Ten Common Malaysian Greetings

Here are ten Malaysian phrases that is part of one's everyday life here. It mostly includes greetings to people.

Selamat Datang - Welcome - This is very common on sign posts as you enter a city or the country. the Malaysians are very hospitable and I know you will feel truly welcomed!

Terima Kasih - Thank You

Apa Khabar? - What is the news?

Sila Masuk - Please Come In

Jumpa Lagi - See You Again - You again encounter this phrase on the road.

Selamat Pagi - Good Morning

Maafkan Saya - Excuse Me; Beg Your Pardon

Dari Mana? - Where Are You From?; From where?

Khabar Baik - I am fine

Apa Nama Anda? Nama Kau Apa? - What is Your Name? The answer to which will be "Nama Saya Mamamia" - or my name is Mamamia.


I am really new to this language as I stay at Little India and have very little occasion to converse in Bahasa. So Maafkan Saya and please correct me anywhere you feel necessary!

Analyse Your Dreams

I just came across a very interesting website. The site www.dreamforth.com is a free online dreams analysis website. How does it work?

Dream Dictionary - The site has a dream dictionary where you find different terms and objects alphabetically and you can find what it means to dream of them.

Otherwise enter your dream and click interpret to find out what it implies.

Suppose you have dreamed of the sea. Find out what it means here at Dreamforth.com

http://www.dreamforth.com/search.php?query=sea&type=dreams&page=1

Don't know if it works or not or how much of the subconscious one gets to understand from the interpretation. Often one wakes up from a ridiculous dream and wonders what it could really mean. This dictionary might help! In my opinion, its quite a lot of fun - if you dont take it seriously!

My dreams are mostly long and protracted - nothing as simple as, for eg, a rose or the sea or goats - how does one interpret them? Maybe there are other sites out there.

Fifteen Malaysian Words for The Road

Here are some Malaysian words you will definitely encounter when travelling by road in the country. You will need to know them if you are self driving.

Tunai - If you are at the toll gates and dont have a "Touch and Go" or Smart Tag - better proceed to the counter which says "Tunai" meaning Cash.

Lebuhraya - Means a highway.

Pusat Bandar - City Center

Jalan - Road

Awas - Beware

Kecemasan - Emergency

Simpang - Junction

Selatan - South

Utara - North

jalan ditutup - Road Closed

Berhenti = Stop

Keluar - Exit

Masuk - Entry

Hentian Sebelah - Roadside stop or next stop

persimpangan - Intersection or "next exit" signs

Hope this helps!

Top 5 Reasons to Watch Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Zingdagi Na Miliegi Dobara is Zoya Akhtar revisiting Dil Chahta Hai – though in an entirely different setting. If a tribute to Dil Chahta Hai was to be shot – ZNMD would fit the bill.

1 – Farhan Akhtar does an amazing job as the down to earth, irreverent, don’t give a damn guy. He is one of the main reasons the movie was so likeable. He excels in dancing and singing too as a huge bonus!

2 - The bonding between the characters – a lot has been said about this bonding. The times the trio spent on the set as “friends” comes across in the movie. None of the scenes seemed forced – even the emotionally heavy scenes come out naturally. Hrithik, Farhan and Abhay complement each other perfectly. Hrithik doesn’t get the heavy star treatment – and that makes all the difference. Katrina Kaif’s presence doesn’t let it be a tedious all-male show!

3 - The Spain road scene – Just traveling through a foreign locale, not just along the tulip route, adds a separate dimension. The movie travels through the narrow winding roads of small Spanish towns, from the beach to the mountains. It covers the colorful tomatina festival too with a “Bollywoodish” song!

4 - The Music – Whether it is the tomatina song “Ik Junoon”, Dil Dhadakne Do or the “Senorita” sung by Hrithik, Farhan and Abhay – the songs vibe with youthful energy. Shankar Ehsaan Loy with lyricist Papa Javed Akthar have ensured that the album will not soon be forgotten.

5. The entire package – Director Zoya Akhtar must be credited with making a sensible fast paced, lovable movie that is not just a soppy romance. The various nuances and layers to the funny dialogues add an extra dimension to this road movie. There are some straight adrenaline pumping scenes like a free fall from an aircraft, deep sea diving or a terrifying running with the bulls at the climax. However the fun and adventure is inter weaved into an emotional roller coaster as the trio face their fears and find out what they want from life while getting in touch with themselves. All as they negotiate the narrow roads of Spain.

Verdict – Must watch

10 Bahasa Melayu Malaysian Words

If you are a new visitor to Malaysia - there are some words you are likely to encounter frequently. Here are some words and their english meanings.

Buka - Open

24 Jam - 24 Hours

Keluar - Exit

Masuk - Entry

Makaanan - Food

Jawatan Kosong - Job Vacancy

Pintu - Door

Perempuan - male

Lelaki - Female

Tandas - Toilet

A Shopping Trip to Mid Valley Mega Mall

There’s a trite phrase for it. Retail therapy. It is not just a therapy, it is a lifeline – it is addictive, drains the wallet, submerges the wardrobe and gives me pleasant dreams for weeks. As the long summer holidays drew to a close - I badly needed the distractions of a mall to get away from CN and Nick at home. Mid Valley Megamall called out to me for an extended trip!



I was almost out of a few toiletery items and there was a good sale on at Guardian – that was the trigger for the trip.



As I crossed the optical store at Mid Valley, I realized there was a huge sale in frames and lenses. Now, for the past 1.5 years I have been thinking of having my eye checked and getting new frames. Somehow sitting at home – hasn’t made this as imminent as it would have been otherwise. I dropped in and soon found my eyes getting thoroughly checked by a London trained Optician. Of course to no surprise, there was a small power change with an increase in astigmatism. I don’t know how, but I soon found myself choosing a nice new titanium frame and making a small deposit on it. I had over over exceeded my budget before I had even really entered the mall!


I got my stuff at the Guardian with what I considered great savings. Those nice new knee braces which I was waiting to get at a sale came at a 40% discount for just Rm 14 – when I purchased items worth Rm 100. Pleased with myself, I got some grocery and other items, drooled over the MNG and Zara stuff and returned home.


The next day I had to go again to pick up my new glasses. I remembered about an upcoming Birthday and also got a toy at Toys R Us at a nice discount. That was when I saw the British India Sale. British India is one brand that I love. A bit pricey, so I have been eyeing their annual sale for some time. I had missed it last year – and I found I was at the fag end of their clearance this time too. How could I miss it?



I soon found myself trying out their stuff. I hit upon one – that seemed to have been left just for me. A nice lovely purple skirt at a hefty discount. It was just one size bigger – but almost neatly fitted me. I took it – I hardly ever lose weight and the skirt (at its price) was too good to be true. It looked a dream. As I picked it up – the saleswoman asked whether I wouldn’t like a top with it? So I looked and found a nice one at – again – 70% discount! The tunic was just a size short though. Well, all my efforts to slim down will soon bear fruits, I thought, as I bought it just before I was about to get out....


So went my retail therapy... (and what if it included a top one size short for a skirt one size big)

(Originally published at Xomba.com at http://www.xomba.com/shopping-trip-mid-valley. Mid Valley Megamall is one of the biggest shopping malls at Kuala Lumpur - and in my opinion the most diverse)

Transformers 3 - Dark of the Moon - My Review

I was privileged to watch a premiere show of Transformers 3 two days back. Not having done my homework (in fact I was confusing this movie with Schwarzeneggar's Terminator - till we hit the theatre) - I was initially at a loss about the movie.

Here's my take on the show!

Of all the irrelevant things in the movie - the worst is the title. Dark of the Moon has very little relevance to the actual movie. Return of the Cybertron or something lke that would have made more sense.

What was the movie about?

How can an entire planet (Cybertron) be transported back to earth? Wont they clash? Come on - we are scared stiff and predict wholescale destruction when a tiny meteor comes close. An entire planet....puhleeze!

Shia LeBeouf in Transformers 3

What exactly was Shia LeBeouf's role in this edition of Transformers? Other than providing some cute moments and running from pillar to post for no apparent reason - he could have been written out of the script - and the movie would have remained the same!

Can Autobots be Killed?

How exactly were the Autobots or the Decepticons killed? They seemed to reform themselves at their will and no one seemed to have a clue how to deal with them - till the last few scenes when the snipers are instructed to go for the eyes!

The Final Mission

Now what was that last mission? I thought it was to take a hit at the "pillars" that were to teleport the Cybertron with the single shot left. However that seemed to be forgotten and everyone just seemed to be fighting each other, the NSA, the Seals, the Bots - till Shia LeBeouf remembers about the pillars!

What a Looonnnng Climax!

The climax was way way too long! Clip it off by 20 mins - movie would be fine. i mean one can only so much spfx of autobots and decepticons fight with humans caught and mangled in between and still manage to come out of it in one fine piece.

Having got out of the way my grouse against the movie - I must admit I enjoyed major portions of it. I am not really a bot and sci-fi and action movie fan. But I have had to adjust my tastes to watch movies with the children. So last week I had to watch Green Lantern - and now Transformers. And Transformers 3 was way way better of course.

Here are some reasons why.

Rosey Huntington - Whiteley

She was fun, sexy and a slightly toned down version of Cameron Diaz.

She was the perfect antidote to the tedium of men and machines. Having not watched the other two prequels to Transformers - I cant compare her to Megan Fox. I have a feeling she will be a great hit. I especially liked the part where her Mercedez (gifted by her boss) turns into a Dr. Ock kind Decepticon, to her shock!

Bumblebee and the Bots

The loyal Bumblebee and Optimus Prime really stole the show as the good guys leaving the men far behind. Even though it is a mystery to me why they chose to protect mere earthlings over their land Cybertron - I couldn't help but be grateful for it at the end. In fact they emoted much better than some of the queer earthlings!

John Turturro

John Turturro and Alan Tudyk as Simmons and Dutch had some of the best sequences in the movie. Turtorro as a writer and ex - Security man who has been paralysed in a Decepticon attack, was sharp and fun to watch.

Special Effects
This shouldnt be a surprise. The Transformers 3 is all about Special Effects. Starting with the moon sequence - the movie has dream SFX. In the last hour of the movie, the plot was all but forgotten to showcase some amazing scenes! There was an amazing airmen free fall sequence, a slide down the side of a collapsing glass building, a great number of autobots and decepticons fights and much more.

First Half of the Movie
The top half of the movie was a treat to watch. There seemed to be a real plot developing with Optimus Prime waking up Sentinel. There were Megatron and Sentinel Prime in a secret pact. Simmons and Witwicky were fast discovering the extent of the plot. Buzz Aldrin was meeting the training autobots. There were two cute autobot pets who kept up the interest. Rich playboy Dempsey and Diaz look alike Rosie Huntington- Whiteley provided the distraction.

As the mosaic of the plot came together - one didnt have a clue it would fall apart (literally) so dramatically in the later half of the movie!

Verdict - Worth a watch - and in 3D!

Originally published at Xomba.com at
http://www.xomba.com/top-5-reasons-i-didnt-transformers-3-dark-moon and
http://www.xomba.com/top-5-reasons-why-you-can-watch-transformers-3