~*A Cruisy Journey*~

I am extremely sorry for not updating my blog this few days. This is just an announcement for those of you who didn't know...i will be heading back to Malaysia after my graduation ceremony...the moment i've been waiting for such a long time!! In my previous post, i was in a dilemma whether to continue staying here in UK or to return back to Malaysia to further continue my studies. Well, given much thought and advices from family members and friends, i decided to continue doing my CLP (Certificate in Legal Practice) at Brickfields Asia College, KL. The course will start somewhere in September and it's kinda rush for me as i will only be coming back to Malaysia either in late August or early September. I will definitely miss UK very very much when i leave this place. According to a close friend, "in order to gain something..u must let go something.." and i totally agree with that statement. I'm giving up this place so that i can go home to be with my parents, my lovely doggy, my relatives and my close buddies. However, if someone would to ask me whether i will return to UK in the future, my answer will definitely be YES!!! Perhaps after completing my CLP examination, i might wanna return to UK to continue doing my Masters but that of course, is still uncertain as of now...only time will tell what the future holds for us!!

Oh, there's one more thing...i am actually kinda shocked that this year's MTV Asia Awards 2008 will be held at Arena of Stars in Genting!! I didn't expect Malaysia to host such a big event especially with PAS protesting the performances by international female singers, such as my all-time favourite Gwen Stefani and Beyoncé Knowles (even local artists such as Ella and Mas Idayu are not spared). That is so so absurd and illogical...even the Sultan of Selangor described their protest as hypocritical” and “trivial”. So, back to the topic, i am actually kinda shocked and at the same time proud of Malaysia for hosting such a big event. I so wanna see Leona Lewis perform live at the ceremony as i totally ADORE her (but too bad i can't attend the awards show since i will still be here in UK) and not forgetting, the super gorgeous and hunky Jared Leto (i HEART him) who will be the host of the spectacular event. Says Jared Leto, "It's an honor to be a part of what I'm sure will be an exciting and unforgettable night in a magical and beautiful country. MTV has been an important home for 30 Seconds to Mars throughout our worldwide journey. I am very proud to join everyone in such a unique and gorgeous location like Malaysia. It is going to be a crazy and wonderful night."

Anyway, my blog will be on hiatus once again as i will be going to London to visit my aunt next Wednesday and then on the following Friday, i will be embarking on a 7 days cruise (Thomson Spirit) to the Jewels of the Mediterranean visiting places such as Majorca (Spain), Sicily (Italy), Naples (Italy), Ajaccio (France), Toulon (France) and lastly, Barcelona (Spain). Thankfully, i don't have to spend a single cent as my aunty will be paying for me...if i have to pay, i don't think i wanna go also lah because it's so damn expensive, if i'm not mistaken it costs around £450 for the entire cruise journey. On my last trip to Italy, i didn't have the chance to visit Sicily and Naples and this time, i get to visit those places...wheee, i am so excited and i can't wait for the trip!! Will be taking lots and lots of pictures during the entire trip.. =) =) So, basically i have been to all the major cities in Italy such as Rome, Vatican City, Florence, Pisa, Venice including the two cities i will be visiting during the cruise trip, namely Sicily and Naples. The only other big cities in Italy which i haven't visited are Milan, Bologna and Cagliari. After coming back from the cruise, i will be staying in London for a few more days before returning back to Newcastle just in time for my graduation ceremony which will be held a few days later...practically, i'll be gone for a couple of weeks. Gosh, i can't wait to come back...i MISS Malaysia!!! Besides that, i'm also looking forward for the Bangkok trip with iL, kH and aL somewhere in December...hopefully this trip will materialise in the end (fingers crossed).. =) =) Anyone else interested to join us on this fun and exciting trip to Bangkok??

That's all for now...will be updating once again after i am back from my trip...until then, take care and have fun always!!

Attached below are the advance publicity pictures of Thomson Spirit cruise:-

~*Decision Making & Rantings*~

I am in a huge huge dilemma right now...there are so many things lingering in my mind and i couldn't be bothered to make a solid decision of what i am planning to do as of yet. Days go by so slowly these days, especially after finishing all my exams. I guess i am pretty bored staying at home nearly everyday because i am so lazy and tired to even step out of my room. I prefer staying in my room surfing the internet rather than going out with my friends or housemates, even if it's just for a meal or two. Besides, going out means that i have to spend more money and i really wish to save some money for the rainy days since i have already spent quite a lot of money during the beginning of the semester. Alas, the greatest and most valuable lesson i have learned is not to waste my dimes on unnecessary stuffs...a lesson well-learned i assumed. Thank God my senses have finally awoken during my stay here in UK. What's the purpose of buying expensive clothing when nobody will even notice what you are wearing...what's the purpose of buying things which you don't even need...what's the purpose of going to an expensive hair salon if the end result is gonna be the same if i were to go to a cheap hair salon and et cetera.

My greatest dilemma is whether i should find a job here so that i can pass my time by doing something more beneficial and at the same time, earning some cash instead of lazing around in my room every day and night. After being lectured by my brother for over an hour or so, i finally decided to look for a job here in Newcastle. Initially, of course i have no intention or whatsoever to work here but after the "good" lecture from him, i think it will be the right decision to look for a job so that i could earn some money and at the same time, gain some well-deserved experiences. I have submitted my application form to work at either McDonald's or some bars-pubs-clubs around Newcastle city centre and hopefully i could get the feedback as soon as possible. A friend forewarned me not to work at the bars-pubs-clubs as it could be quite dangerous at times and also because of the hideous working time, whereby i have to work from around 10pm to 3 or 4 in the morning. However, i did not listen to his advice and continued applying to work at the bars-pubs-clubs and now i am SLIGHTLY regretting over my action to do so. Indeed, i should have consulted my parents first before applying for such kind of job but come to think of it, even if i am offered the job to work there, i could still decline the job when it is being offered to me, right? Logically speaking, it's better and safer to work at McDonald's and moreover, the working time is more flexible although it's not so easy to be offered a job there because there are LOTS of other students searching for empty vacancies at McDonald's too. Sigh, i really don't know what else to do...having a terrible headache right now as i am typing this post.. =( =(

Another dilemma i am facing now is whether i should continue doing my Masters in London or i should return back to Malaysia (precisely Kuala Lumpur) to do my CLP (Certificate in Legal Practice) at Brickfields Asia College. Oh by the way, Alvin...the CLP course will only be scrap off either next year or the year after, not this year (according to one of the consultants in Brickfields Asia College). I guess this is an even bigger dilemma for me compared to finding a job here because this involves my future...my future depends on the decision i'm making now!! Some of you might suggest that i complete my Masters first here in UK and then only return back to KL to continue my CLP but i don't think that is a wise decision because by doing so, i will have to spend more time and money and effort too!! After much thinking, i THINK i will probably return back to Malaysia after my graduation to continue doing my CLP in KL but that decision of mine hasn't been finalise yet...i will have to discuss this matter thoroughly with my father. I hope i am making the right decision as i don't want to have any regrets later in life. Going back to do my CLP in KL means that i can return to the beautiful island of Penang every fortnightly to be with my family, my lovely baby Billion and also Alvin and Nicholas as well as other friends whom are still staying in Penang...at the same when i'm in KL, i can go out shopping (didn't i just mentioned that i have to cut down on shopping) and makan-makan with both Ivans and Alan. But to leave UK will also be quite painful for me...i will miss Jimmy and one of my housemate who is extremely close to me (her name is Ava), the environment, the culture, the lifestyle, the living standard, the delicacies, the enormous amount of eye-candies and everything else. Among all my housemates, Ava is the person whom i'm the closest with...we share almost everything with each other. She tells me most of her secrets and i also told her most of my secrets (except for some, you know what is it)...practically, she tells me secrets which she even kept from her boyfriends (and yes, she has a few boyfriends). We are like brothers and sisters or more like sisters and sisters...we treat each other so well!! When i am feeling down and lonely, i will go to her room and talk to her regarding the issue that is bothering me...when i am sick, she will take good care of me and reminds me to take my medication just in case i forgotten about it...we cook meals for each other when we are around...we bitch about other people, especially another housemate of ours who stole and ran away with my frying pan...we consult and ask each other's opinion before purchasing something...basically, we do nearly everything together!! I will miss her so much when i go back to Malaysia!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, moving one, enough about the dilemmas which i am currently facing...it's now time for some gossip!! I am so so so damn pissed off with one of my classmate...he is such an asshole!! I really really regretted becoming his friend...i have never been so dumb to fall into his tricks. Lots of people are already avoiding him from the beginning but i stood by him all these while, how foolish can i be?? He lies, he backstabs his own close friends, he takes advantages of people...how could i not realise all of those?? I have been blinded by him...i feel like a fool right now!! I just can't wait for him to go home as soon as possible so that i don't have to see his face anymore...i haven't been so angry for such a long time. I must admit that sometimes we do agree quarrel over small matters but this time, it's way beyond the limit...when we talk with our friends, we should be polite during the conversation and we must also have respect for each other. Before accusing your friend, you should investigate the truth behind the accusation made...and you should have more trust and faith in your close friends rather than to believe everything that your newfound friend said!! That friend of mine is older than me but his behaviour is much more amateur compared to mine...that is just disgraceful, shameful and embarrassing!! I will not tolerate this friend anymore...i am sick and tired of his moronic attitude!! ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Alan, learn from me...if you think your friendship with someone is not worth saving, just completely ignore that person and don't waste your time on trying to mend / improve the relationship between you and him!!

Ah, i guess that's all for now...this must be one of the longest post i have ever written. Sorry for the long post, i guess i really am free nowadays. Until then, take care & have fun always. Cheers.. =) =)

~*Free Like A Bird*~

Hello guys...i'm finally back again after taking some well-deserved rest after my finals examination. So, practically exams and courseworks are finally over and here i am resting everyday at home and not going out anywhere. I've been so lazy after my exams...all i wanna do is sleep, eat, listening to music and watch movie on my laptop. Perhaps it has become a habit to laze around in my room because i've actually stayed indoor for such a long time and not going anywhere because i've to study for my finals examination. But hey, listening to music and watching movies has always been my passion, so i guess it's no harm staying at home everyday and let myself rot, hehehe!! Besides, i need to relax myself and help reduce stress especially after my exams.

However, i have to go to TESCO tomorrow to stock up on my grocery supplies. Haven't been there before but i heard that it's quite big and hence, there's more things to buy there. So, perhaps i shall be spending slightly more than i normally would...i am thinking of getting some clothes from TESCO. Yes dear, i am not that rich...so i have to shop for clothes at TESCO or Primark (a clothing retailer known for selling clothes at the budget end of the market but do bear in mind that their clothing are very fashionable). If i have enough money, of course i will buy my clothes from H&M or Marks & Spencer or Fenwick or John Lewis...but now, i am on a budget constraint and i can't afford to spend unnecessary money on expensive clothes. Moreover, people here in UK don't even bother what kind or brand of clothing you are wearing when you go out...you can wear anything you desire without having to worry that someone else might actually judge you. This is totally opposite back in Malaysia because if you happen to wear something unusual or should i say unique, people might stare at you for a long time without even blinking their eyes...thus it means that we have no freedom or whatsoever to wear what we intentionally wanted to wear. There's always a need to think twice what you want to wear before going outdoors or face the consequences of people laughing or staring at you!!

Anyway, move on to something more interesting...like i mentioned above, i've been spending lots of my free time watching movies i downloaded from the internet. I've been downloading so many movies lately because the internet connection speed is so damn fast, especially after midnight when most of my housemates have gone to bed. I can finish downloading an entire movie between a time length of approximately 30 minutes...that's really really fast i must say. Ok, the movies i have been watching are Jumper, The Forbidden Kingdom, Beowulf, 27 Dresses, Georgia Rule, Cloverfield, Employee of the Month, Dragon Wars, Lake Dead, Wrong Turn 2: Dead End, Charlotte's Web, Bee Movie and Awake. That's a lot of movie, right? Well, i will be downloading even more movies soon...well, i need to spend my free time by doing something entertaining so that time will pass by faster. I can't download all the latest movies which are currently showing in cinemas such as Iron Man, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Prom Night, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Made of Honor because the quality is not so good yet...only movies which are already a few months old will be in high quality, i.e. DVD quality. I am very particular when it comes to watching movies because i will only watch movies which are of high or DVD quality...i don't want to waste my time watching crappy quality movies.

Oh yeah, not forgetting to mention, my housemates and myself had a farewell party last week. The farewell party was held at a very elegant and stylish looking Spanish restaurant known by the name of La Tasca, located just beside the Tyne River. This restaurant is very famous for their tapas...and therefore, we ordered so many plates of tapas shared between all of us. After the main course meal, we ordered their desserts which are simply fantastic!! The price of the food in this restaurant is very reasonable. Besides that, the boss of this restaurant (who is a Spanish) is very cute too and i was looking at him all the time (being slutty once in a while is not an offence). Well, he's not drop dead gorgeous but i can say that he's above average looking.. =) =) We were so full until we couldn't walk back home after the wonderful dinner. =) =) Below are some of the pictures taken on that night:-

The main entrance of La Tasca Spanish Restaurant

The side interior of the restaurant

The main interior of the restaurant

The restaurant's menu (front page)

The restaurant's menu (main page)

Our main courses of the day...yummy yummy tapas...

We ordered extra thinking it wasn't enough, lol...

The desserts which are absolutely delicious...

I guess that's all for now...it's a miracle that i actually have 2 posts in a day...hahaha, this proves that i am indeed very free. Shall blog again very soon...so stay tune!!

~*Malaysian Petrol Price Hike*~

Arrgghhhh...this is absolutely crazy!! Malaysian government is going nuts...an increase of 40% for the price of petrol in Malaysia is just untolerable. How could this happen? The petrol price in Malaysia is already quite high (although lower than in some other countries such as Singapore & etc) but yet the government still wishes to increase it even higher. I guess the government wants to seek REVENGE from the people because a lot of people have actually supported the opposition party as illustrated during the previous general election whereby 5 states falls into the hands of the opposition party. Instead of making people happy so that during the next general election, people might actually support back Barisan Nasional, they are making us more angry because of the price hike of petrol. What the hell are they thinking about?? Do they even care about the feelings of Malaysian citizens?? Do they even care about our needs?? Do they how much burden will be put onto our shoulders by increasing the petrol price?? Do they know that prices of other things such as food, transportation fees and everything else, will also increase because of the sudden hike in petrol price?? Business people will use this opportunity to increase all the price of their products or services and we have to suffer because of that...sad. =( =(

And since now the government have reduce the subsidy on petroleum, the question remains as to where are the savings going to be spend on? The government should really address this issue as soon as possible or more and more people will be fuming mad at the government. Oh yeah, besides that, i thought the price increase for petrol will ONLY increase in August?? Why the fuck did they increase the price so suddenly today?? Without any warning given to us...they think just because they are the government (which means they are superior) , they can do anything they want?? They should think of us before making any hasty decision...and when i said hasty, it really means HASTY!!! How about those people who need to travel long distance between their home and their workplace?? For sure that would be such a huge burden on them since they now have to fork out more money just to accommodate the increment in petrol prices, which is supposedly unnecessary if the petrol price remains the same as it should be. The cost of living in Malaysia is going up but our income remains the same...that to me, is just so UNFAIR!! At least if the prices of everything is going up, our salary or income should also go up lah instead of remaining the same...i just don't get it!! Can someone please enlighten me?? To those of you who are ignorant enough to support and vote for the ruling party during the previous general election, eat your arse out!! In return for supporting them, they actually repay back your good deeds by increasing the petrol price...how "nice" of them!!

Since nothing can be done regarding this matter anymore, the government should now focus on how to mitigate this hike of the petrol price. Thankfully, our government is slightly smart enough to provide a RM625 annual cash rebate per vehicle, for owners of private vehicles with engine capacities of up to 2,000cc, as well as pickup trucks and jeeps with engine capacities of up to 2,500cc (according to The Star newspaper) but only time will tell if such mitigation will help to reduce the anger of Malaysian citizens. Indeed, the increase in petrol prices is unavoidable, however one thing that we can change is the way we spend our hard-earned money...gosh, this means that when i come back to Malaysia later in the year, does that mean that i can't do shopping as much as i used to and does that mean that i can't enjoy eating luxury food so frequently anymore?? I just feel like crying...sobs...sobs...someone please help me!! Oh wait, i nearly forgot...Tenaga Nasional Bhd would ALSO be raising electricity rates by 18%?? Does that mean when i'm back in Malaysia, i can't switch on my air conditioner every single night during bedtime in order to avoid paying such a hefty amount of money?? I think it's better if i just stay in UK whereby i can save money not having to worry about air conditioner because the weather here is cold enough...i'm just joking...of course lah i wanna go back to my lovely country. =) =)

Oklah, i guess i should stop ranting for now...i have just exploded and let everything out. Until then, take care & goodbye!!