Universal Studio Singapore

For this year family vacation, we went to visit the Universal Studio Singapore! Despite the hardship of us driving in the heavy rain for more than 4 hours from Kuala Lumpur to Johor Bahru, Alhamdulillah the weather in Singapore was perfectly fine for the whole day we spend in USS. The bus we took dropped us off around 11 am, took us almost 2 hours journey from our hotel in JB - including the hopping on and off the bus for both immigrations check-ins. Gosh, the place was crowded with people already since it was both school and public holiday (lesson learned). There were hardly any spot that was empty, so we pretty much competing for place to take picture with everyone!

The famous Universal Studio globe at the entrance.

So USS was divided into 7 parts with different theme: New York, Sci-Fi City, Ancient Egypt, Lost World, Far Faraway, Madagascar and Hollywood. We kicked off our journey from the New York zone first. When I say New York, I really do feel like I’m in New York. No, I feel like I’m just walk into the set of Sex In The City, kekekek. There was this famous New York Public Library where Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) claims as ‘the classic New York landmark that housed all the great love stories’. Anyway, we all got a little too excited because every corner of the replica building screams for a shot.

In front of the NY Public Library

And now to the future world – the futuristic Sci-Fi City.

And then we were brought way back to the ancient history of Egypt. 

We met Brendan Fraser - err almost! :DD 

This could be my least fave theme - the Lost World. I don't know, maybe because I’m not a fond of dinosaurs. But there was a staff there holding a baby dinosaur! Of course it's not real, but it's moving and he’s chewing the staffs' sleeve. And every time people want to pat him, he’ll turn his head (in attempt to bite?). Cute but scary. 

The baby dinosaur~

There was a mini park called The Water World where we can watch The Waterworld show - a live acting performance which involves many dangerous stunts and lots of fire and gun and explosion. It was an amazing show! The actors and actress were doing all the stunts without wearing any safety. Also, there was a sudden airplane fly into the show arena out of nowhere, unbelievable!  

The WaterWorld show arena

With there main actor/actress
- Ei, selambe je Mr Pirate tu pegang mak aku  (>.<)

From a far we can already see the giant castle. I thought we have reach Hogwart but actually we have reached the Far Far Away Castle (where Shrek and Fiona live happily ever after). Not a fond of Shrek either, so I make myself happy by imagining I’m in Merlin’s world. Now where’s that gorgeous wizard?

The awesome castle!

I wish I can live happily ever after too~

I didn’t get a chance to ride any rollercoaster ride because I was having a real bad flu (yes, out of all day, why it has to be today?  T___T) and even if I don’t have a flu, I’m still not be able to ride all the rollercoaster because there was SO many people. Each ride/attraction took minimum 45 minutes of waiting time (yes, let’s avoid school and public holiday for next vacation: P) so my sisters only manage to get on a few ride.

But I do experience the Madagascar Crate Adventure since it was only a relaxing boat journey which took us into a cave. And they have this animatronics and digital projection with evocative sound that tell us the summary of the Alex and his friend. Although I think it was more for kids, I do enjoy it. There was this part of the adventure where we have to go through a pretty heavy waterfall and I went panic because I have my camera with me and I REALLY don’t want it to get wet. So everyone was screaming (so obviously, I’m not the only one who went under panic attack, kekekek) and there was a flash of light before the pouring water stop as soon as our crate goes through under it. And I was like, ‘Ah, they got  us! And they took, our picture!’ Everyone was cheering for that prank, haha. So after the ride, we had a good laugh seeing everyone’s horror expression being display on the photo board :DDDDD

My favorite family shot!

And finally this is totally my thing. I have always wanted to experience the broadway lifestyle. Took a walk at the famous Hollywood 'Walk of Fame' and watch the stage performance by a group of boys - Daddy O's or something like that. They performed live a few rock and roll songs - which was really good! No kidding, they can sing and dance well, and know how to work the crowd. 

The boys! The one at the far right is really handsome up front :DDDD

My mum and dad who truly love the show~

Had lunch and diner at Mel's Drive In restaurant
 - one of a few restaurant that cater halal food.

We went to watch rock-n-roll musical "Monster Rock!" at Pantages Hollywood Theater. I really don’t know what to expect with this one, I thought it will be like Glee’s Rocky Horror Show and it was not too far away from that. Basically ghosts like Phantom of The Opera, Count Dracula, Werewolf, Frankenstein, Shewolf, The Bride, The Mummy and a Human DJ gather together to sing their favorite songs. It was an okay show for me honestly but since the audience I'm with that night was really a supportive one, so it turns out to be a very enjoyable show!

In front of  Pantage for Monster Rock Show

And before we go back, we managed to catch Steven Spielberg's Lights! Camera! Action! show. It was the only attraction in New York zone where we were brought to watch how an empty sound stage becomes the setting for a major hurricane that was about to hit New York City. A great experience I must say! (and how horrible it was to be caught in that disaster, nauzubillah)

We spend a day in USS but still miss out a lot! And I'm not satisfied with the pictures we took (seriously, the flu was really bad, it kills my mood -_- ) So I need to go there again! I need to try all the ride! I need to take picture with all characters (especially with the Puss In Boot and Madagascars' Penguins!). So yeah, I’m pretty sure there’ll be another trip to USS. Gah, I think I’m going crazy now, wanting to go there again, say, next month? Lol.

Right, I need to stop all the non-sense. See you guys on the next post!

He Will Be Loved

Last Sunday, my friend Dina invites us to attend her baby boy’s Aqiqah ceremony. I never attend one, so I was really curious of how it should be done. There was doa selamat and marhaban ritual. I only manage to go inside Dina's house after the marhaban finished. And I was greeted with a big picture of Aydan at the door!

The cradle was beautifully decorated! They choose baby blue and white as the theme, it was so sweet. I was totally stunned by it. Dina said Aydan was awake during Marhaban but did not cry at all! I guess Aydan just know how to behave when people are around. Now, to the photos~

Gorgeous cradle

Beautiful desert section!

My first time trying the macarons :DD

Can't stop eating the marshmallow!

Cutie Zabi Aydan!

Azza, Dina, Ju-Are & me~

Alhamdulillah, everything went well. Dina and hubby did great to fulfill responsibility as Aydan's parent. Hope that Aydan will be blessed forever and is surrounded by people who love him always, Amin.

Wordless Wednesday: Aku Jantung Kau Udara

"aku jantung, kau udara, mari kita bernafas bersama-sama"

- Abby Latif 

Put Your Hands Up!

I’m not a ‘hottest’ to begin with, so when I purchased 2PM’s concert tickets for me and Linda, I almost couldn’t believe it. I’ve always been into K-pop since school – which was 10 years ago – but have never been to any of their concert or fans meeting.  I bought the cheapest one (cheapest also not so cheap) just to have ‘experience’ cause I quite dislike the idea of being around extreme fans who constantly screaming their lung out throughout the concert (evident from countless of fancams on youtube). Moreover, they are not my favorite kpop band.

L to R: Wooyoung, Taecyeon, Nickhun, Junsu, Junho and Changsung.

So it was a free seating, so fans were running/rushing to get the seat with best view. Brought Sammy with me but the security said I couldn’t bring him inside and asked me to go to the lost and found counter. They told me to leave the battery, which really upset me, because now I only have my BB. Anyway, when we got ourselves into the concert area, it was almost fully occupied except for area at the far left of the stage. It was closer to the extended stage but the view to the center stage was restricted. And since most of their performance with full choreograph was done at the center, I can only see them on the big screen.

View from my seat.

Now please excuse my excessive of unnecessary squealing from this point onwards. Here is the list of the songs they performed that night and what I can remember the most.

1. Hot - A great opening song, straight away set the stage on fire. I always thought that this song has  a bit of Big Bang's flavor to it but they really do rock it.
2. Electricity
3. Hands Up – Gosh, this performance was amazing! The most happening stage because of the simple repetitive movement in the choreography that everyone can simply follow and makes the performance so enjoyable.
4. Noyege Michossoda/Kidaridaga (Remix) - I am super duper happy that they perform Noyege Michossoda since they never perform this songs before.
5. Junho and Wooyoung stage
6. I Can’t - A nice ballad song for a change. They sat on the chair while performing this. Since they all have change into semi casual clothes except for Junho and Wooyoung, the two boys decided to change on stage. Ohoho, I cannot! 
7. Give It To Me
8. Dance2Night - My least favorite stage. Simply because they were dancing with girls in inappropriate way. Humphhh!
9. Ment - They say their greeting here, thank God that Nickhun and Taec can speak fluent English so we can understand most of what was happening. Surprisingly, Junsu can speak English very well too. There was some funny moment of Changsung vs Junho speaking English, randomly throwing each other a ‘What? Where? Why?’ questions. While waiting for Nickhun and Taec to change for their stage, Junsu asked Wooyong to show his free-style dance)
10. My Valentine (Nickhun and Taecyeon stage)
11. Changsung solo stage - He did an action skit. Reminds me so much of Rain's Ninja Assassin.
12. I’ll Be Back - Kick ass song!
13. I Hate You
14. Back To You
15. Junsu solo stage – He sang Alive! This is my first time watching him perform this song and he was doing all the rap by himself. Awesome Junsu!
16. Without You
17. Only You – They gave away flowers during this performance. I wished that I can be at the rock pit to receive those.
18. 10 Points Out of 10 – Another happening performance! During the chorus, everyone would hold up their hands up as if were participated in the performance. Also, Taec give Nickhun's ass a full stroke here, kekekek.
19. Ment – They announced that this will be their last stage for the night. They took turn to say their last word and Junho tried some Malay ‘Saya akan balik lagi’ (I’ll be back again) and he sounded like Chinese speaking Malay! So adorable.
20. Again and Again
21. I’m Your Man - Glad that they even perform their japanese single here!
22. Don’t Stop Can’t Stop - Kick ass song!
23. Heartbeat - Full choreography with the piramid formation. Awesome. 
24. Thank You - I was overflowing with emotion. I'm just glad that they didn't cry.
25. Encore (Hands Up/10 Points Out of 10) – the most fun part of the show because they started to play and do fan service. Nickhun even took the fans’ camera and help them snap photo of him! And last but not least, Changsung walked on the stage half naked!

They sang most of the song they had performed in music shows except for Give Me The Light. Too bad they didn't perform Maja since I really like that song. 

Fans hold up the light stick throughout the concert; a beautiful sight.

They always said that there was a different between younger fans and noona (older) fans. Younger fan always the expressive one, screaming like there’s no tomorrow when they saw their idol, noona fan just watch from afar, calmed and composed. And since I’m a noona to almost every K-pop band exist now, I have to say I pretty much agree with the statement (yes, yes, easy for me to say this since I only see them on my laptop screen). BUT! Seeing them upfront is different! I suddenly got very excited! Every time they came to our side of the stage, I practically going crazy and screaming their names and doing the heart sign and waving like mad. Urghhh, screw the noona title! Oppa, saranghae!

Taecyeon!

Nickhun! Khun's family attended the concert too.
Lucky fans took picture with them.

Since I haven’t decided my favorite member yet (though I have this thing for Junsu and Nickhun), so I told Linda before the concert started, that whoever come to our side of the stage the most will be my fave and I will ship him forever~ So guess who came the most? At first Junho came a lot to our side but in the end, it was Junsu who came the most! Are we destined to be together or sumthing? :DDDDD

Kim Junsu a.k.a Jun K

So the big question is, have I turned into a Hottest after the concert? Ah, almost :PPP I'll monitor them closely after this. Right, now I should leave you guys with  fancams of my fave performance of that night. Enjoy~

p/s: Hottest is the name of 2PM's fanclub. 

Vid Credit: OplusT@youtube

Pic Credit: Linda; Evertything2pm

Back And Forth Part 2

First of all, would love to wish Salam Maal Hijrah to all my fellow muslim. Hope you have a blessing year ahead.

And a continuation of my earlier post... the fun part of the trips :DDDDDD

Normally, we spend the last day going to interesting places after we already pack everything. For the first trip, we went to Ranau Poring Hot Spring to experience their canopy walk. Remember this entry when me and my friends went to FRIM for their canopy walk but they were under construction? So I was truly happy that I be able to walk the canopy here! Though it was really tiring to climb those little-uneven steps to reach the top (where the canopy walk start). My knees were really shaking! Maybe it was sign of old age because I haven’t exercise for a while (I made a mental note to start exercise when I get back but it has been what, almost a week and I haven’t even step on that treadmill).

RIP my  Kungfu shoes~ You have been good to me all these while T_T

On the way back, we drop by at this place (somewhere in Kundasang) where we can see the Kinabalu mountain.

Mount Kinabalu

For the second trip, we decided to spend the last day in the city. So we went to One Borneo, the biggest shopping mall in Kota Kinabalu to play bowling. Although the scoring system were giving us some headache at first, the game was really enjoyable. I can say that I have improved? I have at least one strike in each game. And… I used to only use the 8 and 9 kg balls but now I can bowl with the 10 kg ball, lol. 

And now is my favorite random shots throughout the trips, which I have shamelessly edit using these cool apps on my iPad.

This shot was actually taken by En Rahim
using my camera :D

It's raining at the other side~

God never promise us a good life on earth; 

but He gave the assurance that there will
always be a rainbow after the rain - Maple

Kids are adorable :DD

New shoes bought at Pesta Jagung.

Well, pretty much that's all I have to share. See you on the next post~

Back and Forth Part 1

Been going back and forth to the same place all these while and I already feels familiar with Kota Marudu. I had three field trips altogether. The first trip was without my boss, so I have to lead the team (which was driving me crazy!). The second trip was before Raya Haji and we continue on the third trip shortly after holiday. I must say, for the last two trips, it was the most hectic phase of my life. Got back to KL on Friday, then balik kampong Kuala Kangsar and Kuala Pilah for Raya Haji until Monday, spend two days in the lab packing and preparing reagent for the next trip and fly back to Kota Marudu on Thursday.

For the first time, we flew with Firefly during the first trip. I guess it was okay for a short trip but spending two hours and a half was really troublesome. The flight was shaking more vigorously compared to MAS which caused our BFMP slides broken. And of course the food is hella expensive, so I pretend to sleep while they serve food, lol. We flew with MAS for second and third trip and I hope for the next trip too~

Anyway, same old routine work at different/new kampong. Bla bla bla…. Let me just share a few random shots of what we did at the Kampongs.

Meeting to discuss our schedules for the whole trip.
We usually went to village with recent/most malaria cases

Crossed the river to get to the village.

Changing the tyre. We didn't realize our tyre has flatten until
a villager told us about it. No wonder we were
shaking like mad (-__-);;

On the last trip, we were more organized that we take turns to do the works (registration, finger pricking and BFMP, rapid-test) so everyone can learn everything. But everyone's favorite will always be doing the rapid-test because it's a cool job, kekekek. The hardest would be the registration because of the language barrier, and sometimes we got scold from the children for writing their name in the wrong way, hehe.

I'm doing the 'coolest' job: taking blood for rapid-test.

Listening diligently to my boss instruction.

Then play behind her back, kekekek. (just joking)

With Pitas team.

The best part was to chat with the children :P
Some of them were really curious about our work.

Me: Dah besar nanti nak jadi apa?
Kids: Polis. Sebab saya nak tangkap orang main mercun.
Me: Oh, cutenye reason, kekekek.

When I should lose weight for working hard, I actually gained a few kgs because we have some sort of food festival almost every day! There’s this café right beside our hotel which cooked pretty much everything we ask them to. When we visit Pitas, we went to Kanibongan to buy crabs and brought them to the café for them to cook.

At Kanibongan to buy some crabs

Happy face, probably because they know what's for dinner!

Went to Tamu (a weekly market) and my boss bought local fruits like cempedak, jackfruit, rambutan and banana. Send the cempedak to the café to fry them and we got a tray full of cempedak goreng and we couldn’t stop eating the whole day! We also tried Sabah’s local fruit called Tarap which not available at peninsular. It looks like cempedak with soft outer skin, you can just peal it with your hands. I love the taste but it smells like after-fogging? Sorry, couldn’t find the word to describe it but the smell is not so pleasant but not as stink as durian (oh durian, I still love you even though you stink :DDD).

Aaannddd.... I'll continue on the next post the fun part of the trip, which is more exciting than the foooooddd~