From Salak to Seoul

This is my second attempt at blogging.

The first was a disaster, but my writing had improved, well in away... after three and a half years of rigorous training at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Malaysia in Washington, D.C. 

My former office in Washington, D.C. at 3516 International Court, near the Pakistani, Egyptian, Brunei and Nigerian Embassies.

I remembered writing a report on Bush's visit to China in 2008, the year Barack Hussein Obama succeeded him. My former boss barked at me and said, "Afdal, you tend to write long sentences and you missed the whole point all the way. If you want to write, start with, "This is my cat, my cat is blue...." For the first three months it was hell.

But I guess I did well and survived.

My first but dead blog page., it was 2007 then.

http://frombmtodc-sirmuda.blogspot.com/

OK, now to today! This is my fifth week in Seoul at the Korea Development Institute School of Public Policy and Management at Hoegi-ro, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. I arrived here on 5th February 2012, short of 10 days before my birthday.

Alhamdulillah (Praise to Allah), I have settled in well, start doing assignments and stuff, looked for great eating places, baked fish, grilled fish, steamed fish and voilà, red meat at Dongdaemun Market right near exit 5. HAMBURGER - (ham is not pork, it is a name or a signature dish) a halal joint named Pizza Plus. Thanks to a blogger who went to Korea, he recommended the burger, but not the kebab.  

For KRW5,400 (about RM13.50) a big hamburger plus coke and fries, not bad eh!

Check out the blog.

http://budgettravel2korea.blogspot.com/

One of the most important thing I have to do here in Seoul - as a recipient of TJ Park, Pohang Iron and Steel Company (POSCO) Asia Fellowship, the fourth largest steel maker in the world (without natural resources in iron ore mind you) - we have to write a report about our year-long stay in Korea, and this blog is also to help me with my report at the end of my master program.

"We invite Asia's brightest young leaders to Korea and provide them with educational,
as well as cultural opportunities"

I wish to give my sincerest appreciation to my brother in the service - Azral Izwan Mazlan (Former  Second Secretary at the Embassy of Malaysia in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) for "pushing" me to write and I thank you for that. He told me to write short but frequently. I'll try my best.

I remembered attending a lecture by former Malaysian Ambassador to USA, Tan Sri Ghazzali Sheikh Abdul Khalid when he gave a session to young diplomats in 2007, he said ".. of all my years in the foreign service, I did not regret a single thing of my turbulent and challenging years as a diplomat, but my biggest regret was not penning down all my thoughts and experience when I was in the field."

Tan Sri Ghazzali Sheikh Abdul Khalid
Known fondly by his peers as "Tok Imam"

To end this inaugural 'second' attempt at blogging...

Anyeong hassaeyeo.....

... and not to forget the love of my life.... sarang hamnida.