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Friend from SG called at around 7:22 pm, mentioning about a strong quake felt over the entire island.

Friend in JB also messaged me at 7:40 pm to confirmed the news and he forwarded the following news (Thanks, J):

http://earthquake.usgs.gov

http://news.asiaone.com/

http://www.msnbc.msn.com

Hoping to hear more from the local news media soon.

If you’ve been following my adventure in Borneo, you might have remembered my last trip to the tip of Mount Kinabalu. This second trip to Borneo is rather on the other extreme; instead of clear blue sky, it’s pitch black darkness.

Although, there are no Balrogs nor dwarven weaponsmiths in the caves of Mulu, the smell of guano (also known as bat shit) is enough to suffocate you to death (just kidding). Other than that, the entire Mulu trip really reveals the fascinating world of caves and various formation of rocks under unexposed sunlight.

Some rocks are shaped into very exotic shapes over thousand of years and if there’s really a “morale of the story” I learnt from this trip, I guess it’s “patience” :-p

The Mulu adventure was about 3 days, as we explored most of the main “showcaves”-

(i) Lang Cave- This one has got rocks shaped like jellyfishes

(ii) Deer Cave- This is the one with the Abe Lincoln profile view and little deers’ footsteps.

(iii) Wind Cave- This one is known for the King’s Chamber where one of the rock’s formation resembles a King, actually it looks much more like a beggar on the street to me.

(iv) Clear Water Cave- This is the one that we got a chance to jump into the icy water outside of the Cave’s entrance

(v) Moonmilk Cave- As all the Adventure Cave treckking activities were cancelled due to the Park’s new regulation, we decided to explore this cave which is about 15 minutes in total darkness (with the exception of our headlights). The cave consist of white coral-like textures and does seemed very much like the Moon’s surface.

Another spectacular feat was the Bat Exodus, where millions of bats flew out from the cave during dinner time. It was raining quite heavily and we thought we were going to miss it, but it seems the bats were really hungry and they didn’t mind a bit of rainwater in their diet.

We missed out the Pinnacle climb, and it’s definitely in my list if I am to step in Mulu once again. The story told by one of our Dutch friend is just too good to be missed.

After the 3-day stay (one day in Park HQ, and two days in Royal Mulu), the 5 cavemen and women flew back to Miri to explore the last cave- Niah Cave. We had to cancel the trip to Lambir Hills (known for her magnificient waterfalls) since after the Niah Cave adventure, the 5 cavemen and women were totally wasted.

The whole Niah Cave adventure took about 6 hours. We trekked all the way into the Painting Cave to see how Mona Lisa looked like hundreds of years ago. I can’t say that they are very good artists, but given the “technology” they’d back then, the reproduction of reality with amber ink on solid rocks is rather impressive.

And of course, how can I wind up this Cave Report without any nice visuals. All taken with my faithful SE K750i 2 Mega Pixel lens.

Things are not looking all that clear eversince this morning, though at the time of this post, none of the local dailies has yet to report anything on the “annual haze celebration”…

Those mask-sellers are going to make some big bucks again…

To keep yourself updated on the quality of air you are breathing in right now, watch this space.

Cleveland.com on the haze alert…

Haze from forest fires in Sumatra drifted into Malaysia and Thailand in an annual rite of pollution caused by illegal burning. The fires are typically started by slash-and-burn farmers clearing forests for fields or logging companies clearing land to get at timber.

Indonesia’s Riau province has the majority of the fires and the worst pollution, with air travel suspended in the capital city of Pekanbaru and thousands of people forced to wear masks to breathe. The haze spread to Port Klang, Penang and Perak in Malaysia and to southern Thailand.

Here’s how the term “attention to details” is aptly applied.

Killarkai on Saving Money Like a Pro!

When you finished your previous toilet paper roll, save the core, and then roll the core-less toilet paper up yourself.

Not only you save money(in her words, 60 core-less rolls for more than 10 kuai, versus 10 rolls with core for slightly less than 10 kuai), you also contribute to humanity by saving some trees.

There are many daily chores that we do which has never crossed our mind that there’s a more cost-effective alternatives. I am not saying that we should not pamper ourselves with the goodies of life once in a while, but sometimes, the cost of pampering can amount to a fortune. Quoting Dave Ramsey, “If you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else!”

Many of us often wonder what happened to the money that came from the pay-check at the end of the month. There’s somehow some mysterious force that is capable to syphon the money out of our saving accounts. Hence, this is the time when proper substitutes and attention-to-details are exercised to control our out-going budget. If you are currently employed, very likely you don’t have much say to your incoming budget. :-P

Even getting married can have an adverse effect on your financial health!

Finally conquered the highest peak in Borneo Island. It wasn’t an easy feat, since the entire team almost didn’t get to reach the summit due to rainy weather. The freezing temperature is the most challenging element of the entire ascent.

Nevertheless, it’s a very good experience to be standing at the top of Low’s Peak for a few minutes before the chilling wind made it impossible to stay a minute longer.

Will be actively posting again after I adapt myself back to the altitude. It’s tempting to post the incredible pictures taken during the journey to the summit, but I guess I will leave it to another post in the near future.

Will be leaving for Mount Kinabalu in a few hours time.

Of course, am hoping to get some nice shot from above the clouds and if luck permits, a real life shot of a Rafflesia.
So, don’t expect any new posts in the coming week.

See y’all in a week’s time!

Sorry to spoil your shopping sprees forever.

After reading most of the stuff in Seventh Generation, one can’t just help but think about the destruction mankind inflicts on Mother Earth, even through our most subtle, innocent actions; which includes shopping…

Petroleum pollutes the environment when we drill for it, when we transport it, and when we refine it. Oil spills average a million gallons a month into the environment and refineries release 8.25 million pounds of toxins into our air and water each year.

However, after accepting the fact that we are creating a not-so-perfect Earth for our upcoming generations, it’s also good to balance up the equation by looking at alternatives to reduce our destruction.

Also one of the most useful tool according to the webmaster is the glossary of Household Hazards. I am not that good in my chemistry, but I think it would do me some good if I manage to differentiate the degree of poisonous materials I come in contact with everyday. Ignorance is not bliss!

We can start off by saying, “No plastic bags, please” when we pay at the cashier’s counter. This might be a small contribution, but if every hypermarket that’s environmental concious starts promoting this act, not only will they save alot on plastic bags, but also help reduce plastic waste.