KL to hold back-to-back summits

Published in the New Straits Times on 30 June 2004

  

Fortune telling over lunch!

I’ve just had the most delightful 2-hour lunch break.

My colleague took me out to Gloria Jeans in KLCC. I don’t normally like their coffee, but he wanted to smoke and he didn’t want Starbucks. Dome is always far too busy and Chinoz… that really wasn’t an option. The latte was OK and I had a hot chocolate tart (yes, that was lunch!) - and that was actually very, very good. The pastry was soft and buttery and the dark chocolate filling oozed out as you cut through it. It’s not the best chocolate pastry I’ve ever had, but it was quite good. Recommended.

After a whole week of digusting haze, the weather was surprisingly good today. The sky was a clear bright blue, of the sort you normally see in temperate climates and beautiful photography but rare in Malaysia. We sat by the side entrance to Isetan and therefore felt not only the wind blowing outside, but also the air-conditioning from inside. I haven’t felt this relaxed in weeks…

I wandered around Isetan after lunch, while my colleague went to Kinokuniya. As I was walking around, talking on the mobile, I spied a tarot reader under the escalators on the basement level of Isetan!

Now… as you know… I’m already predisposed to such things. Not only am I an avid fan of Cainer, I also read the tarot. The problem with reading tarot is that it’s quite difficult to read for yourself, as you can imagine. You have too big a vested interest to interprete the cards as you want it, rather than as it is. So when I chanced upon this tarot reader, the bulb in my head lit up!

Now, the thing I’ve noticed about fortune telling is that the chance “encounters”, rather than the premeditated ones, somehow, usually always prove to be more interesting/useful/telling. And when I saw that this lady was only charging MYR33 a reading, I was sold!

She uses tarot, but she reinforces her reading with some palm-reading where necessary. She also relies heavily on her intuition (otherwise also known as spiritual powers). She’s from Taiwan, so her English is a bit funny, but you’d probably understand her. However, if you speak Mandarin, I’m sure that would work out better for her. Her name is Ms Chueh and she will be in Isetan until 07 July 2004 only. After that she says she’ll be in Bukit Bintang, but I’m not sure where or for how long. She did say she shuttles between Taiwan and Malaysia. I have her mobile number if you want to contact her.

For the MYR33, she offerred either a general reading or a specific question-driven one in one area of your life. I chose to ask about my career/work. I wouldn’t go into details - this, after all, is quite private - but suffice to say that I think she’s quite good. I was pleased with what I got out of it. She’s probably not the best in the world, but certainly a lot better than some of the fortune tellers I’ve consulted in my lifetime. I would definitely recommend her, especially at this price.

As with most such consultations, you’d probably get better “value” if you actually had questions to ask. I find that most readers, myself included, would generally not offer to say too much unless you press them. The logic, at least for me, is that you would ask questions if you were ready for the knowledge/information and unless you are ready, it’s probably not a good idea to burden you with things you do not need to know.

If you do go and consult, I’d be interested to know what you think of her.

And if you know of other “good” fortunte tellers out there, let me (and everyone else) know!

  

More offers to host East Asia summit

Published on page 22 of the 29 June 2004 edition of the Star newspaper. Taken from here.

  

So much for the Spratly Islands accord

Published on Asia Times Online on 26 June 2004. Taken from here.

  

East Asia ties keep region vital

Published in the Sunday Star on 27 June 2004.