Kenduri kendara

It has been a terribly busy week for me. Last weekend I was up in Bukit Mertajam at the in-laws. Both parents in law left on Tuesday for the Haj so last Sunday there was a little kenduri doa selamat. I came back on Tuesday itself after sending them off to the airport. Two of my nephews from BM are staying with me for awhile since its the school holidays therefore been busy lah!

I have never been exposed to people from the kampung going for the Haj before. It was a real experience for me. The only time I remember of sending people off to Haj was my parents way back then until I can't even remember and my mom a few years ago. The first time there was no kenduri even and when my mom went we had a small doa selamat session.

But in the kampung it is different. When they know (relatives near and far and the neighbours) you are going for the Haj, they will come and visit in droves. It is like a kenduri 24/7 until you depart. There wasn't a time when there was no one in the house except the wee hours of the morning and after midnight.

All of us were kept on our toes, mixing drinks, serving food which my mom-in-law and neighbours/relatives cooked and prepared. They come to chat, to catch up, to send well wishes and simply to enjoy your company.

I tried to explain what it is like in BM to my mom when people go for the Haj but I doubt she understands. Hmmmm....actually most city folk who have never been exposed to it won't be able to understand. Even for me it is a new experience but not as bad since being married to Bob for 10 years has somewhat exposed me a little to the kampung life. People there are very community driven and their camarederie is really strong. They will go all out to help each other. Here in the concrete jungle, you would probably get a shock if you even see your neighbours out of the house!

I brought the camera back to BM in the hopes of taking lotsa pictures but we were all so busy we even forgot we brought it. I know the kids had the most fun as all their cousins were there. They played 24/7 it seems!

What's in a Name

We all have nice names. Our parents have given us nice names. But it never fails that over the course of your life you get nicknames. Chances are these nicknames are so far off from your name that people, and you yourself, wonder what your name really is.

I remember the first time I heard my husband mention a friend's name, it was Skunk. I was like "what, huh?!?" The best thing is, hubby dearest doesn't know what the guy's name really is. Good one yes!

I have a name that has been changed and twisted. So much so that different friends call me different names. There are only a handful that call me Hayati in full. My friends from school call me "Haya". My friends from work call me "Yat" and my friends from Uni days call me "Yatz". Of course there are the other people who call me "Yati". Sounds so boring after all those variations.

My kids have short names, not three or four names. Hubby and I like short names. Especially knowing that friends may shorten it. I myself refer to them as No 1 and No 2 sometimes. Only because my friends get so confused who is the eldest and the second child because of their close gap and size.

I have a good friend from Uni days who has a very nice name. It's Rumana. But know what? A few of us call her Sneak. Hmmmm.... And it has stuck till now. She actually answers to it too.

My son's name is Ali. We have fielded many questions about his name. Some people even make fun of it. They say it is a very kampung name lah, so short lah, why Ali only lah. Even when Bob wanted to register his name at the JPN counter, the lady asked him, "Itu saje ke? Ali saje?" She said it is very rare these days to get parents only registering one name, it is usually two names minimum. The thing about Ali, his name is easy to remember. Everyone knows his name. I take him to the shops infront and everyone calls him. All the nurses in the clinic know his name too. I like Ali. I have a friend named Ali. He works with Awani now and I have always liked him too. Nice chap! The name goes with him too.

But there are parents who are somewhat cruel to their children and have given them names they are not proud of. A few names come to mind but I don't think I should mention it here. Anyways, people have changed their names before. Old people tend to believe in that -- sometimes a name is too strong or too weak for a person so they change it. Like if a person is always sick they say the name is wrong so they change the name. It works most of the time from what I heard lah.

Point of the story is -- think properly before naming your child. Or their friends might end up calling them Skunk. Oh ya .. for the record, Bob doesn't know who gave him that nickname. His name is Mohd Sobri...

It's the Holidays

Initially I was a little worried about the two girsl being bored during the school holidays but so far so good. I started sending them for Tahfiz holiday classes. It starts at 8am and lasts till 12.30pm. The thing is, it's all the way in Shah Alam but at least it has them occupied half of the day. Quite mean of me huh for not letting them enjoy their holidays completely.

If they are at home all day, they will get bored, trust me! I have been there. It ain't that bad, and it is only half a day. It gives me time to finish up work without cries of "Mama, can I pkay games on the computer" or "Mama, she did it first". I also get to spend some quite time with Ali, more like catching him and preventing him from hurting himself lah.

The maid also gets a chance to clean their rooms, if not they will be in there 24/7 playing and arranging those little minute toys of theirs. Ahhhhh....there is peace in the house until they get back :)

On top of that they also have tuition for their Mandarin classes. Twice a week. But that is at home. Piano classes go on as usual on Saturdays. My sis-in-law was asking about swimming classes the other day. That would be good and also keeps them busy!

It has only been one week but at the rate time flies by these days, I am sure the holidays (one and a half months of it) will go by very fast.

The first weekend we went to Janda Baik. The second weekend we are going back to Bob's hometown in Bukit Mertajam (my in laws are going for the Haj). The third weekend is free. Hmmmm... Then we have Hari Raya Haji coming up. Bob said we may go somewhere then. Hope so. Beats having to take them to Aquaria and PetroSains over and over again. They love that place. Without fail we go there every holiday. So far I have not taken them to the zoo yet. I hear the state of the zoo is deplorable. I would love to take them but the journey and the heat. Oh yes, but it has been raining everyday so that idea is out for now.

So, what are you doing to keep your children entertained?

Ali ...

My little Ali is 16 months this month and is growing up way too fast. He is becoming a little mischievous and oh so cheeky!

This post is just to share with you some of the latest pictures of Ali ....

This was taken at my friend's house. We had to hide the remote controls from him. My friend had to call me the next day to ask me where it was! Ali has his own set of remote controls at home, the ones that he spoilt of course!

He seems to love the camera! Always ready to pose and grin at it

Wonder what his little mind is thinking here...what little mischief to get into next perhaps!This was taken by a friend, Nizam, in Janda Baik. I love the black and white look...

My little heart breaker!

This was taken during our recent open house. Ali was the best host ever, he smiled and grinned at everybody who was in the house. He was, as you can imagine, equally as busy!

Janda Baik Holiday -- Oh What A Night...

My GGG friends have been planning for a holiday together for almost two months. We wanted a place where we could have fun with each other and the family. Many places were thrown on the table but we decided on Janda Baik in the end. Firstly because it is closest, takes us about an hour or less to get there. Secondly, Hazleen has been there and says the place is definitely suitable for us and family. She calls it going back to nature with modern amenities.

We planned it for the first school holiday weekend, Nov 15 and 16. In preparation for the trip we had many discussions on FB and also face to face meetings. The husbands even went to reccee the site! Or was that just an excuse to get out of town ... hmmmm...

Finally the great day came and we were all excited. Bags had been packed, food prepared and the journey began.

This is the drive into Aman Rimba. It belongs to a friend of Hazleen and Nizam (Hazleen's hubby). The drive into Janda Baik is always so cool and the air so crisp.Aman Rimba is nestled on a 3-acre site. Imagine what you can build on 3 acres on land. The owner has his own mansion on the top of the hill. He has built 3 guests chalets, a pond, a swimming pool, a makan house cum clubhouse, an outdoor kitchen meant for catering, and another guest house. Not forgetting the basketball court and landscaping in abundance

This is Bob taking a power nap after lunch in the guest house which is typical kampung style. The men slept in that house that night. It seems it was very very cold....brrrr. Oh Ya! The black and white picture is courtesy of Nizam. He takes very nice black and white shots

Some of the infamous GGG doing what we do best: makan and sembang! We had so much food to eat over the weekend. For an affordable price we had breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner on the first day and the same course the next day minus dinner. On top of that we had packed our own titbits and sandwiches. There was so much food. After all, what is a holiday without food rite

This was our first lunch. Masakan ala kampung. There was ikan keli masak sambal goreng, my favourite, so I was happy. Other dishes were fish curry, sambal belachan and ulam, sayur lemak pucuk, ayam kicap, ikan kering, taugeh goreng. The air bandung was good too, had a bit of soda in it for added punch

It was raining the afternoon we got there but that did not deter the kids at all. Shikin had given the kids raincoats and we mothers who wanted to goss and play "batu" pushed them out in the rain. We told them you will never have this chance to play in the rain again so go out there and make the best of it!

This is Rashid, Shariah's hubby, enjoying a meal. Not sure what he is taking but it looks delicious. There were so many meals we had that I can't remember anymore all the stuff I ate! All food was served in the makan hall which we made our clubhouse. Below are some of the tit bits we brought ... I say some but believe me, we could feed an army. The kids and their parents never went hungry!

Shikin also brought ketupat to eat with daging dinding and ikan bilis to eat with bread. Both very delicious items! Finger licking good .... yummy....

To make sure the kids were entertained, Shikin prepared party packs for them In them were all kinds of stuff to ensure they were occupied. But kids being kids, they found the place exciting too. They cycled, they ran, they swam. The boys had the most fun too, they were at the basketball court most of the time.
Another picture of Bob taking his power nap. I just like the black and white pictures....

This is one of the three chalets, I stayed in Kunyit with Natasha, Suzana and Zurni and some of our kids. Nice rooms with full facilities of a bathroom. Nikki, sorry you were not there. You missed out a lot of the modern amenities lah! :)

This is the inside of one of the chalets, I think this is Halia. Two queen sized beds in each room.

This is the pool which the kids never got enough of. We couldn't swim in the river the day we arrived because of the heavy rain. The water current is way too strong and the water too dirty. So the kid made do with the pool and the bicycles

The owner has monkeys,

talking birds which Ali found very entertaining,

and swans. He has peacocks too but somehow no one took pictures of them!

The makan hall and clubhouse

Ahhhh...Bob and his coffee. He has got everyone hooked on his coffee. We brought a bottle full. It was empty by the end of the night. The next day we had to make do with tea. Bob introduced his favourite serai, halia and honey tea.

Since it rained that afternoon, the men disappeared! Bob took them to TK's house not far from there. That is another nice house in Janda Baik. TK's place is where we usually hang out when we go to Janda Baik

Hazleen organised games for the kids and for us GGG. This is Shariah and me trying our hand at this first game, which we won!!! Put the balloon between you and run as fast as you can to the finishing line. The games were hard to make a success cause the kids were more interested in running around. It took us a good half hour to get order!

Zurni, Hazleen and Suzana celebrated their kids' UPSR results. We had this really great cheesecake. It just melts in your mouth!

After our barbecue dinner that night we had a karoake session. This is Shikin and her hubby Safwi trying hard to make the rain go away. Sadly the machine didn't have any ABBA songs.

Ali trying to make sense of all the noise and singing. He had a good time too exploring the place. Couldn't keep still at all!

The kids and me getting ready to go for our morning walk. It was so cool in the morning, not humid at all like in KL. Really would not mind having a place there. Feel it would be much healthier for all of us

The morning after the rain cleared so we all braved the cold water and jumped in the river. It is located just infront of Aman Rimba.

This is Shariah and Amir....

Zurni and Zamir....

Natasha and Jami....
Our family....

We all had so much fun that we have decided to make this an annual affair. The couples will be going to Bali next month. Unfortunately I can't go along for that trip but I definitely look forward to our next Family Day gathering.

Thank you so much to our hosts, Hazleen and Nizam. We had a blast ....

More from Jakarta

Guess who was on the same flight as us to Jakarta? Ashraf Sinclair. We took this shot of him when waiting in line to clear immigration checks. He was there for his wedding to Indonesian starlet Bunga Cinta Lestari. Cool name huh! maybe we can name our kids like that without getting raised eyebrows!

We travelled confortably in Elona's black Alphard. People in Jakarta like to buy black cars cause their second hand value is better

This was the first night we arrived. We went to a club near by to listen to some live music. The music and performers were really good. The place was not so happening as it was pick-up joint. Infact some of those mat sallehs were trying to catch the eye of Hazleen, Suzana and Shariah!

See! I actually got on that plane. I left Ali for 4 nights! I still can't believe that...sigh...

We were waiting for the plane at the satellite building. I like going to that building cause I don't go there often. They even have a Thomas Sabo counter there

What is a holiday without food right! My friends brought me to the best restaurants and we were treated to meals by wonderful hostesses who gave us a good spreas. This was at Elona's good friend's house, Neena. She gave us an authentic Indonesian meal. This fish (here it is called Kaloi) is fried really crispy

The rest of the buffet spread at Neena's house. Gado-gado I didn'y eat, only because I was so full already. The tempe she fried was fantastic, forgot to ask for recipe lah

The Sista's taking a lunch break. This is a Chinese restaurant and the food is excellent. The mango juice was the best tasting ever!

The restaurant had this basket which they cover with a cloth for you to put your handbags in instead of putting it all over the chairs minimising space. Good idea ya..

Shariah and me at Senayan City. Very nice mall...this was the night we went to watch the latest Bond flick. Which I must add was really lousy!

Family in Jakarta

I have relatives in Jakarta and I managed to meet up with some of them. My great grandfather had 7 children and 4 of them were in Malaysia and the other 3 settled in Indonesia. According to the family tree I have relatives in Jakarta, Bandung and Acheh.

What makes me sad is that my dad (oh ya, this family I am talking about is from my dad's side) never bothered to bring us together. It is only now that we are coming together but not because of my dad but an uncle who has taken all the trouble and effort to make sure we know who our relatives are.

The gentleman on the left is Pak Saihan. He looks like my dad and late grandfather.

We are organising a family gathering this Hari Raya Haji. Thus is organised but us 8th generation kids. And you know what? The older generation folks are more excited about this. Of course right considering they were unable to bring their kids together or make sure their grandchildren know who each other are. Plans are well on the way for that and the family from Jakarta, Bandung and Acheh are coming. How exciting to meet people from far away.

What worries me about these things is you can walk on by and not know you are actually looking at your cousin or aunty. I have had that happen to me and I hope never again!