EcoCare Kick Off 2011

Staying in quite quiet places like Kerteh can be so boring sometimes. How you want to fill the weekend can be quite daunting if you, city dwellers are so into busy and 'filling' city life. You won't find malls or shopping complexes in vicinity except the only Mesra Mall.

Deciding to be more productive this weekend, I have decided to join EcoCare 2011 Kick Off program. It is basically cruising along Kerteh River and get to know about the mangrove trees that grow along the muddy Kerteh River. This program is an initiative by my company that I worked for, Optimal collaborating with Malaysia Nature Society (MNS) to conserve and preserve the mangroves in Sungai Kerteh. The objective of this kick off program is to give exposure to the participants about various species of mangroves that grow along the banks of this river. I get to know a lot about mangroves and the importance of mangroves and swampy areas as biodiversity barrier that protect land from being hit directly by big waves from the seas such as tsunamis.

Optimal's CEO was also present to support the EcoCare program

I get to visit the nursery site established by Optimal and MNS for various kind of mangroves and during the 2 hours river cruise, I had received a lot of information from MNS volunteer regarding mangroves. One thing that attracted me is Rhizophora x lamarckii tree that is the only one in Malaysia.

The one and only Rhizophora x lamarckii

As the name imply, the letter 'x' signifies that the tree is a hybrid tree and hence it cannot reproduce due to it's hybrid nature. That is why Sungai Kerteh is very special for conservation and preservation project. There were a lot more to tell, but I'll just leave the pictures do the talking. :)

The mangrove nursery

Cruise along Sungai Kerteh

The participant with The Boss!

Entering the workplace

You've just graduated with flying colours from your college. After months of unemployment, finally you have been offered a job. An offer letter had been sent to you and you've answered the call to take up challenges in working environment. First day at work, you wore the most beautiful (probably new) shirt to the office. Then you've been directed to your own workstation or cube or whatever you call it.

First month of working was probably the most boring moment in your life. Stuck in the middle. You are not yet assigned to any work and yet you cannot fool around in the office. Opening non-related website or chatting with your college day friends in complete secrecy like a fugitive. Heheh. But then, that's the best thing you can do to avoid from sleeping during work hour. The end of first month finally came and you got your first not-so-hard-earned salary.

Your mind suddenly actively thinking what you want to do with your first pay. Some will think on how the money should be set aside for future saving and some may think how should they spend the money to get something that they dream for a long time. But before that, some of us might forget the most important things when earning the first salary. Here I would like to share with you my experience on managing my salary, the basics of it.

1. Income Tax. Do not forget to open up your file for income tax. Do the registration online and get your income tax number. You can do it online here.
2. Employee Provident Fund (EPF). Your company should manage your salary deduction for EPF (KWSP). But you have to open EPF account for yourself. Head to EPF offices nearest to you. Link to EPF website here.
   
3. Zakat. For muslims, it is our obligation to pay zakat for our income. The rate is only 2.5% of your annual income per year. You can pay zakat via salary deduction. Furthermore, you get tax relief for zakat. :) For more info here.
   

I think that's the most basic thing to consider for you monthly salary. Other than that (eg. Tabung Haji saving, trust funds etc.) is up to you. :)

Hilarious Mesra Mall

Well, another weekend had just started. I left my workplace at 1600H sharp, get changed from my coverall and paid a visit to Mesra Mall, the only place of entertainment for sleepy Kerteh. I never imagined that PC Fair is coming to Kerteh. Yeah, it does, starting from 9th of December until 11th.

Typical Kerteh, do not expect big PC Fair like in KL Convention Centre. The hall is very small and only very few shops open their booth there. Nothing worth mentioning about the so-called 'PC Fair' (it is not organized by PIKOM, just borrowing the name). But somehow, I managed to make myself amused today when I went to Mesra Mall. Look at this picture below.

Everything seems normal right? Just like other banners that promote an event. But look closer.

You got what I mean? This is totally not a typo, but rather a silly mistake due to ignorance by someone with their half-baked English. It is so shameful that they got this printed and be seen by the people of Kerteh including me. I cannot stop laughing (in my heart, of course).

Then I continued walking aimlessly around the mall and entered TMC supermarket (it is actually Giant Hypermarket in disguise) and I found this.

My best guess is that this complete PC in trolley is for stock checking purpose as you can see an RJ45 jutting out from the trolley to access the database. I found this rather old-school. I remembered during my time working part time in Guardian, I can easily check the stock inventory and other information like latest promotion and price using a handheld device. It is a passive device though as we need to download the data into the device first and get the item details by just scanning the barcode of the item. As easy as that.

I think, maybe the management resorted to this old method to cut cost. And, I'm sure that those Bangladeshi workers they hired won't complain much as they see this PC-in-a-trolley think the latest technology breakthrough. Huhuhu~

Pasar Malam Kerteh

Pasar Malam or night market is nothing unusual here in Malaysia. When I move in to new place, one of the thing that I will be looking for is when and where the local pasar malam is. However, I went to pasar malam in Kerteh for the first time only after 2 months I have stayed here. Nonetheless, it is still serve its purpose like the other pasar malam around Malaysia where you can get variety of foods, fresh vegetables, fruits, seafoods and meats, and other items like kitchen utensils, not-so-cheap pirated shirts and many more.

Pasar malam in Kerteh is held every Tuesday near to the road leading to Kerteh airport near the small stadium. It started from 6 p.m. till 9 p.m. Please take note that some stalls are closing early at 8.30 p.m. so it is best if you can come at around 7.45 p.m. so you have ample time to look around the market. My first impression, the ambience is just like other pasar malam in Malaysia. The site is on a sandy field that is most likely can be like a paddy-field after the rain. Luckily last night the sky was clear and I can browse through the market without trouble.

Pasar Malam Kerteh, pardon my shaky phone camera

Basically, you can find anything that you can expect from the normal pasar malam. So, I bought my 'benchmark' food that I normally buy from pasar malam and compare it with pasar malam in Sri Iskandar, Perak (my favourite pasar malam when I was in UTP) and pasar malam Taman Sri Putra, Banting (home sweet home). The foods are yong tau fu, chicken kebab and mixture of beef and chicken satay. I also bought coconut shake, coconut juice that is blended with ice cream.

Chicken Kebab

I am not really a food critique, so I just comment whether the food is up to my 'edible' standard or not. The kebab tastes good, just like other kebab that I can find in other two places. However, the price is slightly expensive though, RM 3.00 per piece.

Beef & Chicken Satay

I would say that the food is up to my standard but not the best in terms of price and taste. The satay is not as tender as Banting satay and they do not provide the satay with cucumber and onion chunks like in Banting. The kuah kacang is just meeting with my minimum requirement so nothing to shout out about the taste. It is priced at RM 0.40 per piece, cheaper than Banting satay but slightly expensive from Sri Iskandar's.

Yong Tau Fu

Nothing to shout out about the taste, it is just meeting my requirement. It just offer sweet sour sauce only to accompany with as compared to Sri Iskandar where I have option to choose between sweet sour sauce or soup. However, it cannot still beat Banting sweet sour sauce though. The price is slightly expensive here compared to the two places.

Price comparison

Here I summarize the price comparison of each food according to their locations.

Location /Item	Kerteh	Banting	Sri Iskandar
Chicken Kebab	RM 3.00	RM 2.50	RM 2.50
Satay	RM 0.40	RM 0.50	RM 0.35
Yong Tau Fu*	RM 10.40	RM 7.50	RM 7.00

*The amount of yong tau fu is taken based on approximate amount only

I come to think of this, whenever I go, they can never beat Banting Pasar Malam in any aspect, be it the price or the taste. Ok, I admit that I got a little bit homesick right now. Worry not, I'll be returning to Banting tomorrow after work. Yahoo! :P