A (REAL) QUICK TOUR OF MALACCA MUSEUM

The other place that we managed to visit was the Malacca Museum. It should be the replica of a palace from the Malacca Sultanate back in the 15th century. The entry fee was cheap, only RM2 and we were given a plastic bag to put our shoes and carry them inside. There must be past cases of people's shoes being stolen when they were left outside. The museum housed exhibits which told the story of Malacca during its glorious days when Malacca Port was the meeting point for merchants from the east and west.

It was a real quick tour as the parking tickets for my car was expiring and we had to catch the ride on the Taming Sari and Sharudin had a class to catch at 2:00 p.m.

I definitely need more time to observe all the things put on display there. You need to spend a lot of time to make your visit to a museum more meaningful. But I have doubt my students would be interested to come to a place like this.

GOING WESTERN, FOR ONCE

Mr. Solleh (from SPM batch 2006) had a craving for western food so he was kind enough to give his friends and I a treat at Banafee Restaurant. As usual, there were many people there and we had to wait a bit for our food to arrive. I felt that the eating process was much faster than the waiting and chatting time.

So thanks to Mr. Solleh and his friends too. I will upload the pictures of the food later.

A-FAMOSA AND STADHUYS

Do you know that A-Famosa is one of the oldest remains of the European architecture in Asia? Built by Alfonso the Albuquerque after Portuguese conquered Malacca, the fort actually surrounded the hill but what is seen today is the entrance gate that survives the test of time.

Info abouth Stadhuys will be updated later.

ST. PAUL'S HILL, MALACCA AND THE STORY BEHIND

St. Paul's Hill is located in the city centre, opposite Mahkota Parade and behind Pahlawan Mall. It is easier to give directions to people by using shopping complexes as the landmarks.

You have to walk up the hill to reach the place where the St. Paul's Church is located. There should be more than one entrance. It is not that steep because I could see much older people climbing up the stairs, slowly of course.

The historic building was built by the Portugese in 1521 after Melaka was conquered in 1511. Then it was used by the Dutch in 1641 before it was turned into a burial ground and graveyard. Spooky! I would never want to go up here at night.

There were tombstones leaning against the wall with words engraved in a language I could not understand (which should be Dutch).

There is a statue in front of the church and it was only built in 1952. That lucky (or unlucky) man was St. Francis Xavier, the pioneer missionary to Malacca. If you observe the statue closely, you can see that the right arm is missing and it was not intentionally done, neither he was alive with a missing hand. Actually before they were trying to consecrate the statue, a tree fell and broke off the arms and it remains like that until now.


So that is all for our history lesson on Malacca for today. Hope it has been informative enough.

reference: http://www.malaysiavacationguide.com/

A PIECE OF CAKE A DAY KEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY

.... the Japanese, like many other Asian people, give gifts quite frequently, often to thank someone such as a teacher or doctor for their kindness. In the Japanese culture, the tradition of gift-giving is very ancient. There are many detailed rules for everything from the color of the wrapping paper to the time of the gift presentation.

source:
listening text of chapter 5 from the textbook "Interactions 2: Integrated Skills Edition" used for my UTM class.


Once in a while, when it was your lucky day, there would be someone who was kind enough to give something to you., as a gift. It may come in different form, shape and size, as well as price. Nevertheless, no matter how small or cheap it, it will always make your day.


So thanks to Syazwan for the blueberry cheesecake from Secret Recipe that was eaten the next day for breakfast. Many people commented that I have lost some weight after the surgery but I think that will not last for long.

SICK AND RECOVERING, AND BEING VISITED

From Abu Hurairah, our beloved Prophet said: "The rights of one Muslim over another Muslim are six." Someone asked: "What are they?" The Holy Prophet replied: "When you meet him, you greet him with salaam; when he invites you, you accept his invitation; when he consults you in a matter, you give him sincere advice; when he sneezes and praises Allah, you ask Allah to have mercy on him; when he is sick, you visit him and when he passes away, you join in his funeral.
source: http://www.inter-islam.org/

Besides the family members, I would like to thank the people who had taken the trouble to come and visit me in the hospital. They are my colleagues: Puan Zakiah and her husband, Mr. Ebi Shahrin, Puan Norizah, Puan Nurul Alyani, Miss Maizura, Mr. Masrizal and Mr. Hisham.

Rashid, Hanif, Arif, Faiz Azizi and Faiq

with Zulfadzelie from SPM batch 2006

Zamir, Syhmil and Hasbullah



Safia, Khaulah, Nashuha, Syafiq, Suhaizie, Zahari, Zulfadli 
and Solleh from SPM batch 2006)

After I was discharged from the hospital, another batch of colleagues who were Puan Noraliza Mazni and her husband, Puan Siti Zabidah, Miss Hafiza and Mr. Hisham who acted as the navigator. Then, there were groups of students and ex-students who came to pay house visits which were not expected because I was already recovering. Nevertheless, it is always a pleasure to welcome them. Not forgetting all the well-wishers on the phone or sms or Facebook. So thanks to everyone, just to say that you are all appreciated. May Allah repay your kindness.

Khaulah's homemade cup cakes

MOVIE REVEIW 18 - ECLIPSE

I watched this movie at Pahlawan Mall in Malacca. At least if anything happened after the surgery that I had to undergo, I would have known what had hapened to Bella, Edward and Jacob.

So this story is the sequel to its two earlier films: Twilight and New Moon. Bella was still in love with Edward but at the same time she could not get rid of Jacob. The feud between the vampire and werewolf went on but when a new batch of vampire came into the scene, the vampires and werewolves decided to work together - to save Bella. The movie this time was more exciting because there were more fighting actions, these creatures running and jumping and wrestling with each other. And the audience would be left to wonder whether Bella would choose the dead and cold vampire or the hot-blooded mammal. However Bella had earlier said "Yes" when Edward proposed to her and she was now waiting for the time for Edward to change her before her coming birthday. You have to be a vampire to be a vampire and when you are bitten by a vampire, it will be very painful while you are waiting for your time to die. The moral of the story: never ever let any vampires bite you.

The movie ended when Jacob was badly injured during the fight and Bella seemed to have chosen to stick to her decision of living her life eternally with Edward. But would she change her mind later? This question will be answered in the coming sequel. There is one, isn't it?