4D3N in Phuket

People ask why i go to Phuket.

After doing my research on various travel-related websites and blogs, I decided it would be too much a temptation to visit those hot bikini cladded babes, nice beaches and cool nightspot despite the current political riot in Bangkok.

Without thinking twice I immediately log on into Airasia.com, grab a free seat, and wait for another 5 months before I started my journey, to the island which was once hit by ocean tsunami once back in December 2004.

We have chosen Patong Aspery Hotel for the fact that it is a new hotel, with a 4 star facilities and 2-Star staying rate. (Note that at Low season, we are only paying around 1000 Bath per night). Completed with free Wi-Fi network, free internet access at the lobby, not mentioning the nice swimming pools and superb breakfast, I guess the price is quite justifiable.

Camwhoring in the room.

Alot of people might think, my favourite photo in Phuket would looked something like this.

Too bad it is not. Check this out.

I think he knew someone will always going to grab a photo of him sleeping in the "tut tut chia", and then report it to the tourism board, so he decided to sleep in the most ridiculous way i have ever seen. (Anyway I've tried this at home, resulted in suffocation and breathing difficulty)

And of course, a trip to Phuket would mean nothing but the same like walking around wearing a torn underwear if you did not take up the island tour. The price would range from 1100 Baht to 2500 Baht. Rule of thumb is always ask for discount at least 50% from the printed price tag on those travel vouchers. And it is not hard to do your comparison ad these tour agents is everywhere, easier than to find the pisang goreng stalls in Malaysia.

Our first stop, Phi Phi Island. All is going well until...

i stumbled upon this sign.

It is like bumping into your mother-in-law when you hit the club with a lady other than her own daugther.

Next, the monkey island. Needless to say, a lot of monkeys, grabbing pineapples.

Monkey that grabbed watermelon. (The ultimate so-hai photo award).

In the afternoon, We stopped by the Phi Phi Don island to have lunch for the day. By that time, we are starving like hell. This is one of the place which was hitted by the tsunami in 2004.

After lunch, i decided to go back to the boat to camwhore again.

Two different nation, one club, one number.

To be honest, wearing the man utd jersey around Phuket has made me a popular figure, and approachable all the times! You can always heard people shouting:

1. Man utd, we are the champion~!!!

2. Yeah, Rooney, I love you!!!

3. You man Utd? me toooo!!!!

I felt like a celebrity.

Luckily never bump into this van while walking around the jersey. Who knows the driver will just knock me off the Patong street.

A jersey or t-shirt in Patong may cost somewhere around 150 Baht to 300Baht. So, make sure you forget your own dignity, and fight like an auntie for the best deal you can get!

During the tour, managed to grab a few more breathtaking pictures during the island tour.

The perfect photos for your desktop wallpapers.

There were moments where i felt like jumping straight into the water. But the fear of sharks, jellyfish or killerwhale (ok i exageratted it), i have decided not to. we did stopped to do snorkelling though.

Can you spot the hottie? (She is a japanese)

Another hottie...

And another one hottie, more than you can "handle" actually. Mind you, this photo has cost me 50 Baht! But you can't do this in Malaysia, so i guess this can be considered cheap for the fact that you got to grab her boobs just for RM5.

This will be the only time when you guys doesn't suffer from any kind of erection while grabbing a pair of boobs in your hand. (I should have wore a Liverpool jersey while taking this photo)

(Warning: In Malaysia, any attempt of doing so may result in severe head injuries.)

This photo was taken in a night spot near Patong Beach. At one time, i felt like i was a hopeless student in the classroom when i was talking to this "she-male"

After taking the photo i strike up a conversation with him/her:

Me: Er..Can i ask you a question?

He/She: Yeah sure, what you wanna ask? (Mind you his/her english is not broken)

Me: Are you a...a....er..you know...(trying to find the right word for it)

He/She: Yes!!I am a lady boy, with a breast. (Squeezing her boobs for me to see).

Me: (Watching in awe).....

He/She: And a penis too....

Me: (Eyebrow raised to extreme height).....

Yeah right. I also have.

(I am hoping that this time the CEO of 7-eleven will email me...).

Apparently they don't really have money to complete "overhaul" themselves, so transformation need to be taken in stages. After wishing her all the best in pursue of their dream to be a real woman, we continue to stroll around the Banglalore street.

It is a cool nightspot, like Bangsar or Bintang Walk in Malaysia, where drinks pouring endlessly, "ah-gua" shows, and lots and lots of foreigners lurking around.

Motorbikes is the common transportation in Phuket. On the third day we decided to head off for a ride to the Phuket town. I managed to get a white and brand new scooter.

A cost of renting a motorbike c/w full tank of fuel is around 200++ Baht for one whole day. Be sure to check for existing scratches and minor damage before you drive off.

We did lost our way a few time, not knowing where to go. But there were motorist kind enough to lead us all the way to Phuket town. We met at least 3 superkind motorist on that particular day.

But never try to follow a stranger in Malaysia. You may ended up like this.

On the final day, after checking out from the hotel, in order to kill of time before our flight at 9pm, we did this.

Watching "Iron man 2" in cinema.

The movie ticket cost somewhere around 140 Bath for the cheapest seat you can get. They even have a VIP seating! (Warning: No english subtitle provided)

Even the loo in the cinema is so modern that if a Japanese saw it, they may detach it, bring it back to Japan and do R&D into the design, reconstruct it, name it as i-pee and start selling it!

Too bad i don't have the picture here. It is actually a loo with "shooting target" that will move around following the direction of your pee!!!

Another thing, you don't have to be worried when everyone around you stand up before the movie started. It is in order to pay respect to their national anthem.

Finally when i touched down in Malaysia, i have to conclude that this trip is nothing short from awesome.

I will definitely come back next time.

Phuket, i miss you

BOSET & Helicopter Underwater Escpae Training (HUET)

Finally, after three days of theories and practical classes, i am officially qualified for offshore mobilization. Upon completion of the 3-day course, they will issue a ID and a certificate as shown below:

The course is commonly known as B.O.S.E.T-R which stands for Basic offshore Safety and Emergency Training with Re-breather.

This kind of training demanded a medically-fit person in order to attend. There were story about an English man who boughta fake medical certificate, ended up unconcious during one of the session and eventually declared as "Da pao-ed by god".

So means, if you don't want to ended da pao-ed, better be honest and go to the approved panel medical center for check ups before enrolling with this training.

The 3-days course includes the following:

1. Re-breather (Breathing through scuba-diving alike equipment, difference is just that you are breathing your OWN air from your lung intead of oxygen tank)

2. Offshore Safety Induction

3. Sea Survival (Jumping from a platform and stay "survive" in the water)

4. Basic Fire Fighting & Self Rescue (Inc. Escaping yourself in a confined and dark space)

5.Boat Transfer & Swing Rope and Basic Life Support

6. Helicopter Underwater Escape Training (HUET)

Among all of the above, the one training which i scared/enjoyed/pissed myself off is the training no.6, which is the HUET training.

It involved a few person sitting in the helicopter simulator submerged in the water, and twisted 180 degree before you can escaped through the small "window" aka emergency exit inside the water. (Try sitting in your washine machine, only without the detergent)

It is not easy as at this moment, where it involveslosing all of your sense of the orientation, unbuckled your safety belt, breaking out the window, before freeing yourself to the surface. (It was conducted in two different session, with and without breathing appratus).

Since i am not allowed to take photos (i don't have time anyway), i am posting a video which shows the HUET training conducted at the very same place of my training center, the CONSIST in Ampang. The simulator is exactly the same one that i am using.

During the simulation (without the breathing apparatus), i have one of those moment where i tried to escaped through the window, forgotten to unbuckled my safetybelt, which in turn caused half of my body out from the helicopter (still in water), and another half of my body in the helicopter.

At that moment, my instinct told me not to panic. So i stayed where i was, sticking out both of my hand, lifeless (like drowned), to signal the diver to come and rescue me. Things doesnt turn out so good when he himself have the difficulty to unbuckle the belt.

In my mind is shouting "you bloody well have a cutter with you now".

Luckily, after few more seconds which felt like forever, he finally done it and i made it out from the cockpit.

That was the time when i knew that god doesn't fell in love with me just yet.

Out of the five session involving the simulator, that is the only time i have faced the difficulty.

Thank god i managed to pass them all!

In fact, our group has done it faster compared to the two team before us!

Not too bad for a guy who only start swimming lesson at 14.

But the qualification will only last for three years and then i have to go back for a refresher course, so thank you to the CONSIST team (all of them are really cheerful and funny character)

for your patient in dealing with us for the past 3 days.

It is indeed a very exciting and wonderful experience which i would love to give it a try again in the future.

See you guys in 2013!

Medical Examination for Offshore Travelling

When i was told by my superior that i might need to travel oversea for a job, i was excited. It is for the fact that this time around, it is not one of the normal oversea travel i used to get ever since i started working.

I am going on board of a vessel in the middle of the ocean!

I was told that in order to get there, 3 modes of transportation will be needed.

1. By airplane
2. By car
3. By Helicopter~!

Yes, it will be the first time i will be travelling in a helicopter!

And for the fact that the place i will be visiting will be off-the-shore, i need to pass two exams:

1. Medical evaluation by qualified medical practitioner. (Appointed medical center only)
2. Passing the BOSET-R training (c/w HUET-Helicopter Underwater Escape Training)

Since tommorrow will be my last day on the (2) training, i will tell you about it in the next posting.

To be frank, i hate the idea of people "poking" something into my body. That is the main reason why everytime i stepped into the medical exams room, my face will turned pale.
(Yeah, WTH, i hate needles)

A lot of question got in to my mind "What if..what if.." at that time. To make my day even worse, the nurse got more nervous than me (Beginner level) that she had to poke both my hand to suck my blood as she couldnt find the right vein. (While i am closed to fainting).

When my friend told me how detailed the medical check up was, i thought it was a joke. But, i realize it immediately that it was so detailed that even my most "private place" was "checked if it was ok" by the male doctor.

Suddenly i felt so gay. Letting out my "bird" to a guy to let him "see" didnt really get on too well with me indeed.

Only at the end of the day i found out that the doctor has actually missed out (i am not sure whether this is mandatory, it was listed as one of the criteria on the medical report) one check, that is the ANAL & RECTUM~!!!

Thank god.

End of the day, i was declared:

FIT~!

Apart from some mild hearing lost with my left ear (I suspect it is the shit), everything is clear.

EVen my blood test results show normal reading apart from a little bit of cholestrol concern.

My X-RAY: According to doctor, VERY CLEAR AND FIT. VERY BEAUTIFUL SUMMORE!

(I wonder if this term will be allowed during his medical school day)

So, it means i am all clear for the BOSET (Basic Offshore Survival) training programme.

Pray to god, they will not called me and ask:

" Eh, Mr. Wong, we forget one more test la~!!!"

:)

Deputy CEO of F&C (KWSP) read my blog~!!!

With the emergence of Facebook, i admit nowadays i have so much lesser time checking my emails. People updated their daily activities via twitter, facebook, u name it.



Somehow, something's telling me to check my email while i was away in Phuket, Thailand. In the hotel that i stayed they provide us with free internet and wi-fi services, so why waste it?:)



Upon checking (and deleting) some of those junk mails in my inbox, i came across this email from a guy, someone i had never heard of. But the subject line has indeed caught my attention.



IT IS THE BL**DY DEPUTY CEO OF FINANCE & CUST. CARE OF KWSP~!!



For those of you who has never read my blog (Anyway i think i have less than 3 reader, namely my grandma, my 5-yr old cousin, and my dog), you can refer my post back on March entitled "KWSP Employee of the month".



The email read like this:



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Employee of the Month‏
From:
Hizwani b Hassan X004 - KHIDMAT (XXXXXX@epf.gov.my)
You may not know this sender.Mark as safeMark as junk
Sent:
Sunday, 28 Mar, 2010 1: 24 PM
To: hungyew@hotmail.com


Hi there Hung Yew!Hope you had a great weekend.My name is Hizwani. I am the person responsible for customer care in the EPF. I have just read your blog and I thought I would drop you a line. We are always interested in such feedback. I take it that you had a bad experience and I first have to apologise for that. It is not something I would want to happen.Before I go further, did you manage to do what you wanted? If not, is there anything I can assist you? I would like to be able to take this further by:



1. Coming to see you and get more detailed feedback. For instance, which branch did you have this bad experience in? I am guessing that it is either PJ, KL or Shah Alam.So, maybe we can catch-up? Then I have to ensure that not all our staff is like what you experienced.



2. Since you had a bad experience, the least I can do is to help you on your withdrawal. If you can give your ic number, tomorrow I can follow-up on your application.



Have a great weekend(what's left of it) and may you have a great scenery tomorrow at 3am as it should be cool one(it is raining as far as I know). Have an awesome week ahead.



############################I am emailing using my handheld mobile device whilst away from my computer.HIZWANI bin HassanDeputy CEOFinance and Customer CareThe Employees Provident Fund



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Check out the 2nd bolded sentence! He even read my bloody profile~!!

For a second i thought he is going to sue me with my blog posting!


As the blog who won the award of "The most unreadable blog of Asia Pacific", i think i have the very reason to be proud of!


This guy has really taken a big leap forward in the way to ensure his customer is provided with the best service available by KWSP.

To be honest, i am quite impressed.

And Mr Hizwani, in the case where you happened to drop by here the second time, i wan to say a big thank you to you and your team. During the second time around, your staff has really put up the smile on their face and show patience in telling me what i should do to get my savings back!

At least that shows that your team is not afraid of improvement within your organization~!! We believe this could forever be considered as the benchmark/yardstick/KPI for other government sector to follow and learn!

We shall always remember that one simple smile can always make a lot of difference to everyone around you.

Keep up the good work~!!