| Celebrating ‘Eid and Other Observations By Capt. Dr Faiz Khaleed |
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. |
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its true..unity is the keyword of everything…people should break the bondage between different ideologies to attain one goal.. work hard…ok, dr faiz..
— reena Dec 19, 01:08 AM #
Actually I don’t want to make any harmful comments to you both our Malaysian worriors.But if it possible for me to get your personal e-mail adress?Especially from Dr. Syeikh Muszaphar Shukor Al Masrie hopefully.Allow me.Please…..poor me
— Tg. asrie Dec 23, 01:48 PM #
yupes, i agree wif ya dr. on ur opinion bout unity.. wish ya gud luck.. may Allah bless u alwiz.. all da best dr.faiz.. =)
— ija Jan 6, 12:24 AM #
Assalamualaikum both of u..welcome back to Malaysia even for 10 days..not too late to say congratulation to create history..I saw this morning MHI and agreed wif Dr. Faiz about unitism..anyway all the best 2 of you, carry malaysia’s mission to the eyes of da world..
Russian lang pretty hard to learn
— Raisha Anuar Jan 8, 10:11 AM #
really proud of both of u…medic guys in d space.must be really challenging.take care n al d best…
— tj Jan 8, 06:20 PM #
Assalammua’laikum, Kalau dulu ilmuan Islam membuat kajian astronomi secara teori, kini anda berdua mampu meneruskan kajian ilmuan Islam terdahulu….buktikan bahawa KITA mampu!
— Eddy Laily Jan 8, 09:33 PM #
semoga capt dr faiz akan menjadikan yuri gagarin sebagai inspirasi dan semoga anda akan menjadi angkasawan pertama Malaysia…good luck
— ombak Jan 20, 03:55 PM #
To Our Hero… Dr Sheikh Muzaffar Dr. Faiz
Fahami dan hayatilah setiap kata-kata peransang ini semoga anda dapat menyemarakkan semangat ingin terus berusaha dalam merealisasikan impian anda…
Nilai manusia adalah semahal nilai matlamatnya
Tiada manusia yang berjaya dalam semua yang dilakukannya dan kewujudan kita ini sebenarnya mesti menempuh kegagalan. Yang penting ialah kita tidakmenjadi lemah semasa kegagalan itu terjadi dan kekalkan usaha hingga ke akhir hayat.( Joseph Conrad)
U ALL CAN DO IT! GO…GO! GOD BLESS U
— SALINA Jan 31, 10:37 AM #
yes, “In union there is strength”
— nadia@nodie Feb 2, 02:12 PM #
asalamualaikum.
kpt dr faiz..recently adk ada baca tntg latihan yg kpt jlnkn..sungguh mencabar..harap kpt tabah dan sabar hadapi ujian..kpt tlh memberi smngt untuk adk mendalami ilmu sains dan teknologi selaras dgn cita2 adk untuk jd pilot..mcm slh sorg calon,kpt faiz kamaludin..wlupun bkn calon utama,at least kpt dpt satu pgalaman yg org lain x dpt..so,klu kta buat sesuatu dgn ikhlas,pasti ada balasannya..adk tahu yg putus asa bkn la sifat yg ada pada kpt..so,buat sesuatu dgn adanya permulaan dan pghabisan yg puas dan diberkati oleh ALLAH..INSYAALLAH..
— syaza Feb 2, 03:21 PM #
askum…kepada dr sheikh muszaphar iaitu my beloved idol…saye harap anda dpt menjayakan misi negara ini dgn cemerlang…salam sayang saye kpdmu drpd adik nina…i love you…gud luck…
— nur amanina Feb 3, 11:30 AM #
Dr. Faez, interesting writing. I echo your thoughts and hope. Wish both of you best of luck. A daunting task ahead but I pray that both of you will make Malaysians proud. Take care!
— wniwi Feb 5, 04:18 AM #
walau di mana berad atau sesukar mana rintangan yang dihadapi,banyakkanlah bertawakkal kepada Allah.sentiasa mengignati-Nya walau di mana kita merupakan kunci utama kejayaan.Semoga ALLAH sentiasa memeberkati hamba-hamba-Nya yang soleh seperti anda berdua.Amin
— secret Feb 9, 03:57 PM #
Terima kasih kerana berkongsi pengalaman… Anda berdua telah berjuang sebaik-baiknya untuk mengangkat martabat Malaysia di mata dunia dan kami tahu ianya bukan mudah! Doa kami agar Faiz dan Dr. Shiekh selamat pulang membawa kemenangan!
— Kak Aida Nurul Ain (senior Faiz kat UM dulu! nak tumpang glamour gak...) Feb 13, 10:13 AM #
semoga segala impian terlaksana.DR SYEIKH harap DR tabah mengharungi hari2 mendatang..ingat ALLAH selalu ya
— FAZLINDA BT MOHAMAD Feb 14, 07:23 PM #
assalamualaikum…. ape kbar??semoga kejayaan anda mjadi inspirasi to all malaysians
— siti naz Feb 18, 11:20 PM #
ASSALAMUALAIKUM W.B.T SEMOGA DR SHEIKH SENTIASA DILINDUNGI ALLAH S.W.T DAN TABAH MENGHARUNGI HARI2 MENCABAR DI SANA YA..
— FAZLINDA BT MOHAMAD Feb 21, 05:37 PM #
asssalamualaikum…semoga sihat abg-abg berdua hendaknya. salam rakyat malaysia utk abg.dr sheikh muszaphar go go chayo!!! we always support u! luv…
— izza Feb 21, 05:46 PM #
Assalamualaikum..
Dr.Faiz, it is really nice of u to write about your experience in Star City & shared it with us.Very interesting!All the best to u & we will pray for you.
— RZ Feb 23, 03:59 PM #
ASSALAMUALAIKUM W.B.T SEMOGA SIHAT2 SELALU HENDAKNYA..4 DR SHEIKH SEMOGA CEKAL MENGHARUNGI SEGALANYA DISANA..SAYA ANTARA RAKYAT MALAYSIA YANG SELALU MENDOAKAN KEJAYAAN DR.INGAT ALLAH S.W.T SELALU.
— FAZLINDA BT MOHAMAD Feb 24, 08:28 PM #
Everyone need to do something proud for Malaysia and you maybe the one…
— Helina Feb 26, 11:24 AM #
gud luck n all the best alwez..
— shyza Feb 27, 12:02 PM #