Setarlia Surprise

Ariff and I are in Canberra! He is here for a course with Australia's DFAT and I am here for a HOLIDAY!

It's the tail end of winter and it will be spring very soon! It's beautiful here! I am using so many exclamation marks that I'm sure you realize how happy I am to be here, not for anything else, but just to be together for raya. Our very first raya as husband and wife!

More updates to come!

!

Love!
Fea

3rd Anniversary Cameron Highlands Weekend

We kick started the day as early as 7.30 am for our anniversary trip up CH. Really beaming with smiles as it’s been a while since we travelled away for the weekend. Took the Shah Alam route this time around as we tried very hard to avoid KL’s BERSIH rally and later I found out probably it was the best decision made as the traffic jams wer
e unbearable!...in fact it was quite a pleasant drive.

Taking the Simpang Pulai route was full of blooming orchids, morning glories, and “oohs” and “ahhs”. Would have preferred fewer cars here though. Travelling up CH reminds me of being transported to another world, very different from us ‘lowlanders’ in Putrajaya/Penang/Parit Buntar. Arriving here we went straight for lunch at Tanah Rata at this place call Rosedale Bistro; steamboat for two on a very cold day…yum. Bloated for a while after the meal but no complaints here. Still on a quest in search for the ultimate steam boat here as there are so many that its spoilt for choice, but this wasn’t bad at all.

Next on the list was our search for the ultimate tea and scones. Not being to get it from our first destination (Cameronian Inn), we headed across the road to Lords Café. Yes there is such a place like it and by its name, lives up to its expectation & name sake. However the scones and tea here were amazing and the place is somewhat cozy.

Having a good meal so far we decided to check in our gear at Equatorial but unfortunately the Senator Suite was not ready, which was somewhat of a blessing in disguise. Our eating escapade continued as we went to Raaju’s Hill Strawberry Farm where we bought strawberries, enjoyed strawberry juice + strawberry float, fried mushrooms, and scouted for flowers & cactus before we do the mother-of-all-shopping tomorrow.

The suite we were in was big in size but old school in terms of furniture. Cold and cozy (plus nice to snuggle =). After getting a power nap after long travelling, we headed for dinner that night once again at Tanah Rata for dinner and coffee. # Tip: Be prepared for a jam…bring a good travelling partner and wait it out. Worth the wait. Once at Tanah Rata after about half an hour, we headed for Sri Brincang restautant (tandoori set/maggi goring/the tarik); pleasantly surprising though. # Tip 2: Hot coffee is best drank in cold weather…duh! But caramel macchiato is ultimately at its best in Cameronian type of weather.

Waking up in the highlands is an experience that is indescribable; cold to the bone yet refreshing. Super excited to begin the day as we got ready to do ‘major shopping’. Had breakfast at Rainbow CH in the form of nasi lemak (which was not that bad) followed by chicken chop (literally dunked in oil) accompanied by milo and coffee. After a somewhat so called breakfast, we headed to the day market just around the corner at Kea Farm. We bought about 2 bags of vegetables, fresh cut & preserved flowers, and new additions to our cacti family. In short we literally ‘borong’ what we could carry and we were both beaming with smiles across our face once done.

At 12, we checked out of our hotel room and got on the road again. This time we bypassed Tanah Rata and stopped for something to eat at Bharat Tea Plantation on the way to Tapah. Probably the most cut throat place on CH with scones costing at RM 12 and brownies at RM 8.50. The only saving grace would have had to be the scene of the tea plantation itself.

The trip down the windy road to the highway takes approximately 1 hour down a treacherous long winding over taking old road. The whole road was scenic with pockets of orang asli make shift huts selling wild honey & other jungle fruits. There was even a majestic waterfall on the way down. The only thing I would have wanted was that if there could have been less overtaking drivers along the way though.

After the long & windy road came to an end, the drive was pretty much easy and quick. Roads were clear after previous closure of KL the day before. What was noticeable was that as we drove back we saw numerous convoys of FRU trucks and police vehicles. Its been a great anniversary, but I have a few more surprises up my sleeves =)

I love you Fea. Happy 3^rd Anniversary sayang. Wishing for more happy anniversaries ahead.

Remembering Ramadhan

When I was a little girl, Ramadhan was a fascinating event. All of a sudden, the normal routine of eating became a celebrated occasion. Suddenly my mother would start cooking 'special' things, things that she didn't cook everyday (laksa johor, roti canai, cendol, pizza etc.) for berbuka (iftar). We kids would be glimmery-eyed, waiting at the kitchen door or standing right next to the stove or squatting right next to her as she whipped up all these mouth-watering morsels that we were forbidden to taste (as we usually would) until the azan can be heard wafting through the air. It was an extremely painful pleasure.

One of my most memorable Ramadhan moments from yesteryear is that one time my mother decided to play a trick on my little brothers. I think they couldn't have been more than 8 at the time, still with their puasa training wheels on. She was making cookies for Raya in the kitchen and my brothers, as usual, were messing up the flour and touching things they weren't supposed to, and my mother, at her wits end, popped a cookie freshly taken from the oven right into her mouth at 3pm on a day of Ramadhan. Obviously she was not able to fast on the day, but my dummy brothers, not knowing the wonderful secret mysteries of womanhood, just completely stopped in their tracks, hands in the air and  mouths on the floor. "Mak makan???" ('you ate something, Mother???'). I remember how hilariously round their eyes were and how their disbelief could be felt throbbing in the room. And my mother, just for good measure, put another cookie in her mouth. I had yet to experience that particular process she was going through, but I knew what the perks were, so I was not as astonished as the two boys. Zubair and Abbas, their eyes getting rounder and opened mouths getting bigger with each cookie disappearing into my mother's mouth, asked her, "Mak buat magic ke?" (Are you doing magic, Mother?"). And my mother just smiled a secret smile. However, a trick that she thought would save her cookies from complete destruction at the hand of two bored and hungry boys backfired. Once they got over the initial shock of seeing her take the forbidden fruit, they started telling everyone that "Mak kita buat magic, boleh makan masa bulan puasa" (Our Mother can do magic because she can eat during the fasting month"). She had to go through the embarrassment for a few hours, but I'm sure it was all worth it for almost 3 minutes of of pure astonished silence from her two rambunctious sons. And I'm so glad I was there as a witness. Can you imagine the potential of this story when told to their future nephews, nieces and children?

That story was written probably 16 years ago (!). Today is my first Ramadhan as a wife. I am celebrating Ramadhan by making sure my husband and I eat healthy, performing tarawih prayers at the mosque together and trying very hard to wake up at 5am everyday. I hope this Ramadhan will give me extra motivation to change what I should and to do what I need to do.

Salam Ramadhan to all.

Fea