Life for us here has fallen into a pleasant routine. I normally wake up at 6 in the morning, and after exercising for an hour, I will leave the building for our 9 a.m. class. Oh, did Dr Faiz already mention that we are the only two people living in this apartment building? I have no complaints though – our rooms are spacious, and everything is provided, including meals three times a day.

The walk to the classrooms building takes us about half an hour. It is extremely cold here, the temperature now is minus 6 or minus 7 degrees Celsius, and with the wind-chill factor, it can get much colder. The air however is exceptionally fresh, and with everything being covered in snow, the view is soothing on the eyes. I can’t really convey the feeling of freshness in words, although one way to describe it, is that somehow it feels like being in a menthol toothpaste advert. 

At the moment, the bulk of our activities consist of learning theories in classrooms. Russian language lessons take up 4 hours a day, five days a week. Russian language differs from other languages as it has 6 cases with 3 genders. Different intonation will provide different meanings. I take it as a very challenging language and I plan to master them in this given 3 months as the importance of communicating with the crew during simulation and on the ISS cannot be taken lightly. 

Apart from that, we are also having lessons in Star navigation, Spaceflight theory (completed), Geophysics, and Aerospace biomedicine. Everything is new and extremely interesting. With the physical stuff and flight coming up, I am definitely living my dream! Most of the tutors teach in Russian though, so we have to use translators in our lessons.

We carry out physical training twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They comprise of cycling, weight training and my favourite, swimming. 

We were required to undergo some medical tests too. Once after a Medical test, they stopped my physical training for a day without informing me. I was nervous and wondered why, especially when they told me to have a rest. It turned out that I had a sore throat which gave me jitters for a day. Here, medical test is taken seriously and though my sore throat was due to the fact of the cold weather here, they wanted to ensure that I was always in good shape before I resumed my training. I was hopping with joy the next day doing my favourite workout which is swimming 1 km, non stop. 

A few people have e-mailed us asking what we normally do at night. Well, we mostly do our homework (lots), review and research through the internet. Schedules are given on a weekly basis, so we try to study for lessons beforehand. But we do mingle with some of the other people here. We usually gather with the NASA and ESA astronauts once a week (ESA stands for European Space Agency) and have dinner with them. Last night, we had Thanksgiving Dinner with the Astronauts at NASA Cottage. Turkey was on the menu.  On Tuesday (21st. Nov), also at NASA Cottage, we had chicken curry prepared by JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronauts. That has been the story so far since we arrived. They cook, we eat. 

Though, I’d love to make the training here sounds easy and simple, I have to admit that it’s quite a challenge here. Every time when the training gets tough, I would tell myself that “if others could do it, why can't I". The advice of our PM keeps coming to my head each time the going gets tough. Mental strength plays a crucial role especially when you are far away from home knowing that you are going through all the vigorous tests and classes are on your own. Faiz and I have no one else here but each other, hence we keep a strong bond taking care of each other and pushing each other to the limits. It's a healthy competitive environment and at the end, we are doing this mission for the sake of the country. Nothing beats that.

I hope it is not too late to wish Selamat Hari Raya to all. For those reading this who doesn’t know, that means Happy ‘Eid.  And Happy Deepavali too.  We’ve been very busy, and the fact that the blog is still not up yet means we are writing this in the hope that it will be up and running soon enough. 

Sheikh and I celebrated Hari Raya at the Malaysian Embassy in Moscow.  We spent the Hari Raya eve at a Malaysian Embassy official, Encik Firdaus Othman’s house.  We woke up early the next morning and attended Hari Raya prayers at the Embassy.  To our delight, there were many fellow Malaysians there, about 150 I think – most of them students from nearby medical universities.  Although we missed family and friends back home very much, we thank God as we still managed to have a very pleasant Hari Raya.  The Embassy officers and their families really made sure everyone was well filled as well – there were satay, nasi impit and even lemang on the menu! 

The best part was meeting the other Malaysians.  They were full of questions about the Malaysian space program, and on our part we asked them about life here, especially preparation for the upcoming winter. 

Life at Star City is pretty hectic.  There is so much to learn.  Fortunately everyone is very helpful.  The Russian people are wonderful.  At first, they appeared to be aloof, but once you get to know them, they are very helpful and kind.  We always try to communicate with them in Russian, and they will listen patiently to our efforts, trying to understand what we are saying.   

One thing that I want to mention is the weather.  Surprisingly, it is not that cold.  Everyone has been telling us that this is a very strange November. Normally, by this time, it will be snowing everyday.  But at the moment, some days, the snow will thaw and it feels like autumn again. 

Apart from the Russians, there are many other nationalities here at Star City.  There are the Americans, a very pleasant bunch who are always inviting the other cosmonauts and trainers to their lovely cottages for a meal and a chat. There are astronauts from Europe, from Japan and from other countries as well.  But I have never, in my time here, heard of any argument promoting this view or that view, or this country or that country.  Everyone here is united and focused on one thing, which is to have a successful mission.  The camaraderie here is outstanding! 

It is a very eye-opening experience.  We are looking at everything from a very different point of view now.  The Space Program is all about unity of every human being, regardless of race, religion or nationality.  The people we have met here are very different – they are so united in their aim, which has nothing to do with race, religion or nationality.  Imagine the Russians and the Americans. Not so long ago, they were ready to blow each other to kingdom come, but here they trust their life in each other’s hands.  So are those from the other nations.  If we finally make it one day to Mars, it will be because of this unity.  It is a sobering thought.  

To my fellow Malaysians I want to say this.  I am very thankful indeed to have the chance to do what I am doing.  I salute those Malaysians who thought of this program, and to everyone who has worked hard and is working hard to send a Malaysian to space.  It is a very important program.  It is more than just sending one man to space.  Malaysians are human being too, and we too have responsibilities towards the human kind.  We cannot just let others do all the work for us.  We must take part.  We must look at the bigger picture.  There are so many things out there in space which we must learn for the sake of human kind.  There is so much to achieve if we don’t spend most of our time promoting narrow interests. 

And we must learn.  For me the most poignant lesson so far in my short time in Star City has been this – we can only reach for the stars if we are united.

We arrived in Moscow on the morning of 27th September.  It was approaching winter, and colourful autumnal trees, bustling in all hues of red, orange, yellow and the occasional green, were busy shedding their leaves.  It was cold although not as cold as we expected.  For sure it was going to get colder.

A few days passed before we embarked on a short trip to our real destination, Star City, where Sheikh and I will be based to undergo our training.  The Russian name for Star City is Звёздный Городо́к (Zvyozdny gorodok), which literally means little town of stars. It is where the Russians and the old Soviet Union train their cosmonauts, and for the next 12 months, this will be our temporary home.  This will be our second trip to Star City. The first time was earlier in the summer during the final four stages of the selection process.

Star City is not that far from Moscow, about 25 km to the northeast of the Russian capital, and our journey to Star City took only about an hour. On the way, we passed through wide open Russian countryside along small lonely roads weaving through thick forests of tall thin trees.

Star City is also known as the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, named after the world's first space traveler and the first to graduate from the Star City regiment of tests and simulators. It was set up in 1960, and the first cosmonauts and their family members, including Yuri Gagarin, moved in the new facility at the beginning of June 1960.

Yuri Gagarin

In actual fact the Training Centre is only one aspect of the city.  Like any other permanent military base, it is self-contained.  It has 3 grocery stores, a bank, a school, a tiny post office and other regular amenities that fulfill your basic needs.  In fact, outside of the Training Centre, it is a normal rural city – a very nice one, with lakes, forests and very fresh air. Kids go to school and the mothers go to shop.  An interesting fact is that many cosmonauts, including those who were there during Yuri Gagarin’s time, still live here with their children and grandchildren.

And there is the much-visited Yuri Gagarin Memorial Museum, which houses the largest collections of documents and materials on history of manned cosmonautics in Russia. It is housed in a building called House of Cosmonauts, which is like a big community centre. The museum's four halls contain unique displays reflecting all stages of manned spaceflights - from the legendary VOSTOK spacecraft through the MIR orbital complex, as well as development of international cooperation in space. 

But no description of Star City, which is what I really am trying to do with this entry, is complete without mentioning what I think is THE most special part of Star City.  In the middle of Star City stand a huge statue of the first man in space and the first to orbit the earth, Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin.  It is a handsome monument, simple yet majestic.  It is the first thing that caught my attention when I first arrived. There is, I was told, a much larger Yuri Gagarin monument in Moscow. I have seen the picture and will one day visit it.  But this one is special because it is situated in the place which bears his name, where he made history, where reminders of him are everywhere and where everyone reveres him, including us two humble Malaysians who before this only read about him in passing in history lessons.  It is also special because every cosmonauts and astronauts who has just return from a space flight on a Russian ship will have a post-flight ceremony at this monument.

       Statue of Yuri Gagarin

I hope I have done some justice to Star City in my description.  I wish I can do better, and there is so much more I want to say, but I’m just not that good at writing like this.  I just feel very honoured to be here, and to say that I’m feeling overwhelmed by the whole experience is an understatement.

I have also borrowed images from other sites on the internet, as the pictures I have are not as well taken as the one I borrowed.  In the next entry, we will try to describe what our life in Star City is like.  To my fellow Malaysians, and to others who have sent their support to us, we like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts.   

Overjoyed, overwhelmed and elated! These should sum up the feelings I have on this memorable 26th September of 2006. It is a very special day for me and Dr Faiz as Malaysia celebrated us as its first astronauts to fly to Moscow. Yes, we are finally leaving Malaysia after a full blown tests and selection course, on this very day to Yuri Gagarin Aerospace Training Centre at Star City in Moscow for an 18-month training. 

 All set and raring to go to Moscow.

I’ll never forget this miraculous event, receiving such tremendous supports from the nation, family, friends and of course the well-wishers who are present here at KLIA to bid farewell to us. There won’t be enough words to really describe how grateful and blessed we both feel.

What more can I ask for as this is remarkably beyond my wildest dream to be given this fortune in making my childhood fantasy a reality, that is blasting off to the space. A desire and dream I have always had as boy.

As I bid farewell to family, friends and the nation, knowing that I have a big responsibility on my shoulder towards the nation, I am spiritually converged with this very mission of boosting the national pride. I'm realising the country's dream and I will do whatever it takes to make the mission a success.

Without a doubt I’ll miss Malaysia and its extraordinaire, I’ll miss family and friends but I am also honored to be given the trust by Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in raising Malaysia’s profile internationally and becoming aspiration to other Malaysians. Remembering Dato’ Jamaluddin Jarjis’ note on how this space launching next year will mark 40 years of diplomatic ties with Russia, just gives me pleasure to be part of this national service . With all these drives, I am positive that this training stint and expedition to the ISS would prove how achievable our own national catch-phrase “Malaysia Boleh” can be.

Our flight to Moscow today is just the beginning of a great Malaysian history. With all the prayers from everyone back home, I hope my journey will be as smooth as it can get. Goodbye Malaysia… with goals and visions in mind, we’ll carry your flag and make you proud.