My kids

All in football jersy of the club of their choice ..................

As the year draws to an end ....I would like to wish all a happy and prosperous new year..2009 !.

Spoiled weekend made good....

I have planned my weekend and was going to spend my "Bonus", then I got a call to go to Tawau. Another ship in distress , some mechanical failure on one of its machinery... and there goes my weekend.

I can not turn down the job as there was no one to attend to it ........My branch Sr. guys was on leave and I only have a Supervisor left and he is the best I have. Although, I made it to Tawau the following day but I missed the boat ride to anchorage somewhere at Batu Payung (never been)........My men went off instead with a full written instructions which I have made the night before, knowing that I am going to missed the ride.

It has been a couple of years since my last visit to Tawau and I have also not been to the new office.

View of mosque from my Tawau office :-


The boat ride to the anchorage location was said to take at least five hours, if I would have taken a motor launch. My men tag along the local agent's hired 200HP speedboat and took 45 minutes to reach the vessel. I checked the nav. chart location and found that it was about 45 km from Tawau port. If I have taken the motor launch I don think I will be able to make it back to Tawau on the same night.

Vessel at anchorage :-
While waiting, I managed to do held a quick trainning for my new surveyors.......at least the time was not wasted there while I waited for my men to return from anchorage....

My men returned on the same night and handed over me all the documents collected on board and uploaded photos taken into my Laptop. Wow!!! that was a huge bulk carrier DW 87K tonner he boarded. The bulk carrier cound not approach Tawau anchorage because of the draft limitations at port and she was drawing about 16m draught when she arrived.

We have nice chats and "teh tarik" night out.............

The next morning they arrived early and we have breakfast before they sent me to the airport....

Tawau airport at best:-

Took these self-potraits while in my hotel room waiting for my men to turn up.....

Raya Qurban

It was on the morning of 8 December 2008 (Mon), I have fully charged my batteries and armed myself with a camera to go to town and try to catch whatever is left, if any, of the massive display of "Ketupat" and "Lemang" on sale at the central market.


I usually have a camera with me on Sunday where ever I go but was thinking that I have other matters to attend to so I just left it at home......what a scene at the market and I missed it all..... so in order to salvage whatever was left, I decided to return the next day....but as I was going out and passing by my housing estate mosque ...wow ! it was crowded and I end up there instead of going to the central market..........

This year, I saw 6 cows, 1 buffalo and a goat were donated and by far the most in their record, I was told .

The buffalo was the most difficult to subdue as it was the most fiercest of all and chased after the spectators when it breaks off from its securing rope.

Cowboys of the East........It rained the night before so the area becomes muddy and messy....


After the events, I still went to the town central market, but all the stalls have closed for the holidays......