Posted on 24 February 2005 @ 21:36 in Ramblings
This year, more people will get to travel thanks to the cheap airfares made available by Malaysia Airlines at its Travel Fair last weekend.
This was the second year MAS organised such a fair. I was at the one last year, part of the huge crowd that queued and waited for the doors to open. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to use my ticket as mother fractured her right wrist and I had to cancel my trip to help care for her.
That’s the thing about cheap airfares offered at such travel fairs. Money-wise, the fares are cheap. But there is a price to pay for such cheap fares. For one thing, you have to travel within a certain period of time. For another, you forfeit quite a bit if you have to cancel. Something like 50% of the airfare, plus an admin charge imposed by the travel agent that did the ticketing for you.
I was fortunate, tho. I knew someone who knew someone who knew a senior MAS official. I got back almost 80% of my airfare. No strings were pulled, it was all legit cuz I had the doctor’s letter to prove that I had to cancel due to medical reasons (not my own, but mother’s).
This year, I wasn’t going to be in the crowd for cheap fares again. But at the last minute, I remembered I really should be looking at travel arrangements to see Hua Mei and her twins later this year. So I went to the travel agent a floor below my office to ask. As it turned out, MAS had extended the fare promotions by two days (not sure if that’s a good sign cuz it could also mean they didn’t meet their sales target over the weekend and had to extend).
I wasn’t interested in just the airfare, but well, not exactly a tour package either. I found what I wanted – a semi-package comprising travel, room and board, and freedom to go around without being part of a tour group. After giving me the necessary info, the rep added that within certain travel periods, there would be a discount of RM90/-. Wow, what a deal, huh?
But wait, there’s a catch. The minute a booking is made, a non-refundable RM500/- deposit is required, followed by full payment when ticket is issued. What’s the catch? No refund at all if cancellation within 14 days before the trip.
The way things are going for me, I cannot book anything and be sure I can go ahead with the trip. For a RM90/- discount, I risk losing RM500/- or even more. Is it worth the risk?
And that’s the other thing about such fare promotions as those offered by MAS at its recently concluded Travel Fair. More people get to travel due to the cheap fares, but at a price dictated by the airline. Is it worth it?
If one can afford to travel, why look for cheap fares and be bound by rules and regulations?
|
Posted on 23 February 2005 @ 22:16 in Pictures, Tech Stuff
We’ve all heard of electronic books, electronic cards, and other things electronic. Now, how about an electronic corkboard that looks exactly like the real thing, but resides in your computer?
|
Posted on 21 February 2005 @ 22:26 in Janis Ian, Music
| Ian soared to new heights in the 1970s with her trio of masterpiece albums: Stars, Between the Lines, and Aftertones. Stars included the hit song “Jesse”, which Roberta Flack made a pop standard. Between The Lines propelled Ian to superstardom with “At Seventeen”. The single sold more than a million copies, and Ian was nominated for a then-unprecedented five Grammy awards, winning two (including Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female). Aftertones proved to be one of the most critically acclaimed albums of its day, garnering Ian her first Japanese hit, “Love Is Blind”, which stayed at #1 for an astonishing six months.
|
|
“At Seventeen” was a spot on description of the pain of loneliness and (dare I say it) ugliness, of not having dates on a Saturday evening, and of being marginalised simply one did not conform to society’s standards of beauty. And because it was written and sung by a woman, it was assumed such pain was unique to the plain girls of her generation and all following generations, too. But such pain is not felt by females only, but believe it or not, by males, too. Just as good-looking boys will not cast a second look at plain Janes, likewise pretty girls do not wish to go out with plain Joes. Does it still happen today?
|
Posted on 21 February 2005 @ 12:14 in Family
Mother was with me in the car yesterday evening when I’d gone to the petrol station. I left her in the car while I went to do the necessary, keeping her in my sight (and mine in hers) most of the time. While I was filling up the car, I saw her fiddling with the glove compartment latch. Now, that latch is faulty, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Yesterday evening, it didn’t. Meaning, the latch wouldn’t catch and the compartment stayed down.
I saw mother looking around, so I knocked on the window to get her attention. After I’d paid, I got back in and tackled the faulty latch. After a few tries, it caught and the compartment stayed up. With that done, I looked at her and told her not to do it again. She burst out laughing. With relief, no doubt.
Of course, she did it again. When we arrived at the restaurant and stayed in the car to wait for the rest of the family to arrive, she got restless and before I knew it, had reached for the glove compartment again. She had forgotten the earlier incident. This time, I got a bit irritated with her, which wasn’t the right thing to do.
The compartment also fell open when I drove over a bump on the way to the restaurant. Yes, time to get it fixed.
|
Posted on 20 February 2005 @ 12:12 in Friends
Happy Birthday, Krudy you old bag!
We met back in 1987 while students at the University of East Anglia. We were not in the same school of study but met through a mutual friend who I knew because she’s a fellow Malaysian and who Krudy knew because they were in the same school of study.
Like most friendships, ours has had its ups and downs, and explosive moments, too. But glad we’re still friends and still in touch via text messages and the occasional phone call.
Here are two pictures, the first from oh-so-long-ago, and the second a more recent one.
Larking about in the coffee bar on campus:
Now a biker enthusiast (not the pillion rider kind, please!) complete in black:
Happy birthday again, woman. Hope you have a good one, with more in the years ahead.
|
