why are Jews so powerful? why are Muslims so powerless?

Very well put by a Pakistani columnist...

Dr Farrukh Saleem http://jang.com.pk/thenews/columnists/furrukh/index.html is an Islamabad-based freelance columnist. In a recent article he asks "why are Jews so powerful?" His answer: Education. He then goes on to ask "why are Muslims so powerless?"

Why are Jews so powerful?

There are only 14 million Jews in the world; seven million in the Americas, five million in Asia, two million in Europe and 100,000 in Africa. For every single Jew in the world there are 100 Muslims. Yet, Jews are more than a hundred times more powerful than all the Muslims put together. Ever wondered why?

Jesus of Nazareth was Jewish. Albert Einstein, the most influential scientist of all time and TIME magazine's 'Person of the Century', was a Jew. Sigmund Freud -- id, ego, and superego -- the father of psychoanalysis was a Jew. So were Karl Marx, Paul Samuelson and Milton Friedman.

Here are a few other Jews whose intellectual output has enriched the whole humanity: Benjamin Rubin gave humanity the vaccinating needle. Jonas Salk developed the first polio vaccine. Alert Sab in developed the improved live polio vaccine. Gertrude Elion gave us a leukaemia fighting drug. Baruch Blumberg developed the vaccination for Hepatitis B. Paul Ehrlich discovered a treatment for syphilis (a sexually transmitted disease). Elie Metchnikoff won a Nobel Prize in infectious diseases.

Bernard Katz won a Nobel Prize in neuromuscular transmission. Andrew Schally won a Nobel in endocrinology (disorders of the endocrine system; diabetes, hyperthyroidism)... Aaron Beck founded Cognitive Therapy (psychotherapy to treat mental disorders, depression and phobias). Gregory Pincus developed the first oral contraceptive pill. George Wald won a Nobel for furthering our understanding of the human eye. Stanley Cohen won a Nobel in embryology (study of embryos and their development). Willem Kolff came up with the kidney dialysis machine.

Over the past 105 years, 14 million Jews have won 15-dozen Nobel Prizes while only three Nobel Prizes have been won by 1.4 billion Muslims (other than Peace Prizes).

Why are Jews so powerful? Stanley Mezor invented the first micro-processing chip. Leo Szilard developed the first nuclear chain reactor. Peter Schultz, optical fibre cable; Charles Adler, traffic lights; Benno Strauss, Stainless steel; Isador Kisee, sound movies; Emile Berliner, telephone microphone and Charles Ginsburg, videotape recorder.

Famous financiers in the business world who belong to Jewish faith include Ralph Lauren (Polo), Levis Strauss (Levi's Jeans), Howard Schultz (Starbuck's), Sergey Brin (Google), Michael Dell (Dell Computers), Larry Ellison (Oracle), Donna Karan (DKNY), Irv Robbins (Baskin & Robbins) and Bill Rosenberg (Dunkin Donuts).

Richard Levin, President of Yale University, is a Jew. So are Henry Kissinger (American secretary of state), Alan Greenspan (fed chairman under Reagan, Bush, Clinton and Bush), Joseph Lieberman, Madeleine Albright (American secretary of state), Maxim Litvinov (USSR foreign Minister), David Marshal (Singapore's first chief minister), Isaac Isaacs (governor-general of Australia), Benjamin Disraeli (British statesman and author), Yevgeny Primakov (Russian PM), Jorge Sampaio (president of Portugal), Herb Gray (Canadian deputy PM), Pierre Mendes
(French PM), Michael Howard (British home secretary), Bruno Kreisky (chancellor of Austria) and Robert Rubin (former American secretary of treasury).

In the media, famous Jews include Wolf Blitzer (CNN), Barbara Walters (ABC News), Eugene Meyer (Washington Post), Henry Grunwald (editor-in-chief Time), Katherine Graham (publisher of The Washington Post), Joseph Lelyyeld (Executive editor, The New York Times), and Max Frankel (New York Times).

Can you name the most beneficent philanthropist in the history of the world? The name is George Soros, a Jew, who has so far donated a colossal $4 billion most of which has gone as aid to scientists and universities around the world. Second to George Soros is Walter Annenberg, another Jew, who has built a hundred libraries by donating an estimated $2 billion.

At the Olympics, Mark Spitz set a record of sorts by winning seven gold medals. Lenny Krayzelburg is a three- time Olympic gold medallist. Spitz, Krayzelburg and Boris Becker are all Jewish.

Did you know that Harrison Ford, George Burns, Tony Curtis, Charles Bronson, Sandra Bullock, Billy Crystal, Woody Allen, Paul Newman, Peter Sellers, Dustin Hoffman, Michael Douglas, Ben Kingsley, Kirk Douglas, William Shatner, Jerry Lewis and Peter Falk are all Jewish?

As a matter of fact, Hollywood itself was founded by a Jew. Among directors and producers, Steven Spielberg, Mel Brooks, Oliver Stone, Aaron Spelling (Beverly Hills 90210), Neil Simon (The Odd Couple), Andrew Vaina (Rambo 1/2/3), Michael Man (Starsky and Hutch), Milos Forman (One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest), Douglas Fairbanks (The thief of Baghdad) and Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters) are all Jewish.

To be certain, Washington is the capital that matters and in Washington the lobby that matters is The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC. Washington knows that if PM Ehud Olmert were to discover that the earth is flat, AIPAC will make the 109th Congress pass a resolution congratulating Olmert on his discovery.

William James Sidis, with an IQ of 250-300, is the brightest human who ever existed. Guess what faith did he belong to?

So, why are Jews so powerful?
Answer: Education.

Why are Muslims so powerless?

There are an estimated 1,476,233,470 Muslims on the face of the planet: one billion in Asia, 400 million in Africa, 44 million in Europe and six million in the Americas. Every fifth human being is a Muslim; for every single Hindu there are two Muslims, for every Buddhist there are two Muslims and for every Jew there are one hundred Muslims. Ever wondered why Muslims are so powerless?

Here is why: There are 57 member-countries of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), and all of them put together have around 500 universities; one university for every three million Muslims. The United States has 5,758 universities and India has 8,407. In 2004, Shanghai Jiao Tong University compiled an 'Academic Ranking of World Universities', and intriguingly, not one university from Muslim-majority states was in the top-500.

As per data collected by the UNDP, literacy in the Christian world stands at nearly 90 per cent and 15 Christian- majority states have a literacy rate of 100 per cent. A Muslim-majority state, as a sharp contrast, has an average literacy rate of around 40 per cent and there is no Muslim-majority state with a literacy rate of 100 per cent. Some 98 per cent of the 'literates' in the Christian world had completed primary school, while less than 50 per cent of the 'literates' in the Muslim world did the same. Around 40 per cent of the 'literates' in the Christian world attended university while no more than two per cent of the 'literate s' in the Muslim world did the same.

Muslim-majority countries have 230 scientists per one million Muslims. The US has 4,000 scientists per million and Japan has 5,000 per million. In the entire Arab world, the total number of full-time researchers is 35,000 and there are only 50 technicians per one million Arabs (in the Christian world there are up to 1,000 technicians per one million). Furthermore, the Muslim world spends 0.2 per cent of its GDP on research and development, while the Christian world spends around five per cent of its GDP.

Conclusion: The Muslim world lacks the capacity to produce knowledge.

Daily newspapers per 1,000 people and number of book titles per million are two indicators of whether knowledge is being diffused in a society. In Pakistan, there are 23 daily newspapers per 1,000 Pakistanis while the same ratio in Singapore is 360. In the UK, the number of book titles per million stands at 2,000 while the same in Egypt is 20.

Conclusion: The Muslim world is failing to diffuse knowledge.

Exports of high technology products as a percentage of total exports are an important indicator of knowledge application. Pakistan's exports of high technology products as a percentage of total exports stands at one per cent.
The same for Saudi Arabia is 0.3 per cent; Kuwait, Morocco, and Algeria are all at 0.3 per cent while Singapore is at 58 per cent.

Conclusion: The Muslim world is failing to apply knowledge.

Why are Muslims powerless?
Because we aren't producing knowledge.

Why are Muslims powerless?
Because we aren't diffusing knowledge.

Why are Muslims powerless?
Because we aren't applying knowledge.

And, the future belongs to knowledge-based societies.

Interestingly, the combined annual GDP of 57 OIC-countries is under $2 trillion.
America, just by herself, produces goods and services worth $12 trillion;
China $8 trillion, Japan $3.8 trillion and Germany $2.4 trillion (purchasing power parity basis).

Oil rich Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait and Qatar collectively produce goods
and services (mostly oil) worth $500 billion;
Spain alone produces goods and services worth over $1 trillion,
Catholic Poland $489 billion and Buddhist Thailand $545 billion.
(Muslim GDP as a percentage of world GDP is fast declining).

So, why are Muslims so powerless?
Answer: Lack of education!
All we do is shout to Allah whole day and blame everyone else for our multiple failures..!

Birthday dinner at Sakura Fuji

Bila Paderi Terpaksa Buka Rahsia

Artikel ni agak panjang, tapi banyak pengetahuan dan manfaat untuk kita, insya Allah... Bila Paderi Terpaksa Buka Rahsia

Ada seorang pemuda Arab yang baru saja menyelesaikan bangku kuliahnya di Amerika. Pemuda ini adalah salah seorang yang diberi nikmat oleh Allah berupa pendidikan agama Islam bahkan dia mampu mendalaminya. Selain belajar, dia juga seorang jurudakwah Islam. Ketika berada di Amerika, dia berkenalan dengan salah seorang Nasrani. Hubungan mereka semakin akrab, dengan harapan semoga Allah s.w.t. memberinya hidayah masuk Islam. Pada suatu hari mereka berdua berjalan-jalan di sebuah perkampungan di Amerika dan melintas dekat sebuah gereja yang terdapat di kampong tersebut.

Temannya itu meminta agar dia turut masuk ke dalam gereja. Mula mula dia keberatan, namun kerana desakan akhirnya pemuda itu pun memenuhi permintaannya lalu ikut masuk ke dalam gereja dan duduk di salah satu bangku dengan hening, sebagaimana kebiasaan mereka.

Ketika paderi masuk, mereka serentak berdiri untuk memberikan penghormatan lantas kembali duduk. Di saat itu, si paderi agak terbeliak ketika melihat kepada para hadirin dan berkata, "Di tengah kita ada seorang Muslim. Aku harap dia keluar dari sini." Pemuda Arab itu tidak bergerak dari tempatnya.

Paderi tersebut mengucapkan perkataan itu berkali-kali, namun dia tetap tidak bergerak dari tempatnya. Hingga akhirnya paderi itu berkata, "Aku minta dia keluar dari sini dan aku menjamin keselamatannya." Barulah pemuda ini beranjak keluar.

Di ambang pintu, pemuda bertanya kepada sang paderi, "Bagaimana anda tahu bahawa saya seorang Muslim?" Paderi itu menjawab, "Dari tanda yang terdapat di wajahmu."

Kemudian dia beranjak hendak keluar. Namun, paderi ingin memanfaatkan kehadiran pemuda ini dengan mengajukan beberapa pertanyaan, tujuannya untuk memalukan pemuda tersebut dan sekaligus mengukuhkan agamanya. Pemuda Muslim itupun menerima tentangan debat tersebut.

Paderi berkata, "Aku akan mengajukan kepada anda 22 pertanyaan dan anda harus menjawabnya dengan tepat. " Si pemuda tersenyum dan berkata,"Silakan!"

Sang paderi pun mulai bertanya, "Sebutkan satu yang tiada duanya, dua yang tiada tiganya, tiga yang tiada empatnya, empat yang tiada limanya, lima yang tiada enamnya, enam yang tiada tujuhnya, tujuh yang tiada delapannya, delapan yang tiada sembilannya, sembilan yang tiada sepuluhnya, sesuatu yang tidak lebih dari sepuluh, sebelas yang tiada dua belasnya, dua belas yang tiada tiga belasnya, tiga belas yang tiada empat belasnya."

"Sebutkan sesuatu yang dapat bernafas namun tidak mempunyai ruh! Apa yang dimaksud dengan kuburan berjalan membawa isinya? Siapakah yang berdusta namun masuk ke dalam surga? Sebutkan sesuatu yang diciptakan Allah namun Dia tidak menyukainya? Sebutkan sesuatu yang diciptakan Allah dengan tanpa ayah dan ibu!"

"Siapakah yang tercipta dari api, siapakah yang diazab dengan api dan siapakah yang terpelihara dari api? Siapakah yang tercipta dari batu, siapakah yang diazab dengan batu dan siapakah yang terpelihara dari batu?"

"Sebutkan sesuatu yang diciptakan Allah dan dianggap besar! Pohon apakah yang mempunyai 12 ranting, setiap ranting mempunyai 30 daun, setiap daun mempunyai 5 buah, 3 di bawah naungan dan dua di bawah sinaran matahari?"

Mendengar pertanyaan tersebut, pemuda itu tersenyum dengan keyakinan kepada Allah. Setelah membaca "Bismillah..." dia berkata,

-Satu yang tiada duanya ialah Allahs.w.t..
-Dua yang tiada tiganya ialah Malam dan Siang. Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Dan Kami jadikan malam dan siang sebagai dua tanda (kebesaran kami)." (Al-Isra': 12).
-Tiga yang tiada empatnya adalah kesilapan yang dilakukakn Nabi Musa etika Khidir menenggelamkan sampan, membunuh seorang anak kecil dan ketika menegakkan kembali dinding yang hamper roboh.
-Empat yang tiada limanya adalah Taurat, Injil, Zabur dan al-Qur'an.
- Lima yang tiada enamnya ialah Solat lima waktu.
-Enam yang tiada tujuhnya ialah jumlah Hari ketika Allah s.w.t. menciptakan makhluk.
-Tujuh yang tiada delapannya ialah Langit yang tujuh lapis. Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Yang telah menciptakan tujuh langit berlapis-lapis. Kamu sekali-kali tidak melihat pada ciptaan Rabb Yang Maha Pemurah sesuatu yang tidak seimbang." (Al-Mulk: 3).
-Delapan yang tiada sembilannya ialah Malaikat pemikul Arsy ar-Rahman. Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Dan malaikat- malaikat berada di penjuru-penjuru langit. Dan pada hari itu delapan orang malaikat menjunjung 'Arsy Rabbmu di atas (kepala) mereka." (Al-Haqah: 17).
-Sembilan yang tiada sepuluhnya adalah mu'jizat yang diberikan kepada Nabi Musa yaitu: tongkat, tangan yang bercahaya, angin topan, musim paceklik, katak, darah, kutu dan belalang.*
-Sesuatu yang tidak lebih dari sepuluh ialah Kebaikan. Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Barang siapa yang berbuat kebaikan maka untuknya sepuluh kali lipat." (Al-An'am: 160).
-Sebelas yang tiada dua belasnya ialah jumlah Saudara-Saudara Nabi Yusuf .
-Dua belas yang tiada tiga belasnya ialah Mu'jizat Nabi Musa yang terdapat dalam firman Allah, "Dan (ingatlah) ketika Musa memohon air untuk kaumnya, lalu Kami berfirman, "Pukullah batu itu dengan tongkatmu." Lalu memancarlah daripadanya dua belas mata air." (Al-Baqarah: 60).
-Tiga belas yang tiada empat belasnya ialah jumlah Saudara Nabi Yusuf ditambah dengan ayah dan ibunya.
-Adapun sesuatu yang bernafas namun tidak mempunyai ruh adalah waktu Su buh.Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Dan waktu subuh apabila fajarnya mulai menyingsing." (At-Takwir: 18).
-Kuburan yang membawa isinya adalah Ikan yang menelan Nabi Yunus AS.
-Mereka yang berdusta namun masuk ke dalam surga adalah saudara-saudara Nabi Yusuf, yakni ketika mereka berkata kepada ayahnya, "Wahai ayah kami, sesungguhnya kami pergi berlumba-lumba dan kami tinggalkan Yusuf di dekat barang-barang kami, lalu dia dimakan serigala." Setelah kedustaan terungkap, Yusuf berkata kepada mereka, "Tak ada cercaan terhadap kamu semua." Dan Ayah mereka Ya'qub berkata, "Aku akan memohonkan ampun bagimu kepada Rabbku. Sesungguhnya Dia-lah Yang Maha Pengampun lagi Maha Penyayang." (Yusuf:98)
-Sesuatu yang diciptakan Allah namun tidak Dia sukai adalah suara Keldai. Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Sesungguhnya sejelek-jelek suara adalah suara keldai." (Luqman: 19).
-Makhluk yang diciptakan Allah tanpa bapa dan ibu adalah Nabi Adam,Malaikat, Unta Nabi Shalih dan Kambing Nabi Ibrahim.
-Makhluk yang diciptakan dari api adalah Iblis, yang diazab dengan api ialah Abu Jahal dan yang terpelihara dari api adalah Nabi Ibrahim. Allah s.w.t. berfirman, "Wahai api dinginlah dan selamatkan Ibrahim." (Al-Anbiya':69).
-Makhluk yang terbuat dari batu adalah Unta Nabi Shalih, yang diazab dengan batu adalah tentara bergajah dan yang terpelihara dari batu adalah Ashabul Kahfi (penghuni gua).
-Sesuatu yang diciptakan Allah dan dianggap perkara besar adalah Tipu Daya Wanita, sebagaimana firman Allah s.w.t. "Sesungguhnya tipu daya kaum wanita itu sangatlah besar." (Yusuf: 28).
-Adapun pohon yang memiliki 12 ranting setiap ranting mempunyai 30 daun, setiap daun mempunyai 5 buah, 3 di bawah teduhan dan dua di bawah sinaran matahari maknanya: Pohon adalah Tahun, Ranting adalah Bulan, Daun adalah Hari dan Buahnya adalah Solat yang lima waktu, Tiga dikerjakan di malam hari dan Dua di siang hari.

Paderi dan para hadirin merasa takjub mendengar jawapan pemuda Muslim tersebut. Kemudian dia pun mula hendak pergi. Namun dia mengurungkan niatnya dan meminta kepada paderi agar menjawab satu pertanyaan saja.

Permintaan ini disetujui oleh paderi. Pemuda ini berkata, "Apakah kunci surga itu?"

Mendengar pertanyaan itu lidah paderi menjadi kelu, hatinya diselimuti keraguan dan rupa wajahnya pun berubah. Dia berusaha menyembunyikan kekuatirannya, namun tidak berhasil. Orang-orang yang hadir di gereja itu terus mendesaknya agar menjawab pertanyaan tersebut, namun dia cuba mengelak.

Mereka berkata, "Anda telah melontarkan 22 pertanyaan kepadanya dan semuanya dia jawab, sementara dia hanya member cuma satu pertanyaan namun anda tidak mampu menjawabnya!"

Paderi tersebut berkata, "Sesungguh aku tahu jawapannya, namun aku takut kalian marah."

Mereka menjawab, "Kami akan jamin keselamatan anda. "

Paderi pun berkata, "Jawapannya ialah: Asyhadu An La Ilaha Illallah , Wa Asyhadu Anna Muhammadar Rasulullah. "

Lantas paderi dan orang-orang yang hadir di gereja itu terus memeluk agama Islam. Su ngguh Allah telah menganugerahkan kebaikan dan menjaga mereka dengan Islam melalui tangan seorang pemuda Muslim yang bertakwa.**

NOTA:

Ini adalah artikel sulung dari qasha dan merupakan sebuah artikel yang cukup bagus. Ia dapat menyedarkan kita agar membaca dan memahami isi kandungan Al-Qur'an bagi membolehkan kita menangkis tohmahan dan menjawab Pertanyaan orang-orang kafir.

Wallahua'lam

Wedding in Sg Kelah

UEFA Champions League Final - Luzhniki Stadium, Wed 21 May

Who is the champion now??

UNITED 1 - Ronaldo 26

(6 pens scored: Tevez, Carrick, Hargreaves, Nani, Anderson, Giggs)

CHELSEA 1 - Lampard 45
(5 pens scored: Ballack, Belletti, Lampard, A Cole, Kalou)

Team line-ups

United: Van der Sar; Brown (Anderson 120), Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Carrick, Hargreaves, Scholes

(Giggs 87); Ronaldo, Rooney (Nani (101), Tevez. Subs not used: Kuszczak, O'Shea, Fletcher, Silvestre.
Booked: Scholes, Ferdinand, Vidic, Tevez

Chelsea: Cech, Essien, Terry, Carvalho, A Cole, Makelele (Belletti 120)., Ballack, Lampard, Malouda (Kalou 92), J Cole (Anelka 99), Drogba. Subs not used: Cudicini, Shevchenko, Mikel, Alex.
Booked: Makelele, Carvalho, Ballack, Essien
Sent off: Drogba

Attendance: 69,552

Quotable

"This is football. I don't know what to say. I think we're going to lose. I score the goal and miss the penalty. The worst day of my life. But the lads did the proper job and I feel very proud for them. It means everything for me."—Ronaldo

"John is Mr. Chelsea. He wants it more than anyone and not many center-halves would stand up and take a penalty of that importance. John did what he did and he will be back."—Lampard on Terry, who was in tears after the game.

The race for the Premier League title between Chelsea and Manchester United came down to the last day. So it was only appropriate Wednesday's Champions League final in Moscow between the same clubs was just as nail-biting... United may claim the upper hand in the 1st half but Chelsea came alive in the 2nd half.

United defeated Chelsea 6-5 on penalty kicks after the teams finished regulation and extra time tied 1-1. The game got off slowly with much of the action in the midfield but picked up with United's Cristiano Ronaldo's goal in the 26th minute and Frank Lampard's equalizer just before halftime.

Chelsea had their chance to claim the trophy for the first time after Cristiano Ronaldo had had his effort saved by Petr Cech. But captain John Terry pushed his spot-kick - Chelsea's fifth - wide of the target. I guess now its bye-bye Grant, Jose may not want Chelsea again, he may take up a new post on the continent and by the time the position is confirmed Drogba and Lampard may follow Jose there. Good luck Roman, pinching Peter Kenyon may be enough to win the Premier League but you still need Sir Alex to win the Champions League kah kah kah

View around Pasar Baru, Bandung

Street performer in Bandung

Jakarta Airport sign

This sign at Sukarno-Hatta airport, Jakarta will make Malaysians think twice before pulling the trolley :)

Nasi Padang

Nasi Padang Garuda in Jakarta, 1 minute walk from the Ibis Arcadia at Wahid Hasyim, god base if you wanna spend much of your time at Tanah Abang shopping

Sunda food in Bandung

Sundanese (the people living in West Java are called Sundanese) has tempting refreshments. Sundanese food tends to be bland yet tasty unless you add sambal dadak (chili and other ingredients grinded together) to your food. If you're looking for more spicy taste, just add this sambal dadak. Sundanese people eat vegetables a lot. Sometimes they even eat raw vegetables (called lalap or lalapan) like cucumbers, tomatoes, coriander leaves, eggplants, cabbages, lettuces, and so on. Lalapan is usually accompanied by sambal dadak. Be very careful of the sambal though. They have different types of sambals with varying levels of pedas. I can bet you if you are not careful your stomach will be churning after a few rounds of these sambals :)

There are a few nice restaurants but I favour Sambara at Jalan Trunojoyo and the food chain Ampera (its like a chain of Mc D's). Guest can choose what they want to have from a buffet table (and you pay per pieces you take afterwards). There are two choices of rice: plain white rice or red rice. Most of their foods are fried—fried fish, fried chicken, fried beef, fried tahu (bean curd), etc. All cooked in Sundanese style, of course.

The most interesting part is their ‘sambal’ section—Indonesian style chili sauce. Not all Ampera chain has four types of sambal. These four sambals are made with different composition, each has a uniqueness of their own, but all hot and spicy! To eat this sambal like a Sundanese, dip a chunk of vegetable in the chili sauce. The vegetable is served on the sambal table, all free.

Photos: left from top; the spread at Sambara, food on Display at Ampera (next to Sukajadi Hotel), my meal at Rumah Mode

right from top: the spread at the restaurant at Rumah Mode, our meal at Sambara, lastly Sate Meranggi (Satay Maranggi) Commonly found in Purwakarta and Bandung, two towns in Java, is made from beef marinated in a special paste. The two most important elements of the paste are kecombrang (Nicolaia speciosa) flower buds and ketanjuadah). (sweet rice) flour. Nicola buds bring a unique aroma and a liquorice-like taste. It is served with ketan cake (

Express Jakarta Transportation - the Bajaj

What is a bajaj? Noisy, hot and in bright orange. Its very similar to the Tuk-tuk in Bangkok and the way to drive it in between the traffic is also pretty similar. They can be quite a nuisance if you are driving cars but if you need to go from point to point and fast.. then bajaj is the way to go.

Depending on the size of the passenger Bajaj seat two passengers comfortably even though I have seen 5 people packed into a Bajaj like sardines in a can. The driver sits in the front and passengers on the back. You have a hood above your head but if it rains heavily even with the plastic window down I bet you will be soaking wet in no time. If not you only have natural air cond (the hot humid air) to keep you cool inside the cramped compartment.

How much per trip? Fare determination is by bargaining. It's always best to ask an Indonesian what they would pay for a trip to a particular destination from your point of departure, and then bargain and pay accordingly. 5 minutes ride for Rph 7,000 or around there.

TDM: quotes from press conference

Received this in my mailing list..

What Transpired In Alor Setar Yesterday:

Undur dari parti?
sy takkan suruh org lain buat sesuatu yg mana saya sendiri tak berani buat. sy berpendapat yg ada sekarang ini, bukan lagi parti umno yang sebenar. yang ada sekarang ini adalah sebuah parti yang hanya wujud... (terdiam sebab bunyi pintu) parti yang ada sekarang ini bukan parti umno, parti ini hanya menjadi sebuah badan untuk mengiktiraf abdullah ahmad badawi sebagai presiden, dan mengutamakan kepentingannya dan kepentingan keluarganya sehingga segala kepentingan negara di kebelakangkan dan saya boleh bagi senarai perkara2 yang dilakukan olehnya yang merugikan negara kite ini sebab itu saya tidak teragak agak itu keluar dari sebuah parti yang tidak lagi pegang kepada hasrat parti ini yang ditubuh 62 tahun dahulu. itulah sebabnya dan kalau dengan ini saya disekat daraipada berjumpa dengan ahli umno, sekali lagi itu merupakan parti umno yang tak lagi demokratik dan benarlah bahawa dianya adalah milik datuk abdullah ahmad badawi sahaja

adakah ini secara rasmi Tun istihar keluar parti?
ya, saya akan tulis surat secara rasmi kepada setiausaha agung umno.

bila?
sejuruss selapas ini

setakat ini tun ahli umno lagi?
ya, saya masih lagi ahli umno

cawangan?
saya ahli umno seumur hidup

tarikh kuar umno?
saya sendiri bg pengakuan bg diri sy sendiri

by doing this, u expect others to emulate u?
itu saya tak peduli. ikut tak ikut. kalau mereka berpendapat bahawa kite harus sokong paklah, dah lebih utamakan datuk abdullah badawi lebih daraipada perjuangan parti, itu hak mereka

tindakan tun akan kuar daripada umno, apakah kesan dia kpd politik melayu?
politik melayu tak hilang, kalau org melayu nak betulkan, bukan sebab kerana nak keluar sahaja,
kalau org melayu berani utk memelihara parti, dan perjuangan parti dan perjuangan org melayu, mereka harus berani bertindak ini sampai kite nak adakan perjumpaan, ahli2 umno tak boleh hadir, ketua bahagian tak boleh hadir, ini apa? dulu masa tun zali lawan dengan saya, mereka bebas pergi mana2 bahagian untuk berkempen saya tak larang. masa tunku razali lawan dengan saya, tunku abdul rahman tulis dalam surat khabar bahkan dia sokong tunku razali, saya tak tahan. ini tak boleh pun siapa kata2 apa2 langsung kepada perdana menteri kepada presiden parti, ini bukan umno

by doing this do you think u are putting pressure to pak lah to resign?
i don't know about pressure. this man could not understand anything

sebelum tun istihar kuar drpd parti hari ini, bila tun dapat ilham tu?
saya suruh orang, orang tanya berani ke tak letak jawatan.. kalau saya suruh orang, saya mesti berani buat lah. saya tak suruh orang.. kalau nak suruh apanama mendaki gunung everest saya suruh orang tapi saya tak pergi, sampai sekarang pun saya tak pergi, nak suruh saya belayar keliling dunia sorang2, saya tak boleh buat.
tapi ini nak letak jawatan saya berani buat.. bukan jawatan, keahlian

so from today you're no more an umno member?
yes

from today?
yes from today

so tun ada mintak ahli2 lain letak jawatan, yang ada jawatan letak jawatan, adakah ini akan melibatkan MP da adun?
yan, sepatutnya la. kalau mereka betul2 sayang pd Umno. kalau mereka sayang kpd datuk abdullah, mereka kena kekallah.

tapi dengan keadaan sekarang ini pakatan rakyat nak amik alih, kerajaan pusat, mp dalam Bn bagaimana?
yalah kekurangan la. mungkin parti lawan akan dapat bilangan kerusi yang lebih daripada kerajaan, tetapi terpulang kapada org yang kuar ini. samada mereka akan undi kepada pihak parti lawan, ataupun pihak parti kerajaan.. ini tidak secara automatik kerana mereka kuar drpd umno maka dengan itu parti lawan akan ambil alih tetapi kalau mereka undi tidak percaya kepada datuk abdullah, dia tetap jatuh mungkin undi itu tak disokong oleh parti lawan .. itu mmg lah sebab parti lawan nak paklah terus jadi pemimpin kerana mereka sedar mereka kerana kepimpinan datuk abdullah ahmad badawi la yang sebabkan mereka dapat kejayaan yng begitu besar.

tindakan tun kuar ada kaitan ke dengan siasatn suruhanjaya klip video lingam?
itu xde. yang ini soal mahkamah. saya pi mahkahmah. dia tuduh saya boleh tuduh.
kalau saya salah masuk jail la. kalau saya tak salah, jangan lah tangkap saya jugak

kalau paklah letak jawatan, tun masuk balik umno?
ya, tetap saya masuk balik umno. itu syarat dia, saya letak jawatan keahlian dalam umno selagi datuk abdullah ahmad badawi ada situ sbg presiden umno.

dia letak, tun masuk balik umno?
ya, saya masuk balik umno,barulah dia jadi umno, sebelum ini dia jadi parti abdullah ahmad badawi

tun tadi bg advise kat pemimpin cawangan dan bahagian utk kuar daripada umno, ada tun jangka ahli mt pun buat demikian?
yang itu sy tak tahu nak kata la, saya dulu org kata kononnya berkhidmat kpd negara itu, ini, puji saya naik asap, cium tangan saya.tapi bila sy kritik datuk abdullah pasal tak buat jambatan, orang maki saya, xde sapa pertahankan saya

tp sejak kebelakangan ini nampak macam tan sri muhyiddin buat kenyataan ke arah menentang sikit?
tapi kite tengoklah.

Tanah Abang Jakarta

Tanah Abang the place to shop for garment and textiles much like Mangga Dua but personally I feel its cheaper here. It is located in central Jakarta at the end of Jln Wahid Hasyim. This is the place where shop owners buy ready to wear clothes or textiles in bulk. Most of the stores sell a minimum of three pieces per clothes type but if you go to the basement level they can still sell n single piece with more expensive price (but still cheap). Tanah Abang offers you a choice to shop at the traditional flea market or the convenient air conditioned building. Both are less expensive than the regular malls downtown. A few years back the place use to be a cocoon of bazaars which was hot but they have built a big tall building to house most of the scattered shops and they are now housed in a large aircond building so you can shop in comfort. Early morning is the best time to go, as the day goes by you can expect the whole complex to be crowded as this is the textile centre where the local traders go to.

Jalan Braga, Bandung

Jalan Braga is located in central Bandung, and connects Jalan Asia Afrika, named after the famous conference of the non aligned nations in 1955, and Jalan Lembong. It is the place in Bandung where you can see remnants of its colonial past, and what happens to them if maintenance is disregarded. The once-beautiful buildings that line the street are now, with some exceptions, up for a complete overhaul or at least, a thorough renovation. The whole neighborhood displays a tired look of what it once was, and although it still is one of the sites where history is brought back alive, it's not alive and kicking, but more alive but tired. Interestingly there is a mal and the entrance is between the shops at Jalan Braga, not much of a shopping mall but you will find a well known supermarket there and a few famous eateries in the mall.

A golden oldie is the antique shop a bit further down the road on No. 59, called Sin Sin . Being in existence since 1943, it is filled up with antique furniture, woodcarvings and jewellery, and is probably more reliable than the streetside stalls selling paintings of unknown age and origin. If you are after street peddlers selling nice paintings you will have to bargain hard to get the price you wanted, I assure you it is worth the effort. They sel these painting all along the Braga road on the side walk.

Jalan Braga is, except for the bakeries, paintings and antiques, not really much of a shopping place. It becomes more alive when the shops are closed. There are several bars towards the Northern end of the street, with a somewhat shady atmosphere attracting mostly expats and tourists. If that isn't loud enough for you, there's also a disco, not too surprisingly called Braga Disco and a Dangdut bar , just off Jalan Braga.

Diaz Bandung for handbags and shoes

The address: Diaz Shoes & Handbag Jl.Sederhana No.9 Bandung (022) 2033661. Most taxi drivers know the place and will take you there.

This is where the ladies will go crazy shopping with thousands of bags on display, from Armani, to Vuitton,with Burberry, Gucci, Coach, Sportsac, Parada, Hermes, LV, MNG etc etc in between, you name it, its there. They have various brands of shoes on display too including its own house brand, Diaz. Don't forget to ceck out the 1st floor for bargain items normally at 50% discounts. Its mostly last season's items or slightly damaged goods. Go hunting girls.

Pasar Baru Trade Centre, Bandung

Pasar Baru, means 'new market' in English, is one of the most big textile and garment market in Bandung. Up to 2002, Bandung’s Pasar Baru was riddled with narrow, dark and untidy alleys. Memories of Pasar Baru seem to have vanished since 2003, when a seven-floor, mall-like building was erected there, sweeping away all the unpleasantness that had usually characterized the place. Batik and garments are the main products with which Pasar Baru has always been associated. Vendors from Central Java mixed with indigenous Bandung residents, and the resulting descendants make up most of the vendors who now live in the vicinity of the market. Seriously its cheap in Pasar baru and the quality isn't bad if you choose it carefully. In some shops you can really get lace dress (they call it bordir there so ask for bordir if wnt that kind of fine kerawang stuff for your dress). It can get cheaper if you buy in big quantity and finally dont forget to bargain. Please be mindful when you bargain though, do not expect 80% discount because the price is already cheap compared to Malaysian prices.
Article from Pasarbaru Trade Center website
Andalkan Promosi "Dari Mulut ke Mulut"

Thursday, 03 April 2008

Belanja! kegiatan itulah yang menjadi daya tarik utama bagi wisatawan malaysia yang datang ke Bandung. Tersedianya pasar grosir dan puluhan factory outlet yang ada di Bandung seolah menjadikan kota ini sebagai surga belanja bagi wisatawan dari Negeri Jiran.Salah satunya adalah Pasar Baru. Menurut Mawar, seorang pemandu wisata dari Malaysia, pasar yang direnovasi sejak tahun 2003 tersebut terkenal dengan harganya yang murah.

Namun, ia mengatakan, informasi tentang Bandung sebagai tempat wisata belanja tidak ia dapatkan dari promosi secara khusus Dinas Pariwisata Indonesia ataupun swasta. "Tahu Bandung dari mulut ke mulut aja, dari teman yang pernah datang ke sini," katanya.
Hal itu diakui centre manager Pasar Baru, Sunardi Rustandi. Ia mengatakan belum melakukan promosi khusus ke Malaysia. "Dulu sempat bekerja sama dengan travel tertentu, tetapi ternyata banyak orang Malaysia yang sudah tahu duluan sebelum kita promosi," ujarnya.

Hal itu sangat disayangkan mengingat banyaknya potensi wisata yang terdapat di Bandung. Tidak hanya belanja, Bandung juga menawarkan kelezatan makanan, keindahan wisata alam, dan beragam kesenian yang khas.

Menurut wakil ketua Asosiasi Perjalanan Wisata (Asita) Jabar Bidang Promosi, Hilwan Saleh, saat ini Dinas pariwisata dan Asita belum memiliki kesamaan visi sehingga menyulitkan promosi Bandung ke kancah dunia. Berdasarkan pengamatan yang dilakukan Asita, ada tujuh negara yang berpotensi untuk mendatangkan wisatawan yang datang ke Bandung. Negara tersebut yaitu Malaysia, Singapura, Brunei, Cina, Belanda, Swiss, serta Jerman.

Turis Malaysia Banjiri Bandung Thursday, 03 April 2008

Logat Melayu yang kental bercampur dengan bahasa Inggris kini bukan hal yang asing lagi kita dengar di pusat wisata kota Bandung. Bukan karena bahasa tersebut sedang menjadi tren alat komunikasi verbal di kota kembang tersebut. Namun, logat tersebut keluar dari turis Malaysia yang sedang menikmati Kota Bandung sebagai tempat wisata.

Jumlah turis Malaysia yang datang ke Kota Bandung, terus meningkat setiap tahunnya. Berdasarkan data Dinas Pariwisata Kota Bandung, total jumlah wisatawan mancanegara yang mengunjungi Bandung sebanyak 137.000 orang pada tahun 2007.