AXE Anarchy Getaway..only for bros...bleh

Recently Nuffnang had organized this contest which a lucky GUY can win a getaway trip - to a sinful island full of bikine-clad girls, hawt DJs and booze...lots of it I supposed. But this contest only opens to Male..if you are a Male and you are reading this just in time, head over to Nuffnang AXE Anarchy Getaway . Good luck in getting away with some tricks on showing them how to charm girls :p

Anyways, I still submit an entry, who knows, Nuffnang decided to be GENEROUS to girls who really wanted to give a try to win this getaway BUT are disqualified WAY EARLY at the beginning?
HAHA...well my hand just got itchy actually and decided to sketch a bunny comic.

Really..Nuffnang team..are you considering on being GENEROUS?
I could do away with a consolation? HAHA...

To charm a girl is not really that hard. Be honest, look at her in the eye (don't stray elsewhere, any level below her face) and engage in a genuine conversation with her:)

Padas White Water Rafting, Sabah...I am nearly a past tense

Some friends thought that we are crazy to do the Kinabalu hike on the day before we raft. They told me that I'd die from exhaustion and worst case scenario would be muscle cramp. Well, apparently we don't die from muscle cramps. We don't experience cramps at all...it's just that we almost give up at that moment when the clock struck 5 am. Our ride would pick us up at about 5.30 am to drive us to the Beaufort train station which is located approximately 1.5 hours away from Sabah town.

At that time, I pretty much regretted not bringing along any photography device - not even my phone; just to prevent it from getting stolen when I was rafting. The rafting center's staff told us that it'd be safe and our properties will be guarded but to what extent can we trust a stranger? The area where we were supposed to keep our belongings was just a compound with 3 rooms. Our stuff will be kept in one room - locked and guarded while the other rooms are the kitchen and the changing room. They don't even have a proper shower place, only an open space with 3 shower heads.

Back to the train station; it's really antique and the train works on a steam locomotion mechanism and some of the cabins are just wooden compartments with no seats. Photo-worthy in sepia/black&white if you ask me.

I was pretty thrilled at the idea of riding in the train- it was quite fun actually since it's my first time riding on such an old thing!

Antique huh?

It took us about an hour or so to reach the rafting center. We were briefed on the do's and dont's and then, off we go for our adventure! Water rafting was fun. Seriously! I love it even after my dramatic encounter. It was 3 months after my trip from Sabah and I would love to spread this message out to all who are interested in trying river rafting. Padas river is located about 2 hours' steam train trip away from Beaufort railway station and ironically, the water is murky rather than 'white' (or clear). None of us had any rafting experience and so my friends and I went with an guide/agent from BUSAT (http://www.ultimateborneo.com/2010/03/padas-white-water-rafting/). We could see the river during our train trip and we thought, okay...doesn't look dangerous or anything. Plus, the weather is too good to surprise us with a downfall or flood.

The lead instructor gave us a good briefing on the paddling methods as well as all safety issues that we should be concerned about. Then comes the paddling part. We went down to the river with our respective guide - whom we learnt that his name is Sham. We are a group of 4 and joined by another female caucasian. This is the cream of the crop because he started to chat with her and eventually asked if she would like to raft in a kayak since this is her second time rafting. He didn't actually ignore us but focused more on her. After some turbulent sites, he then asked us to test the water and jumped into the river where the current was almost nil.

We did and we had fun. So we didn't suspect anything when he told us about this 'body rafting' game when we waded nearer towards the endpoint. We thought, yea, everything should be under control since there are guards paddling in kayak who doubled as emergency lifesavers. We would never ever thought of the idea of jumping near a site with strong current because we are not very strong swimmers AND we are all new to rafting.

(Without suspecting anything fishy or dangerous)We (obediently) jumped into the water when he asked us to and yes, my girlfriend and I were nearly drowned. The site where he asked us to jump has a strong current and filled with smooth rocks. Waves kept crashing on me that I barely had the time to breath. Yes I was wearing a life jacket but that was not enough to keep me afloat. The current was too strong! I tried to position myself the way the lead instructor taught us but still, it was very difficult to stay in the correct position and breath. I merely escaped the rocks and the waves were already washing me towards another one. In the midst of all these, I saw a boat which resembled mine. So I tried waving but the guide on it either couldn't see me or were not bothered. It didn't move towards me at all! My girlfriend had a panic attack when she hit upon on rock. Thank god it wasn't serious.

I was finally rescued by my friend who is a better swimmer. However, we were unable to grab my girlfriend who was so near and yet so far. The kayaking lifeguards got her instead. We later learnt from others that Sham was supposed to either jump along with us OR maneuver the boat in front of us so that he could help us in case of an emergency. But guess what, he did neither and we saw him with the caucasian lady behind us. He had got the lady a kayak and was teaching her on how to kayak through the turbulence.

Please. Never take Sham as your rafting guide. He is just too inexperienced and if it wasn't for my friend, I would have easily been drowned or knocked unconscious in the water. Least he could do was to warn us on the current and asked for our level of comfort with water. I wrote in to BUSAT but there was no response (why am I NOT surprised?) and now, back in KL, I think this is the only way which I can reach out to tell others that, yes, river rafting is safe and enjoyable -- only with the right guide. If you have decided to take this trip with BUSAT - make sure that they don't assign Sham to you.

Shopping made easy!

Once, I awed at the stories told by my friend about how convenient everything is when she was in Shanghai. She said that place is a totally internet-friendly piece of land. Shops are made online and you can place virtual orders any time you like - your purchases will arrive at your doorstep on the very next day.

I used to wonder if this shopping experience will come storming by Malaysia and I'm not saying those little virtual stores which you doubt on their authenticity; I really did when these stores came alive a year or two after that conversation with my friend.

As of recent, I notice that virtual shopping has slowly seeps into Malaysians' life and gradually gains credibility. Friends who have spent years living out of Malaysia trusted online shopping and they especially love eBay, Amazon and the likes. To them, these are equivalent to shopping malls and your purchases are safe with them. Of course, for those who are less exposed (like yours truly) to these experiences, do really doubt if these shops will deliver as promised in a timely manner.

Groupon was the first few that grabbed my attention. My colleague introduced it to me and with all the good deals that Groupon offers, I'm immediately attracted. There are a good few of these types of websites but by far, this is the one which I frequently use. It sells a wide variety of stuff ranging from food to home care items to travel packages- at a discounted price. I have yet to try their travel package though - still a little skeptical. Anyways, I always love their food stuff discounts - buying for 2 at the price of 1 :)p Now, who doesn't love that?

This site actually linked me up to Strawberry.net when Groupon was selling Strawberry's 50% discount voucher. Strawberry.net offers anything related to body care and cosmetics for both genders. The one thing I like about this site is the number of brands they hold. I didn't count but rest assured, you can find brands not sold in Malaysia. This is really cool especially when you are bored with the variety offered by stores in Malaysia and also when they don't offer better discounts, do come here. Also, they ship worldwide too. The drawback is probably the long delivery time; approximately a week to two weeks for your order to reach you.

Another drawback is that they do not offer the best price but hairdressing.com.my does. It is a local store located in Pudu. My friend recommended this page and she had even went to the store to check them out. According to her, the store is quite shabby looking but perhaps it was due to this (low rent, low maintenance) that they are able to beat the prices. As compared to the normal retail price and Strawberry.net, this store offers the best price for several items. Also, it provides speedy delivery - I've got my order 2 days after payment.

Lately, I came across zalora when I saw its poster in Starbucks. As a consumer, I will feel much comfortable with recommendations from a real store which I frequent. Zalora offers a wide range of products as well; mainly shoes, clothes and bags. Price wise, it is not very competitive but it does provide discounts every now and then. I made an order yesterday, an hour after 2pm and today, I received it at 12pm. It's pretty convenient, really.

Along with my purchase, zalora had given me some vouchers and one of them is foodpanda, which to my surprise, caters to different types of food and food stores - online. I have yet to try it but perhaps, one of these days. Then again, the search came up with 0 result to my area. Hmmph...glitches or it's not that established yet..

Anyways, seriously, buying things have been getting easier! Then again, I wouldn't enjoy it as much as I would with real life shopping. How can anything virtual beats real life senses of touching and trying on the things which you will soon buy?　To me, nothing beats that - the pleasure of real life shopping, ever.