Monday, December 31, 2007

usher it in

i am not going to do the typical 'looking back in 2007' or '2007-the year it was' kind of post. what is past, is past. let bygones be bygones. i've had my fair share of everything so i'm gonna look forward to the year 2008. God knows what 2008 has in store for me but i 'm prepared for it. well, i have to be prepared. be it good or bad. heck, i've survived 24 years of living so what's another year, right? *finger crossed* besides, i'll be hitting the number 25 in thirteen days *hint hint* so here's wishing you a very happy new year 2008. may the year 2008 bring all the good things to all of us.


Friday, December 28, 2007

pictures

surprisingly, today the internet connection was fast so i was able to create a slide show of my holiday, as attached herewith. enjoy!
a few things that i learned during the trip:
  • the Indonesians are surprisingly not smelly
  • the Indonesians are a friendly lot
  • they would do anything and everything to sell their goods
  • they sell foods everywhere
  • the gap between the rich and the poor is so huge
  • some of them can be really ganteng and manis (cute/handsome/pretty) while some looks like the typical maids
  • it is a shopping haven
  • you become instant millionaire when you go there
  • you can bargain like hell when you buy stuffs
  • the toilets, although not that fancy, clean and modern (no flush, just pour water when you're done) are surprisingly not stinky, unlike ours. even klcc toilets stink!
  • i gained weight because i ate rice twice a day boohoo but i cannot help it that the lauks are so delicious
  • i drank avocado juice for the first time in my life and it's rich, thick and yummy
  • the baksos are delicious




hooray hooray it's a holi-holiday

Before I forgot, I hope it’s not too late for me to wish all Muslims Selamat Hari Raya Aidiladha and Merry Christmas to all Christians. The day before Raya Haji, mum, lil bro and I went to Jakarta and Bandung for a 6D5N trip. The flight from KL to Jakarta took about 2 hours. We reached Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at approximately 1730hrs (1830hrs Malaysia time) where we were greeted by the tour guide, Pak Taufik. It was raining when we reached Jakarta and the traffic jam was terrible, horrible and much worst than in KL. After braving through Jakarta jam a.k.a macet, which is basically a complete standstill, I think, no I’m sure that I’ll be a lot more patient on the road after this. Heh~ imagine that it took us about 2hours just to get to the restaurant (hereinafter referred to rumah makan) for dinner, which is just 40-minutes away and another 2hours for us to reach our hotel from the rumah makan! Luckily the dinner was good. After dinner, we checked in at Millenium Hotel.

The next morning, which was Raya Haji, we had a little celebration of our own where one of the members in our tour group brought lemang, nasi himpit, ketupat, rendang ayam, rendang daging and kuah kacang. Yes, you read right. He (it was a he) brought it all the way to Jakarta! He even brought the papan landas, senduk, paper cups and plates and plastic spoons and forks. The rest of the group also brought a little something for the celebration and I baked a simple butter cake. Initially I wanted to bake carrot cake but I’m sure that by the time we reach Jakarta, the cream cheese topping would’ve smeared all over the bekas. After breakfast, we started our journey and proceeded to Bandung, which took about 2hours. Upon reaching Bandung, we were brought to the rumah makan where we had a nice lunch. Then the rain poured and the roads were flooded. We had to redah the water to get to our bus and we got our shoes wet boohoo. Silly me forgot to bring another pair of shoes so I had to buy one. There was hardly anything to do because of the rain so the itinerary was changed a bit to accommodate the time. We did some shopping and then later checked in at Mutiara Hotel.

The next day, we went to Tangkuban Parahu. Legend has it that once there was a very beautiful woman who lived in the jungle with her son. She has no husband. One day she scolded and hit her son’s head for being naughty and the son ran away. Since the woman lived in the jungle, she only ate ulam, roots leaves etc and became awet muda. One day her son, who had already grown into a handsome young man met her and fell in love with her, without knowing that the woman is his mother. The woman also did not know that it was her son until one day she saw the scar on the man’s head. By then, they had promised to marry each other. So she figured out a plan to cancel the wedding. Thinking that the man would not be able to complete the task, she challenged him to build a boat and a lake before dawn. If the man failed to complete it, she will not marry him. The man has some super powers whatever and almost completed the task. This worries the woman, who then consulted her fairy godmother or some spirit of some sort. You know how cerita dulu-dulu is. Anyway the fairy gave her a piece of cloth and told her to wave the cloth. By doing this, the cloth would look like the sun and the roosters will start crowing signifying that it was dawn. However the man found out about it and became very angry and kicked the perahu until it terbalik and the waters in the lake all splashed out. The hills look like a perahu yang terbalik, which is said that that was the perahu that the man kicked, thus the name Tangkuban Perahu and until today, the lake looks nothing more like a crater, with very little water. I stand corrected though because I was sleeping when the tour guide told the story so I had mum and lil bro narrating it to me over lunch. Hehe. After the visit to Tangkuban Parahu, we went to Sari Ater Hot Spring where there was a natural hot spring with healing properties and whatnot. We dipped our feet in the hot water for a few minutes before continuing our journey to a strawberry farm. We had lunch at the farm in its small huts and the foods are simply delicious. After lunch, we went shopping.

On the fourth day, we head back to Jakarta and went to Taman Mini Indonesia Indah. We only stopped at one house, which is the Rumah Minangkabau. After that, we went to Ancol, a wonderland or Dunia Fantasi or DuFan as they call it, ala Sunway Lagoon or Disneyland. Unfortunately it was raining when we went there and the stupid tour agency did not exactly include the visit to the DuFan. We were only taken around the DuFan in the bus. Pfft. Then we went to the Art Market, which is a park with artists exhibiting their work of art etc. *yawn* There was nothing much to do there and it was such a waste. Later at night, lil bro and I took the Bajai (a three-wheeled vehicle, similar to Tuk-Tuk in Thailand) from our hotel to the nearest shopping mall and had a fun time shopping. Mum did not follow us as she was too tired and something came up (which I shall deal with in another entry, Insyaallah). We shopped until the mall closed and then walked for about 10 minutes to the Hard Rock Café. HRC is situated in a big shopping mall but by the time we reached there, the shops were closed except for the cafes, restaurants and bars. There was even an F Bar! We then sat at the lounge and watched Jakarta people, who are extremely beautiful, stylish and good-looking. It was a Saturday night so lots of young people hung out at the place and I totally adore the way they dress.

Fifth day, we went to visit the Tugu Monumen Nasional a.k.a Tugu Monas, which is like our Dataran Merdeka. Took some pics and even took pics in front of the president’s palace. After that we went shopping like crazy at a huge shopping haven called Mangga Dua. Later in the evening we went to Plaza Senayan, a high-class shopping mall, just like our Pavilion and The Gardens.

On the last day, we walked to Pasar Tanah Abang, another shopping haven, which is just a 10 minute walk from our hotel. Some of the shops were not opened yet but we managed to buy some stuffs there. After lunch we went to Mangga Dua again and shopped somemore before heading to the airport. Our flight home was at 2200hrs but considering the horrible macet, we pushed off to the airport at 6pm and reached there at about 7pm. Thank God traffic was ok. We landed at KLIA at approximately 0130hrs, on Christmas Eve. On the way out of the airport, something happened to Mum, which I shall also deal with in another entry.

Since my internet connection is very very damn bloody f***ing slow at the moment, I will only insert pics later on as it will take forever to upload the pics and by the time it finished uploading, I would have boiled over. rasa macam nak baling je modem ni kat muka orang streamyx, boleh tak??

Monday, December 17, 2007

a weekend in PD

Attending conferences is not really my cup of tea but if the conference is held at a hotel by the beach, I thought, why not? Besides, I have no plans for the weekend. Might as well fill my holidays by doing something useful and beneficial, right? When I was invited to join the National Legal Aid Conference at Selesa Beach Resort, Port Dickson for a three day two night conference, I did think twice about it since none of my friends from the Fraser's Hill trip are going. But then I thought if I didn't join this one, when else can I join? When I start work next month, I'm gonna have to take a day off if I were to attend such program. Since it's on national level, it's a great networking opportunity because I get to meet lawyers and people from various state bar and legal aid centers from all across peninsular Malaysia. I need the contacts so that when and if I decide to open my own firm in the future *fingers crossed* I know who to contact etc. I also get to broaden my perspective on what legal aid is all about. So off I went on Friday morning. Took a lift with two other lawyers cum Legal Aiders from KL, Puspa and Nik. We reached PD at about 2pm and immediately check in. the conference started at about 3pm and ended at 630ish. after which, we changed and hit the beach. We didn't get to do much on the beach because it was already late. After dinner, there was the night session which ended at about 11pm.

On the second day, the conference was held throughout the day. The conference was, well, a conference. hehe. Our minds were already thinking on what to do at the beach so the moment they called it a day, me and my two friends Kamie and Farah quickly changed and hit the beach. First we went on the free horse ride which was totally awesome! I remembered asking mum where can I go for a horse ride in Penang and I never thought that I would actually get the chance to go on one so soon. The hotel gave the free service so we grabbed the opportunity. At first the horse was a bit reluctant to let us ride him but after much persuasion by the trainer, it eventually gave in. it even peed when Kamie went onto him. hehehe. After the horse ride, the three of us went on the jet ski for 15 minutes. Then we built sandcastle while waiting for the rest of the gang to come down so that we can go on the banana boat together. The banana boat ride was awesome except for the part when the boat men purposely 'drowned' us. We all fell into the water and I accidentally bit my lips and it bled. Boohoo. We then played in the sea until about 730ish before we went back to our rooms and get ready for the bbq dinner, which was held by the beach. The spread was yummy; we chatted and had a really good time. There was even a free flow of drinks. We wanted to dance by the beach but the hotel did not have a good sound system. How boring. Later on after eating desserts, Kamie, Farah and I together with Hidayat and Kiang from Melaka went to search for a place to karaoke. We eventually went to Corus Hotel which is a few minutes away from our hotel and we got a room for two hours. We sang like we have never sang before, danced like we have never danced before and basically we had a blast (which leaves us with sore throat). The karaoke session ended at 1am and we went for a drink at a nearby mamak.

We planned to have another go on the banana boat the next morning and had promised each other to wake up and give morning calls and what not but come Sunday morning, everybody was too lazy to wake up. Instead of waking up at 730, we woke up at 845am. the conference was supposed to start at 9 but we took our own sweet time to get ready because we found out the other senior lawyers were drinking until the wee hours and we figured that there's no way that they could wake up either hahaha. The session eventually started at 10am. So we were not late after all. As for the two guys, they came in at almost 11. The whole event ended at 1pm. we checked out, had lunch, said our goodbyes, took pictures and head home. This time, I took a lift from Kamie who sent me home.

It was definitely another great and memorable experience and not too mention informative. I am glad that I went to the conference and that I met some really cool people. Ok picture time!

Thursday, December 13, 2007

things so far

two weeks into December already? sheesh. what have i accomplished lately? lemme see...
  • i'm still the same ol' me-meaning not a pound lighter nor an inch smaller, eventhough i've been working out quite a lot with mum in Penang (but the makan was just as banyak thus explaining the non-effectiveness of the workout). we went to the youth park on Monday and Wednesday morning, did our poco-poco dance on Tuesday evening, worked my abs on the ab thingy which left me to an achy abs thanks to lil bro who forced me to do numerous sets of sit-ups at one go.
  • i've been sleeping really late at night resulting to waking up really late in the day (no need to state the exact time lah)
  • trimmed and dyed my hair to a reddish tone. new year=new hair colour. konon2 new spirits.
  • surprisingly, chocs ada lagi. but so sikit! stock running dangerously low. need...more...chocs...asap...
things to do:
  • go to PD this weekend for the National Legal Aid Conference (tentatively)
  • pack sis's stuffs
  • go to the money changer to exchange RM to Rupiah
  • shopping and gallivanting in Jakarta & Bandung
  • buy Rinie & Najmie's wedding present
  • was thinking of donating some old clothes to the flood victims. anyone knows where i can send them to?
thing i should do:
  • kemas my ever so untidy and messy room
  • kemas my wardrobe-eliminate the unnecessary
  • file my fair order
  • pack my bag for the PD trip. what to wear oh what to wear...there will be lawyers from all over the country so i need to look the part also, no? heh~
  • pack my bag for the Jakarta & Bandung trip. was thinking of buying some tops and skirts and a cute comfy shoes to be worn there but since i'm going there, it's gonna be way cheaper, right? should i or should i not?

Thursday, December 06, 2007

it's a start

i can't believe myself either but today i actually went for a walk around the neighborhood! yes people you read right. and nope sis, you're not dreaming. *rolls eyes* the weather was perfect for a walk. it rained earlier and i almost abandon my plan but luckily the rain stopped at about 530ish. so i put on my dusty sports shoes and off i went. i was hoping that i could catch a glimpse of Yusry KRU in his new house and secretly wishing that he might pass by me in his car while i was walking. hehehe. but no luck i guess. it feels good to have a brisk walk around the neighborhood but there is only one problem. there are houses with dogs and it's either the dogs really hate me that they bark at me like mad dogs whenever i pass by them or they really adore me that they greeted me with their ever so loud barks, which scared me to death. just when you thought you wanted to relax your mind, suddenly you get the shock of your life! damn those dogs. actually i was mentally prepared because my neighborhood consist of people from all races and some of them have dogs. there was one time, i was cycling and a dog came running towards me because the gate was open. knowing me, instead of continue cycling, i stopped. simply because i was terpaku, terkujat and terkejut. since then, everytime i wanted to take a walk or cycle, i would think twice. see, it's not that i don't want to workout. circumstances doesn't allow me to. tomorrow i'm going to take a walk in the morning, provided that i wake up early, which is most unlikely. oh well, it's the thought that counts, right? oh but who knows, maybe, just maybe i will bump into Yusry tomorrow. *fingers crossed*

glitter-graphics.com

they are super cute when they are puppies and when they don't bark.

Tuesday, December 04, 2007

holiday plan(s)

now that i'm on holiday (yes people, i'm rubbing it in) *evil laugh* i am wondering, what to do oh what to do (besides eat and sleep of course). actually, i plan, repeat i plan to do some workout because i made a bet with a friend but at the rate i'm going, i will surely, definitely, lose the bet. damn. we didn't bet money though. just that the losing party (which is very likely to be me thankyouverymuch) will have to belanja the winning other party makan. and by makan, i'm not talking about mamak food or fast food. this is like real makan! come to think of it, it kinda defeats the purpose, don't you think? the thing is, we can only plan. or dream rather. i was thinking that maybe i could wake up early and go for a walk around the neighbourhood. but then what's a holiday like if i were to wake up early, right? hahaha. then i thought, maybe i could follow lil bro to the gym which he just enrolled a few days ago (it was a 1 month trial period btw). but then he said since it's a trial thingy, he is not allowed to bring any guest. then there's another option. the friend whom i made the bet with invited me to join him at his gym. unfortunately it's so far away from my house (OU je sebenarnya) and it's such a hassle to drive all the way there just to go to the gym. besides, i heard that Big Apple Donut has already opened in OU. and then there's Carl's Jr., tako tao at jj, sushi king you name it they have it oh the list is endless. my last other option is to go to our club in Melawati, K Club (previously known as Club Century Paradise). but there is a problem. i don't have the membership card to access the club. actually, we do have some exercise equipments here at our house but the temptation to slouch and slump on the sofa, in front of the tv while sipping a cup of iced coffee and munching on kuih and what not is too hard to resist.
so how the hell am i supposed to lose weight like this? to make matters worst, the only workout that i really enjoy doing is swimming. does anyone here have a pool behind their house or at their apartment/condo that i can tumpang swim? or does anyone wanna invite me to go for a swim at their club? *batting eyelashes*
btw look at what my officemates got for me. chocolates! the parker pens are from boyfy. so now i have a stockful of chocolates to last me this holiday weeehoooo~ but at the rate i'm gobbling eating them, i bet you it won't last long. two weeks tops. hehe.