The home minister recently bought a car for our teenage son, Owen. We purchased it in Puchong, Selangor, but he is in Kuching, Sarawak.
She placed an order via an agent in Kuching for an Axia last year, but we were on the waiting list.
It was a blessing in disguise as we found an agent in Puchong, Chong Sew Fong, who got us the new Axia three months after we contacted him.
Although we did not get the colour we wanted, the important thing was getting a car quickly, as Owen has a 35-40km commute to class.
He has been using my sister-in-law’s car, but she recently started working, and we did not want him to use a motorcycle as the roads can be treacherous, especially at night.
A day after we collected the car, Chong telephoned the home minister to get her feedback and to ask us if we had any issues with the vehicle.
He did another follow-up a couple of weeks later. Now, that is superb after-sales service. Chong also gave us the contact number of the service centre in Kuching, and the name of the person to refer to.
The next problem was sending the car to Sarawak, but thankfully, we found a company which transports vehicles to east Malaysia and from there to the peninsular.
We were worried it would be a long-drawn process – it was, but only to get paperwork from the bank.
The agents sending the car to Kuching were the nicest people one could meet. We met them on Monday to deliver the car. It took an hour for the inspection before we had to sign more documents and hand over the keys.
The car is on the way to Kuching and should arrive in early June. We will pick it up as we will be there to celebrate Gawai (harvest festival).
One of the agents, who identified himself as Mat, said they have two shipping dates a month to send vehicles to east Malaysia.
He remarked that Sarawakians usually send new cars to their home state, while Sabahans send old vehicles.
“They tell me the roads in Sabah are horrible, so they rather send their old vehicles as new ones get damaged quickly,” said Mat.
“We send cars, motorcycles, vans, and all types of vehicles. Our job is to transport them to the harbour for loading onto the ship.
“It takes five to eight days – depending on the weather – for the ship to travel from Port Klang to Kuching and another day to go through customs.”
He said they previously used one ship for Sabah and Sarawak, but now they use two.
I wish Chong, Mat, and his colleagues all the best as they made the whole process a pleasant experience.
Thank you.
TWENTYTWO13 IS FIVE
We celebrated our fifth birthday on May 22. The brainchild of co-founders Pearl Lee and Haresh Deol, Twentytwo13 survived the Covid-19 pandemic and other challenges this past half-decade.
Happy birthday to us!
TALK ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND OUR ENVIRONMENT
Friends of Sungai Klang Taman Melawati River Three founder Kennedy Michael is one of four guest speakers at tomorrow’s People Library.
He will be joined by Gurmit Singh (Centre for Environment, Technology and Development, Malaysia and Environmental Protection Society Malaysia), Khoo Salma (Penang Forum) and Azlan Yaacob (GreenSteps Malaysia) at Taman Tugu Nursery.
The discussion starts at 9am and ends at noon, and entrance is free.
FESTIVAL OF THE FORCE
Calling all Star Wars fans, Paradigm Mall will host a Festival of the Force on June 17 and 18 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi.
There will be exclusive collectables, fan art, local Star Wars stories and batik artwork.
CREAMY FETTUCCINE WITH BRUSSELS SPROUTS & MUSHROOMS
Last week, the Diary featured a recipe for old-fashioned banana pudding. A reader sent me this message: “I checked out the recipe and decided it is a diabetic nightmare!”
So, here is a diabetes-friendly meal for you, Tammy.
FAREWELL, TINA TURNER
The Queen of Rock & Roll, Tina Turner, died on May 24. She was 83, a year older than Bob Dylan, who celebrated his birthday on the same day.
Turner, born Anna Mae Bullock, gave up her American citizenship in 2013 after moving to Switzerland, where she lived with her second husband, Erwin Bach.
After divorcing her abusive first husband, fellow singer Ike Turner, she enjoyed solo success in the 1980s.
Turner is known for her mega hits We Don’t Need Another Hero, Proud Mary, Private Dancer, What’s Love Got To Do With It and, of course, Simply The Best.
However, to close out this week’s Diary, here is Turner with Sarvesham Svastir Bhavatu (Peace Mantra).
She recorded it in 2011 for the Children Beyond album, which featured 30 young performers reciting 12 prayers and mantras from several religions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam, and Sikhism.
Proceeds were divided equally among the Tina, Seeschau and Dewa Che foundations.
Until next week, stay safe.
