Happy Anniversary to MYSELF...

Today marked the 1 year anniversary of me living in Cambridge. A year ago exactly on this date, I arrived at Heathrow airport all on my own in somewhat seems sooo unbelievable then. I still remember feeling extremeeely nervous (and excited at one point) and too alert about everything around me. My bags, passport, documents, reading all signboards, which bus to take, and asking people for directions and the list goes on...Hectic sunggoh time itu...Not a chaotic kind of way, but I remember being careless about the condition of my tudung then. Hahah. Muka dah penat semacam but still tak pedulik...Get the picture??

A piece of advice from my dad (who also set foot in England for the first time on his own at 18) -just be calm, if you penat, you duduk and think. You tak tau, you tanye orang and the signs are everywhere to guide you. He is so right. Being me (yang agak cepat panick at times), I tend to get lost easily. LOST is like my middle name. Hihihi So yup, I did exactly that. I asked people (at the airport) just to make sure I got the right bus or taking the right exits, carefully reading the directions and signboards, all at the same time keeping guard of my huge-heavy-bulky luggage. Bukannya apa, kalau kat Malaysia kan kita drive..kalau silap pun U-turn je lah. But in this case, the coach ticket price was 33pound (if I remember correctly), so kalau silap takkan soka hati je nak suruh bus stop kan. Plus, damn damn expensive! Well anyway, it was a success to reach cambridge

Fast forward I year later, here I am, at the end of my MPhil... God knows how much I've cherished (and mourned) my life in Cambridge. It's a lifetime experience (as far as I am concerned). Independent sunggoh!

Here are collections of pictures to bring you on a journey of Miss J from Klang all the way to Cambridge the magnificente!!

Snapshots with Fac. Biotech staffs, students, plus messing with Rauda in her lab. Can't remember when exactly. I guess this was 1 week before leaving

Farewell lunch : A treat from Prof. Latiff with Fac. Biotech staffs and Research Assistants

There was a makan-makan (or was it kenduri) at my house two days before departure. All staffs of Biotech Fac. were invited and these were the people who turned up. Memang terharu sebab they arrived in 3-4 cars. And this is Selvi and her hand-made gift for me. It's a calendar of 2008 containing pictures of me, her, fahmie, and many more. How toughtful of her. Apart from the bulky-ness I compressed it into my luggage so that I can bring it along to England. Now it's in my college room ;) That's Fahmie and Er also RAs in the faculty.

Ini adalah barisan lecturer dan staff faculty yang sudi datang. I hope the food was good. Can hardly remember now. On the same day, they presented me a pink winter jacket as a departing gift. I tried it on instantly to show how I appreciate it. Mind you, it was bloody HOT on that day. But I dont have any pictures of it. Now I remember, Dr. Yap had an entry about this. When I read it again now. I can only say sigh (in grateful)......cepat btul masa berlalu and how I am blessed. So, bersyukur lah Miss J oii..kala susah dan senang...


During the night of the same day, as usual my family suke je ada karaoke lah, persembahan lah. Memang meriah.. Oh, I used to love all the fame and limelight. Masa kecik2 la..sekarang tidak lagi. If not, sure I dah sign up for AF7! Muahaha Anyway, these are my lil cousins who performed a tradisional dance. And then they sang a song originally called 'Bila Rindu' by VE but modified the lyrics. It's funny to read it again. Later I'll show you. They are truly adorable, me cousins...

And there I was.....the long-awaited day had finally come...3rd November in KLIA. My flight was at 11.55 I think. So technically, on 4th November sharp I'm off from KL..

Atok and Ibu

me and my lil brother (who flew in from Christchurch just 2 days before I left)...There was a surprise he made..long story, but grateful he was there to send me off

With abang and Along (and Mikayo inside)

With Abang again and Angah


Family picture


Friends who came to send me off...thanks guys. Yayy we'll meet real soon


Final family picture before I cried my heart out. Muahaha Sudah terasa sebak2 time ni...All the way to the gate I was praying silently. Memang nervous habis lah. But my mind was realy focus then.. I was sad to leave my family behind, but far more excited to start on a new journey.


About an hour after saying goodbyes, I'm already in the plane enjoying the business class treatment by the cabin crew. Muahaha..(oh, made a call to Asraf in the waiting room). Special thanks to my cousin brother, Abg Awie who made sure I get in on time and my seat was secured and for carrying the bags and so on. You are super-duber talented ;)

I think I watched series of movies for 3 hours, slept for 3 hours and then continue with movie marathon. I was reading some books as well I think. Then uncle yang duduk sebelah I (not seen in picture) was super-nice. He's a jet-fighter (I think!) and gave me advice on stuffs. Thanks pakcik..wherever you are now

Alhamdulillah...sudah sampai heathrow....But this is outside heathrow, at the coach station where I have to take a national express bus to cambridge. I didn't know which stop to wait at first, so I asked the pekerja. He made a joke i think, but I responded like 10 seconds later to digest the information I just received from him. owh owh..he was trying to be funny...Susah nak paham okayyy. But then it was all right ;)

See the penat face. And told ya, the tudung was just disasterous. Haha Plus, it wasnt so called on that day. I only put on a thin jacket. Jacket baru kaler pink itu saya pegang sahaja..

Apepun, alhamdulillah sudah setahun di sini and still alive (literally and metaphorically) as life has been tough in cambridge. Nonetheless, I would not exchange my life for anything in the world. Because there were equally pleasure memories that I treasure here. Thanks to my family who has been supporting me all the way, with motivation and prayers. Friends back home and here in cambridge who has also been a wonderful group of support. I owe this to all of you.

*emo seketika*

Pray for the V day people..and then, mission accomplished

My to-do List...when I get back!

OK, I know its a month away..but I come up with this list out of boredom (boredom? are you kidding?? 9 days away from the V day..grrr)

Anyway, to be honest, cant wait to be back at home. That's what I've been wanting since..since...since forever! On the other hand, sedey pulak nak balik. Too complicated to think now, so..I'll just go with the flow...

So, below is not a list that must-do thingy, but merely the basic things that maybe it's routine for some people, but I never got around to. So, after a year away from family, I want to do these.....

1 - Prepare breakfast for the family. Before this either Ibu prepare or keluar makan (kak ina's bihun as a good start. It seemed soo easy now. I didn't have a clue on how to make one before this!)

2 - Jog every morning and evening (before this just once in a while. Increase the intensity!)

3 - Oh, yes, gardening! (inspired by the lovely gardens they have here and Gabina, the true nature lover)

4- Again, masak2. For lunch or dinner maybe? (OK, I'm sure saya hanya bersemangat sekarang sahaja. Tapi I am so into cooking lately. So add that to the list)

5- Continue swimming (kat sini, tak pernah pergi. Constantly discouraged by the cold weather)

6- Print segala pictures from digital camera and make albumsssssss (have the feeling this will cost me a lot! but takpe..investment di hari tua..)

7- Read more self-help books. Boley jadi motivator lepas ni

8- Organize my expenses. Invest more money. Save more for travelling (Ibu has tonnes of books on this, might as well read 'em)

9- Give tuition! (ha...i've always wanted to do this. Ada sape2 nak I ajar anak dia? I'm a good teacher you know...hehe (NOT!) Maybe primary school pupils easier. For secondary school, I can only give Biology/Chemistry lessons) Oh, Pendidikan Jasmani pun boley.. ;)

10- Make a family trip (after so long) to...dunno where yet. Along is working on it

11- Trip with friends (would be more interesting this time, as Winnie is the bride-to-be, zulin dh ada boyfy and so on)

12- And last thing I can think of is, pergi shopping bawak mikayo in the baby stroller. Confirm orang ingat I mummy muda.. - I like! ;)

Will update as soon as I can think of anything. Semoga dipanjangkan umur utk sempat achieve all this. Malaysia..here I come......

Nite2

Salam Perantauan...in the making....

Approximately one week before raya, we planned for a photography session in front of King's College. What's the motive for this? To send to Salam Perantauan lah...hehe

So we gathered around 12.45pm in our colourful baju kurungs. The plan was to snap pictures with the jacket on, barulah nampak mcm kat oversea kan. Apart from the durable wind and constant rain the previous days, this particular afternoon turned out to be a sunny one! Maka terpaksalah kami membuka jaket dan menggayakan baju kurung kami itu di depan khalayak ramai. A few stopped before us, wondering, "apelah minah-minah ni buat. must be one of those muslim discoveries". Hikhik. I tell you, blink-blink kami hari tu..Of course caught people's attention. ;)

Thanks to Katherine (from Plant Science dept.) who helped us to snapped the photos. A few trials below...

Paneh..paneh...

In the making..1

In the making...2


In the making...3

In the making...4

In the making...5


Final shot!

Akhirnya, gambar ini terpilih untuk dihantar ke Utusan, Kosmo, Tamil Nesan dan sebagainya. Giler glamour kan promote diri sendiri. Hehe Thanks to Cik Intan for sending this picture to the press. Cewahh

The next week, this picture came out in Kosmo online! Wuhuu...Ingatkan tak cukup glamer untuk dipilih keluar paper, coz there were too many people sending in thier pictures, only some can be chosen for the paper version. To our surprise, ada okk keluar di paper Kosmo!!

Jangan tak tauuuu.....Muahaha

Apekah pelajar Ph.D? Naik saham makcik...FYI, the other 5 are doing their PhD, and yg jejaka kacak itu adalah Mr. Izzuddin dari Anglia Ruskin. ;)

Berbuka puasa....Part 3 : Sex and The City

Whoops..tajuk entry kurang sesuai untuk bulan Ramadhan...but dont take it word for word. It is merely an expression to represent the theme of the night; the fashionable and glamourous girls in the film SATC. This night was K. Zetty's treat and the SATC theme was her idea. So, the girls (yang selalu kebosanan and looking for something exciting to do) was up for it. The idea was to dress up a lil bit fancier than normal. That's easy job since we wear anything but fancy to the lab everyday! To give you even clearer picture of our daily life here - WE CYCLE! Muahaha..how glamourous is that?!!

For those who doesn't follow the movie, I don't fancy the movie so much myself, but the girls outfits are simply gorgeous (well, too much sometimes). From accessories to handbags...grrr....makes you wanna shop! Hehe

Btw, this was sempena after her (K. Zetty) viva and as a get together before she commits herself to hubby. (She's already married at that time, cuma Mr. Hubby tak sampai UK lagi) So, many thanks to K. Zetty and I congratulate you upon entering second year of PhD, also for your wedding! (bila la nak tengok gambar wedding nie, babe?)

We ate at a Thai restaurant. Here are snapshots of the night.

There you go...the girls and the style they carry that night..

Jehan : Street-chic
Zarina : Cowboy girl
Azlin : Muslimah? hehe..excuse the see-thru
Zetty : Lady like

Gweat nite, thanks to all yang menjayakan malam ini...wah tetibe.. ;)

(Cik intan is missing this night! Sorry cik intan, nextime kite buat lagi okeh! Hopefully after MY viva)

Posts marathon yok!

To say I was very busy would be a very lame excuse! But yes indeed, I was extremely occupied! To begin with, let's hope my thesis has no major problemo! Enuff said! Tawakal aja from now onwards...In addition to that, I was in no mood to blog nor to reply any messages. Sorry for the late replies and wishes. Ngehehe

Join me from BEFORE raya (yes, it's antiquated) until recent days... ;)

Thesis progress : Results and Discussion

I've been sitting in front of the laptop since....FOREVER!

Was trying to squeeze out some idea out from my brain on what to write for my discussion part. I started to have some clue and then I went to look for the journals thought to be related to it. So yes, was successful in doing just that. But to go through the papers and relate the contents to my current results....arhh..tiring! So after long hours of reading and scrutinizing the papers, feels like I'm back to square one. Now, how to put them in words........?

Oh Tuhan, berilah aku sumber ilham untuk menulis........grrrr...

Ok, jehan, you are not under pressure, you can do it, it's a matter of strategy, God put you on a test because He knows you can handle it...it's a matter of time, you'll figure it out somehow...yadayyayada....

Urhhh they sound too optimist?? Ahah..surprisingly I do believe in those reminders...they make me calmer...hehe..speaking of psychology! Betul ni..tak baik complainnnn (trying not to)

I'm constantly consuming grapes right now (bought from marks and spencer today)..sedap bangatt! They are very sweet, juicy and crunchy- i like! And the panick-er I get, the faster the rate of putting the grapes into my mouth. Haha, momentum suda larii....

I allow myself to stop and rest only at 12am. It's like lunch hour la, only at night. So now lepaking and rest2. Kut-kut malam ni malam Lailatul-qadar ke...kan best! hehe oh, in my dreams! and here is my all time company.....My cute Mr. Remy......

Mr. Remy patiently waiting for me : bile mau tidur nih?

Mr. Remy sitting on my journal : "cepatla habis kak oi..senang je, i help you read okeh"



Mr. Remy with another mouse, his more 'helpful' friend

Okayy..jehan starts to talking crap....

Sod off

Berbuka puasa...Part 2 : Eating out

Okay..so apart from being alone and breaking fast in the college, there are times where the girls get together and masak2. The first time we berbuka bersama was on the day Kak Ina and Kak Zetty arrived from Malaysia. So Kak Lin cooked. Oh terlupa, I did an entry about this. Anyway, no pictures taken then.

This was taken on the second time kami berbuka bersama, same venue, different menu. Oh, Kak Lin masak (again!) hehe. Main menu was mee bandung ;)

us with food

Several times I berbuka at K. Ina's place...atas invitation of course. Her place is very strategic, memang laluan antarabangsa! Hehe Well let say from the lab, I have to pass Newnham college first before reaching Wolfson College (my place). So dalam 5 minutes ride. Thanks kak ina. Jasamu dikenang ;)

And last week, I was craving for seafood briyani at the Indian restaurant not far from my place. My goodness..the prawns and squids inside were marvellous. They have this buttery taste and to eat it with the veggie+yogurt and hot briyani rice, memang besssttt....The price has gone up a little bit I think. Spent 10pounds for this. But totally worth it ;) Both of us berbuka with tuna sandwich first, pray, then leave for the restaurant. Oh, sekarang terasa mcm nak pegi lagi jerr?? Hm....

Muka laparr..

Muka Happy! It's time!

Looking forward for next weekend berbuka activity. Barulah rasa meriah sikit puasa di sini ;)

Berbuka puasa....Part 1 : Home Alone

Salam and Hi to all...

Sekarang dah masuk hari ke 22 ramadhan, tinggal 8 hari lagi sebelum raya..Oh, how time flies...Still can wish Selamat Berpuasa dan Salam Ramadhan rite...but in a week time..? Haih..sebak sebak..

Anyway, dah nak habis Ramadhan baru I update tentang aktiviti berbuka kat sini. Not much I have to say, mostly on my own in the room. Sadis kan! Well, its just like having dinner alone like any usual day in Cambridge, TATAPI, time ramadhan je la yang the whole family will sit together every evening and eat together. Everyday that is - without fail. So, to be alone at this time of the month ada sedikit terasa di sini. Tapi tak mengapa...it's time for me to improve ma cooking skills because for berbuka haruslah masak proper kann. In fact, I have improved! (i think!) hehe

Check out the dishes I managed to cook...Settapppp ;)

Menu 1 : Ayam kurma

* perencah adabi + modified *

Menu 2 : Sayur goreng

* carrot, dwarf beans, udang, ikan bilis everytime I masak sayur, it will be the same recipe as this LOL *

Menu 3 : Udang goreng bercili

*Perencah maggi, this would be the last one as the perencah is already out of stock. Has to think how else to cook my favourite prawns *

Menu 4 : Daging masak kicap

* this is what I successfully cooked yesterday. Bangga.......this is the first time (ever! believe it or not) that I cook such dish. Plus, without instant perencah okay...Also, I gave some to Kritika, a friend in the college who moved out yesterday. Kira sudah confident la ni nak jamu orang (sometimes!) *

Menu 5 : Bendi goreng perencah udang

* wah...dahsyat nama menu ni. It's merely very simple and was purely experimenting with the lady fingers/okra yesterday. The result is...macam sedap jer...New menu for the veggie part. Yayy *

All in all, adelah jugak bakat memasak. Ibu used to be very concern about us (mostly angah and me) about not knowing how to cook. Yes, I never cook at home. There's no reason to, to be honest. (hurm....think again!) Well, most of the time kat rumah cuma, me and my two brothers. The best solution is to buy some lauk-pauk kat simpang empat (yes, there's only ONE simpang empat in Klang. I don't know, it seems that everyone understands that we are referring to this particular simpang empat everytime we give directions to our house) Anyway, regarding to your previous concern ibu, don't worry, in desperation we WILL survive! Harhar Ber"untung"lah sape jadi suami I...Even asraf is a better cook! Today dapat recipe sup ayam from him. Will try it later...and girls, nanti I habis my thesis ni I'll treat you girls okay

Selamat berbuka everyone....

Saturday activity

Aloha

Now dah jam 9.20pm dah. Cepatje saturday habis. Asal benda best, mesti goes away too quickly! Menci....

Today bangun ada sedikit lewat (tidur lewat again lastnite). Then kemas2 buat kerja, lunch time went to Kak Ina's house, ada makan2. Plus Dina from Sussex came to have all of us as her "samples". Nothing scientific nor close to exam questions. Tapi nervous tak pasal2. Hehe

We have to answer some questionairres that she's prepared in the laptop and on papers. Bukan questionaire la kot. More on english, concentration and memory test. Ada 100 questions about English grammar. Gilos! *Thanks Dina for making me feel a bit zany this afternoon* And I have proved myself that I am not a very focussed person (not ALL the time of course!!). Easily distracted. And sometimes find it hard to concentrate.. Parah tu..Tapi I finished the questions anyway...

*Naseb baik lepas masuk cambridge* ;)

Oh yes, we were served with delicous lunch meal as well. Spageti boloignase and one uncommon finger food for the day is tortilla chips with minced beef and cheddar cheese on top. Wah..for me anything comes with cheese is yummylicous. Bijak betul K.Zetty - ada bakat jadi isteri mithali. keh keh Then kak ina masakkan cucur bawang. Pun best.....Oh yes, CL came too. Airina n Ikhwan came later. Kak Lin takdak..pi london ngan 'Abe John' and anak-anak nya...

Plan to watch Cambridge Fashion Show tonight, tapi malas sangat. Lately selalu penat jer. So I balik and main computer of course! Then realised that angah has just created a blog of her own. Bagusla tuh! Not sure its a private type or public. Nnt tanye. Anyway, Welcome2 sis! Hope you'll find the serenity and excitement in writing. and, Miss and love you too.............

Asraf called a while ago. Nothing much. Tapi saje nak bagitau! Hehehheee.....Ok, mau rest, penat!

I'm off

Terangnyer...

It's sunday 8th of June 2008 at 4.27 in the morning...

Yup, u got that right. Kalau di malaysia tgh pagi2 buta pukul 4 pagi ni. I cant sleep last night, so I stayed awake until now. I am not doing anything worthy right now nor I feel like continuing on my thesis writing. I turn the tv the whole time, watching BBC news.

Obviously the news about Hillary's defeat against Obama is being repetitively announced. Then they have this issue about lesbian territory in Lesbos, Greece. Also 'bionic contact lense'? An electronic contact lens has been developed that will enable maps and videos to be beamed before the wearer's eyes. Wuhuu...advance bangat, We soon no longer need the GPS to navigate our way around town. Bagus jgk. Should be useful in KL. ;)

Rasa macam mmbuang masa, so I am ironing all my clothes (obsession that I developed lately). Anyway..suddenly I realised out of the window that it's already bright. Bright as in 6.30am back home. Check out the photos, view from my room. Sangat peaceful.... ;) Note: ini adalah 4.30 pagi!

Oopsie..subuh hampir habis..Got to go...

Oh yes, yesterday's afternoon (saturday) andak called and asked me to online. So I turned my YM and webcam. Best dgr suara my family. Tapi tak dapat tgk atok n nenek's face cuz andak left his webcam in the office. They can see me instead. We shall give it another try ok, andak! Maju ke hadapan dengan informasi teknologi....Hehe I loike!

ok..have a good sunday people! Kene jumpe "Big boss" ;)

ok one more thing, congratulations to winnie for your engagement! Looking very pretty on your big day...Sayang Win! Muax

I'm off