Oh Kimchi, you're creeping up on me!

It's not the end of my trip in Korea yet, but I have to write this (and the fact that I'm on a 3.5hr bus journey from Donghae to Seoul with nothing much to do☺️). Generally, Koreans are kind and friendly people! Here's why:

1) We were given candies by some strangers, twice so far! Once when I was on a train & holding a Lonely Planet - Korea in my hand. Another while we were taking panorama photos on Ulleung Island. Candies sure put smiles on our faces. 😄

2) It's the first time that I find language barrier very hard to deal with. Nevertheless, Koreans still want to help us! So sign language (and iTranslator app) is handy at desperate times. 😂

3) Our Gangneung accomodation host (from Airbnb) assisted us in finding ferry and accomodation on Ulleung Island. We did not make bookings because based on my research in the internet, the island has plenty of space for visitors and May is not a peak season yet. Most said no bookings needed! We were not aware that the weekend we planned for the Ulleung-Do trip is a Korean long weekend, and locals flock to Ulleung-Do like nobody's business. So she made calls here and there to get details and made arrangements. Now we are safely back from Ulleung-Do.😃. In the brief travel hiatus that we were in, my good Korean friend Lenny also helped out. So yay!

4) Hafizah & I were the only 'species' on the the remote island Ulleung. So we did get stares from top to bottom, but when we smile and bow, they smiled back. Most will ask where we are from in Korean language. I kind of understand their question already. And quickly answered 'Malaysia'. 😁 

5) Two young Korean girls we met at the Attack Camp hostel in Ulleung-Do gladly let us follow them explore the island together. They are very friendly and gave us many presents. By 'presents' I meant thirst-quenching pumpkin juice, ramen noodle & tuna kimchi. In return, we bought coffee for them. 😁 I also kind of promised to invite them to my wedding in Malaysia. Have no idea where that came from, but I did it! Oh well... At least they have a reason to visit Malaysia! Hehe.

So yeah, random acts of kindness exist in Korea! 

These are partly the reasons I love to travel to different countries; To continue learning, to embrace positivity & to show that no matter what our backgrounds are, inside we are still the same. 😊

Note: I'm really getting the hang of Kimchi! 

The mysterious island Ulleung-Do...so they say, and I concur! 🙋🏻

Finding that 'something' while traveling

I remember my first traveling experience when I was 5 years old. Fortunate enough to be at one of a wildlife park in Sydney, I was offered a chance to hold a Koala bear for a pose for the camera. I was scared at the thought of something alive (and nearly half my size) clinging on to me. Trying to be brave, I put one palm on the Koala bear, and smiled at the camera.

Now and then, that simple memory always comes back to me. Never at that point, did I think that I could have a thirst to travel around the world; A yearning to meet new people, experience different surroundings and way of life others; A desire to visit other countries, and just be grateful that back in Malaysia I am blessed with so many things; A need to remind me to always be humble and be awed at the beauty of God's nature; And of course, from that Koala flashback; the courage to be brave and try new things.

In all honesty, I did not realize the meaning of traveling since day one. Nor did I embrace all of the above immediately. All I knew was that I love to travel and visit places away from home. But you see, age makes you wiser. One day, it hit me and I questioned myself "Why do I travel? What good do I get from spending money at some country to be out all day and be tired at the end of the day? How could I make traveling a way to improve myself and be closer to Allah SWT?" The last question hit me so hard. Because in Islam, everything you do is supposed to be for the good and you do it because of Allah SWT. I admit that I am not a perfect Muslim. But deep inside, there is this obligation to always try to improve myself.

This epiphany lead me to a new meaning of traveling. From that day onwards, I promised myself that this passion of traveling should lead to a good outcome. God made the people in every part of the world different for a reason. We should learn from each other; soak in all the good things from other countries or communities. What's bad could be a reminder to us and an awakening to be grateful for what we have back at home. Most importantly, it should be for the improvement of oneself.

Of course, technology made it possible for me to see and watch all of this from my own idiot box, computer or smartphone. But seeing/watching is different from being there and experiencing it yourself. Getting out of the box gives everything a whole new meaning. Trust me.

From one traveler to the next, here's a reminder: 
Travel not just because you can, but also because you want to improve yourself. And while you are at it, explore new things, take chances. Life is too short to say "I'll do it next time!"

Gravity

Music has, and always will relate to my life. Happy or sad. I could always count on music to celebrate me, or heal me for that matter. But there's also that possibility of feeling melancholy when I hear certain songs. Especially break-up songs or songs that remind me of someone special who has been in and out of my life.

There are times, a certain song and lyrics can hit a bulls-eye; relating to exact moments or someone in my life.

Today, that song is Sarah Bareilles' Gravity. http://youtu.be/rEXhAMtbaec

Sara Bareilles - Gravity
Something always brings me back to you.
It never takes too long.
No matter what I say or do I'll still feel you here 'til the moment I'm gone.
You hold me without touch.
You keep me without chains.
I never wanted anything so much than to drown in your love and not feel your reign.
[CHORUS:]
Set me free, leave me be. I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity.
Here I am and I stand so tall, just the way I'm supposed to be.
But you're on to me and all over me.
You loved me 'cause I'm fragile.
When I thought that I was strong.
But you touch me for a little while and all my fragile strength is gone.
[CHORUS]
I live here on my knees as I try to make you see that you're everything I think I need here on the ground.
But you're neither friend nor foe though I can't seem to let you go.
The one thing that I still know is that you're keeping me down.
You're keeping me down, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
You're on to me, on to me, and all over...
Something always brings me back to you.
It never takes too long.


I've always thought that her piano work in that song is superb. The piano work could really hit you to the core. Never got deep into the lyrics though...until today. It brought tears to my eyes because the words describe what I went through (truthfully, I'm still dealing with it) with a special person in my life.

They say that time heals all wounds. Believe me, it's crap. If it's true, why oh why after 5 years, there are times I find myself thinking of him and crying as a result. This is one of the things that puzzled me. I thought I had let it go. But it seems like the wound is still very much fresh. Would it ever heal? Would I be able to love this much? I guess I still need to depend on time, even if it has failed me, over and over again.

I'll never not be your girl

Sahur and High Heels

It was the 15th day of Ramadhan and as usual, my family was up at 5-ish AM for Sahur. And naturally, while eating sahur, we watched the idiot box in the TV room, because it’s more interesting than sitting at the dining table, watching each others’ sleepy/bored face, forcing down food in the wee hours of the morning.

Sometimes Baba got the TV remote first and changed to…drumroll please…Golf Channel 815. We couldn’t always argue with the Head of the House’s choice. I myself have got more or less acquainted to golf (tak main pun, tapi I get the hang of it laah). So when Adam Scott made a comeback by winning a Major (PGA Championship) I was kind of wow-ed. I also found it fascinating when the lady commentator said Adam Scott has a text-book golf swing (In other words, straight lines everywhere. In other words, perfect golf swing lah tuu). I wonder if Adam’s latest win has anything to do with ditching Ana Ivanovic …

Anyway….(slapped myself for getting carried away)

This morning though, it was Ira who got the TV remote first. Ira scanned through the movie channels and settled for a movie which title did not register in my mind, and hence I can’t mention it here. But I remember Justin Long was in it. After a few minutes of trying to work out what I was actually watching (note: brain not functioning well at 5 AM), there came a scene where the woman, while sleeping on a bed, was attacked by a horrible looking ‘creature’ which eerily crawled over her. Neurons sparked in my brain and I figured that we were watching a horror movie! NOOO, absolutely NO at that hour! No thanks if you want to remind me of The Exorcist. I grabbed the Astro remote, while shouting at Ira for her choice of channel (poor her, I felt guilty now) and flipped through to my favourite channel range… 700-ish.

On 712, Australia’s Next Top Model Cycle 6 Finale was on. I made a comment to everyone that this episode was interesting because the host made a HUGE blunder of announcing the wrong winner. Baba and Mummy was quite amused by this fact and said “hah! jom tengok ni!”.

And there we were, watching Aussie NTM. These models wore heels so high that Baba commented “hmmm, ada setengah kaki kot heels dia.” Congratulations, Ba. You managed to make us, the girls and Mummy laugh so early in the morning!

Then, he said “Kenapa nak pakai heels tinggi-tinggi? She’s already tall!”

To which Mummy answered, “Biarlah, actually kan, pakai heels ni makes us more confident tau.”

Baba laughed at Mummy’s comment and snigger, “ye ke?”

I thought to myself, yes on those rare occasions that I wear high heels to work, I DO feel more confident. Albeit the real reason I wear it is to make me taller, Mummy’s statement made me realize that I wear it to feel more sure and confident of myself too. Gaya executive la, bak kata Uncle Aris. Hahahha.

So I added, “Eh betul jugak Mi. Lina rasa more confident kalau pakai high heels.”

The next thing Baba did was so funny, I nearly choked off my kurma.

He stood up on tip-toes to make it look like wearing heels and walked in front of us, swaying away while doing the comically mocking face of his and asking us, “Ni ke rasa confident? Tak rasa pun!!!”

We laughed so hard at Baba’s act. Baba can be so funny you could never imagine.

Shortly after, the Azan Subuh was heard, and Kakak and I finished doing the dishes. On the way up to my room, I passed by the TV room. It turned out the Head of The House dah tukar to his favourite channel, where dimpled white balls roll on green grasses. Haih…so much for Aussie Next Top Model! We didn’t even reach the part where the host made the blunder! DKJ, DKJ….

Selamat Berpuasa to all Muslims! May we gain much from this 2nd leg of Ramadhan.

P/S #1: To Abang Hafeez yang tak suka sahur tu, ada interested nak join we all sahur after this??
P/S #2: Head of The House = DKJ = Baba = :)

Fumbling Towards That Grin - An Excerpt

A change of heart is not expected when it comes to being with him. Afif is God's creation who is perfect in every way, physical-wise and personality-wise. But Ana is asking herself why she is feeling uneasy this past few months with the man that she thought she would spent the rest of her life with. It is at these times that Ana wonders whether there is such thing as fate. and if there is, why it is so cruel to let her be in this position. A position that could be seen as perfectly coordinated, more towards a fairy-tale kind of ending, but deep inside, the uncertainty of her heart is vibrating with such atrociousness, that it is counter-reacting all those wonderful feelings of having fallen in love with Afif. Ana is afraid that soon, the wonderful feelings will be concealed, not allowing for any rescue effort. Save the frantic calls of help. Save all those happiness of being with each other. Save the drama.

Truth be told, Afif and Ana were worlds apart. If Afif is the Sun, Ana is the moon. If Afif is Mars, Ana is just plain old Jupiter. It's funny that they got together. It's even funnier that they have worked it out for 6 years. And just when they would be tied together with God as their witness, this came in. This, came right in. Yes, this, rolled in like that can of soda on a steep slide. This...this is called the secret that should have been locked and dropped into the deepest crevasse, never to be found by anyone. But somehow, it surfaced, and the truth is more than Ana could handle...

By: Haslina Kamaruzzaman

Nov 2008

iPhone Killed the Novels

A few months ago, I bought the exclusive and so-called cool iPhone4. It was about time that I go with the flow and change to a stylish communication device. Oh well. It's not only a communication device, most importantly if you haven't know, the iPhone is an all-important entertainment device. Very handy indeed, especially at times of desperate measures. Keyword: bored.

My previous phone has keypads. I mean whoever uses phones with keypads nowadays?! *sorry, berlagak. couldn' resist* Eh jap. Berries have keypads kan? *ok, I'll stop berlagak now!* ;P

Eversince the day I bought the iPhone, I haven't been able to keep my hands off it. There's so much to do with an iPhone. Even in the house, the iPhone is CONSTANTLY beside me. A member of the family has complained that I keep looking at my phone. oops.

However, there's a bad side to all this iPhone craze - I haven't been reading my novels! Which is quite sad if I really dwell into it. :( I mean, I love my novels. And to think that I killed my reading passion just cause of technology?! Screw you iPhone for being such a temptation!!

*Okay, back to making burgers on the iPhone. Eh jap, it's my turn to play Words with Friends on the iPhone...*

Help!