68 : New Zealand

Hello!
It's been a while since i was here. Alhamdulillah, life is good. New Zealand has been treating me well since day 1 :)

I am currently in Roxburgh, working in a packhouse somewhere in Ettrick. Oh, I am under Working Holiday Scheme for those who doesnt have any idea on what am I doing here hehe. The cherry season just started earlier this month and will continue maybe until mid or end January.

Roxburgh is a small town in Central Otago, somewhere in  between Queenstown and Dunedin. When I said it is small, yes. It is a very small town with a population less than 1000 people. I am staying in The Commercial Backpackers and I think this place is the biggest building ever exist in this little town. It might be  small but it feels like home.

Home for the time being

Backyard / kitchen

Roxburgh town

Before Roxburgh, I was doing work exchange (work for accommodation) in a hostel in Dunedin for about a month. IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST THING EVER HAPPENED TO ME! But I'll write about it in the next post (which I dont know when hehe)

Alhamdulillah life is good here. I do miss home sometimes, but I am loving my life here. Now, I am in torn whether to extend my visa or not. There's some pros and cons but i think i'll pass it for the time being. (typical Hazirah is typical)

The cherry graders!

Cental Organic packers!

Roti canai day in The Commercial

I really want to write more about this but i dont know what and how. If you guys are interested in applying for Working Holiday Scheme, the application for Malaysian will be opened on 22nd of January 2014 at 5.00am (10.00am NZ time). You have to be quick since last year all 1150 places were gone in 30mins. You can check all the requirements and register at New Zealand Immigration website starting from now. Shoot me a mail at miss(dot)kakashi[at]yahoo(dot)com if you have any questions about this WHS and i'll try my best to answer you (whenever I got time for that lah okay). No, I dont bite people. Heh.

(takde ending)

BYE.

67 : To The Land of Long White Clouds

Exactly 5 days left before the journey starts.

I am moving (temporarily/permanently) to the land of the long white clouds.

Yes.

I was granted a Working Holiday Visa earlier this year. The application will be opened every January, you just need to be quick as only 1150 places are available for Malaysian. Once I settled everything in NZ, I promise to write further about this working holiday scheme and the process. Here's some reading material for you about what am I going to do : CLICK HERE.

At first, I was planning to go for a vacation with a friend. Then it turned out that I applied for visa and it got approved. Mixed feeling and i was asking myself "what the hell am i doing?". And i keep questioning myself, until now. Once, I rejected an offer to further my study in France and now i am doing this. (So funny la you, Hzrh!) (I know.)

Since it was a vacation plan before, my friend and i had to figure things out again. We already bought return tix to Sydney actually, then we decided that we are going to spend 2 days there then fly out to the land of long white clouds. Yeps!

So, too many things to be done before that. Because honestly, I dont have any idea on how long we will be living with our backpacks. The visa is for 6-9 months, but i can make shorter (or longer, depends) if i want. Thats why when people keep asking me how long will i be away, i said I am not sure. It can be shorter, or longer.

I quit my 8-5 job on 28/8/2013. Back to the hometown to prepare few things before I go.

Okay I lied.

 I am gaining weight enjoying delicious food at home :p Up until now, i think 70% of the preparation already sorted out, excluding packing. Yes, it's the hardest part of traveling for me.

In 5 days, I am heading for my once in a lifetime (kot) adventure !

Konon.




Uh sorry, my English sucks.

Exclude the cursing part. kthxbye.

66 : Singapore F1 Concert - Big Bang

One of the craziest thing I do; overland trip from Penang to JB/Singapore to see the king of K-Pop, Big Bang. Help yourself by skipping this entry if you are allergic to K-Pop.

I secured the cheapest F1 tix costs $72 ($68+$4 for processing fees) somewhere in Aug then booked a bed in Blissful Loft, near MRT Clarke Quay (3min-walk from the station). Then, it was all good to go! At first, I though this is going to be my 1st solo trip, but managed to drag kak Rina along, but she's flying straight to SG on the day of the event since she had class to attend.

12 freaking hours of bus ride from Butterworth-JB, spent a night in Syafiqah's crib (thank you!) then hopped on the bus to SG the very next day (Causeway Link, Gelang Patah-Jurong East, RM4). Met my new Singaporean girlfriend, Dyna who is kind enough to help me picking up my F1 pass (or else, I have to pay extra $23 for delivery); together with her Indonesian friend, Irma. It was a pleasure to meet both of them :) These 2 kind souls were kind enough to accompany me for check-in and even sent me to the MRT station. God bless both of them!

With Dyna & Irma

I reached Raffles Place MRT station around 12pm since I decided to enter the venue via Gate 5. I read somewhere that there is less people at Gate 5. It was totally right. 2pm and no queue at all. I managed to grab a bite from the nearest McD then enter the venue at 3pm when the gate was opened. The security was a breeze. I brought along  an umbrella, a small mat, sunblock and a 600ml clear bottle of mineral. It was all good. 

I was happily scrolling my twitter timeline (free high speed wifi yo!) while eating my fillet o fish and read that the queue was a mess at Gate 3 and 4.

I quickly look for The Padang stage then only I saw people were running like crazy. So, I decided to join the occasion. LOL. Secured the best view (I think!) and made friends with the crowd around me. I get to know there are fans from Japan, China, Australia etc were there for Big Bang. Amazing! God bless me, I met so many nice people there.These 2 Indian ladies next to me even offered to buy me drinks since they know I was all alone. Thank you ladies! Found kak Rina in the sea of people around 5pm and managed to grab a bite around 6pm. Energy restored! 

The sky was awesome! But not the weather. I think someone forgot to turn off the oven temperature :/

VIPs were having picnic under the sun (VIP = BigBang's fan)

I was glad that I managed to drag her along to the concert!

The $68 pass

View BEFORE the concert starts

1/8 of the crowd. Say what?!

11.15pm. The time has come. They started the concert by playing Fantastic Baby mv on the big screen. People were screaming, impatiently waiting for the boys to come up on the stage. And right after the mv ended, here we go...the kings made their appearance on stage. The crowd went wild. 

Enjoy some of the shots I took during the concert. Not a professional photographer, pardon me.

Can you spot my baby T.O.P?

G-Dragon (in white) x Taeyang (in black). Looking absolutely fine.

12 hours of traveling and additional 12 hours of waiting was totally worth it. He looks perfect. Meet Choi Seung Hyun / T.O.P of Big Bang.

G-Dragon x T.O.P x Taeyang

Daesung. He looks all shy that night. But no one can deny how hot his *cough* body *cough* is when he was sweating. Managed to catch a glimpse of his ehem 6packs ehem. 

The leader of Big Bang, Kwon Jiyong / G-Dragon. Being labeled as the king of K-Pop for his amazing talent and one of the richest idols in South Korea. 

I wont forget the very 1st moment I laid my eyes on this guy. 

My perfect duo, GD&TOP. 

Seungri the maknae (youngest) in Big Bang. No one can resist this 90's baby. He was so cheeky and playful. The crowd went wild when he was flirting with the camera during his solo stage. He performed Gotta Talk to You & Strong Baby.

Taeyang. Damn it, this guy got swag! Whenever he moves his body, he moves with swag. Big Bang's dancing machine. He looks good in blonde, I admit.

G-dragon with Daesung at the back. This is how close we were. I couldn't ask for more :p

The concert ended around 12.45am and we reached hostel at 2am. 

We checked out from the hostel then headed to Bugis St for lunch with Dyna. I cant thank her enough for being so kind to us. She treated us the best chicken rice then spent the day with us. Around 6pm, Dyna and her cousin sent us to Queen St bus station to catch a bus to Larkin. We boarded the bus to Penang around 9.45pm. Safely reached Penang at 7.30am the very next day.

All I can say is, I am so glad that I decided to proceed with this trip. One of the best trips I've ever had. I feel blessed to meet so many kind souls through out this trip. Seeing the kings on the stage was like a dream come true. Been longing to see them on stage since I first discovered them in Running Man (boo me!). They are beyond amazing! I promise myself to see them on stage again for their next tour hehe

Enjoy some of my fancams from the concert : 

65 : Pulau Mabul, Sabah.

Holler! Aku baru kembali dari trip gila ke Singapore untuk 3h2m. Sangat gila, nanti lah cerita. I've been wanting to update about Mabul before Singapore trip, malangnya takde pulak kerajinan memunculkan diri. Tskk

Tiket ke Mabul dah lama beli, tak pasti hujung tahun lepas atau awal tahun ni. Return tix +-RM110 kot. Plan asalnya adalah gerak berdua dengan Adila, then Izyan decided utk join kitorang. After a few discussion, kitorang picked Scubajeff untuk pakej ke Mabul. Aku ada mintak quotation dari a few operators dan bila dah compare, aku rasa Scubajeff paling murah kot untuk pakej 3h2m.

Banyak jugak halangan nak ke Mabul ni, tapi dah memang tertulis rezeki nak ke sana. Aku decided untuk ke Mabul sehari sebelum fly. So, agak rush. But it was worth it. 

Flight kitorg pagi pukul 7. So, malam sebelum tu tido rumah Adila dan pepagi buta pegi airport. Parking kereta kat Zone C dengan rate RM16/day. Masa boarding tu hujan renyai-renyai, tapi alhamdulillah semua okay. Memang bantai membuta je sepanjang perjalanan. Flight touched down airport Tawau pukul 10am macam tu.

Cantik jugak airport Tawau ni sebenarnya

Kitorang nak cepat sampai Mabul, so takde la rajin nak ke town cari bas bagai. So, kitorang decided utk mintak Scubajeff arranged transportation dari Tawau ke Semporna. RM100/way, so share 3 orang dapat la dlm RM30+ per pax. Sampai je airport, dah ada orang tunggu dan terus gerak ke Semporna naik Hilux. Perjalanan dari Tawau ke Semporna lebih kurang sejam lebih. Dekat dah nak sampai Semporna, hujan turun selebat-lebatnya. Down gila aku masa tu. Redha je lah.

Sementara tunggu hujan stop, kitorang tunggu kat office Scubajeff. Dekat je dengan jeti, 5 mins jalan kaki. Sampai office tu dalam pukul 11, next boat pukul 2.30pm. Lemau gila jangan cakap lah. Sempat pusing pekan Semporna. Sedih lah tengok, sebab macam tak dijaga dengan elok. Masa ni memang aku dah rasa bersyukur sangat dengan apa yang aku ada without knowing lagi banyak benda yang akan buat aku sedar diri.

Pukul 2.30pm gerak ke jeti dengan sepasang husband and wife. One hour boat ride to Mabul. It was all good, mujur tak muntah macam boat ke Krabi.

Dragon Inn yang femes kat Semporna

Scubajeff Lodge

Check in dan lepak-lepak je la sementara tunggu dinner. Memang tak boleh buat apa sebab penat gila. Dari pagi kot. So, lepak amik angin je lah dekat deck. Oh ya, electricity cuma dari jam 6.00pm sampai 6.00am saja. So, sila lah lepak kat deck je sebab memang best gila!

Almost sunset

Jeti Scubajeff masa air pasang. Boleh je nak terjun tiruk dari sini.

Esok pagi tu siap-siap untuk pegi snorkeling. Kitorang pegi Paradise 2 waktu pagi and Lobster Wall after lunch. If korang nak pegi Kapalai ke, boleh buat add-on kat package korang.

Pagi-pagi akan ada locals datang jual segala ketam lah, udang lah..harga not bad, sila nego. Dah beli tu, boleh upah tukang masak Scubajeff utk masak seafood. Kalau tak salah, RM20/dish.

Amacam, geram kan tengok air tu?

View dari bilik mengadap perkampungan Mabul.

Jeti Scubajeff masa air surut

Dalam pukul 12 tengah hari, air laut akan surut. So, boleh la turun pegi jalan-jalan sampai ke tengah laut kalau nak. Kitorang just turun dekat kawasan jeti dan mengambil gambar retarded yang tak sesuai diletak di sini hehe. Tapi sumpah best. Cuma kena tahan panas je lah. Air pasang balik dalam pukul 1.30 macam tu.

Sejenis mengundang kan?

Bila lepak atas deck, akan ada budak-budak ni yang datang then hulur tangan mintak duit/makanan. Kalau tengah makan kat deck, memang akan rasa sayu sangat bila diorang datang. So, kalau rasa nak sedekah, bawak sekali la keropok ke gula-gula ke untuk diorang ni. But, pls be extra careful. 

Sunset from Scubajeff

Hallway

After dinner malam last tu, kitorang lepak kat deck. Lepak layan angin laut sambil tengok bintang. View yang sangat hebat, sayangnya camera tak boleh capture. Kamera tak canggih kan..krikk krikk

Dalam pukul 10.30pm macam tu kitorang still ada kat deck lagi dok berborak. A few guests dah tido rasanya. Belakang kitorang ada anak-anak guests lain dok lepak layan ipad diorang. Masa ni la kejadian sedikit mistik berlaku. Aku tengah dok bercakap mengadap Adila dengan Izyan, so diorang berdua mengadap aku. Belum sempat habis cakap, tetiba Izyan dengan Adila terus bangun dan ajak masuk bilik. Aku macam hangin jugak, pehal diorang ni? Aku cakap tak habis lagi. Tapi ikut je lah. Masuk bilik, diorang senyap je.  Dan dekat luar, aku dengar budak-budak tadi macam berlari-lari masuk bilik masing-masing. Masa ni aku dapat agak dah. Kitorang decided untuk tak cakap pasal hal ni. Malam tu memang tak boleh tido dan macam-macam bunyi jugak lah aku dengar. Dengan ribut bagai. Wallahualam.

Last day di Mabul. Pagi tu baru diorang buka cerita pasal semalam. Rupanya masa aku dok bercerita tu, diorang nampak something kat belakang aku. Diorang nampak bebola api. Izyan memula nampak benda tu jauh dan dia selamba ingatkan benda tu sejenis kunang-kunang. Then makin dekat sampai lah benda tu katanya kat belakang aku. Sebab tu dia ajak kitorang masuk bilik terus. Dan malam semalam dia overheard yang staff situ sebut pasal penanggal. Ermm..entah lah. Alhamdulillah la takde pape yang teruk berlaku. Memang tempat dia rasanya, so takleh kata apa lah.

Kitorang request bot lambat sikit sebab nak pegi jalan-jalan dulu. Masa first night kat Mabul, aku jumpa sorang kawan sekolah yang kerja kat Sipadan Water Village. Aku dah 7 tahun tak jumpa dia since habis sekolah, so malam tu dia bawak kitorang pegi the other side of the island untuk chill. So, pagi last ni kitorang decided untuk memandai-mandai jalan hehe

Shortcut to the other side of Mabul. The sky was awesome possum!

Only for Borneo Divers guests

Found an old jetty and the sky was beyond amazing.

Jeti goyang yang harus dilalui dari Scubajeff ke pulau.

Bot bertolak dari Scubajeff dalam pukul 2.30pm. Kitorang mintak Scubajeff tolong arranged kan transport ke bandar Tawau since kitorang dah booking hotel satu malam di pekan Tawau. The reason is kitorang taknak rushing dari Mabul straight ke airport, so bermalam lah satu malam kat pekan Tawau. Kitorang stay kat VS Hotel, 2 mins dari stesen bas pekan Tawau. Selesa sangat-sangat, memang lena tido malam tu sebab malam sebelum tu tak boleh tido kan......

Esoknya gerak ke airport dengan prebet sapu RM10/pax ke airport. Flight delayed setengah jam but safely landed kat LCCT dalam jam 5pm.

Mabul is a great place. Sejenis trip yang boleh menyedarkan diri untuk bersyukur dengan apa yang kita ada selama ni. A very good trip with great people. Thank you Adila dengan Izyan sebab I might be a little fussy and annoying dan korang terpaksa bertahan hehe