New Blog

A friend of mine started a blog about traveling and invited me as a contributor. You may call it a TRAVELog. But it's not just another Travelog. ;P

So, check it out here www.wandergeek.wordpress.com

The Trip...

So here I am, back in spore.. feel totally great, heavier and braver than ever.. =P

Surabaya was surprising.. I mean, I was really surprised by the extraordinarily dry and hot weather.. also surprised by the food which was excellent.. the trip was pretty much like my nowadays infrequent visit to hometown.. everything was so well-provided, from food to transportation to accommodation..

Speaking of being braver.. I survived staying alone in a pretty big-ass room for more than 10 nights and I am very proud of that..=P when the receptionist said “ur room is a business room, number blah3.. “ I was like “what?!? I’m gonna be alone in the room so I prefer a junior room, the standard one.. can u please exchange that for me ?” receptionist: “sorry, no, we ran out of junior room..”

I was very disappointed and scared.. but u know, it's kinda true actually when ppl say that the thought is always scarier than the reality? turned out, it wasn’t that bad afterall.. my imagination did run wild a couple of times at night but since I had been avoiding watching horror movies and listening to ghost stories… I was doing just fine in the end.. =P

We made visits to places like House of Sampoerna and the active volcano Mount Bromo; watched sunrise, climbed up to see the crater and me rode a horse (ehem).. bfore I went there, one of my colleagues warned me that it’s very cold up there, around 5 degrees C.. I didn’t totally believe that inside my heart (who knew there was such a cold place in Indonesia?) so I bravely went there with a thin scarf ard my neck and lecture-theatre-jacket, if u know what I mean.. Jan, from Bangkok did it even more bravely, by wearing only a t-shirt covered with a shirt.. and there we were, shaking like nobody’s business.. I could assure u it was definitely below 10 deg C… damn..

The Mud Volcano.. don't get the smiles in the pic wrong, we truly feel sorry about it..

Bromo

From Far..

What’s new is I’ve got my allergy back again.. since my colleague in SUB, Ida, brought us to drink in Shangri-La, right before heading to Bromo, very late at night.. I totally sensed I was so gonna get my allergy back.. we had very cold alcoholic beverages and since u bond with others easier under alcohol, ida and I drank, talked and laughed like.. a lot.. and we had to talk n laugh very loudly to keep up with the live band.. my throat was totally drained away.. and I cough for the next 1000 years.. damn..

many thanks to Ida for bringing us around!

Oops, didn't say a word about work.. work was good anyway.. Ciao... =P

Oktoberfest 2008...

There was a celebration of company’s Oktoberfest at Swiss Club last weekend.. and just like the way I expected it to be, there were lots of german foods (sausages, pork knuckles, roasted ox, breads, potatoes, u name it!), lots and lots of beers, coupled with bavarian-style live music and performances.. the tent could probably accommodate more than 5,000 people, there were other german companies who came to celebrate too like lufthansa and DHL.. down there in munich, the typical oktoberfest-tent (Hacker-Festzelt as they call it) could actually accommodate a lot more.. around 6 millions of people attending it in fact, definitely much more happening I reckon.. Here are some pictures we took...

The day before we're all like wondering what to wear and finally decided on "rainbow color" theme.. in the end apparently, boss' wife made the matching t-shirts for us.. these are some of us..

There were plenty of foods, guess the roasted ox hanging there explains all.. =P

And lots lots of beers!

Actually i'm not very sure the purpose of blowing this thing, some companies sent representatives and it seemed like the louder ones being cheered at while the soft ones got a boo, that's all..

The bosses and some of us

This is pretty much how the tent looks like.. and when we saw how big the crowd was, we're like nodding and "oh yea, that's what the matching t-shirts are for.."

Almost every 20 mins, the stage performers invited everybody to sing a song, which I’m not sure what it’s called (I was da-da-da-ing) made some cheers, gave toasts and drank together.. it’s probably to make the celebration more happening bcos people tend to get wild over the food.. or I guess, every time they made the cheers and toast thing, more than 300 litres of beer sold! Who knows? =P but anyway, i kinda enjoyed the whole thing, bcos I didn’t get to celebrate Oktoberfest when i was there but heard abt it from my german friends..

I'll be on my very first work-trip in a few days time till the end of october, which pretty much excited me but i guess i'm chickened out over staying alone in a hotel room... i know! don't laugh.. so, till then peeps, take care...

Ciao!

One thing they have in common..

So, after living in a working life for a short period of time, here's that one thing I've discovered (warning! it doesn't have anything do with the work or the work life itself).. speaking of people who work and take public transportation to work every morning.. there's one big thing most of them share in common, and that is.......... they're so afraid of not getting a seat to rest their lazy butts on their way to work..

now, if u feel offended bcos every morning apparently, u pretty much do the same thing.. here's an advice u'd probably like to hear.. it is okay not getting a seat in the bus/train!! seriously, u'd be sitting the whole day from 9 to 5 anyway.. and the good thing abt not being so irritating is that, u can eventually have a peace of mind for not worrying about not getting a seat later in the bus/train once u wake up..

but for those who are very good at pretending to be asleep once u get the seat so that u're not obliged to give ur seat to those with special needs! whoever u are, good luck, what goes around comes around..

see, this is one example why i couldn't get what some ppl are thinking sometimes..

Trip to Hong Kong...

Disneyland was so much fun it reminded me of Legoland in denmark.. foods on the street somehow tasted way better than the restaurants’ (or maybe it’s the fun that counted).. exactly the same time last year, i promised not to travel in hot hot summer yet i did it again..

People say hong kong is a place to shop, and yes they’re right, if u think they’re wrong, u’re just on the wrong spot so keep walking keep looking.. i promise u pretty much found any designer brands u couldn’t even see in Singapore..

Overall, the trip was like a breath of fresh air.. =P

Look at the crowd! the night's always young in Hong Kong

The chaos

"Wellcome" to Hong Kong

The train to Disneyland!!

When the Parade was about to start...

Mickey & Minnie, Goofy

The Little Mermaid

World's tallest outdoor seated Buddha statue, Tian Tan Buddha or the Big Buddha

Ciao... =P

Truth is...

I actually have many things to write because a lot have been going on (yea right...).. like the graduation and trips and all that..but for now, let me just write this instead..

This is what i’ve learned about people's behaviour.. and i know a thing, or even two or three things about it.. some people swing their arms so much and so hard while walking, it hurts others.. i understand, we need to swing our hands for biomechanical efficiency whatsoever.. i know left leg forward right arm backward and that’s how the torque from body and legs counter each other.. but seriously, here are the blatant truths u probably need to know, u take much more space when the arms are swung that hard and that much, u even hit people sometimes and when u walk like that, u totally lose ur cool..

When driving, do not continually step on the brake.. the brake is not there for u to tone ur muscles.. and not there to make me throw up my lunch.. seriously, if u like to stop that often, take the bus.. and if u like to speed up yet aren’t sure how to stop at the right time, don’t even start driving.. don’t step on the brake and change ur mind, and then step on it again, and change ur mind.. fiuhhh.. like ellen said, “nobody said they’re bad drivers – especially the bad drivers”

Not talking is quiet but whispering is not.. covering ur mouth with a menu draws even more attention just like whispering does.. it forces us to pay attention because whatever is being said has gotta be interesting and scandalous..

I’ll write more when i see more.. ciao.. =P

The Nature...

Still, by all means, the most beautiful..

The "Experience Machine"...

"Suppose there were a machine that would give you any experience you desire. Super duper neuropsychologists could stimulate your brain so that you would think and feel you were writing a great novel, or making a friend, or reading an interesting book. All the time, you would be floating in a tank, with electrodes attached to your brain. Should you plug into this machine for life, preprogramming your life experiences? If you are worried about missing out on desirable experiences, we can suppose that businesses and enterprises have researched thoroughly, the lives of many others. You can pick and choose from their large library or smorgasbord of such experiences, selecting your life's experiences for, say, the next two years. Of course while in the tank you won't know that you are in there; you'll think that it's all actually happening. Others can also plug in to have experiences they want, so there's no need to stay unplugged to serve them."

(Robert Nozick, in J. Glover, ed., Utilitarianism and Its Critics, p.58)

The lecturer's question was, "Do you hook up?"

I straightaway went "No, crazy if I would like to.."(actually it's even a little crazy already that I typed what's in my lecture notes in this blog!) but here's another thought.. isn't it all just about human thoughts? it's like... most of the time, we even choose to see only what we love to see.. and we don't see what we don't feel like seeing even if it's as big as an elephant right in front of our very eyes.. do we not do that sometimes??

and i'm just bored... ciao =P

On bad days...

I twist and turn on my bed, instead of sleeping tightly, some things come across and scare the hell out of me.. these 3 months have been the fastest so far, with a fine repetition each and every single day and night, I almost give up..

Occasionally too I type for hours, I delete, I type again.. the words on screen seem so real yet incorrect.. the words from my mouth don’t sound any better.. try to predict sometimes, I see nothing.. i think I’m in a very serious situation, like on the brink of a big failure yet I don’t even see why I would fail myself to that extent..

I soundly wish to have another version of life to move into and disappear, start all over where nobody doesn’t even know or judge me.. I just soundly wish there’d be no time when I think I have been living in a wrong life..

My 22nd...

I am very grateful for my 22^nd..

For I have been living a glowing life, for I always have good and supportive people around me, for I have always been given blesses and gifts and for my birthday always be remembered.. =)

Birthday, to me, is not just like another day.. it is always special in its way.. like, I get to know that I’m always remembered, even though it’s just once a year thing.. I get calls, smses, cards, emails etc wishing me a happy day.. I get to have the reason to gather and have a full of laugh dinner with the people that I love.. I even get wonderful presents.. It’s really not just another day..

I browsed through my 21^st which I spent in denmark.. I couldn’t help but smile when I reminisced, i thought I would end up spending my birthday alone at that time cos nobody was supposed to know, yet some people just knew and celebrated for me.. simple yet unforgettable..

This year, it’s as special, I spent my early birthday dinner at rendezvous hotel (the padang food was very nice!) with my brother, cousin, and some friends.. and I got this Birthday “Surprise” from trio “Lydia Lysia Evan” at night… every year somehow I always knew about the surprises yet I’m still as happy to get the surprise.. hmm.. and on the day itself, I got a small celebration at my beloved engineering faculty (yes, I have classes on my birthday) from some friends.. and the night of my birthday, I have a Korean dinner with chengto.. Oh and thanks for alllll the people who remembered...

Pictures:

@ Rendezvous Restaurant...

The "birthday surprise" @ PGP... with super cute CUP-CAKES!

Lydia Lysia Diah (it rhymes!) + Evan...

@ Techno Edge Engineering Faculty

Togi, our favourite Korean Restaurant

I realized that I did give credits to the people who gave me gifts on my 21st.. i would do the same thing this time.. =P.. as usual, my bag supplier (a.k.a BROTHER) got me a Fendi Baguette which i've been wanting lately.. chengto got me a rose gold plating watch which, again, i've been wanting lately.. my belt supplier, cousin JK, this year made a difference by giving me a Coach pouch, which i've been liking lately as well (now, i'm feeling bad) and the Zara voucher and loccitane set were from fenny and pegrina.. nice of them, i've got to shop soon then.. =P

Guolong gave me a bear, which is now in Lydia's room (long story) so i can't take the picture.. hmm.. and the 501 must visit destination book was from Sri Dj.. when i unwrapped it, i straightaway went to European& Middle East section.. I was like "argh, i should have gone here.. or... there.. or there.. there.. there!" or better one "yes, luckily, i went there.. apparently it's one of the 501 must-visit places"..

And btw.. have i mentioned that i have these two bitches in my life? both with initial S (Sri who forgot to remove price tag on my 21st gift n Suai who didnt even remember my 21st)? well, basically today i got this call from PGP management saying that there's a package for me.. i went there and right away recognized those fat handwriting, right away knew it's something slutty too inside.. (La Senza ppl! and it's from those two..i can even imagine their evil smiling now) opened it, turned out, the thing was even sluttier than i thought.. with a Merry Christmas card, how nice people!! a MERRY CHRISTMAS card! (see what u get when u know ur friends for a long time) with a small fat handwriting at the side saying "this is unavoidable, we forgot to buy u a birthday card.."

and now I want to depressingly say something out loud ......
" I am OLDDDD!!!"

Ciao

One evening in Paris...

Andreas, Sarah and I were walking around Quartier Latin, looking for a nice place to sit and drink.. We found this place called Beamish, they even had outdoor seats and beer promotion.. perfect it was.. we sat, ordered some drink and started to chat.. Andreas started to talk about how he honestly didn’t think he would still be in touch with any of us because it simply just couldn’t be possible, very honest yet can’t be more correct, I agreed with him.. sarah talked about how much she’d really love to stay in france because she spoke the language fluently after being there for one year.. and there I was, talking about how afraid I was to go back to reality..

It was predictable, it was foreseen yet I have and still enjoy the fantasy sometimes..

Today's dinner simply gave me back the feel.. with a bunch of nice people, complete home-cooked meal, wine and jazz.. fantasy, eventually, is heartbreaking..

Oh btw, A Very Happy birthday to Marlinnn!! Ciao.. =P