The Fort A Famosa: Malacca's Pride

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A Famosa, the famous name for one of the oldest surviving European fort in Asia situated in Melaka (Malacca). From what I have studied in the history class, the A Famosa was built by the famous Portuguese admiral Alfonso de Albuquerque after they defeated the Malacca Sultanate in the year 1511. Unknown to me until now, A Famosa actually means ‘The Famous’ in Portuguese. The fort changed hands in the year 1641 when the Dutch defeated the Portuguese. The gate was renovated in the year 1670 with a logo ANNO 1670 on the gate’s arch which represents the Dutch East India Company.
In the 19^th century, the fort changed hands againwhen the Dutch handed it over to the British to prevent it from falling intothe hands of Napoleon? Hmm interesting facts although I have never learnedabout it in the history class. Since the maintenance of the fort was quite costly, thedestruction of the fortress was carried out in the year 1806. Fortunately,during the demolition period, Sir Stamford Raffles, who is the founder of theSingapore intervened it because of his passion for history. Thanks to him, thecurrent gate, Portade Santiago is what part of the remaining A Famosa.

The pride of Malacca, The Porta de Santiago of Fort A Famosa

More close up shot of the Porta de Santiago

The back view of the gate of A Famosa from the rear

The logo of the Dutch East India Company

A close-up shot of the wall of A Famosa, consumed by time~

                    

The old inside view of the A Famosa, 

And that's me with the left cannon of the A Famosa

Erawan Museum: Thailand's Gargantuan Three Headed Elephant

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Since I am heading to Bangkok by tomorrow morning, I guess I should write a post on Thailand first. This time it's about the not so known place in Bangkok.
Erawan Museum, even when the name is mentioned..I guess not many have heard about this cool museum. Unknown to many Bangkok visitors, this gargantuan three headed Elephant museum is situated at Samut Prakan Province which is part of the Bangkok Metropolitan City. Weighing 250 tonnes, towering 29 meters high, and 39 meters long, this pure cast copper statue took ten years to be constructed. Inside the towering museum consists of three levels according to Buddhist cosmology. Let's take a look what's inside. Mind that the photos were all captured in the year 2008 by my old faithful Sony DSC H-1.

Beautiful lotus pond surrounding the Erawan Museum

Inside the museum, you will be greeted by lots of carvings and arts according to Buddhist Cosmology

That is the carvings depicting the Demon King Mara. In Buddhism, Mara is the demon that tempted Gautama Buddha by trying to seduce him with the vision of beautiful women who are Mara's daughters. In Buddhist cosmology, Mara personifies unwholesome impulses, unskillfulness, the "death" of the spiritual life. He is a tempter, distracting humans from practicing the spiritual life by making the mundane alluring or the negative seem positive.

 On the left: Carving of Thai influenced Buddhist DeityOn the right: Jade Buddha Statue

That's me 4 years ago!

If you look up, you can see one huge beautiful and colorful glass art

The glass art is a mix of western and eastern design accompanied by Buddhist Cosmology theme

Beautiful carvings of Naga on Silver plate

Another interesting carvings I have accidentally stumbled upon is the silver carvings of Jesus Christ giving sermons to the people and also during his death on the cross. 

This is my favourite...very beautiful carvings of a giant fish especially its scales

One of the beautiful antiques being exhibited there

At the top, inside the belly of the Elephant is a place depicting one of the heavens in Buddhist Cosmology, the TrÄ�yastriṃśa  (Tavatimsa) heaven.
In this floor, there is a Buddha statue located here. Of course, the Lord Buddha does not dwell in this realm.
That's all for now. ! Enjoy!

Bangkok's Baiyoke Tower II

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Sawasdeekrub! This year 2012 mark my return to Bangkok, the land of smiles, my second home after 2 years ofhiatus. Full of nostalgic feelings however, there’s a place which I have notvisited for the past few years till now. Yes the Baiyoke Tower II, the tallest buildingin Thailand. The building is 304 m (997 ft) tall, or 328 m (1,076 ft) tall withthe antenna included. Situated at Ratchathewi district, the tower has85 floors with a public observatory on the 77th floor. To enter the top of thetower, you are required to purchase a ticket of 400 baht person (300 bahtbefore 6pm; free for hotel guest). The ticket price includes snacks andcocktail of your choice at the “Roof Top Bar & Music Lounge” on the 83rd floorand a 360 degrees revolving roof top deck which is situated on the 84th floor.The Baiyoke Tower II is also known as Sky Hotel which is the tallest hotel inSoutheast Asia and the fourth tallest in the world with 673 guest rooms.

 The photo of the tower taken from afar nearby the Central World Shopping Complex in the year 2008. On wall, the advertisement for "BMW: A Brand to look up to" still remains the same even now

Baiyoke Tower and Sky Hotel at night ~ tall feeling

showing off the tickets we have bought

at the 77th floor, there is a public exhibition hall about the history and construction of the tower. This is one of the concrete used to construct the Baiyoke Tower II

That's me 'flying' across the Baiyoke Tower II on a hot air balloon

 Up next, is the revolving observatory platform on the 84th floor on the Bangkok skyline view~~

My Favourite skyline shot colorful and balanced exposure..

The threading highway of Bangkok

My favorite method of aerial photography..45 degrees tilt to get the round Earth feeling...

cheers with some kind of green pineapple cocktail with some snacks

shots taken at a lower level of the tower at the hotel lobby

From another side of the hotel lobby from far you could see the huge poster of the revered Thai King Bhumibol on the Novotel Hotel.

Viral Video Friday & YouTube's 20 Most Shared Videos in October

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Viral Video Friday is here! Take a look at the hottest videos on the web right now by clicking here.

Also for your video entertainment, check out YouTube's 20 Most Shared Videos in October. Here are the top three:


Coke Zero – Unlock the 007 in you. You have 70 seconds
In an imaginative and hilarious as, Coca-Cola and its brand Coke Zero challenged unsuspecting train passengers to become James Bond for 70 seconds, dodging obstacles and beautiful women to earn free tickets to watch Skyfall.



GoPro – Hero3: Black Edition – Smaller, Lighter and 2X More Powerful
GoPro launched its new camera, the Hero3 with this commercial that begins with stunning views of mountains, beaches and cities. Then it builds up with spectacular footage taken by skiiers, surfers and kayakers.




Ashton Bikes - Road Bike Party
This ad features the craziest bike ride you'll ever see. Martyn Ashton takes the £10k carbon road bike used by Mark Cavendish during the Tour de France for a ride around the UK,pushing the limits of its road bike performing unbelievable stunts.


For more videos that made it on to the list check out Mashable and BENG!NY

Touch 'n Go Card

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Malaysia'sTouch 'n Go card is coming to NFC enabled phones

Malaysia-basedelectronic payments provider Touch ‘n Go will introduce a mobile version of itsprepaid smart card for NFC-enabled phones within the next two months. Themobile Touch ‘n Go app will support a number of contactless functions,including transit ticketing, payment, loyalty, access control, tag reading andpeer-to-peer transactions.

Chris Lehan is a Director atImpressions Incorporated (a multi-color printer in St. Paul, MN specializingin the complete production of customized printing and paperboard packaging). http://www.i-i.com

Follow me on Twitter @chrislehan

Muka Head Lighthouse: The Heritage of Penang

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As I have just passed my PhD oral examination, which is a research on environmental management on the Penang National Park, this post is going to be my inaugural post on the attractions of Penang National Park. For starters, it is going to be a post on the historical light house on the summit of Penang National Park. Named the Muka Head Lighthouse, it is built in the year 1884 at a whopping cost of £37,929 by the British. Located at about 242 metres above sea level from the 14m high white granite tower, it offers superb panoramic views of the coast and and Jerai Mountain (Gunung Jerai) on the mainland. 
To get to the top, visitors must pass through the Monkey Beach whereby the entrance to the lighthouse is located at the end of the beach. The hike will take approximately 30-45 minutes depending on one’s endurance. The final 200 meters is the most challenging part but the hard work is definitely worth the while.

Old and still standing: The Muka Head Lighthouse

One of the best panoramic view of the North West coast of Penang 

Inside the lighthouse, you will be able to see some old lamp and old electrical power supply but I am not sure whether it is still being utilised or not though

an old colonial feeling inside the Muka Lighthouse

Though not many, this is one of the features that I like to see..solar panels which provide green energy for the lighthouse.

from the top of the lighthouse, the view of Tanjong Tokong

on the left side: Pantai Kerachut

The sky was very clear at that time and we're lucky to be able to enjoy the clear panoramic view of the ocean including the Gunung Jerai at the mainland

click to enlarge. Yet another beautiful but rare view of the ocean of Penang.