Letters from Jubileeintan group [ MCKK Class of 65 ]....

Assalamualaikum dan Selamat Sejahtera

Ishak, Peng and Bab,

I admire you guys for your keenness in the endeavour. I salute you and wish you the best.

Dengan Ikhlas dan Salam Hormat

(Yours Sincerely and Best Regards)

Dr. Mohamad Hanif bin Mohamad Jamil

Bandar Baru Bangi

Selangor

MALAYSIA

............................................................................................

To: jublintan65@yahoogroups.com
From: sidekahmad@hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2012 05:31:32 +0000
Subject: Re: [jublintan65]

Doc Haniff


You salute them....aku tabik dua tangan to the three Amigos (or old boys scouts as my old friend Nazru called them) to even dare to think of doing the adventurous overland jjourney through Asia-Europe!!


I went as a tourist in 2011 to do the Silk route journey from Xian to Urumgy-Kashi. Even with few hundred miles on road with a good guide by our side, it was testing enough for us....so I could not imagine what it will be like with thousands of km of wilderness and only gps/maps (and maybe the stars too) to guide them.


It's nice to know that among us we still have those with their of spirit of adventure burning strong.....we can only envy and admire them and wish them all the best and hope they can realise their dream.......and ours too for those like me who wish we could but do not have the courage to take 3 -4 challenge.


Salam
Sidek

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device via Vodafone-Celcom Mobile.




..............................................................................................

datok sidek!

you must tell us the details of your route, various stops, terrain etc of Xian to Kashi.  part of our planned trip will take us through that route

salam, 

wan peng, 

the route planner

..............................................................................................

Wan Peng,

I thought I've shared with all of you earlier in the mail and over teh tarik at Pelita in Shah Alam my so called free and easy silk route trip (covering 3 regions of Xian , liangchow, Xinkiang)which I did in 10days in early 2011 before I did my colon op.

We did consider crossing to Tukesmistan (and the other gohed/gostan countries) from Kashi but was told that visa application cannot be done from China but need some special arrangement before one can get through the border)
What I can see from the air as I flew over these 3 regions between cities, the landscape is very2 challenging....dry Gobi desert and savannah type land all the way through mountains and hills with nil/few settlements in between. Definitely not for those with weak hearts to venture the land route..... and one has to just wonder in awe how those early travellers criss-cross these dry land on foot and on camels for months/years to reach Xian, the then capital for the Kingdom, from MiddleEast and Europe.

I know one of our MC senior (Mr Brown n few of his colleagues) did the silk route on wheels. You may want to consult them for advice and guidance if you guys are dead serious about doing it on land throughout.....or else opt for free and easy trip like what I did earlier and this time round, we cross to all the Tans countries which I did not manage to cover earlier......howsat?

Selamat berbuka puasa to all.

Salam
Sidek

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device via Vodafone-Celcom Mobile

..............................................................................

Nik Isahak Abdullah <drnikisahak@hotmail.com> wrote:


 

 dato sidek and doc haniff,

dont envy us.

i started this madness initially, half hoping someone would cure me of it...successfully talk me out of this 'footloose maladie'.

lank almost did it by asking a philosophical/religious question...of why doing this at this age...doc man added by saying at this stage..duduk 'balassoh' semaye2 lagi baik. ado pitih lebeh, dermo anok yatim'. 
i was almost 'turnaround'.

then my friend nadzru, the 'arabist'  from ranhill worley , quipped that we sounded like 'old boys scouts', still tenderfoot, out to see the world. that did it.

why not ? if we can maintain that fresh boy scout spirit in our life right to the seventh or eight decade, why not ?

and now i have two  equally half mad followers behind me, peng and bab.....difficult to  nak back out dah !

and we are now  not thinking of a KL- London anymore. it is  KL- London- KL Express ?

there is no system to this madness !!

nik howk

............................................................................................




Assalamualaikum,

NH, Bab & Peng,

"Berlumba-lumbalah kamu (mengerjakan amal-amal yang baik) untuk mendapat keampunan dari Tuhan kamu, dan mendapat Syurga yang bidangnya seluas segala langit dan bumi, yang disediakan bagi orang-orang yang beriman kepada Allah dan Rasul-rasulNya; yang demikian ialah limpah kurnia Allah, diberikanNya kepada sesiapa yang dikehendakiNya; dan Allah sememangnya mempunyai limpah kurnia yang besar." (Al-Hadiid 57:21)

If you think that you have accumulated enough of pahala to guarantee you a place in Syurga, please by all means, make that trip and more future trips. If you think your pahala is insufficient to guarantee you a place in Syurga, then now is the time to lumba-lumba to do amalan solih, while you are still breathing, which at our present age, we don't know for how much longer.

"Katakanlah (wahai Muhammad): "Mahukah Kami khabarkan kepada kamu akan orang-orang yang paling rugi amal-amal perbuatannya? (Iaitu) orang-orang yang telah sia-sia amal usahanya dalam kehidupan dunia ini, sedang mereka menyangka bahawa mereka sentiasa betul dan baik pada apa sahaja yang mereka lakukan"." (Al-kahf 18:103-104)

If you think that this trip of yours is not an amalan sia-sia, please by all means, proceed with it :-)

Salam,
RoslanK

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7

.............................................................................


TQ Lank for an excellent reminder.


Peng, I think , already has plan to join a madrasah in Finsbury Park , London to learn the religion deeper.
Bab, he is always very secretive about his plan and aspiration. We suspect he wanted to 'dirikan' masjid once we reach Bosnia. Beautiful  'halal  white chicken'  available there.
As for myself, I want ot find a Tok Guru Murshid in Kazahkstan.


Just pulling you leg, Lank .
Enjoy this short video presentation about wanting  'Jannah',
click here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM1D57SGNhM&feature=relmfu
Lank, we all want Jannah. 
I believe the way to Jannah is not just limited to 'balassoh, masjid'. It is also in the workplace, in the hills and mountains and most importantly in the hearts of men and women.
Yes, Jannah is in our heart. We have to want it . We have to want it badly as the good shaykh told us.
Myself, I want Jannatul Firdaus.

nik howk


....................................................................




And with Him are the keys of the Invisible. None but He knoweth them. And He knoweth what is in the land and the sea. Not a leaf falleth but He knoweth it, not a grain amid the darkness of the earth, naught of wet or dry but (it is noted) in a clear record. (59) He it is Who gathereth you at night and knoweth that which ye commit by day. Then He raiseth you again to life therein, that the term appointed (for you) may be accomplished. And afterward unto Him is your return. Then He will proclaim unto you what ye used to do. (60)

translation of The Quran , Pickthal, Suran Al An'am, 6 : 59-60

Diary : Still on Choice of Vehicles.....

Yang Berbahagia,

Encik Hazem Abdul Rahman

MD , 
Land Rover Malaysia/ Sime Auto Concessionaire

cc:

Yang Berbahagia,

Major [rtd] Hasbullah bin Zakariah

Manager, Service dept, 

Land Rover [Malaysia ] Sdn Bhd

Sirs,

I was at Land Rover Malaysia  last Sunday, trying out your beautiful Defender double cab 90 under the watchful eyes of Miss Shilah.

I was actually there to book Land Rover Single Cab 110 on special offer but was told by this young lady that all have been snatched up like 'goreng pisang' by the East Malaysians! My God ! These people paid cash mostly, just like the Cameroon Highland vegetable farmers!

I was  already forewarned by Major Hasbullah some 3 weeks earlier at Sime Darby Medical Centre, but did not take his warning seriously.

My interest in the ageless Defender is beyond 'sales and purchase' actually. We are a group of intrepid over 60 year olds, Malay Collegians, partly mad 'boy scouts',out to relearn the world, so to speak. [ http://translandjourney.blogspot.com/2012/07/diary-when-it-all-began.html ]

Initially in our discussion, we were thinking of doing it either in an old 1985 onwards Defender 110,[ probably refurbished Series 1]  with the ever dependable TDi engine ,or the conquering ageless 4.2 litre 1996 or less, Toyota Landcruiser. Both for the obvious reason that if we developed engine trouble in the desert of Mongolia or China our hearts would not 'bleed' if local fellows cannot repair them,. We just leave the vehicles there and hopp on to the other one. And if they can, and we expect any Ah Kow can repair these two, we will happily carry on.

But we being' British' thought that we owe Defender more loyalty than a 'cheapo' old Japanese badge, albeit the old  unbeatable beast,Toyota Landcruiser..... Defender, despite it's smaller cc, it  has more character though.

[ http://translandjourney.blogspot.com/2012/07/choice-of-vehicle-tentatively-at-our.html ]

And why use old 1980's and 1990's old vehicles when we can use new ones with more sophisticated  more powerful engines, less guzzly and can debunk at the same time this fallacy amongst long distance 'translanders' that  'newer means more electronics and electronics means trouble on a long transland journey'. We have to give our fledgling motor 'industry' a bite at fame !

Our choice as to whether to go Toyota [ Hilux in this case, the  new 3.0  turbo diesel double cab ] or to still remain true to our original spirit and sentiment and be 'British',  despite the ' general'  world trend  towards 'de-romanticized' transdland journeys, and be practical, and thus join the bandwagon of  every Tom , Dick and Harry, all going 'Japanese'.. this to my mind is still  still  not yet concluded.  We are still discussing the pro's and con's


We symphatise with you guys at Sime's Land Rover over the Mindef's uncharacteristic decision to go ' all Chinese' [ my God, Chinese !!!!!! ] in their vehicle of choice for  the army 2013 onwards.

These generals must have all their heads examined !!
Too much kwaey teow maybe ??
[ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNvs3YDBgeM&feature=related ]

I look forward to further fruitful conversations with you guys.

[ http://translandjourney.blogspot.com/2012/07/diary-change-of-route.html ]

Your Humbly,

Dr Hj Nik Isahak Wan Abdullah

Senior Consultant Cardiologist 

Sime Darby Medical Centre

Subang Jaya

Selangor, Malaysia




..............................................................................




from grand pa  of Jubileeintan 69 :



السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

Go for it Doc Nik Howk. Even if they offer reconditioned Defender  Tdi 110 Stationwawons or reconditioned Discovery Tdi would be wonderful


'car wash utube', click down here :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzEDY7P8Vps&feature=related

...............................................................................


Grand pa , tell us more about Discovery Tdi, what year, reliability and is it Ah Kow proof , I mean easily repaired any where devoid of sophisticated 'electronics'  like the Series 1 Land Rover ?
What year and what price ?


Nik Howk


........................................................................................
from grand pa of jubileeintan 69 group :

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركات

The Discovery does all the Defender does but in luxury. A brother in law used one , I merely borrowed a few times. I did mention Nik Ariff uses one for umpteen years now.

click here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9pP4Jnk6H4&feature=related

.................................................................................................

across the board i heard it has its problem with 'reliability', grand pa ............
the choice can be quite personal grand pa as judged by this  video,
[ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo3ud2ysh0I&feature=related ]

nik howk


..........................................................................................


Nik Howk,


If I were you I would like to travel in comfort.
You have not seen the new Ford Ranger  Truck, 3.2 litre turbo diesel.
Superkiasu like Malek Noor and miles of space. Sexy too !
They will cause a storm in Kuala Lumpur end  of this year.
Can forget about Defender or Hilux.


Pak Chu


........................................................................................

howk, 

we have discussed the rangka of the route. there are various combinations. now we need to zoom in go to next level.  do we want the easy/difficult route? farflung/shortest? touristy? etc. this decision will impact on the duration, expense, type of vehicle, mental prep, bekal etc. and the sooner we work out this the better.  

anyway the possibilities:

1. kl- either via west coast ie phuket and ranong or east coast via surat thani -hua hin - bangkok (thailand)

2a bangkok-chiang rai -luang namtha (thailand/laos petronas route) or 

2b bangkok - udon thani-luang pabang -luang namtha (thailand laos route recommended by nazru)

3.luang namtha - jinghong - kunming- guiyang -xian - lanzou -anxi  (china)

4a anxi -hami- osu -almaty (if we want to enter kazakhashtan to meet besan ntr) or

4b anxi- hami - aksu- kashi (if we want to by pass besan ntr and enter kyrgyzstan) or

4c anxi- qiemo - yulian -kashi (enter krygyztan via south route). all a, b and c done or partly done by petronas.

......

and the above is only about  a quarter way.  jenoh nak tulis all the various options. it is best that we meet and pour over the map 

w.a


..........................................................................


Peng,


we take the toughest, most romantic, longest route.
with accent on safety of course



Now Pak Chu though has thrown a spanner in our planning, Peng.
i thot we have decided amongst us that we choose either a toyota [ new hilux or  old landcruiser ]or a defender...now this new animal called the ford truck, i know nothing about it. 


personally i have gone thru 2 hilux in the last 6 years...., one a double cab which i sold off last year..a find a wee bit softy, the undercarriage long shaft broke after less than 2 years  plying the hills of gua musang. ! i am now driving a brand new working man single cab, manual.  too early to say anything but if i were to go by its popularity amongst the chinese contractors in gua musang, it is a tough work horse. the  tray at the back can be changed to a proper sleeping area, if you can cross over to golok or haadyai and add a long canopy....after the canopy, the workman vehicle look like an 'suv' !
ample space for storage of 'barang2' and good sleeping area. put in a 'bedpan' for those emergencies, we already have a caravan for 2.


peng, can you please check out with your 4wd friends familiar with this new animal called the ford ranger truck 3.2 turbo diesel. is it here already ?


nik howk


.............................................................................


from Doc Azman,
22nd July

Aswt,

Nampak bersungguh puak ni nak travel, jalan3.

Just back from Tapah & Ipoh for 2 night trips.

Ohhh, sakit badan weh, specially backpain.

East-west highway at night, raining, saw 5-6 cars masuk parit tepi jalan. Nothing serious. Ada yg tow truck sedang tarik.

On one road, not a very close corner & at 60km/hr, my car slipped & swerve a few times.

Before that I was traveling at 80km/hr constantly, you still can feel the tyre gripping the road fine.

I think these people put oil on the road. If only only it is not raining, I would have stop and check the road for oil.

Wallah waalam. Just to remind the extend trick that people do to get business.

Doc Azman

V69 S'H, iPhone4

.....................................................................................

from Peng,

23th, July

 

howk & bab

is the meeting on 27th on? after tarawih?  perhaps in ramadhan it is better to meet daytime if at all, say sat or sun after zuhr/before asr?

from the book: long way round, chasing shadows accross the world, by ewan mc gregor and charley boorman who rode round the world , just them and 2 motorbikes:

"i...gazed out at the ocean and thought back to the day when charley and i had sat in a little workshop in west london, surrounded by motorbikes, with dreams of open road in our heads.  all we knew then was that we wanted to get from london to magadan (pacific coast of siberia).  with maps laid out in front of us, we drew a route, arbitrarily assigning mileage to each day, not knowing anything about the state of the roads..  we guessed our way from west to east, across two continents, from atlantic to the pacific....time and again we were told by experienced travellers that our plans were wildly optimistic and that we didnt know what we were letting ourselves in for.  i'd never ridden off-road and charley had never properly camped.  the chances of failure were high they said. yet here we were in madagan, as far around the globe as it was possible to go, and we'd arrived one day ahead of our schedule"

salam
wp

......................................................................................

On Tue, Jul 24, 2012 at 11:35 PM, Nik Isahak Abdullah <drnikisahak@hotmail.com> wrote:

peng, let meetafter ramadan. we have  alot of time.

like charley, i do not like to plan tooo much...just get in your car and drive....worse case scenario, reach phuket can turn back if things do not appear right.

good case scenario we may even take another route back from london to kL via the kyber pass on our way back.......

................................................................................................


ok, meet  aftrer raya then.
insyaAllah we will get to further than phuket, to istanbul at least

salam, wp


...................................................................................................



Peng,


i am proposing that we drive back from london via spain turkey, syria, iran, pakistan, india and if burma is open via burma , if not ship back from chitagong, bangladesh....all in a 3 month to 4 month journey.............
i think the new ford ranger or the new hilux 3.0 litre turbo would be tough and comfortable enough to withstand the continous journey.
insyaallah !


Nik Howk

Diary : A Change of Route...

"Life is just three breaths, one that had just  finished, the present one not yet exhaled, and the next which is still unsure"
an old sufi saying......



“Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.” — Steve Jobs

5am, 28th June

Subang Jaya

Woken up just now at 4am with a 'bloody' toothache. Did the tahajjud, to no avail. Still painful. Went down to the kitchen to take one more ultracet tablet [combination of tramal and paracetamol ] and decided maybe a spot of 'writing' would take the pain away.

Just 4 hours earlier finished 3rd discussion with Peng and Bab on Transland Journey, over roti canai and popia. Another Malay Collegian [ Anwar Ibrahim's classmate , ?class of 64], Mohd Faizal Ismail, from Merlbourne, joined the discussion. He had earlier in the year wanted me to do the Australian outback with him. That has to be postponed or brought forward to December this year.

For now, Kuala Lumpur - London,   via the SILK ROUTE, has to take priority for 2013.

Myanmar probably would not open up it's borders in time for our trip next year, so the Myanmar- Nepal- India route is out of question. We would attempt the 'old' Petronas Adventure Team route via Cambodia's Vientiane- Hanoi- XIan- Xinkiang route and crossover to the Russia's many  S'tans, then head for the Caspian Sea, entering Norway via Helsinki, then right on to London. Time frame ? 2 months. We do not want to miss the many World heritage places  peppered along the way.

To avoid extreme winter cold, we need to leave  early, perhaps on the 6th day of Eid next year in mid August. 


Peng , the most intellectual of us three will firm up on the route detail. Bab will look into visa issues and 'carnet de passage' for our vehicles. As for myself, I would need to make some friendly visits  and call old friends in Sime's Land Rover and UMW Toyota for some much needed friendly 'advice' and help.

Between us we decided we are not doing this transland journey with the ubiquitous 'Landcruiser' afterall. We are firm believers in change, 'the old giving place to the young upstrarts', so to speak. Young 'upstarts', like  Hilux and Land Rover Defender 110, also deserve a decent bite at fame. We will give the new 'Hilux' a chance and  at the same time we do not want to forget our most dependable Land Rover Defender as well. It is after all an icon and we,  despite all pretenses, ARE BRITISH. Only our bottoms are not white !


My other friend , Nadzru from Ranhill Apakahnamadiadah retorted the other day that 'we are a bunch of old semi- retarded boys scouts' !
On second thought, at 60 +, for all three of us, that is a nice compliment.
'Thank you Nadzru !'

The 'bloody' pain has disappeared already. Magic !

Time for subuh Prayer.




....................................................................................


click here :
http://www.google.com.my/search?q=hilux+dual+cab+pictures&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-my:IE-Address&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=XSTxT-H0FonkrAfl8P29DQ&ved=0CEMQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=632


These new 'Jap Wannabees' may takeover from the aging 1990's Landcruisers



................................................................................................



grand pa and doc man,

I know you grand pa is a 'cherookee, landy stiff upper lip type' of man while doc man and myself are basically 'toyota cheapskate' people.

Doc man is still impressed with his prado 1997 even though it now lay rusting in his garage and repeated urge from yours truly to part with his Prado has so far failed. I want to redo his 1995 Prado for my Transland Journey. 

Myself, having gone thru Hilux double cab 2.5  turbodiesel auto for 6 years from 2005 , and now switched to a  new 'marhein' 2.5 diesel single cab Hilux, minus all the frills. My previous twin cab was OK but after only 5 years of usage mine started give funny sound every time when I engage the auto . 4 years and the auto start making this kind of sound is quite disconcerting. The undercarriage is also 'softy softy'. In the 3rd year, my mechanic outside Toyota had to replace the nut and bolt holding the shaft to the back axle joint. And I am no 4wd man thru and thru. Just the occasional jaunts in the forest of Gua Musang.

I am keeping my fingers cross with my new Single cab, working in my farm....no more auto for me though, at least not on my 4wd. Toyota does build Hilux for tough work but I would stay away from it's auto.It is not robust enough.

Having said that to be fair to Toyota, I did a fair 250k kilometres in 5 years on the previous one, one quarter of the mileage on hills and mud in 4wd mode.


This current single cab, just in 5 months covered 30k kilometres plying between KL and Gua Musang twice a month,  the rest mainly used in permanent 4wd mode ,25 days a month on the hills and in mud . Pretty hardy type of work I must say, but I am worried about the soft undercarriage.


I thot the single cab is spartan  but 4 weeks ago I test drive Sime's pick up Land Rover in PJ...it gave my Toyota an instant 'SUV'  status. Land Rover Defender is  really just not any man's transport. It is a 4wd truck in permanent 4wd mode with an attitude........certainly not for sissies.

Doc man, what say you about Prado.?

grand pa, tell me more about the Defender 110, manual or auto....I am still open to Land Rover as our vehicle for our Transland Journey, especially Phase 2 and Phase 3, where we are doing the Mediterranean/Moroccan/ Libya /Tunisia/Algerian coastline countries followed by the Moscow/Siberia/Vladivostok phase. 

Probably need time to get used to it, the landy I mean, but the rating given by some motor 'analyst'  are quite disturbing........

At the end of the day, my question now is : when I do get down to doing it , do I do it with a 'Jap wannabee' or do I do it with the 'British iconic Land Rover' ?....[.England  by the way, my God !, played like a bunch of sissies in the Euro. They deserve to be booted out! They are just millionaires in boots ]

But of course the Land Rover is another story.

Or should I follow the rest of the crowd and settle for the safe option :
LANDCRUISER, the 1990's type I mean, with 'ZERO'  sophisticated electronics where even Ah Kow in Jerantut or Muthusamy in Mumbai can repair under the tree.

nik howk

....................................................................

click here :
https://www.google.com.my/search?q=land+rover+defender+pictures&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-my:IE-Address&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=eyXxT7vxJoWsrAeMwKy-DQ&ved=0CEUQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=632


....perhaps nothing is more 'romantic' than driving one of these beauties in the desert sand of Morocco. Landrover enthusiasts look for the old 1990's Defender110 with TD5 engines. The present modifcations, using bedford's puma engine, according to them, is 'too' sophiscated for transland journeys !
My God ! This beast make Hilux single cabin feels like an SUV !
...an Hilux single cabin is super tough nut.....a work horse. 

...............................................................

Diary : Choice of Vehicle....

"O mankind! Lo! We have created you from male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that ye may know one another. Lo! the noblest of you, in the sight of Allah, is the best in conduct. Lo! Allah is Knower, Aware."

Pichtal's translation of The Holy Quran, 49 : verse 13

“Home is where the heart is, and my heart is wherever I am at the moment.” — 
Lily Leung

4am, 15th June

Subang Jaya

Tentatively , at our second meeting, Peng,Bab and myself, we have agreed that our transland journey would encompass 4 to 5 phases , stretched over 3 years.

Why 3 years ? We are still'young' and could easily do it all in 6 months ! Wisdom, my friend, wisdom....

Individually, we still have careers even  at this relative 'young age of 60'[ we were classmates together at the Malay College Kuala Kangsar.]. Peng, a professor emeritus, is still active lecturing and consulting in  the rarefied field of paediatrics oncology  at University Malaya Medical campus. An ex-cancer patient himself some 10 years back, it is his way of saying, " Masahallah, Thank you " to HIM. 


Bab, an ex MD CEO of one of important Petronas subsidiary, Pet-Chem, if I am not mistaken, still feels himself vital, and is a wealth of information and wisdom on anything 'Gas' and 'business'...{.but Malaysia being Malaysia, even Canocco, the 4th largest Oil and gas business in the world know 'our discard' is still worth electing to the board...I think you guys know who I am alluding to.. ]

As for myself, I am still happy 'plumbing away' ,day and night, at Sime Darby Medical Centre, and until they have decided that this old chap is no longer able to 'plumb away safely', At present they  think I can still 'pee straight'.
I would continue to do what I know best. Admittedly, we plumbers  do mellow with age. Masahaallah !

Secondly of course we do have families and other interests and 'community responsibilities', so it would be more  interesting  and 'practical to do it  in phases.

'Absence makes the heart grow fonder', they say. 
Intermittent 'absense ' I would add, invigorated by new sights, sounds and experience, make us better parents, fathers and husbands.


The beast, 1960's Toyota FJ 40
click here :
http://expeditiongallery.blogspot.com/2011/06/toyota-land-cruiser.html


Phase 1
Kuala Lumpur London via Burma [ hopefully they open up their border by August 2013], India , Nepal, Pakistan [ a fast one thru Pakistan insayaallah !],,,thru to cross Kyber Pass to part of Southern China, on to Iran, Turkey, Bulgaria, Croatia, Bosnia, Germany, Switzerland, France, Holland...and London.
We will go at pedestrian pace and probably 2 months would be enough.....[ Peng, you to check out on the National Geographic, on sights and views that are to be visited along the way]. Then garaged our vehicle somewhere in France.


Land Rovers: The later production , according to enthusiast have too much electronics, unlike the Series 2 Land Rovers and the 1980's with Tdi engine.
Current Dfenders are powered by 2.4 turbo diesel puma Duratorq engine. A computer failure in Gobi Desert would be the end of your transport !
click here:
http://expeditiongallery.blogspot.com/2011/06/commercial-land-rover-defender.html

Phase 2
[probably late 2013 or early 2014]
We do the Muslim Conquest route in the reverse order,
Andalusian Cordoba and Serville, cross over to Morocco, Tunisia, Libya [ Nato insyaallah would be  out of Libya by then and some semblance of peace prevail insyaallh after they have finished with the Libyans !], Algeria, Egypt, Syria [ same expectation ], and finally Turkey, ending in Istanbul.

Phase 3
[sometime in mid 2014]
From Turkey, we go to the Stan's, backtrack to Moscow and do the trans-Siberian across Russia up to Vladisvostok, Beijing, Hanoi Vientiane, Bangkok and finally KL.

Phase 4
Crossover by ferry to Medan, Sumatera and drive northward to Bandar Acheh and from there southward to Jakarta, Bali, Timor, and crossover to Darwin by ferry . Drive via Alice Spring down to Adelaide, Tasmania, crossover to Auckland, Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound, right down to Invercargill.

What have I missed ?
Africa from Cape Town to Egypt !
We need some armoury training with some Ak45....
If we are still around, yes Africa, why not.

...and the Americas. That would require another lifetime perhaps at our age...
Next agenda, the million ringgit question is WHICH VEHICLE ?
I have already got my Hilux single cabin which I can co-drive with my son..
Bastamam suggested a landcruiser, an old secondhand for both of you.
I think a 4.2 litre one would be ideal but that would push up your diesel/petrol bill.
What about a 1997 Prado ?
Doc Man can perhaps give his experience with a Prado 1997......Doc Man , give us your input on your Prado please....and I am still waiting for you to say , " Yes , I will join you guys ! "


...................................................................
click here :
http://www.google.com.my/search?q=landcruiser+fj40&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-my:IE-Address&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=pRvxT8WaCsborAfS34y-DQ&ved=0CFoQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=632


1960's Landcruiser FJ40, my dream vehicle for transland journey....4.2 litre of raw power!........'zero electronics', Ah Kow and Mat Stapo can tinker around in their 'Under the tree' garages. Rarely seen in Peninsula Malaysia



The Beast of transland journey, 1980,s 4.2 litre Landcruiser 80
click here :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaIJfNKAnhU&feature=related

The Beast ! Even Muthusamy in Mumbai or Ah Kow in Jerantut can repair.
But Malaysian road tax can be almost a quarter of the cost of the vehicles!

...........................................................................
doc man,

Diary : when it all began...........

"Lo! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the difference of night and day, and the ships which run upon the sea with that which is of use to men, and the water which Allah sendeth down from the sky, thereby reviving the earth after its death, and dispersing all kinds of beasts therein, and (in) the ordinance of the winds, and the clouds obedient between heaven and earth: are signs (of Allah's Sovereignty) for people who have sense."
Pickthal's translation of The Holy Quran, 2 : verse 164 

“Bizarre travel plans are dancing lessons from God.” – Kurt Vonnegut


3am, 20th May,
Subang Jaya


It all started with a religious polemical argument within my fellow form-mates in MCKK [ class of 69 ] in the jubileeintan69 website.
Two chaps were almost getting too hot under the collar over some 'ranting' issues, the usual 'purist'  vs 'traditional'.

I interjected and suggested we discuss a possible Kuala Lumpur- London drive instead to 'defuse' the hot situation.
Two weeks later saw myself, Peng[ an oncological paediatrics consultant from UH, semiretired, survived cancer of colon ], Bab [ ex Petronas ] and three others brainstorming on this [ Jed, Deng and Bastamam ].

Driving to London at 60 !!??
As usual with most Malaysian style  brainstorming session, we had teh tarik to 'warm up' the neurons , then gulp in a couple of roti canais, followed by a full plateful of  mee mamak. Then , and only a 'much later' then , the 'storm', sans the brains..........

Talk about 'crazy' people, we do have a lot of them coming from MCKK, at least during my time I was there.....that is why we have such thing as BERSIH  now. Restless souls, semiretarded childhood , a preamble to a delayed protracted adolescence  coalescing into late adulthood !!
But we are certainly no  'sissies' from VI or St John like our friend NTR .......
[ NTR was definitely not MCKK of course, not like his late dad... Otherwise he would not be so 'takut2' as he is now. Everyone in and out of Amenu knows his problem, but the typical' lallang' he is, he is not reading in between the lines and still  waiting for someone else to 'bersih' his problem ! My God ! Once a 'lallang', always a 'lallang' ! Must be in the water they serve at St John or VI. No wonder they always lost in Rugby to even RMC .]


We are doing the KL- London drive sometime next year, probably August after Eid. We agreed on a possible route driving thru Myanmar[ hopefully Myammar opens up its border by then], Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Pakistan [  Osama Ben Laden's Abottabad, Quetta etc etc] and on to Iran via the Kyber Pass, then Turkey. From Turkey onwards it would very 'light and easy' heading for Europe and London, via Bulgaria, Slovenia, Serbia and Croatia, Bavaria and Switzerland. My initial plan for leaving on the eve of Ramadan and doing the Umrah and Eid in Makkah midway was shot down .Bab and Peng were unfortunately not 'mad' enough. 


We reckoned 2 months would be ideal for us to be able to pack in visits to some World Heritage spots and towns along the way.I will drive my Hilux single cabin with the help of my 2 boys, while Peng and Bab plus minus wife will probably in between them secure an old Landcruiser Prado. We plan to 'camp' as much as we can along the way. On  'breaking camp' in London we would go our separate ways. If Bab's and Peng's Prado is still intact by then they will ship it back to KL. Plan B would be to sell it as scrap iron in East London.So far my other classmates are not yet 'mad' enough to 'want to join us'.


I have my very own plan B and plan C : will drive down to Florence and leave my Hilux there with my son in law and daughter who is currently looking after Malaysia's 'durian plantation'  owned by Petronas there.
Some eight months later, after doing some decent work in my hospital back in KL, I would take a two month break and do the 'Muslim Conquest' route in the reverse direction:
Serville, Cordoba, Gibraltar, Tangier, Casablanca, Tripoli , etc and etc and finally Cairo. That would be , insyaallah the 2nd phase.

Godwilling , in late 2014, plan C would be  a trans-Siberian cross to Vladivostok from Moscow and the Stans in the West. This would require a wee bit more of ' mind over matter doa  and zikr' as this is basically no man's land. Insyaallah.
'Angan2 orang tua'.


My plan B. click here :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6dmIyaSSBA&feature=related


..and if Peng and Bab  are still quite game and crazy enough we will, insyaallah, proceed to plan C,
click here :


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXZJAbMyWV4&feature=fvwrel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_2LmfFz_uw&feature=relmfu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxL9Z4z83tg&feature=relmfu  ,

I doubt Yang Ariff  Datuk Alizatul , who most probably has more sense than all the three of us all added together, would not veto 'Peng' into joining us at least for plan C.
I definitely can reassure Yang Ariff Datuk that plan A is basically 'no sweat' insyaallah. It is just as easy and breezy as a drive from Kuala Lumpur to Kuala Teganun, x50 of course....we will have 'kerepok lekor in London's Malaysia Hall, insyaallah. Yang Ariff can perhaps take her time off from her busy Hall of Justice's schedule, and join us for a spot of 'chopping' at Oxford Street's Selfridge, courtesy of Malaysia Airlines of course.