Sunday 18 December 2011

CG Highlights for December 2011

1) Guardhouse Renovation
MBSA's approval has been received.
Work will commence soon and will be completed before Chinese New Year 2012.
To meet the deadline, Monday - Saturday will be a Full Work Day.

2) Roof Shelter
MBSA has approved the structure.
Work will commence after Chinese New Year 2012.

3) Jogging Track
This is completed.
The damaged jogging track along the canal has been repaired by MBSA.

Thursday 24 November 2011

CG Highlights for November 2011

Highlights of Canal Gardens

1.    Painting of the perimeter wall around Canal Gardens has been completed. 

2.    No fogging was done in October and lately due to the rainy spells in the late afternoons and evenings.

3.    The contractor will complete the jogging track currently being constructed along certain sections of the dry creek area as per specifications.


Issues in Kota Kemuning

Issue No. 1 – Flyover

An earlier 2005 MBSA road map indicated that there would be  a proposed flyover link from Persiaran Mokara to Persiaran Anggerik Malaxis as part of the draft master plan for Selangor. However, in the subsequent 2009 MBSA road map, this proposed flyover is now no longer shown in the master plan.

If this flyover were to be built, it will benefit the residents of the apartments currently under construction, the Lagoon, Canal Gardens and the shoplots at Persiaran Anggerik Malaxis.  At the same time, it will also ease the increasing traffic congestion along Persiaran Anggerik Vanilla.

Together with PPKK, CGRA has through the residents submitted its objections (using the blue printed Borang Bantahan) to the removal of the flyover from the master plan.

Issue No. 2 – Proposed Medical Center on the plot of land behind the current McDonalds

There is a proposal to build more commercial units on this plot of land allocated for the proposed medical center.  It is the opinion of many Kota Kemuning residents that there are already too many commercial units within Kota Kemuning especially along Persiaran Anggerik Vanilla.

Issue No. 3 – No U turn at Persiaran Anggerik Vanilla

Protests have been received from the new shop-lot owners/tenants opposite Canal Gardens and Lakeside residents about MBSA removing the No U turn signage which was initially there.

There is a proposal that Canal Garden residents use the left turn before the new shop-lots into the Kota Permai access road and wait to cross the street with traffic lights put up at the junction (where we now make our u turns) to enter Canal Gardens.  However, Encik Radzi of PPKK advised that we should try not to have any traffic lights at the moment as it could give rise to a backlog of traffic.  Traffic lights tend to create more traffic snafus and it is good to take note that at the moment there are no traffic lights in Kota Kemuning.

Rather, a proposal to MBSA is to have additional road humps on both sides before the said U-turn.

Reported by ~ CGRA ~

Tuesday 1 November 2011

Flyover Issue (CGRA / PPKK / Zone 12 MBSA)

Below are the maps to show the proposed flyover link from Persiaran Mokara to Persiaran Malaxis as part of the draft master plan for Selangor.

The earlier 2005 MBSA road map shows the proposed flyover.
However, in the subsequent 2009 MBSA road map, the proposed flyover is no longer shown.

A protest against the removal of this proposed flyover has to reach MBSA before 8 November,2011.

Original Approved Flyover Link From Persiaran Mokara Directly To Persiaran Malaxis

Amended Map 2009 (Proposed Flyover Link Has Been Silently Removed)

Golf Tournament 2011

CG Golf Tournament @ 9 October 2011


The Game Begins............click for more pics


It was a hot Sunday and tee off was on time at 1 pm at the Bukit Kemuning Golf & Country Resort.

It was Canal Garden's third tournament and we would say that it was the most successful in terms of participation,  both from residents and their invited guests. We had 17 flights consisting of 32 residents and 36 guests.

The WINNERS were:-

        Residents                                                Guests

1.Mr Lee Chew Foo (38Q)                         1. Azmi Mahmud

2.Mr Yeap Boon Huat (2H)                         2. Mr Mertin Leeau Ming Hin

3.En Keifli Othman (33R)                           3. Mr Soong K L

The event ended with a dinner and prize giving ceremony and I am sure that all participants had a good time. This event was co-sponsored by the Canal Gardens Residents' Association recycling fund.

Article Contributed by ~ Ng Kiat Guan ~

Friday 21 October 2011

CG News - 20 October, 2011

Tree pruning on overgrown trees along Bukit Rimau Interchange wall will be carried out by the contractors starting Friday 21 October, 2011.

Reported by ~ Property Manager, Hicom Gamuda ~

Thursday 20 October 2011

Additional News From MBSA Zone 12 Meeting

1) Security

Due to an increase in all types of crimes in Kota Kemuning and Kemuning Utama, MBSA Zone 12 has requested the OCPD for a dialogue at the Selangor Police Headquarters with the intention of requesting for an increase in police presence and patrols. Presently, there are only 4 police officers with 1 police patrol car to take care of residents in Kota Kemuning, Kemuning Utama and Bukit Rimau.

Selected exco reps. will attend the meeting. Paul Leong, the CGRA Chairman hopes he will be able to attend the meeting.

PPKK will compile all recent cases of crimes (including that of Canal Gardens) to be highlighted to the OCPD to support our case.

We also will be requesting for a proper police station at the gazetted police station land allocated by Hicom-Gamuda.

CGRA will keep everyone posted on the outcome of the dialogue.

Mr. Tan Ah Kow, the Zone 12 councillor, has proposed to organise a Crime Prevention Talk by En. Kamal Affendi , a renowned Crime Analyst (Penganalisa Jenayah). He is a paid professional. Details of date/venue will be advised once confirmed.

Tentative venue for this talk would be at either Dewan Liparis or Dewan Oncidium.

Once again CGRA would like to remind all residents to continue to be vigilant and not take safety & security for granted even though we are fortunate to stay in a Gated & Guarded Community  as these days, the thugs are smart, brave and desperate.

2) SRKC Chung Hwa

PPKK has contributed RM500.00 as donation for their 100-Years Celebration.

MBSA Zone 12 has received approval from the Selangor State Government / MBSA to donate 100 fruit trees to be planted in the school compound.

The tree planting handover will be held on 10 November, 2011.

Reported by ~ Paul Leong ~

Wednesday 19 October 2011

News From MBSA Zone 12 Meeting

1.    Walkaton & Kempen Kesedaran dan Pemeriksaan Kesihatan Di Kalangan Warga Emas

This event would be held this coming Sunday and the details are as follows:-

Venue:      Pejabat Cawangan MBSA Kota Kemuning (Start)
Time:        6.30 am to 2.00 pm
Date:        Sunday, 23 October 2011

Activities include the following:-
i     A health talk on Alzheimer.
ii.   A health check by Columbia Hospital.
iii.  A drums performance by SRJC Chung Hwa.

Lots of “walkaton” prizes and souvenirs for participants!

CGRA residents are welcomed and encouraged to join in the fun.


2.    Telecommunication Tower

It has been confirmed that the telecommunication tower will be relocated.


3.    Draft Master Plan - Selangor

The Selangor Draft Master Plan plan is ready and could be viewed at MBSA Cawangan office any time during office hour.

Of interest to Canal Gardens residents, the proposed plan for the flyover from Kesas to Canal Gardens has been removed from the plan.

A period of one (1) week has been allowed to register any objection from residents.

PPKK, together with all zones residents, have been requested to submit their objection forms to MBSA.  A copy will be issued after an emergency PPKK meeting this coming Friday.

Paul Leong has requested Tan Ah Kow, the Zone 12 councillor, to send the web link to all residents to check this out if they are interested to do so.  So do look out for it.


4.    New MBSA Gated & Guarded (G & G) Guidelines

The Guidelines has recently been released to residents for viewing at the Jabatan Perancangan & Pembangunan, Shah Alam.

Some pertinent points to take note of are:

i.    Security personnel of G & G communities are not permitted to collect/keep personal ID of visitors such as their Mykads and driving licences.  This will affect Canal Garden’s SOP which may need to be amended to comply with the ruling.

ii.    G & G requires two (2) entrances or exits.

iii.    TNB Meter Guard House

iv.    Nepalese with the exception of ex-army personnel (gurkhas) are not permitted to work as security guards.

v.    Security personnel after 60 years of age are not permitted to work as guards.

vi.    Security personnel between the age of 56 - 60 are required to have medical check-ups.

vii.    Security personnel must be in uniform with black/dark blue pants.

viii.    The height of walls surrounding a G & G community should not exceed 9 feet and the walls should permit view of the residential community.


5.    U-turn for Canal Garden

Lake Edge and MBSA informed that the U-Turn may be closed and a “No U-Turn”  sign placed at the junction.  Lake Edge Residents/New Shops/Kota Permai have difficulty driving across the main road especially during peak hours.

They have highlighted the original traffic plan of Kota Kemuning to support their complaint.  Paul Leong has requested for a month for the CGRA to respond with a proposed amicable solution for all concerned.  This may include changing the traffic flow to Canal Gardens for residents through the use of the back gate.

En.Azlan (Cawangan Manager) is ready to support our proposal and solution to settle  this complaint and issue.

All residents via their road representatives can suggest solutions to the entrance/exit to CG.  Residents are encouraged to write to CGRA’s email with their suggestions and proposals.

The above changes will have major implications and impact our current security SOP and the proposed renovations/improvements to guard house.

The CGRA will need to organise an "Emergency" CGRA Meeting to discuss these latest issues next Monday, 24 October 2011 at 8.30pm.

Reported by ~ Paul Leong ~

Friday 14 October 2011

News from PPKK

The following are some of the latest news on Kota Kemuning from our Chairman, Paul Leong, who attended the PPKK meeting held on Tuesday, 11, October 2011.

1.     Telco Tower @ KK roundabout

The Telco Tower has not been commissioned due to PPKK’s protest.  MBSA is reviewing the Telco Tower for possible relocation to RELA Land at Pesiaran Anggerik Renantanda.

2.    Flyover

The proposed new access to Canal Gardens connecting Pesiaran Anggerik Mokara to Pesiaran Anggerik Malaxis will be followed -up at Zone 12 MBSA Meeting to be held on Monday, 17 October 2011 at Tan Ah Kow’s office.  A letter has also been written to the MB of Selangor.  Paul Leong plans to attend the meeting to follow-up in order to support this proposed project.

3.    Library

The existing MBSA cawangan building next to the lake will be converted to a library.  Residents who wish to donate books can contact the MBSA Cawangan New Manager, En. Azlan Dollah, Tel: 012-942 6952.

4.    Security

There is an alarming increase in reported crime from all zone chairmen present.  Residents are advised to be take precautions and to be careful and alert to protect themselves.  Robberies, break-ins, thefts and snatch thefts incidents are on the rise.

CG residents are advised not to be over-confident and be security conscious over their properties, their personal safety and the safety of their families.

Do not take things for granted even though if you are staying in a Gated & Guarded Community.

PPKK intends to request for a Residents Dialog with the Shah Alam OCPD soon.  CGRA will keep you posted on the venue/date/time once it is confirmed.

Meanwhile, PPKK will also request via our patron, former Selangor MB, Tan Sri Abu Hassan Omar, to seek the CPO S'gor/Bukit Aman/ IGP to allocate funds for a proper Police Station in Kota Kemuning.

For information, currently there are only have 4 police officers serving Zone 12 Kota Kemuning including Kemuning Utama and Bukit Rimau.

Sunday 9 October 2011

The Perennial Garbage Enigma - Yours, Mine or Ours???


Is this what we, the residents, want? To turn Canal Gardens into a garbage dumpsite? This pile of household garbage has been dumped at the end of Road S since last Thursday, 6 October 2011. Dogs, cats and rodents had broken the garbage bags to get at the leftover food inside. The pile is getting unsightly not to mention a potential health hazard to CG residents. Presumably it has been dumped after a party by one of the residents living nearby.

We wonder who the resident thinks will collect his/her garbage by dumping it there.

Does the resident know the difference between garden waste and household garbage? The garden waste contractor will NOT collect household garbage.

The MPSA household garbage contractor will not collect garbage if it is not placed in the house garbage bin. We would like to highlight this problem and appeal to the resident concerned to remove it. Kindly place it in your own house garbage bin for the MPSA garbage contractor to collect. It is the only right thing to do.

Reported by ~ Skunkworks@23 ~

CG News - 7 October, 2011

Current on-going Canal Gardens (CG) improvements and beautification projects

Work Started & Completed                
06 September - Spikes installed at the low lying perimeter wall along Road L
08 September - Commencement of the perimeter wall painting (60% completed @ 30 Sept)
23 September - Commencement of jogging track along Road P to M, works completed on 28 September
28 September - Fogging carried out in CG
05 October - Work on the rear entrance (jogging track) at the exit of Canal Gardens

Work to Start Soon
1.    Pruning of trees at the edge of the canal, awaiting L/A to be given.
2.    To apply goat manure to the plants and trees and the planting of more trees and plants; an ongoing landscaping project.
3.    To build concrete bollards at Roads G, R, S and T to prevent vehicles from taking shortcuts causing damage to the grasses and the park.

Reported by ~ Property Manager, Hicom Gamuda ~

Saturday 8 October 2011

The Treasure Hunt 2011

Rising Before DayBreak To Start The Hunt...click for more pics

The Hunt @ Sunday, 25 September 2011
Final Count - 24 cars with around 100 participants in total

Our Treasure Hunters turned up as early as 6.45 am - breakfast comprising packed nasi lemak and mineral water were distributed to all. Registration started at 7 am with a short 5 minute briefing before the flag off at 7.30 am sharp. We had a wet start as it drizzled when we were getting into our cars for the flag off. Hunt was designed to cover 3 stages - first stop to the shops around the first roundabout, second stage back to Canal Gardens for a walk hunt and lastly to the shops at the second roundabout. The questions also involved a picture hunt, road safety questions and for the Treasure questions, we had to purchase a couple of edible items which were given to childrens homes.

Being a participant myself, I would say that we had a great time figuring out some tricky questions and it was such fun looking for the 'black box' at our Gardens. We ended with a simple Chinese lunch at a nearby restaurant and everyone went home with a prize, however big or small.

The first five top prizes went to the teams (drum roll) :

1)      Cherry
2)      Jack Sparrow
3)      5588
4)      Angry Birds
5)      Infinity

A BIG Thank You to the Organising Committee :

Anna
Christina
Dean
Eva
Jimson
Kenny
KY Yap
May
Mrs Tan
Mrs Woo
Ng Kiat Guan
Sonia
Steven Lam and our external organiser, Liew Kok Seng

We hope that all participants had enjoyed themselves and we certainly look forward to more Treasure Hunts in future.

Article Contributed by ~ Sonia Tait ~

Monday 3 October 2011

Chairman's Message

Hi Fellow Residents of Canal Gardens,

As the Chairman of the CGRA, I am pleased to update all the key activities in our blog for your information and knowledge.

I hope you have enjoyed reading all the blog contents contributed by the blog administrator, Sonia and other contributors.

Again, I would like to request all fellow residents for interesting articles and posting at our Canal Gardens Blog. We value every contribution and comments to further improve and ensure the blog is kept active and alive.

The success of the blog is dependent on all residents. It’s your blog!

Here are some updates since my last posting in early August, 2011.

1) Security

I like to inform all residents to be vigilant on the issue of security in CG.

For the info of all, there was a break-in on 11th August via the front door window. This is the "1st" break-in since vacant possession was given to us almost 6 years ago.

Earlier, some houses experienced incidences of ‘missing shoes’ that were left at the car porch.

Please do not relax and compromise on your own house security even though we are living in a Gated & Guarded Community.

All necessary precautions and care must be exercised at all times to ensure your own safety.

We simply cannot depend on the few guards at the guardhouse to ensure our protection.

Meanwhile, steps are being taken to tighten the security and improve the SOP.

I would like to call upon all residents to report any strangers to our guardhouse (Tel: 03-5121 5076) and to support our VISITORS REGISTRATION at the entrance.  Although it may inconvenience some of your guests or service providers, the security measures are implemented for the benefit of the community.  Security is of the utmost priority in any community. As such, we do advise residents to abide by the security arrangements implemented.

2) Missing Dust-Bins Covers


There are numerous metal bin covers missing from our parks. All residents are to report anyone seen removing the bins covers to the CGRA committee, HGD or Guards.

It costs us huge amounts of money from our maintenance funds to replace these covers/bins.

3) Recycling

I call upon all residents to continue to support the monthly recycling activity.

Besides helping the environment, we also raise some $$$ for the CGRA funds to support our activities for the benefit of residents here in CG.

Thanks to the contributions from the residents and the concerted efforts of all the CGRA Committee members on duty, headed by our recycling chairman Steven Lam, the collections have been increasing.

I call upon all other fellow residents who are able and willing, to come forward to volunteer your services between 9am-3pm (last Sunday every month) at the exit Gazebo.

4) New Jogging/Bicycle Track
A new track has been built to join the exiting track from the basketball court to road P. With the completion, residents can jog/cycle the entire perimeter of the garden.

5) Treasure Hunt


The 1st treasure hunt was held on 25th Sept (Sun) sponsored with RM3,000 from the recycling funds. 24 cars and almost 100 residents and families members participated in this very enjoyable, fun and challenging event put together by Organising Chairman Dean, Sonia, Kenny, May and others.

6)  New Landscape Improvements

After planting new trees at the central park, Chairman Chua Lee Kiang and Peter Poh provided expert advice to HGD and the landscape contractor to next further improve the flora and fauna at the main entrance, including the roundabout. With coming raining season, we hope this project will further beautify our garden.

Residents are encouraged to green their house surroundings’ with quality plants, flowers and decorations to further beautify CG.

7) Painting the Perimeter Walls, Fence & Grill


On-going works has commenced to paint a new coat on the entire perimeter of fence, grill and walls with quality Nippon paint. This will take about 2 months and will further enhance the appearance and facade of CG.

8) Mosquitoes


Fogging by Rentokil and MBSA are conducted regularly. Residents are encouraged to clear their house surroundings to prevent mosquitoes from breeding.

Hopefully with return of the rainy seasons, this problem will be contained and minimized.

Upcoming Activities and Projects Planned / To look out for

1) Golf

3rd Canal Gardens Golf Tournament organised by Ng Kiat Guan, Choong Chee Sum, Steven Lam and his committee will be held 9th Oct (Sun).

This event will also be subsidised by funds from the Recycling collections.

2) Guardhouse Reno / Improvements

A new rain shelter at the guard house and renovation at guardhouse shall commence once approvals are obtained from the authorities.

3) Bollards For Road G, R, S & T

Bollards will be built to prevent cars and lorries from driving through lanes and cul de sacs from damaging the plants/grass at these roads.

Again, on behalf of all residents, I would like to thank the hardworking CGRA Committees and HGD for working closely to ensure CG is well managed. Issues and problems are identified and resolved for the benefit of the residents.

We will update you again in the next Chairman's Blog Corner!

Cheers

Paul Leong

Thursday 29 September 2011

Hello! I'm a Parent

The Author is a mother of 4 and has been a stay-at-home mom since the birth of her 2nd child.

Now a grandmother of 3, she holds to her belief that parents should raise their own children and encourages her own children to do the same. She works hard at cooking healthy, varied and of course, budget-friendly meals for her family. She enjoys craft, gardening, music, decorating and writing.  She is also an avid supporter of recycling, reusing and repairing. To her, cleanliness is next to godliness!

She will be sharing her views on parenting with the hope that it will help young couples raise their own family…..

All parents would be familiar with the following:
•  “I just don’t know what to do with our kids!”
•  “We have tried everything but nothing seems to work!”
•  “Rising early” to make breakfast, get the children ready for school, going the laundry, marketing, cleaning….the list goes on…
•  “Staying up late” to work on unfinished chores, make sure the children complete their homework, plan for next day’s meals, errands to run, etc…
•  “Toiling” to chauffeur the children to and fro for tuition and other activities, grocery shopping, seeing to the needs of the family, etc…

At the end of the day, when we finally put our heads on the pillow, do we sleep? NO! Our minds are busy running through the list of things to do.

Does this sound familiar? Have you been there? I’m sure many parents, especially MOTHERS, would nod in agreement.

In today’s society of instant noodles, instant coffee, fast food, etc., there is no formula for instant parenting. We need to go through this ‘season’ of life where there are no short cuts to raising a new born. There’s no formal training to be parents and we often wonder if we are doing the ‘right thing’.

The GOOD NEWS is that parenting reaps Great Joy and Great Rewards!!!  It gives you a Great Opportunity to shape your children’s lives. 

I recall the time when my parents and friends advised me NOT to stop work after having such a good education, training, etc.  When I finally made the decision to be a full time homemaker, I have not looked back!  I have found satisfaction and fulfilment in being the parent my children needed. This would not have been possible had I continued working.  3 of my children are graduates from our local universities here (2 from UM and 1 from UKM) while my eldest child graduated from KDU (she was the Valedictorian for her class).

We are in an era where there is an abundance of information about anything and everything. We can no longer say ‘I don’t know how’. We can always ‘Google it’!

Each of us is a living example of our own parents’ good teachings and values. Stay focused with raising your children.  Do not be distracted by today’s technologies and modernization.

Article Contributed by ~ Skunkworks@23 in collaboration with Mrs Loh ~

Wednesday 14 September 2011

Ipoh Curry Mee

Many Ipoh-nites have been known to drive all the way back to Ipoh for a day trip just to eat.  Although Ipoh is well-known to tourists for its 'Taugeh Chicken' aka 'Nga Choy Kai',  this dish is never on my or any Ipoh-nite list of 'Must Eat'. It is more of a tourist 'thing'. I have to admit though - Ipoh beansprouts are the best - short, juicy and crunchy!

For Ipoh-nites, it is the mouth-watering curry mee (called 'curry laksa'  in KL which sounds very alien and strange to Ipoh-nites as the word 'laksa' connotes the dish that originates from Penang - sweet, sour and fishy white noodle). One of the hallmark of Ipoh curry mee is the mint leaf which enhances the aroma and taste of the curry.



One of our crazy friends who is also a Ipoh-nite has compiled a list of curry mee stalls that he has sampled and graded according to his 'refined-curry-mee' taste.
 .
If you happen to be in Ipoh, this is a 'Must-Not-Miss' dish.

1. Nam Chau – Started in old town (Jalan Bandar Timah) of Ipoh, famous for the dry curry noodles (for best effect, try a combination of yellow mee + kuey teow/flat rice noodles). Good also for the half-boiled eggs on toast, and creamy milk tea, white coffee or ‘cham’ (mixture of both). Location : Old Town of Ipoh.

2. Yee Fatt – A true-blue Hainanese classic, no frills here. Pure thick, robust and spicy curry paste on noodles with char siew and chicken. Some people swear by their ‘Lor Mai Gai’ (glutinous rice with chicken and mushroom) too, but beware of their diluted milk tea/coffee. Try the herbal egg instead. Location : Opposite of MGS (Methodist Girls’ School) on Jalan Kampar.

3. Yat Yat Seng – This ain’t too bad, but the lady owner may be a little obnoxious. And this stall serves a reputable chicken rice for lunch as well. Location : Facing the Ipoh Garden roundabout; opposite of post office.

4. Xin Quan Fang – The infamous “Ma Da Liew” (police station) curry mee in town. Decades of legacy, and the pungent side of spicy sambal paste with lard oil is a must! Just don’t walk over and rush for your orders, unless you’re itching for some smackdown. Location : Hugh Low Street (Jalan Sultan Iskandar)

5. Woh Heng – Opposite of the former Foh San dim sum on Osborne Street, this stall has a following too. Not as spectacular, but take note of the wantan mee stall next to this. Good with braised pork noodles, chicken feet and mushroom noodles, etc. Location : Opposite of old Foh San.

6. Twin Sisters Food Stall – Amazingly, these feisty ladies are still there! Try the bite-sized fried ‘liew’ (stuffed fish paste and meatballs), though the curry itself is forgettable. Location : Jalan Ali Pitchay; off Hugh Low Street and Yang Kalsom Road.

7. Tim Shun Loong – Though I can’t attest to this curry mee here, many are head over heels in love with this. Even then, come night or day, you can see hordes of people eating at this coffee shop. Location : Off Jalan Tokong/Jalan King, walkable from Tuck Kee Restaurant.

8. Sun Seng Fatt – Another old town classic; they used to export their curry paste over to Hong Kong! Was miserable before, but the last few times we tried, the curry mee actually improved. Remember to grab a plate of the chili paste and the prepared lime juice in a squeezer bottle. Nifty ideas? Location : Old Town, Jalan Bandar Timah. Somewhere between Nam Chau and Kong Heng.

9. Ipoh Garden Curry Mee – One of the better ones in Ipoh; originating from the famous stalls named “Tung Koo Thing” (Aneka Selera) in Ipoh Garden. The rojak stall here used to be good, but wonder if it’s still around? Location : Jalan Pasir Puteh

10. Leong Kee – Situated a stone’s throw away from Mee Kari Ipoh Garden, you will not believe that Leong Kee used to be, and still is a famous eatery for porridge, bean sprouts chicken and curry mee. Very rundown, but then again … this IS street food at its finest, no? Location : Jalan Pasir Puteh.

11. Keng Nam – I prefer the glutinous rice with egg jam (kaya) instead, and that’s a MUST order. The curry mee was mediocre, but still you will be surprised by the popularity of this. Location : End of Cowan Street before Tower Regency Hotel.

12. Kafe Tim – A relatively new stall; in Medan Ipoh Bistari where the Japanese restaurants are. Probably the least notable of the group, but some still proclaim this as the best. Maybe a serious dearth of good ones around Ipoh Garden East? Location : Medan Ipoh Bistari, a corner coffee shop.

13. Foo Kwai – With delicious cuts of caramelized char siew, and tonnes of ‘yeung liew’ to go with the noodles. Bear the wait, and you shall be rewarded. Location : Bercham; same row with Maybank.

14. Chuan Fatt – Another classic in Pasir Puteh, this stall is famous for the fried chicken, assam chicken, etc to complement the curry noodles. Spicier than most. Location : Jalan Pasir Puteh, almost right by the traffic lights connecting Jalan King and Jalan Pasir Puteh.

15. New Weng Fatt – Popularly known as ‘Fei Lou’ curry mee, this stall was from the opposite coffee shop named New Hiong Yuen before the restaurant was closed. Not as good as I had imagined though. Location : Ipoh Garden South.

**And there you have it! 15 of the more prominent curry mee stalls in Ipoh. I have missed out a few, most notably Merdeka Garden Curry Mee that opens only at night, the real “Tung Koo Thing” curry mee at Medan Aneka Selera in Ipoh Garden, etc.

Article Contributed by ~ Skunkworks@23 in collaboration with SH Foong ~

Thursday 1 September 2011

View The Blooms


Barely a week ago, we strolled down this stretch of the garden to see only green leaves like grass.

It was truly a delightful surprise when we walked along this path yesterday to see so many flowers sprouting in full bloom along both sides of the pathway!

This evening, Wednesday, with camera in hand, we could not resist snapping some pictures for all to see.

We were told the blooms last only a few days. So, if you have the chance, do wander over this stretch of the garden by this weekend to take in its beauty before it's gone. Hopefully, you will get to enjoy it too!

Article contributed by  ~ Skunkworks@23 ~

Tuesday 23 August 2011

Smell The Flowers

We walk almost every evening.  Our walk takes us one round Canal Gardens.  When we take our walk, we see residents like us walking or jogging, parents pushing toddlers in prams, seniors gathering to chit chat as well as children playing games or football.  We just walk taking in the sights and enjoying the activities like so many people do.  What we realise during one of these walks is that we have missed out on the flowers grown within Canal Gardens.  Honestly, how many of you noticed the vast array of colourful flowers in Canal Gardens?

Perhaps you have been too busy to notice or you are not a nature person.  The next time you get a chance, do slow down to admire the beautiful colours exhibited in the potpourri of flowers all around us.

We decided to go round Canal Gardens lugging our cameras along and start snapping all the flowers we come across to show what you have been missing.  One of our neighbours was driving pass and saw my posterior sticking out of a bush in one of those unnatural camera-focusing positions.  He could not see that it was me.  He commented to his wife of a crazy resident doing some unnatural act in the bush.  His wife took a long look back as the vehicle drove by and said, hey, it’s your friend, Vincent!  Later that night I got a call from him admonishing me in a bantering tone of my unnatural posture!  So these photographs were taken at a great sacrifice.  Enjoy them, but just do not look at them, go take a walk and enjoy the real thing.

Look at the orchids, the hibiscus and so many others whose names we do not have an inkling.  Marvel at how they grow into a spectacular display of colours.  Nature in all its glory has endowed them with a texture and a beauty nothing man can make or duplicate.  Be refreshed and inspired then by taking a slow walk to see, touch and smell the flowers!













Article contributed by  ~ Skunkworks@23 ~

Monday 8 August 2011

A Typical Recycling Day

Between 9am - 3pm, 2 groups of volunteers will take turns to be at the Gazebo to assist in unloading and sorting the contributions from residents till pick-up by the Recycling Agent.

The Agent only collects 4 category of items, namely, Papers, Cardboards, Plastics and Metal Containers. Any other items not wanted by the Agent is still removed by them to be thrown away.

Perhaps it would be more beneficial if we sort out these unwanted items by the Agent and let the regular garbage truck collect them or donate the used items like clothes/shoes/toys/mattresses to charity.

A suggestion to lighten the work of the volunteers would be for contributors to go a step further by bundling and tying the papers to ease unloading and loading.



BUNDLING & TYING THE NEWSPAPERS

VOLUNTEERS HELPING TO UNLOAD PAPERS FROM CAR

VOLUNTEERS TAKING A QUICK BITE & CHATTING WHILE WAITING

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Friday 5 August 2011

Barbed Wires Anyone?

Every morning at 6.30 am on my way to work, what do I see around Canal Gardens? I see a couple jogging, two uncles strolling, a young lady brisk walking, a maid walking a Labrador and the morning Tai Chi group exercising.

I find it so comforting and it really makes my day knowing that we, the residents of Canal Gardens have this privilege of being in the ‘open’ at anytime of the day even before the sun is up. Do we ever ask ourselves how we can continue to enjoy this privilege?

Every day in the newspapers, we read nothing but about the increasing crime rate in our country – burglaries are happening even as near as at Aranda and Oncidium. Over the past couple of months, there have been a spate of house break ins and the modus operandi is the burglars come well dressed and in big expensive cars. Lucky for us but sadly to mention, there have been thefts of shoes from Roads L and S.

For the interest of all residents, the CGRA committee has always regarded ‘SECURITY’ as our MAIN concern. In fact, at our recent committee meeting we had debated on whether to even install razor blade barbed wires on our perimeter walls. After much deliberation, we had decided to shelve the idea at the moment.

How Can We Help Ourselves?
1) Adhere to our security SOP (you may find a copy on the blog)
2) Get your visitors to register at all times
3) Why be harsh with the guards when they ask for this and that – they are just performing their duties? Put yourselves in their shoes
4) Lock your gates (I have seen gates wide open at night)
5) Lock your vehicles at all times – Smart Tags are a favourite
6) Keep expensive shoes/items in your house
7) If you know of teenagers doing a short cut by jumping down the walls, please advise them of the injuries which may befall them
8) If you see suspicious looking persons loitering around, contact the guard house at 03-51215076

We cannot do this alone – We need your cooperation to maintain Canal Gardens a Safe and Crime Free Community.

Let’s say a big ‘NO’ to prison-like living and continue to enjoy our stay in Canal Gardens – Our Beloved Home.

No one can whistle a symphony.
It takes a whole orchestra to play it.
~H.E. Luccock

Article contributed by  ~ Sonia Tait ~

Thursday 4 August 2011

Recycling Programme at Canal Gardens

Looking for somewhere to discard your recycleables and keeping the environment green at the same time? Look no further as we have such a programme in our Gardens itself. When and Where?

WHEN    -   9 a.m. till 3 p.m. on the last Sunday of each month
WHERE -   Gazebo at the 2nd exit

We are appreciative of your contributions.
However, we shall be obliged if you could please refrain from sending us the following:

        clothes and shoes;  old and broken furnitureaquariums and glass bottles;  
                                                 soft toys;  styrofoam



Our recycling programme has been ongoing for the past couple of years and the $ collected goes into our Canal Gardens Residents' Association (CGRA) fund. So far, the recycling $ has been the main source of income for the CGRA fund which we utilise for guardhouse decorations during festive occasions, printing of flyers, AGM expenses and last but not least, to subsidize the costs of the past three Family Nights.

We currently have around 25 volunteers consisting mainly of CGRA committee members, their spouses and lately a couple of new friends.

If you are looking at having just a good chat on the happenings in Canal Gardens or even the Bursa Malaysia, do drop by at our recycling venue. For those who are new to the recycling scene, please start now.

Syabas to Steven Lam (our own CGRA Head of Recycling) and his team of volunteers for an Unpaid Job Well Done. Keep It Up!

Article contributed by ~ Sonia Tait ~

Wednesday 3 August 2011

Chairman's Message

Dear CG Residents,

Let's keep the blog interesting, beneficial and interesting by the continued support of contributions of comments, postings, ideas etc. to the blog administrators and team to make it a success.

Remember, the blog is yours and will be alive and interesting only if all residents make it happen.

For the info of all residents, HGD has, after discussion with the Committee, decided to proceed to award the following works:

1) Jogging Track

Extend and build a new jogging track and path from basketball court to Road P.

This, when completed, will join the missing track to cover the entire garden.

2) Metal Fencing at Road L

Due to recent spate of missing shoes, we shall be increasing spikes height on weak areas facing Road L identified as potential risk wall areas.

3) Door Excess (Front) and Additional Door Open (Rear)

Due to call by residents to open a bicycle and walking access door using existing "Access Cards" for entry/exit, we shall be building a new door opening at the rear entrance facing Gazebo and opening the side gate with a Touch and Go System for the front entrance.

This will benefit those residents who wish to walk and cycle to/from shops without compromising security and minimise distracting  the Ghurkha guards from their normal duties.

Please ensure that you bring along your resident’s access cards when using both the gates.

Additional cards can be purchased at HGD office should you need any.

4) Fertilisers
 

Have you noticed the new trees and plants at our beloved garden are getting healthier and looking great?

We wish to thank Peter and Mr Chua for arranging the purchase of a number of bags of quality "dungs" for our gardeners and landscape contractors to apply to the plants and trees. 
I look forward to speak to you again via this Chairman Corner blog.

Cheers!

Paul Leong
Chairman CGRA.
 +6012-6185757

Tuesday 2 August 2011

Love Your Pets

Pets play an important role in the home and can be wonderful companions to kids, adults and seniors. The bond that forms between a family and their pet is sometimes difficult for non pet owners to understand, but for all of us who have or have had a pet in our home, we know the joy and pleasure these faithful companions can bring. Owning and caring for a family pet doesn't have to be a difficult or burdensome experience. 

DOGS
Dogs are great friends and very good companions.

They need good baths to keep them neat and clean. Keeping them clean will keep them from bacteria and from getting sick or getting diseases. It will help them not get fleas and ticks. Check their teeth and their ears occasionally.

Do not starve them or they could die. You should take them for annual medical check ups at the veterinarians. If they don't get good attention or good care or if they are hurt or sick they might try to run away or won't come when you call for them.

You need not cage them up or they might start biting you for not playing with them. They might also feel neglected or think that they did something very bad if they don't come out of the cage or where they are kept.  If neglected the dog may bite or attack some of the people in your neighborhood and then you could get sued and your dog could get put to sleep. If you don't watch your dog when you take it outside it could run away. When you bring your dogs for walks, please bring along paper and plastic bags for picking up their ‘poo’ and discard them at nearby trash bins. Be considerate to your neighbours and keep the surroundings clean.


Here are some signs and symptoms that we see in animals which are not taken care of:
- Tick or flea infestations. Such a condition, if left untreated by a veterinarian, can lead to an animal’s death
- Wounds on the body
- Patches of missing fur
- Extremely thin, starving animals
- Limping
- An owner striking or physically abusing an animal
- Dogs which are repeatedly left alone without food and water or often chained up in a yard
- Dogs which have been hit by cars or are showing any signs listed above and have not been taken to a veterinarian
- Dogs which are kept outside without shelter in extreme weather conditions
- Animals which cower in fear or act aggresively when approached by their owners

CATS

Cats are very good on their feet. If they are neglected they will bite, hiss or claw.

You will need to give them a manicure or trim their nails or a scratching post will help keep their nails trimmed. They love lots of toys like toy mice and a ball.  Cats love you when you pet them nicely. 

You need a litter box so they don't make a mess on the floor, a scoop by the box will help keep it clean.

Cats of all ages, shapes, and sizes have made their way into the homes and hearts of millions.


RABBITS
Rabbits are nice if you can take care of them well. If you don’t, you will have a very naughty Bunny.

Rabbits can have a heart attack if something scares them.

Rabbits need food like hay, pellets and vegetables and they also need water everyday. You need to love them by playing with them. They do growl and bite you when they are mad. Their nails should be occasionally clipped.

You can build hutches for them outside so that they have a good shelter. Rabbits are playful so ensure you keep them exercised or they will start chewing on your stuff.


Let’s end with two quotations -
Animals are such agreeable friends – they ask no questions, they pass no criticisms.
An animal’s eyes have the power to speak a great language.

The ABCs Of Recycling.....(for Dummies)

REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE

Recycling refers to the process of collecting used materials which is usually considered as ‘waste’ and reprocessing them. In this process, these used materials are sorted and processed to be used as ‘raw materials’ for the production of new products. Recycling varies from ‘reuse’ in the sense that while reuse just means using old products repeatedly, recycling means using the core elements of an old product as raw materials to manufacture new products.


Process of Recycling

The recycling process involves three stages. In the first stage, the old products are collected and processed, where they are sorted, cleaned and made ready for recycling or manufacturing new products. The second stage involves the manufacturing of new products from the raw materials obtained by the processing of the old products. Finally, the process ends with the purchasing of recycled goods by the consumers.


The more people step forward to buy recycled products the better the success of the recycling process can be ensured. Buying recycled products will only increase when every individual will develop an awareness of the difference that can be made by utilizing their old household objects as raw materials to produce new goods and help the environment by recycling.


7 Good Reasons to Recycle

­    Financial Income
­    Recycling helps conserve limited resources
­    Recycling is energy efficient
­    Recycling builds community
­    Recycling creates jobs
­    Recycling builds a strong economy
­    Recycling is earth-friendly


Recyclable Items

1.     Plastic
2.     Steel and aluminum cans
3.     Aseptic Packaging (drink boxes, soy bean containers)
4.     Car batteries
5.     Computer printers
6.     Paper
        - White office paper
        - Corrugated cardboard
        - Newspaper
        - Phone books
        - Waxed cartons
        - Mixed paper


Other Things You Can Do

- Favour products with a high recycled content, even if they cost a little more
- Reduce the volume of packaging you buy, reuse what you can’t recycle and recycle the rest
- Tell the cashier ‘I don’t need a bag’
- Use your own reusable canvas bag or backpack at the store
- Buy quality products and keep them for a lifetime