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*updated!
For those who are interested with susu ILHAM, sorry this is my personal blog, you can go straight to my susu ILHAM shoppe :) Enjoy the goodness of milk with sunnah food ingredients and AL-Quran therapy :)

*Susu ILHAM is still on sale with promotional price! Hurry while stocks last.

Of Brunei and a bit of Labuan

This cute ornaments greeted us upon our arrival at the hotel

I spent the whole weekend including cuti Hari Wesak visiting my husband in Bandar Seri Begawan and a quick getaway to Labuan. Hence, some quick summary and tips in case you/me will need it soon.

Day 1
As soon as I arrived, we went to the hotel in Bandar (as the locals used to call it in short) for a quick clean-up and travelled via car to Kuala Belait(KB), to fulfill the invitation to attend Malaysians gathering and tadabbur Al Quran there. At first I was quite reluctant, but hubby insisted because he felt the importance to extend the networking to the fellow Malaysians in Brunei as he'll be staying here for quite some time.

The journey of 94 km to KB took about 1 and half hours (termasuk sesat dan simpang kecik)..Eventually when we arrived, they were half way through the tazkirah. We received a warm welcome from them and we chatted the whole night. They loved the fact that real PETRONAS people finally join them here..by the way most of them are Shell workers and O&G related contractors/consultants. We parted around 10.30pm and went back to Bandar.

Day 2
Our plan today is to drive straight to Muara and take a ferry to Labuan just for one objective - borong coklat! I heard it is far cheaper compared to Langkawi.Also the fact that I never step a foot to Labuan makes me very curious although everybody tried to convince me that I'll regret my trip there.Tapi takpelah, since I am already in Brunei and it's located very near to Labuan, then why not? Apparently the Bruneians also love to go to Labuan(on trip day) on public holiday just to enjoy the beaches and restock their chocolates :) The ferry trip took just about 1 hour (about 52 km-so solat jama' qasar is not allowed!).

We went straight to the shops,the only mall then makan.Since the weather is extremely hot, we went to the nearest hotel for some shelter..in the end kami terus pinjam toilet dan solat di sana, haha. Kemudian, we went back to the pekan for a last minute shopping of chocolates and kain batik jawa, then we waited to board the ferry at 4pm. The weather, however was not on our side as we faced a rough sea on the journey back to Muara..alot of people even puked on the boat! It took almost 2 hours for us to reach the jetty.

Some random fact that I note in my short trip to Labuan :

1. The pekan is very small, and the only mall was located opposite of Grand Dorsett. If only you could categorize it as mall, that is. However,there is one supermarket 'Parkson Ria' in there if you wish to buy some necessities.

2. To buy chocolates, you really need to compare the prices at few shops before you buy coz the prices might vary. Among the cheapest were at the mall (ground floor, near the taxi stand) where you can get alot of freebies (normally chocolates that are near expiry).The ones in the jetty are not bad too. Just try to avoid buying at the bigger and more established shops e.g. the airport :)

3. The shops operated half day on Sunday. So grab your things fast coz last minute shopping sometimes is not the greatest idea :)

4. Some recommended food place around town including Malindo(nasi campur) and Mawilla(for a scrumptious sotong tepung and black pepper crab).. I didn't get to enjoy Anjung Ketam (macam lah I makan ketam kan, I mean to enjoy other barbecued seafood delicacies there) and its alike though coz it opens only at night :(

5. The taxi charges were unbelievable. No metres were used, they just use their instict. For a journey about 4km they charged RM10 in average. So bring extra money or rent a car instead.
6.I secretly believe this island has potential to grow. If only it has the same chance like Langkawi.

Day 3 and Day 4
Not much on these days coz hubby is working. I just had a walk around the mall connected to my hotel and stayed in the room, enjoying the unlimited internet access-hence the post :)! At night, hubby drove me around Brunei for a sight seeing around town – including Kampung Air, Istana Nurul Iman, the magnificent gold domed mosques, up until near the boarder of Limbang! On Day 4, I was scheduled to go back to KL via the morning flight and leaving him.. :(

OK lets skip that part, just to share some guide and facts about Brunei :

1. This is a wealthy country and the ruler practically own everything. You will spend some time gawking at how beautiful is the mosques (especially the one with real gold domes) and how enormous are the palaces and even the massive royal car garage!

2. The locals pun boleh tahan hebatnya. You will see huge houses of the locals with average 5 or more cars in each compound. In short, they are living an easy and wealthy life.

3. Since the currency is high, you will find alot of things as costly. First to be noticed is the hotel rates and house rental rates. An average hotel will cost about 200 Brunei dollars per night. If you look for a nice and cozy hotel (but surely not cheap either:), The Rizqun (wah nama macam kat arab!) in Gadong area is highly recommended:) It has majestic interior and connected to a mall,and eateries are everywhere around this area.

The Gadong Pasar Malam is just a walking distance from The Rizqun..and it opens daily!

4. Food is never an issue here. If you crave for cheap and hawker style food, just go to the daily night market (near the Rizqun,also in Gadong area) that starts from 6pm onwards. Some of the must try local favourites are Nasi Katok, Nasi Pusu, Pais Ikan/Daging/Udang, roasted chicken and many more with average price of just 1 Dollar each! The tastes are heavenly good and great for your pocket too.

This cute little nasi bungkus cost 50cents (about RM1.20) each..but of course you wont be full by just eating one kan.

5. The favourite fast food here is Jollybee. However KFC, Mc Donalds, Pizza Hut and Coffee Bean is around too (just to name a few).

6. The locals looked alot like our own Sarawakians. You may recognize them by the way the ladies wear their tudung..its like, hurm have you seen the Brunei's Queen wearing tudung? Macam tu lah fesyen diorang. Darjah kebesaran dan 'Haji' is very important to be addressed too, hence pay special attention if you need to communicate with one.

7. Kuala Belait is among the famous town in Brunei because of the oil and gas industry-although it is a very small and quiet town. It is also very near to Miri -bear in mind that the border closed at 9pm, hence plan your journey well.

Likes : alot of tasty food, peaceful and wealthy country, alot of Islamic signage e.g. Subhanallah, Alhamdulillah,Allahuakbar on the roadside, no traffic jam. I met Malaysians who are so comfortable living here and taknak balik Malaysia.

Dislikes : High cost of living, not much modernisation, too slow-paced jadi kurang kena dengan jiwa saya haha

Unforeseen Circumstance

I was scheduled for a presentation in front of the Managers and Senior Managers in one of my company's subsidiary,situated in the southern of Malaysia. So I rehearsed my lines all night until I fell asleep.Man, this opportunity doesn't come often so I need to give my best.

So the next morning, I was in my best suit, well-prepared and ready for some action.
The presentation consists of two parts, the first part is covered by my boss and my part is the latter one. Suddenly,

(ok nak mintak izin alih bahasa untuk kesan yang lebih dramatik)

Tetiba I rasa pelik semacam je rase kasut yang I pakai. FYI kasut ni adalah stock kasut formal yang telah berada dalam loker ofis lama sangat sebab I memang malas pakai kasut formal, sakit kaki. I suke yang fancy2 colourful kalo ade bling2 lagi suke. Ok side track seketika. Nak katanya kasut ni bukan yang selalu digunakan la.

I cuba jalan2 sekeliling room tu untuk mendapatkan keyakinan. Selepas terasa seperti nak jatuh beberapa kali, I tengok secara dekat kasut tersebut, rupanya telah berubah menjadi buaya. Pernahkan experienced tapak kasut terkopak dan kelihatan seperti mulut buaya? Ah seperti itulah.

I dah panik tapi muka masih buat2 cool (ini memang kepakaranku).Nak pergi cari Plan B, my presentation will start in two minutes time. Maka Plan C nyer, saya nekad untuk tidak memakai kasut ketika presentation. Mujurlah saya mampu mencover diri dengan berdiri dekat dengan meja peserta dan bilik itu berkarpet pula, tidaklah obvious sangat. Dan ambience presentation pun agak santai dan banyak interaksi,kuss selamat! Hihi tak dapat bayangkan kalau kena present on stage, tak dapat pikir apa nak dijadikan Plan B, C atau D. Bila boss buat muka pelik kenapa I tidak memakai kasut, I buat isyarat menunjukkan I saje je kononnye, malas nak pakai kasut. Keskes.

Kendian selepas berjaya melupakan hakikat sedang tidak memakai kasut dan teruskan presentation dengan yakinnya, I passed the floor to my boss again for her to conclude the session. Oh tentunya saya perlu berfikir bagaimana nak keluar dari room itu nanti. Takkan nak tunggu habis pastu beramah mesra dan kantoi tak pakai kasut? OH tidak.

Jengjengjeng! Baru teringat ada kasut satu lagi dibawak semalam dalam beg kat room. Maka misi mengexcuse diri pun bermula, konon ke toilet padahal sebaik sahaja keluar dari meeting room tersebut, serta merta berlari kaki ayam utk ke bilik mengambil kasut. Untuk mengelakkan malu yang melampau, I mengambil jalan swimming pool agar tak nampak ketara (yelah orang gi swimming pool memanglah berkaki ayam kan.Konon I'm one of them-minus the suit I wore. Heheh) dan terus ke lif dan amik kasut kat bilik. Kendian berlari balik ke meeting room bagai tiada apa yang berlaku. Hasilnya : None of the participants realise that the presenter is not wearing shoes/kasut dia koyak.

Kesimpulan dari cerita di atas ialah :
1- Manusia hanya merancang. Macam2 perkara tak terduga boleh berlaku..jadi sentiasa sediakan PLan B dan C dan D dan E kalau boleh.
2- Keyakinan sangat penting dalam apa jua situasi. Fullstop.
3- Creativity helps in unexpected situations!
4- To husbands, jangan lah marah sekiranya isteri anda mempunyai habit meletak kasut di merata tempat, baik di kereta anda, kereta dia, opis anda, opis dia, rumah mak anda mahupun di rumah mak dia. Ataupun asik nak bawak kasut lebih sepasang kalau travel. Sebab kasut pempuan ni fancy dan murah sikit la (I'm talking yang brand biase ye) kalo dibanding ngan kasut lelaki, maka life-span nya dikhuatiri lebih pendek berbanding kasut anda. Jadi akan berguna dalam masa2 yang tidak dijangka :)

Plagiarism strikes back!

Call me emotional, easily annoyed, mudah tersinggung or apa2, but I really felt a punch on the chest when I discovered someone plagiarising my writings.Walaupun sat perenggan, mahupun satu muka surat. Unbelievable, right? I dah la blogger picisan, tak pandai menulis, tulis ikut sedap hati jer, blog pun takde sapa yg bukak yet still ada orang nak plagiat my writing.The first time I experienced this was with my review on FT's theater not long ago. I refused to put any hyperlinks or whatsnots, if you are curious you can find it out easily. I also managed to calm myself to avoid doing stupid things like harassing the doer. I just pray that the doer will understand and stop doing what he did.And then, poww I experienced it again.

 

Do you believe the utmost important thing is to spread the goodness to everyone, perasaan atau etika penulisan si penulis tak perlu diambil kira.Hey, kita nak share benda baik kan? Bukan nak buat benda tak elok.So jangan lah kedekut ilmu. 

 

Tapi, betulkah tindakan orang yang masuk rumah orang, ambil barang sesuka hati dan letak kat rumah dia? Dah kes mencuri tu satu lah kan. Can't you ask for permission, or at least kat rumah awak tu letak lah - credit to xx, I got this info/this write up from her. It is about ethics and good deeds. Same goes untuk orang yang suka amik gambar2 dari blog orang lain, come on lah, you are mature enough than go stealing around people's pictures/write-up and put them in yours.

 

Sebenarnya tak susah,tak payah beriya2 contact dan dapatkan consent pun takpe, asalkan ada kredit di mana2. Sebenarnya yang menjadi kerisauan penulis adalah takut penulisan mereka disebarkan sesuka hati, tanpa kawalan atau pun di tiru-tampal separuh2 dan akhirnya disalah ertikan oleh orang lain. Nak berkongsi ilmu dan pengalaman, silakan.Malah sangat dialu-alukan. Adat orang Melayu, orang berbudi, kita berbahasa. Taklah main terjah  macam wartawan Melodi (ehh?) pastu owner tu find out sendiri, tak ke kita yang malu. 

 

 This time I truly understand how the famous bloggers felt when their writing being copied everywhere without credits. So let's act wisely dan sesungguhnya hormat menghormati amalan mulia. Saya tak marah tapi hanya mengingatkan.Peace!

Health Tips#9 : Stevia

ni mesti nanti Hazel marah aku sebab asik gambar blur.Sorry lah beb hp cikai, nanti I tukar hp baru kamera cantik skit :) Encik A, hint*hint*

Have you heard about Stevia?

I know mesti korang baru dengar masa tengok Majalah 3 minggu lepas. Sebenarnya I pun :p Pernah dengar sebelum ni tapi tak amik port sebab macam susah je nak cari..lagipun saya bukan pemakan gula yang tegar. Tapi sebab mak asyik bising abah banyak amik gula, yelah kalo pagi petang nak Milo O dan Teh O jer, kalau weekend tu sampai 4 cawan sehari, bimbanglah jugak kan.

Tetiba belek2 katalog Cosway dan teruss jumpa produk ni. Magik ke apa? Atau diorang timing it right supaya keluar produk sekali ngan keluar dokumentari kat TV dan orang2 terus mencari produk ini? Dipendekkan cerita, I pun gi Cosway shopping benda alah ni. 100 tablets harganya RM12.50 jer, produk baru sampai bulan lepas.

In short, Stevia ni pengganti gula yang sangat baik, takde kalori, memang bagus untuk pesakit diabetes dan yang sangat menjaga kesihatanlah. Manis sebijik cam gula, even lagi manis kot jadi bila makan guna sikit jer. Cam produk dalam gambar tu comes in small tablet, so satu tablet kecil bersamaan ngan satu sudu kecil gula. Bila tanya abah, sedap ke tak stevia tu, dia kata sama cam gula biasa.Siap tak sedar lagi my mum replaced the normal sugar in his drinks.

So everyone, bolehlah habiskan stock gula di rumah anda dan cuba guna Stevia pulak. I am yet to try using it masa masak sambal tumis nanti, apelah rasanya..

Akhirnya Susu ILHAM dah ada blog sendiri

Hehe, sorry la baru2 ni banyak sangat flood pasal susu ILHAM. Mesti yang tak suke susu menyampah jer kan, haha. So jangan risau, mulai hari ni susu ILHAM telah ada kedai sendiri di IVY shoppe :) Jemputlah masuk jika sudi.

OK, kenapa IVY shoppe dan bukan kedai susu ILHAM ker, ILHAMbest ke?
Sebab.. mungkin, iya jika masa mengizinkan nak jugak la tambah produk2 lain kat situ. Janganlah ditanya bila, bila masa nanti akan diwar2kan lah, hehe.
(okeh I know Encik A mesti tersenyum lebar membaca post ini. Nak tumpang jual baju ragbi le tuh.Komisen ye yang, komisen :p)

So adakah saya ingin mengikut jejak langkah ramai orang dengan memulakan online biznez dengan cita2 nak quit job dalam jangka masa tertentu? Jawapannye, atleast at the moment, mungkin tidak. I'm just being myself, terlalu curious nak mencuba sesuatu yg baru.Untung tak banyak mana pun, kepuasan dan experience yang dituntut!oyeah. Dan juga sunnah Nabi, nak rase the hardship yang nabi rasa masa berniaga :)

*updated in 2013 - sorry I need to say that I did not restock Susu Ilham for quite some time due to some reason.. while you may contact other reseller or get it from the HQ itself. Sorry for inconvenience and keep on supporting the product