A milestone Post

This is a post to pat myself on my back. A marker, a milestone has been reached in the history of Monsoon blogging, hooray - its the 100th post.

AIS Award 2007

Monsoon in Mid Autumn

Today, we had a farewell lunch for Wei Feng, Martin who will be leaving us due to personal reason. He has to go back to China. Martin has been a very dedicated young executive who is very well liked by all of us, by our principals and the crew onboard. We wish him all the best for his future and his family.

Captain Lee return safely from Yangon, he has a frontline view of the marching monks during the past few days - it is no doubt a very memorable experience.

So, we are all back in this very safe and organised city - I have everyone gathered together to celebrate Mid Autumn with what else? mooncakes and Tei Kuan Yin. I took the opportunity to explain to our staff how Monsoon started with Than Win and our first supporter Mr G. from Norway.

With the strong experience and system build up since 16 years ago, we are confident of our future as we now have a team of young and old staff who are completely dedicated to Monsoon's mission and to build further our expertise in crew management.

Monsoon wishes one and all, a Happy Mid Autumn festival.

Super Duck

Here is a photo of the super duck, the most expensive roast duck in Singapore - the general comment is that it tasted very good, superior to even the crystal jade roast duck.

If you have $52 to blow or just want to give a treat to remember, go for it.

Cha Kuan (Jeffrey) Tel 64383510 - they will deliver to offices nearby the market street multi storey carpark upto evening time.

Promo exams

JK, PC and HK are in the midst or soon to take their promotional exams - so it is mugging and more muggings, flasks of ginseng, and power naps - "Sleeps are for losers" ... - but they seems to take it in their stride. Whatever their results, I will be happy because I know they give their best effort.

In Singapore where academic excellence are highly regarded, and this modern day competition of brain powers, I can see the justification why our kids should study hard and aim high.

There is a big cost, most of the kids are robbed of their childhood and highly stressed. The education system are changing in order to keep up with the future demand for new skill sets but I expect academic rigour to be zealously guarded in Singapore. Our education system ranked among the best in the world and the varieties has flourish in recent years so its not just maths and sciences but arts, sport etc.

Is Yangon burning?

We are glad Capt. Lee got back safely tonight, according to his eyewitness report, there was no panic mass exodus of foreigners and the road to airport remain calm. The Silkair flight landed as scheduled and plane was quite empty.

We hope that there will be a peaceful way out but the message must be clear now to the authority that things have to change. I will be surprise if it is going to be business as usual.

I hope the outside pressure and attention on Myanmar will be positive in ensuring that no one, not the authority nor the monks resort to violence or instigate a chaotic situation but instead works to encourage the authority and its opponents to calmly address and sort out the current tense issues with a view to a better future for the country.

While we remain worried about the situation and what tomorrow will bring, we hope that this will be an important historic opportunity for Myanmar to sort itself out for the future.

If help is needed, it will preferably be from China, India and the neighbouring Asean countries instead of the Western powers.

Ancient Mariner & PKFZ

Ancient Mariner is really upset with the debacle that is PKFZ - I have make an earlier posting of my fellow blogger who is a retired pilot superintendent of Klang Port Authority and pioneer GM of West Port - an old school senior seafarer with lots of pride and passion - and rightly so he should be upset.

Ancient Mariner, he is going after these guys who has brought down the organisation, what the old guards has spend their lifetimes building up, it is gone - pooft - kena cheated by corrupt officials and their cronies, the very officials who should be looking after the nestegg has taken away all the eggs.

Sad and a lesson for all of us. The Human Element - worst practice?

The human element

Some days back, I was presented by my good friend KWS, issue 1 to 12 of The International Maritime Human Element Bulletin and "The Human Element, Best Practice for ship operators" published by Lloyd's Register May 2007. I have a quick browse through last night.

Truth be told, I have not been reading trade and professional papers as I and perhaps many other of my comtemporaries in the trade should be doing to keep updated of the relevant issues, what more that we as practitioners should find ways to contribute to the knowledge base for the future of our industry.

Is this the key to ensuring positive progress to the future of our industry? Human Element - I think it is all encompassing - a wide perspective of our responsibilities to the maritime industry, to the society at large.

Lets hope more of us will learn, understand and implement these best practices.

Monk Power

The monks are marching...more and more... It seems to be getting more serious. Some weeks back, the Myanmar government double the price of diesel. Since then, the discontentment has been boiling, slowly at first but during the last few days, what we see from the newspapers seems to be gathering momentum.

All of us want to see progress in Myanmar, the country has missed out on economic development over the last two generations while the rest of SE Asia steams relentlessly ahead, so it is time for Myanmar to wake up now, joins the rest of Monsoon Asia progress and share the prosperity. It does not matter what form of government if the people are well look after, that there is a future for their children.

I hope these difficult issues in Myanmar will be resolve without violence, wisely. Even if it is threatening to the existing government, perhaps they could see this as an opportunity to make the necessary changes now for the good of the country.

Capt Lee is currently in Yangon - Lets see what eyewitness news he bring back when he return tomorrow.

Back by popular demand

It is nearly one month I have not make any new posting on this blog - just to test if my readers should miss me or not :-) Well indeed there has been one or two comments left on my earlier posts which I have not responded.

So what's happening?

Tonight is Mid Autumn night - I have been invited to the MPA gala dinner which is a grand formal affair but I have decided to spend time with the family instead. We are going to my elder sister BK place for a reunion dinner with her family and my second sister BE and her two teenage girls - so its going to be like 10 from BK, 7 from my side and 3 from BE total 20 relatives - not including my new maid Gema from the Philippines. We are going to have steamboat. I shall bring along a roast duck from my favourite lunch place Cha Kun - this duck is costing $52 - must be a super duck, better be good - anyway I shall have JH and JG to sponsor this. After the dinner, we are going to have mooncakes and chinese tea accompanied by chinese instrumental music.

I was at the National University around noon to collect some computer accessories. We had lunch at the Yusoff Ishak building - it is a great place to hang out for the Uni students - very vibrant and lively. The food court is very well lay out, not crowded, food tasty and inexpensive. For two dollars, you get a heap of rice and three type of vegetables.

Driving out of the Uni via Clementi, there was this little white birdie guarding the entrance to NUS, must be the Uni mascot or something - I have seen it there before.

I think we have one of the best university in the world and the cost of education, cost of living here is very reasonable.

We blog as we please - no pressure but with pleasure - it's a nice hobby. I should remain an occassional blogger but with sufficient and interesting postings to keep it alive and meaningful, always something nice, something positive to share with friends and the world at large.

My favourite blog, the most useful blog in the world is Tan Kin Lian - he has always something useful to share, if you do not find any interesting posts here, go to his blog. Go to his blog anyway, you will always learn something new regarding insurance and financial management and more....