Wednesday

Delhi
First day in the capital of India.. lots of things to see lots of things to learn...
Started our day walking half a mile to a local stall.. had some really nice food... some rice kind of stuff and samosa.. and there is some south indian food too.. not as great as in south india of course.. but somehow, food here seems to be less spicy and more enjoyable... anyway, hot food on a cold morning is always welcome...

next, we walked to some ancient observatory, which i forgot the name...
huge structures were standing there.. looks really mysterious..
guess i'm not much of a scientist.. or astronomer, or architect... anyway.. dunno how they work... it seems that they are used to measure the position of the earth and its relations to the sun, moon and individual stars...
one of it was a 5-storey high sundial.. which of course tells time... why is it made that huge?.. no one knows...
then there is the auxiliary globe shaped structures which help correct the time according to the seasons where the length of days and nights vary...
i thought about the whole thing of why they built such things... came up with a theory that the scientists of that time loved astronomy and recording it.. but due to lack of funding.. they told the kings that the stars and their movements direct the fate of men.. and that by observing they can predict the future... so ka-ching... jackpot from the royal coffers!!

anyway... we went on to visit the flea market.. which was called janath - something...forgot..
anyway.. its like Petaling street with lots of carpet vendors... loads of clothes and baubles and weird stuff... then there are these crack sales people who sell some fake rayban glasses and "genuine" leather woodland and gucci wallets.... the crazy thing is their persistence and extremely unpredictalbe prices.. leaves me wondering what it actually costs.. they go like rs500 to 250 to 100 to 50 to 20...

then we tried out the malls... took some time really...
coz we didn't know where to find them.... and we realized that the indian gov does not approve and thus the absence of any of those super giant wholesale markets like tesco or jusco or cold storage or carrefour...
and we realised that malls are pretty much the same everywhere in the world and theres really not much point in visiting them unless you some really special thing you need to get thats only available there...
so.. yeah... when we realized that, its time to head home...

One nice thing about india is that you get veg food everywhere.. yeah... they even have veg zinger burger in KFC... which we tried it out... they don't have whipped potato though... and the pizza huts don't have a salad bar... sad...

tuesday

Tuesday morning

Well, i'm not sure if its late monday night or tuesday morning.. but i froze over.. like literally.. i underestimated the climate when i went to bed without socks..
somehow survived till morning.. and they tell me it'll go down another 15 degrees before we reach Delhi... o.0"

now there are really nice sloping hills and grass fields outside... we passed a river and more fields.. different crops though.. more lush green and yellow stalks...
tried to watch the scenery through the train door.. but was beaten back by the icy wind...

had a pear for breakfast.. and some biscuits... feeling hungry now... hope to get some food in the next station...
which is Agra..




Tuesday afternoon

Finally, Delhi!! no one can say I haven't visited the capital now!! bwahahaha...
first look at the place, dirty, busy, large buildings.. i'm really in a city..
we boarded in the church union guestroom.. very beautiful building..
our church seems to have a knack at getting posh places for their union offices.. :P

Met a traveling africano sharing our guestroom.. Herbert from Uganda.. he has a really impressive traveling log book. traveling solo to so many different places as a NGO volunteer.. Nice to have him around since he has already explored Delhi for 3 weeks..

Mission number 1... to meet up with our fellow Malaysian E who is stuck in Delhi with severe food poisoning in his friends place..
We decided to meet up in central market... mode of transport: metro!!
Can't believe it!!.. the metro is a subway system which connects all the important places in Delhi.. Consisting of some 6 lines it maps out something really really similar to the singapore mrt..
In fact, its so similar to singapore that i had a temporary flashback...
until the crowd part... which really hit me. that singaporeans are really disciplined people... hmm...
but it was impressive..
the rest of the night showed me something better than KL.. as i remember it..
the weather, the buildings, .. and to some extent, the people... yeah.. there is such varied forms of people.. and all of them have such beautiful eyes!!

Had something like fried noodles, and eg roll, something like the huger version of popiah... all from roadside shops which really reminds me of Petaling street..
yes, we are a bit adventurous for eating in these places, especially one of us already had diarrhea.. but, yeah... we enjoyed it.!!

Monday

had a wonderful sleep... woke up around 9:30.. the first thing that greeted me was the blaring of the train horn.. guess I'll get really used to that after a while..

had a small devotion together with the guys... then breakfast time!! Have I ever told you how cheap Indian food can be?? We got some lime rice, and briyanis and an omelet less than Rs100!... and there s enough enough for lunch too.!

the guys friends of the girls we were sharing berths with arrived.. it seems that they are traveling in a different coach.. one of them, J studied in a SDA school previously... had a casual chat...

India is beautiful! there were acres and acres of farm lands and its harvest time! the golden fields are really golden!.. and the laborers are cutting the rop by hand and piling up the hay.. i think...

weather is becoming cooler too.. something that reminds me of our northwardly journey..

today is the day of names... counting the names of the stations we pass by... Chitor, Gugha, Nellore... tongue twisters all of them.. try Balharshahah..
anyway..

forgetting the names.. we had a great time talking.. then playing cards... then the guys had to study.. so i went to find a friend who was also traveling in the same train.. talked to her and her dad... then spent a bit of time watching a movie too..

in the night, we said goodbye to our new friends who's getting off at nagpur... and they gave us a rose..??

Sunday night

Finally boarded the train... preparing for a restful sleep and a long journey northwards.

Can't believe it! Finally on my way to fulfill one of my dreams.. to see snow!!
It will be a long long ride but the excitement that awaits at the end of the road lifts my spirit up...

Was a little unsettled by the setback yesterday... didn't get reservations for our train.. luckily, we had the foresight of double booking on the next date.
but it would mean a small change in our initial plans.. a side trip to Agra and the legendary Taj, might be cancelled depending on the availability...

but sitting here listening to the creaking of tracks and humming of the engines sort of reminds me of the importance of the trip itself rather than the destination..
It would be one that will add to my experiences in life.. after all, it is my first time traveling 2 days by rail, that too the Indian rail...which is supposed to be the pulsating aorta of indian transportation... cessation of the rail would cause the immediate arrest of india's economy...

we got in a berth with 2 girls traveling to Nagpur and a gentleman to Delhi...
hmm.. maybe we'll make friends tomorrow!!

Clinics

ARRRRRRRGH...
fianlly got a few minutes of free time for the comp....

since clinics starrted... i am soooooooooooo occupied.. everyday 7-7
then have to read up for the next day...
not that i'm complaining.. its pretty interesting to be able to see patients and real signs and symptoms and all.. just that it takes up sooo much time!!!
finshed one posting in medicine.. had end of posting today.. thats why i have some free time.. coz my attendence order was in the front...
terrible time... didn't do well at all inspite of having been reading up the night before..
conclusion... clinical skill acquired does not equal amount of time spent studying,..

anyway... decided today that its not worth the whole thing... i'm gonna give myself some time...
especially to email my friends and call them up....
really really miss home a lot..

having a few days of holidays coming up.. deepavali.. or they call it diwali here..
the great thing about celebrating it here in india is.. other than india being the native place of this event, is that there is no ban on crackers!!
whole arsenals of explosive sticks are lining up on the streets!
now we can do something about those monkeys who visit us in hostel at regular intervals...

trouble trouble trouble

lately there has been trouble in hostel...
3 of my blockmates and close friends have run into relationship troubles...

seeing them in such a sorry state is terrible.. helpless to do anything...

one of them was someone i look up to since 1st year.
he told me about the power of love...
i saw his fidelity... he doesn't flirt with other girls
i saw his sincerity... he doesn't smoke or drink to keep himself worthy for his girlfriend
but a broken relationship results in a broken man
he is drunk for 3 days and started smoking.
he is depressed.
i cannot help him...
how shallow one's foundation is when it is based on another human...

May God help us all... to keep the anchor within the veil

Commission

Go
Make disciples
Teach
Send

。。。

Pseudo exams

ARRRRRRRRRRRRGHHH
i died today//...

actually, is quite an impressive feat.. since ive survived for almost a week...
one might have thought i would've died earlier...

i cannot remember one instance in my life where i have studied so much in so little time...
i guess there is a first time to everything..
i remember during sec 5 spm exams, i studied as much as possible but still slept at 10pm every night...
i had the "i dun care" spirit then...

now for the first time in 21 years... i accomplished a feat of sleeping 3.5 hours a day for a consecutive of 5 days.. and no less than 10 hours of studying each...
so far so good..

wonder if i'll be able to keep it up until next week....
then emulate it again during university exams...

:P... mati...

missing home

i'm missing home all over again....
haiz...
going home is like sensitizing urself towards it...
i thought i've got over it pretty ok in since Sep... but going home seems to make me go through all the emotions again...
wonder if its the same with love...?

can i overcome all this without going through the motions..?

exams coming up... gotta focus!!

A Long Wait

Dunno how to explain how it feels...
every time i sit in the airport waiting for my flight...
i'm doing this more and more often it feels...

glad that in malaysia there's wifi... but even when online, dunno what i'm supposed to do with the time...

sometimes its just like this...
although we know we have a lot to do...
and many things to accomplish..
but we dunno how to do it utilizing our free moments...

time just slips past like this....
my flight gate is open...
maybe till another empty window in life...

March 22

Wonder why,
people put so much emphasis on a single day...
its not like new year, where it is the start of a cycle of plans and dreams
not like independence, or labour or father's day or mothers day to commemorate wonderful people who put in wonderful work for the society..

yet when it comes....
there is anticipation, there is excitement, there is a funny feeling inside..

always remember a friend who told me..
birthdays should be celebrated with your mum..
afterall, its the day when she suffered the most for you and i..

but then...
i'm not so philosophical
at least i try not to think too much..
for me
birthday is just

another day of life
another day to share with people who matter the most
another day of enjoyment
another day to witness
another day of realising our dreams

Happy birthday to me...
but i recently found not 1 but 2 friends who share the common date on the Julian calender...
Happy birthday to you too

New Year cum Valentine...

Ist New year away frm home...

miss the noises, miss the smell, miss the food... and of course, the shiny red packets filled with well wishes and more importantly...

The few malaysians here suddenly planned to give a dinner for their indian friends... chinese style!!

wonder what we can cooked up without the usual "zai liao" & tofu so often used for veg......

Valentines day

Same old, same old.... no valentines to send, no dates to attend... luckily its CNY, and that makes it less lonely??

To all others who are away from home... u r not alone!!

To all enjoying family company... have fun ler... n dun rub it in on me..

:)

Opened up the cranium in dissection today... the "noodles" were rotton
its almost as tough as opening the durian...... smells just as bad too!!

Went to low cost effective care clinic today, was shown how to examine patients with heart problems...
its amazing how much of the diagnosis we can know by listening thru the stet...
Wonder if listening can solve other "heart" problems as well??

Fifth Grade Assignment

Got this as a forward... really nice

Wouldn't this be great if it was taught in every school.

A fifth grade teacher in a Christian school asked her class to look

at TV commercials and see if they could use them in 20 ways

to communicate ideas about God.



Here are some of the results: scroll down.

God is like.
BAYER ASPIRIN
He works miracles.

God is like.
A FORD
He's got a better idea..

God is like.
COKE
He's the real thing.


(This is great)


God is like.
HALLMARK CARDS
He cares enough to send His very best.

God is like.
TIDE
He gets the stains out others leave behind. ..

God is like.
GENERAL ELECTRIC
He brings good things to life.

God is like.

WAL-MART
He has everything.

God is like.
ALKA-SELTZER
Try Him, you'll like Him

God is like.
SCOTCH TAPE
You can't see Him, but you know He's there.

God is like..
DELTA
He's ready when you are.

God is like.
ALLSTATE
You're in good hands with Him.

God is like.
VO-5 Hair Spray ;
He holds through all kinds of weather

God is like.
DIAL SOAP
Aren't you glad you have Him? Don't you wish everybody did?

(that one is my favorite)







God is like .
The U.S. POST OFFICE
Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet nor ice will keep Him from

His appointed destination.




God is like.
Chevrolet. . . .the heart beat of America

God is like
Maxwell House. .... .
Good to the very last drop





God is like.
B o u n t y . . . .
He is the quicker picker upper. . Can handle the tough jobs. ..

And He won't fall apart on you

Thought of the Day

Medical research that do not yield results are unethical in itself...

Dreams

Every boy once dreamed to be a soldier at some point of time... He was no exception...
perhaps he was not old enough, or not strong enough, or not smart enough, or not rough enough; whichever the case, when the king called for an army, he had to see his brothers off while he stayed at home...
Not that he didn't like it at home. He enjoyed playing on the green hills and rolling on the fields and swimming in the river. He always did those when he took his father's sheep out for grazing. But whenever he watched the clouds drift by, David would relive his dream of fighting mighty battles among the lines of Israel, the Lord's Own army!

Its amazing to see where one's dream will lead him... lets watch David...

He went to the battlefield to send a lunchbox for his brothers. That's when he heard someone who openly defied the troops of Israel, and their God.
Imagine how angry one would be, to have something one looked up to and dreamed about and admired for all his life suddenly mocked and derided and publicly scorned.
Well, David's not the kind who would be satisfied just playing sitting ducks!
He started to talk...

Well, I guess one of the first things one should do to reach one's dreams is to share it. Talk about it, show it to others that you want to do it.

Pretty soon,David caught the attention and got an opportunity. King Saul asked for a personal interview.
David gave a wonderful presentation and got the break he wanted.
Off to the field you go!

Well, I don't think I need to say that we should grab the opportunities that is given at hand and make the most of our dreams...

Well, he did it! He took the giant down and when others saw that his dream worked, they all jumped in and had a share...
Then again, SOME ONE had a bigger dream for him... a dream that had a "king" ring to it......

Well, I guess accomplishing dreams is a wonderful thing. But then, allowing God to accomplish His dream in us brings it to a whole new level.
His dreams for us is always bigger than we think.
For now I'm content to dream to be a soldier for Him, winning small victories in life...
who knows what God has in store for me??... what about you??
just be ready to run when king Saul comes after you!!

感激月亮,否定太陽

Got this as a forwarded message...

A wonderful story for a new year. Sry to those who can't read chinese, traditional chinese for that matter...

主題：感激月亮,否定太陽

"被照顧到無微不至的人反而不會感恩，
因為當白天夠亮，太陽就是多餘的> > "。

有一則猶太故事說，有一天，有人問一位老先生，
太陽和月亮哪個比較重要。
那位老先生想了半天，
回答道：「是月亮，月亮比較重要。」
為什麼呢？
「因為月亮是在夜晚發光，
那是我們最需要光亮的時候，
而白天已經夠亮了，
太陽卻在那時候照耀。」
你或許會笑這位老先生糊塗，
但你不覺得很多人也是這樣嗎？
每天照顧你的人，你從不覺得有什麼，
若是陌生人這樣對你，你就認為他人真好；
你的父母、妻子或先生一直付出，
你總覺得理所當然，甚至還有得嫌；
一旦外人為你做出類似行為，
你就受寵若驚，你就會很感激。
這不是跟「感激月亮，否定太陽」一樣糊塗嗎？

有個女孩跟媽媽大吵了一架，氣得奪門而出，
決定再也不要回到這個討厭的家了!
一整天，她都在外面閒逛，
肚子餓得咕嚕咕嚕叫，
但偏偏又沒帶零用錢出來，
可又拉不下臉回家吃飯。
一直到了晚上，她來到一家麵攤旁，
聞到了陣陣的香味，真是好想吃一碗，
但身上又沒帶錢只能不住的吞口水。
忽然，老闆親切的問：「小姐，妳要不要吃麵啊？」
她不好意思的回答：「嗯！可是……我沒有帶錢……」
老闆聽了大笑：「哈哈，沒關係，今天就算老闆請客吧！」
女孩簡直不敢相信自己的耳朵，她坐下來。
不一會兒，麵來了，她吃得津津有味，
並說：「老闆，你人真好！」
老闆說：{哦？怎麼啦？}
女孩接著回答：「對啊！我們素不相識，你卻對我
那麼好，不像我媽，
根本不了解我的需要和想法，真氣人呢！」
老闆又笑了：「哈，小姐，我才不過給妳一碗麵而已，
妳就這麼感激我，
那麼妳媽媽幫妳煮了二十幾年的飯，
妳不是更應該感激她嗎？」
被老闆這麼一講，女孩頓時有如大夢初醒，
眼淚瞬間奪眶而出！
顧不得還剩下的半碗麵，立刻飛奔回家。
才到家門前的巷口，就遠遠的看到媽媽，
焦急的在門口四處張望，
她的心立刻揪在一起！
有一千句、一萬句的對不起想對媽媽說。
還沒來得及開口，只見媽媽已迎了上前：
「唉呦！妳一整天跑去那裡了啊？
嚇死我了！來，進來把手洗一洗，吃晚飯了。」
這天晚上，這個女孩才深刻體會到媽媽對她的愛。

太陽一直都在，人就忘了它給的光亮，當親人一直都在，
人就會忘了他們給的溫暖；
一個被照顧到無微不至的人
反而不會去感恩，
因為白天已經夠亮了，太陽不是多餘的嗎？

2009 finale

2007, 2008, 2009...??
each year passes by, never to return...
won't see 2009 again... wonder if there's something memorable in the 12 months we shared.
surely its a year of lots of changes, and lots of "first"s...
looking back, it has been a wonderful time we've shared...

although i've some regrets, 2009, you've taught me to look forwards, and not make the same mistakes... you've taught me how to give up the things i hold dear... you've taught me how to take them up again without fear...

but best of all, you've told me a secret... that you're neighbour 2010 is just round the corner.
and she's got lots more to teach me, lots more to share with me, lots more to enjoy with me...

thanks for being with me... i'll definitely miss you.
let me cherish these last few minutes with you, recalling the moments we had...
So long 2009...

Walking in the Streets of Chennai

They tell me that it is one of the great cities of India, a hub of commerce, having the status of a Metropolis...

You can tell my disappointment when I trod the streets of Pondi Bazaar...
true, there are definitely more shops and larger too compared to Vellore, more people, more traffic.... but then again, more rubbish, more pollution, and no less slums sitting by a toxic river...

Of course I was amazed at the huge jewellery and gold stores lining both sides of the street, the whole length of the street (india is the largest gold consumer in the world, i am told)...
I really liked the (claimed to be) widest beach in the world -- marina beach...
I was wowed by the architecture of one of the oldest and one of the only three catholic basilica claimed to be built over the tomb of the apostle of Christ -- st Thomas Basilica...
Intrigued by the Kashmiri hand woven carpets and the intricate designs of branze idols...

but then, there was so much poverty, so basely portrayed...
and religion so cheaply peddled...
art so socially detached....

where lies the heart of the city??

i see it in the efforts of the government initiating one of the most efficient public transport systems..
i see it in the hard work of auto drivers renting their vehicles for 200rps a day...
i see it in the serious face of the policewoman guarding the order of the streets...
i see it in the excited school children going for a hockey match...
i see it in the laughter of the kids sitting on a hand powered Ferris wheel...

as i enjoy myself at marina beach, talking to my friends, flying a kite, eating bhaji, feeling the Bengal bay wind, watching the lighthouse in a distance, hearing the screams of happy children around... i am happy to leave all the unsolvable problems to God, and enjoy every moment of life He blesses me with.