Apple iPhone, wow!

Finally, an iPhone from Apples Computer Inc. Though we will get it only in 2008, i think it will be another sensational hit, like the iconic iPod.
iPhone is 3-in-1 : a revolutionary mobile phone, a widescreen iPod with touch controls, and a breakthrough Internet communications device with desktop-class email, web browsing, maps, and searching. It is a small and lightweight handheld device that introduces an entirely new user interface based on a large multi-touch display and pioneering new software, allowing total control with just your fingers.
I would love to feel the touch screen and hold this sleek, beautiful babe. Just hope that Apples could tie up with all the service providers at home so that we are not limited to a certain service provider. Cheers!

Chery, Geely, Roewe - Are The Chinese Cars Coming Or Not?

Much has been spoken about Chinese cars, especially on build quality and pricing. Most of the time, brickbats are thrown at them without much thought and reasoning, even in Asia itself. On the other hand, some venture to say that Chinese cars are coming to Europe and USA soon.
However, it is seldom that we hear reasonable and well-thought argument on this topic. I'm happy to share an example of this type of article, regardless of the position that they are taking.
In the article: Are China’s car manufacturers ready to compete in the US and Europe?, a briefing paper by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) sponsored by Roland Berger Strategy Consultants (RBSC), the findings in perspective is appended below in brief:
1) The Chinese automotive industry has the political and financial support of its government, which is encouraging automakers to develop locally made cars and take them to the international markets. The government is looking toward strong contribution from the industry by 2010 to the tune of about US$1.2bn in export sales.
Quick to spot an opportunity, European and American auto dealers are also promoting the cheap chinese cars in the US and European markets. The Chinese government’s support is being augmented by financing from foreign investors keen to import Chinese–made cars to Western markets. Chery’s entry into the US is being championed by American auto dealer Malcolm Bricklin and reportedly by American investor George Soros.
2) According to an analysis, China belongs to the “autarkic” group of countries which includes Malaysia, Iran, and India. They have under–developed automotive sectors that are striving to become fully integrated. It will take around 10–15 years for a Chinese auto manufacturer to become a serious threat to domestic producers in North America and Europe.
3) Chinese automotive industry is in the “intermediate” stage of development, in terms of production. Autopolis, an auto industry strategy consultancy, found that in order to succeed in the automotive business a country needed a population of at least 50m, a GDP of at least US$500bn and a production output of at least 2m units a year. They have supported the belief with country charts based on the number of vehicles produced relative to population, and found that China makes the grade by those measures, but this is only because of the production volumes of foreign–owned firms. To succeed, China needs domestic firms to produce at least 2m units per year, and to have a band of independent mass–market automakers that own their technology.
4) Industry experts beleive that Chinese cars will initially enter the US and Europe on low prices, but they will be hamstrung by poor quality and safety standards. Price alone will not be sufficient; Chinese cars will have to compete on brand, and to radically improve quality and safety standards.
5) Chinese main domestic automakers are developing a range of vehicles with low prices. They are also keen to develop hybrid and fuel cell vehicles, and they have the backing of the government to do so. They are likely to focus on value and engines and the government has clear plan for their gradual implementation over the next 15 years. This will require the automakers to push up their R&D abilities and technology. Most have already begun to do so. Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), for one, has a venture with Ricardo Engineering, a UK–based design and engineering firm, where it develops engines and trains a number of its engineers. SAIC also has access to world-class development centre through its venture with Volkswagen and General Motors.
6) The paper supports the notion that Chinese automakers must develop a strategy to become fully integrated automaking enterprises. Presently, Chinese companies own very little technology and rely mainly on reverse engineering. However, it is also reported that a few have moved away from reverse engineering and begun to partner with global design and engineering consultants. Reliance on outside assistance may assist automakers to bring a vehicle to market in the short term. But in the long term, this reliance could delay the development of indigenous design and engineering expertise.
7) It is essential to build or buy a brand. While companies like SAIC may have the courage and money to develop their own brands, some are choosing a quicker strategy to enter Western markets by buying existing brands, as Nanjing Automobile has done with MG Rover of the UK. Acquisition would give Chinese automakers access to the acquired company’s products, its technical knowledge, technology and customer–base. But such overtures by Chinese automakers might also provoke a political backlash in the target companies’ countries of origin.

Wow, I must have put in some time writing this. Got to stop now before i turn into a... Adieu!

December Holiday

Spectacular Hainan Island ???
Someone once told me that Hainan island is one of the rare place in China where you can run away from
the cold winter and enjoy the beautiful scenery and beaches.
This December, I will have the opportunity to find out myself. We shall be travelling to Hainan Island on a
family trip on December 22nd. This trip will be special as we will be visiting our ancestral home on the
island for the very first time. Although, we will be spending most of the time sightseeing, I specially look
forward to pay my respect to my paternal grandmother, a fine and kind-hearted lady whom I love very much. When I was young, she would look out from our flat whilst I crossed the road on my way to school which was located just across the road. Now, she is no longer with us, but I know she is
somewhere in Heaven looking over us. Now, I can only visit her grave and perhaps, clear some weeds around it.
Anyway, I will try to take some nice and beautiful pictures of the island and share them here. Till then, adieu

Hungry Ghost Festival, Gates of Hell & Getai

I read from the newspaper today that there was a marathon 14-hour $20,000 Getai in Pandan Crescent from this morning. Wow! can you believe it? But, it's true.
According to Chinese folklore, on the first day of the lunar seventh month that falls on July 25 this year, the gates of hell open and spirits are released into the land of the living. This year, the festival is exceptionally longer – 2 seventh months comprising of the regular seventh month from July 25 to Aug 23 and the leap seventh month from Aug 24 to Sep 21. However, it is believed that the gates of hell only open in the first seventh month.
[ Believe it or not? See results of the recent investigations on the gates of hell by Singapore Paranormal Investigators on their web www.spi.com.sg I read from the media that near midnight, some investigators reported the presence of many spirits emerging from what seemed like doors in the air. Unidentified howling was also heard,… ]
During this period, believers would offer prayers and burn hell money and incense papers for the spirits. Taoists believe that the 15th day of the seventh month is the birthday of the Earth Deity, Ti Kuan Ta-ti, the Taoist deity with the power to pardon human sins.
Interestingly, according to the Buddhist Sanskrit legend, Mu Lian, one of Buddha’s disciples, started offering food to monks in order to save his dead mother from suffering in hell. Unlike Taoists, Buddhists do not burn incense papers and observe the virtue of filial piety inspired by Mu Lian on the auspicious 15th day of the seventh lunar month known as the Ullambana Festival.
In Singapore, Seventh Month festivities are organised by clans, businesses and groups of residents. Beside the prayers and rituals, it is customary to stage performances to entertain the visiting spirits. These days, Getai is the preferred entertainment – a raucous makeshift concert. These Getai (Mandarin words, meaning song stage) pop out all over Singapore during the festival. These 3-hour concerts are permitted from 7.30 p.m. to 10.30. According to the police, around 300 such permits have been granted so far. In good times, the figure can be as high as 1000 getai shows a year.
In Singapore, the religious beliefs have merged with folklore to create a uniquely Singapore experience with its own urban legends and rituals. Mothers would warn children to refrain from swimming and avoid late nights. It is also inauspicious to hold weddings and buy properties. These seventh month rituals are also observed in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and other Asian cities. However, the getai show is uniquely Singaporeans.

Killing fields - My visit to Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia

After my return from the recent trip to Phnom Penh in late June, I have been putting off blogging until last night when I was told that the day was the 15th day of the seven-month festival, a.k.a. the "Hungry Ghost Festival" here.
In June, I have spent a week or so on a job assignment in Phnom Penh, capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Everything went smoothly as scheduled and I was fortunate to make time for visits to the central market, Russian market where imitation of many kinds can be had for a couple of dollars, the National Museum, Royal Palace and Tuol Sleng Museum, the infamous detention prison, torture and execution centre in the heart of the city.
Tuol Sleng, S-21, the former high school is located in Tuol Svay Prey sub-district, south of Phnom Penh. We paid US$2 each for the entrance fee. BTW, the Cambodians use US dollars beside their currency, Riel. Thai baht is also welcome in supermarkets and shopping centres. Outside Tuol Sleng Museum, the scene is disheartening. Amputees and other beggars beg near the entrance and refreshment stands. The once school may look benign, with palm trees and grass lawns in a suburban setting. From the outside, Tuol Sleng could be a school anywhere in the world. But, what you are about to see is equally disheartening – there are weapons of torture, skulls, blood stains and photographs of thousands of people who were murdered inside the ‘school’. I was appalled by the inhumane, horrifying and cruel tortures depicted in artifacts, pictures, and photographs. 17,000 victims were probably tortured and killed in a short spell of 3 years, only 7 survived. The Khmer Rouge kept meticulous records of their work. Every prisoner was photographed upon arrival – they were forced to sit on a wooden chair with a rod stemming out from the back and directing the position where their head should be. There were children, women with babies and young men among the prisoners. The few foreigners who were killed at Tuol Sleng also have their testaments on the wall.
How could this happen? How could anyone torture these children and women with babies? I know the history. I have heard the Khmer Rouge rhetoric about creating a utopia. But I still cannot understand! In the same way, I cannot understand how the Japanese soldiers could have murdered so many innocent men, women and children during World War II. Such mass cruelty is beyond my comprehension. I was told that most, if not all, of the tortures were carried out by young, uneducated Khmer Rouge recruits. This reinforces my belief that education is the very foundation and institution that everyone in this world, regardless of the societal strata level one is in, family status, race, religion or wealth, should not be deprived of, for the uneducated will always be disadvantaged and manipulated by others.
I thought I would probably spent an hour or so there. It turned out that I actually spent more time. I was both shocked and saddened! I decided to abort the trip to the killing fields of Choeung Ek, some 14.5 kilometres from the city centre, for obvious reasons. I have had enough of the genocide practised by the Khmer Rouge during the late 70s – probably an atrocity of the worst kind. This is where human rights activists should focus on more, not those activities commonly heard of in first world city centre such as those staged by failongong and what have you. I shall not go on.
Next time, when you are in Cambodia. There are two things you must see in Cambodia. Obviously, one is Angkor Wat. You must also not miss the killing fields, one of which – the killing fields of Choeung Ek - has been turned into a tourist attraction. Another notorious site is the Tuol Sleng Museum of Genocide in Phnom Penh - a high school converted torture camp, prison and execution centre that I have just described earlier. If you have more time, make a trip to the world’s second largest lake, Tonle Sap and all the sites I have mentioned earlier. By the way, it takes about 4-5 hours to get to Angkor Wat in Siam Reap from Phnom Penh.

Land of the Killing Field, Here I Come Again

Time really flies. It was December 2005 when my friends and I visited Cambodia. Next week, I shall return to this beautiful country. This time, I am going on a work assignment in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia.
Last time, we visited Siam Reap and Angkor Wat, one of the world's eight wonders (is it really 8?). This time, I tell myself that I will explore Phnom Penh to the fullest. Well, I've got 5 days to do so. Hope to publish some beautiful pictures of the country when I return from the trip.
What wiil I see, this time? Is there any culture shock awaiting me? I really eager to fly there, as if this is my first overseas trip. Why? I don't know; maybe I just love the country...
World Cup 2006! So far, I have been having good times during this World Cup - It's 100% strike rate. I mean betting. First Korean beat Togo 2-1 and I won. Ghana vs USA 2-0, again I'm right on target; I celebrate an Italy job well done, Italy rubbed out the Czech Republic 2-0. Portugal romance with 2-1 win over Mexico. Wow! the feeling is wonderful, you know what i mean? Ooh! it's 10.10 pm now. Got to watch my world cup, now. Bye!

Stomp or Star Blogs? Sorry, I Prefer World Cup!

Stomp from The Straits Times was launched on June 14, the day we celebrated our son's birthday. It was claimed that Stomp had received more than 120,000 hits by Saturday. Good luck! Meanwhile, we have our good time on June 14. We also watched the world cup matches together, for the first time.
We did not invite celebrity or use sexy gals to grace the occasion, unlike the people at Stomp who prefers to use star blogs such as Xiaxue, Dawn Yang, etc. (no offence to these bloggers)
Mt point here is: do we need to use or depend on such characters, who often strive on articles relating to sex or similar themes, to jump start a new portal, especially S.T which is an everyday icon for the past donkey years. The youngs and young-at-heart do not live on SEX alone!
Of course, comparing my son's birthday to the portal's launch is not quite appropriate here, but I'm trying to make my point that life is not always about sex, and SEXY MACHINE is not only about sex, and nothing else - Sexy in the way we enjoy ourselves, the way we work, the way we enjoy others company, etc.
Previously, in my article on 'Xiaxue or Dawn Yang, Who Cares!', I provided a link to Xiaxue's for those who have knocked at the wrong door. This time, I will make it easier for Dawn Yang's fans who have accidentally called at this blog site. The link is on the right column directly below Xiaxue's.
If i have it my way, Stomp could organise contests for the targeted audience, create special preview and events / articles linking to the popular American Idol, Singpore idol AND WHAT HAVE YOU. Anyway, I wish them success.
Oop! got to stop now, before i get carried away into the journalist's world. I'm going back to World Cup now. Adieu