Indecency

Yesterday, supposedly I wanted to attend my boss/GU classmate birthday bash. I even asked my dear wife to bake a special fruit cake as a birthday present for him.

However, I had to take a rain check as we just received a sad news that my wife's BIL succumbed to a stroke attack and just had an operation to remove the blood clot in his skull at Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun in Ipoh. I managed to pass the cake to another GU colleague of mine, nevertheless.

Driving smoothly on the North-South Highway from KL to Ipoh, I quickly noticed that even on a non-holiday non-weekend day, the traffic was kinda heavy. There's a lot of container lorries laden with goods. Why don't they use the freight train as their logistics alternative. It's six times more efficient, according to my research. It's not my problem by the way, not yet.

Upon arriving, the hospital looks the same just like thirteen years ago, the last time I was here. In fact, it looks more crowded, more worn down, dilapidated conditions and not proper at all. In short, I think people will get sicker there instead of healthier.

I wish the hospital director will try to emulate the fictional New Amsterdam Hospital director Dr Max Goodwin. I'm sure that there are many issues to offer good service and manage public hospitals especially with regard to funding and planning. But then again, that's why the directors are there in the first place, for the leadership role.

I dropped my wife at the entrance and proceed to find a parking space, which unfortunately not adequately available at the hospital. I had to get out from the hospital compound and parked my car by the roadside.

When I got out from the car, I noticed that all the parked cars were with summon chits on their windscreens. Wait a minute, first there's no parking space available and now all these hospital visitors were given summons.

Suddenly my quick thinking cap suggested:

"Why don't I just borrow one of the summon chit for a while."

Yeah, why not.

After we finished the hospital visit and upon getting back to our car, I returned the summon chit back to the original car. But then, I saw the car already had another summon, and by now it will have two.

When I told my wife about this, she just  said:

"All this while I thought you were a decent guy."

Di Sudut yang Berlainan

... kadang-kadang secara tidak sengaja, ianya berlaku.

Tentunya ada di antara kita
dalam meneruskan perjalanan jauh
merentas benua dan zon-zon masa
dengan tidak sengaja kita tersapa

Mungkin pada tanggapan kita
apapun yang telah berlaku
pasti akan berakhir di situ
di terminal atau di transit itu

Mungkin itulah hakikatnya
lalu kita teruskan perjalanan
kembali menelusuri kehidupan
atau mungkin ianya bersambung

Di tepian sungai yang mengalir tenang
di timuran pantai pohonan melambai
di persada sejarah tercipta nama
di kembaraan utara hangat semalaman
di sebalik teduhan bayu lagenda
di antara pengungsi angkasaraya
di suatu masa takala hujan
berselindung sinaran neon ungu
di tepian jalanan taman nan indah
dalam suasana yang teramat hebat

Atau mungkin ada patutnya
kita berada di sudut yang berlainan
dan sapaan tadi tidak pun berlaku
di terminal atau di transit itu

only if we were at a different corner ...

Love of My Life

Love of My Life - Queen

Love of my life, you've hurt me
You've broken my heart
And now you leave me
Love of my life can't you see?
Bring it back, bring it back
Don't take it away from me
Because you don't know
What it means to me

Love of my life, don't leave me
You've taken my love
You now desert me
Love of my life, can't you see?
Bring it back, bring it back
Don't take it away from me
Because you don't know
What it means to me

You will remember
When this is blown over
And everything's all by the way
When I grow older
I will be there at your side
To remind you how I still love you
I still love you.

Back, hurry back
Please, bring it back home to me
Because you don't know
What it means to me

Love of my life
Love of my life ...

KTMB Train Services - An Observation

Few months ago, I was asked by somebody just to ride on KTMB trains and just observe to get the first-hand experience.

'Errr ... ok. Why would I do that?'

I enquired without much enthusiasm.

'Well, you have told me that you like to reminisced the wonderful rides on the train in foreign countries, maybe you need to look at what we have here and what can be improved, maybe to add on to your previous report on KTMB business challenges.'

'Yeah, why not.'

So, the other day, in one of the weekend, I did just that.

--------------

Subang Jaya to KL Sentral:

• Took the KTM Komuter. The train station was new and integrated with LRT, looks very clean.
• The time table for the train to depart to KL Sentral was shown on the screen to be at 9.36 am.
• The designated train arrived at 9.34 am and departed at 9.36 am, so far so good.
• Inside the train, there were no advertisement at all, no posters, no panels, even at the hand-grips, or even hanging advertisements, unlike the trains in Japan or Hong Kong. There are LCD panels showing some information and opportunity to advertise. Lots of opportunity in advertising.
• There are some broken window panes (maybe hit by stones thrown by somebody) and outside body of the train a bit dirty.
• Some unused railway lines at Kontena Nasional depot near Seri Setia station.
• There are a lot of 'pencerobohan' and squatters at KTMB land between the Jalan Templer-Petaling-Pantai Dalam stations.

KL Sentral Station Platform 3 & 4:

• Many sections within the platforms were badly lit and very dark, signage can be improved, advertisement not enough, all in all, neither comfortable nor conducive environment.
• Komuter train to Batu Caves was late by 8 minutes, originally scheduled at 10.36 am, but only departed at 10.44 am.

Kuala Lumpur Station:

• It is an iconic station build in the King Edward VII era. In dire need for refurbishment and make it a top tourist attraction in the city maybe like St. Pancras / King’s Cross Stations in London. In fact the opposite KTMB building will require a refurbishment as well.

The iconic Kuala Lumpur Railway Station
in dire need of refurbishment and rebranding

The KTMB Office is also an iconic building

• The music / jingle before KTMB announcement is very catchy, similar to SNCF's at Gare du Nord in Paris, and could be commercialised.
• Toilets at the station can be improved a lot.
• Within the station may require improved ventilation, maybe via some big-ass fans.
• Notice that the access to the platforms were a bit loose.
• There was a Heritage Hotel before but was closed down in 2010. Need to find a business partner to revive back and improve the hotel, maybe like some railway hotels in the UK.

Need to revive back the railway hotel

• The food stall at the station entrance is an eye sore.

This is an eye sore

• When talking to the staff, they neither aware of any changes after the arrival of the new CEO nor understand if there are any new directions of the company.
• The staff attitude seems very normal, may require to put on some smiling faces and friendlier, just to emulate the Japanese train staff.

Friendly looking Japanese railway staff

Kuala Lumpur to Kepong Sentral:

• Took the ETS service to Kepong Sentral.
• The KTMB ETS Class 93 EMU was clean and quiet, on time arrival and departure.
• There were some stick-on advertisement at the seats.

Kepong Sentral Station:

• Practically, there's nothing there. The namesake 'Sentral' can be misleading.

Panoramic view of Kepong Sentral Station

• There are migrant communities residing and occupying the business outlets nearby the station.
• How can we transform this kind of KTMB train station and many more from non-income generating premises to vibrant community hubs? Example, train stations in Japan and Hong Kong.
• How can we make more people to use train as their main mode of transportation so that they could be on their way for a greater upward social mobility.
• This station, for example, has two big parking lots, lots of areas for shops and businesses within the station, nearby apartments and shop houses, and just 20 minutes away from KL Sentral.

KL Sentral Platform 1:

• To exit and coming up from the escalator from Platform 1 ETS can be very dangerous as a lot of people just coming up and the exit outlets are not adequate to handle the traffic flow.

Penang Sentral:

• Penang Sentral is an intermodal transit-oriented development in Butterworth, modelled after KL Sentral. There's a big growth potential as the hub for transportation in the North.