Friday Flashback

Still in Raya mood even though I spent the whole two weeks holiday not just preparing for raya but attending meeting at three places , last minute shopping and also driving around Alor Setar looking for a decent house for the next maybe five years..

Here are some photos from last week pre-post raya celebration....

We left for Penang on the 24th and made few stop at RnR to rest..and by the time we reached Juru tol, it was already 7.30am..I was behind the wheel from Sg Bakap to Tg Tokong, we rest for only two hours and headed to Sik for my work...it was raining and we were tired....but at least I could finished one task before the holiday


Here's our kitchen helper, preparing ingredients for nasi tomato for Iftar

nasi tomato in a big pot

Had to finished another task before raya in Gurun and Yan..Gurun has changed a little bit
View of Gunung Jerai ..rail track project is on going


Old photo of pekan Gurun..please ignore the reflection

Big sis with her sketch , she draw everyday..its the almost the subject but loves their drawing simply because they are not perfect.

Tesco Tanjung Pinang is just few meters away from MIL's house, so went there for some last minute shopping and let the kids have fun indoor
Cosy inside tesco trolley..put on a hairclip to tell people that my lil pumpkin is a girl..tired of answering people's question :-)



We treat the kids before raya..their cousin joined us ..games and ice cream

We were in Alor Setar on the firtst Syawal, but I missed going to the old madrasah for solat,..it is just a small madrasah but the thought of meeting so many familiar faces old and young that make it special....and the weather was nice..sunny compared to wet and gloomy few days before that...


Big Bro with his cousin in Jitra..cheeky..

Open house on second day in Alor Setar..office mate from Putrajaya with her family


And we made a tour in Penang ...

We went to Gurney Plaza before visiting relatives house and lil pumpkin need a rest and it was feeding time for her.

It was a tiring two weeks holiday because we were driving back and forth..andon the 4th of Sept, we were back in Alor Setar for hubby's work..and back in Putrajaya on the 6th...

I just wish that this Syawal will bring another good news...Insyaallah

Eid Mubarak

It took us a week to update this raya entry, as usual we were rushing here and there stuffed our stomach with nasi tomato and beriyani and mee 'basah'..and this the first time I did not eat ketupat pulut with rendang..first time ever, since we were married, every morning of Eid we were served with idiapum and chicken curry and korma, it surely taste good...but sometimes I do miss my usual ketupat since it was a raya staple food for more than twenty years..so En Haffis, I'm sure you got my message here... This is my sweet little girl, few days before raya.. My little boy, who is not that little anymore : in JJusco nursing room during our shopping spree The three of us..just like sardine in a can..both of them wants to sleep on mama's lap Princess Sufiya in her royal yellow baju kurung, a gift from her Pere Ma (aunty)..it's hard to snap her photo nowadays,most of her photos are candid.. :-) Hadif at his Mami's house in Penang...posing dalam bilik anak dara.. Hadif and Dada (grandpa)..his dada requested that this photo will be sent to Kolkata..right away sir . Last few days before we left for Putrajaya, we received a good news all the way from Kolkata, new member has been born on the third day of Eid, and for the first time after three years been to India, I finally spoke to Nassima in Bengali, but my vocab are very limited..just basic 'kemano aso..bhalo aachi, moina,beta..thats it..ohh forgot to mention this, she called me Bhabi..don't get me wrong, its 'sister' in Bengali, and their niece call me Khaki Ma..rasa macam dalam filem Devdas..hahaha..!!berangan la...and hubby was making funny faces while I was on the phone..at least I've tried.. Second day of raya..at last, this is the only house that served us with light food, just kuih raya and buah pala, jeruk pelam..and all things sour..no more heavy food:-) We had a BBQ open house in Alor Setar and I think when we grow older, the celebration is not focused on us anymore like it used to be, but being together with family is the most important part of Eid. I had a visit from a friend whose last visit to my house was 13 years ago and we also managed to keep in touch with another long lost friend..



This used to be my playground when I was a kid, Tok's house is not far from the sea..but before we reach the beach, we have to pass by an old cemetery and paddy field, then we have to cross the river that is flowing smoothly on a small titi kayu..

Lagu Raya : A Nostalgic Piece

What is hari raya without a nostalgic lagu raya..

The best lagu raya is the one that could make you want to cry and call home or pack your things right away..

Of all the songs that has been composed, only few songs that are evergreen.

Each song create a different mood, some shows the joy and happiness while some make our heart melt..

Saloma - Selamat Hari Raya : a must-played-song that could make everyone smile

P.Ramlee - Suara Takbir & Dendang Perantau : So nostalgic and classic

Fazidah Joned - Selamat Hari Raya : Raya will not be complete with this song

Aishah - Pulanglah : Touching especially for those who are apart with family and loves one, when were in Skudai, whenever someone played this song, everybody will stop drawing and look at each other with face that tells they wanna go home.. :-(

Anua & Elina - Suasana Hari Raya : Anuar Zain was so cute at that time,and Elina have a great voice..



..But the best hari raya must be the one when we were a kid, still living with our parents, when we received duit raya and jalan keliling kampung kutip duit raya ramai-ramai. Nothing to think off, just enjoy the day...makan ketupat, kutip duit, makan kuih, kutip duit lagi....

..And now raya means a lot of preparation and headache and not plus heartache!!

EID MUBARAK TO ALL...FROM US IN PUTRAJAYA (Sue, Haffis, Sufiya, Hadif)

Balik Kampung

Dari Jauh Kupohon Maaf

Dalam dingin subuh hatiku terusik
Kenang nasib diri di rantauan
Bergema takbir raya menitis air mata
Terbayang suasana permai desa

Rindu hati ini inginku kembali
Pada ayah bonda dan saudara
Tetapi aku harus mencari rezeki
Membela nasib kita bersama


Hanya ku sampaikan doa dan kiriman tulus ikhlas
Dari jauh kupohonkan ampun maaf
Jangan sedih pagi ini tak dapat kita bersama
Meraikan aidil fitri yang mulia

Restu ayah bonda kuharap selalu
Hingga aku pulang kepadamu



Restu ayah bonda kuharap selalu
Demi anakmu yang kini jauh

Nyanyian : Allahyarham Sudirman Haji Arshad

..................
Tengah syok-syok layan lagu ni, kononya nak dapatkan 'feel' balik kampung..TUP TUP..!! Ada berita terkini :-

I thought of packing up tonight for balik kampung, especially for the kids since their's will be the main priority...BUT...En Haffis told me that we will only be leaving on Monday!!!..Monday is just two days away from Eid...that means we will be rushing and we won't have enough time before the celebration..

Balik kampung is a tradition that we still look forward every year, it is a time share the joy especially for the kids.

That means I can't enjoy Sudirman's 'Balik Kampung' song just yet..!!

Kad Ucapan Hari Raya

I just received four Kad Ucapan Raya for this year, one from an old friend..thanx Syuhada for the thought and three from official client. I think as time passed by, the thrill of sending and receiving card raya is slowly slipping away from me..




When I was in secondary school, getting a kad raya (greeting crad) was a BIG thing, especially when you are in all girls school. We will always compared who got the most and who got the prettiest and fancy card. Back in late 80's raya card were our most reliable mode of communicating and expressing tools. We girls loves card with flowers and beautiful places or landmark.Some were from original photo and some copied from original watercolour painting...but I remember seeing a card with cute little kitten with glossy pink background.

Cards with raya theme like ketupat, mercun, mosque and even local flowers are the things to remember, the tone and hue are different from contemporary cards.

Hari raya card for teachers were a must-do at those time, and the best thing is when the teachers replied our card,..it was a time to show off to friends that we are ehmm..'not average'.

I remember back then when I sit on wooden staircase of my Mak's house waiting for the postman every Saturday morning....

Then came kad raya with funny characters and funny wishes with pantun. This kind of card are suitable to be delivered to friends ONLY...looking at those cards are just like reading kartun Ujang...The sentimental value of Hari Raya are less compared to traditional one.

Sometimes we made our one card using manila card, draw on it and paste with ribbon or anything fancy..

And now emails and MMS and also animated virtual greeting card are the easiest way of wishing Selamat Hari Raya but I still treasured the old school way..

Whatever the way is,..it should come from the heart...

p/s I open one card and the sender is YMM Tengku-something-...terkejut juga, bila masa ada peminat VVIP ni :-)..but then I noticed it is an official greeting card from a company..hehe....jangan marah aarr..

Salam Aidiladha

Salam Aidiladha..semoga semuanya diberkati..

Tomorrow will be a very special day for all Muslim plus a double celebration for us..its been 4 years now..

To my dear husband...Happy Annivesary, love you so much...

Rumours

Everybody were talking about it yesterday...about the revision of Hari raya date...but nobody said that they actually heard it on tv announced by the Penyimpan Mohor Besar.....or whoever have the right to say so....some like it...and don't even mind at all....but for me if they change it just because to follow Arab Saudi decision...that will be a trouble....there are only two days left for me to enjoy my annual leave since I joined here in June, so I got 15 days instead of 30 days...

Been channel switching last night..kot kot ada latest news or announcement.....

And the end..tarak...

So we'll be leaving on the 19th, as planned earlier..I'm looking forward to have asam pedas and ulam raja during this coming holiday...can't wait..

Aidil Adha 2006

This year Aidiladha were different, first time in Putrajaya and no iddiapum / putu mayam for hubby that morning.

We went for solat Aidiladha at Masjid Putra and surprised that there were so many people until some of them had to used the overflow area. The ambience are similar except for people start taking photograph after the prayer unlike in Tg Tokong or Alor Setar where people will directly went home. The sight of people coming out from the main entrance of the mosque was something to behold. We just stood still infront of the square looking at people....the sight that you won't see everyday....

...Happy New Year..welcome 2007