My #Top15Playlist (Cause I'm just so mainstream)

I find this is a fun thing to do, but then again I do not want to share it with people. So, here I am in front of my phone writing on my blog. Here's my #Top15Playlist thay (I believe) I'll never get bored of (Disclaimer: I'm not a music geek and I do not seek for new songs at all. Plus, I do not have any preferences in the kind of music or the musicians I wanted to hear. So to all of you music geek, please forgive me for only listening to random music I heard and happened to enjoy :p):

1. Eliza Doolitle - Rollerblades

2. Ingrid Michaelson - You and I

3. The Beatles - Blackbird

4. Chairlift - Bruises

5. Fountains of Wayne - Hey Julie

6. The Perishers - Nothing Like You and I

7. Plain White T's - Rhythm of Love

8. Sondre Lerche - The Curse of Being in Love

9. The Weepies - The World Spins Madly On

10. The Beatles - Penny Lane

11. Ben Folds - You Don't Know Me

12. Mindy Gledhill - All About Your Heart

13. Voiceless and Soulastic - Warnamu

14. The Fray - How to Save a Life

15. Colbie Caillat - You Got Me

There goes my #Top15Playlist that I've been listening to since forever! 

How I miss being anywhere but here

First day at school and all I've been thinking about is how to bring back my holiday? I need one, asap! So instead of whining about how boring school was (well not that boring actually, one of the most prominent lecturer is going to be my lecturer for this semester: Iwan Jaya Aziz!), let's get back to the day I first travel abroad. Well not really the first, it's the first when I'm conscious and big enough to remember everything. And where is this fortunate country? Give a round of applause to China & Hong Kong! (Are they still a same country now? Yes? Okay whatever.)

My very first trip abroad was very impressive! It makes me the person I am now: a person who loves to travel and wants to do it more and more (if only I have all the time and money in the world).

I went to Beijing and Hong Kong when it was in the winter season with my dad, sister, and grandma. Luckily it was not the peak of winter, it already in the middle of transition to spring. Because if not, I'd be a dead meat since I can't bare any cold (yes, I know I look like a peasant. But then again, that's why people invent heater!). But anyway, I was happy because I got the chance to use a coat even though I didn't got the chance to see some snow and the most important thing is, I can tell people that I've been to the Great Wall of China. Seriously guys, it really is great.

The great Great Wall of China

I really don't know why people always complain about how the number of pollution in China is really high and you can actually feel it when you take your first step there, because frankly, I didn't smell anything. True, there are lots of cars and traffic jams, but I still think that it is far better than Jakarta. You can actually see bikers bike in their side, no overwhelming amount of motorcycles, cars queueing in the middle of jams, etc. Everything was in fact (at least for me), very neat and tidy and organized and I can't smell or feel any pollution!

And then comes Hong Kong. Hong Kong is really is the even-more-industrialized version of China. Sophisticated skyscrapers everywhere, high-end cars here and there, no one seems to be in poverty, you name it! What startled me most is the Avenue of Stars, and ironically it's not because of the handprint and signature of the artists (I don't even realize that it was there until I read more about the place later). I was in fact amused by the scenery of skyscrapers and lights of the buildings. Avenue of Stars is located next to a lake (or a river?), and the buildings' reflection in the water just somehow bring it to the next level (one little tip: visit this place at night, it's prettier!). We took a ferry (or a boat) ride there (I remembered that it's really expensive but don't remember how much was it because my dad pays it all :p), and I definitely recommend the boat tour! It's a very lavish one and you'll be treated like a princess (or prince)!

Beautiful skyscrapers in Avenue of Stars

Another highlight from Hong Kong is of course.... *drumroll* ..... Disneyland!! Nothing needs to be explained, Disneyland is just Disneyland and it's amazing.

Cinderella's Castle, Dumbo, and Princess Belle!

Disneyland highlights and please-don't-miss are: the parade and the fireworks when it's closing. You will again feel like a princess (or prince)!

Highlights of the whole trip was my understanding about how people of China and Hong Kong are really really religious. They have lots of Gods and they pray to each and one of them. You want a soulmate? They got one God for it. Want to be healthy? Another God is ready. Want to get rid and forget an ex? Of course they also have one. And what more important is, never ask something to the wrong God because if you mistaken the God, something bad will happen. And that's not what we want, right?

Dewi Kuan Im

Dewa Pemberi Jodoh

You can see people coming to the Gods for their personal needs and desires every day, every hour, every minute, and you can see them praying from their hearts. Some of them even pour some tears when they pray. That's just how religious they are. And that's one of their value that I admire: to never forget where they come from and where they belong.

Malam & hujan

Malam datang lagi. Kali ini, ditemani hujan yang tidak henti-hentinya turun mengguyur ibukota sejak matahari terbit pagi ini. Entah sejak kapan aku mulai membenci malam. Namun sepanjang yang kuingat, malam tidak pernah menjadi waktu yang aku tunggu. Malam selalu menyuguhkan keheningan dan kegelapan yang seperti tiada habisnya sehingga menimbulkan rasa hampa dan sepi dalam diriku. Sebaliknya, hujan merupakan fenomena alam yang paling aku tunggu. Sejak kapan aku mulai menyukainya? Entahlah, sepertinya kesenangan ini sudah lahir bersamaku. Suara hujan yang bergemerisik dan berisik mungkin terkadang mengusik sebagian orang. Tetapi bagiku, suara hujan menentramkan. Bagiku, suara hujan menandakan adanya kehidupan, menandakan bahwa bumi masih berputar, dan yang paling penting, suara hujan dapat mengisi suara keheningan yang aku benci.

Malam dan hujan. Bagaimana mungkin dua hal yang sangat aku benci dan senangi dapat berkolaborasi menjadi satu kesatuan yang saling melengkapi? Apakah aku akan ikut membenci hujan karena telah menemani malam, atau akankah aku menjadi senang dengan malam karena malam tidak lagi terlalu sepi? Ini terlalu sulit.

--

Mungkin aku bukan takut malam, dan mungkin pula, aku bukan senang dengan hujan. Mungkin, aku hanya takut merasakan kesepian. Suara malam – atau perlu kusebut, ‘tidak adanya suara malam’ – menimbulkan rasa takut dalam diriku yang pengecut ini. Sedangkan suara hujan, meskipun bergemuruh dan keras, dapat memberikanku kenyamanan karena setidaknya aku tidak akan merasakan kesendirian. "Ada hujan, kok", bisikku dalam hati.

My little sister is not little anymore!

This is what I did to my not-so-little sister earlier today for her friend's sweet seventeen party! This is probably my best makeup so far, and what's more exciting and satisfying is that I did this with almost all drugstore makeup!!!! I'm sooo satisfied with my work that I feel the urge of putting it in my blog!!! Who said that makeup must be expensive? Not me!

My makeup list:

Eyes

For eyeshadow I used Nyx Glam Shadow Stick in the colour Elegant Marble as a base, and a black and brown colour from Nyx Be Free Sois Libre Palette for the crease and wings. For eyeliner, I used a black liquid eyeliner from Maybelline. I used fake eyelashes with a random brand name that I got from the nearest drugstore. Last but not least, I used Make Over (yes, Make Over not Make Up For Ever) for the brows with an eye brow pencil in the colour Brown to Earth. Oh I forgot, I also used Elf Eye Primer just to make sure the makeup last all night!

Cheeks

For the primer, I used L'Oreal Base Magique while for foundation I used another Make Over product: Ultra Cover Matt Foundation in the colour Pink Shade. As one simple last touch, I used Chanel's powder to sweep all the oil away. For bronzing, I also used Make Over with their Contour Kit product (you can now see that this brand is actually one of my favorite; it's local, it's cheap, and it works well!). While for highlighting, I used a little bit of Benefit Sun Beam (well this is fancy, but it really does works well and disclaimer, I have it in the mini size :""). And for the blush, I combine Nars Blush Stick in the colour I-forgot-what and Splash! Floral Blush. 

Lips

I used Maybelline's lip balm before giving some color to the lips, and last I used L'Oreal's lipstick in the color Fairy Touch for a little bit of magic! 

A heart will always find a way

If there is one thing that I learned from life is that people are not capable in changing their behavior and personalities. A person's behavior and personality is a sum up of all what they have been through and thought throughout their childhood years. And one little tweak, one little chit-chat, one little suggestion, or one little order will never be able to change the personality wholly. Well maybe, some little adjustments can actually be made, but the question now is: are those small adjustments enough?

People often say that 'there is no such thing as a perfect partner. You have to work for it, you both should.' which kind of come to the conclusion that in order to have a 'perfect' and healthy relationship, both of the partner should adjust themselves to their significant other. But the thing is, no matter how hard each individual tries, the 'adjustments' and changes will never be perfect. So in the end of the day, it is a matter of acceptance. Will you accept those kind of behavior for the rest of your life? Are you ready to be encountered with those habits everyday? Will you be willing to hold on and stick with those personalities forever?

Some people ended up forcing themselves to say yes, I do, when in fact they really don't. Or maybe, at that moment they just didn't realize that deep down, they actually can't. This is why we have to take some time to be with ourselves, have a deep conversation with our heart and just reminisce all the thing that we have been through. Don't have your heart take sides, just listen to them. It was never a matter of right or wrong, it's just about compatibility.

If you finally realize that it is a no, even though it is really really hard to accept, just let go. Because everybody deserves a chance to find their true love, their soulmate. And if you block one's way, even (especially) if it is your own way, then someone, somewhere, must be falling apart.


"I can control my destiny, but not my fate. Destiny means there are opportunities to turn right or left, but fate is a one-way street. I believe we all have the choice as to whether we fulfil our destiny, but our fate is sealed." -Paulo Coelho

7 Days in Cambodia: Cambodia in a Nutshell!

This month (like less than a week ago) I've got a chance to explore some parts of Cambodia a little bit. In these seven days, I went to Siem Reap, Koh Rong Samloem (an isolated island just 2 hours away from Sihanoukville), and Phnom Penh. This experience in Cambodia is definitely one of the most amazing travel experience I ever had, and this experience had also changed my whole perception about Cambodia in general. At first and foremost, I always thought that Cambodia is a very less developed country with a strong communist influence in its government that made the country have less interaction with the world and made them sounds 'jungle-y'. But in fact, what I've seen in Cambodia is a very beautiful country with incredible architecture and very neat cities. Even though I only went to the touristy places so I might be bias, but overall I might as well say that Cambodia to some extent is very ready to welcome tourist even more than Indonesia, my own country which notabene more 'developed'. See how impressed I am?

Angkor Wat at Sunrise

1st day
We (me, Emily, and Stephanie) started our 1st day from Bangkok and go straight to the Northern Bus Terminal (Mochit) to buy a bus ticket to Siem Reap. We arrived at the bus terminal around 10 AM and turns out, all of the tickets were sold out until 12:30 PM, so there is nothing else that we can do and we just wait there for 2 hours (that turns out to not be that bad (well at least for me)). So after 2 hours of waiting, we finally start our looong journey to Siem Reap! We arrived at the border between Thailand and Cambodia (Poipet border) around 18:30, and we go through all the visa on arrival processes. For me, it is much much more easier since I have a Southeast Asian passport and thus, I didn't need to make any visa! I won't talk about what happened in the border in detail just because there are a lot of other blogs that already talked about that. But in short, the experience wasn't as overwhelming as what people had said (again, at least for me)! Long story short, we finally advanced to Siem Reap using a minivan around 20:30 and successfully arrived at our hostel in Siem Reap around midnight. (We stayed in Onestop Hostel by the way, and the place was amazing -- everyone was so nice and the location is perfect!)

My bus to Siem Reap!

2nd day
We decided to not to force ourselves to go to Angkor Wat on the next day because we realized that we really need to have some rest. So our second day was a very very lazy day. We fell asleep until 10, have some breakfast, rest a little bit more, wander around until we didn't have anything else to do until noon. Then we decided to go to the War Museum that located a little bit farther from our hostel and hire a Tuktuk to take us there for only $2 each. The War Museum was not like any other museums that you've been! Everything is outdoor, you can see everything (and even touch them if you want), and the tour guides are all veterans from the war. It was an extraordinary and heartbreaking experience to learn more about the war that happened in Cambodia not so long ago, about how the Khmer Rouge tried to banished all Cambodians from their own land. The museum is definitely a place to go if only you hire the tour guide, because if you don't, you won't get the feeling of the museum.

But apparently, it didn't take a long time to see everything in the museum. We finish after 45 minutes and it was only around 1 PM. We then talked to the Tuktuk driver and asked him about other good place that we can possibly see and be done at 4:30 PM (because we planned to see the sunset in Angkor Wat that day). And the Tuktuk driver decided to take us to the biggest lake in Cambodia and possibly in Southeast Asia: Tonle Sap, and that was a decision that we will never regret.

We have to pay $20 each for a roundtrip boat tour to the floating village that lives in the edge of the river. Even though we realize that it is such a big amount of money, but nonetheless, the floating village was so impressive! It's amazing to see how people with different lives, situations, and conditions live their life in a complete different way, and they survive anyway. So these people from the floating village lives in a house that is practically a boat. Every house should own a boat in order to survive, because every single place that they wanted to go (even if it's only to a neighbor's house) is only accessible through water. So unless they are able to swim every second, they certainly need a boat.

The next w-o-w thing that we found out was that every year, they have to migrate to the lake because every time the dry season comes, the river will run out of water. And when they move, they have to move everything; their houses, the school, the church, the health facility, and the market. How crazy is that??

Stephanie, Emily, and me on our way to the floating village

The Floating Village of Tonle Sap

Our trip ends at 4, and it's now time to see the sunset in Angkor Wat. To be honest, the sunset experience wasn't that impressive. I kind of believe that Angkor Wat was made for you to see the sunrise, not the sunset. But right when we just want to get back, something amazing happened..... There was the moonrise.

Moonrise in Angkor Wat

Neither my phone nor my camera was able to took a perfect picture of the moonrise. But it was there, the moon was only 100 meters from your face, it was the full moon night, the moon shone so bright and it was so big. So big. It was so amazing. So amazing. I can't even describe how amazing was it. The moon was so big and it looks like it touches the temple. I'm literally out of words to describe how startled I am.

3rd day

This day is our last day in Siem Reap and it's the day to explore the magnificence of Angkor Wat and the other temples in the complex. Angkor Wat is definitely so magnificent, it stood there big and proud but at the same time will give you some sort of happy and peaceful feeling. I can't really describe my experience in Angkor Wat, because for some people it could be kind of a spiritual experience and I believe being in Angkor Wat will bring a different impression and experience for everyone. 

My Angkor Pass

Entrance to Angkor Wat

After finished enjoying the sight of the Angkor complex and finally feel exhausted (it was so big and you have to walk a lot in the temples), we at last decided to get back home at around 1:30 PM. We use the time that we have to rest a little bit and just enjoy our free time that we really need. We will have another long ride at around 9 PM that goes to Sihanoukville. From there, we will go straight to the pier and take the first boat that goes to our next destination: the isolated island, Koh Rong Samloem.

4th day
Unlike all the islands in Thailand that is so full with tourists, this island in the southern part of Cambodia is nothing close to it. We arrived at Sihanoukville around 7:30 in the morning and we immediately proceed to the pier which was only 10 minutes away from the bus terminal. The next boat will be at 9:30 and it is the slow boat that will take us around 90 minutes to get there (which turns out to be 150 minutes). But whatever, we surely cant wait for the next speed boat that will depart at 3 PM.

Koh Rong Samloem is so amazing with its emptiness. The whole island was still a forest, not inhabited with anyone. Someone told us that it just opened for public for less than two years! But in that two years, we could already found a few bungalows that are available to be rent. But still, this is probably one of the best places if you want to run away from the hassle in the city or just to find some peace.

In order to see the sunset, we have to walk across the forest and go the beach that located in the other end for about 30 minutes. We prepared ourselves with flashlight, because after the sun sets there will be no light to guide us in the forest. And all the exhaustion of walking for 30 minutes and the nervousness of the need to go back in the dark just by the three of us was paid off after we saw the sunset.

Do you know the moments when you just sit in silence and wonder how great God is? This is definitely one of those moments. (And yet again neither my phone nor camera was able to capture the moment)

Sunset at Koh Rong Samloem

5th day
Moments in the island was all about leisure, lazy, and simply enjoying life. I spent the whole day reading the book that I found there, lay by the beach, drink some shakes, and just enjoying every moment. This is unfortunately our last day here, because at 4 PM (which turns out to be 4:45 PM) we have to take our speed boat back to Sihanoukville. From there, we will be separated and each go to their own ways. I will proceed to Phnom Penh and look forward for the capital of Cambodia, Stephanie will take the bus back to Bangkok and then go to Myanmar, and Emily will take the bus to Siem Reap and catch a flight to Bangkok from there. This is the moment when we have to go our own way, and say goodbye to each other for good...

6th day
The journey from Sihanoukville to Phnom Penh was just 4-5 hours. So since my bus departs from Sihanoukville at around 8 PM, I arrived at Phnom Penh around midnight.

I spent this day with my personal Tuktuk driver that drove me to all the touristy places in the heart of Phnom Penh such as the National Museum, Silver Pagoda, Royal Palace, Independence Monument, Wat Phnom, and last but not least I took a boat trip in the river that connects Tonle Sap river and Mekong river. Since my hostel (it's Onestop hostel again!) is located in a very good location, thus I was able to see the Sisowath Quay (the river) just from my window.

Me riding a Tuktuk!

Silver Pagoda

Royal Palace

National Museum

Sisowath Quay

Sunset at the boat trip on the Mekong River

Sisowath Quay was what took my heart the most. It doesn't look like what I expected to be in Cambodia at all, and in fact, it doesn't even looks like anywhere in Asia. It was surprisingly so neat and clean and nicely built. There is a nice and simple park there where people can just hang out with friends (or lovers :p) and enjoy the beauty of Tonle Sap and Mekong River. There, they also put out all the flags from every country in the world that kind of increase the 'wow' moment. This is where I deeply fell in love with Cambodia -- I fell in love with Cambodia on the days before, but this time, I fell in love... deeply.

7th day
My seventh and last day in Cambodia was the day my heart broke and was the day I question the humanity of every human. This day I ride in my comfy Tuktuk again and go to the outskirts of Phnom Penh to two of the 'best place to go' in Phnom Penh: Toul Sleng Museum and Choeung Ek Killing Fields.

If you don't know (I also don't really know before I came here), in the 1970s there was a massive killing for all the Cambodians in Cambodia. It was initiated by the Khmer Rouge who was strongly influenced by communism. They believe that Cambodia needs to be fulfill all of their needs by themselves and they do not accept any help from the outside. And in order to reach out this dream, they will gladly killed everyone that stood on their way. But as we all expect, they start to put suspicion to everyone; from woman to kids, farmers to intellectuals, doctors to foreigners, students to the homeless. This is where the genocide starts, and they successfully killed more than three million people from their only four years of ruling the country. People said that some of the people died because of the killing, hunger, or illness, and some of them died out of hopelessness and loneliness. And for me, those was the worst reasons to be died from. And do you know what's the saddest part? The ones who kill the Cambodians are the Cambodians itself.

I spent the whole day wondering how could human being be that evil? What kind of reason that can push them to do such a horrible thing to their own kind? I kind of believe that humans must be the most ruthless creature that God ever made.

Do you know what is the last message that they gave to you in the voice guide? It sounds like something like this: "......what happened in Cambodia had also happened in other places like the holocaust in Germany, and some other countries. And this is probably not the end. Humans will always come up with something to be fight for, and there is a big possibility that people will ended up doing the same thing again. So please remember our story and take it to your heart, because no one knows if this will happen again someday..."

May all the souls rest in peace.

Mass grave of the victims

The skulls of some of the victims of the genocide that showed in Choeung Ek

The victims

I ended my travel in Cambodia in not a really fun way, but I'm happy that I did went to these places. This makes me remember how fortunate I am and how I need to be thankful even more. This day I went back home to Jakarta at 5 PM, and finally ended up my trip to Cambodia.

In a nutshell, Cambodia was one of the most amazing, impressive, rich in culture and history, and of course, worth-to-visit country. I'll surely come back again!

The Tournamet by Matthew Reilly

In one fine afternoon in Koh Rong Sanloem, an amazing and rather isolated island in the southern part of Cambodia, I found a surprisingly very interesting book called The Tournament by Matthew Reilly. It's about Bess, who years and years after become Queen Elizabeth I, and her lifelong teacher, Mr. Ascham, journey to Constantinople to attend a chess tournament held by Suleiman, the Sultan of Constantinople. On the first night of the tournament, suddenly one of the most distinguished guest was found dead in a miserable way. Mr. Ascham, who's widely known as a very wise and intelligent man was delegated to solve the problem. Even though the whole story is generally about the murderer and how they investigate the problem, but if you read through the book, it's actually more than just that. There's an even deeper message and value that the writer wants to deliver. And it's remarkable. Here are some of the quotes (or just passages) that I really love.

--

I realised that the truly powerful do not need to put their power on display at all times. 

--

"For a great sultan who is lord and ruler of all that he surveys, his English is lamentably poor. He can't even spell England properly."

Still holding the note, Mr. Ascham looked up at me. "Is that so? Tell me, Bess, do you speak his language? Any Arabic or Turkish-Arabic?"

"You know that I do not."

"Then however lamentable his English may be, he still speaks your language while you cannot speak his. To me, this gives him a considerable advantage over you. Always pause before you criticise, and never unduly criticise one who has made an effort at something you yourself have not even attempted."

--

If aggression meets empty space it tends to defeat itself.

--

Every nation thinks their own culture is the pinnacle of civilisation and that all other cultures are primitive and barbarous. It is sad but natural prejudice of the human mind. This is why one must travel as much as one can. Travel is the finest form of education. 

--

Cleverness is not the exclusive domain of the wealthy and the cultured, Bess. Don't confuse someone's outward appearance with their inner acumen; just because a man is well spoken and well tailored does not mean he has a brain. Incidentally, and with respect, this is an error I believe your father makes at court regularly and one you would do well to avoid should you ever sit on the throne. Employ competent people: the state of their mind matters far more than the state of their clothes. 

--

To the best Dad ever

To the best Dad ever,

Thank you for letting me dream, even if that is your worst nightmare

Thank you for staying by my side without saying a thing eveytime I failed on something

Thank you for staying up and not being able to sleep whenever I'm not home yet

Thank you for sharing your dreams, and your unrealized dreams 

Thank you for always being positive

Thank you for working so hard to fulfill all your daughters needs and wants

Thank you for trying to be the best Dad and give everything that you have to us

Thank you for all your advice though sometimes I didn't realize that it's for my own good

Thank you for loving me in your own way

Thank you for always putting our interest first before yours

And, thank you for always trusting me, even if I sometimes ended up disappoint you

Sorry for letting you down so many times, purposely or not

Sorry for sometimes feeling mad at you, and feel like you just cant understand

Sorry for keep forgetting that you are getting old, and you also need some concern

Sorry for haven't been able to fulfill your wish

Sorry for breaking my promises, sometimes I just cant sort my priorities well

Sorry for not spending more time with you and just have long talks about life

Sorry for lying to you and do bad things behind you

Sorry for messing up a lot of things that you trusted in me

Sorry for never call or text you, just because contacting Mom is much more convenient

Sorry for not being able yet to be the women you want me to be

Sorry for not being the best daughter in the world, but trust me, I'm trying to be one

Everyone must have their own version of the best Dad in the world, and this funny man is my version of the best dad ever. I love you more than you know, Ayah.