London to Brighton Bike Ride

Last month I participated in an event to cycle 54miles (86km) from London to Brighton. It was a charity event for the British Heart Foundation.

The company I work for partially sponsored 70 of us for the event. I was lucky to be shortlisted last minute - two weeks before the event! At first, I wasn't sure if I was going to represent the company, so I didn't prepare for the race. I didn't have a regimented training like I had for the marathon nor a proper bike to go long distance. Two weeks weren't enough to prepare for the event. So I went with my mountain bike. It proved to be a struggle riding 54 miles!

Three of us from the same office

27,000 cyclists participated in the ride. We started at different times at Clapham Common. Of the 70, three of us were from the same office. We made prior arrangements to meet up and start together. Well, we did start together but ended up breaking off as soon as the ride started.

Start line

Greg who was on a hybrid bike was "technologically" more superior than us. And my colleague admitted defeat to me right from the warm up session. There was no way we could keep up with each other even before the race. So we agreed to meet up at the finishing line.

A red bus got caught in the middle of us

The ride was more difficult but also more fun than I expected. People and bikes came in all shapes and sizes. There were as many road bikes as there were mountain and folding bikes. Yes, plenty of Bromptons too!

I was a little jittery when I first started because (1) I didn't prepare for the race and (2) I have never cycled more than 25miles in my life!

However, after 10miles into the race, I gathered enough confidence to finish the race. Halfway through, I had a flat tyre. I went to the official bike mechanic for a tube replacement. I am glad I brought a spare tube or I would be in trouble as I didn't have cash with me to buy one.

The mechanic replaced the tube in less than 5 minutes!

The most difficult part of the race was Ditchling Beacon. Cyclists must ride up a winding and steep road for more than 2km before flattening off. This part reminded me of the steepest climbs at Genting Highlands. A colleague challenged me to ride up Ditchling Beacon without getting off the bike. I took up the challenge and proved myself worthy. The bike computer at one point showed "2 mph"! People who pushed their bikes were faster than me. Many cyclists didn't bother struggling up to the peak. My head nearly exploded from asphyxiation!

Climbing Ditchling Beacon

At the peak of Ditchling Beacon

The road after Ditchling Beacon was the best part. It was all the way down to Brighton. The descend was so steep I hit a top speed of 40mph. Don't forget I was only on a mountain bike. It was a dangerous phase of the race. Some people lost control and crashed at high speed. The consequences must be dire.

The last 2 miles to the finishing line was a pain. We had to abide traffic rules and there were no preferential treatment to cyclists even though the event was for us! We were directed to use the cycle lanes. The traffic lights slowed our progress tremendously. We even had to stop for pedestrians to cross! The traffic jam created by us from road closures didn't help either.

Finally when I crossed the finishing line, I couldn't wait for it to be over. I just didn't want to sit on a bike seat anymore. My back and bottom was aching like mad!

I breathed a sigh of relief that I managed to cover 54miles and reached Brighton in one piece. My time was 5hours 10mins. Nothing to shout about.

At the finish line

The company booked the entire terrace of a luxury hotel to celebrate our arrival. We were fed lots of food and drinks. We had the best view of Brighton and its famous pier from where we were. The party must have cost us a bomb! Still it was a befitting welcome for us who just couldn't be asked to travel any further.

Celebration at the hotel terrace overlooking the iconic Brighton Pier

The best thing for me this time, about doing the ride is not about breaking new limits and getting a medal for it, but knowing that I have overcame the anxiety, fear of uncertainty and challenges of the Ditchling Beacon because of wanting to pedal and make a difference to someone's heart and life.

Rest in peace, Michael Jackson

I was on the news channel on Thursday night while working on two assignments. At 10.30pm British time, BBC news paused for a breaking news. They said Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital and that he wasn't breathing. 10 minutes later, a footnote wrote "TMZ: Michael Jackson dies".

I stopped my work and immediately called my brother and friends in Malaysia. It was 5.40am in Malaysia and I woke them up from their sleep. I didn't care as I was shocked.

People in my generation know MJ. We grew up listening to him. For me, I remember Billie Jean most because it was the first song that I came to know MJ.

Early this year when tickets to attend one of his 50 gigs in London was up for sale, I set my alarm to wake up early and queued for the tickets. I couldn't get a ticket in the end because the server crashed. So I told myself to buy it off Ebay nearer the time. Now I do not have to worry about it anymore.

MJ was a great artist. His talent was unsurpassed. He was one of the few artists whose music grew with the technologies of our time - from the days of cassette tape to CD and to downloadable music files now.

He is a legend. There will never be another Michael Jackson in our lifetime. This is exactly what kept me moody these couple of days. I engaged in conversations, see and listen to chat shows that was close or had anything to do with MJ. It was a great antidote to feeling depressed.

It's strange. I am not a big fan of MJ, yet his departure has left me feeling upset. I felt more upset when I heard people bringing up his past on child molestation charges and race inferiority. To me, I don't know if these allegations were true but neither do they.

It's shocking how much energy people waste paying attention to rubbish allegations and not on what is real and proven i.e his talent, struggle to get airtime for black music in the 80s and 90s, highest number of albums sold in history and the positive messages in his songs. Or even if nothing good could be said about him, for goodness sake, shut up and leave him alone, he's already dead!

People cry and scream in concerts not because of his alleged wrongdoings. People cry and scream because of how he touched their lives. Now people of all races and nationalities come together to mourn for his death. His death has united the world.

Now I feel old. After the passing of MJ, talking about him reminds me of how my parents used to talk about Elvis Presley. I am sure people in my generation will always associate MJ to the great music legend of our time.

RIP Michael Jackson.

London's Mitsukoshi

Mitsukoshi is one of Japan's upmarket departmental stores like the in-between of Marks and Spencer and Selfridges. I would say it's more Selfridges than M&S.


To Malaysians, Mitsukoshi is like the Isetan. In fact, both of these stores have merged under one management last year.

In London, Mitsukoshi is tucked away at the southern end of Regent Street. Unless you go looking for it, the store can exist but stay unnoticed forever.

Last week I went to check out the store. To my surprise, a large proportion of the customers were Japanese. The sales assistants were mostly Japanese and greet "Japanese looking" customers in their language. The entire building were even signposted in Japanese! One would never have guessed I took these photos in London:

And as usual, even the translated English is unpolished

I felt like I was in Japan again. The customer service counter also mimicked the Mitsukoshi stores in Japan.

This place is catered for Japanese tourists wanting to buy European branded products especially British ones like the Burberry and Aquascutum.

Mostly Japanese tourists

Burberry displayed like a cheap brand here! What a mockery!

At first it didn't make sense. The items were not any cheaper and sales not any better. Why would people want to buy their Burberry in a small store like that?

Japanese flock here to get their branded goods

Japan is one of the most homogeneous countries in the world. That's why you can never find such a mix like an "Indian Japanese" or "British Japanese". Japanese look and talk the same. And when it comes to foreign language, they'd struggle. When the tourists in Mitsukoshi started communicating in Japanese with the sales assistants, it became clear that the only reason Mitsukoshi existed is for Japanese to shop in an environment which they can understand and be understood.

Unless there is a revolution to communication technology where a device is able to capture and translate the language of the speaker into the ears of the listener a language they can understand and vice versa, this is how Japanese tourists will shop and this is how Japanese stores will have their customers in a foreign country.

Trooping the Colour

The Queen has been the figure of unity in Great Britain.

The monarchy is the heart and core of the country's political system. 76% of the population are still in favour of the monarchy after the Queen. The British love and revere the royal family.

Yesterday was the "Trooping the Colour" in honour of the Queen's 83rd birthday. It is a custom of over 200 years old where members of the royal family and the public gather to celebrate this day.

The flag indicating the Queen is in

Initially I thought calling it Trooping the Colour was quite a misnomer because it didn't quite describe about the Queen or her birthday or anything near at all. It would have sounded much better as "The Queen's Birthday Parade"; simple and straightforward.

However, Trooping the Colour was never meant to be a celebration of the Queen's birthday. Based on history, it was an enactment of the traditional preparations for battle when the colours, or flags, were ''trooped'' down the ranks so that they would be seen and recognised by the soldiers. Hence, "Trooping the Colour". But there are no more battles to be fought in modern times, so this is now celebrated as the Queen's birthday.

I watched two-thirds of the pageantry on TV and walked over to Buckingham Palace towards the close of the event to see it live. I knew there would be a fly-past of vintage and modern fighters based on last year's experience.

Fly-past at Buckingham Palace

It was very crowded at St James' Park, a stone's throw from Buckingham Palace. When I arrived facing the palace, I just made it to catch a glimpse of the Queen. She was about to leave the Palace Gate and make her way into the building.

Queen making her way into the Palace after the final salute

Then she appeared from the balcony with the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip. They greeted the public and were reciprocated with a loud cheer and applause from us.


Princes Charles, William and Harry joined in from behind. Camilla was beside Prince Charles. More members of the royal family joined in.

I was really excited because this was the first time I've come so near and meet so many members of the royal family in one place. It was also the first time I met Princess Anne and the younger Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice. I am glad I had my camera with me at the time and managed to get many close-up shots.

Princes Charles, William and Harry joined in

Members of the royal family

The event closed with the royal bands playing the national anthem "God save the Queen".

Tube strike

Imagine the crowd twice the size of Kuala Lumpur's population or 35x the capacity of Bukit Jalil stadium descended upon the streets of KL. Absolute chaos!

That was exactly what happened in London this morning. The tube was not running and will remain so until Friday morning because of an industrial action taken by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) workers .

The first unusual tube update I received yesterday evening

As a result, commuters had to walk, take the bus or taxi, drive to work or cycle.

People walking to work at the Southbank

Many people cycled to work too

The strike was in response to a breakdown in talks between the tube bosses and union leaders. The union was demanding that the tube bosses assure them that there'd be no compulsory redundancy in this time of uncertainty. In this day and age, this must be the biggest joke I've ever heard.

The recession is bound to cause some job losses and everyone is at risk of being made redundant. None of us can be assured of our jobs. So what makes these tube workers any more special than us who are equally fearful of our jobs or those who have already lost their jobs due to the recession? I simply cannot see their point.

People forced to drive today causing a gridlock in London

If anything, they are punishing the wrong people. Passengers are the victims.

The tube strike hasn't affected me in any way because I cycle to work. If I may be selfish, I wish it could be like this everyday so that more people will switch to cycling and provide a strong case for City Hall to provide better and safer cycle routes for Londoners.