1st note from Reading

I promised my friends that I'll be writing to them through my blog.. so here goes..

Kehadapan Caah, Wilson, Diana, Yatt, Aween and all my family and friends who miss me (hehe.. :D ada ke?)

It was freezing cold in Reading last night. The rain was pouring heavily throughout the day and night, and I got stuck with my writing, as I have been drafting this post since yesterday morning.

I safely arrived at Heathrow Airport on Tuesday morning after a journey of more than 17 hours. The local temperature was then 12 degree Celsius. Well, endurable (though the low temperature back in my office usually kills me) No jet lag whatsoever, although I could not really sleep during the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Abu Dhabi and from Abu Dhabi to London.

The Etihad flight throughout the journey was not as bad as what I had anticipated after reading the online reviews of previous passengers. Nice meals, pretty stewards and stewardesses, window seat on both flights (my fave!) but only that the seat space might be a bit smaller compared to the flights I have been on. Plenty of in-flight movies to keep myself entertained with, and I could hardly sleep.. unlike the-usual-sleepyhead-me when I'm on flights on business trips.


The two-and-a-half hour stopover in Abu Dhabi was not a bad one too. No doubt the airport is smaller than KLIA, making it a bit congested that night accommodating a huge number of travelers. But it didn't really matter, and the airport staff were friendly and helpful. I also met a Pakistani girl who was on her transit in Abu Dhabi to Frankfurt and we had a small chat. Interestingly her parents were working in Kepala Batas, and because of that, she told me she was quite familiar with Malaysia (I don't think I've been to Kepala Batas myself!)

Some photos I managed to snap from my camera (and a few taken by my hubby)..

Stepping out of the flight exit led to this spectacular lounge. The mosaic design that connected the ceiling to the center pillar easily made me freeze my steps to take a better look on it. Oh well, if it was not unique and elaborate, then I would not think it was UAE I landed in.

Another beautiful ceiling design in Abu Dhabi airport. This shopping lounge led to the boarding gates.

"I'm leaving on a jet plane..~" Etihad aircraft from a distance.

I couldn't really sleep.. and I waited for this moment to arrive.. the sunrise. In real life, it was even more mesmerizing. The light spectrum was just so captivating.

We were gonna reach Heathrow in a few minutes. Just look at that. It was London!

Can you spot London Bridge? :)

Arrived finally! (this shot reminded me of the fighting scene in Die Hard, where after getting rid of the bad guys, Bruce Willis made the cool runway fire torch for the plane his wife was on to land. How romantically thoughtful..) 

Meanwhile.. Mr. Husband was waiting for his wife at the arrival hall..

Mrs. Wife stepped out of the customs exit and spotted her Mr. Husband. She couldn't stop smiling..

The grin was even bigger when he presented her with the bouquet :D So sweet of you sayang..

Finally, they were united again~

So yeah, I have begun my long leave.. and I'm having a great time :) 

Ustazah said..

Ramadhan is here again. I am so thankful that I am given another chance to experience Ramadhan again. And I hope I will use this given chance to improve myself spiritually; to seek forgiveness and blessings from Allah, and to improve my relationship with others. Insya-Allah.

Today was a great day at MISC prayer room. We received a visit from an ustazah. Well, it's not everyday that we, the jemaah, get to listen to 'ceramah' by ustazah. Can't really recall her name, but she was as pretty as Heliza. Soft spoken. A wife of a doctor and a mother of a nine-month old baby and has written a number of religious books alongside notable ulama' and motivators. She's undergoing her Ph.D currently (which made me think, where am I?)

What gained our attention was her topic of the day: Wanita (Women). There were quite a few important topics that she was able to cover within the given one hour: The story of Maryam (one of the four women mentioned in Al-Quran), favorite Islamic issues that anti-Muslims like to create confusion about... and there were few other.. which the one that caught the most attention was polygamy. But trust me, her arguments were clear and concise, and somehow helped the jemaah to understand better.

(Siapa rajin, baca la terjemahan + tafsir surah An-Nisa. I quickly referred to the translation of the verse as soon as we ended the session.. and got my understanding better..)

Before she ended the ceramah, she left us with a quote. It went straight to my brain and heart.

"Sebenarnya bukan perempuan bertudung yang patut dilihat ketinggalan zaman.. sebenarnya perempuan yang tidak bertudunglah yang sebenarnya ketinggalan zaman..... kenapa? kerana itu amalan orang jahiliyyah.. yang suka melanggar perintah Allah.."

The audience paused in a brief silence. I froze. I never thought like that before. Suddenly a few faces came to my thoughts..

.. Sekadar perkongsian di bulan Ramadhan.. moga tiada yang terasa.. wallahualam..

The 101th post

Don't ask me what's with the 100th, 101th post. I kinda just think that these numbers mean well to EE engineers.. well, at least to me. It also seems like I have begun to spend my days without so much thinking of blogging. Is it some sort like a change after marriage? Hmm, I would say not exactly. I suppose the fact that I only have 2 weekends left before I take a long hiatus from the office (and from my family - that's the worst part) squeezes the time I have to complete loads of things.. work-wise and also personal-wise.

But amazingly within these few last weeks, I really had a great time (well, let's also say my 2 weeks in Kerteh was fun too :) Nadi and Wilson are the reason definitely): Zamila's wedding, luncheon with Fatin & Jaja, Edzuan's house warming cum Mikael's 1st birthday party (thank God for the avenue to fulfill my promise to Hazlinda to meet her before I leave!), 2 times of durian feast at home (trust me I never knew that I could eat more than 6 ulas!), some shopping using all the vouchers that I got during my wedding (hihi) and Yayasan UTP Concert 'Tapestry of Colours" filled my time (apart from work and commuting to and fro Sg Buloh - Kajang).

 Alone browsing the Net at Awana lobby.. 

(Can you imagine they don't even have room internet connection.. and they charge RM25 to use wi-fi at the lobby! Whereas other hotels with cheaper room rates offer free internet utilization in the room! Huh)

Friends from childhood.. At Zamila's wedding

 

Alamak Tein, I'm 2 ringgit short!! RM50 notes adalah.. (cewah.. lame gile) Masuk buku 555 eh..

 

My companions for Yayasan UTP concert.. ever loving sisters

I'm currently reading Nicholas Sparks' Dear John.. after falling immensely in love with the movie ( I just love that kind of genre.. love stories..) The novel has not disappointed me so far.. plus imagining the characters while reading as Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried like in the movie makes ambling through the novel even more appealing :)

Ramadhan is approaching very very soon. I am thankful that I have another chance to go through this blissful month. I'm not really certain how I will adapt to a different environment soon.. and with really long hours of fasting (I mean extending 7-8 hours more of fasting from the usual 5.45 a.m to 7.30 p.m).. well, that is something iman has to take control over.. and I trust that a hungry stomach means nothing over accomplishing a day fasting with patience and ibadah :) Insya-Allah..