Reflections

This book has been written by a veteran Malaysian journalist Wam Hulaimi who initially wrote it as a blog under the name Awang Goneng. I had seen a review of this book in one of the newsletters here, but it was only when I got my hands to the book that I realized what a gem it is. The blog is here: http://kecek-kecek.blogspot.com/ The writer was born and brought up in Terengganu, a state in the eastern Coast of Malaysia. Even today it is known for its laid back atmosphere, the lovely beaches and the Islamic fervor of the population. Incidentally their football term recently won the Federal Cup just across the road from where I live at the Bukit Jalil stadium. I have visited Kuala Terengganu, the capital sometime back. I wrote about it as well, you can check it out here. http://akdcts.blogspot.com/2010/02/kuala-terengannu.html This book is something else. Written as series of small essays, it covers all aspects of the Terengganu of the author’s childhood, reminding us of the people...

I always enjoy reading articles in the medical journals that deal with medical mysteries. The mainstream journals do not usually publish them thought eh venerable BMJ is one exception. Some of the speculations can be very thought provoking and some positively outlandish. Sometime ago I came across one such interesting article published in Toxicology, a Web Med Central journal. The author, from the New York University, has speculated on the death of the famous Egyptian queen Cleopatra. Our image of Cleopatra is based on the film portrayal By Elizabeth Taylor when she was famously rolled out of a carpet onto to bemused presence of Julius Caesar. Allegedly he fell in love with her at first sight and the rest is history. However history apparently did not happen quite like that, this incident which was the talking point of the film, apparently never happened. But the facts are reasonably certain, that she was the queen of Egypt and she had an affair with the leader of one of the superpower...

In the Puja holidays of 1999, I together with my inseparable comrades during my mountain trekking expeditions, Swapan Chakrabarty, Subrata Chowdhury , the late Asit Bose and three others completed the Annapurna Circuit. It was one of the finest walks that I have ever undertaken and I have walked many trails in my time. The walk started in Besisahar, a few kilometers short of Pokhara on the main highway to Pokhara from Narayanghat or from Kathmandu and then it took 14 days to complete the circuit, the high point of which was the crossing of the Thorang La ( 5416 meters) to descend to Muktinath and then to Jomsom along the gorge of the Kali Gandaki. The walk was strenuous, but not unduly so, the stages were manageable as we slowly vended our way up some of the finest mountain scenery in the world. It is possible to see the entire Annapurna range, as well as the Dhaulagiri, and the Macchapuchare. This was when I was still working at the NRS Medical College , but this journey was to chan...

When I was in India I noticed some Indian papers reporting the setting up of an “ Obedient Wife’s Club” in Malaysia. Set up by a fringe Islamic group Global Ikhwan, (which had the previous distinction of setting up a Polygamy club as well), this club with a membership of 800 was set up amongst fanfare and a guest list of 1000. When I got back last week, I found out some more about this group and it was quite entertaining to hear what they had to say. One of the leaders of this group who is allegedly a doctor, Rohaya Mohammad, gave several tips to women to ensure happy and satisfactory married lives. These women were special too, more than 30% of them were in polygamous marriages which is , while not prevelant, is not really uncommon in Malaysia as in many Islamic countries. However, Non Muslims would also be welcome to join this unique club ,we were assured. : A good wife is perceived to be prim and proper – you just take care of the children – but not much is emphasised on fulfilli...