Property market boom in Bulgaria

One of the newest countries to join the EU is former communist country Bulgaria. It joined on January 1st this year.

This country location is very strategic - at the crossroad between Asia and Europe. It borders Romania to the north, Greece and Turkey to the south, Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west. The Black Sea lies on it's east.

The entry into the EU has resulted in the bulgarian property market becoming a very attractive place to invest in.

A report marks Bulgaria "as among the top three European destinations for the overseas property investor in 2007"

This picture is copyrighted: Nikola Gruev

Bulgaria has a lot to offer. From the snowy ski resorts in Bansko, Pamporovo and Borovets, all close to the capital Sofia (fast becoming the new European skiing hot spot) to the beautiful sunny beaches along the Black Sea.

Check out BulgarianVenture.com for more news on the Bulgarian property market.

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Tags: Bulgaria EU Property market

Am I weird meme

Got tagged by Lilian.

The rules: Each player of this game starts with the ‘6 weird things about you.’ People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog.

So here goes...
1. I am a ovo-lacto vegetarian. Almost everybody in Malaysia (not all) thinks that is weird.
2. Went without driving a car for nearly two years after I obtained my car license because I couldn't afford one. Only re-learnt to drive properly later with my girl friend (later to be my wife) as my driving instructor.
3. Worked as the communications officer of an International NGO for quite sometime. The weird thing is that I was selected based on my IT skills. FYI, I don't have any IT background.
4. A lot of people seem to think I am "orang Melayu" (Malay), more so after I started the Melayu Boleh Project. I am not a Malay but I am married to one.
5. Some people thought that I am a Jew because of my name. The reaction have been good as well as bad.
6. I love classic rock music but some of my favourite songs are old love songs from the sixties and seventies.

I am now tagging Lucia, Acat, Azlynne, Ita, Madder and Zaza

Tags: Wierd Meme

Introduction to Techzoogle

I love reading about electronic gadgets and the latest technology news. I would like to introduce my readers to Techzoogle, a relatively new site (the first post was in December last year), that talks about the latest technology, trends, gadgets, computer and software.

Written in the blog format, the site has five writers, namely David Allen, Craig Childs, Kathryn Vercillo, Michael Paul and Robert Maynard covering a wide range of topics ranging from hi-tech cars to linux computer systems. The editor is Mark Johnson.

Are you a hardcore gaming enthusiast? (I hate to use the word, addict). Click here to find out.

Anyway, I was really interested in one particular tech news - like many other tech crazy guys. I am referring to Apple's new iPhone in the the post here. In case you didn't know, Steve Jobs unveiled the new iPhone last week. However this phone is not about the features but rather about the name. I learnt that Cisco Systems had absorbed the rights to the name in 2000 and now Apple is trying hard to keep the name. I am going to keep myself updated with this ongoing saga and would love to see what happens next.

Go and check the site out.

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Tags: Blog Techzoogle Gadgets

Ethnicity of my kids

I was given a form to fill at my daughter's pre-school. We were required to provide some details including her ethnic background, language spoken at home and religion among others. According to a friend, who's been a long time resident in the UK, this is a recent development and he was not very happy about it as he considered it as a case of Big brother being too nosy. Anyway, I was not really concerned with that. After all, it not something unheard of in Malaysia.

We were a bit confused what to fill in under Ethnic background and we finally ticked the "Mixed others" option.

It's quite funny but the issue of our kid's ethnicity has come up on more than one occasion. When we first arrived here in Coventry, some people were surprised when I told them that my kid's birth certificate says "Melayu" under Keturunan (meaning ancestry or descent), meaning my kids are Malay.

I guess they normally follow the father's ethnicity.

My wife once joked that is precisely the reason why they say "Masuk Melayu" (join Malay) whenever you marry a Malay. Melayu Boleh lah!

I am OK with that as long as my kids don't forget the father's (my) side of their heritage and start waving a Keris around.

BTW, the definition of "Malay" according to the Malaysian constitution may differ from that given by anthropologists. Refer to Article 160 of the Malaysian Constitution for more details.

Related posts:
- Mixed marriages and the melting pot

Tags: Ethnicity Melayu boleh Malay

Learn a new language

At present I can speak four languages. However there are two languages I would really like to learn. One is Cantonese and another is Spanish.

Cantonese is one of the Chinese dialects and most of the Chinese people living in Hong Kong. The reason I want to learn it is that most of my Chinese friends in Malaysia speak this dialect and I am sometimes left in the left wondering why they were all laughing whenever someone would tell a joke. Somehow it was not that funny when translated.

Spanish on the other hand is one of the most popular languages. According to one source, it is the 2nd largest language in the world in number of speakers (after Mandarin Chinese). It is the official language in Mexico and many South American countries.

To learn a new language, we can either enroll in a language class, buy audio cassettes + book and learn it in our free time or you can go to Zen cart, which provides complete digital versions of well known language courses from the FSI (Foreign Service Institute).
At only US$29.99, these are quite cheap as compared to the other above options.

And I just found out that they have Cantonese basic and Spanish courses available for download.



Tags: Courses Language

Visit Kerala

Kerala is a beautiful state on the western coast of southern India. I have only been there once and for a few days but the good memories remain.

Kerala - Gods Own Country, has been listed under National Geographic's 50 places of a lifetime.

The state has a lot to offer - a warm climate, long shoreline with clean beaches, cool green hill stations and exotic wildlife. The backwaters on the coast have become very popular with tourists and is the reason why Kerala is often referred to as "The Venice of The East".

The state is also famous for the ancient Indian traditional medicine called Ayurveda. Some people visit this state to cleanse and heal their bodies through the Ayurvedic health holidays.

I also can't forget the amazing and vibrant art forms of Kerala - the most famous being the Kathakali dancers with their colorful painted faces and elaborate costumes. For those interested in martial art, according to the Discovery channel, Kalarippayattu the Indian martial arts practiced here, may be one of the oldest martial arts in existence and that other martial arts like Kung Fu traces their origins to it.

Seems like Kerala has something for everybody. I am definitely going back again.

Oh yeah I almost forgot to mention that the state has a hundred percent literacy rate and also claims to be India's cleanest State.



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Car serviced..... FINALLY!

Woke up early in the morning and sent my car for servicing. I had to leave it at the workshop on Stony Stanton road, for a few hours and I didn't know what to do or where to go. Read my post here.

Fortunately, I suddenly remembered that Malaysians usually had a gathering every Saturday, at the MRC nearby. While I was walking over there, I called up En. Wahab my good friend to see whether he was coming today. He was but found out, unfortunately that the gathering was an hour later.

So got back to the workshop and was able to chat a bit with the owner. I passed away the time reading the car service manual and I actually learnt a lot about the car.

Later went to the MRC around 10am and the families started arriving soon after. The Malaysian community in Coventry is quite close knit and it was nice meeting up with them - listening to what they were up to and to their experiences here in the UK.

Later went to En. Wahab's house to pass the time while my car was being serviced. Chatted about life in Malaysia and my previous job. Quite interesting.

Finally got back my car around 3pm.

Thanks Wahab for all the help. I won't forget it.

Tags: Coventry Malaysian