and the journey begins...

Judgement Day..

2008-02-16T09:04:00.003+08:00

Today is the day.. and as im getting ready right at this very moment, i am also blogging to calm my self down. For others, it might be something exciting and usually the bride to be will be jiggling here and there but not me. I am out cold, freezing my feet off.. thinking of the future responsibilities and my new life. How different it would be from my life right now, how far apart i will be from my friends and family, and why im doing this, all this..
Wish me all the best and all the luck to him!

Boo!

2008-01-31T23:15:00.000+08:00

After 4 months of silent, i have news for you. Something that i never thought of doing, never cross my mind and certainly not on my things-to-do-before-i-die list.. im getting married. To the man i met while travelling to Alaska..
Some say it is a fairy tale, some say its too soon, but i think it is perfect. Im done doing things my way, well not really but im not letting an opportunity slip away either. I will somehow manage my new chaotic life which i hope would fill with new adventures, new problems and new eye opener. I crave for something different for so long and the answers might just be in a new life, new place and a new me..
Im not writing to tell you how the wedding preparations are going right now (it's crazy!) and i certainly wont be writing about my new man (he's not crazy, i am). But i would love to share my new experience living abroad, being married, new culture and my new toys (ahem, sure you know what it is my friends). Leaving my friends and family are the last thing on my mind but as they say, 'when you gotta go, you gotta go'. And the ride will begin in 16 days as of today, you have no idea how i feel. It's all a mixed feelings that i cant even describe. Coming from a very protective background, i must say these reactions im having right now is not a pleasant one. I do everything as if im dying in 16 days when actually, i'll be starting a new company, like a merger or something with someone that i could also call my own. A commitment that is binded by the law (damn!) where you cant just runaway when things fall apart or when you are bored and dump him. Now i know why people actually walk out of their own wedding. Dont get me wrong.. i wont do that. But i understand now the pressure of delivering your best to one person for the rest of your life! Scary? Maybe it is just how i see it from my eyes. But i hope it will do me good.. It certainly made my parents happy. And nothing compares to that.
That made me into thinking, how far would you go to make someone happy? How strong do you have to be to live a life far away from your loved ones? And when does it all end? The answer for me right now is.. i may never know. But i will challenge everything that comes my way without any fear in me and embrace every moment of it.. after all, i am his daughter. So bring it on.. test me. I am unpredictable.

2007-09-10T10:01:00.000+08:00

after 8 days of driving, travelling around 7500kms from anchorage, we have finally arrived in new jersey where we've been staying since thursday.. it feels good to be back to civilization, not on the road but at the same time, i do miss the adventure and waking up at new places, meeting different people everyday. the reason we made a pit stop here is to shop.. to treat ourselves with some (or lots of) shopping bags and to walk around, instead of driving around. we are currently now staying in saddle river, a quiet place (and a definitely must come back for me if i ever be back here that is) in a subburb, half an hour away from new york and 20 minutes ride from the shopping heaven, woodbury commons. you-know-who was also here, flew in all the way from buenos aires for the weekend.. yeepi!! and the minute he left, 4 hours ago, i felt lonely and lost. damn it!
and since we are already at the end of our journey, there is nothing much to say.. only a recap of what happened from the day we started, 13th of july and the day we arrived here, 6th of september. pictures above and captions below are the only thing i have for you now..pictures might be all jumbled up, forgive my untidiness..

picture 1. the group having dinner and piranha soup as entre
picture 2. piranha soup, up close n personal, yummy!!
picture 3. wonder if i could live here.. what do you think?
picture 4. famous spot in the colorful la boca
picture 5. first night in buenos aires.. love the beefy!
picture 6. i lived in these flip flpos for weeks.. cute toes arent they?
picture 7. iguazu falls.. border of argentina, brazil and paraguay. definitely
a must come back!
picture 8. group picture before leaving ruben and rosa

i went to north pole and guess who i met..

2007-09-04T12:47:00.000+08:00

hah! you must be thinking about that 'north pole' ay? i wish for that too.. but i would be freezing my skinny ass even if i wear 10 layers of jacket. north pole is a small town, famous for ... ta-da.. santa claus house. i was like a lil girl, honestly! jumping out from the car when we got there and rushed in into 'santa claus house' which is by the way a shop selling all cristmas stuff.. but i made a quick u-turn upon seeing rudolph! rudolph the red nosed reindeer.. la-la-la-la-la-la-la.. cant remember the rest. i paid my visit to their cage, said i was sorry that i ate their friends every morning for the past few days so many times but i couldnt help it as they taste so yummy. os courfe they wouldnt know as i dont think they eat their own kind or do they? eeww.. bye rudolph and rushed into the shop. when suddenly i heard 'ho! ho! ho!' wowwee.. i met santa and his wife and just when i thought i wanna catch santa only wearing his underpants since its summer, he was wearing the full outfit. i laughed my head out ( i was in shocked actually ) and said hello, still amazed and excited. i dont know why!! he was sitting on his chair, the ones you always see in the malls during cristmas and the wife, sweetly next to him, knitting i think. didnt pay much attention to the wife as i was, again , still amused with santa. I MET SANTA CLAUS IN NORTH POLE! hehe.. i still giggle everytime i think about it. i ran out to call my dad, forcing him to take my picture as a proof.. for what? god knows why.. think about it and tell me ok. i didnt even know why.. after all the excitement, i browsed thru the shop with a basket in my hand, buying ridiculous stuff and i wasnt the only one. hantu was even faster in filling it up. if you looked into mine, you might think it belongs to a 5 year old.. somehow, i enjoyed shopping in there.. and i even signed up for their catalogue so i could order more and more and more.. cant wait! i love it.. love, love, love it. what a happy place..

off to denali..

2007-09-03T15:45:00.000+08:00

from seward, we drove 8 hours north to denali. i booked a cabin in crow's nest.. a cute and small lodge nearby denali national park. as it was already dark, we went to have dinner and i stayed in the cute cabin whole night, hoping for northern lights to appear some time in the middle of the night while online with him till i fell asleep.. only to wake up there was no northern lights, as i did register myself at the reception to wake me up in the event there is one and no signs of him os courfe next to me. wishful thinking.. one day, one day. in the morning, hantu and i went for 'tundra wilderness tour' into denali national park.. it was so cold as i didnt realized that we were actually quite high up. got onto the tour bus with a bunch of old but crazy old couples who cant stop cracking jokes at anything that moves. they are so happy and content with their lives, i bet. i wish that one day, i too could have a life like that. growing old, aging gracefully yet crazy and funny as hell! the drive in was very scenic and boring at times so being me, i fell asleep.. zzz.. only to wake up at the first stop where they had a pee stop and to snap pictures at yet again another scenic view of the mountains and rivers but no wildlife sighting so far. we then continued our journey to the deep end of denali park to view mount mckinley from a distance which was breathtaking, i must say. hantu had hot chocolate and coffee for me to stay awake while admiring the scenery and posed a few.. you see, when there's only the two of you in a group and your father always wanna take a picture of you, after some time you dont give your best pose anymore so i started making faces to brighten and cheer up my day and i hope his too.. to see that his daughter not only can give people a hard time but could be a clown as well. obviously those pictures wont be published and as much as i wanted to (yes my friends, i would love for you guys to see my other side but i think you've seen more than that, agree?) i couldnt as he didnt bring his cable for me to transfer it into the laptop. what the hell? why am i telling you all this? anyway on the way back, finally we saw few animals such as moose, dall the mountain goat, lotsa different type of birds and bears.. grizzlys in the wild! we saw at few different stops but my favourite was when at this section where the grizzly was busy eating by the roadside. twas quite far at first but it headed towards us and nearer and nearer and walked in front of the bus, passed by us and started eating on the other side of the road. that was the closest encounter so far.. but sad to say, i only got few pictures and mostly of his backside.. yeah, you like that 'backside' word, dont you my dear? that was the highlight of the tour for me and i assumed the coffee i had didnt work coz i did it again.. zzzz.
after the tour, hantu and i went to town, if thats what they called it. i will rephrase it tho.. we went to this row of shops.. one row, just to rub it in to do some shopping. apparently, cris was right. i am a compulsive buyer. i cant see shops, i have to go in and buy something. even if it is just a kiosk at a petrol station. i didnt know what to buy so i got myself an ice cream, cookies and cream, yummy!! which obviously didnt help as it was so cold and eating ice cream freezed me up and my hardly used brain as well. later, we had our dinner, halibut for me and for dessert, i signed up to white water rafting for tomorrow morning activity.
white water rafting was fun!! by 8.15am, i was already in my wet suit, helmet and paddle, ready to get into the raft and enjoy. the first splash of the cold cold water woke me up, no shit! it was 3 degrees if im not mistaken. andy, the guide was cute, adventurous and very informative. he give up being a banker to enjoy winter as a ski instructor in hmm.. i forgot, and during summer, doing white water rafting in denali. i told him to try out queenstown, new zealand.. he would love it. i love queenstown.. and i would love to go back there with my chicas.. will you my friends? we can bungee jump, white water rafting by day and drink all sorts of beers by night. wowee..what a holiday! please.. it has to be our 'things to do before you are 30' and that is in 2 years time. why am i reminding myself that im growing old? not old.. older.. hehe. it sounds better that way ay..

p/s above, there are two favourite pictures of mine. one is the food, which i have to show you guys. it was what i had for breakfast most of the time, eggs toast with reindeer sausages,love, love, love it!! i hope santa would still list me under his good list tho.. and another one with me in it, not because im in the picture but the background is so picture perfect. it may looked like it was taken in a studio but this is real! the reflections of the sky and mountains could be seen so clearly on the water, can you see it? if you cant, you will be growing balls at your neck soon, so you better see it, or admit that you do.. or else..

i totally forgot about..

2007-09-03T13:36:00.000+08:00

i havent been smoking jojo but i act like i just did.. hah! i wish and i miss you jojo..i cant wait to see you. thanking you in advance adik! anyway, after doing my dog sled, a short drive later, we reached wildlife conservation center. it is a place where they keep injured animals and heal them before releasing it into the wild. it is quite a big place and with a small fee at the entrance and a map, we drove in and stop at the first cage, i called it 'the moose house'. my god, they are huge! i never thought they are that big, well, maybe as big as a horse but they are bigger! their head itself is huge and with one strike, i bet it can overturn a 'smart car' but then again, a big fat angry lady can do that too.. but they are huge! how many times do i have to say it? sheesh.. next stop, 'the grizzlys house'. now they are cute! and adorable and doesnt look scary at all. maybe because they are not angry or intimidated and playful and happy i supposed..i couldnt stop snapping their pictures, so did hantu. we also visited 'the bison house', 'the reindeer house', 'the black bear house', 'the brown bear house', 'the caribou house', 'the owl house'.. hmm.. and being me, sorry but i was only into fat animals and so only fat animals pictures are in here.

take me back to seward..

2007-08-30T16:11:00.000+08:00

seward.. im glad i went there. we left anchorage on sunday morning, driving south towards seward, a small fishing town about 2 hours drive from anchorage. 50 miles out, we stopped by at girdwood where i took my heli ride, landed on a glacier and greeted by 80 huskies and 2 mushers.. yummy for both! the dogs and the keepers.. after 15 minutes of briefing and listening to the history of dog sled, i went around looking for the perfect husky to play with. although they all looked cute and cuddly and scary as well, i cant make up my mind on choosing which one would be my favourite.. i dont know why i do that all the time but i had to do it. my favourite is called ... shit, i forgot. dario, the italian musher could remember the whole pack and i cant remember one. i cant be a musher then..are you happy my dear? i will keep on calling the wrong name and will be wondering why they are not listening to me. damn i love the dog sled ride.. i love it! part of me felt like i was a santa claus minus the red outfit, reindeers and big fat tummy os courfe.. but yeah, the ride was the same, i feel, in some way. and for one moment, i also felt like i was living in the old ice age like a real eskimo or maybe i just dream too hard or too much tv.. i dont know.. you go figure. this is definitely a must try for anyone who is in alaska.. where else can you do this? dog sled with a good looking italian musher on a glacier, 1000feet above sea level overlooking gorgeous mountain and being drop off and pick up by a heli.. it was a perfect way to start my day.
and i slept all the way to seward.. hehe. didnt see the view for nuts! the next thing i know, i was already on 4th avenue, seward and one wrong turning, led us to this stream full of salmon swimming against the current, up stream, looking all ugly and scary and yucky for some, lay eggs and die. what a tragic way to die! either they die eaten by bears, human or love for their eggs.. hehe, sound familiar, correct? aint that a sweet love? hehe.. again. not so when you see them minutes before they r.i.p.. u-g-l-y. sor sar, no offence but my love is only for halibut, which is ugly too but who cares, they taste great! we checked in, walked around town, their teeny weeny town which i love, love, love, i dont know why and head to ray's, a favourite restaurant of mine that i could never get enough. now, why do i say this? because i basically tried every main dish that they have throughout my stay in seward and all the dishes are superbly cooked! honestly.. i could eat it, again and again. they have 4 styles of cooking halibut..if im not mistaken, hmm.. maybe thats why i like it so much.
the next morning, we were off on a cruise to see glaciers and wildlife in the open sea. the weather was gloomy and windy but to me, i like it. i hate it when its all sunny and i get all tanned. not for long, we came across sea otter (fluffy and fatty) which i adore so much as they are so cute floating around on their back, a family of orcas swimming gracefully (i love big fat revengeful orca) , sea lions sunbathing on the rock with flippers covering their face as if they were shy to be seen but not.. and this new kinda bird to me called puffin. they are small, adorable for a bird (this is something coz i dont like birds) and loves to sit around, floating in the middle of the sea, just like us having coffee in bangsar cafes, thats how they looked like in the middle of the sea. we also get to see and get close to the glacier and listened to the ice break away and fell into the water. its magnificent and incredible how loud the sound could be. it sounds like thunder, a huge one as if it was about to rain heavily when actually a small fraction of the whole glacier was falling off. it is a wonder, only when you see how nature works you would feel so small in this world.. i know i did. looking at the iceberg too made me feel like i was in the set of titanic.. for one second, i laughed,a small lil laugh.. you jump, i jump remember? hell no! you jump, i stay and wish you bye bye.. i stayed at the bridge with the captain who looks and sound like kevin costner. remember friends? that i used to like kevin costner? hehe.. we talked and i learnt a thing or two.. all the way back to the port and dock.
seward.. i will certainly come back for you.. that is for sure. be it for fishing, boating, eating, 'love making at a cabin on a cliff'.. as ive said, i love small towns and seward is definitely on my list.

ive been busy - anchorage

2007-08-30T15:18:00.000+08:00

sorry for my long absence.. ive been busy. busy checking out anchorage, busy spending time with the boys as they were leaving earlier than me, busy shopping for souviniers, busy planning on what to do and where to go, busy with him whom i dearly miss now.. busy bee me.
anchorage is not a big town but not that small either. the city is well planned with parks, medical centre, hotels, airport, university, with all sorts of ammenities and services strategically located around the area. it is in some way a nice place to retire, to start a family, to run away from crowded city life.. but i guess it is not so ideal during winter times ay? too cold for a malaysian perhaps?
from where we were staying, info center, good restaurants, railway station and the weekend market are all within walking distance. i love it actually.. during the day, it is so much fun to walk around. filled with tourist taking pictures, locals serving good food and all sorts of beers, street performers having a show by the park.. it is just lovely and fun and lively.. by day that it.
at night, downtown anchorage turn to somewhat a dodgy and quiet place where one wouldnt want to or i, personally dont feel like going out for a night cap. i seem to understand why they impose such law on drinking alcohol.. are they a natural born drinker or is that a culture they live by? i wonder.. one night, i was walking to a shop, looking for my father after dinner, i passed by a group of youngsters, barely 17 i must say asking for ciggies from me.. and as i passed them ciggies and light it up for them, they were 'friendly' enough to ask where i was from.. to me, they were the most polite drunkards and druggies ive met. i could smell the alcohol, not beer or whiskey and by their faces, it is not herbs or pills we are talking about. i took back my lighter, wish them a good fun friday night and left..lets just say downtown anchorage is not so touristy by night okie dokie? well, not to my taste anyway..
dont get me wrong.. i would love to come back to anchorage. i must! i love it and my stay here for this trip is not long enough to complete what ive come here to achieve. and if we ( he and i ) could make it this february for winter, it would be great.. winter in alaska with him. to me, that is perfect, and to me, he is too..

p/s i made new friends.. mei and nicollete. mei works at the visitor info center, the place i went to stick my face everyday to plan my activities. on my last day,i told them i dont want to do anything 'touristy' so they took me to their campus and let me pretend as a student to collect free gifts on their open day!it was a lot of stuff that i will never use, carried around in a huge laundry bag which i felt at one point like a santa claus but i had so much fun being young again os courfe. we then head out to earthquake centre, 10mins drive from the campus and nearby the airport (where he was that morning, sob sob) looking for berries and the legendary 'sleeping lady'.. come dinner time, we picked up hantu and i had the first, really good asian meal after 50 days of travelling at this vietnamese restaurant. they have spicy food! and i finished the whole big bowl of rice! whats new!!! thank you mei and nicollete. i had a really good time.. ohh.. anyone interested with an archeologist? let me know.. you wont regret it. trust me..

the rice story..

2007-08-27T13:27:00.000+08:00

where do i begin..
to tell the story of how great a love can be..
the sweet rice story that is older than the sea..
the simple truth about the love it brings to me..
where do i start..
with the first order..
it gave a meaning to this empty tummy of mine..
there'd never be another love another time..
it came into my life and made my tummy fine..
it fills my tummy..
it fills my tummy..
with very special things..
with all seafood..
with chicken and meat..
i fill up my plate..
with so much rice..
that anywhere i go..
im never hungry..
with take away..
fear i might get hungry..
i reach inside the plastic bag..
its always there..
how long does it lasts..
can rice be measured by the hours in a day..
i have no answers now but this much i can say..
i know i need rice till the paddy all burn away..
then life is unfair..

dedicated to all the restaurants that has been feeding me and i miss dearly..
-sri siam thai restaurant
-kanna indian curry house
-muhibbah malay/chinese restaurant
-the talk japanese bistro
-bonga korean restaurant
-teluk gong seafood restaurant
-klang seafood restaurant
-nasi lemak bangsar
-berjaya restaurant
-aunty starhill seafood

god i cant wait to eat you guys again. it has been 53 days since i last taste the sweet love of malaysian food. and as much as i dont feel like going back to face malaysian society (the snob and the remps), i miss the food and nothing, nothing compares to our delicacies that is available 24hrs a day. although i must say i found something new and love to eat here in alaska, i am still very traditional and faithful to my food back home. the new love i found is called halibut. a very very very ugly fish with good white meat.. halibut looks like it belongs to the dinosaur world, it is huge, scary ancient looking fish. but YUMMY! i have halibut everyday in every meal. and i know i will miss halibut once i leave alaska so i intend to fill up my body with it by eating it without killing the entire population, os courfe. i never miss a meal so far.. i wish you could have a taste of halibut, i know you will like it but i cant bring it back to kuala lumpur. i cut you a deal, how about if i draw you one instead? hehe..ok, ok.. i know i cant draw for nuts! i'll try to take a picture of it. wouldnt it be nice if i could catch one? ya right.. i think it is as tall (the length) as i am, if not taller. my god! i bet it is heavier that i am too.. :( halibut the fish is heavier than i am, now that is sad..i need you rice!

WE DID IT!!

2007-08-24T05:08:00.001+08:00

i could now offcially say that we did it!! we have reached alaska.. drove 21504kms.. from buenos aires.. across brazil, venezuela, colombia, panama, costa rica, nicaragua, honduras, guatemala, mexico, united states, canada and now, ALASKA! congratulations to the drivers, hantu and hugh.. and the co-drivers, cris, patrick, martin and me os courfe! i think we did one hell of a job, one hell of a team and definitely one hell of a holiday that i would never forget. thank you! muchos gracias senor..

First time here, wont be the last..

2007-08-21T14:17:00.000+08:00

Scratch what i said about Central America.. No doubt its different from the countries i've been to, exotic in some ways and wouldnt mind doing it again but Canada, Canada is a must for all. The drive towards the U.S/Canadian border was rather boring and we travelled 3074kms from El Paso, only to stop at a small town town called Casper, Wyoming to sleep before continuing our journey the next day, across the border into Banff, Canada. Speaking of casper, adik told me to print out stickers like my father's and in this case, i should be casper since he is 'hantu'. Thank god i didnt. I just realized that casper looks like a condom and i aint gonna portray myself as a flying safe sex mascot. Now, back to Banff.. Where do i begin? It is a small town, tourist resort, surrounded by mountains and greenery's.. It was just honestly breathtaking. When we arrived, it was late at night, we were tired and just looking for a place to sleep. We couldnt see the view or how the town looks like. When i woke up in the morning, had my coffee and walked outside for a puff.. there it was. Amazing.. Incredible.. God damn it! I love it.. love,love,love,love it! Thanks to Hugh's mother who suggested that we should take a peek at this town, we spent the night and i know for sure now, it is not enough. I will definitely come back for more, i would even stay for a week perhaps. They have all sorts of activities such as atv tours,white water rafting, horse riding, rock climbing, hiking,float trips, caving tours, biking, fly fishing, wildlife tours, kayaking. glacier sightseeing,heli flights, zipline tours, gondola rides, camping to name a few or did i just list it all? I cant help it. I think i found a new love.. Told you that i would be in this state of mind the whole journey. K.L really got me on my nerve and im not homesick at all. Sure i miss adik, mama, baby, my hommies (not homo ok, my dear) and the FOOD but for now, im super fine, still thirsty for more new places, new people, new day. So Alaska, here we come! Pictures above was taken throughout the drive from quick-passing-thru America to heaven-on-earth Canada.. It's amazing, isnt it?

p/s after my camera's battery died, i started to take mental picture. Do you know how? Let me teach you.. Aim and focus on what you want to remember and then close your eyes for 2 seconds as if you are the lens, taking snapshot from the camera. If you are not sure you are doing it right, please call adik and she will gladly show and guide you.

Daniel.. This is for you..

2007-08-20T17:02:00.000+08:00

Daniel rindu papa yea.. This is just for you. All papa's pictures for you to view till papa comes back.. He misses you, i know. And i miss you too.. And when he comes back, he'll take you to the beach ok. Love you dan..

One border crossing to another..

2007-08-17T10:46:00.000+08:00

Time passed by so fast.. It has been 36 days since we started the journey, leaving Buenos Aires on the 13th of July. After covering 9 countries (Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico) and travelled 14941 kms, we are now in El Paso, Texas, America with 6768 kms to go to get our sweet asses to Alaska.
We left Dominical, Costa Rica into Nicaragua on Friday, 10 August. With heavy rains and early sunset, we decided to stay in Jinotape, a small town along the route. Hotel was nothing fancy and i never did mind since we stayed at a 'whorehouse' before in Maracaibo but my god, i didnt feel safe. There were 3 security guards armed with (pump gun, i think), standing by in front of the hotel. Imagine that! I guess it's a norm as when we got to Tegucilgapa, Honduras.. its the same thing too. Armed guards and the main door at the hotel lobby is locked by night falls. Something tells me that i dont think i would wanna go back to this 2 countries. Driving up north into Guatemala the next day, we spent the night in Cuilapa in a small, on top of a hill motel which looked quite deserted but i feel a lot better than the ones before. A man who is apparently running for governor of that teeny weeny town joined us for dinner and damn his moustache is so thick that i bet he has a shampoo and a comb for it.And my mind started to wonder whether is that the reason he got elected for.. Perhaps, you may never know. I was trying very hard not to stare at him and his other half as i know and half of the people i know that i can be quite obvious when something intrigues me that much so i tried to keep my focus on my pollo championes (is that how its spelled? i wonder) that tasted exactly lke the roast chicken in Dave's Deli. I was amazed with that too. Shit! Im easily amused, arent i?
By the way,thank god for the heated pool, it took my mind off the moustache and into the pool with Patrick and Martin and ohh.. our new found frined, Rambo. He is the security guard that was around the area, guarding while we took a dip ( and a picture with him too! i dont know why). We had an early cool morning drive out of the scrawny town, up and down, round and round the hills, heading towards the next border. It was so good.. I dont know what made it so good and my mind could think clearly ( i actually resolved few issues in my head that morning). Maybe it was because of my full tummy with heavy breakfast, cooked by papa as the motel didnt serve any breakfast. At 6.30am, he prepared 3 packets of maggi in a bowl and a cup of milo for me. I think he thinks im a pig, what say you? Not that im complaining as i did finish without any hardwork but really, am i? Am i?
The good feeling didnt last that long as we've reached the Mexican border, we were stuck there for half a day due to unnecessary situation. Thanks to my 'lucky charm', we got thru the border by 6pm. Spending a night at Tapachula wasnt so good as i could recall but Puerto Escondido, which was the next town that we spent the night was great. Great, great, great. You see, i like small towns. I find that the people are friendlier, the food they serve is original, not confused to suit to certain international taste and the ambience is just relaxing, easy going where one can enjoy the time they spend. Puerto Escondido was great! Next day, we drove up to Acapulco without going into the beach area as the city wasnt impressive at all as i thought it would be.. Dirty, unfinished building, poverty, too commercialized made us skip and headed for Toluca. But before that, we said our goodbyes and many thanks to Buby and Barbara who are heading back to Buenos Aires. I will miss them.. they are so much fun to be with.
Anyway, back to Toluca(telur ka?), it's a city which is 2400mtrs above sea level so you could well imagine how's the tempreature was like. Driving up to the city/town, we went thru small indi villages with superb views and i was wondering why were they covering themselves up with pochos and sweaters. Then i realized how high we were and upon arriving, it was cold, freaking cold. And these two Malaysians just strolled in with t-shirts, shorts and flip flops! Malaysia Boleh! Hehe..
Hmm..Let me see. There was Torren 1150kms up north from Toluca, a small town that we stopped by to overnight since the sun had dawn on us and left early in the morning towards the American/Mexican border. After driving 904kms, we reached Santa Teresa, an easier check point, rather than going thru El Paso's check point and got ourselves a very much needed comfy room in Holiday Inn El Paso, where we are now.. So far, it has been one hell of a trip. Crossing Central America without Maxis line was hard for me especially when it comes the need to talk to adik and unconsistent internet service has put me on hold in writing the blog. As i've said before, i would love to have my friends, my adik to be with me (rather than writing, i aint a writer) and see what i see, feel what i feel and experience new, everyday joy that makes life worth living. No doubt,as foreseen, a lot of money was spent (and a lot more to come till we get back), time taken and unexpected scenes arise but it was all well worth it. And if i have to do it all over again, i would.But this time.. come with me. I promise you, you wont regret it..

what can i say about dominical..

2007-08-08T09:03:00.000+08:00

it has been 4 days since i got here in dominical.. and things are still the same. been raining everyday in the afternoon and i miss being on the road. honestly i do! well, to keep myself occupied, i found a new love. its called directv.. hehe. it is something like astro, only better! they have every channel that you can imagine and the bonus point is their radio station. it provides the title, artist and the album of the song that is on at the moment. i love it.. love love love it. hard habit to break by chicago, right before my eyes by southside hustlers, real girl by nutya buena, black horse by kt tunstall.. one minute i was doing salsa, then switched to trance then love songs then on the bed, reminiscing on my past life (yawn.. it seems so far away now, im way over it thanks to you my dear, you know who you are)then back to tv in english and maybe spanish (yes..im learning). everywhere i go, i would fall in love with something..even when i thought i was gonna die of boredom while waiting for HIM and the car, i found myself a new toy to play with. lucky lucky lucky me.. or am i that easy to be pleased?
by the way.. hantu and i went for horseback riding to nauyaca waterfalls. obviously, it is nothing compared to angel falls but i had a good time with the horsie horsie.. mine named pacheko. cute yea? he's 10 years old and very very slow (like me when im stoned) and loves to eat (like me again!) every 100 mtrs ride, he'll stop to eat. im the last one to arrive at every stop! thats how slow he was.. nauyaca falls is great, the main guide looks like pacheko and the one who asked for my number reminds me of zaid a.f.. eeww.. i kinda like horse riding but i cant stand the pain on my ass. it hurts even now! im lack of fats you see, so papa suggested to put cushion if i wanna take up riding. no, gracias.. maybe till im 50kgs.. thats my next mission in life.
being here, having all the time to myself makes me wonder and think about my life a lot. i dont wanna think about it, i hate thinking about it. the problems i have, the future problem that may arise and the ones that ive dealt with. at the moment, there is one. how open are we to talk to our father about love life? not that im in love right now but my whole life, i dont talk about it, at all. i just let them find out by themselves and it wasnt a proper way either. im older now and i wanna be open to him (since i could drink openly here, why not talk about it?) but i feel awkward and this goes to my mother as well. do you have a problem like this, friends? how do you handle it? should i just say it out or keep it to myself? lemme know coz im tired.. too tired to think.lazy too perhaps. maybe it is for the best if i give up.. maybe its better to be on my own.. so far, it has been great (didnt have that much of a choice do i?) but i know i am missing something every time i see a couple passing by, holding hands and embracing each other..this is not me talking.
enough! of these crappy things.. i must get back to my beer, pool and ipod and think of the next thing i could play with ( double meaning!)wondering alone is not an ideal thing to do when you are in costa rica. i should have fun! damn the ports, the clearance, the country, the security and bureaucracy.. i will try to give you fools a hell of a time when you are in mine! dont let me catch you in my territory ok.
posted here are some pictures i took in dominical.. resort is lovely, beach is a surfer's paradise, food is great and the people are friendly.it's not you dominical but i cant wait to get out of here and head to alaska!
p/s adik.. you are right. i do sound like im talking to myself when i write. wonder if that is good or bad..

i miss..

2007-08-07T05:25:00.000+08:00

i dont have a picture of baby.. somebody, help me!!! please.. i miss baby.. baby, this is for you..
when i first saw you, i saw love
when the first time you touched me, i felt love
and after all this time, you are still the one i love..
looks like we made it
look how far we've come my baby
we might took the wrong way
we knew we get there some day
they say, i bet
they'll never make it
but just look at us holding on
we are still together
still going strong
you are still the one i run to
the one that i belong to
you are still the one i want for life
you are still the one that i love
the only one i dream of
you are still the one i kiss good night
YOU ARE STILL THE ONE BABY!!

p/s nini.. if you look at one of the pictures closely, you will find the answer to your question. sarip.. no,im not crazy!! you were there when i got him/her. shit, i still cant figure out if baby is a boy or a girl.

Wishing and hoping..

2007-08-06T09:32:00.000+08:00

After 5 nights in Cartagena, Colombia, i am now in Dominical, Costa Rica.God,i love Cartagena.. or maybe for the things that happened while i was there. Hehe..Cartagena is a tourist spot, therefore it is safe to wander around. During the day, the boys and i started with lounging by the pool, me i supposed. They were jumping, swimming and terrorizing each other.. so much fun by looking them and tired too.We would have lunch and later in the afternoon, we head out to the beach where they played football and i sunbathing in my new bikinis. Their bikinis are gorgeous!!I bought a few and determine to go back for more.Sell it in kl perhaps?Would there be a market fpr it anyone?Night life in Cartagena is fun and lively tho i spent most of my night time 'connecting to internet' so i called it. I love those nights..Beer in one hand, 'typing' on the other. Hehe.. Ohh.. I met 2 Colombians who gave me their number just in case if i wanna go back there. One is a navy officer and the other is working in New York. Not that i would call but it felt good knowing that someone is interested to know about me (and Malaysia) better. They could hardly speak English and i dont speak Spanish so most of the time we communicate thru sign language..its universal yea. And i also tried this liquor that gives the same taste and effect as flaming.. i love it! Thus, i bought two bottles, one to drink and savour it all the way to Alaska and another for my friends that i miss so much and wish could be here with me. I want you guys to try it, i dont care! Dont be bothered about the fire (flaming). You drink it neat and you are good to go. I ate a lot while i was there. There's this one particular restaurant that i could never get enough of to the extend, i dont even have to order. They knew what i wanted (everytime i walked in, which is daily). A deep fried fish (i dont even know what fish it is), 2 serving of rice(typical shakhira), a bottle of chili (i miss spicy food and they freaked out by the way i eat)and coke (typical again).
We couldnt get our visas to Panama despite many attempts,phone calls and harress by Hugh but to no avail. We went our separate ways at the Panama Intl Airport where they would be staying in Panama for few nights while waiting for the 3 cars to be cleared at the port while Hantu and i jumped on the next flight to Costa rica.We stayed one night at the airport hotel and took a ride to Dominical, where we are now this afternoon. It is a meeting point for us to reunite with Hugh and the rest for 2 nights. 2 NIGHTS! Lama tu..Villa Rio Mar is the name of the resort. It is a jungle and beach resort and it is so serene and quiet. Perfect i must say after a week in the city of Cartagena. Although i wish i have my special someone to share it with..soon i hope. After this, we will be driving up north, all the way to Alaska.. i hope Hugh and the boys could make it, given the time limitations due to the boys school holiday.Cant wait to get there! I was told that Linus has this url and if you are reading this, welcome! Im sorry if it is not up to your expectation as i didnt expect any of Hantu's friend to read and neither did i clock down the mileage from Point A to Point B (for your future expedition perhaps?) but i do hope you enjoy it. It is the best i could do for now. I will try to key in details for your reference, if i remember.
Friends and adik.. I cant stop wishing and saying that i miss all of you and want you to be with me all the way. Promise me one day, we will do the same thing. Well, maybe not South America but we have to start somewhere ok. It is so much fun, different than K.L, different places to go, ppl to meet, things to see, every freaking day! Its undescribable and i thank papa for making it came true for me. I couldnt have done without him. I guess ive been blessed by this opportunity to experience what i called once-in-a-lifetime trip and i want to share it with all of you.So keep on reading, send me your views, hope you are not dissapointed with my blog and please remember what i said before i left, 'NO ONE GETS MARRIED WHILE IM AWAY,PLEASE'. I dont want to miss a thing, not a moment from your life, all of you. While on the other hand, you guys are missing a whole lotta thing by not being with me now.. Hehe. Dont get angry, i'll put up more pictures, i promise. Till then, take care chicas.. love you loads.

The day i fell in love..

2007-08-02T11:36:00.000+08:00

It has been a while yea? A week ago or should i say 9 days ago, I was in Santa Elena, south of Venezuela. Its a small border town which has a magnificent breathtaking view. Im not lying! We spent 2 nights there as i wanted to see Angel Falls and that required one full day. Hugh, Patrick, Cris and I took a flight in a teeny weeny Cessna on tuesday morning to Kavak. But first we flew towards Angel Falls and to tell you the truth, I nearly cried (i think i did actually, kecik2 dlm hati) Its beautiful , beautiful, beautiful!!! The pilot took us around , over , from the front for us to get the perfect shot ( but i aint a perfect person ya.. same as my shots). Words cant describe how i felt at that time. It was overwhelming. The day was so perfect, no clouds covering the ´salto angel´, flight without turbulence ( you have no idea how many times i said my prayer before boarding as the pilot called himself ´lil fatty´and he is at least 5 times my size)and to make it better, the village where we landed was so so so serene that i swear to God ,i will come back for more. A day in Kavak isnt enough for me. We landed on a red earth airstrip, took at least 3-5 kms hike into the woods, swam thru a freezing cold stream and ended up in a secluded fall which , again is superbly incredible. Incredible! As the boys climbed, jumped, dived ( you name it, they did it) my freakishly skinny body was holding on to my non fat skin to stay warm so i kept myself busy by snapping pictures for you guys. It was ... my, my, my. Its useless to type it.. useless to describe how beautiful, perfect, magnificent, incredible Angel Falls and Kavak is. Lets all wish upon a star that we somehow miraculously get there one day, oka? Then you would know how i felt on that day. I will never forget the feeling. We hiked back to the village after 3hrs of tranquilo(relaxing, for this context), had lunch there and took our ride back to Santa Elena. End of tour. Sob sob.. But Kavak will always be in my heart and i will find a way to get my ass there again , and this time i would be prepared to go thru the icy cold water with lotsa fats stuck in my body (pray for me friends)and an insect repellent for the puri-puri that attacked and bit me (right leg 20 bites, left leg 18 bites , value market down 50%)like im some kinda their ¨lunch express¨. Puri-puri sounds cute kan but no, no, no. They are this ceput mosquito that drills into your skin and suck on your blood. I guess they have never tasted a Malaysian blood before. Well, there´s always the first time. I know.. i had it over and over again. Till the end of the trip i guess and i cant wait to see what happens next. What would be the next thing i fall in love with...

Back to civilization..

2007-07-22T04:42:00.000+08:00

I survived!! Hello.. Im back. After 2 days and 2 nights of terror (wasnt so bad actually), i managed to get my ass in good condition or should i say whats left of it to Manaus, a city which is still in the Amazon province but well developed. The journey started when we left Humaita early in the morning few days ago into the mouth of Amazon. We were using BR319 or Tranz Amazonia, a highway that was built in 1971 by the government which was under the military back then.It was built hoping that the ppl of Brazil will do some kind of settlement in the Amazon along the road or 'highway' but it was a complete failure. Tranz Amazon runs for 750km from Humaita up to Manaus and it will only take us perhaps 8 hrs the most to complete the journey. But no.. it wont be fun trip without some adventure right? As shown in the picture, the road is badly damaged from the erosion and since there is no proper maintenance been done, the road starts to deteriorated, eating mostly the tarmac and whats left only red earth. During November till May, rain wont stop falling and will overflow the entire Amazon which eventually sweep away the bridges that connects us from one end to another. Mind you, when they built the bridges again, its not some kinda fancy one as no one, NO ONE, goes through the Tranz Amazonia except the telco guys and crazy ppl, like us, Hugo said. Telco guys who comes in during dry time will repair damages that could be repaired with what they have in their pick up truck and also to check on the telco tower which is located in every 40kms along the 'highway'. Now, this telco tower is our 'casa amazonia'.. We drove the whole day and just before sunset, we tried to position ourselves to the nearest tower to sleep and for safety precaution. From what i heard, there's a lot of jaguar and panther wandering around. Tho i doubt they want a skinny boney girl from k.l, i would not risk it as i refuse to die eaten by a cat family.
Anyway, the road was so bad that papa's car had to be pulled out 3 times due to the bad rear tyre and my, my ,my.. I was scared. Im built for speed, not off road and since this is my first time, i started to think that we might not make it to Alaska. But Hugh said that in every expedition like this, there will always be one car that will be on a safe ground to pull another should they get stuck. That made me feel better. We crossed the river 5 times on a barge and i like it! The last river that we crossed was the Amazon River which is so wide that that the big ships and a submarine could actually dock at Manaus Port. Amazing!!
When i was in the Amazon, i didnt let my mind get to head. I know if i let it happen, i'll freak out. Now that im out of it, i could say it.. I was indeed imagining a lot of things while we were in there. What if when i was sleeping in the car that night and i woke up surrounded by some cannibal ppl and they are waiting to eat me. Or what if the man that we saw while driving into the jungle was actually a werewolf? He was walking alone, all happy and smiling.. We all agreed that he was too 'friendly' to be approached. And what about these 2 saloon cars that we saw driving out off the jungle, saying that they were from Manaus when there was neither mud nor broken tail pipe, totally opposite the car that turned back with everything dangling like saggy tities.. Were they the good guys or the bad ones? We doubt. And when we driving late at night on the first day, my eyes and my mind was playing tricks with me. At one point, i started to imagine wentu-wentu and kept quiet, praying in my heart till we reached the telco tower. I didnt shi shi till the next morning. Papa thought i was sick!
By the way, now that we are in Manaus, all safe and sound, im glad that i could actually said that i did it.. AND PROUD OF IT. The city of Manaus is lively and filled with friendly people. On saturday night, they are dancing by the beach, diving off from the pier and other sorts of entertainment. Basically, they are like us Malaysians but minus the annoying part which is mat rempit and judgemental ppl. I like it here and i wish my friends and adik are here to enjoy this part of my trip with me. You guys would love it.. i promise you that. Its a mixture of fun, adventures and cultured/modern lifestyle.. Its different in every stop that we made and i learnt as we drive along north to Alaska. When i left Kuala Lumpur, i didnt know what to expect and whether or not i should arrange a backup plan. Now that im here, seeing incredible things, meeting great ppl and eating food that i would never thought id eat, im loving every second of it and as much as i hate to say this, i dont miss home at all. I do miss adik, mama, friends, food and baby but other than that, im not ready to go home..Not yet, not until i say i do.

10 things i found out so far..

2007-07-18T09:53:00.000+08:00

1. Michellin has a rubber plantation of their own in Brazil to support the demands of tires worldwide.. Cool yea. We passed by it yesterday and its impressive. Huge..

2. Some 'ppl' just dont know when to quit conquering other ppl's land even in the modern days and to make it worse, it is far away from their own territory.. Grow up chappies!

3. Ive been to the equator line in Padang, Indonesia ( thanks ma for a trippy trip but i love it, there is a reason why i cried leaving it), stayed overnight at Ciuaba, Brazil known for the central city of South America (you could check the latitude and longtitude) and will be going to the most northern city in the world in Alaska.. where the road ends (for the fuck of it, papa doesnt seem to mind).

4.Piranha soup tastes like sharks fin soup, yummy! I would never eat or put anything funny in my mouth but when im on holiday, so is my body.. Friends, dont get any funny ideas ha..

5. Older man can be attractive and charming and this is new to me.. Ive always like younger ones but from now on, i know what to look for. I understand why some ladies would go for much older men.. I feel ya siti nurhaliza!

6. I will be going through 14 countries from this trip alone, add on 15 countries that ive covered for the past 28 years and hopefully another 14 countries that is on my list but never could i top papa who will reach 101 countries by the end of this trip.. Im jealous!

7. Have been to Iguazu Falls which is the widest and by far the most beautiful waterfall ive ever seen.. On and off tv. Honestly. I would be going to Niagara Falls on the way back from Alaska but to me, it is only famous because it has been commercialized. And in 10 days time, i should be done flying over Angel Falls, Venezuela with the highest drop, approximately 3000mtrs.

8. I could actually live without my jo-jo, with no mood swings.. nada! I guess its 'anywhere but kl' does apply in this category..

9. Spanish is a very very sexy accent, South American girls arent that gorgeous but the men are superlicious! I wouldnt mind having one or ten for that matter. No wonder papa said mama didnt even blink for a second when she was here.

10. I have lived quite an interesting 28 years of life, and despite few pests and depressing pit stops, i would not let a tauge to ruin it after this..

Opening my stoney eyes..

2007-07-11T21:39:00.000+08:00

Ola.. It's another cold day and im still waiting to leave Buenos Aires and get on the road. We went to do our visas for Panama and Costa Rica yesterday. Didnt know that side of the world is damn gorgeous! Again, cant wait to get there. Apparently, Costa Rica is one those countries where ppl love to retire.. Americans, Canadians, a skinny Malaysian girl perhaps? And why not? Similar to Malaysia only, again, no rempit. The properties there are selling like hot cakes. For a modern 1200sq apartment overlooking a beautiful, white sandy beach, it costs only USD110,000.Damn i wish i was rich. And shh.. i didnt know its so hard to write down the things i wanna say when there is a cute guy in front of me, looking and smiling, waiting to check in at the lobby. Oohhh..
By the way, today, im going to pay a visit to the National Museum of Fine Arts where they have a complete room of the best national contemporary art.. That should be fun! It is sooo not me but yet around the city, you could find statue work of art which amazes me like a small girl in a toy shop. How can anyone come up with this kind of idea and why, we cant do the same in KL? Maybe when i go back, i'll be an artist. Haha.. When baby can transform into Optimus Prime or mama will let me keep a hippo at home, that will be the day i become one but till then Adios! The only thing that im good with my hands are rolling(you know what..) Sob sob.. i miss my jo-jo.
And since i have so much of me-time now, i started to think. For long, ive been keeping myself in a nutshell, away from my feelings.. far away from him. Its not that he broke my heart that made me this way. I lost the ability to trust anyone. It's worse.. a lot more that just shattered and been stampeed. Thanks to indo songs that could make me cry faster that i could drive, i cracked everytime. Im no idiot but why did i let him step all over?Since i was born, i was well protected by my dad till i met a DUDE (literally,no name pls,hehe) and he took good care of me.. for the next 6yrs till he got married, a wedding ceremony that i love, honestly, for the alcohol that got me thru the night. Then i met him.. and i thought maybe he'd take care of me too. I was wrong and now im paying the price.. So now, the question is, how would i know when am i supposed to be at ease and when am i supposed to be on guard?

From a far,far away land..

2007-07-10T09:53:00.000+08:00

After getting off a 25hours flight, I've finally reached Buenos Aires..Thank god!! One more hour and i'll puke my brains out. Hugo checked us in this chic & very zen hotel called ... shit,sorry,i forgot the name and im too lazy to check.Something dazzling................ Screw it! Anyway, took our shower since we both smelled of plane food and head out for dinner.Oh, by the way, i took my first puff with papa when we were in transit at Cape Town & Jo-Berg and boy,it was awkward. To make it worse, during dinner, Ruben ordered wine and they cheers to welcome us.. Awkward, again! But my ,my ,my.. Argentine wine is damn delicious. Papa drank quite a lot and gave me a shock but not to the extend that he got drunk and made a full out of himself as adik put it. I would love that to happen..Tho i'll be freaking out and calling my mom instead, crying for the fact that my dad lost the plot.
Buenos Aires is kinda similar to any Europian city, always entertaining, full of good looking ppl (yeepi!no remp-it) lovely architecture and the meat.. hmm.. yummy. The only thing that im not in favour so much is the language. Dont get me wrong, spanish is a verrryy sexy language, if you know how to speak. And i dont. The end. Although they know english, they will try not to speak and give you a hard time figuring out what the hell they are saying. Its like a mule trying to converse with a turtle. Even now, i have to figure out myself on which box im supposed to press after blogging since everything here is in .....? Smart.. In espianol. So now, im walking around with my spanish-english dictionary, learning. Si..Yes. Ola.. Hello. Gracias.. Thank you. Well, most of it i picked it up from the Godfather. Uno..One. Dos.. Two. Tres.. Three. Thank you Ricky Martin.
Today is their Independence Day and for the first time in 60 yrs, apparently, its snowing. And mind you, im not prepared for this. I was out shopping when it started to drizzle..then snow. Woohoo.. but then, towards nightfall, it went -1. Sob sob, cried my skinny body. Im shivering as im writing this down.. To go through this weather, i bought my very first winter clothing. And more, more, more.. I wanted to buy it when we reach Alaska but it feels like im in the Antartica already.
Tomorrow, we'll be going to the Embassy of Panama and Costa Rica to apply our visas and picking up the car later in the evening.We'll be leaving on friday.. i think.. And the journey will cover at least 22,000km, crossing over 14 countries. Yeepi!!! We'll be going thru the Amazon.. Cant wait and friends, try not to scare me with anaconda and piranha stories. Im scared as it it. Oooohh.. and Columbia too. Think i could smoke some my man? Yes.. If i could shit baby hippos, maybe.

p/s : i miss che pot n since i left it at home, i got myself a new friend, a zebra named olly. zebra=coli ( in malay)=olly. i wrote it down just in case i forgot why i called it olly at the first place. i think my brain is freezing..

9 days to go..

2007-06-29T14:48:00.000+08:00

Nine days to go.. Excited? Scared? I dont know.. But i cant wait to leave. To all my friends, hello.. welcome to my world. A world full of fantasies, adventures and of course, lots and lots of crap! I am not an exciting or interesting person to begin with but i do wanna share whats in my head.. Now, my head is a whole new person. It has a mind on its own, things to do, stuff to buy, his ups and downs. Yes.. Its a boy. And adik, i guess you are partially right when you told me maybe pama wanted a son and got me instead.
I was packing my things for this trip that im about to venture in when i realized the people that i'll miss, the nasi lemak that i wont be eating and most of all, my baby, my love that i couldnt get my hands on. For nearly 3 months! Am i sure? Or am i kidding myself? Guess we would have to wait to find out if i could survive.