The Brunei Tourism team organised a farewell lunch for their CEO’s retirement. Image courtesy of Sheikh Jamaluddin.

Sheikh Jamaluddin’s quote on RA upon his retirement from Brunei Tourism Board – “What I would like to say is that after 16 years, I have seen many positive changes in Brunei Tourism. Money changers, tourist buses, tour guides, souvenir shops and cultural dance groups have grown tremendously in the last 5 years. Tourist arrivals have shown on average an annual increase of 15% year on year since 2005.

However, the above sentences may be challenged by those who are against tourism. What I like to say to your readers are that they must maintain the respect to protect our environment and keep Brunei clean. What we do reflects how they perceive our country.

I also believe future job prospects for our country lies in the tourism sector. It’s the world’s number one industry and this has been realised by world leaders and they have taken steps to develop further their tourism industry, mainly to ensure a continuing stream of job opportunities for their people.

Nation building is all about our ability to create jobs for our people. Jobs in tourism sector are much preferred than say jobs in the agriculture or fishery sector where the work are harder and less glamourous and more dependent on foreign labours.”

The AITI delegates and representatives from ICT companies paid a visit at IDA

Authority for Info-communications of Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam (AITI) coordinated a site visit with established companies in Singapore bringing along the participants of this year’s CommunicAsia 2012 and representative from iCentre.

The group visited Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) which has kindly arranged 3 companies to present their products.

COL (Ret) Png Bee Hin, CEO of LDR Pte Ltd, presented a mobile interactive applications that helps users to discover Singapore. Mr Bee Hin created other apps to educate the young people about the history of Singapore through a medium that is most familiar to them. The Learning-on-the-move (LOTM) tool, utilises hotspots in Singapore, and as people who are using the hotspot in every new area will be shown different info based on the landmark of the area. Informations and games of the related area will pop-up on the mobile phones. They are able to learn about history of the place through games too as a medium.

There is an opportunity for this app to be used as a tourism tool for Brunei Darussalam. For more info please visit, www.ldr.sg

The Brunei delegates at the presentations by the three companies

LDR company presented their popular mobile apps which is very educational and interactive

Eric Loh, Strategic Sales Director of G Element , showcased a smart building platform that uses a system called Nucleus which controls the ip Internet Protocol (IP) sensors that of a building that monitors fire alarms, control management system for fire alarm, humidity, temperature and CCTV of a building.

The system utilises a mix of 3D building floor plan and live feed. To date, the company has developed handles several solutions such as Smart Hospital, Smart hospitality, Smart campus and Smart city platforms.

The company had also participated in APICTA 2010. For more info, please visit www.gelement.com

Eric Loh of G Element talked about smart building platform

Mr Tan Ze Chong, Executive Director of Argentra, shared the solutions for paper printing security. They showcased tool based on helps to defined secured printing policy for sensitive information in the office. Ms Olivia Kunardi, Project Manager, explained the functionality of the software. The report printing comes with 3D secured barcode and fine print line for document authenticity. The software keeps an audit trail on all the printed documents by users in the office and also prevents unauthorized printing of classified documents.

Perhaps the session that most of us were finally in-tuned from Argentra

Hadi documenting her presentation on his Galaxy Note

My experience at MBS hotel was pretty good. I used to hear of many complains last year especially upon checking in and how it was pretty draggy then. I suppose it’s normal considering the Marina Bay Sands Hotel just opened quite recently and there was so much hype about it. Judging from the room I stayed in, I don’t think it stood up to the hype or maybe because it was still new then. The room was pretty good but I guess it’s the status of being able to stay at MBS as most people praised it for its price.

I had the special privilege to be invited by AITI to do coverage for their involvement in the CommunicAsia 2012 at Marina Bay Sands and hence I was sponsored a 5 night stay at MBS *woohoo* I didn’t have the chance to try out the gym which I heard it’s pretty good but I finally found something time to relax by the Infinity Pool, one of the perks of being a hotel guest at MBS.

My room was at Tower 3 and it’s quite a walk if you actually walk from the main entrance. By the way, I’m quite happy that there’s an MRT now at MBS – Bayfront stop – which is quite recent and this is another good factor if you are seeking for convenience of public transport. I remember back then that I have to stop by Marina Bay stop and take a bus to MBS or go for a 15 min walk to reach MBS.

In conclusion, MBS is a hotel where I would highly recommend you to try at least once if you haven’t. If price isn’t your concern, then this is As for me, I had a good experience but it wasn’t all the hype that it lived to. Like I said, it’s all about status and branding. I’m more of an Oasia or Quincy or Royal Plaza on Scotts kinda of guy *lol*. Well, you get the picture 🙂 On my next trip, it’s a coin toss between Oasia Hotel or Albert Court Village Hotel.

My work station at my room at MBS *lol* Messy as usual 😀

Every 3am I would wake up to catch Euro 2012 matches though 50% of the time, I ended up sleeping halfway.

I love how they presented the amenities of the hotel

I usually would take this home as souvenirs. I kinda forgotten to do so on this trip.

My room is quite spacious and no complains here. Wifi is also complimentary as a hotel guest.

A nice piece of artwork here on the mirror. Strangely I took this photo while I was naked *lol* TMI here

Every time when the room is being cleaned by housekeeping, this tray will be lying on your bed

Ahhh… finally the Infinity Pool on the 57th floor though I didn’t enter the pool as I was worried about my belongings

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JoomBah Jobs is a job board component from the Joombah Suite of Human Resource applications that is developed by ISDS – Syarikat Indah Sejahtera Development and Services (Brunei) Sendirian Berhad. ISDS is a private limited company registered in Brunei. It is 100% Brunei owned company that has been in the IT industry since 1999.

ISDS was fortunate that Pehin Abdullah, Minister of Communications of Negara Brunei Darussalam, had consented to launch the latest version of JoomBah Jobs at the opening day of the Singapore CommunicAsia 2012. The CommunicAsia 2012 is a global platform for the ICT industry that companies like ISDS can use to reach a global audience.

JoomBah HR Suite has a product (JoomBah Jobs 1.3) that already has a global installation of over 2000 sites. The multi-lingual installations are from all over the world including Australia, United Kingdom, Germany, France and Singapore. The suite was an off-shoot of a project called where2kerja (www.where2kerja.com) that was an incubatee of iCentre (a Brunei Economic Development Board project) and a recipient of a development grant from the Authority for Information Communications Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam(AITI). Programming work done for where2kerja was later leveraged to create smaller components that are marketed separately as a Human Resource Suite.

Mohammed Aleng Talib, founder of ISDS (left) speaking to the Minister of Communications (right) while Christopher Ng, Marketing Manager & Business Development Executive looked on

The global sales generated are used to finance the daily operations as well as the research and development activities of the company. The company is registered as a Brunei Government Accredited ICT business (AAB and ICTAB) that actively participates in Brunei e-Government tenders. This gives the company a good platform to provide ICT services to regional SMEs as well as for e-Government projects.

For the SME (and small government departments) market, ISDS have partnered with Dell Computers and Microsoft Corporation to provide Small Business Server Solutions. ISDS is a partner of both Dell Computers and Microsoft Corporation. The solutions are either black-box implementation or a cloud based solution.

ISDS had taken the opportunity to launch its latest version (JoomBah Jobs 2.5) at the Singapore CommunicAsia 2012 so as to reach a wider audience as well as showcasing what Bruneian companies can do. It is hope that this will highlight Brunei as a growing regional ICT player as well as encourage other Bruneians to follow in its foot-steps.

Ak Mohd Khairi, General Manager and Project Manager of PHMD Publishing Company, talking briefly to the Minster of Communications on their latest book where one can easily create a mobile app

Made Simple: m-Commerce and How To Build Business Apps in 30 minutes. This book was published with the collaboration of Infindo Technology. The book is intended to enhance further the understanding on the new wave of m-commerce and what mobile apps can do for the commercial industry. With the edge of a mobile revolution storming through, it is a very vital step for different companies and individuals to capitalise on the power of m-commerce to enhance their business.

Previously, publishing the ground breaking selling book, Business Icons in Brunei, Ak Mohd Khairi bin Pg Hj Metussin, GM of PHMD Publishing Company hopes that “Made Simple: m-Commerce and How To Build Business Apps in 30 minutes” will educate the younger generation on the full potential of mobile and ways to benefit from it,and not merely for telecommunication purposes but even from an entrepreneur stand point. An average mobile user owns atleast a smart phone, this book is intended to provide a brief introduction on what anyone needs to know about the full potential of the mobile phone as well as the future of the next generation of technology.

The book is priced at $14.90 was launched at the regional’s largest IT event, CommunicAsia at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore. It will soon be available at all major book stores in Brunei.

This is the latest book published by PHMD Publishing Company

Miami Heats are NBA champions after defeating Oklahoma City Thunder 4-1 in the NBA finals. LeBron James was named MVP and this is first NBA championship after two failed attempts.

Idris T Vasi, CEO of DST, at the Brunei Pavilion during the recent CommunicAsia 2012 at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

Idris T Vasi, CEO of DST talked about the announcement of the roaming rates between Singapore and Brunei which is currently being looked into by IDA Singapore and AITI Brunei and he believed this is a great move especially for the benefit of end users. As you know that both countries are in the works of reducing the roaming rates between Brunei and Singapore in terms of voice, sms and data.

According to Idris, the volumes of voice and SMS are still greater than data though there is still a high significant usage of data as well. He hinted that there has been talks as well between Brunei and Malaysia on a similar issue.

On the issue of LTE or 4G, DST is having an ongoing trial on technology and marketing to see which works best and what frequency to use. From there, they will have a tender process and select the vendors to start the LTE projects. Idris said that the early stages of LTE could start in early 2013. The trials have been going for a few months and it will continue to see what suits the country best.

This will be a good initiative from DST as the 3G network are getting congested due to the high usage of data as quoted by Idris. The existing countries that are already running on LTE are the UK, US and Korea. Other countries are slowly embracing this technology and it’s quite evident to see LTE making its presence felt at CommunicAsia 2012.

Cecilia Lee of IA Salon at her recent visit to NY for the Make-up courses

These are the photos of the new trend make ups from a simple make up to a fantasy make up. The make up classes were conducted in New York. Mrs. Cecilia Lee of IA Salon attended this make up classes such as glamour make up, lash, lip and brow excellence, perfect beauty and understanding airbrush make up. You can visit IA Salon at The Mall if you are interested to learn make up.

EnGenius had a demo of traffic light censors at their booth

The ice-cream challenge is always there and it’s a good gimmick to bring visitors to their booth

These guys just started their business for two years and they now they are focusing on selling Android box which is ideal for hotels. They also gave me a card on eShineTV where it’s a prepaid voucher so you can watch satellite channels through your TV or smartphones. There are more than 5,000 channels, 20,000 radio stations and 20,000 online games on their service. Awesome!!! All the way from Malaysia!!

I met Abhishek from Indus Net Technologies where his company focuses on outsourcing and there’s likelihood I’m gonna engage their services soon as they are able to provide what I want in terms of my conceptual ideas

Huawei has a huge booth as usual

These ladies are promoting their booth where you can take photos with them at their booth on Level 1

Karel Lee, a Korean from Neo MetroKhan, is selling water resistant plastic screen for smartphones and iPad. I was sucked into buying the skin for iPhone and iPad. Hilarious guy too!!

This booth also had games for the visitors where you can either win a set of dice or a t-shirt

Level 5 is the quietest among the lot. Maybe because they don’t have much to offer. The Brunei Pavilion is located at the basement level and we are fortunate that the basement floor has the biggest traffic. No wonder Level 5 needed more marketing tool to push the traffic.

This level is not my cup of tea…. The floor is full of satellite stuff.. *yawwnnn*

IDA Singapore always have a big presence at CommunicAsia 2012

The CBOSS pavilion was just a few booths away from the Brunei Pavilion and they have dancing session too with their Russian models from CBOSS

Diana and Leong had a photo opportunity with the CBOSS model

The Alibaba booth was giving away recycling bags. This is quite common at CommunicAsia where you see visitors with their hands full of woven bags.

Hadi doing a mic test before the announcement between Brunei and Singapore

Take a photo with these ladies and you can stand a chance to win Singapore F1 tickets

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Most of the Brunei delegate at the CommunicAsia 2012 are staying at Marina Bay Sands hotel and this morning I heard some shocking news about a body being found at the hotel lobby. According to the statement issued by MBS, a body was found outside the Rise lobby restaurant last night.

Just last week, there was another incident where a dead body was found at the food of Marina Bay Sands’ Sky Park. A few of my Bruneian friends did come across some policemen who are probably running the investigation on the said discovery. I’m not too sure what’s the latest development. Anyway, the hotel is running its business as usual but it has been a talking point among our Brunei friends who are currently staying at MBS.

Group photo with delegates from Brunei at Nanyang Polytechnic

Authority for Info-communications of Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam (AITI) coordinated a site visit with established companies in Singapore bringing along the participants of this year’s CommunicAsia 2012 and representative from iCentre.

First stop, the group went to Nanyang Polytechnic, Games & Digital Entertainment Technology School of Interactive & Digital Media at which Albert Lim Song Lian, Deputy Director welcomed the Brunei delegation and explained the courses offered for game programmers and animators.

Potential game programmers in this school are given a real work opportunity as the school works closely with Sony Computer Entertainment in developing games for Playstation as well as games for smart devices on Android or IOS platforms. He further elaborated that “in the past game programmers usually comes from a separate computer science school and students of graphic would come from fine arts school and it was observed that the mental requirement were seen not to sync well with each other.” The school then merged the 2 different talents under one roof and has achieved considerable success

Albert Lim Song Lian, Deputy Director of Nanyang Polytechnic, Games & Digital Entertainment Technology School of Interactive & Digital Media

The Brunei delegates watching the presentation

International students are also welcomed into this school at a small percentage due to limited 400 placements per year. The pre-requisite of this school is a minimum of an O-level background and students would need to undergo a 3 year course. Students are encouraged to broaden their horizon by participating in exhibitions such as Tokyo Gameshow in Nagoya and also similar exhibition in Guangzhow, China.

Some students were also sent to do attachments in Los Angeles, USA to gain relevant work experience with Side Effects’ main office, as the school has made a close work collaboration with the company. Side Effects supplies the Houdini software tools, used by major Hollywood studios, for the school.

Young kids were also given opportunity to get a feel of creating or designing a program

Each year they have a different theme

The green screen room where all the motion capture is being done

Mel trying out the F1 simulator

Students working hard to create a visual for the animation

These are special ordered Playstation machines for the purpose of game creation and they have 50 units that were sponsored by Sony Japan

A token of appreciation from AITI to the Albert

Last night 60 people including Board of Members of AITI and representatives from AITI, Brunei International Gateway, iCentre, DST, Folec, Comquest and others attended a networking dinner hosted by AITI at the Straits Kitchen, Hyatt Regency, Singapore. The dinner was also an appreciation for those who attended the ongoing CommunicAsia 2012. As you know AITI is currently leading the Brunei delegation where 9 local ICT companies are exhibiting their businesses at the Brunei Pavilion at CommunicAsia 2012.

Hj Yahkup Hj Menudin, Chief Executive of AITI, gave some praises to the three companies that recently launched their products at CommunicAsia, notably PHMD Publishing Company, Mars Enterprise and Indah Sejahtera Development & Services Sdn Bhd. He also highlighted of the upcoming BICTA which is one of AITI’s biggest project which will also lead to APICTA where Brunei is the host nation for the regional ICT award.

I have to say I really love the food there at Straits Kitchen though I just read from my instagram that a friend of mine had a gruesome experience. I didn’t even try all the counters but only focus on one area – Indian food – and I was already satisfied and full too 😀

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There’s one week left peeps!! What are you waiting for?

Hey peeps!!! Have you completed your Panini Euro 2012 Sticker album? I just started mine last week but I’m still having fun nonetheless. Some of my friends have finished their albums and some even had two albums to themselves.. Apparently there are two groups of Panini gatherings and I’m more familiar with the one that gathers at Gadong Properties FoodZone. So there will be another gathering tomorrow Friday at FoodZone starting at 4pm.

If you haven’t been to this group session before and also wanting to swap or buy/sell stickers, then do join this group —-> click here and you will be updated of current events and gatherings. Next Friday 29th June, there will be a final gathering also at Foodzone food court and I highly recommended you to come as I will be handing out some stickers from my leftovers from 6 boxes of Panini stickers *lol* The event management company Adison Marketing might also make their presence and who knows there might be some things in store for next Friday.

Just to let you know that the Panini sticker boxes have ran out from the main supplier so what remain are the stocks from vendors and retailers. Hence stickers will be very limited especially if you are a late starter like me. I’m currently in Singapore and hoping to attend a swap session if there’s one in Singapore. Apparently the end users are selling stickers at 30cents a piece *eeeekkss*

I bought two boxes initially but ended up with 6 in the end *lol*

These guys have completed their books

There was quite a turn out and this was the 5th swapping session. The 2nd day gathering had the biggest turn out.

People of all ages were there too even small kids

Ewa is a big fan of Panini football sticker

So do turn up tomorrow Friday 4pm onwards at Foodzone Gadong Properties for the meet up

I’m pretty sure these guys have completed their book. Last I heard they needed two more stickers and that was 5 days ago

I was a bit messy and my area was the messiest of the lot 😀

Despite going through numerous boxes, it doesn’t guaranteed me a complete set

It’s happening this Saturday

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Minister of Communications Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Haji Abdullah Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar (L) and Singapore Minister of Information, Communications and the Arts, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, extended handshakes to commemorate the announcement of reducing roaming rates on voice, sms and data for mobile phone users. The event took took place at Brunei Pavilion at CommunicAsia 2012 event, Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.

Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Haji Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar, Minister of Communications, Brunei Darussalam and His Excellency Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Singapore, have jointly announced Brunei Darussalam’s and Singapore’s commitment to reduce the prevailing roaming rates for mobile phone users by 1Q 2013. The two Ministers made the announcement at the sidelines of the Ministerial Forum which was held as part of the annual Infocomm Media Business Exchange 2012, Asia’s largest infocomm and media platform.

As part of building strong bilateral ties between Brunei and Singapore, the Ministers have tasked the telecoms regulators of Brunei and Singapore to work with mobile operators to reduce the roaming rates.

The Minister of Communications gave some remarks on the special announcement on reducing of roaming rates for voice, sms and data between Brunei and Singapore

In his remarks at the event, Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Haji Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar, Minister of Communications, Brunei Darussalam said, “Brunei Darussalam is really looking forward to further progress in this arrangement. With the reduction in voice, SMS and data roaming services charges between the two countries, international mobile roaming services can be utilized in a more efficient and beneficial manner by our users. It will also spur further growth in the mobile industry”.

It was great to know that the Minister highlighted the usage of social media that plays an important role in the high usage of data among Bruneians. He added, ” There are currently 234,060 Facebook users in Brunei and in relation to our population; Brunei ranks No.1 among all countries in Asia in terms of penetration for the social networking site-Facebook, standing at 59.25%. Social networking services in the country are seen to grow at a rapid pace and this would also lead to growing number of data roaming traffic. Because of this, we should not impose very high charges to our customers as we do not want it to be perceived as a hindering factor for efficient connectivity.”

“Brunei and Singapore is not only looking into the possibility of roaming rates reduction in voice and SMS services, but also data. And we hope this would minimize the complaints on high roaming charges.Such initiative does not mean that it will overcome the challenges of high retail roaming charges and bill shock.”

“However, I also believe it can be done through self-regulation. For example, a systematic price transparency – empowering customers to make more informed choices when utilizing roaming services. We should also learn from the best practice on bill shock measures.”

His Excellency Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Singapore, was delighted to announce the special collaboration between Brunei and Singapore for the reducing of roaming charges

His Excellency Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Singapore said, “Brunei and Singapore enjoy a long history of warm friendship with strong cooperation in a wide range of issues of mutual interests, including infocomm issues. This collaboration seeks to provide cross-border communication at a lower cost for the people of Brunei and Singapore. It would also enhance and reduce the cost of doing business between the two countries.”

Both the wholesale inter-operator charges and the retail subscriber charges will be reviewed. As mobile roaming charges involve different price components charged by operators in both countries, any effort to reduce roaming charges would require coordination and cooperation between both regulators and operators to ensure that users from both countries benefit from the decision.

Check out the current data roaming charges from DST. This image is taken from DST Group website.

[RA’s summary]: As you can see that this is just an announcement between Brunei Darussalam and Singapore on the reduction of roaming charges between two mentioned countries. The expected time frame of the newly rates could be in the first quarter of 2013. So do expect another special announcement once the rates are finalised and these will be applicable to both telcos in Brunei – DST and b.mobile. AITI and IDA (Singapore) are mediators for the negotiations between both countries and this will result in a more competitive, affordable roaming rates and this will be a win-win situation. As for now, the data roaming is charged at 73 cents per 50kb. So you can image if I were to send an image on Whatsapp which could be as big as 1Meg. So that would be an estimated of $14 if I were to send that image to my friend. Ouucchh!!!

Group photo with the Ministers and representatives from Brunei Darussalam, Singapore and Malaysia

His Excellency Dr Yaacob Ibrahim and Pehin Dato Hj Abdullah sharing a light moment after the announcement

During the short interview, the Minister expressed the frustration of mobile users in Brunei on high roaming charges especially on data usage and this issue have been highlighted on the ministerial level regionally to see how roaming rates can be reduced. He said after an agreement on the finalised rates on roaming charges between Brunei and Singapore, he hinted that Malaysia will be next country to work with on reducing roaming charges.

 

The Minister was being interviewed by Channel News Asia

Special offer to all b.mobile customers and you can watch The Amazing Spider-Man on 5th July 2012 at M-Vision Empire Cinema 8pm. Offer valid from 16th June to 4th July 2012.

The Minister of Communications with the Brunei senior officials after touring the Brunei Pavilion at CommunicAsia, Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands

Brunei Darussalam makes their presence in CommunicAsia 2012 in Singapore when the Minister of Communications, Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Haji Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar visited Brunei Darussalam Pavilion together with ministers from Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Bhutan and Bangladesh. The ministers toured the booths of the 9 Brunei’s ICT companies who participated in the Brunei Darussalam Pavilion. The Brunei Darussalam’s minister also officiated 3 participating companies’ new products during the exhibition. One of them, Indah Sejahtera Development & Services Sdn Bhd (ISDS) launched their JoomBah applications. This application is part of a solution for the human resource industry that has already been installed over 2000 sites all over the world – from Australia to Zimbabwe. The Human Resource suite will include applicant tracking and HRIS (human resource information system) in future releases.

Pehin Dato Hj Abdullah officially launched JoomBah application created by Indah Sejahtera Development & Services Sdn Bhd

Mohammed Aleng Taib, founder of ISDS (left) speaking to the Minister while Christopher Ng, Marketing Manager & Business Development Executive looked on

Mars Enterprise launched their “Mars ERP in cloud and mobile”. Mr Foo Boon Seng, Proprietor presented the solution to Pehin. The solution aims to improve accessibility of traditionally offline-based ERP solutions by adding an online and mobile component.

The Minister pressed on the screen to launch Mr. Foo’s latest software called Mars ERP in cloud and mobile

Mr. Foo is very proud of his product and hopes his work will be a big hit internationally and he ended his presentation slide with “Brunei Yakin” motto

The third is an upcoming publishing company, PHMD who launched their latest book from the publishing company called “Made Simple” which is a book on m-Commerce & How to build a business app in 30 minutes. This is a guidebook for anyone who is interested in developing mobile devices applications.

AITI hopes that local Brunei ICT companies, by participating in CommunicAsia, will enable them to promote their ICT solutions, products and services to international buyers or partners.

The Minister cut the ribbon to officiate the launch of “Made Simple” book

The Minister also signed electronically on the iPad to commemorate the launch

Ak Mohd Khairi, General Manager and Project Manager of PHMD Publishing Company, talked briefly to the Minster on their latest book where one can easily create a mobile app

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Surprisingly I have never entered this building. This is the H & M building and previously this was California Fitness.

After a two month wait, I finally managed to catch Raid: The Redemption movie which blew my mind completely. I almost caught it in Melbourne back in April but the timing didn’t allow me and Brunei didn’t bring the movie too. Verdict: 9/10.

I had another meal with Fina and Marianne and it was a pretty good steamboat meal at Ion Orchard

We had a four hour tour to Polytechnic Nanyang and IDA. Representatives from AITI, ICT vendors, iCentre incubatees and BEDB representatives also joined the tour.

Did you know that there’s an MRT stop now at Marina Bay Sands? It’s at the Bayfront stop. You will need to change platform at Marina Bay stop to go to Orchard MRT 🙂

Sometimes it’s a good reason to wake up in the middle of the night to catch Euro 2012 while blogging 🙂

The big day is today and the organizers AITI and the 9 invited exhibitors were busy preparing for CommunicAsia 2012 yesterday at Marina Bay Sands convention. I shall be covering the event this morning for the official launch of CommunicAsia 2012 and three companies will be launching their services/products where the Minister of Communications of Brunei Darussalam will officiate the launches of the respective companies.

The guys setting up their booths for the four day event – CommunicAsia 2012

Hui Nee and Jo looking very busy

Coffee lovers in Brunei will be able to indulge in premium and top quality beverages as Australian coffee house Gloria Jean’s Coffee finally opened its doors to the Bruneian market at Citis Square yesterday.

This was made possible following the business role of MyFranchise, a subsidiary of Perbadanan Nasional Berhad, which is responsible for the Brunei and Malaysia operations, through Wonderful Lifestyles Sdn Bhd.

Joining allegiance in the successful opening of Brunei’s latest coffee store were the Australia Trade Commission and the Australian High Commission in Brunei Darussalam. Gloria Jean’s Coffee is internationally recognised especially in the Asean region and popular among Bruneians who visit neighbouring countries. The owner of the Brunei outlet who is responsible for its daily operations is Pg Hjh Jamilah Matarasat.

Gloria Jean’s Coffee – one of the world’s top gourmet coffee retailers – has outlets in 45 countries, with approximately 1,000 stores worldwide and 470 stores in Australia. It is not only renowned for its genuine and distinctive taste and flavours but it is meticulously focused on the art and techniques of coffee-making to ensure top quality standards.

Awg Mohd Riza bin Dato Paduka Hj Mohd Yunos, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources (3L) with Mr Wes Knight, the Acting Australian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam (2L) and other distinguished guests during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Image courtesy of Fadhil Yunus of Borneo Bulletin.

Following the opening landmark in Brunei and adding an alternative to the healthy Bruneian market, Datuk Hj Ahmad Shalimin bin Hj Ahmad Shaffie, Chairman of Gloria Jean’s Coffee Malaysia said that yesterday’s opening was the first outlet for Brunei Darussalam.

Gloria Jean’s Coffee is also a registered member with Rainforest Alliance Certified. “It means that we only buy coffee from the farmers that follow the standard operating procedures of coffee farming,” Datuk Haji Ahmad Shalimin said. Gloria Jean’s Coffee’s long extensive line of coffee products contains Rainforest Alliance Certified beans.

“The hero for the brand is the coffee itself and the beans are specially blended according to their recipes and directly comes from Australia. In terms of making coffee and the whole technicality of making the coffee, everything is handcrafted and we pride ourselves in making sure that our baristas actually learn the right and proper way of making coffee,” a representative of Gloria Jean’s Coffee said.

“As coffee drinkers, we are critical in the coffee we drink and for the market overall, the market is moving towards more places (for people) to hang out but at the same time provide good quality food and drinks,” he added.

The investment and training in coffee professionals and baristas are well documented to ensure the highest level of professionalism and quality in Brunei coupled with the varied taste which ranges from one-dimensional to the rich and complex flavours.

“We also have a training centre in Kuala Lumpur where we call it Coffee University. So all the baristas will be sent to our centre not only for the coffee but also the SOP of the whole store,” he added.

He said that the local staff in Brunei also received training in Kuala Lumpur. Gloria Jean’s Coffee in Malaysia also expertly looked at the convenience of the location.

Originally started in the US in 1979, it was brought over by the Australians in 2005, which considered the brand as an Australian brand ever since.

Meanwhile, Mr Nabi Salleh, the Executive Chairman of Gloria Jean’s Coffee International said, “We’re incredibly excited about being able to provide the local Bandar Seri Begawan community with the high quality coffee, outstanding personalised services and vibrant store atmosphere that Gloria Jean’s Coffee is famous for.”

Present as the chief guest at the launch was Awg Mohd Riza bin Dato Paduka Hj Mohd Yunos, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources. Also present at the event were Mr Wes Knight, the Acting Australian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam; Dato’ Mohd Ali bin Abd Samad, Member of the Board of Directors of Perbadanan Nasional Berhad; and other distinguished guests. Text courtesy of Fadhil Yunus of Borneo Bulletin.

Image taken from Gloria Jeans Brunei Facebook page

The winner of the 5km Fun Run @ Tasek Lama last Saturday

The Surveying Division of the Young Surveyor’s Group, under the Institution of Surveyors, Engineers and Architects (PUJA), held the ‘Fun Run @ Tasek 2012’ event yesterday morning at Tasek Lama Recreational Park.

Present at the event was Permanent Secretary (Professional and Technical) of the Ministry of Development Hj Suhaimi Hj Gafar, PUJA Brunei Chairman Hj Zulkipli Hj Abdul Hamid and PUJA Brunei Surveying Division Chairman Hj Hanafi POKDGSDRDLU Hj Abd Rahman.

There were three categories at the event: the Student Run, 2.5km Run and the Overtime 5km Run. The event began with a flag off for all the runners, which was then followed by a ‘Student Treasure Hunt’.

Apart from raising funds for SMARTER and Pusat Ehsan, the fun run also aimed to give the participants a better understanding of the quantity surveying profession. At the event, members of the public got the chance to interact with quantity surveyors and those in the construction industry, and learned more about the profession

A prize presentation was held at the end of the event for the winners of each category. A ceremony was also held to hand over the donations to SMARTER and Pusat Ehsan, with each organisation receiving $2,500

Representing the benefiting charities were Malai Hj Abdullah Hj Malai Othman, president of SMARTER and Dato Paduka Alimin Abd Wahab, acting chairman of the Board of Trustees for Pusat Ehsan Al-Ameerah Al-Hajjah Maryam.

The Fun Run @ Tasek event was held in conjunction with the 16th Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors Congress, which will take place from July 7 to July 19 at the Empire Hotel & Country Club. Text courtesy of Zatty Joanda of The Brunei Times.

The winner of the 2km Fun Run @ Tasek Lama last Saturday

Donation handed to Pusat Ehsan

The warm exercise before the event led by Edgar

The flag off for the 2.5 km and 5km Fun Run

It was a day of heroes, as many rolled up their sleeves to donate blood at the RIPAS Blood Bank on Thursday, June 14.

The event was called the ‘Hero Blood Donation Drive’, where donors came dressed in their best superhero costumes and donated their blood.

Organised by GetFitCrossFit and the Health Promotion Centre (HPC), and supported by the Department of Laboratory Services, the event saw more than 200 people show their support for the cause and a total of 129 successful blood donations received.

The event, which coincided with World Blood Donor Day (June 14), was one of many ‘mega drives’ all over the country on the day.

“It’s much more than just a donation drive. It’s something inspiring and you feel like a hero by doing this,” said DJ Faye from Pelangi FM.

According to a press statement from HPC, the reason behind making the event a fancy dress was to show potential blood donors, especially young people, that blood donation can be fun and social.

It was hoped that potential blood donors would be inspired to set up their own events and donate regularly in the future. By making the event social, potential blood donors would overcome their fears by having friends and family supporting them. Text by Zatty Joanda of The Brunei Times. Images courtesy of HPC Brunei Facebook and Stephanie Liew.

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The Minister of Communications sent off the Brunei contingent. Click image to enlarge.

CommunicAsia here we come!!! Yesterday the Brunei entourage under AITI left for Singapore for the upcoming CommunicAsia 2012 which will take place from 19th to 22nd June at the Marina Bay Sands. AITI stands for The Authority for Info-communication Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam and the entourage was led by Chief Executive, Hj Yahkup Menudin. Also following are 9 chosen local ICT companies which will participate in this year’s CommunicAsia 2012.

The 9 ICT companies participating are Folec, DST, PHMD, Comquest, SocialBuzz, Mars Enterprise, Indah Sejahtera, Bru GPS and Cube Box. I shall be reporting some of the participants’ products and services and what they have to offer in CommunicAsia 2012.

I’m not sure how many years already Brunei has been participating in CommunicAsia. The convention will feature a comprehensive myriad of key and emerging technologies from cloud security and services. “fibre” for nextgen services, M2M, Satellite communications etc. This will be a good platform for the local ICT companies to get some exposure and who knows they will also create opportunities and partnership with international players.

Prior to departure, Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Hj Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Hj Bakar, Minister of Communications and Abdul Mutalib bin Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Setia Dato Paduka Hj Mohamad Yusof, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Communications had a photo session with AITI representatives and ICT Companies before departing for Singapore yesterday.

The Brunei program book that has all the participating local ICT

I managed to check in early but AITI had a few boxes to bring in for the upcoming Communia 2012

Aahh.. I’m another sucker when it comes to Apple products and I’m pretty please that they came up with a new edition of Macbook Pro and Macbook Air. Both models look superb and I currently owned the previous model of Macbook Pro and Macbook Air and should I venture into the new specs, I might just sell off my old ones for a very good price indeed. But but but… I won’t be saying when for now :p

So let’s see what’s great about the Macbook Pro? Firstly, there’s an option where you can choose a 15: with Retina display with 5.1 million pixels. Mind you the Retina Display is only available for 15″. The model is also thinner than the old Macbook Pro and it’s only 0.71 inch thin with a weight of 4.46 pounds. Yeah, it’s still slightly heavier.

The battery can last up to 7 hours while surfing wirelessly on the web and yea, battery for it is very important to make sure that I get the best hours for my work with the fuss of the carrying the power adapter. It now has a USB 3.0 port which transfers 10 times faster than USB 2. There’s also an HDMI port. This is perhaps the best Macbook Pro to date.. I’m quite sad that the new iMacs haven’t been announced. Maybe soon…

The new edition of the Macbook Air…

Portability is one thing. The other is its lightness and I’m amazed how thin the Macbook Air can be. Now the latest model is more powerful than it’s previous mode and it comes in 11″ and 13″. Another great thing is the prices are pretty competitive. The Air models do not have

You have the options to choose either Core i5 or i7 processors and there is also a major improvement as the graphics is 60 percent faster than before. There’s also connection hubs for Thunderbolt and USB 3.

Both notebooks are powerful and if you are deciding between the two, then just look at its practicality which will suit your needs. For me, Macbook Air is now my 2nd toy after the iMac at home. The reason being is that it suits perfectly for me especially during my travels and man, I do save a lot of weight on my hand carry. So now the question is which one would I invest in – the Mackbook Air or the Macbook Pro… We shall wait and see…

By the way, you can check out the special deals for the old batch at AV Electronics. Click image to find out more.

The new stock probably have sold out by now due to limited stock but you still can pre-order for the next shipment at AV Electronics. Click image to enter Facebook page.

After being a week away from Brunei for my Penang trip, I’m now in Singapore for my coverage on CommunicAsia 2012 which will kick off 19th to 22nd June and I will be staying a few extra nights to chill off before heading back to Brunei.

It’s also the first time that I will be staying at Marina Bay Sands hotel (thank you AITI) and I’m loving the spacious room so far.. Awesome!!! I finally managed to catch up with Fina who happened to be on holiday in Singapore and I also met a new friend Marianne who came to Singapore with Fina. I’m looking forward for the next few days indeed and I will update you on the happenings at CommunicAsia 2012 through my instagram and Twitter @ranoadidas and of course my blog 🙂 Happy week, peeps!!

Upon arrival at Changi Airport

The Marina Bay Sands shuttle bus is impressive. Great leg room and there’s WiFi on board 🙂

A bit tricky during our check-in at Marina Bay Sands. Some had to pay a higher deposit though we all were in the same group check-in list. There was also one stage where they didn’t want to accept my Brunei dollars for deposit. Strange…

MBS is fully booked this week because of CommunicAsia 2012

My first pitstop at Marina Bay Sands – ADIDAS 😀

I had a quick lunch with Fina at MBS while killing time before I could checked in

I also met acquaitance with a new friend from Norway who are colleagues with Fina. Nice to meet you, Marianne.

I love it how the chocolate sauce was poured

… and the taste was simply amazing.. A great way to cap off a heavy lunch 😀

Make your reservations for Sunday 😀

Have an amazing Father’s Day on the 17 June 2012 at the Radisson Hotel Brunei Darussalam. It is another cause of celebration at Tasek Brasserie. Treat your dad to the BBQ & Grill by the pool. The selection of our splendid buffet featuring seafood platter with salmon terrine, mixed sushi, whole lamb on the spit, beef goulash and a sweet treat; raspberry fruit jelly with marshmallow, to name a few.

Priced at B$30.00 nett per adult and B$15.00 nett per child.

Have you tried the cuisine at Caliente? First opening its doors in the month of April of this year, Caliente which is located in Regent Square has satisfied its patrons with its Spanish cuisine.

Spanish cuisine has a rich and cultural history drawn from a mixture of European and North African food and even a slight greek influence.

One popular food item is tapas which was originally used to refer to a piece of bread used as a lid to cover drinks. Today tapas is the most acquired Spanish cuisine owing to the versatility and ease of its preparation, Caliente offers its patrons this versatile experience drawing from the best loved tapas enjoyed all over spain which could either be a perfect appetiser or even a complete meal.

Spanish tortillas, chorizo, prawns mackerel and anchovies along with the simple yet scrumptious patatas bravas are all featured in Caliente’s hot and cold tapas selection.

The owners stated most of the ingredients used in spanish cuisine are olive oil based and uses fresh green vegetables. Some of the ingredients are even specially imported from Spain such as the case for the flour used to make Caliente’s nachos and many more. [Info from Adib Noor of The Brunei Times]

So do make your bookings tomorrow (Sunday) at Caliente for Father’s Day and enjoy 10% off total bill above $50. It is located on 1st Floor, Regent Square at Kiulap. Call 223 4549 for reservation.

The new KFC Pokkits at KFC outlets

The Holiday Bucket Combo at KFC outlets

The charity event took place earlier this morning at Tasek Lama organised by the Young Surveyor’s Group under the Pertubuhan Ukur Jurutera Dan Arkitek (PUJA). The idea of the Fun Run is to raise funds for SMARTER Brunei and Pusat Ehsan Al-Ameerah Al-Hajjah Maryam and the event was also in conjunction with the 16th Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyor’s (PAQS) Congress.

There were three categories for the event – Student (treasure hunt), 2.5 KM and 5 KM.

My friends and I enjoyed Penang and most importantly the food in Penang *nom nom nom*

Happy Friday peeps!!! I just wanna let you know that I will be going back to Penang next year again and that will be by third year running. I had a very fulfilling trip and I bonded with people whom I wasn’t close too and the conversations were interesting too. This shows expanding your circle of friends can bring some flavour to the mix and even give some new dimensions to the level of conversation.

Today I feel appreciative of my friends especially my close ones who have always bring joy and giving me some awareness on new things I would simply discover through my friends’ experiences and from there, we will be able to appreciate what we have and focus more of the present (neither the past nor the present). So thank you guys for showing up and empowering one another.

During my Penang trip, I lost two of my valuable possessions though they are not expensive in value but they are very dear and in a way priceless to me. So it was kinda a low key moment for me because I was suppose to give three things away that are meaningful to me to the three most important people in my life. It somehow teaches you how to let go off things and you don’t hold too much attachment to it. Now that’s hard to execute, right? But I was already willing to give away my dearest items but I ended up losing them *lol* ironic, aye?

Yesterday I had a challenging chat with my good friend about my opportunities. It’s great to see my friend able to see the potential in me that I’ve so much to offer on the plate right and she believes that I can grow if I just grab those opportunities. Sometimes I ask myself if I’m pretty comfortable in what I do which is just blogging. I do have other things in mind where I could mushroom from the success of my blog.

I hope to start my Panini Sticker Album collection later.. As you can see I’m pretty behind and quite a number of people have already finished their album. But it’s all good since I still can feel the satisfaction of sticking on my album book slowly at my own pace and enjoy every single moment before the deadline. I remember 2 years ago during the World Cup 2010 that I had this urge to finish my album as quickly as possible and I felt proud about it *lol* Now I’m just going with the flow and see where this will lead me.

Before I sign off, I want to wish my good friend, Nisaa Suresh (Bonita), Happy Birthday and I know we did catch up once in a while but I want let you know that you are a true friend. I still remember our eCircle days *lol* and that’s how we get to know each other and it feels that we both graduated into our own lives. So let’s do lunch or dinner again soon.

Below are pictures and recap of my Penang trip with my buddies last week. Enjoy your day and enjoy your weekend.

Joan had an amazing time at Penang. This was taken at BIA boarding room before boarding on Air Asia

As usual, I had my pre-ordered nasi lemak while watching Modern Family 😀

The book where I pour in my thoughts and how my day felt

This soup is interesting because it has small alphabets in it

Every morning we experienced the sunrise by the beach at Golden Sands Resorts

My friends enjoying the back seat

We went to Royal Selangor and did some knocking of our own

I did one for myself with my name written on it

Winnie loves small things so much that she bought a smaller version on what she was holding on her palm

If you were to be in Penang, I highly recommend you to stay at Golden Sands Resort as you will be able to enjoy the facilities at the hotel and also by the beach

I love the hammocks that they have at Golden Sands Resort

At the food court at Gurney Plaza, I had the ice cendol and it was the bomb!!

Joan didn’t like the clothes from Joan *ironic*

What we bought at MPG Book store at Gurney Plaza

Community Mural Painting and Multimedia Art Installation

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Make your reservations for Sunday 😀

Have an amazing Father’s Day on the 17 June 2012 at the Radisson Hotel Brunei Darussalam. It is another cause of celebration at Tasek Brasserie. Treat your dad to the BBQ & Grill by the pool. The selection of our splendid buffet featuring seafood platter with salmon terrine, mixed sushi, whole lamb on the spit, beef goulash and a sweet treat; raspberry fruit jelly with marshmallow, to name a few.

Priced at B$30.00 nett per adult and B$15.00 nett per child.

My friends and I enjoyed Penang and most importantly the food in Penang *nom nom nom*

Happy Friday peeps!!! I just wanna let you know that I will be going back to Penang next year again and that will be by third year running. I had a very fulfilling trip and I bonded with people whom I wasn’t close too and the conversations were interesting too. This shows expanding your circle of friends can bring some flavour to the mix and even give some new dimensions to the level of conversation.

Today I feel appreciative of my friends especially my close ones who have always bring joy and giving me some awareness on new things I would simply discover through my friends’ experiences and from there, we will be able to appreciate what we have and focus more of the present (neither the past nor the present). So thank you guys for showing up and empowering one another.

During my Penang trip, I lost two of my valuable possessions though they are not expensive in value but they are very dear and in a way priceless to me. So it was kinda a low key moment for me because I was suppose to give three things away that are meaningful to me to the three most important people in my life. It somehow teaches you how to let go off things and you don’t hold too much attachment to it. Now that’s hard to execute, right? But I was already willing to give away my dearest items but I ended up losing them *lol* ironic, aye?

Yesterday I had a challenging chat with my good friend about my opportunities. It’s great to see my friend able to see the potential in me that I’ve so much to offer on the plate right and she believes that I can grow if I just grab those opportunities. Sometimes I ask myself if I’m pretty comfortable in what I do which is just blogging. I do have other things in mind where I could mushroom from the success of my blog.

I hope to start my Panini Sticker Album collection later.. As you can see I’m pretty behind and quite a number of people have already finished their album. But it’s all good since I still can feel the satisfaction of sticking on my album book slowly at my own pace and enjoy every single moment before the deadline. I remember 2 years ago during the World Cup 2010 that I had this urge to finish my album as quickly as possible and I felt proud about it *lol* Now I’m just going with the flow and see where this will lead me.

Before I sign off, I want to wish my good friend, Nisaa Suresh (Bonita), Happy Birthday and I know we did catch up once in a while but I want let you know that you are a true friend. I still remember our eCircle days *lol* and that’s how we get to know each other and it feels that we both graduated into our own lives. So let’s do lunch or dinner again soon.

Below are pictures and recap of my Penang trip with my buddies last week. Enjoy your day and enjoy your weekend.

*LOL* First of all, you guys must be wondering what on earth is RA talking about? Intentions are things that can be of your visions or your goals which are made of small objectives to help you guide through but some where along the lines we humans are attached to expectations which makes it difficult for us to focus on our actual intentions. It may sounds easy that way I’ve described it but it has a deeper meaning to it and this is why relationships among friends (mutual and close ones), families and marriages can fall apart because of high expectations. This was what I became aware of during our relationship course back in Penang and the most important relationship that I’ve neglected for a while is the person in the mirror – myself :))

I’m glad to back home in Brunei after an 8 day trip to Ipoh/Penang and man, I really missed my room back at home.. I was also able to watch the Euro 2012 matches at my own comfort though the matches are shown past midnight so it has been affecting my sleeping patterns once more. I managed to catch Prometheus which I haven’t gave a review just yet but it was an okay movie for me. More review on that soon.

I will heading off to Singapore for a week this weekend for the upcoming coverage of CommuicAsia so it’s another trip I’m looking forward too. So it’s more of a working/holiday trip. My family is currently outstation in the UK. Speaking about that, it’s been a while since I’ve been to London. InsyaAllah next year it could be a possibility 😀

I’m slowly getting back to the groove of blogging and do have a great weekend ahead, guys!! In my head, I’m still deciding whether to invest in the Macbook Pro. Well, honestly, I was looking forward to new iMacs. I’m pretty sure by July we might see new ranges of iMacs..

This picture is dedicated to one of my biggest fan – Muhd Syahmi – who celebrated his 12th birthday yesterday. Happy belated and may Allah bless you 😀

BICTA is a national annual competition that aims to nurture and unleash the potential of individuals, students and ICT players. BICTA 2012 will be the eight time the competition is being held.

The competition is divided into three categories: Secondary Student Project, Tertiary Student Project and ICT Industry.

Prizes for winners of the competition, following their respective categories are cash prizes of $3,000 (Secondary School), $7,000 (Tertiary School) and $10,000 (ICT Industry).

There will be special awards given to 1) New Media and Entertainment 2) Made in Brunei Products 3) Green ICT and 4) Islamic ICT.

BICTA winners will also have the opportunity to represent Brunei Darussalam at the prestigious international ICT competition, APICTA, which Brunei will proudly host in December 2012.

Please contact Ang Hui Nee 2323232 ext 1126 huinee.ang(a)aiti.gov.bn or Johana Sumin 2323232 ext 1121 johana.sumin(a)aiti.gov.bn

Be the change agent 😀
 

Today (14th June) there is a blood donation drive with GetFitCrossfit, HPC and Bloodbank RIPAS at the Bloodbank RIPAS. Organisers have given the option for blood donors to come in fancy dress (as heroes!). This is to encourage young people to give blood and to show them that giving blood can be a fun social occasion.

More information on the event can be found through this facebook link: http://on.fb.me/KmoECJ

This is a part of the drive towards World Blood Donor Day celebrated in Brunei Darussalam on 24 June 2012 at the Health Promotion Center and commemorated annually worldwide on 14 June.

Other events include the “Recruit a friend” program until 14 June 2012, whereby recruiting a friend for blood donation will give you a chance to win prizes. 

The goodies you will get from today’s event. Taken from HPC Brunei Facebook.

These incidents happened at 3 locations three days ago. Break-ins have become a rising trend in Brunei and it’s a very worrying sign. Image taken from Brudirect Facebook page, documented by Borneo Bulletin

Where other countries have used more drastic tactics in breaking ins, Brunei have just started a less sophisticated way of breaking in at public car parks. I owned an SUV and the hardest part is that I don’t have a proper place to hide my belongings as an SUV have window glasses at the back of the car which makes it visible for others to see.

Anyway, the main question here is how do we deal with this kind of situation?? Of course, it would be nice to have people like G4S patrolling places prone to break ins but such tasks can be very demanding if we were to suggest a few places. Perhaps the best bet is not to bring to put any of your belongings that are visible to the eyes of the potential thieves. Or if you have a saloon car, then place your belongings at the boot though thieves will be able to outsmart a lot of us at the rate they are going.

The photo above was taken a few days ago and there were five cars that have been smashed and a few weeks ago, there also have been similar cases. So peeps.. Be more mindful of your belongings if you plan to leave them in the car. The criminals these days are in desperate measures.

Wooww!!! What a great trip I had at Ipoh/Penang which lasted for 8 days and now I’m at LCCT with a few hours to spare before I head off to Brunei later. I’ve learned so much from my travels because of the awesome companions around me. Friends from Kuching, KL, Taiwan, China, Brunei, Singapore and so on and perhaps the most amazing thing was I learned so many lessons from the kids/teenagers on their perspective of life and how authentic they are when they share their experiences.

You will notice that I have not been posting so much in the past 7 days.. Don’t worry, peeps, as I will back to the usual blogging self once I’m back in Brunei. Oh yeah, then again, I will be flying off to Singapore for CommunicAsia this Sunday but not to worry as I will have ample time to blog anyway since it’s a working cum holiday trip 😀

My car is being repaired again so I will be car-less for a while. Well, it doesn’t mean it won’t be going to places for coverage but I’m grateful that I have a driver back home and also my friends around who are willing to give me a lift. Thanks for that 😀

I can’t wait to go back home now and have a long, warm shower and catch up on some nap.. Happy Wednesday, peeps!!