Goan Food

I created this posting and left it for a very loooong time still in the form of "draft" since my visit to India is sooo last year.
We did a short trip-weekend getaways thing to Goa, the smallest state in India (as I wrote in my other post) and stay in a nice hotel with a nice food (of course now the reason why I wrote the title is revealed).

Basically the food is a bit similar to other Indian food (I will be cursed by a lot of Indian-cooking expert by saying above sentence).
The influence of Portuguese cuisine can be seen by the difference of spiciness in Goan Food. The special sauce named "peri-peri" is used for roasted chicken, prawns and fish. It is also one of Indian cuisine that use pork as the ingredients.

What surprised me is that the dessert is somewhat similar to Indonesian/Thai dessert.. (wait, or did the installing the name tag at the dessert table saying "Thai desserts"?... oh crap... that's wahy it's better just to erase old post instead of pushing yourself to continue it:p)

The beach getaway - Goa

Goa is a smallest state in India. It is located in west coast of India, bordered by Maharasthra in in north, Karnataka in south and east and Arabian Sea in the west. It has lots of Portuguese influence as it was the first place which Portuguese ships landed in india.

I went there for a 3-days weekend, and it was worthed the trip. Here I can see the things which is completely different with Mumbai (and India in general, as I assumed). Took a 1-hour flight and arrived at Goa's airport. Then we the hotel bus took us to Taj Aquada.

The name comes from the name of the portuguese fort, Aguada, which used to be a stop for the ships to fill up the water. The fort itself located very near with the hotel. The hotel is great, very luxurious, and I stayed in a cottage, apart from the main hotel building. Above picture wa staken from the fort looking to the hotel building.

The back of the hotel was a semi-private beach, clean, with not-so stong waves (They said that we come at the right time when they just took the notice sign of not to swim the day before). Seems that there is a certain moment when the beach/sea is safe for any water activities.

In one part of the beach, located a part of the fort, as seen in the picture. As almost all other old building in Goa.. this forts was made of laterites rock, reddish in color. The fort is still quite sturdy and is safe to be a tourist attraction. The part of the fort looks like a peeping tower, since it is located in the fartest part of the land towards the open sea.

We took a day-tour package to see the main town, some churches and temples. We went with a small 4-seats car, with a driver and guide, towards the old Goa.

The first stop is a remnant of the old church, named St. Augustine. This was destroyed by Portuguese at that time after they thought that the influence of the religion is too much, that's what the guide explained to us. The church was consisted of the main altar and church building, also the monastery, where the priest and students stayed, completed with the library. When I walked to see around this ruins, my thinking wander to the movie: Timeline, based on Michael Chrichton books, about a group of archeologists who traveled back to the old time to find some of their friends who had been trapped there. This ruins seems so quiet and lonely to me. Nothing has moved, nothing has changes, as it has its own story and won't share with anyone else, keep its mouth closed.

Nobody knows what the people at time were doing in this rooms and places, nobody can feel how was that when they destroy the main pillar of the church.

As I notice, that in some part of the church's floor, an old emblem was placed as part of the floor. The guide said that it was a noble family had some members burried under, so it is a tomb of a person, burried inside the church. The more noble the family, the closer the tomb located to the altar. This is a common things in catholic community, but not to me, as this is only I knew it that time.

Then we continue the trip to the main-old Goa, where they have 2 big churches or basilicas, located one against each other. First is Basilica do Bom Jesus, this church has the relics of St. Francis Xavier. Lots of people were inside the church, some of them were praying, whereas more people were tourist to see and take pictures of the relics. Inside of the church is similar as Jakarta-Chatedral.

Then the second church is Se Cathedral, Se means Big., similar architecture with the other church, here the guide explained about how they built this huge building, using massive pieces of rock without any cement or plester. They had a special rock, shaped in a way that it can hold other rocks, called the key-rock. usually it was placed at the center and top of the building/door/gate.

Finished with the church, we went to a spice farm, they organize a tour around tha farm with aguide to identofy each spice plants, which a big possibilities, some of the tourists have never seen it, except in the kitchen or dinner table, ready to use.

The trip is continued with a self-serving lunch in the main hut. The food, they say is an original daily goan food, which they served a free-feni (local alcohol drink - made of the cashew fruit). Nice package of a tour and food.

Then we went to the capital of Goa, Panjim. Here we saw a temple - Hanuman temple, as the name, this temple is devoted to hanuman, monkey god. With bright colored architecture. This temple has an unique shape and it is located in a high spot overlooking a part of the town across the river. All hindu temples is devoted to a particular deity/form of god/goddes. It has a holy shrine with holy basil planted in front of the building, as hindu houses should have as well. The duty of a married woman to water and circle the shrine 3 times. Also as a duty of married women to present the prayer.

The city of Panjim has several nice beaches, but full of people and domestic tourists. We visited one beach - Donna Maria beach. It has beautiful tower structure. Said that it was built by an English-family. Top of the tower was a veranda-like, to see the whole town. There is a statue of a woman, waiting for somebody.

Then the trip was continued to the town itself, where the guide took us to a housing area, influenced by portuguese style, as can be seen in below pictures.. the houses was painted in bright color. Very interesting. The alleys's names also using portuguese's names such as Rue de Natal. The environment is quite tidy and clean..

We took some walk going here and there around the houses and took some pictures. Not much to see.. but the houses and environment around is already an interesting things to explore.

After that, the driver stopped at a local store and we bought cashew nut (a speciality from Goa) and port wine - a sweet - portuguese wine.

Then came the boat trip, where a bunch of people shoved into the big-open boat and some people performed songs and all of them danced and shouted. Well.. not that so nice experience..but.. :)

Mumbai 3: Old Town and Colaba

I started from Hutatma Chowk, or Flora fountain.. near the biggest train station in Mumbai, Victoria Terminus.
As all other roads and streets in Mumbai.. the road was so packed with vehicles, buses, trucks.. but no auto rickshaw can enter this area.
Hutatma Chowk is a round about to intersect 4 main roads. It has some statue with old style - british influence.

This is the old town area which buildings have a great influence by british design and all are old building.. if we don't see the people and the wheater.. then would be very easy to mistake it with some old cities in Europe.

The things that still amazed me in India is the number of people.. yes I come from Indonesia which population is over than 250 mill people already.. but see India and you then will know what it means by " a lot of people".
People just are everywhere.. walking, working, playing, sitting down and chatting, eating..
And numbers of vehicles in the street, the taxi swerving around, so hectic and so lively.

I went out from the taxi and strolling along the big street towards the Gate of India. Passed several landmark as the art gallery, Price of wales Museum, Times building, library.. I like this part of the city. And seems that it is a tourist area, since I saw a lot of foreigner walking around as well.

Then I reach the end of the road, which also the end of the land since there is the cape, facing the Arabian Sea. Gate of India located as the landmark and tourist attraction. Huge.. and again British style of gate.. lots of people coming to see and take some pictures.

I saw a little boy, trying to get empty bottles people threw into the water. He used a net to catch the bottle.

The sun was so hot..but still bearable.. much better than what I tought I will find in India.

I keep walking to the right, going along the Chowpatty beach and passing the Grand Taj-Hotel, the most luxurious hotel in Mumbai.

Then I keep walking and try to find the way to go to Colaba. Finally I turn right again, entering a small alley with a school kids gathering around. The streets is small, old, with big treets on the side of it and lots of leaves falling down.

Then I arrived at colaba highway.I remember about Malioboro Street - Yogyakarta when I walked around colaba.. Long streets with lots of seller along. They mostly sell traditional souvenirs, mostly clothes. India have beautiful textile, clothes for sari, shawl, tunic, bags, etc. One side of the street is the modern and fancy shops and the other side, the pedestrian path is covered with the small stalls.

I passed Leopold Bar, the bar which name I know from "Shantaram" - book by Gregory David Roberts. In the books, this bar mentioned as the places for the main role hand around with his friends. I was so surprised when I found this place, eventough I know that the books in not a fiction and based on a true story.. but it still feel like I found a wardrobe in Narnia..:). I didn't go inside, just take some pictures and went away.. as I am a kampong-tourist, taking pictures for all the things.

I keep walking and find myself in Fashion street, as the name tells us.. this is a normal street with clothes hanging to be seen and bargained and sold. Was not so interesting as colaba highway. Then this street connected back to the biggest market: Crawford Market.

As seen in the picture: this market with official name : Mahatma Joytirao Phule Market, named after Arthur Crawford, the first Municipal commisioner of the city. FMI (For my information) that this place is the first place in mumbai which lit up by electricity in 1882.

This place is of course, crowded of people and sold items. I walked to the small alleys which ends up in a big-white-gothic style mosque.. very beautiful, called Jama mosque. The streets were packed with - you named- goods, the household items, food, fruits, veggie, clothes, textile... and that I didn't enter the real market building yet. The market area is ended with slums, where people stays in card-boxes houses.

On the other day, I went to Bandra, another Mumbai's suburb, with a most posh environment compare to other suburbs, it has nick name as "Queen of the Suburbs". It is well-known for its chatolic churches and the Juhu beach which border its area with Santa Cruz, other Suburbs.

I enter Mount Mary's Church, biggest they have in Bandra.. and most famous. The chuch located in a hill, overlooking the ocean. The building is also in European style, but can be seen quite clear that this building is newer compare to those in Old town. In front of the church, there is a small statue and prayer place with a big Mother Mary's statue. People went up and pray. There are couple of sellers on the way entering the church, selling candles and all church souvenirs.

When I went down from the church, then I arrived at the long beach and pedestrian path - Juhu beach. Very nice spot to walk and enjoy the sea breeze. The streets are quite clean and well maintained. The beach doesn't seem to good for any water activities, though. The houses in this area is wellknown as the most expensive houses and owned by famous and rich people. And yes, it can be seen.. with the nice style of the building and environment.

I continued this path and turned right to find linking road, a counterpart for Colaba + Fashion Street. Lots of seller, have good textile (again), traditional shoes and bags. I just wend around and around without noticing the direction where I was going to. I bought some Indian-snacks in small shop, with spicy masala and nuts.

After It was a bit unbearable, then I stopped in a shop and asked which direction to Powai, from there I took a taxi back.

Mumbai 2: Dadar TT Circle

That was my 3rd day in Mumbai..tired of wandering around Powai area, just 2 small supermarkets, 1 small bookstore and that's it.

The 2 supermarkets was not big and I have hard time trying to spend some more time there, because the sales girl came to me when she noticed I was picking one by one items and put it back again and I did it for all items in the whole 1 row. She asked me " what are you really looking for?"
I was a bit embarrased.. but how can I explained to her that I am deadly bored here...:)

So I realized that it was merely my own mistake. I was in vacation and I did nothing and I let time passed by just wandering around the supermarket only?
Well, I can't make the big change at the same moment (only a slight improvement by going to the book store nearby and spend another 3 hours..) but the next day I decided to to out.

Moreover after I found out that taking an auto-rickshaw or taxi is quite easy since they have automatic meter and no bargain will be required.
Small problem only if the driver can't understand english plus my pronounciation - however hard I am trying to imitate them - still hardly understood by them.
They have their own unique way to pronounce a word - such as Dadar; they can say it half with the mouth closed and no tongue moving and another half with mouth open wide.. so it will sound as (dae-DAR).

Then will full-confidence the driver brought me to the opposite direction, instead going to Dadar he took me to hotel renaissance - this I still can't find a logic explanation of how come he found the pronounciation of Dadar is similar with renaissance.. or maybe if my prononciation that bad...

Then after 45 minutes rocking in the rickshaw - as what we have in Jakarta also.
The driver stop at the taxi centre, apparently rickshaw is not allowed to go inside suburbs area.


Taxi in Mumbai is an old-no AC taxi, the price is slightly more expensive compares to rickshaw. But still considerably cheap and easy to take me to go around the town.

As it is documented, written, read in almost all articles about India - the traffic was horrible.
All of the vehicles drives recklessly if not dangerously.. which is somewhat still similar as in Jakarta. The street is jammed, which supposedly designed to be 3-way street, it will always be more than 5-way.

The funny thing I noticed.. a lot of vehicle write " HORN OK PLEASE" in the back of the vehicle. It meant to be an announcement that they don't mind if somebody else using their horn..
as honking the horns was something can't be separated from Mumbai's traffic.

Dadar is the name of the suburb located in the northern part of Mumbai. I walked around the city centers where they have lots of shops selling textile.
Can't deny that India is good for textile products. The price is cheap and the quality is good.. not mentioned the pattern which is very nice and lots of variety.

This parts of Mumbai looks quite old with old houses and trees. The street was not very clean with all the rubbish and fallen leaves.
I passed a large cricket playground with lots people just walking and sitting and spending some time under the trees.
A couple sitting and holding hands, a family, the grand-pa and grandchild was staring to every person passing by, middle aged women walking fast with their colorful and nice-fit sari.
How I love to see them and their sari. The color is so beautiful and bright.. and 2 weeks I was in India.. as far as I remember I didn't see 2 woman wears the similar pattern of the sari (of course my comment is highly depend to my brain memory)

I passed a traditional market that sells fresh food-stuffs. Bright colored peppers and tomatoes, corriander leaves and lady's finger are the most favourite veggie. Apple and custard apple, carrot, papaya and pineapple. All is prepared for the customer to buy..

As I walked and walked.. I keep thinking inside my mind.. trying to let loose and absord the vibe.. that this is India..

Krispy Kreme - A Lifestyle

Krispy Kreme doughnut is opening in Jakarta, at least 2 branches that I know, each at PI mall and Plasa Senayan.

Krispy Kreme is a popular chain of doughnut stores. Its parent company is Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc., based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA

The founder, Vernon Rudolph, worked for his uncle, Ishmael Armstrong, who purchased a secret recipe for yeast-raised doughnuts and a shop on Broad Street in Paducah, KY from Joseph LeBeouf of Lake Charles, LA (although company mythology tells a story whereby Rudolph won the recipe from a New Orleans baker in a poker game in Paducah). Rudolph began selling the yeast doughnuts in Paducah and delivered them on his bicycle. The operation was moved to Nashville, TN and other family members joined to meet the customer demand. Rudolph sold his interest in the Nashville store and in 1937 opened a doughnut shop in Winston-Salem, NC and began selling directly to customers. The first Krispy Kreme store was located in a rented building on South Main Street in Winston-Salem in what is now called historic Old Salem.
By the 1960s, Krispy Kreme was well-known throughout the southeastern United States, and it began to expand into other areas of the country.
In 1976, Krispy Kreme Doughnut Corporation became a wholly owned subsidiary of Beatrice Foods Company of Chicago, Illinois. The headquarters for Krispy Kreme remained in Winston-Salem.
A group of franchisees purchased back the corporation from Beatrice Foods in 1982.
In 2003, a pilot project in Mountain View, California to sell doughnuts through car windows and sunroofs at a busy intersection (with wireless payment) failed.
On June 3, 2005, National Doughnut Day in the US, participating franchises gave away free doughnuts. One free doughnut was given to each customer in recognition of the often-ignored holiday.
(Taken from wikipedia)

Look for the Hot Light!It signals our customers about some really good news. When we turn the light on during certain hours of the day and night, it means that our Original Glazed yeast-raised doughnuts are coming out RIGHT AT THAT MOMENT! So come on in and get some HOT!

The first time I heard about it was in The Simpsons - cartoon series.
Then I forgot about it until I struck an article in sunday news paper about doughnut fastfood - a newlife style.

It is the krispy kreme.. after other doughnut chains which has gained a good success story in Jakarta - j.co..where a lot of people queuing to get a box of doughnuts.

Krispy kreme come with a slightly different theme since it has a strong and defined characted of being a chain of the wellknown and widespread brand since 1937.

The lighted up neon is displayed, the merchandises and the flavour is limited to 15.

As I sit down, biting the hot-free-original glazed doughnut and drink kreme latte which the price and the taste is not worthed at all.

I watched my surrounding. There was a young father accompanied with his baby and a babysitter sitting right in front of me. The father was going back and forth - queuing to get the free hot doughnut and encourage the babysitter to come and get another one. (dunno when krispy kreme decide to give aways free doughnut as one mean of advertisement, they already think about this events can happen)

Sat beside me, a family consist of middle aged father and mother, their 2 daughters and husbands with a baby. They have a full dozen of doughnut and start eating one by one until the box is empty.

The counter was full of people and family. They don't think of spending quite more money to get the doughnut with 5.3 each and the beverange is 20 in average (there is tax applied).

I remember the article in the newspaper.. it is really a lifestyle. It is not just a matter of delicious taste or fresh smell of the doughnut itself. People wants to go there and sit there and taste the doughnut. Even in the article that I read, on the very first opening day: people were already lined up since 21:00 the previous night, to get the first doughnut. Kids were running here and there putting on paper krispy kreme hats on their heads. They talked and bragging abouth themselft who has already tasted the "new york cheese cake" or "maple glazed".

Is it really the lifestyle? or it is really the taste is good..

Doesn't really matter: as some saying mentioned " doesn't matter what is the motive or the way, as long as the result is the same". In this case Krispy Kreme Doughnut Inc. can be benefitted from that people still want to come and buy.

X-Men : Heroes or Freaks?

X-Men has been my new interest now

It started when I watched X-Men The Last Stand in the plane between Jakarta - Singapore - Dubai.

I still remember how I was not patient after returned back to the plane in Singapore, to the movie to re-start, since it was cut in the middle when we stopped.

Then I continued to watch another 2 previous x-men movies and watch The Last Stand once more in Mumbai and I decided to be their fan. Not only because of the hunky-wolverine..:p

Then I spend sometime to search that Marvel comics character in internet and I found out that this characters was created back in 1963! even at that time my mother has never met my father yet...

What make this x-men are interested is that: The complicatedness and so many characters with the relation between one another - which doesn't make it to be melrose-place-alike, the super hero story which I found is not as simple as superman-hero story - saving a person and everybody claps. The story is complicated in a way that the must fight - the enemy who consist of normal person, government and even other mutant who has different ideas.

Then at the end of each story.. the questions will still remains.. no matter what big things they have done for the earth and the human being.. still they are considered as freaks.

Maybe because the creator is the same as Spiderman - Stan Lee.. the red thread of the story is the same.. that nobody (or no-mutants) is perfect.

Rouge wants her power dissapear so that she can touch other person. Wolverine has been wandering around a fighting - gambling to get money for living, where other fighters will alienate him since they can't beat him. Jean Grey, altough she accept everything, but she has to let a part of her mind being blocked since her real power can be uncontrollable. Mystique, since a long time ago she already give up to be acceptable to her environment and let human being really believe that she's as bad as she looks. Cyclops, has to wear special glasses all the time to strain the laser light from his eyes to destroy other things. Angel, when the mutant start to change him, he was trying so hard to make himself as normal as other person by trying to file his wings. And many other things also from other characters to reveal their own problems and weaknesses..

My fav. character

Mystique:

Powers
Mystique can psionically shift the atoms of her body to duplicate any humanoid of either sex, wearing any kind of clothing. She can precisely duplicate another person’s retina pattern, finger, palm and skin-pore patterns, and vocal cords. She can increase her volume, but not her mass. Mystique’s power grants her age retardation, increased healing, and immunity to drugs and poisons.
Abilities
Mystique is a highly skilled combatant, actress, marksman, and strategist in terrorist and commando operations.
Weapons
Mystique uses an array of conventional weapons.

Why this character is interesting: it is her way that she let everybody else think that she's as bad as how she looks and she doesn't give a damn about it. She is smarts, will be the chosen one to sneak in (since she can change the appearance) and operate the computer to get any information.

In the last movies, she turned into normal person and lost her power because she protected Magneto. But then Magneto betray her and leave her alone since she's no use anymore. From that, she, then reveal all information she knows about Magneto's plan which help the government to fail them.

Trip to Mumbai - City of Holy Cow

First time arrived in Mumbai.. it was around midnite. So the road to staff house was empty and dark. But still I can’t help myself to skip the slum and bad road condition. Still I think it will be similar to some part of Jakarta which is also lots of slum and not developed yet. In the airport lots and lots of Indian faces.. quite similar like what will I get in Jakarta Airport. Where they are pushing and keep trying to offer you vehicle.

I slept in Chrys’s staff house in Powai. It is quite a posh-suburb area with huge, 30-floor building for apartments. I was fascinated with the big pillars of the entrance to the apartment. The design is meant to be similar with European-old style, massive towers and beautiful pattern of the marble tile. The apartment is in 26-floor.. 4-bed rooms, 1 TV room and kitchen.

Just in the morning then I realize how city of Mumbai really look. From the apartment window, it is quite green with lots of trees surrounding the building. Several other towers are standing nearby with similar design. Unfortunately that the maintenance is not too good here, that caused the buildings look old and neglected.

Went down around 8 o’clock in the morning. There is a small park nearby with the children playing ground. I am trying to figure out the area around the apartment, and I can’t say that it was easy for the first time how to find the way out to the main road.. even after asking several people.(which then I found out that actually there are several short-cut routes from the front, behind or beside apartment) I manage to reach the main road and just walking along the road, passing a school, small shops area, office building and end up in a supermarket.

Thing that I notice here is that so much crows everywhere.. in the bulding terrace, apartments windows, roofs, street, parks, trees.. They are flying and squeaking and shitting everywhere and everytime. At a glance it is similar as the crowd of dove in Paris, but when I noticed them more they look more fierce and that noisy squeak that differ them from doves.
Another thing would be the slum that is very close to the posh-building area. Those people live peacefully, sitting in front of their card-house, chanting, kinds playing and sometimes they enter the building park to watch people walk, at one time a woman just stopped me and beg for some money when I passed by.

These kind of situation, after I see them more and more in another parts of the city and also after I read several books about India from western people’s point of view (try Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts and Holy Cow by Sarah Macdonald) made me getting used of them.. but still can’t understand.. especially of how those people can stand living in such condition and neither feeling depressed or unhappy about it.
In Shantaram, the author explain of how they are actually not disturbed of their condition which is quite different from the normal standard that we normally perceived. Altough I come from Indonesia which this such thing is not the new thing for me.. but still it amazed me.

First and second day in Mumbai still make feel uncomfortable and feel insecure when walking around alone, although everybody told me that it is quite safe to go out alone. But I think I would be myself who don’t let me to be careless since this is safe and then ignore about everything. Just in the third days that I started to be accustomed to it. And also it is because the people there, the appearance is so different compare to people back in Indonesia that make me to take extra attention since I am not familiar with the condition.

And it is really happen that cows are being treated special, in the way that they are allowed just to wander around in the streets and not being eaten. In one occasion even I saw a man passing them and then reach one of the cow to touch its body and then tough his chest with the same hand to show gratitute and respect.

But it is India.. and to be specifically it is Mumbai!

The desert

Dubai is a HOT city!

As i was walking outside the hotel.. just to reach the nearest supermarket. It felt like I was walking inside a huge plastic bubble, with no fresh air to fill my lungs.
The wind was also hot and the sun was very strong.

It is a huge city and they really mean it to be huge. A lot of construction works are going on. everywhere you see there will be tall building and buildings. The streets are in good condition and neat. The street-side parks are clean with the real bushes and flower plants are struggling to survive under the hot sun. Artificial and automatic watering system is in place everywhere for the plants.

Another thing I notice here.. every people.. every time you asked for a location of a place or an ATM..
they will reply as .." Oh, its very near. Just turn right after the first junction.."

Ok, they maybe right... but one thing they forgot to mention: that the first junction that they talked about is very.. very far..:D.

The hotel is good, the name is Dhow palace hotel..
http://www.dhowpalacedubai.com/ not a very big hotel and located 15 min (if there is no traffic) to the city center.

And don't mentioned the food:D.. excellent!!! Although I mainly only ate the fruits. The food is mixture of Middle Estern + Indian + Western food.

First day I just went to the nearest supermarket and browsed to get some chips and fruit.
Then the next 2 days I was busy with the control sessions and dinner with people from the office, so only time I can start feel the real dubai city was the evening after the control finished.
I went to the 2nd biggest mall in the city called Emirates Mall.
This mall is sooo huge.. if there is any malls bigger than Jakarta malls, one among a few qould be malls in Dubai.
All the goods are branded stuffs.. which even dream about it also I wouldn't dare enough:p
The carrefor was huge.. with all the choice of food stuffs there made it is less than enough to wander around until my feet aches.
I bought a lot of dates, figs and almond.
On the way back, stopped at Hard Rock Cafe.. just to buy souvenir.



We took the desert safari.
We were picked up from the hotel at 4 o'clock afternoon with a four-wheel drive.. then picked up another 4 person and then drove for 1 hours to reach the desert.
The driver just went like a drunkedn driver in the desert, he hits the sand dome and drove round and round. Felt like trapped in a roller coster with a car-shaped.
It was nice and make me want to throw up at the same time:p

After 1 hours he kept doing the acrobatic things with the car.. then we went to a camel farm and took pictures in front of the camel.. not to be too near since they really stink!.

The after the sun set, we went to a bedouin camp. There was dinner (mainly kebabs) for us.. henna painting, beer, belly dancing, picture in traditional arabian outfit.
The dinner was good and the dancing was quite ok.

They retuned us around 10 at night back to hotel.. which then I just had time only for taking a bath and headed back to Jakarta directly.

A nice and new experience.

A journey ended (or just started?)

To DUbai....

For GFE control..

long story short.. finally it's over.. over and over..

How happy I was, a moment after they said that I am a GFE.. then I waited until all managers dissapeared.. went to paper shredder and put all my paper, presentation, documents into it:)
What a very enjoyable moment it was.

Go to hell with LMS, with all QHSE bullshit, with personnel and finance theory!!

When I sit down in my hotel room, I was thinking.. whether this is the end of a phase.. or a beginning for another phase?
No burst of happines, tears or relief that I felt.
After months and months of long hours study, making the paper and presentation, face the control, turned back for a lot of reviews, dry-runs, correction, appointmen with client to get the data, to verify the information..

Gosh... I can't remember how I can stand those things!!

Then I decided to let everything runs and flows.. to which other new phase will be there for me.

For now, I try not to burden myself with too much thing.. just think about tomorrow only. The day after.. the next week.. those will be on another story.