Wall

"I'd like to know if you'll make an effort. Will you try to be open, and not change the subject whenever it comes too close to something that hurts or that you're afraid of?"

I felt suspended, above an absolute void. "You want too much. You should have left things alone."

"Believe me, I've thought long and hard about leaving things alone. But then there will always be this wall between us."

"It's all ugly things behind the wall," I said, not looking at him.

"I'm not afraid of what's behind the wall, only the wall itself."

But the wall was my exoskeleton. It was what held me up. Sometimes it was the only thing that held me up.

---------------

"You're not walling yourself off from heartache- there's no possibility of that. You're only walling yourself off from life."

Excerpt from: Sherry Thomas, The One in My Heart.

26

I am officially a 26-year-old woman.

But I still feel 20 by heart. Heh.

What is it like to be 26? I don't know, because this pandemic happens huhu.

Actually I'm so freaking out into turning 26 when 2020 comes. Lol. Merely because I feel like reaching nearer to 30 and the fact that I'm getting old and already pass 25 years old threshold. Okay, going to share a funny story happened earlier this year.

I was waiting for my sister to pick me up at LRT station, and there was a guy approaching me wanted to sell perfumes. As I declined, he tried to have some chit chat with me and asked how old I was? And I was like "25" and then started thinking back about my answer and coming to realisation that it's already 2020. "Eh, laaa saya dah 26 tahun ni!" Lol and I think the guy saw my astonished face upon the realisation, end up apologizing to me for asking about my age hahahaha. 

That's not the issue actually, it was just like it hit me at the moment that I'll turn 26 this year. That's all. Pity him.

I don't know what's to hope, let's just say I'm open for full surprise whatever comes to me this year. (Jika umur masih panjang, insya-Allah)

Activities During Movement Control Order

Day 20.

Our MCO was extended until 14 April. I think they will announce soon that the MCO would be extended again. Looking at the positive cases day by day, it would probably be the case.

So I just want to list down activities that I've been doing during this pandemic. Hoping that when this is over (hopefully), either I would be consistently doing the positive ones rather than just glued to my phone.

1. Social Medias

Okay. I totally glued to my phone on the first few weeks of the MCO. I was either on twitter or instagram, scrolling through the feed. I even download TikTok hahaha and I found out that the content, I mean the videos were so funny and enlightening. I even ditched instagram for tiktok haha by scrolling the timeline feed, I mean. (pss I even made several tiktok videos lol but private kayh).

Then I decided that I shouldn't do this all day long, not moving at all. So..

2. Online Course

Upon my friend's suggestion, I sign up for online course at coursera.org for Greek and Roman Mythology. Why? Because it's sound interesting haha. I always curious about greek gods and their history actually. That's why I was so tempted to sign up for this class. It was free if you don't want to 'officially' get their certificate at the end of the course.

There would be various of courses you can choose there from Data Science, Arts & Humanity, Social Science etc. You can explore and choose which courses you want to enroll. 

Hope that I would focus myself on learning through this course because I struggled to watch the lecture videos. Just survived like 3 videos so far for week 1. Yeahhh.

3. Subscribe to AAPlus

Okay so I subscribe this just yesterday. I follow Aida Azlin's Tuesday Love Letters since 2018, I think. It's almost 2 years now. So this time when she promoted through email about AAPlus, I didn't hesitate to subscribe and pay for the content monthly.

In order to surround myself with this positivity and knowledge during this pandemic, AAPlus's content are really good. You can check out at aaplus.co for more information about their online content. Specially for ladies out there who want to seek knowledge and for us to find something to keep us in check on spiritual level emotionally and mentally during this pandemic.

4. Exercise

I think this is the hardest part that I struggled to be consistent with hahaha. Okay, at least I tried to exercise weekly, but looking at how every day I rarely move from my bed and just sitting there all day long, I think it's better for me to exercise every day. At least before this I went to work I have to walk every day. Now I rarely moves. So it's better to workout every day. 

Haih. You don't want to gain extra weight right during this MCO, Hannah????!!

5. Netflix and Chill + Reading

I mean like this is totally a must every day?? Watching Netflix and searching for new movies and series to watch. But recently I have not much interest to watch anything. Like every movies and series that I watched, I watched it like half-finished. Didn't finish that one, and searched for another, repeat.

Same to my reading habits. I read one book, then stop in the middle, then move to another book. Repeat.

Sigh.

So now I just listen to podcast from AAPlus while hoping that maybe (most importantly) that my reading habit would catch up a bit.

That's all for now.

Quarantine

2020 is no joke, guys.

This is so far from what all of us expected I think. 

My friends and I were planning from last December to go for a Japan trip this end of March and early April. It's spring season and to go there during hanami, watching the cherry blossoms scenery everywhere (or they called sakura!). Flight tickets bought. And then this COVID-19 happened. 

At first during February we're like, "Oh, it's not really bad. As long as we take precaution." Then March was coming, doomed! No, guys. This is really bad. So we cancelled our trip T__T

Thankfully we didn't pay for any accommodation yet. It's just the battle with the airlines now to get the refunds back, lol. I hope anyone who happened having the same problem as us, we will eventually getting back our refunds, yeah.

And today marks the Day 6 for Movement Control Order (MCO) in Malaysia. We need to stay at home for 14 days, that is until 31st March. If matters getting worse, the government might extend the MCO. Most of us working from home now except the one in essential services. But I also heard that some workers were forced to take unpaid leave :(

May this pandemic will be over soon.

Painful Truth

"We like to watch intimacy in movies, tapi in real life kita sendiri memang takkan buat. Kita lagi rela sunyi sampai mati. Daripada tunjuk sisi diri kita yang manusia ni. We would rather... screen." - Wani Ardy

Indeed. I love watching movies and uttered “awhh” when sweet moments happened just like when I watched K-Dramas. But then, just on the screen. I love listening to other people love story. But in real life, I become so cynical about it.

Guilty.

2020

Hello..?

Still can say happy new year right? Happy New Year 2020. A new decade ahead of you, wow. I think most of us have dream about what 2020 looks like. And, that's that. January started with a blooming hope for me. And a bit teary at the end. And then come February, a hectic month. Which this will go on until March, April and maybe the rest of the year?

We are on the midst of COVID-19, which resulted my trip at the end of March being cancelled. So sad :(

And then Malaysia's political turmoil of changing government (backdoor government).

Wow, 2020 you'alls.

End of 2019

Wow.

2019 marked my ups and down in my working career, mostly. I don't know what to expect in 2020 tho. Just hope than I can survive it, ameen. But it's beautiful that I got what I prayed for, alhamdulillah.

1st - once I wrote here that after chambering I wish to travel before I practice as a legal practitioner. Done! Hehe after I finished and called to the Bar I travel with my friends to Jakarta & Jogja (that's the end of 2018).

2nd - I manage to be unemployed for a few months. Then I got hired by my chambering's firm. Got to practice from February to June.

3rd - I got an offer from AGC, report myself on July.

4th - Transfer to another branch at the end of August. 

In a span of a year I was able to practice as a lawyer and as well entering into public service.

The only thing that is constant in my life is the single life hahaha. Wish 2020 to be a better year, ameen.

Trip Pulau Belitung Laskar Pelangi (13 - 16 Disember 2019)

Salam dan hai.

Baru sahaja pulang bercuti daripada Pulau Belitung yang popular dengan jolokan Pulau Laskar Pelangi. Ini merupakan last minute trip kerana waktu ini tiada kawan-kawan yang dapat ikut untuk bercuti hujung tahun jadinya saya memilih Pulau Belitung untuk short trip. Juga kerana saya merupakan seorang peminat Laskar Pelangi dan mengikuti karya-karya Andrea Hirata.

Oleh yang demikian, berdasarkan carian di internet dan membaca pengalaman para traveler yang lain di Pulau Belitung, kalau nak pergi solo trip dicadangkan untuk join Open Trip. Open Trip merupakan salah satu pilihan popular di Indonesia malahan ia lebih menjimatkan. Open trip ni kiranya kita sertai dan akan digabungkan dengan group atau individu lain yang akan ikut pada tarikh tersebut. Open trip yang saya ikuti, saya contact Sekaput Belitung (boleh whatsapp di nombor tertera di website mereka www.sekaput.com atau instagram @belitungtrip).

Secara keseluruhan kalau individu ingin ambil pakej 3H2M, bayarannya hanya sekitar IDR 800k seorang bergantung pada hotel yang dipilih. Memandangkan saya ingin join trip hujung tahun, saya memilih tarikh 14-16 Disember. Tapi tiket direct flight Air Asia - Tanjung Pandan tiada pada 14 haribulan, jadi saya tambah sehari penginapan di sana sehari. Memandangkan saya pergi berdua dengan kakak, total sekali dengan dijemput ke airport pada hari tersebut adalah IDR 1.850 juta. Seorang dalam RM 286 kalau convert (harga ini termasuk hotel, peralatan sewa island hopping, bayaran tempat masuk kecuali Muzium Kata dan tour guide).

Hari pertama betul-betul sampai di Belitung kami berehat di bilik hotel setelah pergi ke Mart untuk beli sedikit makanan dan selepas makan tengah hari. Petangnya hujan. Rupanya di sini pun tengah musim tengkujuh bulan Disember.

Itinerary selama 3 Hari 2 Malam:

1. Hari Pertama

i) Sarapan Pagi - Mie Belitung

Sedap jugak. Kuah dia tu rasa macam mie rebus la kalau kat Terengganu.

ii) Pantai Serdang

iii) Rumah Ahok / Rumah Fifi

Ahok merupakan ahli politik di Indonesia dan beliau berasal dari Belitung. Rumah keluarganya hanya berada berhadapan dengan Kampong Ahok (rumah kayu ini). Sekarang Kampung Ahok ditukar nama kepada Kampung Fifi. Di dalamnya ada barangan cenderamata seperti mug, T-Shirt, makanan ringan dan kerepek.

iv) Muzium Kata Andrea Hirata

Untuk orang macam saya yang merupakan peminat tetralogi Laskar Pelangi, melawati Muzium Kata ini adalah suatu yang mesti ada. Dikatakan bahawa Muzium Kata ini merupakan Muzium sastera yang pertama di Indonesia. Bayaran masuk merupakan IDR 50k dan anda akan diberikan Buku Saku nipis Laskar Pelangi seperti di atas.

Tetralogi Laskar Pelangi yang telah diterjemah dalam pelbagai bahasa.

v) Replika SD Muhammadiyah & Rumah Keong

Ini hanyalah replika sekolah Muhammadiyah yang di dalam buku tersebut. Sekolah sebenar telah pun dirobohkan dan telah dibina sebuah sekolah yang lain. 

Rumah Keong

vi) Mangroove / Ngopi

Sepatutnya kami pergi mangroove tapi cuacanya tidak mengizinkan. Hujan lebat lalu kami dibawa mengopi di Kong Djie Coffee. Kopinya sedap!

vii) Dinner

Makan malam di Timpo Duluk untuk merasakan makanan asli Belitung.

2. Hari Kedua

Island Hopping!

i) Pantai Tanjung Kelayang

ii) Pulau Lengkuas

iii) Pulau Burung

iv) Pulau Kelayang

v) Pantai Tanjung Tinggi

Pantai Tanjung Tinggi merupakan salah satu tempat lokasi syuting Laskar Pelangi. Seperti yang kalian dapat lihat dalam video klip Nidji, lagunya Laskar Pelangi itu.

3. Hari Ketiga

i) Tanjung Pendam

Salah satu kawasan atau pantai di Belitung.

ii) Rumah Adat Belitung

Lebih kepada pameran, terdapat props mengenai pakaian tradisional pengantin, hantaran kahwin etc. Boleh sewa pakaian pengantin untuk bergambar.


iii) Danau Kaolin

Danau Kaolin merupakan bekas kawasan perlombongan biji timah yang merupakan sumber pendapatan penduduk dahulu sebelum harga biji timah jatuh di pasaran dunia. Kisah berkenaan PN Timah jatuh bankrap juga ada disisipkan dalam buku kedua Andrea iaitu Sang Pemimpi kerana bapa Ikal merupakan salah seorang buruh yang bekerja di situ.

Itu sahaja setakat ini. Tips: untuk mendapatkan pengalaman yang lagi best di sini dinasihatkan pergilah sekitar bulan Mac - Jun iaitu ketika bukan musim tengkujuh seperti hujung tahun. Jadi boleh nikmati snorkelling dan island hopping dengan pemandangan yang lagi cantik jika cuaca terang.

Sekian. (doa untuk cepat kaya untuk trip 2020 pula)