I never planned nor dreamt that I would own a holiday villa in Bali. So how did the unimaginable happen ? One day my good friend Eddy Hor told me that he is developing some villas in Bali and asked if I would be interested in buying a unit. Based on his plan, I looked up the site in Google Maps and found out that the proposed location seemed to be a patch of rice field! Surely this was a risky situation, would Eddy’s development succeed ? To get a better picture of the project, I decided to fly to Bali to see the site for myself and also took the opportunity to tour this famous island for the first time.
On reaching the villa site, I saw fields of rice and a few luxurious looking villas next to the fields. Then I realized that most of the luxury villas in Seminyak are not situated on the busy main road but are hidden at the quiet side lanes. Futhermore, Seminyak is the top choice of Australian and European tourists. I told myself that I should buy a unit.
While touring Bali, I realized that Bali had more than enough interesting places and things to do to fill a week-long stay. There is Kintamani, a live volcano with beautiful scenery, unlike any seen at home. On the way, browse through paintings, fine wood handicraft and pure silverware, enjoy the Barung Dance and Kopi Luwak (a most expensive coffee). Ubud is an ancient town with a royal palace and modern boutiques - also try the Dirty Duck and Babi Guling (roasted piglet). Tanah Lot, a temple on a big rock in the sea is not to be missed. Also Uluwatu, a century -old temple on the cliff and Tampak Siring with its holy spring water. And many more places. Only then did I make up my mind to buy one of Eddy’s villa.
It took Eddy 12 months to complete all 6 units. Eddy named the group of Villas “ The Jas Villas” also known as “Jas Villas Bali” and we opened for business on 1st Sept 2010. I went on the 3rd day after the opening with my friends – there were 4 families, all together 14 of us. We stayed four nights in 3 Villas, one of which was mine. All of them, myself included were very happy with the finishing, the layout & design of the villas. I am quite confident that tourists who stay in our villas will get be very pleased – it is a 5-star experience at 3-star prices.
If one were to look up the location of the Villas in Google Map, you will realize that a 3-minute walk will take you to some high class Japanese, French, Western as well as local restaurants along the main road of Jalan Laksamana(Oberoi) which is now known as Jalan Kayu Ayu. There are also a few International boutique shops. Seminyak Square is another 2-minute walk from the restaurants. For those who like water sports, the Seminyak/Petitenget Beach is only 15 minutes away. The beach is ideal for water surfing with Denpasar Airport at the far left hand side as back ground.
Renting a car with a driver from 8.00am – 5.00pm, ranges from USD50-65 for a small car inclusive of fuel, whereas for a bigger, more comfortable car it is USD90-120. Renting a motorbike with an attached surfing board holder is also available at relatively low rental.
Anyone interested in seeing our Villas, please feel free to click on http://www.jasvillasbali.com for more details.

A Matter of 10 Cents

May 1972. A few months after my Form Five exams, the much awaited letter finally arrived. I felt so excited that the Singapore Police Force had approved my application and was calling me for an interview. But I was also very worried because I had no money to buy the train ticket to Singapore.

While I was thinking of how to get the money, my friend Kian Hong came and told me that he had received a letter calling him for an interview with the Royal Malaysian Armed Forces in Kuala Lumpur as a cadet officer. His interview was a week earlier than mine and he could afford to buy the train ticket to Kuala Lumpur.

On the day that he was to board the train to KL, I fetched him on my bicycle from my hometown, Sg.Lalang in Kedah to the Bidong train station, four kilometers away. We said goodbye and as I sadly pushed my bicycle out of the railway station I saw a 10-cents coin lying on the road. Of course I picked it up but I knew that this amount of money was way too little to buy a train ticket.

The next morning I woke up still worrying about how to buy my ticket. As I got up I happen to see a “three-digit directory” (the pink book which match 3-ekor numbers to certain things or events) . I took it up and flipped through it when I suddenly saw a sketch of a person sending someone to the train station. It reminded me of sending Kian Hong to the railway station yesterday. And so I used that 10-cents to buy the number 583 since 10-cents couldn’t contribute anything to the twenty plus dollars needed for my ticket.

I could hardly believe it when that number actually striked first prize that evening. I won about sixty-two dollars !! I had enough for the ticket and also some pocket-money! But Mother let me keep just enough for the ticket and took the rest, telling me I could ask my brother in Singapore for pocket money when I got there.

So I finally got to Singapore, went for the interview and was accepted. But Uncle in Singapore disagreed and would not allow me to join the Police. So I sat around doing nothing but reading advertisements in the newspaper looking for another job. I applied to a socks factory and was accepted to be an apprentice technician. I was fascinated with the machines that made socks and so began my career in the socks industry.

A Matter of A Pair of Socks

“Can I have a pair of socks for the New Year? This New Year can I get a pair of socks?” A week or two before the Chinese New Year, I would be asking my mother and grandmother the same question many times, hoping one of them would finally say yes.

I wanted a pair of socks to wear during the Chinese New Year but much more than that I wanted a pair of socks to wear to school. Not all the students wore socks and I wanted to be one of those who did.

It was on the eve of the Chinese New Year that Grandmother finally took me to the shop-that-sold-everything in my little kampong and bought me one pair of very new and very white socks. I was so happy. For the rest of the year, I wore this one pair of socks to school. Of course with time, they became yellowish, then brownish and then the elastic also gave way. But still I wore them to school – with rubber bands to hold them up!

And so every Chinese New Year, I would beg my mother and grandmother for one new pair of socks. But when I started secondary school, I did not ask for socks anymore – because it was compulsory to wear socks to school, my mother bought a pair for me when the school year started.

Now forty something years later, I have so many pairs of socks because I am manufacturer. If I were to wear and throw away a new pair each day (of course I won't) I would still have plenty left. As I put on one pair, I remember how precious my very first pair of socks was.