As intructors, we are normally tied up with our daily classes; be it classroom sessions or the practical activities which you could see some of us in the swimming pool (showing our 6 packs and sexy bods) or jumping off the 'slide' in trying to motivate the trainees to have jump (even if we ourselves are nervous about it). Well as a diver, I would prefer jumping into the pool then the slide which is about 13 feet high!

But last Friday, we were involved in a different activity. Lead by the Head of Academy, we organised a special Deepavali dinner for the representatives from BEAT. The Barrier-Free Environment and Accessible Transport Group or famously known as BEAT, are represented by 16 NGO bodies which, its main purpose is to promote and support accessibility of public transport for the disable people in Malaysia. BEAT has been working closely together with us; providing trainers for the Disability Equality Training subject which is one of the subjects in our Flight Attendants and Guest Services training syllabus .

Representatives of BEAT , to name a few, the United Vision, YMCA Deaf Club, Malaysian Association of the Blind (MAB), Damai Disabled Persons Organisation attended the dinner and I could say that all of us had lots of fun spending time together. We managed to communicate well and shared some experiences and jokes through out the dinner. Some of us (especially myself) learned quite a lot of new sign languages from the ladies who were representing the YMCA Deaf Club.

We look forward to having more activities like this in the future.

Some of the pics taken during the dinner...

Yes!! I've just returned from my latest trip. This time, its Yogyakarta!! The long 3 days weekend allowed me to make my usual 3 days 2 nights trip.Personally for me, the difference about this trip were; 1) it was 'wrongly' booked during the fasting month and 2) this was the 1st time for me exploring the options of staying in a 'guesthouse' without making any advance booking.

Nervous? Oh yes, I did. I was even thinking of canceling the plan to travel because of the 2 reasons. But then, if I never have tried I wouldn't know what would happen!

I left LCCT on 29th Aug and the flight was on time. Coincidently one of our intern who just completed her 'internship' with us was on the same flight with me, together with her boyfriend . So, I recommended that we shared the taxi from airport to town to save cost. Must always find ways to reduce costs ;-)

Since I refused to spend money on the Lonely Planet books like some others, I used the information I got from Wikitravel and that was sufficient for me for a 3days 2 nights stay! I stayed at Losmen Nuri, one of the recommended budget guesthouse in Jalan Sosrowijayan, which is walking distance to the famous Malioboro street. Well, I got one of the rooms with attached bathroom for 70,000 rupiah. Clean, comfy and safe - that's all I needed. And it is also walking distance to the 'food place' as I had to wake up at 3am to eat something before I start fasting!

The next day, I booked a tour to the famous ancient temples, Borobodur and Prambanan. In the same van, I got to know a group of girls from the United Kingdom and one from Holland. 4 of them; Caroline, Charli, Ruth and Sophie are in the midst of traveling within Indonesia for about 4-6 weeks whereby Petra from Holland, is on an 8 months travel through out Asia. (Oh yes - they said they love AirAsia )
We ended up to be great friends in a short time period. We toured the place together,took lots of pictures, shared information of the countries and places we've been to, our experiences with the locals..etc..

The temples? They were amazing. I never thought I would fall in love with the place. Its just beautiful and looking at it, it is amazing thinking of how it was built hundreds of years ago. We took a lot of pictures there, trying to ensure we managed to capture every angle of the temples.

By 12 noon, it was really, really hot. With a high temperature and dry season, and as I was fasting as it is Ramadhan, it really tested my patience and stamina. The girls being understanding friends, just drank water as they actually felt guilty to eat in front of me! There were so sweet!

We returned to the guesthouse to rest and promised to meet again for dinner, accompanying me breaking my fast. The rest of the night was spent having good food for dinner, then adjourned to a famous local chain donut place (I persuaded them because of my cravings) and later walked along the Malioboro street to get some souvenirs.

Yogya is also known for its Batik. There are lots and lots of it and at some places we could bargain and get the best price. They also have lots of other souvenirs and its really cheap.

This has been a really great trip for me. Exploring a new place, facing new challenges, making new friends - it is definitely a memorable one!!

Before I left, I dropped by at the AirAsia office to say hi to our Yogya family members. And they are definitely a great bunch of people ! Say hi to them when you travel to Yogya!!

What would you do if you only have 48hours and a limited budget in Krabi?

These costs 5baht each stick.

This crispy and sweet dessert costs 20baht for 14 pcs.

5 pcs of these huge, fresh, prawns per stick cost 20baht.

This spicy Thai seafood noodle salad costs 40baht per serving.

This excellent ice-blended cappucino topped with fresh cream and others stuff costs 25baht each.

And this excellent beef noodle for breakfast costs 35baht a bowl.

Oh....and there's a lot more choices of food to enjoy. Just travel to Krabi and visit their night market every Friday, Saturday and Sunday and you will definitely put on some extra kgs before you leave!!

When I heard the news that AirAsia is going to sponsor the NFL Oakland Raiders team, I thought it was cool. But not more than that. That's it. Until I saw the new A340 which has the Oakland Raiders livery parked in the hangar. It was really cool. I guess it was more than cool.

I started to google and learned a little bit more about the team. As a sportsperson myself - anything to do with team sports - I get a little bit excited. Luckily for me, in that particular week, the day they held the launch ceremony was the only day I had no class to teach. Immediately I informed my boss to get her permission to attend , and yeay!!! Green light!!!

The launch itself was simple but exciting. Personally I love basketball and if it was the Lakers , I might have jumped on them!! I don't even know how American football is played but I have always loved all the movies about the game such as "Remember the Titans" as it provides motivation to my players. And here I was, seeing and meeting the Oakland Raiders,a famous American football team from the US, is something that I have never dreamt before.
After the launch, we visited the aircraft and had a photography session with the Raiders, and I thought that would be all.

So what came up next? This was the best part - Priya from Corporate Comm called me and informed that Tony was bringing them for a visit to the AirAsia Academy!! I was really, really excited! I couldn't help myself smiling from ear to ear and I was practically 'bouncing' and 'jumping' everywhere in the office, feeling excited. Why? Because usually if there is any visitors to the Academy, I would be the one who would bring them for a tour. Yes!!!

The big boss himself brought the group and lead the tour, which includes Mark Davis , the owner of Oakland Raiders, 3 Raiders legends: Ted Hendricks, Rod Martin and Cliff Branch ( really huge guys) and 4 sexy and beautiful Raiderettes ( their famous official cheerleaders!!) We went into all the classrooms and also the simulator ride.

The Raiders Legends

Tony and the Raiderettes in one of our training room.

It was an AMAZING and UNFORGETTABLE experience being with them and getting to know them. My boss and colleagues asked what was so special about it that makes me so excited. Everybody seemed not being able to capture the feeling that I had.
This is how I see it : Even if you have the chance to go to the US, and you have the chance to watch them play live at the stadium, you might not have the chance to get close and personal with them! And I had a great moment learning basic American football from Ted Hendricks himself!!

With Mark Davis and the beautiful Raiderettes.

The whole experience was definitely an experience of a lifetime and thank you to AirAsia to let me be part of this great team ;-)

p/s: Maybe I should start to dream meeting the Lakers!

What can you do when you have an extra day off either on Friday or on Monday other than spending time in KL? (Even if its only Saturday and Sunday, it is still possible)

1) Pack your bags which includes: beach towels, swimsuit (bikinis if you have a six-pack), flip-flops, sunscreen lotion(suntan for others) and comfy dresses or bermudas.

2) Get some friends to join you. Car pool to Mersing. Follow the North South highway , exiting Segamat and go through Air Hitam and Kluang.Or if you love to travel alone (like me) just take the express bus which costs only about RM23.

3) Take the ferry to Tioman. Return trip costs about RM70. It will be about 2 hours journey.There are a few stops along the way . It depends on you where you would like to stay. The 'stops' include Tekek, Marine Park, Ayer Batang, Panuba and my favourite, Salang.
The accomodation starts from RM30 per person per night.

4) Once you arrive there, some of the activities you could do which includes SCUBA diving, jungle trekking, snorkeling, swimming, sun-bathing, make friends with locals(and get to eat free durians) or just sit down at one of the beach facing restaurants/ cafes and eat!

But warning! Do this only if you DO NOT have any 'negative' post-holidays syndrom and fit enough to return to work the next day. Because you might reach home at 3.30am and by 8am you need to be at work and still be smiling !