Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri

... to all Malaysians and my Muslim friends all around the world.

The Malaysian Angkasawan

Can't decide whether to feel proud or not after reading this article on the BBC.

On one hand it's great to know that someone from our homeland has finally made it to the space. On the other hand, all the political exploitation of this expedition is quite embarrassing. And also knowing that this expedition is a 'free' gift for buying Russian jets. Also about the initial suggestions by some politicians on some 'experiments' to be carried out.

The following quotes are so 'Malaysian'... How the politicians trying to create the 'feel good' factor.

...Reports said the rocket was adorned with a Malaysian flag as it lifted off.

...Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi joined 1,000 schoolchildren at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur to mark Malaysia's entry into space.

They clapped and cheered as a giant TV screen showed scenes of Sheikh Muszaphar smiling inside the spacecraft minutes after the lift-off, the Associated Press reported.

Also there's mention on the guidelines prepared by Muslim clerics for him to observe during the 9-day expedition. No mentioning on any researches or experiments though.

On a personal note, congratulations to Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor who has beaten many others to this trip, even though the expedition may have been heavily exploited by the politicians, just like some of our badminton players and the latest heart transplant operation on Tee Hui Yi.

I sincerely hope that this trip will inspire more space technology research in Malaysia, so that we can eventually use our own rockets or spaceship to fly into the space. China has caught up with the space race very quickly. Can Malaysia do it too?

Full article as follows: -

Landmark lift-off for space crew

A Russian spacecraft heading to the International Space Station (ISS) has blasted off from Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

The Soyuz rocket propelled Malaysia's first astronaut into space alongside the first female astronaut to become commander of the space station.

Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor and American Peggy Whitson were accompanied by Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko.

Ms Whitson and Mr Malenchenko will remain on the ISS for six months, replacing two other astronauts.

Mr Shukor will spend nine days on the space station before returning to Earth with the outgoing crew.

Malaysians proud

The Soyuz-FG rocket was launched on schedule at 1752 Moscow time (1322 GMT), topped with a spacecraft containing the three crew members.

Reports said the rocket was adorned with a Malaysian flag as it lifted off.

The launch has been eagerly anticipated in Malaysia, where it has been hailed as a landmark for the Asian nation.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi joined 1,000 schoolchildren at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur to mark Malaysia's entry into space.

They clapped and cheered as a giant TV screen showed scenes of Sheikh Muszaphar smiling inside the spacecraft minutes after the lift-off, the Associated Press reported.

Ramadan rules

Mr Shukor will be the first Muslim to fly in space during the holy month of Ramadan and will be there for the Eid festival, when he will treat his crewmates to a celebratory meal.

For the rest of the time he will try and observe the dawn-to-dusk fasting rules of Ramadan.

Muslim clerics in Malaysia have prepared special guidelines for him on observing religious rules while on the ISS.

He will use a wet towel rather than water to clean himself before praying, and is not obliged to kneel in zero gravity or face Mecca while praying.

To avoid confusion about when to pray, Mr Shukor will follow the time at the launch site in Kazakhstan.

The crew are expected to dock at the space station on Friday.

Facebook

The ConnectU lawsuit turned out to be free publicity for Facebook.

Some funny videos on Facebook, on how it has affected our lives.

The First Emperor Exhibition @ the British Museum

259 BC ~ Birth
246 BC ~ Becomes King of Qin at age of 13
240 BC ~ Construction of his tomb begins
230 - 221 BC ~ Conquers 6 other states
221 BC ~ Becomes the first Emperor of China (Qin Dynasty)
210 BC ~ Death and burial in tomb

It was a great experience visiting the British Museum yesterday with Johanna. She has been very excited about visiting this exhibition. We were quite worried that we wouldn't be able to get any tickets by the time we fly back to Malaysia as the online tickets have been sold out for the next many months due to overwhelming response. So we've decided to try our luck by getting 2 of the 500 tickets to be sold early every morning.

We were shocked to see the long queue around 9.15am. There were definitely more than 500 people in the queue by then. But we've decided to try our luck and was lucky enough to get hold of two tickets for 4.10pm entry.

We were back at the British Museum at 4.10pm. Unfortunately no photography is allowed for the exhibition.

So the story started... how the Qin (pronounced "chin") kingdom came about and how an ambitious young man born Ying Zheng, installed as the King of Qin at the age of 13, managed to conquer 6 other warring states within a decade, to form the first unified China empire.

He carried out many major reforms aimed at cementing the unification - language script, legal system, weights and measurements and currency. He also built the Great Wall of China to fend of attacks from enemies from the north and the west, at the expense of many human lives. He outlawed Confucianism, by banning his books, in order to cement his oppressive rule.

He is perhaps most well-known for his intention to govern forever, and tried many ways to prolong his life. He also spent 30 years building his tomb complex, a 57 km sq palace where he could rule forever in his afterlife. This palace was only unearthed by a farmer in 1974.

Around 7,000 terracotta soldiers have been found burried in a few pits outside the tomb, standing guard. Other items from the excavation include statue of entertainers, government officers, horses and chariots, cranes, pottery, etc.

The main part of the tomb itself has been left unopened. Historical text mentioned that it contains rivers of mercury. Traces of mercury has been found around the tomb thus far. It will be interesting to know what treasures are inside... For a man who has so much attention to detail, I dare to imagine anything.

We're both amazed by his attention to detail. The swords for his army has to be made to specification, with the names of the labour and his supervisor engraved to ensure quality. Each terracotta army statue also has the stamp of the workshop for the same purpose. His palaces in various regions were also built consistently. The list goes on for many other things...

I've known some of the history relating to Qin Shi Huang. But the exhibition was truly an eye opener. Will definitely visit Xi An one day to look at the real tomb itself.

The long queue


The ticket booth

A Buried 60 Minutes Interview/Indictment

The war and occupation on Iraq has been planned way before 911...

Saddam Hussein has been 'convicted' few days into Bush's inauguration.

OIL and NATION BUILDING are the objectives.

Revealed by Paul O'Neill, Bush's Secretary Treasurer 2001 - 2003

Dinner with Victor & Clare

I was very delighted to have my Bapak and Mak over for dinner last night.

After attending a number of Christmas parties organised by the McWilliams over the years, it's only fair that I make them a dinner in return.

It's great to see them back in the UK, after retiring from their teaching roles in KTJ after a whopping 12 years.

So here is the photo of the dinner, not including the dessert - Tarte Tatin. Can't remember how Clare pronounced the name of this French dessert.

And here is everyone...

And also I'm suppose to check out this book called The Harmony Silk Factory by Tash Aw, a great read according to Clare.

Single Party Barisan Nasional

Gerakan Youth chief Mah Siew Kong today called for the merger of all 14 parties in the ruling BN coalition in order to achieve national unity.

"The time has now come for us to be one single party, the BN Party," he said in his opening speech at the youth wing’s annual meeting which started today at the party’s headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

I agree that this may be the best way forward for the nation. However, this idea is unlikely to get any buy-in, especially from UMNO.