Something Borrowed

Wednesday evening has become a little bit empty as I decided to skip Hacienda salsa session. Deep down, I kind of miss it. It has been a regular salsa session since the past 4 months. So it's quite a hole when I skip it. However, looking at the bright side, now I can revisit my old ritual of closing the day with romantic movie. I have some that I haven't seen yet, one of them is Something Borrowed. A movie based on Emily Griffin's novel.

movie

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a smile after the rain

Heavy rain. Bad traffic. Missing salsa class. Cancelled dinner.  I have all the justice to call it bad day.  Almost did it and cursing life. That was before I made up some calls to Garuda and Merpati. Checking if I can still refund my cancelled flight. I never put any hope if I’ll get my money back. But … I talked to a very helpful customer service from both airlines who gave me real good news. I swallowed my bad words as Merpati gave me 50% refund and Garuda let me to re-route the flight. Fiuuuu!! I can smile now!

So where I’ll go next? It’s a place called Simeulue. It’s OK if you don’t know where it is. Cuz I didn’t know either. Not until Mike keep talking about it and convinced me that I’ll have a lot of interesting to do there. For me it’s pretty ashamed when foreigner knows about my country better than me. This island is located at the outer part of North Sumatra. It has been very famous since tsunami 2005 and series of earthquake shaking this island. Forget about the scary part, this place is also known to have nice beach, surfing spots and lobster.

Why I choose to go there? It’s a simple reason: I have no idea at all about this place.  I have googled to get more information. Not so much. So, nothing’s better than just give it a shot and see what I’ll get. All I know is the place is still underdeveloped. So I’m thinking to bring some children books and see if I can set up children library later on.  A little thing to make the natives and  the traveller equally happy and rewarded.

travel

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One Day The Movie

How will I meet you, my half? One million dollar question that everyone's dying for an answer. No one knows. And nothing to be worry about since I do believe that each of us will have special story about it. Some involves miracle, some takes a long time to wait, some faithfully keep the ride no matter how bumpy the journey is. 

movie

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Bonjour, Happiness!!

I guess you heard this quoted many times: happiness is never too far but often hide in the simple things of everyday life. I'm fully agree with this. For me, happiness is to finally have a quiet and relaxing Sunday. Re-arrange my apartment, re-organize iTunes' song list and lying down in the couch while reading this interesting book: Bonjour Happiness by Jamie Cat Callan. It is about how French finds it through their culture of pleasure and embrace all the things that make life so delicious.  And for us girls, it's really  a fun and exciting guide.  It reveals us some secret why French can always look charming despite of age, body size and simple dress they have. Also steal some life tips on why they don't race against the world but they can be content at the same time. Curious? OK, here are slices of favourite lesson shared by the writer:

life

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Don't Save Paris, Single Ladies

Don't save Paris. Don't save your best pair of shoes. Don't save anything. Travel, party, live, and laugh as if it were the very last chapter in your single life. It just might be. 

Just cleaned my inbox and found this piece of writing forwarded by a friend. Post it here for you all my single girl friends :). Nothing to wait when it is about enjoying the most romantic city in world. Expect for exciting surprises when you travel solo or with your girlfriends.

Paris 2006. Checked!

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The Thrill Of Traveling Solo 

When I was about twenty-two years old and in my first year of law school, I remember reading a wedding story in the newspaper about a couple who got engaged in Paris. It was the bride's first trip to the City of Lights. She said that she had been saving it, waiting to see it with the man of her dreams. Her husband-to-be, of course, knew this about her and so he chose Paris as the perfect place for his proposal.

It was the kind of story that makes single women swoon and dream and wish. For an engagement that satisfying, a husband that thoughtful. I remember reading that story and thinking that the bride's plan was a good one. I hadn't yet been to Paris, and so I, too, would save it for the man of my dreams.

travel

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Paradiso Found at Cubadak Village

Blogging is an ecstasy. I'm suppose to draft another presentation for tomorrow. But hmmm.. I just can't help it again. I guess I can't keep it for later before mind stop wonders. So, let's keep typing.

It's about the trip I took back in 2008. The love of natures dragged my feet to the beauty of West Sumatra. All I know, this region has superb mountain and hill. Bukittinggi is every one know about. But I'm a beach girl. Any trip must involved sandy land for my bare toes. Googling and browsing, I was happy to pick West Sumatra for the trip destination. I won't talk about the the whole trip.. no time eh. I have to get to office soon. 

So, I'll save the rest and blog only the most special one today: Cubadak Paradiso Village. A real little heaven in the north part of West Sumatera.  It's a such a nice island. So secluded, two hours by car from Padang. Don't worry about a quite long land trip as the view a long the coastline of Carocok Beach is superb!

waiting for sunset

West Sumatera

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Les Baux de Provence is really really Beau!

It's just true, once you get going, you keep going. I thought I'm sleepy. But scrolling through my travelling pics, I just can't help my self from having big smile and warm feeling inside. So, here I am for another blog post.

For sure travel as far is the thing that I will tell my kid(s) to do once they hit 16. Why 16? I think that's the best time to fall in love or search for love. As for me, travelling to South of France was a story of losing love and finding it again. Broke up with my boyfriend, I got so devastated and couldn't do anything but crying day-night. Then one of a friend said, travel cure a broken heart. Travel very very far where everything is foreign and you don't speak the language. The broken heart then took me to a small village in South of France, Tarascon. It was just a perfect place. Beauty of the surrounding made me forget about the blue post breaking up feeling. And I found a new love: Les Baux de Provence. The one that is really really "beau".

2 weeks in South of France and I went there 3 times. Yap. I couldn't had it enough. Whenever Fouquet family didn't have plan going out, I asked any of them to take me  here. I really love the atmosphere be it sunny, windy or cloudy ( been there, got all that!). I feel like jumping into time machine and voila! I'm in the Middle Age time. With the provencal color and scent. Am I living in a bottle of L'Occittane cream? I thought so!

Summer Smile 2006 :)

travel

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Siena: Amore A Prima Vista

If you get water color set, you'll find one of the color name: Siena. It's a mix of yellow, brown and orange... or sometimes we call it earth tone: terracotta. Only later I knew it's also the name of beautiful city in Tuscany.

I went there in the middle of freezing winter. But it didn't make me enjoy Siena less. I just fell in love right after I stepped down from SITA bus I took from Firenze. It's amazing to see how the city is classic but also flirtiously modern. All buildings is preserved as the way it is from centuries ago, with its naked brick. I'm no running out of words to describe its beauty ( ugh hey, it's 11pm in here ha!), so I guess picture does it better. Muaaaahhh!!!

The big happy smile from Torre del Mangia. The tower was built to be the same height as the Cathedral of Siena, to make the point that the Church and State had equal power. Finger crossed the church read the sign ;)

Tuscany

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It starts with HELLO

Wisdom says ” hold your dream tight, universe will conspire to make it happen”. That’s true. It happens to me TODAY. And it scared me to death that I ran early from office, skip the gym and start this blog. I think universe is mad at me and decide to conspire to make me act on my dream. Yah, I daydream too much about writing. I’ve been talking about this for years. I’m not bluffing, but I had it in my diary from 10 years ago. I travelled like famous writers (Elizabeth Gilbert, Paulo Coelho, Gabriel Garcia Marquez), hoping that i would come back with some pieces of stories to write. The story is there. Plenty. But to write?… ahemmm. ^_^.

So, today universe shocked me. Morning, I got delivery package from a friend. She’s psychologist. Last time I met her, she said she’s working on writing. And now the book is launched! She said, you just need to get it started no matter good or bad. Afternoon, I also got delivery package again.. from a long friend. I haven’t met her for 8 years and just met her again few weeks ago. Today she sent me two books. She wrote them!! I asked how, she said you just need to keep writing and don’t edit until you feel the rhythm. Ohaa!!! End of the day at work , I just needed to spend sometime in the restroom. I grabbed a magazine. Flip the pages and when I stopped it’s an article ” How to become a travel writer”. I was shaking and just finished my business. Shut down my laptop and ran home. It’s obvious universe is mad at me for daydreaming too much. This is just too scary!

Answering the universe’s call, here I am. A hello to you, my guest reader. Also a hello to blogging and writing world. Hoping I’ll be just fine in here  :).

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