조선민주주의인민공화국

so north korea came and went. had been planning this since 2 years ago but there was some nuclear missile testing (what else?) in 2009 and i had my visa application rejected. i guess its not a place where most people would like to go to, but for me it was one of the more memorable trips that i have been on.

i had always been politically leftist, and with the increasing number of countries "embracing" democracy (and consequently capitalism), north korea was my last chance to experience what the alternative would be. most of us must have read or seen about north korea in the media: about how cruel the regime is or how tough the living conditions are. well, in all fairness i must say that i was treated really well during my stay there. of course, its not MBS or RWS but it not a hellhole either. basic amenities were provided, the people were warm, and food was abundant. there was plenty of beer to go around too! yes, the itinerary was pretty much controlled and we were chaperoned everywhere but for me it was much better than walking around freely at some shopping mall or theme park.

anyway, i wish i could tell you fully how interesting it was and how much fun we had but unfortunately as the saying goes, a picture does indeed paint a thousand words, and for the benefit of my fingers here's the link to the photos: dprk, vladivostok and harbin.

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chinup bar

this strangely reminds me of james.

homecoming of sorts

and.. i'm back! a blink of an eye and its already been 2 weeks in northeast asia / russia. of course, it felt like eternity when we were there, but now that we are back, i can't help but wish that we were still on holiday!

anyway more on that later, and photos will be up on facebook soon as well!

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the feeling of being cheated totally sucks, especially when you thought that your friend was really in legitimate trouble and needed help. sucks even more when that friend also turns out to be one of your superiors.

this issue had dragged on for far too long already, and now it seems like this might just be a bottomless pit with no end in sight. should i just forget it and move on? or should i pursue to the very end with no guarantee of a favourable conclusion? seems like damn if i do and damn if i don't.

stupid naive me: i actually believed that my friend would settle everything once and for all and that everything would be settled once i came back from holiday. well, right now he is uncontactable and might have even gone awol!

gah. a friend in need is a friend indeed; but never will i ever be so gullible again. =(

dprk

dear comrades, to the land of the free and plenty i go tomorrow!

see you in a fortnight's time!

endorsement

what's up for all the endorsements for tony tan these days?

seriously, does that guy even need people/unions to publicly declare their ass-licking for him to "win" the elections?

and what does it even mean for the unions that have endorsed him: does that mean that their members now have to lan-lan vote for him (which is why the ST keeps on citing the number of workers in every union), or they are still able to vote independently? i wonder if they did even hold a meeting within their respective unions to decide on who to endorse, or did the committees just decide on their behalf?

sigh, such is the pragmatism of singaporean politics: you scratch my back and i'll scratch yours later when i gain power.

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so much for a president who is above politics.
so much for a president who must be a unifying figure.
so much for a president who must accept and can only act on the advice of the cabinet.

you want a candidate with all of the above qualities? forget the tans; let me tell you who i feel has all of the above and more: our very own merlion!
above politics? check. one can say that it is apathetic even.
unifying figure? check. who doesn't know what the merlion is?
accept and only act on the advice of the cabinet? check. i mean, vomiting water is its only ability.

and the merlion will definitely cost less than any of the tans. sure, some money must still be put aside for periodic maintenance and polishing of all the fish scales, but i'm sure the total amount will still be peanuts as compared to what nathan is drawing now, and what the tans will draw in office in the future.

indeed, as the chairman of 110 bukit purmei road unit number 05-156 (total members: 3), i endorse the merlion for president as i believe that it will be able to listen to the voice of the people and think singaporeans first, thus being the heart of the nation to inspire confidence for the future. =)

hurry curry

同志们, welcome to curry weekend!