1Boosting your health From fluent to proficientPlay ball Rub my bellySatisf ied faces Movers and shakers

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June is for Zongzi & Dragon Boat Festival 04-05

Shooting some hoops 06-07

Cracking the code - With Louis Lai 08-09

Kung-flu fighters 10-11

My City, My Life - With Mandy Wong 12-13

Father’s Day 14-15

Youth Day - 16th June 16-17

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CONTENTS

Youth Day - Pix! 18-19

Advanced English Discussion Group 20-21

Mpisi’s Got Talent! 22-23

Mayoral visit 24-25

HIV/AIDS Training at Mpisi Group 26-27

Ravishing Restaurant Review 28-29

Competition! 29

4June is for Zongzi

& Dragon Boat Festival

Duanwu Jie (端午节) has come and gone on the 12th of June this year. In

Asia a lot of people had some time off work to celebrate. Although the roots of this festival lies with the death of a famous poet centuries ago this festival is mostly marked by the racing of dragon boats and eating a special type of food.

The Taiwanese version typically is filled with

mushrooms, pork, (sometimes shrimps,

chestnuts or peanuts) and dried egg.

Not too long ago we all received this delicious treat at work from the company. Some of us enjoyed this familiar favourite and others stared at the bamboo leaves and string wondering what to do with this.

This tasty snack is called zongzi and is now revealed here in Express.

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The outside consists of large bamboo leaves, soaked in hot water for four hours until pliable.

This is uncoloured string, which is used to keep

the contents of the zongzi together while

being prepared.

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SHOOTING SOME HOOPS

Every Saturday twelve of our employees get together to play some basketball in Cyrildene. They start with a simple warm

up to get those joints ready, able and willing.

Thereafter, they play ball!

After speaking to some of the guys, we gather that they do this for fun over the weekend and also mentioned that anyone is welcome to join them.

So, if you’d like to join them you can speak to either Chris, Louis or Jackson.

Here are some photos from one of their epic games.

Some guys from Mpisi love hitting the court hard

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Cracking the Codewith Louis Lai from IT

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What is your position here at Mpisi Group?

I’m a project manager/specialist in the IT department.

What does your general day at work consist of?

All IT related matters form part of my daily work. I help colleagues with any computer problems, improving our work environment, server maintenance and also program development.

Which part of your job do you enjoy most?

Helping colleagues with computer problems, because I love to see their satisfied faces.

What do you like to do after work?

Watching movies and animation, reading comics, playing computer games and doing anything that will make me relax at home.

And over weekends?

I enjoy playing basketball with colleagues, fishing or some other outdoor activities.

Where did you grow up?

Bloemfontein! The city of roses!

What do you remember most from your childhood?

My accounting teacher! When I was in high school, I always failed accounting

Cracking the Code

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as a subject, but when I became a freshman in society I realized that accounting is the most important thing in my career – even in my life! So I regret not having studied accounting properly. I’m so sorry I didn’t listen to my accounting teacher!

What is your favourite kind of food? Why?

MEAT! For no reason whatsoever!

Have you ever achieved an important goal in your personal life that you would like to share with us?

Not yet, still working hard to do so.

Do you have any advice for our new employees? Any positive values you would like to convey?

I have been working for quite a long time, and I feel most of the Chinese people often feel a lack of self-confidence.Self-confidence is a self-affirmation. On the one hand know your own limitations, but it is also clear that becomes the direction of their own efforts.

Perhaps most people are afraid to make mistakes or are too polite.

Being “afraid of making mistakes” is a good thing, because it will always remind you of what you need to do to prevent yourself from making mistakes.But shall we stop eating for fear of choking? And have fear in our hearts about everything?

For example, express your ideas and share your experiences, ask questions in class, discuss things with the teacher.We do not deliberately express ourselves, but when it’s time to speak we don’t need to be polite. Express your opinion, that will help you, the group and society to grow.

Are you romantically involved at the moment?

Ya, I’m married. And… I have three sons!

Where is your wife from?

She is from Taiwan.

How did you meet?

At a birthday party of a friend.

How long have you been together?

12 years. If I remember correctly.

What is your favourite colour?

Blue.

If you could be any animal, which animal would you choose?

Definitely a dog, because dogs are very faithful. And do you know that a dog can be like a doctor? They can heal people’s hearts and provide companionship. Healing activities and rehabilitation services to a person who need these services and through these services it will improve the patient’s physical, social, emotional or cognitive function. And the most important thing is, I love it when people rub my belly. :)

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It’s that time of the year again. The hallways are reverberating with the sound of chests hacking away in a symphony of coughs. Noses are running faster than any PA and people are just generally feeling a bit tender and tired.

No, it’s not the Mayan apocalypse catching up with us in 2013. It’s flu season, again!

We, here at Express, have put together a list of our favourite flu fighting tips to help you stay healthy this flu season.

It’s not just the cold, stupid!

We are quick to think that the chill in the air, cold feet, wet hair and exposure to cold winter air is what makes us fall ill. In fact, the cold weather only weakens our immune systems and makes us more susceptible to the flu virus.

So sitting in a room with all the windows closed and the heater on full blast won’t help that much at all.

The hands are where it’s at

Hands are what we experience the tactile world with. Therefore, it goes without saying that our hands are also carriers of germs and bacteria which cause infection. Keeping your hands clean by regularly washing them should help combat and fight the flu virus.

Swimming on the surface

Surfaces like table tops and kitchen counters are hotbeds of viral activity. Counter your counters by keeping them clean and by using a cleaning agent that contains alcohol to keep things sweet and sterile.

Build immunity

Build your immunity by boosting your health with vitamins, plenty of fluids like water and juice and also by exercising regularly.

Time to Strike Again

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Love, eat, sleep

Eat properly and healthy – raw foods contain a lot of vital nutrients. Sleep enough and rest when need be. Now all you need to do is to top it off with a bit of love.

Love the people, avoid the virus

Now before you all go running off and create a stampede, simply try and stay clear of those that have fallen ill. If you happen to be one of those people, do us a favour and stay home until you’re better. Don’t worry, we’ll still love you.

Time to Strike Again

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MY CITY, MY LIFE

CAPE TOWN

With Mandy Wong

How long have you lived in Cape Town before?

I moved there from Hong Kong since early 2002 and moved up to Johannesburg in late 2009. So I stayed in Cape Town for seven years.

What did you love about living there?

It is very relaxing and it’s sort of like a country living city. There’s no stress living there and you can always find something to do. Are there any things you dislike about Cape Town?

There is nothing to dislike about Cape Town. People are very friendly. I love this city a lot. Cape Town has good weather in summer, except the winter is unbearable as it is always raining and the wind keeps on blowing.

What are some of your favourite things to do in Cape Town?

There are many fabulous things to do in the Cape.

I love chilling on the beach with friends at Camps Bay which is one of my favourite places to go during summer in Cape Town. I love enjoying the sunshine, playing volleyball on the beach, having some drinks, watching the sea view, and feeling the sand and the ocean. I love to go shopping at Canal Walk and the V&A Waterfront.

I love going out to have lunch at Hout Bay. There are a lot of great seafood restaurants out there. Sometimes I would go for a drive on Chapman’s Peak Drive, which is one of the most famous spectacular scenic drives in the world.

il dolce far niente - the sweetness of doing nothing.

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I also love going out to have lunch at a wine farm and to do wine tasting.

I would say living life in Cape Town is “il dolce far niente” - the sweetness of doing nothing.

If you could describe Cape Town in one sentence what would that be?

Cape Town is a city which is all about enjoying the little things in life. “C’est la vie”!

If you compared Cape Town to other South African cities such as Durban or Johannesburg - what’s the same and what’s different?

Cape Town seems to be more relaxed and has less of a work ethic compared to Durban and Johannesburg. What they all have in common is that they are all South African cities and are all multicultural and diversified.

What’s your favourite building in Cape Town?

Jameson Hall, UCT.

What building in Cape Town is an eyesore to you?

Nothing in particular.

What would you tell someone that just moved to Cape Town?

How lucky you are! Cape Town is the place to be. You’ve made the right choice!

What is your position at Mpisi Group?

I am an accountant.

What does a regular day at Mpisi look like for you?

Each day has its own difficulties. Problems are there waiting for you to be solved.

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Father’s Day

Sunday, the 15th of June, w

e celebrated

Father’s Day. We set time aside this

day to let our dads know how much we

love and appreciate their gu

idance and

helpful advice.

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Father’s Day

Sunday, the 15th of June, w

e celebrated

Father’s Day. We set time aside this

day to let our dads know how much we

love and appreciate their gu

idance and

helpful advice.

Here are some of our

employees showing off as

dads or with their dads.

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Celebrating the spirit of our youth, remembering the sacrifices from the past.

On the 16th of June we celebrated Youth Day here in South Africa. While many of us enjoyed the day off and the rest that comes with a long weekend, we decided to explore the significance of this day as held within our collective memory.

Youth Day is to commemorate the sacrifice of the youth in the Soweto uprising in 1974. On this day the youth in Soweto fought against the use of Afrikaans as the language of instruction in schools as part of a greater legislated system of racial segregation.

Today, we have moved on from that frightful period and choose to celebrate our youth as they are our future. They are the leaders, movers and shakers of tomorrow. We salute you!

June 16th17

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We at Mpisi Group celebrated by either dressing up in school uniform or providing a photo of ourselves in school uniform back in the day. Some of us also submitted photos of us as kids. Enjoy!

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Advanced English Discussion Group

Every Thursday, after work, some of our dedicated employees get together to discuss current events, news articles, popular television series and the use of humour in the English language.

Everyone is free to raise their own opinion and to improve their English skills.

Basically going from fluent to proficient.

We try and keep things interesting and entertaining.

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Mpisi’s Got Talent!The Sequel

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With the AYEF less than six months away, Mpisi Group is gearing up and getting ready to host the second round

of our employee talent show.

We would like to encourage any employees that would like to

participate to start practising now.

There will , in all likelihood, be eight groups this year and the company will soon be holding auditions to

select the final eight groups.

If anyone is keen on entering they are welcome to send an email to

mpisiexpressteam@mpisi.com and we will forward it to the organising

committee. Remember there will be great prizes

up for grabs again!

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Mayoral Visit

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On the 27th of May, the mayor of Beira, in Mozambique, came to visit us here at Mpisi Group. Everyone worked hard to prepare the office for his visit and also to extend a warm and welcoming hand to Mr Simango.

Mr Simango met with the management of Mpisi Group and was shown our various sites and operations.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Simango for taking the journey to our head office in Johannesburg and for gracing us with his honourable presence.

Read more about Mr Daviz Simango here: http://www.theafricareport.com/Southern-Africa/the-50-most-influential-africans-daviz-simango.html

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HIV/AIDS Training at Mpisi Group

Alan Brand from Positively Alive spent ten days at Mpisi Group in May and June to train all of our employees in HIV/AIDS awareness and to train peer educators to continue spreading the word and the love and light that comes with increased understanding and improved knowledge.

Here is some feedback from our employees.

Mbali Sidu from Transport

I think we all know or have heard about HIV/AIDS, but the moment we see a healthy person whose HIV-positive it’s an entirely different story. What I learnt in the training is the different stages of HIV/AIDS, how to live with the virus and how to treat the person with the virus and not to discriminate against them. What made

the training exciting was the trainer, Alan, he made you look at it differently and not as the silent killer as many calls it. So, for me it was a great experience and I learnt a lot and enjoyed it as much.

Joyce from IT

It was great. We learnt a lot and our facilitator was very good, friendly and welcoming. The course went very well.

Julie from Phidisanang

The course was very practical and helpful for me and helped me to understand more about HIV. Thank you!

Lindy Banda

An awesome presentation – got me sitting on the edge of my chair. I’m a new person after today. Thanks Alan!

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Ravishing Restaurant

Review

Fiddlewoods at Ryan’s Nursery by Matthew from HR

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COMPETITION TIME

We asked you all to send in photos of yourself as youngsters, in uniform or of our dads. A lucky draw will take place on Wednesday, the 26th of June 2013 at 10h30.

The winner of our lucky draw competition will win a meal at Fiddlewoods at Ryan’s nursery, Bedfordview, for a meal to the value of R200.00 – R100.00 per person.

In the next issue of Mpisi Express we will publish another restaurant review in Durban and the winner of the competition will be reimbursed for two people to enjoy a meal at the reviewed restaurant at any time. Keep participating if you would like to stand in line to win a prize!

Fiddlewoods at Ryan’s has a great sense of countryside

charm to it. The food and drinks on the menu offer wholesome

and hearty standard Italian fare and is relatively

well priced.

Fiddlewoods offers al fresco breakfast and lunch and also some warm inside space in

which to be all snug this winter.

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