AITI Carnival Sunday
The Fisheries Department under the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources (MIPR) officially launched the Local Shoot Out and International Shoot Out competitions last Friday, May 17.
The competitions, which were officially launched by Acting Deputy Director of the Fisheries Department Ranimah Hj Wahab, comprise of both local and overseas photographers, with a total of nine participants competing.
Photographers will be shooting in selected diving spots in Brunei: the Australian Wreck, Abana Rocks and Brunei Patches. The winners for the competitions will also known as the Most Influential Underwater Photographer, as their winning images will be used for education and conservation of the region.
Apart from the prestigious title, the winners of the Portfolio, Digital Portfolio and Best Marco categories will receive amazing prizes.The winner of the Portfolio category, which is the contestant to produce the 10 best images, will receive $2,500, as well as a medal and a certificate. Meanwhile, the winner of the Digital Portfolio of the best three images will win $800, along with a medal and a certificate, and the winner for the Best Macro category will also win $800, with a medal and certificate.
The International Brunei Shoot Out also carries the same three categories, however, the winner of the Portfolio category will receive US$3,000 (about $3,778), as well as a medal and a certificate, while the winners of the Digital Portfolio and Best Macro categories will each receive US$1,000 (about $1,259) and a medal and certificate.
Activities such as these hope to unearth new talent in underwater photography, while simultaneously promoting awareness of the beauty of the ocean floor and marine life, and the importance of keeping the waters clean and protecting the endangered species of the deep blue sea.
The competitions are held in conjunction with the Fisheries Department's World Ocean Day 2013 event, which will be held from June 7 to 9, alongside the 12th "Celebrate the Sea" festival at The Empire Hotel & Country Club, Jerudong.
For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/asterabrunei or
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. Text courtesy of Zatty Joanda of The Brunei Times.
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8 days and ticking!!!
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The Ministry of Health (MoH) yesterday issued a list of recalled products containing maleic acid, a type of additives that are not permitted for use in food, based on the information obtained from Taiwan Food and Drug Administration.
The list of products includes fish paste (oden), flat rice noodle, taro/yam balls and also tapioca balls under the Sunright brand which is often used in the making bubble tea.
Maleic acid is a crystalline material to make unsaturated polyester resin which are often used in fibre reinforced plastic used in making industrial boats, automobiles and construction. When incorporated in food, it will provide elasticity in the food but it is harmful to health.
The MoH has been conducting surveys and inspections as a result of this information. The importer and dealer in question is directed to recall the affected products from the marketplace and deliver it to the Quality Control and Food Safety Services Department to be destroyed.
Users are advised to return the affected products to the store where the product was purchased or surrender them to the Food Safety and Quality Control, Department of Health Services or Health Offices in each district.
Importers, traders and consumers in this country are reminded that under Brunei law, anyone who provides, sells or import food harmful to health can be jailed for five years or a fine or both. Source: The Brunei Times
Sunright tapioca balls
By the way peeps, don't panic too much about the bubble tea phenomena in Brunei. From what I understand and feel from the comments after my posting on Instagram that bubble tea lovers are now skeptical or having doubts now about whether it's safe to drink their favourite bubble tea out there. I can assure you that some of the franchisors are cleared from this issue as they don't use Sunright brands to begin with.
Sunright products are most likely accessible through supermarkets and normally individuals and perhaps restaurant or cafe owners might buy these so called pearls for their home use or their establishments respectively.
It was also reported in the Singapore media that the Sunright brand tapioca balls might contain substance that might cause kidney damage in the long term. So don't panic and jump straight to conclusion that all bubble teas are hazardous. Anyway, such panic just shows how mindful and alert you are when it comes to your health. That I find interesting :D
The Setia Motors Netball VIII Tournament is set to tip off on Friday. A managers meeting for the competition was held at the Asma Hotel in Jerudong last night. The meeting started off with the confirmation of the teams competing in the tournament.
It was also announced that the first game of the tournament will be between Setia Motors and Netiquette in the women's category. The men's category introduced for the first time in the competition will follow the opener.
The rest of the women's games will be played on Sunday. Setia Motors, G-Force, Nextz, Spitfire, Sonic, Netballisus, MMA and Netiquette will fight for top honours in the men's competition.
They will be playing in a round-robin format of seven minutes per-half at the Multipurpose Hall of the Hassanal Bolkiah National Sports Complex.
The eventual champions would be the team sitting on top of the table by day's end.
In group A for the the women's division are NY 13 (Under-21 national netball team), NB, Red Butterfly, BSRC and G-Force. The teams forming group B are Setia Motors, Ivy League, Netiquette, Strivers XOXO and last year's winners NN Speed who boast national players.
The format of play will be 10-minute halves in the group stages, followed by 15 minute halves in the next round. They will play 10-minute quarters for the final.
NN Speed were crowned champions after winning four of their games last year. The main change of this year's tournament is there will be only be one category played unlike the previous novice and advance groups. Text courtesy of Syarif Rasani of The Brunei Times.
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Old Sport
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Iron Man 3. This movie has been out for two weeks already and it still doing great business. It has already raked in USD 1 billion worldwide in box office receipts. Isn't that amazing? Iron Man 2 only earned below USD 700 million and that is already considered an overwhelming success. Now that we know how marketable Robert Downey Jr is whenever he is playing a role as man behind the iron. He even demanded a pay cheque of USD 100 million for the two sequels of "The Avengers"… Hmmmm…. That perhaps is the minus point from him.. Anyway, here's the review.
What an awesome movie!! I watched it twice actually. This was way better than the disappointing Iron Man 2 which felt a bit clunky and I was trying to hard to like and appreciate it too. Gwen Paltrow was amazing too and she has a bit more screen presence than previous movies. I just thought the movie's execution and pacing were just nice. I began to believe in Iron Man again but sadly this is the final trilogy of the Iron Man movie. If you haven't caught it, I suggest you do. It's still showing in the cinemas. Verdict: 8/10.
Identity Thief. It's good to see Jason Bateman with another hit movie. However, I wasn't impressed at all. It become to a point where it got too ridiculous my ratings generally was affected. I definitely had my laughing moments but it wasn't enough to save me from feeling restless. There are some good lessons to be learned so at least that's a good consolation for my review. You are looking for a no-brainer movie and some cheap laughs, I'm not sure if it's still showing but I'm not caring too much for this movie *lol* Verdict: 6/10.
Star Trek: Into Darkness. Holy cow!!! I was blown away from the start till the end. I was already on a high for the first reboot of Star Trek and the sequel was even better than the first. The chemistry between Captain Kirk and Spock was still the highlight for me and not to worry, if you haven't seen the first one, it won't matter too much. Cheelin and Aziimah praised the movie without seeing the first. So there you go. Oh, I even caught the movie twice because I was so impressed. This was slightly better than Iron Man 3 and the best movie I've seen so far. I can't wait for the summer movies and it's good to know that Iron Man 3 and Star Trek have started the ball rolling and they are still satisfying movies as compared to last year's summer movies. Verdict: 8.5/10.
The Great Gatsby. I've been hearing many rave reviews about this movie. Some even said it's the most beautiful story ever told. I watched it for myself to see what's the big fuss about it. I would say I don't completely agree with my peers. It was still an enjoyable movie but I won't rate it as highly. Reason being, the dialogue wasn't that sharp to begin with. I wasn't even emotionally driven which would have made my movie experience worthwhile. Maybe they caught me on a bad day *lol* The scenes and cinematography were amazing though and I quite enjoyed the soundtrack. It was also another great performance by Leonardo DiCaprio and I'm also a fan of Carey Mulligan. Don't be influenced by my review. This is just my perspective and plus I have seen better stories than this. Verdict: 7/10.
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RB flying forward
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Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Hj Abdullah graced the ceremony of Royal Brunei Airlines double daily flight to KL. Also in the picture are Jamilah Abdul Halim, Director of Tourism Malaysia (Brunei), Abd Mutalib, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Communications, Dato Paduka Hj Bahrin, Deputy Minister of Finance and Chairman of RB, Dermot Mannion, Deputy Chairman of Royal Brunei Airlines and Mariani Hj Sabtu, Acting Director of Tourism Development Board (Brunei) yesterday held at the Muhibah room, Airport Restaurant
A moment for the guest of honour from RB. The event took place yesterday morning prior to our flight to KL where the program continued
Royal Brunei Airlines (RB) are in the process of rebranding and they have created some presence in the UK lately and also in the region and wow, I'm pretty impressed with their rebranded products and services. Tomorrow will be a milestone for RB as they will be flying to Kuala Lumpur twice daily from Brunei. This is good news because of the high traffic of Bruneians flying over to KL. It was noted by Dayang Mariani binti Hj Sabtu, Acting Director of Tourism Development Board, that there is a figure of over a million visits alone from Brunei to Malaysia. That's like 3 times more than our population. Perhaps it's also safe to say that most of the frequency takes place between Brunei and Miri.
Of yesterday's multiple events, I have to salute Dermot Mannion, Deputy Chairman of Royal Brunei Airlines, for his great leadership under RB ever since his appointment in 2009 and how he has turned the national carrier around step by step. Some of the new things introduced was the revamped online booking system and this year was the rebranding of Royal Brunei Airlines with their new logo and also a new theme carrying the message of "A Redefined Journey".
I could feel the previous leaders or CEOs of the airline did their best but I honestly felt the stagnancy in the direction they were heading then. To tell you frankly, a few years ago, I had this feeling where I would make RB my second preference for flight bookings. It was more of a confidence thing and slowly after seeing the changes and the new direction it is heading, I began to believe in RB. Now with this being said, this shows how these small little steps can slowly change one's mindset and made that difference.
After seeing Dermot's presentation last night dinner event, I'm much more excited about the new things to come for RB. The rebranding process has slowly paid off and I truly agree that it's not about the destination but the experience of the journey that makes a difference. Yes, there may still be complains here and there but RB has taken things more serious now and I could see the improvements over the past year or so.
RB's presence of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and instagram (@royalbruneiair) have also made communication easier and accessible and it also have played an important role in reaching to a bigger community especially through sharing information.
What I'm truly looking forward to is the the Dreamliner Boeing 787 which will make its debut insyaAllah by September 2013. The Dreamliner will be flown from Seattle and I hope I'm able to experience the new livery in September. The other tentative dates for 2nd, 3rd and 4th Dreamliner are October 2013, February 2014 and March 2014. For the record, RB will be the first airline in ASEAN to own a Dreamliner. That really shows of RB's vision of moving forward and taking that extra step. I remember such news of Dreamliner was even announced back in year 2007 and supposedly scheduled for delivery in 2009 which didn't materialized. So this time, it's for real.
So what's impressive about the Boeing 787 Dreamliner? It's fuel efficient by 20% and that will help to reduce cost in a long run. In fact, it's the most fuel-efficient airline. They have bigger seats even in economy section and this also means more leg room. You also won't feel as suffocated (not saying that you will *lol*) but because you will leave the airline feeling fresher because the cabin pressure allows more oxygen to be absorbed into your blood. Did you know also that the Dreamliner generate 60% less noise than the standard planes especially during take-off and landing? So just imagine once you are on air.. it will be quieter than usual.
Dato Sri Mohd Effendi Morwawi with his spouse Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina looking at the RB's Boeing 787 Dreamliner model at last night's event
This is a planned appearance of how the interior of 787 Dreamliner looks like. Image taken from http://dreamliner.thomson.col.uk
Anyway, enough about the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Let's focus on the main subject here and that is the RB's moving forward in terms of the double daily flight to Kuala Lumpur. This is a good indication for Brunei Tourism Development as well as Tourism Malaysia to explore more opportunities and work on the synergies and each other's strengths.
Last night event also made a significant impact on the journalists and the media in Malaysia. Some said it's the first time they have seen Royal Brunei organizing such event or dinner for their milestones and rebranding phase. This shows that RB is not taking this campaign lightly and they want to create an impact and branding awareness of RB's vision and objectives and make make one's journey a "redefined" one.
After a slightly turbulent phase back in 2011 (where routes such as Brisbane, Perth, Kuching, Auckland and Ho Chi Minh City were cut off and also the restructuring of the company began), RB is gaining back its momentum, thanks to the direction of Dermot Mannion who has a solid track record of achievement in airline operations, characterized by strong cash flow, improved productivity, low unit costs, excellent customer service and high staff morale. So far, he has a planted new seeds and give it a few more years and you will probably see how much different and improved RB has been since its restructuring phase.
Hats off to Dermot Mannion and his team of their new era and keep it up!!! Oh thank you to Royal Brunei Airlines also for inviting me exclusively for the coverage of this important milestone in Kuala Lumpur.
Upon arrival at the KLIA where our flight was blessed. Thank you @emmagoodegg for the wonderful moment shot
The traditional dance performance for the special guests
Another cake cutting ceremony held at the boarding room at KLIA. Also present during the press conference were Syed Yahya Syed Othman, Director of Tourism Malaysia, Dato Paduka Hj Ishaaq, Brunei High Commissioner to Malaysia, Dato' Azmi Murad, Senior General Manager of Operations Services Malaysia Airports, Dermot Mannion, Deputy Chairman of Royal Brunei Airlines and Karam Chand, Chief Commercial and Planning Officer at Royal Brunei Airlines
Group photo with the guests
Karam Chand at the press conference yesterday upon arrival at KLIA
Members of the local media from KL
This is a special privilege --> To actually dine in inside a boarding room *lol*
Dermot took the KLIA Express train to KL Central. More on this service later on. It's very ideal if you want to reach the city in less than an hour :D
Muaz preparing for the evening's event
On my right, Mr. David Hogan, founder of MalaysiaAsia and I love his job because he travels (more than me). Next to him is his Chinese editor of MalaysiaAsia, Janice Wong. Do check the website out!!!
This is to be launched by July in business class. Now you can watch movies or play games or listen to music through means of iPad. Of course, you won't be able to access the internet. The experience alone using iPad Minis on a plane is just a first step.
Dermot appreciating the RB management team based in KL
Ok, this is the finale of the cake cutting ceremony which took place last night at Hotel Istana
Another press conference held last night and a lot of focus targeted on RB's rebranding program. Dermot announced that RB invested USD 1 million in their rebranding journey.
Datin Seri Tiara Jacquilena who is famously known for her big role in Puteri Gunung Ledang had a photo opportunity with RB air steward and stewardess. Also in the picture is Jamilah Abd Rahman
Datin said service is the most important and she would like to fly RB one day.
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Off again to KL
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It's happening this weekend. Click image to find out more.
Deputy Chairman of Royal Brunei Airlines (RB) Dermot Mannion gave his remarks and he announced that all business class passengers will enjoy the luxury of the usage of iPad Mini as part of their inflight entertainment beginning July 2013
Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Utama Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Yahya bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar, Chairman of BIBD, presented token to one of the longest serving employee of 20 years
Another long serving employee of BIBD for 20 years
Last week Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD) held an “Awards Night”- themed annual dinner for all BIBD staff at the Grand Hall, Indera Samudra of The Empire Hotel and Country Club in Jerudong. The annual dinner was held to commemorate all the hard work the BIBD personnel has achieved over the past year.
The Guest of Honour of the event was the Minister of Industry and Primary Resources Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Utama Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Yahya bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar, who is the Chairman of BIBD.
Also present were the BIBD board members, its Shariah Advisory Body as well as the Managing Director of BIBD Javed Ahmad, amongst some 600 managers, officers and staff of BIBD and its subsidiaries; BIBD At-Tamwil and BIBD Securities.
The dinner started with a recitation of the Doa, which was then followed by a welcoming remark by Managing Director Javed Ahmad, which was continued with a speech by the Guest of Honour. The annual dinner caps off a wonderful year for BIBD, with BIBD winning several awards on the regional front such as being awarded the Best Retail Bank in Brunei from The Asian Banker, Global Finance’s “World’s Best Emerging Markets Banks 2013 in Asia-Pacific" for Brunei and Best Islamic Bank in Brunei from The Banker, Global Finance and Islamic Finance News, to name a few.
Along 2012, BIBD also managed to enhance its client-banking relationship, bringing them ever closer together via the launch of the dedicated BIBD Mobile app, upgrades to the BIBD Online and Contact Centre. All these activities and more were made in line with our ever-continuous efforts to serve our customers better.
BIBD, via its Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, has also increased their efforts to further serve the community around. This is exemplified by the recent launching of their ALAF (Advocating Life-Long Learning for an Aspiring Future) programme, a programme to help bring more educational opportunities to underprivileged children, adding to their ever growing contributions to the growth of the society.
The dinner continued with an award ceremony for a total of 91 BIBD staff, who each received service awards as a token of appreciation for their years of loyalty and commitment to the bank. Press release courtesy of BIBD.
Javed Ahmad, Managing Director of BIBD, in his opening remarks
IA Salon is having a special Mother's Day promotion until 30th June 2013. Any hair service spend $80 above with a single receipt and you will get a FREE Hair Treatment (L'Oreal product).
There is also a manicure + pedicure + foot scrub with 20% off from Monday to Thursday only. For Wash & Blow + Scalp treatment (L'Oreal product) - $30 for Men, $35 for Women.
So do come and make your appointment at IA Salon. Call 242 3232 or 8738232 and the business hours are from 10am to 8:30pm daily. IA Salon is located at the ground floor, The Mall.
Cecilia Lee of IA Salon, a very passionate hairstylist and make-up artist, always learning new trends
You can get your scalp check which reminds me I better get mine re-checked again
Hair and make-up done by IA Salon
Guess what peeps? Another instagram competition is being organised and this time it is by AITI who partnered with Brunika and it's known as "AITI Instagram Competition". This is also in conjunction with AITI 10 Years Anniversary. The first prize is an iPad Mini while second prize is a Sony Xperia.
The closing date is on 20th May 2013 by midnight and you will have to take photos that portray AITI. Example AITI buildings or anything ICT related or even activities or events related to AITI. Then make sure that you include their official hashtags #insta_a_i_t_i and #brunika to be eligible for the competition. Oh, do make sure your instagram is not priviatised, otherwise it will be hard for the judges to view your photos via hashtags.
So what are you waiting for? The deadline is by midnight tonight :D So this is something to keep you busy as well during the weekends. I will put up my own shots too (since I don't mind an iPad Mini :p). Anyway, Happy 10th Year AITI.
Want to win an iPad Mini?
Please take note of the following rules:
1. The opening date of the AITI Instagram Competition is on 6 May 2013 and the closing date will be on 20 May 2013, midnight.
2. This competition is open to local and permanent residents in Brunei Darussalam.
3. Participants can submit as many photos as they wish to (either old or new photos) and include both hashtags #insta_a_i_t_i and #brunika. AITI employees are disqualified to enter this competition.
4. The selected Top 10 participants will be contacted via their Instagram account. And they must attend to the AITI 10 years anniversary carnival on 26 May 2013 to collect their prize.
5. The Top 3 participants will be announced on the day of the carnival.
6. Images must portray on AITI (such as AITI’s office buildings, ICT technology, any activities/events related to AITI, etc).
7. Images must NOT express any forms of profanity, sexual and/or racist elements. Image must NOT incite religious hatred and/or phrases that may be deemed inappropriate to other races.
8. AITI and BRUNIKA reserve the right to reuse any photo that are submitted to the official hash tag of the AITI Instagram Competition #insta_a_i_t_i
9. Upon submission, the owner of the photo will no longer have rights to use the photos upon submission and after the competition for personal or professional use, giving AITI sole rights of the photographs in an unrestricted, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, display, publicly perform, transmit and distribute such photographs.
10. AITI and BRUNIKA shall determine winner eligibility in its sole and absolute discretion. Decisions made by the judges are final and no forms of communications will be entertained at any time.
Mohammad Hasrol bin Bagol receiving the grand prize for winning the 2013 Brunei Telephone Directory Cover Design Competition from Lim Ming Doon, Chief Marketing Officer of Telekom Brunei Berhad and Dyg Mariani binti Hj Sabtu, Acting Director of Brunei Tourism Board
Mohammad Hasrol bin Bagol’s artwork made him the first-prize winner of the “2013 Brunei Telephone Directory Cover Design Competition”, winning him a cash prize of B$1,500, after it was announced last Friday at a prize presentation ceremony held at the TelBru Headquarters.
Handing over the prizes were Lim Ming Soon, Chief Marketing Officer of Telekom Brunei Berhad; James Lee, Managing Director of Tele Directories (B) Sdn Bhd; and Dayang Mariani binti Haji Sabtu, Acting Director of Brunei Tourism.
The entries for the competition which were collected since early March were recently judged by the managers from TelBru, Brunei Tourism and Tele Directories. Among the participants were customers, subscribers and students, as well as artists who were keen on displaying their talents, expressing awareness based on the theme “Kenali Negara Kitani” (KNK) to promote Brunei Tourism in their drawings.
Judging criteria were based on the most visually expressed drawing on the essence of KNK, portraying tourist attractions and activities available in the country.
Mohammad Hasrol, an Art teacher from PAP Hajah Rashidah Sa’adatul Bolkiah Secondary School in Lumut, during an interview explained that the inspiration behind his drawing originated from his family’s trip to Brunei from oversea, who then asked to see the attractions in the country.
“The reason why it is shaped in a circular form is because it represents how easy it is to reach these landmarks in Brunei and that it is also easy for tourists to find these places in all four districts,” he said.
His artwork was chosen as the winner as it showcased the most creative piece of work that had achieved the depth of understandings of the concept.
Certificates and tokens of appreciation were also given out to 10 consolation prize winners during the prize presentation ceremony. Text courtesy of Izah Azahari of Borneo Bulletin.
One of the consolation prize recipients
Well done, Winnie, for making the top 10 :D
Merrick Chin was also a consolation winner
Another consolation winner
Mohammad Hasrol bin Bagol the grand winner
Winnie's design entry :D
One of the top 10 entries
Group photo with the Top 10 entries
In an effort to bring together young adults for a chance to meet new friends and socialize with old friends in a casual setting, Fun Bee Park invited the talents of an Improv Group to put up their version of ‘Who’s Line Is It Anyway?’ and conduct a short workshop to introduce the spectators to the fun world of Improv recently.
The group of Improv loving folks were pulled together by Joshua and the show was hosted by Liz.The night was filled with good laughter and also good eats. Set in a casual theme, spectators sat on cushions, munched on finger food and sipped on spritzers created by the Chef Will, the newly appointed head chef of Fun Bee Park.
Following the success of Improv Night, next in plan would be a Movie Night along with movie charades and themed dress up fun. For more info regarding the movie night, contact Fun Bee Park at 245 7729. Images below courtesy of Fun Bee Park.
Yugo BBQ lunch promotion from Monday to Thurs
Have you tried Yugo BBQ yet? I have made a few visits there already and the food is great.. Now they have a new lunch promotion for the Shabu-Shabu lunch whic is only $6.90.. You can choose either beef or chicken lunch set with a soup base selection of either chicken, beef, milk or curry. You can also have a choice of noodle or rice and you will be served with either cold or hot tea.
Now isn't that a great deal for only BND 6.90 and the lunch promotion is only available from Monday to Thursday, from 11am to 2pm. For reservation, you can call 242 7790 or 878 5398 at Yugo BBQ. You can also follow updates on instagram @yugobbq
We tried the lunch set and we were kinda full but then again we ordered a few more side dishes
The lunch set comes with this
So you can either choose the chicken or beef
Do try out their home made spices
Fina loved the combo of the soup with the Kampung sauce
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