Happy National Day

I cannot help noticing since 1983 when the population was only 200,000, Brunei now has 400,000 mouths to feed. That's a lot of young people amongst the populace now. Throughout the 23 years, Brunei has experienced great peace, progress and prosperity. But now these young people are starting to enter the job market. One sign of a vibrant economy is whether you can keep the best and brightest of a community's young people at home. That means having good jobs available, but it also means nurturing young talent and showing them what is available.

Though Brunei has many merits, it still nevertheless also has other shortcomings. There are people living in this Abode of Peace who don't have access to the basic necessities of life. In the Brunei of my dreams there will be no poor people. The other simple dream is for a proper motorway between KB and BSB- that's only 100km of black top. Not too much to ask for.

Nasi Lemak on Sunday

Today we went to Toko Mix Restaurant to have Nasi Lemak for lunch. It was great. So much so that we only had some light fillings for the evening.

In the afternoon, Chelsea was playing against Arsenal young guns in the Carling Cup. It was a nice attacking game with lots of incidents. But at the end the overpaid Chelsea won - but just.

In the meantime my team of 29 years won 4-1 today against Bolton.

Antwerp in Belgium

Last Saturday we went on a worthwhile trip heading South. First stop was Rosada Factory Outlet, an hour drive located in the outskirt of Roosendaal smack in-between Rotterdam and Antwerp. This place is smaller than the one in Roermond.

Then we moved to Antwerp to an American-style shopping mall called Wijnegen Shopping Center. It was mainly window-shopping and having alook around.

Towards the evening we went to the Centre of Antwerp hoping to find a well known Malaysian restaurant. We found the place - called Satay House next to the Central station but decided to go back and have our dinner in The Hague.

Knight Hall in the Hague

The knight Hall is a building in the Binnenhof (Parliment) Courtyard in The Hague. The building is known as Ridderzaal, literally means Knight’s Hall. It dates back from the 13th century. The outside walls of the hall is said to have a thickness of 1.2 meters.

Each year, on the third Tuesday of September, known as the Prinsjesdag, the Dutch Queen holds her annual speech in the knight hall.

E46 in red

The E46 is the name for the automobile platform for the fourth generation BMW's 3 Series. This red one is powered by the powerful M54B25 engine, a 2.5 L (2494 ccm) power-horse giving an output of 184 hp (143 kW) at 6000 RPM with 175 ft.lbf (245 Nm) of torque at 3500 RPM if it at all means anything to you.

Why red? Red is associated with anger, blood, passion and most importantly love! Red is of course one of the three primary colours. Red light has a certain wavelength range, frequencies lower than this are called infrared, or below red and cannot be seen by human eyes. Not that you cannot see this car, it just happened to be red when we saw it.

No More Leaves Standing

During Autumn, the normally green leaves change colour to red or yellow before eventually falling during Winter. The phenomenon resulted in a really beautiful time during Autumn commonly called Fall or Autumn colours before turning into a really dull sight in Winter where no more leaves are left standing on the trees.

But alas, spring is coming. Can't wait to see the tulips blossoming again and filling the colour of the countryside in Holland especially the area around Noordwijk and Harlem.

Circular Glass Roof

Beyond providing functional characteristics, architects nowadays heed many aesthetic qualities to improve the environment within a building. A good one is this massive glass roof in Centro located above a promenade which house some 20 food outlets and hundreds of seats for diners.

It brings with it a great sense of openess, great space and at the same providing natural lighting. It also makes good sense in this era of increasing awareness of global warming and energy conservation.

Oberhausen in Germany

Last Saturday we drove for two hours in the direction of Germany to a city called Oberhausen. Its a straight drive from The Hague plying through A12 and A2 motorways, passing through Utretch and Arnhem before reaching Oberhausen. Destination was Centro Shopping Complex, a place we often frequented the last time we were here 10 years ago. It was then the largest shopping complex in Europe.

The place is still really big with over ten thousands parking spaces! The surrounding area has now been developed with theme park, sealife, convention centre etc. Generally items sold here are quite a bargain compare to what you pay in Holland.

Car Wash

It cost 4 Euro for basic wash without drying and up to 10 Euro to include hot waxing and drying. Sunday late afternoon seems to be a popular time of the week for this activity.

Today petrol is selling at 1.30 Euro per litre, that's equivalent to B$2.86 per litre. In Brunei it only cost 53 cents per litre. That 5.1/2 times more expensive here. Imagine how much the Dutch government is gaining from fuel tax.

Amsterdam’s Dam Square

Dam Square is the historical center of Amsterdam, approximately 0.8km south of the Amsterdam Centraal Station.

It connects with Kalverstraat, the busiest shopping street of Amsterdam. It's named after the kalvermarkt (calves market) that historically took place over there.

Several times a year, such as near Christmas, there is a big funfair on Dam Square. Especially when it's getting dark, it brings a nice warm atmosphere to the place.

Bicycle Shed

Today we went to Amsterdam. Parking our car near the Centraal Station is a convenient but very expensive (3.40 euro per hour) exercise. Standing on the canal bank next to the Centraal Station is a multi-level parking lot for bicycles. Easily there are more than a thousand bicycles in this parking lot alone.

In the Netherlands, cycling is very popular. Bicycles are used for various reasons, including recreation, travelling from city to city, tourism or just simply to cycle to the local high street to shop at the supermarket. Many roads have separate cycle lanes marked along it.

Over the Dead Sea

Taking off from Amman, my flight passed through the Dead Sea, Jerusalem, the West Bank and Israel before reaching the Mediterranean Sea. I took this photo showing the Dead Sea from above while the plane was still gaining attitude. The Dead Sea is a body of hyper-saline water measuring 67km long and 18km wide. It is the Earth's lowest point, at 418m below sea level, and is located on the border between the West Bank, Israel, and Jordan, and lies in the Jordan Rift Valley.

Today in the news, there are more clashes between Palestine and Israel’s security at the ground of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerussalem. For me being 5000m above is the closest I have been to this holiest site.

The Heshemite Kingdom

After 3 long hard days, its time to head back to Holland. That's tomorrow! Jordanian that I worked with were vey nice and helpful. Most were curious where I am from - are you from China? Japan? Korea? NO NO. The mention of Brunei suddenly sparked life like I was a long lost friend.

Jerussalem is only 45 minutes drive. There is a lot to see and learn here. May be next time.... hopefully soon!

I got this image from one of the guy here. The Jordanian monarchy was set up in 1921 by the help of the British. Abdullah I was made the first king of the new Hashemite dynasty. The dynasty originates in the Hejaz, a region in the northwest of present-day Saudi Arabia. Photo: names from right: Sherif Hussein, Abdullah I (1921-51), King Talal I (1951-52), King Hussein I (1952-99) and King Abdullah II (1999-present).

4-Seasons Hotel

Its a strange place. First a vehicle check 100m away from the hotel by gun-carrying , black balaclava security people and then walking through airport-style body screening before entering the hotel lobby. Inside is totally another world.

Today a group of American was seen entering the hotel, heavily guarded, apparently having a break from assigment in Iraq. Jordan is not blessed with lots of oil like its Arab neighbours but seems to be doing not too bad. Main industry being tourism, agriculture and some helps from Uncle Sam. People seems to be happy and enjoying life. Restaurants seem to be always lively and full, but if you can't stand being in the company of chain smokers, this place is not for you.

Snowy Holland

Amman is cold, Holland is colder!

Apparently heavy snow has showered Holland for the past two days. Fiz sent this photo showing Zim and Ish playing in the backyard after school yesterday. Traffic was bad and many reaching school or office pretty late.

Hey where's the snowman?

Cold Amman

Paris Charles de Gaulle is not a friendly airport to catch your connecting flight. The place has got 3 big C's- chaotic, crowded and confusing. From Paris its a 4.5 hrs flight to Jordan.

In Amman, entry visa can be obtained for 10 Jordan Dinar (equivalent to 10 Euro) upon arrival. Then its short drive to the city. Amman is an expanding city of 2 mln people, located close to some of the current world's 'hot spots' - bordering Iraq, Israel and Syria.

Weather here is suprisingly cold (6 degC) and rainy. There are no skyscrappers or significant landmark to orientate where you are. Amman is built on top of 7 jabals (mountains) with valleys in between -so it can be very confusing. Here's a snap of Amman from the 10th floor.

One Way to Travel

One way to go to the office - The Hague has a fabulous tram system which has been around over a hundred year.

The trams are very dependable and easy to use, all you need is a tram map, 1.80 Euro (a strippenkaart or monthly pass would be a much better deal), and you're off.

Tram are like miniature train with their tracks partly or wholly laid in streets. Trams are given priority at traffic junctions and are on the go all the time.