May 2009 - Association of Dutch Businessmen

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Conference Calendar A selection of upcoming conferences in the region in June: Middle East Plastic Pipes 2009 1 – 3 June, Dubai Asia Forum on Economic Sanctions 18 – 19 June, Hong Kong Leaders in Luxury 2 – 3 June, Hong Kong Global Better Business Conference & Awards 2009 3 - 4 June, Brisbane India Summit on Anti-Corruption Compliance and Enforcement 3 – 4 June, Mumbai Fraud Investigation and Forensic Accounting Seminar 8 – 9 June, Singapore ad:tech Singapore 9 – 10 June, Singapore China Wastewater Treatment 2009 11 – 12 June, Beijing Handling Sales Objections and Negotiation Skills 16 – 17 June, Kuala Lumpur 10 Ultimate Tips for Communication Confidence 17 – 18 June, Damansara Perdana, Malaysia Successful Branding in Asia Workshop 22 – 23 June, Singapore Enhanced Oil Recovery 2009 23 June, Kuala Lumpur 3 rd annual Airport Development Summit 23 – 24 June 10 Ultimate Tips for Presentation Confidence 24 – 25 June, Damansara Perdana, Malaysia 7 th Annual China Airfinance Conference 25 – 26 June, Beijing Crisis Communication 29 – 30 June, Singapore Retail World 29 – 30 June, Sydney Resources and Mining Roundtable with the Government of Australia 30 June, Perth Log on to www.conferencebay.com for more information on these and many other events. And remember, you can make a bid and decide the price you’re willing to pay for any of the conferences listed on Conference Bay! 14 Vol.19 • No. 4 • May 2009
Column By… Richard Soemita (O)KTV Being in Asia now, you must have been confronted with Karaoke TV better known as KTV bars. Well, at least you must have seen the signs, some neighborhoods more populated than others. I used to work for this Japanese company in Europe and the Japanese lads invited me several times to join them after work at a KTV bar in Amstelveen… every night, according to good Japanese customs! So being on the Continent where this thing was invented I decided to go on a KTV tour. I guess you can categorize KTV bars in several categories: The local KTV in your own neighborhood - After a few pints at my friend’s restaurant down the road, Christine recommended this pub at the traffic light, a KTV bar called Traffic Light (not a bad name!). Christine was kind of shocked when we asked her where we could continue drinking, but at first she recommended to go to Clark Quay which is the closest to my home. I insisted we wanted to ‘go local’ so after hesitating, she called the bar owner, Long Dong, and told her that we were on our way. 2 Minutes later we entered the establishment and the entire bar (all Chinese workmen) looked as these 2 Dutch angmohs …like they were expecting us. We walked straight up to the bar, Long Dong recognized us (from Christine’s call) and she gave the sign as to whether we wanted to have a pint or jug of beer, not a word of English spoken. Soon we both were handed a songbook with paper and pencil for the requests. I put down La Bamba and being Surinamese I sang the whole song in Spanish without reading the words on the TV screen. By this stage I had impressed the whole pub and soon all the Chinese lads closed in wanting to get to know us. Needless to say that they had never seen a ‘local’ singing in Spanish and dancing at the same time. Then my friend took over the mike and had a real good go at Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’, but in Andre Hazes style. By this stage the whole pub got over exited and wanted to do the song again with us, but then as a choir. We even got whiskey offered from their tables and after 6 jugs of beer and numerous straight-down-your-neck-whiskeys (as we had to drink this) we staggered home after a great night. The next category is the family KTV, now ran by Christine in China Town. She decided to give up the restaurant since she can make more money with KTV. Chrissie is a great girl, outgoing, funny and a good drinker and as such reflects this on her business. Her pub is frequently visited by her friends, amongst them many angmoh’s. Angmoh’s visiting KTV’s could be quite painful as their singing skills are no were near the Asians. This American lady who is quite often in Chrissie’s bar always insists on singing Dolly Parton. As soon as she grabs the mike most of the pub runs outside for a smoke, including me… and I do not smoke. The atmosphere is great and Chris roams around every table to bottoms-up with you and then refills her glass with your whiskey bottle, of course. Great way of managing your business and Chris seems to enjoy every drop of it. As a matter of fact I have never seen her sober or with an empty glass! The last category is the sleazy KTV. Please note that this is a myth and the stories you hear are just made up or should not be categorized as a KTV. Here, pretty girls accompany you as a chaperone and also help you with the singing. Nothing wrong with that and quite entertaining too, especially when they only speak Mandarin! These establishments have several rooms in different sizes, accommodating just 2 or a large group. Some of the larger rooms even have a pool table. The rooms are all staffed with waiters and serve you as soon as your glass is empty. The Manager brings along the ladies and you select as many as you want. Soon after, the whiskey bottles are brought in! Here’s the catch: once the glasses are filled your chosen lady cheers with you for a bottoms-up. First you think that it is funny, but after the 9 th shot (a whole glass!) things become serious. Being a real man you do not want to give in but you will soon realize that this slim, 45 kilo looking beauty drinks you and your whole village under the table. Meanwhile your friends around you are screaming (you cannot call that singing) and fighting for their turn, thinking they all are Rene Froger. So, other than drinking, nothing happens (although I was waiting for some real action to occur!) until you sober up in seconds when presented with the bill: 10 bottles of whiskey at around S$ 400 each! The next day you call each other to check how much one had drank, but the conclusion is that the girls drink at the ratio of 5:1! My conclusion: do NOT compete with these girls and try to stay sober. Wonder which one is more difficult …. 15 Vol.19 • No. 4 • May 2009
Page 1 and 2: Orange activities 2009 May 2009 MIT
Page 3 and 4: Prologue Dear members, I am proud a
Page 5 and 6: Review World Wide Fund for Nature (
Page 7 and 8: Business The workspace of… By Kar
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Page 23 and 24: ADB’ers go Orange! John Bruinsma,

May 2009 - Association of Dutch Businessmen

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