Wednesday, November 10, 2010
For just over 2 incredible weeks in June, I went on tour with the Voices of Baha choir :) They're a choir made up of people from all over the world who get together basically to sing songs about peace, love and harmony. There are a million and one emotions that I could place on my trip to India this summer. The most memorable one being Happiness :)
It's a funny kind of thing leaving the country for the first time and being away from your family for a long period of time (yes, 2 weeks is long for me). It doesn't really hit you 'til it hits you, you know? I wasn't traveling alone, I had this wonderful lady named Ibu Yeoni (pronounced "Yuni") with me :)
Even though it was so great having her around, it's still different being away from your family :/
All of this just happened to hit me outside the terminal at the KL International Airport. My mum, my dad and my sister were there to see me and Ibu off and literally *just* as I was about to hand the attendants my ticket and boarding pass my brain goes like "Oh crap". So to force myself on, I kind of had to remember how much it cost to send me there, how much I actually wanted to go and how much I was looking forward to India. Ibu constantly chatting to me helped too :)
We were pretty early for our flight so there was a lot of sitting around waiting. At least the view was nice. We could see the planes coming in to stop at the terminal. It was kind of a relief to sit there and see the planes and be like "Okay, there's no turning back now so you just have to do it!"
The flight there was TERRIBLE. I seriously wish I'd brought some sleeping pills or something. I hadn't wanted to sleep because I wanted to be awake for my first long flight (5 hours) but I kind of regret it now :/ I think most of the plane (or at least my section of it) was full of this really huge family all flying back to India. Or at least that's what it seemed like to me :/ Cause everyone was talking to everyone in Hindi, walking up and down the aisles and changing seats. It was so confusing! And this lady sat next to me and she didn't speak English so she didn't understand when I asked her if she was flying with her family :/ This flight was also my first exposure to Ibu's chatterbox syndrome XD She would talk to anybody and everybody who would listen to her :) So the flight was really, really turbulent (we wound up being told to buckle our seat belts every few minutes) and really really noisy but the view of India coming in to the landing was *so* worth it.
Can you say Slumdog Millionaire? :D
Mumbai International Airport was a funny experience. There are slums riiiiiiiight next to the runways! Some of them were even ON the runways! Do I really need to comment on that? I was petrified for those people 0.0
When you land at the International Arrivals terminal, you have to walk and walk and walk and walk for aaaaaaaages (seriously - 10-15 minutes!) before you get to the baggage claim. Then there's the mulling through immigration, then it's another long walk before you get to the entrance. The great thing about the travel company they hired for the tour was that they really looked after us from the moment we land - right outside the entrance, they had people waiting with signs to take us to the hotel. The trip to the hotel alone was wonderful! You have to travel right across Mumbai to get to the hotel from the airport. The area around the airport was buzzing with taxis & autos going all over the place - all of them with "Horn Okay Please!" printed across their bumpers. It really had me laughing but our tour guide didn't get it XD We passed through the slums, the high-rise buildings, the old apartments made new and the mosque in the Bay of Mumbai.
The hotel we stayed at was the The Trident, Nariman Point, Mumbai. If you're wondering why "Nariman Point" sounds so familiar, it's because the Trident was one of the hotels involved in the Mumbai bombings - all of which took place around Nariman Point. The Trident wasn't hit that badly, but the hotel connected to it (the Oberoi) was hit terribly. In fact, most of the Oberoi had to be rebuilt. It's a beautiful hotel, but we weren't allowed to take pictures in it for security reasons. But imagine an all black & white marble lounge, with marble walls going up to the ceiling 3 floors above. All decorated with black & cream furniture - black armchairs & tables and right in the middle of the lounge, a bright red grand piano! It was the most beautiful combination of things I've ever seen in a room. And they have this amazing light feature, it's made up of fresh orchids forming a sphere to create a HUGE flower chandelier with the black marble staircase curling around it, it was just beautiful. That's not to say the Trident itself wasn't beautiful, though :)
The first day was spent kind of milling around my room, waiting for my room mate to arrive. I was meant to be sharing with Joanne LeBlanc, a lady from Canada. So I waited up until I couldn't wait anymore then decided to just go to sleep, hoping I'd wake up if she came in. I got to know my TV really well in the mean time lol
The next morning I woke up at 4am (3 hour time difference :/) to... no roommate. Which was confusing, cause she was supposed to have arrived the day before :/ I decided not to worry about it and go down for breakfast. I went to Ibu's room and got to know her roommate - Liz Hahn from Hawaii :)
We all had breakfast together, since we're all early risers (Ibu and I out of habit - time diff) then we headed to the lobby to register :)
It was a great way of getting everyone to kind of take a good look at all the people in the group. It was mostly made up of people over 40 but there were a few kids like me :) Ibu seemed to know everybody and anybody. I kind of took it on myself to photograph the occasion and test my camera :P
After registration, we all got together to walk to the practice area - the Mumbai National Center for Performing Arts. We went in through the back entrance so it seemed like a pretty small building. We were shown into an auditorium that was somewhat like Pentas 3 in KLPAC if anyone's been there. It was all done in black with those plastic chairs with metal legs. We all took seats and they began with prayers :) It's kind of nice how everything (practices, performances) started off with prayers. It calmed us down and got us centered before we began singing. Then we were divided into our parts and I happened to be sitting next to one of the amazing friends I met on this trip: Sahba Kashani :D
We got to work right away with practicing our parts. The speed at which we did things was crazy! Song after song after song came and I had to try my best to keep up :/ I think we did like 6-9 songs a day and 9 hours of singing per day so that's like 1 song per 1.5 hours or so :S It was intense, but gratifying - I really felt like I was kicking my vocal chords into shape XD
I remember going to bed pretty satisfied. Exhausted, but happy and satisfied :)
It's a funny kind of thing leaving the country for the first time and being away from your family for a long period of time (yes, 2 weeks is long for me). It doesn't really hit you 'til it hits you, you know? I wasn't traveling alone, I had this wonderful lady named Ibu Yeoni (pronounced "Yuni") with me :)
Even though it was so great having her around, it's still different being away from your family :/
All of this just happened to hit me outside the terminal at the KL International Airport. My mum, my dad and my sister were there to see me and Ibu off and literally *just* as I was about to hand the attendants my ticket and boarding pass my brain goes like "Oh crap". So to force myself on, I kind of had to remember how much it cost to send me there, how much I actually wanted to go and how much I was looking forward to India. Ibu constantly chatting to me helped too :)
We were pretty early for our flight so there was a lot of sitting around waiting. At least the view was nice. We could see the planes coming in to stop at the terminal. It was kind of a relief to sit there and see the planes and be like "Okay, there's no turning back now so you just have to do it!"
The flight there was TERRIBLE. I seriously wish I'd brought some sleeping pills or something. I hadn't wanted to sleep because I wanted to be awake for my first long flight (5 hours) but I kind of regret it now :/ I think most of the plane (or at least my section of it) was full of this really huge family all flying back to India. Or at least that's what it seemed like to me :/ Cause everyone was talking to everyone in Hindi, walking up and down the aisles and changing seats. It was so confusing! And this lady sat next to me and she didn't speak English so she didn't understand when I asked her if she was flying with her family :/ This flight was also my first exposure to Ibu's chatterbox syndrome XD She would talk to anybody and everybody who would listen to her :) So the flight was really, really turbulent (we wound up being told to buckle our seat belts every few minutes) and really really noisy but the view of India coming in to the landing was *so* worth it.
Can you say Slumdog Millionaire? :D
Mumbai International Airport was a funny experience. There are slums riiiiiiiight next to the runways! Some of them were even ON the runways! Do I really need to comment on that? I was petrified for those people 0.0
When you land at the International Arrivals terminal, you have to walk and walk and walk and walk for aaaaaaaages (seriously - 10-15 minutes!) before you get to the baggage claim. Then there's the mulling through immigration, then it's another long walk before you get to the entrance. The great thing about the travel company they hired for the tour was that they really looked after us from the moment we land - right outside the entrance, they had people waiting with signs to take us to the hotel. The trip to the hotel alone was wonderful! You have to travel right across Mumbai to get to the hotel from the airport. The area around the airport was buzzing with taxis & autos going all over the place - all of them with "Horn Okay Please!" printed across their bumpers. It really had me laughing but our tour guide didn't get it XD We passed through the slums, the high-rise buildings, the old apartments made new and the mosque in the Bay of Mumbai.
The hotel we stayed at was the The Trident, Nariman Point, Mumbai. If you're wondering why "Nariman Point" sounds so familiar, it's because the Trident was one of the hotels involved in the Mumbai bombings - all of which took place around Nariman Point. The Trident wasn't hit that badly, but the hotel connected to it (the Oberoi) was hit terribly. In fact, most of the Oberoi had to be rebuilt. It's a beautiful hotel, but we weren't allowed to take pictures in it for security reasons. But imagine an all black & white marble lounge, with marble walls going up to the ceiling 3 floors above. All decorated with black & cream furniture - black armchairs & tables and right in the middle of the lounge, a bright red grand piano! It was the most beautiful combination of things I've ever seen in a room. And they have this amazing light feature, it's made up of fresh orchids forming a sphere to create a HUGE flower chandelier with the black marble staircase curling around it, it was just beautiful. That's not to say the Trident itself wasn't beautiful, though :)
The first day was spent kind of milling around my room, waiting for my room mate to arrive. I was meant to be sharing with Joanne LeBlanc, a lady from Canada. So I waited up until I couldn't wait anymore then decided to just go to sleep, hoping I'd wake up if she came in. I got to know my TV really well in the mean time lol
The next morning I woke up at 4am (3 hour time difference :/) to... no roommate. Which was confusing, cause she was supposed to have arrived the day before :/ I decided not to worry about it and go down for breakfast. I went to Ibu's room and got to know her roommate - Liz Hahn from Hawaii :)
We all had breakfast together, since we're all early risers (Ibu and I out of habit - time diff) then we headed to the lobby to register :)
It was a great way of getting everyone to kind of take a good look at all the people in the group. It was mostly made up of people over 40 but there were a few kids like me :) Ibu seemed to know everybody and anybody. I kind of took it on myself to photograph the occasion and test my camera :P
After registration, we all got together to walk to the practice area - the Mumbai National Center for Performing Arts. We went in through the back entrance so it seemed like a pretty small building. We were shown into an auditorium that was somewhat like Pentas 3 in KLPAC if anyone's been there. It was all done in black with those plastic chairs with metal legs. We all took seats and they began with prayers :) It's kind of nice how everything (practices, performances) started off with prayers. It calmed us down and got us centered before we began singing. Then we were divided into our parts and I happened to be sitting next to one of the amazing friends I met on this trip: Sahba Kashani :D
We got to work right away with practicing our parts. The speed at which we did things was crazy! Song after song after song came and I had to try my best to keep up :/ I think we did like 6-9 songs a day and 9 hours of singing per day so that's like 1 song per 1.5 hours or so :S It was intense, but gratifying - I really felt like I was kicking my vocal chords into shape XD
I remember going to bed pretty satisfied. Exhausted, but happy and satisfied :)
ally.j.belle 8:09 AM.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
I have officially found my dream dog :D An Old English Mastiff :D:D
ally.j.belle 4:45 AM.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
A little dedication to the people who made Form 5 life as awesome as it was <3
ally.j.belle 7:05 AM.
Monday, April 19, 2010
A) Old Age and Sentimentality
The running joke between Tracy and I is that both of us are "aunties". Our messages to one another normally begin with "Oi, Aunty" followed by whatever it is we have to say to one another :P I think the silliness is starting to manifest itself in real life XD As the years go by, we seem to be giving each other sentimental presents that seem to increase in their sentimentality as each year goes by. From "birthday scrapbooks/journals" to personalized bookmarks to socks and to stuffed animals (re: Dorkus Marlokus Maximus - pictured above), all of them have a meaning and it's pretty awesome to have virtually just that one person in the world to share them with who knows exactly what each of them mean :D
B) Of Clumsiness and Hangul
The running joke between Tracy and I is that both of us are "aunties". Our messages to one another normally begin with "Oi, Aunty" followed by whatever it is we have to say to one another :P I think the silliness is starting to manifest itself in real life XD As the years go by, we seem to be giving each other sentimental presents that seem to increase in their sentimentality as each year goes by. From "birthday scrapbooks/journals" to personalized bookmarks to socks and to stuffed animals (re: Dorkus Marlokus Maximus - pictured above), all of them have a meaning and it's pretty awesome to have virtually just that one person in the world to share them with who knows exactly what each of them mean :D
B) Of Clumsiness and Hangul
Ever since Trace introduced me to this KDrama You're Beautiful, this beautiful song has been running through my head. It's a song that they play in virtually every episode and is SO easy to play on guitar! It's a little tough to sing, but that's all part of the challenge. In English, the chorus means something like "Without a word, you showed me love... without a word, love left me..." Anyways, it's this really gorgeous song and there are 4 different versions of it used in a drama! You'd think, since it plays every episode, I'd be sick of it but I'm not :) In fact, I romanized the lyrics myself and I've learnt how to play/sing it :D
C) Painted Faces
If you'd asked me 4 years ago to wear make-up, I'd have put up a fuss and eventually gone with as little as possible. If you'd asked me 3 years ago to watch TV shows about fashion, I'd have said no and watched a "Making Of..." special on a music video instead. If you'd asked me 2 years ago to go clothes shopping, I'd have squirmed my way out of it or squirmed my way through it. If you'd ask me last year to actually go and buy make-up for myself, I'd have called you crazy.
Well, this year, I got my first little make-up supplies. Starting with that SilkyGirl LipGloss in Barely Nude (17) [I think that's the name and code, anyway]. The Funky Eyelights in Gold and Blue are my Mum's as well as the eyeliner but I use them more than anyone else in the house :/ I think I'm starting to develop the same kind of love KP has for nail polish and manicures for make-up :) Next on my wishlist: Funky Eyelights in silver and green.
And yes, I am shamelessly a converted SilkyGirl.
C) Painted Faces
If you'd asked me 4 years ago to wear make-up, I'd have put up a fuss and eventually gone with as little as possible. If you'd asked me 3 years ago to watch TV shows about fashion, I'd have said no and watched a "Making Of..." special on a music video instead. If you'd asked me 2 years ago to go clothes shopping, I'd have squirmed my way out of it or squirmed my way through it. If you'd ask me last year to actually go and buy make-up for myself, I'd have called you crazy.
Well, this year, I got my first little make-up supplies. Starting with that SilkyGirl LipGloss in Barely Nude (17) [I think that's the name and code, anyway]. The Funky Eyelights in Gold and Blue are my Mum's as well as the eyeliner but I use them more than anyone else in the house :/ I think I'm starting to develop the same kind of love KP has for nail polish and manicures for make-up :) Next on my wishlist: Funky Eyelights in silver and green.
And yes, I am shamelessly a converted SilkyGirl.
ally.j.belle 7:32 AM.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
I still remember the very veryyy first conversation I had with KP :)It was my first day at school and I hadn't made any new friends and then, at recess (when I thought I'd just about give up on speaking AT ALL that day), I see her sitting at the table across mine, reading a Raymond E. Feist book. And our verrryyyyy first conversation started out with:
"Wow, is that Raymond E. Feist?"
"Yup, you read his books too?"
Or something to that effect, anyway lol Stuff kinda snowballed from there, but we didn't really start talking 'til Form 3-ish, I think. When we were in the same class, sat next to each other and could sing songs together at the top of our lungs :) Since then, it's been awesome.
Our usual exploits include:
- Dancing Koi no ABO in class XD
- Singing Ai Nante at the top of our lungs on the way to one of the labs (in the midst of all the younger students)
- Talking too fast/finishing each other's sentences in such a way that people can't keep up with us (totally unintentionally, of course!)
PS. We need to take more pictures together when you get back here!
ally.j.belle 1:02 AM.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
I've started this little picture blog in the hope that I'll keep posting! It's basically an outlet to practice my writing/photography and hopefully, everyone reading this won't get too bored of it :)
A) Formula 1 Practice
This year (I'm not entirely sure about the years before) the Friday Practice Sessions for The 2010 Sepang F1 GP was free! So the family made a trip there and we watched the practice session :) We were a little late cause the girls had to come home from school and get ready, but we got there about half an hour after it started - 2.30pm. The stands were mostly empty so we were able to move around quite a bit and take photos along the length of the K1/K2 grandstands.
I guess most people would find it boring, but we had an awesome time :) The roar of the engines was amazing. I went to the toilet (which was outside the grandstands) and the noise was shaking the bathroom doors! Now imagine being seated about 8 feet behind the tyre walls...
These are the shots I'm 100% sure I took because I loved taking the cars as they came down the starting straight and turned into the first corner.
B) Yummyyummyummy
On a whim the other day, I decided to put my slightly-neglected miso paste to good use with one of my new favourite vegetables: eggplants :D
I fried them in tempura batter with a little oil and made some tomato-ginger-miso sauce by frying up some onions and ginger in some veggie oil (and some sesame oil) then adding tomatoes and miso paste (dissolved in some water). I used soy sauce (no salt) and some pepper to season it and thickened it with the leftover tempura batter. The one in the picture above was attempt #2 at making it. I didn't have any tomatoes so I used ketchup (which didn't do as good a job).
It was soooo gooodddd :D And I'm not just saying that 'cause I made it! I really do love it.
I'm going to try and upload as often as possible (and putting our camera to good use!) so stay tuned for episode 2 :)
A) Formula 1 Practice
This year (I'm not entirely sure about the years before) the Friday Practice Sessions for The 2010 Sepang F1 GP was free! So the family made a trip there and we watched the practice session :) We were a little late cause the girls had to come home from school and get ready, but we got there about half an hour after it started - 2.30pm. The stands were mostly empty so we were able to move around quite a bit and take photos along the length of the K1/K2 grandstands.
I guess most people would find it boring, but we had an awesome time :) The roar of the engines was amazing. I went to the toilet (which was outside the grandstands) and the noise was shaking the bathroom doors! Now imagine being seated about 8 feet behind the tyre walls...
These are the shots I'm 100% sure I took because I loved taking the cars as they came down the starting straight and turned into the first corner.
B) Yummyyummyummy
On a whim the other day, I decided to put my slightly-neglected miso paste to good use with one of my new favourite vegetables: eggplants :D
I fried them in tempura batter with a little oil and made some tomato-ginger-miso sauce by frying up some onions and ginger in some veggie oil (and some sesame oil) then adding tomatoes and miso paste (dissolved in some water). I used soy sauce (no salt) and some pepper to season it and thickened it with the leftover tempura batter. The one in the picture above was attempt #2 at making it. I didn't have any tomatoes so I used ketchup (which didn't do as good a job).
It was soooo gooodddd :D And I'm not just saying that 'cause I made it! I really do love it.
I'm going to try and upload as often as possible (and putting our camera to good use!) so stay tuned for episode 2 :)
ally.j.belle 5:51 AM.
