It has been a while or I shall say been months I have not updated my blog. The time frame was like Marco Polo's silk path from the Bosphorus' air of Istanbul to the mainland China, experiencing new things and meeting new people in life. I have been experiencing the same situation since I first arrived from the UK in early June, only that mine is in the 21st century. The similar situation shapes up my perspective in life, narrowing down my dream yet to be achieved after graduation next year, and simplifying the choices that have to be chosen wisely.
Life in the university cannot be compared to the working life, it's not an apple to an apple, yet the effort to find the similarities will be just an effortless effort like one who tries to compare Mahatma Ghandi with Julius Caesar. At this point of time, I have been working as a Vacational Trainer for a month in KPMG Malaysia, or in the UK it s called as an internee. Throughout the month, my diary from Monday to Friday will be the same. The day for tomorrow will be the same as today when I close my eyes trying to get the best sleep I could have, this expectation is basis upon the working life for argument sake. This is the reality, the phase after the sweet and hard time in the university.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Where Have All The Flowers Gone?
Mary & Kingston Trio: PRESENT
" All the time in life, appreciation to the older generations will remind us that the world is not ours.
They, the older people they tasted the salt before we were born.
They faced the hardship and trauma during the world wars.
They survived the times of Hitler, Franco, and Mussolini,
They even saw the blooming flowers before us.
They fell in love before we comprehend how to say love.
They listened to the music full of harmony with deep, meaningful lines.
Thus, whenever we the young people started to think about it.
You will understand why I always, always.
Take my hat's off to the older people.
And this what makes me to appreciate those times.
Rings the bell in my head.
How great today's people are.
Greater, greater are those older people.
Let us take a step back.
In our racing path filled by selfish, egoism, and forgetfulness.
To look with passionate eyes.
The older people around us.
Who brace the English weather to walk on the streets.
Who brace the frail illness on wheelchairs.
Who brace God for forgiveness and sin done.
Humility arose from this reflection.
Even though I was born in a paradise.
Missing those wonderful and historic moments.
That they had experienced.
As I know.
Years in the future.
I will be like one of them too "
Wikipedia.com: Mary Travers (born 9 November 1936 in Louisville, Kentucky) is a member of the folk group Peter, Paul and Mary, along Peter Yarrow and Noel "Paul" Stookey. Together, they formed one of the most successful folk-singing groups of the 1960s.
Mary & Kingston Trio: WHEN THEY WERE YOUNG
Country Roads
I...
come from a country where..
it is summer over the years..
and it will always be for thousand years to come..
where I can eat chinese, indian, and malay food in one single shop..
where i can take photos in the jungle..
or at the seaside..
and be in the city few hours later..
and the place where the awareness of cultural differences is exotically embraced.
Thanks to John Denver (1943 - 1997) for the song, it inflicts the appreciation in me.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Walking Path
I am in my penultimate year of BA (Hons) Industrial Economics now. The path of my career planning has been charted out, and I have two options upon graduation. First, embarking the investment banking sector with power houses such as JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, or Credit Suisse. This is the reason I chose to include International Finance module as part of my modules for my final year. In a nutshell, typical issues that will be taught are foreign exchange markets, international risks, international banking, and security markets. Second, working in one of the Big Four like KPMG or PriceWaterhouse Coopers while achieving ICAW or ACCA. The former aspect is the most suitable vis-a-vis my degree title. The latter depends on my success on optional accounting modules like Corporate Finance (basically this module develops my knowledge of financial decision-making and strategic financial decisions like mergers and acquisitions), Management Accounting, and Financial Accounting which are the stepping stone for me to get exemption papers in ICAW or ACCA later. At the moment, I am focusing on my French learning and my aim is to speak good 'francais' in a year time. This ability brings a major advantage for me in the working world in the future if we talked about globalisation and the evolutionary finance. Moreover, the ability to speak a foreign language is part of the essential achievements in university education as today's world does not communicate in a single, isolated language.
I have done few research on my prospect degree. According to Nottingham University Business School 2006/07, a wide range of career options are possible upon graduation, though typically students of Industrial Economics gain final employment in areas such as management consultancy, accounting, and financial services. In addition, from the source of U.S. Department of Labour; Industrial Economists or organizational economists study the market structure of particular industries in terms of the number of competitors within those industries and examine the market decisions of competitive firms and monopolies. These economists also may be concerned with antitrust policy and its impact on market structure. Vis-a-vis prospect environment "economists have structured work schedules. They often work alone, writing reports, preparing statistical charts, and using computers, but they also may be an integral part of a research team. Most work under pressure of deadlines and tight schedules, which may require overtime. Their routine may be interrupted by special requests for data and by the need to attend meetings or conferences. Frequent travel may be necessary"... :)
For now, I have to seize every single day with hard work passioned by perseverance, dedication, and blessings from God. bon courage pour moi.
As Benjamin F. Fairless said "What is the recipe for successful achievement? To my mind there are just four essential ingredients: Choose a career you love, give it the best there is in you, seize your opportunities, and be a member of the team"
I have done few research on my prospect degree. According to Nottingham University Business School 2006/07, a wide range of career options are possible upon graduation, though typically students of Industrial Economics gain final employment in areas such as management consultancy, accounting, and financial services. In addition, from the source of U.S. Department of Labour; Industrial Economists or organizational economists study the market structure of particular industries in terms of the number of competitors within those industries and examine the market decisions of competitive firms and monopolies. These economists also may be concerned with antitrust policy and its impact on market structure. Vis-a-vis prospect environment "economists have structured work schedules. They often work alone, writing reports, preparing statistical charts, and using computers, but they also may be an integral part of a research team. Most work under pressure of deadlines and tight schedules, which may require overtime. Their routine may be interrupted by special requests for data and by the need to attend meetings or conferences. Frequent travel may be necessary"... :)
For now, I have to seize every single day with hard work passioned by perseverance, dedication, and blessings from God. bon courage pour moi.
As Benjamin F. Fairless said "What is the recipe for successful achievement? To my mind there are just four essential ingredients: Choose a career you love, give it the best there is in you, seize your opportunities, and be a member of the team"
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Finding Maddie
The reason of one's happiness in marriage. The gift from God.
Please don't take it away.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=453049&in_page_id=1770&ICO=NEWS&ICL=TOPART
Monday, May 07, 2007
Rich Kids and Scholarships?
[ I extended my highest gratitude in advance to a junior of mine back in A Level College whose the writer of the blog http://faizulmd.blogspot.com/ for allowing me to post this article ]
Why rich people still take scholarships although can afford not to?
Firstly, my intention is not to stir a controversy or create a conflict but it is to rationalise rich parents' decision on their kids taking up scholarships.
DEFINITIONS: My analysis will centre around 'rich' people who can afford to send their kids to overseas universities and can do so without any scholarship. Their 'kids' are people who undoubtedly have the merit to qualify for such a scholarship. The 'scholarship' is also one which entails an employment bond with summons if bond is broken.
So… why? If I was rich, lets call me Tan Sri Tengku daNN, I wouldn't want my kids to enter a scholarship contract if I can afford to pay for their education. Because later on, they would have to serve a very long bond, twice the average employment period in a private sector firm, with low salary. I would rather have them work for pure private firms, rather than government linked ones. Besides, my kid is a graduate from a top university with a top degree. Which employer wouldn’t want him/her? Unemployment is out of the question in this model.
Well… Theory 1 (which I think is the coolest): When bond is broken, summons paid to sponsor is exactly the nominal amount sponsor paid for education (half a million RM). So, the sponsor breaks even, in nominal terms. Fair enough.
But does it really break even? As a finance guy, I would say 'Hell No!'. The sponsor actually loses a significant amount of money. It forgo on the time value of money (it could have used the money to invest in a project) and it loses in real terms, because of inflation, but the time value of money is of course, a greater factor. Half a million ringgit worth of scholarship could have at least yielded an extra RM 55,000, interest compounded on a yearly basis for 3 years (equivalent period for university degree) at the most basic Bank Negara interest rate of 3.5%. So, a rich person, by telling his/her child to take up a scholarship, and then breaks the bond, actually earns a cost saving on the time value of money. It’s like a loan of RM 500,000 but without any interest. And when paying the summons, since the Future Value of a ringgit is more than the Present Value of a ringgit, and the summons is paid in the future, the Present Value of the summons settlement is in fact, less than the cost of education because the money used to pay for the summons could have earned interest for 3 years. Instead of putting aside RM 500,000, you only need to put aside RM 451,000 max, discounted using Bank Negara's OPR (basic interest rate).
That is super smart, in a finance-savvy kind of way. Which is a cool analysis, especially for finance people and economists since it assumes rationality, which is a sensible assumption.
Theory 2: Getting a scholarship is a Value in our society. It earns prestige and status. By having a scholarship, it 'signals' you’re smart or whatever (caveat: not always true). Time value of money doesn’t matter. This is a typical Sociologist's view.
Theory 3: Stingy parents. Want to save money just for the sake of maximising personal wealth without wanting children to have a better career. Can't rule out this possibility.
I am a profit maximising capitalist. I believe more in theory 1. Based on this premise, there could actually be huge policy implications. Firstly, to avoid this sort of 'rent seeking', sponsors should charge interest on defaulted bonds. The cost of default would increase and there would be less default. People who can afford, will no longer take up the scholarship (given the Present Value cost of default is greater than the Present Value cost of self sponsoring) and this leaves room to more working class, middle class and kampung people, who on average won't default because they can't afford to. This will then not only reduce the income gap but also sponsors make a 'Return on Scholarship', which is good for Wawasan 2020.So, tell me what do you think? Especially if your parents can totally afford but still signed your scholarship contract.But for now, don’t suggest sponsors to hike cost of default because I might want to consider doing that. Haha! Kidding. Actually, my rich friends might kill me.In my opinion, given Theory 1 holds, it is not wrong for rich kids to receive scholarships (given they qualify on merit) since it is actually the most rational and cost-minimising strategy to take. - daNN
[ Dann is an Accounting student in London School of Economics ]
Why rich people still take scholarships although can afford not to?
Firstly, my intention is not to stir a controversy or create a conflict but it is to rationalise rich parents' decision on their kids taking up scholarships.
DEFINITIONS: My analysis will centre around 'rich' people who can afford to send their kids to overseas universities and can do so without any scholarship. Their 'kids' are people who undoubtedly have the merit to qualify for such a scholarship. The 'scholarship' is also one which entails an employment bond with summons if bond is broken.
So… why? If I was rich, lets call me Tan Sri Tengku daNN, I wouldn't want my kids to enter a scholarship contract if I can afford to pay for their education. Because later on, they would have to serve a very long bond, twice the average employment period in a private sector firm, with low salary. I would rather have them work for pure private firms, rather than government linked ones. Besides, my kid is a graduate from a top university with a top degree. Which employer wouldn’t want him/her? Unemployment is out of the question in this model.
Well… Theory 1 (which I think is the coolest): When bond is broken, summons paid to sponsor is exactly the nominal amount sponsor paid for education (half a million RM). So, the sponsor breaks even, in nominal terms. Fair enough.
But does it really break even? As a finance guy, I would say 'Hell No!'. The sponsor actually loses a significant amount of money. It forgo on the time value of money (it could have used the money to invest in a project) and it loses in real terms, because of inflation, but the time value of money is of course, a greater factor. Half a million ringgit worth of scholarship could have at least yielded an extra RM 55,000, interest compounded on a yearly basis for 3 years (equivalent period for university degree) at the most basic Bank Negara interest rate of 3.5%. So, a rich person, by telling his/her child to take up a scholarship, and then breaks the bond, actually earns a cost saving on the time value of money. It’s like a loan of RM 500,000 but without any interest. And when paying the summons, since the Future Value of a ringgit is more than the Present Value of a ringgit, and the summons is paid in the future, the Present Value of the summons settlement is in fact, less than the cost of education because the money used to pay for the summons could have earned interest for 3 years. Instead of putting aside RM 500,000, you only need to put aside RM 451,000 max, discounted using Bank Negara's OPR (basic interest rate).
That is super smart, in a finance-savvy kind of way. Which is a cool analysis, especially for finance people and economists since it assumes rationality, which is a sensible assumption.
Theory 2: Getting a scholarship is a Value in our society. It earns prestige and status. By having a scholarship, it 'signals' you’re smart or whatever (caveat: not always true). Time value of money doesn’t matter. This is a typical Sociologist's view.
Theory 3: Stingy parents. Want to save money just for the sake of maximising personal wealth without wanting children to have a better career. Can't rule out this possibility.
I am a profit maximising capitalist. I believe more in theory 1. Based on this premise, there could actually be huge policy implications. Firstly, to avoid this sort of 'rent seeking', sponsors should charge interest on defaulted bonds. The cost of default would increase and there would be less default. People who can afford, will no longer take up the scholarship (given the Present Value cost of default is greater than the Present Value cost of self sponsoring) and this leaves room to more working class, middle class and kampung people, who on average won't default because they can't afford to. This will then not only reduce the income gap but also sponsors make a 'Return on Scholarship', which is good for Wawasan 2020.So, tell me what do you think? Especially if your parents can totally afford but still signed your scholarship contract.But for now, don’t suggest sponsors to hike cost of default because I might want to consider doing that. Haha! Kidding. Actually, my rich friends might kill me.In my opinion, given Theory 1 holds, it is not wrong for rich kids to receive scholarships (given they qualify on merit) since it is actually the most rational and cost-minimising strategy to take. - daNN
[ Dann is an Accounting student in London School of Economics ]
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Lebanon War and BTC?
[ The introduction part in our MNEs' economic impacts paperwork for module: N1B208 International Firms. By: Mohd Sharazad Saiful Bahri, Kamran Karbassi, Omer Kigili, Izer Yakuppur, Rosdanial Rosti, Chris Masters ]
"The Kremlin has been ‘disturbed’ by the decisions made by Mikhail Saakashvili; the President of Georgia since 2003, about his campaign to join NATO and the European Union (EU). Yet, despite this cold relationship between Georgia and Russia, the centre of attention lies upon Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan. It is a post-Soviet country with around 8 million people and most of the Shia Muslims, it has the biggest population. Not just that, it also has oil and gas which a consortium led by British Petroleum (BP) is extracting from the Caspian Sea and pumping through new pipelines across Georgia to Turkey and beyond. All the Caucasian economies are now picking up, recovering from the claw of communism and command economy – even corrupt Armenia’s, dependent though it mostly is on remittances. According to the finance minister, the 34.5% growth created by Azerbaijan’s second oil boom (the first was 100 years ago) was the highest in the world last year (The Economist, 2007)"
"The Caspian Sea is completely landlocked by Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran, and Azerbaijan. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC or “Baku-Ceyhan”) oil pipeline is a proposed pipeline that would span 1,056 miles from the Azerbaijan capital of Baku, through Tbilisi Georgia, ending in the Mediterranean city of Ceyhan, Turkey. British Petroleum (BP) is the lead sponsor; there are seven other participants. Construction is targeted to begin in autumn 2002; project operations are planned to commence by early 2005"
[The conclusion]
"Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline is an example of an operation by MNEs in the less developed countries yet at this point of our writing they are experiencing a developing economy. This project paper explains the economic impacts that BTC brought upon the respective countries. However, on the course of achieving an agreement for the construction of the pipeline, various disputes had to be cleared out by the main MNE which is BP. The disputes and campaigns organised especially by the ‘environmentalists’ served as a fact that ‘positive’ economic impacts from the MNEs’ promises should not be taken at ‘face value’. In reality, there is always the other side of the coin which is always the negative impacts of an operation by MNEs that would not be revealed to the public. It is a fact that every MNE does not want to tarnish its reputation in convincing the public about the impacts that they may bring upon. Nonetheless, in today’s time of conflicting and escalating wars especially in Iraq and the tense attention towards Tehran (both countries are in the rich area of oil), BTC keeps on ensuring that energy consumers in the South America particularly Brazil, Europe, Japan, China, and all around the globe will experience subtle impacts in the global industry market. Energy industry leaders will receive a useful case study of how they can conduct major energy projects in the future. Energy-producing and energy-transit countries around the Caspian will have new choices about how to reach markets. Citizens in the three host countries will experience both indirect benefits (wealthier state coffers) as well as direct benefits – employment, local procurement, community development, and other social investments. All along the way, from the first conceptual discussions in the 1990s to the present day, BTC and its positive impacts have contributed to the economy and people of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey. Its first delivery of 600,000 barrels of crude oil by tanker to Savona, Italy on 9th June 2006 was just the harbinger of all good things to come in the Caucasus region. As Lord Browne the Group Chief Executive of BP predicted prior to the operation, “We can have a measurable and positive impact on the biodiversity of the world”
Surprisingly, during the course of my research I found this article by Michel Chossudovsky; a professor in Ottawa who was one of the speakers in the Perdana Global Peace Forum held in Malaysia last year:
(source: http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=CHO20060726&articleId=2824)
"Water for Israel.. Also involved in this project is a pipeline to bring water to Israel, pumping water from upstream resources of the Tigris and Euphrates river system in Anatolia. This has been a long-run strategic objective of Israel to the detriment of Syria and Iraq. Israel's agenda with regard to water is supported by the military cooperation agreement between Tel Aviv and Ankara..
The Strategic Re-routing of Central Asian Oil... Diverting Central Asian oil and gas to the Eastern Mediterranean (under Israeli military protection), for re-export back to Asia, serves to undermine the inter-Asian energy market, which is based on the development of direct pipeline corridors linking Central Asia and Russia to South Asia, China and the Far East.
Ultimately, this design is intended to weaken Russia's role in Central Asia and cut off China from Central Asian oil resources. It is also intended to isolate Iran.
Meanwhile, Israel has emerged as a new powerful player in the global energy market.Russia's Military Presence in the Middle EastMeanwhile, Moscow has responded to the US-Israeli-Turkish design to militarize the East Mediterranean coastline with plans to establish a Russian naval base in the Syrian port of Tartus:
"Defense Ministry sources point out that a naval base in Tartus will enable Russia to solidify its positions in the Middle East and ensure security of Syria. Moscow intends to deploy an air defense system around the base - to provide air cover for the base itself and a substantial part of Syrian territory. (S-300PMU-2 Favorit systems will not be turned over to the Syrians. They will be manned and serviced by Russian personnel.) (Kommerzant, 2 June 2006, http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=IVA20060728&articleId=2847
Tartus is strategically located within 30 km. of the Lebanese border. Moreover, Moscow and Damascus have reached an agreement on the modernization of Syria's air defenses as well as a program in support to its ground forces, the modernization of its MIG-29 fighters as well as its submarines. (Kommerzant, 2 June 2006). In the context of an escalating conflict, these developments have farreaching implications.. "
And recently, The Independent UK on 2 May 2007 reported; "Lord Browne (born in Hamburg 1948, son of an Army officer and Auschwitz survivor) the chief executive of BP resigned yesterday in the aftermath of a torrid case of sex, lies and perjury. He lost 15m GBP and the right to keep his life private. Now he may face jail"
And now I fathom the business deals done on the back, dirty street.
Enron's Scandal
[ The conclusion part in our group report for module N1B307: Financial Reporting ]
"Based on the above analysis, it is very obvious in terms of profitability measured by ROCE that BT has the largest chunk of profits that can be invested back into the company for the benefit of shareholders. In a glance, it is the most successful growth company compared as descended by Cable & Wireless, Vodafone, and Kingston. Similarly, BT is also the most efficient company in controlling its production costs followed by Cable & Wireless, Kingston and Vodafone is the most inefficient company based on the profit margin. The positive relationship between a high ROCE and a high profit margin is resembled by BT and Cable & Wireless but one may argue this when we look upon the case of Vodafone and Kingston. Obviously, these two companies share the same negative relationship of the two profitability measurements. However, when it comes to how efficient a company is in utilising its resources invested in fixed assets and working capital we may conclude Kingston. Even though BT is the most successful company it falls behind Kingston in employing its assets but still ahead Cable & Wireless and Vodafone. In a nutshell, in this period of our analysis we may say BT is the most growing company so far and the least performed company is Vodafone. Nonetheless, our analysis involves only the element of profitability and excludes short-term liquidity and long-term liquidity. Since the difficulties of the recession in the late 1980s liquidity, both short term and long term, has increased in importance. One has to bear in mind, companies which are profitable but have poor short term or long liquidity measures, will not survive the troughs of the trade cycle. In contrast, companies which are not profitable but are cash rich, do not survive in the long term either. Such companies are taken over for their cash flow or by others who believe that they can improve the profitability of the business. Financial reporting shall also be reported within the context the political, business, and economic environment in which the business operates, as figures cannot do the transparent justice to the corporate world like what Enron did. All in all, any of these four companies which do succeed and survive over the long term (which is beyond our period of analysis), is the one who has a well-rounded financial profile, and the best performer in all aspects of financial analysis"
Enron's corporate scandal in relation to Arthur Andersen should not be repeated again. It was a blindly excessive pursue of short-term shareholders' value that ignored the long-run shareholders' value. This case stressed upon the importance of transparency in corporate governance.
Nottingham University Business School
Undergraduate Programmes
FINANCIAL REPORTING
Ratio Analysis in the UK Telecommunications Industry
by:
Mohd Sharazad SAIFUL BAHRI
Bilal Qamar SANDHU
Maria STROUTHOU
Egli EVANGELOU
Talha IBRAHIM
"Based on the above analysis, it is very obvious in terms of profitability measured by ROCE that BT has the largest chunk of profits that can be invested back into the company for the benefit of shareholders. In a glance, it is the most successful growth company compared as descended by Cable & Wireless, Vodafone, and Kingston. Similarly, BT is also the most efficient company in controlling its production costs followed by Cable & Wireless, Kingston and Vodafone is the most inefficient company based on the profit margin. The positive relationship between a high ROCE and a high profit margin is resembled by BT and Cable & Wireless but one may argue this when we look upon the case of Vodafone and Kingston. Obviously, these two companies share the same negative relationship of the two profitability measurements. However, when it comes to how efficient a company is in utilising its resources invested in fixed assets and working capital we may conclude Kingston. Even though BT is the most successful company it falls behind Kingston in employing its assets but still ahead Cable & Wireless and Vodafone. In a nutshell, in this period of our analysis we may say BT is the most growing company so far and the least performed company is Vodafone. Nonetheless, our analysis involves only the element of profitability and excludes short-term liquidity and long-term liquidity. Since the difficulties of the recession in the late 1980s liquidity, both short term and long term, has increased in importance. One has to bear in mind, companies which are profitable but have poor short term or long liquidity measures, will not survive the troughs of the trade cycle. In contrast, companies which are not profitable but are cash rich, do not survive in the long term either. Such companies are taken over for their cash flow or by others who believe that they can improve the profitability of the business. Financial reporting shall also be reported within the context the political, business, and economic environment in which the business operates, as figures cannot do the transparent justice to the corporate world like what Enron did. All in all, any of these four companies which do succeed and survive over the long term (which is beyond our period of analysis), is the one who has a well-rounded financial profile, and the best performer in all aspects of financial analysis"
Enron's corporate scandal in relation to Arthur Andersen should not be repeated again. It was a blindly excessive pursue of short-term shareholders' value that ignored the long-run shareholders' value. This case stressed upon the importance of transparency in corporate governance.
Nottingham University Business School
Undergraduate Programmes
FINANCIAL REPORTING
Ratio Analysis in the UK Telecommunications Industry
by:
Mohd Sharazad SAIFUL BAHRI
Bilal Qamar SANDHU
Maria STROUTHOU
Egli EVANGELOU
Talha IBRAHIM
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Coffee Shop Lesson
My Portuguese friend Ruben brought me a weekly Caffe Nero magazine while I was reading 'Prague: A Novel' on a pleaseant Saturday morning. Last week, when I was surfing the Caffe Nero website I came across the compliments or complaints section. As a regular customer at the outlet in Bridlesmith Gate overlooking Ted Baker, I wrote an email expressing my views on the service by the baristas since the day one I tasted its coffee. Ruben said Justina Virdee, who is the Head of Customer Services of Caffe Nero Group Plc chose to published my comments in their magazine three weeks in a row, as the best comments so far from its customers. I believe any kinds of service to the public, it shall be delivered in a professional manner, with a smile and warm attitude that ensures the satisfaction of the public. This is something that Malaysians in the public sector should ponder and improve on, after all these people are just baristas working in a coffee shop and earning minimum wages. Nonetheless, they never fail to smile and greet me.
Dziekuje (thank you) to Ruben, Eva, Greg, and the rest of the baristas. Bordza dobra robota (very good job)
;)
Subject:
RE: [NEWSENDER] - Thanks! - Message is from an unknown sender
Date:
Mon, 16 Apr 2007 09:23:04 +0100
From:
"Justina Virdee"
To:
"Saiful Bahri Mohd Sharazad"
YAHOO.Shortcuts.overlaySpaceId = "97546169";
YAHOO.Shortcuts.hostSpaceId = "97546168";
Hello Sharazad
Thank you for your email.
I am delighted to hear that you enjoy your visits to our Bridlesmith store in Nottingham . It’s great to receive such positive feedback from our customers. I will be sure to pass this onto our manager and team concerned. They will be equally delighted to read of your kind comments. I certainly hope that we can continue to serve you in the manner that you have come to expect.
Many thanks for your interest in Caffe Nero
Kind regards
Justina Virdee
Head of Customer Services
Caffe Nero Group Plc
Tel: 0207 520 5169
Email: justinav@caffenero.com
From: Saiful Bahri Mohd Sharazad [mailto:mohdsharazad@yahoo.com] Sent: 15 April 2007 21:39To: complimentsSubject: [NEWSENDER] - Thanks! - Message is from an unknown sender
Dear Caffe Nero team.
I would like to express my highest satisfaction and gratitude on its outlet service at Bridlesmith Gate Nottingham. I am an international student studying in University of Nottingham and Nero's would always be my regular spot to have a cup of caramelatte while studying or meeting up with friends. I am a regular customer and most of the baristas know me by now and their hospitality and greetings and sometimes accompanying me during breaktime have made me feel at home.
I have a suggestion here on the selection of music in Nero's; how about playing italian or eastern european music which is now starting to make its impact in the music world? and the soothing feeling in Nero's can be ambienced by playing some of the wonderful orchestra or classicals i believe.
Till now, kudos to Nero's.
Caramelatte will always be my favourite, and I hope the caffe will expand internationally, hopefully mark its first existence in my country, Malaysia !
Carpe diem,
Sharazad,
University of Nottingham
Dziekuje (thank you) to Ruben, Eva, Greg, and the rest of the baristas. Bordza dobra robota (very good job)
;)
Subject:
RE: [NEWSENDER] - Thanks! - Message is from an unknown sender
Date:
Mon, 16 Apr 2007 09:23:04 +0100
From:
"Justina Virdee"
To:
"Saiful Bahri Mohd Sharazad"
YAHOO.Shortcuts.overlaySpaceId = "97546169";
YAHOO.Shortcuts.hostSpaceId = "97546168";
Hello Sharazad
Thank you for your email.
I am delighted to hear that you enjoy your visits to our Bridlesmith store in Nottingham . It’s great to receive such positive feedback from our customers. I will be sure to pass this onto our manager and team concerned. They will be equally delighted to read of your kind comments. I certainly hope that we can continue to serve you in the manner that you have come to expect.
Many thanks for your interest in Caffe Nero
Kind regards
Justina Virdee
Head of Customer Services
Caffe Nero Group Plc
Tel: 0207 520 5169
Email: justinav@caffenero.com
From: Saiful Bahri Mohd Sharazad [mailto:mohdsharazad@yahoo.com] Sent: 15 April 2007 21:39To: complimentsSubject: [NEWSENDER] - Thanks! - Message is from an unknown sender
Dear Caffe Nero team.
I would like to express my highest satisfaction and gratitude on its outlet service at Bridlesmith Gate Nottingham. I am an international student studying in University of Nottingham and Nero's would always be my regular spot to have a cup of caramelatte while studying or meeting up with friends. I am a regular customer and most of the baristas know me by now and their hospitality and greetings and sometimes accompanying me during breaktime have made me feel at home.
I have a suggestion here on the selection of music in Nero's; how about playing italian or eastern european music which is now starting to make its impact in the music world? and the soothing feeling in Nero's can be ambienced by playing some of the wonderful orchestra or classicals i believe.
Till now, kudos to Nero's.
Caramelatte will always be my favourite, and I hope the caffe will expand internationally, hopefully mark its first existence in my country, Malaysia !
Carpe diem,
Sharazad,
University of Nottingham
www.caffenero.com
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Ahoj, Slovakia
(click on the map to enlarge)The plane took off from East Midlands Airport, United Kingdom like an eagle flying across the horizon en route to Bratislava International Airport, Slovakia. On the plane, the mixed feelings of curiosity and eagerness made a butterfly swing in my stomach as on this date 25 March 2007 will witness the start of my solo excursion through Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Poland, and Czech Republic. Everyone on the plane seemed to be heading to Vienna once Ryan Air landed on Bratislava International Airport, and as seconds passed by I almost succumbed to the decision not to go ahead with this solo excursion discovering the hidden charm of these Eastern European countries. I fought this failure temptation, kept on reminding my mind, go ahead with this. I kept on singing this line, and this was the only train of thought running on my mind while the plane flew across Germany;
“…the first condition of right thought is right sensation – the first condition of understanding a foreign country is to smell it…” – T.S. Elliot, ‘Rudyard Kipling’
I walked through the arrival gate, and my first instinct was to catch the bus no. 61 to Bratislava Hlavna Stanica (main train station). I went to the information counter and a Slovak young woman with a short, black hair assisted me on the location to catch the bus. She was not that friendly as a person who works in providing information to the public should be, and her littleness of English may be the reason perhaps. I saw the bus stand, and I saw this word ‘Wien’. I made a quick guess; Wien must be the word for the main train station in Slovak. Having satisfied with my wild guess, I put down my North Face’s Tetra 40 on the ground and felt the relief on my back. It was my only luggage throughout this journey, with my clothes, four packets of energy bar, Eastern European Lonely Planet guidebook, hostels leaflets, and other important documents all inside it. As seconds passed by, the bus stand was full of people waiting for the same bus. A tall, young woman wearing a cap with the typical Eastern European flair stood beside me. Losing my patience for the bus no. 61, I made a random asking which I believed is essential throughout my one week backpacking days;
“Do you speak English?”
The woman nodded with a smile, and I was relieved yet surprised with her ability to speak English. The assumption that communication would be the main challenge for me to smell the charm of these post-Soviet countries slowly drained away. She showed a ticket machine nearby which I could buy the ticket and as I realised I had no change to put into the machine’s slot, she told me she had to go as the bus had arrived. I examined carefully the Slovak Koruna notes (1 GBP equals to 49.0 Slovak Koruna), like Robinson Crusoe who had just found a plate of well-cooked steak in the middle of an isolated island. I had a problem, to get the change to use this machine. While I was staring at the machine hoping that it would accept Koruna notes at least once for a traveller like me, I realised few other backpackers behind me were in the same shoes as mine. Without any greetings, we discussed about how to change the notes in English as if we were friends before and this kind of mutual understanding and friendliness cleared out any thorns in my journey from this day. We shared the same ambition, we had decided to go out of our comfort zone, to discover other countries which were beyond our eyes and comprehension, and we had to be mentally strong and helping out each other, even though I knew this encounter was the first and last in my life. This short meeting encountered me with an American couple who were students; just arrived in Bratislava from somewhere in Central Europe, a confident and energetic Scottish student from Glasgow who has been backpacking alone for almost two weeks, and three Spanish students who by coincidence in the same university of mine in Nottingham on the Erasmus program for a year. After getting the required change from the information counter, I hold my ticket with an enthusiasm like a child holding an ice-cream with a flake. Once the bus had arrived, we got on it without any hesitation. The bus cruised along Trnavska Cesta, the main road leading towards the main train station. The Spanish guys and the Scottish guy got off from the bus earlier than my destination, and I asked the two passengers in front of me;
“Ahoj. Hmm, Hlavna Stanica?” like a man who had just learnt to speak Slovak bit by bit.
The two men answered me in Slovak which was all Greek to me, and the only thing that I could understand was the man’s finger pointing further ahead and his advice for me to sit back. I smiled, and said “D’akujem”.
When the sight of a rundown-seemed-to-be a train station appeared to me, one of the men turned his head towards me and gave me a smile that was Hlavna Stanica. He talked in broken English, “This is the train station”. Appreciating his effort, I once again bid him “D’akujem” which means “Thank You”. I looked at my watch, and it was half to 9 at night. Realising that I had to set my watch one hour in advance according to GMT, I felt the urge to walk fast to the counter and ask about the train time to Budapest, Hungary. I had the European Rail Timetable by Thomas Cook and also the Inter Rail Pass which I could use for unlimited travel by train in Zone D countries but I did not know how to use them as this was my first experience. However, the easiness in getting information from the information counter shall be put at edge as the woman whom I tried to talk to did not speak English at all. I looked at my watch, and it was almost 10 o’clock at night. I looked around, few citizens wearing soldierly-clad uniform passed by and staring at me, really perplexed me on their taste of attire, few Roma (wikipedia.com - an ethnic group living in many communities all over the world. The Roma are among the best known ethnic groups that appear in literature and folklore, and are often referred to as gypsies or gipsies, a term that is based on a mistaken belief of an origin in Egypt. The Roma are still thought of as wandering nomads, but most Roma today live settled in permanent housing. This widely dispersed ethnic group lives across the world not only near their historic roots in Southern and Eastern Europe, but also Western Asia, Latin America, the United States and the Middle East) who just wandering around the train station and staring at me like tigers who by any time looking for their prey, homeless and poor old men and women lying down near the heater as if it was the most luxurious item in their life, a crying woman approached by asking me “Do you speak English?” and asking for money to buy her train ticket, a Vietnamese who tried his best to gain my sympathy to get few euro from me by showing his passport, laid upon me his story about an Asian should help an Asian; as he did not have enough money for his train to Poprad (located in north-central of Slovakia) and all of these made my heart beating fast, added by the dilemma of ‘staring at people with undefined intention’. I tried not to observe the people, and I observed the train station instead. It was an old train station with the information board and its big clock operated manually, reminded me of the old photos of Tanah Melayu (Malaysia) in the 60’s, and its big ceiling just above the main departure gate leading towards its platforms was decorated by a painting of different priests with a little Baroque element like one could see in a Gothic church. I was trying to get the message out of it, a man with a white robe reaching his hand out to the sky, a child playing with a bird, few people surrounding a singing woman; but to no avail. After all, this was just my attention in escaping the night crowd at Hlavna Stanica.
[further writings are in progress]
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Je Vais Bien
Ever since childhood.. I have seldom heard a train go by and not wished I was on it. Those whistles sing bewitchment: railways are irresistible bazaars, making along perfectly level no matter what the landscape, improving your mood with speed, and never upsetting your drink. The train can reassure you in awful places - a far cry from the anxious sweats of doom aeroplanes inspire, or the nauseating gas-sickness of the long-distance bus, or the paralysis that afflicts the car passenger. If a train is large and comfortable you don't even need a destination; a corner seat is enough, and you can be one of these travellers who stay in motion, straddling the tracks, and never arrive or feel they ought to - Paul Theroux in The Great Railway Bazaar
1 Pound Sterling - 49.0 Slovak Koruna
- 10.86 Croatian Kuna
- 3.0 Bosnia-Herzegovina Convertible Mark
- 362 Hungarian Forint
- 5.71 Polish Zloty
- 41.5 Czech Koruna
I am mentally preparing for my solitary journey through the city of Bratislava, down to Zagreb, crossing the border of Bosnia-Herzegovina towards Sarajevo, then up north along Danube River towards Budapest, to Krakow, then to Prague's Old Royal Palace; once the sane of Bohemian banquets and indoor jousting tournaments.
My dearest companion along the journey will be my only pen and notebook.
I travel in silence, but the words will forever tell my stories.
ps: I have learned something in my French class today. The norm that we heard 'Mayday Mayday' which is the international distress call is actually a French word M'aider M'aider; which means Help Me Help Me. Oh, do not taint the beauty of this language ;)
" La semaine dernière, j'étais occupé avec le diner annuel des malaisiens ànottingham. le matin, j'ai ammené des assistants et des équipements en voiturede Dunkirk, St. Peter's Court, etRaleigh à Portland Building et King's Meadow Campus. J'avais appelé le servicede minibus auparavant de m'aider. Je restais à Portland pour aider les autrespréparer la halle pour le theatre. A midi, je suis allé déjeuné avec mes amis.Nous avons joué au foot à jubilee campus. Après, je suis retourné à l'universitévers 18h30. Les invitées sont arrivées autour de 20h00 et le theatre a commencéà 20h30. Les invitées ont dû monter dans les buses pour y aller. Il a terminé à23h00. Après, mes amis et moi sommes allé manger légèrement et boire. Nous avonsdiscuté jusqu'au le lendemain matin. Pour le reste de la journée, j'étais trèsoccupé et fatigué "
Monday, March 19, 2007
Flakes in Spring
Copyright: Central Park, New York The flowers are starting to bloom, and spring is just around the corner. It was five o'clock in the morning, the wind brushed a teething sound on the window, and I was thinking all alone in darkness. I sent a message to a friend of mine, informing her of my solitude train of thoughts.
Sharazad : Have you ever felt that at this time of hour when everyone is asleep and the silence can be broken even with the brushes of the wind on the window..that this world seems to be in total boredom? When you think and ponder on the deepest purpose of our life, trying to find the answers...
Jennifer Friis : I think about that too! It is only when its really quiet that one can confront thoughts like this. Today as it snowed I wondered what purpose it had in the middle of spring.. surely God had something in mind.. and if He could make it snow to fulfil his plan and purpose for something else, He must be causing something to happen in my life to fulfil later the plan He has for me..reminded me why I get up in the morning, especially wen I feel bored with life! I hope u find ur answers u early bird xx
Yup, it did snow in spring.
How miracle it is, when the mind does the seeing.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Ball
I am learning on how to juggle the daily life routines with work.
To do the groceries, to clean up the room and kitchen, to contribute to the society in the university, group and individual paperwork, to meet and mingle around the internationals in this university, and the top of them all; to play football at least once a week.
Yup, the seem-too-fast passing time shall never stolen away the minutes of playing football.
After all, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. No?
This is how I play my university life. After all, I have nothing to lose. The pressure shall be narrowed into my base of improvement as time goes on.
As Benjamin Spock (American pediatrician
1903-1998)said "A child loves his play, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard"
To do the groceries, to clean up the room and kitchen, to contribute to the society in the university, group and individual paperwork, to meet and mingle around the internationals in this university, and the top of them all; to play football at least once a week.
Yup, the seem-too-fast passing time shall never stolen away the minutes of playing football.
After all, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. No?
This is how I play my university life. After all, I have nothing to lose. The pressure shall be narrowed into my base of improvement as time goes on.
As Benjamin Spock (American pediatrician
1903-1998)said "A child loves his play, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard"
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Malaysian Night 2007
(Photos: Yi Ning and Phil Jackson's Copyright)
Wayfarers all of us be,
Spirits of Hang Tuah, Cheng Ho, and Gandhi,
The golden tales we present once and only,
The pride of the Sultan undoubtedly,
The beauty of Puteri Gunung Ledang, heavenly,
The wily Raja Bersiong the Fanged King, wickedly,
Dwelling anger of Hang Jebat ferociously,
Share this lifetime cup of tea,
Rise to this glittering promise, a memory" (Sharazad)
Event Details
Date: 10th March 2007
Time: 5.30 pm for Dinner
8.00 pm Play starts
Venues:
Portland Building for Dinner
King's Meadow Campus for Play
Theme: Mythical Malaysia
Dresscode:
Formal / Traditional
Price:
£15 (Dinner and Play)
£8 (Play only, early booking)
£10 (Play only, at the door)
* Those who attend will have a chance of winning a lucky draw prize of a ticket to Europe worth £ 499!
"Across the North Sea,
Date: 10th March 2007
Time: 5.30 pm for Dinner
8.00 pm Play starts
Venues:
Portland Building for Dinner
King's Meadow Campus for Play
Theme: Mythical Malaysia
Dresscode:
Formal / Traditional
Price:
£15 (Dinner and Play)
£8 (Play only, early booking)
£10 (Play only, at the door)
* Those who attend will have a chance of winning a lucky draw prize of a ticket to Europe worth £ 499!
"Across the North Sea,
Wayfarers all of us be,
Soil of Malaya whence we tell thee,
Spirits of Hang Tuah, Cheng Ho, and Gandhi,
The golden tales we present once and only,
The pride of the Sultan undoubtedly,
The beauty of Puteri Gunung Ledang, heavenly,
The wily Raja Bersiong the Fanged King, wickedly,
Dwelling anger of Hang Jebat ferociously,
Share this lifetime cup of tea,
Anew wilful wisdom worldly-wit we shall see,
Rise to this glittering promise, a memory" (Sharazad)
Thanks to all, without every one of you, this would not be such a memory.
Monday, February 26, 2007
Cymru Am Byth
A man, a woman, and a small young boy entered the carriage, videlicet they are a family boarding the train at King's Cross Station London. I just comfortably sat down on my seat and I was fashionably early. There were only the family and I on the train and the their seats were just across the aisle to my left. I started to search for my magazine to kill off the time en route to Nottingham when I realised that the man was not going to travel with the woman and the small young boy. Curiosity arose, I looked at the man's face through the corner of my eyes, pretending like I am the statue of liberty sitting down with no particular interest in what was happening around me. The face of the man showed a glimpse of sadness, maybe because he had to stay in London for some work I supposed. Then he came in, with the angelic voice he could made he told his boy to come again next week. He asked whether the boy enjoyed the football match at Upton Park, and he nodded in silence with an air of innocence. The woman just ignored the man. I assumed both of them were divorced and now living separately, taking turns out of each other to show their hopeless love due to their negligence to smell the roses of marriage. Few minutes had passed by and it was about time for the train to rattle its way up north to the midlands. Who loves sayonara? However, everyone at least once in the phase of this life cannot run away from saying goodbye and refrain from the tears if not in the eyes deep in the heart of missing or not seeing someone for a long period of time. However, what was happening was the most cruel moments I could never want to swallow, as the woman deliberately attracting the boy's intention by asking him random questions in order not to let the boy fathom how much does his father love him as he waved endlessly towards the young face that would never at least turned and waved back at him. Oh how the illusion and ignorance of adulthood tainted the innocence, leaving the boy hanging for a split second to witness his father's love.
Maybe I am too observant.
Maybe I am thinking too much by observing every moment, every movement all around me.
Inter alia, perhaps I have to be ignorant?
Yesterday, I made my way towards Caerdydd, Cymru (Cardiff, Wales). Vis-a-vis the previous experience, on the train to Cardiff I observed the example of a joie de vivre. A lovely old couple sat beside me. How the old woman treated her husband, serving him sandwiches and politely conversing with him really flattered the inner of me as I was reading along the lines of my lecture notes on Industrial Economics A. How both of them exchanging ideas and appreciation about the scenery painted on the windows as Central Train made its way across the countryside towards Gloucester.
Maybe their appreciation on memento mori make them to really appreciate each other and the smallest of small things perhaps? How the fact that death is just around the corner makes them to capture every second in carpe diem perhaps?
Life.
Croeso (welcome!) to Caerdyyd, Cymru (Cardiff, Wales). Due to the recent fatal train crash in Cumbria en route to Glasgow which killed an old woman and severely injured 11 people there were intensive maintenance and 'Kilroy wuz ere' work on the signals along the tracks all over Great Britain. I arrived about one and a half hour late and after filling up the complaint form (the passengers are entitled to get the money back if the train arrived late more than an hour) I ran into Millennium Stadium to be part of the blues in the Carling Cup Final 2007.
And 'she' made her own way ;)
[The Kooks - She Makes Her Own Way]
Maybe I am too observant.
Maybe I am thinking too much by observing every moment, every movement all around me.
Inter alia, perhaps I have to be ignorant?
Yesterday, I made my way towards Caerdydd, Cymru (Cardiff, Wales). Vis-a-vis the previous experience, on the train to Cardiff I observed the example of a joie de vivre. A lovely old couple sat beside me. How the old woman treated her husband, serving him sandwiches and politely conversing with him really flattered the inner of me as I was reading along the lines of my lecture notes on Industrial Economics A. How both of them exchanging ideas and appreciation about the scenery painted on the windows as Central Train made its way across the countryside towards Gloucester.
Maybe their appreciation on memento mori make them to really appreciate each other and the smallest of small things perhaps? How the fact that death is just around the corner makes them to capture every second in carpe diem perhaps?
Life.
Croeso (welcome!) to Caerdyyd, Cymru (Cardiff, Wales). Due to the recent fatal train crash in Cumbria en route to Glasgow which killed an old woman and severely injured 11 people there were intensive maintenance and 'Kilroy wuz ere' work on the signals along the tracks all over Great Britain. I arrived about one and a half hour late and after filling up the complaint form (the passengers are entitled to get the money back if the train arrived late more than an hour) I ran into Millennium Stadium to be part of the blues in the Carling Cup Final 2007.
And 'she' made her own way ;)
[The Kooks - She Makes Her Own Way]
I had nasi lemak at Bali restaurant in the city centre. There were lots of English people started to coming into the restaurant to satisfy their exotic hunger and taste. After explaining what is nasi lemak to the two men beside my table, he asked me whether I am from Malaysia. I said yes. When I was about to leave, the big man who was eating satay and could not resist to tell his friend "this is delicious" asked me did I come all the way from Malaysia to watch Chelsea in the final? Laziness crept in and I just said yes. Out of the blue he told all the Chelsea fans in the restaurtant;
"This chap came from Malaysia to watch Chelsea in the final!!!"
Haha. I was speechless and to share his delight I showed him the spirit of Chelsea as I walked out of the restaurant with exchanged of smiles between us. How great it is to know how the foreign people know the existence of my country and I am proud of the soil.
I boarded Arriva (Welsh train) and made changes in Gloucester and Cheltenham Spa and stranded for an hour at Birmingham New Street. The thought of being the only Malaysian on the trains full of the real 'English' people really made me cold in the feet and at times it made me smile to my own reflection on the window door as I sat down on the floor, listening to various English slang I have not heard of before.
And I smiled, how Chelsea and Arsenal shirts were mixed together throughout the carriages from Cardiff, that couldn't have happened 10 years ago.
Llanfairpwllgwyngyll or Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, also spelt Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll and commonly known as Llanfair PG or Llanfairpwll, is a village and community on the island of Anglesey in Wales, situated on the Menai Strait next to Menai Bridge and across the strait from Bangor. It is the longest place name in the UK. A translation into English would yield "St Mary's church in the hollow of the white hazel near to the rapid whirlpool and the church of St Tysilio of the red cave".
The English name for Wales originates from the Germanic word Walha, meaning "stranger" or "foreigner", probably derived from the name Volcae. The term also appears in the "-wall" of Cornwall. The Welsh themselves called themselves Cymry, "compatriots", and named their country Cymru, which is thought to have meant "Land of the Compatriots" in Old Welsh; this has reference to their awareness that they were the original countrymen of Wales, and indeed Britain by virtue of their ancestors the Brythoniaid (Brythons), and also in order to distinguish themselves from the foreign invaders of Britain, the Saeson (English) and the Gaels (Irish). There is also a mediaeval legend found in the Historia Regum Britanniae of Sieffre o Fynwy (Geoffrey of Monmouth) that derives it from the name Camber, son of Brutus and, according to the legend, the eponymous King of Cymru (Cambria in Latin); this however was largely the fruit of Geoffrey's vivid imagination. Cumberland and Cumbria in the north of England derive their names from the same Old Welsh word.
ps: Cymru Am Byth = Wales Forever.
and merci beacoup to Apu, the dearest friend I ever had.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Vive La Différence
You could be at your desk.
On the train.
In the lift.
At the sales.
Gardening.
Queueing.
Showering.
Jogging.
Even counting sheep.
We don't mind how you do your best thinking, as long as you do it.
Mostly because it means you're already like us.
You're not afraid of questioning the norm, or of giving other people your point of view.
The prospect of working on out-there projects for up-three clients doesn't make you quake in your boots.
Like the rest of us, you want to be challenged and pushed right out of your comfort zone.
The end result is that our thoughts change how the world works.
We broaden our minds on a daily basis.
We're pretty certain you're unlikely to find training and development opportunities that stretch you quite like ours will.
You could find yourself using technology in a way it's never been used before.
Or being told on a Friday night that you start a new project in Newcastle on Monday morning.
There's always going to be a lot happening.
And a great deal that makes you think - ACCENTURE
Having participated in the HSBC Business Challenge during my first year in University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus in 2006 served as a platform for me to work in the real world of banking and finance. The award of Trustee of the Year 2006 by International Securitisation Report (ISR) received by HSBC's Corporate Trust and Loan Agency (CTLA) business further strengthened its status as the truly local and global solutions to the clients from all over the world. In light of globalisation, the banking and finance industry is developing in a fast-changing environment and HSBC proves its ability to be the leader, driven by its dynamic worldwide workforce . My undergraduate course Industrial Economics with optionals like Financial Management and Management Accounting needs the real enrichment to apply and contribute my knowledge, and HSBC Corporate Banking is the ideal platform. In addition, globalisation brings about the different nationalities all around the world to cooperate, work, and learn from each other to keep on generating the corporate banking industry. The emergence of China and India proved my point to nurture my ability and career skills with other nationalities, and with offices in 76 countries, HSBC is one of the world s largest banking and financial services organisations; this is my golden chance to contribute and be part of the community wherever HSBC do the business. To gain experience during my internship in HSBC will develop myself to be a well rounded student, as David Kappler said experience is the most important quality.
Ian Christison the CIMA president once said, "chartered management accountants are leaders. We demonstrate our leadership in our approach to the profession and in our relationships with major stakeholders, most significantly, employers". Based on his saying, to work in a team group during my academic term will always be like the real test in working in a banking and finance industry. Globalisation brings about the importance of working with different nationalities. My group and I participated in the HSBC Business Challenge 2006 in Malaysia and my responsibility as a leader was to be professional in discussion to accept the views and ideas from the members. I also believe in the fun of the task that we have to accomplish, to work in a prosperous environment. Yes, different people will present different ideas and I believe the consensus shall be achieved based on the relevant and critical elements of all the ideas, and teamwork provides a pool of ideas that is also a reflection of a highly grounded, dynamic, healthy, and successful organisation. In 2006/07, my group and I from Nottingham Business School participate in the Global Management Challenge United Kingdom brought by Hobsons Graduate Employment, and to engage in the real world business proves the importance of a dynamic team working. I believe the different approaches and abilities from different members will bring about the positive outcome in any consensus that we shall make, and the most important aspect is we can contribute and learn from each other.
If people don't get to know each other first, there's a good chance the relationship won't last.
Vive la différence.
Robert Burns (January 25, 1759 – July 21, 1796) was a poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best-known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English and a 'light' Scots dialect which would have been accessible to a wider audience than simply Scottish people. At various times in his career, he wrote in English, and in these pieces, his political or civil commentary is often at its most blunt.
Burns is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement and after his death, he became an important source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism. A cultural icon in Scotland and among Scots who have relocated to other parts of the world (the Scottish diaspora), his celebration became almost a national charismatic cult during periods of the 19th and 20th centuries, and his influence has long been strong on Scottish literature.
Burns also collected folk songs from across Scotland, often revising or adapting them. His poem (and song) "Auld Lang Syne" is often sung at Hogmanay (New Year), and "Scots Wha Hae" served for a long time as an unofficial national anthem of the country. Other poems and songs of Burns that remain well-known across the world today, include "A Red, Red Rose", "A Man's A Man for A' That", "To a Louse" and "To a Mouse".
Burns' Night, effectively a second national day, is celebrated on 25 January with Burns' Suppers around the world, and is still more widely observed than the official national day, Saint Andrew's Day, or the proposed North American celebration Tartan Day. The format of Burn's supper has not changed since Robert's death in 1796. The basic format starts with a general welcome and anouncements followed with the Selkirk Grace. Just post the grace comes the piping and cutting of the Haggis, where Robert's famous ode To a Hagis is read, and the haggis is cut open. The event usually allows for people to start eating just after the haggis is presented. This is where the reading called the "immortal memmory" which is an over-view of Robert's life and work is given. Lastly the event will usually conclude with the singing of Auld Lang Syne - wikipedia.org
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!
For auld lang syne, my dear, For auld lang syne.
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
And surely ye'll be your pint stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o'kindness yet,
For auld lang syne. For auld, &c.
We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.
We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.
And there's a hand, my trusty fere!
And gie's a hand o' thine!
And we'll tak a right gude-willie waught,
For auld lang syne. For auld, &c.
On the train.
In the lift.
At the sales.
Gardening.
Queueing.
Showering.
Jogging.
Even counting sheep.
We don't mind how you do your best thinking, as long as you do it.
Mostly because it means you're already like us.
You're not afraid of questioning the norm, or of giving other people your point of view.
The prospect of working on out-there projects for up-three clients doesn't make you quake in your boots.
Like the rest of us, you want to be challenged and pushed right out of your comfort zone.
The end result is that our thoughts change how the world works.
We broaden our minds on a daily basis.
We're pretty certain you're unlikely to find training and development opportunities that stretch you quite like ours will.
You could find yourself using technology in a way it's never been used before.
Or being told on a Friday night that you start a new project in Newcastle on Monday morning.
There's always going to be a lot happening.
And a great deal that makes you think - ACCENTURE
Having participated in the HSBC Business Challenge during my first year in University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus in 2006 served as a platform for me to work in the real world of banking and finance. The award of Trustee of the Year 2006 by International Securitisation Report (ISR) received by HSBC's Corporate Trust and Loan Agency (CTLA) business further strengthened its status as the truly local and global solutions to the clients from all over the world. In light of globalisation, the banking and finance industry is developing in a fast-changing environment and HSBC proves its ability to be the leader, driven by its dynamic worldwide workforce . My undergraduate course Industrial Economics with optionals like Financial Management and Management Accounting needs the real enrichment to apply and contribute my knowledge, and HSBC Corporate Banking is the ideal platform. In addition, globalisation brings about the different nationalities all around the world to cooperate, work, and learn from each other to keep on generating the corporate banking industry. The emergence of China and India proved my point to nurture my ability and career skills with other nationalities, and with offices in 76 countries, HSBC is one of the world s largest banking and financial services organisations; this is my golden chance to contribute and be part of the community wherever HSBC do the business. To gain experience during my internship in HSBC will develop myself to be a well rounded student, as David Kappler said experience is the most important quality.
Ian Christison the CIMA president once said, "chartered management accountants are leaders. We demonstrate our leadership in our approach to the profession and in our relationships with major stakeholders, most significantly, employers". Based on his saying, to work in a team group during my academic term will always be like the real test in working in a banking and finance industry. Globalisation brings about the importance of working with different nationalities. My group and I participated in the HSBC Business Challenge 2006 in Malaysia and my responsibility as a leader was to be professional in discussion to accept the views and ideas from the members. I also believe in the fun of the task that we have to accomplish, to work in a prosperous environment. Yes, different people will present different ideas and I believe the consensus shall be achieved based on the relevant and critical elements of all the ideas, and teamwork provides a pool of ideas that is also a reflection of a highly grounded, dynamic, healthy, and successful organisation. In 2006/07, my group and I from Nottingham Business School participate in the Global Management Challenge United Kingdom brought by Hobsons Graduate Employment, and to engage in the real world business proves the importance of a dynamic team working. I believe the different approaches and abilities from different members will bring about the positive outcome in any consensus that we shall make, and the most important aspect is we can contribute and learn from each other.
If people don't get to know each other first, there's a good chance the relationship won't last.
Vive la différence.
Robert Burns (January 25, 1759 – July 21, 1796) was a poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best-known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English and a 'light' Scots dialect which would have been accessible to a wider audience than simply Scottish people. At various times in his career, he wrote in English, and in these pieces, his political or civil commentary is often at its most blunt.
Burns is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement and after his death, he became an important source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism. A cultural icon in Scotland and among Scots who have relocated to other parts of the world (the Scottish diaspora), his celebration became almost a national charismatic cult during periods of the 19th and 20th centuries, and his influence has long been strong on Scottish literature.
Burns also collected folk songs from across Scotland, often revising or adapting them. His poem (and song) "Auld Lang Syne" is often sung at Hogmanay (New Year), and "Scots Wha Hae" served for a long time as an unofficial national anthem of the country. Other poems and songs of Burns that remain well-known across the world today, include "A Red, Red Rose", "A Man's A Man for A' That", "To a Louse" and "To a Mouse".
Burns' Night, effectively a second national day, is celebrated on 25 January with Burns' Suppers around the world, and is still more widely observed than the official national day, Saint Andrew's Day, or the proposed North American celebration Tartan Day. The format of Burn's supper has not changed since Robert's death in 1796. The basic format starts with a general welcome and anouncements followed with the Selkirk Grace. Just post the grace comes the piping and cutting of the Haggis, where Robert's famous ode To a Hagis is read, and the haggis is cut open. The event usually allows for people to start eating just after the haggis is presented. This is where the reading called the "immortal memmory" which is an over-view of Robert's life and work is given. Lastly the event will usually conclude with the singing of Auld Lang Syne - wikipedia.org
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!
For auld lang syne, my dear, For auld lang syne.
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
And surely ye'll be your pint stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o'kindness yet,
For auld lang syne. For auld, &c.
We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.
We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.
And there's a hand, my trusty fere!
And gie's a hand o' thine!
And we'll tak a right gude-willie waught,
For auld lang syne. For auld, &c.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Ain't Left Behind
US Media group Viacom (the owner of MTV and Paramount Pictures) is to provide free content to video website Joost (the founder of Skype), just weeks after demanding that YouTube (bought by Google) to remove more that 100,000 copyright video clips. In the music industry, Warner Music is making its way to acquire EMI (and the former is in a prosperous inter-industry relation with MTV) ;p.
I believe there must be some sort of 'under the table' business planning ;p
Daily readings that shape my joie de vivre, the harbinger of corporate and business skills that I need to hone along my career building -
The Independent UK Newspaper
The Economist
Financial Times
Wall Street Journal
Financial Management
Reader's Digest
It is no easy task. But all of us believe if there are commitment and perseverance, it shall develop towards habitual habit.
I believe there must be some sort of 'under the table' business planning ;p
Daily readings that shape my joie de vivre, the harbinger of corporate and business skills that I need to hone along my career building -
The Independent UK Newspaper
The Economist
Financial Times
Wall Street Journal
Financial Management
Reader's Digest
It is no easy task. But all of us believe if there are commitment and perseverance, it shall develop towards habitual habit.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
He Smiles
There is an event on Creative Writing/British Media Awareness Training Session tomorrow at Malaysia Hall London, organised by UKEC in cooperation with the Malaysian Students Department UK and Eire. The respective speaker is Mr Wan Ahmad Hulaimi, the former NST correspondent for London and Europe.
Sadly, it is on Tuesday.
Unless the event is nigh to my place, any excuses to miss this are deeply unfathomable. Lest to miss the golden views from the speaker, I shall convey a bird to bring me back a letter of wisdom from what the event may bring.
Kudos to the rest who are going to spend their Tuesday for this.
Upon this posting, shall of us take a few minutes to ponder on something that is a certain in this life, but the enjoyment in life always do the injustice in reminding us about this.
Death.
It is not a moment of sadness, it is the moment for us to remind about it. And certainly, appreciate death.
I witnessed death at a young age when my friend and I promised to each other that I am going to be his best man when he gets married and likewise for my occasion.
Out of the blue, it was like a slap on my face.
Yup, it was painful and the sky fell on me when the incident happened. However, a wise mind will think and reflect on death.
I believe, that knowing your life has an endpoint will help you appreciate every moment your alive.
And, death helps you understand life's precious gifts. Every single of it, even the one we rarely think of. Anything. Anything.
It makes me wiser, I want to grow through life. I do not want to just go through life. Mark this dichotomy.
The world flashed its teeth to me in 2003, four years ago.
LOVE STORY FOR KAKAK
By Nanim (a piece written by my secondary school mate, who is now pursuing her dreams in journalism)
My sister asked me to tell her a love story, any love story for that matter, to give her some ideas on what to write for her assignment.
Love story. Uhh. I shudder to think of the word love.
Lest u think I’m a sceptic, oh I’ve been in relationships before. I have known love and love has known me. However, for some reason, love has eluded me, or rather, I have ran away from love.
You see, I had a very tragic first love. Ah... the mere mention of first love... brings back the memories, doesn’t it?
I was 13 when I met him. We were young, naïve and foolish. He wasn’t the best looking guy in school, nor was he the richest. Well, he was well off, but there were better looking guys compared to him.
His name was Ryan.
You see, I was infatuated with another boy, and Ryan was initially enlisted to help me win the attention of the boy I liked. I would look for him before, in between and after class everyday to know more about my dream guy, his likes and dislikes, what he did in class, little things like that. And Ryan was more than willing to indulge me with the information.
But little did I know, we would start sharing the same interests. He loved grunge – the music was so popular back in the 90s, I thought KL was Seattle – and I was into the genre too. We liked the same movies, the same comics, and we have the same favourite colour and the same favourite number. In fact, we even shared the same birth date, except that we’re 5 months apart.
So anyways, the infatuation didn’t last long, but our friendship did. At 15 years of age, I found out through a friend that he had feelings for me. I guess I could actually saw it coming, but nevertheless I was pleasantly surprised. A best friend who is like-minded in so many ways, that fits you like the missing jigsaw piece you just found under the bed, to become your boyfriend. What more can you ask for?
This story should come with a happy ending. However, I am sad to say that it won’t. We were together for only 2 months, but rest assured, the drama lasted longer than your favourite Philipino soap opera.
I abhorred the sight of him and the mere mention of his name. I wished I never found out that he had another girlfriend. That alone single-handedly shattered my esteem, my self-confidence, my faith in him. U can’t imagine the wounds of adolescence. It hit me rock bottom. He would say sorry, and I would take him back, then he would break his promise, and I would vow to stay away from him, and he would say sorry again, the vicious, incessant cycle exhausted me.
However, as we grew older, we somehow managed to salvage the friendship that we had, thus explaining why I never got rid of him in the first place. We had ups and downs, and he had always hinted that he still loved me, but for the sake of our friendship, I just never entertained it. We fought, like we always did, but we also supported each other, in an eccentric yet special way that only both of us knew. The fights were often ugly and public. The good parts, however, were never known to our peers. They only thought we would fight all the time. They say don’t hate someone too much, or you’ll end up loving them more than you think you would, and I found that to be true in the cruellest way possible.
Without a doubt, he was my first love. And do you understand me when I say that you would automatically assume that your first love is the one that you’ll marry? This is very foolish of me to admit, but I once thought that I would marry him. But things happened the way it did, and he once assured me that, no matter what, even if I’m a mother of six, married to someone else, he would want us to still be friends, so that our children can be friends like us when we were 13. I simply nodded at that time. I never knew how much it would mean to me later.
Today, the day this story is written, is the 13th. It’s our favourite number. He would have turned 22 today, had he survived the car crash. It has been four years since his passing, four years since I received that fateful phone call about his accident. It was never easy for me to recall any of these, I was depressed for quite a while before I could stand on my own feet again and moved on. Time heals pain. Time dulls pain. And time can also make you forget.
I remember the day of his burial. His cousin came to me and whispered, “The cards that you gave him, are still on his study desk. He often had them nearby whenever he studied.”
Another friend, who was close to him, told me something I never expected to hear, “Let it be known, that of all his exes, he loved you the most.”
Time is evil.
Time took him away from me before I could tell him I never meant to hate him for his wrongdoings. Time snatched him away before my children and his children could be friends like how he wanted.
But I have no power to bring him back. It doesn’t matter if my tear ducts are dry from crying, there’s just no rewind button to push on time.
Sometimes I do see him in crowds. That split second at the corner of your eyes, when you’re glancing, that’s where I always see him. And I know, for a thousand years more, he would be in that special place in my heart.
Does this affect my current relationship? Oh yes, it does immensely although the influence has been subdued lately. For all the pain that he put me through during his infamous infidelity (geez, we were only 15 then), I often demand my boyfriend to be what Ryan was not. And that can be straining. I’m in a long-term relationship that sometimes drains me. The line between love and dependency has since blurred. It gets me thinking to remember what Ryan used to say, “as long as it makes you happy.”
The innocence of first love is what I missed most. Nothing else mattered much then. It was stupid, but it was also true.
I’m sorry, dear kakak, my love story isn’t a happy one. I am forced to grow up too fast for falling in love too early when I was 15. I hope you would have better luck in love than me.
The End.
And I told her, do not cry. Achieve what you want to achieve in life. He will be smiling from there.
And I am doing the same.
I will keep on walking alone around the lake, sing the song sang by the swans, look at the trees, breathe the crystal air, and think. The silence breaks once in a while when I step through the bed of falling leaves.
And my tears fall unnoticedly, in harmony with the caress of the wind.
Wikipedia.org :
Pokarekare Ana is a traditional New Zealand love song, probably communally composed about the time World War 1 began in 1914. East Coast Māori song-writer Paraire Tomoana, who polished up the song in 1917 and published the words in 1921, wrote that it emanated from the North of Auckland and was popularised by Māori soldiers who were training near Auckland before embarking for the war in Europe.
Sadly, it is on Tuesday.
Unless the event is nigh to my place, any excuses to miss this are deeply unfathomable. Lest to miss the golden views from the speaker, I shall convey a bird to bring me back a letter of wisdom from what the event may bring.
Kudos to the rest who are going to spend their Tuesday for this.
Upon this posting, shall of us take a few minutes to ponder on something that is a certain in this life, but the enjoyment in life always do the injustice in reminding us about this.
Death.
It is not a moment of sadness, it is the moment for us to remind about it. And certainly, appreciate death.
I witnessed death at a young age when my friend and I promised to each other that I am going to be his best man when he gets married and likewise for my occasion.
Out of the blue, it was like a slap on my face.
Yup, it was painful and the sky fell on me when the incident happened. However, a wise mind will think and reflect on death.
I believe, that knowing your life has an endpoint will help you appreciate every moment your alive.
And, death helps you understand life's precious gifts. Every single of it, even the one we rarely think of. Anything. Anything.
It makes me wiser, I want to grow through life. I do not want to just go through life. Mark this dichotomy.
The world flashed its teeth to me in 2003, four years ago.
LOVE STORY FOR KAKAK
By Nanim (a piece written by my secondary school mate, who is now pursuing her dreams in journalism)
My sister asked me to tell her a love story, any love story for that matter, to give her some ideas on what to write for her assignment.
Love story. Uhh. I shudder to think of the word love.
Lest u think I’m a sceptic, oh I’ve been in relationships before. I have known love and love has known me. However, for some reason, love has eluded me, or rather, I have ran away from love.
You see, I had a very tragic first love. Ah... the mere mention of first love... brings back the memories, doesn’t it?
I was 13 when I met him. We were young, naïve and foolish. He wasn’t the best looking guy in school, nor was he the richest. Well, he was well off, but there were better looking guys compared to him.
His name was Ryan.
You see, I was infatuated with another boy, and Ryan was initially enlisted to help me win the attention of the boy I liked. I would look for him before, in between and after class everyday to know more about my dream guy, his likes and dislikes, what he did in class, little things like that. And Ryan was more than willing to indulge me with the information.
But little did I know, we would start sharing the same interests. He loved grunge – the music was so popular back in the 90s, I thought KL was Seattle – and I was into the genre too. We liked the same movies, the same comics, and we have the same favourite colour and the same favourite number. In fact, we even shared the same birth date, except that we’re 5 months apart.
So anyways, the infatuation didn’t last long, but our friendship did. At 15 years of age, I found out through a friend that he had feelings for me. I guess I could actually saw it coming, but nevertheless I was pleasantly surprised. A best friend who is like-minded in so many ways, that fits you like the missing jigsaw piece you just found under the bed, to become your boyfriend. What more can you ask for?
This story should come with a happy ending. However, I am sad to say that it won’t. We were together for only 2 months, but rest assured, the drama lasted longer than your favourite Philipino soap opera.
I abhorred the sight of him and the mere mention of his name. I wished I never found out that he had another girlfriend. That alone single-handedly shattered my esteem, my self-confidence, my faith in him. U can’t imagine the wounds of adolescence. It hit me rock bottom. He would say sorry, and I would take him back, then he would break his promise, and I would vow to stay away from him, and he would say sorry again, the vicious, incessant cycle exhausted me.
However, as we grew older, we somehow managed to salvage the friendship that we had, thus explaining why I never got rid of him in the first place. We had ups and downs, and he had always hinted that he still loved me, but for the sake of our friendship, I just never entertained it. We fought, like we always did, but we also supported each other, in an eccentric yet special way that only both of us knew. The fights were often ugly and public. The good parts, however, were never known to our peers. They only thought we would fight all the time. They say don’t hate someone too much, or you’ll end up loving them more than you think you would, and I found that to be true in the cruellest way possible.
Without a doubt, he was my first love. And do you understand me when I say that you would automatically assume that your first love is the one that you’ll marry? This is very foolish of me to admit, but I once thought that I would marry him. But things happened the way it did, and he once assured me that, no matter what, even if I’m a mother of six, married to someone else, he would want us to still be friends, so that our children can be friends like us when we were 13. I simply nodded at that time. I never knew how much it would mean to me later.
Today, the day this story is written, is the 13th. It’s our favourite number. He would have turned 22 today, had he survived the car crash. It has been four years since his passing, four years since I received that fateful phone call about his accident. It was never easy for me to recall any of these, I was depressed for quite a while before I could stand on my own feet again and moved on. Time heals pain. Time dulls pain. And time can also make you forget.
I remember the day of his burial. His cousin came to me and whispered, “The cards that you gave him, are still on his study desk. He often had them nearby whenever he studied.”
Another friend, who was close to him, told me something I never expected to hear, “Let it be known, that of all his exes, he loved you the most.”
Time is evil.
Time took him away from me before I could tell him I never meant to hate him for his wrongdoings. Time snatched him away before my children and his children could be friends like how he wanted.
But I have no power to bring him back. It doesn’t matter if my tear ducts are dry from crying, there’s just no rewind button to push on time.
Sometimes I do see him in crowds. That split second at the corner of your eyes, when you’re glancing, that’s where I always see him. And I know, for a thousand years more, he would be in that special place in my heart.
Does this affect my current relationship? Oh yes, it does immensely although the influence has been subdued lately. For all the pain that he put me through during his infamous infidelity (geez, we were only 15 then), I often demand my boyfriend to be what Ryan was not. And that can be straining. I’m in a long-term relationship that sometimes drains me. The line between love and dependency has since blurred. It gets me thinking to remember what Ryan used to say, “as long as it makes you happy.”
The innocence of first love is what I missed most. Nothing else mattered much then. It was stupid, but it was also true.
I’m sorry, dear kakak, my love story isn’t a happy one. I am forced to grow up too fast for falling in love too early when I was 15. I hope you would have better luck in love than me.
The End.
And I told her, do not cry. Achieve what you want to achieve in life. He will be smiling from there.
And I am doing the same.
I will keep on walking alone around the lake, sing the song sang by the swans, look at the trees, breathe the crystal air, and think. The silence breaks once in a while when I step through the bed of falling leaves.
And my tears fall unnoticedly, in harmony with the caress of the wind.
Wikipedia.org :
Pokarekare Ana is a traditional New Zealand love song, probably communally composed about the time World War 1 began in 1914. East Coast Māori song-writer Paraire Tomoana, who polished up the song in 1917 and published the words in 1921, wrote that it emanated from the North of Auckland and was popularised by Māori soldiers who were training near Auckland before embarking for the war in Europe.
There have been numerous claims and counterclaims regarding authorship over the years. Although the matter has never been definitively settled, guardianship of the words and music are held by the family (descendants) of Paraire Tomoana.
Although the Māori words have virtually remained unaltered over the decades, with only the waters in the first line being localized, there have been many different English translations.
Originally sung in a subtle 3/4 (waltz) time, since World War 2 it has been heard in a more plodding 4/4 time. The song is performed, usually badly in Māori, wherever Kiwis congregate anywhere in the world. It is very popular in New Zealand and is sometimes called the country's unofficial national anthem, although it has been adapted to commercial advertising and by sporting groups.
New Zealand soldiers taught it to Korean children during the 1950-53 war, and it is now much sung in South Korea.
A schoolyard parody, O curry curry arna, I found a squashed banana, is well known to New Zealand school-children, and was being sung in
The tune of Pokarekare Ana has been borrowed for an Irish wedding song A Mhuire Mháthair sé seo mo ghuí.
Late in 2003 Pokarekare Ana featured on the Pure album released worldwide by the young New Zealand soprano Hayley Westenra. Pure is the fastest selling debut album ever on the UK classical charts. Internationally known New Zealand opera singers to previously record and perform Pokarekare Ana are Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Dame Malvina Major. Dozens of other artists throughout the world have recorded this song.
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