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2 weeks ago, I was in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam for Mediaworks 2011. Now, if you don’t know what this training is about, it’s actually training on how to take on a real life pitch through strategy and presentation. It’s not exactly a “fun in the sun” kinda trip as it was sort of like a reality show situation where they split you into groups with other strangers from across the APAC region and given less than 48 hours to come out with a full presentation based on a given brief. Why I said reality show is because of the stress and the time it takes to put together a proper presentation deck with strategy to impress the client. Yes, there was a real life client there where he gave an actual pitch brief and requirements. Imagine being in Masterchef going through Pressure Tests and Mystery Box Challenges…that sort of stress.

I arrived in HCMC together with a fellow colleague Nicole around noon after our flight was delayed by nearly 1 and half hours. Event only starts at 4PM so we first checked in and proceed to look for some food. It’s the only time we will ever get to see HCMC as we both know that we won’t be going out of the hotel except on the final night.

Nicole and I at the arrival hall waiting for our transport

We were put up at the Sheraton Saigon, and I was supposed to be sharing a room with a random stranger as it was a twin sharing room. I will tell you why I said “supposed” later on. So after putting down our bags and checking in, we walked around our hotel area for a bit.

Twin sharing room

View from my balcony

A Louis Vuitton store in HCMC

Emporio Armani Cafe

Street food!

Nicole’s sad bowl of noodles for lunch

As you can tell, we’re staying at the “higher end” of HCMC where you can find designer labels. Ok, so when I went back to my hotel room, I got a shock as I found 2 ladies from China who were also attending the workshop in my room. They say they were assigned the same room as I am. There is definitely a mix up here as I don’t think they would put both guys and girls in the same room. Anyway, I went down to the reception and made a complaint. They say it was a mix up on their end and they apologized for it. They were so apologetic to the point that they offered me an upgrade to a larger room. So now, I have a really large room…all by myself! It seemed that the room mate that I was suppose to share the room with, didn’t turn up at all.

Check out the larger room…I have this all to myself for the next 3 nights! :)

After the minor drama, it was time to get into serious mode. We were assigned into groups and given briefs by the client. Each team was also assigned a mentor who are all industry leaders in their own regional market. My team consists of 2 Malaysians, 2 Singaporeans, 4 PRC nationals, and 2 from Hong Kong. Oh yea, I was also appointed the group leader by popular demand…probably because I spoke the most during the introductions.

Over the next 3 days, we were all “locked” in the hotel. First night we slept around 1 AM as most of us were tired especially we all woke up early to catch the morning flight. The second night, it was crunch time. We slogged it out till about 4AM and woke up by 730AM for breakfast and to rehearse and find tune our presentation deck before the actual pitch.

That’s me in the striped shirt briefing the team and our mentor

On the final night, there were 3 finalist being announced and they had to make the presentation to all other teams the next morning. Sadly, our team didn’t win, but we did had a really brilliant idea. The client gave good comments about our overall performance and liked our idea, we were just lacking a few minor details here and there. We all consoled ourselves by saying we finished “forth” overall. Hahaha…but seriously, I was really happy with the team despite some minor disagreements and communication problems.

Team photos

Overall, the trip was a real experience for me. I would definitely recommend this workshop for anyone in the media industry who would like to know tactics and training on how to take on a pitch. I definitely have no regrets going there and would do it all again if I have the chance to.

What an eventful week I had. Last Monday till Sunday…

…I found out I was blacklisted
I went to KLCC Maxis Centre to separate my phone billing account as my brother is leaving for Singapore, it’s only logical that we split the billing account each to our own name as it’s more convenient for payments and other things to be made in future. Our current account is still registered under my late dad, which is why we should transfer the name to our own since he is no longer around. But before they can transfer names to a new account, they will cross check with other telcos to see if you are blacklisted. As it turns out, I am blacklisted under UMobile as there are 2 accounts registered in my name using my identity card with a total of RM3k worth of unpaid bills! WTF! I’ve never even used UMobile before! So I had to lodged a police report to state that someone has used my identity falsely to create these accounts. I’ve already submitted the report to UMobile, and hopefully their stupid excuse for a telco staff gets back to me sometime next week. I cannot transfer the Maxis account to my name without my name being cleared first. FML!

…my car break lights went cuckoo
My car breaks lights were on….permanently! I was about to drive away from my office car park when I realized my car break lights were on after I disarmed the alarm. For a moment I really thought there was someone in my car stepping on the break pedal! Damn freaky, but got it fixed on the same night.

…gotten a friend drunk on his birthday
It’s only Tuesday night, but a friend’s birthday falls on Wednesday. So like any other crazy birthdays, our mission was to get the birthday boy wasted. We succeeded after some shots of Jägermeister (Jäger Bombs), Around the World (through a tube and funnel), and Angelique Absinthe. It was seriously funny as hell after the birthday boy attempted to eat a pork burger with face and fingers half numb from the alcohol.

…went for a “Mad Hatter” themed party
It was a company “Start of the Year” party, and everyone have to come with a hat…everything else is optional. There was food, games and of course booze all courtesy from our loving clients.

…got an increment! :)
It’s always good that your company appreciates you in what ever you do. It’s also good that the company recognizes your contributions to the team and rewards you accordingly. Let’s just say if you had a 16.66% increment from your monthly salary, you will be happy too. Waiting for bonuses now.

…put a deposit for the wedding dinner restaurant
Yep, the venue for the wedding dinner is pretty much set. Deposit paid. At least one major headache to strike off in the long checklist of wedding “to-dos”. Next up will be finding a bridal house for photo shoots and wedding attire….the headache goes on!

…catching up with Samantha who came back from Singapore
Samantha came back on Friday night, and we were at Ecoba for drinks together with a few other friends for a catch up session.

…had an argument with the fiancé
Let’s not get into details but it’s all good now :)

…went Chinese New Year shopping
Went Chinese New Year shopping with baby and her mum. We bought household items for Chinese New Year. From food and drinks to even alcohol. Monetary damage was a lot…but thank goodness for a huge stack of Jusco Vouchers.

…had my first Yee Sang of the year
Had dinner with baby’s friends at Pantai Seafood. It was also my first Yee Sang session for the year. I see more sessions coming up in the upcoming weeks as clients, partners, media owners, relatives and friends will be inviting me to go for some.

…said goodbye
My bro and sis-in-law are already in Singapore as I’m writing this. Will miss having them around during the weekends, but I know they are only a stone throw away.

…had Japanese buffet
As part of my promise when I got my increment, I brought baby and her mum to Genji at PJ Hilton for Japanese buffet lunch. Needless to say, we all over ate and skipped dinner after that.

So…that was my week. How was yours?

I recently been to Sabah (my first time in East Malaysia even) in hopes for fulfilling a dream and experience to climb Mount Kinabalu, the highest mountain in South East Asia. The trip was planned since end of last year, which gave us a lot of time to train and to get in shape. Mind you, I did train myself to build stamina by playing badminton, swimming laps in the pool and also running the treadmill and bikes in the gym. Some of us also went training in Batu Caves by climbing up the stairs and carrying weights in the backpack to simulate the climb. However, most of our group underestimated how difficult was it to climb, even though we were told that even old uncles could do it without a sweat…yeah right!

Day 1: En route to Kinabalu Park

We (all 16 of us), met at the Kota Kinabalu Airport where we then head to Kinabalu Park. We spent the night in a place called Grace Hostel in Kinabalu Park before we head over to the summit trail the next morning. We arrived there around 3PM as it was raining for most parts of the journey. Mind you, it takes about 2 hours or so from KK airport to Kinabalu Park. Temperature here was around 16 degrees Celsius, which was fine perfect weather. Surprisingly, Grace Hostel is a very nicely maintained place, with nice showers and clean bunk beds. We all expect something a little worse actually. I would recommend anyone to spend the night here if they want to make the climb.

it was foggy on our way up

Reception of Grace Hostel

Hostel living room…not bad eh?

Look..they even have shower gels and moisturizers!

Clean and nicely lit bunk beds

Day 2 and 3: The Climb to Laban Rata and Mount Kinabalu Summit

This is it the day has finally arrive. All that hard work training is for this moment. Well there are 2 trails up to Laban Rata, which is base camp of Kinabalu before the climb up to the summit. There is the Mesilau trail and the Timpohon trial. Mesilau is the longer (6km) but more scenic route, compared to Timpohon which is only 3km. Now if you ask me, for first timers, take the Mesilau trial up, and Timpohon trail down. The Mesilau trail, although longer, has more sceneries compared to just jungle and trees in Timpohon. Mesilau trail is also “easier” as the elevation is not as steep as Timpohon.

I must say, many of us underestimate the climb. All that hard work and training just gone down the drain as we all didn’t think it was this hard. All of us were training on relatively flat terrain like steps, gym or walks in the park. The terrain in Kinabalu consists of uneven rocks and boulders which were slippery and steep. My advice for first timers is to TRAIN and PREPARE properly before climbing. Seriously it’s not easy. We have a few guys in our group who were season athletes, and there was also a person who does triathlons, and even he to mentioned it’s harder than he thought.

Kinabalu trails – click to enlarge

Brandon, Kim, Lianne and I before the climb

The Mesilau Trail

The trail going up to Laban Rata

Us taking a break

This is probably the nicest part of the trail. Seems like you’re walking in the clouds! 

I got to say, I took longer than expected to reach base camp. I was also extremely unfortunate and disappointed that I tweaked my calf muscle in the process. I didn’t feel much pain upon reaching Laban Rata and I thought I would just continue the trail to the summit the next morning (at 2AM). But upon the first kilometer up, I could feel a sharp pain on my right calf which is uncomfortable and at times unbearable for me. Alas, it was rather unfortunate that I didn’t make it to the top and had to come down to base camp to my sheer disappointment. I figured I would rather not risk the injury any further as I still have to make the climb down to Kinabalu Park using the Timpohon trail, which consists of steep steps.

Laban Rata..it’s about 8 degrees Celsius here

This is the view of the sunset at Laban Rata

And this is the view from the summit, taken by Quin…awesome stuff!

Well, as you can see, the view from the top is absolutely stunning. It’s about 2 degrees Celsius at the summit so you actually won’t look weird wearing a ski mask at the top. I waited for the rest of the group to return from the summit to base camp where we then headed down to Kinabalu Park using the Timpohon trail.

This is what we have to endure on the way down…knee height steps!

…and this shot was taken on the way down, looking back

Day 4: A Day In Kota Kinabalu

When we got back down, we headed to KK town where we stayed at Marina Court Service Apartment. I got to say, for about RM750 per night for 8 people in a room (we had 2 rooms for 16 people), it’s a place really worth staying at. Its right smack in town, and it faces the sea front where shopping for souvenirs and fresh seafood is convenient. We didn’t had much time to walk around KK town as everyone was exhausted (and injured) and decided to just chill at the apartment until we head home. We did however squeezed in some time to do some shopping for gifts and memento to take home. We also did manage to go for a nice seafood lunch before our flight.

A view from of KK from the plane

This trip was a really good experience for me. It showed my capabilities, my fitness level and how far I can go to push myself but at the same time exposed my weaknesses and what I have to do more to keep myself in better shape. Do I regret making the trip? Hell no! It’s definitely one hell of an experience for me. Made a bunch of new friends who are both crazy and fun…something all of us forget to do every once in awhile…to have fun. Would I ever go again to try to make it to the top? Well, at this point I would say NO…but ask me again in a year or so and I might give you a different answer. :)

Photo Credits: Quin & Mike Lian

Last weekend, I was asked by Ruhani Rabin who was invited by Maxis, to participate in an interview session with Dato’ Soh Chin Aun, Santokh Singh, Hassan Sani & “King” James Wong. Now, I’m sure many of you will be asking who these people are. Well, they are legends of Malaysian football. I bet you didn’t know Malaysia once qualified for the Olympics and was only 1 game away from qualifying for the 1982 World Cup in Spain! Back then, these 4 legends were in the much-feared Malaysian team back then that made all Malaysians proud . Unfortunately, that was our best team and best chance of us qualifying for the World Cup and after losing in that final qualifying round, it was all down hill for Malaysian football.

Santokh Singh & Soh Chin Aun

During the interview, I asked them what they thought of the current state of Malaysian football. Sadly, all of them agreed, it’s not up to par with the rest of the world simply because of politics in the local football scene which hinders the growth of Malaysian football. They also said that no one in the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) have approach them to help out in grass root development, which comes as a surprise to me considering what these guys have accomplished in their careers and what they can bring to the table. They mentioned that they were saddened because they felt “unwanted” despite contributing so much to the team and country. It became a bit emotional at one point during the interview.

Still got it! - Hassan Sani showing off his ball balancing skills

Gone were the days that you see supporters come in their team jerseys and fill the local stadiums to the brim. I myself used to be a Selangor FC fan, not a hardcore one but still I remember the time I used to follow local football when I was younger but not any longer. So what changed? According to them, it’s simply the lack of quality of the players today that made everyone distant themselves from local football. They rather watch the BPL who plays “sexy” fluid football than to watch the locals players play like a bunch of high school kids.

To me, I think we need role models like them to show the younger players what does it take to win matches and to play well. The current squad still lacks that special something despite being the current SEA Games champions. Perhaps one day these legends will play a role in development and share their knowledge and experience which might make a difference to the current squad and country.

L-R": “King” James Wong, Santokh Singh, Dato’ Soh Chin Aun & Hassan Sani

It was really an honor and privilege for me to be able to meet them and what more interview them. Thanks Maxis for giving me that opportunity.

Last week and the week before, I have friends who have asked me if I wanted to go to Rootz and Zouk for a nice night out. I am glad they asked me, but I had to decline because I made a vow to myself to stay off clubbing indefinitely. I think I’ve kinda outgrown the clubbing life. Majority of the people in there are younger than I am they all look and behave like kids….seriously! Well that’s because THEY ARE! Most of them barely out of college or just graduated with a job and have some cash to blow.

I admit I was like that once, and I was thinking back, sharing with a few friends the other day. The best clubbing days were during my college days. It amazes me how we use to go clubbing and raves every Friday and Saturday night without fail. It also amazes me how we even find all that cash to do it while only living on allowances from our parents. No matter how far the raves were; from Malacca to Genting to Port Dickson, you’ll see us there. I was reminiscing the days where we were underage and went in anyways. I remember we use to go as early as 9PM before the crowd came and before they start the cover charges just because we college students wanted to save a few bucks. Also having only 1 drink for the whole night was enough for us to have fun. We even parked the car at the cheapest car park possible even though if it meant a longer walk to the clubs. I guess that’s how we manage to save and go clubbing twice a week eh?

There was one incident in this club called “Hot Java” (circa 1998-1999 I think)  which is now more known as Benard’s in Centrepoint in Bandar Utama. Imagine this scenario: We were in college; we went in with some underage girls; police came for a raid; my friends and I hid in a walk-in cold room in the premise to avoid the cops…well the owner of the club asked us to hide there as they didn’t want to get fined for letting in underage patrons either. Scary right? But that’s all the fun bits!

I remember the number of kill-buzz raids that ruined the night. The numerous drunk stories. The numerous of substances (shhh..you didn’t hear it from me). The supper/breakfast before we head for home..

Now I can no longer stand extremely crowded places that you have to push your way through just to get to the toilet and worst of all, you have to shout or write a message on paper just to communicate. Yea, it looks really stupid when you see 2 people writing text messages on their phones and showing the other person the message to let them know what they want to say because the music is too loud to even talk!

These days, I will rather spend my time in bars/pubs with the company of a few good friends where we can sit, drink and chat. The only way you will ever see me in a club now is if there is a client event or a friend’s birthday. Other than that, I will most likely decline.. SORREH! Call me an old uncle but it’s true…I AM too old for this shit!