Happy Diwali

Best wishes,
Happysurfer

Durian, the King of Fruits

A first-time visitor to Malaysia may be fascinated by this thorny fruit called durian. This fruit is our King of Fruits. To Malaysians, it tastes like heaven but to foreigners, it smells like hell. LOL!

The odor of durians can be quite (understatement) unbearable for those who are not used to the odor. A whiff of it may send one scurrying to escape the overpowering aroma.

Durians are not allowed in hotels so you can be rest-assured that you will not be bombarded by this funky smell of the King of Fruit in the comfort of the hotel.

Check out Nat Geo's amusing coverage of the fruit.

MAS starts direct flights to Istanbul on Oct 25

Good news for travellers going to Istanbul, Turkey.

Malaysia Airlines, the national carrier, will start thrice-weekly direct flights between Kuala Lumpur and Istanbul on Oct 25.

Departures from Kuala Lumpur are on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

At the moment, the service to the Turkish city is via Dubai. There is a plan to delink Dubai from Istanbul. Instead, MAS will be flying direct to Istanbul.

MAS also plans to link its network from Australia to Istanbul via Kuala Lumpur.

A(H1N1) still active despite reduction in cases

KUALA LUMPUR: Influenza A(H1N1) is still active and spreading in the community despite a reduction in cases of late, said Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Mohd Ismail Merican.

He advised the public to take precautions and abide by the guidelines set by the ministry, and to refrain from visiting crowded areas.

“The are no new deaths from the flu and the death toll remains at 77,” he said in a statement on Monday.

He said 123 influenza-like illness (ILI) patients were admitted while 106 more were discharged on Monday.

Of the 743 ILI patients warded, 9% or 66 of them were confirmed to be infected with AH1N1; 15 of them are in intensive care units including one new case, while one other was discharged, he said.

He said 13 of the remaining patients in ICU were high-risk patients, seven were children below five, three have chronic diseases and three were obese persons. -- Bernama


Source: The Star

Jetstar doubles flights from Singapore to Penang

Jetstar Asia recently doubled the frequency of its Singapore-Penang flights to twice a day, totalling 14 times weekly to this historic UNESCO World Heritage site.

The route was launched on July 1 and marked the 17th destination for the low-cost airline that serves four Malaysian cities – Kuala Lumpur, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu and Penang.

This service will create real low-fare access for Singaporeans and the growing number of passengers travelling through Singapore on the Jetstar and Qantas (a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Jetstar Group) network.

Malaysia Airlines' Low Fares Promo is Back

Even though not as cheap as budget airline, Air Asia, tickets, full-service Malaysia Airlines is again offering its “Everyday Low Fares” with attractive deals for November.

All-inclusive, one-way fares to Hong Kong, Taipei, Perth and Melbourne are priced at RM368, RM400, RM649 and RM951, respectively. Or fly to Amsterdam, Paris, Rome and Frankfurt at RM1,228, and London at RM1,248.

For domestic flights, enjoy RM79 fares for flights within the peninsular and RM109 to Sabah and Sarawak. MAS has also increased the frequency of flights to Tawau, Sandakan, Sibu, Seoul and Taipei, while flights to Colombo will be increased to five per week starting Oct 28.

For more information, log on to www.malaysiaairlines.com.

Michael Jackson This Is It

Yep! This is it!

If you are a fan of Michael Jackson and happen to be in Malaysia October end, you would be able to watch Michael Jackson This Is It movie/documentary which will be released exclusively for two weeks only, starting Oct 29 at selected GSC cinemas nationwide.


To avoid long queues, you can buy tickets from Oct 15 onwards through GSC box office or via GSC e-payment facility @ www.gsc.com.my

If you are the first 90 people to buy two tickets via box office in GSC Signature, you will receive one limited edition Michael Jackson collectible poster.

Klang Valley movie-goers will have an option of watching this movie/documentary in either Digital 2D or 35mm format at GSC Mid Valley, GSC 1 Utama, GSC Pavilion KL and GSC Berjaya Times Square.

It will also be available in 35mm format at GSC Signature (The Gardens Mall), GSC IOI Mall Puchong, GSC Tropicana City, GSC Alamanda Putrajaya, GSC Gurney Plaza (Penang), GSC Queensbay Mall (Penang), GSC Sunway Carnival (Seberang Jaya, Penang), GSC Dataran Pahlawan (Melaka) and GSC 1Borneo (Kota Kinabalu).

Michael Jackson’s fans and music lovers will be treated to a rare, behind-the-scenes look at him as he developed, created and rehearsed for his sold-out concerts that would have taken place this summer in London.

The film is compiled from more than one hundred hours of behind-the-scenes footage, featuring Jackson rehearsing a number of his songs for the show, chronicling the months from April through June.

Audiences will be given a privilege and private look at the singer, dancer, filmmaker, architect and genius as he creates and perfects his final show.

You can log on to www.gsc.com.my from Oct 15 onwards for more details on the movie and schedule, advance cash ticket sales and ticket pricing.


Source: The Star


Related post:
This Is It - Michael Jackson's New Song

Last MH91 MAS flight out of New York

The 19-hour MH91 flight which took off from New York to Kuala Lumpur at 10pm on Thursday was Malaysia Airlines’ farewell flight from the Big Apple as Malaysia’s national carrier has decided to suspend its Kuala Lumpur - New York route from Oct 1 due to a drop in demand following the global economic crisis.

As the plane prepared for take-off from the Newark Airport, it was given a water salutation normally reserved for aircraft making their debut at an airport.

Onboard were a total of 188 passengers including eight members from the Malaysian national darts team who had just won a bronze medal at the World Darts Championship in North Carolina.

With the suspension of this KL - New York direct flight, direct access to the US has now been reduced to just the KL - Los Angeles flight.

The New York - Kuala Lumpur flight has been operating since 1998, initially transiting in Dubai and since Nov 2004, in Stockholm.

Indonesia says thank you for the help

The Star reported that the Indonesian government has thanked Malaysia for providing assistance to the people of Padang who have been affected by the earthquake.

The Malaysian government has provided aid in various forms, including food and medicines.

Those who would like to find out about their family members in Padang could contact the Indonesian embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

They could also get the latest update on the earthquake from the Padang earthquake hotline at +62-751-9824980 or the Disaster Management National Agency at +62-21-3458400 or e-mail to posko@bnpb,go.id.

Penang beach hotels quick to act

Having learnt from the devastation of the 2004 tsunami, beach hotels in Batu Ferringhi, Penang, were quick to act this time around when the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued an alert following the earthquake in Sumatra.

A Golden Sands Resort resort spokeman said they had put staff members on standby to be on the lookout for tidal waves. However, the alert was later called off.

High waves pounding the Esplanade waterfront in Penang as locals watch.


Source: The Star