it Up!

My eBay Frustration

2007-03-14T16:37:00.000+01:00

I am frustrated because, for the first time in my online shopping experience, the goods that i bought got lost in delivery. Maybe I was tricked. Maybe someone stole it if it was simply left on the doorstep, i don't know. It costs me around 55 euro so yes i admit, i was really dumb to get the normal postage delivery. OK Lesson learnt and as personal punishment (lol) no retail therapy for 2-3 months (Yeah right lol) :( Always purchase the Insured Postage especially for expensive items. I want my CK Euphoria Blossom :( :( So here is what i decide to do to ease my mind:

Just Posting Pics

Translation: 1st Text - Pull down your pants!
2nd Text - Who are you actually??

I honestly hate this advert. The other one is a girl wearing white panty and definitely won men's attention. Why? Because you can clearly see her wonderland leaves...if you know what i mean hehe :p

You will not believe me if i tell u that this was taken before 9pm lol! yes this is Reutlingen ladies and gentleman।

I think I just returned from my retail therapy in Stuttgart.

One of my favourite places to ease my mind when time gets rough. This is the short cut to the UNI and the nearest mini supermarket.

Other places include the mini park near the Town Library and the public park 10 mins walking distance from my place.

I saw this on my way home. I had to walk since I didn't have my semester ticket for transportation (i just got it today! Yipeee). Yeayyy it's spring seasonnn and there will be flowers soonnnn and more sunshineee! I love spring hehe =)

STARBUCKS One of the main reasons i love Stuttgart :) The magic of marketing and brand awareness esp. among youths, don't you agree? If Starbucks is opened in Brunei, I dare say Coffeebean, Coffeezone, Twelv....get ready to think of new strategies!

Money Matters on a Monday Blues

2007-03-12T17:06:00.000+01:00

Today is pretty quiet. It's the first day of our new summer semester n hopefully, my final semester in Reutlingen :) So today, i met a few friends. Some (used to be my IB-Juniors) just returned from their internship semester n some js returned from the holidays. Surprisingly, there were no classes today lol. It's good exercise though kekeke

As soon as i arrived home, i logged into my MSN. My brother got me busy wf his Skype. My sis couldn't stop rambling about "Skim Cepat Kaya" ("Pyramid scheme"). Yes, i have stumbled into a few websites such as Forex, Google Adsense etc and I have to admit, they are superliciously tempting! Thousands of US$ per month..who can resist that?? The secret of such scheme is mostly its ability to attract students like myself or even employees who are in need of extra cash. All you need to do is find people who are probably spendthrift, have loans to pay, big family to take care of and so on. The more friends you invite and the more people they invite, the greater the income you will get! Simple isn't it? Unlike Amway, Tupperware or any other membership, you don't even have to sweat to earn extra income!

Oh btw, i finally bought Ralph Lauren Romance "Sensual Note". Its a limited edition from 2002 i think. I have to admit, the original Romance smells better but it's nice though and the smell stays! One spray is enough to make a man falls inlove! I wish lol. I have been experiencing weird dreams lately; old friends, family but mostly old friends.... almost everyday!! Does that mean anything? sigh.

Visit Brunei 2008

2007-03-10T15:42:00.000+01:00

yes it's our turn next year :) I am wondering what will our strategies and plans be in order to lure visitors from all over the world. From marketing and promotion viewpoint, what are the measures taken by the government so far? Have we learnt anything from the previous dissapointed tourists and try to improve our mistakes?

I once asked a Korean businessman during his business visit here in Germany if he would be interested to come to Brunei. His answer was a straight NO. I was not surprised by his answer. In fact, I believe there are more out there who think like he does. My dream is to change their minds one day. Therefore, we must take action!

Here are some suggestions i could think of:

Know your target consumers! From statistics, where do most tourists come from? Which countries have the highest no. of tourists? Who are our new target tourists? From there, we can limit our commercials to these countries - enough to represent other countries as well!
Commercials and advertisements on international TV, Magazines (Travel, TIMES n other business mags, National Geographic etc), Publications, international newspaper, internet (YOUTUBE, yahoo, google etc) and so on must Be creative. There are a lot of professional photographers (or even hobbyists) in Brunei. If necessary, employ professional companies for TV commercials from other countries. It's definitely worth the investment. Oh by the way, whoever produced the Jerudong Park commercial made a great job! Include also in adverts a six months schedule plan on what will take place in Brunei during the whole year. It helps travellers to plan and make Brunei sound interesting at least lol.
Jerudong Park, if not the maintenance... please consider the pricing policy! Does it make serious sense to pay $x for a certain game played? There are Disney Lands and Sunway Lagoon to be taken as examples. The adverts really lured me (yes i haven't been to JP since 2000 i think) Went in 2004/2005, I was really dissapointed.
More interesting programs and further improvement for the recreational parks, historic places and shopping centers. However, we must be aware that Europeans are different from Bruneians. They travel not to shop but in most cases trying to escape from the chaotic workplace and living environment.
Transportation system. Taxis from the APT are ridiculously expensive. Bus system are not properly organized. I admit that I do not know the progress in Brunei since the privatisation. Seriously, what is the point of having more hotels if it is very inconvenient for tourists to travel? Even Holiday Inn in Edinburgh has a bus stop in front of it and Brunei Hall has a metro station nearby.

For now, thats all i can think of kekeke

Brunei's 4 Billion Budget

2007-03-09T13:49:00.000+01:00

I was reading brudirect.com this morning. The 4 billion budget for 2007 is approved. I hope this will be used in the right way. I think for SMB, their hope for success is to export abroad esp for consumer products & other services. I believe Brunei need more experts esp in the area of supply chain management and marketing. We need more consultants in all areas to assist the management. We need more professional auditors to make sure the accounts are clean and tidy. Companies need to be encouraged to comply with the international accounting and auditing standards.

We need more engineers to figure out ways to invent products that we can produce ourselves. If we lack skilled labour now, what can we do to reduce this problem, say in 5 years time? It is true that to import is cheaper but the time will come when we need to be self sufficient. And because our market is too small... exporting abroad is one of our main solutions. Ofcourse, i do not deny that it's a very complicated task to accomplish. Obstacles include large capital and financial investment and high level of international competition esp those companies which have already enjoyed the benefit of economies of scale.

I believe that the performance of the companies (large or small) that the government assist must be monitored. There is absolutely no point to continue supporting companies which continue to make losses! Bankruptcy can be avoided by other measures such as better management and new strategies.

I believe that not many in Brunei are impressed with students including myself who are sent abroad to study business. This is due to the fact that UBD offers the same course. However, here we have the possibility to learn from large companies such as IBM, HP, BASF, Mercedez etc. I do feel intimidated at times and hence my goal is to prove them wrong! We are the creative thinkers, strategist, the decision makers and believe me, businesses help the economy grow. And in this modern world, the need for economic, finance, marketing n management knowledge in all areas is almost inevitable.

I hope the above will not offend anyone and for opening up my mind, I hope i will not be tracked down lol! But yeah, that's Brunei :)

Today was a beautiful day bcos...

2007-02-28T20:34:00.000+01:00

Expect the Unexpected

Today was full of unexpected happenings. It was a busy day. First, I couldn't extend my student card (after tryin hard translating the word "verlängern" lols), then the secretary couldn't find my "confirmation for registration" card. OMG! I had to see her colleague to find out what's wrong and after checking the database, opsss they are still missing 100€ semester fee!! OK That was sooo not in the agenda. The secretary told me it was a new rule introduced by the Student Union. I had no idea about that so i apologized and left. Basically, the whole costs went up by 500%!! It used to be 100€, now it is 600€ per semester! Nevertheless, it is still cheaper as compared to UK. I must always remember that kekeke :)

On the way back to the bus stop, I stopped for a few seconds because really, i could not believe what I saw! Was that really Jun??? (Jun is one of my closest frens here but he is working in Hamburg/Korea so i haven't seen him in more than 6mths) So it was him!! Gosh, that was really unexpected n I was sooo happy! We then had lunch n coffee js like old times :)

Reutlingen has not been the same without my frens n i miss them :( We talked and joked about a lot of things and he always have these useful advices and make me think outside the box. I remembered my frens calling me "Jun's favourite girl" infront of his father LOL but yeah, i was kinda close to him.

Anyhow, my day didn't have a good start but ended well :) Hopefully, the coming days will always be this bright n shiny :) :)

BruStu Gathering in Mannheim

2007-02-28T18:58:00.000+01:00

Broodies Gathering on 17th Feb. and CNY Celebration on 18.02.07...siapa inda datang atu.... RUGI hehe :p

The Pictures ;)

Let's Cook Together!!!

TIME TO EAT!!!

AFTER DINNER

REUNION WITH SHIRLEY!!

Felt good to see her....Broodies is complete now kekeke

THE NEXT DAY... LUNCH & MANNHEIM COSTUME CARNIVAL

CHINESE NEW YEAR DINNER WITH THE GROUP

That was our 2days activities kekekeke

More Ramblings!

2007-02-02T18:13:00.000+01:00

M.è.m.o.i.r.e.

I am trying to forget about my silly mistakes for getting 80% of the equations to this particular section mixed up. I had Cost accounting and I was looking for the summary card this morning. Rupanya tinggal on my bed! The question could be worth 25-30marks *sigh* so i try to keep my mind busy. Oh well...

I was on the way to UNI one day and i thought about things. Here are some of them:

This one is my ermm wats the english word for "waschmittel" ermmmmm ahaaa DETERGENT lol. I have been using this since i first came to Germany. It smells good! A guy fren used to tell my baju smells nice (oh I miss those days). AHAKZ! Even mum likes it. Our personal tutor, Hannah, recommended Dash to us. Banyak memories nie lol luckily she got paid to tolerate us lol. I remember us calling her to ask what cornflour is in german ....and she was in the middle of her love-making session lol. Classicssss!

O T H E R M E M O R I E S

This is the Faculty of SIB. Just half of it. This was taken during Autumn. I was in the library so i took pics of the building hehe. Actually this part of the building is where you can find the Dean's office. I cannot face him because everytime he's infront of me, i will feel as if the world is crushing down on me. lol. My friend asked me how i coped during his lectures? I said "Either i never looked at him or if i do, i imagine him as someone else :)" So i learn, that whatever your position may be.... be it a teacher, manager, friend; watch what you say. People can be easily demotivated... and i mean VERY! Dun get me wrong, I moved on but.... yeah... i lack confidence ever since :)

Would you like to wake up each morning thinking about the 10-15mins you need to spend clearing the snow on your car? This is infront of our house. I live in the basement. The owner of the car lives on 1st floor. So can i call him my housemate? Kekeke

Finally, the landlord's dog. He is BIG!! But he barks a lot. Kinda disturbing but overtime, its like music to the ear lol. IF there's a postman or anyone at the doorstep, he barks so i know when to check my mail ^_^

He's nice. He doesn't bite. Would you make him as a puppy? ;)

So exam is over............... what should i do during the holiday?!?!? =(

Breaktime.

2007-01-30T18:10:00.000+01:00

PIZZA ANYONE?

Ermmmm.... i had my Economic Policy (ok i assumed it means this in English lol.) exam yesterday evening. It's really not funny when a Prof. says a certain topic is not relevant for the exam and suddenly *kweng3* .... 8 marks!! ok so if u dun read the topic, basically u wont know what to write, right? lol. I ordered Pizza for lunch. I was more interested in the seafood ingredients when looking at the menu n when the pizza came, i thought they lied about "Large Pizza" because....

It was super delicious with those thick filling *slurppp* Do you want some? :P

Blank

2007-01-15T12:21:00.000+01:00

Rambling Rambling!

I was in the middle of doing my paper ..... until hunger strikes!! The blankness began. Nightmare! I have to submit it to my fren tomorrow to check my German. Last minute work. Tell me about it. Google Translator saved me n my time! Trust me, German is not easy. The same with any other languages. OK its js an excuse for my lazyness kekeke. Anyway back to Google Translator. In my opinion, it is much better than Altavista Translator. It's not 100% perfect but it's close. You js need to change the words a bit. So for those of you out there who might have a letter, certificate, contract or even an article in German which u hv no clue what its all about (and not to mention unwilling to get a professional translator to save $$), i really recommend the page.

I feel like time is chasing me!! The other day its Jan.1 and now it's the middle of the month! I haven't even thought about my resolutions haha. Oh well, when things in your life never turn out as planned, you will eventually stop planning :) In less than 2 weeks I will have my first exam and *sugar* i haven't even finish reading the whole chapters. Panic breakdown. Good luck Hafizah! All the Best.

I just had lunch. Food delivery again.

I was craving for pasta so today I ordered "Kawatini". 3 types of noodle or pasta backed with mushrooms, brocolli n cheese with napolean sauce. I requested no Tortellini because it was filled with minced beef. Coke and salad. All for €8.10. Not bad. Plus, the delivery man was handsome!! And i have his mobile number *lol*. Ofcourse i didnt ask. The bell for my apartment doesn't work so anyone who comes by MUST call me first. But i dunno y... he rang the bell anyway. Not mine but chose randomly!?! Heard him talking to the House owner. erksss.

I think i wrote a lot today. I should get back to work. Maybe next time, i will write something useful not js rambling :) Cheerss!

New Years Eve 2007

2007-01-13T20:55:00.000+01:00

2007 2007 2007 2007 2007 2007

31st Dec 2006. This is the final night of 2006. So what did we do? For sure we did not go partying nor clubbing...queue nya panjanggggg!! So being good muslims haha we js had new year's eve dinner. We had to look around for restaurants. Either they were fully booked or closed!! Can you imagine? Restaurants closed on one of the busiest nights of the year?? OMG!! I went all the way from Reutlingen (around 80mins with the fastest train and 3 hrs with the slowest connection) so i was worried if we wouldnt be doing anything hahaha opssieee :P

so we ended up eating at Prince of India. Ate there once. It normally takes 30mins - 1 hour for your food to arrive. But the waiting is always worth it. The food was d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s!!! After dinner, we went straight to Arif's place. Watched the Barcelona clips then head down to play the fireworks. It wasnt a great new year's eve because of the wind and the rain but we had great fun!! Yuly didn't want us to sleep. Am had PMS. Yuly n i both had a cold. lol. But we didn't sleep the whole night. Imagine six people in a 9m² room hehe. Am planned kan balik at 7am but..............time atu tah we started gossiping lol. so inda jadi lagi kekeke

At 11++ (i think) we went to Istanbul to have lunch. It was raining heavily!! ada mini hailstone lagi tu. If i get that right. haha. So in the end we were soaking wet!! Lunch was good as usual. My train came at 3.54pm. Missed the 3.30 one with ICE. In Stuttgart, I missed the connection train so i had to wait half an hour for the next one or even longer. OMG!!!! It was coollllddddd! Almost 1.5hrs later, i arrived home. *Phewww*

That was our new year celebration!! It might not be as big and lively as yours but..... It was really fun and i hope none of us will forget this....ever! :)

Barcelona Trip

2007-01-13T20:42:00.000+01:00

THE MOVIE

THE PICS

summer during winter??

2007-01-11T02:21:00.000+01:00

Yes believe it or not, winter this year in Germany is pretty warm. The sun is shining and it's really warm. Is it January already or end of April? The past years is not like this. Global warming? You figure. By this time, you will be cursing the cold weather, the slippery roads due to the snow, the strong wind or... you might even spend days on your bed due to fever!!

I am.... ofcourse enjoying the weather. I wish it would stay like this. I am not a fan of cold weather and slippery roads. I had winter fever recently.... imagine spending the night out in the rain and strong wind just to celebrate new years eve and erm Raya Aidiladha. OK i lied about the Raya part. What's there to celebrate anyway? No cow nor lamb to sacrifise here. Oh wait, they did sacrifise Saddam Hussein....in Iraq. The other muslims. :)

Anyway, i need to get back to work. Otherwise, the Germans would create war again. I can't wait for this semester to be over and done with. :) :) :)

Cheers!!

BSU & Brunei Embassy Lunch in Mannheim

2006-12-06T20:03:00.000+01:00

Apparently from now on this blog will be about the BruStu activities. And no more in German :P

We had great fun during this meeting. It was not just a serious one but it was really fun indeed! This is what I would really say "Majlis Beramah Mesra". At first was kinda reluctant to join. Maybe it would just be another "repeat yourself" event n i was completely wrong. It was really "productive" and not just "listening" if you ask me. We really appreciate it. And the officials were sporting!! Getting to know us, mingling around wif us, walking around the city together was yeah cool :) I will use this knowledge just incase if i am lucky, jadi official one day haha. kidding *drool* The kelupis, daging masak kicap n ayam kari were awesome! Miss mum's cooking :(

Anyway folks, Enjoy the pics & vids :)

Eid in Berlin

2006-11-03T16:20:00.000+01:00

Eid Festival in Germany 27th - 29th October 2006 with Brunei Embassy

Nach 6 Stunden waren wir endlich im Berlin angekommen. D-Bahn hat dieses Mal 50 Minuten Verspätung. Das war ja echt Scheiße! Trotzdem haben wir eine schöne Reise gehabt und das beste Eid Fest in Deutschland gefeiert. Normalerweise machen wir nur kleine "Gathering" entweder bei mir oder im Mannheim. In Brunei ist Eid ein großes Fest. Man ladet Freunde, Familie, Verwandter zu Hause ein. Aber passt auf, jeder muss bereits sein, 5 Kg zuzunehmen. Essen Essen Essen!! Also liebe ex-Kollegen... ich glaub nicht, dass ihr euch diese Herausforderung stellen könnt. haha.

BBQ Farewell Party in Mannheim, Germany

2006-11-02T16:19:00.000+01:00

Tribute to my friends

Farewell BBQ Party

Hab das Video im Mai erstellt aber ihr sieht mich gar nicht drin. Schade.

Achtung! Es ist kein Silence Movie ;)

Brunei

2006-11-02T16:18:00.000+01:00

Brunei

Ein Paar Bilder von Brunei :)

Ofcourse I do not live on Brunei River :P Ich hab leider keine Bilder von meinem Haus gemacht. Wir haben 6 Star Empire Hotel Resort in Brunei. Hab niemals dort übernachten. Ich glaub, es ist sogar billiger als Holiday Inn Hotel in EU.

Bruneis Kultur basiert auf "MIB". MIB heißt Melayu (Malay), Islam (Religion) und Beraja (König). Unter diese Begriffe gibts mehrere Bedeutung. Das wäre zu lang, wenn ich erzähl :)

His Majesty's Birthday:I watch.... wenn ich Heimweh fühl :)

Family & Bestfrens in Brunei

2006-11-02T14:29:00.000+01:00

Hallo zusammen :)

Sorry for the wait. Enjoy!

I present u meine Familie :)

The pictures tell everything ;)

Bestfrens from High School