#109 - Experience West to South

This is a scheduled post.

By the time you reading this, I am already on my way to our family little vacation. This will be our first time flying with a baby in tow and first overseas holiday for Inas. My MIL, Aunt, Brother in Law and Nephews will be joining us for this trip too.

We will be heading to these 2 places;

 Perth

Adelaide

I am quite excited as I always wanted to go to Perth. Wanted to come here for our honeymoon but we went to Bali instead. We will be spending 6 nights in Perth then off to Adelaide for 4 nights.

This trip will be a birthday treat for Inas (yes, she still too young to understand this but let the parents enjoy this trip and pretend this is her birthday gift) and delayed celebration of our 2^nd Wedding Anniversary.

Please pray everything will be smooth and according to plan. Please pray for our safety.

See you guys back on the 21^st October!

#106 - Successful Cooking

Assalamualaikum.

So, I had the opportunity to prepare decent lunch for En. Suami and Inas last weekend. We went to Pasar Tani on Saturday morning since we were out of things to cook. That was my first time going there actually and at 10 am, the place was still buzzing with people.

I actually went crazy looking at the stuffs selling there. Nasib baiklah we have to be on budget and need to be realistic. Otherwise, semua benda pun beli

I straight away started preparing the ingredients moment after we reached home. I left Inas under En. Suami's care. 

I can't believe how at ease I was preparing the lunch. Probably, it has been a while since I prepared something other than fried chicken for En. Suami.

Saturday lunch; fried chicken, daging salai masak lemak and bendi goreng belacan. My masak lemak was not thick enough though. But for a first timer, I think I did okay.

Sunday lunch, garlic fried chicken, sambal tumis sotong and stir fried bak choy. All good and finished within one seating. HAPPY.

I admit, my cooking is far from great or even very delicious. I'm still trying and struggling to get everything right. But alhamdulillah, En. Suami is very supportive. Whenever I prepared something for him, he would look at the dishes, smile and give me a kiss on the forehead. Give so much joy and makes everything worth it. 

After all this success, makes me wanna go to pasar tani every week and try different dishes.

All the best, Zeti!

#104 - Hot Date

Assalamualaikum.

Lately, it's hard for En. Suami and me to have a decent date. Let alone a quality one. Often, when we were out for a drink, someone would called and asked us to come back because Inas was crying.

A few weeks back, we went out for a movie date since my mom willing to take care of her for couple of hours.  So off we go to Midvalley. Upon reaching the GSC's counter, we found out that there's only one seat left for Chennai Express. Being such an understanding wife, I let En. Husband to go ahead with the movie and I watched a different movie. So much of a date lah kan.

Then, last week my brother-in-law offered a few tickets to Siti Nurhaliza's Lentera Timur Concert. Rezeki because we were looking for the tickets. Finally, another chance of a decent date. I dressed up in my new dress, new shawl given by my mother-in-law and put on my highest heels. Felt like old days.

We truly enjoyed our date. We sang and danced to all Siti's songs. (yes, both of us are Siti's fan).

Look forward to more decent and quality dates in the future.

Insya Allah.

Till then.

#103 - Snippets of the Week Part 8

Assalamualaikum.

Has been a while, isn't it?

I'm not truly busy with work. It just that my writing mojo has totally disappeared. I wanted to write something but I could not figure out a subject to talk about. Since I have a lot on my mind right now, I think it's about time for another round of snippets of the week/month. 

Here goes;

1) Inas, my beautiful daughter will turn one next month. Wow, time flies so damn fast. Inas can stand on her own and already took a few steps. Such an active baby girl and eats a lot. She even know how to blow her nose and it was the cutest thing I've ever seen. A kepochi baby I might add. I wonder where did she get that from. And I don't have any plans for her first birthday yet.

2) Work has been okay until earlier this week when my manager express his unsatisfactory towards his work performance which resulted to him resigning. Although I understand where he is coming from but it's a pity, really. I do learn a lot from him. On the other hand, I was given a new project to work on from my boss. Something I haven't done before.

3) En. Suami already started work at the new place earlier this month. He seems happier at the new place. Which is good for him. With this company and his line of work, he would need to travel almost every month. So far, he has travelled to Terengganu and will be going to Langkawi next week. First night without him, I cried like a baby. I wondered what's going to happen if he needs to travel for more than 1 night.

4) Had a discussion with my good friends about how I am trying to be better a Muslimah especially in terms of my dressing and hijab styling. I have a long way to go but I'm taking one small step at a time. May Allah ease this journey for me.

Till my next entry. 

#95 - Happy Baba's Day

Yesterday, the world celebrated Father’s Day. Though there are still debates going around about how we can’t celebrate Father’s Day (or any other Days for that matter), I have my own stand.

I lost my father at the tender age of 14. Up until now, there’s a huge hole inside my heart every time I think about my late father.  I feel that I didn’t spend enough time with him; I didn’t get to treat him with my own salary, and of course, the fact that he was not around to give me away.

Growing up without him was tough. Not helping when he used to spoil me. I had a very huge standard when it comes to type of man I want to marry. I want that person to be like my Abah.

Alhamdulillah.  I married that person.

He has been a wonderful husband.  Now, an amazing father to our Little Star.

Recently, during our car ride from doctor’s appointment he told that “I hope I always know how to make Inas laugh”.

I almost cried when he said this and I told him, “You will always know how to make her laugh and smile. You are her Baba and her hero”

Happy Father’s Day, Sayang. 

Please continue finding ways to make our girl smile and laugh.

Please continue to be our own Superhero.

#50 - 365

Alhamdulillah.

365 days.

52 weeks.

Today En. Suami and I celebrate our first anniversary. How time flies. I can still remember the rush on that morning. I was surprisingly calm and composed. 

I still remember how happy I was on that day. I couldn't stop smiling. Even until now. Whenever I look at my wedding photo, it still put a smile on my face.

It was a joyful journey so far. And of course an adventurous one if I might add. But, what is a marriage without a little bit of hiccups, right? 

I do not want to dwell on the small disagreements that we had because on this auspicious day, I would like to look back at the 365 days that I have spent with En. Suami.  No wonder people said being in love after you are married is the sweetest. I shall not argue with that. It IS the sweetest. 

I thank Allah everyday for this opportunity.

Thank you En. Suami for being everything that you are. 

And insya Allah, we will be welcoming our Little Star in November.


p/s: the scan picture is googled.

#31: Love Story

The conversation took place in January.

En. Suami: Oh my god, T**y is 29. (Our friend who just had her birthday in January)

Me: I know right. Can't believe it. Oh wait, I'm turning 29 too this February

En. Suami: *smile unknowingly*

Me: Oh my goodness, I'm getting old, I'm getting old

En. Suami: *smile again* Err... never mind.

Me: What? Nak cakap apa?

En. Suami: Takpelah.

Me: Kenapa? Nak cakap yang you married an old lady? (his birthday is in August of the same year)

En. Suami: Ha'ah

Me: Eleh, tak kisah. Marrying an old lady is the in thing right now.

With that, discussion ends.

#16 - Fantasia Bulan Madu Day 5

Our last day in Bali.

Since we already packed all of our stuff the night before, that morning was not that chaotic. We took the time to really enjoy the last moment of honeymoon.

After we done packing the necessities, we headed down with our bags and have our last breakfast. The driver was already waiting for us and he was 30 minutes early. Maka, tunggu dulu ya Pak.

Breakfast was nothing fantastic as we were having the same thing over and over again for the past 5 days. So, makan yang perlu jer untuk mengalas perut. Lepas makan, off to airport.

The process at the immigration counter was a smooth one. Alhamdulillah. We have like one and half hour to kill so we took the opportunity to do some more shopping since we have some rupiahs to burn.

Managed to get myself a new pair of Ipanema's slipper. Woohoo! It's a new design, not yet available in Malaysia. En. Suami bought 2 Ipanema slippers. Melampau betul :P

After we done with our shopping, we waited at the lounge. Alhamdulillah, our flight didn't delay and we got a bigger plane. More comfortable. And the best thing, I managed to get some sleep.

I had so much fun in Bali (obviously). Like I wrote in honeymoon album in FB, "it's like celebrating our 6th months anniversary. Look forward to countless anniversaries and thousand of trips together"

Till then.

#14 - Fantasia Bulan Madu Day 4

Day 4.

Today we planned to do some souvenirs shopping. With Bakhtiar's help, we managed to a get driver for a half a day trip around town, from 1.30pm - 6.30pm for RP300K.

So in the morning, after breakfast, we decided to go for a pedicure and manicure session at one of the spas near our hotel.

We chose Princess's Spa.

People always ask me to go for full body massage because that is Balinese people are known for. But, considering my condition I dared not to do any massage so we settled with pedi and mani.

Obviously the treatment is nothing to shout for. I mean I can get the same (better) treatment in Kuala Lumpur but obviously the rate is cheaper in Bali.

The two spa assistants thanked us profusely as we were the first customer of the day. So, I hoped we do bring some good business for them for that day.

After pampering ourselves, we walked along the street and we found out that there's a beach nearby.

Obviously, this is not the famous Kuta Beach (or maybe it is) but I am so happy to be near the beach. Since it was scorching hot so we didn't stay too long at the beach. Took a few photos and back to hotel and get ready.

Our driver greeted us at the lobby at 1.30pm sharp. We made a few stops and actually managed to get everyone's souvenirs.

Since we paid RP300K for the half a day trip, we thought it would such a waste to be using it only in town so we asked if the driver can bring us to Uluwatu and watch the Kecak Dance.

Ok, the reason why Uluwatu was not in our earlier itinerary because we heard so much about monkeys in Uluwatu. Apparently, the monkeys are quite violent and they steals from tourist. So Pak Media (our guide from the 2nd day) didn't really encourage us to go there.

But after giving it so much thought, we decided to give it a try. I mean how violent can the monkeys be, right?

But Agus already have another Client that he needs to pick up at the airport at 7.30pm and the Kecak Dance performance is at 6pm. It's impossible to go there and come back to airport in time. Not our luck.

After we done shopping at our third store, Agus said that he can bring us to Uluwatu as he already made another arrangement with his friend. Like, how accommodating can he be?

For that, we were super thankful to him.

It was already 4.oo at that time and it's a 40 minutes journey to Uluwatu. We stopped by at McDonalds (it's halal by the way) for a quick snack and off we go!

Once there, Agus reminded us to be careful with our belongings and don't mind the monkeys. Upon entering the temple, we were given a string to tie around our waist as a show of respect of the place.

Agus took the role as our photographer.

We took some photos and around the area and off to the theatre set to get the tickets for the Kecak performance. Luckily we go there early because it full house that day.

The performance was something different and while watching the dance, we managed to catch a glimpse of the sunset.

Once the show ended, we walked back to the carpark where Agus will be waiting for us. Our next stop should be Planet Hollywood but Agus need to pass some documents to his friend that is waiting for his Client at the airport. So, we off to airport first then to Planet Hollywood.

It was already 9 when we reached Planet Hollywood. We were there for 20 minutes because there was nothing much to see and we asked Agus to drop us at Kuta Square instead of the hotel.

We paid Agus (plus some tips) and off we go to find something to eat. Do some more shopping. Not too long though as we have to go back to hotel because we need to start packing.

It has been long and tiring day for us so as soon as we finish packing, we called it a night.

Till my next entry.

#13 - Fantasia Bulan Madu Day 3

Day 3.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, our initial package was only for 3D2N with one day tour package. Since we extended 2 more days, we have to plan on our own itinerary for the rest of our stay.

Through Pak Media, we managed to arrange another one day tour. Our day started as early as 8.30 am as we have to reach Batubulan before 10am to watch the Barong Dance performance.

Barong Dance is actually about a fight between good and evil. But fret not, you'll be given a programme paper that will explain the dance act by act so you won't be lost in translation. The dance is performed in old Balinese dialect.

The performance is an hour long. After the performance, we off to Ubud. Both me and En. Suami agreed that Ubud is more happening (in terms of shops and hotels) as compared to Kuta. But of course, different people have different opinion and preference. We roamed around Ubud Market and managed to get some souvenirs for the people back home.

Next, we off to Tegallalang. This place was not in our initial itinerary but the driver suggested to stop by as it's on our way to Kintamani so we thought why not.

Tegallalang is one of the famous rice terrace paddies in Bali. The road is a little bit narrow and was quite packed with cars that parked along the way but we managed to stop and took a few photos.

Something different isn't it? However, do beware of the by the roadside sellers. They could be quite persistent so you have to firmly say no if you are not buying anything.

After a few shots, we continue our journey to Kintamani. From Tegallalang, it took us another 30 minutes. Kintamani is known for volcanic Mt. Batur and the scenic view of Lake Batur. There are some package for tourist who wants to climb Mt. Batur and witness the sunrise. Please do so if you are into that kind of activity. As for me and En. Suami? No way Jose!

Again, be careful with the sellers that will be harassing you to buy their stuffs. Politely (but firmly) say no and walk away. After camwhoring like nobody business, we off to have our lunch. Since this is tour is not part of the package so we have to pay for our own meal.

We went to this restaurant called Grand Puncak Restaurant. They served lunch buffet so again we ended up eating only seafood although our driver claimed it's halal. The view, however, is beautiful.

After scrumptious meal, we off to Tampak Siring Village where the Tirta Empul Temple is located. The Temple is a holy spring temple. They believe the water could help them expel the black magic. This is the only thing that I could remember from the guide's explanation. When we done roaming around the temple, it's shopping time.

We took the opportunity to shop souvenirs for my nephews and nieces. The sellers at Tampak Siring are far more aggressive compared to the one in Tanah Lot or even Ubud and can be quite intimidating. I think we spent almost an hour here then we have to go to our last destination of the day.

Hello, Jimbaran Beach!

We've been told so many times about this place. The main attraction is the seafood dinner but the interesting part is to do it while watching the sunset. Sounds like a romantic dinner date to me :P

The view is gorgeous. I think this must be my favourite part of my entire honeymoon. It was romantic, the food was good, the wind, the buskers and most important of all the most perfect company, En. Suami. I could never ask anything better than this.

To make it even more memorable, it was on 11.11.11. Alhamdulillah.

Check out our food spread. Gila ok makan dua orang. Macam nak bagi makan segerombolan. Tapi sumpah sedap dan fresh!

On our way back to the hotel, since we already covered all the major tourist spots, we decided to hire half a day driver to bring us around to shop at the major shopping outlets. So we asked Bakhtiar (our driver) to help us. Unfortunately he couldn't make it so he suggested Agus, our driver from the previous tour. So kawtim already.

After freshened up, we took a taxi to Hard Rock for some live band performance. We were quite lucky because the band was good.

It was a challenge to get a taxi after 10pm because they tend to mark up the price and does not even bother to use the meter. We managed to get a taxi that would use the meter but he decided to use the longest route possible. Cost us Rp30K!

Anyways, another long day. Had so much fun. Toodles.

#12 - Fantasia Bulan Madu Day 2

Assalamualaikum.

Day 2

We scheduled for one day trip to Bedugul and Tanah Lot today as it was part of the package. Putu said the guide will pick us up at 9am so we have plenty of time to enjoy our breakfast. Breakfast was so-so as we didn't have that much choice.

The guide of the day was Pak Media and he was punctual. With us another 3 couples from Malaysia.

Our first stop was Toko Agung Bali. Since it was too early in the morning, I didn't have the mood to shop yet and I personally think that the souvenirs were quite expensive. So we looked around just to get ideas of what to get for people back home. We stopped for almost 45 minutes then we off to the next place.

Lake Beratan, Bedugul.

Pak Media explained to us on our way to Lake Beratan the story behind the temples and the lake but obviously yours truly was too occupied with other stuff I can't really recall what was the story. So we took a few pictures and suddenly the camera only left with 1 BAR. Yes ONE BAR! Since we have a lot places to cover so we decided to rely on our IPad.

Nothing much here. So then we off to have our lunch.

Next, Royal Temple at Taman Ayun. As the name suggest, the temple is for the royalties

Ye, memang sesungguhnya kerja kami memang melawat segala temple yang ada di Bali tu tapi these are part of the attractions of Bali. But of course, you've seen one, you'll see it all. So for Royal Temple nie tiadalah apa yang menarik sangat cuma dari segi view dan history nya sahaja.

Next, we off to Tanah Lot. Yes, this one is one of the reasons why I want to go to Bali.

The view was breathtaking. As one of the Tanah Lot's attractions to watch the sunset so we were there for almost 2 hours. Did some camwhoring and shopping while waiting for the sunset. It was beautiful indeed.

The funny thing was we almost missed the chance to watch the sunset as it was raining heavily 30 minutes before sunset but the rain stopped just in time. Alhamdulillah. Rezeki tu.

Balik dari Tanah Lot, berhenti makan di Kuta Town. Masa tu memang tawakal sebab diaorang berhenti dekat chinese restaurant.

Selesai makan, hello room!

Till then.

Note: Pictures are taken from Mr. Google.

#11 - Fantasia Bulan Madu Day 1

Since I have a little bit of time, I would like to start the first entry of our honeymoon in Bali.

A little bit of info before I begin. Our honeymoon is actually a wedding gift from my sisters in law. Obviously we accepted the gift happily as we don't have any plans for our honeymoon yet. Unrealistically, we both want to go to Italy. Tapi impian itu ibarat memetik bintang di langit. Tidak tercapai (yet). Jadi impian mahu ke Italy tangguh dulu.

The initial package was for 3D2N. Accommodation, flight and one day tour were included. But, we extended our stays to 2 more nights. Barulah puas kalau nak berjalan.

Day 1:

Our flight was at 12.25pm at KLIA. We took MAS. First time for me as I always travel with AirAsia (my favourite airlines :P ). Since we have like one hour to kill, we took the aerotrain to the other side and look for something to eat.

We were at the waiting lounge for good half an hour when we informed that our flight is delayed for another half an hour. Sabar je lah. Maka tak perlu ok nak gebang satu dunia AirAsia flight delay. Semua airlines pun sama.

We departed at 1.05 sharp. It was a smooth take off. Forgot that this is MAS and not AirAsia, I went through the pocket in front of me to find the menu the moment. Chet. Silly me.

An hour or so, we were served with lunch. I chose dried chili chicken with rice while En. Suami chose dried chili chicken stragonoff with pasta (or something like that). Tried to sleep but hardly catch a wink. En. Suami slept like a baby. Jealous.

We reached Ngurah Rai International Airport around 4.30. We were greeted by Putu, our driver of the day. In Bali, we stayed at Aston Kuta Hotel and Residence. Not too far away from airport. Upon checking in, we were told that our room is not ready yet. YES. NOT READY. Patut aku meletup ke tidak. But, the girl quickly informed us that we can have our complimentary light meal while waiting for the room.

FINE.

So, we had Nasi Goreng Seafood.

After maghrib, we decided to walk around Kuta town. Tapi alangkah sedihnya, gelap je. Dah tu tak tahu nak ke mana. Bengong sekejap. Maka half way, patah balik ke hotel, ambil Ipad dan google apa yang boleh digoogle dan menelek peta. Apparently, we were not too far away from Kuta Square. So we took taxi and off we go.

The taxi driver was quite friendly, telling us which shop we can go for souvenir shopping and all. Point noted. The moment we reached Kuta Square, my heart leaped with joy. I saw beautiful shops I can go crazy. There's Ripcurl, Paul Smith, Giordano and almost every other brands. My mind was doing mental calculation everytime I saw the price tag. Tiba-tiba aku terror maths. Haha.

So, we roamed around. See what other interesting stuff at Kuta Square. There's The Coffee Bean (yeay!), KFC, McDonalds (not sure whether they are halal), Starbucks, Hard Rock (double yeay!), souvenir shops, Uluwatu brand shop.

After walking aimlessly, we stopped for a drink at Starbucks at Discovery Mall. Initially we wanted to take the opportunity to browse the internet but unfortunately we have to register with hotspot. Malas so we ended camwhoring.

Then, it's time to head back to the hotel. While coming to Kuta Square only cost us less than 10K rupiah but going back to the hotel cost us 20K Rupiah. Gila cekik darah ok. Itupun after we bargain otherwise it's gonna cost us like 30K rupiah.

Now, let's rest as we have one full day tour.

Till then.