July 2011 ~ Weird and wonderful news library

All American Muslim reality TV show

On Monday, July 25, 2011 No comments

TV network TLC is making a reality series following the lives of Muslims living in America.

The programme - called 'All American Muslim' - will follow five Muslim families in Dearborn, Michigan hoping to expose the 'misconceptions and conflicts' they face 'outside and within' their own community'.

Program realiti TV memaparkan keluarga Islam di Amerika

Dearborn has one of America's largest Muslim populations and has the largest mosque in North America.

The announcement comes as positive attitudes in America towards Muslims appear to be on the rise.

Earlier this year a CNN found that 46 per cent Americans have a positive view of American Muslims, while 26 per cent have an negative view.

In 2002, the number of Americans with a positive view of Muslims stood at 39 per cent.

Read more at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2018319/Islamovision-Network-creates-All-American-Muslim-reality-TV-show.html

Chinese villagers mistake atrophied ape for alien

On Friday, July 22, 2011 No comments

This ape made a monkey of Chinese villagers who feared it was a visitor from another world.

Locals panicked when Mao Xiping, a housewife from the village of Gezhai, in Henan province, central China, found the scraggy simian stealing cucumbers from her flat.

She thought it was a harmless rabbit, until she noticed it had an 'alien face' and her neighbours agreed it was like nothing they had ever seen before.

Sepak takraw, popular game in Malaysia and Thailand

On Wednesday, July 20, 2011 No comments

Sepak takraw (Malay: sepak raga; Tamil: "செபக் தக்ரா" or "கால் கட்டைப்பந்தட்டம்"; Thai: ตะกร้อ, RTGS: takro; Lao: ກະຕໍ້ "ka-taw"; Filipino: "sipa"; Vietnamese: "cầu mây"), or kick volleyball, is a sport native to the Malay-Thai Peninsula. Sepak takraw differs from the similar sport of volleyball in its use of a rattan ball and only allowing players to use their feet, knee, chest and head to touch the ball. It is a popular sport in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Philippines.

In Malaysia, the game is called sepak raga or "takraw". It is also thuck thay (Lao: "twine" and "kick") while in Thailand it is sometimes called takraw. In Myanmar it is known as chin lone. In the Philippines it is known as sipa, meaning "kick". [Wikipedia]

Sawah padi di kampung Darau, Besut, Terengganu

On Friday, July 01, 2011 No comments

Sawah padi kampung Darau, tidak jauh dari bandar Jertih, Besut. Agak luas juga, sayup mata memandang sawahnya. Jarang-jarang dah ada sawah seluas begini di Terengganu sekarang.

Sawah padi di kampung Darau, Besut, Terengganu

Tidak sempat mengumpul maklumat yang banyak tentang tempat ini. Ini pun sambil mengambil gambar 'outdoor' anak sepupu saya dan isterinya yang baru lepas kahwin.