Field Trip: Lundu

Been planning to post this from Sarawak but couldn’t get a proper internet connection. So hello people! How was your week? Mine was fun and exciting because I was in Lundu, Sarawak for a field work!

For the new project, we need to get malaria sample as many as we could. Malaysia is currently in pre-elimination phase of the disease, so total number of cases is decreasing. Most cases reported are from rural region in Sabah and Sarawak – especially in palm oil/rubber plantation and logging area. And based on the malaria statistic, we’ve decided to try our luck in Lundu since they have the highest number of cases up till Mac 2011.

We had an opportunity to tag along with the Pejabat Kesihatan Daerah (PKD) team from Lundu to do b;ood screening for malaria infection. PKD do this screening routine for each village in the district once in every 3 months. Normally they will take blood smear and bring back to the lab to read under microscope. If positive, they have to go back to the village again to give medicine and do the fogging. But this time, we brought along our rapid test diagnostic kit (RTD) which could detect the malaria infection in just 15 minutes. Fast and efficient but very costly (about Rm12.00 per test) which is why they stick to blood smear procedure. So basically, once we found individual with malaria infection, blood will be drawn from the patient and will be taken back to our lab station in PKD Lundu for further test.

Okay, let’s skip all the technical part. The distances from Pekan Lundu to the village are about 14 to 30 km. We also went to logging camp which took 30 minutes ride on a bumpy-potholes-uneven road. Normally, we went to the village around 2 pm and back around 9 pm every day. On the fifth day, we have screened more than 500 peoples. And guessed what? No positive case!

Anyway, I’m gonna share with you guys some of my fave photo that we took.

Setting up the 'lab'

Walking from house to house in the village

Brave boy self-volunteered for blood smear. His friends are watching with curiosity :D

Making thick blood smear

Thick and thin blood smear

Me taking blood for RTD

The RTD kit

IMR team: Prem, Dr Noor Rain and Umi

Setting up the station at the back of our hi-lux

In logging camp

Good response from the felda's employee. They really concern about their health :D

Chatting up a bit while waiting for the Felda employee to come back from their work

Working at night~

I learned a few words that we often use like baik means don’t want and lawa means arrogant. Most of the children will yelled baiiikkk!!! when we said we want to prick their finger, kekekek. I love the way they said auk meaning yes. It reminds me of my cat, April :D 

And oh, before we went to Lundu, we were afraid that we won’t be able to get the food like in Semenanjung, so we bought a lot of Maggi, Campbell soup and Ayam Brand’s tuna because we thought it will be like in Kalabakan, Sabah where we couldn’t get those brands. But it turns out that the mini market in Lundu has those brands too! And I actually thought that I could lose some weight but guess what? Lundu have this night market that opens every night and there was this one stall that has excellent cooks. So I end up having heavy dinner every night!

Nasi lemak for breakfast!

The PKD team were so relieve when we got zero case on the last day. Because this mean they have a great control strategy. Good for them but bad for us. We need at least 5 positive cases in 1000 population screened and based on what we got in Lundu, it almost impossible to get a sample. The next trip will be in Kota Marudu, Sabah and I hope it won't be another mission impossible. So wish me luck!

A Special Kind Of Something

So we’ve been planning Azza’s bridal shower party for weeks! And I was so glad that everything went well despite the bad weather, thank god!  Hosted at the Fullhouse @ Jalan Yap Kwan Seng on the Saturday, only 9 peoples could make it. But still! It was fun as expected because reunion with Smaklian had never been boring.

It was raining so heavily that morning and we were kind of worried because we have booked the outdoor area. Since we have games and naughty things to do - sure bising giler with all the hilai tawa riang gembira - we really don’t want to disturb other customer. So outdoor is definitely a good choice. Luckily, the rain stopped just before the party begins, so we actually have a natural cool environment while catching up with all the girls.

The bride-to-be had a hard time to find the venue. The poor Azza looked tired when she arrived, but still sporting to finish all the dare missions we have prepared for her. She have completed all the hot poses (too hot to shared it here!) we asked her to and even managed to get a phone number from one of the waiter. I should really learn how to do that from her but according to her, “Skill menggatal ni memang tak boleh dikongsi.” LOL!

We couldn’t play taboo game cause tak sempat and everyone have other thing/place to hit after the party. So we end up the party at 3 pm with group photos and finally, giving Azza her gift. I was the one who choose the gift, so I really really REALLY hope that she’ll like it!

Now photo time!

Arrived @ 11.40 am. Fullhouse open @ 12.00 pm :D

Ju-are kate: Takpe, AJK mesti sampai awal :P

The theme is Red & WHITE. Colorblind that much eh?

With 3 beauties: Adah, Dina and Yatie

With Yatie again!

Azza's excited face XD

p/s: Gosh, I got flashback of our dorm life a few times while we were chatting and it kind of got me space out a lot, lol. I missed these people! If only I could turn back time...

Goody Two-Shoes

Yesterday, I went to 2011 Shoes Festival @ PWTC with Linda~

As I was determined to get myself at least two pair of shoes, it ends up quite disappointing for me. I don’t know, never been to the first one but I expect to see all kind of shoes cause well, it was a shoes festival. But I must say that those shoes collections on blog offers way better choices and prices compared to what I see here. Of course there were a 50 up to 70% sales for those high branded shoes but the design was outdated and the condition of the shoes was pretty bad, it’s not even worth it. Lucky that they have this shoes history exhibition, at least I can educate myself~

Ancient shoes

In front of the fashion shoes runaway

Mirror, yay!

Beaded nyonya shoes made of chocolate, yummy!

Happy face cos duit tak habis~

We decided to have  lunch at Mid Valley cause I haven't been there in ages. We had a Korean food at Ko Hyang stall @ The Garden. So that was where the shoes festival turns into the food festival. Our small table was full with foods! 

Been there twice before and I ordered Ojinguh Bokkeum (stir fried squid in spicy sauce) again because I love the taste so much. Linda ordered Ramyeon (kind of maggi, like what you often seen in Korean drama) which I think it was quite delicious. I decided that I should try something else too, so we also ordered the pajeon, a pancake with squid and onion spring. It's a popular street food in Korea that serves with the salty sauce on the side. Well, taste exactly like our local cucur bawang :D Out of curiosity, I also tried the Patbingsu, a shaved ice-based dessert loaded with nata de coco and sweet red beans as topping. It turns out not my taste as the red beans are way too sweet for me. 

We had this talk about how much we have gained weight and how we couldn't fit into some jeans anymore and how we should really start to exercise. And having those conversation while eating is so not appropriate, lol. What is worst was that none of us were actually really care and keep on munching like eating THAT much wasn't going to make the matter worst, heh.

Anyway, I think the place seriously needs a bigger space as the customer keeps on coming, waiting at your side for the table. It’s not endearing to eat (or even to chat) when the waiters keep on looking at you with that  can-you-just-finish-that-dish-already-so-I-can-clear-the-table face.

If you’re an adventurous eater, I’ll totally recommend this place for the food but not so much for the place itself. The service is okay and the price is reasonable too. But of course, this is just my opinion :D 

Go try it out!

You Can Stand Under My Umbrella

Hello people~

Nak cerita pasal Merong Mahawangsa which me and my friend Linda (plus Mieyra who pow me for a ticket at last minute) went to watch about erm, 2 weeks ago? Well, I’ve been so lazy buzy lately, tak sempat nak update blog. Pastu bila tengok entry kat blog orang, rase nak post something but sangat malas got no time la. And bila dah malas nak cepat, I have to use bahasa rojak cause my vocab selalu campur2, what comes to mind first la okay?  

So we went to watch Merong Mahawangsa @ Sunway Piramid. I of course, know nothing about Merong, heard of him but not quite remember what was the significant of him that had to do with Malayan history. So I sat there in the cinema with nothing to expect except for a good computer graphic cause last time I heard that KRU spend couple of millions just for the CGI.

And it did surprise me on how well the movie was made.  I mean, if it wasn’t because of the classic malay narration in the beginning, I would think that I was watching an international movie. I mean, the effect is really that great! And I think Stephen Rahman is so perfect for Merong role! No matter which language he speaks – classic malay, english, He really did great job to makes the Merong character so loveable – I still couldn’t believe that Merong is a ‘go with the flow’ type of guy. Sarcastic and funny and charming – adoiyai, ku telah jatuh cinta. Not to mention that he’s bodylicious too! Hot giler weih~  

And of course, there’s still a few things that can be improve such like; I still have a problem with the dubbing system in Malay film, it was not sync perfectly. Why do we need dubbing? Or if they could asked Kabir Baktiar to advice on the cinematography mesti lagi dasyat. Or perhaps they could give a less-funny wig for Dato  Rahim Razali to wear? Because the whole cinema laugh every time Dato Rahim Razali appear on the screen padahal tak kelakar pun time tu :D. But it wasn’t that bad so it didn’t affect the film so much.

Anyway, if you guys haven’t watched this yet, please do, because it’s awesome and spectacular, you don’t want to miss it. This was something that we can be proud of. 

p/s: It felt weird if I didn't share any pic, but since I didn't snap any picture at that time, so I'll end this post with piccas from the next day trip when me and Linda went to Putrajaya to see hot-air balloon festival (but we didn't get to see any balloon, now how weird is that?). I bough a color-spectrum umbrella, wee~

Self-taken pic with Linda

With abang jual payung at the bazaar :D

Under my umbrella, ella, ella, ella, eh, eh, eh

The Day You Went Away

Last Sunday, I’ve sent my parent to KLIA for umrah.  I know I shouldn’t be worry because they went with Pak Lang and Wan Yang who already been there, but I couldn’t help it. But I’m also grateful that they’ve been giving this chance to perform this minor pilgrimage. I know this will help them a lot before their names are listed for Haji. It was an emotional morning to begin with. I tried so hard not to cry when dad recites the Azan at home. I don't know how to describe the feeling, it's so beautiful. The journey to KLIA is quiet and peaceful. I tried not to think much about how I will survive for these two weeks without seeing them.

Luckily, when we reach there, Pak Ngah’s family was already there. He’s truly a mood maker - always with his jokes and keep everyone happy.  I momentarily forgot that I was about to be apart from mum and dad. Until they were about to enter the departure hall and gosh, I need to skip this part cause I don’t feel like writing up my feeling at that time here. Just know that there were a lot of crying involves, okay? (And my cousin, Iqbal was happily capturing the moment with all those horrible-crying faces >.<)

Fake-crying face :D

With Dad <3

Dad, Pak Ngah and Pak Teh

A bunch of cute peoples!

It's almost impossible to take a good picture with this boy around >.<

With cousins.

So the two weeks of living alone life have started! I missed them terribly. Keket looked depressed. She’s been standing at the stairs waiting for mum because that was what she normally does. I really hope that I can keep myself out of trouble for the time being (though something REALLY big had happen on the way back from KLIA T__T).

I wish that everything went smooth for my parent and pray for their safety. Just can’t wait to have them back in my life again!  I love you mum, dad!

Thank You Love!

Salam and hello~

Last Saturday, me and my two friends went to watch a musical theater Terima Kasih Cinta at Istana Budaya. It’s been my fifth time and I must say that I love watching theater be it a musical or not. One of my favorite things in the world. I enjoy watching movies, but it’s nothing compares to seeing them act and dance and sing live in front of you! Not only that, I always found myself wondering how the set was created, how many hours they spend to get all the perfect timing, how the cast could deliver and share their emotion with the audience. So many works to do and I guessed all these element is what makes it's impossible to leave a theater without a smile on your face no matter how cheesy the plot was!

Terima Kasih Cinta is a musical version of Cinta, they keep the plot exactly how it is with of course, new people to play the role. We have (cstand in for the original cast in the film) Vince and Nadia Aqila as Pierre Andre and Sharifah Amani; Deja Moss and Anding as Nanu Baharuddin and Que Haidar; Tony Eusoff and Norish Karman as Rashidi Ishak and Rita Rudaini ; Shajiry Damery and Faradhiya as Eizlan Yusuf and Fasha Sandha; Latiff Ibrahim, Safura Yaacob and Diddy Hirdy as Datuk Rahim Razali, Fatimah Abu Bakar and Nasrizal Ngasri. And no I’m not going to write the synopsis here. Just what I think of this play.

If you haven’t watched the film, I think it'll be hard to understand the storyline since there were too many pairings, too many many things for one to absorb at the introduction. The constantly and rapidly changing scene did not help at all.  However, the entire cast was great. Norish Karman and Tony impressed me the most. Their scene was intense and dramatic and I almost cry when Tony had to part from his daughter played by Nik Nur Amalin. Gosh, this girl is really amazing with her dance and her acting is not bad too! Just that I constantly get jealous as she gets to hug with Tony all the time, totally not fair. Lol, kidding. That girl is so cute, I wish I can be like her when I grow up~  Anding impress me too with his vocal and acting skill but his bright yellow pants were hurting my eyes (Same goes to Tony's bright orange and Shajiry's shocking pink blazer). But one thing is good for sure that every love-pair are color-coded, it really helps people like me (yang rabun, pastu tak bawak glasses) to know who is who especially the girls because once they change their clothes and hair, I really can’t tell anymore.

The stage set up was awesome in some way. It’s really important because you only have two and a half hour to cramp all the 5 plots together and this is where the stage set plays an important role. They have this 6 moveable cubicle, arrange in a row of three so it’s really high.  If you gonna watch this play, better choose the seat that a bit far from the stage. And they can move the cubicle to front and back. I love it but to some people, you might get a headache. At some point the stage looks really crowded.

Three minutes before the show start~

The list of songs contains Permata Untuk Isteri (Kopratasa), Seribu Impian (Casey), Cinta (Misha Omar/Jaclyn Victor), Kau Ilhamku (Man Bai), Belaian Jiwa (Carefree), Sejati (Wings), Mata (Noorkumalasari), Janji Manismu (Aisyah), Berkorban Apa Saja (P. Ramlee), Itu Kamu (Estranged) and the rest, I’m not really sure.  I’m not entirely happy with the songs choice but my fave has to be Mata - it's a sexy song and the vibe is really groovy (no doubt, music arrangement is awesome). It makes me wanna stand up and dance on my seat! And I really love it when they sing Itu Kamu - happening giler. The backup singers were also great. Like really great!

The best theater for me so far is still P. Ramlee the Musical but really, I shouldn't compare them two or with any other theater because every each of them have different style, left me with different emotions. I love some parts in here, but hate the others, so I guess this is the appeal of theater? 

Anyway, me and Ju-are went to Istana Budaya quite early, and while waiting for Suzie and Yah, we took many pictures~ Turns out that Yah couldn’t make it. So it’s just the 3 of us.

Pic with poster is a must!

Me: Oh, gong!
Ju-are: Gendang ar weih~

Ju-are and Suzie shopping~

The play finished at 11.45pm. There was a fan signing event with the cast and I would be in line if I wasn’t so hungry. And there was many people too. I managed to snap a few shots of them but it went all blur, cause I didn’t bring flash (so it wasn’t Sam’s fault).

Norish Karman

Tony Eusuff

And then we head on to Pelita for some naan cheese and tandoori. It’s yummy! 

And finally, I will end this post with a pic taken by Ju-are on our way to KL :D

Title: Aku Sekotak Tisu :D