Jojo is a very friendly creature. I am not so sure with its gender but I am going to guess that its a female. Her hair is going all over the place and in need of a quick trim. Looking utterly cute with its short legs, wiggling its tail as you call her. Ah, so adorable.
I have the tendencies to get scared of sudden movements from animals. I called Jojo and she looked at me, eyes all round. I was just calling to check out if she recognizes me, after all we are neighbours. Out of the sudden, she starting making quick tiny steps more and more towards me. On automatic, I panicked and ran towards the gate without a single reason why. Apparently Jojo only made a couple of steps towards me but I guess she stopped upon seeing me fleeing. I bet you Jojo thought I was acting all weird. All she wanted was to play with someone but she scared me instead.
I ended laughing at myself. I felt silly too. Jojo went back to the front of her gate and sat watching me. Oh Jojo, next time if you feel like approaching me, give me some kind of signal will you? It is not you, it is just me. Scared of little sudden movements especially when it comes from furry or flying animals/insects. Haha.
Oh if you still can't tell, Jojo is a little doggy. I am not sure of her breed but it is one of those black and white little dog with almost curly looking hair. A real cute little doggie.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Not so quick update on Mt.Kinabalu latest happenings
Ever since I was totally hooked on Mt.Kinabalu via ferrata activity conducted by non other than the Mountain Torq company, I was quick to follow them on Facebook just like any typical ardent fan will follow their ultimate favorite band which in my case I fan DJ Tiesto and The Prodigy on my Facebook. Gosh, I just love them. Sorry, just cannot help myself from getting off track from the topic. =)
Anyhow, since I am following Mountain Torq or the Via Ferrata Asia group in Facebook, I have the privileges of getting updates on anything regarding Mt. Kinabalu. Of late I have been getting news about water shortage at the mountain due to the dry weather. Without rain for close to four weeks since late February it resulted to low water reserve on the mountain * this was update I received on March 9. Due to that facilities on the mountain are forced to go on the water conservation mode by limiting water usage strictly only for cooking and drinking. No showers allowed for guest's accommodation. As on March 21, the group updated that rain finally showered the mountain however it was not heavy enough to fill up the water reserve.
Other updates...
I just found out there will be a charity climb on the mountain conducted by Shelter Home for Children, KL. The charity climb will be held from 18-21 April 2010. I am not sure if you can still participate in the charity climb with them since if I read correctly, the registration date was closed on the 26 February. However, if you are interested to donate towards their drive to raise RM100,000 for their Shelter Home you can still do so by contacting them directly here. What is interesting about this climb is that a one legged young man is going to attempt the climb towards the summit and if you happen to be climbing Mt.Kinabalu on the same date as them, do give your support for these climbers. Too bad I am only climbing in May.
I just hope the weather will get better and the mountain will see more rain in days to come. On that note, I should be training more since April is coming pretty soon. Yikes! My stamina is still not up to standard and April is going to be a do or die training regime. Until more updates, happy training to my fellow comrades and safe climbing for all climbers.
Anyhow, since I am following Mountain Torq or the Via Ferrata Asia group in Facebook, I have the privileges of getting updates on anything regarding Mt. Kinabalu. Of late I have been getting news about water shortage at the mountain due to the dry weather. Without rain for close to four weeks since late February it resulted to low water reserve on the mountain * this was update I received on March 9. Due to that facilities on the mountain are forced to go on the water conservation mode by limiting water usage strictly only for cooking and drinking. No showers allowed for guest's accommodation. As on March 21, the group updated that rain finally showered the mountain however it was not heavy enough to fill up the water reserve.
Other updates...
I just found out there will be a charity climb on the mountain conducted by Shelter Home for Children, KL. The charity climb will be held from 18-21 April 2010. I am not sure if you can still participate in the charity climb with them since if I read correctly, the registration date was closed on the 26 February. However, if you are interested to donate towards their drive to raise RM100,000 for their Shelter Home you can still do so by contacting them directly here. What is interesting about this climb is that a one legged young man is going to attempt the climb towards the summit and if you happen to be climbing Mt.Kinabalu on the same date as them, do give your support for these climbers. Too bad I am only climbing in May.
I just hope the weather will get better and the mountain will see more rain in days to come. On that note, I should be training more since April is coming pretty soon. Yikes! My stamina is still not up to standard and April is going to be a do or die training regime. Until more updates, happy training to my fellow comrades and safe climbing for all climbers.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
What's new at Broga Hill this year?
We've been up Broga Hill for a couple of times last year with each trip being uniquely different from the previous one. By all means, 'we' represents myself and my equally adventurous partner,FF. If you have read my older post about my hiking trips on Broga Hill, I was proudly mentioning that
As far as I am concerned, that statement was so last year. It is because there have been a lot of changes going about in and around the hill. It is sad to say that the changes I have seen a couple of weeks back will draw me further out from making future hiking trips up this hill. Here are the reason why.
To begin with, every frequent hiker at this hill knows about the palm oil plantation parking lot. It used to be a free parking for all visitors but not this year. Either pay up a parking fee of RM 2 or decide to park else where like by the roadside which is right before entering the plantation. A lot of people resorted to parking by the roadside because of the parking fees and if you are a frequent hiker at Broga Hill, I find it just not worth the money simply to pay some fees for parking. Just not worth it.
More over, you get to see a couple of sign boards from the starting point of the hike right to the summit. Putting up sign boards of course is a good thing because it shows that the hill is properly taken care of. Well at least that is what we think.
[caption id="attachment_735" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="The grass started to grow green again despite being totally pitched black a couple of weeks black. Only the branches left blackened."]
[/caption]
Next, for the past couple of weeks, the hill for some unknown reason was badly burnt at the summit and the formerly green, tall grass turned into tall strands of blackened sticks and leaves. An aerial view of the hill shows that a good portion of the hill was badly burnt down. The only possible reason for the burnt I guess was because of the dry spell, the grass got all dried out and eventually burnt on its own due to the heat. That is what I think though.
Lastly, ever since the hill has been getting a lot of publicity thanks to television - I suppose it was the 8TV Quickie Show, weekenders varying from youngsters, students, families and hikers like myself throngs the hill like a tiny procession towards the top right from before sunset. The last thing I wanted was to brush shoulders with some bunch of strangers on some hill. Hill hiking suppose to be a fun-filled outdoor activity to be closer to nature, not closer to more people.
Therefore if you have yet to visit Broga Hill or have some thoughts of going over there this weekend and if you are an ardent hiker trying to explore new terrain at this hill, try going after my suggestions here:
1. Avoid early morning weekend hike because that is the peak hour time where many will flock the hill to view the sunrise. Come on you can have better sunrise view elsewhere where it is peaceful and serene.
2. Recommended timing for hiking will be around 8 am or later. You can also try evening hike or best do it on weekdays.
3. If you are thinking to save some bucks because if you are coming from KL or PJ area, it is a long drive to get here, thus it is best to park free by the roadside. Just watch out for the immediate left of the roadside right before the plantation entrance because the surface area there is slightly steep and not stable. You do not want to see your car toppled to the side at the end of your hike.
With that all said, FF and I figured that the hike we had at Broga Hill two weeks ago will be the first and the last at least for both of us this year. But come to think of it again, you'll just never know. We may make our return trip here but just not anytime too soon.
you can never turn down an invitation for a hike at Broga when the sole purpose of climbing is to capture images of the scenery and the climbers!
As far as I am concerned, that statement was so last year. It is because there have been a lot of changes going about in and around the hill. It is sad to say that the changes I have seen a couple of weeks back will draw me further out from making future hiking trips up this hill. Here are the reason why.
To begin with, every frequent hiker at this hill knows about the palm oil plantation parking lot. It used to be a free parking for all visitors but not this year. Either pay up a parking fee of RM 2 or decide to park else where like by the roadside which is right before entering the plantation. A lot of people resorted to parking by the roadside because of the parking fees and if you are a frequent hiker at Broga Hill, I find it just not worth the money simply to pay some fees for parking. Just not worth it.
More over, you get to see a couple of sign boards from the starting point of the hike right to the summit. Putting up sign boards of course is a good thing because it shows that the hill is properly taken care of. Well at least that is what we think.
[caption id="attachment_735" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="The grass started to grow green again despite being totally pitched black a couple of weeks black. Only the branches left blackened."]
[/caption]Next, for the past couple of weeks, the hill for some unknown reason was badly burnt at the summit and the formerly green, tall grass turned into tall strands of blackened sticks and leaves. An aerial view of the hill shows that a good portion of the hill was badly burnt down. The only possible reason for the burnt I guess was because of the dry spell, the grass got all dried out and eventually burnt on its own due to the heat. That is what I think though.
Lastly, ever since the hill has been getting a lot of publicity thanks to television - I suppose it was the 8TV Quickie Show, weekenders varying from youngsters, students, families and hikers like myself throngs the hill like a tiny procession towards the top right from before sunset. The last thing I wanted was to brush shoulders with some bunch of strangers on some hill. Hill hiking suppose to be a fun-filled outdoor activity to be closer to nature, not closer to more people.
Therefore if you have yet to visit Broga Hill or have some thoughts of going over there this weekend and if you are an ardent hiker trying to explore new terrain at this hill, try going after my suggestions here:
1. Avoid early morning weekend hike because that is the peak hour time where many will flock the hill to view the sunrise. Come on you can have better sunrise view elsewhere where it is peaceful and serene.
2. Recommended timing for hiking will be around 8 am or later. You can also try evening hike or best do it on weekdays.
3. If you are thinking to save some bucks because if you are coming from KL or PJ area, it is a long drive to get here, thus it is best to park free by the roadside. Just watch out for the immediate left of the roadside right before the plantation entrance because the surface area there is slightly steep and not stable. You do not want to see your car toppled to the side at the end of your hike.
With that all said, FF and I figured that the hike we had at Broga Hill two weeks ago will be the first and the last at least for both of us this year. But come to think of it again, you'll just never know. We may make our return trip here but just not anytime too soon.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Must do at Mt. Kinabalu - Via Ferrata
Another must-do attraction up Mount Kinabalu wil be none other than the Via Ferrata experience right from the summit of the highest mountain in Borneo. I first came across the Via Ferrata experience from another local outdoor adventure blogger but I didn't give so much notice about it. I was thinking, oh well, it was just another person climbing up Mt. Kinabalu.
A couple of months later, I stumbled upon the Mountain Torq's website while Googling on "how to prepare for Mt. Kinabalu climb" since I will be stepping foot yet again over at Mt. Kinabalu pretty soon. After checking out the Mountain Torq's official website and watched through their video, I was so amazed and excited about it that I really wanted to do the Via Ferrata too!
First up, what in the world is this Via Ferrata?
Still clueless about it reading the definition despite above? Oh wait, you didn't bother to read the little Wiki definition I pasted above right? *wink
Alright then, this is a via ferrata.
* a print screen of the Google Images search for "via ferrata mt.kinabalu"
[caption id="attachment_714" align="aligncenter" width="800" caption="Via Ferrata at Mt.Kinabalu, Sabah"]
[/caption]
So as clearly seen here, via ferrata is where you climb a rocky mountain that has been fixed with special equipments which allow anyone without rock climbing experience to safely maneuver the mountain. Also, via ferrata by all means is not the same as rock climbing.
What is it doing at Mt. Kinabalu?
For all that I know, it's the World's Highest Via Ferrata and it's right here in Borneo, South East Asia. So what more are you asking? It's the highest in the world so you better land your feet at this via ferrata.
How to get to the starting point of this Via Ferrata?
I don't know if you already have an idea on how to get to this via ferrata. Obviously, if you are used to mountaineering, you would have instantly know the answer to this question. But being silly me, not dumb ( that's an understatement, haha), I just have no idea about where and how to start this via ferrata at Mt. Kinabalu. After much reading, I finally figured that you first have to climb the mountain up until the summit and the ferrata experience starts if you choose to descent down the mountain via the ferrata route. So it goes to show that, if you want to experience the highest via ferrata in the world, like it or not, you have to climb the highest mountain in Borneo- Mt. Kinabalu first. That makes a lot of sense right?
Furthermore, pre-booking is obviously necessary if you choose to follow this ferrata route and most certainly a bigger budget for your all together, unforgettable Mt.Kinabalu experience. As for this coming May which is the month I'm going to climb this mountain, we will not try out on this via ferrata. Hence, there will be more reason to come back to Sabah again soon just for the sake of the via ferrata experience.
If you happen to have done this particular via ferrata, do drop down some comments over at this post. Probably you can share some experience and stories about it with us. =)
A couple of months later, I stumbled upon the Mountain Torq's website while Googling on "how to prepare for Mt. Kinabalu climb" since I will be stepping foot yet again over at Mt. Kinabalu pretty soon. After checking out the Mountain Torq's official website and watched through their video, I was so amazed and excited about it that I really wanted to do the Via Ferrata too!
First up, what in the world is this Via Ferrata?
A via ferrata (Italian for "iron road". Plural vie ferrate. In German, Klettersteig) is a mountain route which is equipped with fixed cables, stemples, ladders, and bridges. The use of these allows otherwise isolated routes to be joined to create longer routes which are accessible to people with a wide range of climbing abilities. Walkers and climbers can follow via ferratas without needing to use their own ropes and belays, and without the risks associated with unprotected scrambling and climbing - Wikipedia
Still clueless about it reading the definition despite above? Oh wait, you didn't bother to read the little Wiki definition I pasted above right? *wink
Alright then, this is a via ferrata.
* a print screen of the Google Images search for "via ferrata mt.kinabalu"
[caption id="attachment_714" align="aligncenter" width="800" caption="Via Ferrata at Mt.Kinabalu, Sabah"]
[/caption]So as clearly seen here, via ferrata is where you climb a rocky mountain that has been fixed with special equipments which allow anyone without rock climbing experience to safely maneuver the mountain. Also, via ferrata by all means is not the same as rock climbing.
What is it doing at Mt. Kinabalu?
For all that I know, it's the World's Highest Via Ferrata and it's right here in Borneo, South East Asia. So what more are you asking? It's the highest in the world so you better land your feet at this via ferrata.
How to get to the starting point of this Via Ferrata?
I don't know if you already have an idea on how to get to this via ferrata. Obviously, if you are used to mountaineering, you would have instantly know the answer to this question. But being silly me, not dumb ( that's an understatement, haha), I just have no idea about where and how to start this via ferrata at Mt. Kinabalu. After much reading, I finally figured that you first have to climb the mountain up until the summit and the ferrata experience starts if you choose to descent down the mountain via the ferrata route. So it goes to show that, if you want to experience the highest via ferrata in the world, like it or not, you have to climb the highest mountain in Borneo- Mt. Kinabalu first. That makes a lot of sense right?
Furthermore, pre-booking is obviously necessary if you choose to follow this ferrata route and most certainly a bigger budget for your all together, unforgettable Mt.Kinabalu experience. As for this coming May which is the month I'm going to climb this mountain, we will not try out on this via ferrata. Hence, there will be more reason to come back to Sabah again soon just for the sake of the via ferrata experience.
If you happen to have done this particular via ferrata, do drop down some comments over at this post. Probably you can share some experience and stories about it with us. =)
When you have so much to write about, you ended up writing nothing.
I've been having series of ideas flowing into my head since the past couple of weeks but the worse part of all is, I never come around writing them. The most I've done is to write down titles of topics that I should be writing for this blog and it just stopped there. Just mere titles and no articles.
Right now I'm just going to write up this post and publish it in between myself writing another Travel/ Outdoor Adventure post in this blog. I reckon it's best to put up a post to fill up the gap I've been making for not publishing anything for the past couple of days, or has it been weeks already now? Erk...
To add on a wee bit on this post, let's just talk about the weather.
The weather has been insanely hot and humidity is high all the time. It has been going on for a month or so that way not until yesterday where things started to get better. It rained heavily and it was pretty much a thunderstorm. For the first time after what has been a long time,I found myself searching blindly for my blanket last night. It was chilly last night and that's a great sign that the weather is going to be back to normal soon. At the time of writing, it just started to rain a little bit with some noise of thunder. If the weather forecast I'm seeing from Yahoo! Weather is correct, thunderstorm is expected through out the weekend too. Yay!
Oh well, that's enough updates for now. Praying for more interesting posts, good weather, good health and more money to come! Hope you guys will stick around for more updates in Yasz Amzah.com pretty soon! =)
Right now I'm just going to write up this post and publish it in between myself writing another Travel/ Outdoor Adventure post in this blog. I reckon it's best to put up a post to fill up the gap I've been making for not publishing anything for the past couple of days, or has it been weeks already now? Erk...
To add on a wee bit on this post, let's just talk about the weather.
The weather has been insanely hot and humidity is high all the time. It has been going on for a month or so that way not until yesterday where things started to get better. It rained heavily and it was pretty much a thunderstorm. For the first time after what has been a long time,I found myself searching blindly for my blanket last night. It was chilly last night and that's a great sign that the weather is going to be back to normal soon. At the time of writing, it just started to rain a little bit with some noise of thunder. If the weather forecast I'm seeing from Yahoo! Weather is correct, thunderstorm is expected through out the weekend too. Yay!
Oh well, that's enough updates for now. Praying for more interesting posts, good weather, good health and more money to come! Hope you guys will stick around for more updates in Yasz Amzah.com pretty soon! =)
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
I need a banner and logo design for YaszAmzah.com
This site has been pretty bare and naked from colorful designs for a couple of months now. Hence, I need a banner and logo at least somewhere by this month. I've been thinking to put up a banner and logo that reflect myself, me, the rightful owner of this blog/site which ever you want to call it. But thinking is as far I've gotten to do until now. The action part is coming in pretty slow which is not a good thing at all and I'm sure you readers are dying to see some colorful change over at this site. Believe me, I do too!
If you guys have any suggestions on where I can get my hands for a really cool, fully customized banner and logo designs or any tutorials for me to create my own design, do give me a heads up. If the design is worth the buy at a real bargain, I might as well buy it. Otherwise, I really don't mind tweaking my own designs with some help from tutorials but that will mean I have to push myself to actually sit down and put into action on the designs. Seriously peeps, I need huge help in the banner and logo department of YaszAmzah.com and I do hope you guys can help me out here. Thanx!
If you guys have any suggestions on where I can get my hands for a really cool, fully customized banner and logo designs or any tutorials for me to create my own design, do give me a heads up. If the design is worth the buy at a real bargain, I might as well buy it. Otherwise, I really don't mind tweaking my own designs with some help from tutorials but that will mean I have to push myself to actually sit down and put into action on the designs. Seriously peeps, I need huge help in the banner and logo department of YaszAmzah.com and I do hope you guys can help me out here. Thanx!
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