Dreams Come True (part 2)

cont'd-finale

Dr. L : Oh, well. Prof. W is actually very nice. But he has his own unique way to express his kindness; nice and kind but a little bit tough. 
Me : Beughhh...pantesan aye dapet "bonus" semprotan pas pertama kali ketemu dulu XD. But Dr. L, I've secured my plane ticket to Indonesia by next Tuesday. #wails

Anyhow, after received Dr. L's full support, I gritted my teeth* and decided to meet Prof. W to ask a favor. Even though I didn't know how would I explain my situation to him, I determined to do so. A few minutes later, another person came and assured everything. Her English name is Monica. She's a PhD student; my advisor's former student. She's also a researcher in one of the biotech companies in Chiayi.

Monica : Bunga, long time no see! #a little bit dramatic with hugging and almost teary scenes =))
How are you? I haven't seen you for ages. What's this form? 
Me : Monica, I've made up my mind to resign as a student here. I want to go home to pursue another degree in my country. This is a form of resignation and I'm here to ask for Prof. W's signature.
Monica : WHAT? No, no...please don't do that, Bunga. You've worked really hard here and you MUST go home happily with your certificate of degree!
Me : #sighing Dr. L just said the same thing, Monica. She asked me to meet Prof. W to find a way out for this complicated thing. But honestly, I just want to go home. #drama queen mode : ON
Monica : Listen to me, Bunga. Did you know that I also ran away from Dr. Y's** lab? We had a fight about my research and I decided to change advisor. Now I'm under Prof. W's advisory. He's very nice. I'll accompany you to meet him and explain everything to him. I'm sure he'll help you. Bunga, I understand your feeling because I've faced the same situation as you when I was under Dr. Y's advisory.

Hence, Monica became the second person (after Dr. L) who successfully shifted my decision, 180 degrees. After an hour or so, Prof. W came and we awkwardly met. Shortly after sat, Monica explained my A-to-Z situation to him.

Prof. W : Hmmm...honestly, right now I couldn't come up with any idea for your research project, Bunga. Okay, what about like this. Monica, because you've promised to help Bunga, I'll assign you to be her supervisor. Put her on the same research project with you. The solid state fermentation project from your biotech company. What do you think?
Monica : No probs, Prof. What do you think, Bunga?
Me : Nodding speechlessly (*bengong saking bahagianya) --> That research topic is the ONE THAT I'VE ALWAYS WANTED!
Prof. W : If you agree, I'll be your new advisor. What do you say?
Me : Nodding extra speechlessly (*sampai hampir nangis di tempat) --> This kind-tough professor is the ONE THAT I'VE ALWAYS WANTED to have as my advisor because he's the expert in food microbiology-food safety; my all favorite things.
Prof. W : Done deal! So, Monica meanwhile Bunga is having her break in Indonesia, you have to arrange her experimental design, thus she can right away start her experiment once she comes back to Taiwan.
Me : Nodding extremely speechlessly (*akhirnya berkaca-kaca sambil tak berhenti mengucap syukur. Thank you, Allah~)

So, here I am. Start afresh as if I'm a new enrolled student :). Meanwhile, because I have to enroll as an extended student, I need to go home to Indonesia for a couple months and will be back there by July. 

Kun fayakun! Allah itu...KEREN :)! Rencana Allah itu...BEYOND KEREN! DREAMS COME TRUE~^^

*Grit one's teeth : to accept a difficult situation and deal with it in a determined way

**Dr. Y : my former advisor

Dreams Come True (part 1)

Source: http://tinyurl.com/6tpcf4r

Recently, seems like SURPRISE turns into A NEW OXYGEN for me. It becomes a part of my everyday's life. I never stops jaw-dropping everytime I recall these past few days' sequence of events. For real.

Started from my decision to leave Taiwan for my own good, -not for good, to vice versa's fate Allah has designed for me as in all new advisor-supervisor-research topic. Yes, after had sort-of "mental breakdown" for facing a dead end on my research, I was planned to take a u-turn with pursuing another degree in Indonesia. On Friday, I've made up my mind to arrange my letter of resignation to NCYU's OIA. But oh well, getting out from my university (*or maybe any university?) doesn't seem any easier from its enrollment procedures. I have to get my advisor's to dean of life science's signatures in order to resign from there. A mere withdrawal. 

So, after received a full support to drop out from school from my insanely weird advisor, I went to meet head of department of food science, -Prof. W. Apparently, he still has a class at that time, hence I have to wait. During waiting, Dr. L (*vice head? secretary of dept.?) came and flatly rejected* my "idea" to drop out from NCYU.

Dr. L : Bunga, I couldn't accept your decision to dismiss from school like this. Seriously, it's not fair. You've taken all required courses and only need to fulfill your thesis project. Did you know that in order to graduate, doing experiments at lab is not the only way? You can also write a literature review. Promise me you'll meet Prof. W. I'm sure he'll figure something out for you.

I was like...dumbfounded after heard her saying. Honestly, I was slightly wavering at that time. But still, I have two reasons not to listen to her.

Me : But Dr. L, I've discussed this matter with my parents and they've agreed. Moreover, I couldn't imagine myself talking to Prof. W**. Seems like he despises int'l students. #horrid

*Flatly rejected : menolak mentah-mentah

**He was the one who chased me (and one of my friends) out from his office almost four years ago, when we just arrived in Taiwan. #traumatic

I Feel Blessed

#fact = 600 mg painkiller couldn't chase away my asphyxiation during this kind of situation

I was just vaguely woke up after took a metamizole sodium and suddenly (healed) and feel even more blessed after found a couple loving-care messages from some friends. Seriously, I couldn't express my gratitude enough to Allah for giving me such an awesome friends like them :). Thank you Allah...

To be honest, I've no intention aside from "relieving my anxiety" through writing when I  composed this post, yesterday. Not knowing for what could possibly happened if someone read my post, -including some of my best friends there in Indonesia. And yeah...now I feel like I've caused a ruckus >,<. An emotive chaos. 

Truthfully, my feelings now are still somehow higgledy-piggledy. Campur aduk. But, regardless of how complicated my feelings are, I've locked up my decision. I won't waver. Papa...Mama...Bunga pulang hari Selasa. Ririt, Sunett, Nyu...I'll see you girls within a few days. #tiketsudahditangan

As an epilogue of this sort of blue episode, I would like to say that I feel blissful because I can sense the beauty of ukhuwah here in Taiwan. I really do. Thank you, dear friends...thank you...for everything :). May Allah will let us meet again in another part of the world...or in jannah.

"Ukhuwah Islamiyah is indeed powerful because it's not a mere friendship; it's a strongly tied connection in the name of the beliefs of our faith, aqidah".

A song from Dewi :)

Pyramid's Dirty Little Secret

Taichung's Pyramid

Pyramid? The triangular-shaped structure located in Giza, Egypt? 不對! The pyramid that I meant is the one located in Taichung, Taiwan. Eh? Is there any PYRAMID in Taiwan? Yes, there is. Well, it's not the real-sturdy 'construction' as the real pyramid, one of the seven wonders of the world, though. Nevertheless, let's just consider them as a twinning. So, what's the creepy story behind this well-known Taichung landmark?


As we all know that there are more than 160.000 (to date) Indonesian migrant workers who are tempting fate in Taiwan. Some of them are working in the central part of Taiwan, -Hsinchu-Changhua-Taichung-. Every Sunday, if they are lucky enough to get a permission from their boss (老闆; lǎobǎn), they will hanging out and mingling in the downtown with their friends. This what so-called Pyramid is their 'meeting point'. Before heading to the shopping centers or Indonesian stores, a swirl mass of them can be seen at Pyramid. 


Last week was definitely not my first time to go to Taichung, to be exact to Pyramid. But it was without doubt one of the most spine-chilling moments, yet. Albeit you are a taekwondoin, you'll still goosebumping if you're facing this kind of situation I'm going to tell. 

The swarm remnants : alcoholic beverages, food packagings, plastics, etc

As the time went by, the swarm of people in front of me were getting bigger. FYI, it wasn't an ordinary people's swarm. It was a drunk-gambling-babbling swarms. Why didn't I move to another place? Well, the answer is because I need to stay on that specific place since I was 'guarding' zakat booth. So well, yeah. The tipsy guys kept walking back and forth. And every time they passed me by, I got goosebumps. Oh my...I really felt as if I was in the lion's den and ready to get munched Y-Y. Imagine you're facing the same situation. Finally, when the sun almost set and one of the drunk guy fainted, the swarms were thinned out. Whew...alhamdulillah~~~


That's it? Well, not exactly. When I got ready to wrap up my 'work', one of migrant workers approached me and said "Kok berani-beraninya sih ke sini, Mbak. Di sini ini sangat berbahaya. Pekerja2 Thailand, Indonesia dan Vietnam itu sering berantem dan terkadang tusuk-tusukan di sini". WHATTTTT???!!! #almost fainted. Ya Allah...thank you for protecting me >,< ~~~

冬瓜茶砖

Source : http://tinyurl.com/3wvk742

Dōngguā cházhuān***. Winter melon rock sugar. And...what the heck is that :D? It's a mixed-simmered-molded-refrigerated winter melon (*beligo, in Bahasa Indonesia) plus brown sugar and black sugar. At first, this brown-blackish block-shaped stuff didn't attract my eyes. But then, one of my friends made a glass of drink out of that stuff. And this picky girl LOVED it :D! If you like to buy drinks at Taiwan's tea stores, you'll almost always find this what so-called dōngguā chá (冬瓜茶). It has a distinctive aroma which definitely can indulge your nose buds. Give it a try or you might want to consider this 冬瓜茶砖 as a gift for your loving ones at home :D

***冬瓜茶砖 in the nearby store. A block costs only NTD35

Halal Card for Muslims in Taiwan

Copy-paste this article below, save it as a document on your smartphone/tablet or simply print it out and you'll survive while living in Taiwan. Trust me :D.

--------

Halal Card from
NCTU's Prayer Room

你好，我是穆斯林（回教徒），因為我的宗教信印，所以

Nǐ hǎo, wǒ shì mùsīlín (huí jiàotú), yīnwèi wǒ de zōngjiào xìn yìn, suǒyǐ :

Hello! I'm a Muslim. Because of my religion :

◆ 我不吃豬肉及任何豬製品，如培根、火腿及含豬油食物，也不吃含血的食物，如豬血糕。

   Wǒ bù chī zhū ròu jí rènhé zhū zhìpǐn, rú péigēn, huǒtuǐ jí hán zhū yóu shíwù, yě bù chī hán xuè de shíwù, rú zhū xiě gāo.

I cannot eat pork and any kind of food ingredients with pork, for example bacon, ham and pork oil.  Besides that, I cannot eat blood-based foods such as pig’s blood cake.

.

◆    我不能吃含酒精的食物及飲料。

     Wǒ bùnéng chī hán jiǔjīng de shíwù jí yǐnliào.

I cannot eat any kind of foods or drinks that contain alcohol.

◆    如果您必須用炒過豬肉的鍋子來炒我的食物，麻煩請您將鍋子清洗乾淨後再炒。

    Rúguǒ nín bìxū yòng chǎoguò zhū ròu de guōzi lái chǎo wǒ de shíwù, máfan qǐng nín jiāng guōzi qīngxǐ gānjìng hòu zài chǎo.

If you have to use the pan that has been used to cook pork, please help me to clean up the pan before cooking (my order).

◆    我不能吃任何非伊斯蘭教屠宰方式的雞、鴨、鵝、牛、羊肉。

     Wǒ bùnéng chī rènhé fēi yīsīlán jiào túzǎi fāngshì de jī, yā, é, niú, yángròu.

I cannot eat any kind of animals' meats (chicken, duck, goose, beef, and mutton) which (animals) have been slaughtered with non-Islamic methods.


credits : Tina Chang for Chinese-English translation

TR-Pass, A Dirt-Poor Student's Savior in Taiwan

I forgot (to be exact) how many times I've been using TR-Pass in a habitual manner, this past few years. Too many times, I supposed XD~~~. Yes, this insanely cheap train ticket "destined" for students under age of 30 in Taiwan has always been my savior. Imagine you must continuously traveling in between cities, -not for leisure activities-, during a specific period of time. Well, it doesn't cost me an arm and a leg, though. But still, it's a pocket drainer. Hence, TR-Pass is such a win win solution for a dirt-poor student who doesn't mind spending hours of hours of their time in a local train, just like me :D. 

As I've ever posted before, Taiwan offers a tantalizing traveling options for students. The what so-called Youth Travel Card can always be a hocuspocus warrant to save your money. However, before can be categorized as an eligible TR-Pass buyer, you must register yourself at the "Information Visitor Center" (IVC) which can be spotted at some major train stations in Taiwan. After filling a form at IVC, you'll get a YTC (in a form of a key chain). Show your YTC, passport and student ID card to the ticket officer (in every train station here) and you'll be able to buy international students edition of TR-Pass (*shown on the image below, first row/above). Too lazy to bring passport and YTC ? Then, just buy a local students edition of TR-Pass (*shown on the image below, second row/below) by merely revealing your student ID card. Don't forget to tell the officer about which type of TR-Pass you want to buy; the 5-day, the 7-day, or the 10-day tickets. They cost NT$599, NT$799, and NT$1099, respectively. Trust me, the price is EXTREMELY CHEAP and REASONABLE. Okay, let me make an avouch comparison. A local train ticket price from Chiayi to Taipei is NT$390-something, thus, return ticket price will be nearly NT$800. Bus ticket is approx. NT$100 cheaper, but I hate to travel by bus. So, well...yeah...it's a personal preference. I usually go in between cities from Chiayi to Zhong Li and then Taipei, sometimes to Hualien and then head back to Taichung or directly to Chiayi, or sometimes to Tainan or Kaohsiung. Just count how much money I must spend if I don't buy TR-Pass @_@~~~. Counting money always makes me dizzy =)).

All in all, with your personally selected TR-Pass, you can travel all around Taiwan by three types of designated trains (*local train, local express train, and chu kuang train [see here for "trains in Taiwan"]) for unlimited times during the validity period of time (5, 7 or 10 days) of your TR-Pass. You can choose direct route by get on until get off on the same train or manipulate your route by changing trains. The second one is undeniably a lot more challenging and less boring. I usually choose this mode :D. So, for example, I want to go to Taipei. I'll get on from Chiayi train station and get off at Taichung train station, continue my journey to Miaoli, then Zhong Li and finally get off in Taipei. Fun isn't it^^? Ergo, have an earthy way of traveling in Taiwan ^^!

Chop-Chop Celebrity

Huh? Who the heck is that on the screen? Eeeehhh...is that M.E? Kekeke...that was my reaction when I saw my-very-self on everywhere's screens in my three separated campuses. Dayuummm...I never knew that my junky survival guide video would be campus-widely played like that =)). 

Speaking about being celebrity in this country, I always feel uneasy when it comes to walking-around-in-a-suppressible-manner. Ever since my arrival in Taiwan, I never once feel at ease. Hello, do you guys mind leaving me alone? I just want to be INVISIBLE! Aughhh...the wishes that simply couldn't be actualized in this place where EVERYONE seems insanely curious about a girl in a veil. 

It's my nature to be very-autistic when I'm walking; bending my head (while "ghodul bashor"-ing =p), walking very fast and listening to my music with nearly maximum volume =p. These are obviously describing my personality as errr...a nerd who hates being the center of attention. So, studying and living in this country sure is a torture to me because everywhere seems like an open catwalk Y-Y. *Sigh

Back to the video which successfully rises me to the top, -as a top-notch campus's celebrity =p. I like the quality of the video. The problem lies in it's dreadful audio, -my voice. Kekeke, the person who usually speaks in a flat inflections like me is not suitable to be an anchor, a host, an MC, whatever it is that needs a golden seiyuu-like voice. 

The Quirky Musician

Last week was Dewi's birthday. It's kind of hard to understand why bizzare (*bizzare in my point of view has nothing to do with the unpleasant things) things keep happening during this annual "celebration" of hers. Well, I guess that's her luck =p.

After wrapped up our part-time job, Dewi, Wahid and me were agreed to celebrate Dewi's birthday with...eating 臭豆腐. Such a "modest" way to celebrate someone's birthday, wasn't it =p? We went to our favorite vendor and met this ojiichan named Mr. Yang. Ha! Our first impression of him was precisely right. He's a musician, - a violist, to be exact. During our conversation, I realized that my Chinese sucks, to be compared to Dewi's and Wahid's =)). I should be grateful that I can understand Yang Ojiichan's sayings because he could speak Japanese. Hahaha...thank God my Japanese hasn't completely vanished =p. In the end of the encounter, three of us were kind of contemplating Yang Ojiichan's advice. Hmmm...there's nothing to regret, either for extending study, bearing tons of amanah, missing a bunch of family events, or else. 對不對? #self-reflection#

 Dew, jangan mepet2 ya =))

Food Safety : Setting a New Standard

Source : http://www.usrecallnews.com/

E. coli outbreak in Germany? No..wait..in E.U.R.O.P.E? Yes, that's shocking news was all I heard earlier this week on the headlines. 1600 people across the European countries have been infected with a suspected new toxic strain of E. coli. And guess what, the "mastermind" behind the outbreak was playing around in the fresh produces such as tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuces. Whew, even consuming vegetables can be a very daunting experience now. Besides the E. coli outbreak, on almost the same time, some commercial beverages products in Taiwan have been confirmed tainted by a dangerous plasticizers, -six different chemicals including DEHP (*). Haiyyaa...什么可能？

It's only the beginning, though. For the second case, after being investigated, another electrifying news surfaced. "The government response also appears to have come too late for vendors at Shihlin Night Market, one of the Taipei’s biggest tourist attractions, who report that business has dropped off after some of the market’s drinks and shaved ice deserts tested positive for plasticizers". EeeEEEhh??? Shaved ice? 甘蔗汁? *Sigh. Even night market, the most iconic spot in Taiwan has been transformed into an intimidating place.

Source : http://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/2206

In my opinion, although the outbreak case's cause's source still blurry in the eyes of the scientists, something needs to be reviewed. The on farm's GAP and regulation of the supporting factors around the farm itself, play an important roles. For example, cleaning the raw produces before they go to market, using the properly processed organic fertilizers to the plants, workers' hygiene and isolating the animals/cattle (and its drops/manures) from the farm and irrigation water. As for the second case, it's simply related to the awareness of the manufacturer and food/beverages producers to use the safe ingredients in their products. Instead of using the cheap but dangerous substances like DEHP, they should consider the health of the consumers with choosing the not-so-cheap yet hearty ones like palm oil or citrus fruits' extracts. Simple matters which undoubtedly very difficult to be implemented in the society. [BP] 

Personal notes : Clouding agents are chemicals that usually use in juices or jams to increase the color density of products thus the products can look more appealing.  

Black Magic (-scratched) Sesame

To be honest, I didn't get along with this seeds quite often back in Indonesia. Why is that? Because it's hard to be found =p. Here? Sesame and its derivatives are everywhere. Inside of a bun, on the top of a bread, on the top of the noodles, mixed with matcha (and being sold at local St*rb*cks), mixed with oats (to drink as an instant cereals), in a form of an oil, in a form of a powder, in a form of a candy (*my favorite =p), etc. Among all forms of it, I'm really curious with the fourth one *drooling*. When will I get 買一送一 (mǎiyīsòngyī; buy one get one for free) St*rb*cks's coupon from 7-11 again? Just like the "old" times when me and Ella collected it. I still remember that time when we were sneaking out the campus and headed downtown just to get a sip of coffee from the biggest coffee chain, of course using that 7-11 coupon. Xixixi.

Hmmm....along with "Lady Tomato", I guess I'll also miss sesame after I come back. *munching black sesame-filled buns at the dawn*

Getting Around Taiwan, Literally

This is actually a pretty "stale" (read : basi) story, since it's been more than three weeks from its "happening phase". Started from 5th FORMMIT's Muktamar which happened to be conducted on April 9-10, 2011, I ended up traveling around Taiwan, -in a literal manner. Still don't get it? See this map :

Original map; source : http://www.orientaltravel.com/Taiwan_map.htm

Got on the train from Chiayi, spent a night at Zhongli, headed north and took u-turn route to Yilan, stayed over in Hualien for two nights, inquisitively attached to Nat'l Prehistoric Museum in Taitung (*but completely failed to find it after almost-three-hour walking) and went back to Chiayi again, all being done in four consecutive days. Honestly, this kind of "traveling-rally" was my first experience. Well, there's always the first time for everyone...in everything :D. _to be continued_

P.S : Rinc, thanks for being an-easy-to-deal-with companion during half of the route *wink.

never intended to be narcissistic at all

For a little cash and a lot of glory [part 3]

The longer I'm staying here, the more vary things (read : something related to "earning money") I'm doing. Honestly, I'm enjoying doing them although this kind of thing is new for me. My parents raised me to be a responsible girl who only needs to pay attention to her study. To be exact, I just need to study, choose my favorite extracurriculars and activities, help some chores at home, and that will do. They never gave me a chance to think about finding part-time job, earning money and such. I never blamed my parents, though. They are just a perfect parents who want to give their kids happiness and put the "burden" as a parents on their own shoulders. 

But recently, I'm getting realized that those kind of things my parents done have a positive and negative effects for the kids, -me in this case. The negative one, for example is I become less responsible when it comes to money management. Not knowing about the hardship of earning money, I know that I'm growing up as an extravagant brat. Hence, I feel like now I have a chance to do the payback. To understand about something, we need to put ourselves in such a specific positions or circumstances. 

P.S : For the one who asked about how much money I earn as a TA (Teaching Assistant), you can see above :D. It's NTD1692 for a month, once a week, two-hour working time per week. That means, I earn NTD169 per hour. Not much, isn't it :)?

Kiss and Ride Zone

Hah? って、何なんだ一体? 

I found the sign at Chiayi THSR station

kiss and ride n. a passenger drop-off area near a rapid transit station; the act of using such an area as intended. Also as verb phrase. (source)


Kiss and Ride Zone's rules :

• Drivers do not leave your vehicle.  A driver must not move more than 3 metres from their vehicle, in effect a driver can get out of the car, open the boot and help children with their bags.
• Be timely. If your child does not enter of exit the vehicle with in 2 minutes you are required to travel around the block and legally re-enter the zone.
• Ensure your child leaves the vehicle via the rear kerb side door. The back seat is the safest seat for children to travel in regardless of the make of vehicle.
• Stay in sequence and drop your child as close as you can to the top of the zone allowing vehicles following you to enter the designated area.
• Do not do U turns within the school zone.  U turns in these busy school zones are dangerous and put children at risk.  So drive through the zone and around the block if you want to go back where you came from. 

(Source)

Hi-level Rambling

Prologue 

A : Taiwan has three nuclear power plants and now building the fourth. Three of them are located in Taipei and one is located in Kenting.

B : Hmmm...I see.

A : Nuclear power plants supported only 5 % of Taiwan's energy supply. Mainly, Taiwan relies on water power plants to produce the energy to run the country. I'd say that Taiwan must build more the gas-fired power plant to increase the energy supply.

B : Why is that?

-and the discussion continues to Kuomintang, PRC-Chinese Taipei relations, Hongkong-UK-PRC alliances, until illegal logging, fasting, praying, directing and filming- (*such a random things to talk about =p)

Started from filming the dunno-which-part-of-footage for our project, me and my new acquaintance, Albert, ended up talking about fluky topics. The filming was only an hour and the conversation was two hours-or so, btw :)). I don't remember how long I've been missing those kind of "serious" subjects to be discussed with local people (read : Taiwanese), but I'm beyond-happy having Albert as a knowledgeable acquaintance. Simply speaking, I can see clearly that this 23-year-old boy loves to read :D. Let's just forget that his English sucks and he makes me frowning deeper to get his point of talking. 

Honestly, aside from Albert, I barely met an au fait Taiwanese. Most of them are "boring" =p. "Boring" here means they don't really care about things happened outside, hence they  are unaware about the world's recent issues. That's why every time I talk about the happening things, most of them will answer "ohh..." or "how did you know that?" or "hmm...I don't really watch TV". Gaahhh %$#@! OK, basically, they are just ignorant. For Albert, he admitted that the youngsters are now more likely attracted to pop culture than the global issues. Forgive me if my conclusion is wrong. Probably, I befriended with the wrong people :)). But well, yeah...that's what I experienced.

OK, let's get back to the track. Even Albert, the one who said "I love how your God has "arranged" everything", is still Albert. A Taiwanese who doesn't own a religion. He, - like most of people here-, simply thinks life circles in four things : studying, working, earning money and having a vacation abroad. Sad. Thinking deeply about it, I believe that Allah sent me here for a bunch of reasons. One of them is to open this Albert-like people's eyes regarding to the metaphysics matters, things couldn't be reached by merely a human logic.

My father used to say "Well, Nak, there are times you can't use Qur'an's verses to explain the beauty of Islam to the commoners. It won't get to them". Yes, Dad...I understand. I will also add my father's basic advice : "action speaks louder than word". As for my story, Mr. Lee, Laskar Chiayi's acquaintance, used to say, "I'm very touched seeing all of you doing this kind of activity (*in Musholla Al-Iman)". "Your religion is beautiful", he added. *let's hope Allah will open this kind of people's heart and give him His hidayah :)*.

Epilogue 

It takes more than a creativity to wrap the information so that it can get directly to the person we're aiming for. It takes more than a willingness to explain the beauty of Islam to the commoners. It takes more than a kindness to do things for others, unconditionally.

NSYSU, The High-Pitched Campus

I've been wanting to post/upload this story/pictures since my visit to this Kaohsiung-located university earlier this month. But well, you know, I'm kinda busy. *puke =p*

OK, this is SERIOUS. After arrived at NSYSU, I swore I recalled that I said to myself "Thank you Allah I didn't end up studying here". Xixixi. Despite the fact that NSYSU has a breathtaking scenery, beach, even monkeys (*trust me, they can just pop out in front of you anytime), I couldn't stand seeing its steepy landscape. Even Bugi, my dearest bike would probably be given up crossing that kind of track. Don't seem to believe me, do you? See the pictures by yourself.

P.S : For the ones who said that NCYU is isolated-ridge-suburb-located campus, I suggest you to go to NSYSU. You'll definitely change your opinions and say NCYU is a "megalopolis" campus. Hahaha *joking*

P.P.S : [Bachelor Alert] Beware of a bunch of pre-wedding pictures which can activate your envious mode. Xixixi.

Fun Filming

First Scene
   Restaurant. Pork dumplings. Refuse to eat.
Second Scene
   NCYU's bus stop nearby. Walking. Missed the bus. Chase the bus.
Third scene
   NCYU's parking lot nearby. Cycling. Look around the campus.
Fourth scene
   NCYU's book store. Walking through.
Fifth scene
   NCYU's SAC (Student Activity Center). Climbing stairs.
Sixth Scene
   NCYU's canteen. Walking in and out the spot.
*sweating*

Now I know how does it feel to be an actress/actor. Today, after only 4-hour-run filming, I was FRAZZLED. My exhaustion was paid after I watched the raw videos Albert showed, though. We couldn't stop laughing when the second scene was replayed. "It's cool, huh? You are a good actress, Bunga. I like your natural acting", he said. NYAHAHAAAA...you've gotta be kidding me ! *masih terasa betapa lelahnya adegan kejar-kejaran dengan bus saat itu =))* Nonetheless, can't wait for next week's filming =p.

Si Albert bela-belain menggotong Bugi dari dorm ke area kampus :))

Serius spotting tempat dan bersiap nge-shoot

Rule The Roost : ME

Wooohooo! Finally, I got my golden chance to show my supremacy to "the innocent party"  :)). Yesterday was my first time to undertake my job as a TA. I was being warned by the English teacher who "hired" me that the class I'm going to handle is a freshmen class. Means, I must be very patient and never forget to speak s.l.o.w.l.y. "Piece of cake", my mind whispered. Yet, it happened that teaching English for Taiwanese is CHALLENGING :D.

What's the obstacle? Them. I never imagined they could be "that" silence. "Is there anyone who wants to ask me a question?", asked me after I introduced myself at that time. *crickets and cicadases' sounds* They were all close-mouthed. "Well, OK then. Now I'll let you to introduce yourself. Is there anyone who wants to start?", I continued. *dead air* "No one?", I kept going. *quietude* "Errr, 我有禮物送給你們*** if you are willing to introduce yourself. A special gift from my country", I was trying to win their hearts. Still soundless and motionless. *Gaaahhh!* "None of anybody here wants a gift, eh?", I started to feel desperate and annoyed. "OK, don't blame me for pointing anyone I want, then", I began to be a little bit wicked. "You, come to the stage and introduce yourself to the class", I was pointing one of the boy who sat on the last row. Hahahaaaaa...I RULED! But wait, It hasn't over yet. A boy that I pointed when he was playing around with his stuff, disobeyed my "order" and quibbled "Don't push me. Don't ask me to do things I don't like". NYAHAHAHAAAA =))! Watch me to kick your a** on the next meeting, anak-ingusan :))! In the long run, the first meeting was over. I had fun, really :)). Let's wait and see whether I could "conquer" them later =p.


P.S : I felt like an obaasan after listened to their introduction. "I'm 18 years old". "I'm 19 years old". Hahaha =)).."I'm 26, y'all".


***我有禮物送給你們 (wǒ yǒu lǐwù sòng gěi nǐmen) : I have a gift for you.

Ignorant-Selfish Taiwanese

Not long ago, Rina posted this article on her blog. A few days earlier, during my way back to Chiayi, it happened that I encountered the similar situation as her. Well, it's not like after living here for more than two years, I never bumped into it. It's just like this one was the most upsetting among all, thus I couldn't keep silence. 

Let me describe the situation in details. I was sitting next to a 20-year-old-something girl who brought along a huge bag, which (of course) she put NEXT TO HER. Then, a family rushed off to get on the train (a mother of two; an at-least-twelve-year-old boy and a seventeen-or-so-year-old girl) and sat next to me. They brought so many belongings. No wonder, it was Chinese New Year holiday, thus they might just came back from visiting their relatives or going to visit ones, with a mass of gifts on their hands. The problem was, the next-to-me's empty seat was only fitted for two of them. As a result, the sister gave in and standing not far from her mother and little brother. Her mother offered her the seat but she said "不用阿". Shortly after, that girl looked jiggly which later made her mother forced her to sit on hers. All those situations were happened in front of my eyes which made me felt VERY uneasy. I've tried to draw the next-to-me girl's attention with my phony coughs. But of course, she kept texting without feeling a speck of guilt. Masya Allah. I just couldn't handle it and blurted "Excuse me, could you please put your bag down? Somebody is dying to sit here". She glared at me as if I was asking whether I can marry his brother or something. BLOOMING HECK! She moved her bag sluggishly and back to her cellphone as if nothing has happened. Ckckck...unbelievable! "谢谢...谢谢", the mother thanked me after I saved her a seat.

See? Most of Taiwanese are so ignorant. Beware of this bad side of them which definitely can get on your nerve. That ugly behavior gets worse because the one in needs (the mother, in my case) seems half-heartedly demanding their own rights. *Sigh

Borneans

How long I've been staying in Taiwan? Two and a half going-on-three years. How many tabligh akbar I've been through? Errr...can't remember. I just know it's quite a lot and I almost always become a paparazzi. Honestly, although I always have superabundant chances to get close to the guest stars, I never have an ambition to take pictures with them, on purpose. When I ended up in one frame with them, it must be because they are asking me to do so. Really. The same situation was happened on two days ago's tabligh akbar. Lacking of DSLR troops in the northern part, Rina asked me to come during my Chinese New Year vacation =p (*I was in Taichung at that time). It turned out to be great :D. This picture was one of the proofs of how great it was.

Thanks to Pak Tya for taking this adorkable picture :))

So, what's the correlation between the title, the prologue, and the picture? Simple :). It's INDRI, Sahrul Gunawan's wife. She happens to be a Bornean, -West Bornean to be exact. Just like the-half-of-me. The difference is her half-half combination, -Melayu-Chinese, which have successfully imprinted that kind of beautiful face, unlike ehmm...you-know-who =p. Anyhow, I'm so excited that I could find someone who can talk Bahasa Melayu-Kalimantan Barat. HaaAA^^! Feels like home. Besides a-little-bit-surprising-fact about Indri's origin, I found that this woman is wonderfully humble. Yes, she is. The way she talks, just like a regular housewife. OK, not a regular one. She's a respectful-humble one :). She even care-freely gave her cellphone number and e-mail address to me. "Contact me", she said. Subhanallah...