Saturday, December 31, 2011

Hullo Dragon! Bring it on!

(Source: email forwarded by a fellow Toastmaster friend)

Happy New Year!

Even before midnight my phone, Facebook page and Twitter was already full with New Year wishes and postings on thousands of wants, wishes and apologies for any wrongdoings made in 2011. For me, I decided on a simple new year wish to everyone, having yet unable to decided on my new year resolutions yet and also the path that I want to undertake this coming year. It's kinda difficult to keep promises that you make on a whim and then wonder why haven't you kept up with your resolutions. So for the coming year of the Dragon, I aim to:

1. Be healthy. Meaning: Get a 15-minute workout at least 3 times a week. Year after year I've vowed to lose weight but to no avail. This year, no more losing weight resolution. Just plain old simple exercising for health benefits. I've seen fellow friends and colleagues get high blood pressure and diabetes, and even die of heart attacks and it's scary. So, as I do not want to emulate bad juju (aka vibes) I have to start creating good juju.

2. Have a better spending habit. What I've noticed is that my worst purchases have always been impulse spending. You know, impulsively buying a top/ dress/ pants and only wearing it once then finding that it looks absolutely horrible on you. This year, I've made a resolution to make quality purchases and not quantity. I will buy, but I will buy what I think is the best for me. And I resolve to stop my impulse purchases starting from this year on.

This morning I made my first purchase for the year. I've been eyeing it for more than a year (an extremely long time *sigh*) but unfortunately as a person who chooses to cover her hair (and there are certain times that I do not, I know, so sue me) , I've had doubts on whether I should, or should not make that purchase. And finally, they've made an offer that I cannot refuse. And the offer is only for today! Lets see if you'd like the offer. This is the promotion:


A Sereni & Shentel hairband promotion. Valid only for today

A few of my gal pals are fans of Sereni & Shentel and I am too. However, I haven't dared to get an S&S of my own because I haven't really thought on how to best wear them. I know you'd be thinking headbands, worn on the head lah *duh*. But the problem is, I was thinking about wearing them over my shawl. And after some serious contemplation, discussion with fellow girlfriends and even trying it out in front of my fellow gal pals at Rock Paper Scissors. And finally, I did it! I made the purchase at around 11 this morning and I can't wait for my S&S headbands to reach me. Will update pics once I've gotten them =). 

3. Prioritize. I have a serious problem of overcommitment. This time around, I will not overcommit. I will practice the act of non-committing to any event/ task/ duty until I am really, really sure that I can deliver. Otherwise, I will always remain unfashionably late at everything *oh bugger*.

I think, three's good enough for me. Remember, my resolution this year is focusing on quality not quantity. As my dad would always remind me when I was younger, "If you want to do something, do it well. Otherwise, don't do it at all."

Have a great year ahead peeps!


xo Mrs Fashionista

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

2011, Year of the Rabbit, Adieu.

We'll be approaching the New Year very, very soon. And with that in mind, I'd like to be THANKFUL all the blessed memories and events that have colored my year.


Me and Raden at the Great Wall of China. This was taken last year during our vacation to Beijing =).

Life
This has been a very, very hectic year. Workload has been over the top and my life even took a roller-coaster ride as I tried to manage my time between travelling, office paperwork, teaching, and preparing for a wedding. However, I do feel very blessed indeed that at the end of this topsy-turvy year is a wonderful rainbow (and a pot of gold from the Ministry, in the form of a year end bonus). I definitely have had a very, very amazing year.

Love
In February, I (yours truly, the one who thought she would never get married) got engaged =). And in November, a lil' Miss Fashionista became a Mrs *wink*.


My engagement. If you are currently looking at this photo, I apologize for the unkempt background. No apology for the unfavorably large nose however. I seem to have been born with it.


One of the wedding photos taken by my wedding photographer, Ise.

Work
Work has been simply amazing. I have been in UiTM for about two years plus now and I am still learning the ropes. There's tons to be learned and I think I have only scratched the tip of the iceberg. Being an educator is a a great opportunity, molding and shaping the brains of the leaders of our tomorrow is an opportunity that I would never miss. Syukur alhamdulillah. My best achievement for this year would be having FIVE conference papers presented.


In Palangka Raya, more accurately at Universitas Palangka Raya.


Us at Universiti Mulawarman, Samarinda, Indonesia.


Mommy and a fellow UiTM professor at the International Halal Business Symposium where I was presenting.

My target is only a paper a year, but having good teammates, we managed to complete an amazing five! In lieu of that, three were presented in Indonesia (one in Palangka Raya and two in Samarinda), one was presented in Shah Alam, and the last one in Kuching at our very own UiTM Sarawak Conference 2011.

Travel
I've finally managed to see Port Dickson for the first time! Amazing isn't it? A fellow traveller who's been to so many countries all over the world but still fails to visit her own. Downright shameful, I must say. I've always wanted to go to Port Dickson (and not because of anything cool though), simply because almost everyone that I've known (most of my Semenanjung friends and also my Sarawak and Sabah friends who're working in Semenanjung) have been there. There's always posts of weekend getaways to PD. I've always wondered how does PD looks like and due to work (and my amazing mentor, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Roziah) I get to stay there for an amazing four days!

This year's travelling started off in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, followed by a short trip to Bandung and Jakarta, Indonesia, then Johor Bahru with the students, moved on to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, and a much anticipated vacation cum pre-wedding session to Macau, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, another trip to Samarinda, Indonesia, and finally my mini-getaways after officially becoming a Mrs to Singapore and Bangkok.


With one of my students during our trip to Johor. However, this photo was taken in Melaka. A beautiful historical city it is =).


At Tanjung Simpang Mengayau, Kudat, Sabah.


Us at The Venetian, Macau. Wondering where I am? I'm the one capturing this photo lah!


Us at Disneyland Hong Kong.


Us at Windows of the World, Shenzhen.


At Marina Bay Sands, Singapore =P


At Hard Rock Hotel, Pattaya.

Thank you Allah for such a blessed year. Am looking forward to another blessed year. Adieu 2011 and Hello 2012. will be dusting my new year resolutions book to see if I'm missing one or two resolutions and will update new ones very, very soon!

Lots of love and let us say a prayer of thanks, everyone! It's been a great year and I hope everyone have had the time of their lives =).

Syukur Alhamdulillah. 


xoxo Mrs Fashionista 

Monday, December 26, 2011

Fashionista's Escapades: Bangkok, Thailand

Before I started embarking on my travels and holidays throughout the many different countries, I had already decided on the two places that I really wanted to visit the most. And no, those places are not even located in Europe, but in our own neighboring country, Bali in Indonesia and Bangkok in Thailand. Why? I don't know specifically why but I think the fusion between culture and modernization of these two places are amazing. Bangkok is a metropolitan city of 12 million people (and from what I see, there's equal parts of Thai's and foreigners in Bangkok) but the influence of culture is very apparent everywhere. Here's a snapshot of my trip =)


A handy guide to me while I was there. Although I am not able to make full use of the book, it did help me out on more than one occasion. 


Sawattdee~ka

If you meet a fellow Thai, it is more respectful to greet them with two of your hands clasp in front of you (like the photo above) rather than the usual handshake. 


We've arrived! This is our second getaway. Not a honeymoon, mind you, as Raden is working on this trip. 


Tuk Tuk. We were also fortunate to ride on one of these. It's actually a modified motorcycle (I think). It's kinda fast and unsafe (there are no seat belts and windows or doors). But it's an excellent mode of transportation, it helps you get past the traffic jam (which is absolutely horrible, by the way) in record time. 


The traffic in Bangkok usually would mean a trip of either 30 minutes to 3 hours depending on the traffic conditions. We managed to experience both *yikes*.


The Grand Palace. It only opens during the day (until 4 pm). The palace is not accessible by MRT or BTS (Skytrain) so if you're thinking of going, you are advised to look for a metered taxi. 


There's lots of these street decoration all over Bangkok. They've just celebrated their King's 84th birthday on the 5th of December. It's a perfect time to visit the city as there's a parade of lights everywhere. The Thai are extremely fond of their King and after chatting up some new friend's that I've made in Bangkok, I know why. In simple words, the King have contributed a lot to making Thailand what it is today. 



Near the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. It's such a pity that we weren't able to make time to visit this temple. I'll make sure it'll be in our itinerary the next time we visit Bangkok. 


By the way, most Thais do not actually refer to Bangkok as Bangkok (they say, only the foreigners do), to them, the city is known as Krung Thep or the City of Angels. 


Travelling by MRT or BTS is one of the best way to visit Bangkok. If you're a shopaholic (like me), a must-go to place would be MBK or Mahboonkrong. It's kinda like Bukit Bintang Mall in KL. They sell all sorts of stuff (including imitation products, unfortunately) and below is kinda the street mall part of the shopping complex. 


MBK is accessible via National Stadium Station via MRT.


This is the central part of the mall. 


From MBK, we moved up to Siam Discovery for a trip to Madame Toussaud's Bangkok. Lo and behold, look who's here! Our 4th Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir, one of my idols =). 


Took a photo with the Obamas...


And another with Doraemon =p


Siam Discovery is accessible via Siam Station (if you're using BTS). 


Siam Paragon. Unfortunately, I also did not have enough time to drop by =(


Part of Bangkok's skyline. We were fortunate enough to catch a ride on Chao Phraya River and enjoy a city tour by the river. 


Wat Po (if I'm not mistaken) or also known as the Temple of Dawn. 


One of the places that I was excited to visit is the Chatuchak Market (a market almost similar to Pasar Minggu Satok in Kuching) that sells everything under the sun (i.e. from furniture to gadgets to pets, you get the meaning, right?). 


The market is packed with people, Thais and foreigners alike. 


I had a great bargain that day *yeay*. 


While we were there, there was a peaceful protest (though on God knows what). Interestingly, the protesters were accompanied by the police, right behind of the line. 


All in all, I'd say the trip went very well =). 

Will be posting more posts on Thailand, most importantly Halal food (should you feel like spending a day or two in Bangkok), the hotel that we stayed in (which is a beautiful boutique hotel by the name of Sabai Sabai) and a short dash to Pattaya (sin city just an hour and a half away from Bangkok). 

Am extremely glad that I've finally achieved to visit the two places that I've so wanted to visit, Bali in 2009 and now Bangkok. Let's start 2012 with a new wish list, shall we?

Have a great week ahead peeps!


xoxo Mrs Fashionista xoxo

Thursday, December 22, 2011

True Cafe

How I wish we have one of these at UiTM. This was taken at Chulalongkorn University, where my husband is currently doing work a few days ago. The name of the cafe, True Cafe actually comes from the telecommunications provider's name in Thailand i.e. True (almost like DiGi in Malaysia or AT&T in the US).




Taken at True Coffee2, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Sawattdeeka everyone!


Am leaving for Bangkok for Christmas. Hubby's going for work and I'm going in part of our mini weekend getaway. Remember when I said that there's two mini getaway's? This is the second one =). I am currently rocking the married life *grin*.

Let it snow... Merry Christmas everyone! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Media_httpdistilleryi_ticnx

Taken at Harrods

Carolling =)


Merry Christmas everyone! A group of carolers bringing the Christmas spirit to Kuching. Have a blessed weekend =).


Taken at The Spring

Monday, December 19, 2011

Adieu, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Song

A fellow friend and colleague will be leaving for UiTM Penang so in lieu of her leaving the campus we opted for a farewell dinner to celebrate her new academic journey in UiTM Penang. 


Booked dinner for 10 at The Eatery. Great buffet spread at only RM58++ per person. If you like fresh salmon, oyster and clams, or maybe you like a bit of pasta and pizza, or maybe some local dishes like nasi ayam, laksa and kolo mee, and topped with a great dessert spread (i.e. cheese cake, moist chocolate cake, ice cream and ice kacang); you can find it here at Four Points by Sheraton =). 


A mentor and her mentee. Erimalida is Dr. Song's master's student and she'll be graduating this May. Congratulations!


These three have been together in UiTM for more than 10 years. Time certainly flies fast. 


A lil' bit of something from us to Dr. Song. Thank you Madam KPP for being able to make it tonight. 


Dr. Song's few words on us and UiTM Sarawak. Am glad that she liked the company (us, I mean) and also the Sarawak food. Dr. Song is a native Penang, by the way. 


Another gift from the mentee. 


These two ladies are ecstatic that they've finally completed their master's degree. Carolin will also be joining Erimalida for the convocation in May. Congratulations Carol!


The crowd. Our faculty is a small one, there's only about 12 or 13 of us. Only two aren't in the picture, Dr. Chong who couldn't join us because she has a family affair to attend to and Madam Azilawati who's currently pursuing her PhD in New Zealand. 



The old timers (as they put it). They've been together in UiTM for many years, it's sad that we witnessed the passing of Madam Faridah earlier this year. She's also one of the gang. Al-Fatihah to her. 

To Dr. Song, you will be missed by us all. We hope that you'll achieve even greater success in Penang and hope to see you again in the future =).


xoxo Mrs Fashionista xoxo