Last Saturday must have been one of the craziest Saturdays I’ve had in a while.
Surprisingly, it didn’t even involve a single drip alcohol.
Few people may know about this, but 42 years ago Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand got together and said, “Yo man, whassup? We be startin’ a GANG yo!”
And thus ASEAN was born.
From that day onwards, every 8th August was designated ASEAN Day.
The head honcho of ASEAN is this Thai guy named Dr Surin.
He’s that important-looking one in the middle.
This year, he decided to take the ASEAN Day celebrations to new heights. He meant that literally.
Dr Surin wanted to take his team of diplomats to visit several capital cities on ASEAN Day, so he enlisted the help of Tony Fernandes, who gave him this fully sick blinged up ride for a day.
Diplomats appear in the news all the time, but I always wondered what they actually do. Apart from acting important and diplomatic all the time.
Lucky I was invited to the ASEAN Day celebration as a guest of AirAsia.
Because I got my own cabin crew for a day. Hot damn.
Wish I could have them everyday.
From then on, I followed Dr Surin and had a glimpse into his life as a diplomat.
I flew into Jakarta from Kuching the night before, and the group of us started our celebrations very early in the morning at the ASEAN headquarters.
The flag was raised and the song was sung. Immediately, we were scooted off to the airport where our chartered flight was already waiting for us.
It was the first time I’ve ever crossed the immigration counter using the express lane reserved for diplomats. Makes me feel important. Makes me feel bad also for ‘cos I’m not a very diplomatic person.
From Jakarta, our flight scooted off to Kuala Lumpur, where the AirAsia boss was on hand to welcome us.
This is a photo of me and a very distracted Tony Fernandes.
He was probably laughing at someone telling a stupid MAS joke.
It was awesome meeting Tony Fernandes again though. We talked about the airport situation, and I also told him about my ‘secret project’. He was very supportive of it, even invited me over to the AirAsia Academy to see how they do it.
Our former deputy prime minister (no, not Anwar. The other one) was nice enough to receive us at the airport.
This is Tony playing his toy with Tun Musa Hitam.
Tony Fernandes: “Wheeeee eeekk ekk chkkkk chkkk TRANSFORMERS!”
Musa Hitam: “Piang piang piang! You lose! HEE HEE HEE!”
After lunch at the LCCT, we hopped on the plane once again.
This time, we’re off to Bangkok to visit someone very very VERY important. Someone so important that we had to travel to meet him in this Ah Beng zhng-ed up bus.
Dun pway pway ok got green light somemore.
So who’s this very important person that we’re meeting in Bangkok?
The Prime Minister of Thailand.
Yes, yes, I KNOW what you girls thinking. All the females at my table were thinking the same thing as well.
Calm down lah. I know he’s young and good-looking and all that. But he’s the freaking Prime Minister of Thailand ok? Not some MTV VJ.
Please behave yourselves.
Even I have to admit the Thai Prime Minister is so damn cool. Looking at him, I wonder why my own country’s Prime Minister cannot be as cool.
Off the top of my head, here are three reasons why the Thai PM Abhisit is cooler than our Malaysian PM Najib.
1. Abhisit sounds like Absinthe. Najib sounds like Nazi.
2. Abhisit has no gray hair. Najib has totally no hair.
3. Abhisit led angry people to protest and overthrow his previous government. Najib overthrew Perak and made people so angry they protested.
It was only appropriate that he received a portrait of himself in honour of his participation in ASEAN Day.
Check out that portrait of him posing so yau-yeng.
I wonder where he’s gonna hang it. If it were me, I’ll put it up in my bathroom so that every morning when I wake up, I can go, “Yo Abhisit. You looking too daaaaamn good, man!”
Throughout this whole entire journey, I realised one thing about being a diplomat.
As a diplomat, you must be able to eat lot. And I do mean A LOT.
My entire journey, they’ve just been feeding us like crazy. We had breakfast in Jakarta, lunch in KL, dinner in Bangkok.
It started at our hotel in Jakarta, where I had a full Indonesian breakfast. I thought we might have a long day ahead, so silly me whent and stuffed my face at the buffet tables.
Big mistake.
Barely ten minutes later, we were at the ASEAN Headquarters. God forbid diplomats get thirsty. More ‘refreshments’ were served.
When we took it to the skies, AirAsia thought those diplomats might get hungry during the 2 hour flight.
Solution: Free in-flight food for everyone!
We touched down at the LCCT airport in KL.
What did we saw? A whole suite of Malaysian food sitting there waiting for us.
Straight after lunch, we got back in the plane. This time, to Bangkok.
Tony Fernandes was afraid we might hungry, so he ordered the crew to bring out more food.
Tony Fernandes: “FOOD. FOOD! MOVE IT MOVE IT NOW!”
By this time, we were so bloody freaking full that we couldn’t even walk. When we landed, we had to ROLL ourselves out of the plane to meet the Thai Prime Minister.
Of course, as PM of the country, he ain’t gonna let his guests go back hungry. So?
Plates after plates of prawns! And fish! And dessert!
Instead of three meals a day, we got seven.
Life sure is good being foreign diplomat.
To top it off, the final dish was a piece of dark chocolate with gold leaf on top.
Damn. At the rate this is going, ASEAN should be renamed Association of Super EAting Nutcases.
Music of the week: Lost Without Your Love by Amy Pearson.
It’s clear from the title that this is one of those lovey-dovey emo songs. You know, the kind that only lovey-dovey couples or emo singles like me will like.
me first commenter
and i wannaa a diplomatic eater
so that the whole world wont suffer from hunger anymore
malaysians will live as leaders of asia
woo hoo
i also want to be a diplomatic eater..
hehe…
traveling to 3 places in 1 day.. FREE somemore!
what an experience! 😀
Lucky Kenny!
Lucky you! I’d like to eat that much too!
picture no. 5 – is cool –
wow – with the airasia crew –
shiok man —
you are the popular blogger can do this –
3. Abhisit led angry people to protest and overthrow his previous government. Najib overthrew Perak and made people so angry they protested.
LOLOLOOOL
Being a diplomat, eat a lot and doesn’t look obese. Tell us the secret. 😛
i bet the bus have hydraulic absorbers & ‘dance’ hip hop
Kenny,I saw your Google Maps pin at Bangsar Village!!! Dayum cool man!
That’s awesome! Wish I could eat that much a day. At least, it’s free, isn’t it?
Wow…so many hot cabin crews accompany you during the flight!!! If I were you, I sure cant sleep that night…Lols~
LOL….now i know ASEAN means that…
Don’t you think the Thai Prime Minister Abhisit looks a bit like Chow Yun-Fatt in his God of Gamblers form?
Wah…lucky you Kenny…
Eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat
I think the stomachs of the diplomats are like Jughead from The Archies “Bottomless Pits”…
Wow, a lot of hot crew with you. 🙂
What did we saw as what did we see 🙂
lol. u’r so lucky to have such a once in a lifetime opportunity..
kenny wanna b my bf ? 🙂
Lol!!
Did you Ta Pao??
Cool dude kenny!! love u lots!!
wah.. eat so much..
run 100km marathon also cannot slim down d… =P
goddamit kenny, you are so lucky!
i am willing to skip my Uni’s convocation if I were to get an invite like this..
world is in a depression and what do people do? fly around all day in a plane.. whoop dee doo priorities..
Didn’t our government say we should change our spending habits to cope with the economic downturn? Guess they would have flown MAS if it wasn’t for the economy huh..
no mood to continue reading when saw some pretty girls with kenny again >.
its like living in a rich world,going to different places to have food and enjoying the flights and journey all in one day. to be able to meet so many primes ministers and tony the boss himself is just once in a lifetime opportunity (or maybe twice/thrice for you). you really are famous now… ^__^
ARE you secretly in love with kenny, hence you jealous
it’s nice being famous and knowing well-known and well-established people.. you get privileges, just like this! you’re one lucky guy, kenny.. =)
kenwooi.com
Lucky is one thing.. guess your hard work on the blog paid off too eh.. nice work.
it sure is nice get to travel and eat like that…
and thai prime minister is really cool. at least he don’t need a blog to look cool…
he is cool just like that. =)
Wow, Air Asia may have the most uncomfortable seats known to man, but they have the hottest stewardesses, hands down. Me like.
and yeah. i like that music “lost without your love- amy pearson”
WHY CAN SO LENG CHAI ONE!!!!!! (not you la keju)
hey kenny, you gotta stop eating…do you realise that you look FAT in your pictures these days…
This post is the best among all.. I couldnt stop laughing especially the bottomless tummy one malaysian has to have..
lol roll out of planes….
kenny u do not nid to eat a lot oso can roll out of plane already…
ahhh.. so short the post. make it longer. i crave for more. it’s damn interesting. what else? what else? i bet you have more to tell us. come on kenny, don’t be shy!!!!
looking nyummyyyyyy!
one of the nicer post in recent months… i like this one… esp the comparison… u make the journey sounded so funny and entertaining as we read. thanks.
I wouldn’t mind to be the eater. lol! Eh, you look thinner! 😀
P/s : Abhisit is damn hawt! Ever since he was elected as PM, i’ve always love reading Thai news – with him in picture of course. lol. But nowadays always come out with Thaksin again 🙁
I wouldn’t mind to be the eater. lol! Eh, you look thinner! 😀
P/s : Abhisit is damn hawt! Ever since he was elected as PM, i’ve always love reading Thai news – with him in picture of course. lol. But nowadays always come out with Thaksin again 🙁
wow, 7 meals a days, so enjoy~~ or torturing??????
what’s your secret project?? a visit to Air Asia academy?? or get to pilot the plane???
Wow, Jealous~ man
btw, since when Airasia recruit so many lenglui ~ 😛
the last picture.. gold leaf T_T..that awesome..how it taste like ,Kenny?
seriously kenny, sometimes u just make us feel like strangling u out of jealousy for all these privileges u r enjoying… 😛
Nothing to be happy and proud of this Asian Day Celebration!
You should suggest to stop extravagance and donate the food and money to hunger countries in Africa…doing humanitarian supplies. And it is also good for your health of not to get “Sickness of Prosperities”
My god, no wonder most of them have perut buncit… :))
Kenny, you weight increase to???
waaaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaah waaaaaaaah waaaaaaaah
yerr… u always got gold shit oops sheet to eat one!!! jealous >.
such a priviledge! to travel with the important and meet the important! to dine with PM of countries. Man, I envy your position.
You have to come to realise that your blog has become a rather important medium to convey messages to a very mass crowd from all countries and walks of lives.
i have, seen many and leant many things thru your blog. thanks
Incredible trip, you must be really enjoying it.
Don’ worry Kenny. If you have the numbers for each of the AirAsia cabin crew, those massive calories gain would be gone in no time!
9cabin crews. 9days.
don worry you can always work it all off at “the gym”
Hi Kenny nice to know you in person ^^
Another great post.
Thanks for writing your experience as a “diplomat”.
It’s good in-sight from your point of view.
Hi there, you must have heard about the Marathon Runner found dead at Shah Alam Stadium… The cause of his death is *dehydration*, however we believe that perhaps the real cause of his death is negligent… Please visit http://justiceforgaryrobert.webs.com/ to know the real truth behind his death..
p/s we know you are a experience marathon runner.
i have extra mtv world stage tickets!!
anyone wants??
Totally cool~~~ lucky you…enjoy every second of it!
OMG.. Oh behave! My sentiments exactly.. As if he’s not hawt enough, you have to put Najib’s photo next to his!
erm..It’s not true that Abhishit led angry people to protest to overthrow the government. But he managed to calm down angry people who were protesting against his government.
By the way, he’s an Oxford graduate and of course he sounds better than Najib.
haha yea,Thai PM is so handsome compared to our PM?:P
and woah
the food look super yummy!
Looks like Thai PM is more delicious than the food…drooolin’
aren’t u afraid getting smack at the butt for comparing Najib and Thai’s PM ? :p
Wow.. Wow.. Wow.. 🙂
Kenny,
With all the food coming his way, the Thailand PM surely looks good.
Liked your comparison Thailand PM v Malaysia PM… hope you won’t be a target for the internet filter. 😛
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2009/08/2009878294416847.html
omgness, LOL to the najib part. you’re awesome :’D
oi, at least credit me for taking the photo of you with tony n dr surin! hahahha..
it was certainly nice meeting you btw. and yes, we had too much to eat! i think i gain 2 kilos already. sigh.
Waaaaahhhhhhhhhhh O.O Jealous liao. Yan dao leh you! XD
Totally agreed with u!!! Kenny deserves it!
I kinda get the impression that Malaysian Ministers usually talk only about golf when out on social occasions which I think would be kind of sad, since they do have important responsibilities. Didn’t you have any substantive conversations all this trip that you could talk about besides all the good food that you ate???
my favourite post!
Wah. wah. Nice day you had there ! woots.
Waseh…so hope that I can be with the Air Asia gals.
Anyway, I think it’s an enjoyable trip. The furthers oversea I went is Singapore. I never fly before..so sad…
But luck is on my side… following company trip to Bali next month… that’s the new record of the furthest i go..wahhaha
and since you have stopped screening me from your comments. I may as well point out also : you must think you are capable of running the country as well, sitting back and criticising the PM. Why dont you make a meaningful contribution instead of entertaining the hoards are numbnuts who continue to read your shallow entries.
U hate kenny so much but u seems like following his posts too. hahaha..then you are in the ‘hoards of numbnuts’ category as well.
This asian diplomats really knows how to eat all day long har!
the guy is my colleage’s cousin. =( so sad…what a misfortune.
how if 1 day Najib pay u to write bout him?
OMG the transformers bang bang part is damn funny hHAHAHAAHA
I love the Thai PM! So handsome!
OMG. The food looks soooo delicious. T.T
I wanna try also.
yo super blog!
what do the diplomats do besides eat?
you are being exploited by Fernandes. I hope he is paying you sufficiently, apart from flying you places on his planes at the same time gluttoning you…
“What did we saw? A whole suite of Malaysian food sitting there waiting for us.”
GOOD ENGRISH KENNY! =p
Damn, sound like my dream job :D. Get to fly around visiting places doing nothing and plenty of food for free! Might look into this
people in their country are starving and these “diplomats” are eating their ass off.. good job
Air Asia again?
Or should I say, another Tony-ass-kissing post?
Does your so called “new project” got anything to do with promoting Air Asia???
Haha! Loved this entry. The food looks so good! 🙂
Hey Kenny,
I thought you said you wanna lose weight? How to lose weight at this rate you are going? You will definitely going to be double your size by end of this year if you are celebrating ASEAN style everyday!
LOL!
No wonder they’re often overweight=,=
wtf…. people in all over Malaysia are starving and live in destitution(i.e sabah and sarawak rural areas) and u guys are freaking damn enjoying ur food here… and somemore eat so many delicacies. walau damn dulan. Our PM is TOTALLY SUCKS.
I really do hope u guyz can go and look yourself in those destitute areas
Hey Kenny,
Didn’t know you were into emo songs 😛 Although this doesn’t have much to do with the blog post but check out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhV6104DzUU
🙂 My version of emo breaky uppy song
rolf najib…..nazi…..
haha
omg! 7 meals a day!
that prime minister is damn cute!!! but of coz KENNY SIA CUTER!!! ;P
This post has me ROFLMAO. Now I’m hungry… how ’bout them shrimps! haha..
Hi Kenny,
How to share this blog entry on facebook? I’m currently studying ASEAN studies, would like this blog entry with my friends.
Thank you.
What is the website that means it is easy to understand podcasts and blog sites? I don’t get an iPod, does that make any difference? .