Escaping.....For Real!

A couple of weekends ago, my friends and I took some time off our hectic life and went for a quick getaway. We planned for this trip right after we went back from South Korea earlier this year. The destination was almost out of the blue and we thought that we should just give it a go.


So, our destination was the state of Penang, locally known as Pulau Pinang (Penang Island).


Upon our arrival at Georgetown, Penang from the airport, we went straight to our guesthouse called The 80's Guesthouse. The bus driver was thoughtful enough to stop the bus right in front of the lane where our guesthouse was located and he even briefly yet clearly explained that we needed to simply walk along the lane until we found our place. And that was exactly what we did. After checking in, we rested a bit and walked around the areas nearby. At one point, we thought about renting bicycles to cycle around freely (and safely) but since we were looking for specific locations, walking seemed to be more fitting. In the evening, we went to one of the cafes near our guesthouse to enjoy some late night desserts and drinks.


The next day, we kicked off the morning by having a breakfast at our guesthouse's common area and then made our way to a bus stop nearby. We hopped onto bus #101 to Teluk Bahang. When we reached Escape Adventure Theme Park, we were amazed and excited at what the park has to offer. Okay, I can't speak for all of us, but at least I know that I was amazed and excited.


I'm telling you, every activity that we did at the park symbolised how living life is. I'm not even kidding. You'll see how as you read further. So, to me, I intuitively summed up our whole adventure on that day as a representation of life. Or am I the only one who sees it that way? Hmm...


The first activity that we did was pretty easy (relatively). Oh, I have a piece of advice - always warm up properly before doing anything physical even if it's just for fun, especially when what you're about to do actively involves your limbs or abdomen. We gradually became more determined and daring as we tried out more activities despite the heat and eventual exhaustion.


Below are my explanations on how the things that we did that day represented life.




When we're at the bottom, just about to start our climb, we take a glance at what's up there and admire the idea of being at the top. At the same time, we ponder and strategise how we will go through everything that's on our way up. Those things can either be obstacles that make it harder and slower for us to go up, or stepping stones that we can use to give ourselves a push upward. While climbing up, we try to juggle between being time-efficient and not letting go unnecessarily even when we're tired.






When we're at the top, or on our way there, it's a good idea to let loose and take a leap of faith. In other words, just jump! What's scary about this is when you're at the top, just looking way, way down can send chills down your spine. Have you ever thought of this, at one of the high points of your life - "Why should I allow myself to go all the way down after coming such a long way up?" I'll tell you why. It's to keep you grounded. Don't get too caught up by the high's of life that you end up forgetting your roots.






In order to enjoy the thrilling part of life, we normally need to work hard for it. We usually need to go through hills of learning experiences. This can exhaust us as time goes by but whether we realise it or not, it also strengthens us. Once we've earned our fun time, we better make sure that we enjoy it after all.






As we journey through life, there will be stages when what we do, or about to do, is especially important and we definitely don't want to mess it up. However, those particular stages of our life can intensify into something so nerve-wracking that we start to question "Should I go on or back off?" Even when we're well equipped with all that we need, the path that we see in front of us might seem surreal. All that's left for us to do is to go forward but our doubts often keep us frozen. Once we've gathered the courage to move forward, we can instantly enjoy the journey.




After we were done with Escape, we dropped by at Batu Ferringhi beach to try out parasailing. I'm glad that we did!







As we made our way back to our guesthouse, another one of our friends surprised us by showing up at the guesthouse! Most of us were pretty convinced that she wouldn't be able to join us. After washing up and resting, we went out to have a meal and hunt for some of the street arts in Georgetown, Penang. When it got darker, we were still strolling around. It suddenly rained and the rain got heavier. My friends and I momentarily stayed under the roof of one of the shop lots. Then, we decided to bravely (and carefully) run through the rain, from one building block to another, and so on. We eventually reached our guesthouse and washed up. Before heading to bed, we went to another cafe, again, for some desserts and drinks.


We ended our short little vacation the next day, looking forward to seeing each other again soon.




(Photo credits to all who snapped and shared them)

posted from Bloggeroid

posted from Bloggeroid

Dear Potential Global Support Executive...

To job seekers (Fresh graduates, expected to graduate, experienced.... It doesn't matter.), here's a piece of good news.

HSBC Electronic Data Processing (Malaysia), or HDPM in short, is hiring! To be more exact, this particular position is under HSBC Global Service Centre Malaysia (HSBC GSC MY).



HDPM is a subsidiary company of HSBC Group, under the umbrella of HSBC Global Resourcing. The main office is in Cyberjaya, Selangor but there is a branch office in KL city, which is located inside Bursa Malaysia building at Jln. Raja Chulan, KL.

The work here involves back office tasks and functions, where we receive, process, verify, and settle transactions. Structure-wise, we are categorised into Global Banking & Markets (GBM) and HSBC Securities Services (HSS). For HSS, our core functions are Global Custody (equities, bonds, corporate actions), Sub-Custody, Fund Services, and CTLA (corporate trust & loan agency).

Even though we are connected to HSBC Bank, or HBMY in short, we do not do the exact same things. HBMY handles commercial banking, while HDPM handles global services involving institutional clients (corporations, other banks, asset managers, fund managers).

I'm under HSBC *Group* -- HDPM *Company* -- HSBC GSC *Centre* -- HSS *Process* -- Global Custody (GC) *Service* -- GC UK: Overseas Settlements *Department* -- UK-Far East *Team*.

Even though I'm still new at the company, I can confidently say that I've made a good decision to work here, considering the values that the company practises, the work environment, the benefits, and the opportunities that we get, work-wise and non-work-wise. Of course, it has to start with you and your initial mindset.

If you're interested to apply or to know more, drop me a message or comment and I'll reply the soonest possible. Sorry if I don't respond right away, but I'll try.

If you would like to get the assistance of a professional job consultant, I can recommend one too.

"Sharing is caring"~

Cheers~ ★

posted from Bloggeroid

[FAN ACCOUNT] 140808 HAHA Fanmeet @ K-Festival Malaysia 2014

You just never know when luck is on your side. Of course, it's not advisable to rely on good luck all the time because effort still matters more, but when you're lucky, you're lucky.

So, I was very lucky to be chosen as one of the special pass winners for K-Festival Malaysia 2014, held at Pavilion mall, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The pass that I won allowed me to participate in an autograph session by HAHA (Real name Ha Dong Hun; Korean reggae singer; SBS 'Running Man' variety show cast member) as one of the activities during K-Festival.

How did I sign up for the special pass' lucky draw, you may ask? Simple. Korea Plaza KL, governed by Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) Malaysia, promoted about the lucky draw on its social media sites (website, Facebook, Twitter, etc.). I saw the promotional post on Facebook and decided to sign up since the steps were very simple. First, applicants should be Kaki Korea Club members (*Member registration can easily be done at visitkorea.com.my for free.*). Second, we needed to submit our basic information (contact details) and answer a trivia question about HAHA. Third, applicants needed to submit the online form and wishfully wait for the result announcement. I went through my days as normal and frankly, I wasn't expecting much from the lucky draw that I almost forgot about it. One evening, as I was having my dinner break at work place's cafeteria, I checked my e-mail inbox like I always do. When I opened the e-mail message sent by KTO KL (which I initially thought was a promotional message about any of its events), my next expression was literally O.O ... I then had my dinner gleefully and went back to my work area. I hesitantly asked my Line Manager if I could get a day off on the particular fanmeet day. Thankfully, I could! From that moment onward, I was looking forward to the day I would meet HAHA.

August 8th came around and I was more than ready to meet HAHA at K-Festival. The day before, a Korean lady from KTO KL called me to inform about special passes' collection. So, I made my way to Pavilion mall, KL via public transportation and a little bit of walking. Along the way, I couldn't help but to smirk or giggle on my own whenever I thought about meeting HAHA 오빠 and getting his autograph in person (!!!). Once I reached Pavilion, I went straight to Centre Court area of the mall, where K-Festival was held. I got my special pass (in the form of a red tag, placed on my wrist by the crew member) and a goodie bag from KTO KL, containing KLiK magazines, "Imagine your Korea" t-shirt, Dove shampoo samples, Sunsilk shampoo samples, and "Imagine your Korea" hand fan. I was then led to the special zone area, where I sat with other K-culture fans. I briefly talked to a few of the girls at the special zone and we ended up getting each others' contact numbers to enable us to stay in touch and discuss everything K-culture-related. ^^



All audience members were entertained by a Kayarang (traditional Korean musical instrument) performance, played by 예쁜 Korean twin sisters. They even performed 'Negaraku', Malaysia's national anthem, and the whole audience stood up during the anthem's performance and sang along. It created such a heartwarming atmosphere. After the Kayarang performance, MC Cody Lim took the stage to chat and interact with the audience. The newly appointed ambassador of Kaki Korea Club was announced - Baki Zainal, TV host and Korean culture fan. Baki went on stage and joined Cody in chatting with the audience. After that, we were entertained by Painters Hero, a 4-member group of male artistes (painters) who impressively created pieces of arts while dancing on stage.

A press conference session was carried out right before the opening ceremony of K-Festival Malaysia 2014. Representatives who delivered their brief speeches were all amazed at the big crowd that K-Festival managed to attract even from the first day of the 3-day event. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was carried out and K-Festival was then officiated.

After that, it was the moment that all K-culture and 'Running Man' fans anticipatively waited for from the beginning of the day - the appearance of HAHA! HAHA went on stage and the crowd went insane (*I did too.*). HAHA, along with his interpreter and crew members, was surprised to see so many fans at the venue. I can recall how HAHA exclaimed "Waaah~" when he first appeared from back stage. He even took out his handphone to capture the moment in a video. A talk session with HAHA was carried out with Baki as the MC. HAHA even gave away some gifts to the audience by throwing out the (non-dangerous) items towards the audience's direction. The audience was so excited and bold that HAHA had to momentarily go back stage to cool down and wipe off his sweats from all the excitement. ㅋㅋㅋ



Soon after that, the autograph session took place. As one of the lucky winners of the special passes, I excitedly and nervously waited for my turn to get HAHA's autograph on the stage. When it was my turn, I handed out my "Imagine your Korea" hand fan for HAHA to sign on. As he took my fan, I greeted him with "오빠, 안녕!" (Oppa, hello!). He looked up, smiled (so freakin' cutely!!), and cheerfully replied "안녕~!" (Hello~!). He then wrote down my name and signed the fan. When he was done, he initiated a high-5 while exclaiming "Okay~". I happily responded to his high-5. I wanted a little more interaction, so I said out "하그.." (Hug..). He immediately said "Okay!" and stood up for a while to give me a hug. I was smiling ear-to-ear the whole time. God, thank you for allowing such a special occurrence in my life! The official photographer, who had been snapping photos of the session from the end of the table on stage, signalled me to look at the camera, so I did (with my I-am-on-Cloud-9 expression that probably looked silly). I went down the stage, still smiling (*My poor facial muscles~*) and briefly met the new friends I made before making my way to the station to go back. When I reached home, I still smiled like a fool, thinking of how wonderful the whole experience was.



Thank you very much, KTO KL and other co-organisers and sponsors!
Looking forward to more events like this one in the future..
잘하다.. 감사드리다.. 사랑하다..

posted from Bloggeroid

I'm From Borneo, Malaysia

It's no longer a surprising occurrence for me if someone pops out a question like "Erm...may I know where you are from?" even when it is not an ice-breaking or self-introduction session. I get that kind of question a lot and I don't mind it at all. In fact, I feel that it's a great opportunity for me to introduce or promote my birth place to more people. So, to strangers or passers-by who are wondering where I might come from, feel free to ask when you bump into me. LOL..

One of the occurrences took place when I had my meal break at the cafeteria of my work place. Normally, my friends and I would have our meals outside of our office building but lately, we choose to be less 'adventurous' and have our break nearby. It obviously saves more time and energy. So, when I was about to select my meal, the auntie who was catering us, the customers, abruptly asked me "Are you a Filipino?". I smiled and replied "No. I'm from Sarawak (part of Borneo, Malaysia).". The auntie acknowledged my answer and responded "You look special." (- She said it, OK, not me! LOL) I just smiled again and continued to pick my food, which was so good, turning me into a regular customer.

Another instance that really happened was during a Malaysian public holiday. I was on my way to work and the station was particularly packed with people. As I made my way out of the station, I noticed a family of tourists wandering around, as if looking for assistance. I was walking towards their direction. The mother came near me and asked if I could tell them the directions to Independence Square (Dataran Merdeka, KL). I tried my best to explain the directions to them since their intended destination was indeed nearby. Before parting ways, the mother asked me "Are you from Japan? Or Korea?". (- She really asked this, OK. I'm not making this up. Hahaha..) I was startled at the question but tried not to show it. I simply replied "No. I'm from Borneo, Malaysia.".

From these couple of examples, we can see that outward appearance can be quite deceiving but it's not necessarily a bad thing. I see it as a good thing because it shows that diversity exists. In a country as diverse and colourful as Malaysia, it is common to see a variety of Malaysians who look different from each other. This is one of Malaysia's uniqueness. Differences should not break us apart. Instead, let's make use of our differences to complement each other so that we make up a great, diverse team. Despite whatever challenges that we may face as a country or as individuals, I still refuse to give up on our 1Malaysia ideal. It may not be easy, but guess what? It's the challenges that keep the journey alive.

We can make it happen. It's all up to us.

posted from Bloggeroid

-

The 1st Batch of 1MET

1Malaysia EnTrepreneur (1MET)

in conjunction with

the 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES)

in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

First and foremost, I would like to express how grateful and fortunate I feel for being one of the participants for the very first batch of 1MET.

1MET is an initiative by Malaysia's Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with Startup Malaysia, that aims to cultivate the innovative culture of entrepreneurship among Malaysians, especially the youngsters.  Any Malaysian between the age of 18 to 40 could register until the slots were full.  With "Unleash your potential" being its motto, it is clear that a big reason behind the government's effort to govern such a programme is to encourage citizens to be bold in turning their ideas into reality without being so afraid of the unknown future outcomes.  As a developing country, Malaysia certainly needs more creative and diligent people to not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk.  In fact, the more, the better!

So, here is the account of things that the first batch of participants of 1MET went through.  I'm going to write from the perspective of a participant from Sarawak.  For most parts, all participants went through pretty much similar things, though.

Tag with participant's state so that no one got left behind

September 21st, 2013 (Saturday) or September 22nd, 2013 (Sunday) 

- Bootcamp -

A series of half-day bootcamps were conducted from state to state.  For this first batch, the seven states involved were Kuala Lumpur, Pahang, Pulau Pinang, Johor, Sabah, Sarawak, and Kelantan.  What needed to be done in order to be part of this bootcamp was simply to register online at http://www.1met.org/ for free.  Each participant could choose which session he or she wanted to attend.  For Sarawak, there were three available sessions - the morning of September 21st, the afternoon of September 21st, or the morning of September 22nd.

When the day of the bootcamp session arrived, registered participants needed to be present at the allocated venues.  My venue was INTAN Sarawak, located at Kota Samarahan.  Before the bootcamp session started, participants were required to go through a quick attendance check and snap a photo right away.  The purpose of the photo-taking was for a follow-up event in Kuala Lumpur, known as 1MET launching, held in October 2013.  Only the earliest participants who registered online and attended the bootcamp session would be chosen, but at the time of the bootcamp in September 2013, the list of selected participants was still unknown because the bootcamp series was still taking place.

During the bootcamp session, greetings and introduction were made by representatives from the Ministry of Finance and Startup Malaysia.  Several existing entrepreneurs shared their stories and offered some advice to participants who were aspiring entrepreneurs.  Some of the participants were already entrepreneurs, by the way.  Apart from talks and presentations, group activities were also carried out.  Participants were randomly divided into groups.  During my session, there were two group activities.  The first activity was to come up with a business plan as a group.  Whether it was based on an existing business enterprise or based on a yet-to-be-realised idea, each group needed to identify its business products or services, tagline, marketing strategies, and things alike.  Then, a representative would need to briefly present what the group had discussed.  The second group activity was to specify different segments related to the business enterprise such as target market, technology, production, distribution, marketing, and so on.

Bootcamp session at INTAN Sarawak, Kota Samarahan

 Group activity

For the morning session, breakfast, brunch, and lunch were prepared.  As for the afternoon session, lunch, tea break, and dinner were prepared.

Early October 2013

- Announcement of Selected Participants -

The selected participants were notified that we were chosen to attend the launching of 1MET, in conjunction with the 4th GES in Kuala Lumpur, via e-mail and the official 1MET website.  I don't know about the other states, but for Sabah and Sarawak, 200 participants from Sabah and 200 participants from Sarawak were chosen.  As long as the travel period did not coincide with other personal or work-related schedules, the selected participants could gleefully accept the invitation and be on our way to the launching event.  Round trip flight fares, accommodation, transportation, and meals were part of the provided package.

Notification e-mail to selected participants

The follow-up event at KLCC was an invitation-only event.

Participants from Sabah and Sarawak were given flight booking numbers for check in.

October 10th, 2013 (Thursday)

- Departure to Kuala Lumpur -

There were three back-to-back AirAsia flights used by Sarawak participants from Kuching International Airport.  The same went with Sabah participants from Kota Kinabalu International Airport.  Based on the name list, I was in the third flight from Kuching.  A few days before the departure date, participants were given flight booking numbers so that we could check in and print our boarding passes.

Upon arrival at Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) in Selangor, each batch of participants was greeted by representatives holding sign boards with "1MET" name on them.  Once all participants from the particular batch of flight came out of the arrival hall, we were given tags with our state name on them and were led to the buses waiting outside.

Before being sent to our accommodation place, we were brought to Bukit Jalil Sports Complex for registration purpose.  At the registration venue, each participant identified himself or herself to the one behind the counter (There were a number of open counters available.) by showing his or her identity card (IC).  Participants were also required to give their bank account number so that an allowance reimbursement could be done later on.  Once registered, each participant was given a security tag (with the participant's pre-taken photo, full name, and barcode on it) and a woven bag containing a T-shirt, booklet, pen, and notice.  After registration, participants were treated to coffee/ tea and local kuih-muih for a tea break.  A representative from the Ministry of Finance welcomed us and gave us a briefing.  Then, participants went back to the same buses that brought us from the airport.

Greeting and briefing from a representative of the Ministry of Finance

Our next destination was our accommodation place.  For Sabah and Sarawak participants, we were placed at Pusat Latihan Polis (PULAPOL) Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Semarak.  Once we arrived at PULAPOL KL, we checked in by writing our name and contact details at the check in desk.  We were then given keys to our hostel rooms.  At PULAPOL KL, each room can accommodate two residents.  I'm not sure about the other blocks, but for the block that I was given, each room was equipped with two beds with mattresses, two closets, two desks with chairs, a washroom, lights, and a fan.  It was really 'hostel-style'.  Dinner was provided for all participants at the cafeteria.  After dinner, another briefing was carried out, along with a Q&A session.  The briefing focused on what was going to happen on the next morning, which was the morning of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Kuala Lumpur.  We were informed that the security would be tight due to the involvement of Malaysia's and the United States of America's (USA) VIPs and delegates.

Important notice for participants

Security tag and 1MET T-shirt for every participant

October 11th, 2013 (Friday)

- The 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) & 1MET Launching -

1MET participants were required to be ready early in the morning.  Buses were ready to bring us from our hostel to Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC).  As informed to us, a number of policemen with motorbikes escorted our buses from our hostel to KLCC for security reason.  Throughout our route to KLCC, other traffic users needed to momentarily stop and give way to our buses.

Being escorted by the police force on the way to KLCC and back from KLCC

1MET marquee tent was set up not far from Petronas Twin Towers.

Once we arrived at KLCC, a quick briefing was given to keep us informed on the timing for departure back to hostel.  The Muslims then made their way to a surau in KLCC for their prayer.  For non-Muslims, we freely yet cautiously dilly-dallied around the area.  Breakfast was provided for participants.  After breakfast, we could enter the 1MET marquee tent.  Upon entering the tent, crew members scanned our security tags for attendance.  We walked through a security scanning machine (like the ones used at airports) and had our seats on the carpeted floor.

Inside the 1MET marquee tent

Once all participants were in, the moderator who came all the way from Texas, the USA, entrepreneur-author EJ Carrion, greeted all participants and shared his "skydiving" story as an introduction.  Then, a number of speakers, consisting of entrepreneurs from the USA, went on stage to talk about their entrepreneurial journeys.  The speakers were Sarah Green, co-founder of Empact, and Shama Kabani, founder of The Marketing Zen Group.  They were very engaging and motivating in their speeches.  Having them as speakers at the launching event was an honour.

When the official Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) commenced in the convention hall of KLCC, we could watch it through live broadcast on a number of big screens in the 1MET tent.  We listened to the speeches by John Kerry, the USA's Secretary of State, as well as Dato' Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak, Malaysia's Prime Minister.  While the convention was being broadcasted, local and international media started to set up their cameras in front of the stage.  Not too long after that, John Kerry and Dato' Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak came over to 1MET tent and went up on stage.  With their waving and greetings, the audience members were hyped.  Each of the two delivered a short speech.  Then, a quick Q&A session was carried out.

Live broadcast of the 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) that was happening in the convention hall nearby

A visit by Malaysia's Prime Minister and the USA's Secretary of the State

After the two guests of honour went back, a sharing session by Norman Abdul Halim from KRU Group (once a music band, now also an entrepreneurial brand) was conducted.  After his sharing session, a panel of entrepreneurs from different countries went up on stage for an open Q&A session.  The audience members were very much receptive and the panel of entrepreneurs were helpful and informative enough.  Lastly, the launching event was concluded with a bow from the organising team from the Ministry of Finance.

Lunch was provided for all participants.  Everyone was then free to wander about but those who wished to go back to hostel via provided buses were informed to be ready at the drop point by 2:15PM.  On our way back to the hostel, our buses were once again escorted by the police force.  A few hours later, tea break was prepared for participants.  Later on in the evening, dinner was also provided.  After dinner, the last briefing was carried out to inform participants about the departure to the airport the next morning.

Wandering around after the programme ended while waiting for buses

October 12th, 2013 (Saturday)

- Back Home -

In the morning, all participants from Sabah and Sarawak checked out of our hostel and returned our room keys.  Before getting on the buses, we had a wholesome breakfast at the cafeteria.  We then bid goodbye to those who were going on separate buses and flights.  The buses brought us all to LCCT.....and that marked the end of our 1MET in KL 2013 journey.

+ + + + +

So, to all existing and aspiring entrepreneurs, especially the young ones,

stay alert of the next batch of 1MET bootcamp series.

When the registration is opened,

sign up right away and tell your friends, family, or relatives about it.

At the end of the programme,

you'll get a great deal of inspiration, motivation, and knowledge

that can boost your entrepreneurial potential.

Don't miss it!

+ + + + +

+ + + + +

To the organisers and those involved in this programme, either directly or indirectly,

thank you very much for this initiative.

I think you did great with the execution and more importantly,

the motive of this programme is nothing short of noble

as it intrigues innovation and encourages Malaysians to be the best that we can be.

Thank you for taking good care of us!

All the best!

+ + + + +

[FAN ACCOUNT] 130627 - AIA K-pop Concert in Malaysia

[FAN ACCOUNT] 130627 - AIA K-pop Concert in Malaysia

I went to K-pop Dream Concert Live in Malaysia in the month of May and I enjoyed it.  One month later, I went to yet another concert!  This time, it was AIA K-pop Concert in Malaysia.  What made this concert extra special was the three performing acts who all came from the same company, Cube Entertainment.  My favourite K-pop company!  The three acts were 4Minute, BEAST, and G.NA.  In January 2011, the same lineups came to Malaysia for DiGi Live K-pop Party and I attended that one too with my dad and younger sister.  This time for AIA K-pop Concert, my dad tagged along again.

My dad and I took a flight to Kuala Lumpur on the same day of the concert.  We arrived at Kuala Lumpur about four hours before the tentative time of the concert.  We made our way to the stadium where the concert was held via Light Rail Transit (LRT).  The concert venue was only two stations away.  When we arrived at the stadium, we wandered around the stadium, which was already filled with fans and AIA (M) Berhad's agents, staffers, policyholders, and family members.  The concert was initially planned as a private concert for those related to AIA (M) Berhad only.  After discussing with Malaysian fanclubs and K-pop concert-goers, the company decided to make the concert open to public.  *cough* /Extra revenue/ *cough*  *cough again* /Nothing wrong with that/ *cough again*  I bought the concert tickets for my dad and I through Malaysian BEAST's fanclub, MYB2UTY.  About fifteen minutes before the concert started, we entered the concert area.  Upon hearing songs (which turned out to be music videos) by the Cube artists being played in the concert area, I felt excited and could not wait to see the performing artists live again, especially BEAST!

G.NA was the first performer.  Even as a solo singer, she did not fail to capture the audience's attention with her powerful yet sweet vocal and her friendly greetings.  Her first song for that evening was 'Supa Solo', one of my all-time favourite songs of hers!  G.NA also performed '2Hot', 'Bananas', and the English version of 'I'll Back Off, So Live Well' (in which, B2UTY went wild when BEAST's Jun Hyung came out to perform his rapping part) before performing a two-song medley of Rihanna's songs, 'Take a Bow' and 'Rude Boy'.  Her remaining performances of 'First Kiss', 'Top Girl', and 'Black and White' kept the crowd cheering.  I especially liked it when G.NA mentioned during her talk time that Malaysian fans have been doing great at supporting the United Cube family and asked for continuous interest and support.

The audience continued to gleefully scream, shout, and sing when 4Minute came on stage.  The girls appeared on the stage with their stylishly sassy performance of 'What's Your Name'.  They also performed 'Mirror Mirror', 'I'm Okay', 'HUH', and 'Muzik'.  I enjoyed every performance but I particularly liked their emotional balladry song 'Pretend'.  Before stepping out of the stage, the girls performed the bubbly 'Heart to Heart' and the catchy 'Hot Issue'.

Then...the most anticipated (for me, personally) act of the evening...the one, the only, the amazing BEAST!  As expected, the audience, including me, went wild when an introductory snippet featuring BEAST's members was played.  The next thing that came up was Gi Kwang's "Byeol-i bit na neun areumdawoon bam-iya-iya~".  The BEAST's members appeared on stage to perform their upbeat 'It's a Beautiful Night'.  What made the audience (at my area) even more hyped up was the members running towards the front part of the stage from the beginning of the song.  So, my eyes were pleasantly treated to the up close view of real life BEAST's members!  Dear God, thank you very much!  I frantically waved my rose-shaped lightstick and sang along while smiling ear-to-ear.  BEAST is known as one of the groups with outstanding fan-service.  That fact was really shown that evening even from their first performance.  The group performed 'Bad Girl' and 'Shock'.  These two songs are their first two title songs.  So, being able to see them perform those songs and dance the choreography meant so much to their B2UTY fans, trust me.  The other songs that BEAST performed so marvelously were 'Special', 'Fiction', 'On Rainy Days', 'I Knew It', and 'Freeze'.  Right after that, a new but familiar tune was played.  I immediately screamed joyfully when I heard the introduction music of one of BEAST's new songs, 'Will You Be Alright'.  I could tell that a few of the audience members who were near me turned their heads to look at me.  They must be wondering why I suddenly shrieked.  It was another special treat for B2UTY in Malaysia because that was the first time the song was performed overseas, and the second time it was ever performed live.  The first time the movingly sad song was performed was during B2UTY Party event at Maru Park, Seoul, South Korea.  Oh yea, now I remember something!  During 'Will You Be Alright', Jun Hyung missed a tempo and ended up giggling while doing his "Stay with me babe, stay with me babe.. Don't go, don't leave me babe.." part.  It was so cute!  Their last performances were 'Beautiful' and the encore song 'VIU'.  The members had lots of fun on stage, running around and making each other wet by splashing drinking water from bottles.  In fact, the members seemed to be in a very good mood from the beginning of their appearance on stage.  That made fans extra happy.  One of the things that the members said that I particularly remember is Dong Woon's "[Translated] Now I know why Malaysia is so hot.  It's because of your passion."  *o*  Smooth move, Son-Nam-Shin!  Another one is in Yo Seob's advice for everyone to take extra care of their health because of the haze, "[Translated] Please stay healthy.  Because you exist, I exist." *o*  Very sleek, Yang-Yo!

That evening is definitely a memorable evening for me.  I am sure many fans think so too.

We will continue to stand by your side, United Cube!

[FAN ACCOUNT] 130524 - K-pop Dream Concert Live in Malaysia (Cube Entertainment's Fan's POV)

[FAN ACCOUNT] 130524 - K-pop Dream Concert Live in Malaysia

(Cube Entertainment's Fan's POV)

The Evening Before (May 23rd)

My family and I arrived at Genting Highlands, Pahang on May 23rd.  Our flight was delayed for about an hour, so my energy was mostly drained by the time we arrived at the lobby of our hotel.  Before entering our hotel room, I had to first meet up with a few Melodies (Melody = Fan Name of BTOB's fan) to pass them their slogan towels and lightsticks.  (For those who did not know, the slogan towels and lightsticks that I am referring to are the official support merchandise produced and sold by the talent management company.)  The first day of the concert was happening on that evening.  The tickets that I bought for my family and I were for the second day. 

From our hotel room, we could hear the songs that the artists were performing.  Our hotel was right next to the main entrance of the concert venue.  I could particularly hear BTOB's 'I Stole Those Lips (Irresistible Lips)', 'Wow', 'Second Confession', and G.NA's 'Oops!' because when those songs were performed, my family and I were walking somewhere outside, looking for a place to eat. 

It was about half an hour past midnight and my family members were already sound asleep but I was still up, watching TV.  I then received a text message from a fellow Melody-and-K-popper.  I was supposed to pass her some slogan towels too but we could not meet up before the concert that evening because of my delay in arrival.  We then made a quick appointment to meet up outside of a coffee house near the lobby of the hotel where the artists were staying at.  There are a number of different hotels at Genting Highlands and those hotels are connected by walking paths and buildings.  So, I just followed the sign boards and some directions from that Melody friend of mine to get to our meet up place.  I finally reached the place and I knew that I was at the right place because I could see a number of people gathering and waiting outside of a coffee shop.  At that time, the artists were having a break after the first day of concert at the coffee house.  I met my Melody friend there and passed the slogan towels to her.  We had a little chat and I met some other K-pop fans.  I was told that BTOB, my favourite group out of the performing line-ups, had already gone back to their rooms.  I decided to wait with the other fans to try my luck at catching a glimpse of the other artists who were going to come out of the coffee house sooner or later.  BTOB's senior label-mate, G.NA (pronounced as "Ji-Na"), came out of the coffee house with a manager from Cube Entertainment and  some security guards.  They walked towards my direction, making me feel more excited but I tried to contain my excitement and I took a step back to give way.  G.NA was literally about one metre away from me.  I blurted out "Hi, G.NA~" and she looked at me while smiling, waving, and saying "Hi!" back.  That made me feel so happy and thankful!  She is not only a very beautiful woman, but she is also kind and genuine towards her fans and others.  Not long after that, 4Minute, also BTOB's senior label-mates, made their way out of the coffee house.  A manager went out first with a cake from 4Minute's fanclub.  The girls followed after that, surrounded by security guards.  The girls were all-smiles as they walked pass fans.  Like G.NA, they really looked like porcelain dolls up close.  Apart from BTOB, G.NA, and 4Minute, the other artists in the line-ups of K-pop Dream Concert Live in Malaysia were Sistar and Brown Eyed Girls.  I was not sure if Sistar and Brown Eyed Girls had already gone back to their rooms earlier on or not, but I decided not to wait any longer and walked back to my room. 

G.NA coming out of the coffee house and walking towards my direction(!)

4Minute coming out of the coffee house and walking towards my direction too(!)

The Concert Day (May 24th)

From the afternoon, I joined the other fans lobby-stanning (Lobby-stanning, a.k.a. hotel-stanning, is a term used to refer to fans waiting at the hotel lobby where their favourite artists are staying at, hoping for a chance to see the artists with their own eyes when the artists go out to have a meal, walk somewhere else, or off to a rehearsal or show.)  Of course, security guards were there to make sure that fans did not go overboard and that the other guests of the hotel would not go through too much of a difficult time because of the hoarding of fans.  I felt bad for the other guests because there were times when they had to squeeze their way through the fans to get to the hotel lobby.  Fans were kind enough to make way when necessary but still, the overwhelming number of gathered fans at a hotel lobby can be quite frightening to anyone who is not used to that.  Nobody got hurt, though.  We patiently waited and queued at the hotel lobby for hours.  Our biggest 'enemy' at that time was not the long hours of standing but the cold highland wind that occasionally blew in from the front entrance of the hotel. 

The concert was about to start in a couple of hours, so G.NA walked out to the hotel lobby first, surrounded by an entourage of staff members and security guards.  Sistar and 4Minute then came out one after the other.  My Melody friends and I were anticipating BTOB the most.  We kept waiting.  The authority at the hotel lobby announced that BTOB (and Brown Eyed Girls) would not be coming out soon.  Some even claimed that they were already at the concert venue since rehearsal, but fans knew better that they were not at the venue yet because some fans really waited at the hotel lobby since morning.  Nice try but you cannot easily fool fans, okay?  Fans are extra alert, extra attentive, and extra informative.  Most fans were already on their way back or to the concert venue but a number of fans remained at the hotel lobby area.  I even had some time to briefly followed and 'stalked' managers from the talent management companies, especially Cube Entertainment, when they wandered at the lobby area.  My Melody friends and I wanted to stay at the hotel lobby until BTOB came out but it was already ten minutes before showtime.  We did not want to miss the start of the concert, so we decided to make our way to the concert venue, which was about fifteen minutes away by foot.

The managers

On the first day, the order of performing artists was BTOB-G.NA-4Minute-Brown Eyed Girls-Sistar.  I expected the order to be the same for the second day but it turned out that Sistar was the first performing act.  My seat was at the front row and the two seats on my right as well as the two seats on my left belonged to fanboys.  So, I was surrounded by fanboys!  I enjoyed Sistar's performances since I knew some of their songs.  In fact, I was familiar with all of the songs that the group performed that evening.  After Sistar, it was G.NA's turn to perform.  I screamed my lungs out especially when BTOB's Il Hoon came out to perform his part in G.NA's 'Oops!'.  G.NA also performed the English version of her debut song, 'I'll Back Off, So Live Well', among other songs.  Then, 4Minute went on stage to perform their songs.  4Minute is one of my top K-pop acts.  The second last performing act was BTOB!  Woohoo~~!  As expected, I went insane when BTOB came out.  From the first song, 'I Only Know Love', to 'Secret (Insane)', to 'Second Confession', to 'Wow', I gleefully sang along and followed some of the dance moves.  The guy sitting next to me was surprised and asked me, "Waa... You even know all their dance moves?".  I smilingly nodded and continued cheering.  Brown Eyed Girls was the last performing act.  I was not very familiar with some of their songs but I still enjoyed their performances.  During Brown Eyed Girl's turn to perform, the group's manager came to the front of the stage area among the security guards and stood near my seating area.  At one point, he briefly scanned the seating audience area and I happily waved at him.  He saw me and nodded.  

Sistar

G.NA

4Minute

BTOB

Brown Eyed Girls

When the concert was over, I walked to my hotel room, feeling tired but happy.  I simply love it when I can smile after a concert no matter how exhausting the day has been. 

Fan Account: Digi Live K-pop Party 2011

 [a/n - VERY sorry for the delay in posting this]

My flight to Kuala Lumpur from Kuching with my family was set to depart in the afternoon of January 12^th.  I was actually tired even before we reached the airport since I had a class in the morning.  Driving a 30-minute journey to campus and another 30-minute journey back home can be draining.  At the same time, I had to keep reminding myself not to forget the important things that I should pack along.  It would be very troublesome if I didn’t remember to bring my K-pop Party passes and identity card, among other things.  I had a clear and simple mission for that particular trip: to attend the Live K-pop Party.

So, we arrived at KL and commuted to our hotel by taxi.  The CUBE family hadn’t arrived yet at that time.  I kept checking updates (on Facebook and Twitter) to know if they had arrived safely.  When I found out that they had arrived, it was thrilling, but the sad news was that Kiki (Lee Gi Kwang) wasn’t with them. It was reported that his schedule for “My Princess” drama recording clashed with CUBE’s pre-planned schedule of coming to Malaysia.  It was a last minute thingy, so he couldn't join the others for the K-pop Party in KL.  How sad~  I felt a little down because BEAST, after all, consists of 6 members and they’re amazing as a 6-member group.  However, Kiki’s absence shouldn’t keep any B2UTY down.  At least the rest of BEAST had safely arrived, together with 4Minute, G.Na, and CUBE managers, staff, and dancers.  The CUBE family was really in Malaysia!  Gratitude, B2UTY, gratitude.  My excitement kind of overshadowed my exhaustion.  I even skipped my dinner.  I was hungry but was also too tired by the end of the day to even eat.

Then, it was January 13^th, the day of the Digi Live K-pop Party.  Dad, younger sis, and I figured out how to get to the venue of the event by using LRT (Light Rail Transit).  So, we bought our LRT tickets and roamed around the area near our hotel with mom and youngest sis for some time before lunch.  We went karaoke-ing for a while but I remembered that I needed to keep my throat safe and okay till the performances later that evening.  So, I sang just a couple of songs.  I had chicken pasta for lunch.  Yummy!  It was delicious (and expensive). After lunch, we went back to the hotel to get whatever we would need for the Live K-pop Party.  Then, off we went to the LRT station.  Just a quick note here: we were not yet used to using the LRT as a mean of transportation but we knew that we would be alright.  Just after two stations, we got off the LRT and walked the rest of our way to Stadium Negara.  We kept walking and didn’t even stop to rest till we reached the venue.  And there we were!   I got the B2ST lightstick that I pre-ordered weeks before the K-pop Party through JC (Iza Yanti) of MyB2UTY.  My sis and I didn’t miss the chance to take some photos.  There were 4Minute’s, G.Na’s, and BEAST’s life-size cardboards.  I even had a duet photo with ‘cardboard Seungie’.   ;)  Then, we started lining up in front of the entrance.  It was around 1.30 PM.   We just sat there on the ground, chilling and preparing to get in for the event.  We had Mentos (one of my usual sources of glucose), drank mineral water, bought souvenirs, and chattered. There was a Meet and Greet session at the same venue before the K-pop Party started. However, I didn't get to go for lucky draws or join any contest that would entitle me to one of the Meet and Greet passes.  There was  going to be a private TV Show recording the next day as well.  Again, I didn't have a pass for that.  I was grateful that I could at least go to the K-pop Party.  :)   Maybe I’ll get to go to the other extra events next time.  So, no point pouting forlornly for what I didn’t get.

The stadium doors were opened about an hour and a half before 8 PM.  As expected, people were pushing in the line, not wanting to wait another minute longer.  I was prepared for that and it actually felt pretty comfortable (?), strangely.  My sis got in before me and we got pretty good seats.  Let me tell you, just sitting there in the indoor stadium made me feel pumped up already.  MVs by the CUBE artistes were being played.  Then I remembered that I should at least inform dad, who was still lining up outside, that the two of us were already in.  So, I sent him an SMS, which was rather a tricky thing to do at that time due to all the distractions, excitement and anticipation.  Some fans screamed out of the blue.  It turned out that they saw BEAST members walking at the upper level of the stadium.  O..M..G..!  They walked from one room to another probably for touch ups or something else.  Minutes later, they walked out of the room.  Fans screamed again.  I did too!  ^^  Two of the members waved at the fans from afar.  Fans went crazy!  One of those two was Yoon Leader (Yoon Du Jun).  I could recognise him because he was wearing a sleeveless black shirt.  I couldn't tell who the other one was.  Who was it?

When it was already 8 PM, the event started.  The MC greeted the audience.  The opening act was a performance by a singer, whose name I didn’t quite catch, sorry.  Then, G.Na performed “I’ll Back Off, So You Live Better”.  Pretty G.Na eonnie sang the song beautifully, causing fans (including me) to cheer so loudly and energetically.  I partially lost my voice and it was only the first song by the CUBE family!  At that time, I didn’t care much about the after-effects of all the screaming.  When Joker (Yong Jun Hyung) went on stage for his cameo in the song, I screamed even more (as expected).  G.Na also performed Rihanna’s “Take a Bow” and her own single, “Supa Solo”.  Gosh, she was great!  The next performance was by the 4Minute girls.  ^-^  All the way throughout 4Minute’s "Muzik", “HuH”, “I, My, Me, Mine”, “Highlight”, and “Hot Issue”, the girls wow-ed fans with their charm and talents.  Cheering and chanting for them contributed to me having a sore throat later. But whatever, right?  ^o^  Two CUBE acts were done with their performances, and there was only one act left to go.   The excitement while anticipating for BEAST was….beyond words.  I couldn't wait to see them perform but at the same time, I was a little worried of the possibility for me to not be able to speak anymore later if I were to really lose my voice.  xD  BEAST appeared on stage with the song “Special”.  Kyaaa~~~!  It felt almost surreal for me to see them perform in front of my own eyes.  Kiki wasn’t with them but they were great, nevertheless.  Go BEAST!  I wanted to cherish every moment.  The moments really were "special", just as the song title suggests.   :)  When the intro music of the song “Oasis” was heard, I cheered in joy.  Omo…  That song is one of BEAST’s songs, which lyrics I’ve really memorised and understood.  Other songs performed by BEAST were “Shock”, “Breath”, “Beautiful”, and lastly, “V.I.U.”.  Their list of performances was perfect for me but I felt like I wanted some more.  :D  The event ended after the CUBE family bid goodnight and goodbye to the audience.

Dad, sis, and I made our way back to the hotel by walking, getting on an LRT, and some more walking. To feel exhausted after the event was inevitable.  It was a worthwhile exhaustion, though.  Absolutely!  :)  I had a wonderful evening, thanks to the CUBE family.  I’m very much sure that everyone who was present at the event had a great time too.  So, please come back to Malaysia when you get the chance in the future.  We love you, CUBE family!