Busy summer for Liverpool's Spanish stars

Fernando Torres looks set to face a busy summer of football with little time for a summer break, after the Merseyside club announced plans to tour Thailand in July.

Torres is already set to play for Spain in the Confederations Cup in South Africa in June and may now have to report back to Liverpool shortly afterwards as the club plan to travel to Asia for a pre-season tour.

Despite current political unrest in the country, the Anfield outfit are reportedly in negotiations to play a series of games in Thailand, according to the Mail on Sunday.

The paper claims that an announcement will be made this week about the tour, which should see the club play the Thailand national team, managed by former Everton midfielder Peter Reid, in Bangkok on July 22.

Liverpool will then move on to Singapore to play another game, four days later, in a tour that should prove, financially, very lucrative for the club.

However, the timing of the trip, which follows the Confederations Cup, means that Torres will have little time to rest during the summer, which may cause anxiety at the club particularly as the striker has endured an injury-plagued season at Anfield.

He has managed only 15 Premier League starts this season, yet has still hit an impressive 11 goals.

Of course, Torres is not the only Liverpool player who this will affect, as the Reds boast several Spanish internationals who are also expected to play in the Confederations Cup.

Pepe Reina, Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arebloa will join Torres in South Africa and may also have to endure very little time off this summer.

Old rivalries resume in Asia

National pride will be a significant component in this week's AFC Champions League Matchday 3 with the fixtures throwing up some intriguing derbies between countries that have developed key rivalries over the years.

In East Asia, Korea Republic and China have long been football adversaries and that rivalry is set to continue this week with each nation's representative teams scheduled to lock horns. Inspired by the recent outstanding performances of the Socceroos, Newcastle Jets and Central Coast can be expected to raise their game, on the back of an improved showing on Matchday 2, as they challenge Japanese opponents in the shape of Nagoya Grampus and Kawasaki Frontale.

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Asia's Most-Visited Tourist Sites

10. Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong, China

6.2 million

Modeled after Hollywood’s Walk of Fame, The Avenue of Stars runs along Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade at Victoria Harbour, and pays tribute to the celebrities of Hong Kong’s film industry. Highlights include a six-meter-tall sculpture of the Hong Kong Film Award and handprints of cinema luminaries like John Woo.

SOURCE: Hong Kong Tourism Board

9. Mount Tai (Taishan), Tai'an, China

7 million*

Regarded as the first of China’s five sacred mountains of Taoism, Mount Tai is located just north of Tai'an City, in China’s coastal Shandong Province. The mountain served as a sacred retreat for emperors during the ancient Zhou Dynasty, and was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list in 1987. Taishan Temple lies at the foot of the mountain, and some 7,000 stone steps lead to the Azure Clouds Temple at the top. Two sources estimate 8 and 6 million annual visitors, respectively.

SOURCES: Tai'an Municipal Investment Promotion Bureau

8. Everland, Kyonggi-Do, South Korea

7.2 million

Everland, opened in 1976, is South Korea’s largest theme park and ranked tenth, just ahead of Universal Studios Florida, in TEA/ERA’s 2007 attendance ranking of world theme parks. The park is divided into five sections, including “European Adventure,” “American Adventure,” and “Global Fair,” where “a road leads to a new world of Dream and Hope where the Orient and the West meet and match together.”

SOURCE: TEA/ERA

7. Forbidden City, Beijing, China

8 million*

According to the China Daily, Beijing’s Forbidden City was completed in 1420 and meant “to embody the idea of the emperor as the center of the universe and to evoke a visceral sense of his power. Surrounded by a wall more than 30 feet high and 20 feet thick, the walled fortress once served the emperor exclusively but became ‘a palace of the people’ in 1925 when the Republican forces transformed it into a museum.” Visitation estimates vary; our average of four sources puts the figure at 7.9 million.

SOURCES: China Daily (9 million)

6. Universal Studios, Osaka, Japan

8.7 million*

This Osaka outpost of the Universal Studios theme parks welcomed 11 million visitors in its first year of operation (2001). In 2007 the movie theme park, home to Snoopy’s Sound Stage Adventure and Hollywood Dream: The Ride, was visited by about 8.7 million people.

Sources: Japan National Tourist Organization (8.6 million)

5. Victoria Peak, Hong Kong, China

9.4 million

Nearly nine and a half million tourists come to enjoy the view from Hong Kong Island’s highest mountain, which was developed as a resort for the wealthy in the 19th century, when a tram route was built. The Peak Tower, at the tram’s terminus, was renovated in 2005 and offers an oasis of dining, shopping and entertainment for those who ascend.

For more information: Hong Kong Tourism Board

4. Nagashima Spa Land, Japan

11.4 million

This massive tourist complex in Japan’s Mie Prefecture includes a sprawling botanical garden (home to Japan’s largest flower festival), a large network of indoor and outdoor hot springs, an outlet mall, and an amusement park that is home to the renowned “Steel Dragon 2000” roller coaster. The TEA estimates 2007 amusement park attendance alone at 3.9 million, and the Japan National Tourist Organization pegs overall visitation at 11.4 million.

For more information: Nagashima Resort

3. Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China

12 million

When it added the Temple of Heaven to the World Heritage list in 1998, UNESCO explained that the site, built in the 15th century, “is a dignified complex of fine cult buildings set in gardens and surrounded by historic pine woods. In its overall layout and in that of its individual buildings, it symbolizes the relationship between earth and heaven which stands at the heart of Chinese cosmogony, and also the special role played by the emperors within that relationship.” Today, about 12 million visit annually.

For more information: Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad

2. Great Wall of China, Bandaling

16 million

The Wall traverses some 4,000 miles across north China, and its construction began more than two millennia ago as a barrier against invaders. Today the wall is invaded only by tourists: The 10 km section open to visitors at Bandaling (the nearest portion of the Wall to Beijing) receives millions of visitors each year. Estimates vary, but according to the Xinhua News Agency, the local municipal bureau has limited yearly visitation to the Wall at 16 million.

1. Tokyo Disney Land/Tokyo Disney Sea, Japan

25.9* million visitors

The first Disney resort to be built outside of the U.S., Tokyo Disney Land/Tokyo Disney Sea celebrated its 25th anniversary this year, and its attendance was 25.4 million in 2007, according to the Japan National Tourist Organization. A separate trade-industry source comes up with a similar total for ‘07, breaking it down to 13.9 million visitors for land, and 12.4 million for sea.

Sources: Japan National Tourist Organization (25.4 million), Themed Entertainment Association/Economic Research Associates (TEA/ERA, 26.3 million)

History of Pekan Brunei Mosque

Mosques have long dominated the skyline in Brunei. In 1578 during the reign of Sultan Saiful Rizal, a Spanish traveler, Alonso Beltran described the main mosque as one made up of five layers.

The Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque is said to be one of the most beautiful mosques in the Southeast Asian region. It symbolised the country’s official religion of Islam.

However not many people realised that prior to its completion in 1958, there was no proper mosque in the capital city, then known as Pekan Brunei.

Before the Second World War, even though there were a number of other mosques built in the countryside, the only mosque that was built in the capital city was called Masjid Marbut Pak Tunggal (also known as Masjid Pekan Brunei) which was built during the era of Sultan Mohammad Jamalul Alam II, the 26th Sultan.




This mosque was located by the river approximately nearby where the current Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque is. The mosque was made out of timber with an asbestos roofing and a small rocket like minaret attached to it. The building was raised about a foot off the ground with concrete base.

This mosque was clearly visible in some of the aerial photographs taken during the Second World War (try to spot the mosque in the photo). Unfortunately during the Japanese occupation, the mosque was destroyed.

A temporary mosque catering to about 500 worshippers was built immediately after the war. This was sited where the TAIB Building is currently located. It was more like a temporary prayer hall rather than a proper mosque for Brunei Muslims to congregate for their prayers.

The building structure was made out of timber with the roof made out of thatched palm leaves and the walls out of thatched nipah leaves. Built on top of the roof was a small tower. Everything about the mosque signifies that it was temporary.

It was never given a proper name but was always known as Masjid Kajang (named after the type of roof material used). Despite that it was widely used until 1958 when the Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque was completed.



However Masjid Kajang was relatively small and for bigger congregation, the prayers would be held out in the open at the Padang (now known as Taman Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien) in the town centre. His Majesty Sultan Haji Omar Ali Saifuddien himself prayed together with his subjects out in the open air.