Our family umrah trip by road

Journey from Qatar to Riyadh to Madinah then Mekah and back to Qatar by road.

 It has been long since we ever made a long trip journey other than to Malaysia since we had Mishel. We thought to give any trip a rest, until the kids got slightly bigger. But at the end of March, somehow we were invited to go to Mekah to perform Umrah. Alhamdulillah.. not everyone are invited, it is the most privileges invitation a muslim can have. Be it you have all the money in this world, if HE didn’t invite you, then you will not be allowed to go.. and if HE decided to invite you.. a short notice invitation is all it takes for HE is the best planner of the universe. AllahuAkbar.

I just started a new job with a completely new field in an oil and gas industry. I was always TV/Media kind of person. Have always been in operation and now, migrated, in hope to achieve a better mindset and a better family-oriented kind-of job. Yes.. I am thankful, now I am working 7-3.. just nice for school hours.. yes, although Maqeel and Mishel are currently at home, but soon they’ll join the nursery too.. so this is by far, the best job option Allah had granted me with. Alhamdulillah.. another Arafah prayer has been answered.

I started my new work officially on 12th of March, luckily enough, my boss allow me to go for a short break from 26th until 30th March for this short-notice umrah trip, and back to work the following Sunday.. blissed.. and I tought I’m going to feel tired and restless.. but I was wrong.
Thanks to Mr.Ai’s brilliant plan, we manage to complete our Umrah and Ziarah mission in 5 days, without feeling restless, nor tired. Here we share our itinerary to Umrah by road in hope that many more people could benefit from this and get their chance of invitation too.

25th March 2013

1400hrs we pushed off to border and completed the whole yada yada process in approximately 2 hours. Made our way to Riyadh and reached our hotel around 2230hrs.

26th March 2013
0900hrs we pushed off to Medina Al Eiman Taibah (N 024 48.969, E 46 37.947). Reached there just nice for Asr prayer. Parked our car, checked in.. then rushed to Masjid Ad-Nabawi. The hotel is not too far from the masjid.. a 5 minutes walking distance, which is acceptable. That night, after Isyak, I went to Raudah with my P.A.. Yup.. our main point of going to umrah must be because of her.. she is quite warak and never have left Dhuha prayer.. and Alhamdulillah.. our journey has been made easy, and I believe it is partly because of her too. Allah have given her this rezk by inviting the whole family. My experience in Raudah also was easy this time. I could just walk straight to the very last point where they stopped you to wait for your group turn just before the Raudah..but still, it took about an hour of patience to be allow an entrance.. finally.. I manage to enter and perform my solat there.. praying.. hoping that all that I have asked for came true. InsyaaAllah.

27th March 2013
0800hrs we pushed for Masjid Quba’ (N 24 26’17.6” E 39 37’03.5” ). He who take wuduk from home then perform 2 solat sunat in Quba’ will be granted the same amount of rewards as if performing Umrah. InsyaaAllah..

After prayer, we visited masjid Qiblatain (N 24 29 02.2”, E 039 34” 43.4”), Madinah Quran factory (N 24 30’55.6”, E 39 32’ 19.9”) then straight to Miqot Bir Ali (N 24 24’ 53.8” E 39 32’ 34.1”)..before continuing to Mekah.
Note: If you thought about putting wakaf copies of Quran in Masjid Nabawi or Masjidil-Haram, please be sure to put the version printed from Madinah Quran factory. If they see any other version, it will eventually be removed and put into other masjid. So be sure to get the original copy from the factory shop itself, not from stalls selling Quran outside of the masjid area. The Medina Quran factory opening hours is from 0730am till 12pm. And only men are allowed to go in for visit. Women can only enter the shop. Visitors to the factory will be granted a free copy of Al-Quran.

We reached Miqot Bir Ali at around 10am, we changed to ihram and set our umrah niyah. LabaikAllah.. humalabbaik.. 5 hours later, we reached the Kuday free parking area (N 21 23’54.6”, E 39 49’39.5”), pared there and then took taxi to our hotel in Mekah Al-Mukarammah (N 021 25.17”, E 39 49.607”). Alhamdulillah.. just in time for Asr prayer. After Asr, we performed our Umrah.
One of the experience that I felt was meant to happened to teach me a lesson was, when I got separated from my family. I was carrying Mishel in my arm, while performing tawaf.. she cried most of the time due to the heat.. I then opened up her clothes and pray that she’ll get better and sleep. Thankfully, after the 5th round, she fell asleep. I finished my tawaf, and still hoping to find my family again.. but I couldn’t. Then it was almost time for Maghrib, so I took sleeping Mishel into the women’s praying area. Still praying and hope that my family will find me. But they didn’t.
 It was somehow meant to be, I didn’t have any money or my phone with me.. it was hanged on the wheelchair that carries Myra and Maqeel.. . After Maghrib Mishel was hungry.. thankfully somebody gave us 2 pieces of Tamar, more than enough for us to gain some extra energy to perform Sai’e. I went to Safar, hoping that I’ll see them.. but still.. no sign of them at all. Luckily, I got to borrow one of the nice men phone to send a text msg. I then perform Sai’e with Mishel in my arm.. feeling just like Siti Hajar.. running back and forth looking for water and food for her child. I could hardly bare her in my arm anymore.  After Isyak, we settled, we went back to our hotel, I was barefooted. Luckily enough, the bell boy remembers me, as Maqeel’s Ummi. He hand me another copy of the hotel card, so I manage to go in to rest.
Alhamdulillah.. even in the worst, Allah still provide helps, one after another.. and if I hadn’t been separated, I wouldn’t have appreciate it more than I am today.
It was an experience to remember.
That night, I took Shaklee Collagen and 4 tabs of Shaklee Ostematrix. My arm was numbed .. ached all over from shoulder down to my back. But I woke up feeling fresh and re-charged.. ready for more.. Alhamdulillah. Click here if you need more info of the product. Highly recommended as they are very very good.

28th March 2013
We stayed 2 night in Mekah.. and Alhamdulillah.. Allah has answered my prayer.. finally, I got to kiss Hajar’ul Aswad.. something that I have not considered from my last 2 visit to Mekah before.

29th March 2013
After performing tawaf Widaa’, we stop by the Zam-zam distribution center in Kuday, then pushed off to Riyadh.. the most long and tiring journey.. 9 hours to be exact.

30th March 2013
After a nice and relaxing time, we made our way back to Doha. Reached Saudi border at 1430pm and finished by 1450pm. Yup.. going out is fairly easy and fast. We reached Qatar border at 1515pm, performed our jamak prayer and safely entered Qatar at 1523pm, stopping at Hyatt Plaza for a nice family meal.. before heading home to Gharrafa.

It was amazingly smooth and everything was somehow made very easy for us. Alhamdulillah.. may we be invited again someday.

Happy 4th birthday my sweetie

Sedih rase dari malam tadi after coming back from work. Myra was already asleep. It was almost 11pm. I crept through her bedroom, kissing her forehead.. then when I was about to go out, I heard her little voice "Mommy?". I went back in.. kinda happy that she realized my presence. Myra asked me to read a story book. I didn't want to switch on the light for that so I tell her that I'll read a make believe-story about a girl name Myra. She was happy. She throw a light giggle sometime.. so bleh tahan jugakla my bedtime story rupenye.. hehe. Then I told her to get back to sleep, she nodded. Such a good girl.. Sayu rasenye.. tibe-tibe anak dah besar sikit, 4 years old. I then made the video above just so I have a lil memory of her being so excited with our outing at aspire park the other day. She love the grass so much.. running around barefooted, as if it was her first time to ever laid her feet on the grass (memang jarang!)
In the morning, when she woke up, I brought her to see the simple video and said, happy birthday Myra!. She laugh happily.

Dear Myra,
Today you turned 4. But you will always be my lil baby.. no matter how big and how tall you'll get. Know that my prayers are always about you and now your lil brother too. I pray that you grow to be not just a good daughter, but a good human being, a solehah.
My love and life will never be completed without you sayang.

Love you so very the much! muah muah muahhh

Winter Saviour

Ibu is here again.. to help look after Myra while I'm finishing my last bit of working life up until the delivery of baby M.
1 day after her arrival, she's already on her feet cooking for the winter nite market done at our Embassy on Friday. 40 packs of Laksa Johor and 45 packs of Roti Jala- sold out! Alhamdulillah.. we are happy for Ibu. She always love to do cooking business, and she is a great cook too. So, it was sure a good experience for her. :)

2 days after, I treated her for our small AJE ladies Hi-Tea gathering at Ritz Carlton. The food, ain't that great.. but okla.. at least its a release session before i'm locked up for my confinement. ;)
But the companies were the most important, old (not that old as age, old as in org yg lame skit kat Doha) and new gather to mingle, it was a fun evening in deed.

Pasir Berdengung

Last weekend was packed with instant activities. No plan was really made, but luckily everything fall into places; we managed to go for Singing Dune (yeah.. after that many years of kene-tinggal-sebab-keje) finally dapat jugak gi main pasir berdengung ni.

Funny thing is, the sound resembles bunyi kentut sikit-sikit.. hehehehe
And just imagine that number of 'behinds' sliding simultaneously down the dunes.. it was like a fart-fiesta.. hiks and yucks!! :P

Well.. here's some of the shots during our last minute trip (pics courtesy of others-kami lupe bawak kamera! seb baek videocam ade), will upload the video later on.. (malas nak transfer hehe)

After the brief fun, everybody agreed to an instant BBQ session at Zahed's, which turn out to be brilliantly filled with lotsa food that i can't stomach anymore! huk huk..

Then, the next day, same crowds agreed to play futsal at our place. it was nice to finally get to use one of the court .. kalau tak, slalunye penuh ngan kekanak riang jek.. main beskal la.. apela.. hmmm.. i do miss playing futsal.. can't really recall the last time I had fun sweating out kicking anymore.. i guess it's true what my mom and MIL said.. once you are a mother.. all those activities will be part of history.. sob sob :(

Well, enuff talk about the what if and the what was.. let see some 'jumping-sekerat-acts' hehe


Oh.. btw, here's the coordinate to go there: N250 02.466' E510 24.540'
Someone told me, there's only one particular hill that'll sing as you rub down the dunes.. others.. will only be a pain in the 4$$.. hiks.

Tok Mi in Doha!

It was already late, but yet Mommy and Daddy didn't try to rush me to bed like they always did. Hurmm.. something seems wrong. I wonder what is up with them? Instead, they took me out for a ride, still.. nobody is telling me anything, are they taking me to the Zoo? I wonder.

I was tired, but the twinkling lights along the slow and relaxing journey makes it harder for me to shut my eyes, so i rather stay up and stay fresh.

Oooo.. airplane!! Are we going for holiday? Are we flying to Disneyland? oh.. i wish.

After some time, I started to yawn, and my cranky nerve has got to me, I then started to behave abnormal. After sometime in the airport, I then saw a very familiar face, i know her from somewhere.. I felt a sudden rush of warm love... So I ran to hug her. Yes.. it's her! My Tok Mi is here!

Upon Ibu's arrival at the airport, I didn't aspect Myra to act the way she did, gosh.. budak kecik ni memory die kuat dari yang kite jangke. We tot they are just too little to remember, yet, they know just what is happening and who's who. Or maybe we should thank Skype?! Zaman teknologi.. the world became smaller than it used to be. Ingat lagi rupenye die kat Tok Mi.. siap berlari peluk.. memang terharu.

We made a sudden decision to bring Ibu to Doha. Sebab ade rezeki lebih, so dapatla ajak Ibu jejak kaki ke Doha lagi, and insyaallah to join our umrah trip at the end of the month too (I am praying to Allah so everything went as planned). 2 days after Ibu's arrival, we joined MAQ's camping program in the desert, on the way, few cars terstuck, sebab pasir terlalu lembut, so bergotong-royongla kaum bapa untuk menarik kereta.. Sampai-sampai the camp site, wow... ini jauh panggang dari api from our desert-camp experience, the place is like a resort, the only thing missing is a comfy bed and our own room. Lain-lain facilities memang tip-top. Siap ade surau, proper toilet and shower. Cantik.. untung Ibu dapat merase..

After sendiri-sendiri lunch and prayer, we enjoy a camel ride and some sukaneka for kids (yes.. si budak kecik myra participated! Rupenye dah pandai!! hehehe) Kiut sangat tengok Myra lari bawak air dalam sudu.. even die tak tunggu turn die, tapi what matters is she knew the concept of taking one spoonful of water from point A to point B (again silap point, instead of isi cawan team sendiri, die gi isi cawan team sebelah.. hehehe nasibla sape dpt Myra in their team! hiks)

Habis sukaneka, Myra trus main lompat dalam blown up castle.. I tried lompating too.. best!!! hehehe. Then I heard an announcement about a volleyball game to whoever interested. Aizal was nowhere to be found, so I went on and play with others, best.. lame tak enjoy a game like that ;)

After dinner, they started the fire and organize some congkak game, but I was already in the tent putting the cranky Myra to bed. Thank god it went easy. I then snugged out to meet with other ladies, borak-borak for a bit then forced to went back to our tent bile dengar Myra melalak. Our night was chilled but cozy enough, we slept on our own sleeping bag, sharing the tent with another sister while the rest of the bapak-bapak budak shared their sleep in a big tent opposite us.

After breakfast, all of us had to rush to leave, as the camp is booked by another group of people at 9. So, the journey home begins.. yang kusangke sekejap dan senang, rupenya sangkut ditengah jalan.. dieorang ajak main turun-turun bukit pulak! So, nak dijadikan cerita, sangkutla satu kereta ni at the tip of the hill, sebab the car is quite heavy and the bottom dah touch the sand, so tak bergerak-gerak.. Mr. Super Ai konon nak tolak sorang2.. haha memang tak jadi ape! Even tolak ramai-ramai pun tak gerak2, akhirnye kene tarik dari belakang jugak.. After almost half an hour, berjaye jugak kereta tu di-unstuck kan, then he went on to slide down the sandy hill, followed by Aizal. Me, Ibu and Myra tak berani nak naik kereta, so we slide down on our own, best.. main gelungsur pasir~

We reached home at noon, getting some rest for more activities to come..

P.S from Myra: Tok Di.. there's more story of Tok Mi.. that Mommy will update soon~

Enjoy the pic for now ;)

Deserted camp

One of my must-do-thingy while living ere. Finally we manage to find a way to join a group of friends camping in the middle of the desert. The itinerary said meeting @6pm - Sealine. First thing first is to get the air out of the 4-wheels tyres as to get the just-nice-a-pressure to drive through the desert. It was our first time to off road wheeling deep into the desert. I was a bit nervous, dunno what to expect, and further more, it was already dark.. but I somehow convince my little heart to believe in my husband's driving skill.. There we go, a +- one hour of a slow and steady journey of a line of ten 4-wheelers, hardly no obvious bounce at all. Everybody was equipped with a set of walkie-talkie, we are number 3 on the line. Myra was a bit scared, tightly holding up my hand and kept quiet along the journey.. seeing many other 4wheelers pecutings to cut our snail-line.. must be arabs yang dah expert.. ;)

and Alhamdulillah, we manage to safely reach the camp site at 8-ish. A complete site, with seat-toilet, dapur serba lengkap, BBQ pit, table and few ready tent of the regulars. Huhu.. camping zaman moden~

The first thing we did was to set up our tent.. there we went, opening up our freshly-bought tent for the first time. Yeah... we only went for the camping-things-to-bring shop few hours before departure.. hehe. Ape yang unsangkerable was, our tent dah terlebih over dari orang lain! Canggih tak canggih, siap ade 2 separate 'room', that we then decided to convert one for walk-in-closet. AND a living room kat tengah-tengah.. hahaha.. kalau ade competition tent-paling-cantik memang kompem dah menang!

After we've settled with the tent, kaum-kaum ibu terus bergotong-royong masak dinner, feeding all the rumbling tummies. They've got BBQ, segala macam nasik and bihun gorengs, yeah.. macam biase.. melayu dan konsep hidup-untuk-makan.. hiks. After the burps, we then went for some fun games. The most memorable was the first game, which was a bit exotic.. acare makan epal berkapel. I held up the apple with my teeth while Mr.Ai eat-it-all-up, with Myra giggling for his every bites! Lawak.. tapi kami berjaye jugak menang tempat kedue.. hehe (sorry, no picture due to censorship). Tup tup, lebih kurang 12-ish jugak baru semua games habis.. pastu tidoooo. I was thinking the temperature would drop drastically that I couldn't sleep.. but I was wrong, or maybe the fact that I snugged into the cozy sleeping-bag helps to ignore the cold-breeze. Anyho.. I had a great and undisturbed sleep.. and so was Myra.

See the result.. pengsan tanpe kompromi!

Paginye.. i went out to see the beauty of the nearby sea,, tenang.. dah lame tak tengok nature at its best. ;) After the quick breakfast of kaya toast and teh tarik, they got some more acare sukaneka.. but mostly involves the kids. It was already boiling hot.. so I mostly settling in the tent, overlooking the ongoing games, until they call for the last game- Pak Andaman.. yup, I was the model, and Mr.Ai was the Pak Andam.. hancur muke ku.. ade sedikit berupe bapuk.. hahahaha, and as expected, memang tak menang.. (takpe sayang, this just mean you are a real man.. taktau make up make up ni ;P)

After lunch, we pack and get ready to leave. Little that I know, the journey home is far worst than coming. The location of the campsite is actually surrounded by water. Berpusing-pusing carik jalan keluar, avoiding the water, tapi tak berjaye-berjaye, sampai sangkut kat tanah lembut. Luckily the other 7 wheelers are expert in menarik kete-sangkut. So off we went again.. looking for the best possible way home, when we met with the police-truck yang selambe badak melintas air. With the police assurance, we then slowly make our way out of the 'island' through the cetek sea.

The excited Mr. Ai sudah naik syekh.. makin terer controlling the wheels doing some sand duning, nothing major.. main sikit-sikit je (as per Ifw4n). Huhu.. kecut jugak tau perut ni :P

Anyway, once we reach our previous meeting point (by the entrance of sealine beach), they start pumping in air again, as to allow our normal driving on the road. So that ends our 2 days 1 nite camping trip in the desert.. best! boleh buat lagi.. ;)

Pasar Malam 2010

Before you know it, january is almost over. Yup.. we've survived nearly a month of year 2010! Last Friday, the MAQ has organized yet another 'pasar malam'. And this time my dear hubby along with his partner-in-crime paricipated to sell 'ayam percik'. And guess who's the pakse-rela volunteer? Yeah.. moi~ Actually I do not want to get involve, because I'm sure I'll be too tired, and when I'm too tired, I'll get too cranky, and nobody like a cranky old lady (not that I'm that old.. hehehe). But, memandangkan my hubby n the partner seems a bit kelam-kelibuts (maybe sebab first time nak buat jual2 ayam secare besar-besaran).. I then menyinsing lengan to help in the kitchen.. Oh well..

The theme of our gerai (yesss.. believe it or not, we are theme-crazy here in Doha!, semua benda mesti ade theme! including pasar malam! hahaha) is gerai KOBOI - so kenalah semua orang dipakse pakai topi koboi and mangse tukang beli from souk, tak lain tak bukan, moi again. Coz, I was the one yang belikan topi koboi aizal during our last Masquerade Birthday Party @Ju's (Oh yeah.. totally forgot to make an entry for that ocassion.. hehehe). Anyway, alhamdulillah although jualan agak banyak tak abes, kami still tak rugi, and yang paling penting gaye kena adeeee.. yeeeehaa!!

Things to do (outdoor), with zero riyal in ur bank ..

Sape kate everything cost money? Good news is, you could always have some fun without bocoring your pocket!!.. here's how.. ;)

1. Main sepak takraw..(with sepak takraw ball obviously being borrowed..)

2. Some football games with friends (disregard the kakibangkuness)

3. Cycling (menumpang basikal orang.. even sendiri punye ade)

4. Flying the cheap kite (bought like a month ago when there's still money in the bank.. hiks)

5. Tengok Cheles beraksi with his powerkiting

6. Volley (with the lil one sebok nak join)

7. Enlarging 'the behind' on the kerusi (or also known as bench warmer)

8. Sleep (well.. you could do it at home too if u like)

9. Makannnn (potluck - masak & bawak je ape yang ade kat dlm dapur.. hiks)

10. Exercise (with one volunteer to lead- and obviouly not Myra!! hehehe)

11. Rollerblading (pinjamm slagi boleh!!! haha)

12. Bergamba, bergamba, bergambaaaa

Well.. that's basically our activities for the past 3 Fridays.. Picnic & Riadah at Aspire park with friends and families. Although we've been disturbed by the annoying guard on his super-fancy-golf-buggy- itu tak boleh... ini tak boleh.. menyampah! You are NOT gonna patahkan semangat beriadah kami! never! hiks.

Visit to Doha Zoo

It has been two days since our 'Moms&Kids' visit to Doha Zoo when Myra kept putting on her school bag and ask me 'Mommy, ankie! (Monkey!)', or 'Mommy nak wiwaf! (girrafe)', or 'Mommy nak Ephen! (Elephant)' or 'Mommy nakes (Snake)'; showing how eager and excited she is to go back to the Zoo and visit all of her favourite animals. Never tot a two years old could be so attach, so soon. ;)

I used to have a very low expectation of the Doha Zoo, having seen some picture from my friend's visit, last I could remember there were only farm animals there; like the ducks and the chicks.. and I was proved wrong. It was not that bad at all, they have almost all of those zoo-must-have animals; the lion, tiger, leopard, cheetah, ostrich, zebra, elephant, girrafe, monkey, snake, crocodile, raindeers and not forgetting their very own oryx (the mascot). The kids had so much fun, posing here and there, jumping with joy to see cute animals in person.

The Zoo also have a big playground area, (which you could easily escape if you don't feel like freeing your kids to join the other super-hyper kids on slides!). And, since it's school holidays, expect to see more groups of kids around, which could be pretty fragile to the smaller kids (like mine!) as the arab kids could be a bit rough sometime.

The zoo entrance fee is QR5 for adults and QR2 for kids, below 4 goes free. It is located not far from Hyatt Plaza and Villagio, a very convenient location for the after-zoo-visit trip. As you can then take the kids for their meals, and perhaps let them have fun in Jungle Zone or the new Villagio's theme park- complete with roller coaster and all. (Yess.. that's what we did! )

Oh well, I guess I hafta make more frequent visit to the Zoo, with Myra's cute begging and all.

And the party of the year goes to....

Finally, I got a reason to wear that baju that I've had for ages. Azerdills just moved to their new villa, which is so homely and have got just about everything you need for the family. In a way, I really enjoy seeing their progress in life, they take things one step at a time and make it better each year; which we always set as a good example for our on references in life.

So, come Friday, the most sought-after-and-talk-about nite finally arrived. It was in conjuction with their 6 year old son's birthday (and I'm pretty sure skali dengan house warming ;). The bling-bling Party! Most all of the guest arrives with their own style of blings, including the sporting guys. Some came with a disco ball hanged up their jeans, some with cds sew'd onto their back of shirt, some with sparling sock, some with sparling eyeshadows, some came with wife's earings punched onto their chest and some even came with their newly-tailor-made-blinded-blings'd-dress! (Aku ingat my dressing dah over, rupe2nye ade lagi yang lagi over! hahaha thank god!)

It was a pretty great turnouts; the kids were having fun with their own party games; musical chairs, bawak bola pingpong dalam sudus, nari2 masuk kertas yang mengecik and so on. Best part is, the kids game were done in the clubhouse yang dah macam part of their house, sebab duduk sebelah jer.. memang best gile, dah la lengkap dengan pingpong, pool, fusbol and swimming pool.. just what you need to have fun with family and friends.

Then later that nite, came adults kind of games plak (please jangan pikir bukan2.. hiks). They organize such a great game; first is the how-well-you-know-your-friends-quiz. Soalan yang tak disangke2, and dapat pulak orang jawab. Macam-macam hadiah menariks, termasukla pati ikan bilis yang I just thought to kirim from Malaysie, tapi dah dapat, so takyah dah kirim.. hehe. Then came a grouping game- team Satu and team Dua. I was in team Dua; the champion. hehe. We played some puzzle games and won, then we played guess-what-the-hell-I'm-mimicking-about game but draw. So, overall, we are the winner. Memang takleh lupe, by far the best party I ever attended. Everybody was so happy and over-the-moon. Yang paling tak tahan, menang botol kicap kosong pun dah rase excited gile. Hehe

It was in deed a nite to remember.. thanks again Azerdills for your great bling-bling party. A joy equally shared among the kids and adults. Memang lain dari yang lain ;)

Squashed

It was the time of the year again, where many free sports events are lining up to entertain the ever so dull life in Doha. And I thank the Emir for that ;)

One of the wajib sport competition is the Qatar Squash Classic 2009; which mean we have the chance to meet with World number one, our very own Malaysian player, Nicol Ann David.

After seeing her play, I understand why I can't even be the world's 100th, she play so calmy, despite the tension pushed from her opponent. On Saturday, she was up against in Quater Final, were we saw a very tight play between the two, and yesss.. as we expected, she won!

But sayangnye on Sunday, during the Semi, she loss to her petite opponent from England. It was a very tough game, and I could tell that her opponent is somehow seeking revenge, that she struggle to beat Nicol to the end. Well, anyway I still salute you Miss Nicol, you are truly an inspiration!

Come back again soon! ;)

Kite & Above

Last Friday, there's a kite festival going on nearby the big empty space just at the corner of InterCont hotel. Hundreds of peoples turn up with their colourful (and I bet slightly dusty ) kites or Wau. And, not forgetting this one tiny person- Myra. It was her first time, but she flew it like it was in her nature. SO, cute! Boleh je die jalan menonong sambil pegang kite tu.. I'm not sure if she even realize she is playing a kite? hehehehe.. but anyway, that's the day we realize, the cold breeze in Doha, which means, Winter is finally here! Yipeee!

Hyde park in Doha

Yeah, I know.. what is this la.. compare to Hyde park, or to Tasik Titiwangse even! hehehe
But as jakun as Doharean would be, we were still excited to see a big lake in a middle of a beautiful green field here in Doha; be it artificial or not ;)
I heard about the park before , briefly drove by the other day to see what's so great about it, to found an empty field of green grass, and I told Mr.Ai.. that's it? This is 'the park' that they've been talking about? Then come Wednesday, after Mr.Ai's return from work, we just had to get out for some fresh air, and we decided to take a walk there... and to my surprise, the park is so huge, complete with lake, air pancuts and all! Waaa.. how come we didn't see it before? Great, now I have something to remind me of the good ol time with parks in london. Another hangouts to add ;)

Perhitungan

Friday, like usual will be filled with some sort of activities, or else the Doha peeps will go out of their mind (but our case is different, due to the shift hours of work, so kiteorg slalunye belasah jek). The week before last week, we had MAQ bowling tournament, in which my dear hubby participated (yeah, takde menang pun, so tak yah la citer panjang2..hiks). But my stand as a viewer are more concentrated towards the out of the alley acts. Since most of the parents are busy menjatuhkan pin, the kids are left to play on their own, which mean the more adult of the group had to take some sort of action to somehow monitor them, so jadila saye babysitter tak bertauliah pade malam itu. The best part is, I was kinda been bullied by the bunch of underage kids! Cisss... First, they ask if I could buy them water, then chocolate, then fries, then ice-cream (tapi malangnye ice-cream tak lepas piawaian), then some more fries. Then after sometime, one of them started to 'pau' me a riyal, so being the melayu-yang-senang-kesian-kat-budak-budak-and-wanna-treat-them-equally, I gave all of them 1 riyal each. Naseb baek kene pau seriyal je.. hehehe.. pandai korang ek, seb baik auntie tengah good mood, so layan aje la.. Tapi once all of them ask if I could take them to the toilet, I started to panic, Errr... can't you guys like go on your own? Nasib baik ade rescuer, a more senior kids among them then volunteer to take 'em to the loo... fyuohhh..lege.

Then last Friday, another MAQ event took place, but this time it was bigger and merrier. The Malaysian communities are up against the Indonesian communities, for Badminton, Volleyball and Football games. But since there's no available sport complex for such an event in Doha, we then had to take it to Al-Khor; where the big community of RASGAS & QatarGas are (Most of the Indonesian lives there, so boleh pakai the facilities). The compound is like a mini town. Everything is there; be it school, medical centre, mini market, post office or bank. No wonder they don't quite need to go to Doha that often.

Anyway, talking about the sport tournament; as you can see, Mr. Ai was literally flying to fight the Indo-team. And yess, the Malaysian did win the whole set of badminton games. But a sipi-sipi kekalahan untuk Volleyball for both men & women team; which I somehow contributed on the first round (main after many many years without traning, yang bestnye memang dah jangke akan kalah, tapi tak sangke kalah tak seteruk mane, hiks). And yeah, it surprised me too that I manage to play in peace, sebabnye Myra tido, jadi dapatla saye main sekejap, kalau tak, toksah harap la.. sure satu dewan dengar suare die meraung..hehehe. Dan tak lupe, sipi-sipi kemenangan for football team; Go Malaysia!
Yup, it was indeed fun, make me miss my high school era, main volleyball suke2 lepas kelas petang. Hurm... how I wish for a multi-sport complex that we could rent by the hours ere. Anyway good team effort to all, and well done MAQ for organizing such an event to merapatkan lagi siratulrahim. I hope, after this takde la lagi bising2 isu tarian p4nd3k la m3nd3k la..kekeke

Menyotong

Last nite was the first time I joined an outdoor activities without my Hubby. Me, being the sole driver to and flo to Simaisma for a crabbing nite out (so they called it).
From Doha, I picked up Kak R n kids, then off we went to the sea....which turn out quite a joyful journey, and best part is, it's only like 20-30 minutes from our home.. A straight highway road, so takdela adventurous mane pun, hiks..
I never intended to even touch the cold sea water, let alone crabbing, but there I was, with one hand holding my pants up, and another one menyuluh lampu picit underwater while it's attached to a boat, that carries 4 kids!! Mannn, tahan sabar jugak rupenye aku ni, hahaha, come to think of it, I was quite impressed, camane tah bleh ade daye tahan letih yang agak tinggi malam tu, boleh aku angkat si Myra crossing the yucky mud for berkilo-kilo meter before finally reach the water. Oh yeah, air agak surut time tu, so jauhhhhhh sangat baru sampai air, as some claim, best time for crabbing. I tot of turning back, but persuaded to continue, so when we finally reached the water, i quickly tried to put Myra into the boat, but she scream and struggle to hold me tight, with her special-koala-hug. Mannn, memang menguji iman! So akhirnye cik Aina terpakse masuk bot, so that Myra will join her and stay calm. That's how I end up, with a hand locked to a boat, pointing torchlight underwater looking for Mr. Crab sambil menarik budak2 dalam bot!
I think it was about an hour or so that we move right n left whilst Myra busy entertaining us with her lupe-lirik-and-pelat mode of singing, when cik R finally saw a crab right under his nose! The excited me then helped to point some light... Wow, never tot i can enjoy being orang-batu like hunter. But, funny thing was, that's about the only crab we ever got that nite, followed by 2 or 3 other sotong, hence the title.
It is surely a nite to remember, coz I don't think I ever want to do it again until Myra learn to make full use of her own OP water shoes, and walk herself out to the open sea. So I guess after this, I will only join you ladies leisuring with the BBQ n yummy yummy food! Hiks

Anyway, in case you are stuck in Doha, with nothing better to do, marilah same-same menyumbang dalam industry mengetam atau menyotong (yang dah nak pupus gare-gare melayan kebosanan warge Doha hehehe).

So, what you basically need are;

1. A tombak and a baldi (minus Miss Z4ir33n - oh btw if you r reading this nyettosan, this is ur x-schoolmate!) picture dicedok dari facebook Kimi..hehehe
2. A pair of underwater shoes, or any comfy shoes that you think can handle the sea..banyak batu2.. sakit kalau tak pakai kasut
3. A rumbling empty stomach for the after-crabbing BBQ (although i guarantee, most of which will come from the supermarket, don't get your hope too high on your own catch! hehe
Till then, Enjoy~~~

It's not so hot anymore

Today after hubby's brief break-dinner at home i took Myra out for a walk. He was doing the late shift again, and Myra just won't let him go, hence the 'walk'. Maghrib is now from 5-ish. So, at 7:30.. it's already feel like 9:30, dark and a bit quiet, but not like serial-killer-in-a-loose-kind-of-quiet ;)

The air feels right and kind, so I tot I gave the local groceries around the corner a visit. So, with a determination at heart, and Myra in my arm, I walked passed the masjid-under-renovation, big scary Villa which has got 'Room for rent' labelled on its front door (I manage to take a tiny peek inside to see some indian guys talking at the front yard), a manned truck (which inappropriately called out 'Hi Baby' - even if I assume it was for Myra, still.. Bluwehhh) and then finally reached the store; tiny-packed-with-stuff. I didn't get in, as my intention was just to see how far off i could go with the 'extra baggage' at hand. The bonus part was to see a fruit/veg store right next to it. Yess... now I can easily swing by to get any emergency ingredient by foot.

After the less-than-a-minute screening, I turned back. Taking the back road toward our tiny playground; where Myra then happily with no shoes-attached going up and down the slides.

And oh yeah.. my hubby got a new toy last nite; a slim tablet which makes handwriting or drawing much much do-able. So i tot i give it a try and drew a lil shot of our so called walk-and-about 'adventure' ;D

Oh, by the way.. i didn't quite wear such baju-kurung.. just that it makes the drawing much easier.. hehehe

Mamam mamam before Ramadhan

Two days in a row, i've vialated my pre-raya diet (Oh yeah, didn't i tell you? I was hoping to lose few kilos by the time for raya, so then I could do all-i-could-eat during the festive time in Malaysia without gaining any guilty extras meahahaha >;)

This week alone, we've been eating out a lot. For a start, we had a nice quiet dinner for hubby's birthday in Lagenda... it's a new restaurant in Holiday Villa; the newly launched Malaysian-own hotel. The food was delicious, and best part is, that nite there were only us, and another chinese-looking couple.. so we were serve lika V.I.P. All waiter(ess)s are kinda dying to entertain our demand, oh well more like Myra's demand to be exact. I had Nasik goreng Kampung, while hubby had Nasik Kenduri, and spaghetti bolognese for the lil princess (which then cleaned-up by the hungry daddy). All are very satisfying, that I recommended it to some friends. But as i heard, their experience the next day wasn't that great as it turns out to be full-house, and the restaurant wasn't that ready for the number of ala-carte orders.

Then, yesterday nite we were out for Khattab's farewell dinner @Ashai; an indian restaurant in Villagio. There were many interesting food around that i stuffed my belly up and can't stop burping all nite long (which still smell like my dinner!!). But, ever since last nite, i'm never gonna take Myra out dinner in a fancy restaurant in shopping mall (ever!); with many excess to her fun run- oh yeah, while waiting for everyone to decide on their meal, Myra dragged me out so she could do her joyful tour of the ice skating arena- running here,there and everywhere, refusing to go back to the restaurant! Man, she sure can run!

Then tonite, we've been to Ija's place for a delicious porridge nite-in. Memang best, hingge menjilat mangkuks. Hurmm..only one day to ramadhan, i hope we'll enjoy the holy month gracefully and not just think about food for our tummy ;).

Ramadhan Kareem everyone!

TGFFS!!!

That's Thank God for Friday and Saturday!! hehe.. Was a fulfilling weekend. Yup, the weekend here are Friday and Saturday (I'm sure most people are aware of that?). Alhamdulillah, this weekend, I could rest more from my daily job routine in the kitchen. You know, ever since becoming this so call house manager, my time spent in the kitchen has boost up to 85%!! It is quite frankly tiring!! hehe.. but who am I to complaint.. ok jugak, it has sharpen my cooking skills, and broaden my creativity on ..what's cooking doc? (In Bugs Bunny kinda way). Opps.. I did it again, melencong dari topik asal.. erghh! focus!

Well anyway why i was thankful so much for last weekend is because of the endless invites to makan-makan.. kenyang purut suke-hati ;). Friday, dari pagi lagi we don't have to bother about breakfast, got a free invites from the Tun's family. Lovely meal... cam biase; sarapan orang melayu nasik lomak- nyum nyum lauk sambal sotong yang super-delicious-just-the-right-hottness ;). Then there's yong tau foo- which got quite a long number of people queing, coz kene tunggu turn nak rebus.. haha. All in all, we had a great time there, well... bukan selalu dapat makan bekpes free with good company, aite?

Then later in the evening, we went to the so-called farewell tea-break for Mr.B4shir at the lovely home of Said n Ain, both Singaporean. Bes gile! Bukan makan petang pun, makan lauk pengantin! hehehe.. Nasik minyak, ayam masak merah and i think rendang daging! Pastu ade sluuuurpious dessert ever! (That I'll definately will try to make myself someday ;). Hahaha.. memang kompem i gained like 1 or 2 pound coming home that nite. Besides the great food, we still feel sad to bid our farewell to B4shir; one of the victim of the recent mass-job-massacre. Anyway, i heard that he is already talking about another good offer awaiting him, so maybe this is for the best afterall ;)
Balik balik lak, sh4fie n Hunny came to collect some football cd from Ai. So, ended up they lepak sambil layan seround movie, while training as babysitter to lil Myra. Bes ni.. makin ramai babysitter bertauliah kat Doha, senang sket mommy n daddy nak beraktibiti lepas ni.. hihihi
Then on Saturday, we celebrate 4rif R4yyan 1st birthday. He was so happy- like he knows everybody there to celebrate him. Memang budak magik kan? tau aje! hehe
So, there.. tak tau la about next week, hopefully dapat lagi la break camni.. >;) hiks

Italian job

We just got home from another house warming party, this time from an Italian guy name G4bri3ll4? (Bit confused with the name.. bukan name pompuan ke ni?) The so-called house warming party should have mention; no food-more booze? I dunno la, if it's a bachelor thing, or an Italian culture? Tapi memang silap besarla to expect your rumbling tummy will be well fed and happy from a bachelor, mat-salleh home. All we can see is a plate of italian pasta, each for me and my hubby! Best part is, the two plates that we got was it! Finito. No more for the coming guest! (seb baek gakla sempat makan.. hehe) Adeh, aku penah gak la makan2 rumah mat salleh (yang also happens to be single guy), tapi ade jugakla food.. at least enuff for everyone..hehe.. I think this is the least that we expected laaa. The house warming just another of their excuse to lansing2 dan minum2! (Which i hafta stress ere, are NOT our cup of tea! jangan salah paham aaaa) . Memang terase amat geli hati.. memang tak terpikir sungguh, (mungkin sebab lapa, sampai lupe rumah mat salleh buat ape je lagi, hiks.. memang jauh panggang dari api kalau nak compare house warming melayu! Kalau kite, food toksah cakapla, sampai tak muat meja! Kekeke.. Tadi just before leaving (yeah we usually left early sebab nak tidokan si comel) barula tuan rumah serve some salad, and tengah potong2 buah.. Aduih, I bet the cuppies that I brought will be left un-open too, if all they care is their booze. Penat je beta buat cupcakes tadi, tau bawak untuk bekpes rumah Ju esok lagi bagus... Huhu another tales to tell.. Now excuse me, me hungry, me want to make Indome!

Roger Federer in Doha!

Mr.Federer sir! I'm a BIG (but tiny in size) fan!! can you sign my diaper puhlisss?

In a glimpse, we caught a sight of the famous tennis master, RF; serving, back-handling his opponent as smart and smooth as he always is. Myra was over joy to be among the super-cite fan screaming on top of her lungs just outside of the court, but wait!... that's no Roger! it's the next best thing!! Mr. AI, the super dad! so she call out daddy! daddy! while they were intense for a break point ;)

It was great when we finally got the chance to join some of hubby's colleagues to play tennis (why do i still think that i'm part of the company even after 3 months of SAHM-ing and after 1 year of resignation from AJE? kompiusss) . I've always love tennis, but oddly enuff, not as an audience, but as a player. I can't recall my last swing with the racket... dunno if i still got it. Back in the Uni days, tennis to me is like a compulsory leisure. I played almost every sangap-day.. But I could never play in front of a crowd, even for small numbers of audience, sifat malu yang sangat tinggi buat daye konsentrasiku merudum jatuh! hahaha.. so i said. But i think it is kinda true. I've played better without rules, with no competition, but when it come to tournament, memang kompem tak bleh menang- except mase buat double mix with Mr. D4n1r; die power, so saye tumpang menang la.. haha.. yang lain2, sure sipi2 je nak menang, then last minute i somehow will sabotaj my own strength to continue.. can't figure out why.. ingat lagi time high school, i was about to be Kulim's champion, fought against someone yang i could easily kalahkan with one swing, tapi entahla nape tak menang.. saje jeee.. maybe takde rezeki.. ahaks. Talking about Kulim, remind me of the very first reason why i started tennis-ing. Had a major crush on some senior at my school, he was the best tennis player there, in fact of the state too. He was all macho and tall (kunun die jela idola paling best time tu.. kakaka kelaka (aiseh, kantoila rehsieku ngan budak maktab! kikiki...dont care anymore peeps! it was centuries ago!). ). From then on, me and few of my girl friends start to main main belajar, and then fell in love with it. Oh well, thanks to him, at least now i can play a lil bit of tennis, tade la teruk sangat, hiks.

Note: Hunny, if you are reading this, don't worry.. it was only a stupid highschool crush, meant nothing, you are now my roger federer at heart, my only one..hiks~~

Tadi anyway, i didn't get to play, but Myra Sharapova did. She sure got some talent there.. a natural player ;) She even understand that, in tennis, the ball have to pass the net onto the next court side. Quite smart for an almost two year old aite? So, what she did, she pick up the ball and throw it across- because lets face it, she's too tiny to swing the racket! so what she did was quite brilliant! hehe don't worry my dear.. soon you'll get to swing it across! ;)

That's Myra and her tiny lil racket - kunun2 swinging ..

I hope cite-cite daddy Myra nak tengok myra main tahap propesinel akan tercapai someday, insyaallah.. just that, mommy is a lil bit worried, coz if you play outdoor tennis often enough, u'll get too tanned a.k.a itam! hehehehe.. anyway, here's more of her shots (not taken with SLR, so please ignore the goyangans ;)

Next week, daddy said we gonna go again, but this time all the three of us can play! And Mommy and Myra can buy that pink racket we eyed on earlier! yay!