Nana just started work and lately shes been coming home late. I on the other hand just finished our show for the year and have a lot of free time. Sometimes I call her up randomly for a meet up but she's either still at work or too tired to go out. Last weekend I asked her if she wants to hang out and her reply was "I taktau mana you dapat your energy, every weekend you pegi sini sana"

No, Na. When there's time, sleep all you can. And make time to go out if money and cash are a luxury.

So yeah. 3 weekends ago, right after our FHM exhibition ended, I board a bus and went to Penang for Kimi amd Ain's convocation. Got to spend time with Lii Jing and meet many friends from USM.

It's always great to be back in the island and USM. Sempatlah duduk 2 malam kat sana and makan beria the food that I miss.

I didnt plan to spend much but Kimi just had to take me to the bookstore in Chowrasta. Maka, we both left with 3 books each and 200 dollars lighter.

The rest I spent on food and flowers for my 2 closest friends. So glad I managed to be there and see them in their robes. So proud.

And then last weekend Tangsue and I planned a random trip back to our beloved hometown Kuantan. Main purpose is to be beach bums (and that we did!). But hello, we're in Kuantan. And when you put Tangsue + Faraha together, its makan trip!

Hold on! I need to announce this. I DROVE FROM KL TO KUANTAN!!! ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED! Our first stop when we arrived was Hoi Yin for mi kicap kuah kari extra fishball tambah tulang ayam. Hoih sedapnya! Next we went to Mustafa Cendol for cendol pulut. Next on our agenda was picnic at Pantai Pelindung. Picnic means food, therefore we stopped by Taman Gelora for karipap special, Tanjung Lumpur for otak2, sata, udang celup tepung and air kelapa. But then it rained.

Gerimis pun lantaklah, all we cared was to spend the evening at the beach. We were joined by Tangsue's schoolmates - such a warm and fun bunch there are! After the beach we moved our lepak session to new place in town, Kula Cakes which serves cakes and really sedap drink concoction called Pandan Cooler. Desserts first! Then dinner. Such hipsters we are.

For dinner, we brought ourselves to Teluk Chempedak or hipsterly known as TC. They had a new fast food concept restaurant that serves Western Food called something Rimba Bistro. Good food, satisfying portion, nice flavours and reasonably priced. The only downside is theres too many people queing and the place is stuffy! But their staffs are efficient.

Next morning we went for Nasi Minyak breakfast at Tanjung Api and hit the beach again! We brought a mat and an umbrella, some ice cream, books, sunnies and a bottle of bubble for Tangsue. Picked a shady spot in Teluk Tongkang and laze awaaaayyy. That was THE highlight of the weekend. Sleeping at the beach. So nais. I wanna do it again and have a Mean Girls trip with the rest of the girls!

Harini balik kerja patutnya ada family dinner, tapi sebab Im late..akhirnya Abah pergi beli bungkus. Macam biasa, Since Mama wanted dimsum, we (Abah and I) went to Abdullah Chan to tapau. I walked in alone while Abah went to park the car. Since nobody was there to attend to me, I ambik sendiri menu and start walking to the table nearest to the counter.

Halfway there, a couple who were seated started signalling for me to look at them. I turned to them and the boyfriend mouthed "nak order". I just shook my head and walked straight ahead. I sat myself and a waitress came to me. So I told her that that guy wants to place his order. Bila pusing pandang the couple, yang boyfriend tengah tunduk malu gosok-gosok kepala. And the girlfriend was laughing hysterically while patting the boyfriend.

Aih. Fail! Kan termalu dah. Diorang lah malu. I okay je. Mentang-mentang korang makan kat Chinese Muslim restaurant, aku pun korang ingat kerja kat situ lah eh?

Akhirnya! Lepas ke Siam! Remember a while back, I posted emo posts about not ever gonna be allowed to travel on my own? Ironically, the trip I'm not allowed to go was to Hadnyai too. Thank God the second time around I got clearance from ze parents. Oh, I'm not exactly sure of the correct spelling. Is it Hatyai or Hadnyai? Im comfortable with the latter. So Im gonna use that.

My new passport is stamped dah! Yays!

On Friday, Ain picked me up from USM after pre-internship presentation. Not 2 hours after I left Penang, not even halfway to Kedah, I started missing my happy pills. I use to have the strongest attachment to one, now I'm attached to 5! Parah dah. So anyway, lets just fast forward. I slept over at Ain's place. And the next morning...to Hadnyai!

Im sort of malas to fill in the details because that morning was a big blur for me. I had stomachache, I was not excited, it was hot, I was sleepy and I slept through most of the journey. Lets skip details for the first place. Let me tell you something. I went to Thailand, and I shopped at 7Eleven. Melampau kan! Toiletries dorang best! And cheap! And then they stooped at this hypermarket call the Big C, and I got stuck at the toiletries section, AGAIN!

Everytime bas berjalan, I tidur. Everytime they stop, we don't get down. Instead we ate! Ain's mum owns a kedai makan. So that morning she prepared nasi bungkus for us. Sedap gila! tu yang jadinya tak turun bas. Kitorang (Ain, her sister, cousin, Fura and I) makan dan makan. For the first 2 times je lah. Banyak berhenti kot. Kat sempadan, kat imigresen, kat kedai madu yang bosan tu. Dahlah sakit perut.

I cheered up at the second stop, tempat jual makanan kering where we can test all jajan / kudap-kudapan / cikedis for free. Which I did not sebab semua tulisan Siam. Tak faham makan apa kan. Yang pasti, perkara yang menerbitkan senyuman adalah AISKRIM KELAPA sedap MAX! Berlayer-layer okay. First layer pulut, second chuncks of bread, third ice cream, forth buah kabung, and topped of with nuts and pieces of ubi. Om nom nom! 20 bhat, RM2 sahaja! 

Lepastu we went to the mall yang I got stucked buying toiletries.

And then finallyyyyy, sampailah kami ke Klonghae. I think the whole time I was a bit moody because I'm really looking forward to eat. Not shop, but eat. Pastu they place where we are going for food is the last stop because it only opens in the evening. Great innit? There were so many people and all the vendors on the boat are Muslims. So I'm a happy fat kid. Sayangnya masa tak cukup. Tak habis berjalan sepanjang sungai.

Paling best, ada sushi okay! 4 pieces RM2. So its 50sen each! Everything there is 20 baht. Damn syiok! Tom yam sedap. Chicken wings! For drinks, they sell it in gelas tembikar or gelas made from buluh, and we can bring it back! I MUST COME BACK!

Its the Chinese New Year holidays! And also our 1 week term break. Pada asalnya plan cuti nak ikut family Semenyih to Tiara Beach Resort, Port Dickson. And at the same time Dieyla/Awek ajak-ajak ayam ikut dia balik Terengganu. Jadi I gamble tanya Abah boleh ke tak. Siap bertekak semua lah kat phone walaupun cuak dan takut jugak sebenarnya nak mintak permission. Tiba-tiba......BOLEH!

Jadi, last Saturday berempat lah kami sekereta memulakan perjalanan ke Terengganu. Awek the driver, Cip the co-pilot, and Ana the paying passenger. I tukang buat bising selama journey tu. We crossed 4 states to get to Terengganu. So I updated my FB status konon-konon macam pergi roadtrip. Padahal lalu je. Penang-Kedah-Perak-Kelantan-Terengganu. Bunyi cam best je kalau dapat roadtrip betul-betul.

The journey from Penang to Kuala Terengganu was 8 hours of breezy, nyaman, dingin, and exciting smooth driving. We were stopped by JPJ once to check license, but the rest of the trip went on smooth. My lodging was at Awek's house. Terima kasih Awek, especially to your family bagi menumpang berhari-hari. Bagi makan nasik free, siap tanpa segan silu aku menambah lagi. Hehehehe

The first day we woke up late sebab qadar tidur. Kepenatan from the journey the day before. Persinggahan pertama adalah di gerai goreng pisang mak Awek! Di mana aku duduk situ dan makan keropok lekor, cekodok, jemput bawang, goreng pisang sampai kenyang. Free pulak tu! Her parents refuse to take any money. Pasni taknak makan dah kalau gi sana. Segan I. Sebab sah-sah aku makan memang bersungguh!

Kucing photogenic kat gerai mak Dieyla

Then we went to Kampung Cina, and found out that the stores along the street are taking part in CNY decorating competition. Since belum semua siap berhias dan hari pun hujan, jadi sekejap je lah kami ke situ.

We came back the next day at daytime for jalan-jalan camwhore session.

And also on the night of the judging by Terengganu MB for the decorating competition. Siap ada perarakan, lion dance, and one of the store actually brought in an orchestra to play songs in front of their store! Meriah gila okay! I'll have to tell all in another post.

Dang! I can't believe tiap-tiap hari kitorang pergi Kampung Cina. And its not big pun. Its just 1 street.

Day 2
Mulalah hari bersiar-siar dan photoshoot di KT. Tempat pilihan adalah Pasar Kedai Payang, Kampung Cina (lagi) dan beberapa tempat makan minum.

Sempat jumpa Ajis lagi! Since he's working for Kosmo Terengganu, mestilah kena jumpa! Tak sangka kawan aku yang paling slacker ni dah jadi trainee reporter. Beratus dah artikel. Bangga tengok kau dah jadi orang Ajis! Biarlah mereka di situ panggil kau dubuk pun.

Oh! On this day I pakai dress tu kan. Mak aih! Mata orang sana, melilau! Mungkin tak kena tempat, atau mungkin terlebih gorjes kot. Ahahahahahahah! Oh well!

Day 3

Hari kami berkelana di Taman Monumen Tamadun Islam. Tapi tak masuk pun. Instead we took the 40 minutes boat ride di Sungai Terengganu. Not bad. Siap ada tour guide explain macam-macam. Masa nak naik tu Awek dengan Cip punya first question, "Kau tak puas lagi ke dah Dondang Sayang kat Putrajaya?" Ehhh tu tempat lain, ni Terengganu. Dah berzaman aku tak datang Tenganu nih!

Best hokay nak photoshoot! Next time nak kena datang balik sebab tak masuk Taman Monumen dengan Muzium Terengganu.

Petang, kami lepak di Pantai Batu Burok. Awek main lelayang. Cip ambil gambar. Dan I, berbaring atas pasir sambil baca buku. Bliss!

Katanya Jumaat, pasar malam sepanjang-panjang beach tu. Mostly gerai bundle. Menetes dengar. Takpelah takde rezeki.

Day 4
Hari terakhir. Sedih meninggalkan kota raya yang menjadi saksi bahawasanya bapaku benarkan aku bercuti dengan kawan-kawan dengan berkat dan keizinan. Eheh! Drama much?

Berangkat lah aku ke stesen bas dihantar Awek dan Cip. Tiba-tiba dikejutkan dengan kemunculan Ajis yang turut sama datang menghantar. Thanks korang!

I really really appreciate this trip. Enjoyed it tremendously! Nanti kita trip tempat lain pulak eh?

Jesse McCartney's Just So You Know is a gift for things better left unspoken. Or to tell a person without telling it directly.

Secondhand Serenade's Your Call helps you get over the waiting without feeling sorry for yourself.

Maliq & D'Essential's Untitled is just what you need to reflect, to ponder.

J Rocks's Cobalah Kau Mengerti is something to say out of jealousy.

* * * * * * * * *

Nothing beats writing it on your own though. Since I do not have internet access, I wrote old fashion style. Literally wrote. Using pen and paper. Shocking ey? Hehehehe. I had to! Or else I might lose all my thoughts.

By the way, I am in Kuala Terengganu at Dieyla's house with Cipcip for the semester break! Will be heading to Kuantan from T'ganu. Its been yearssssssssss since Ive been in Terengganu. I plan to enjoy my stay here and snap thousands pictures. Ada cameraman cameragirl okay! Thanks in advance Cip! Dieyla and myself jadi model sepenuh masa. Hehehhehe

Another must-do in my list is to pick up the T'ganu slang. 3 hari pun 3 hari lah. Yang pasti paling kurang dah tahap diploma slanga T'ganu aku bila balik ni.

Hah! Since its the Chinese New Year holiday, rupanya my family semua bersepah bercuti hokayyy! Semenyih clan - the Mondoques, and Syister's family are enjoying themselves at Tiara Beach esort, Port Dickson. While KOTH's family went to BALI! Jealous!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Takpe, Im in Terengganu. And my dad gave clearance to go on my own. Grateful!!!!!

May I tell you that the journey from Penang to Terengganu is 8 hours of back breaking ordeal crossing 5 states (Penang-Kedah-Perak-Kelantan-Terengganu). But I enjoyed it tremendously. Cuaca redup, angin sejuk, tidur sedaaaap!

Sempat singgah photoshoot kat Tasik Banding pulak!

Ni sikit je baru. Tunggu ehhhh, expect gambar yang berlambak =)

Pulang untuk rujuk dengan Juna yang dah cerai talak dua. Juna crashed. Bila dah rosak, baru lah tau cerita sebenar. Juna casing je Vaio. Rupanya all the hardware and software aren't genuine products. Sebab tu lepas 6 bulan dah crashed.

At least its twice longer than my previous relationship. But the situation is quite similar. Lepas dah putus baru tahu cerita sebenar. Baru dapat cerita persona dalaman which apparently sangat jauh dari luaran.

So how do I feel? Betrayed. Same feelings for both relationships. Its as if Juna is a guy secara fizikal, but he's gay. Get it? Okay! Personafikasi terhadap laptopku adalah agak melampau. There'll be changes. Cerai 2 kali takkan nak rujuk kan? Cari lain lah! Isi badan Juna dah diganti. Sebab dah jiwa lain, nama pun kena lain.

I'm still searching for a name. Preferably Sanskrit like Juna was. Hmmm Arjuna had 4 brothers; Nakula, Sahadeva, Yudisthira and Bhima. But I think the second time around, the lappy will be a she. She can be my new new best friend!

Choices? If I were to have a daughter, I want it to be these names:
Layla (night) / Leala (French for faithful)
Raissa (rose)
Nazneen (charming or delicate)
Irsa (Arabic rainbow)
Zia (Arabic for splendor, light)
Yara (Small butterfly or the loved one in Arabic and many other meanings in various languages)

None of it sound like a good match for the lappy. Oh btw, I've kept these name secret for 5 years now. The last time I brought up names for future offspring, it was snatched. Twice! Since its out in the open, its up for grabs! *now that I searched for the meaning again, I think I want it back!*

Sigh. I can't find a good name for it. Something close to me. Something I'll hold dearly.

Hmmm..the girls I'm affectionated to right now are Sophie & Hilde from Sophie's World. Female philosophers? Taknak lah! One is a nun and another is an existentialist.

Audrey for Audrey Niffenegger? Henry the Time Traveller? Male! Clare, the Time Traveller's Wife? Not exactly right.

HOMAIGOD! Perfect! She will be Alba. After Alba de Tremble, the Time Traveller's daughter! Alba means white fortress. Too great, my lappy is white too. Let's hope it'll be a strong fortress and will not crash again.

Guess who else is Alba? You got that right!


Well hello my favourite girl! *cue Justin Bieber's My Favorite Girl*

This is my 21 year old self, attending my Diploma convocation on the 21st of November 2010.

Terkilan tak ambik gambar dengan Abah. Mama dengan Adik tak datang. Jadi peluang tu memang dengan Abah sorang.

Tak tahu boleh duduk tak ikut turutan nama. Kalau tahu, memang nak duduk dengan geng sendiri. Takpelah, kurang-kurang dapat berbaik dengan gadis paling tak ngam di UNISEL dulu.

I lagi happy dan bangga tengok kawan-kawan naik stage ambik sijil daripada I yang berjalan atas tu. We made it guys!!!

Diploma Comm & Media students duduk bahagian paling depan. Tiap kali kamera fokus pada muka, macam-macam gaya keluar. Konvokesyen dah macam perhimpunan biasa yang tak formal. Penangan kitorang.

Bukan tu je. Protokol memang buat sendiri lah. Gelak ketawa, tidur bersungguh-sungguh (I dan most of the boys), tepuk tangan, comment MC. Paling best...bersemangat menyanyi lagu UNISEL. Rupanya ada lagu okay!!! Kami bangga buat seketika.

Keluar dewan, I jadi Mak Tiri slash speaker rakyat semula. Nak kumpulkan semua untuk shoot gambar ramai2. Tapi tak kesampaian. Cuma sempat jadi koir nyanyikan Birthday song untuk C'Put the birthday boy.

Terik mentari jangan cerita lah! Merenik peluh. Basah baju. Hilang ayu.

Dan bagi seorang aku yang asalnya tak mahu berada di situ, aku mengaku sepatutnya aku mahu. Walaupun highlight Diploma aku adalah pada 6 May 2010. Hari terakhir semuanya ada berkumpul dalam satu tempat yang sama dan acknowledge each other, memaafkan segala.

We'll see each other again. Our reunion, in 5 years time. InsyaAllah. I'll make it happen walaupun almost impossible. Harapnya korang tak culas, malas, dan cheapskate lagi dah selepas 5 tahun.

All the best guys!