Hari-Hari Yang Bermakna

It has been a while since my last post. I know people out there dok carut kat cheq sebab tak update blog dah lama. Nak kata sebok, sebok la jugak. Nak kata malas, well, malas pun sama banyak. Lets put it this way, sometimes I don't feel like writing anything. Sometimes tu, tergedik2 atas LRT nak balik rumah update blog. Senang cerita, cheq akan update blog as and when I feel like writing something, bley....??

Bulan ni, banyak benda berlaku. Yang paling recent is that my close friend from utara just had his weekend at my place. Sorry na uol sebab cheq ni bukan kaki merayap sangat, so tak bawak uol pi mana2. Asyik dok rumah, tgk TV and makan. Hope you had enough to eat...... lets get fat, gitu. Jangan serik datang lagi. Kalau tak ke mana, we ol sentiasa akan ada di sini.

And not forgetting, I just had my birthday yang ke 29 (yeah right..... matila kena carut lagi) pada 14hb yg lepas. I had a good birthday with org tersayang and close friends. Had some cakes and keropok lekor sempena trip ke Kuantan. I'd been there once long time ago but didn't actually had a good look around. Ala2 sampai pukul 4 pagi, pukul 9 pagi terus headed to Kuala Terengganu. Tak done (bak kata Bard) nak bersiar2. And my 2nd trip ni sempat la tgk Teluk Cempedak (selalu sangat tersasul sebut Guar Cempedak) and Beserah (teringat lagu Amylea, Ku Berserah...... matila AF lagi). Terlebih dahulu nak mintak mahap kat org Kuantan, tadak apa kat tempat hangpa. I had to do a day trip saja, balik tidoq kat KL.

*bodoh tak?? gimrama la kekdahnya........

*Pantai Teluk Cempedak............

*McD Pantai Teluk Cempedak....... having some light snack...... snack ke??

Bulan Februari pulak, pegi ronda2 Melaka during one of the wknds. It's good to get out of KL for a change. Bangun pagi, tatau apa nak buat, terus shoot ke Melaka. Experience yang interesting was, masuk Museum Maritime without realising that we had to pay for it. Strange thing was, no one there to stop us and there was also no signboard at the sides yang kata kena bayaq kalau nak masuk. So mana nak tau kan?? I love freebees.

*Muzium Samudera, Melaka.....


*One of the historical sites in Melaka...... nama apa pun tatau. Tak hengat.....

Cobaan

I just reached KL less than 30 minutes ago. Still penat lagi ni. I went back home last tuesday in a hurry. After talking to my bosses in the morning, they asked me to go back as my mind was not there anymore. It was my dad who was not in his best state of health.

During Chinese New Year's break, he was not exactly well. He convinced me that he would be fine after taking some medicine and I left for KL dengan berat hati. When I reached KL after the holiday, my sister broke the news saying that my dad was admitted to a specialist hospital. I wanted to go back again but she convinced me that my dad was not in a serious condition as the doctor wanted him to stay in hospital just for observation. Nothing to worry about.

I had been calling home every now and then, but failed to speak to my dad as according to my siblings, "Abah penat (lelah). Tak boleh cakap banyak". Siapa tak risau dan bimbang kalau everyday his condition macam tak berubah saja. The doctor said that my dad probably had bronchitis and his prostate got swollen again. But the doctor would examined and run some tests anyhow. Walaupun banyak kerja kat office dan most projects require their first drafts in February, I rushed back home, just to see my dad. As someone said, family comes first.

Alhamdulillah, he is recovering well at home now. Cuma batuk lite-lite and I hope I will sleep better tonight. He will still need to see the doctor for follow ups next week. Cuma masa cheq nak balik tadi, cheq sayu sangat. My dad said to me, "Anak menantu semua jadi susah sebab aku", sambil mengalir airmata. I didn't know what to say. Anak mana yang tak sayu melihat bapa dia mengalir airmata. Emo jap ***pause***

Along the way, I was listening to my MP3 collection in the car and lagu2 Rossa memang buat cheq lagi emo. Cuma satu lagu yang dah lama cheq tak dengaq and menarik perhatian cheq untuk share with you. Let us take a break for a while and enjoy the lyrics.

MAKIN AKU CINTA - ANANG & KRISDAYANTI

Caramu mencintaiku
Menjauhkan kecurangan
Seperti bintang, yang setia pada bulan

Memegang kukuh janji
Menemani aku sampai mati
Terpasung hati
Tulusmu mendampingi diriku

Makin aku cinta
Cermin sikapmu yang mampu
Meredam rasa keangkuhanku
(Mengerti, memahami cinta)

Caramu memanjakanku
Kau rujuki kesejukan pagi
Memasang hati, tulus aku
Memasrahkan diri

Jangan pernah terbesit hati
Meragukan kesetiaan yang tercurah
Aku dan dirimu, ditakdirkan satu
Langit jadi saksi

Xing Nien Quai Le

I am currently spending my long holiday at kampung in Kedah. Taking a good break away from work and KL. Di kesempatan ini cheq nak ucapkan pada friends and family, A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS CHINESE NEW YEAR. May years to come bring good fortune and happiness to all of you.

China - Part 3

Salut. Terlebih dulu cheq nak ucapkan selamat tahun baru, masehi dan hijrah. Maaf ye cheq dah lama tak update blog ni. Dah bersarang pun. I've been busy with work and personal matters. A lot of things happened to me for the past few weeks, either good or bad. All I can say is, I'm a lot happier now, walaupun schedule untuk year 2009 agak menakutkan. Tapi cheq tak ambik pot sangat. One thing at a time..... I'll manage.

Jom sambung tengok gambar2 from China's trip.

*This is the Imperial Summer Palace where the Emperor spent most of his time during summer. Tempat ni cantik sangat, walaupun tak sebesar The Forbidden City. Kalau you all semua pernah tengok film The Last Emperor, you all akan tahu macamana permaisuri China membesarkan anak dia (pewaris takhta) di istana ni. She spent her time at this palace and had an illicit affair with her bodyguard. Cheq dah lupa citer tu macamana but this film won an Oscar for Best Film back in the late 80s or early 90s (tak ingat). Must get the DVD soon.

*this man-made lake kat Imperial Summer Palace ni agak menakjubkan. Cantik sangat. Time cheq sampai situ, the surface dah membeku tapi they all pecahkan sikit untuk dapatkan oksigen for the fish yang hidup dalam tasik ni.

*cheq fascinated dengan tulisan yang orang dok tulis kat pavement tepi tasik tadi. They all guna brush sebesar penyapu but yet the writing was so neat. The ink used was washable. Entah apa yang ditulis. I'd guess it was a poem. I need an interpreter here.

*Beijing's latest landmark. The Birdnest Stadium and its Olympic Sports Complex. The area was so big and spacious. Ala2 beribu kereta boleh park at this area. Boleh dikatakan dia 5 kali lebih luas than Kompleks Sukan Bukit Jalil. Penat kami berjalan from on spot to another. Very impressive indeed.

*pandangan dalam sebuah masjid di Beijing. From outside, tak nampak macam masjid pun sebab most masjid kat Beijing tadak kubah. Sorry to say, it looked more like a chinese temple than a mosque. Tapi hiasan dalaman dia, very unique. Chinese architecture masih dikekalkan.

*the end of the trip. After spending 7 days in China, it was time to say goodbye. Penat jugak sebab 7 days packed with tour activities. Pi sana sini, cuma malam saja tidoq kesejukan dalam bilik. Heater pun tak terasa warm sangat, kulit extremely dry and the weather outside was also extremely cold. Nak shopping pun penat jugak tawar menawar kalau tak nak kena tipu hidup2 dengan overly-priced goods. However, I quite enjoyed the trip and hope to come back in future. Maybe to some other places in China. Like I always said in the past, there's no better place than home.

*Beijing City International Airport. My luggage kena selungkar dengan airport security sebab masa x-ray ada nampak image tajam2 (manicure sets yang cheq beli banyak2 utk my sisters and friends). After waiting for about 2 hours, we departed and landed at KLIA at about 11.45 pm. KL Express pun dah habis service and my luggage "lost" for a few minutes. When I was just about to sign the report for loss luggage, my trolley bag suddenly appeared from nowhere. Memangla choi sangat hari tu. Tapi Alhamdulillah sebab cheq selamat sampai dan able to tell you the experience here.

China - Part 2

Tak mengantuk lagi, so let la sambung kongsi gambar.

BEIJING

*reached Beijing at about 6.30 am. Michael (our Chinese tour who speaks Malay very well and knows so much about solat jamak takdim and takhir and yet he's not even a Muslim) dah tunggu dengan setianya di railway station. After breakfast at a local Muslim restaurant, kami dibawa ke Tiananmen Square and passed by Beijing Opera House (see photo). Damn, so chanteq and smooth. So much better than Istana Budaya ibarat kater.

*the historical Tiananmen Square. Pagi2 buta dah ramai tourists. Muka Melayu ramai kat situ, even though we didn't come from the same group. Teringat cheq satu ketika dulu ada the popular news clip pasal students demonstration kat sini dan depa tried to obstruct the kereta kebal from dispersing them away. Scary sangat kalau jadi pisang lenyek time tu.

*Forbidden City. This place was so huge and beautiful. Kalau tak silap cheq, ada 7 gate untuk sampai yang terakhir. Each gate ada building2 yang tertentu which served for different functions and occasions. Dan paras lantai pun ada 7 lapisan. The reason being, susah untuk orang luar cuba masuk ke istana. And istana tempat emperor resided pun ada 29 rooms and he would sleep in different rooms every night. That shows that the emperor sebenarnya penakut jugak. Takut kena bunuh katernya. And ironically, he had 3000 concubines. Talk about kuat nafsu kan....??

*pintu terakhir kat belakang istana. And through this door, the family members akan keluar masuk kalau nak ke mana2. And the potential concubines pun akan masuk ikut pintu ni for the emperor to scan-scan katernya and she would never leave the palace again kalau emperor dah suka, even though the emperor subsequently died. Hmm....... janda kertu la jadinya. (Note : I love this photo too)

*Benhai Park. Tempat emperor and family pi sembahyang kat temple di sini. This park chanteq sangat and even now, people are queuing up to buy the monthly pass untuk sembahyang kat sini. Tasik masa time cheq sampai sini tengah membeku tapi tak la sampai boleh ice-skate lagi.

*a giant crystal ball at a local crystal shop. Dok tilik nasib, kot2 year 2009 boleh bawak lebih 'ong' in my life.

*posing sat bersama2 replicas of Terracotta warriors. Maybe someday boleh tengok the actual ones kat China lagi, InsyaAllah.......

*Great Wall of China. My dream finally came true, but sadly enough tak seperti yang cheq idamkan. I got to see it alone, instead of with my loved one. Tak pa la, tadak rezeki. One interesting fact, kat sini banyak padlocks yang dikuncikan pada rantai2 besi di tepi dinding. The reason being, Chinese people believe that kalau kita kuncikan our padlock kat situ, our love akan bersemadi selama2nya dan seutuh tembok ini (*tetiba teringat lagu Ramlah Ram and her blinking dress). I didn't actually leave my padlock there but I did leave something behind at the Great Wall. Semoga kasihku bersemi selama2nya (ohh payung.....!!) and hopefully someday when I return to the place again, the thing will still be there.

*my climbing partners, Sharifah & Onie. Dengan depa ni la cheq termengah2 naik ke satu point (macam nak mamp...!!) dan melayakkan cheq to claim a certificate for it. See... how steep and uneven the steps are.

*something to be proud of and I had to pay for it (damn....!!)

*I slipped and fell at this place, due to an icy/frosty pavement. And my back has been aching since then. Harap2 tadak apa2...... I may get my back checked one of these days. Bak kata pepatah, tempat yang jatuh lagi dikenang (true enough)...... How ironic.

*tak tau dia tulis apa. Maybe someone can read it for me :)

**bersambung in China - Part 3

China - Part 1

Ni hao (hello). It's good to be back. I've noticed that there have been some remarks made towards my last post. I don't want to add much to it. In short, I know what I did and didn't do. That's all. Silence speaks a thousand words. Lantak la orang nak cakap apa.

Anyway, I'm back now. Alhamdulillah. It was quite a good trip, though I didn't quite enjoy it as much as I did during my holiday in Langkawi back in May. Nevertheless, I've seen and experienced a lot of things in China. It will be another experience in life that I will treasure. I am not really in the mood to tell it all at this juncture but I am attaching some of the photos taken there for my friends' viewing. Let the photos tell you the story :

SHANGHAI

*Pudong Airport, Shanghai. Departed KLIA at 1.40am and arrived in Shanghai at about 6.30 am. There is no time difference between these two countries. My first time setting foot on Chinese soil and it was freaking cold (range between -6 to 6 degree celsius). With very basic knowledge in Mandarin (e.g. xie xie (thank you), zai jian (goodbye), bu keqi (you're welcome), bu yao (don't want), duibuqi (sorry), wo yao jiu cesuo (I want to go to toilet) etc.), I was looking forward to the tour at this point of time.

*upon arrival, we headed to the "Bund" (the famous waterfront in Shanghai). Boleh nampak Shanghai World Trade Centre, Shanghai TV Tower and other skyscrapers yg dipisahkan oleh Huanpu River. In short, the skyscrapers represent how ambitious the Chinese government is to turn China into a developed country. Semuanya out of the world punya design. As a result of the massive construction and flyover yang sampai 5 tingkat, it was dusty here. Duduk sini boleh pendek umur rasanya.

*opposite the "Bund" was the "Bank Street". Semua bangunan colonial peninggalan orang putih diduduki oleh bank2 terkemuka di China (either local or foreign banks). At this place also, cheq di-approached oleh a group of local girls yang fascinated with our "alien" faces. Mula2 ingat nak suruh ambik gambaq dia, rupa2nya depa nak ambik gambaq dengan cheq. Penuh ni kiri kanan diapit oleh not so gorgeous looking girls (hiks.....). I was wondering, cheq ni celebrity ka? Nothing of me resembles Justin Timberlake or even Andy Lau. Heran...... (!!!???)

*posing jap kat mailbox depan a local muslim restaurant after lunch.

*2nd day in Shanghai, shopping trip to the famous Nanjing Street. As it was on sunday, berpuluh ribu orang keluar shopping at that time. Gila akak barb punya ramai orang. That street cuma punya kedai2 & mall yang ada nama. Tapi kat alley2 tu ada kedai2 kecik yang penuh dengan penipuan. The trick is to get someone (normally a female accomplice to attract tourists like us with "Hello sir, you want bag? watch?? iPod?? iPhone??" (of course, in a very bad English sampai tak paham dia cakap apa). Pastu ajak pi ke kedai dia and once you enter, the door akan dilock and a whole bunch of gangster-like guys ugut you beli something not worth buying. Luckily, I didn't get into the trap tapi one of us dipaksa beli imitation iPhone yang tak elok langsung for 1200 yuan. A tip for you guys the next time you go there.

SUZHOU (pronounced Su-Cho)

*we left Shanghai on the 2nd day in China by bus. After a 2-hour journey, sampai la kat Suzhou and it was already dark at 6 pm. Personally, I prefer this city which was well-planned and organised. It was like visiting Putrajaya tapi kat China. Industrial area pun businessmen from Singapore yang helped to develop once upon a time.


*photos taken from the government owned silk factory. I bought the kungfu master shirt I long for all this while. I've talked to my darling before of getting this shirt tapi tak sangka sampai ke China pulak dapat belinya. Yang penting it's pure silk. Meletop......... (pic not included).


*photos taken along the canals kat Suzhou. It is famous for its man-made canals and it was once called Little Venice of the East. So romantica de amour ibarat kater naik gondola along these canals waktu2 winter macam ni. Kecut telor siot....... I'm not joking. Kena search for "it" kalau pi toilet. Kecut segals........ ibarat kater.

*Surging Waves Pavillion was built in 1044 AD and the garden is the oldest classical garden in Suzhou. I am not much into gardens, so tak pandai sangat nak appreciate this place. Cheq hanya tengok batu2 laut yang tua diletak dalam garden ni and old chinese houses yang mencecah berabad usianya. Look see look see and snappy snappy sajork. Next.....!!!!

*being in the same species as Panda, cheq gian nak tokak batang buluh ni. So serene sangat kat sini. Someone mentioned macam dalam video clip Atilia - Sangkar. Ya ka...??

*merenung luar jendela teringat orang jauh...................

*lost in Suzhou (and translation).

*leaving Suzhou at 8.30 pm for Beijing on the Night Soft Sleeper Train. Kena pulak share dengan 2 local people, sorang jants dan sorang betins. Macam ayam dan itik, aku tengok kau, kau tengok aku. In the end, dengaq iPod dan terus ke wonderland. Excuse me for the snoring........ what an experience. (Note : I love this photo walaupun gelap. The image nampak unique)

** bersambung in China - Part 2

Siaran Tergendala Sebentar........

By the time this post got published, I would be on my way to Shanghai. I'm taking a few days off and berjalan2 tengok negeri orang. Cheq tak kan bersiaran selama seminggu. InsyaAllah kalau umur panjang, kita akan berjumpa semula. Diharapkan this trip akan berjalan dengan baik dan selamat. Jika tidak, cheq mohon maaf di atas segala salah silap, terlanjur kata serta perbuatan selama ni.

Buat insan tersayang....... I love you more than words can say, and this is for you, Yang :

"Stay The Same" - Joey McIntyre

Don't you ever wish you were someone else,
You were meant to be the way you are exactly.
Don't you ever say you don't like the way you are.
When you learn to love yourself, you're better off by far.
And I hope you always stay the same,
cuz there's nothin' 'bout you I would change.

I think that you could be whatever you wanted to be
If you could realize, all the dreams you have inside.
Don't be afraid if you've got something to say,
Just open up your heart and let it show you the way.

Believe in yourself.
Reach down inside.
The love you find will set you free.
Believe in yourself, you will come alive.
Have faith in what you do.
You'll make it through.