Looking down at KL from top of the world

The Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur apart from being Malaysia’s tallest building and the World’s tallest building till 2004 offers visitors a day of fun filled wholesome enjoyment. Apart form the awe of visiting the world’s second largest building and walking across the sky-bridge on the 41st and 42nd floor, the twin towers are full of activities that will keep the traveler occupied.

Perhaps the most well known attraction is the crescent shaped Suria KLCC shopping mall that features six stories of stores, cafés and food courts. Most Malaysians will tell that it is the most hi and happening up-market shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur. Another crowd puller is the Aquaria KLCC; it is a world class aquatic exhibition spanning over 60,000 square feet and features more than 150 species.

Galeri PETRONAS is chic art gallery that exhibits paintings, sculptures, and works of art on paper, fabric and other medium throughout the year. For those who prefer a bit of cultural stimulus, a world-class concert hall known as the Dewan Filharmonik. The architectural design of the hall incorporates Malaysian motifs one of the most acoustically sound in the world. It regularly hosts concerts of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra as well as traditional and jazz musical shows.

Strategically located amongst other Kuala Lumpur Hotels, The Petronas Towers are only two kilometers to the north east of the Grand Millennium Kuala Lumpur. It is a Kuala Lumpur luxury hotel that offers guests five star amenities with easy access to sights and sounds of Kuala Lumpur top enjoy an unforgettable experience in Malaysia.

Agoda ha propuesto una lista de TOP 10 Hoteles Verdes en Asía

SINGAPORE, 18 Julio 2007 — En apoyo al Movimiento Mundial “Hacerse Ecologista” ?Agoda.com, una compañía de viajes en línea especializada en precios de hotel con descuento asegurado, ha publicado “Una lista de TOP 10 Hoteles Asiáticos que protegen el medio ambiente.

Como los viajeros de todo el mundo se dan cuenta de que la protección del medio ambiente es una responsabilidad compartida, ellos? aceptan un estilo de vida verde, escudriñando los hoteles y los destinos donde quieren alojarse. Según La Sociedad Internacional de Eco-Turismo,?? aproximadamente 70% de los viajeros prefieren pagar una tarifa prima para un hotel respetuoso con el medio ambiente en lugar de uno con el precio más bajo pero desprovisto de normas de responsabilidades sociales.

El Gerente General y co-fundador de Agoda, Michael Kenny dice: “Es muy lógico que los viajeros conserven los sitios que visitan y devuelvan algo bueno para la comunidad. De ser una? Agencia de Viajes, Agoda aplaude a los hoteles que trabajan para el? desarrollo? del medio ambiente y el turismo sostenible.

Es muy importante “hacerse ecologista” esto no solo está relacionado con el medio ambiente, sino que también consiste en trabajar en todos los aspectos de sostenibilidad y responsabilidades sociales. Para conseguir el estándar verde, como fue definido por la Sociedad Internacional de Turismo, hay seis puntos claves: administración general del medio ambiente, política y marco, entrenamiento del personal y conciencia, compras, gente y comunidades, y protección del destino.?

A pesar de que Agoda es una compañía que ofrece servicios de turismo a nivel mundial, el conjunto tiene un gran experiencia en el mercado de viajes en Asía especialmente, es por esta razón que ellos han limitado una lista de “Los Hoteles Verdes” en Asía.

TOP 10 Hoteles Verdes en Asía por Agoda son:

1. Banyan Tree Phuket, Tailandia: Este sitio ha sido transformado de una mina de estaño abandonada (que una vez fue descrito por UN como un “Páramo tóxico”) a una imagen respetuosa del medio ambiente y ahora eso nos demuestra que tan poderoso es el turismo responsable. La herencia del Grupo Banyan Tree lo es. Ahora tanto el santuario de la fauna y flora como un complejo del hotel se sirven como un a inspiración a todos. Los huéspedes pueden estar seguros de que los precios que pagan por el alojamiento en Banyan Tree sean dirigidos para la conservación del medio ambiente y a la comunidad local.

1. La Residence d’Angkor, Siem Reap, Camboya: Diseñado para formar un conjunto armonioso con el medio ambiente, La Residence tiene un compromiso intenso con el turismo sostenible.? Más allá de su práctica respetuosa con el medio ambiente (la cual incluye el tratamiento del agua para que esta pueda ser regresada al río, y la conservación del petróleo? para producción del Bio-petróleo) el hotel muy frecuentemente dona a las organizaciones benéficas locales e invita a los huéspedes para que estos hagan lo mismo.? En particular, ellos apoyan al Hospital para Niños de Angkor mostrando un video donde los huéspedes tienen la oportunidad para hacer preguntas al personal del Hospital para poder? contribuir con artículos de segunda mano o con dinero.

1. Evason Hua Hin Resort & Six Senses Spa, Tailandia. ?Las casuchas con techo de paja de Evasor Hua Hun Resort no despistan en cuanto a su carácter respetuoso con el medio ambiente. Recurriendo al uso de productos biodegradables y aceptando las prácticas que conserven la energía y minimizen los desechos, el hotel apoya algunos actividades como Conservación del Bosque de Mangle, la Fundación de Kervorkian (creada para ayudar a los bebes y niños que sufren de VIH+), además ellos proveen a los inválidos de oportunidades de empleo y patrocinan su granja de verduras orgánicas.?

1. Nihiwatu, La Isla de Sumba, Indonesia: No hay otro sitio en el mundo como la isla de Sumbu. Aquí las tradiciones indígenas y la cultura animista de Gente de Sumba permanecen completamente intactas. el hotel no tiene ninguna intención de cambiar esto. Ubicando en el bosque tropical de 438 acres y rodeado por algunas de las playas más vírgenes que hay en el mundo,? Nihiwatu es un sitio para visitar y sumergirse en la naturaleza. El hotel está seriamente dedicado en sus alrededores a la mejora de la calidad de vida de la gente de Sumba.

1. Anantara Resort & Spa Golden Triangle, Tailandia. Situado en jungla tropical en una provincia del Norte de Tailandia, Anantara´s Goleen Triangle este Hotel también realiza una labor muy importante en la conservación de los elefantes. Siendo una división del Centro de Conservación de los Elefantes Tailandeses, para el Gobierno de Tailandia ese proyecto está dirigido a la protección de los elefantes y conservación del medio ambiente similar a los campamentos de mahouts tradicionales los cuales apoyaron alguna vez la industria prospera de logging. Junto con los programas únicos para los huéspedes que consisten en el entrenamiento por los mahouts, trekking en elefantes y habilidades de supervivencia en el bosque, la experiencia de conservación es verdaderamente muy interactiva.

1. Amar Vilas Agra, India: Siendo una parte de la cadena de hoteles estimados de Oberoi Resorts and Hotels, este lujoso hotel está ubicado solo a 600 metros del majestuoso Taj Mahal. Además de su diseño arquitectónico y un entorno natural único Amar Vilas se dedica a las actividades filantrópicas (incluyendo la educación y el apoyo a personas físicamente minusválidas) y también realiza programas de conservación del medio ambiente a nivel local y también al patrimonio cultural.

1. Popa Mountain Resort, Bagan, Myanmar: Este hotel está ubicado en el bosque a un lado de la montaña Popa, este lugar ha sido diseñado muy sensiblemente de tal forma que no haga daño al medio ambiente que lo rodea.? Los huéspedes están rodeados de un terreno muy vibrante, aún tranquilo, aquí hay una gran oportunidad para hacer hiking y visitar la Montaña Popa con su impresionante brillo. Usando los productos biodegradables y adaptando sus prácticas de reciclaje para así evitar daños al medio ambiente, este hotel pequeño puede mantener la naturaleza en su forma más pura.?

1. Soneva Fushi Resort & Six Senses Spa, Maldivas: Como todas las propiedades de Six Senses, este hotel tiene una política muy extensa hacia sus responsabilidades sociales y medioambientales. Suneva Fushi en particular apoyo a la Comunidad de Maldivas A travez de la plantación de árboles en la Isla Eydafushi, la preservacion de los campamentos de ojos donde los nativos pueden obtener un tratamiento gratis de oftalmólogia, el patrocinio al Centro Cultural de Malvidas y mucho más.?

1. Tanjung Sanctuary Hotel, Langkawi, Malasia: Como dice su nombre y slogan, este hotel es literalmente un? santuario para la gente que “no le gusta los hoteles grandes” pero tienen una pasión por la naturaleza.? The Tanjung Sanctuary Hotel no hace una lista de sus políticas para el cuidado del medio ambiente pero si diseña y practica las ideas del turismo sostenible. Es muy importante que ellos provean un entendimiento único hacia la flora local y fauna a través de las visitas educativas para sus huéspedes.

1. Alila Ubud and Manggis Resorts, Bali, Indonesia: Estos dos hoteles están muy cerca el uno del otro hace poco ambos han conseguido un status de Globo Verde. Alila Ubud ha sido nominado por sus excelentes resultados en la práctica del reciclaje de los desechos como han logrado reciclar el 80% del agua ya usada. Alila Manggis se ha superado en la reducción del consumo de agua y electricidad, también se ha superado en la contribución a la comunidad por emplear el 85% de los nativos que viven a menos de 20 km a su personal.

Kenny continua: “Nosotros queremos proveer a nuestros clientes con información que les sea muy útil y esta lista pueda dar un entendimiento valioso de las opciones de alojamiento, que tienen los clientes en los mejores hoteles de Asia respetuosos con el medio ambiente. Mucha gente ya es consciente de las iniciativas en los Estados Unidos y Europa pero tal vez no conoce que algo parecido ocurre en su región. Nosotros creemos que esta tendencia en particular es muy importante porque? las posibilidades de elegir los alojamientos verdes han salido como actuales.”

Para obtener más información acerca de Agoda, por favor consulte página Web www.agoda.es o contacte el Equipo de Agoda a través de correo electrónico info@agoda.com. ?Para buscar más información de la lista de los hoteles verdes por Agoda, por favor, envíenos correo electrónico a green@agoda.com.For media enquiries:

Shopping Paradise in Kuala Lumpur

 

“Jalan Ampang”, located near the the “Petronas Twin Towers” which is world’s second tallest structure, is one of the most famous and dazzling shopping destinations of the city. It is situated in the Golden Triangle area of the city which is reputed for its shopping malls, which attracts a large number of local and foreign tourists everyday. This is an immense commercial area where small as well as big shopping malls can be found addressing diverse areas of customer needs.Ampang point, Great Eastern mall and City Square are some of the leading shopping malls in this area.

 

There are plenty of restaurants and nightclubs situated in this area in order to satisfy all sorts of needs of the tourists. Moreover in Jalan Ampang there is an outstanding collection of mouthwatering cuisines at many eateries and restaurants located in the area. Another unique fact of this fascinating shopping area is that anyone is able to fulfill their needs with the variety of merchandises that suit to any taste and budget. Also the annual sale, which is called The Shopping Carnival, held in October and November in Jalan Ampang and around is an opportune time for people to pick up great bargains.

 

On the other way, there are many embassies located along Jalan Ampang, such as the British, French, Chinese, Irish and Thai embassies. The American embassy is also located in Ampang at the corner of Jalan Tun Razak and Jalan U Thant. And not only shopping and entertainment, but also Jalan Ampang considers even health care of its visitors also. In consequence, there are four major hospitals with all necessary facilities such as, Ampang Putri Hospital, Pantai Hospital Pandan Indah, Hospital Ampang, and Gleneagle Hospital. Also this wonderful shopping land is surrounded by many attractions such as flower gardens with marvelous views and many ideal destinations for eco-tourists to fulfill there research purposes also.

 

If you are planning for a shopping sphere in Kuala Lumpur its best to choose accommodation at Kuala Lumpur hotel with convenient access to many of these shopping malls such as Citrus Hotel KL.

Marriott Hotels resorts leverages equal strategy fragrancing solutions for its great room concept in malaysia

The first Renaissance Hotels and Resorts under the Marriott Hotel Group have gone live with Equal Strategy’s advanced environmental fragrancing solutions for their Malaysian properties great rooms, beginning with the Renaissance Melaka Hotel.
Marriott Hotels & Resorts’ great room concept, introduced last year, redefines the way that guests relate to and use the common spaces within hotels like lobby, check in areas, restaurants, social areas and retail outlets. The concept of the great rooms will be to create more fluid, organic spaces where individuals can enjoy public privacy. The new model is also expected to create some trends by giving guests fresh ways to work and play within the property that they couldn’t outside of the hotel.
By removing architectural barriers, the spaces will be designed to adapt to guests’ needs. The great room zones will include welcome, individual, social and business zones. The great room concept was conceived around the ideas of relaxing work and social business. Relaxing work has been defined as a much less formal way of working in the presence of other people, akin to the way people work at Starbucks.
Marriott’s Great Room fragrancing project implemented by Equal Strategy in Singapore and Malaysia is designed to standardize music and fragrance across hotels in the Marriott’s brand portfolio. Equal Strategy has delivered the fragrancing for various Renaissance Hotels in Malaysia including the Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel (Zanzibar Mist), Renaissance Kota Bahru Hotel (Calypso Orange) and the Renaissance Melaka Hotel (Calypso Orange). Calypso Orange is a citrus floral fragrance with top notes of orange, lime, lemon and green accord, middle notes of jasmine, lily, lilac, violet and rose, and bottom notes of musk. Zanzibar Mist meanwhile is also a citrus floral fragrance is composed of top notes of ylang, coconut, citrus, spicy, lemon and orange, middle notes of jasmine, lily and rose and bottom notes of vanilla.
On 6th November 2007, the Renaissance Melaka Hotel went live with the fragrancing of its hotel lobby. It was followed a few days later by the Renaissance Kuala Lumpur (East Wing-Lobby and West Wing Lobby Lounge).
According to Simon A. Faure-Field, CEO of Equal Strategy, Marriott Hotels & Resorts is one of the major international chains leading the pack in terms of introducing innovative new ways in which guests are able relate to the interior spaces of a hotel.
The chain has examined the latest evolving guest behaviours, both socially and also at work, and have redefined their spaces into zones which support and extend those new behaviours. This is incredibly inventive for a major hotel chain to think outside the box like this and break the mould of its previous service model.
Equal Strategy is proud to partner with Brandaroma and the chain to provide a signature scent to those spaces which supports and compliments the underlying role of the space and imprints a recognisable sensory cue which guests will find pleasing and which reinforces brand recall and loyalty.
Equal Strategy has consulted other hotel chains, as well as boutique properties, on similar sensory branding solutions including Westin Hotels, Starwood Hotels, Pan Pacific, Naumi and M Hotel to name a few. This same month Equal Strategy has also delivered musical styling to four different outlets of the stunning new Raffles Dubai property. The company is the only one of its kind in the Asia region advising forward-thinking hoteliers on the deployment of these sensory brand techniques.
Faure-Field started his business in 1998 providing companies with telephone recorded answering services designed to help them project a consistent brand image when interacting with customers. His company’s services currently cover telephone on hold messaging, messages broadcast within retail businesses and hotels, the creation of music styling and fragrance deployment which is the most sophisticated system available in Asia.
Mr Faure-Field is the only consultant in Asia specializing in combining music with fragrance to synergise a consistent brand experience for customers. His work is solidly grounded in behavioural science research and draws extensively upon the finds of researchers in the field of effects of background music and atmosphere on retail environments. In the retail arena, studies by Areni and Kim, for example, noted that music can be a critical component of store atmosphere, playing a role in the decision-making processes.
Their studies, and others, show that if shoppers stay longer and travel slowly through a store, they are likely to purchase more. Another study by Milliman¹ found that the tempo of music can affect a shopper’s pace of movement around the store. For this reason the music tempo at Borders is slow and relaxed. Creating the right ambience in a store through music can have other benefits too, such as facilitating discussion between customers and sales staff, something that can be carried over into the hospitality field.
Faure-Field also collaborates with world renowned fragrance house Belmay and Australian company Brandaroma to design fragrances to positively reinforce brands positioning. The system, which creates an aerosolised fragrance deliverable through the property’s air conditioning system, also has the ability to cancel out malodorous smells like body odour and residual cooking smells emanating from kitchens and food preparation areas. Odourfoyl has the ability to actually change the genetic structure of bad smells so that the brain can no longer recognise them.
Footnotes
Equal strategy

Presenting Asia’s finest destinations and hotels

Now that the holiday is coming, everybody is going crazy in search of the perfect destination. This article is meant to help you make the best choice. Ever heard about “The Peninsula”? If you did, then you know that I’m talking about Asia’s hotels. Yes, it’s about time you changed the common destinations.



Created 77 years ago in the glamorous 1920s, the legendary “Grande Dame of the Far East” is consistently ranked as one of the world’s top hotels, offering a blend of the best of Eastern and Western hospitality in an atmosphere of classical grandeur and timeless elegance. The Peninsula accommodates amongst the most spacious hotel rooms and suites in Hong Kong and a multitude of technological innovations have also been introduced, whilst retaining the hotel’s tradition of personalized service excellence. And this is just an example.



Since the advent of the Internet, nowadays is so easy – with just a few clicks – to find the perfect hotels. And there are so many tourism specialized websites where you can check the rooms, the availability, the travel options and every other detail. We can also book a room online and get an instant confirmation, then you are settled! No need for worrying. Sometimes you can even get a discount for booking online.



Asia’s hotels are already familiar for those who want comfort, luxury and exclusive treatment. So, next time you make plans for that perfect holiday consider Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan, Halong or Nha Trang – these are wonderful Asian destinations.



Pick one of Thailand hotels, Singapore hotels, Malaysia hotels, Japan hotels and Bangkok hotels. Each of them have opulent guest rooms, which are comfortable, stylish and equipped with advanced technology. and many command some of the most breathtaking views to be had in the city.



Cebu hotels, Hoi An Hotels, Halong Hotels and Nha Trang Hotels command some of the most breathtaking views to be had in the city.



Choosing one of Osaka Hotels, Bali Hotels or Jakarta Hotels for your wedding or honeymoon will prove to be more than ideal. You have limousines and even helicopters for hire on an hourly basis for weddings, anniversaries and other special occasions.



For best traditional food, served in the most exclusive and elegant restaurants and bars you can search online for Ho Chi Minh hotels, Kyoto Hotels, Shinjuku Hotels, Ginza Hotels, Perth Hotels or Hanoi Hotels.



Now that I’ve presented to you some guiding marks for Asian hotels, I want to give you also other perspectives concerning the facilities. It’s not at all difficult to find the best ones at very good extra or included room prices. I bet that the ladies will appreciate luxurious hotel spa facilities, health clubs, huge stylish swimming pools and beauty and hairdressing salons. Right?



About the room facilities, the bathroom with the television, hands-free telephone and mood lighting should be a plus. An international phone line, a fax, a fully stocked mini-bar, a safe, Internet access, a radio and color television with cable satellite, CD and DVD players are facilities that nobody could do without. The in-house nurse and a multi-lingual hotel staff are a must for Asia’s hotels.

Songkhla Hotels: Taking Pride in Its Hospitality

Songkhla is the provincial capital of Songkhla Province located in south Thailand bordering the state of Kedah in Malaysia. This city is placed between the Gulf of Thailand and the Songkhla Lake at a distance of about 950 km south of Bangkok. The province boasts of many natural attractions like beaches, waterfalls, parks and so on. Surrounded by beautiful beaches, this city is popularly known as ‘the great city on two seas’. This city can be reached easily via government buses that run on regular basis to/from Bangkok. These air-conditioned buses runs daily and covers a distance of about 984 km in 12 and half hours. Direct buses are also available from Chumphon, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surat Thani and Hatyai. There are also many minivans that offer access to this city. Songhkla has emerged as a favorite tourist hot spot for its awesome beaches and natural wonders. This place receive many tourists who stay here for a few days before heading for places like Hat Yai. There are a number of good Hotels in Songkhla for the guests to spend their vacations at this destination.

Various attractions to see here include Samila beach and its famous golden mermaid statue, Tang Kuan Hill, City Pillar Shrine, Pathammarong Museum, and Songkhla National Museum, and Songkhla Zoo amongst others. For the shoppers the most popular thing to buy here is a mini replica of the golden mermaid statue. For food and beverage, you can visit places like markets in front of Songkhla post office, Phatthalung road, Suan Thaokae market, Wachira market and so on.

Songkhla receives a fair number of tourists all throughout the year. To accommodate these guests there are a host of hotels and resorts offering luxury accommodations as well as budget stays. The Hotels in Songkhla are of an extensive variety and offer comfortable stay for all budgets and preferences. The city it is the proud home of various hotels, resorts and guest houses which ensures the guests with a comfortable stay. Rajamangala Pavilion Beach Resort and Pavilion Hotel are two popular hotels in Songkhla. To book a hotel in Songkhla, you can take the help of online Internet reservation facility. You can directly visit the official website of the hotel or use any other reliable website for booking.

Langkawi: Heaven of Ecotourism and Travel Adventure

Langkawi situated just off the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia comprises a group of 104 tropical islands during the low tides and 99 Island during the high tides. The main island Langkawi, is 47. 848 Hectare followed by Pulau Dayang Bunting and Pulau Tuba while some of the others appear to be mere dots in the emerald green ocean when viewed from the air.

In Langkawi a nature adventure had a true-blue naturalist as their guide. The guide’s name is Irshad Mobarak. Dubbed the Jungle-wallah (Jungle-fellow) of Langkawi ( http://www.junglewallah.com ), he is perfect for the job as he possesses vast knowledge about Langkawi’s wildlife, gleaned from years of trekking and observation of its jungles, mangroves and wildlife.

Some people think the beauty of Langkawi lies in its pristine beaches. Others like the duty-free shopping. But Irshad and his team of naturalists at Natural History Tours ( http://www.wildlangkawi.com ) reckon that the edge Langkawi has over places like Bali and Phuket is its jungle and wildlife.

As such Irshad and his team have been actively involved in preserving Langkawi’s natural environment. His social-responsible company provides real ecotourism experiences such as nature walks, birdwatching, jungle-trekking and mangrove tours in kayaks or motorized boats without the “gimmicks” activities involve.

His pet peeve is the eagle-feeding sessions at the mangrove swamps of the Kilim River. While it is quite a sight to see dozens of white-bellied sea eagles and brahminy kites circling in the sky and swooping down on their food, Irshad feels it’s bad for the birds.

“What you’re doing is habituating the eagles to take food from humans when they usually feed on fish. Now they are given chicken guts, and these are from farm-bred chickens fed with antibiotics and hormones, making it unhealthy. It may affect their bone development and the integrity of the shells of their eggs.” Irshad said contaminated feed could kill a lot of birds, as each feeding attracts between 50 to 100 birds.

Not only is Irshad fully acquainted with information on the wildlife in Langkawi, he is also great at handling children. His “young explorer club” is a hit for student’s summer program in Malaysia and tourists traveling with their children. “The trick is not to bore them to death. You can be much more informative with adults, but with children, you need to make it more experiential. They need to touch and smell and conduct experiments.”

Irshad, who’s especially love birds, said Langkawi has recorded 190 species of birds, including brown winged kingfisher, black hooded oriole and mountain hawk eagle. The mountain hawk eagle which can be identified by its very pronounced crest with two feathers can only be found in Langkawi and Irshad has recorded 3 different individual here.

The relatively small and cut-off habitat of an island like Langkawi allows for many of its flora and fauna to evolve into unique species over thousands of years. But it also possessed a danger of Habitat-fragmentations. One of Irshad ongoing project is planting figs trees closer to the road so the canopy on either side of the road will meet and become close enough for animals to cross over. “This is one way to counter the negative effects of habitat fragmentations and we hope to see the results in 10 years,” Irshad said. Visitor can also get involve in this program by purchasing trees and plant it during their visit to Langkawi ( http://www.treesfornature.com )

Who is the Jungle-Wallah of Langkawi?

In the 80s, the Negri Sembilan-born Irshad was a decathlete and rugby player employed by a major bank institution. He worked for five years with the bank in Kuala Lumpur, only to discover the corporate world was simply not his cup of tea.

The turning point in his life came during a vacation in Tioman Island between 1981 and 1982. He realized that what he really wanted was to be closer to nature.

“So I quit my job, traveled and bummed around for a couple of years,” said Irshad, and then he found Langkawi. The island’s beauty and mystique inspired him to embark on his own study of its ecosystems.

“I saw the potential for nature-related work. I got a job as recreation manager at Datai and at the same time was involved in conservation work,” he said. Soon, a new position was created for him, that of a Resident-naturalist. And today, after 19 years, he is so well-versed in the subject, he is considered an expert. He has trained many individual who is now employed by other hotels as their own Resident-naturalist and some of them work as independent nature guides.

Irshad considered himself very lucky because his work, his hobby and his passion are all fused into one. He also believes that taking care of the natural environment is an integral part of being a steward of the Earth. He is recently won DiGi Amazing Malaysians Award 2007, an award for Malaysians who were nominated by the public for their passion and dedication in heritage conservation.

History of Malaysia Under One Roof

 

Museum Negara or National Museum was opened in August 1963 based on “Minangkabau”, classical Malay architecture on a hill facing Jalan Travers. It has been built on the site of the old Selangor Museum in 1906, which was unintentionally destroyed during the 2nd World War and which had been designed to use as a storehouse of Malaysia’s rich community and as the centre of sharing knowledge of the historical past of the country.

 

This historical museum which provides an interesting introduction to the history and culture of Malaysia, is surrounded by historical buildings and a romantic parkland which has been built in the style of a “Rumah Gadang” and is a major stimulus in attracting local and foreign tourists. The museum is a three storied structure 109.7 meters long and 15.1 meters wide. It holds a remarkable collection of artifacts on local history, culture and customs, art and handicraft, flora and fauna, weapons and currencies. It also houses several main galleries such as Historical Gallery, Cultural Gallery, Metal works and Musical Instrument Gallery, National Sports Gallery and the National History Gallery, specializing in ethnology and natural history of Malaysia. It welcomes its visitors with a large central main entrance hall that is flanked by two exhibition wings on the exterior of of which, two large murals illustrate the scenes of the country. The mural on the rights side demonstrates Malaysian culture and customs while the one on the left chronicles the historical episodes of the nations.

 

Museum Negara was renovated in the 1990s, extending its capacity with a library, an auditorium and an additional exhibition hall for thematic exhibitions. Also now we can see, at the rear, a variety of old Malaysian motor vehicles, including a fire engine and the Rolls Royce used by Malaysia’s first prime minister. Also the structure comprises 26 concrete pillars, positioned to reflect the features of a traditional Malay palace. This concept of 26 pillars is based on the assembly of 13 pillars to the east and 13 more to the west of the building in order to represent the 13 states of Malaysia.

 

Another aspect of attraction of the Museum is the old Terengganu timber palace known as “Istana Satu”, which was erected in 1884. More over the Cafeteria, Souvenir Shop, Wheel Chair and Disabled access and Prayer Room are the other main facilities provided by this national museum. And it’s open daily from 9am to 6pm with free entrance for children and guided visits by appointment if needed.

 

This popular Malaysian attraction is located close to a several Budget hotels in Kuala Lumpur such as Citrus Hotel KL.

Unexpected experience in the first flight

UNEXPECTED IN FIRST FLIGHT EXPERIENCE

When I sent my relatives to airport for overseas trip, I imagine how nice in the air or flight. However, it is nonsense if I do not have business to travel by flight. In addition, I do not think that flight would be bad for me.

I was very happy when I received an invitation for an interview of master programmed session. I was happy because I had been waiting for it for two years. I decided to book a return flight from Kota Bharu to Kuala Lumpur. I thought I would not have a problem with my first flight .What is more , my boss gave me only two days holiday. So , to make sure I was rested when I arrived , I decided to go to Kuala Lumpur by air.

With confidence, I drove happily early in the morning to the airport. I did not think to have breakfast first, because I did not expect to have any trouble.
I checked in for an early bird flight, and rushed to the airport. However, I did not allow enough time and reached the airport slightly late. I rushed quickly just to take a curry puff and tea. Then I heard that passengers to Kuala Lumpur must assemble at the departure hall immediately.

This was the first time I had been to the hall. It is not so big but it can be filled with 300 people for a domestic flight. I had to queue patiently to have my ticket check. Waiting for me was a beautiful curly haired flight attendant with her red uniform. All passengers seemed to be moving fast in order to have a few minutes more for departure time.

I walked through the departure hall to the door to the stair to enter into the cabin. I was surprised to meet an old friend who I had not seen for eight years. He asked me where I was going and I told him that I was going for an interview for my master proposal of second-degree research. However unfortunately I did not have a chance to ask him his destination, but I thought that I could ask him when we reached KLIA, or Kuala Lumpur International Airport. At that time, I was very excited because I would be going to one of the most famous airports in the world. I had seen the airport on television, newspaper, or video only. However, in just one hour I would walk through the international airport. I could not wait to go back and tell my family about the marvelous airport.

A few minutes later, I was feeling happy when the engine roared. Suddenly the temperature went very cold for me. At first, I turned to see other passengers. May be a few of them were also this the first time like me. My seat was beside the left wing. I could see the wing on my left. At first when the pilot drove the plane, we could see a few families of the passengers waving goodbye. In the cabin, the flight attendant gave guidance on safety in the plane. She showed how to fasten the seat belt, when and why to do so. Then when the engine started to speed until it took off, I felt something uncomfortable happen to me. My stomach began to reject air and my food. Then I started to use my oil that been prepared by my wife. The oil could relieve airsickness. At first, I do not want to bring it but my wife urged me to bring it. If I had not, I think my health would have become worse. At that time, I felt I was uplifted and saw we faced the sky. I thought the was plane nose up for more than five minutes. In addition, my health was started to give me problems but I tried to peep through the window to see downwards. I could see with my naked eyes for the first time how amazing the world was that I had being living in for 35 years. The nice beautiful colour of scenery with white stripe is still in my memory. I recognized The Tendong Bridge that is the famous and large bridge in my hometown.

To begin with, I massaged my backside to relieve my headache. A few minutes after that there was an announcement .The announcer was the pilot. He described who was he, what’s was the flight speed, the altitude and when we would reach the KLIA. I remember that he was Captain Azhan. The plane was flying at about seven hundred and fifty kilometers an hour and the altitude was ten thousand feet above sea level. During that time, I felt so frightened to hear the flight speed. It was ten times faster than my car speed. Almost all my time in the cabin, I closed my eyes. Maybe the mother beside me thought that I was sleepy and able to sleep in the short trip. Luckily, the flight did not include any meal or beverage. If they had prepared it, I could not eat or drink anything. I remembered about someone had told me that in flight there are many factors can make someone suffer from airsickness. One of them is air pocket, which can happen, in bad weather. When remembered that I became worse but I tried to relax myself. By that time, I smelled an unpleasant smell. It smelled as somebody vomited. They were in the same situation as me but I thank the Almighty I was not like them.

A moment later the pilot said that the flight was ending .We would arrive twenty minutes early. This statement made me happier and slightly eased my pain. The young mother thought that I was having problem, but I ignored her. At least I had not vomited. I know if I am in the situation they are getting to be like me. I think why my situation likes this to me. I remember that I not eat rice as usual .Sometimes I looked through my left window to see the sky. On that time I can feel who we are….just like dust on the road .We have nothing. It teached me that how power Allah is.

Then the flight ended. I rushed to search for the toilet, forgetting to see my friend again. In the toilet, I vomited and wasted all my food. I felt weak and sat near the toilet to rest. After that, I forced myself to look for the taxi or bus but it was a long way to walk. Finally, I reached the driver centre. Luckily, I could get some medicine there. I had a lodging there for that day at the small mosque near the limousine parking area. At first, I asked a few drivers to bring me to the hotel near my interview centre but they told me that it is very expensive with their limousine. They guide me how to go to my interview centre. So I did like what did they told me. No need for me to stay at hotel on the day .I can stay there in the small mosque.

On the next day when I felt a little better, I went to my interview by taxi. Nevertheless, here I still having problem to look for the place because it was unfamiliar to me. It still makes me in trouble. Then I had my interview. After that, I had a rest for a few hours before returning home by flight. Unluckily for me I cannot travel back by plane. So I bought a train ticket to go back home.

I reached home on the next day. Therefore, I wasted my flight ticket. For me it did not matter. It was better than flying home. I think for the first time I can fly one way only!

Another Malaysia is Possible

Another Malaysia is Possible

(Or Losing Sight of History, Justice and Compassion *)

M Nadarajah

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I have stopped feeling at home in Malaysia. There is a great deal of uneasiness. Someone out there may want to shout at me: “Go back to India, if you want!” Really, that is not the issue. I am not making a choice between India and Malaysia.

Though my reasons may be private my uneasiness is not, and it is certainly very real for many of us here. It is for me complicated and mixed up with the history of this country, its emerging character and its future.

I am a Malaysian. But my ancestors belong to a culturally rich ancient civilisation, which is today a major contributor of human resources to the global cyber-industry. Inevitably, my cultural roots are in India. They are not here. Like many in the Indian diaspora, ‘India’ is a presence that shapes the diaspora Indian’s everyday cultural life around the globe.

But the Indian civilisation, as the Chinese one, has long ago interacted with the culture of the people of the Malay Peninsula and has produced distinctive and creative hybrids. I sincerely like to locate my ancestors and my culture in that process of hybridisation. But no. This nation has not made me feel comfortable or proud of that.

The attempt here has been to carefully remove any hybrid elements, in what I think, are vain attempts to create a ‘pure culture’, whatever that means. In its everyday life statement, cultures have always carried out dialogue with each other.

Except in the clever ads put up in the national television networks at around the time of the national day in August – when an attempt is made to show the sharing of cultures – the rest of the year we live in a highly ethnically compartmentalised and charged reality.

The ads seem to assume that sharing and hybridisation is something new, which has to be promoted, little realising we always have a tradition of hybridisation and active syncretism.

There are fine examples of sharing and cultural hybrids in Malaysia, all of which are facing danger of marginalisation, “cultural extermination and death”. A couple of decades from now, through conscious design or careless neglect, cultures around “wayang kulit” or “Dato Kong” would have been consigned to the dustbin of history, forgotten for good. We completely avoid that history. In fact, steps are taken to destroy that history. Why?

A little reflection would reveal that we are becoming a nation that is slowly but certainly having little or no respect for history – past, present or future – justice or compassion and how they once enriched our individual and national life. For some of us, this is the root of our uneasiness. And homelessness.

There have been a number of stages through which Indians have interacted with the Malay community. But under British colonialism, south Indians – mostly Tamils – were brought here through the indentured labour system and, later through the kangani system, to work in the plantations to help make money for British entrepreneurs and the British government. And, of course, later for the Malayan government.

Imagine this scenario for a moment. Imagine that you can go down to the material foundations of this nation and can see the contribution to that foundation in terms of layers of labour and income in dollars and cents.

You will certainly see what critical contributions Indian labour has made to creating a modern Malaya/Malaysia. But that is history now and it is best forgotten. In fact, the situation here is even more saddening. Instead of recognising the contribution of the Indian community and being sort of “grateful” for that, we have some Malaysians shouting coldly and loudly that the Indian Malaysian community is an ungrateful community!

History, and by extention heritage, is this country is faced with the problem of political myopia. We have fed and fattened our greed for profits any way in the name of “development”. In the face of this, history and heritage in this country have been given up for commercial and short-term growth benefits and ethnic demands.

We are willing to tear down the “significant old” and give the developers all rights to develop. Under the rent control repeal, Georgetown in Penang is, for instance, under attack. This is culturally a very rich area, both in terms of cultural practices and architectural diversity.

In this place, you have within walking distances, in one street a Protestant church, the “Goddess of Mercy” (Chinese) temple, the Mariamman Hindu temple and the Kapitan Kling Mosque. And, more importantly, a community that supports it. Isn’t this what we must preserve and promote as an instance of the “true Malaysia”?

But short term, and therefore historically blind, planning and greed will perhaps one day destroy this cultural diversity and richness. Recently, the multiethnic and historical cemetery at the Sungai Besi area – a preservation and the memory of our past community – was faced with the danger of being gobbled up by greed.

“True Malaysia” must have physical icons around which we can all come together in the true spirit of being Malaysian. But our historical insensitivity is bent on destroying all these. Sadly “Malaysia” as a “cultural hybrid” is soon going to be only reflected in advertising and public relations budgets and programmes. It will in time be merely a media event. Perhaps that is all we really want.

This historical blindness, greed for profit, lack of concern for justice or the feeling of compassion affect all of us and certainly the Indian Malaysian community a great deal. When the world of the Indians – the plantation society – the world they worked in very hard, the world in which many of them died working to produce wealth for this nation, started to crumble, there was no urgency in this country to do something about it.

It was a process that was certainly going to produce a massive problem within the community. But that foresight was neither with the government nor the MIC. In fact, it was not at all seen as a problem for the nation. It was the problem of the Indian community, not Malaysians.

Such a mode of thinking is the root of our mainstream political existence: Turn the problems faced by Malaysians into the problems of the community and let the community deal with it. So when we have problems with pigs, it is seen as the problem of the Chinese community.

The problem of the Ecstasy is the problem of the Chinese youth. Not Malaysians. The problem of drug abuse is the problem of the Malay youth. Of course, the problem of the Malays directly becomes the problem of the Government.

In one way or another, all these affect many Malaysians. Sometime ago an elderly Chinese taxi driver told me “I want to be a Malaysian and I want to love this country but I am not allowed to. I am always made to feel like less than one”.

This year he has decided not to put up the Malaysian flag on his taxi. The quality of justice and compassion in this country is abysmal. And there are many who do not feel at home.

Coming back, the Indian Malaysians unable to deal with their crumbling world moved from rural poverty to urban poverty. And even 40 odd years of independence, with the Indian rubber tapper labouring community – mostly Tamils – even now not guaranteed a minimum wage, a minister with the Malaysian government had the cheek to say that he did not know what the rubber tappers really did behind the rubber tree!

That is symtomatic of our insensitivity to history or justice. Or our gratefulness to our own people. The Indian Malaysian community is a poor minority exhibiting all the problems of a poor minority in a multi-ethnic environment. Left to fend for itself – unlike the protected Malay community – within an ethnically charged environment, it constantly faced a great deal of obstacles.

These problems started early. In the sixties, my brother was working as a door-to-door salesman selling books. As he knocked the door of a non-Indian Malaysian home, he heard one say, “Find out what that black bastard outside wants.”

In a chat with a young frustrated Indian Malaysian student of mine, I was informed that she was told by a non-Indian employer “If not for your colour, we would have employed you.”

After completing his hotel management course, the son of a friend of mine – quite a dark-skinned person – wanted to join the “front office” of a hotel, which a “visible position”. To his disappointment, he found that it was quite difficult for a dark skinned person to occupy such a position. He was given a position in the “house keeping” department, a “behind-the-scene” department.

If you are a fair skinned Indian, close to appearing like Sharukh Khan, perhaps you will have an opportunity in this country. I have watched the plight of a pregnant Indian Malaysian woman, with a big bag of goods she had shopped in a nearby supermarket, trying to get the attention of a taxi driver. The person who finally stopped to pick her up was an Indian taxi driver.

I can go on with these examples. The fact that I remember these examples is certainly uncomfortable to me. But “objectively” they reflect a reality that most of us, and certainly the government, like to hide. I am not saying that Indians do not exhibit racist tendencies.

The thing is that we have put our blinkers on and like to believe that there is no racism – retail or institutional – in this country. And therefore no need for us to talk about it, articulate our problems in public, rationally engage in a discussion, and even work towards legislating against certain forms.

We are told that we are not ready for discussions of racism or that we can’t even rationally discuss certain unhappiness about “race relations” in this country. The David Chua episode is a case in point.

If after 43 years of independence and many more decades before that of living together, of working together, of seeing our loved ones – even across ethnic groups – being buried in this land, we cannot come to a table to rationally discuss a common problem that affects us all, what have we really accomplished as a nation or as a community?

And what is historically blind about all these is that we are pushing our problems to the next generation and teaching them to push the same problems to the next, hoping eventually everything will come to pass and that we will all form one big, happy family. Even myths need to be constructed with some realism! We have come to a bridge and we are refusing to cross it!

The marginalisation of the Indian Malaysian community has many secondary but critical effects. After the Sauk incident – an incident that clearly revealed how low people rated the mainstream media and its independence and how cynical they have become – there was one question that many threw at me in our casual conversations. Members of the Malay community also raised this.

“If”, they said, almost in a chorus, “the group that carried out the arms heist was a non-Malay group, do you think they would have hesitated shooting them on sight?”

And in many discussions, there was always a reference to shooting of a “pregnant Indian woman”. An unarmed Indian Malaysian pregnant women was shot on sight for being in the company of Indian Malaysian men who were suspected to be kidnappers.

This terrible thing has been burnt into the Indian Malaysian psyche and it will appear again and again as a query: “What is our status in this country?” There were many others who were likewise shot in situations that raises many questions, all of which affects the feeling of “belongingness” to this nation.

Political powerlessness

TV3, for instance, is famous for putting Indians (read: Tamils) in their place. TV3’s treatment of Indians is a good measure and is reflective of Indian economic and political powerlessness. Had this group been financially strong and politically powerful, the scenario would have been significantly different.

The Indian Malaysian community will have their movies not at a god-forsaken time but at prime time. Elsewhere, the community has been told to stand on their own two feet. But the same logic has not been directed at the Malay community.

In this country, the majority community behaves like a besieged minority, putting the poor minority community of Indian Malaysians, and other such communities, out of the scope of Islamic justice and compassion. When are we going to learn that ethnicity alone is really an inadequate criterion to deal with poverty?

In an unequal level playing field, I think we need to look at poor Malaysians. They are Malaysian. They are our people. They need help. Why is this so difficult to see? We look but do not see. We hear but do not listen. Our drive for political survival is so narrow and blind that it suffocates and kills our sense of justice and compassion.

My unease with Malaysia is not only the result of the marginalisation of the Indian Malaysian community. There are certainly many things that are going on in this country that will make a citizen uneasy, that will further question our notions of justice and compassion. We are, for instance, a labour shortage economy and we need alien labour. We bring this people in from the neighbouring countries but treat them rather badly.

Hard-earned income

One of my close relative runs a gold jewellery shop. A number of his customers are Bangladeshis. I have personally observed how they take their money out from some of the oddest of places, sometimes from inside their under garments.

When asked why they do that, they say that there are “Malaysians” who like to extort them of their hard-earned income. So when they travel, they put their money in the oddest of places, hoping that it is not found. We point our finger at them without realising how mean we have been.

During the height of the economic crisis, a conversation with a taxi driver revealed yet another aspect of our brutality. The driver of the taxi I was travelling in told me that his business is down. He continued to say many Indonesians have returned since the crisis, finding it difficult to sustain themselves here. As a result of which, the taxi driver observed, his income was down significantly.

I was curious about immigrant labour using taxis to travel rather than bus service or LRT. He told me that they use taxi to avoid being spotted while walking or waiting for a bus or train. They just do not want to be visible because for them, that attracts a section of Malaysians out to prey on them. To avoid being preyed on, the immigrant labour take taxis. This is really sad.

Security on the roads or other public spaces in Malaysia really has a character with a cold attitude: Malaysians vs non-Malaysians; professional aliens vs aliens doing manual labour; rich Malaysians vs poor Malaysians; politically conforming Malaysians vs politically non-conforming ones. In all of the above, the former always has a better deal than the latter.

Economic units

On another question of immigrant labour, I was once talking to a health activist working on AIDS. In the course of our discussion, I saw another instance of the shallowness of our compassion. We import labour into our labour shortage economy as economic units, expecting them to come here, work, earn an income and get back when their time is up.

But to do so is demeaning. Human beings are not economic robots. They have all kind of needs, not only economic or survival needs, but also sexual needs. We have not made provision for this. Over a time that need begins to raise its head, and in an arrangement where these needs are not taken into consideration, a number of health problems will certainly ensue, including the problem of AIDS. Is that the problem of immigrant labour or the system we have?

I like to believe that we have a system that is hardly considerate or compassionate. These are not political problems as much as they are problems of governance. But do we as a people and as a nation care? A similar problem relates to the blind, our own people. If you walk around in Brickfields in Kuala Lumpur you will find a lot of blind people moving around … quite dangerously. A vehicle could anytime knock them down.

These people have been around here for a long time and yet we have not spent time to develop a blind-friendly environment in Brickfields. In Tokyo, as in many other places in Japan, for instance, walk on the pavement and you will see how the needs of the “visually challenged” have been taken care off.

Compassion is intricately knitted into the design of the pavement and that makes the environment for the blind there certainly friendlier than ours. Compassion is not just about a value or a feeling but also about concretely designing a really caring and sustainable society.

Due process

The most serious recent happening that brings to sharp focus our sense of history, justice and compassion relates to the events surrounding our treatment of ex-deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim. I am not debating here his innocence because I really do not know that.

But we need due process in place to seek the truth out ceaselessly before we convict any citizen of this country. Have we really done that in the case of Anwar Ibrahim that we can answer this affirmatively, without an iota of doubt?

This is a classic case, which reveals how insensitive we have become to history, justice and compassion. For now, they have become the silent casualties. As many people felt and still feel, if this could happen to the DPM, where do we ordinary citizens stand against the power of the state, even to raise an innocuous question about its public behaviour?

History has however never been known to be silent about truth for a long time. That will eventually comes out into the open. The Anwar episode will be written and re-written. It will be discussed and researched.

Articles and dissertations will be produced on it. And perhaps one day, when justice assertively holds politics accountable, Malaysia may hear of alternative narratives. Malaysia will wake up to the terrible wrongs that it has committed to a number of its citizens.

And we may just find Guan Eng and Anwar Ibrahim on that list. So will the unarmed pregnant Indian Malaysian woman who was shot. How can we believe that history will not review our actions, our decisions 25 or 50 or 100 years from now? That is the depth of our historical blindness.

The court decision in a case that an international community – of not just governments, that may have other agenda for criticising us, but also of professional bodies, NGOs, and concerned individuals – says is ridden with all kinds of legal anomalies and the sentence of six years and nine years to be served consecutively, raise nagging questions and leave a deep seated uneasy feelings: What is my country really? Where is our compassion? And where is our notion of fairness and justice?

How can I feel being at home in this country? As I walk down the main corridor of Mega Mall on the Aug 30, I see people’s economic and instrumental arrangement with this nation. Not their emotional attachment. I like to believe that I am wrong. Somewhere in the distance, I hear an announcement: “The business hour is extended to 12 o’clock to welcome…”

Without a sense of history – the past, the present and the future – without a capacity for justice and without a feeling of compassion, what are we really going to welcome? I really wonder…

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*Written in 2000

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