Blue Mountains

Hello there!!

On Monday morning, we went to Blue Mountains, world heritage that offers a range of experiences found nowhere on earth. I was so excited about this trip because I never been to this place before. We started our journey from Wollongong at around 8.30am and after about 4hours of driving, we reached Katoomba, the main city. Since we were still ahead of time, we decided to look for accommodation first. We chose to spend our night at Blue Mountains Backpacker Hostel which is situated right in the middle of Katoomba city. Walaupun namanya hostel, tempat ni sangat selesa, well equipped room, toilet sangat cantik, dapur besar, ada free internet access, ruang lepak yang sangat selesa and reception yang sangat peramah yang siap boleh tawar menawar (dapat harga $70 untuk 3 orang, murah gila!). If you want to spend a night at Blue Mountains, I will definitely suggest you to go to this place.

Blue Mountains Backpacker Hostel, 144 Bathurst Street, Katoomba NSW 2780

Reservation and check in counter

Spacious communal area, a huge lounge room with comfortable sofas, big screen TV and a roaring fire to warm the whole area.

Then, we straight away made our way to the first spot, The Echo Point. Sampai je dekat situ, I rasa tergamam sangat dengan pemandangan yang sangat cantik yang tak mungkin kita dapat di mana mana tempat selain Blue Mountains. When we perched along the edge of the scarp, we are facing the panoramic view of the Blue Mountains, Kanangra-Boyd Wilderness and the Three Sisters. Selama ni scenic view macam ni I dok tengok dalam National Geographic je, tapi kali ni, terbentang luas depan mata. Rasa bersyukur sangat dengan peluang yang Allah bagi untuk saksikan kebesaran ciptaan-Nya.

The Three Sisters behind us. Sila google kalau nak tau sejarah Three Sisters ni ye..:p

Then, we went to the Scenic World. Dekat sini lagi best. I dapat peluang naik Skyway, Railway dengan Cableway. Best sangat sangat! Pemandangan jangan cakap lah, setiap sudut mata memandang rasa cantik sangat. Tak dapat nak describe dengan perkataan. Harap gambar dapat membantu. Tu pun still tak sama dengan apa yang nampak jelas kat depan mata. Ha, kalau nak tau jemput lah datang ke Australia, nanti I bawak jalan jalan datang sini..:p :p

Four types of scenic world rides: Skyway, Railway, Walkway, Cableway

Me and the Skyway behind. Pardon my BIG, ROUND face pleasee.. T__T

While waiting for our turn to ride on the Railway

The couple on the Cableway

Lepas dah puas jamu mata dengan pemandangan yang super cantik, kitorang pun singgah kat satu garden ni untuk makan bekal tengahari. I masak lauk masak kicap sebelum gerak pagi tu. Bila perut dah lapar, cuaca sejuk, badan dah letih, lauk tu jadi ayam masak kicap yang paling sedap dalam dunia tau! Walaupun temperature sangat rendah, angin pulak kuat, makan sampai tangan menggigil, kitorang tetap hargai pengalaman ni. What a really precious experience we had.

Setelah puas memenatkan badan, kitorang pun bergerak balik ke bilik. Sebelum tu singgah jalan jalan di sekitar pekan Katoomba yang sangat comel tu. Unfortunately, all the shops were already closed when we reached there. Sungguh tak mencabar lah kehidupan mat salleh ni. Pukul 5 petang dah tutup kedai. Malam malam boleh baring atas jalan raya. Haihh. Takpela, we ourselves were exhausted enough. Sampai je bilik terus terpengsan keletihan tak ingat dunia. Malam tu kitorang bangun makan maggi kari panas panas sambil tengok cerita hantu, lepas tu sambung tido balik.hahaha. Best sangat!!

Mari masak maggi kari pedassss, yeayy!!


To-be-continue : Canberra ACT

Dapto, Kiama, Stanwell Park

Hello Mr Diary, here I come again..=)

Our actual activity started on Sunday morning. We went out as early as 7.30am to fetch our hired car from Thrifty Wollongong. Mula mula dapat kereta tu I sungguh terkejut. Wah, hijaunye!!!Rasa macam katak gergasi sedang berlegar legar di jalan raya. Tapi bila lama lama naik, rasa cool jugak bergerak dalam kereta katak pisang tu.hahaha..:p

Early morning at Thrifty Wollongong

Si katak hijau

For most of the people here, Sunday has no meaning without going to Dapto Sunday Market. So, our first stop was at Dapto. Kepada yang tidak tahu, Dapto tu macam flea market atau carboot sale market la. Ada banyak sangat jual barang barang yang murah. Kalau orang yang pandai cari, memang akan jumpa macam macam barang yang sangat best. Puas la kakak dengan abg adil memborong kat situ. The price is wayyyy cheaper than the ones we may get inside the store. Memang berbaloi! Me? Tak jumpa apa apa. I memang lemah bab bab mencari ni. Jeles betol tengok orang angkut macam macam dari sini. Sighs~

Hasil dari Dapto

From there, we went to Kiama Blowhole. This is my third visit to Kiama and everytime I went there, I never failed to be amazed on how beautiful is the place. Cantik sungguh ciptaan Allah. The weather was so perfect. Sunny day day offering bright sunlight, wide blue sky with not even a tiny cloud and chilling ocean breeze really made our visit to Kiama something unforgettable.

Konon macam hebat lunch dekat bawah matahari. But it was freezing. Believe me!

Kiama Lighthouse

Kiama Blowhole

Then, we drove off to Stanwell Park where we found people doing hand gliding there. Another beautiful lookout that you cannot miss if you happen to visit Wollongong one day okay. Dekat situ, kebetulan pulak terjumpa geng Gundi. Kak Mas, Kak Fai, Kak Suzana and Hazmi. What a coincidence. I datang bawak kakak jalan jalan, diorang pulak datang dengan trip accommodation..=))

Bald Hill, Stanwell Park

Geng Gundi: Hazmi, me, K.Mas, K.Fai, K.Suzana

Lepas dah puas seharian jalan jalan, kitorang pun balik rumah. Rehat kejap then keluar balik pergi beli barang dekat Woolies. Niatnya nak singgah makan dekat Turkish Delight, tapi tutup lah pulak. Then kitorang pun makan dekat Oporto. Makan sampai kenyang gila lepas tu baru balik rumah. What a tiring day we had. But overall, it was really fun!=))

To-be-continue : Blue Mountains Trip

A day at Auntie Noon's house

Assalamualaikum sweetie..

A few days went off, and now only I have time to update something about Kakak and Abg Dil's visit. They arrived at around 8.30pm on Friday, 15th October. I picked them up at the airport with Laili and brought them to Uyghur restaurant for dinner. Then, we straight away went back to Wollongong. I know it was a really exhausting day for them after a very very long journey. That's why I didn't plan anything in particular to do on the next day so that they will have some time to regenerate their energy.

Upon arrival at Sydney Airport

Dinner at Uyghur Restaurant

Then, on Saturday noon, Kak Azean told me that Auntie Noon invited us to her crib for cooking and gardening session. Mungkin rezeki kakak untuk kenal lebih ramai orang Malaysia di Wollongong agaknya. So, lebih kurang pukul 2pm kitorang gerak ke rumah aunty. Bukan kitorang je, family Mad, Nas, Pak Joko, Ilyas, Ungku, Rauf, Kashfi and Khairul pun ada jugak. As usual, the ladies will be cooking at the kitchen and the guys will be helping out at the garden. Hmmm, rutin wajib kalau dijemput ke rumah aunty.hehehe.

Berkumpul dekat rumah Mad

Cooking session

Lepas dah siap keje masak memasak, kitorang tunggu orang lelaki siap berkebun sambil jalan jalan di sekitar rumah aunty. Berkebun? Where on earth did we get to do the gardening session here in Wollongong? Fyi, belakang rumah aunty sangat penuh dengan segala macam pokok yang bermacam macam jenis. You name it, daun kari, serai, pokok pisang, pokok lemon, limau barli, etc etc. Semua ada kat situ. Nak ape cakap je, nanti aunty petik je kat belakang. Cool kan?

Berjalan jalan sekitar rumah aunty

Ingatkan lepas dah siap memasak dan berkebun semua tu boleh la terus makan. Rupa rupanya tidak. Aunty organize game lah pulak. We were divided into 3 groups and each of the groups was given a few questions. I was in the same team with Ilyas, Kash dengan Ungku. Kalau dah nama pun Aunty Noon, game pun haruslah berkaitan dengan kesihatan jugak kan. Walaupun pening pening lalat, it was fun doing it. At the end of the session then only we learn that there were actually quite a lot of important info regarding to health and cleanliness that we never been aware of. Ha, dalam game tu, group I dapat number 2.hehe. Jadiklah.. Lepas dah main, ape lagi, makan time!!

Makan makan

Lepas dah makan semua, kitorang pun lepak lepak sambil berkaraoke. Penat gila rupanya bila seharian beraktiviti. Padahal bukanlah buat apa sangat pun. Masak masak, lepak lepak, tapi penat jugak. Balik tu terus tido dengan nyenyaknya akibat kepenatan. Esok paginya kena bangun awal sebab nak ambik kereta yang dah disewa dari Thrifty. Fuhh, what a tiring day we had.

Lepak lepak sambil berkaraoke

Group photo

To-be-continue

Simpson oh Simpson

Hey buddy!!

I went to see Tim this morning. Only a very short meeting for about 20minutes. 2 minggu ni I serabut sebab masih tak dapat solution untuk transcendental equations yang I tengah solve sekarang. Ada integration part yang bapaklah complicatednye. Asyik dapat piecewise solution je. Buat buat tapi tak dapat jugak, akhirnya buntu!

Maka dengan itu, tepat pukul 11am hari ni I pegi la jumpa Tim sambil buat muka kesian. It was such a disgrace everytime I went to see him without something in hands. Sungguh! Rasa macam tak cukup kerja keras. Then I started to feel bad for myself. Sighs~ But I already tried my best you know. Walaupun kadang kadang harusah ngelat jugak kan.hehe.:p

Bila jumpa tadi baru I tau kena guna any type of numerical works in order to solve that supercomplicated integral inside the transcendental equations. He suggested me to use Simpson's Rule which seems to be quite simple at my stage. Wahhh, pandainye supervisor saye!! Ape punya sengal la you ni Amirah. Kalau dah tau involve integration, automatic la ingat kena guna numerical baru senang. Ini tidak, paksa jugak diri pi buat cacing cacing tu. Memang la tak dapat. Haihh. Okay, assignment hari ni, pi cari balik formula Simpson's Rule yang dah lama ditinggalkan tu. Omg, menggelabah! Lupa, lupa!

Simpson's Rule. Mari belajar Matematik ye kawan kawan.. T__T

Lepas dah settle bincang pasal research, I pun sekali lagi dengan muka kesian bagitau Tim details pasal I nak balik bulan depan. I had told him before. Which was about a few months back. And I bet he already forgotten. So, when the date is getting near, I just want to remind him all again. I mentioned about my brother's wedding thingy and how important does the ceremony to me and bla bla bla. And he just said, "Okay, no problem. Just send me the details of the date and you may have a break". Owh, begitu mudah sekali. What a relief. Alhamdulillah..=))

p/s: Kejap lagi I plan nak pegi hospital melawat Abg Najib. Kaki kanan beliau dah tak dapat diselamatkan dan baru je menjalani pembedahan amputation bermula dari bawah lutut dan ke bawah. Sila google apa tu amputate ye. Tak sanggup nak terangkan kat sini. Tapi memetik kata kata beliau, "Allah telah mengurniakan kaki ini untuk tempoh yang panjang dan telah sampai masa Allah menarik sedikit rahmat ini". Beliau menerima semua ujian dengan redha dan telah bersedia. Ya Allah, kurniakan ketabahan yang berlipat ganda ke atas keluarga Kak Hajar dan Abg Najib. Amin.

Fly AirAsiaX to Sydney please

Assalamualaikum..

Here I am again. With a real big grin on my face. Ngeeeee... Why? I just read something so exciting from Yahoo!NEWS a couple of hours ago. And I can't stop praying for the news to be true right now. Okay, the title of the news is "AirAsia X urges Malaysia to end Sydney route monopoly". See how exhilarating the news is? No? Hey, at least it is REALLY thrilling for me and the rest of other Malaysian here around Sydney and New South Wales. Rasa nak loncat sampai kena bumbung sekarang jugak tau!!:p

Come, let me explain. You must be aware of the existence of Malaysian long-haul budget airline AirAsiaX(AAX) rite? Setakat ni AAX dah berjaya meluaskan penerbangan hampir ke sebahagian besar pelosok dunia. And out of all the important places, Sydney is excluded. What a shame. In Australia, AAX already flies to Gold Coast, Melbourne and Perth but has failed so far to obtain government approval to expand the route to Sydney. Adalah menjadi polisi kerajaan Malaysia untuk membenarkan hanya Malaysia Airlines yang boleh memonopoli hak penerbangan KL-SYDNEY. Can't you see how unfair the policy is?

AAX route map all around the world. And Sydney is nowhere can be seen. Sighs~

I faham, mungkin ada sebab kenapa kerajaan kita tetapkan polisi yang macam tu, but if they look at other important aspects, Sydney is a major gateway and an important market for Malaysia in terms of tourism, education, as well as trade and investment. Mungkin dengan adanya AAX ke Sydney, peluang Malaysia untuk mempereratkan hubungan dengan kerajaan Australia akan turut bertambah. Chewahhh!! Pandai la kau cakap Mira.hahaha. Ni pendapat peribadi I dari segi konteks yang luas la.

But, if I say it from personal point of view, I'll be very very happy as this will makes my life much more easier. Dapat balik Malaysia dengan tambang yang murah tanpa perlu transit beberapa jam di Melbourne. Sungguh terrible bila kena menunggu okeh. Kawan kawan dan saudara mara pun senang nak datang melawat. Best sangat kan kalau macam tu kan? So, apa lagi, tolongla doa supaya berita ni akan jadi berita terbaik untuk tahun ni..Owh, cakap pasal saudara melawat, esok Kaklong dgn Abg Dil akan sampai. Happy!! Happy!!=))

p/s: Did I ever mentioned that I'm not going back next year? I think I did. Hmmm, how lah? Boleh tarik balik tak? Ngeeee..:p :p

Walk with me, anyone?

Good day sweetie!!

I started walking to uni since last week, after a few months of not doing so. I gradually discontinued walking since late autumn and during winter, I stopped the activity permanently. Cari pasal je jalan kaki sejuk sejuk tu. Ada yang mati keras kat tengah jalan pulak nanti. But then, when the weather now looks a little bit promising, I started walking all again. Best pulak dapat jalan kaki pagi pagi pegi uni. Good on me, my health, my weight, my fitness as well as help to lose my unnecessary body fat.

For some people, they love all the tough physical activities in order to improve their good health. As for me, physical activity does not have to be too vigorous. I tak mampu la nak paksa diri jogging kat padang bola 5 round tiap tiap hari, atau main badminton 2-3 game sehari. Tak reti main badminton pun. Asik kena kutip shuttle cock je nanti.huhuhu.

My regular excercises now include intensive aerobic classes (BAT and BodyBurn) two times a week, cardio workout once a week, and now I will walk to uni for 20minutes everyday. Cukup la tu untuk maintain the fitness of my body. Jangan ajak I lumba lari tau!! Nanti orang lain semua dah sampai, I pulak berenti bawah pokok berehat dengan nyamannya. Kalau ajak I jalan kaki kat botanic garden, sembang sembang, I'm totally in it.hehehe..:p

Why walking interesting? Well, everybody knows walking is a low impact activity requiring minimal equipment. Pakai baju apa pun takpa, yang penting kasut mesti selesa. Jangan la jalan pakai 6inches heels, tu cari penyakit namanya. Walking can be done at any time of the day and most interestingly, can be performed at your own pace. Kalau agak agak panas, I bawak la payung, ala ala makcik makcik yang balik dari pasar tu.hehehe.

Satu lagi kan, masa berjalan tu jugaklah biasanya masa untuk I berfikir. Ye la, sambil tengok rumah orang yang cantik cantik, bunga warna warni, kereta lalu lalang, tenang je rasanya. Paling best kalau terjumpa couple at their golden age, jalan jalan sambil pegang tangan, cakap manja manja macam tengah bercinta. Sweet sangat sangat!! Pemandangan macam tu sangat biasa kat sini. Tapi kat Malaysia jarang sangat jumpa. Why? I have no idea why.huhu.

Ain't this golden couple looks lovely? Very much inlove. I like!=))

p/s: The benefits of walking can also be achieved when shopping. A good stroll around shops for a few hours can still help burn off some fat stores. Ha, sape cakap orang pompuan malas eksesais memang nak kena gigit! We are all good in this tau! So, to all ladies out there, in order to support fat burning mode, more window shopping may be good for this! =))

Saya budak baru belajar

Dear diary,

I had a nearly one-hour tutorial session just now. Learning on how to operate this new little fella I owned since one month ago. Mind boggling session. Really confusing. But very very fun indeed! Memang kena cop dekat dahi ni "saya budak buta teknologi" rasanya. Mencabar sungguh nak belajar benda benda canggih ni ye. Sepuluh soalan diorang tanya, sepuluh jawapan macam, "Waaa, canggihnye!", "Oooo, camtu je ke?", "Fuiyooo, bestnye!!", "Alamak, taktau pun boleh buat camtu", dan bermacam-macam lagi jawapan ala ala jakun yg terkeluar dari mulut I ni.hehehe. Serious, memang I taktau. Memang kena gelak je la dengan budak budak ni tadi.huhu.

Okay, you must be confused now. You have no idea what the hell am I talking about? Did I ever mentioned that I'm using a new mobile phone rite now? Never? Okay, let me explain. I telah kehilangan handphone kesayangan yang paling canggih dalam dunia masa balik Malaysia raya yang lepas. Handphone yang ada torchlight kat kepala dia tu. I hung onto that phone since I first came to Australia in 2009. Semua manusia kat Aussie ni pakai pakai phone yang canggih canggih. Excluding me. I tetap setia dengan phone I yang "super power" dari zaman batu tu.

Handphone yang paling setia dengan I. Last sekali hilang jugak. Sedey..=(

For me, the main ideas of having a mobile phone are only for making or answering calls and text messaging. The rest, I don't give it a damn. Really. Sebab I memang tak reti gadjet gadjet yang canggih ni. Paling hebat yang I tau pun main game bodoh bodoh yang ada dalam phone canggih orang lain. Tu pun dah excited gila dah.hehehe. Wujud jugak manusia macam I dalam zaman serba teknologi ni kan. Memang ada, tapi dah kian pupus jenis manusia macam ni. What to do. I'm really not a technology freak.

Tapi kan, lepas balik dari Malaysia hari tu, I seriously need to get a new mobile phone to replace the one that lost. Punya la pening nak pilih pakai phone apa. Sebab yang jual kat kedai semua yang canggih canggih belaka. Kalau yang macam I punya dulu, diorang buat toys untuk anak anak kambing diorang je agaknya. Tu pun kalau kambing kambing tu sudi.hehehe. So, I pun pergi buat survey kat mall. Jalan dari satu kedai ke satu kedai. Tengok plan yang diorang offer and try to make careful comparison on top of all that. After a few session of careful searching, I ended up buying the latest hot babe in the whole mobile phone technology, the iPhone 4. Fuhhh!! First time seumur hidup pakai tepon canggih. Jakun, sungguh jakun sekali.hehehe..:p :p

My sleek and slender new toy. Keep falling in love with it from time to time.

After using it for almost 4 weeks, I started to enjoy the applications of the world's thinnest smartphone from Apple. It's not that hard though. You gotta learn on how to use it bit by bit. Explore every single thing inside it. Tapi sesungguhnya masih banyak benda lagi yang memang I tak tau lepas tutorial session dengan diorang ni semua tadi. Terima kasih ye kawan kawan yang sudi share ilmu tadi ye. Kena gelak pun nasib la. I took it as a matter of learning. Sekarang baru I tau banyak benda rupanya yang I boleh buat dengan adanya teknologi canggih dalam iPhone 4 ni. Yang paling best, I baru tau yang ada scientific calculator dalam benda alah ni.hahaha. Tak payah usung calculator ke mana mana sekarang ni. Suka! Suka!=))

p/s: That's all about my new passion now. Masa mula mula beli tu, I register satu application ni tau, iPhone 4 Case Program. For those yang beli sebelum 30th September, boleh register untuk dapat satu casing free. Baru je pagi tadi sampai. Yeayy!! Sekarang tepon ku ini dah ada 2 baju untuk salin salin..=))

A Bug Costs a Human Life

Dear diary,

Semalam lebih kurang pukul 7pagi, Kak Azean kejutkan I, dia cakap dia nak pergi Sydney. Emergency. Husband Kak Hajar dah kena transfer ke Prince of Wales Hospital (PoWH). Masa tu I terus duduk tegak. Terfikir condition Abg Najib mesti sangat kritikal sampai kena immediate transfer dari Wollongong Hospital (WH) naik helicopter pukul 2 pagi. Yes, his condition was really really bad that time, they need to transfer him immediately to Sydney for further action. Masa tu I cuma mampu doa yang takkan ada apa apa berita buruk yang akan menimpa family Kak Hajar.

Dalam pukul 10pagi, Kak Emy call I, ajak pergi visit Kak Hajar dekat Sydney petang tu jugak. Since I pun takde apa apa yang busy dekat office, I straight away said yes. Eventhough we knew there's nothing we could do, we just want to be there for her, support her, emotionally and spiritually. So, at around 4pm, we drove off to PoWH with prayers that Abg Najib is in stable condition. We met Kak Hajar at Malaysia Hall. Kak Hajar nampak sangat lemah. Tapi I tetap kagum dengan Kak Hajar, dia masih boleh bercakap dengan tenang, explaining the whole thing about his husband's condition.

Kak Hajar (tudung hitam) is explaining about what had happended.

Cerita sangat panjang. I'll just cut it short here. His right leg has been infected by bacterias from a tiny little bug. Yes, a bug. Siapa sangka serangga sekecik tu mampu buat seorang manusia terlantar di dalam ICU dalam keadaan sangat sangat kritikal dan hanya dapat bernafas dengan alat bantuan pernafasan. Bakteria tu dah menyebabkan banyak sel-sel otot kaki Abg Najib mati, sebab tu pembedahan demi pembedahan terpaksa dijalankan. Selagi ada sel otot yang mati, pembedahan akan terus dibuat untuk buang sel sel tu semua. Akibat daripada ni, mungkin kaki kanan Abg Najib tak dapat diselamatkan bagi mengelakkan keadaan jadi semakin buruk. Memang hancur hati Kak Hajar bila dengar berita tu, tapi dia tetap kena tabah.

Masa dekat WH, keadaan jadi sangat kritikal sebab bakteria dah mula nak merebak ke kaki sebelah kiri dan hati, tp Alhamdulillah, antiobiotik yang dimasukkan lepas transfer ke PoWH reacts positively, sebelum bakteria jahat tu terus merebak. Owh my, I can't even imagine what will happen if the action taken was a few hours late. Things might became worse. Thanks to Allah for saving his life. But poor Abg Najib, even a small insect like that could cost him a life.

Sebagai sahabat, kami semua hanya mampu mendoakan kesihatan Abg Najib dan harap Kak Hajar akan terus kuatkan semangat menghadapi semua ujian. Yang penting, Allah swt masih beri peluang Abg Najib untuk terus hidup bersama isteri dan anak anak. Setiap ujian yang melanda lepas ni, harap Kak Hajar dan keluarga akan terus tabah. Hanya Allah swt yang tahu kenapa keluarga Kak Hajar diuji dengan dugaan seberat ni. Yang pasti, setiap apa yang berlaku, tentu ada hikmah disebaliknya.

p/s: Masa kami ada kat Sydney teman Kak Hajar, student di Wollongong pulak dah uruskan solat hajat dan bacaan yasin mendoakan kesihatan Abg Najib kembali stabil. Di sini saya nampak betapa pentingnya hidup bermasyarakat terutama sekali bila kita berada di perantauan. Sahabat sahabat merupakan ahli keluarga terdekat. Syukur.

The last memory

Hye!!

I'm very very happy as everything is over now. MAS Open House & Annual General Meeting was held perfectly as planned. Alhamdulillah. I'm no longer MAS_UOW comittee member. Service dah bertukar tangan. The new comittee is now formed. I know the new organisation is gonna be better having Fendy as the new President. Good luck to all of you! To me, I still think my team mates are the best and Kak Emy is the greatest president, ever!!

My little family. From left: Baem, Rauf, me, Ilyas, Kak Emy, Jiwan, Mad.

Dah berapa hari ni memang I busy gila. We started from the last two weeks. But the climax was 4 days before the event. Mula dari hari Jumaat sampai Isnin, setiap hari I keluar rumah pagi pagi, balik tengah tengah malam. Memang penat! But it was fun doing it. Seeing all your plan went on very well made me feel really glad being part of this family. I feel like the hard works were all paid off.

Untuk final event ni, I ditugaskan untuk handle bahagian pendaftaran dan hadiah. I never thought that handling things like this would be soo complicated. Ingatkan bunyi hadiah hadiah ni macam best je. Rupa rupanya susah nak mampus. With a very tight budget, I have to make sure that the amount could cover things like door gifts, goodies bags, lucky draw, kids performance, and games. Tu tak termasuk bab membungkus hadiah lagi tu. Lepas dah bungkus, kena tagging pulak. Memang separuh gila dibuatnya. Tapi bila tengok hadiah yang melambak lambak yang dah siap balut memenuhi ruang tamu rumah Kak Emy, rasa happy pulak. Semua tu untuk ahli MAS. Harap semua orang gembira dan puas hati. Hadiah yang kitorang sediakan dari sekecik kecik cawan comel sampai la sebesar besar set Corelle.best kan!hehehe..=))

When it comes to the date of event, I became super busy that day. Rasa macam tak cukup kaki tangan semua. Mula mula sampai hall, tolong Jiwan setup decorations and everything. Mujurla la ada ramai yang tolong. Semua ringan tulang. Terima kasih semua! When the guests started to arrive, I'm the person in charge, making sure everybody get their event planner, lucky draw number, door gift ang goodies bag. Kepada semua, saya mintak maaf kalau ada yang terkurang ke apa ke, kalau terlebih tu takpe, dihalalkan.hehehe..

Me and my little dayangs when the registration counter closed.

Lepas dah setel pasal registration, tugas I bertukar dekat meja hadiah pulak. Memang pening gila masa ni. When it comes to handling a huge amount of prezzies, it was really really confusing. Believe me! Tak percaya cuba la, baru tau susah ke tidak. Sorry sangat kot2 kalau ada yang tersalah bagi hadiah tu ye. Kepada yang dapat grand prizes, tahniah!! Anda semua memang bertuah!! Kepada yang tak dapat, sila cuba lagi di tahun hadapan..=))

Meja hadiah. Atas meja, bawah meja semua penuh.

Okay, kalau nak cerita semua, tiga hari tiga malam pun tak habis. I'll show you pictures with me inside . All pictures were taken from Hovis's FB and some from my personal camera. I tak dapat ambik gambar sendiri banyak banyak sebab terlampau busy. Maklumla host.hehehe..:p

Me and Kak Suzana, my gym partner. Look at her figure, nobody can tell that she's a mother to a beautiful girl. Envy you la Kak Su.

Me and my house mate, Kak Ean, another gym partner. And Aunty Noon. Granma vogue!!=))

Band performance.

The crowds.

Me and Jiwan. Terduduk kepenatan selepas tamat event. Tapi muka tetap ceria. Well, you know me..=))

It's not the certificate that matters, but the memories that count.

p/s: Special thanks to Kak Emy dan Jiwan yang sangat sangat membantu dalam urusan hadiah dan pendaftaran. Kepada semua bekas ajk, thanks for having me around.. I love one quote that Kak Emy put in our corporate video, don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened. ~Theodor Seuss Geisel.

Cintamu

Hello! Hello!

It's October now, welcoming the midspring of Australia. The flowers are in bloom, the weather is suppose to be warm, but not in these very few days. The wind is very very chilling, just like the one we had during winter. Urghh, I sungguh tak suka sejuk. Baju tebal tebal. Berat! Well, the month of October begins with a public holiday, Labor Day, on the first Monday of the month. Ensuring a long weekend early in October. Yayy!! Yang ni I suka.. Senyum sampai telinga..=))

However, there is another thing which I really really don't like. The first Sunday of October will be the starts of Australian daylight saving time, also known as Australian summer time. It is the practice of advancing clocks one hour during the warmer months when the day is longer than the night. It will only ends on the first Sunday of April the following year. Omg, daylight saving for another 6 months is a real big difficulty for me. Sighs~

Kenapa I tak suka daylight saving time? Sebab masa tu perbezaan masa antara Malaysia dan Australia akan jadi 3 jam. Susah la I nak skype nanti. Orang kat Malaysia baru sibuk sibuk nak dinner la ape la, I kat sini pulak dah nak kena membuta.. Aduhh, sungguh tak best! But what to do. Survive je la nanti ye. I experienced it last year and it happended to be so hard for me to adjust my time at the beginning. But after a while, I'm used to it. Hey, banyak pulak komplen tau. Yang tu suka, yang ni tak suka. Dah nama pun duduk negara orang, belajar la sesuaikan diri. Sudah, jangan banyak bunyik!

Actually, tujuan I menulis hari ni sebab nak share satu lagu. Tapi tiba tiba banyak pulak benda nak mengomel. So, let us get back to the main point. I just can't stop listening to this song over and over again for the whole day. Kalau la itunes ni boleh bercakap, mesti dah lama dia suruh stop. Bosan dok main lagu yang sama je. But who cares. It's my playlist. Suka hati I la.hehehe..:p

p/s: Owh, I'm so inlove with this song. Tenang. Tak sakit telinga. Lirik pun best. And now I want to dedicate this song to my beloved one.. This song means a lot to me..=))

Sayonara Kak Azreen

Hey there!!

I'm back!! I just finished preparing goodies bags for MAS's coming event, Open House and AGM 2010. However, the treats are only for kids. Too bad rite. Oh, sungguh bahagia kan jadi kanak kanak. Main loncat loncat sini sana, then ada je rewards yang diorang dapat nanti. But nothing much in there. Cikedis je yang mampu kasi. Kalau mintak Happy Meal sorang satu set tu memang takde la ye.hehe.. Tapi orang dewasa pun jangan risau. If you're lucky, you're not going back empty handed..=))

Btw, petang tadi pegi makan makan rumah Kak Ila & Fairus. Makan nasik kerabu. Sangat sedap okay! I dengan tak malunya siap mintak izin tambah lagi. Hishhh. Buat malu je anak dara makan banyak banyak umah orang. It was not only that, siap dapat tapau lagi tau. What to do. Orang memberi, kita kena menerima la dengan senyuman lebar.hehe.. But the nasik kerabu is so yummy! Nobody can deny that. Thanks Kak Ila and Kak Faie for being such a warm organizer hehehe..:p

Actually, we celebrated one of our friend who's going to leave Wollongong for goods today, Kak Azreen and family. Owh, Gong will definitely gonna lose one of it's kindest person over here. Babies are gonna miss their second mother called Mama Azreen. All Malaysian in Wollongong absolutely are going to miss their warmest friend. And MAS will certainly gonna lose one of its main volunteer for any event. When it comes to moment like this, saying good bye is always the hardest words to confess, isn't it? Hmmm..=(

Last moment with Kak Azreen

If you noticed something, tiap tiap kali ada aktiviti MAS, nama Kak Azreen tak penah miss dari menyumbangkan something dekat kelab. She never say no whenever we asked for her help. Kalau tak banyak, sikit pun mesti Kak Azreen akan buat jugak. Siapa yang tak penah rasa kuih bakar Kak Azreen memang rugi la. She's the sifu! Nobody can beat the taste her kuih bakar. Bukan bodek tau, bukan! Tapi memang sedap sangat..=))

Kuih bakar. We'll miss this so much!

One more thing, she's the mama to almost all babies in Wollongong (Malaysian babies la).hehe. Hampir semua budak yang pernah duduk di bawah penjagaan Kak Azreen mesti sangat sayang dengan dia. Tadi tengok Damia dengan Adam melekat dekat Kak Azreen rasa sayu pulak. They are too small to understand that their mama is going to leave them soon. It's okay babies, nanti bila semua dah balik mesia boleh pegi melawat mama anda ye.. Kalau buat buat lupa nanti cubit pipi baru tau!hehe.. Hey, suka hati je nak cubit anak orang..:p

To Kak Azreen and family, good luck for your new life back in Malaysia. Kalau ada rezeki insyaAllah boleh jumpa lagi. Kalau ade anak anak akak yang sambung belajar kat USM nanti boleh cari Mira ye.hehehe. I'm gonna miss this family. Especially Alisha@Dora yang kiut miut tu.. Sayonara~~

MAS Open House and AGM 2009

My final photo with this sweet little girl. Alisha@Dora. Dia sangat la susah nak senyum okay.. Takpe, cute jugak..-))

Precious moment ever!! Alisha senyum..=))

p/s: Being with Malaysian friends really make you feel like home. Especially if you're being alone abroad. I rasa sangat bersyukur sebab ada kakak kakak yang baik hati di sekeliling I..=))

PhD rollercoaster rides

Assalamualaikum Encik Diari,

I am so sleepy today. Nak kata berjaga malam tu tidak la pulak. In fact, I had my sleep with the very best quality last night. Apa tidaknya, pukul 10 malam I makan sepinggan BESAR nasik goreng. Then I masuk tido 3jam selepas melantak. Konon kononnya kasi chance nasik goreng tu dihadamkan.hehehe. Hello miss, kalau dah nama pun makan tengah malam, tak payah la nak tunggu tunggu makanan proses la ape la, tido aje la ye. It won't give any harm to you, unless if you're lucky, go check your weight in the next morning, a few kilos will be deposited right into your fat account.hehehe..:p

I have a habit of weighing myself the first thing in the morning. Supaya saya boleh tau hari tu boleh jadi monster atau tak.hehe. Mind you, yang atas tu bukan berat saya okay!:p

Btw, I'm suppose to meet Tim this morning. I went looking for him at his office, unfortunately he was not there. He has a whole day meeting today. His personal assistant, Joell told me that he will be available for a couple of minutes between 3.30-4pm but he won't be there for so long, try come and get him again within that time. Oh no! Should I wait until next week or go back and see him later in the day? Hmmph.. Hang on a sec, I learnt something from the workshop I attended on Wednesday, if things are not working out, do something about it. Don't just think it will get better with time or that you can struggle through on your own. No, never! So Amirah, go and get help from your spv immediately okay!!

I still remember the time when I was in my PhD induction, they told me about what paperworks to complete, the rules and regulations, where the library is, and even where the toilets are. But they didn't tell me about the emotional side of being a research student. That is why I love to spend my time talking to other PhD students from any other courses, because they could tell me their stories and share their own personal rollercoaster rides while doing their research. Most of them experiencing the challenge of going ups, downs, twists and turns of their rides. Hmm, sounds fun huh? You can't tell until you are on your own journey. Ha, siapa nak join saya naik rollercoaster? Jom! Jom!=))

Me and my extreme rollercoaster ride. Ha, yang ni sapa nak ikut??:p

p/s: Memang best bila dengar orang kongsi cerita pasal pengalaman buat research masing masing. But it feels even better to listen to stories about students completing their PhDs. Rasa seperti mahu tamat belajar sekarang jugak tau!=))

Cermin mata hitam untuk bapak

Dear diary,

This is a real delayed entry. I should have informed you about this since ten days ago, but because of the time constraint, I only have chance to do so now. Okay, this entry is specially dedicated to my beloved father, Haji Azmi Mansor. I mentioned that he celebrated his 50th birthday on the 1st Syawal remember? So, sekarang ni I nak cerita sikit lah pasal surprised birthday party yang kitorang buat malam raya tu. Check it out!=))

Happy turning 50 bapak!!=))

Macam biasa, tiap tiap kali malam raya kami sekeluarga memang akan balik rumah tok. Kebetulan malam raya tu jugak la bapak akan menyambut hari lahir yang ke-50. Wow!! My father is now an official 5 series club members. Congratulation bapak!! A sign that you are gonna drive a BMW 5series real soon. Aminnn. hehe.. Okay, bila sampai rumah tok tu kami semua buat macam takdak apa. Semua dah agak, bapak memang sangatlah tak ambik tau pasal date date ni. Sila jangan kecik hati, tapi bapak memang jarang sangat ingat birthdays. Kalau tanya tarikh lahir memang ingat. Apparently, when it comes to that particular date, he simply forget it, unless somebody keep reminding him about it.hehe. Hmm, bukan memang semua lelaki camtu ke? No offense..=))

Tepat pukul 12 tengah malam, abang and Wan masuk bawak birthday cake, sambil nyanyi ramai ramai. As expected, he was surprised. Tak sangka agaknya kami akan celebrate malam tu. But overall, we could see how happy he was that night. Having his children around him on his birthday is the most meaningful part for him I suppose. By the way, my second younger sister, Hamizah also celebrated her 16th birthday a day before bapak, so that night, there were actually two surprised birthday cakes for both bapak and Ijah..=))

Okay, now comes the happiest part, birthday presents!! Petang tu I, abang dengan mak pergi beli birthday present untuk bapak. At first, it was really hard to find anything that suits bapak's interests and needs. And we finally made our mind up to by him a pair of new sunglasses. I knew it straight from the start that he's gonna love the gift. Fyi, my father is a loyal RayBan user, so we went out looking for a RayBan for him. Kitorang pegi kedai cermin mata yang bapak dah biasa tengok tengok RayBan yang dia suka. Salesgirl tu cakap ada 2 pasang yang cantik yang bapak dah lama dok tengok . Alamak, macam mana nak pilih ni. dua-dua smart and sesuai untuk bapak. In the end, abang told us to grab both sunglasses. Woww!! Maknanya bapak akan dapat bukan satu, tapi dua cermin mata hitam yang baru sebagai hadiah hari jadi. Suka suka!!

The moment bapak received his presents, we could see his eyes sparkling. He totally loves the prezzies. Kalau boleh, nak pakai cermin mata hitam tiap tiap masa. Siap boleh matching kan dengan baju lagi sekarang ni tau. Pegi market pakai, pegi jalan jalan raya haruslah pakai kan, tapi yang paling best masa tumbuk sambal belacan pun bapak pakai jugak. hahaha. Yang ni paling lawak. Takut sambal masuk mata katanya. Selama ni dah berpuluh tahun memasak, bapak tak penah complaint pun pedih mata sebab tumbuk sambal, tapi sejak sejak ada cermin mata hitam baru, takut pulak mata pedih, dan dan kena pakai cermin mata hitam kat dapur. Lepas tu bila nampak macam gelap, bapak suruh mak bukak lampu siang siang hari kat dapur. Mana la mak tak bising.hehehe. Bapak, bapak.. Now we know how much you appreciate the gifts from us..=))

Potong kek sambil pakai cermin mata hitam baru

Segak bergaya memandu dengan cermin mata hitam baru

Bersalam salaman di pagi raya dengan cermin mata hitam baru

Makan Nasi Ayam Warisan di Kota Damansara dengan cermin mata hitam baru

Beraya di rumah tok dengan cermin mata hitam baru

p/s: Amacam?? Nampak tak macam mana bapak sangat sayang hadiah dari anak anak beliau. Tapi saya yakin, it's not only about the gifts, but the beautiful thoughts that matter to him. I love it when he said, "Anak anak adalah harta bapak yang paling bernilai". It somehow touches deeply in my heart. We all love you bapak. Banyak lagi kejayaan kami semua yang kami nak bapak saksikan. InsyaAllah doa dari anak anak bapak takkan putus di dunia dan di akhirat. Aminnn..=))

International Luncheon

Yuhuuuu!!!

I just had my dinner with 4 pieces of pikelets and two slices of Spanish omeletts. Hmm, they sounded not like the ordinary foods that I normally take for dinner rite. But please, don't ask me what a pikelet is. I have no idea. It looks like a pancake but the taste is slightly different especially the part when you dip it into thicked cream, the taste is just soo wonderful. Omg, drooling. Bila teringat je meleleh balik air liur ni. Sedap gila!!huhu.

You must be wondering apehal la minah ni makan makanan pelik pelik malam ni kan. Bukan lupa diri tau, bukan! Saya masih melayu tulen yang suka makan kicap kipas udang dengan ikan goreng. Sanggup bawak dalam luggage semata mata nak pastikan lauk feveret takkan ketinggalan.hehehe. Tadi kan I bagitau ada international lunch kat office. Wah, sangatlah meriah dengan makanan dari macam macam negara. Suka sangat!! Ada dari Indonesia, Libya, Thailand, Mexico, Australia, China, Spain, and a few others.

Group photo. Half of the crowd. Okay, memang I tak termasuk dalam ketinggian orang Asia yang normal rupanya. It's proven now.huhu.

Endah brought Indonesian special spring rolls while another Indonesian girl with her homemade gado-gado. A group of Thai girls with their famous Thai foods. Padthai, green curry, stir-fry prawn with cashew nuts, and Thai fried rice. Bothaina made her own cous-cous with lamb and white peas gravy. Diane cooked her own Thai style chicken curry. Somebody brought two big size of Spanish omeletts. Sara came with a big plate of pikelets, which came together with strawberry jam and thicked cream. These are among the foods that I ate just now. Ada lagi beberapa makanan yang I tak sempat nak makan pun sebab terlampau kenyang. Me?? Disebabkan I baru sampai balik and tak sempat nak masak memasak ni, I bawak kuih raya je. Malaysian homemade cookies. Ada tart nenas, biskut kacang hijau, dengan mazola. Okay la tu kan, they somehow representing traditional Malaysian delicacies rite..=))

Yang paling hujung ni la pikelets yang sangat sedap tu.

p/s: Lepas dah rasa makanan makanan dari negara lain, tekak ni tetap cakap makanan Malaysia jugak yang paling sedap in the world.hehe..kalau la dapat kasi diorang makan sambal belacan, budu, cencalok, atau tempoyak, mau seminggu jugak mat salleh ni semua meroyan.hehehe. gila kejam!!

Frame of mind

Dear diary,

I'm now writing from my PC at the office. Oh my, everything seems to be so awkward. My workspace is very empty (because I kept everything in my locker before I went back). The trees outside my window are now greener (u know there was no single leaves left during winter). And guess what made things worst? I even forgot what is my login password to get access to my PC. Tekan tekan tapi fail. Tekan lagi tapi fail lagi. Sampai kena check balik dalam my record book. Hahaha.This one is so funny. Hey Amirah, awak tu baru cuti 2 minggu. Kalau 2 bulan, agaknya jalan nak ke office pun lupa kot. Sorry2.. Tapi betol2 tak ingat..:p

People asked me how was my holiday in Malaysia. My answer is, "It wasn't good. But, it was AMAZING". I bet everybody who had chance of going back home couldn't agree more. The only thing is, when my working momentum is now at the lowest energy, I really have to work harder so that my studies and my personal life are at equilibrium. I noticed the competing influences are not balance now. Saya perlu bekerja lebih keras supaya research saya tidak akan ketinggalan. Janji dengan diri sendiri tau!!=))

Big family. Ain't we look cheerful? This is why I said my holiday was amazing.

There are a lot of things need to be done in my priority list now. Kejap lagi ada international lunch untuk PhD student School of Maths. I didn't bring much. Only homemade cookies from Malaysia. Kita cakap kuih raya la.hehe. Lepas tu nanti ada meeting dengan Kak Emy pasal MAS Annual General Meeting. Wah, bunyi macam hebat je. Yes it is! One of the biggest event for the Malaysian society here in Wollonggong. So, I need to put my very best effort in making sure that the event will be a huge success. Rabu pulak ada workshop yang sangat lah penting. THE 7 SECRETS OF A HIGHLY SUCCESSFULL PHD STUDENT. I've been to this workshop last year. And still, I have no doubt of attending it again this year..=))

Memandangkan hari Isnin dan Rabu jadual I dah penuh, tinggal hari Selasa dan Khamis je untuk I study sikit sebelum meeting dengan supervisor hari Jumaat. Alamak, meeting!! Cepat, cepat!! Please do something so that you won't feel bad of not doing anything within these two weeks. Now look at yourself Amirah. Please focus in your studies, complete your research, get your doctorate, go back and serve your country. Bersemangat sungguh ayat tu kan. Bagus bagus.hehehe..

Ayahanda dan bonda. From them the inspiration comes.

p/s: Bila tengok muka mak bapak, terus bersemangat nak belajar. Tapi bila ternampak je katil yang empuk, comforter yang gebu, dan dan mengantuk tu datang. Aduhhh, problem betol la..:p