Bandung: Site Visits in Botanical Garden & Tea Plantation

I was in Bandung from 3-9 November for an agrotourism workshop, which had about 20 participants from various countries such as Lao, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Philippines, India, Taiwan and of course the host, Indonesia. After a gruelling 3 days workshop filled with presentations, we were ready to say goodbye to Bandung and go to agrotourism site visit namely to the Archipelago Botanical Garden in Cipanas and the Gunung Mas tea plantation in Bogor. It took about two hours from Bandung to reach Cipanas using the hilly road, and witness one motorcycle accident on the way, which thank God was not a fatal one. We arrived first at the botanical garden and had about two hours to walk around. There were different types of garden such as the French garden and American garden that was cultivated as part of the landscape.

Gunung Mas Tea Plantation

Tea plantation in Gunung Mas in Bogor

Tea pickers

The participants in factory garb - minah kilang huahua

Watching the workers airing the tea leaves

The group in front of the tea factory

The Archipelago Botanical Garden in Cipanas

a peacock with seasonal flowers in bloom for its tail

French garden

View from top of entrance

Agnes from Philippines and Hong from Vietnam with me in front of the garden's entrance

Mediterranean Garden: Love the cactus!

"Clown" flower from Vietnam

Didn't have time to go thru the maze, so just took a picture of it from the observation deck

Hydrangea in bloom

My mum loves this flower, she said it's called bunga Siti Zubaidah

The participants on our last nite out in Bandung, only managed to go to one factory outlet.
But we did went to the Bandung Electronic Mall (BEM), which is just like Low Yat plaza, really. We came back by angkutan kota or van sapu which cost about Rp5000 or RM1.75 per pax. By taxi, it could've easily cost about Rp50,000 for night fare (without meter).

Indonesia: Culture, Signboards and Sights,

In Indonesia, the time difference with Peninsular Malaysia was about one hour. However, their sunrise is very early, which is at 5am and sunset is at 6pm. Therefore, 8am here feels like 10am already. It rained almost every afternoon when we were in Bandung. Couldn't do much shopping at the factory outlets.

Some of the things which really left an impression on me was how similar but yet different the culture and language of both countries. Its funny that Malaysia and Indonesia have the same language, but have different meanings, for example: bed in Indonesia is called ranjang but in Malaysia it's called katil. Katil in Indonesia means the bed in which you carry the dead (spooky!).

Also, some words which have the exact meaning in three different countries: goat is called "kambing" in Malaysia, Indonesia and also the Phillipines. "Ulam" means dish that accompanies rice in Tagalog. "Bahsa" means language to Sri Lankans and Malaysia, but it means "read" in Tagalog. Filipinos calls chicken "manug", whereas Sarawakian calls chicken "manuk". So many Tagalog words that have the same meaning in Malay: kanan, putih, lelaki. This trip has been a wonderful experience of language and culture with all the different countries, which I've never really experienced in previous job assignments. To experience it to such an extent that I feel we are bonding beautifully as a group of participants to the workshop.

Some of the pics i took on sights around Bandung and some signboards which amuses me.

Roadstall was up and running by 7.30am in Bandung

Bandung road in the morning

Traffic in the morning in Bandung

Cigarette ad

Road stall in Bogor selling avocados, sweet yams and the white things hanging are called singkong or cassava - tastes like tapioca. Reminds me of that song really..."aku suka keju, kau suka singkong..."

Bogor area

School kids by the roadside - view from bus

A lot of roadstalls like this selling food like baso, satay padang.

I've tried mie ayam pedas and mie baso...but haven't tried mie babat - or perut

Very catchy advertisement

and tada! My favourite advertisement - because of the bold colours and bold words :)

Words are everything in Indonesia. Next time you're there, open your eyes to the advertisements. It can be hillarious but at the same time very catchy and truthful. No beating round the bush that you won't get the meaning. Nothing lost in translation.

Updates for November

Hi cyber friends...I'm back!!! Some updates on what happened to me during the hiatus:

1. Attending a course in Indonesia
Was attending an agrotourism course in Bandung and Jakarta from 3 - 9 November 2008. I have been to both Jakarta and Bandung, but it's nice to revisit the places again. One important thing is that, I need to go SHOPPING! but couldn't do it in Bandung coz the workshop ended at 5.30pm and it rained in the evening, so what a bummer...but managed to do some shopping in Tanah Abang complex in Jakarta. Besides that, Ministry of Agriculture Indonesia was kind enough to bring us for a field trip to the Archipelago Botanical Garden in Cipanas and also Gunung Mas tea plantation in Bogor. More updates on the trip on my next blog posting.

2. Job movement, again!!!
While I was in Bandung, received a phone call from my colleague informing that I'd received a letter dated 5 November to move to yet another division. This time around to Domestic Promotion Division. I was stunned to hear the news because I was just transferred to Research Division only two months ago. Have not reported duty to the new division, which was suppose to be on 10 November coz I was on leave. But my current Division is going to appeal to not move me to that Division, because I'd just started to adapt to the work. Anyway, see how it goes on the decision from the top management. For now I was told that senior officers (like myself) are needed to be on the operation side to do marketing and promotion. My personal opinion: It's a hassle to move again, but I think it's better to stay than move to Domestic. That is a hot seat division as Minister is now focusing on domestic promotion.

3. Laptop still busted
It's been that way for the past two weeks and I hadn't the liberty to update as often as I would like it to be. Note to self: Will continue to nag on hubby to fix it hehe

4. My kitties
I had given away all my kitties. Have some pictures on their last day with me and drop off but couldnt upload yet. I've given two kitties to Gojie, my office mate and another one, Kemek, to my sis in law. Kemek is now known as Meme, and she actually responds to that name. I was informed that all three kitties are behaving well and still go to their litter box. What a relief! Seems that I'd train them well. I had to get rid of the kitties as my house is too small and for health reasons. My mum is convinced that it's the cats' furs that are making me cough.

So that's it for now...will update again soon.

Tagged by La Signora

La Signora tagged me ages ago.....couldn't copy the original from her, so I copied from Ash.

When is the last time you ran? erm.....months ago
Do your jeans have rip, tears and holes in them? yeah in unseen places hahaha - - i've had the only jeans since my uni days and it only cost me RM19 which i bought in Giant. La Signora, if you remembered, you said I look nice in those jeans!!
What are you dreading right now? Work...coz I got a report due...
Do you celebrate 4/20? Huh? I don't understand this question! (buat muka blur) - - copied from Ash hehe
When is the last time you saw your significant other? This morning
Do you get full 8 hours sleep every night? yes
What is your current favorite song? I kissed a girl by Katy Perry
If anyone came to your house on one of your lazy days, what would you do? clean the house like mad before they arrive, and try to whip something up.
Who last grabbed your ass? Haha need I tell?
Have you ever been in your school band? Yes but only for a while...
Do you own a pair of Converse? Never own them.
Did you copy and paste this survey? Yes...from Ash.
Do you eat raw cookie dough? Never....
Have you ever kicked a vending machine? I must've have!
Do you hate it when a radio ruins a song by playing a slow one after that? Depends on the song.
Do you watch "Trading Places"? Don't think we have it here in Malaysia.
Have you ever stayed on a line a long time waiting for someone? yes...
Are you 'cocky'? Dunno...maybe not.
Could you live without a computer? Probably not...
Do you wear shoes in the house? No
At what age did you believe that Santa was not real? No
How many phones are there in your house? 2 only
What do you do when you are sad? Hear my favourite song or vent it out to my sister
Who would you call first if you won a lottery? My hubby
Last time you saw your best friend? Hmm....on Monday I went to Noreez's house to return her bekas laksa Sarawak. I haven't met Ms Fantaghiro in ages...since Hari Raya in fact.
What or who sleeps with you? My bedroom secret heheh
Are you still in high school? No
Is anyone on your bad side right now? Can't think of anyone now
What jewellery are you wearing right now? Nada
What is the first thing you do when you get online? Go to my blog
Do you watch Grey's Anatonomy? Yes, sporadically
Would you ever wear your boyfriend's / girlfriend's clothes? Not really
Where do you work? In PWTC
What are you doing on Friday? Shopping!!
Is Justin Timberlake the next Michael Jackson? No
Favorite name for a girl? Nadia
Favorite name for a boy? Daniel
Will you keep your own name when you get married? Yes
When is the last time you left your house? This morning
Did you return your cart (I assume trolley)? Yes
Do you have a dish washer? No
What noise do you hear? The fan and the washing machine and somebody washing the dishes

I now would like to tag: Noreez Azlan, Salfaryna,Tinie. Others are welcomed to do the tag if you want to/

K.A.O.S and MAYHEM

It's a bird, it's a plane...no, its K.A.O.S and MAYHEM, the supercats that have destroyed a roll of kitchen towel in my living room!

This was taken two weekends ago, but since my hubby's laptop is busted, couldn't download it soon.

K.A.O.S at work

The perpetrators


Busted!!

"Aku tak bersalah"

MAYHEM at work

Them at it again

"Sniff...snifff...I found a clue"

Tired after a hard day's work of making a mess of my living room

Got more picture on the kitties...will download them again....

The one with the fish spa experience

Today at lunch time, me and Nina went to the Jungle Fish spa at The Mall. This shop is like the cheaper spin-off version of Kenko Fish Spa, all the rage now in the Pavillion. It cost us about RM28 each for a half an hour session. So we sat down at the pond, pull our sarong till up on the knees and gingerly dipped our feet in the pond. OH MY GOD! So damn geli, ok!!! Nina was screaming, "This is the last time that I will go to the fish spa!". Twice. Hehe....

Seriously, it felt like your feet was being electrocuted by hundreds of small fish, sucking at your toes and foot and calf, only that it didn't hurt. Ticklish is more like it. Nina said it was the blood circulating. If you guys ever had the foot messager with the infra-red thingy, it also felt like that. Only your feet is in the water. 10 minutes or so, we began to relax our feet. I began to really look at the small fishes. They're called the Garra Rufa. They only eat your dead cells, and leaving your healthy skin, that's why they are also called the Doctor Fish. The Garra Rufas are small, like ikan tamban, and eagerly gnaw at your skin. My feet felt smooth and tingly after the treatment.

The only sad thing was, two little Garra Rufas died during the session. Maybe they overeat my dead skin cells or something. Oh well, the hazards of working in that environment....hehe

Next project: ear candling treatment.

cont. on "My wishlist"

Am wearing my new Esprit diamente watch which costs me RM339 after 15% discount. Never bought anything so expensive for myself. No I lied. Just bought them Clarks shoes from RM300++ hehehe. But then shoes are a necessity, this watch is for a different purpose. It symbolises a pat that I give to myself in the back for the hardwork that I've done for the past 5 years or so to get promoted (albeit that position was only "acting") - duh. Means I still have to get confirmed for that position. But that's another story....

My Wishlist

Gaji dah masuk!! Including my elaun memangku E44. *pat on the back*. I have a wish list:

1. Buy meself a good watch
- haven't decided what to buy yet, anything nice at the Mall would be fine. I'm so malas to go to KLCC
2. Buy meself a good perfume
- was thinking about Love in Paris by Nina Ricci or Rose Essentialle by Bvlgari or 5th Avenue by Elizabeth Arden. Another alternative I can ask my colleague who is going to Malaga, Spain and stopping over in Paris to buy for me
3. Buy meself a good leather handbag
- Hilly or Balenciaga or Bonia
4. Polish my car
- been wanting to do this since June, but always run out of money before I get the chance to do it

A self-centred list, I'm sure. My money, my business haha

Blog "facelift" and Weekday Updates

Ta-da! Just got new facelift for my blog coz: 1. getting tired of my old layout; and 2. same layout with Salfaryna (sorry Sal, I get confused with our blogs heh heh).

Updates for the week:

One
I was quite busy with presentation for the newly appointed Research Officers (RO). They have a one year contract with us and will be assisting for the survey under my unit. Total pax for the new RO are 7, but under my supervision (old + new RO) are 20 pax, scattered around Malaysia. Oh boy...we have to supervise them on the survey forms submitted, their claims and other welfare. On top of that, I had to present to them about something which is quite new to me, and I think I managed to pull it off (cewah, masuk bakul angkat sendiri)....but, of course with the help of my super-colleague, Aza de Kaza.

Two
Also, quite preoccupied with writing. My uni-mate, who coincidently happened to be my colleague now, had asked me to do an article for a travelogue that he and a bunch of other people were trying to publish. I was so flattered that he asked me to write...I'd never published anything and this was the closest that I can get to being published. The only catch was that it had to be written in Malay! So I was struggling a bit to write it coz the only time I write in Malay is for karangan in school and minutes of approval (which was pretty standard template). That was in July and I thought that they'd shelved the idea. Suddenly last week he was asking about the article. So I dug it out again, showed the draft to Jamilah (which I did half in Malay and half in English). Jamilah said it sounded like Indon, so I rewrote the whole thing back. It came out quite good, considering that I don't write in Malay... Ms Fantaghiro said that she felt like reading the travel pages off majalah Jelita hehehe.......now I already have about 5000+ words and I just have to finish off the ending and submit it to the Editor soonest possible.

Three
Was also busy with planning jamuan Hari Raya for the two divisions. FYI, Abang Aza had decided that she doesn't like the existing division and therefore, changed the whole structure of of our organization, again. As a result, my division has been combined with another division, which makes the total number of workforce up to 90++ pax. What a headache, especially dealing with people's comments and critics on the arrangements and planning. To say and do are two different things, I had a hard time......Again, Aza de Kaza was to my rescue. In the end, we managed to pull it off, and was considered quite a success since this is the first time the two division actually get together. Methinks the next time, we'll just stick to our own division's potluck!! Less headache, more fun, more food! By the way, I'd ordered from Noreez Azlan the yummiest Laksa Sarawak I've ever tasted. Highly recommended if any of you wants to do party catering. Her Laksa Johor's very yummy too.

Four
The kitties again. They've outgrown my flat. Every time I opened the front door, they'd scurry to go out. But I'd to contain them in for fear that they'd be kidnapped before I can deliver them to their prospective owners. Happened to one of my kitties (batch 2) last time. Now they'd taken sleeping in our room, and even in our bed. I must say that it's quite unhygienic but they just find ways to get in the room. Same goes when I locked them outside the kitchen door. They pry open the door just enough for them to go in with the help of their Mami. Also, had trouble with their litter sand. I'd bought one of those clay litter, totaly bad experience. It doesn't cover the smell of faeces, doesn't clump nicely and the colour's just horrible when the cats stained it with urine. So today, I had to go buy Tesco's Premium Lightweight Litter. This is by far, the best brand of cat litter I'd ever used - easy to scoop out the faeces, it smell nice, and the colour's ok. Bought 20 packets of the Whiskas pocket wet food - that'll last only 2 days and a half. Will buy more when gaji masuk on monday. Planning to send them off for adoption in one to two weeks time...have braced myself for this, I'm sure I'll be sad to give away the kittens but at least I'll know they'd be in good hands....

Five
Lately the internet connections was very bad at nights, maybe due to heavy rain from 3pm till late at night. Couldn't upload more kitties pics coz connection was lembap like hell.

So I guess that's the updates for the past weekday, Will update more soon.

Happy Birthday....

....to two special ladies in my life:
1. Nuyun a.k.a Kolat - my sister, was born on 15 October 1982
2. Cik - my mother's youngest sister was born on 14 October 19..

May Allah bless you always...

Updates on My Kitties, batch 3

They are now almost 3 months old, haven't weaned off from Mami. Got a bad case of milk deprivation when I brought them back to hubby's hometown for raya (5 days). Couldn't leave them behind so have to bring them along. They're so big now and my house is too small to cater to three very active kittens. Though it saddens me that I will be giving the kitties away, but I have to be strong. Enough rambling, I now present you some pics updates on the kitties, taken last weekend.

The kitties really love the laptop
Pantang I bukak laptop, mesti 3 ekor ni nak bergomol kat sini



Dah puas main laptop, pindah naik meja makan pulak

2 kitties and their Mami

Macam tugu negara, more like tugu Kitties hehe

She is the wildest of the bunch, but suddenly became very fond of the laptop....

......fond enough to sleep on it!

Dah penat bergomol, semua kitties tidur termasuk Mami

yang si Kemek tuh tengok ajer la....nak join Mami kerusi dah tak muat

Kemek kempunan nak tidur dgn Mami..


Steps to sleep

Step 1: Feeling2 dulu

Step 2: Mata dah kuyu

Step 3: Pejam mata sat

Step: 4: Tido!!

Si Kemek ni tido kat bucu meja

Nasib baik tak jatuh ke bawah

Tak selesa agaknya, si Kemek pun pindah tido atas meja

Mami kepenatan melayan the kitties, pindah tido atas rak kasut

Memang favourite spot Mami

Kitties diet now consists of Whiskas pocket (wet food) which costs about RM1.20 per pack. At each meal time, the 3 of them will consume 4 packets. Mami will consume about 1 packet. Chemeng (stray cat outside) will eat the biscuits. I feed them twice a day - once before I go to work and once when I get back from work. So if you multiply the expenses for a week - food only about RM70 - Whiskas pocket and Whiskas biscuit, not including their litter sand, shampoo and other things. Memang kopak menjaga kitties ni...tapi once I give them away, lega lah I. My hubby is always harping on me and saying that I should've sold them instead of giving it away for free.....but I always told him that I'm not out making profit, that I'm rearing the kitties for the love of it and I am concern about finding the right home for them to stay in. So far, it has been quite a success and I don't mind spending for the kitties....

Common mistakes by Malaysians drivers

After 5 and 1/2 years taking the public transport everyday to work, I've finally decided that I've had enough of taking the LRT to work. I've experienced things in the LRT that I don't care to repeat such as becoming human sandwich in the sea of people for the entire 30 minutes ride to Masjid Jamek, pregnant woman not given seat, people fainting, witnessing a young couple making out. So in June, I've bought the new Saga BLM for RM35,000 in silver. Am now driving to work everyday. Happy that I'm not in the LRT anymore, but at the same time a bit miffed (alright, actually very mad) at Malaysian drivers. Maybe its me, I can be an impatient driver at times, but I do hate slow poke drivers.

Some observation by me while driving:
1. No signal when turning into corner - especially when cars are already waiting for that particular car to pass by, but suddenly turned into the corner/junction. What a waste of other people's time.
2. Cruising on busy roads and during peak time - what is wrong with people like this, please drive at an even pace then people can get to work on time!
3. Slow car insisting to stay on fast lane - especially in highways, perasan kereta dia Ferrari kot....
4. Slowing down to see accidents - not actually helping the accidents. Most of the time, it's not even an accident just a broken down car.
5. Cutting cues - very kiasu and unethical drivers especially at tolls or busy roads
6. When it rains, everybody slows down - what's up with this? can never understand this....just drive carefully, not slowly...ugghhhh!
7. NOT Giving way - especially taxis...God forbid they give way to you
8. Not giving way to pedestrians - pedestrians have to watch out for drivers even if it is a zebra's crossing, not the other way round. Drivers in Europe and America have the right attitude and ethics in giving way to pedestrians. Safety first. Even though I'm an impatient driver, I actually give way to pedestrians and cars.
9. Parking "creatively" - a term that I borrow from Hitz fm public announcement. Malaysian drivers can just park anywhere and everywhere that's convenient for them i.e double parking at busy roads for a quick stop, and thus creative a massive bottleneck behind.
10. Road bully - they see "red" and think that driving is like a competition with other drivers.

.....and I could go on and on about Malaysian drivers, but you get the drift. As long as Malaysian drivers do not have an overhaul for attitude while driving, our driving style won't change. Just like a third world country mentality, not adhering to system. But its life, either you sink or you swim....

My favourite number 5

Trivia is taken from Roy Lazim's fotopages

5 things found in my bag

~ handphone - can't live without my handphone

~ wallet - to store all the "moolah" (Ash's word)

~ MP3 player

~ makeup kit - only time for me to make up is while driving to work, at the red lights.

~ car & house keys

5 things found in my purse

~ My Identity card

~ ATM card

~ Driving licence

~ Money

~ pengorek telinga - in case my ears get really itchy when I'm in the office!

5 favorite things in my room

~ my hubby's laptop - with broadband connection so I can go online at nights

~ my hubby - haha he's always in the room with the laptop

~ clothes

~ home decorating magazines & storybooks

~ my kittens - when they play hide and seek in the room

5 things I’ve always wanted to do

~ Quit my job

~ travel the world

~Open a business - like a book store or a bakery

~ Write a novel

~ Cook like a chef

5 things I’m currently into

~ house hunting

~ blogging

~ surfing the links on my blog

~ rearing kittens

~ watching DVDs

5 people i'm going to tag

~ La Signora

~ Noreez Azlan

~ Ziah

~Tinie

~ Ash

The one with the birthday on 6th October

Dear Lisa,

Happy 30th Birthday to you!
Age is just a number and a state of mind
Never stop being your unique self
Sure, you need to be matured in handling certain issues
But don't let that change who you really are
I still remember you as the fun, witty, beautiful person
Not to mention quirky, freaky, slightly manic
A lover of handbags and shoes and the movie Amelie
I do miss our times berembun, yakking and gossiping
The late night outs, pouring our hearts out
Yeah...the good old days
Again, Happy Birthday dear friend!!

Love,
Nuwal

Al-Fatihah

My heartfelt condolences to Hanna (Nuyun's best friend), whose father passed away on second day of Aidilfitri (Thursday, 2nd October 2008).

Mudah-mudahan rohnya dicucuri rahmat dan di tempatkan bersama-sama dengan orang yang beriman. Amin....