. . . rambling thots . . .

yeah, it's a bit over the top for me to actually have several entries just to tell you about my recently bought yukata.

but, i love it so much, you just have to humour me.

so, this is how my yukata looks like. it's quite simple looking actually.

the background color is dark blue, with repeating print designs of a crane over a, what looks to me like a sakura tree.


this one, bought by my colleague during her trip to tokyo, is size 's'. my colleague thought size 'm' might be big for me. errr... 'thank you'? and it's not a complete set though since i only gave her rm100 (me, being broke, again...heheheh) and i guess she didn't have that much of shopping time.

well, i don't have any occasions to wear it to anyway...

since that's the case, i'm thinking of making it into a decorative item for my house. perhaps, get it framed (it's gonna be a very big one though) or hanged. before that, i'm gonna try to find something that can become something like a 'mock up' of the missing accessories.

already have a spot (in the house) to display it, in mind!

i've been wanting to blog about this for quite sometime now but couldn't find the time to.

want to share it with you since it puts a smile on my face everytime i remembered it.

it was on my last trip to Bandung with my 2 colleagues, NAR and NWAL. being that that was our last nite there and the rest have finished their shopping spree, i asked our cheuffeur (of our rented MPV) to bring me to any CD Music store that he knows.

we were on Jalan Dago, which is the liveliest place in Bandong come weekend-nite, when upon approaching a traffic light, suddenly a teenage boy jumped rite in front of our car blocking it to a halt. Luckily, there were lots of traffic on the road and the car was just cruising about 10-20kmph.

back to the boy.

"Is he crazy!?!" "What is this guy trying to do?" "Is he trying to kill himself!?!" All sorts of things came out from our mouths. Of course we were shocked. Scared? Not really. But I then looked at the driver. He was calm and smiling even. Perhaps he was silently laughing at us, heh?

My colleague asked him what's going on. He just smiled and we saw his side of the mirror slowly going down. There, lined up just beside our car was several teenagers eagerly looking in. I saw one of them equipped with a guitar in his hand.

"1,2!" shouted this guy and his friends opened their mouth and started to sing!

hahahahaha...

"oh! so, this is what they were up to!!!" we said to each other almost in unison!

only then that we noticed the same thing happened to the other cars...

these boys and girls were singing to us their song in that short 2-3 minutes while the traffic light is still red. happily clapping to the rythm. their singing was not that bad! it cheered us up actually, especially after our long and tiring shooping spree!

knowing how it is in Indonesia, I open up my purse looking for some money to tip these happy youths! but it was my colleague who tipped them in the end coz she wanted to finish up her Rupiahs. I think she gave quite a hefty amount coz the teenagers cheered thunderously upon receiving them and loudly thanked us!

hahahahah! isn't it wonderful to be at that age again? *sigh*

shocked and surprised, I didn't remember to capture them on video but NWAL managed to snap a picture just as the car was about to move.

not having that much of pocketmoney but still wanting to enjoy a nite out with their friends on weekend nite, these Bandung teenagers do this quite regularly perhaps. i don't think it's harmful though.

in the words of Miss Lauper, "they just want to have fun!". enjoying the company of their friends, forgetting about their worries for just that one night...

how i wish i could do the same...

a word to those teenagers, though.

"Do your parents know you're doing this?"

hehehehe...

There are high possibilities that two of my colleagues are going to Tokyo come March. They've been invited there by their Japanese project team member.

You see, the project that they are involved in, consists of members from Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, New Zealand, Phillipines, Singapore, Thailand, Japan and Malaysia.

These colleagues are incharged of developing the web site and since it will later be hosted and maintained in Tokyo, they were invited to do the setup; flight and accommodations to be covered by their Japanese counterpart.

The invitation reached my Director some time end of last year. It wasn't confirmed until early this month.

*sigh*

uwaaaa!!! I am so jealous!!!!

I think it'll be very long 'til I get the chance to go there myself.

The travel cost is damn expensive. In Lonely Planet, they say the daily budget, assuming you travel only near distance, should be around USD$60.

Get this. The price of one movie ticket, which is RM10 here, is about RM52 there! Not that, I'm planning to go to the cinema there anyways. Meanwhile, one can of drink costs RM3.50. Erk!!!

But, I still want to go there...

Those two colleagues of mine sure are lucky. And to think that it'll be spring in Tokyo come March. It's the time when the Sakuras bloom!

*double sigh*

I am sure they'll be at my face when they return to the office, knowing very well I'm crazy about Japan.

My eyes are green with envy!!! HON-TO-NI!!!
);

Hey, guys! Can I follow you?
If not, can you please bring back something for me from Japan?

Nothing much.
Just an 'ikemen' will do for me!

Hehhehehe...

Here's an interesting conversation that is going on between the "singles" in the office this morning...

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

IZZA :

hello my dear...
there's a wind-news-news that you're interested to go to Spain but next yr??
how early u have in mind???..hehe...
let me know, and maybe we can work somethg out!...:))

SSH :

heheheh... am very, very interested !!!
agak2 u how much money i need for the trip?
u tell me the rough figure, and then i see lah if it's a "reacheable target" ( ;
otherwise, hehehe.... guess u guys have to go without me. ) ;

IZZA :

the more the merrier la, ..
if there are 4 ppl travelling..that's ideal "travelling grp"..hehe..:)..
i think roughly (assuming we go for 1week):

1. flight - 3k (depending on mth, but i think early next yr after xmas & new yrs should be around that)
2. accommodation - normal motels to safe 3 star hotels would range from 12-20 Euro per-person per-night so let's say la euro 20 * 6 = 120 euro
3. travelling - if sewa kereta we may be able to save a bit but i drove in italy and was not one happy driver.(drove manual so was worst since auto much more expensive).so i'm thgkg spain is not much better...:) but if let's say we take train/bus let's sayla give or take between euro 200-300 per person..we can stil consider kereta
4. food - let's say once a day we eat out lain semua magee or bread stuff then we can put around euro 20 a day so that's approx euro 150
5. sightseeing tickets, shopping - probably aorund euro 100-200 i think depending on how much we shop or sight see.

So give or take that's a total of : RM3K + EU800 (being prudent could be lower) = RM7k (assuming EU will be around 5 times higher:)

U have no excuse, start saving RM1k mth, by end of the yr you should hm rm12k for spain...kah kah kah...:)...
we're still considering packaged tour tho but so far i havent found an interesting one. so was thgkg if we decide packaged tour best option would be to go to london first (save flight ticket a bit) and get one from there since they will have tonnes and cheaper ones as well becos competition is higher)...
but will see la..
at least if unstructured travelling more adventurous la..:))

Plus guys, this could be our LAST chance to find some sexy latino who can flamenco or tango all the way to Malaysia!hihihihihi...

NAR :

wow!!!!..
terus rasa bersemangat.. ni nak kena gi asb simpan duit lagi nih.. hahahah.
last two days i chck hotel price at granada... 3 star hotel.. the cheepest..is euro71 per room.... but not more than 85 euro...
tapi tak tau la.. tu rate kat internet.. might be cheaper...
gi london dulu???..waaaa best gak tu...hehehhe

IZZA :

euro 71 per room not perperson right??...if yes, then if fits our budget else..huaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!..that means prices have really shot up...
kalau pergi london dulu can shopping sikit there..hihi....
takpe takpe..we have time to survey and check out options...

NAR :

yep..per room.. that one is without breakfast.. if with breakfast.. lagi la mahal..
so bawak jer la bekalan megi byk2.. hahaha.. balik mesia.. terus rambut gugur.. :D

ha...betul tu... amik2 gambar dulu kat london.. shopping kalau mampu.. kah kah kah... yg penting.. leh cop passport... :P:P:P

SSH:

UWAAA!!!!! very the very the menggoda!!!! awh! tidaks!!!
kena save rm1k per month ek? gulps!
I'll try my very best... nampak nyer i have to rework my monthly budget nih. as if!
so, u all bagi me time until when nih? u guys gimme until june... if by then, i still can't afford the flight ticket, then, with a very pain-ful feeling, bye-bye se-pain.

btw,kalau nak drive manual, saya memvolunteerkan Kak NAR! hehehehe...

NAR :

chissssssssssssssssssssssssssssss <---- itu adalah perkataan yg spontan keluar dari mulut aku masa baca ayat terahkir ko ituhhhhh....
boley..boley.. kenapa pulak tak boley..
tapi korang kena bgtau dulu.. longkang mana yg kita akan tujui... kah kah kah...

SSH.. mesti boleh punya..
utk dis few months nih.. ko jgn berjoye2..
sumer duit simpan.. hahahha...

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Wargggh!!!!!

To save RM1K every month for a trip to Spain is definitely gonna be really, really, really difficult for me! Somewhat 'unreacheable'.

Besides, which weighs more? RM7K for a once in a lifetime trip OR RM7K for a long overdued SLR Camera?

SPAIN? SLR?
SLR? SPAIN?
SPAIN? SLR?
SLR? SPAIN?
SPAIN? SLR?
SLR? SPAIN?
SPAIN? SLR?
SLR? SPAIN?

Help me decide.... pleeeeeeaaassssse....!

one tip for all of us

if you plan to go on a holiday and also have to attend a training back to back, which will preceed the other? not priority-wise, more to its arrangements.

from my very own recent experience, better have that holiday after the training or whatever things that might require lots of your energy (physical and mental).

otherwise, you'd be like me. really feel tired and i can't really concentrate on the training...

at least after the training, you can have that holiday for relaxation and pampering...

That's short for "Kenangan Lalu Menusuk Jiwa"...hheheheh...

It was around this time last year, me, Cik Lee, Cik Tinn, and Acu spent our Eidul Adha and New Year with our favorite men; Dutt, Eross, Bri, and Adam.

The bus ride, the ferry across to Lampung, the show, the durian eating session, etc etc etc...


That is one memory we can never forget and will always treasure...

Wish we'll have more opportunities like that after this!

phew! it's been a great one week vacation for me.

it was a last minute decision (made by Cik Lee) that i went to ipoh, penang and cameron for the hols. granted, the journey was tiring and of course, an exercise that had left my purse almost half empty.

we initially decided to do some touristy stuff but ended up eat-eat-eat instead! at the end of the vacation, i've put on almost 4kilos of weight. gotta do some serious dieT-ing quickly!

ipoh
unlike my last visit to ipoh, i opted to drive instead of taking the bus there. although some say that taking the bus is much easier and less hassle, but personally, i'd rather drive as it's more comfortable, i can take my own sweet time and further more, I JUST LOVE DRIVING!!!

however, i'd like to say just one word to those travelling on the highway during (any) holiday seasons - SMARTTAG. but do make sure you've reload your card before hitting the road or at least some cash in your wallet to reload it at the Toll plaza.

i arrived in ipoh just in time for breakfast. Cik Lee had promised to take me to a shop that sells some delicious frshly made Prawn Chee Cheong Fun. yep! it's definitely delicious and cheap. i'll make sure i'll go there on my next (and every) visit to Ipoh.

penang
in Penang, we stayed at Anggerik Lodging near USM. the place was cheap, clean and small. by small, i mean, around 8ftx8ft with bathroom ensuite. yeah, what do you expect from a RM65 a nite room!?! regardless, it was clean and we didn't spend most of our time in the room anyway.

i'm not sure why, but Cik Lee had a 'craving' for Assam Laksa and we went to search for it around Georgetown. In his sms, Cik Lee's friend recommended us to look for it near Gama and Swatow Lane. This was on our second and last day.

When we found out the one behind Gama opens around 2pm, we headed to Chowrasta for some 'ole-ole' shopping and later went to Swatow Lane. To our delight, there is one shop selling Assam Laksa there, but to our disappointment, it's non-Halal.



So, guess what we had instead?


after having Nando's and BR31 on our 1st day, due to frustration (of not having found Halal Assam Laksa) and hunger, on the 2nd day, we had our lunch at... (drumroll...)... Manhattan Fish Market! yeah, imagine our friends asking "So what did u eat in Penang? Assam Laksa? Char Kuey Tiow? Nasi Kandar?", and we'd reply "No. We drove all the way to Penang to have Nando's, BR31, and MFM!"... soooo not the local cuisines!!!

what else did we spend our money on in penang?

i, myself spent about rm50 on *cough*pirated*cough* DVDs bought during our (lengthy) walk at Batu Feringghi on our 1st night in Penang. OK la, there are risks of you buying the Cinema instead of the Master Copy, but it's only RM4 per DVD. If you don't like the quality, u can just throw it away...

on our way back, we stopped again at Gama, cuz i insisted on buying the Laksa Penang (tapau). When we arrived at Seberang Perai, we headed North to Sg Dua to have the famous Mee Udang.

The different thing about this place is that you can pick your own prawns. Ada la udang harimau and kertas. Pricey!!! 100g=RM8. but worth it la, if you love prawns. and the gravy is delicious too!!! so, if you're on a journey up North or if you're from North, do stop by the restaurant. It's near Sg Dua Exit, go straight about 2-3kms, across the bridge, and the restaurant is on the left after the bridge. yummy!!!

what touristy stuff that we do?

we went to Bukit Bendera to ride the cable car up the Penang Hill. yet another disappointment. The earliest ride is at 8pm and at the time, it was only 4.30pm!!! What the heck r we supposed to do for that 3 hours? Dah la tempat tu tak de apa. Traffic jam pulak on our way there!!! Buat perabis boreh ajo!


so, we looked in the map that we have for another interesting place to go. Since PRamlee's house is around that area, we headed there straight. but. we got lost!!! Yep! Even with the map in hand! We went around and around looking for the place. Not sure if the map's fault or maybe it's because Penang's road are 90% one-way streets. My sense of directions are perfect. So, not a problem there! By the time we arrived, it was already 5.30pm and the place is closed!!! arggh!!!!

So, if you're planning to drive in Penang, be sure to have a map with you. not just any map! make sure the map indicates which roads are one-way and which are not! that should make your life much-much-much easier!!!

cameron
cameron was definitely a spur of the moment's plan. even Cik Lee's family (moins father) decided to join us in the eleventh hour.

we drove up from Simpang Pulai, which Cik Lee said the road is less curvy then of those from Tapah. But we encountered several traffic jams on our way up. This due to people stopping to go to the markets or farms found on road side.

as for ourselves, we stopped at Brinchang's Market to do our shopping.

love the fresh fruits! love the fresh veggies! if only i had more money to spend, i'd buy a whole lot of them!!! but i only budgeted RM50 for my Cameron trip, and even that I bursts!!!

on our way down, we stopped at Cameron Bharat Tea Shop for tea (obviously!). it was just me and Cik Lee. Her family had already gone down in the other car.

anyway, we had the strawberry flavored tea, one scones each (one set of twos = RM12), and a pack of shortbreads. Yummy!!! Let's do that again!!!

the scones reminded me of Cik Tinn. She one told me of her love for scones. wished she was there with us.

maybe next time!

later, we had our photo-ops in the tea plantation area behind the shop. i wanted to do that pose that most korean's like to do, just for the FUN of it!!! i looked stupid too doing it!!! kahkahkahkah!!!

we took several photos but kept deleting them. why? because we looked fat in each of them!!! ;P

in the end we just left some be and opted to photoshopped them instead! heheheh...

all in all
it was tiring (i'm referring to the journey home - traffic! traffic! traffic!) and fun!!!

and of course, one of many ways to empty your pockets...

the 2 days that we went on that 2 tour packages...

on the 2nd day, by 6.30am the four of us were already waiting for the tourguide (Bin) to come and pick us up to head to the Floating Market located outskirt of Bangkok (approx. 2hrs). we went with another group in the van. but the thing we couldn't stand, is that they have BO and we had to endure it the entire ride. Luckily i brought my 'minyak kapak' along. it did the job pretty well i might say! d(^ v ^)

we were taken from the pier to the Floating Market by Boat. it was exciting. the last time i was on a boat like that was on my English Society's trip to National Park. there were time during the ride, the boat seems to more to one side and another. guess that's a sign for me to start losing weight huh? hehehehe....

when we arrived there (safely), there weren't many boats there yet. instead of walking, we hired a boat to take us along the river (200baht/per). it was a lady who paddled the boat. i felt a bit guilty about it and even Jal silently offered to take over! hehehe...

a few things you should know when at the floating market.

1. don't point to any stuff if you don't intend to buy bcoz 'gondoleer' will stop at the place you pointed thinking you want to buy it.
2. learn a few Thai phrases like 'i don't want', 'don't stop here','stop there','i want to buy' so that it'll be easy for you to communicate to the 'gondoleer'.

after stopping at several shops but didn't buy anything, the 'gondoleer' and some of the shopkeepers started to mumble something in Thais. This is what we're guessing they were saying to each other:

Shopkeeper : Come stop over here. Buy something.
Gondoleer lady : Don't bother. I stopped at the other shops but they're not buying anything.

But we didn't care. We paid her for the boat. It wasn't a must for us to buy things, right? Furthermore, we already planned to buy those things at Chatuchak Market which costs much much cheaper!

From the Floating Market (after waiting almost one hour for the other group to re-group at the van!!! Poor Bin had to go around the market several times to look for them), we stopped at the Snake Farm (they watched the Snake Show, we didn't have the mood to!). We were supposed to go to a factory outlet that sells all the handicraft but since we're already late (thanks to those people), we had to go straight to another place since we had to change to another tour guide (don't ask me why).

from there, we headed to Rose Garden for lunch and the Elephant and also Cultural Show. Things went smoothly from then onwards.

The new tourguide, whose name as we learned later is Mango, was in his own words 'talk too much' (hahaha!) and we had difficulty understanding what he says. We tried, hard! He was a nice guy and often asks us to 'hurry up' bcoz the 'show is starting'.

In the van, since us girls sat in the middle row, we had to 'layan' Mango. Penat ooo... At one point, Cik Tinn and I planned to switch row with the boys so that they'll be the one to 'layan' him, but alas! We still sat in the middle. sigh... tak pe la...

it was really tiring. the whole tour. one day. in and out of the van. from Rose Garden back to Bangkok, we slept the entire way. Except Cik Tinn, i think.

We ended the tour at a Gem Factory. What were they even thinking bringing us there? Apart from looking at how they polished the gem stones, we're definitely couldn't afford to buy any!



Arriving at Suk11, we were already hungry. Cik Tinn had headache and opted not to follow us for our hunt for dinner.

At 8pm, me and the boys went to Suk3 for dinner and then Patpong for window shopping. Although Patpong is famous for their 'Thai Girl Shows', the boys decided not to go and get the 'experience'. Mango already warned us that the girls there are aggresive and we're going to lose money (due to treating them drinks and also theft). From what we gather from the 'ulats' outside the bars, there are shows like those of Ping Pong Pussy, Smoking Pussy etc. Ewwwww!!! I got goosebumps even thinking how all that is possible! But walking along the market, we did get a glimpse of the 'girls' and girls pole dancing since the doors were opened. Wearing just a two piece swimsuits and high heels. I must say they do have great bodies. Not quite sure about their looks though.

Going back to the hotel we got lost. We took the wrong direction walking from Nana Station. It took us almost one hour to reach Suk11. By the time we reached Suk11, our legs were shaky and in the words of Jal 'rasa nak roboh' that we couldn't even climb the stairs to our rooms. We stayed at the Lobby for half hour or so, eating the already cold but still delicious grilled tiger prawn! 60Baht for 8. yummy and cheap!

Me as the designated map reader, i felt terribly guilty. Sorry guys! Should have done better job... m(_ _)m

But I didn't let you guys down after that, right? heheheh... or did i?

[to be continued]...

ps: the weather was surprisingly cool. from what i've read in the internet, i thought Bangkok was going to be hot and stuffy.

Cik Tinn, Roy, Jal and I arrived at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport at around 12 noon and took the Airport Bus (No AE3, 150 Baht, about 1-2hours ride) to the SUK11 Guests House at Soi 11 Sukhumvit.

Suk 11 definitely exceeded my expectation. I thought it's gonna be some cheap, dodgy, unmaintained, a bit dirty and rundown inn like those at Jln Chow Kit etc. But, instead, I found myself in a unique (like Roy aptly put it "a hotel with Central Market look to it"), clean and beautiful guests house. We booked the ensuite rooms. It's airconditioned, the beds, room and toilet (with water heater) is clean. Quite near to the BTS Nana Station and the Arab Street at Soi 3 (although I must say that the halal food is a bit on the expensive side). Really backpackers and budget tourists friendly. Thanks to Azita for recommending it to us!

We rested for a while and around 5ish, headed to MBK (changed at Siam and stopped at National Stadium) to find some halal food. Found the food court on the 5th floor. There were a few to choose from. I settled for the Rice roll starter set, Roy had the Chicken Rice (or something), while Cik Tinn and Jal ordered the Kebab. Didn't satisfy our hunger though...

Went around the Mall for a few hours. It had the Sg Wang feel to it. Many shops selling imitation goods. Decided to come again some other day.

Oh, we also dropped by tour agency to book us some tour package. Decided to go on the Floating Market+Rose Garden+Crocodile Farm tour (1000Bht/per) for the next day and Temple and City Tour (500Bht/per) for the day after.


Later in the evening, we headed towards the Suan Lum Night Bazaar (changed at Siam and stopped at Sala Daeng OR you could take the MRT). Got ourselves lost going around the Bazaar. But stuff there were definitely 'should buy'. Esp for interior decor and accessories. Made a mental note to myself to come again next time with lots of money and 'borong' me lots of stuff for the house, that is when I've really settled down.

Cik Tinn was the first among us to shop. As for myself, I bought several inexpensive cute looking scrunchies with small flowers made out of yarn/wool thread (i think?). That reminds me. I need to give them out to my cousins etc.

Then, we sat down for some drinks at the food court, which reminded me a lot of Hartamas Sq, and ordered Sticky Rice with Mango. Absolutely DELISH!!! We first had it when there was this Thai Fair in Ipoh. You guys must give it a try when in Thailand. It's just 60Baht.

Went back around 11ish for a night rest. Need to get up by 6am the next morning for the Floating Market tour...

ps: the Thais sure do look and talk fierce to me eventhough their language is soft. whenever we asked something, they surely to reply in a harsh tone. perhaps it's just their nature.... huh?

came back yesterday night from Bangkok.
were at the airport at 4pm BKK (5pm KL).
arrived at LCCT at 9.50pm KL.
arrived at Sentral at 10.50pm KL.
arrived at WMaju and took cab to Aunt's at 11.50pm KL.
finally arrived home at 1.30am KL.
about 8hrs journey!!! really tiring...

decided to take the morning off of work.

but the trip!
minus one bad experience with a tourist guide, our 4 days trip was great!
as usual, wished i had more money and more time to spend

will fill you in with the details later.

am downloading the pix taken during the whole trip.

here's a teaser!


definitely going there again... esp for more shopping!