Sette colori dell'arcobaleno, sette colori per dipingere il cielo

The title of the post is part of a lyric from the song Improvvisando by Neri Per Caso. It means 7 colours of the rainbow, 7 colours to paint the sky. Why I put it as a title? Well because I saw a rainbow on my way home today. I let an audible "wow" which perhaps stunned the people who were walking near me. They might be thinking that I'm some kind of a lunatic but maybe it's just all in my mind. Either way, I do feel excited when I see a rainbow because I feel it's such a blessing. Somehow I feel I've seen more rainbows here in Singapore than back home in Jakarta.

On other news, Ayu just tagged a picture with my name in Facebook. It's actually a picture of the Mr. Men and Little Miss characters and for "The good little church girl", she tagged me! Oh my Lord, haha :D Coincidentally, yesterday I had dinner with NanSee, la Gioia, Lois, Starfish, and Gascoigne and in one of the conversation, they jokingly said they would put a reminder in msn and such to tell me to go to church :D I guess this group of people don't think that I'm the goody good one :P

So yesterday, as I said I had dinner with those group of people. I have to say that I loathe having to organize these people. I guess someone has to do it and somehow it's me because I am in the middle of these people. It would be great though if someone else can do the organizing and I just go for the ride. I hope that everyone had a good time though. We had some laughs and we did go quite loud at times. I guess with some very opinionated people, we will get some fun mocking at each other's arguments. I wasn't able to eat much though yesterday. I feel rather sorry and disappointed with myself actually for not being able to eat more. I don't know what's wrong with me. Sigh.

On other note, I just need to say what I hide. Sigh. If only I still have teachers to correct my composition :(

Dico una bugia se dico che non ho un sentimento per lui più. La verità è io penso ancora a lui spesso. Mi manca tantissimo. Mi mancano tutti i tempi che passavamo insieme. Mi manca parlare con lui. Mi mancano le volte quando mi ha detto "ciao". Ma questa settimana mi rendo conto che è finito tra noi. Mi sembra che sono invisibile per lui. Mi sento che non siamo neanche amici. Sono molto triste e nonostante io sappia che devo dimenticarlo, penso a lui ancora. C'è un buco senza lui e mi sento che il buco diventa grande ora. Ora che mi rendo conto che lui non pensa a me perfino per un po'. Vorrei sorridere di nuovo. É triste perchè dopo tutto questo tempo, è ancora lui nel mio cuore. Io so che lui non è per me ma ogni giorno penso a lui e chissà se sta bene e se è felice.

Per favore Dio, devo dimenticarlo, per favore ...

:) eKa @ 8:26:00 PM • 0 comments

He's Just Not That Into You

I thought this week I'm not gonna watch anymore movie but in the end I did since I didn't know what to do with today. I went to watch He's Just Not That Into You. I was interested in this movie mainly because of the many famous actors and actresses in it and I'm also in the mood of something light and perhaps slightly lovey dovey.

He's Just Not That Into You is a story about relationship, about figuring if someone is into you or not. This is perhaps the more realistic version of Love Actually. Both movies are about love, both movies are about characters who are intertwined with one another in some way or another. I do like this kinda intertwining movie. As I said earlier, He's Just Not That Into You is perhaps more realistic, it's not so warm and fuzzy like Love Actually and at times it may come down slightly harsh with all the reality check that one of characters, Alex (played by Justin Long), gave. His character really knocked down any romanticism that many girls have about a guy. I feel that he was quite insightful and he's actually my favorite character there. I adore him more than the other guys who were pretty good looking as well. I also love Alex and Gigi's love story the most. Least favorable was the rectangle between Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Connelly, Kevin Connolly, and Scarlett Johansson. That was just one unhappy mess, even though I found Bradley Cooper to be quite handsome.

Overall I thought it was quite a nice movie. It was kinda good to see Drew Barrymore there, though her role was rather small. She's just so likable. As for Jennifer Aniston and Ben Affleck, oh well ... I thought they were so-so, perhaps more on the boring predictable side. One line from the movie that Alex said kinda resonated with me. He said, "If a guy treats you like he doesn't give a shit, it's because he doesn't give a shit". It's something that I really have to bear in mind. Cheers!

:) eKa @ 7:09:00 PM • 0 comments

"But Maybe It's Written, No?"

Today I had the chance to visit the temple in Chinatown which I visited last time when Dewi was in town. This was only my second visit to this temple. I kneeled and bowed my head in gratitude because that was the only thing I felt that time, gratitude. There was a feeling of peace and relieved too, especially since there were chanting inside the temple, it was really comforting.

Today I did something that I hadn't done for a long long time. I was nervous and scared about it very much but there were people who supported me, especially my mom and my dear cousin, Marlisa. Somehow their support conveyed in Indonesian really lifted my spirit. I don't really know if this is what I want, as a matter of fact I'm not feeling it much but perhaps that's just fear talking. I guess I should just repeat, If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it. So if with all my prayers, this is what God gives me then it is really for me. So we will wait and see, we will wait and see.

The title of the post comes from a line from the movie Slumdog Millionaire which I watched today, which I must say I love it a lot. I truly like it so much more than The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I thought the cast were great, especially the 3 actors who were chosen the play our hero, Jamal Malik. They were just so lovable! They really made you fall in love with the main character and really made you hope the best for him. I thought the movie was smart, touching, and entertaining all at the same time. I have to say though, the love story was so not like what I imagined it to be and I found it to be such a let down slightly, simply because I would have loved a better course of life for our characters. They just seemed to have too much bad luck. But I suppose if it's all too easy and all too happy, it wouldn't be such a nice movie.

I actually knew 2 answers from the questions asked, the Benjamin Franklin and Aramis questions. So I kinda knew that the ending would be a happy one since I knew the answer to the last question. Such a coincidence for me, I wouldn't have known the answer if the question was like, who are the other musketeers other than Aramis. It's totally a good film and I totally recommend you to watch it. Really look out for the main character, Jamal, because he is really really a handsome lovable boy. The ending with all the dancing was kinda silly but I suppose it wouldn't be an Indian movie without it. The dancing was necessary to give it an authentic feel :P and so with that I got reminded to the National Geographic store in Vivocity. Today was my first time checking it out and I have to say it is so cool! Unfortunately I didn't have much time so I couldn't explore the big store in detail but really it's very cool with all the photos. I love the gallery feel into it. Do check it out if you haven't :)

:) eKa @ 9:41:00 PM • 0 comments

Spending Saturday Stupidly

Let me share with you how I spent my Saturday morning stupidly today. I had to renew my permanent residency status here in Singapore. Checked the website and I actually saw that it can be done online. But I got confused because it was written there that after the whole process I only had to print a piece of paper and the validity of the new PR status is only for 5 years. Currently I have a green card and was told by Oshie that when he renewed his PR status, he got 10 years easily. So since I wasn't sure about all this, I decided to go to Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA).

For whoever have dealt with applying for PR in Singapore or been to ICA, know that there's always a long long queue in ICA, so you gotta be there early because people are actually already forming long queue even before the building opens at 8 am. So I had to get up early today and I made it there by 9, where there was already a long queue. Got my queue number and form and after waiting for 2 hours, I finally got to the counter only to be told that since I didn't bring all the necessary accompanying documents, the lady cannot process my application and she said just do it online! I am a bloody idiot, don't you think? I want to kill myself more because of my stubborn brain who refused to read all the requirement correctly. I read the accompanying documents part but I just ignored those and I could actually be saved if I had asked the customer service about the things needed when I was queuing for the queue number and yet I didn't do that. So I wasted 2 hours of my life. Just now I did the online process and less than 10 minutes, I got approved! I don't even have to wait at all. I'm a moron!

Nevertheless, I am still very confused with this new system. The lady at the counter said they have changed the system, they're not giving green cards anymore. My biggest concern right now is when I am traveling out of Indonesia. All this time, I don't have to pay fiscal tax because of the green card as my proof of residency. But now without it, I wonder if the process will be as smooth or I have to declare some sort of certificate of residence as I was advised by a friend some time ago, which require me to fill in some form and passing to Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Currently without the proper document, Indonesians who are traveling out of Indonesia may have 2.5 million rupiah if they are going out of Indonesia, that's about S$300 plus, so I am getting really nervous about this. I guess I have to ask around if anyone with this new system have gone through Indonesian immigration *sigh*

Okay, enough about me complaining and ranting about my stupidity. I do get stressed out easily, huh? After the 2 hours of my life were wasted, I went to meet up with La Gioia for the The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I was already planning to watch it today, alone but then she sent me an sms during the 2-hour wait so since she could make it today, in the end we watched the movie together.

I was rather sleepy and disappointed with the morning mishap and Benjamin Button was really long that I thought the movie was rather so-so. I do have to say that Brad Pitt is still so gorgeous. How they made him look so young like a 20-year old is so much more interesting than how they made him look old. He looked so young and handsome that it was rather unbelievable and of course enviable. Story wise, I thought it wasn't bad but somehow I don't find it extremely amazing. There were little parts of the story which I found to be pretty nice but overall I did find it to be quite long and slow moving. Of all the parts, I love the ending the most when Brad's character grew younger and younger, the dynamic of his character and Cate Blanchett's character was very moving for me. There's something affectionately comforting about it. Imagine what it's like looking at a boy who can't remember that he's old and you had much history and love together. It really is touching for me.

:) eKa @ 11:21:00 PM • 0 comments

Back From Home - Chinese New Year Trip 2009

I am back again in Singapore. If you do not know, all this while I was away. I was at home for the Chinese New Year holiday. Left on January 22nd and came back Monday morning at 1 am. It's the earliest I've been upon reaching Singapore. Anyway, here are some stories and photos about my trip home.

For the first time, I took Qatar airline to go home. It's actually the cheapest (non budget airline) ticket available. I was quite surprised to find out that I was departing from Changi Terminal 3 because I haven't experienced this terminal before. It was really nice but I found myself not familiar with where the shops are :P It made me kinda miss the other two terminals but overall it was quite a nice experience.

There were many maids on the plane. They were going back to Indonesia from their work in the Middle East. Such a long journey for them, even longer because when they reached Jakarta they had to continue their journey on buses or trains to wherever they came from. I seriously think these foreign workers ladies are awesome. I got nervous when I was going to Singapore for the first time and these women with all courage decided to go to a foreign place where they don't really speak the language, they don't even speak English much, and they have most probably never left their village. So the courage and strength that they have is amazing for me.

Sitting next to me was this Indonesian engineer who's going back to Indonesia after a stint in an oil company in Saudi Arabia (I think). He didn't have a good experience there so he decided to go back for good. Apparently there were quite a number of Indonesian engineers there. I found it to be very interesting. He said the pay was really really good, so much better than his previous pay when he was working for a foreign company in Indonesia. I guess it's just wasn't his luck that he didn't have a good time there.

My dad and cousins picked me up from the airport and the traffic jam was rather unbearable. My cousin said when they were leaving their house to pick me up the sky was still bright but when we reached our homes, it was dark!

The next day, I went to the mall alone and had a hair cut. Eka is now in a short hair, peeps. Some people here had said it's nice though my mom had difficulty getting it. Anyways ... during my stay at home, I didn't really go anywhere outside Jakarta. In fact, I stayed home most of time. I guess it's because I was lazy to go out, I wanted to spend more time at home (since I don't experience what home is here) and I also wanted to spend as much time as I can with mom. I miss mommy so.

At home, I did House season 3 marathon. Love that so much that I feel like doing a marathon from the first season, since I haven't watched all the episodes. I really love Dr. Chase, simply because he's so handsome. I really like House too. Man if only I'm a brilliant smart person like him, then I can get by with all the sarcasms. I totally like how he can just say nasty things. How I really wish I can do the same. I also try to be in front of the telly at 5 pm for 2 episodes of Spongebob Squarepants Monday to Friday, though my mom was shaking her head. I hate it that they were dubbed in Indonesian but I began to accept it and run the English lines in my head. Spongebob in Indonesian can be extra funny because of the stupid translation that they used. Indonesian TVs still pretty much show a lot of junk but I do watch them, including the "sinetron" with mom. At the very least, I got to know more Indonesian musicians and there are really many talented acts in Indonesia. So cool!

Did go out with the girls, Marlisa, Dewi, and Emilia and oh I should add the boy also, Idrus. He has somewhat joined the monthly meet-up that the girls have. The girls and him always try to meet up at least once a month. I know it's my cousin, Marlisa, who's really "on" about it. I guess it's really good to do so. This time around I got to meet other friends too, my primary and junior high school friends, Shervin, Dian and Inneke. It's so nice to meet them and we really had a good time talking. Darn, we were loud and with so many things to catch up, there were much laughter, teasing and all in a volume which perhaps can be quite annoying and frightening to the people in the same restaurant as us. It's really something meeting these people and talking about those days when we were 10 - 12 years younger. Gosh! Oh yeah, I also got the chance to meet Dewi's boyfriend, Sofyan. Man! Those two were so chummy together that I was feeling quite uneasy! Apparently Eka showed her bitchy side to Sofyan. Not a good first impression, I guess. But oh well ... I do get cranky a lot and often.

Oh yeah, I got to watch Bride Wars with my cousin, Marlisa. I thought the movie was nice and I love it. There are many Indonesian movies right now. I actually wanted to watch Asmara 2 Diana because I wanted to see Jamie Aditya who was acting in it but I didn't get the chance to do it :( All and all, I only managed to watch that one movie there. Hmm, the next parts will be with pictures.

Let's start with a picture of the table where my family prepared offering for our grandparents / ancestors. I have to say the praying is perhaps the highlight in our family Chinese New Year tradition. Here you see a table for my father's side. There's another table for my mother's side which contained similar things and there's also another altar with similar things at the kitchen for the God which was supposed to be my brother's God protector. Something like that.


After the praying was done, we did the burning of the hell notes and the paper clothes. I actually really like this burning part a lot. But these few years, mom decided to pack the paper clothes in bundles so this burning session lasted so much shorter :( Behind you can see a pot which we used to burn the things for the Kitchen God. So that's pretty much our Chinese New Year custom. In Indonesia there's only 1 day holiday for Chinese New Year and as usual we were visited by relatives and we went to my mother's older brother house. Pretty much the same old stuff.


So what else do I do on my days at home? I took pictures. This is a close up of the gladiolus that mom bought. The flash made the colour to be orange-y :( the colour was actually more softer and a bit pinkish.


One of the evening I was there, there was actually no electricity! Me and my mom was watching tv and just like that it turned pitch black. I was really really amused and was actually laughing because I haven't experienced this for a long long time. Things like this are really common in Indonesia. It's annoying but for someone like me who hasn't experienced it for a long time, I actually enjoyed it, getting candles and all. It was really pitched black and so there's nothing that we could do but to go to bed early.


It rained a lot in Jakarta. In fact mom was sending me an sms some minutes ago telling me that it rained right now. The rain at times were quite heavy with strong wind and at times was a little shower that lasted for some minutes, then stopped, then rained again. Singapore on the contrary is so freaking hot! When I was out and about on Monday afternoon, the heat was totally killing me. It's rather funny that when I was flying back here, it was raining in Jakarta with a wet runway and yet when I arrived in Singapore, it was so dry. Anyways, so here you are a peek of the wet Jakarta.



Today I was listening this song, When Will I See Your Face Again from Jamie Scott & The Town and a part of the lyric reminded me of these flowers.
I'm a flower, soaking in the rain ...



The last 2 pictures are from a small aquarium in Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta airport. I arrived early because the flight was very late and I don't want my mom and my cousins to go home late if they drove me later. So I had much time to kill. One was spent taking of pictures from the aquarium.


Then after I took much pictures, I decided to just sit down and listen to my iPod. I have to say that I did get quite moody because I dreaded coming back to Singapore. Then this old man asked if he could sit next to me. I said yes. He offered me boiled eggs. Those of you who know me know that I love eggs but I had to say no because I was full. We talked and all the while he finished 3 boiled eggs. He's a Kuwaiti and he was going back home after a holiday in Indonesia. He must be quite rich because he bought a villa in Puncak! Puncak literally means "peak" which is the nearest mountainous area in Jakarta (I think). Anyway it's one of those places where the Jakartans go for a short time away from the city. He said he loved it so much there though he did say that he didn't see much sun when he was there since it was raining all the time. He said Puncak still has cool weather. His flight was at midnight and he was already in the airport at 8 pm because he was afraid of the traffic jam between Puncak and Jakarta (which is quite common) but there was no jam so he arrived so much earlier.

We talked about stuff like how he found out about Indonesia and Puncak nonetheless. It's hardly a place that people will know about Indonesia. He said for a Muslim like him, Indonesia being a country with a lot of Muslims is perfect for him. He doesn't like Bali because it's culturally and religiously different for him. Being the straightforward me, I asked if Kuwait is a safe country. He said it used to be before Iraq invaded them. He asked me if I know about it. I said no. I'm so sorry about it actually, but he did say it happened in around 1991 when I was only 9 years old and perhaps more interested in barbie dolls then world politics. Anyway he said Kuwait is not so safe now. Upon knowing the Iraq invasion I actually wanted to ask if the Kuwaiti are happy that Bush invaded Iraq and I want to know his opinion as a Muslim from the Middle East about Israel's attack to Palestine (an issue which the Indonesians feel so strongly against!). Unfortunately I didn't the time. I had to go. Before I left, he gave me a chewing gum which I almost threw away because I felt accepting food from a total stranger can be dangerous but in the end I decided to put it in my mouth anyway and I am still here. Thinking about it, I feel it's one of those stranger that sometime God send my way so that I don't get too lonely. I kinda regret that I didn't talk to him more.

:) eKa @ 8:58:00 PM • 0 comments

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