The Snorkeling

Snorkeling is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped tube called a snorkel, and usually swim fins. In cooler waters, a wetsuit may also be worn. Use of this equipment allows the snorkeled to observe underwater attractions for extended periods of time with relatively little effort.

Snorkeling is a popular recreational activity, particularly at tropical resort and scuba diving locations. The primary appeal is the opportunity to observe underwater life in a natural setting without the complicated equipment and training required for scuba diving, and without the exhaled bubbles of scuba-diving equipment. Snorkeling is also employed by scuba divers when on the surface, and search and rescue teams may snorkel as part of a water-based search. It is also a means to an end in popular sports such as underwater hockey, underwater ice hockey, underwater rugby and spear fishing.





A swimmers' snorkel is a tube around 30 centimeters long and with an inside diameter of between 1.5 and 2.5 centimeters, usually L- or J-shaped and fitted with a mouthpiece at the lower end, and constructed of rubber or plastic. It is used for breathing air from above the water surface when the wearer's mouth and nose are submerged. The snorkel usually has a piece of rubber that attaches the snorkel to the outside of the strap of the diving mask since pushing the snorkel between the mask-strap and the head can cause the mask to leak.
Snorkels used to be sold with small "ping pong" balls in a cage mounted to the open end of the tube to prevent water ingress, though these are no longer sold nor recommended to be used since they are considered hazardous to the snorkeled. Similarly, diving masks with a snorkel built into them are considered unsafe and obsolete

Diving

Most diving competitions consist of three disciplines: 1m and 3m springboards, and the platform. Competitive athletes are divided by gender, and often by age group. In platform events, competitors are allowed to perform their dives on either the five, seven and a half (generally just called seven) or ten meter towers. In major diving meets, including the olympic games and the World Championships, platform diving is from the 10 meter height.

Divers have to perform a set number of dives according to established requirements, including somersaults and twists. Divers are judged on whether and how well they completed all aspects of the dive, the conformance of their body to the requirements of the dive, and the amount of splash created by their entry to the water. A possible score out of ten is broken down into three points for the takeoff, three for the flight, and three for the entry, with one more available to give the judges flexibility.

The raw score is multiplied by a difficulty factor, derived from the number and combination of movements attempted. The diver with the highest total score after a sequence of dives is declared the winner. Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acribatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sports that is part of the olympic games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.



Diving is one of the most popular olympic sports with spectators. Competitors possess many of the same characteristics as gymnasts and dancers, including strength and flexibility. China came to prominence several decades ago when the sport was revolutionized by national coach Liang Boxi and after intense study of the dominant Louganis. China has lost few world titles since. The success of Greg Louganis has led to American strength in diving internationally. Other noted countries in the sport include Italy, Australia and Canada.

Sapi Island, Tunku Abdul Rahman Park

Pulau Sapi is located off the coast of downtown Kota Kinabalu. From Hyatt Regency Kinabalu, a 2-minute drive or a 10-minute walk will bring you to the jetty at Jesselton Poin ferry terminal (formerly known as Sabah Port Authority jetty).

There are a number of tour operators here that will bring you to Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park (which consists of the islands of Pulau Gaya, Pulau Sapi, Pulau Manukan, Pulau Sulug and Pulau Mamutik). The one way charged per head of boat which only cost you RM7.00 . One boat can fit 4-6 people, A short 20-minute breezy boat ride away brings you to the sun-kissed beach of Pulau Sapi.

The water is extremely crystal clear. During the day, the beach is buzzing with a hive of beach activities.The beach is probably one of the region's most beautiful beach. The water is quite shallow and ample of shades are available. In term of snorkeling, one still can do it here although I found there was not so much marine life compared to the nearby island of Pulau Manukan. Otherwise, you can laze down by the beautiful beach and worship the sun. In short, activities galore on this beautiful beach. Just get your sun-tan lotions and sun-shade, then head to the lovely island.


Do not be afraid of your safety while you are in any five (5) Tunku Abdul Rahman island, life guard will be there to help you out in case of anything happen. Besides, you can also explore its unique of the junggle trekking which is believed to be the Sapi Head as you can see through the map. The jungle trekking will takes you 20-30 minutes. Asides, do not missed out the lovely beach (Gaya Island) while you are on trekking. Gaya island can be seen clearly through the jungle trekking in Sapi Island. Trust me, it is a bliss scenery to behold as for the beach lovers!

Memory of Sandakan Death March

Imagine this. It is May 1945. Clad only in ragged loin-cloths, over 500 skeletal creatures, barely recognisable as human, struggle to their feet at the Sandakan POW Compound, on Sabah's north-east coast. Three long years in captivity, half of them on starvation rations and with little or no medical attention, have taken their toll. The grimy, wasted bodies of these once fit and strapping Australian and British servicemen are covered in sores and scabies, their filthy hair and beards matted and lice-infested. Many are suffering from tropical ulcers, some so large that shin bones are clearly visible. Others, bloated from beriberi, lumber along on sausage-like legs. They are bound for Ranau, a small village on the flanks of Mt Kinabalu, South East Asia's highest peak, situated 250 kilometres away to the west, in the rugged Borneo jungle interior.

All were members of a 2700-strong Allied contingent transferred to Sandakan by the Japanese in 1942-43, following Singapore's fall. Their task? To construct a military airfield, using not much more than their bare hands. For the first twelve months or so, conditions at Sandakan were tolerable. However, in mid 1943 the Japanese discovered that the POWs not only had a radio but were in league with a local resistance organisation. The kempei-tai, or secret police, swooped. Arrests and transfers followed. Discipline at Sandakan was tightened considerably and life became much more difficult for the remaining 2,434 prisoners.

Manila City, Phillipines

The City of Manila (Filipino: Lungsod ng Maynila) is the capital of the Philippines and one of the 17 cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila. It is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay, on the western portion of the National Capital Region, in the western side of Luzon. Manila is one of the central hubs of a thriving metropolitan area home to around 20 million people. As of 2009 update, Manila ranks as the world's eleventh and the fifth by population. Manila is also ranked as one of the most densely populated cities in the world.


Manila occupies a total land area of 38.55 square kilometers, is the second most populous city in the Philippines, with more than 1.6 million inhabitants. Only nearby Quezon City is more populous. The metropolitan area is the second most populous in Southeast Asia. Manila is bordered by several cities in Metro Manila such as Navotas City and Caloocan City to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong City to the east, Makati City to the southeast, and Pasay City to the south. The Pasig River bisects the city in the middle. Almost all of the city sits on top of centuries of prehistoric alluvial deposits built by the waters of the Pasig River and on some land reclaimed from Manila Bay.






Filipino is the national language of the Philippines and, along with English, is an official language designated in the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Filipino is an Austronesian language that is based on existing native languages in the Philippines; the most significant influence is the Tagalog language. A large number of Spanish and English loanwords also exist in the vocabulary. The Filipino language remains in evolution, development, and further enrichment on the basis of existing languages of the Philippines and other languages. It is the first language of Filipinos living in Metro Manila and the second language of most Filipinos.


Sometimes the term "Filipino" is incorrectly used as the generic name for all the languages of the Philippines which, in turn, would be termed as dialects. Also, because of its similarity to the language on which it is based, it is still sometimes identified with Tagalog. The Commission on the Filipino Language (Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino), the regulating body of Filipino, envisions a process of popularizing regional dialect usage derived from regional languages as the basis for standardizing and intellectualizing the language, thus forming a lingua franca.

Sony Ericsson K660i

I never wanted to have a Sony Ericsson mobile phone. Eversince i had my own mobile phone in the age of 13 i realised that Nokia brand never comes out with problem. Until last year February 25th, 2009 i left out my hanphone outside my verandah which was shone my the hot sun. I could not even enter any keys to my nokia handphone. Until now, my nokia handphone is no longer functioning.

Back in the month of may, 2009. I decided to have a servay upon Sony Ericsson mobile phone in Wisma Merdeka as well as KK plaza. After spent in about 4 hours servaying and at the same time make few comparison on few sony mobile. I was stuck with the brand new sony ericsson with the lastest model of K660i. By looking to its beautiful colour with the combination of Green and white colour ( that is my favourite combination colour as always)

These mobile phone has now become of the best sold out within a month. This also can be unserstand that most of the people who prefer this mobile phone are female due to its attractive colour and its function. Since that onwards, i started to love sony ericsson.

Down Syndrome

Down syndrome is one of the unlucky illness that is now occuring almost all around the world which is highly include Malaysia. Such illness is very high potential to those women who gets pregnant in their late age of 30 above. Moreover, these type of sickness should take into account especially for those women in the age of 30 and above.

Down syndrome (DS), also called Trisomy 21, is a condition in which extra genetic material causes delays in the way a child develops, both mentally and physically. It affects about 1 in every 800 babies.The physical features and medical problems associated with Down syndrome can vary widely from child to child. While some kids with DS need a lot of medical attention, others lead healthy lives.

Though Down syndrome can't be prevented, it can be detected before a child is born. The health problems that can go along with DS can be treated, and there are many resources within communities to help kids and their families who are living with the

What causes it ?

Normally, at the time of conception of baby inherits genetic information from its parents in the form of 46 chromosome which 23 from the mother and 23 from the father. In most cases of down syndrome, a child gets extra chromosome 21 for a more or less total 47 chromosome instead of 46.

It's this extra generic material that causes the physical features and developmental delays associated DS.

Sompoton

Sompoton is a traditional Kadazan music instruments for the Dusun tribes in Sabah. Traditionally it was from Kampung Tikolod, Tambunan. It is now prevalent among Dusuns and Muruts. It is made of a double raft of eight bamboo pipes inserted into a gourd. Inside the gourd, seven of the pipes have small polod palm lamellae or sodi inserted into their sides and kept in place by beeswax or sopinit.

The eighth soundless pipe is stopped up with sopinit. The player blows and sucks air through the gourd mouth-piece to activate the sodi. The musical sound produced can be likened to a cross between the sounds from a conventional mouth organ and a bagpipe, minus the latter's shrillness. Often it is played solo, for personal expression. If you are interest on this traditional Kadazan Dusun music instruments, you can visit any handicraft centre or Tamu in Sabah.

The sompoton is the free-reed mouth organ of Sabah in northeastern Borneo. It is played by the Kadasan and Dusun peoples, and is still quite common. The sompoton has a gourd wind chamber from which extend 8 pipes arranged in two rows. There are bamboo reeds in seven of these pipes only, and three of these pipes do not have sound holes and are played by closing and opening the tops of the pipes with fingers of the right hand. The sumpoton can be played with the pipes pointing up, as is done with smaller instruments, or with the pipes pointing either sideways or down with larger instruments. The instruments range in size from 6 inches to 3 feet in length, with the average size of just over 1 foot.

Bahar, 'Tuaran Traditional Drink'

Sabah, the land below the wind belong to the big number of races and traditional. We believed that sabah state belong about 34 ethnics. One of the best known ethnic in Sabah is Lotud people which can only be found in Tuaran Town. Nowadays, local drink such as Lihing, Montoku, Bahar, Tapai, Tumpung and Tanduay are seem to be the favourite among the people living in Sabah. The chinese, Indian, Muslim and bajau love them so much.

Bahar local drink is a must in every festival and occasions in Sabah. It doesnt count on which occasions. Morever, even in chinese new year, christmas seasons, Hari raya the local people will not miss to serve them.

Bahar is originally made from the coconut tree with a mixed of a special kind of tree bark known locally as rosok which will make the sap coloured red. These drink has been comfirmed by chemists to have a high contain of high anti-oxidants. However, these drink would taste very unpleasant and pungent to the uninitiated. Apart from that, these drink would goes very bad within a day is it will becoming sour either.

As for those people who are anxious to test these local drink, try to grab holidays and visit sabah the beautiful nature state with a good drink of those. For sure, you will love them and enjoy your holidays in the land below the wind.

The athlete, Che Chew Chan

A young and talented well being in taekwondo sports. Che chew chan was no longer an ordinary athlete after she has shown her talented by achieving a gold medal recently in the sea games last year. Che chew chan who is turning 28 years old this coming october 1st is currently running her centralise training in Bukit Jalil.

Che chew chan was obviously recovering from her injured both knee after broke down in one of the international tournament last 2 years. She had a severe knee operation and was hospitalised within few months without attending her training.


But then again, she has never give up having through her disable period and pain. Eventually, after she went through 1 month she then again started to involve herself in some of the international competition.

By the end of october, che chew chan flew to korean with her teamate of taekwondo to attend centralised training with the korean within 1 week. The next following week, chew chan and malaysian team flew to laos and fight. She was really delighted with her performance by grabbing gold medalist.

Sea Walking

Sea Walking has now proclaimed to be one of the best tour promoted and offers in Sabah @ The Land Below The Wind. These adventure tour happened to be high demand in year of 2008 and currently. These tour is essentially an undersea adventure without the aid of any diving equipment except for an air-hosed helmet, the sea walking is available by everyone above 7 years age without risk or danger.

Apart from that, swimming skills are not even essential as the adventure is safe and fully guided. The benefits of these tour is that you are going to interact with all kinds of marine creatures underneath the sea as you come face to face with them.

Moreover, sea walking allows you to the seabed and watch fishes go by without having to carry an oxygen tanks or complicated equipment. You will don on sea trek underwater Helmet Diving System and be ready to discover underwater world. The walk will take you approximately between 20-30 minutes along the shores of the island and children as young as 8 years in age can view natures aquarium. Thus, no miraculous effort is needed but just a short briefing on breathing and hand gestures. a pair of underwear shoes and 30kg astronaut underwater helmet.



Eventually, one's should try these adventurous tour which is now available in Sabah as well. Do not be shock with the price which would cost you quite a huge number of visit this is due to tourist high demand.

The Land Below The Wind, Sabah, Borneo

Sabah was known as Jesselton back in 1940's before the world was 2 happened. Sabah holds a vast historical during the occupation of Colonial British where everyone are allow to visit to Kundasang Memorial Park and as well as the "Death Match".

Sabah also known as North Borneo before its independence through Malaysian in September 16, 1963, Sabah occupies the top portion of Borneo which found to be the THIRD largest island in the world and covers the area with 74,500 sq km and a coastline of about 1,440 sq km washed by the South China Sea and celebes sea on the East. She is blessed with a diverse landscape of tropical forests, rugged mountains, greenflatlands and prestine sea teaming with indigenous flora and fauna which only can be found in some part of the world.



The climate found in Sabah is warm and tropical but pleasant. Sunny blue skies typify most days and it is summer all year round. Though depending on the month and locality, rain may cause a little inconveniece, with the annual rainfall varying from 69 to 120 inches.

As a general guide, the wet season falls between November and February. The name "Land Below The Wind" is given to Sabah simply because it is located below typhoon belt. Thus, setting the state free from climatic disturbance.

Nike sports

For sure everyone knows what nike stands for. The origin of nike is based on United State Of America. Somehow, people living in Malaysia could hardly owns the nike stuffs due to its high costing but at the same time nike is a quite high demanding in Malaysia as well. This company is originally headquatered in the united state, Oregon city which is part of the portland metropolitan area. It is the world's leading supplier of athletic shoes and apparel and employed more than 30,000 people worldwide.

These nike company was founded on January 25, 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports by Bill Bowerman and Philip Knight and was last 14 years to be officially became Nike Inc in the year of 1978. Nike word was originally came from Greek. Its brings the meaning of Greek Goddes of Victory.

As for me, one of my favourite apparel on Nike is the trendy shoes, the watch which really looks awsome and fancy. Not to mention with its variety types of bags. Eventhough it cost me really high but eventually it hits my satisfaction of needs.


As you can see the shoes above, this is one of the limited edition of Lebron James IV NYC shoes last 2007- 2008 with its high resolution of 411x280. These fancy shoes will cost about RM899.00- RM999.00 in Malaysia Market.

Nike for sure sponsors many high profile athletes and sports team around the world, with the higly recognized trademark " JUST DO IT " as well as the " SWOOSH LOGO ".

Tambunan Village Resort Centre

Im so sure everyone knows that tourism industry has become the main contribution to ur country Malaysia. Now, let me brief you as one of the interesting place to visit or holidays which found strategically in Tambunan Town called Tambunan Village Resort Centre. These attractive place takes 1.5hours by road from Kota Kinabalu to Tambunan which lies a valley picturesque serenity, the valley with sparkling mountain streams glowing across emerald green rice fields present the gentle side of Sabah's interior.

A walk through the bush valley offers visitors a chance to enjoy Sabah's traquil countryside while listening to chorus if insects and the called of forest birds. TVRC in short situated Pegalan River in Tambunan in which the one and only place to provide accomodation facilities in Tambunan as said.


As for the nature lovers, never to missed out the unique giant biggest flower in the world called "Rafflesia". Tambunan Village Resort Centre offers you a great experience of a lifetime to behold where it may be understand those flower spend 9 months to bloom and only last 1 week somehow.

Apart from that, another activities that is applicable and available close to Tambunan Village Resort Centre is none other than " Mahua Waterfalls". These waterfalls is a prestine natural fall nestled deep in the tropical forest of the Crocker Mountain Range. The spectacular waterfall is approximately 17 metres tall and has a pool depth of 1.3 metres.

Tambunan Town is simply bliss for tourist as well as domestic travellers. To those who loves nature more, i suggest to come and visit this simple and unique of nature place called Tambunan.

Datuk Nicol Ann David,DSPN

First of all, welcome back to view my blog! time passes by without realising that i am now sitting for my last subject of Communication skills 3 after i have gone throughout the communication skills of 1 and 2. Moreover, we, the student of Communication Skills have been given a task by completing as many as 15 posts which will contribute 20% in our final semester 3. Now, i will begin my 1st post by having Datuk Nicol Ann David as my choice or in the other word as my Idol.

Nicol Ann David, chinese + indian was born in the month of August 26, 1983. She was born in Penang, Malaysia. She is a daughter to Desmond David an engineer and Ann Marie David a teacher which happened to be the only child in the family. She began to involved herself in squash sports when she was in the age of 5 and started to take squash seriously in the age of 8 with a regular training and involved in competitive games. Besides, she received her primary education at SM. Convent, Penang.

It seems hard and challenging as a SPM candidates back in the year of 2000 and at the same time concentrating her well centralised training as squash athlete. Apparently, she has already making the world's top 10 list and her up as well. By then on. she began to brought the joyful bliss to Malaysia by winning the track record in Asia within 5 times in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006.

In december 2005, Nicol became the youngest world champion after beating Rachel Binham in Hong Kong Open. By then, by the age of 23 years old, nicol reached a new height when she took over the helm as the world's number 1 women squash player. She was not the only the first malaysian take over the crown but it also the first Asian women to be rank as number 1.

However, her number 1 rank was short lived to only 3 months before she dropped to number 2 after failure at the commonwealth Games in Melborne. But then again, many malaysian presses predicted further down fall of her and the failure even evoked the wrath of the sport ministry. Unfortunately, nicol bouced back with a blast by winning with a record of 51 consecutive matches.