farewell

It has finally ended. Have gained much much more than I expected and lost none in which I am thankful for. Time to bid farewell. Heavy hearted I am but looking forward to be home apart from all the work I know I will be receiving from william though ;p I am glad I left something profound for God behind thank Him for leading and maturing me and I know I am ready for greater things ahead.

So… goodbye Kongsberg and who knows, I might return one day =)

quoting from Here In My Home by Malaysian Artistes United… “…no matter where I roam, this is HOME SWEET HOME…” Yes, back to Ipoh it is… my home sweet home ^_^ counting the days…

the real holiday

Finally, I have decided to treat myself with a real holiday. And my definition is one that I only RELAX and not rush through top and tourist attractions, one that I FOCUS on MYSELF and not on others, one that I buy things for myself and not others, one that I ENJOY TRULY without taking too many photos for memories sake and one that of which I call a holiday.

And I think I chose a perfect place, at least with all the time I left and the cash restriction. Copenhagen, Denmark it is.

Without actually knowing it, I have booked myself into a five star youth hostel. The most expensive one among the hostels I stayed in for the previous trips. Costing me euro20 per night!! At least that was the cheapest I could get at that time. But, yes, just the right one to start off my real holiday. Six clean and comfortable beds per dorm, best location ever right in front of the harbour in the city centre ^_^ Got to know a couple of new friends – the dorm mates which is a huge bonus. Networking I call it.

Spend first half of the day just strolling along the harbour, passing by the canals and visiting the famous “Little Mermaid”. I enjoyed it so much, the views and ambiance. The second half of the day is even better as I decided to go for Tivoli Gardens and Amusement Park (it’s just 5 minutes walk from my hostel) I have always love amusement parks… the thrill rides!! Now you know why I like to be in Genting the theme park. I feel like a small child again. Treating myself with lots of ice cream, nachos and cheese and of course, those thrill rides. And yes, I finally had my merry-go-round after years of wanting to ride on it and the fact the I can’t in Genting due to age and height limit. I was there from 2pm till midnight. I was screaming and laughing, indulging myself in uncountable times of those crazy rides… and just when you think Solero Shot in Genting is scary and gives you LOTS of adrenaline rush… till you have this!

Introducing the Golden Tower in Tivoli… it’s way higher than Solero Shot, I like it, hehe…

and the highest carousel… was not working though when I went

Tivoli doesn’t offer just unlimited rides but also beautiful gardens here and there, live bands, short musicals, pantomimes and other entertainment – all of those for DKK200 a day. I went for some live jazz band performances as well as a half an hour pantomime – Thumbelina. Great one with eye candy casts, graceful dancing and good music. I think I haven’t laughed or enjoyed myself alone so much. It has been awhile. And I am glad and thank God that He is helping me to get through things and to find some time and have a treat for me, myself and I. Lord, you know exactly what I needed.

Second and final day – a Sunday. Decided to look up the brochure and map and found this church which actually has English service, so why not? And the result? I had a wonderful time of worship. They always say save the best for last, and this, my final worship and sermon in Europe is indeed the best of all. Not only the praise and worship was great, the sermon spoke to me that very morning and answered my question of one of my previous posts – the most important think is the PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP you have with God rather than acts of service itself. Thank You again. I mean I knew it all along so, another reminder and assurance for me.

After the service, I went to the King’s Garden/Park. Found a nice spot and laid down on the soft grass, actually enjoying the sun! surprise surprise. Spent the noon just lying down, yes, relaxing, reading Where Rainbows End by Cecelia Ahern and had a short nap. Never knew it was so good to lie on the grass with soft breeze blowing and the sun giving you warmth and smiles. I then proceeded to the harbour, sat down on one of those benches and write while enjoying the beautiful view from the harbour.

Catching the last glimpse of canals before I hopped on the bus to leave Copenhagen and back to Kongsberg. I had a great real holiday. I am happy. I am content.

The End.

warsaw, poland

There I go again with Mark, Peck Sze and Ansel. This time to Warsaw, Poland. Think of it as a “City of Construction”, the way Mark described it or more like a “Constructed City”, the way I sum it up. Everywhere you go, there seems to be construction going on *hence the city of construction* be it rebuilding of a certain building or reconstructing new roads. Well, Warsaw in divided into the old and new town, and I must say, the new town is really NEW. I mean it’s so constructed. The floors are sparkling clean and buildings look like they are freshly painted. NEW, that it is. Spent the first day of our visit exploring the old and new town under the rain. Wasn’t pleasant because of the rain, of course. But I guess with the company of Mark and his family, it lightens everything up.

Second day – the zoo! I am not really a zoo visiting person but I like the possibility that I might get to see some unique or different animals and of my favourite as well and I did, at least the penguins not the dolphins though weather was good and we had very good Mediterranean food for dinner. When it comes to good food, I am always all smiles

My last day started off not so well with me finally, yes, finally getting impatient with Mark :p maybe it was that or just simply because I hate to leave them, I hate to leave Ansel most. We went for Wilanow Palace, quite a decent beautiful palace and garden but could not be compared with Chateau of Versailles in Paris. The Versailles is way too beautiful to be compared anyway ^_^

Some randomly snapshots taken.

Day 1 – Old and New Town

The Unicef “United Buddy Bears” – promoting unity despite differences and the need to get to know each other better.

Some of the United Buddy Bears, each bear representing one country. I was very disappointed because Malaysia isn’t there. Not Singapore and Thailand too but yet they have Myanmar and some other small countries of which their names I can’t recall.

and saw this interesting teddy bear shop… starting with an empty teddy bear…

filling it using this machine…

and finally dressing them up with these ^_^

Day 2 – Zoo

presenting only the best of all *no, not the penguins but this*

I think that is very beautiful. No wonder the ‘as proud as a peacock’. Why wouldn’t they be with such beauty?

and another one…

dinner we had in Sphinx

my all-time favourite, spaghetti carbonara ^_^

Day 3 – Wilanow Palace and Park

What I love most about this trip? The family I am with. I love being around kids and I love and enjoy even more being with Ansel. I am going to miss him terribly…

bringing good memories back home

God is.

Still the great “I AM“.

I talked with some of Helene’s cousin and friends and to my ‘discovery’, about 90% of Norway’s population are members of the church but a large amount of them are not Christians. I mean what kind of teaching or custom is this. I just don’t understand sometimes. They attend church occasionally, are baptised, serve and know the hymns better than you and me. When I asked, they will say that they are not Christians but members of the church as they have been baptised there. It’s sad actually… they do everything but do not believe.

but God reminded me again that He is still the great “I AM”. Later in the evening, I followed Helene’s mom to her church and once again, it’s like being home. It was the best fellowship and worship I had since I came here. For once, or should I say, finally, I am able to worship the Lord again. It was good, so good. A lady named Biance shared her story of how the Lord has called her to serve in Norway and after going through many trials and reluctance, she is finally here.

… with Bianca and her family …

It was very encouraging and scary to know as well, hehe, that when God called you to do something, you will end up doing it, no matter how much you didn’t want to. It may take longer than it should have been but by the end of the day, what God has placed in your heart, asked of you, you just can’t run away from it. His will and plans WILL BE DONE ^_^

There were performances by the children and youth of the church. Here are some short videos I managed to take. And yes, if you were wondering, I worshiped in Norsk that evening. Amazing huh? To sing songs you are familiar with, not in English this time but in another different language ^_^ my heart was filled with peace and joy.

God is like the air. You can’t touch it, you can’t see it but you know He is ALWAYS there, around you, FOR you.

God is indeed beautiful. His beauty demands a response that is shaped by that beauty itself. I am amazed. Truly.

Norway’s Constitution Day

Each year on May 17 marks the day where Norwegians fill the streets with loud cheers and flags. It is the celebration of Norway’s constitution, adopted in year 1814. The celebration varies from place to place but usually follow a traditional pattern making this event the highlight of the year. I am very fortunate to be around during this time to experience the event. Celebrated it in Telemark, the hometown of my housemate, Helene.

This is one of the many formal days where Norwegian will dress up in the national dress, known as bunad. The bunad varies in appearance and is a form of identification to indicate which part of Norway you come from. On this occasion, especially in the main city, there will be a magnificent sight of national costumes from all over the country which makes this day truly a celebration of Norwegian tradition and history

The parade started off at 930am, us going around the small town making a few stops to sing for the old folks and ended with a short service in church. After the service, everyone gathers in a community centre area where there are food and games for everyone. Something like our fun fair. Event ended around 5pm. Unfortunately, the weather is not on our side today, cold wind and drizzling.

Here are some pics taken during the parade…

children singing at the old folk’s home

cute little kids in their tiny bunads

Anyway, I woke up at 730 in the morning to get ready for the day. I do feel like a princess today, hehe. Breakfast being prepared for me by Helene, and getting dressed up by them. I was so excited too. I think it’s really cool to experience and take part in other people’s cultural event, what more to dress up in their national costume I seem to have special treatment today, somewhat the center of attraction. Maybe because I am non-Norwegian dressed up in a bunad, and it is a very old bunad as well. Apart from the weather and the fact that I have to always be careful with my bunad, I had great fun. Well, I have to be extra careful because… the bunad is 55 years old and costs NOK 45000… that is like RM 30000!! I can get myself a kelisa already with that amount of money, hehe. the bunad is that expensive because it’s handmade, every detail of it.

and so here… me looking like a display doll in Telemark’s bunad

… the brooches and accessories …

… the shoes …

… with Helene’s cousin …

… and her friends …

… THE END …

looking forward

to spend the Norway National Day back in my housemate’s hometown. She said I might even get to try on their national costumes!! yes!!

to travel with Mark and his family again next week.

to finish up my report and presentation *smile*

to finally meet up with zibin and edmund *more smiles*

and to be back in Ipoh for food glorious food. Thanks to all the ideas from ricky and since yian blogged about the list, here goes… my own fair share of the I-can’t-wait-to-have Ipoh food list…

1. curry mee from Sun Chuen Fong (near the balai polis in Yang Kalsom road) and Yat Yat Seng (Ipoh Garden) - the curry is just right, not too hot for me

2. laksa and liew in Pasir Pinji, behind Tuck Kee – not the best laksa in the world but good enough. missing the ones in Perlis

3. beef noodles and meatballs from Tong Sui Kai – I like the clear beef soup, slightly better than the one is old town.

4. look look in Ipoh Garden South - the last time I had this was at my cousin’s pre-wedding night, my uncle hired the whole look look for the night! was so good… unlimited sticks all night long, hehe

5. 2 plus 1 steamboat in Bercham - just like the fact that I can pan fry as well, had my birthday celebration here last year

6. porridge steamboat at Stairway, Ipoh Garden or Farm House near Uncle Soon Chye’s place - haven’t tried the one at Farm House though.

7. satay celup (stall next to honda showroom near Elim, below Fairmont Hotel) - haven’t tried this either, heard it’s a little expensive but out of the norm food.

8. pan mee at Leong Sin Nam street - my favourite! the soup is way too delicious… not to mention I am the special customer, the only one who always order “no vege, just the ikan bilis and shrimps” haha ;p the lady remembers me until now…

9. Ming Kok’s dimsum, or maybe Kao Lee’s - nearer to my house and I love their prawn salad rolls ^_^

10. wat tan hor at Leong Sin Nam street - have to wait for at least an hour though… but worth it the only one in Ipoh, or maybe Malaysia that cooks the noodles WITH the sauce together instead of pouring the sauce over the fried hor fun.

11. prawn crackers from Pasar Malam on Wednesday night or from the old man in front of Public Bank – my favourite late night snack while watching TVB dramas

12. K10 claypot rice and chicken feet - the one in Bercham of course as it tastes better compared to the one in Ipoh Garden and I only eat chicken feet from K10 ;p

13. noodles and liew from Tai Ka Lok, Greentown - my typical breakfast or brunch

14. friend bihun from stadium - yet another favourite breakfast of mine

15. pina colada from Juice Station – yummy yummy, fell in love with this drink ever since I first tried it

16. japanese food at Kizuna - quality japanese food at a good price *after my dad’s discount card, of course*

17. burger, chee cheong fun, egg tarts and prawn cracker from Kampung Simee market – don’t you ever think food from the market is not nice, try them!

18. and last but not least, grandma’s irreplaceable homemade dishes and yummy western deserts and my mom’s apple soup too ^_^

gosh, I am feeling REALLY hungry now… *saliva dripping* three more weeks, just three more weeks and I will be back to the food heaven

my heart is

beating in a funny way.

And my thoughts wander from the positive hopes and dreams to the negative disappointments and back to the hopes again. The cycle just repeats itself. Tomorrow I will know. Could it be a fresh start of something new after 7 long years? or could it be that God has something, someone else in store for me instead? Gosh, the waiting kills…

Paris – My Top Three Pick

1st – Eiffel Tower

The night view especially is awesome. Good place to spend it with loved ones At least it reminded me of my loved ones…

2nd – Louvre Museum

This one is undoubtedly my favourite! The artwork is amazing and the Louvre night view just took my breath away ^_^ I will definitely come again.

3rd – Chateau de Versailles

I didn’t spend enough time here as I need to rush back to the hostel. The garden is a great place to just stroll along and relax. Perfect for a lazy day :p

All in all, this trip is good except the aftermath of sore legs and headaches. Had a good time and made a couple of friends from Hong Kong, Seoul and Canada. Traveling alone allows you to meet new people and make contacts not to mention all the freedom!

Anyway, I saved a total of €27.90, thanks to the 2-Days Museum Pass(€30) which offers me unlimited access to all the places I went plus saving all the hassle of queuing for tickets and entry especially to the Louvre and Chateau de Versailles ^_^

Day 5 in Paris

My final day in Paris ^_^

1st stop
Musée d’Orsay (€5.50)

… outside the museum …

… inside the museum …

this is how the signs of all metro stations look like

Symbolism paintings…

‘Vision’

‘Inner Fear’

playing around with the sculptures

2nd stop
Tour Notre-Dame (€4.80)

inside…

known as the Great Chandelier

creatures of fantastic birds, hybrid beasts and mythical monsters perching on the towers

staircase to La Esmeralda’s Cell where Quasimodo rescued her

the Marie Great Bell of Notre-Dame that Quasimodo clings on to

3rd stop
Conciergerie, the Palace of Justice and Prison (€4.80)

famous prisoner, Marie-Antoinette

4th stop
La Saint-Chapelle (€4.80)

The La Saint-Chapelle is a gem of High Gothic architecture

… inside …

… each of those painted glass tells the stories of the Bible …

… the Western Rose …
in the center of the rose, Christ returns in glory at the end of Time to judge the dead and the living

5th stop
Panthéon (€4.50)
from a Christian basilica to a temple of the Nation

and the central rotunda…

6th stop
Chateau de Versailles (€20.00)

hall of mirrors

the King’s chamber

the Queen’s cosy bed

the very very beautiful garden of Chateau de Versailles

Final stop
Pont d’Alma

Day 4 in Paris

phew… gonna be another long day of walk in Paris. Woke up at 630am today to do the planning. Decided then to go for

1. Basilique du Sacre-Coeur and Moulin Rouge all the way up in Montmartre.
2. Palais Garnier (Opera Garnier)
3. Ste-Marie Madeline
4. Palais Royal
5. Musée du Louvre ^_^
5. a walk along Champs Elysees passing by Jardin Des Tuileries (Tuileries Garden) and Place de La Concorde before going back to Louvre Museum to enjoy the night view

Basilique du Sacre-Coeur (The Sacred-Heart of Basillique)
** my heart was moved when I went inside, listening to their choir and feeling very much the presence of the Lord, spending some precious time praying to Him. It’s beautiful inside but no photos are allowed **

Moulin Rouge
** reminds me of my first movie date with Ed, yet another sweet memory **

Palais Garnier (Opera Garnier)
** nothing of my cup of tea showing at that time else I would love to watch a musical here **

check this out… good lighting effect!!

Ste-Marie Madeline

Palais Royal
** I like it here interesting, those little black and white seats/steps **

Musée du Louvre, I am here finally!! (€9.00)
** I just fell in love with this place, marveled at the famous triangle. And I seriously think that anyone who visits the museum should refrain from snapping pictures and just purely enjoy all the art work. It’s very … just hard to describe it, seize the moment, that if you like looking at art works anyway **

some of the collections…

the famous Portrait of Lisa Gherardini – The Mona Lisa

and finally, my obsession of the triangle, hehe … I can’t help it :p

Jardin Des Tuileries (Tuileries Garden)

Place de La Concorde

in one the cafe along Champs Elysees

The only treat I had throughout my visit in Paris. Survived solely on the biscuits, bread, snacks and bottles of water packed by Sandra before coming to Paris. Save all the cash, hehe and hopefully lose abit of weight as well

Coconut Dream, thirst quenching and yummy!!

End of another long day… legs are sore and my digi cam is running out of battery AGAIN.. time to head back to the youth hostel and get a good rest!

Day 3 in Paris

This trip started off with a really nice surprise… guess who I met all the way in Paris??! Melissa Chi, my high school junior. It’s really cool. She’s backpacking alone as well and we spent some time together. Anyway, I just hit for the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe today.

Here comes the Eiffel Tower!! (€12.00)

Views from second floor of the tower

… Day View of Tour Eiffel …

… Night View of Tour Eiffel …

… the illuminated Tour Eiffel …

and the Arc de Triomphe (€4.50)

closer shots

the stairs on the way up

mini Arc de Triomphe

ended the day with beautiful sunset viewed from the Arc ^_^

perfect

capturing the ‘egg-yolk’

Rama-Rama

Enjoyed my three days two nights stay at Uncle Siew’s place alot. Really thank God for him and his family, it is like being with a family member again in a far away place, very warm feeling. They generously accommodated me, paid for all my expenses and took time off to bring me around. If you are wondering, Uncle Siew is my uncle’s ex-schoolmate. He opens an Asian food restaurant, Rama-Rama in Landquart, Switzerland together with his wife, Sandra (a Swiss lady who speaks fluent Cantonese) ^_^ You can check out the restaurant’s website at www.rama-rama.ch

Photos of the restaurant…

with Uncle Siew and Sandra

with some of the staff
L-R: Kit from HK, Kah Poh from Malacca, me and *don’t remember his name* from Indonesia. The chefs are from Macau and Malaysia. They are all very friendly and funny especially the two waiters, hehe. Sandra told me silly stories about them :p

dinner back at the restaurant

Day 2 in Switzerland

The City
spent the second day in Luzern and Zürich window shopping and experiencing the cities

Luzern

Zürich

the famous super brands street

the WORLD’S MOST EXPENSIVE HANDPHONE, VERTU

Day 1 in Switzerland

THE RHEINFALL

Arrived in Zurich Airport around 1030am, greeted by Uncle Siew and his wife, Sandra. We then headed straight to a waterfall, Rhyfall-Mändli, in Schaffhausen, around one and a half hours drive from Zurich Airport. I totally love it! Amazed once again by God’s beautiful creation We had a quick lunch at the cafe then proceeded for a boat ride towards the waterfall.

my sleepy face after spending the night in airport, hardly slept

and some short videos taken during the boat ride and of the Rheinfall before my digi cam got splashed by the water…

THE 3-IN-1 TRIP

Can you believe it? I have actually entered three countries (Switzerland, Germany and Austria) all in just one day!! We were actually making a tour around this lake which covers these three countries. Started off at Stein am Rhein (Switz) to Konstanz and Insel Mainau (Germany) and finally to Lindau and Bregenz (Austria) before heading back to Landquart (Switz).

a little garden representation of the lake I was talking about. The left part belongs to Germany, right Austria and south area Switzerland.

In Konstanz and Insel Mainau – Die Blumeninsel Im Bodensee Park

the peacock

the garden gnome

and all the pretty flowers…

and presenting my best shot of the day…

In Lindau and Bregenz, Austria

James Bond in Bregenz!! They were actually filming James Bond on the same day BUT BUT BUT we just somehow overlooked and missed it, darn!! definitely gonna watch the Bond movie end of this year for the sake of me being at the filming location and telling people “you know what, I was there when they were shooting!” hehe

Anyway… we had my favourite Italian food for dinner in Austria ^_^

Starters

mixed plate
a variety of cheese, salami, smoked ham, different types of vege, seafood, some special mushroom and paprika.

raw beef with cheese and some special vege
**i love this dish, never knew RAW, yes, 100% raw beef is soooo good!! half the dish is finished when this pic is taken, hehe**

Main Course

Uncle Siew’s Pork Ribs

Aunty Sandra’s Four-Cheese Pizza

and my Spaghetti Carbonara with Bacon
**still prefer the one in Italiannies, One Utama, best I’ve ever had so far**

Was a really long day, back to Uncle Siew’s house around 11pm. He is even more tired due to all the long hours of driving. Time to sleep.

way back into love

when I couldn’t put thoughts or feelings into words, I allow the song to describe it all.

contentment

I like the way it is now.

With clearer goals and directions in my life. With God leading. With assurance that I can still comfortably cling on to my favourite friends no matter what. With faith that I will fall in love again. With the project coming to an end. With anticipation of many more good things ahead.

I love it just by sitting at the balcony reading a good book, enjoying everything that spring has to offer from the soothing breeze to the chirping of birds and fresh smell of flowers. I am content.