Lunar Eclipse 04/04/2015

I caught it at the late stage.
This is one of the moments when you wished that you had a very good camera and lens.
Until that time, this is the best that I could capture.
Enjoy!

Ayo ke Jogja ~ 4WD at Merapi



Well, it was my first time riding along in a 4WD. Fortunately, it was such an awesome experience!

 

Our driver was a very polite and friendly young man. I didn't catch his name, but based on his name tag, it's IBENK. I hope I got that correctly and hopefully that's not his company's name or something... eiks!

 

I also didn't know for sure what is the cost of this activity because the price was already inclusive in our package and I never asked for an itemized bill. But, it was roughly IDR350,000 for a 2 hours ride.

 

I don't know all that for sure but what I do know is, you cannot miss this experience if you're ever in Jogja. They'll take you around in a 4WD around Mount Merapi (not to the top) and you'll get to see the after effect of Mount Merapi eruption in 2010. Lives were taken during the eruption, homes and possession lost, human endurance tested. After 5 years, the lands have started to flourish again.

 

You will also be taken on a ride full with 'free massages'. Heheheeee...

 



Our cool and friendly driver with the 4WD. He's so good at taking photos with 'Harry Potter flying on a broomstick' effect. I'm just saying in case you're interested in that kind of pose :) Find him... heheheee...

'Pesan Merapi', a message from Mount Merapi to the people who will be affected by its rage. To me, this shows how the people here are in understanding and at peace with the nature around them. And, there are always lessons to be learned from everything that happened.

Pesan Merapi:

Aku tidak suka mengalah  juga tidak ingin mengalahkan. Tetapi pasti sampai janjinya.

Cuma mohon maaf, kalau ada yang tertabrak, terseret dan terbawa hanyut, kebanjiran

atau tenggelam, karena menghalang-halangi yang akan kulewati.

How small we are when challenged by nature. Nothing much we can do when nature runs amok. We can just watch it passed by, be patient, pray and save enough love, courage and strength to face the aftermath.



A watch that shows the exact time of Mount Merapi eruption and everything that remains.

Whatttttt????!!!

 

Top: The lava path during the eruption. The gorges are deep.

Bottom: There are 3 houses buried under this area.

 

The peak of Mount Merapi hidden behind the mist.

Who can imagined something so beautiful can cause such catastrophe. When it erupted, it brought agony with it. But, after it has calm down, the lands are fertile and the landscapes are breathtaking.

It takes, then it gives.

What choice that we have other than be at peace with and respect it?



A sticker on the jeep that captured my attention straightaway.

Right on!

 

Ayo ke Jogja

'Third time's the charm' is the most accurate expression of our trip this time. We had planned and cancelled our trip to Jogja twice before. But this time, we were determined to make it happen.

 

So, with the charm of the third time, last minute's decisions and bookings, plus a new member to my usual travel gang, we had successfully arrived and had wonderful moments in Jogja. We travelled quite leisurely this time. Not a backpacker's style. I wonder whether it's age, or time constraint or low energy but we hired our own driver, guide and private van. Which saved us a lot of time and energy, and gave us the privileged of knowing two very friendly, kind and funny locals.

 

Main reason of going to Jogjakarta... BOROBUDUR.

 

 

But, Jogja has so many other amazing places that you can visit. Just go with the right gang and the right spirit (plus enough money on hand), you'll be surprised at how much fun you can have in such a simple place.

I wish our trip was a bit longer than 3 days and I wish we brought a bit more money (ngeee...) so that we can go to visit a lot of other places. But for now, I am very happy to have a chance to finally visit Jogjakarta and cross one more UNESCO site off my list.

Wait for more entries on my Jogja trip.

See y'all soon!



What do I get from Travelling?

A few years back, somebody made a remark to me about travelling, which I couldn't really comprehend at that time.

'There's nothing special about travelling. You visit the place, do some sightseeing, shopping, spend a lot of your money, it's tiring and then you come back home which you feel really happy to do.'

I really couldn't understand that.

Although my home is my favourite place in this whole wide world, I always felt happy to leave it for a while and go explore some other places.

But, since last year, I've been thinking about this... What do I get from all the travelling that I've done other than some temporary excitement and happiness? Have all my travelling made me a better person than I was before?

That's a very tough question to answer because if I'm the judge of myself, the answer to that question is 'not so much'. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself, but that's how I feel.

So maybe after this, I should plan things to do on my travel carefully and start evaluating whether I have learned something from my travelling and whether it has positively changed me.

Wish me luck!

Not all those who wander are lost...

Although, that was where she had been. Lost, not wandering...

2014 had been quite a testing year for her. She thought what happened last year did not have that much effect on her. But, losing a much beloved Father will leave a deep unexplained feeling inside anyone.

An independent, strong and adult daughter, is still a daughter. As much as she thinks that she's handling losing her father well, she apparently did not. Subliminally, without her knowledge, it did affect her.

Somehow, it left her struggling & wondering what is going wrong with her. Nothing interests her anymore. Her moods kept on plunging. She finally reached for help worrying that it will hit rock bottom. Aren't she glad that she did that?

So glad :)

She's back now. She thinks so... She can feel the energy and the excitement coming back into her. Bit by bit.

2015 has a new set of challenges for her. The big one served to her at the very early of the year. Even though the light at the end of the tunnel is still so very dim, she stays optimistic and hopeful.

She has little to worry about knowing that she has all the support and love from her incredible family and friends.

And for that, she is forever grateful.

"Be not sad (or afraid), surely Allah is with us."

Al-Fatihah - To my beloved Father, my Grandmother and the whole crews & passengers of flight MH370 who had all left us on the first week of March, 2014 (although I am still hopeful for MH370).

Al-Fatihah.

Don't Quit

The last verse is like a mantra that keeps playing in my head whenever I feel like quitting. This has been with me since I was in high school but I still don't know who is the original author.

****

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

 Life is strange with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure comes about
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.

 Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell just how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

 

Ben Affleck R.E.S.P.E.C.T!

I read this post on 9gag last night and my first thought was... Wow! Ben Affleck! Wow!

Finally, someone said something that has to be said.

R.E.S.P.E.C.T!

http://9gag.com/gag/aj658D0/-respect-ben-affleck

You can search for the debate on YouTube --> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vln9D81eO60

Listening to the interview, I feel offended.  Especially when 'It's the only religion that acts like a MAFIA' was said. The woohooooo and the clapping from the audience was like adding salt on a wound.

I am offended. Deeply Offended.

Honestly, the 'ISLAM' that they discussed is NOT the Islam that I know.

The ISLAM that I know is peaceful, is fair and definitely does not oppress women.

Just look at me and all my female Muslim friends. We are smart & educated, we have careers, we wear hijab without it ever limit the things that we can do, the married ones are not abused by their husbands, the married ones even helped with the family economy, we have our freedom. I am free to travel even on my own without anyone ever holding me back. We can do everything we want and we also know how to protect our honour and always behave like a muslimah.

Obviously, I cannot deny the fact that there are Muslims who are extremists and the reason behind all these generalization on ISLAM... and on Muslims.

I admit that there are also Muslims who are unfair, who are always in rage, who oppress women, who are extremists, who are terrorists etc etc... But, are these behaviour limited to Muslims only? I don't think so.

Except for that terrorist part; lately I feel like for someone to be called a terrorist, that someone must be a Muslim. Otherwise, that someone will only be called a shooter or a hijacker.. something like that. You get the idea right?

The truth is, ISLAM is the one being oppressed right now.

So, I thank you Ben Affleck for keeping an open mind and giving ISLAM a chance of getting a defense in the western world.