Reunion With MCOB Kamil

the mckk fraternity in dubai is converging yet again. where? if you need to ask, then you haven’t been following dubai mckk stories up close and personal enough! haha. tawasol lah beb. mandi rice!

this time to reunite with kamil, mr. khairul’s mckk batchmate who had left dubai for good some months ago, but comes back for a visit occasionally.

incidentally, another mcoba, abang faisal shon celebrated a happy birthday last two days; and also on the occasion of him and wife kak muna embarking on the journey that’s coveted by all muslims – the pilgrimage to kota mekah. they are scheduled to leave at the end of october, insyaAllah.

 

mr. khairul & mckk batchmate kamil

 

makan-makan borak-borak

 

tales of maids, child upbringing, recipes and arabic classes. of unpronounceable unspellable names of kids these days and of stories gathered from those who had performed hajj. sometimes i just let the kakak-kakak sembang berdua while i sat close by absorbing all the wisdom. still a lot to learn as a mother, a wife and as a person!

one word : xanariah? man!

 

kak rozina & kak muna

 

kamil in his natural state or entertaining a party!

 

* * *

 

kamil v96, faisal shon v84, zaim v82, shamsul v86 & kay v96

 

us in front of my favorite restaurant in dubai : tawasol!

 

it’s not too much to say that THIS is our family in dubai. and i’m thankful to have them coloring our lonely lives here in dubai far from our own family.

also, one thing i always notice, abg faisal shon and abg zaim would wear an mckk t or shirt whenever possible. this time, even mr. khairul wore his white shirt embroidered with a tiny emblem of the quad-colors. talk about semangat, man! speret kolet habis!

oh well, friends who are like family. restaurant yang macam rumah sendiri. time on our side. lots of stories to share. lots of good food to go around. perfect ingredients for a get-together!

* * *

till we meet again kamil on your next visit back to dubai. happy birthday to abang faisal shon – wishing you are blessed with many more glorious years ahead. safe journey this october to you and kak muna, may Allah grant you all the blessing and rahmat.

amin!

Dubai : Boy Fell 8 Floors; Traumatized Mom Jumped Too

mom was waiting for schoolbus with 14 year old daughter. saw her 5 year old boy dangling at the window of their 8th floor apartment. went up to try and save him. he had already fallen. she came down. saw that he was dying, sister was holding his hand. her clothes soaked with blood. she went straight back up. and jumped too. she fell on her son. died instantly. her son died soon after. husband who was away on business rushed back.

i read the tragic account on gulfnews many times. i live in a high-rise building, and i have young children. it shudders me still when i write this, tears forming in my eyes. may Allah have mercy on their souls, and grant courage and strength to the father and daughter to go on; especially the daughter who had witnessed the whole tragedy.

this happened in a building at jumeirah lake towers, an area of high-rise buildings right by our place in dubai marina.

* * *

it was probably just like any other morning for the mother and her daughter. wait for the school bus with her daughter, and leave her son (who was probably sleeping) at home. little did she know it was going to be a tragic day for the iranian family.

only Allah knows what went through her mind when she made the decision to jump.

the boy fell 8 floors down, before mom went up and jump too

a few primary issues arise : the safety of the windows of high-rise apartments in dubai, and the negligence of leaving children unattended at home, even for awhile.

a lot of people are questioning dubai government on the safety standards of these high-rise buildings. even if they want to blame the mother for leaving her son unattended in the house, this incident could've easily happened even when she's busy in the kitchen, or in the bathroom. the question remains : how safe are the windows? how can the window be easily opened by a 5-year old?

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS :

• build a net around the building to catch any falling object
• build window that DOES NOT open wide, but just enough to put a head in
• locking system of windows and doors should be top-notch
• make the windows heavy, or tight - that no children would have the strength to open
• build small balconies under a window, like a flower box
• have grills on windows and balcony
• build iron bars below the windown for support, or stronger railings on balcony/window
• install door alarms on balcony door, so you'll know when it's opened or not locked
• building management should review building-safety and and identify any possible hazards, then put warning signs

i am a mother of 3 boys, so i know that it is difficult to keep an eye on our children ALL THE TIME. from long ago we as a family made it a point to close the bathroom doors and kitchen door everytime leaving these rooms. these two places are open to so many possibilities of dangers for my baby kazim. kahfi my 3 year old also has accustomed to this rule and alhamdulillah follows it.

from the moment they play near windows, deter them harshly from the beginning; so that a window or its surrounding will NOT be an area where they will play. living in the harsh weather of dubai, i keep the windows closed all the time, really.

safety awareness campaign with parents, and educate children on safety - we must be proactive as parents!

* * *

in light of this tragedy, i am thankful to be living on a lower floor, despite the less-attractive view.

my husband had wanted a higher floor. i agree it was a charming idea. great view from the window; we could see the marina, the boats docking, and of course the majestic view of the open gulf sea. beautiful. however, there wasn't any available floor that high, and we had to settle for the 3rd floor.

looking back, i'm quite relieved.

the design of our building is in such a way that the 2nd and 3rd floors have balcony, but there's no door - that means it cannot be accessed via door. and it's a very narrow balcony SURROUNDING our whole unit (dulu macam tensen jugak - ape ni, ade balcony tapi takde pintu nak ke balcony tu. tapi pikir-pikir balik kalau ape-ape hal - nauzubillah - selamat) BUT the higher floors have balcony ONLY around a few perimeters (macam balcony biase kat hotel-hotel), while the rest of the unit only have windows like this :

lebih kurang macam ni la window aku, tapi aku ade balcony sempit tu around my windows. kalau tingkat yang tinggi-tinggi, takde balcony kat window macam gamba bawah ni

absolutely no grill, no small balcony under window, no metal railing to hold on to

even so, with all the precautionary measures we may take to ensure safety of our children, there are risks of fire, theft, car accidents, kidnapping...the list is endless. we are only human, so from Allah we seek protection and care. may Allah protect our families from harm. amin.

to read the news in full, click here.

Merisik Si Puteri Bongsu

unbelievable. my youngest sister is taken. booked. reserved. my comot youngest sister is officially off limits!

in a simple malay ceremony called 'merisik', the family from the future-groom's side visits the future-bride's parents to 'seek permission' to 'book' the girl from the family; normally by presenting her with a ring. this event usually includes both family getting to know each other, and a preliminary discussion on hantaran (dowry), date of nikah (solemnization) and other important details.

the merisik is the first step towards a wedding ceremony according to the malay culture. what follows are usually the bertunang (engagement), nikah (solemnization) and the reception.

future mother-in-law sliding the merisik ring

insyaAllah, by end of next year, my youngest sister will wed her long-time buddy faiz.

their story is worthy of a chic-lit or teen malay movie. they've known each other for the longest time, during which both had fallen in and out of love with other people. and all through their friendship they had been there for each other and became best of friends. little did they know that they were finally meant for each other.

sob sob. aku pulak yang sebak tulih ni haha.

family discussion : abah in green batik, faiz's dad in blue batik

* * *

my sisters, nephews & nieces

the event was a simple one, with just close family members; my abah's siblings and my mak's siblings. i wish i were there to help out (..with the noise!) so i would like to thank my mak's younger sisters auntyna and cik for being there to support and offer help to abah and umi. not to mention all my other uncles and aunties for memeriahkan suasana.

cik, my sis azot & auntyna

* * *


i like this picture ~ future besan (in-laws) having a light moment over yummy food to mark the memorable occasion

what did they have? delicious laksa! mengada request from the future bride, huh! and the many kuih-muih (desserts) for the guests. simple dishes for a simple event - yet this day marks the beginning of preparation for the big day!

i'll try to do my part here, being in dubai - (girls, i need theme color, pronto!) haha!

* * *

so where's the picture of my future baby-bro-in-law? shh. kasi mysterious sket. (tak pun korang just visit azot's blog and korek-korek sendiri lah. haha) he was the impromptu photographer for the awesome shots of me and my siblings during my last visit back to malaysia. check out the photos here.

* * *

actually, this october will come with another eventful day. *wink wink* what? two daughters taken in the same year? abah is on a roll!

Do You Tip Your Waiter?

giving tips for services was a prevalent culture in dubai. now the tipping culture is in question : to tip, or not to tip; and how much? should it be expected, or appreciated? how do YOU decide your tip?




people don't normally leave tips back home in malaysia (but there is 10% 'service charge' included in the bill which is sangat banyak, especially when the 'service' is not that good, and slow!), while in the states, people are usually expected to tip the waiting staff 10-15% off the total bill right?

but here, 2 dirham is the minimum amount of tip - some are more generous, while some might even choose to ignore this tipping culture altogether. some waiting staff or delivery persons expect tips; while there are still rare ones who refused huge tips.



people whom i encounter that involved tipping :

1. waiters/waitress


2. delivery person


3. helpers at hypermarts - unload your shopping bags into car, help bag your shopping items


4. taxi driver

waiter
we know you're tired. we know sometimes you're just not in the mood for small talk. and we know sometimes you're just swamped with other customers. but a smile doesn't cost a thing! SMILE!


i'm an easy customer to please, you see. so when a waiter/waitress serves me with a smile, is helpful and always available when we need anything - that person deserves extra tips.


in my opinion, the waiters in dubai are generally polite, so we usually just leave 2 dirham on the table as a tip. fortunately, no bad experience yet!




delivery person
most restaurants place a 5 dirham charge for each delivery. most of the time, i take it that this 5 dirham is already the tip for the delivery person. however, someone told me that since it's in the bill, the restaurant probably pockets the delivery charges, and not the delivery person.


so... i do add extra dirham as personal tip from me to the delivery person, based on a few criteria :

• say that the pizza delivery should take about 40 minutes to one hour. if the pizza delivery guy came before the estimated time, i would tip him 3 dirham.


• if he came with a polite smile and warm greetings, i wouldn't mind adding an extra dirham.


• 2 dirham would be the normal amount of tip if he came slightly later, but with a smile.


• once, not only was he late - he didn't smile and even looked annoyed. no tip for you, grumpy!


• and once, even though he was very late, this delivery guy was very apologetic, and sported a humble smile. he deserves my tip!


• see - SMILE! a smile is always important! it can be the yardstick to your tip!

i never encountered anyone who waits and expects a tip from me - BUT once we're waiting for the delivery of a furniture we bought. the delivery truck was LATE, they got LOST, and they had the nerve to miss-call my husband so that he would call back and give directions. if that's not bad enough, they asked my husband to DRIVE to their location (where they're lost) and guide their truck to our place. TERUKNYA!

yes, the worst part was - before going back, they buat muka seposen, and asked, "boss, no tip?" and yes, my husband gave a long lecture of how he had already SPENT so much on credit AND fuel to call them back, and pick them up - and now they expect tips???

hello - you only get a tip for a job done WELL! not simply for a job done!

helpers at hypermarts

at hypermarts there would be staff at the check-out counters help bagging the stuff we buy. once we tipped this bag-dude 5 dirham (the most we've ever tipped) because he used to work in our building, and we remember him to be very friendly, helpful and always smiling. and he was still smiling when we saw him at the hypermart; and he greeted us with the same warmth. he truly deserved the extra tip.

taxi driver

i don't go on taxi much here, but when i do, i tip when the taxi driver is helpful, like folding the stroller and put into his taxi. yes, there was one un-gentleman-ly taxi driver who just sat in his taxi waiting for me to fold the stroller while i hold the baby!

no tip!

refusing tips?

yes, once, we lost our internet connection more than week. when the etisalat guy came to fix the line, he worked for hours, and was very friendly with the boys. before he left, i naturally gave him a huge tip for a job well done. he politely refused. i was impressed, and made me pressed him even more to accept the tip.

* * *

all in all, i don't mind tipping. kalau ade duit lebih, ape salah kalau orang tu deserving kan? however, i strongly believe a tip has to be earned, only to the deserving ones. service providers should not take tips for granted - like making a face when there's no tip, or no thank you's when they do get a tip.

attitudes need to change, and improve - SIMPLY doing the job you're hired to do DOES NOT necessarily earned you a tip. it is when you take your service the 'extra mile' that earned you a tip.

a SMILE goes a long way - the company gets good image, staff is happy to get extra tip, and customers will come again/use your service. win-win-win.

this tipping culture at times terbawak-bawak ke malaysia, where we did tip friendly, helpful waiters, or whoever provided good service with a smile - takpe, niat je nak sedekah!

Tasty Tandoori Chicken @ Appa Kadai

‘appa kadai’ restaurant in discovery gardens is our favorite place to get apam with chicken *chettinad. the apam is freshly made and served hot, while its chicken chettinad looks like curry – thick and spicy – but taste so much better!

chettinad-style of cooking is said to be “one of the spiciest, oiliest and most aromatic in iIndia, a distinctive culinary style with judicious blend of spices.”

‘chettinad’ is a region in the state of tamil nadu, india.

read about my first taste of appa kadai’s amazing apam here, and to see how chicken chettinad looks like.

 

 

however, in our recent visit to appa kadai in discover gardens, we tried their tandoori chicken, and it tastes just like home. malaysians who want a taste of home in the form of tandoori chicken, can head on to ‘appa kadai’. delicious, and full of flavor!

it’s served together with cut-up tomatoes and cucumber with onions, as well as this very deliciously tangy dip that can very well compete with dips at chillis or tgif!

serious sedap combo ni!

 

the surprisingly awesome dip

 

* * *

 

 

we also shared this plate of combo meal of rice, fish curry and vege – because it’s quite cheap, so we gave it a go.

the fish in the curry was super soft and yummy – but i wasn’t really crazy about the curry taste. love the vege though because i’ve never tried anything like that before – a combo of cut-up pickled cucumber, dal and a few more stuff.

the white liquid is probably coconut milk, but it looked so transparent that it became quite unattractive to be eaten. haha.

 

the fish curry & vege

 

this is interesting – serving rice with dried chilli to be eaten – just like that? me the tak-makan-pedas gal wasn’t even thinking of trying!

 

 

* * *

 

 

khaleef loves their roti canai (here they call it parotha) and yes – here the roti canai taste and feel as crispy and soft like our roti canai mamak back home too. khaleef likes it with sugar, and just a spoonful of chicken chettinad or fish curry. simple yet satisfying!

 

* * *

 

best appam in dubai, roti canai (parotha) and tandoori chicken that taste just like the ones in malaysia – ‘appa kadai’ remains one of our favorite makan place in dubai!

Khaleef’s Year 1 Class Timetable

my eldest baby is in year one already! unlike last semester, now he wears shirt complete with a striped tie. fancy!

 

first day of school

 

this time around, he will also learn arabic – just very basic – but still i’m excited for him. i learn arabic when i was in UIA and it was super-tough. it’s great that khaleef can get the exposure at a young age.

there’s also islamic education, which starts with the most important fact – Allah is the creator of everything, and the lesson goes from there.

there’s also the subject UAE S.S – which stands for ‘united arab emirates social studies’. social studies? social studies?! when i was his age, i don’t even know what a ‘social studies’ subject is. heck, i don’t even know what ‘social’ means! if i’m not mistaken, in this subject they will learn about the culture and customs in the UAE, like the national dress – abaya and kandura for example.

 

 

and how about that tuesday lesson at the end – ICT? info & communication tech? man! kids these days seem to be born complete with IT manual haha. year 1 pun ade computer lesson! well, babies as young as few months can already operate the mouse once they learn how to sit up!

i was already in my standard 5-6 when i got to even touch my first computer keyboard! when abah brought back that bulky desktop, we were so excited that we slept in front of the computer so that we could be the first to play with it when we woke up. haha.

on the other hand, it’s a very positive thing when you realize that these young kiddos motivate themselves to learn how to spell their favorite cartoon so that they could ‘search’ for the videos on youtube. they can also play all sorts of language/maths game on the internet all by themselves.

 

khaleef is in the blue team - water

 

study smart, and play hard my son! discover your passion, and explore your imagination. mak and bapak will always be around to lend a hand (and nag you about homework). most of all, ENJOY because when you’re all grown up, you’ll soon realize that this is one of the best times of your life!

Happy Birthday, Atuk!

today is atuk’s birthday. happy birthday, atuk. come watch a video we made just for you. by khaleef, kahfi and kazim. mak helped. a little.

enjoy!

 

 

 

happy 64th birthday to my super-Abah, may Allah grant you many more wonderful years, shower you with all the blessings in this life n the hereafter. amin!

Aksi Blogger Malaysia : Korang Yang Mana Satu?

mr. khairul forwardkan email klaka ni pagi tadi. lawak gile. terkena pun ade jugak. tapi still lawak. asalnye komik comel tapi lawak gile ni dari ‘blog aku bukan blog bapak kau’.

korang yang mana ye? jom gelak-gelak kejap.

 

Blogger Sangap Tarafik

Blogger Updet Semua Benda

Blogger Tak Cukup Makan

Blogger Full Time Emo

Blogger Segalanya Nuffnang

Blogger Segalanya Freemason

 

rupanya aku ‘blogger tak cukup makan’. uhuk uhuk. haha.

Questionnaire : Books Books Books!

 

if you love books, love collecting books, love reading books – answer these questions – for fun! i got all these questions from the facebook page of bookxcess – a bookstore in amcorp mall that sells great titles with great affordable prices!

i’m tagging all my readers who love books!

What book are you currently reading? How far in are you? What's it about? Are you enjoying it? i’m currently reading agatha christie’s ‘poirot’s early cases’, a collection of short stories on the esteemed investigator’s earlier cases. being a mom of 3 boys – time is never enough, so short stories are the best – it’s short and easy to digest. i can finish one story in one sitting, and continue my chores right after.

If you could live out any storybook (as a character in it), which story would it be? any story happening on the discworld. discworld is the wacky world created by one of my favorite authors terry pratchett as the setting for his books. a police force made of trolls, dwarves, a werewolf, vampire and a few humans; a librarian who was cursed and turned into an orangutan and prefers to stay that way – all happily living and solving crimes on discworld!

 

the discworld series

Lets say you had to donate your old books. Is there ONE book that you could not bring yourself to donate? it’s probably gonna be really hard to part with my books, but if i had to choose, it would be john adam’s ‘watership down’ (about adventures of rabbits) because it belongs to my late mom, and she was always asking me to read it so that she could have someone to talk about the book with. i would keep THAT one.

Do you recommend books to other people? If you could force everyone you know to read one book, what would it be? george orwell’s ‘animal farm’. people not familiar with this masterpiece need to know that just because it’s a classic written before the dinosaur age, it doesn’t use difficult words. the story is easy to follow with an interesting plot. it has engaging loveable animal characters and even more touching and meaningful message.

What’s the first book that you ever read more than once? What book have you read the most times? And–how many? i’ve read many books more than once; but the FIRST book that i’ve ever read more than once would be stephen king’s ‘it’. and it’s a mighty fat book! finish reading it is like losing a friend, because i got really attached to all the characters.

now the book that i’ve read the MOST times pulak would be roald dahl’s ‘omnibus’ – a collection of adult short stories by the author more popularly known for his wonderfully wacky children’s books. his stories are so very interesting especially in the way he wrote it, the sentence structure and most of all the ending – that countless re-reading will not get you bored.

 

 

A book you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving? i’m stubborn. i very seldom read books outside my favorite genre or other than my favorite author. however a colleague of mine recommended yann martel’s ‘life of pi’ and i ended up being so engrossed in the book and his writing style. it’s about a shipwrecked boy who survived at sea on a boat – with four zoo animals; a tiger, a hyena, an orang utan and a zebra. interesting, huh!

Name one book that you hope never, ever, ever gets made into a movie (no matter how good that movie might be). twilight. no, wait ----

What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read? And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it? Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW? the last book i was really excited to read was jasper fforde’s ‘the fourth bear’. yes, i was excited in advance because for the rarest time, i actually tried to be more adventurous and ventured out to discover new authors that i might like, instead of sticking to the same authors (reading ONLY my favorites) – that’s when i found jasper fforde and that he writes about cases that involved nursery rhyme characters. so interesting, and wacky! just how i like it!

 

What’s the largest your personal library has ever been? What’s the greatest number of books you’ve ever owned at one time? the largest nearly 200 i think – JUST storybooks! and i’m not done yet!

What is the most annoying character in a book ever? frodo. just thrown the daymn ring already, and don’t be so lembik!

What is your favourite fictional relationship between characters? (romantic, friendship, familial) there are so many favorites! the relationship between christopher boone & his dad in 'curious incident of the dog in the night time' is sweet and needs patience because of christopher’s condition as an autism kid; also hercule poirot & hastings’ conversations are always delightful – poirot the self-confess genius in solving crimes while hastings just put up with him; oh, and the wonderful sisterly love in 'little women' ~ many, many more!

 

What is the most difficult book you’ve ever read? beowulf. had to read for a class in college. yech. he made shakespeare looks like dr. seuss for beginners! tak paham ape!

What animal-related books have you read? Which do you love? Do you have a favorite literary animal? definitely, definitely george orwell’s ‘animal farm’ – one of my favorite books, and the best story ever written in my opinion. i still cry at the end no matter how many times i’ve read it.

If you could see one book turned into the perfect movie–one that would capture everything you love, the characters, the look, the feel, the story–what book would you choose? there’s so many – but i would choose terry pratchett’s ‘the truth’ – set in a magical world, a clever plot, it has an inspiring hero who rises to the occasion, a love story, an adventure, a mission – it would be a very enjoyable movie!

Do you prefer to read a book really fast, or savor it slowly? definitely savoring it slowly. in fact, even a simple book like an agatha christie, i would be forced to re-read a page if i were interrupted in the middle of a reading. i admit i’m a s---l----o---------w reader!

What’s the latest you’ve ever stayed up reading a book? Is staying up late reading a usual thing for you? YES, staying up late reading a book is a VERY usual thing! hihi. when i was younger, when lights were off at home, i used a torch light to keep reading. what’s the latest i’ve ever stayed up reading? never can tell, because i’d be reading myself to sleep!

Do you read book reviews? Whose do you trust? Do they affect your reading habits? Your buying habits? i do read book reviews, but i’m never swayed by what’s written. i STILL look at the author, and storyline. opinions don’t matter, because books are very subjective. also, since i usually buy books by my favorite author, i don’t really need a review to tell me that his book is awesome! (yes, stephen king, terry prachett and roald dahl!)

 

Choose one book as a gift to:

1. Your best friend – stephen king’s ‘shawshank redemption’ – a wonderful tale of friendship fostered in an unlikely place
2. Your mom/ dad/ both – for mak, if she were still alive, would be jasper fforde’s ‘the fourth bear’ since this is one of the authors that i proudly discovered all on my own without being inspired by what she likes hihi. for abah, it would be mitch albom’s ‘tuesdays with morrie’ to show him that eventhough he’s a man with few words, he taught us just as much as morie did with that young man.
3. Your other half – for mr. khairul? anything with the word ‘leadership’, or ‘business’. *yawn* we have VERY different taste in books!
4. Yourself – complete set of gary larson’s ‘the far side’. mahal nak mampuih. so please someone give it to me as a gift ya hahaha
   

What is your favorite quote, from your favorite book? that’s easy – from terry pratchett’s ‘the truth’,

There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who, when presented with a glass that is exactly half full, say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!

~ terry pratchett’s ‘the truth’

How did you encourage your children to pick up the reading habit? one of the things i did is i bring a pocket-size dr. seuss book in my handbag everywhere we go so that when there’s some sort of waiting involved, i could just pass the book to khaleef for him to read while he waits.

Do you read short stories? What do you like and dislike about short stories?  i LOVE short stories. by roald dahl, stephen king, edgar allan poe, agatha christie, h.g wells. in fact, i have ALL of jeffrey archer's short stories compilation but i've never read any of his novels! being a mom of 3, short stories are the best - easy to digest and fast to finish!

Ever received an unexpected gift of books from your loved ones? a day after i delivered my first baby, mr. khairul surprised me with the latest terry pratchett’s book ‘going postal’ which i finished during the first week of my confinement. it was a very meaningful book because it entertained me during my very boring confinement days. i was in taiping (tokcik’s house) and he works in kl. sob sob.

 

 

From your parents you learn love and laughter and how to put one foot before the other. But when books are opened you discover that you have wings. ~Helen Hayes

 

i would like to tag these adorable dorky bookworms :

1. aisha
2. syidot
3. hmm…

hmm, i know there are more out there, if you did do the tag PLEASE leave your url in the comment section because i would really love to read your answers. love, from a fellow dorky bookworm!