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Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam Berhad (BIBD) held a prize presentation ceremony yesterday for its ‘Swipe to Win’, BIBD Online and BIBD Mobile lucky draw winners. The small ceremony was held during the 11th Consumer Fair at the National Indoor Stadium.

The winners only had to sign up and use the promoted BIBD products and services to be eligible to win these prizes. Erna Aliza Hj Raya and Dk Hjh Noraini Pg Hj Mohammad were ecstatic when they were announced as the 4th and 5th week winners for the BIBD ’Swipe to Win’ campaign. The two very lucky women brought home with them a Samsung Galaxy Note II each.

Three others – Dk Hjh Norayushima bte Pg Hj Yusri, Mohammad Khairul Hazirin bin Haji Ariffin and Muhammad Rizuan bin Haji Lamit – had smiles on their face as each of them were presented with an iPhone 5 for the iPhone 5 promotion.

Meanwhile, Ismat bin Hj Lamat and Azanor bin Haji Ahad were overjoyed, as they each walked home an iPad Mini, for having the highest Department of Electrical Services and DST top-up usage for the month.

The winners with Ben Lin, Head of Marketing of BIBD

Presenting the prizes to all the winners was Ben Lin, Head of Marketing, BIBD. The lucky draw winners were chosen from BIBD customers who have signed up and used the BIBD Mobile or BIBD Online along with the usage of the BIBD Debit Card or BIBD Credit Card at any retail outlet within the promotion period.

The BIBD ‘Swipe to Win’ campaign will continue on until the 24th of February, carrying along a weekly prize of a Samsung Galaxy Note II for twelve consecutive weeks, along with a final grand prize of 100,000 Royal Skies Miles for one lucky customer. Furthermore, this campaign only requires the BIBD customer to swipe their BIBD Credit or Debit Card at any retail outlet and which will automatically entitle them one ticket for the lucky draw, regardless of the transaction limit.

On the other hand, the BIBD Mobile and Online promotion will be running until the 27th of January, 2013, where each BIBD customer is given one lucky draw entry for each qualified transaction, which will be entered into the upcoming lucky draw, which will be the last one. The grand prizes remain the same for the final edition of the promotion, being three iPhone5s and two iPad Minis. Press release courtesy of Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam.

I present to you Babiators!!!

What is the most common complaint about children’s sunglasses?

“My child will break or lose them!”

Worry no more as Babiators won’t break, and we believe that protecting kids’ eyes is too important to overlook simply because sunglasses might get lost. That’s why if your child’s Babiators are lost or broken within one year of purchase, we will replace them, no questions asked!

All you need to do to be eligible for the Lost & Broken Guarantee is to register your Babiators within 30 days of purchase.

Just click http://kidsoclock.form2go.com/7224424.html to register and voila… you’re signed up for the Lost & Broken Guarantee!

After you’ve registered, in the unlikely event your Babiators are lost or broken, email us at kidsoclock@ gmail.com to claim your replacement pair.

Check the booth called KidsOclock at Consumer Fair at booth 27 at Zone C and they also have kidswear as well such as Gingersnaps and Gap. You can also visit their Facebook page here.

They are flexible and durable indeed and costs less than BND40

Don’t these kids look good in them? 😀

Check out Babiators at KidsOclock at Consumer Fair at booth 27 at Zone C

It’s so flexible that even it kinda fits Jessie *lol*

 

Do try out Caliente’s Authentic Paella’s
Paella Valenciana (Seafood Paella with Beef Chorizo)
Paella de Verduras ( Vegetarian Paella)
Paella De Marisco (Seafood Paella). 

As their paella are made to order, there is a minimum waiting time of 45minutes. 

Call 2234549 / 7202985 for reservation. Caliente Spanish Restaurant is located at Regent Square, Kiulap. It closes every Monday for your info.

Paella De Marisco (Seafood Paella)

Paella De Marisco (Seafood Paella)

Click banner to enlarge

The winner of the Mercedes-Benz SLK AMG Roadster – Hjh Haliza bte Hj Abdul Hamid

I have never seen one of the intense lucky draw for the grand prize at Jati Transport Gadong showroom this morning. The three finalists were called to the front to randomly pick any key that will ignite the “Roadster” and fun bit was that even the wrong key will be placed back in the draw to heighten the suspense.

Last week, the shortlisted draw was offically conducted by Shazali Hj Sulaiman, local partner at KPMG auditing firm, who was witnessed by Jati Transport associates and members of the local media. 21 names were drawn from the glass box which had around 316 entries.

The lucky draw promotion was a yearly draw by Jati Transport Sdn Bhd, the official dealership for Mercedes-Benz in Brunei. The promotion was from 1st January 2012 to 31st December 2012. The winner will win the grand prize – a Mercedes-Benz SLK 350 AMG Roadster which is worth $120,000. Awesome!!! All they have do was purchase a new Mercedes-Benz passenger car, Vito or Viano to be eligible for the draw.

The grand winner was no other than Hjh Haliza bte Hj Abdul Hamid who bought a Mercedes-Benz B200 in 2012. Her husband and children were there to support her and she was also the earliest person from the shortlisted ones to arrive the venue. She said she has never won anything big in this scale and she’s not sure yet what to do with the car.

Currently, Jati Transport Sdn Bhd is having an ongoing promotion where you Purchase a new Mercedes-Benz passenger car, Vito or Viano from 1st January to 31st December and you could win a new Mercedes-Benz A 250 Sport! Do follow them on Facebook for updates!!

The grand draw took place at Jati Transport Gadong Showroom

Jenny Malai Ali emcee-ed this morning

It was definitely a tense moment for the participants

A consolation winner walked away with Patchi goodies

Vincent Goh also walked away with a consolation prize

Mr. Ho, Sales Manager of Jati Transport, did the draw

A consolation winner walked away with Patchi goodies

A consolation winner walked away with Patchi goodies

Executive Chairman of Jati Transport, YM Pg Anak Ja’far, did the final batch for the grand prize

Mohamad Hilmi Hj Mohd Ali Sofian, Hj Jamain bin Hj Momin, Brunei-Muara District Officer and Hjh Haliza bte Hj Abdul Hamid were the finalists for the grand draw

Mohamad Hilmi Hj Mohd Ali Sofian was the first but his attempt failed

The Brunei-Muara District Officer was also unlucky

Haliza’s son was praying so her mother would win the SLK

The reaction from him was priceless and same goes for the people at the background *lol*

Haliza’s husband celebrated with joy

What a great end to the finale!!!

Tears of joy were shed

The official handover of the SLK AMG 350

Ivan, a salesman from Jati Transport, was happy that his client won

Group photo with the winner and consolation winners

Haliza has been receiving tons of congratulations wishes on my instagram and happy advanced birthday to you 😀

 

I don’t know how much they have invested in setting up the tents especially with the ventilations but the set up looks pretty huge outside the Indoor Stadium. It was also the first time that Sunlit Advertising’s Consumer Fair took place at the area. The reason being the usual venue is under going renovation for the upcoming Asean Summit 2013. The biannual event at the National Indoor Stadium car park centres around the theme “Let’s Get Together”, described as “a one-stop shopping and entertainment destination” for families and friends, said the organising chairman and executive director of Sunlit Advertising, Dato Paduka Hj Danial Hj Hanafiah.

Let’s just say that Consumer Fair is like a one stop shopping area for consumers. The directions and the flow might be a bit tricky since this is the first time it’s held at an opened space. The CF11 consists of three zones and you can refer to the site map at the information counter. Do check out the activities that I’ve posted.

They are a few recreational activities and games such as an ice cream eating competition organised by Kingston Creamery and Beverage Sdn Bhd and a Guess and Win contest run by Syarikat Perniagaan Malar Setia. Another activity partner, Poni Divers is offering rock climbing and scuba diving sessions.

The 11th Consumer Fair also has international vendors from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Pakistan, Syria, Turkey and Yemen. Last Wednesday, the guest of honour Hjh Normah Suria Hayati Pehin Jawatan Dalam Seri Maharaja Dato Seri Utama (Dr) Hj Awang Mohd Jamil Al-Sufri, permanent secretary at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources, graced the 11th Consumer Fair and toured around the booths. The five-day fair is open to the public until Sunday from 10am to 10pm. A free shuttle bus will be provided for visitors from the entrance to the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium.

The Consumer Fair grand lucky draw – Toyota Vios

Guest of honour touring the NBT area at the Indoor Stadium

Aaron Sitai of Gadgetplus Store showcasing the SMART Pass and the Key Pass, located at Indoor Stadium

There’s rock climbing activity organised by Poni Divers

There’s also a mini dive in you’re interested at Poni Divers booth

Say hello to the Baiduri guys 😀

Acer Projector is a good catch Concepts Computer

BIBD being interviewed by RTB at the Consumer Fair

You can jump for free but I’m not sure how much this trampoline actually cost

More books to look at for book lovers

SMARTER Brunei is there as well so do show some support

These guys are back as usual

Some anime stuff for you

Super cheap lamps…

This might be a popular joint because of the heat

The food court area has a nice spacious set up

This is one cool ride – from Victory Motorbikes

I managed to fill in the questionnaire from this booth

 

 

11th Consumer Fair 9th to 13th January 2013

 

Guess what, readers?? ICON Design Store is having a clearance sale on their European furniture. If you haven’t dropped by ICON Design Store, then I suggest you do especially if you are a collector of European furniture. Actually you don’t have to be one to enjoy the great quality and the continental design of the furniture brought in by ICON Store.

ICON Design Store will be having in new stock coming in so this is a great time to buy their existing stock where they will be giving 25% discount on all the stock items. That’s definitely an awesome deal. They are closed on Mondays but they are open from Tuesday to Thursday 10am to 7:30pm, Friday 2pm to 7:30pm, Saturday 10am to 7:30pm and Sunday 10am to 5pm.

The furniture shop is located at Sempurna Complex, Jalan Batu Bersurat and it’s two blocks away from Happy Star. They also provide free delivery locally to your homes. You can check out their website here or you can call 242 7351 for more information.

Gert Schriever and Rick Van Aageten, co-founders of ICON Design Store

Some of the items going on 25% discount at ICON Design Store

Gert behind the counter

Interesting European furniture and these can be yours too

Some of the European chairs on display

I wonder how much these items cost.. I feel like a bawse sitting on it *lol*

They have table lamps too

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Dato Paduka Hj Ali Apong, Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, hopes to see the creation of more multimedia companies in Brunei during the launch of CRAFT at the Knowledge Hub.

The Creative Arts Facilities (CRAFT), an initiative spearheaded by the Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB), was officially launched by Yang Mulia Dato Paduka Hj Ali Apong, Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Chairman of BEDB.

I believe CRAFT will create more interest in this field and entice more youth to take up this initiative provided by BEDB. CRAFT is located at Knowledge Hub and they have physical labs, workstations and even rendering facilities for multimedia developers. So this is a great place to start off with and yes, you can have zero knowledge and start from scratch too.

The goal of CRAFT is to train at least 100 animators and multimedia developers in the next four years. The BEDB will continue to collaborate with relevant government agencies, including foreign agencies, institutes of higher learning as well as foreign and local industry players to ensure that a conducive ecosystem is developed to allow the growth of the local creative industry.

There was also a signing ceremony between BEDB and Autodesk (NASDAW: ADSK), a leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software. Autodesk, for your info, will be providing training and certification for Autodesk media and entertainment solutions at CRAFT.

Signing on behalf of the BEDB was Dr. Abdul Manaf Metussin, Deputy CEO of BEDB, witnessed by Mr. Daniel Leong, Senior Manager Innovation and New Initiatives, while signing on behalf of Autodesk was Mr. V. R. Srivatsan, Managing Director for ASEAN Region and witnessed by Mr. Chris Lee, Regional Sales Manager.

Mr. Daniel Leong, Senior Manager Innovation and New Initiatives, Board Economic Development Board

Mr. Chris Lee, Regional Sales Manager of Autodesk, Mr. V. R. Srivatsan, Managing Director for ASEAN Region of Autodesk, Dr. Abdul Manaf Metussin, Deputy CEO of BEDB and Mr. Daniel Leong, Senior Manager Innovation and New Initiatives of BEDB signing the collaboration agreement

The signatories with Dato Paduka Ali Apong and Vincent Cheong of BEDB

The invited guests during the launch

The animation on display from Autodesk

Trying out their software on Autodesk

Dato Paduka Ali Apong watching the participants playing with Autodesk software

 

Congratulations Rozana and you look pretty and radiant :))

Rozana with her boss, Puan Haslina, CEO of BAG Networks Sdn Bhd

Rozana with Lulu

Rozana with her colleagues from BAG Networks

The flower girls leading the way

Rozana being being led by her beloved dad

Shahri and Rozana

Rozana with her colleagues

Rozana with her buddies from Toastmasters

Rozana with her buddies from Toastmasters

Rozana’s friends came to attend her wedding

 

[Press release from GetFit CrossFit]: Two Bruneian athletes, Gavin Singh Sekhon & Rory Teo, recently returned to the Sultanate as the nation’s first certified USA Weightlifting Level 1 Sports Performance Coaches. This came after successfully completing their grueling, yet highly sought-after qualification in Chiang Mai, Thailand. USAW is the nationalgoverning body overseeing the sport of Olympic weightlifting in the United States.

Olympic weightlifting, also called Olympic-style weightlifting, is an athletic discipline in the modern Olympic programme in which participants attempt a maximum-weight single lift of a barbell loaded with weight plates. The two lifts attempted in this style of weightlifting are the snatch and the clean and jerk.

“If properly executed, the snatch and the clean and jerk are both dynamic and explosive while appearing graceful. These lifts and their components are commonly used by elite athletes in other sports to train for both explosive and functional strength. Usain Bolt, the reigning Olympic champion, incorporates these very lifts to complement his sprinting.”, says Rory.

Gavin Sekhon, Drew Dillon, Mark Cannella & Rory Teo

Their training and subsequent evaluation was carried out by experienced Olympic weightlifters, Mark Cannella and Drew Dillon. Mark is head coach and president of the Columbus Weightlifting Club (CWLC) in Columbus, Ohio, USA and was present at the 2012 London Olympics as a coach for US Olympic weightlifter Holley Mangold. He also organizes and hosts the annual prestigious Arnold Olympic Weightlifting Competition.

Drew is currently ranked in the top ten in the USA for the 85kg class, and also assisted in coaching lifters to reach the Olympics in London. He is a state record holder and has finished as high as fourth in the US at a National level.

According to Gavin, they are excited to work with aspiring weightlifters, national athletes or even everyday individuals who simply want to learn the basics of the Olympic lifts. He says, “Just understanding & carrying out the lifts safely will add value to your everyday lives thus making you a stronger, fitter and an overall healthier person. This will then carry over to your life at home and at work.”

Rory & Gavin, who also happen to be certified CrossFit Level 1 instructors, are both co-owners of GetFit CrossFit, the first CrossFit affiliate in Brunei Darussalam. Their training regiment consists of a unique blend of Olympic-style weightlifting, gymnastics and endurance. While in Thailand, they also competed in a USAW-sanctioned Olympic weightlifting competition and came in second and fourth place respectively. For more information on how to get involved in this dynamic sport, visit www.getfitcrossfit.com. 

 

The Fulwin 2 only costs approximately BND 15,000

Press release from T.C.Y Motors on Fulwin 2: It seems that Chinese manufacturers slowly are approaching design more elaborate products from other regions. Though slowly, the evolution is clear with each new release, and as proof of this is the renewed Chery Fulwin2, hatchback and sedan.

As a new fine model under Chery, Fulwin 2 is highlighted by its exterior. Designed by a distinguished Italian designer, following the concept of bionic design, the exterior is vigorous, fashionable and sporty. The V-shaped front face produces a strong visual impact. The headlamp and grills are connected naturally, making the car energetic, dynamic and sporty.

Regarding the power, Fulwin 2 carries outstanding ACTECO 1.5L engine, one of China’s ten best engines, with maximum power of 80kW horsepower and a maximum torque of 140Nm/3000rpm. With features of low speed and high torque, the engine perfectly combines its advantages in fuel economy and dynamism, making ride comfortable with little fuel consumed.

As for space, Fulwin 2 has a 2,527mm super long wheelbase. The distinctive hatchback design and collapsible rear seat design create a flexible interior space to meet diverse needs for satisfy family life like traveling, shopping and work.

Recently, “2012 best Chinese Auto Model”, organized by Bolido, an authorative auto magazine in Chile, has been unveiled. As a result, Chery Fulwin 2 outperformed a host of strong rivals to be honored as the most popular Chinese model among Chilean consumers in 2012 with an overwhelming majority of votes. Chery made a series of localized improvements to Fulwin 2 to ensure high quality, performance and adaptability.

Thanks to Chery’s unremitting pursuit of product quality, Fulwin 2 was acknowledged by local distributors and potential consumers upon launch. Consumers considered Fulwin 2’s exterior attractive and interior characteristic. Local distributor representatives said Fulwin 2 was fashionable, spacious, reliable and powerful despite small size, believing the fine car will sell well in.

Imported and distributed by T.C.Y. Motors, we present to you the new manual transmission, 1.5-litre gasoline engines, Chery Fulwin 2 hatchback and sedan. The car also features ABS, EBD, driver and front passenger airbags, front and rear fog lights, remote door opening, central locking, power windows, power side mirrors, CD player, USB port, remote boot cover and etc. It will be officially launched on Friday, 11th January 2013 at Kiarong Sentral Showroom.

So far the unit comes in manual only

The interior of Fulwin 2

How the back looks like for the Fulwin 2

Vincent trying out the Fulwin 2

It’s pretty spacious too at the booth

 

4th Blood Drive by Kemuda Institute

Clearance sale (25%). Click image to enter website

 

11th Consumer Fair 9th to 13th January 2013

Click image to enter Facebook for updates and pictures

The mascot for SCB Half Marathon is Sir Sib (Seeing is Believing) which was unveiled this afternoon at Radisson Hotel

Last year, it was a huge success where more than 4,000 participants took part in the event. I think 2012 was a great sign for Brunei in terms of creating the healthy lifestyle culture. Yesterday Standard Chartered Brunei announced this year’s Half-Marathon event which will take place on the 7th april 2013.

Great Eastern Life is the official sponsor for the Standard Chartered Half-Marathon. The official partners are GetFit Crossfit, Mixmediaworx, New Balance, Radisson Hotel, Royal Brunei Airlines, Soleus, Suci, Sunlit Advertising, 100 Plus, Borneo Bulletin and Media Permata. This event is also strongly supported by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and sanctioned by the Brunei Athletics Association. ThreeG Media Sdn Bhd is also a supporter.

This year, funds raised through this event will benefit Standard Chartered Bank’s Seeing is Believing programme, SMARTER and Learning Ladders. We look forward to welcoming you to our event and thank you for your participation and support.

To register, you can click here. There are a few categories to choose from 2.5km, 5km, 10km, 21km for Bruneians and 21km open category. I will be joining the 10km should I be in the country then . The images below are courtesy of Ammirul of The Brunei Times.

Caroline Sim, Assistant Head of Great Eastern Brunei, talked about the company’s role as a sponsor for SCB Half-Marathon. Great Eastern Life, for your info, also focuses on a healthy lifestyle.

CEO of SCB officially announced the SCB Half-Marathon

Group photo with the organisers, sponsors, partners and of course, the mascot, Sir Sib

 

I was there this afternoon to take some shots of the preparation for the upcoming Consumer Fair 11 (CF11) which will take place in a few hours’ time. The event will last for five days from Wednesday to Sunday and I still vaguely remember how the 1st Consumer Fair was back then in 2007.

This time the venue is slightly different and it won’t be at ICC. It will be at the Indoor Stadium Carpark area and there will be three zones plus the Indoor Stadium which will taken up by NBT. Approximately 400 booths will be making their presence felt this week until the weekend and it’s also a great time to spend as there will be special promotions from various companies.

Of course, the main draw will be the Toyota Vios Auto which is the grand prize of the CF11 lucky draw. There will be rock cllmbing activities organised by Poni Divers. Kingston Beverage & Creamery Sdn Bhd will be organising “Kingston Ice-Cream Eating Contest” and also a jingle competition. Syarikat Perniagaan Malar Setia will organise and facilitate the “Malar Setia Guess & Win” activity throughout the event, as well as the “Enjoy & Win with Mi Sedaap” draw.

I shall be posting more pictures but for now, these are the sneak pics taken this afternoon.

You will see this arch which is the main entrance. It is advice for you to park at the National Stadium and you will have to take the shuttle bus in order to get into the CF11 venue

CF11 stalls for the games area

NBT will showcasing their Toyota and Lexus brand at the Indoor Stadium and they are also the main sponsor for CF 11 where they are sponsoring a Toyota Vios Auto for the grand lucky draw

Gadgetplus Store will also be participating and you can catch them at NBT exhibition area at the Indoor Stadium. They will be running competition where you can win a SMART pass ideal to lock your car

Exhibitors busy unloading goods

Maxtrack is one of the regulars for Consumer Fair

Concepts Computer will be having a promotion on their Acer Projector and other Acer products

BIBD also taking up a huge space at CF11 and they will be offering products/services such as BIBD Rumah Plus, BIBD Home Improvement Financing, BIBD Online and they will also be eligible to be part of the “Blessing Rewards 3” Campaign and the grand prize will be the Toyota 86

A great idea of using the tree to hang their stuff

Huhu… Someone looks stressed :p

TAIB had a successful event at the Airport Mall and now they are participating again at CF11

One of the usual suspects at Consumer Fair

Hmmmm the Philips TV looks tempting…. and great prices too

Second hand car will also be on display

Ok the picture is so enticing indeed..

Hello Kitty casing will be available at CF

Wanna play Angry Bird?

The food court area looks huge

This zone is the food area

I met a retailer from KL who sells authentic high end futsal shoes (Kelme brand). You should check them out!!

This orange stuff helps to bring air conditioning inside the tents

Malar Setia will have Spin the Wheel game

Exhibitors moving their goods from the carpark area

It’s never easy to drag stuff from the carpark. Loads of energy required especially during the set up.

It rained for a bit this afternoon, making logistics trickier

 

With Khalil and Hamizah two weeks ago. Khalil will be off to U.S. for further studies so let’s catch up soon buddy and Happy belated wishes to LFHW model Mizah (though I’ve already wished you yesterday). Let’s catch up soon before you fly, dude!

It was fun to see blindfold musical chair *lol* Thanks Amalina for the suggestion

We had a pot luck gathering a few weeks ago and I realised no matter how much we tell them to bring a little, we tend to have more food than required

My best buddy. Enough said :))

We had so many bbqs as of late.. A good start to 2013 indeed

We had a water fight last weekend. Totally fun!!

The culprits of the night.. but then again, all got wet

The aftermath of the colourful water bombs

The chocolate chip cake was delicious indeed

I think we had too much lamb in the space of a few days

I bumped into my sister during the opening night of the At-tamwil University Cup. Thanks for keeping me company that night. Hugs!!

I finally realised she’s a good food critique too. I always tell to give a 2nd chance and it pays off at times *lol*

Congratulations Messi… Click image to see why he won 2012 FIFA Ballon d’Or Award

Messi was voted 41.60%, Iniesta 10.91% and Ronaldo at 23.68%

 

RA says thanks to my family and friends for the wishes yesterday. It was an awesome day to start off with and I just went with the flow though my other friends already made plans for me last night. It was also the wedding celebration of my long time friend Rozana Yunos who’s now officially married to Shahri and a big congratulations to both of you. A big shout out also to Liza Kamaruddin and Sofian on their wedding two weeks ago. Sorry, I couldn’t make it on your wedding day and it seems both of you are having a jolly good time, judging from your IG posts 😀

This is only the 7th day of 2013 and I’m slowly picking up some pace though I have to admit that I’m taking my sweet time and still adjusting to the new year. So far it has been just simple with a steady slow and I sense of better things to come, career wise and personal growth as well. I’m always been appreciative of my surroundings and of course, my abundant of friends who have been supportive and I truly learned a great deal from those experiences.

Lately I’ve been reading about a few mishaps that have been circulating on the social media and Whatsapp. The first of many was the 15 year old boy who has been clarified by the Royal Brunei Police Force that he is in better shape and he was not in serious bad condition based on the circulation of news. It wasn’t also a hit and run case incident too. I did post that it was a hit-and-run incident based on my friend’s post on IG and the victim was in need of blood which apparently he doesn’t need one. So I learned my lesson not to take things literally from my friends’ postings on social network and just wait for the actual statements from the RBPF. My apologies for posting that status on my twitter and Facebook account. It’s also a good reminder for us to be mindful what we post online and make sure the facts are right before hand.

In recent news, I have read about the recent SMS alert where some received texts (some more than 15 SMSes) on their phones and funny part is that most of the texts were outdated as SMSes were such as “Enjoy your iftar” or “Enjoy your fasting month” and there were some who received texts wishing them a pleasant Haj pilgrimage and oddly enough these recipients didn’t even go on the pilgrimage and furthermore, their respective travel agents have yet to refund their monies. Let’s hope they receive their refunds soon too.

I read something interesting in today’s The Brunei Times which I feel needs to be addressed. This is with regards to cleaners especially at the washroom area. I’ve noticed how sometimes female would clean the men’s washroom which also being practiced in regional countries. Even when that happened (overseas), I was already in an uncomfortable position and sometimes it might have a psychological reaction where I just can’t let it go *lol* My suggestion is to let the building owners or the one in charge to make a policy so there won’t be situations like these kinds in public buildings and even hotels. I just felt it’s not right and I salute to “Shyguy” for addressing this in The Brunei Times at “Letters to the editor” section.

Another interesting article I saw in today’s The Brunei Times is about the challenge that the Municipal Department has in turning our capital city into a “vibrant and lively” city. Hmmmm.. Now this is quite a tall order and strangely enough places like Gadong, Kiulap and Berakas are more populated while our town has been less active especially after working hours and weekends. Bandar will only get busy when there are events happening and it’s not every day that we simply can run events in the capital. Previously the weekend night market initiative along Jalan Sultan have been a flop as it lasted for a few months and the crowd slowly waned down and tenants perhaps lost interest in investing their time to set up their booths.

Now the Municipal Department is having another pilot project by having weekly leisure activities and also having a Sunday market for 2013. Will be a success? This again is another chicken-and-egg situation. Lesser crowd, lesser interest or motivation for stall owners or even activity coordinators. It’s good to see relevant agencies such as Tourism Development Department and Municipal Department working forces together. I believe a good research study by having focus group among the community might give a hint or two on what is lacking to motivate people to come to town. In my opinion, the proposed pilot project might need more ammunition than just having activities and a Sunday market.

That’s my “Ugly Truth” segment for the day.. Have a great week ahead!!

Will weekly activities help to boost the interest of the locals to visit town? Your thoughts. Image taken from The Brunei Times website.

 

Guess what? The Rockpit Zone (RM688) is sold out but there are still the Samsung Galaxy Zone (RM699) and the Hallyu Zone (RM 199) for the upcoming 27th Golden Disk Awards 2013 which will be held on 15th and 16th January at the Sepang International Circuit. This is like the Grammys but Korean version and yes, this is an annual event where Korean artistes will be honoured for their presence in the Korean music scene.

For your info, the Hallyu Zone was just introduced a week ago to cater to those who can’t afford the Rockpit zone and yes, it’s only RM199 which is pretty worth it for a two night concert event.

Earlier last December 2012, Mr Kwon Jae Hoon, Managing Director of Samsung Malaysia Electronics and Ms Kim Sora, Entertainment Editorial Director, Ilgan Sports today officiated the launch for the Samsung GALAXY The 27th Golden Disk Awards in Kuala Lumpur (GDA). Confirmed to be held this coming 15th and 16th January 2013 at Sepang International Circuit, the event will be hosted in Malaysia by Mediartncomm Co., Ltd., supported by the Malaysia Convention and Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) and presented by Samsung Malaysia Electronics as title sponsor.

So this is good news not only for Malaysians but neighbouring countries even Brunei because it’s only nearby and you will get to see 25 of the Korean’s top artistes performing over two nights in Kuala Lumpur. Mr Kwon believes that the extension of Samsung’s philosophy will enrich the Malaysians and Samsung will continuously strive to inspire and enrich our consumers’ lives.

Click image to enter SilverWings Facebook and enter the contest to win

The complimentary tickets will be given to the winners for the recent quizzes on Instagram and Twitter

By the way, there will be a final quiz where you can stand a chance to win Rockpit Zone tickets for two. However, this doesn’t include flight and accommodation. All you have to do is “Like” and answer a pop quiz question related to Golden Disk Awards on SilverWings Services Facebook page and one winner will be drawn. The contest will end by 11:59pm 8th January and the winner will be announced on the 9th January.

Good luck to you guys!!

Teen Top to perform next week at GDA 2013

4 Minute will also be performing

Click image to enter website

 

The redevelopment of Supa Save Seria which started early February this year, will be bringing a whole new shopping experience with the convenience of a bank, cafe and other exciting retail outlets under one roof. With the help of local creative agency Mixmediaworx, this popular supermarket has also been working on a re-branding exercise that will be rolled out progressively, beginning with a logo refresh followed by some exciting campaigns lined up for the coming year.”

*LOL* This is a sweet photo of my sister and I when were still innocent back then.. We still are, right? Thanks for posting this up on instagram. Much love 😀

I attended Rozana’s wedding this morning and wow, you look fantastic and beaaaaautifullll… I’m so happy for you. Congratulations also to Beb and Nadiah on their wedding too.

It has been a while since I had a cake on the actual day since my family is always outstation. Today was one of the rare moments. Thanks for the presence and gesture and I’m still laughing over Mom’s wishes

 

The official poster

What an awesome opener to the At-tamwil University Cup which took place last night at Hassanal Bolkiah Stadium. Both ITB “A” and UNISSA “A” battled to a 5-5 draw but the big news was the comeback effort by UNISSA “A” who were trailing 3-0 15 minutes into the game. I would have thought it was game over by then as ITB “A” were simply unstoppable on every attack.

However, it was UNISSA “A” number 10. Julazni Zaini who started the comeback by scoring twice to make it 3-2 before Shahrul Amni scored the equaliser before the break to make it 3-3. It was game on since then but captain of ITB “A” Naasiruddeen scored the goal of the match with a long effort to make it 4-3 before the half-time whistle. Amazing first half!!

Julazni scored his hat-trick and he deserved man of the match for his effort in the 76th minute and they were still trailing 5-4 then. UNISSA’s Muhd Hibatul Haqqi scored a late equaliser to share the spoils between the two and the final scored ended in a 5-5 thriller. Both sides didn’t deserve to lose and it was an awesome opener indeed.

The BIBD At-Tamwil Berhad University Cup, the first inter-university football tournament to be held in Brunei, kicked off last night during an opening ceremony at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium. The Uni Cup, organised jointly by BIBD At-Tamwil Berhad and Institut Teknologi Brunei (ITB), will feature a total of five universities, with each institution fielding two teams which will be split into Group A and Group B.

The five participating education institutions are ITB, Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali (UNISSA), Kolej Universiti Perguruan Ugama Seri Begawan (KUPUSB) and Politeknik Brunei. For more updates of the University Cup tournament, you can follow them on Facebook.

Present to officiate the opening ceremony was the guest-of-honour, Dato Seri Setia Haji Awang Yussoff bin Haji Awang Ismail, the Deputy Minister of Education.

The guest-of-honour, Dato Seri Setia Haji Awang Yussoff bin Haji Awang Ismail, the Deputy Minister of Education

The working committee of At-tamwil Unicup

Working under the rain

Thanks Amal for the pictures

Working on the opening night

The doa selamat during the opening night

Team UNISSA “A”

One of the scorers from ITB “A” celebrating

This was the third goal celebration by ITB “A”

Captain of ITB “A” scored a wonder goal before half time

The hat-trick hero for UNISSA “A”

Leo Kassim doing the draw for the 100 winners

The committee checking with the lucky draw

Jake Ten also picked some of the lucky draw

Some of the winners of the lucky draw

My favourite movie of 2012

1) The Cabin in the Woods. It’s no doubt that this is the best movie of the year for me on many levels. I’ve never seen the trailer prior either and that perhaps made that extra edge to my high level of satisfaction. I won’t spare much details here because I could easily reveal some spoilers. I don’t even know if this is considered a horror flick either. If you watch the first half of the movie, you would have thought it is so but wow!! the final third of the movie was something that caught me off guard and to edge of my seat. I would categorized this as a mystery more than a horror perhaps. It has been a while since I’ve seen a movie that will take me by surprise and I’m always a sucker for this.

The castings were great too with Chris Hemsworth as one of the lead actors. Another reason why I love this movie was the presence and influence of Joss Whedon, who co-produced and co-wrote the movie and I’m pretty sure you know he was also behind Marvel’s The Avengers. The plot was awesome and I’m proud owner of the Blu-Ray edition which I have watched it a couple of times to date. I highly recommend you to catch this movie and most of my friends also appreciate its uniqueness of the movie as we watched it over the New Year’s Eve. For me, this deconstruction of a horror movie is no doubt my number 1 movie of the year. Rotten Tomatoes score 91%

2) The Raid: Redemption. I heard many rave reviews of this movie and I was happy that it was shown in Singapore during my short visit. For your info, this is an Indonesian movie directed by Gareth Evans, another young director. I have to say this was the best action movie I caught in 2012 and you will some silat action too which was choreographed to its best. If you watch Dredd, the plot is pretty similar. It basically about a SWAT team trying to capture the leader of the drug dealers in a worn down apartment and they were all trapped as the building went on lockdown. Yea, the plot may not be as witty but stunts and the camera shots really made up for it. I was surprised that when Brunei released it in the cinemas, the voices were dubbed instead of having subtitles. A great popcorn movie nonetheless. Rotten Tomatoes score 84%

3) A Werewolf Boy. This is perhaps the movie which is similar to You’re the Apple of My Eye. This was another movie that caught me by surprise and it was showing then in Singapore. I’m a huge fan of Korean movies though I was disappointed with Korean’s biggest box office The Thieves. A Werewolf Boy is about a relationship between a wolf boy and a lady and the struggle the wolf boy had to go through to be part of a normal civilisation. This put Twilight series to shame because the chemistry between the two was very warm and I could feel the romance too. A tear jerky movie and I was hoping this would make to our local cinemas. It’s very unlikely though. Rotten Tomatoes score unknown.

4) Pitch Perfect. Believe it or not, I ended up catching this movie twice on the big screen. I’m not really into chick flicks but this is an exception and plus I love music too. It has humour, some high level of lameness and the flow was just nice. I’m now waiting for my Blu-ray order and do expect some high replay value once I get hold of this. I believe tons of my female friends gave rave reviews too. I’m not surprised it also has a good score on Rotten Tomatoes 80%

5) Marvel’s The Avengers. Joss Whedon is a genius. How did he pull off with seven characters (including Loki) to play around within 2 and a half hours? I mean, the chemistry and the character were almost spot on and I really had a blast watching this super hero flick. I was a bit skeptical in the beginning because I was afraid there will be less focus on their characters’ development. Boy, I was wrong.. You get to see the human side of these super heroes and the set pieces were just awesome especially the finale. I apparently loved the Hulk here than the other two movies he was in. I also have this in my Blu-ray collection. Great entertainment value. Rotten Tomatoes score 92%.

Ted is crude and hilarious

6) Ted. The best comedy for me this year. Come to think of it, there weren’t many great comedy movies in 2012. Nothing that comes into my mind. Ok, I remember doing this review a few months back and wooowwww!! I had a ball, laughing my butt off. Yes, a comedy high in profanity and a few sexual preferences which made it difficult to be released in Brunei so I managed to watch this in Singapore. Awesome flick and it’s good to see Mark Wahlberg back on the screen. I’m predicting a sequel for this too. A funny “bromance” flick of the year. Rotten Tomatoes 69%

7) Argo. Isn’t Ben Affleck such a talented individual? He directed and acted in The Town and this time he did the same for Argo which to my surprise is based on real events. This was another great movie from Ben and this is one of the movies that made it close to the edge of my seat. It was a story about six American from the U.S. Embassy in Iran escaping from the Iranian protesters and they harboured themselves secretly in the Canadian Embassy back in 1979. Though it’s a tense movie, it still manages to bring some laugh through its dark humour. Another movie that I caught in Singapore. Woww.. Now I realised a few of my top 10 movies can’t be seen in Brunei. Rotten Tomatoes 96%

8) Wreck-it Ralph. Surprise, surprise.. Only one animation made it to my top 10 list and this deserved to be up there. I admire its creativity and the characters were well thought of too. It’s difficult now to have an animation that can please both kids and adults but Wreck-it Ralph is an exception. It has been tough for Disney to bring back their mojo especially in animation. It will take a couple of “Wreck-it Ralph” type of entertainment value to boost up the credentials of Disney in this generation. I almost watched this for the 2nd time. Rotten Tomatoes 88%

9) Skyfall. This is the biggest James Bond movie in terms of revenue as it passed the $1 billion mark to make it the 1st James Bond to do so worldwide. Amazing!!! The difference among JB’s past movies is the introduction of Sam Mendes the director for Skyfall. His style was so different and yet he managed to maintain the charismatic presence of James Bond played by Daniel Craig. People were complaining there weren’t much gadgets being showcased. But honestly, do you think that mattered when you have an awesome story and script with an intimidating villain played by Javier Bardem? I was so drawn that I cared less about the gadgets. Skyfall is sleek, dark and well executed. I couldn’t ask for more. Rotten Tomatoes 92%

10) The Hunger Games. I kept warning my friends.. Please do not tell what you have read on Hunger Games *lol* I never enjoy spoilers for movies I have yet to watch. This was one of the earlier movies that I enjoyed and my love for Jennifer Lawrence grew. I love it from the start to finish and now I can’t wait for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire which will be out in November. I actually watched Battle Royale (Japanse) but I still prefer THG. The thrill is intense and yes, there are some disturbing scenes and it’s not something little children would like to see because of the violence. It was great pacing as well by Gary Ross the director. So Jennifer, bring it on for the next one.. Rotten Tomatoes 85%

Honourable mentions. 21 Jump Street. Magic Mike. The Amazing Spider-Man. The Grey. Paranorman. Jack Reacher. Chronicle (2012). Moonrise Kingdom. Looper. Les Miserables. Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2. The Dark Knight Rises. Katy Perry: Part of Me. Dredd. Titanic 3D. Safe House.

Oh my, the French lady in CZ 2012 was totally annoying

Disappointments. Wow!!! I have to say there are tons of movies that I want to list here and even spend some time talking about it. Perhaps the worst movie of the year of 2012 is a close call between CZ 2012 and Silent Hill: Revelation. Both movies were simply plain messy to start of with and I had this restless feeling that I had to endure and I’m not the type that would leave the cinema regardless how bad the show is. CZ 2012 had one of the worst CGIs and what’s with the “Pirates” scene at the island? Furthermore, the French lady was simply unbearable. The jokes were flat and I was laughing at how they made a fool of themselves. Don’t mind me as I used to enjoy Jackie Chan’s movies especially the early days. Now it’s gone downhill and let’s hope this is his last movie though he is still part of the casting for The Expendables 3. I was still surprise that some of my peers kinda like CZ 2012 though my friends who watched with me shared the same sentiment. 

I would have listed The Dark Knight Rises here as well because of the obvious flaws it have and I have high expectations on Christopher Nolan. I just felt the final trilogy was slightly underwhelming and it could have been better. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was another disappointment and I found the feeling that I had with The Lord of the Rings series a little mismatch with The Hobbit. It even scored a distant 65% on RT (no surprises there) and I hope Peter Jackson do take this seriously for the next instalment of The Hobbit. 

Other list are such as John Carter, Battleship, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Paranormal Activity 4 and Wrath of the Titans…. and ooh, The Bourne Legacy too. As for animation wise, Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax and Ice Age: Continental Drift were movies I had some level of expectations and they failed miserably though they performed well in the box office. They should just buried the Ice Age already. I love the first two but the last two have turned into mediocre levels (of Shrek series).

Man of Steel directed by Zach Synder and produced by Christopher Nolan 😀

Movies that I can’t wait to watch.

1) Pacific Rim. Watch trailer here. Looks freaking awesome!!
2) Man of Steel. June release.
3) Django Unchained. Most likely released mid March.
4) The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. November release.
5) Iron Man 3. April release.
6) Star Trek Into Darkness.
7) Monsters University. Sequel to Monsters Inc. June release.
8) Despicable Me 2. July release.
9) Lone Ranger starring Johnny Depp. July release.
10) Fast & Furious 6. May release.

Click image to enter website

 

The redevelopment of Supa Save Seria which started early February this year, will be bringing a whole new shopping experience with the convenience of a bank, cafe and other exciting retail outlets under one roof. With the help of local creative agency Mixmediaworx, this popular supermarket has also been working on a re-branding exercise that will be rolled out progressively, beginning with a logo refresh followed by some exciting campaigns lined up for the coming year.”

Click image to enter website

It’s up and running now.. www.oasismarche.com where you can order premium food such as Rude Health, Firefly and Munchy Seeds through online. The website is pretty user-friendly and it has a refreshing, clean interface which makes navigation very fluid. There are also categorized in different sections such as breakfast, pantry goods, seasoning & flavours, snacks and many more. You can also order in a gift form such as The Breakfast Hamper and The Goodness Hamper.

Thanks to Oasis Marchè, now the consumers have the opportunity or the access to premium healthy food. The food that they bring in are natural and wholesome and they don’t contain GM ingredients, artificial colourings, flavourings, artificial sugar and hydrogenated fats.

The other great news is that www.oasismarche.com also ship outside Brunei, around South East Asia too. Thumbs up to that!!! Payment will be made through Paypal for safe and secure transaction.

Click image to enter website

 

Who’s gonna win the SLK 350 AMG Roadster?

The draw was conducted this morning at Jati Transport Headquarters in Beribi and it was offically done by Shazali Hj Sulaiman, local partner at KPMG auditing firm, who was witnessed by Jati Transport associates and members of the local media. 21 names were drawn from the glass box which had around 316 entries.

The lucky draw promotion was a yearly draw by Jati Transport Sdn Bhd, the official dealership for Mercedes-Benz in Brunei. The promotion was from 1st January 2012 to 31st December 2012. The winner will win the grand prize – a Mercedes-Benz SLK 350 AMG Roadster which is worth $120,000. Awesome!!! All they have do was purchase a new Mercedes-Benz passenger car, Vito or Viano to be eligible for the draw.

The 21 names which were shortlisted will contacted by the management of Jati Transport. The final lucky draw will take place next week on the 11th January in the morning. Good luck to the finalists. I believe that there will be consolation prizes for the rest of the shortlisted names.

Shazali doing the draw for the 21 names

His daugther was there to reconfirm the names

Shazali finalizing the chosen ones

Group photo with KPMG and Jati Transport management

The remaining ones were left in the glass box

Amy keying in all the shortlisted names into the system

 

Group picture. Clic to enlarge

The Shotokan Karate-Do Brunei Darussalam (SKBD), Brunei’s Japan Karate Maruyoshikai Organisation (JKMO) Branch, received its Certificate of Affiliation and became the newest member of the Brunei Karatedo Federation (BRUKAF) in a ceremony at the Indoor Stadium in Berakas last week.

Shihan Sasaki Toshiatsu, the president and founder of the JKMO, presented the President of SKBD and Technical Vice President of BRUKAF, Malai Hj Mohamed bin Malai Haji Othman, with the Certificate of Affiliation, who then presented the certificate to the President of BRUKAF, Pg Hj Yura Kesteria bin PSN Dr Hj Md Yussof.

Shihan Sasaki Toshiatsu is also a karate instructor certified by the Japan Amateur Sports Association (JASA), and is leading a two-day training session to ensure that Brunei karatekas are updated with the regulations and techniques of the World Karate Federation (WKF).

More than 30 participants joined the training session. Brunei’s newest karate-do association’s first action will be to administer its first Kyu grading on Tuesday night.

The karate styles which are currently registered under BRUKAF are Goju-ryu, WadoRyu, Shito-ryu and Shotokan. Text and images courtesy of Jake Ten.

President of BRUKAF, Pg Hj Yura Kesteria (left)

Shihan Sasaki Toshiatsu, the president and founder of the JKMO (right)

The participants during the training session

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The redevelopment of Supa Save Seria which started early February this year, will be bringing a whole new shopping experience with the convenience of a bank, cafe and other exciting retail outlets under one roof. With the help of local creative agency Mixmediaworx, this popular supermarket has also been working on a re-branding exercise that will be rolled out progressively, beginning with a logo refresh followed by some exciting campaigns lined up for the coming year.”

Les Miserables. This is not a movie for those who can’t endure musical or singing. Well, this is no Bollywood stuff and nowhere close *lol* Spoilers alert —> The singing is from start to finish and the non-singing dialogue content is perhaps only 2-3% of the whole 3 hours movie. However, I’m unfazed by it. Why? First I do enjoy musical movie shows and second is the performances by Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman especially the former. Did you know that Anne Hathaway is only on screen for 15 minutes only? And yet she totally delivered when it mattered and her presence made an impact throughout the movie. She was just freaking awesome!!!

Russell Crowe was one of the flaws in the movie. The main reason being that he can’t hit the right notes and I was reading on some entertainment news that it was a challenging role for him. But I have a huge respect for Tom Hooper, the director of Les Miserables, who managed to make up for Russell’s weakness in singing by playing around with the camera works. You will probably noticed how much of a close-up was given to Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman during their solo moments as compared to Russell Crowe. I also love how the script was written which makes it easier for the audience to grasp. I thought that I was gonna weep since a few of my friends were in tears. I survived *lol*. I recommend you to watch Les Miserable and watch out for Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) on screen. Hilarious!! Verdict: 8/10.

A few weeks ago a press conference was held where BIBD At-Tamwil Berhad and Institut Teknologi Brunei revealed that they will be organising the inaugural BIBD At-tamwil University Cup which will be launched tomorrow evening. This will be the first inter-university football tournament for local universities and higher institutions in Brunei Darussalam.

The one month tournament will kick off on Saturday, 5th January at 7pm at the Hassanal Bolkiah Stadium. All of you are welcome to watch the opening ceremony tomorrow and catch the first match between ITB “A” and UNISSA “A” at the Hassanal Bolkiah Stadium. There will be lucky draws at every match and you can get the lucky draw tickets at BIBD At-tamwil branches at Beribi and KB branch and also during the matches themselves. To be eligible for the draw, you will have to put the draw at the lucky draw box during the match day itself.

The expressed objective of this UniCup is to improve the quality of football sports in Brunei Darussalam, to increase healthy and friendly competition among local Universities, we would like also to promote sense of belonging among undergraduates and highlight the leadership qualities amongst undergraduates through their hard work and dedication in organising the premier event.

Guess what? The University Cup will also be updated via social network such as Facebook and Instagram. The name of the official Facebook page of UniCup 2013 is ‘BIBD At-Tamwil Berhad University Cup’ and the Official Instagram page is ‘attamwil_universitycup’.

There will also be quizzes and photography competition where you can win attractive prizes during the one-month tournament. All you have to do is upload your photos on instagram and make sure that you use the hashtags #ATWUC or #ATWUC13 and #TAMWILUC and photos with the most likes will win attractive prize. Oh yeah, it’s also ideal if you don’t privatise your IG account, otherwise it will be hard for the management to view your photos.

Fantastic prizes to be won tomorrow as well on the opening night of the University Cup 2013

You can grab the lucky draw tickets at BIBD At-tamwil branches (Beribi and KB)

Do join them on instagram for updates too and don’t forget to hashtag your photos #ATWUC or #ATWUC13 and #TAMWILUC

Some of the schedules of the matches. I shall be posting more soon.

 

I woke up this morning with updates on whatsapp and instagram on what is a fire mishap at Menglait that started out early in the morning. The Royal Brunei Police Force and BOMBA had to close the roads leading to the affected area and even Gadong Central. I drove past the bridge on my way back around 11ish am and the fire was still not under control. I’m not exactly sure what companies that are affected and I’m not sure what was the cause of the huge fire. Good job on BOMBA in making sure the fire didn’t escalate into other parts of the building and of course, the shell station wasn’t affected too which was just metres away from the incident.

Below are pictures courtesy of @lululio @sabrinajimmy and @kurapak360.