Almost A Year...:)

It's HOT!! Yes, I can't believe it myself..saying that in London...although if I say that outloud in a park I would probably screamed at...:p

The days are getting longer..weather getting hotter...it's SUMMER! that also marks my one year in London...it truly flew by, but if I were to sit down and write all the things I did in the last one year, it would make me smile..I had travelled quite a bit and met a lot of nice people..some I believe would be a friend for a long time...

The recent loss of my aunt made me realise that we will leave this world one day! So, while we are still here, make the best out of everyday. I have been working really hard, juggling a few jobs..trying to make as much as I can so that I can see and do more before leaving this country. Some of the things I did in the last two weeks or so include going for "Wicked" the musical which I truly enjoyed, made a road trip to Lake District and a one day trip to Bath, Salisbury and Stonehenge. I have also actively met up with group of strangers and trying to make new friends...

So, what else is keeping me alive or should I say...smiling...:p I wish I can say I met someone special...but unfortunately NO!! But I do meet an almost perfect man...which make me believe that there are still hope out there..!! Lets see...he is hardworking, quite good looking, non-smoker/clubber, wanna build a family, friendly, good dressing sense, loving father...sighhh....

And she has left...for good...

It has been weird the last few days...I tried preparing myself mentally, and yet I couldn't...Everytime my phone receives an sms, I was worried that it's a msg from my mum telling me the bad news..but up to this morning, I never receive any msg from my mum.

I knew they are bringing her home today, Thursday morning in Penang. When I went to bed last night, I was mentally prepared to receive a sms when I wake up this morning. But I did not. So, on the bus to work, I called home to ask. I heard my mum's voice on the other side, "Lu ei 3-ee bo liou"....I didn't know what to say..but just asked if she made it home before leaving us..and mum said, "Yes, she did".."She passed away after about 10 minutes.."

I wrote a poem for her..as I really can't think of anything else which I could do. This poem would be "given" to her by my cousin on my behalf.

My dearest 3-ee,
Am really sad that you've left us,
That I couldn't bid farewell,
That I couldn't remember the last we spoke,
Or the last time I held you close.

I would truly like you to know,
That you will always be remembered,
As the aunt who brought me up,
Whom I shared my secrets with,
Whom I laughed and cried with,
Whom I've loved and will always do.

You will be missed dearly,
Today and every day to come,
In my heart, I will always love you,
For you are my one and only 3-ee.

Rest in peace.

With love, Ah Na.

I can't exactly describe the feeling I am feeling right now..it's a mixture of everything..:( I hope she is in a better place..a place where she is not hurting or in pain anymore...

The sunshine..the blooming flowers..O so pretty..

A month has passed by once again...One month and lots had happened, so I can't really complain...

I attended a very good friend's wedding in a land they call Down Under..:p It's a trip planned since many months ago...and is finally over. I spent 2 weeks with my very good friends in Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth...just being us..driving around..and catching up...It's not an easy trip, very exhausting..but fulfilling...

So, about the wedding...Yeah, primarily the trip is for Deanna, the bride. She asked me to be her bridesmaid even before I have the idea of coming to London and I kept my promise. It was quite an adventure for all of us to plan the bridesmaids' gowns and etc because the 3 of us are at 3 different continent! The bride, myself and the other bridesmaid..but we made it!! The wedding would be the first wedding of a very close friend which I have attended so far. It's was very touching..she had hers very personal, only with those who truly care...from the ceremony to the reception, everything was well planned and pretty. ooo...I have to share these 2 quotes which I learnt from my trip.

1. "LOVE IS A DECISION."

2. From the groom's dad to the groom. "When you are wrong, just admit it. When you are right,
just shut up."

After the Australia trip, I came back to London. WOW...What a change in 2 weeks..the day is so much longer now.., weather is good despite the rain and the blooming flowers! It's good to be home. :) After about 9 days, I left again to Amsterdam. Amsterdam is very eye-opening. I managed to visit the House of Anne Frank, Keukenhof garden and well the famous red light district. The coffee shops and the sex toys are ..just totally in a category on its own. And yeah..I had a "vanilla muffin" which didn't quite give me anything else other than blood shot eyes. Out of my 3 days trip, I managed to go to Leiden and also Rotterdam for a day. Leiden is boring while Rotterdam is just another city with skyscrapers.

Oh well, back to work. Times are really bad here..every sector are affected by the credit crunch. I also kinda lost my chinese takeaway job cos they are having very quiet times and don't really need an extra hand. sighhhh...

Anyway, here are some pics..I have uploaded more in my facebook.

At Keukenhof...

The red light district..

With the bride and groom...

At Cottlestoe sunset..supposed to be one of the best in the world..

At the 12 Apostles...

Since last update...

It's been tougher and tougher for me to find the time to write, to rest or just being...I guess that's cos I have to juggle 3 to 4 jobs in a week...which could sometimes means waking up at 4.40am and work till 10.30pm. Yeah..I work hard...but I also intend to play hard..I deserve every single penny that I earn...Every week must do "something"..anything really..whether it's a theatre, a movie or a trip or even clubbing...

Since my last update, lots have happened. I went to Eastbourne for a day trip with 4 other friends. It was my first road trip and my first visit to the English Channel. Eastbourne is like one of my friends said, "It's like a town stucked in time!" She is right...everything seems extra slow there..people walk at a slower pace..nothing seems to be in rush..which is really good for me. It really reminded me of the joy of simple living...almost 360 degree as compared to life in London. There is nothing much in Eastbourne, but the visit to Beachy Head for the Seven Sisters is well worth the journey! I was truly amazed by the wonders of nature when I was standing there, feeling the chilly breeze brushing my cheeks with the towering white cliffs and sound of the wave hitting the endless stoney beach...I felt so small as a human and humbled by the grandeur of the natural world. Neither the highest building nor the biggest man-made pool can ever give u the same feeling...

So, I also finally made a trip to Richmond..It's just about 30 minutes from London zone 1 but it's soooo different..in a good way. I wished it didn't rain that day though, which has certainly made my trip much shorter than intended. Liked what I saw for the brief few hours I was there, just walking with Chew Ping and Eow..so, will definitely make another trip there ..hopefully better luck in weather next time.

I also had my first big screen cinematic experience for the 1st time in London in the last 8 months. There was a double bill promotion in Riverside Studios for "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Kite Runner" for gbp7.50. I decided to go for it because I truly wanted to watch Slumdog Millionaire. It was a nice small independent theatre and I am glad I treated myself for the movie night. Although I have seen "Kite Runner", I still teared...almost from beginning to end...lol....as for "Slumdog Millionaire", I really enjoyed it...

Life's short...work hard, play hard..:)

Paris...the city of love

I have just read a friend's article about everlasting love. It touches me dearly...as it reflects alot on my life. Love has always been a very simple yet a complicated aspect of life, which in many ways makes it wonderful.

Since we are on the topic of love, I would like to write about the city of love which I have just recently visited...PARIS. I managed to go for a 4 days budget trip to Paris recently. It was a full 4 days of walking..tiring but great! I visited most of the tourist attractions; Le Louvre, Musee D'Orsay, Arc de Triomphe, Versailles, Pompidou and a few more...but the one which I truly enjoyed was the visit to Sacre Couer, Montmartre. In my opinion, it is nicer than Notre Dame. I wouldn't be able to describe in words the feeling I felt when I was there, so I decided to immortalize the moment in a video form. Below is a short clip of the place, the crowd and the atmosphere while I was standing in front of Sacre Couer.

So, of course I went to the famous Eiffel Tower. Only went to the 2nd level as me and my friends thought we could climb up to the 3rd, but unfortunately, it was closed at the time we were there. The view from the top is amazing....I mean, I wish I was there with someone special. Cliche as it may sound but it does somehow gives you the feeling of being loved...Oh well...sighh

Anyway, February is scarily coming to an end. I don't know how it passes by..seriously. My everyday motto now is "Must do something every week..Anything...".This week, I went for a play at The New Players Theatre called "The Vagina Monologue". I went partly because a friend's friend were in it and I would like to meet her. Yeah, Vagina Monologue is all about vaginas...:p No hidden meanings whatsoever...It has got the word in almost every sentence. It talks about vaginas through the eyes of an old lady, a lesbian, a to-be mum, a normal female, a victim of rape and etc.

I am at a place where I need to make decisions and I really hate it. I hate making decisions...but I guess that's what living is all about.

On another note, my sis just told me this morning that one of my mum's friend's daughter passed away in a tragic accident. She's just 19 years old..It further reminds me of how short our life is and that it can be taken away from us anytime...

This blog entry is really fragmented. I write as how my brain works. I am that random...lol..

White Chinese New Year!!!

I was complaining about the weather the entire day since the time I stepped out from my house to work this morning..but at about 8pm, I stopped! It started snowing heavily when me and my friends were walking home...It was soooo beautiful...and all of a sudden, the freezing day out was all worth it!!

It's already the 7th day of CNY today but there's a huge celebration in Chinatown. My friends and I decided to join the fun..although we were warned that it's going to be crowded..Anyway, after work, I went at abt 2pm. Nothing much, some lion dance and according to Chew Ping, it's a baby compared to what we have in Malaysia. So, we went to Trafalgar Square to see some performances, as Kai Ling puts it, she heard some cheesy sounding Chinese songs while walking past earlier. It was well, nothing great...and due to the freezing weather, we (myself, Chew Ping, Kai Ling and Yean) decided to go for coffee..an excuse to be indoor really...ended up at Portrait Gallery's cafe. From the cafe, we get a very pretty view of London city. Spent some time there just chit chatting and getting defrosted...

So, Cheyenne called and told us that there will be some fireworks at abt 6pm at Leicester Square. We left the cafe when they were closing and made our way to the square. The fireworks were what I would call "fireworks war"..it just went on and on and on without much design whatsoever..but I really like how "chaotic" it is...hehe..at last, I saw some fireworks for the new year!!! since I missed the last new year countdown by being at the wrong bridge...

After the fireworks, we went to a small pub near Seven Dials for a drink and to warm up..It's a very nice place..Decided to leave at abt 8pm..and as we stepped out of the pub, we stood there and just admire the falling snow...today, 1st of February 2009 is officially my first day experiencing the continuous falling snow...It's so so wonderful..It's so romantic..I could fall in love with anyone at that moment..(yeah, I am pretty idealistic)..and for that reason, the journey home was simply breathtaking...

I cannot quite explain the feeling I feel by just watching the snow falling, so I decided to record it and share it with you guys and hopefully, you could feel what I am feeling right now as I am typing. It is so calming, beautiful and made you feel loved at the same time reflective..so serene and peaceful...

This is the view from my room window..I just sat there quietly..and enjoyed the feeling...

Okie, below is the video I took when I was typing this blog half way, and Chew Ping (my housemate) came down and said...wanna go out? We wanted to do this earlier but the snow kinda stopped..so, we thought, "Let's just go to sleep" but since she couldn't sleep, so yeah..why not? Let's do it!!!!! lol...

I wanted to post some pics of the CNY celebration but it's not that interesting anyway..maybe next entry...:)

New friends, new family...

I just came back from meeting two new friends (Mikey and Pandora)...one of them I have met twice, while the other one it was our first meeting. I am soooo happy that the dinner happened..though I didn't eat anything.

How do u know if you are going to get along with these new friends or not..you will know when it's your first meeting and all you did was lots of laughters! We said hie, and then started talking and talking and talking..it almost as if we have been friends for a long time. I didn't had to think of what I was going to say next cos I felt so comfortable to be myself..

To be alone in another country, one needs to build a new family. This family is made out of the new friendship you make with people you meet. I have been sooo blessed to have met so many people I can call family.

On another note, I worked on a surprise 60th birthday party event recently. The event was attended by 80 people, all gathered in a hall and when the birthday lady walked in with her husband, everyone sang the birthday song...It was wonderful...the feeling of friendship and love..The husband gave a speech about how they met and how amazing the wife is as a wife, mother and grandmother. I was so touched and nearly teared. I really hope one day, when I m old, I will still be surrounded by all my friends whom I love and who love me.