Danbo in Garden

My curiosity is finally pampered. I saw billions of super creative danbo photos and I could just be jealous. And now I have some pictures, which I can be a little proud of, though there's still so much I need to learn from other photographers.

Knock knock!!!

Knock knock!!!

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Who's that?
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It's Mr. Dragonfly :)
Another wonder that God made. Actually I was taking Danbo pictures, then I found this amazing creature-Mr. Dragonfly.

Happy Mom’s Day

Yeah, Indonesia has her own Mom’s Day which is on every December 22. I don’t have a special present for my mom. But as usual, I give my quality time and energy for my mom (Yeah, I know it's a lame excuse). My mom was invited by her friend to celebrate birthday party on the night and she still did not have “proper” clothes (so she thought) for the party. So, I offered myself as her chauffeur and fashion stylist.

We went to this famous shopping mall walking around going in and out boutiques many times for a couple of hours with empty handed. Suddenly my mom remembered that our neighbor recommends a boutique, which she thinks it has high fashion style. So we searched for it because we’ve never been there before. We searched for it from the direction board. Many people (can be seen from their faces) were quite puzzled, perhaps because we are one of the so little people who search stores from the board direction. Let me be clear why it is so weird of reading a direction board. First, it is a “not-that-big-mall-which-you-have-to-read-the-direction-so-you-can-find-your-boutique mall. People believe that you just need to wander around for few minutes to find the boutique. But we were fed up and ran out of time to wander around the mall. Second, it’s people’s favorite mall. People go to the mall basically every day (it is obvious that I’m not; my best record 5 times in a month). People know and can point where the store is with their eyes closed (again, not me). SO, it is WEIRD to read a direction board. Thanks God, I am tired of caring other people’s opinion about me.

Back to the point of the story, we finally found the store! And there is NO boutique’s name in front of it. The owner of the boutique is a very-metro-sexual-almost-sissy man recommended some “flashy party” tops. We (my gang members and I) have a nickname for those flashy clothes – “pedangdut”. Pedangdut basically is called for a musician for our proud genre of music–dangdut. Normally the musicians will wear flashy, shiny, tight clothes which reveal the silhouette of the singer’s body. And my mom bought one of those types with AMAZING prize! Ok, it is a Jessica Red’s top (BTW, who/ what is Jessica Red? After I googled it, it is one of the most famous clothing brands in HK) but with the style and material, for me, it is not worthy! It is HKD 1,999; He sold it to us Rp 2,200,000.00! Try to count the zeroes! Haiks… Even my mom confessed that it is her most expensive top she has ever bought in her life. And by reading her face, I know she meant it and decided that it was her last time to buy such expensive clothes.

Eventually, she pulls it off! Wow! Happy Mom’s Day! :)

Uneg-Uneg

Uneg-uneg is a slang word meaning sth (usu. issue/ problem) that bothers one. And here's mine.

My friends and I are planning to go to Nias this coming holiday. Nias is a small island located beside Sumatra island. She's becoming more infamous because of earthquake and tsunami effects. Nevertheless, She's also a gorgeous island! Amazingly and naturally beautiful!

But...

The tradition is still strong in Nias. Some of the tribes do not welcome outsiders yet. State laws is not as strong as the norms there. So, some people who are attracted by her beauty feel hesitant to visit her. In addition to that, with some recurrent disasters there, government is reluctant to rebuild or beautify or upgrade her. What a waste huh?

And, after all of the fact, Why do I still want to go there?

Good question. I am still thinking about that too. As far as I am an explorer (I wish), I think it's more about ego/ pride. When one says I should not go there, I feel more urge to go. Look how stubborn I am...

My brother is extremely concerned about me (I thank you bro for your concern. I really do. Sorry that I am too stubborn) persuading me NOT to go, when at almost the same time, he is going to Nias too. He stated that it's dangerous for FEMALES to go around, while it's ok for MALE. I'm not a feminist, but when you talk to me about what I can and cannot do, I am just fed up and disappointed and sad.

I really want to go to prove that it's safe for outsiders to visit Nias. And I do not want to go and make all my family members worry about me. But I will still go! People may say I am stubborn, I am too proud, I gamble with my life. But I pray every night for God's protection over us. Amen. I don't know to whom I should trust on this case, except Him.

Teacher's Day = Thanksgiving Day?

We don't have Thanksgiving day or even Thanksgiving dinner, as I can see many gorgeous pictures captured the moment almost in every blogs, here in Indonesia. However, we have Teacher's Day, which we (teachers) are very grateful of, on the same day. On this specific day, many presents are coming to us, it has many meanings though; such as a bribery so we get loose of their kids or an expression from the bottom of parents' heart because we educate their children or even an apology for their kids' misbehaves. For all of the good reasons, I, on behalf of every teachers who got presents :P, am thankful, especially for the person who had brilliant idea that teachers should have their day!

I have these amazing cards from my boy, which I use them as bookmarks. I love handmade! Thanks!

I love this particularly :)

Will somebody call me 'Gran'?

Looking at our earth condition now, we can tell that the nature is mad at us. Some floods here, some earthquakes there, some tsunamis down here, some eruptions up there. The heat burns us and the rains drown us. It's a revenge for what humans have done in the past.

I got this chain message informing us that the earth temperature is going to increase four degrees in 10 months. Can you imagine that?

Go green is not a strange word for us again. All of the campaigns has been done to awaken humans. Yet some of us are still ignorant. Take me as a subject. I still use plastic bags! I can't stop using it! The big excuse is, of course, to accommodate house's trashes. I like to take a shower for minutes! I prefer to read a book rather than read online! And many other ignorance.

Moving on, it's also very familiar for us with this "The end of the world is coming" line. Yeah, all of the natural disaster and the moral corruption are signs of the end of the world. It's written clearly on the bible. But, does it make one to be more religious? more caring? more ignorant?

For me, I become both optimistic and pessimistic at the same time. I become more optimistic knowing that the end is coming, so I need to be my best. And pessimistic too doubting that there will be future for me.

The picture is very much influenced by Gran in Double Act by Jacqueline Wilson.

The 100th post: A Bumblebee in My Garden

To celebrate my 100th post, I present you - A Bumblebee in My Garden.




Sometimes the best place to take picture is around you. You just need to put on new glasses. And enjoy it.

The Source of Life

A teenager accidentally had tumbled off her bike and fell under a passing tram. In an instant, her leg was severed below the knee. The bloody, broken limb lay beside her, no longer connected to its source of life.

Christian Growth Study Bible, pg. 1244

We live in a busy world. Tightened with all appointments and events. We wake up in the morning, give grace for the breakfast, and emerge in the crowd. Back home, rest and get a sweet sleep. The next day begins, with the same activities, same duties, same responsibilities, same feeling. We exist but do we live? Fully live...

Have you ever felt that you are actually a dead man walking doing the same activities and duties? And at some points, you stop and ask, "why do I do this? Oh, it's because that's what I normally do. This is my life." And you go back to that dead-man-walking mode.

At one point, you finally get the feeling to break all the boredom. You wanna chase after the freshness and sweetness of life. You pack all the things, ready to break out. But there is something missing. The gist. The fuel. The source of your life. What is it?

I know I'm not the one who feel this. There are billions of millions of people who feel the same. When I feel this, I know where to go. I go back to my source of life, to connect my life to Him. Because I know I can't stand away from Him too long, otherwise I'll die. He is my source of life. He is the Ruler of the heaven and earth. He is my God. What about you?

Making Dolls 101

Here's the result from one of my holiday resolutions.
Interested to make one?


What do I need?
1. Felt/ Flannel fabric
2. Scissors
3. Thread and Needle
4. Beads
5. Cotton: Dacron
6. Glue gun


How to make?
1. Make pattern of the doll that you want to do. Make sure you use thick paper so you can get nice print and it can last long.
2. Copy that pattern on the fabric. Cut it.

3. Put beads as eyes, you may a bead as the nose too. Use "tusuk tikam jejak" to make a big smile (I don't know how to write tusuk tikam jejak in English. When I google translated it, the translation was "stab stab trail"! XD).
4. Connect the fabric by using "tusuk feston". Make sure that the colors of the fabric and the thread are same.

5. When you almost finish connect the fabrics, put in the cotton. Then continue sewing to the end.
6. Connect the head with the body. Using glue gun with be easier rather than the normal glue. However, using glue gun can be very technical. Don't put too much glue though.

7. Enjoy your doll.
I'm quite impressed. They are my first hand-made dolls.

A Bowl of Noodle and A dog

It's a drizzling day. The weather was nice for anyone to have a nap. But I didn't. It's a weird habit that I develop throughout my holiday. I don't nap.

I finished cleaning my house. The second floor only. And I got so exhausted. I got this silly idea because I hate mopping floor. Mopping uses up all my energy to clean other parts of the house, that's why I dislike it. So, here's the silly idea. After I swept the floor, I poured some water on it. Then I used squeegee (the word I just learned) to clean the floor and remove the water (yeah, that's basically the function of it) and next I gently mopped to make sure that the floor is really dry. But in the end I actually wasted more energy. It's a dumb strategy after I think all over again. But I'm happy that I have one clean floor.

I took a rest for a while after the cleaning session. I watched Marley & Me movie on Star Movie. And I couldn't believe I watched this movie for so many times and I still cry for so many times. Somehow, I don't know why, it triggered me to my family. I miss them. I miss some yelling and teasing and the crazy non-sense noises.

I made myself a bowl of Korean instant noodle for lunch and I ate it at the door until I surrendered to the heat of the bowl. So I went up and enjoyed the noodle with a movie as a garnish.

In the end of a good day, I'm grateful that I have Lucky today. Accompany me through a good lonely day.

Vote for the "amazing" photo?

Hmm... I got these pictures on the first day of my holiday. I see them quite "impressive"? Hmm... ok, "unique in its own way", to be safe :p

My dog, Lucky, in an afternoon. He always yawns.

I got this butterfly picture in Cemara Asri swimming pool.

My Apology and Condolence

I've been ignorant these past years (almost a decade!) on September 11 incident. I knew something huge happened, but I didn't give any specific attention on it. Until yesterday I watched this show-My 911, on National Geographic, as memoriam to the victims. And with all my heart, I'd like to say sorry to all the families and friends who died on Sept 11, 2001. May all the souls rest in peace. I think it's better late than never.

I paid huge respect to all passengers on Flight 93 who bravely took control over the plane even though they knew the consequences of their action. It doesn't mean I don't respect other passengers from other planes, no sacrifice is higher than another on that day. All people - police officers, fire fighters, pilots, doctors and all medical workers, reporters, photographers, volunteers - who contributed are heroes to date.

I also particularly paid respect to this dog, Salty. A dog helped a blind man, Omar Rivera, to get out from the tower although his master had sent him free because the emergency stairs were too crowded for him. But Salty came back and sticked to his master until they both got out from the tower.

Salty is awarded as one of animal heroes

Omar Rivera with his new dog after Salty has been put to sleep forever

One of reminders for us to eradicate terrorism.
It is a great video by Jonathan Wong.
Music: The Fray-How to save a life.

Popped-up Resoulution?!?

I didn't put it in my previous entry as one of my holiday resolutions. But I think I amazed myself today. Irene lent me her novel. I thought I'd put it on my table and let it stay there till the end of holiday and returned it to her without even flipping through the pages. But weird enough I actually opened it, out of boredom, and finished it in three hours! I never ever ever ever finished reading a book in a day! So I give myself a standing ovation.

It's a very light book, telling a simple-predictable story. It's in Indonesian. A very solid point why I can finish it in a day. Nevertheless, it's interesting enough to keep me read it, and giggle at the humors, and "gregetan" at some pages.

I recommend this novel if you have some free time and if you don't wanna sweat or squeeze your brain (No sarcasm here). It's a very chick novel.

Four Seasons in Belgium by Fanny Hartanti

Holiday Resolutions!

I feel so blank this holiday. No plan. No feeling. No excitement. But I don't wanna waste it. Time flies fast, really fast. And I'm done with looking back and regretting what I've missed. So, I start my holiday by making some resolutions.
Time given: 10 days.
Targets:

• Make two crafts: Caterpillar doll and Bunny doll
• Take an "amazing" photo from extraordinary world
  
• Write an "amazing" post out of my ordinary life
  
• Finish reading half of Bible (targeting the short books)

*amazing is relative. It is subjective to my satisfaction.

Targets are achievable , I guess. I will update on my achievements! :)
Happy holiday! Happy Eid ul Fitr! :)

2-day Shopping Thoughts

My sis came back for holiday. She and my parents are going to Spain for holiday. Assessing her wardrobe, we really believe she needs SHOPPING! So, as the only girl who can drive and shop, I was elected to be their chauffeur. I drove them wherever they want to shop and was honoredly asked to be their fashion adviser. My advise was taken seriously, by my surprise, as you can see my own style will be harshly criticized by high-end fashion doers.

Two-day shopping was tiring. I am still young and I love traveling, but if you ask me to go shopping when I have no intend to buy a thing would be a very tiring activity (except for giving advises although it isn't easy). My legs easily got tired while we were adventuring to find good clothes. My thoughts while my sis and mom busy shopping:

1. Females choose short-term-used item (clothes/bag/shoes). We (including me) choose items that too expensive-and-outstanding-and-short-lived goods (if I may use the words) which we will get bored soon and throw both money and item. We are delighted to find cute and unique item so that people will notice we have something new.
Study case: "A" bought a doll-pictured-with-sharp-color shirt which people easily notice and praise how cute she is when she wore it for the first time. The second time she wore it, she is still cute. The third and fourth times, she looked childish. Finally she decided to end the shirt's life.

2. Females are indecisive. We tend to choose a beautiful item which does not match our personality. Confusedly, we still spend a quite time to think whether it's ok to force it to ourselves. For me, it's ok that we have some items which we don't normally wear. It adds surprise to our lives. However, if we force something which way too far from our personality. It's wasting money!
Study case: "B" bought these pairs of studded-gray shoes which cause her to look double her age. She wore them once. And for the rest of those shoes, they spent it inside the box.

Recently I am learning to restrain myself from buying short-lived items. It's hard. But Hopefully in three months, I'm collecting long-lived items. Hopefully.

Time flew fast, betta watch out!

I think tonight's gonna be Merrier!

It's Saturday again! I realize that I didn't post a single thought this week. But never mind!

My sis is coming back for holiday today. My mom is gonna have one more person to enslave her :P But I think my mom is just ecstatic! I got the feeling that tonight's gonna be a good nite!

1st Saturday huh?

It started GREAT, it ended BORING!

For few weeks, I finally felt relaxed, away from work. Then "as usual", my independence day was ruined because my mom wanted to beautify her hair. I had planned some "me" activities, but in the end, I had to call them off.

From this experience, actually I don't wanna be a complainer, but sometimes I just wanna have "lazy" time, when I don't need to do or think or feel anything. Just relax. When the day was off, I think I had one. Reading lots magazines in the salon.

Lists

International travel destinations:
1. Greece
2. Turkey
3. Japan
4. Kenya
5. India
6. Thailand

Domestic travel destinations:
1. Bunaken, Manado
2. Raja Ampat, Papua
4. Nias
5. Halmahera islands
6. Ambon

Youngsters nowadays

I've tried to get rid of it but I couldn't help to think of it again so I think it'll be healthier if I write it down here.

I think I am sick of teenagers' lifestyle.

#1 is their body. They grow so much! Their age may be little but their body isn't, and their face too! As an illustration, I got this independence day celebration last week when all teachers needed to attend it and some students did too. Teachers had to line up beside senior high school students. They basically outgrown all teachers. And I couldn't help but caught this view of a teenager "boy" who basically looked like a thirty-year-old man. Don't get me wrong here, I don't judge people by their look, but it's way too ridiculous (too bad I didn't take his picture, you may get chest pain if you look at him).

#2 is their attitude. As an illustration again, I met this mother and teenager "girl", who supposedly looks like she's still in her senior high year, in a boutique. Anyhow, she looks like she's a working woman. She dressed up super neatly with a white three-quarter-long-sleeve shirt and white tight shorts and white heels, and, fortunately, a blue handbag. While she looks very mature for her age, her mother, on the other way, looks very young for her age.

What happens to this generation? They think too mature, they behave too mature, and they speak too mature! Call me childish, you may, but I personally feel discomfort. And let me tell you this theory of mine, when teenagers get rushed to be mature at their young age, they will act way too childish at their old age. For me, enjoy your age. You can't repeat to be 24 and fabulous.

quote

'The tail belongs under the head. That way the dog will be reborn as a man with a ponytail and not an animal with a tail...'

The Cave of the Yellow Dog, pg 8, Byambasuren Davaa & Lisa Reisch

Bali II

My Bali trip is not as fun as last year's trip. It was so flat and there was no interest or curiosity to explore anymore. It's quite sad as I've paid so much for it. Yet I've paid the bill for last year! I surfed! I could stand thrice on board in an hour practice. Yay! :)

I went to Joger, finally. There was people-flood there. People were taking the items as if they pay for them with leaves! Crazy! I bought a pair of striking-color sandals for myself :)

PS: My memory card got terrible creature named Virus! Help! I lost most of my pictures ;(

bearing the name

Sometimes I'm ashamed to call myself a Christian with all of the sins which I still continue doing and all of the disobidient acts which I still take.

However, if you ask me whether I can live without God, surely I'll say I can't! Again, in the bible is written: whoever loves God, he lives in God, which is holy. Am I holy enough?

Bearing the name of Lily means pure heart or holy and the name of Christian which also means holy, I feel so burdened, sometimes.

Being humble, giving thanks and praise and filtering my mouth are my challenges today. So I turn my challenge list into a prayer list, asking for strength to tackle them.

Just what do Christians look like?
What sets their lives apart?
They’re ordinary people
Who love God from the heart. —D. De Haan

Bali I

Today the trip route was almost the same as I took last year. We went to Nusa Dua. Finally I tried parasailing (with instructor) :( They said the wind was furious and my body is quite small so I might have trouble in landing. Still I enjoyed it though not as much as if I could do it alone.

Then we continued the trip to visit five worship places (Pura, Vihara, Churches (Protestant & Catholic), and Mosque) in a row, literally. However, only Protestant church and pura has fully built, the others are still on the progress.

Next spot is Dreamland beach. Wonderful beach with dangerous waves, for me. But I spotted some bules swimming toward the wave and let the wave rolled them. They looked like they enjoyed it so much when I could only shake my head. We passed Padang Padang beach and took pictures on the bridge.

The main course of the day is, of course, Uluwatu Temple. We evidented a very unique incident. We saw a monkey stole a Mizone (isotonic drink) from a visitor after eating so many nuts. He tried to open it! He knew how to open the bottle. After he tore the seal, he tried to turn the cap. Because it's too hard for him, he used his big and sharp teeth to pull the cap away. Less than two minutes, the monkey successfully opened the bottle and drank the Mizone. It was indeed a rare performance so all of the visitors cheerfully gave an applause when the monkey opened the bottle.

Again, I watched the Kecak Dance. Yet it was not exactly the same as like year. I was amazed how they can maintain the culture and keep it funny and creative at the same time. Salute to all of the performers.

Bali Waterboom

Shout with me: TOP BGT! This place is so cool with crazy games! Try Boomerang and Smashdown surely they'll shorten your life. Crazy!

PS: No picture proves my adrenaline on work ;(

Blessed Bday!

Blessed B'day Irene!
It's truly a blessing to celebrate a birthday in Lombok!

PS: We got a free cheesecake as the birthday cake :)

I pray...

I pray for myself:
- I won't have the "holier-than-thou" attitude ever again.
- I know for sure that success is nothing without God.
- I give thanks always in good and bad times.
- I don't take granted of God's every blessings on me

Sengigi here we go!

We came back to Sengigi, Lombok. Somehow I am so "kebal" with high current now and enjoyed the trip from Gili Trawangan to Bangsal. Still I felt terrible boat lag.

We finally used cidomo, to send us out of the port and found a car to send us to Sengigi.

Here in Sengigi, we stayed at Sonya Homestay. We walked down to Sengigi beach. It is quite dirty at first as many visitors throw rubbish on the beach. But when we walked further, we found clean beach. The weather was cloudy so we couldn't see the sunset.

PS: The photos are driving down from Sengigi.

I'm so dark!

Today is a snorkling day! We went around three Gilis - Gili Air, Gili Meno, and Gili Trawangan. The tide was high! Mixed with "nekat" and curiosity, I pushed myself into the water. The first stop-Gili Trawangan, I snorkled with fins. It was quite confusing at first as it was the first time I used them. But I figured it out then. I saw many beautiful-striking-color coral reefs. The second stop-Gili Meno, it's the best place to see turtles. But because I used life jackets, it was very hard for me to swim. I couldn't catch up with the others. And I didn't see any of the turtles! Sobs sobs sobs! The third stop-(supposed to be) Gili Air, since the current was high (again), we moved closer to Gili Trawangan. We snorkled around the sinking ship. It was so magical!

It was a very tiring day for us since we are city girls. We rarely do this stuff. But, because we didn't want to waste our time on beautiful island, we rented bikes and caught the sunset. The weather was good and we could see the sunset clearly! It was worthy to bike and almost bumped cidomo and bumped (for real) a bule. This experience gave me lots of things, especially hurt on my ring finger (coz I bumped the bule) and my bottoms! ;)

We closed our last day on Gili Trawangan by having (again) another expensive dinner. My dream came true! I got the chance to try the seafood kebab! Best pick of the day :p

And, of course, the world cup fever also flooded every bars. We stayed at the bar till late to watch the game: Brazil-Portugal. Irene and I could only watch till the first half of the game then we went back to our homestay.

I just wanna reaffirm the information in the books if it is written: "you should bring flashlight", then you should! The lights shine the street. So if there is no restaurant or bar around, there will be no light too!

PS: Our homestay names Getaway Holiday.

Lombok II

Today we went up to Senaru. It looked so close when we saw it from the map. But it is very far in the reality. We went to Sendang Gila waterfall. We went down to the second waterfall only, which is nearer-around 40m from the post. The first waterfall is around 60m. We didn't have enough stamina to go that far. The water is so cold!

Straight from the waterfall, we went to Bangli port. It was TOTALLY not in the plan. We planned to go Gili Trawangan on the following day. But thanks again to Pak Jupri for his initiative to pump in our gut and, of course, it saved our money a lot! Since we crossed the sea after 4pm, the wave was high. It's a nice welcome to a paradise! Gili Trawangan!

Gili Trawangan is highly recommended by ME! However, if you wanna feel local atmosphere, it is not a good place as you can see more "bule" than local people. Here in Gili Trawangan, there are numerous cool cafes and homestays or hotels, with reasonable price if you are good at bargaining. We stay at ... (I totally have no idea the name of our homestay, wait let me ask the person in charge), it costs Rp 200 rb per nite.

Another grand dinner at Sama Sama bar- Americana Pizza, Greek Salad, and Benoffie Pie! Yummy! And the nite was ended by a reggae band! Fanstastic nite at Gili Trawangan! Bravo :)


PS: The photos just departed from the port :D

Lombok I

The real adventure finally begun. We started at around 8am. Guided by a very fine driver named Pak Jupri, we explored middle part of Lombok. We went to a beach which is divided into two parts- Pantai Segar and Pantai Kuta (note: Lombok has its own area named Kuta too, however it's so much quieter than Bali Kuta). We swam at Kuta beach coz the waves were so high at Segar beach. Nevertheless, the sky, the sea, the sands and the view are GREAT! The only annoyance is the people who constantly begged us to buy their things-local t-shirts, bracelets, and coconuts! Warning: apply sun block! I got terrible sun burn! Don't tell my mom!

Along the way to Kuta, we dropped at Sukarala to learn to weave cloth. It is learned that local female should be able to weave. It's a basic requirement to get married. And guess what!?! I weaved two rows and the pattern was difficult! I'm proud of myself! :)

Next, we stopped at Sade village. Native people of Lombok-Sasak people live here. Their language is similar to Java language and mostly they are Muslim. When we arrived there, there was a local dance, which I don't know the name of the dance. The dancer was playfully asking the spectators to dance with him. I personally enjoyed it. Then we were brought around the village. The people again kept asking us to buy the items, which are almost the same in every stand. We bought a weaving bracelet for each of us.

The day was closed by consumptous dinner at Lesehan Taliwang Irama. This was the most satisfying dinner since we arrived here, but, of course, we need to spend more money. Still sleeping with full belly is worthy.

PS: Pictures are on the way! :)

Bali-Lombok Trip

Today, actually, is our third day outside Sumatra Island. The first two days we spent transiting from Medan-Bali-Lombok. We (me, Yenty, Ritho, Irene, and Bintang) just arrived in Lombok, at Oka Homestay to be specific. It's a very green and comfy place to stay after excruciatingly tiring 5-hour journey by ferry from Padangbai to Lembar. I'm happy we can make this far though we haven't started anything yet. The real journey will begin tomorrow. Thanks a lot to Kak Desak and family for the warming home! :)

PS: Pictures will be uploaded when I'm home.

Something to Think

...
It's as if we are screaming,
Notice me! Remember me!
Yet the notoriety barely lasts.
Names quickly blur and in time are forgotten.

Have a Little Faith-Mitch Albom

World Trip I (2010)

Yataa! We did it! The first world trip to Medan (Indonesia). It's funny if I looked back to our first plan. We planned to go to Cambodia but we couldn't make it because our family thought that it may not be safe enough for girls to travel around to the unknown land. Then we planned to Thailand. We couldn't make it too. The next destination is Singapore but it's too normal for us. With all respect to Singaporeans and your super clean city and wonderful Sentosa, nothing new excites us since we all have been there before. Then we tried to make it to Sipadan island but it's too difficult for us to get in there. All in all, with all courage and disappointments, we decided our first world trip started from a small city but it gives us huge energy to go on to have more exciting world trip. So, MEDAN here we go!
We, Lily Susanti, Pak Liang Sien, and Chan Pek Har, are ready to take on the world! (Thanks for Yenty being such a great help!)
First day: Brastagi.
Medanese do really suggest outsiders to visit Brastagi, even Medanese themselves should explore this place more (including me). We planned to harvest strawberries yet it's not in season so we went on to a temple. It's a huge temple indeed.
Our footprints in this temple
We behaved well in the temple. Do you know what the punishment is for misbehaved girl? Pretty humiliating right?
What is Brastagi if we don't go to Mikie Holiday? Hmm...

There are lots new games there. I never noticed this before (thanks to Chan) compared to Genting, Mikie has more "theme park" feeling because there is always music kept playing on. Then what did we do after playing? Took lots of pictures of course!
Second day: Medan (town)
We visited Maimoon palace, the place which I only passed but never got in. Shame to be a Medanese! Thanks to our Malaysian friends for bringing me into the palace. I personally feel amazed of the palace. But yeah the owner should preserve the palace more and open more rooms for us to explore. The guide was very considerate too explaining the palace in dual languages which indeed made Liang Sien and Pek Har became center of attention.

Then we went to Pasar Rame, What an unusual place to bring foreigners around Medan. But they were excited finding new things. But the main course was EARTHQUAKE! It was so unexpected. We were busy buying lots of food that Chan and Pak never tried before and we felt the tremor. When the crowd hurriedly went out of building, Chan saw a man pulled a lady's wrist thinking that he was a pimp trying to run away from police officers! Wkwkwk...
Next place to visit was Cong Afi's house. But we were late when we arrived there. It was closed. So, we had dinner at Tip Top Restaurant. Nice food but there were lots of mosquitoes! Erghh...

I was amazed I can see this cash register. Cool stuff!
So, after a successful first world trip where is our next destination?
And our next world trip is:

April Art&Craft Journal

Lots of drawing and coloring this month.



Actually I wanna make a story based on these characters, but it seems I have to postpone it for a while.

Thanks for the reference Caca!
Finally I can do stone painting! Yay!