MOVED

Hello there! If you're looking for me, I've moved! Here's my new address: http://juliamoh.wordpress.com 

See you there and thanks for popping by!

Things to do:

1. Blog; this and for e-commerce.
2. Write a 4-page long report on how you failed in communicating with Finns and how you survived it, by March 8th.
3. READ WINE BOOK!!! Re-exam on March 1st.
4. Really plan for the possibility of exchange studies next spring and the possibilities of completing both work placements in the third country *fingers cross* :

• Residence permit costs and regulations
• Insurance
• Accommodation
• Travel/living
• Renewal of Finnish residence permit
• Renewal of Finnish insurance
• Finances

5. Return self-evaluation report to Pirkko?
6. Read marketing book.
7. Catch up on French. (oh why did I pick up such an arrogant language?)

Which all means work, work, and more work. Now I'm starting to think if I shouldn't have bought the ticket to fly back home. I did not plan well and thoroughly. But well, it was probably for the best for myself. I do need a break. But that means I would have to work extra hard before and after the trip. Hopefully, my boss would still want me and find me useful. And then, I still have to think where I can put myself in this industry and that may mean I have to work elsewhere pretty much now? I really don't wanna end up like a lost lamb by the time I graduate. But man, this stuff is really stressing me out, making me nauseous and all.

I AM

STRESSED.

Once. Again.

Not. Fun. At. All.

I just want to be at peace and happy.

Been too busy

I've neglected this blog...and the other blogs too.

But here's a summary of what I've been up to over the past few months; since summer started and is now over =(

Started 'working'... thanks to a couple of Malaysian friends I have here. Still with them, currently.

Moved out of the suburb and into the city. Felt somewhat liberated but worried at the same time. But it turned out well...in the beginning.

Started school.

And having fun while I'm at it.

Started dating again.

*fingers crossed* I'm happy at this point =)

Got a new phone (finally!). Thanks to Angeline, the sweetheart, with her help, I manage to open a line with the local phone company. Sometimes, I think Finland has got too much legislations. *shrugs* So I'm finally on Whatsapp (who's on Whatsapp??!!), finally able to tweet and FB update on my phone, finally able to take photos and actually use them (I've had camera phones but the cameras were next to being useless), finally able to do a lot more. Finally, a touch screen smartphone =D

Two months into school, work's piling up. The first few weeks were orientations + parties. People here know how to be serious and have fun at the same time.

Work at the part-time workplace piled up too. And those were shitty days.

And then there's the housemate situation. Not a very nice thing to be added into my calendar and mind at the moment. I really do not need additional stress.

I had a test today. It was supposed to be an easy test. The questions are random, I was aware of that. So the difficulty of the paper depended on my luck. And I had questions of a topic I deliberately skipped just cos I thought they would not be too technical. I almost failed, though I passed. But I'm still very disappointed at it. It feels like the day I failed my first Physics test in Form 4, all over again.

My Sunday was ruined, because of a certain someone. It ruined my appetite and my mood for the rest of the day. Sadly, I still encoutered the same effect today, when my classmate mentioned about her. I was happily having my big and awesome chicken thigh lunch when my classmate asked 'so what are you going to do about her'. At the thought of her, I felt a churn in stomach and I lost my appetite for my chicken =( I hate it when it happens. I freaking love food ok. Don't ruin it for me.

Tomorrow's wine tasting class is cancelled (yes, I have wine tasting classes for free :P ) and there's no replacement. So yay, free morning. But I have an assignment due tomorrow afternoon for another class, and then the Grand Dinner on Wednesday. My class of 30 will prepare a 4-course dinner. My group's in-charge of the first starter and it'll be awesome. Just you wait =)

Seriously?

I am tired too.

Thanks for ruining my Sunday.

363: A little experiment

Once, a friend told me to 'do one thing that scares you every day'. I tried to remember that but I always get chicken shit scared of doing some things anyway, if not get all nervous and talk about it all the time and then blowing away the chance of actually getting something out of it. But never mind that, now.

I did something out of the ordinary yesterday. I wouldn't say it's something entirely scary, but still, not something I would do at all.

I created a profile on an online dating website.

Before you think I'm all desperate for a man, I am not. I am simply curious how an online dating website works, what kind of people you get in there, and partly also because I've been watching (a reality TV show) and reading on successful career-driven women (and men) turning to such sites once in a while, to either look for potential partners or short flings.

Still, I was kinda scared - scared that I'll get unwanted attention. So I first created a fake profile, with the first name that comes into my mind as a username, and did not upload any photo - cos I just wanted to 'browse through' :P Naturally, I did not get any messages and had only 1 or 2 visitors.

Two nights later, while reading more of Catherine Townsend's articles, I somehow got inspired to just do it. So I did. This time, I carefully picked out a username that wouldn't reveal my real name and doesn't sound desperate, picked out the right keywords and wrote a little something about myself, and uploaded a photo - just to see who and how many messages I would get =D

So I put up my new photo of fake pouty lips and eyes that looked elsewhere.

I set all this up before I went to bed close to 3am. I woke up the next morning at 10am, I had 7 new 'lovemails' waiting for me to open. In the next 2 hours, I had 4 more new mails. And after that, they just kept coming in 3s and 4s. I was so excited about it and the messages I got were hilarious, so I shared this with one of my best friends who lives in London at the moment and had a good laugh about it.

Most of the men who wrote to me lives in Sweden and wrote to me in Swedish. Some in Norwegian and Danish but mostly Swedish. Scandinavian languages are somewhat unique. So unique that when you use Google Translate on them, the English translation becomes ridiculous and makes no sense.

For example:
'Are you a girl/woman who is mobile?' whaaaat?

And the funnies:
'Cute. How email it? See you tomorrow in Gothenburg?'
'would you keep up to Copenhagen today?'
My profile clearly says I live in Helsinki, dudes.
'Move right to norrköping .- let me know if you want to be seen' No, I don't want to be seen lol.

And then the cheesies:
'Do you know a good, nice guy like me and maybe get together and see what it leads to.' Really??
'Hello! How sad to see that the mail basket huh even when logged in ida But know one thing! YOU are out there and waiting just for me!' Uh, I don't think so...

One friend decided to tweak my profile by adding the lines 'Please send me messages in English. Swedish is a great language but it's not one that I master.' It did not work.

The youngest who wrote to me was 19 and the oldest 47. Average age was 30. Most of them were not exactly very attractive but there were a handful of them who could be eye candies. Some have kids, some were clearly looking for hook ups (most of them are anyway), some looked miserable, and there's even one guy who clearly wrote in his profile 'looking for a mistress'. He sent me a virtual flower. ...

Unfortunately, this was a site that's sustained by a membership fee and I had only 24 hours of free trial. I couldn't reply anyone even if I had wanted to. By 7pm, I decided to update my profile a little bit to see if I would get more responses, since I did not know what was going to happen to my profile after 24hours (no, it did not say in the website). So, I uploaded another photo. This time, an old and infamous photo of mine I've used frequently, on Facebook and sending out for casting opportunities.

In the next 3 hours, I got another 11 new 'lovemails'. Yea, they call it lovemails. And then again, they kept coming in 3s and 4s and 7s. By the end of the 24 hours, I've had a total of 49 visitors and 55 mails, 6 of which are from the same people. So that makes up to 49 new mails. Not bad. I got more than what I would've expected.

It was good laugh for a while. And then I got sick by just looking at it.

It's truly a cheese fest and a perv nation.

11 days to one year

I'm in this phase of my life where I'm pretty bendable, in the sense that I can easily adapt to new situations and perceptions by accepting or following the current. Which, is good and bad at the same time, maybe. Being open minded is one thing. Being open minded and losing yourself in the end, is another. It's scary to think when you have a teenage child. It's even scary being myself now.

I like rom-coms, does not mean I don't enjoy other types of movies, and does not mean I don't live in the real world at all.

The problem is, I was suffocating.

376: Supposedly 335 days in Finland

*Originally written yesterday, 4th of May.

I'm finally free. My exam is over. I can finally sit back and relax for a while.

Now, I'm a little bored. But that's just today, maybe.

I woke up at 11am today, after sleeping for more than 12hours. Well, that's cos I woke up at 4.30am yesterday to catch the 5.45am bus to Helsinki, just so I could reach the school in Haaga by 7.15am. The exam was scheduled to start at 8am but registration was opened from 7.15am. Plus, I haven't been to the school before, so I thought I'd go early, just in case I get lost.

But not only I didn't get lost, I instantly made 3 friends at the train station. One guy who asked me on the train if I was going to the exam, and 2 other girls who came to us at the station. So we walked together to the school, hung out and talked for the entire day.

Overall, the exam was quite ok. I had to take the essay language test as I didn't have any IELTS or TOEFL to submit. The paper asked to elaborate on a sub-topic of one of the 26 topics in the reading package (that was delivered in the form of 300 pages). I was worried for a while as I could not remember much of what I read (it was the very last topic in the reading material and I read it only once). Since the question asked about the change in transportation and infrastructure in the next 85 years, I just made stuff up. No one knows about the future anyway.

And I passed. (Yays!)

Then came the time for the written exam. Multiple choice. I was told it would be tricky so I had to make sure I really read the reading package. True enough, it was pretty tricky; in the sense that they asked and quoted word for word from the reading package. Like seriously, unless you've memorised all 300 pages by heart, you most likely won't be able to answer. Thankfully, I could answer *some* of the questions and was pretty confident about it. I just don't like the history questions that involved numbers e.g. Which year did the first Chinese restaurant open in downtown Helsinki? Urgh, I hate to memorise numbers.

And then the interview. Had to wait 3 hours in between so we went for lunch. Spent 5.50€ for chicken curry pasta and salad and gorged on it cos I was sooo hungry. This time around, I was grouped with a new bunch of people. Standing at the corridor of the classroom with no speaking a word, there was some kind of tension in the air. But once we got in and were required to discuss about our answers to the 3 questions, everything seemed to be at ease. Everyone was quite talkative, participating in giving opinions and what not, and 1.5 hours went by pretty quickly. Initially, when we heard the interview was going to be 1.5 hours, we were like 'Omg what are they going to ask us for 1.5 hours??' But hey, there we were, not having enough time to elaborate on our stories :P

I went back to Nummela, since I didn't need to go back to the school the next day. Talked to Anu for a while, had a sandwich for dinner (with fresh salad grown in the 'greenhouse'!), watched a little bit of TV in my room and fell asleep until morning. Bliss. Dirty, but well rested =)

***

Today's the 5th of May. Two weeks ago, I was offered a job (another yayers!) by a fellow Malaysian friend, who's one of the partners of an Asian grocery store here. It started out as a favour/help just so I can stay here in Finland as my permit was expiring in 2 days. I went to his office the next day to get the contract, came back and submitted the papers for the permit and was told to come back today and pay 120€. I did just that, but now I'm told to wait another 4-6 weeks. And at first, they didn't even seem to know where my papers were. In the end, they found it and told me they now have to send it to Vantaa and then back here and then bla bla bla and it will take 4-6 weeks. Urgh.

Anyway, it's back to waiting again. About 1.5-2 months of waiting for answers from both sides. I'd be so crushed if I hear another rejection from either party. These are my last hopes. My applications to previous jobs have returned with negative responses. If these last two options are also not fruitful, I guess I'll be showing my face back in KL.

It has been a while since I last wrote something. Mainly because I was preparing for the exam (300 pages is really a lot to read). Also, I didn't want to shout out loud yet about the job and all, just in case. Cos I'm really good in jinxing things.

Life has a been a real roller-coaster ride so far. One day, I'm happy and everything's sun-shiny, the next day's gloomy and indefinite. And then the cycle repeats.

A lot of things happened in the past month, though. I got fined for speeding (Lol!), I went to a kid's birthday party and got a job from there, went to church one Sunday after finding out about English services, met up with someone new, rekindled a friendship, attended more interviews, had a great time at another Malaysian event again, met up with Paulina and dragged her along to a friend's party.

Last weekend was Vappu (Labour Day) and it's celebrated as a festival in Finland. I've got photos but my uploader's not working for some reason =( Anyway, on the eve of Vappu, the town is filled with loads of people, mostly students (and in a type of overalls with different colours representing their schools), balloons, coloured hair spray, face paint, etc. and the capping of Havis Amanda, the statue. This year, there was a live band, soap in Havis Amanda's fountain, and confetti before and after her capping. Apparently, the best Vappu ever.

I think I've been quite lucky. I had an unusually warm summer, a good winter with loads of snow (which is also not typical), and experienced a good Vappu ceremony compared to the previous years. Maybe it's a sign, that I don't have to stay here longer to experience it all? :P But I hope not.

350: Jane Monheit and other jazzy songs

Read up some old posts of mine, just to see how much I've changed or how far I've achieved. I went back to as far as the time I broke up with the ex. And after that, at one point of my life, I stumbled upon Jane Monheit and was listening to her songs every day, together with a few other jazz songs.

This particular song struck a chord in me. At that time I said, 'Listening to songs like that, makes me wanna take a stroll in the park or lie down on the grass staring into the black sky with that someone I love.'

Now it makes me wanna slow dance.

But it's interesting how I'm remembering the song almost exactly one year later, and my feelings are about the same one year ago.

349: Joy, sorrow, and an eye-opener

Joy, is when you have 287 pages of something you are unfamiliar with, to read. For an exam, of something you are entirely unfamiliar with. Good luck, me.

***

So I found a place where I could potentially work, for at least a short time, or I could carry it on during my studies, *if* I get accepted to study here. We tried out on Sunday, with me working for free. It's a Chinese restaurant near where I live now, in Nummela, and not in Helsinki. That, was my first worry; lodging, transport, distance. But that another story. I went to work anyway, thinking I'll decide after Sunday when I would know better.

It was a nice and good experience. I've never worked in a restaurant as a waitress before. Never in my life. I have always wanted to but I just never had the chance. I was in fast food and then a receptionist but never chanced upon a waitressing job, for some reason. So, this was my waitressing cherry being popped.

People were nice and patient enough to teach me and show me how things are done. The owners, husband and wife, both from China, were quite nice as well. The chefs were from China and Malaysia (small world!), and they were also very nice people. Work was manageable, although my favourite word of the day was 'Anteeksi', which means sorry in Finnish.

I did not manage to take any orders, unfortunately. It was something I was looking forward to as I wanted to use that opportunity to improve on my Finnish. But because orders had to be written in Chinese as the chefs could only read Chinese, I was at a disadvantage as I was not educated in Chinese. I can speak, read a few characters, but I can't write. So, all I could do was service.

On that day, I learned how to balance multiple dishes and glasses on a tray on one hand without tipping them over and walking in a fast pace; I learned how to stack plates of different sizes up on my palm and arm, together with all the forks and knives and gravies in between that made them friggin' slippery; I learned that time is of the essence, so you should carry as much as you could and if possible make only one trip to the kitchen (soiled dishes) and one to the bar (soiled glasses); and I learned that you should never eat the garnishes on the dishes, because they are only there to garnish, and not to be eaten. Really. Seriously.

But on cleanliness, for a Chinese restaurant, I'd say they're pretty clean.

It was nice to be in such familiarity; speaking Chinese and a few different dialects with the Malaysian chef, eating fried noodles, steamed fish and stir fried pak choy (all these I haven't had for a long time), and sharing the same channel since we're from the same culture. But their hiring method was a little, um...let's just say, more towards their benefit, which was my second worry from the beginning. I was not exactly thrilled to know my potential employers could be Chinese. But I continued to give the benefit of doubt.

In short, they want me to commit for at least 2 years, work 6 days a week, 50 hours in total, and the pay is low. Knowing that I would want to study in the near future (the most is one year from now), they already told me from that day I wouldn't be able to do that. So, it basically means, I would be overworked, underpaid, and not able to do anything else at all for my personal growth. I'm not giving away 2 years of my youth doing something I know I won't be happy for. This is not my goal. My goal is to seek self discovery and development, and not work my ass off in a foreign land for the money so I can send home (although, that's part of my hope but it's not my main goal).

So, the search continues. I've got 2 more weeks left before my permit expires. Good news is, I can still stay, but I'll be on visitor status for a maximum of 3 months.

I guess the plan now is to sit for this entrance exam in May, and then hope to get a positive answer by June/July. And then apply for a student's permit, which will still require me to find a job as I would need to prove my financial support, but it'll be easier as there are more jobs that would hire students.

So yea. First, I have to read 287 pages of the reading guide. Good luck, me.

346: Buses and Trains

You know how at some point of your life, certain songs are exactly how you feel, when you hear them? Or when they come straight into your mind and when it's played in your head, the lyrics tell exactly what you're thinking of and how you're feeling.

This is my current song:

Buses and Trains - Bachelor Girl

Hey Mom
Why didn't you tell me
Why didn't you teach me a thing or two
You just let me go
Out into the World
You never thought to share what you knew

So I walked under a bus
I got hit by a train
Keep falling in love
Which is kinda the same
I've sunk out at sea
Crashed my car, gone insane
And it felt so good
I want to do it again

Hey Mom
Why didn't you warn me
Coz about boys is something i should have known
They`re like chocolate cake
Like cigarettes
I know they're bad for me
But I just can't leave 'em alone

So I walked under a bus
I got hit by a train
Keep falling in love
Which is kinda the same
I've sunk out at sea
Crashed my car, gone insane
And it felt so good
I want to do it again

(And I walked)under a bus
I got hit by a train
And it felt so good
I wanna do it again
I wanna do it again
*Hey yeah yeah*
(wanna do it)
Oh, felt so good

Hey Mom
Since we're talking
What was it like when you were young
Has the world changed
Or is it still the same
A man can kill and still be the sweetest love.

So I walked under a bus
I got hit by a train
Keep falling in love
Which is kinda the same
I've sunk out at sea
Crashed my car, gone insane
And it felt so good
I want to do it again

So I walked under a bus
I got hit by a train
Keep falling in love
Which is kinda the same
I've sunk out at sea
Crashed my car, gone insane
And it felt so good
I want to do it again

(And I walked)under a bus
I got hit by a train
And it felt so good
And I wanna do it again

342: STRESS

I'm feeling very frustrated right now. Stressed and frustrated. So stressed that my period came 5 days earlier. That's rare; and how stressed I actually am.

For the past 2 weeks, I've been living every day without knowing what will happen in the near future, without knowing how to plan. At. All. When asked about my plans for the future, I have no answer. Not because I'm not planning. But because I can't plan. I have no friggin' idea at all.

I've been in a similar situation before back in KL. But things were easier back then, looking back now. Opportunities were more plentiful, I had more advantages and I had more connections. But it doesn't mean that I made a mistake by coming here. Things might not be clear right now and this whole coming to Finland thing might turn out to be a catastrophe, or otherwise. Only God knows. Bottom line is, I need this experience.

Some of the days I feel like crying. Some days I actually cried. Some days I couldn't sleep. Most days I have weird dreams; maybe I've been thinking too much. One day I even lost the car key. But thank God for honest and reliable Finns as it was submitted to the local police office. No change of locks needed. No car has been stolen.

I've never felt so rejected in my life before. I know it's not the worst compared to others, but I'm only comparing to my own life now.

I don't believe this is the end of my story. It can't be so abrupt, or can it? It should be more, it should last longer. It shouldn't end here.

329: Life is a rollercoaster ride

I know I haven't been writing anything here for more than a month now. De-motivation might just be an excuse. Definitely not busy, although there were times I was actually busy, but there were also times when I had lots of me-time, which I took to fill with watching movies in my room.

At the moment, I'm writing on 3 different blogs - here, NDH, and Project Wear and Tear organised by NDH. In a typical week, I get about 4 - 5 nights when I don't feel too tired or much like a potato. I try to squeeze in things to do during my me-times. That is, to write in one of the 3 blogs (Proj. W&T is supposedly a must every week but I'm quite a failure at that), read stuff on the internet (sometimes random stuff, other blogs, sometimes news), look for jobs in every portal there is out there, compose different application letters to potential employers (which most of the time take a while), at the same time catch up with friends online and of course, watching some movies. There should be more things I've done and want to do but until I can recall, these are some of them. And which is hard to squeeze everything within the week, where each night is only about 3-4hours long.

Oh, well. It's coming to a year I've been here in Finland. It has been over 9 months now. If I had gotten pregnant, I would've given birth by now. But that's not the point. I want to stay in Finland for a longer time, and in order to do so, I need to get a job so I can apply for a work permit that would allow me to stay. I know I should start job hunting 6 months before my year ends. And I did; starting from December, 6 months after I've been here. Unfortunately, my residence permit ends earlier than my contract with my host family. Well, I arrived later as well. Damn red tape.

Nevermind, it's a long story. Thing was, I had to extend my permit in February (hoping it would grant me until May). And because of my carelessness, it expired earlier than I thought it would. So I was 2 days late in submitting my forms. I had to submit a new application all over again. Thankfully, not paying as much as I had paid back in KL. 80€ lesser. Still, it was a hefty fee. In the end, I got my new permit (on Wednesday), but sadly, it will expire on the 19th of April. 120€ for one month extra time. Not worth it. But at least, it's better than nothing.

Another thing was, I was hoping to get a job before I had to submit for an extension so I would avoid paying 120€ twice. That didn't come. And at that point, I've been hunting for 3 months, attended 6 interviews and sent out probably between 15-20 applications for various jobs. So when I got the new permit (and after living for 2 weeks without knowing what the future holds for me), knowing that I've only got 1 more month to be legally living here, I was crushed. Honestly, I wasn't feeling very positive.

I gave myself a deadline that I should get a job before the summer starts because by then, everyone will be on vacation and no one will be hiring, if not most. I had wanted this new permit to end according to my contract, which is at the end of May, so I would have time right before summer starts. It'll be my safety net. But now, I'm kinda left hanging. What will happen after the 19th of April if I don't get a job? Should I be exiting Schengen countries and re-enter so I can have 3 more months? I can do that, but I can't be an au pair for the family anymore because you're not supposed to work as a visitor. And if I do, I'd be cut off from having an income. I can't afford that. Moreover, there could be a chance that it would be a more complicated process if I should apply for a work permit while on a visitor's status. Argh, damn red tape.

Anyway, so yea, that's what I've been doing all these while, if anyone has been wondering. Some days I'm stressed, some days I'm not. Some days I feel so stressed that I get bad skin and breakouts as though my period's gonna come 2 weeks earlier. Other days when I'm not, I can afford to sleep early, have a good rest and wake up at 7am the next morning. My mom texted me recently to tell me one of my cousins passed away due to brain haemorrhage. Apparently, it was because of stress and pressure and she told me to look after myself and to pray more for His guidance and care. I took it lightly as I didn't think I would be that stressed. The next day, I got my new permit, I haven't found a job, I have no idea what's going to happen next, and I felt the pressure and stress building. I take my words and thoughts back. Life is fragile. My cousin was only 37 years old.

On the lighter side, Helmi's a very cute girl. She and Eliel just turned 9 three weeks ago. Recently, she's always asking me, 'Julie! Are you happyyy?' Sometimes I say yes, sometimes I say no, sometimes I say maybe, sometimes I give a rant. And her next question would be, 'Whyyy?' Yesterday, she asked me, 'Julie! Are you going to stay in Finland?' I said to her, 'Well, I can't stay in Finland if I don't get a job.' And she went, 'I'm gonna get you a joooobb!' (in a comical deep voice). I laughed and said, 'How are you going to get me a job?' And guess what she did? She showed me her puppy eyes! Omg that made me laugh so hard. Later that night, we had the same conversation again and at one point she said, 'Why no one give you a job? Because they dunno you're so gooood?' Hahaha...yes, baby, they don't :P

The Hunt for Roti Canai

*A good local friend of mine, Tom, detoured to KL one sunny weekend from his Thai holiday. This is him guest blogging about his adventures. -Jules

On an emotionally tumultuous day eleven years ago a skinny, bespectacled boy took off his school uniform for the last time. To this day the grey tie lies forgotten in a dusty corner, the shirts and trousers packed away never to see the light of day. It was the day I left Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar and Malaysia in 2000.

For those of you who haven’t heard of it, KTJ is a respected boarding school in the middle of a jungle. It is surrounded by a fence, patrolled by guards. One of the strongest memories from my time there was this dark grey haze clouding the school for a week after a local pig farmer was forced to incinerate all his stock. Swine flu was rampant in the area during the time and drastic measures had to be taken to contain it. The cloud and the school as well as every tutor, teacher and pupil in it smelled like bacon for a week.

Apart from the cockroach-infested boarding houses, drills, detentions, rules prohibiting public displays of affection, and lasting friendships formed under the Proctor’s punishing gaze, KTJ had something else to offer. Namely food. Nothing quite compares to learning about the cuisine of a country than the meals served at schools. At KTJ they were good, away from the school, even better. Let it be settled once and for all then: Malaysian food is the best in the world. The best of the best – the uncrowned emperor of all the dishes in the world – being roti canai. This particular dish was also the reason for my return.

Okay, fine. Not even the most hardcore foodie would travel to the other side of the world for just one dish (unless it was this). Served with chicken, fish or lamb curry, roti canai is more buttery than a gang of greasers. It’s also the dish I’ve been dreaming about for the last eleven years. So, off to Kuala Lumpur I flew.

Good thing I knew a few people from there.

Friday. As I arrived at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal near Kuala Lumpur International Airport I was already starving. Not stopping to waste my taste buds at the airport cafeterias, I hopped into a taxi giving the directions to KTJ. Arriving at the school gates was an eye-opener. Were the gates really so low? Where was the barb-wire from the fences? Why were the guards so amicable? Waiting at the foyer near the teachers’ common room was my old Drama teacher. Him leading the way, I was taken to be the assistant teacher during a drama class where the kids were only beginning to learn English. Nothing had prepared me to be reminded of how much I enjoy acting. Not to mention being part of that class and helping the kids out. I enjoyed it so much I forgot how hungry I was. To rectify this horrendous oversight, I made my way to the Tuck Shop, the small kiosk selling snacks. Here it was that I had my first authentic Malaysian meal after eleven years: chicken rice with sambal (a chilli based sauce) and a can of coke. Though not a religious man by any definition, it was still an epiphany.

The very same evening I had another revelation. An old friend from the KTJ days took me out that night. After much back clapping, hugs and whoops of glee, I was taken to the Sultan Lounge at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Just as a 5-star hotel should, the lounge was impeccable and packed with beautiful things as far as the eye could see. Bottles of Möet & Chandon resting on their icy beds, a Cohiba Esplendidos enhancing the chilled out smoky atmosphere, it was hard not to like the place.

One of the first things on the drink menu for that night was an introduction to a local drink. Whisky with green tea and soda. I lost count of the times we had the following conversation:

Friend: “You don’t have to drink it, if you don’t like it.”

Me: “Don’t worry about it, I like whisky and this sounds too interesting not to try.”

Friend: “Yeah, but really, if you don’t like it…”

This went on for a while until the bottle of Johnnie Walker Green Label (really, what else was it going to be?) and the necessary complements arrived.

Sip.

Me: “Dude. This is the only thing I’ll be drinking from now on.”

And during my time in KL, it was, as evidenced by the following night.

Great night, but no canai.

Saturday. Beef rendang for breakfast. Heaven. Fast forward to the evening and a Chinese place on Jalan Alor near the Changkat area. The smell of durians wafted on the streets as we passed them on our way from Bukit Bintang. Although wafted may not be as accurate of a description as it being more like being hit in the face with a two-by-four. If you’ve ever smelled durian, you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, then there’s one more thing to add to your bucket list.

Having free rein, my friend ordered all the good stuff. Stingray with some sambal and fresh lime, a Chinese omelette with oysters, and some mussels spiced with garlic. I was in heaven for the second time that day.

Julia, the wonderful hostess of this post had kindly provided me with Tim the Tomcat’s number, and Saturday night was my great pleasure to be taken out to Zouk.

Tim: “The only thing I wanna know is where you wanna go, and what you’re drinking.”

Me: “It’s your home, so anywhere. And whisky and green tea.”

Tim: “Done.”

Great guy. Entering Phuture, the R&B club at Zouk, I fell in love with KL just a little bit more.

Another great night, but still no canai.

Sunday. Always a chilled out day. At Nirwana’s in Bangsar, having breakfast off a banana leaf, it truly was. Some rice, chicken curry sauce, fried chicken and bitter gourd washed down with iced red tea. Cured the remnants of a hangover without any problems. Then it was time for me to mosey on over to the bus station and head off to the airport. With a belly full of all the good stuff, it was not hard to appreciate the trip.

And the canai? Never had it. Tried to hunt down a place on Sunday, but for some reason all the restaurants only served it in the morning and later at night.

I finally did find a Malaysian restaurant in Helsinki. Their canai was delicious. But not the same.

Looks like I need to go back.

274 - Everything in between

So, Valentine's Day is approaching soon and apparently back at home, a certain group of people are campaigning against the celebration. First, it has never been a problem. This is the day where restaurants will be filled with reservations for two, flowers would be sold at ridiculously high prices, young couples will flock the cinema catching a movie together...everywhere will be packed.

Two, I can understand that the ustazah is concerned about young Muslims behaving un-Muslim like. Because church elders and pastors would also probably preach and advise against conforming to and adopting paganistic behaviours and celebrations, which is un-Christian. But to seriously say that on national TV, and to specifically say that how couples behave on Valentine's Day (you really have to hear the things she said) are the traditions of Christians, is beyond incomprehensible stupidity. Outrageously unbelievable.

Since when is Valentine's Day a celebration of the Christians?

As much as I wish (and I really, sincerely do) that everyone in my country can live harmoniously side by side, but when something like this happens, it's impossible not to feel attacked and insulted. I feel that this is friggin' disrespectful. Disrespectful because she got her facts wrong and tried to preach it to other people. Thus, the insult.

Like on another article I read, in a pre-school textbook (pre-schoolers have textbooks now???), 'mahjong' is explained as a Chinese traditional game. Oh. My. Gosh. Get your facts right, people! Seriously! Next, we'll be attacked on our gambling habits because our forefathers have been traditionally playing mahjong and therefore, no one should have any relationship with the Chinese.

I love my country. I really do. I wouldn't give up my citizenship. This is my home. And to see all these happening, is just disheartening.

***

Heavy stuff aside, I've been having a lot of fun lately. From cooking for my friends to having a Chinese New Year gathering celebration with the same people, and an additional few. Fun aside, I've also been going for interviews, following up on them, and writing to more potential employers. So far, I've gotten a few maybes, some nos, and not a yes. My permit ends this month, which means I'll have to look harder to avoid spending a large sum of money for a new permit, twice. Bottom line is, I need a job before the month ends. Of course, I've got Plan B and C but best lah if my Plan A works.

Helsinki's black Superman

He accepts cash only, thank you.

Dinner at Marette's

Made rendang.

This was what happened. I asked Tom to get rendang and fish curry paste during his weekend trip to KL. He got me the stuff all right, but they were imported from Thailand and Singapore respectively. Thus, a slightly different kind of rendang. And he got me fish curry powder cos the rest was just 'water'. *face palm* Never trust a white guy.

Nasi lemak. Burnt the rice a little and put too much salt. Hehe :P But still edible. The rendang overpowered it anyway.

Tuomas & Marette

Marette made Sunday roast; just the roast.

And then I had a headache and someone was a good friend =)

Satisfaction. I did feel better afterward.

Marette asked for the same service, which she didn't seem satisfied about.

Well, Tom was fooling with her.

But finally... =)

And Marette fed me her homemade pie, which led to Tom and I arguing about chili sauces.

Went to a bar in Kallio, had a couple of drinks, played cho tai di with Angie, Matias and Sasku, and I don't know who these guys are. Some of Marette's friends she made me take pictures with.

Marette

Us girls

Made nasi lemak rendang for the family during the week. The adults loved it, the kids freaked out at the fried anchovies cos 'they had heads'.

Grandma Riita had her nameday. So it was time for coffee and cake.

Cake, meat pies, and Grandma's awesome blueberry pie.

CNY dinner at Angie's!

Angie's version of yee sang.

Fried wantons and Joy's yummy seaweed salad.

Nasi lemak again. This time, there was sambal belacan.

Half of the people. Brought my classmate, Paulina, along.

Lou sang! But bad shot :P

The aftermath. Funny stuff we said while lou-ing too, like 'Hope Polish football team will win the next World Cup'. - Paulina. She's from Poland =)

Played Alias. It's like Taboo, but with more rules.

And it was very fun too.

Some LOL moments:

Matias: Two words, with a line in between.
Me: *thinks* is it horizontal or vertical? What line???
Me: Do you mean a hyphen?
Matias: Yes!

Matias: Another word for cups.
Me: Glasses!
Angie: Police!
Matias: Correct!
Me: Cops or cups?

Paulina: *points to Marette* She is...?
Sasku: Dumb?

Matias: *to Angie* We have...?
Angie: Sunlight lamp?
Matias: Love! !!!

Made rojak and served as dessert. But not everyone liked it bwahahaha :P

And as usual, we went out to a bar after that. Went to Gaselli (the really Finnish bar) and the karaoke bar again. This time, it was for Paulina. She hates the place now :P And Marette kept feeding me with Sex On The Beach after learning I could drink Passoã and like it. Crashed at Marette's and apparently experienced my first hangover the next day. I literally felt like a potato.

CNY potluck open house tomorrow in the ambassador's house. Food and friends! Not cooking this time. I'm only bringing oranges. Easy peasy. Will see Marette, Sasku and Paulina again. Hopefully no more hangovers.