Happy Birthday ~ Meenz

Congratulation to india for its 60 years of Independence Day.

India's Independence Day is celebrated on August 15 to commemorate its independence from British rule and its birth as a sovereign nation on that day in 1947. The day is a national holiday in India and it is celebrated all over the country through flag hoisting ceremony and distribution of sweets. The main celebration takes place in New Delhi, where the Prime Ministre raises the natonal flag at the Red Fort and delivers a national ly televised speech from its ramparts.

Bonne fete a Meenz.....une annee de plus. Happy Birthday to Meenz.......one year more. How come you had two cakes?? Thank you to all for the nice dinner and see you guys soon. Thank you Christine for the nice surprise and have a nice holiday too. We'll see again soon somewhere in winter. Gros becs a tous et a bientot.

Another goodbye.....good bye Claudio. We wish you all the best on your next posting. We'll definately meet again somewhere in Stolkholm. Ciao bello.

Big kiss from NDH /Gros becs de NDH

Jalan-jalan di Old Delhi.

From the spice to any house hold that we need, we can find in this place. We spent a few hours in Kenari Bazaar and also the surrounding area together with the spice market just to take these impressive photos. But what we can see in the photos, it is nothing if we compare living inside.

It is Saturday, Kenari Bazaar is always busy to welcome their customers. Laurent, Christine, Adeline and me each one of us has our own camera and always get ready for the action. Well, ladies if you are so desparate to have a human or a man touch, you can serve yourself at Old Delhi...I mean in general you can have that everywhere you go in India. It is nuts but it is like this here whether you like it or not you have to live with it. At the same time, it was fun just hanging around and looking at the people....exactly likes an ant, they come out from every hold...from everywhere. They work really hard and to earn what....just enough to eat for one day or two. It is a crazy life out here and what we can do....just taking pictures.

We had a great time even beside the few incident where I kicked and punched a few persons after touching my breast and buttock. Such rudeness that I haven't seen anywhere else accept here in India. The Old Delhi has taken away all the energy that we had until I was so tired and felt to sleep for a moment.

Big kiss from ndh / Gros becs de ndh

Mister Swiss ~ 2008

Well, it is not what you're thinking.....it isn't a punishment, but just a small exercise before they go to work. Perhaps next year they're both going to the MISTER SWISS contest......hihihi. Keep on going guys....go go Laurent...go go Flavien. I wished that I could join them but staying on the bed in the morning, it is just something that I couldn't resist.

Ce n'est pas ce que vous pensez.....ce n'est pas une punition, mais juste un petit exercice avant d'aller au travail. Quel effort. Peut-etre que l'annee prochaine ils vont pour le MISTER SWISS....hihihi. Allez les gars....go go Laurent...go go Flavien. J'aurai bien aime de vous rejoindre mais je prefere rester dans mon lit.

big kiss from ndh / gros becs de ndh

Bonne Fete Nationale ~ La petite Suisse

Best wishes for all who celebareted the 1 August as it was a national day of the Swiss people.

Bonne fete a tous qui fete le 1ere aout qui etait la fete nationale de la Suisse.

Big kiss from NDH/Gros becs de NDH

Bako National Park

We participated in Visit Malaysia Year programme by visiting Bako National Park after 6 years we haven't been back. The last time we were there, it was after our wedding and we were with Alain, Yann, Gill and Anne-Marie. So, here is a description of Bako National Park.

'The national park of Bako', inaugurated in 1957 in Eastern Malaysia is the oldest national park open in Sarawak at Borneo. It extends on 27,27 km2, at the of the peninsula of Muara Tebas to the estuary of the rivers of Bako and Kuching. A distance of 37 km by road separates it from Kuching. The coast which is under the effect of million years of erosion, is composed of abrupt cliffs, rock course and broad sandy bays. Erosian due to vague carved, with the foot of cliffs, good number of the rock courses in fantastic marine arches or column whose coloured reasons are due to a ferruginous deposition.

Bako is one of the smallest national park of Sarawak, but is not less one of most interesting, the tropical forest, the flourishing wildlife, the brooks of the jungle, the waterfalls, the botanical richness of the ground, the beaches isolated and the tracks from excursions which it contains in its great richness. A network constantly maintained 16 tracks of excursions, codified using various colors active of the strolls quiet with the excursion of 24 hours in the jungle makes it possible to the visitors to optimize his arrival in this single environment. Few places in the world can be prided to have a great beauty in a restricted place and pallets of its attractions and activities which proposes gives to the national park of Bako its great popularity in Sarawak.

'Le parc national de Bako', inauguré en 1957 en Malaisie orientale, est le plus ancien parc national ouvert dans l'etat du Sarawak à Bornéo.Il s'étend sur 27,27 km2, du bout de la peninsule falaises abruptes, de cap rocheux et de larges baies sablonneuses. L'érosion due aux vagues a sculpté, au pied des falaises, bon nombre des caps rocheux en de fantastiques arches ou colonne marines dont les motifs colorés sont dus à une déposition ferrugineuse.

Bako est l'un des plus petit parc national de Sarawak, mais n'en est pas moins l'un des plus interessant : la forêt tropicale, la vie sauvage florissante qui s'y trouve, les ruisseaux de la jungle, les chutes d'eaux, la richesse botanique du sol, les plages isolées et les pistes de randonnées qu'il contient en sont sa grande richesse. Un réseau constamment entretenu de 16 pistes de randonées, codifié à l'aide de différentes couleurs allant de la balde tranqille à la randonnée de 24h dans la jungle permet aux visiteurs d'optimiser sa venue dans cet environnement unique. Peu d'endroits au monde peuvent se targuer d'avoir une si grande beauté en un lieu si restreint, et la palette d'attractions et d'activités qu'il propose donne au parc national de Bako sa grande popularité au Sarawak.

Big kiss from NDH / Gros becs de NDH

Nigerian High Comm at Kuala Lumpur.

That day, I felt tired after painting the toilet and have decided not to follow Laurent to the Great Eastern Mall. Actually, it is only five minutes away from Seri Maya but I just didn't feel to go out at all. When Laurent was about to leave and asked me to come with him....well, I said yes, alright.

That was the first time we were shopping at the Cold Storage at Great Eastern Mall. The mall, like I said before wasn't far away but the only problem...there is no bus from Seri Maya and the taxi driver most of the time doesn't want to go there as they won't gain so much money and more they will stuck in the heavy traffic. Well, after waiting for a while we managed to get one taxi which wanted to go at the same way as us.

At the Cold Storage, we could find a lots of thing that we couldn't find in India and there's a lots of cheese....different type of cheeses which are coming from all over the world. While I was talking about cheese with Laurent and had a thought to buy some to bring back to India, all of sudden I saw this man and I know him. But he just gave me a smile as he understood what we were talking about in french and I told Laurent about him. We remembered that we saw a white man and an Indian lady walked behind us, but we didn't care much as so many local women are with the white men in Kuala Lmpur. We followed him until the cashier and at that time they were at the cashier ready to pay. I called for Sugi as I saw her. Sugi and her husband that we met in Abuja few times during the embassies receptions. We almost didn't believe that we could meet again after leaving Abuja and Sugi took the opportunity to invite us on her birthday that would be held at the Nigerian High Comm, Kuala Lumpur. Peter arrived in Kuala Lumpur 3 months earlier and posted as a nigerian ambassador. Laurent knew him when we were in Nigeria. Two nights later we were all assembled at Peter's residence at Jalan Utant to celebrate Sugi's birthday party and there were Sugi's famiy and friends were also invited.

Big kiss from NDH / Gros becs de NDH

White is boring.....

After two days at home, we didn't what to do and we decided to change the colour in the living room and in the toilet. We put orange in the living room and green like a banana leaf (a bit tropical) in the toilet and decorated with three paintings of the tropical animals.

VENUS ~ The planet of love.

VENUS came and visited us in Delhi on the 18th of Jun. For the first time, we saw such a phenomenal and guessed that it would be rare. At the beginning we thought it was a star and in the morning we found out from the local news paper said that it was a VENUS ~ planet of love. Here is the photo that has been taken by Laurent from the embassy compound at 9.30p.m.

Lets learn a little about VENUS

Named of the Roman goddess of love by the same names, the planet Venus is the second planet from the sun at a distance of roughly 108,209,000 kilometers. With an orbital circumference of 680,000,000 kilometers. Venus is just slightly smaller than the Earth and has a very similar chemical composition. For this reason, Venus is commonly referred to as the Earth's "sister" planet. It takes Venus just under 225 days to orbit the sun on full time, compared to the 365 days orbital period of the Earth.

Venus actually rotates from east to west, as opposed to west to east which in the common rotating direction of most other planets in space. The atmosphere on surface of the planet Venus consists mostly of carbon dioxide, with a small trace of nitrogen. The planet Venus has a surface pressure about 90 times that of the Earth, making any life on the planet unsustainable.

Venus is in view to the naked eye from earth for an period of 2-3 hours before sunrise and 2-3 hours after sunset. Venus is the only other non terrestrial body, besides the moon, that can be seen from Earth during both day and night time hours. At night, Venus is usually the second brightest object in the sky next to the moon.

Quelques informations générales sur Venus.

Tirant son nom d'un Dieu Romain, Venus est la deuxième planète la plus proche du soleil, à une distance d'environ 108'209'000 Kms. D'une circonférence orbitale de 680'000'000 Kms. Venus est juste un peu plus petite que la Terre et a une composition chimique très ressemblante. C'est pourquoi Venus est souvent appellé la <<>> de la Terre. Par contre elle n'a besoin que 225 jours pour faire le tour du Soleil, ce qui la rend donc significativement plus <<>> que la Terre et ses 365 jours.

Venus a la particularité de suivre une rotation d'est en ouest, alors que la plupart des planètes tournent sur dans l'autre sens. L'atmosphère de Venus est principalement composée de dioxyde, avec quelques petites traces de nitrogène. Elle connaît une pression en surface d'environ 90 fois celle de la terre, ce qui empêche toute vie de s'y développer.

Venus est visible à l'oeil nu durant deux à trois heures le matin avant le lever du soleil et après le coucher du soleil. Elle est en fait la seule <<>> (hormis la Lune) qui est visible depuis la Terre le jour comme la nuit. Durant la nuit elle est de plus planète qui brille avec le plus d'esclat, après la Lune bien évidemment.

Big kiss from NDH /Gros becs de NDH

Once in Vashisht........

This small village of Vashisht is busy with their everyday life events. Some of the drivers were looking for the parking spaces……the number of tourists were taking the photos…..one man was showing a huge snake that he carried in his arms to the children….and a women was holding a big rabbit and walking left and right to get an attention from the public while the shopkeepers were busy handling their customers and the weather was also fresh. It looks like a circus. Down on the road we saw few young women were carrying their huge basket filled with the grass and it must be for the cows. We walked up into the village and there, few children were playing side by side with the cows and one little girl were playing with an empty bottle and had been trying to fill it with the water. There were two women and one girl washing their dirty laundry next to the animal disposal. This particular little girl, she was about 10 year old washing her own cloths and she reminded me when I was about her age. Memory….unforgettable one!

Big Kiss from NDH / Gros becs de NDH

Qui a oublie sa coulotte....who forgot his underwear?

Somebody has forgotten something here….kurang asam punye orang, tinggalkan dia punye underwear kat wire electric. Tak ada tempat lain ke nak sangkutkan, dah lah tu depan tingkap hotel lagi tu. Il y a quel qu’un a oublie sa coulotte qui pendait sur le cable electrique. Hehehe……

Big kiss from NDH / Gros becs de NDH

VISA.....VISA.....HAHAHA...IT'S TOO HOT!!

Wish you guys good luck for the visa application. The weather is too hot to queue up out side...isn't it. In Old Delhi yesterday was about 47 degrees and we still survived though until today......huhuhuhu, don't know how far more we can go.

Big kiss from NDH / Gros becs de NDH

Saturday and Sunday programmes

Saturday evening usually we make the breads for Sunday breakfast. It is not a tv that they are watching but the breads in the oven. As long as they are happy with it....fine with me.

La tresse and le pain aux olives among our favorites plus the jams from all kind of fruits. We even have kaya (Malaysian marmelaid made from eggs and coconut milk) too and fresh fruits and the omelettes. What a life............but we never complained:-).

Big kiss de NDH / Gros becs de NDH

Slum in Delhi ~ Sting Garden (Malaysian Version)

Visited a slum.

What is a slum?
A slum is a district of a city or town which is usually inhabited by the very poor or socially disadvantaged. Slums can be found in most large cities around the world. Through the terms are often now now used interchangeably, slums and ghettos differ in that ghetto refers to a neighborhood based on shared etnicity. Slums are also different from favelas or shanty towns, in that they consist of permanent (if low-quality) housing rather than less-durable shacks of cardboard or corrigated iron or newspaper.

Slum in Delhi ~ The present population of Delhi is about 13.9 million. Of this nearly 45% population lives in unauthorised colonies, rural villages and slums and JJ clusters. The current number of slum dwelling units is estimated at about 0.6 million and the population living in slums and Yamuna clusters in projected at about 3 million.

Out of the 0.6 million JJ units, nearly 62,000 units are estimated to be located in the river bed of Yamuna on both sides of its stretch along Delhi and on the and embankments of a few major storm water drain such as Najafgarh drain, Barapulla drain etc. During dry weather these slum dwellers use open areas around their units for defaecation. In ths way, the entire human walk generated from these 62,000 units along with additional waste water generated from their household is discharged untreated into the river Yamuna.

Big kiss from NDH / Gros becs de Delhi

Cool May....

Delhi ~ the weather can be very hot and these days we spend most of our free time at swimming pool. But the temperature of the water doesn't help much and will become much hotter soon. Still better then nothing!!!

But according to the weather forecast in Delhi, it is just unusually wet and cool May this year. Last weekend, the temperature dropped from 42 degrees to 22 degrees and when it's raining we spend time at home, doing the sudoku and watching tv. Somewhere on the south of India ~ the southwest monsoon hit Kerala on Monday and in europe it's hardly to follow the Roland Garros tournement that was just started last Sunday because of the rain while it supposed to be summer at the moment. Question is the climate change or not??

Big kiss from NDH / Gros becs de NDH

Thank you Tata.......

Sunday ~ 20 May 2007

The day before we just made a fun of Tata, the lorries which had a difficulties to climb up the mountain but this very day, it was Tata who brought us back home safely. Tata has been pulled the car for more then 300km back to the embassy. That was a part of our adventure and it was really FUN!!!

River rafting.......

Saturday ~ 19 May 2007

After taking a chai (Indian Tea), we were on the road and at the beginning we wanted to go to Manikaran - a place which is famous with its hot springs (hot enough to boil rice and apparently curing anything from rheumatism to bronchitis) but we have changed the plan to do a river rafting. Since it was raining the night before, there was a lots of water in the river and we believed that it would be fun. It was short (25 minutes) but FUN!! All the way through the valley, we could see the MAGIC HERBS, but we are really not a fan of it. The drugs are still illegal in this area and the police make regular arrests. Over the last decade over 160 foreigners have been arrested for drug-related offences and drugs are behind some of it the desappearances and murders of foreigners in the Kullu Valley. So, please becareful when you make a visit to Kullu Valley.

Slowly, we made a way back to Delhi and thought the we could find a place to stay on the way. At first, we wanted to stop at Bilaspur but the city doesn't have much to offer, so we continued. By the time we entered Punjab state, the car stopped for it self. It was too hot!! On the watch showed 6.30pm and it would be dark soon. Laurent managed to start again the car, but after 2km, it became hot again. He tried everything that he could but it kept repeating the same problem. We stopped in front of one restaurant by the road side and tried to fix the problem until 11.30pm. About few kilometres away, there was one hotel waiting for us and we made our way until there. We decided to solve the problem the next day. That night, after having a little beer.....we slept like a baby and forgotten the problem for a while.

Manali & Naggar

Friday ~ 18 May 2007

We visited a ski resort up on the mountain but never expected that the traffic on the top there was horrible. From 9.30am to 12.00noon, we stucked in a huge traffic jam. We've completely forgotten that it was a school holiday in India and with that they go up to the mountain to avoid the hot weather. Anyway, from that place, we went down to Manali and made a little visit in this busy city. Manali is situated in northern end of the Kullu Valley, the popular resort of Manali is the last major settlement in the valley. According to legend, Manu, Hinduism's Noah, alighted his boat here to re-create human life after floods and destroyed the world - Manali means 'Home of Manu'.

After taking our late lunch in Manali, we headed to Naggar. The lovely little village of Naggar, one of the nicest places in the Kullu Valley, is known for its castle, ancient temples and gallery of the Russian painter Nikolai Roerich. It's a superb place to relax - having a glass of red wine, tomatoes and mozarella cheese, a fish from the river and the fruits from the valley. Naggar lies on the eastern Kullu-Manali road but the hotels, temples and gallery are grouped around the castle at the top of steep 2km road.

Vashisht Village

Thursday ~ 17 May 2007

We started early in the morning and made a few stop to take the pictures, for some that we can take and a lots of what we have seen we can only keep in mind as a souvenir. The road to Kullu seems too long but we have been served with a beautiful landscape. It is magnificent!! Up there on the mountain, there is a bit of snow!! IT looks similar to the Alps in Europe.

Instead of finding a place to stay in Kullu, we headed staight to Vashisht and it is a lovely little village northeast of Manali with hot springs, old stone houses, ancient temples, great views but it's definitely a 'scene'and "delicious pizzas".....hmmmmmmp. The village was founded by the sage Vashisht Muni and there are several old temples dedicated to him and the god Rama.

The journey to Kullu Valley & Manali

Wednesday ~ 16 May 2007
We started our journey at 5.00pm to Kullu Valley and Manali(Himachel Pradesh). Arrived at Chandigarh at 11.00pm where we had to make a stop that night. The city offered a lots of hotels and guest houses. Chandigarh is a unique city. The Nehruvian idealism at its core is in stark contrast to the industrial development on the restaurants and other in-transit facilities have mushroomed as a result. The pollution-free air, the short distances, the wide tree-lined boulevards and avenues, the lake and the plush interiors belying the dull exteriors contribute to making Chandigarh a charming place for residents and visitors. Though the Le Corusier architecture tends to get monotonous, the easily defined localities, called "sectors", and general sense-of-organisation are fine compensations.

Mee Jawa ~ Javanese noodles

Ingredients ;
1 kg yellow noodles or egg noodles
1 kg medium prawns
300 gm sirloin beef (boiled)
4 eggs (boiled)
500 gm sweet potatoes (boiled and mashed)
50 gm brown sugar
2 - 3 heaped tbsp cornstrach
1/2 cup oil
2.5 l of water
3 shallots (sliced and fried until the colour turn to brown)
spring onion (chopped)
red chilli (sliced)

Herb paste ;
3 stalks lemon grass
6 shallots
4 cloves of garlic
4 cm ginger
6 cm galanga
5 red chillies
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp curry powder
1 teaspoon coriander seed

Method ;
Heat oil and fry the paste till fragrant. Add prawns stolk, simmer and bring to a boil. Stir in the mashed potatoes and ticken with cornstrach and season with sugar, salt and pepper.

Serve with fried tofu, slices of hard boiled egg, prawns, beansprouts, fried onion, slices red chillies and spring onion.

To make prawn stolk ; Bring 2.5 litre of water to a boil and pour in the prawn. When prawns are cooked, dish tem out. Shell the prawns and keep aside for the noodles. Return the prawn shells to the pot to make prawn stolk. Continue boiling the stolk for another 30 minutes.

P/S : In the picture above I didn't use any prawn due to the hot weather in Delhi and you can add or remove what ever you like or don't like.

Have a nice try and big kiss from Delhi.

Kaba Reception ~ 27 April 2007

Nice reception with the people that we don't even know and with a lots of journalistes too. It came with the nice and beautiful Indian Danse mixed modern and classic. On the kitchen side, there you are the delicious foods.....ummmmmmph the smell also good.

Big kiss from Delhi

The butterflies for Clea ~ Les papillons pour Clea

Especially for Clea...for her 4 year old anniversaire ~~ Happy Birthday.

The colourful and beautifully landscaped park is home for over 6,000 butterflies from 120 species. It is only a stone throw away from the Bird Park.

Here you can learn about the life cycle and mating habit of the butterflies. There is a nursery and breading area, as well as an insect museum to enhance your knowledge about these creepy-crawlers. Comprising the beautiful landscape are flower and fruit plants and some rare herbs essential in the diet and pollinating activities of the butterflies.

Big kiss from Delhi.

Putra Jaya ~ A new political city in Malaysia.

Named after Malaysia's first Prime Minister, the late Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, this landmark complex stretches over 11,320 acres (45.8km2). More than 70% of Putrajaya is devoted to greenery and water bodies with different gardens. The principle landscape is the 600 hectare (6km2)man made lake. The Putrajaya Wetland. Native wetland plants from over 50 local species were propagated in the 7 hectare (0.07km2) Putrajaya Wetland Nursery prior to planting in the wetland cells.

(Above are pictures of Perdana Putra and Putra Mosque taken on 15 April 2007)

Cameron Highlands ~ 14 April 2007

Sebastien and Corinne have arrived at KL International Airport at 6 in the morning. We had decided that they could take a train (KLIA Ekspress) to city centre as the travel wouldn't be so long (about 28 minuutes). Finally, we met at KL Sentral (Main train station) in the city. Felt funny to see them there in Kuala Lumpur but at the same time we were so happy to be together somewhere else then Switzerland.

Laurent rented the car for us to travel up to Cameron Highlands where both of them could have a nice sleep with the cold mountain air. After making a visit at the tea factory, we made the way back to Lake House Hotel about 7km from Tanah Rata. We took a shower and half an hour later we climed back up to Tanah Rata for a dinner. That night we had a "chinese fondue" or also called "steamboat". Happy with the foods until we finised the whole things. Before 10.00 o'clock, we were back at the hotel and slept till the next morning.

Sebastien et Corinne sont arrives a l'aeroport internationale de Kuala Lumpur a 6h00 du matin. Nous avons decide qu'ils prennent le train (KLIA Ekspress)jusqu'a la gare centrale de Kuala Lumpur.Le voyage ne dure pas tres long (28 minutes). Finalement, nous les avons rencontre a KL Sentral (la gare centrale) en plein millieu de la ville. C'etait bizzare mais en meme temps, nous etions tres content de nous retrouver ailleur qu'en Suisse.

Laurent a loue une voiture pour que nous puissions voyager a Cameron Highlands ou nous pourrions avoir un bon dodo avec l'air frais de la montagne. Apres avoir visite la fabrication du the nous sommes retournes au Lake House Hotel environ 7km de Tanah Rata (ville principale). Nous avons pris une douche et nous sommes remontes a Tanah Rata pour souper. Ce soir la, nous avons eu "la fondue chinoise" ou la bas on l' appelle aussi "le steamboat". Nous etions tres content de manger cette fondue lorsqu'il fait frais. Avant 22h00, nous etions deja rentre a l'hotel et avons dormi jusqu'au matin.

Big kiss from Delhi ~ Gros becs de Delhi

HAPPY BIRTHDAY....BON ANNIVERSAIRE!!

Bon anniversaire a tous et profitez bien!! Happy birthday to all and enjoy.

Gros becs de Delhi.....Big kiss from Delhi.