Green Resolution

In a blink of an eye, 2009 has arrived. Do you already have a new year's resolution? If saving the environment is part of your resolution simple things below might help make the world a greener place.

1) Look for things that has minimal packaging
2) Buy organic produce. Because it doesn't use pesticides, it uses less energy.
3) Bring your own bag to the store and fill it with recycled and organic items.
4) ATM machine : Request for a receipt when you really need one
5) Do your banking online. Because you don’t have to waste petrol driving around and get
yourself caught in the jam
6) Unplug all your electric appliances when they are not in use.
7) Buy local and eat local
8) Buy second hand

From bling to bliss...welcome to the new luxury

This century has seen the bling, ostentatious consumerism of the 90s gradually rejected in favour of all things that is synonymous with terms like organic, natural, eco-friendly, hybrid, homemade and locally-produced, just to name a few. Something peculiar has happened to our concept of luxury in the past few years. Before I allow you to proceed any further with reading, yes, this post may seem biased and that it’s not a fair representation of all demographics across the globe…BUT – if you’re reading this post, then it definitely applies to you. Do not be pointing fingers that it’s been abandoned the situation of the current global economy, but let us at least be enlightened with a sigh of relief in knowing not only what is today’s concept luxury but also that it is so easily attainable by anyone of us.

Social and economic circumstances have colluded for us to change the understanding of the very concept of luxury. Those of you in the urbanized towns of Malaysia, who hasn’t been in close proximity with someone who is toting a Prada bag or Gucci shades? Pardon the decadence in tone but if you’re really interested in luxury today, you won’t find it plonked on the lap of the girl next to your workstation.

Clearly, the concept of luxury is far from dead. The luxury goods market was worth more than US$ 200 billion last year, and according to Bain & Co., even in light of the global economic turmoil triggered by the subprime crisis, it only has a projected decline of only between 3 to 7 percent in 2009 (after a steady expansion over the past few decades). It’s just that its rules have changed. Generations ago, luxury wasn’t a product, available to anyone who had the money to purchase it, it was founded on a tradition that maintained quality and integrity. And in the Twentieth Century there was the exclusivity of precious Mikimoto pearls and anything that comes with a wait-list that came along with unjustifiable figures to many like the Birkin bag. Today, ‘luxury’ goods can be found piled in mountains by workers in China gluing away thousands of “Made In Italy” tags to leather goods.

As a result, true luxury today embodies something entirely different. Luxury was once in the form of tangible items. Now, it’s sitting on the sofa with the kids after having a warm home-cooked meal together. Duck confit at the latest “It” restaurant in town, or the ability to go on a weekend getaway to an organic farm tucked away from the urban towns we live in? In our time-poor society, it’s not getting one’s hands on the iPhone but the ability to shut it off for the evening.

The new luxury hinges on originality, traceability, ethics, eco-consciousness and a first-hand experience. Sprouting out from the mega-success of online-auction eBay is etsy.com – a site catered entirely to dwellers of luxury being able to make their own hand-made items and then selling it on etsy.com. You’ve been forewarned that it’s another online empire in the making but who would have thunk that an infinite amount of hand-made items could be so in demand? And never mind the fight for the latest mean machines menacing the roads, Chanel has taken a cue of the change in trends by producing its own line of bikes. Imagine that, never mind the special edition automobiles lining up the driveway – in place of that, a Chanel bike tucked under the stairs. And no silly, if you are thinking that Chanel is solely (and arrogantly) attaching its heritage of yester-years with the bike, it’s them inevitably keeping up with the times of the eco-conscious society. And at $12,400 a pop, believe you me that the bike comes with a price enough to rival its engine-enabled counterparts.

Some new ways to indulge in luxury today ranges from spending an entire day in your PJs, and eating organic ice cream straight from the local farm, or growing your own herbs to even sponsoring an orang utan. With the challenging times that lie ahead for most of us in the coming year of 2009, let us not get carried away in benchmarking against what now constitutes as ‘old luxury’ and indulge whenever we can in nouveau luxury.

Eco-Living

Planning to build a new house or looking for some furniture? Check out these eco-friendly houses and eco-friendly furniture!

Chairs and tables designed by a UK designer David Stovell from newspaper that are tightly rolled and bundle up together. The wine racks are made out of sustainable English wood.

This is a house that us made out of aluminum cans. The Paper House is an actual house made from paper. It was built in 1922 by Mr. Elis F. Stenman, a mechanical engineer, who created building block material purely out of newspaper (about 100,000 newspapers were used). The only wood used in the house was for the frame, floor & roofs. The house was built with electricity & had running water but no bathroom.

Hope these will provide some inspiration to all the eco friendly people out there!

THAT trip to the Gardens - Taman Botani Putrajaya

I remember the time when I got furious with my eldest sister upon her insisting that we made a trip to a botanical garden instead of settling for Zoo Negara (Malaysia’s National Zoo). I remember how disappointed I was at giving up the chance of being able to catch the animated antiques of the animals in the Zoo and instead having to settle for what to me was the still and less exciting version of nature…and not to mention how unhappy my parents were at me being difficult in coming to a compromise. This happened, of course, was when I was very much the little hyperactive girl who only knew that she wanted to catch live animals in action. But upon hearing from Sue-Anne that we are to make a trip to Taman Botani Putrajaya (Putrajaya Botanical Gardens), I was reminded of that fateful day and how I have concluded that my one and only trip to a botanical garden was tainted by the disappointment of something I looked forward to so much more. However, this time, it was different. I was almost raring with enthusiasm to go – almost as if I wanted to challenge the recreational facility to engage me with its botanical heritage – all 63 acres of it!

So, early on a Saturday morning, Sue-Anne, Toon and I made our way to Taman Botani Putrajaya. Awang who’s our tour-guide for the day was already there bright and early ready to take us on what was to be a trail in the Gardens that would change my take on all things green. In a nutshell, the 3 of us combined said an astounding amount of “oooooohs” and “aaaaahs” (I’m sure Awang found that amusing). We were first taken into the Visitor Centre, which is a building with its white oval roof reminiscent of traditional Minangkabau forms with a touch of the futuristic. And the Botanical Gardens is not just a place to feast one’s eyes on the lush greenery that exists in our climate but in every corner you look environmental consciousness is incorporated into the entire Gardens. Many of the designs employed derive their inspiration from nature. Where possible, natural materials are used to create nature friendly surroundings – including the use of oil palm shells on certain parts of the Garden to give it a different feel, laterite curbs lining the walkways and even a recycled railway sleeper just to give the area a ‘jungle-y’ feel. And with the use of nature comes the replacement of it where to compensate for the use of Chengal timber in the garden structures, many Chengal trees have been planted around the Garden.

Leaf imprints on the concrete that welcomes visitors at the Visitor Centre

Upon entering the Visitor Centre, we were then greeted by a too-gigantic-in-size replica of praying mantis.

It is said that the praying mantis is displayed at the entrance of the Visitor Centre because it plays a vital role in maintaining the balance in the botanical eco-system. I was a wee bit disappointed when told that the mechanism of the gigantic insect was not working at the time of our visit. I can only imagine what an interesting form of welcome for the bus-loads of kids that come in to visit. There was even a Mushroom Room that displays the different types of mushrooms including the ones that glow-in-the-dark! Awang gave us a quick tip on how to spot and differentiate a poisonous mushroom from an edible one. But the one thing that truly caught my attention and intrigue was when I saw and discovered Malaysia’s very own version of the Venus Flytrap – the Nepenthes Rafflesiana.

Lo and behold the Nepenthes Rafflesiana – otherwise known as the Raffles’ Pitcher Plant

We then made our way out to the 170m long Canopy Bridge that is suspended high across a valley that linking the Visitor Centre with the Heliconia Trail. In a few years’ time, visitors will have the unique experience of walking through the canopy of a rainforest (hence the aptly named Canopy Bridge) – but as yet, it is a work-in-progress by Mother Nature. As we were walking along the bridge while stopping to take pictures of the view of the Gardens from what works like a long observation deck, we saw the Sundial standing tall at the end of the bridge. Almost like moths to a flame we hurried our way over to the where the Sundial stood in the Sun Garden. Having never looked at the time on a sundial, I went up-close to try to identify the time shown on the Sundial. It took a while to understand how the readings work but after confirming with modern day time-telling devices, the Sundial showed an estimated time of 10:30 am (give or take 15 minutes).

And we walked along the Canopy Bridge...

Catching the view of the Gardens from the Canopy Bridge

The view of the Visitor Centre from the Canopy Bridge

And as we walked, watch us all be drawn towards the Sundial...

And walked…before finally feeling a little pooped out from all the walking. We were told that there was the alternative of renting a bike or even taking a buggy-like tour. In which we thought would have been a better choice to have made in attempting to cover as much of the Botanical Gardens as we could. So Awang suggested we took a quick break at the seafood restaurant that was situated right next to the lake that fringes the Garden. After recharging ourselves we then made our way to the Astaka Morocco (Moroccan Palace). For the breathtaking architecture and view of the palace we witnessed, well, I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

Every piece of material of the palace is brought in straight from Morocco.

What the people of Taman Botani Putrajaya have to say:

“Once all phases of the Garden are up and running, Taman Botani Putrajaya will be the leading institution dedicated to the preservation of the country’s rich botanical heritage. It’s 3-pronged mission is encapsulated below:

A venue for the display of tropical flora and a centre providing educational information on plant.

An organization contributing to the scientific and cultural understanding of plants.

A sanctuary for the conservation of rare and endangered species.

What I have to say:

Personally, not being one who is very close to nature, it was a surprisingly pleasant experience for me. With the right development, conservation, maintenance and support, Taman Botani Putrajaya is definitely a beneficial necessity (on so many levels) to the country and its nation. But if one is on the lookout for a getaway from all the hustle and bustle of daily humdrum, we can take a cue from the visiting birds from Zoo Negara who does a daily stop-by at the Gardens and make it a trip - be it with family, friends, that special someone or even if it is only to for a major oxygen or shutterbug therapy. And you know what they say about the benefits of green for that perfect vision. ;) My only wish was that if only as a little girl, if only there already existed this botanical garden during the time when I made that trip with my family then…

Byte-size geography:

Taman Botani Putrajaya is located south of Kuala Lumpur, at about latitude 3 degrees north and longitude 102 degrees east. The climate is uniformly warm throughout the year, seldom falling below 25 degrees Celsius at night or rising above 30 degrees in the day. The annual rainfall of about 240 cm is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. Rains usually occur in the afternoon and rarely last more than an hour or two. The day length varies by only half an hour between the shortest and longest days of the year.