Malaysia Relaxes Medical Checkup Rules for Indonesian Migrant Workers

The Jakarta Post: Malaysia Relaxes Medical Checkup Rules for Indonesian Migrants

Malaysia has agreed to loosen its rules on health checkups for Indonesian migrant workers, the Health Ministry said on Friday.

The new setup eliminates the need for workers to undergo two checkups — one in their hometown and one in Jakarta — and requires just one medical exam by a state-appointed hospital in the capital.

Motorists will be barred from renewing road tax, driving licence

If you have unsettled summonses for traffic offences, you will be barred from renewing road tax, driving licence. The Star has the information:

PUTRAJAYA: Motorists, who have yet to settle some 18 million outstanding summonses, have only five more days before they are barred from renewing their road tax and driving licences.

Road Transport Department (JPJ) director-general Datuk Solah Mat Hassan also warned on Wednesday there would not be any further grace period for traffic offenders who failed to settle their summonses by the Feb 28 deadline.

“If not settled, you will be blacklisted by the respective agencies and you won’t be able to renew your road tax or driving license,” he said.

Solah also said there were still more than 15 million unpaid summonses which were issued between 2000 and 2008 - 13,796,212 by the police, 831,599 by KL City Hall (DBKL) and 434,003 by the RTD.

“A total of 3,002,870 summonses issued by the three agencies in 2009 have also not been settled,” he said.


Source: The Star

Malaysia and Turkey announce lifting of visa requirement

Malaysia and Turkey have agreed to lift the visa requirement for their citizens to travel to each other's country.

Currently, ordinary and official Malaysian and Turkish passport holders are exempt from visa for stays up to 90 days.

Article source: The Star..Malaysia and Turkey announce lifting of visa requirement

Puduraya bus terminal - Opening rescheduled to April 16

Opening of the RM52mil Puduraya bus terminal has been rescheduled from March 1 to April 16.

The terminal is set to be relaunched with a host of facilities to improve the level of transportation services. There are two escalators heading to the basement where buses are parked and one travellator from a new main entrance to the ground floor.

Heat from the bus engines and smoke will no longer affect the passengers at the ground floor with the new air-conditioned waiting area.

Other new features include ticket counters on the first floor, a surau on the second floor and a food court on the fourth floor.

All the 198 previous tenants including bus operators, food outlets, retail outlets, convenience stores and baggage storage will return to Puduraya. There will be 51 ticket counters for 72 bus companies.

Related article:
Puduraya bus terminal to reopen on April 16


Source: The Star.. Opening of Puduraya bus terminal rescheduled to April 16

Penang, one of top 10 islands in the world

View Larger Map
If you haven't visited Malaysia, Penang in particular, you will have to visit it now. It has made it into the top ten islands in the world "you must see before you die".

Reprint of article in The Star:

Yahoo! lists Penang among world’s top 10

GEORGE TOWN: An online travel guide has picked Penang as one of the top 10 islands in the world “you must see before you die.”

Yahoo! Travel writer Gary McKechnie ranks Penang eighth on the list of the “must visit” places.

Other islands listed are Bali, Vieques in Puerto Rico, Easter Island in Chile, Ischia in the bay of Naples (Italy), Chiloe in Chile, Bora Bora in French Polynesia, Key West in the Conch Republic, Galapagos in Ecuador and Palm Islands in Dubai.

These destinations offered something that could not be found anywhere else, said McKechnie in his article ‘10 Islands to Explore Before You Die’ (http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-37926474).

He praised Penang as Malaysia’s food capital and suggested that visitors did their “food crawl” along George Town’s street stalls.

He recommended that foodies head to the area adjacent to the Kek Lok Si Temple in Ayer Itam to feast on delicious food of rice, noodles, fish, shellfish, chicken, pork and vegetables.

He also suggested visitors try out lor bak, lok-lok and ikan bakar.

On the local architecture, he described Penang as having a range of modern high-rise buildings to 19th-century British architecture.

He also pointed out a mix of beach resorts, preserved mangroves, fishing villages, temples, mosques and churches.

“Kek Lok Si was the best example as the largest Buddhist temple in South-East Asia,” he said.


Related articles:
Hotels in Penang - Make it a Beach holiday
Tune Hotel opens in Penang
20-storey Pavilion over the Goddess of Mercy (Kuan Yin) Statue - Penang
Penang Street Food - Kimberly Street

Clubbing in Kuala Lumpur

If you are visiting Kuala Lumpur and are looking for clubbing venues, you would want to check out these clubbing hotspots in the Bukit Bintang area, the place to be when in Kuala Lumpur.

Map embedded below for your reference.


View Larger Map

Pay more if you delay clearing traffic summonses

Motorists will have reason to pay their traffic summonses promptly under a restructured system based on the principle of “the more you delay, the more you pay”.

The Cabinet has approved the revised system under the Road Transport Act, which covers summonses for offences that do not contribute to high accident and fatality rate.

Motorists would also not be issued with demerit points if they settle outstanding fines within three months.

Full article.. ‘Pay more if you delay’ system to ensure motorists clear summonses promptly

Need a Personal Injury Attorney?

Accidents sometimes cannot be avoided but when it involves personal financial hardship on top of the pain and disability as a result, some serious action has to be taken to prevent further hardship. If you have been involved in an accident through no fault of your own and are in Texas, you may want to get in touch with an Austin Personal Injury Attorney from this Law Firm, O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath – Personal Injury Lawyers – 808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701 – 512-494-9949.

The Law Firm of O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath is committed to providing their clients with superior client service and legal representation. You can expect high quality expert advice in a prompt and efficient manner. Their attorneys and counselors concentrate their practice on personal injury and auto accident cases so you can be assured of their vast experience to help you win your case.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, they serve the people throughout Forth Worth, Texas, and surrounding areas. Their initial consultations are free-of-charge and they will meet with you at a place and time that is convenient for you. Contact them today.

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath – Personal Injury Lawyers – 808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701 – 512-494-9949

Penang's Chinese New Year Sizzling Street Party

If you are in Penang, join thousands of people including tourists who will be making a beeline to the heritage enclave in George Town, Penang, today to take part in the annual grand celebration of Chinese culture.

A memorable day of activities and entertainment awaits visitors at the Chinese New Year Cultural and Heritage Celebration to be held from 3pm till midnight.

Armenian Street, Cannon Street, Chulia Street, Acheh Street, Carnavon Street, Kampung Kolam, Soo Hong Lane and Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling will come alive during the one-day celebration.

By the way, while in Penang, you may want to also visit the Kek Lok Si temple in Air Itam from today until Feb 14 to view it in its festive splendour all lit up. It is said that during Chinese New Year, roughly 230,000 light bulbs and 10,000 lanterns will be lit every night.


Source: The Star

Flood situation in Johore

Though flood waters have receded in some places allowing people to return to their home in Johore, parts of the state is still flooded.

In Muar, Sawiyah Salleh, a villager at Kampung Tanjung Olak near Johor, rows a sampan daily from the relief centre to her flooded home to ensure it is safe and sound.

The 52-year-old said she rowed the sampan from the roadside to her house, located about 30m away from the Jorak Tanjung Olak road.

Full story and flood update..The Star - Villager rows to her home every day to make sure it’s safe and sound

How to Increase Website Traffic

If you are looking to increase your website traffic and are wondering as to why the SEO strategies you are using are not showing results, you may want to check out ThinkBIGsites.com.

ThinkBIG is a search engine optimization company with a difference. Unlike other companies that still use antiquated methods, ThinkBIG uses new SEO methods and formalas to deliver results increasing clients' website ranking and traffic resulting in increased conversions.

ThinkBIG's organic search engine optimization methods are so effective that 95% of their clients reach page 1 on the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) in a short 3 to 6 months. Their result-oriented campaigns get websites ranked on page 1 and stay there. Three of their top SEO campaigns include:

1. Keyword analysis. The website is thoroughly analysed for desired keyword phrases that will bring the best results. ThinkBIG ensures that the client's website is keyword-optimiized.

2. On Page SEO. The site is prepared to be more easily searched and indexed by Google and other major search engines. It could mean making changes to a website to make it more search engine friendly to enable search engine robots and spiders crawling the site from time to time in search of relevancy, value the site more highly and thus begin moving it forward in their search results.

3. Strategic Inbound Linking. Inbound links are important for a site's ranking. In Google's Algorithm, inbound links to a website determine the rank position within the "Organic" search engine results page (SERPS).

In order to achieve high search engine rankings, ThinkBIG's primary focus is on thoroughly optimizing the most critical components of a client's website. Thus they pay great attention to their On Page SEO strategy. What they do is, they analyse meta data length and relevancy ensuring they are of appropriate length so as not to harm SEO. Link analysis is also carried out to ensure broken links are fixed are removed as broken links do more harm than good to a website's SEO. Site is also combed for broken pages to have them either fixed or removed.

Structural analysis is also done as website architecture is very important in overall SEO. Websites that are poorly developed can harm the ability for search engines to crawl a website. Sitemaps are equally important for telling search engines which pages of your website you would like to have indexed.

The above are just some of the strategies employed to increase website traffic and increase site ranking for the clients. Increased traffic and increased site ranking can only mean one thing. Increased sales and conversions. ThinkBIG can help you achieve the sales figures you are looking for.

Train services restored on most routes

In a statement, Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) said two train services were cancelled Wednesday, the Ekspres Sinaran Selatan from Kuala Lumpur Sentral-Singapore and the Gemas-Singapore-Gemas shuttle.

KTMB advised passengers affected by the cancellation to change their travel date or claim their ticket refund at the nearest KTM Intercity counter.

Meanwhile, repair works to restore the damaged tracks on the South and East Coast sectors are expected to take another two days to complete, weather permitting and flood conditions at the locations.

As reported in The Star, the following train services have been rescheduled:

* Ekspres Rakyat: Butterworth-Singapore-Butterworth (service from Butterworth-Kuala Lumpur Sentral-Butterworth only)

* Ekspres Sinaran Selatan: Singapore-Kuala Lumpur Sentral (Singapore to Labis only)

* Ekspres Sinaran Timur: Singapore-Tumpat-Singapore (Tumpat-Gemas-Tumpat only)

* Ekspres Senandung Sutera: Singapore-Kuala Lumpur Sentral-Singapore (Singapore-Labis-Singapore only)

* Ekspres Senandung Timuran: Singapore-Tumpat (Singapore to Labis only)

* Ekspres Senandung Timuran: Tumpat-Singapore (Tumpat to Triang only)

* Shuttle service: Kuala Lipis-Singapore-Kuala Lipis (Kuala Lipis-Gemas-Kuala Lipis only)

For enquiries and further information, the public can call KTMB's Customer Service Centre at 1-300-88-5862. - Bernama

Experience a Super-inclusive Caribbean Vacation You will Remember for a long time

In true term, a vacation should be hassle-free - not having to be concerned about paying extra for an additional order of food or drink, for instance. What type of vacation is more hassle-free than an all-inclusive type of vacation.

If you are looking for an all-inclusive vacation, be it for a golf getaway, a family vacation or an all-girl or all-guy vacation, you need look no further. Breezes Resorts and Spas has just the perfect vacation for you, your family and your friends. You would be having such a great time, you will be talking about it for a long, long time.

A super-inclusive caribbean vacation could be one of the best vacations anyone can experience. Super-inclusive vacations provided by Breezes Resorts & Spas are the best value vacation in the world. Deluxe accommodation, all meals, all drinks, all entertainment, participation in land and water sports, with professional instruction, are all included. And you do not have to be concerned with tipping as it is never permitted. Breezes Bahamas is the first and only Super-Inclusive resort in The Bahamas. If you are looking for THE resort in the caribbean, this is it.

Feel like going further than the Caribbean? Besides the Bahamas and Jamaica, Breezes all-inclusive resorts are also located in Brazil, Curacao, Dominican Republic and Panama. They are all Super-Inclusive resorts. As always, just about everything you can eat, drink and do is included, which makes Breezes resort in caribbean or in other locations an ideal family vacation destination. There's always something to keep your kids thrilled, while you and your spouse slip away for a little excitement of your own. In Breezes Curaçao, for instance, the adults can slip away for some excitement at the largest casino in Curaçao, which just happens to be located right on the premises.

For holiday-makers who enjoy the freedom of a clothes-free vacation in the comfort of private, beachfront accommodations, Breezes Grand Resort & Spa Negril and Breezes Resort & Spa Rio Bueno in Jamaica have launched the Super-Inclusive four-night "Bare Bones" package starting at $900 per person, based on double occupancy. Both properties feature the full-service, à la carte Blue Mahoe Spa, where each "Bare Bones" booking includes a complimentary full body wax and a post-sunbathing "Sun Kissed Aloe Wrap."

Give yourself and your family a vacation of a lifetime. Take a Super-inclusive vacation at Breezes Resorts & Spas.

Update on Flood situation in Johore - Water, water everywhere

The flood in the southern state of Johore is causing havoc in many towns. Intercity rail service has been cancelled while in Segamat, power has been disconnected to prevent electrocution.

Get update on the flood situation.