I need a break

I had to take some time out to think about everything: my recent actions, behavior and state of mind. I'm so worn out. I'm not myself anymore these days. I mean, what was I doing? I was annoying people with my tweets... I'm glad they told me, because I probably wouldn't stop. Lately I'm totally not the person I used to be. When I realized that yesterday, I broke down and it all came out of me. My life's a mess! These days can't sleep all nights because of my allergy. I keep waking up 4am and sneezing like crazy. During the day I'm confined to the four walls inside, because it's constantly raining... If it's not, then my allergy is severe again. It's really a bad period of time for me. But it's not only that. So many things happened in this short year. I left Malaysia, left my girlfriend and a whole family behind and eventually she broke up with me. My grandpa died 4 months ago and here's everything different. Hell, even a cat died, which we had for 11 years and our 40 years old willow infront of our house fell because of the heavy snow this winter. Everything's so different in a very short amount time, my whole life's flipped upside down. And how did I face these changes? With denial and with surpressing my feelings. Especially during the break up 3 weeks ago I was behaving like nothing happened. Maybe I couldn't comprehend what just happened in that moment. But I did yesterday. I realized how I love and miss her, how I wish things were different. But at the same I know I can't do anything. It's frustrating! What I've been doing this whole time is running away from my problems. I wrote tons of posts, comments and tweets, I've created another online world for myself where I could escape from my offline problems. I need to stop with that. I need to make the online world exception and the real world the norm and not the other way around. I will try to write fewer posts, comments and tweets. I will try to do more things offline. The obsessive twitterer is not the real me. That's not who I am. And especially I'm not someone who would annoy people. That's why I sincerely apologize to those who were annoyed by my tweets. I'm truly sorry. I don't know why I was so obsessed with having more hits on my blog. It's just had to peak in this nonsense and make me realize how much I've changed. I'm so glad that people told me and I'm glad I realized I had to stop after two days... What if I continued with that even longer? I would have lost my face! Well, now it's 1st of June and I have the chance for a new fresh start. I also hope my allergy will ease up and that I'll do more things outside, finish renovating, going out more and meet some people and hopefully find a job. I do wanna stress that I'm very happy that I made many new friendships through blogging and tweeting and that I hope these friendships will last and evolve. I value them highly and you all have nothing to do with this, my friends. I'll still tweet you up or comment on your blog. Maybe less excessively, but you'll know I'm for real and that I'm doing fine. I also have a lot of ideas to blog about. But a post a day should be fine, maybe sometimes more, maybe sometimes less. I won't pressure myself. I just have to find some temperance, some middle ground. Now that I spoke my mind, I feel so much better. I hope things go the way I set them now and I hope that these events that have changed my life so drastically, will be dealt with and worked out. I need to become the old Nino again, the one who was happy by default and not by trying hard to appear that way. I need a break.

Thank you.

Lisa Ling is about to go public!

A moment ago I read some of Lisa Ling's (凌志慧 ) tweets that said the following (regarding her sister's trial in North Korea):

Our families have decided to go public. The girls' trial starts June 4, we must get the message of diplomacy out. We'll start with the Today Show Mon morning, Larry King, Nightline Mon night. Anderson Cooper during the week as the trial begins. Please help us spread the message.

Thank you

Finally. I respect the family to decide what's best to do in this situation. But eventually the media has to start talking about this sad case. Quiet diplomacy is good, but recent North Korean behavior prooves it didn't work. And poor Laura Ling and Euna Lee will be used for propaganda by the North Koreans rather than some leverage for the negotiations. Seems like they're going nuts. They're challenging the world's patience and threatening the world peace and it looks like they're preparing themselves for war. Gates' comments made me a little worried when he said it was not a crisis and no additional troups would be deployed. I hope he lied. I hope that's tactics and behind the scenes USA, Japan and South Korea have a good plan to take down the evil Kim Jong-il down, if he decides to start a war. In I really hope it won't be necessary, because millions could die and we could forget the case of Laura and Euna. Who knows what these nut-cases in North Korea are willing to do to show how ruthless they are.

Breitling Chrono Colt Superquartz

Here's one of my favourite Breitling watches: The Chrono Colt (Superquartz) from the Aeromarine series. I like watches with chronomat. I think it makes a watch look more professional. And this eye candy has one of the best movements in the world. The unique Superquartz (which you find only in Breitling watches, some of those are Aerospace, Airwolf, Emergency and Colt Quartz.) It has a thermocompensated quartz crystal that adapts to the variosu climates and changes in the outside temperature. That makes the watch extremely accurate (Breitling says 15sec +/- a year, while some other sources say the difference is less than 10 sec a year). That's some of the best there is on the wristwatch market. So, if you're into accuracy (like me), this watch is definitely for you. The battery lasts 2-3 years (similar to Airwolf, but less than the Colt Quartz, which lasts about 8 years). It has a calendar between 4 and 5h, which makes it unique among Breitling watches and easy to distinguish. The water resistance is 200m. Everything else is a well known Breitling quality and design. If you wear this watch, it's really obvious that it's a Breitling and it's definitely an eye catcher. You can get a new one for about 2000 euro, maybe more, maybe less, depends on how good you bargain. This watch is definitely on my list, it's more affordable than the Airwolf and still a great watch. If I have the chance, I'd pick this one first. Great watch!

[Photos: Source]

Was ist der Sinn des Lebens?

Mein Sinn des Lebens ist Menschen zu bekheren. Nein, ich bin keine Pastorin und ich bin auch keine Moralistin. Ich bin eine normale Frau, die an einem Zeitpunkt ihres Lebens ihr Kind verlor und mit dem Verlust des Kindes zerbrach auch die ganze scheinheile kleinbürgerliche Welt. Es gibt keinen gott! Es gibt keinen Almächtigen und Barmherzigen, es gibt nichts außer des Menschen unendliche Dummheit, Phantasie und Machtbegehren. Es gab keinen gott 1938, es gab keinen gott 1945 und es gab keinen gott 2002. Seitdem ich meine Augen geöffnet habe, liegt mein Sinn des Lebens so vielen Menschen wie möglich durch die gleiche befreiende Erfahrung ihre starke Vernunft mit dem schwachen Herzen zu ersetzen und zugleich das Herz viel bewußter zu entfalten und sich der Vernunft mit größerer Gewißheit und Stolz zu bedienen. Mein Leben ist in der Realität angekommen.

My meaning of life is to convert people. No, I am not a pastor and I am also not a moralist. I am an ordinary woman, who at a certain point of her life lost her child and with this loss the whole fictitious smalltown world was shattered as well. There is no god! There is no almighty and merciful, there's nothing but the human stupidity, phantasy and the thirst for power. There was no god in 1938, there was no god in 1945 and there was no god in 2002. Since I opened my eyes, I found my meaning of life in the effort to give as many people as possible the same liberating experience of replacing their weak heart with the strong reason and at the same time letting their heart unfold more consciously and being proud and confident to rely on reason. My life arrived in reality.

[GERMAN version and Eng. translation by Silke W., her website of choice]

Useful Chinese phrases: Make her melt more

This is part two of my make the girl melt series. These phrases are more advanced and it'll take you some more time and effort to learn them and memorize them. So take your time and use the simple ones I published before. These are for stage two, when you cracked the ice and you want to say some more complicated (read cheesy) things to your lovely lady. I don't know, if Chinese girls really fall for this kind of sweet talk, but it certainly won't hurt you. ;-)

4.0 Make her melt more

我有事要告訴妳。
我有事要告诉你。
Wǒ yǒu shì yào gào sù nǐ.
I have something to tell you．

我沒見過像妳那麼可愛的女子。
我没见过像你那么可爱的女子。
Wǒ méi jiàn guò xiàng nǐ nà mo kě ài de nǚ zǐ.
I have never seen a girl as cute as you.

我永遠不會離開妳。
我永远不会离开你。
Wǒ yǒng yuǎn bù huì lí kāi nǐ.
I will never leave you.

我永遠不會傷害妳的感情!
我永远不会伤害你的感情!

Wǒ yǒng yuǎn bù huì shāng hài nǐ de gǎn qíng!
I will never hurt your feeling!

我要永遠和妳在一起。
我要永远和你在一起。
Wǒ yāo yǒng yuǎn hé nǐ zài yī qǐ.
I want to be with you forever.

我可以問幾個問題嗎？
我可以问几个问题吗？
Wǒ kě yǐ wèn jī gè wèn tí ma?
May I ask some questions?

妳想要我做什麼？
你想要我做什么？
Nǐ xiǎng yāo wǒ zuò shén me?
What do you desire me to do?

我們能永遠在一起嗎？
我们能永远在一起吗？
Wǒ men néng yǒng yuǎn zài yī qǐ ma?
Can we be together forever?

我們之間的關係有沒有可能更進一步？
我們之間的關係有沒有可能更進一步？
Wǒ men zhī jiān de guān xì yǒu méi yǒu kě néng gèng jìn yī bù?
Is there a possibility that the relationship between us could progress further?

我能成為你的男朋友嗎？
我能成為你的男朋友嗎？
Wǒ néng chéng wéi nǐ de nán péng yǒu ma?
Can I be your boy friend?

錯過的機會永不再來。
错过的机会永不再来。
Cuò guò de jī huì yǒng bù zài lái.
A lost chance never returns.

不要讓我等得太久。
不要让我等得太久。
Bù yāo ràng wǒ děng dé tài jiǔ.
Don't keep me waiting long.

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Useful Chinese phrases: Make her melt

Here are some of my most important phrases when it comes to learn Chinese. It's those sweet words to make a Chinese woman smile. These are simple phrases, very easy to learn. These phrases are very simple and probably understood in every Mandarin-speaking region. Keep in mind that Traditional Chinese still uses 妳 for the female "you", while simplified usually doesn't distinguish and uses 你 for both genders. Good luck with making your Chinese beauty melt:

3.0 Make the girl melt

寶寶, 寶貝。
宝宝, 宝贝。
Bǎobǎo, Bǎobèi
Baby, darling

甜心。
甜心。
Tián xīn
Sweetheart

美女。
美女。
Měi nǚ
Pretty girl

我愛妳。妳愛我嗎?
我爱你。你爱我吗?
Wǒ ài nǐ. Nǐ ài wǒ ma?
I love you. Do you love me?

我愛上妳了。
我爱上你了。
Wǒ ài shàng nǐ le.
I'm in love with you.

妳讓我開心。
你让我开心。
Nǐ ràng wǒ kāixīn.
You make me happy.

我愛慕妳。
我爱慕你。
Wǒ àimù nǐ.
I adore you.

我要妳。我需要妳。
我要你。我需要你。
Wǒ yào nǐ. Wǒ xū yào nǐ.
I want you. I need you.

我(很)想妳! 妳想我嗎?
我(很)想你! 你想我吗?
Wǒ (hěn) xiǎng nǐ. Nǐ xiǎng wǒ ma?
I (really) miss you. Do you miss me?

(請)吻我! (請)抱抱我!
(请)吻我! (请)抱抱我!
(Qǐng) wěn wǒ! (Qǐng) bàobào wǒ!
(Please) kiss me! (Please) hug me!

妳真漂亮。妳很美。
你真漂亮。你很美。
Nǐ zhēn piàoliang. Nǐ hěn měi.
You are very beautiful.

妳很性感。
你很性感。
Nǐ hěn xìnggǎn.
You are very sexy.

妳很可愛。
你很可爱。
Nǐ hěn kě ài.
You are very cute.

妳很好笑。
你很好笑。
Nǐ hěn hǎoxiào.
You are very funny

妳很棒。
你很棒。
Nǐ hěn bàng.
You are great.

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Did Susan Boyle freak out?

I was a bit shocked when I saw Susan Boyle, the singer who came to fame in the show Britain's Got Talent, freak out like a mad man. I was watching the last episode of Prison Break, where she played an inmate in a female prison. Someone started a fight and accidentally bumped into her when she ate. She became furious like there's no tomorrow. Why did she freak out like that? (See photos below!) Is now her clean image gone?

Actually no... :) That's an actress that I found and she's really a Susan Boyle look-alike, ain't she? I don't know where I get these connections and why I make posts like this one. I guess I am a bit 'loco'.

[Photo aboveby PA: Source, Photos below: Screen caps of PB final episode]

Useful Chinese phrases: Do you speak Chinese?

There are 2 names for spoken Chinese language in Mandarin. The most common is 漢語 (hàn yǔ), overseas Chinese and those in Malayisa and Singapore use 華語 (huá yǔ). Here are some phrases regarding speaking Chinese that I found really useful. I learned them by heart and I suggest you learn them, too. It's not that difficult. Have a look:

2.0 Do you speak Chinese?

你會說漢語/英語嗎?
你会说汉语/英语吗?
Nĭ huì shuō hànyǘ/yïngyǘ má?
Do you speak Chinese/English?

會一點點。
会一点点。
Huì yï diăn diăn.
Just a little.

我喜歡漢語。
我喜欢汉语。
Wŏ xĭhuān hànyǘ.
I like Chinese.

我學漢語一個月了。
我学汉语一个月了。
Wŏ xǘe hànyǘ yï gè yué le.
I've been learning Chinese for 1 month.

噢!太好啦!
噢!太好啦!
Ò! Taì hăo là!
Oh! That's good!

那在漢語裡叫什麼？
那在汉语里叫什么？
Nà zài hànyǘ li jiào shén me?
What's that called in Chinese?

"Hello" 在英語裡怎麼說？
"Hello" 在英语里怎么说？
"Hello" zài yïngyǚ li zĕnme shuō?
What does "Hello" mean in English?

"Friend" 在漢語裡怎麼說？
"Friend" 在汉语里怎么说？
"Friend" zài hànyǘ li zĕnme shuō?
How do you say "Friend" in Chinese?

我漢語說的不好。
我汉语说的不好。
Wŏ hànyǘ shuō de bù hăo.
My Chinese is bad.

我需要練習漢語。
我需要练习汉语。
Wŏ xǖyào liànxí hànyǘ.
I need to practice my Chinese.

什麼! 再說一遍!
什么! 再说一遍!
Shénme? Zài shuō yī biàn!
What? Can you say it again?

請記下!
请记下!
Qĭng jì xià!
Write it down please!

我不懂!
我不懂!
Wŏ bù dŏng!
I don't understand.

我不知道!
我不知道!
Wŏ bù zhī daó!
I don't know!

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Useful Chinese phrases: Introduction

This post will teach you some basic greetings, sayings and follow up questions. My examples will be mostly in this order: 1 Traditional Chinese characters, 2 Simplified Chinese characters, 3 Pinyin 拼音 (Romanization) and 4 English translation. As you may have heard or learned, Chinese is a tonal language, it has 5 tones, of which 4 are pitched and one is neutral or 'toneless'. How to pronounce them you can learn here. Those tones marks are seen in the pinyin Romanization.

1.0 Introduction and basic phrases

你好/您好!
你好/您好!
Nĭ hăo! / Nín hăo!
Hello! / Hello! (polite way)

你好嗎/您好嗎?
你好吗/您好吗!
Nĭ hăo ma? / Nín hăo ma?
How are you? / How are you? (polite way)

我很好, 謝謝。
我很好, 谢谢.
Wǒ hěn hǎo, xiè xiè.
I'm fine, thank you. ("很好" means "very good")

不客氣./不謝。
不客气./不谢.
Bú kè qi. / Bú xiè.
You're welcome. (in reply to 謝謝 thank you)

不好意思。
不好意思.
Bù hǎo yì sī.
Excuse me. (when passing by people on bus for example)
I'm sorry. (when you cause inconvenience to others)

對不起。
对不起.
Dueì bù qǐ.
Sorry.

沒關係。
没关系.
Méi guànxì.
It's ok. / Never mind. / Don't bother.

你叫什麼名字？
你叫什么名字？
Nĭ jìao shénme míngzì?
What's your name?

我叫寧諾。
我叫宁诺.
Wŏ jìao Níngnuo.
I am Nino.

很高興認識你。
很高兴认识你.
Hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.
Nice to meet you.

你從哪裡來？
你从哪里来？
Nĭ cóng nálĭ lái?
Where are you from?

你是哪國人？
你是哪国人？
Nĭ shì ná guó rén?
What nationality are you?

我是從斯洛文尼亞來的。
我是从斯洛文尼亚来的.
Wŏ shì cóng Sīluòwénníyà lái de.
I am from Slovenia.

我是在斯洛文尼亞出生的。
我是在斯洛文尼亚出生的.
Wŏ shì zài Sīluòwénníyà chū shēng de.
I am born in Slovenia.

我是斯洛文尼亞人。
我是斯洛文尼亚人.
Wŏ shì Sīluòwénníyà rén.
I am Slovenian.

我在台灣。
我在台湾.
Wŏ zài Táiwān.
I'm in Taiwan.

你住在哪裡？
你住在哪里？
Nĭ zhù zài nálĭ?
Where do you live?

我住在台灣。
我住在台湾.
Wŏ zhù zài Táiwān.
I live in Taiwan.

你在哪裡工作?
你在哪里工作?
Nĭ zài nálĭ gōngzuò?
Where do you work?

我在台灣工作。
我在台湾工作.
Wŏ zài Táiwān gōngzuò.
I work in Taiwan.

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Learning Mandarin Chinese series

I went through my drawers today and saw all my old notebooks from the time I was enthusiastically learning Chinese. I was thinking why not publish some of the stuff I learned. It may not be the best Learning Mandarin course you'll find online, but I'll supply you with some nice useful phrases. It's good if you already have some knowledge of Chinese, at least the basics, because I won't go into all of them thoroughly and explain every detail. I'll focus on the useful phrases.

I remember when I started dating a Chinese girl, I wanted to impress her with some lovely Chinese phrases. And I kept googling and browsing the internet to find something useful. It was not easy - it took me a lot of time and effort to get what I want. But I still keep some of these phrases on various Word.docs or even in notebooks. Later when I stayed in Malaysia, I bought various language guides and dictionaries. I'll give you some nice examples from that books as well.

I also have to say, I learned a lot from my girlfriend and from her family. Especially the kids taught me a lot, because their Chinese is not so advanced and they mostly talk about the usual every day things. A lot of times I heard same phrases every day. I asked the kids to tell me how it's pronounced properly. Then I wrote it down in pinyin (romanized Chinese) and memorized it. Once I learned it, I could strike a simple conversation with the kids, mostly about food or who's going where or coming back when.

And the last thing that really helped me was my Nokia E66 that my Chinese sisters bought for me. I can use Chinese signs (converted from pinyin) and I messaged with my ex girlfriend and her sisters many times in Chinese. Maybe I'll post about how to write a Chinese text message some time in the future. Until then, let the fun begin. Let's start from scratch.

[Photos by MKL, 2009]

Apakah arti hidup?

Selama hampir 24 tahun kehidupan ini, hidup adalah keluarga. Sebagai manusia, keluarga - orang tua adalah pengalaman pertama akan cinta tanpa dasar. Dimana orang tua dan saudara sekandung mencintai diri kita apa adanya, seberapa jelek pun rupa kita, betapa hancurnya kepribadian kita, bahkan cinta mereka tak akan luntur karena nilai raport yg kebakaran atau separah apapun kemampuan kita untuk jadi shopaholic, workaholic, ataupun holic-holic lainnya. Jika hidup adalah sebuah lukisan. Keluarga adalah warna dasar. Biru untuk lautan, hijau untuk rerumputan, dan merah untuk sang mentari. Kemudian adalah teman-teman yg kita kenal dari kecil. Pertama kalinya kenal bagaimana caranya berempati, berbagi, tertawa, bermusuhan. Masih ingatkah dengan masa kecil tak bernoda itu? Masih ingatkah perasaanmu ketika bertemu mereka yang dulu untuk pertama kalinya berbagi sepotong kue dari ibu guru di sekolah? Bagaimana perasaanmu ketika bertemu mereka sekarang dan mereka masih menyambutmu dengan tawa ceria walaupun wajah itu sekarang berkerut, berminyak, dan berjerawat, ataupun penuh dengan guratan tajam kehidupan. Warna warni manis dalam hidup. Mereka adalah warna biru tua pada ombak di lautan, hijau kebiruan pada laut dangkal, bahkan semburat kemerahan di langit senja. Lalu, teman-teman yang datang dan pergi dalam kehidupan. Ya teman sekolah, teman kuliah, teman di tempat ibadah, teman di teater, dan teman-teman lainnya. Mereka juga ambil bagian di lukisan hidup, ada yg menyenangkan seperti burung kecil yg terbang ke cakrawala, sampai yang menyebalkan seperti jembalang di tengah sawah. Tapi intinya, tanpa mereka, lukisan hidup gw ga akan ada isinya. Hidup adalah cinta, persahabatan, dan perjuangan untuk membahagiakan orang-orang yang kita cintai. Dan yang terpenting, jangan pernah kehilangan dirimu sendiri dalam hidup, betapapun sulit dan berlikunya jalan hidupmu. Karena dengan mengenal dan mencintai diri sendiri lah kita bisa selalu kembali ke mereka yang kita cintai. Kenalilah dirimu, maka kau akan tahu apa yang ingin kau lukis dalam hidupmu.

For almost 24 years in my life, life is family. As a human being, family - parents are our first experience in having unconditional love. Where parents and siblings will still love us the way we are, no matter how ugly you looked like, or how awful your personality is. Their love won't vanish just because of your report card blazing red or how capable we as a shopaholic, workaholic, or any other holics there are. If life is a painting, family is the base colors. Blue for the ocean, green for the grasses and red for the sun. Then, the friends that we've known since we're small. The first time learning about empathy, sharing, laughter and enemies. Can you still remember the innocence of that childhood? Can you still remember the feeling when it was the first time they shared their piece of cake from the teacher with you? How do you feel when you meet them now, years afterwards and they still embrace you with the same happy laughter even though those faces are now wrinkly, oily, or even being decorated with acne or grieves of life. They are the sweet colours of life.. They are the dark blue in the deep ocean, greenish blue in the shallow waters, even the reddish glaze in the afternoon sky. Then, the friends that come and go in life. Friends in school, in college, the one that you meet every sunday for church, your community friends, and others. They are also the part of this painting of life. Some are fun and beautiful like the birds flying on the horizon, some are very irritating and annoying like the gnomes in the field. Life is love, friendship, and the struggle to make our loved ones happy. And the most important thing is not to ever lose yourself in life, no matter how difficult and twisted your lifeline is. Because by knowing and loving who we are, then we can always go back to the people that we love. Know yourself, then you will know what you paint in life.

[INDONESIAN and English by Selvy, her blog The World With No Together]

Renovating our house (part 2)

Yesterday was a busy day for me. I was renovating our old house again. I want to show you some progress I made in the recent weeks. It's not yet finished, I have multiple things left unfinished, because sometimes I run out of paint or cement, sometimes I'm lazy, sometimes I have a bad allergy and have to be inside. Anyway, things are heading towards completion. Yay. So here are some snap shots of the stuff I did:

1 I had to sand down the old wood with emery paper. Took me like 15 min, the wood was old and had some sticky rasin. That was harder to remove, but I did it eventually.
2 You can see the recently sown grass popping out. I had to bring a lot of fresh soil to make the terrain even and nice. Once the grass is thick and nice, it'll be a nice lawn.
3 New coat of paint, I used a dark varnish (palisander color), because dark color looks better on old wood. And it really looks like new.

4 That's the pavement I've been working on for many weeks. The hardest was to dig out a long thin hole for the curb stone. Then putting all the curb stones in (it's like 20m long), add cement to make it firm. Then put a lot of sand in the whole area and the paving stones on top. Now I need to sweep some fine sand inbetween the rifts to make it complete.
5 The whole area where I put a lot of new soil on top and sown grass.
6 We added some new white stones on the road, made it even and strong.

7 I filled the hole in the wall. There was an old window, which I smashed. My grandma used to have chickens there some 20 years ago. I wanna clean up the whole place, from outside and inside. It's not yet finished.
8 You can see, I covered the old bricks with rough coating. I will cover the whole wall like that, make it even and in the end paint in white.
9 I built this fence, because my mum was afraid that deer will come into her garden and eat her bushes and roses. They really do that. The worst are the roebucks, who destroy small trees with their horns. We had this accident a week ago, that's why I had to build this fence. Yesterday I made the door (on the right). Today I want to paint it with a dark varnish as well.

Ok, that's it for now. I have to say, I worked whole afternoon yesterday and there was moments where I lost my patience. I hit my thumb 4 times with a hammer and every time it hurt more! So annoying. I cursed like a Serbian shepherd. During sawing, I scratched off some of my skin on my index finger. That hurt! Ouch. And last but not least, my hands were all full of varnish. At first, I was careful while painting, my strokes were very careful. After a while, I lost patience, wanted to finish faster and created a mess. Well, that's how I am. Not very patient. I like things to be done fast. Ok, more to come in the next days and weeks.

[Photos by MKL, 2009]

North Korea launches nuclear missiles

And what are we hearing from the media and politicians?

Harsh words - denouncing - threat to stability - warnings - concerns - act of defiance - options - latest development - Pyongyang - Chinese propose dialogue and negotiations - 6 party talks - framework - UN Security council - tougher resolutions - frustrations - sanctions - influence NK behind the scenes - strong statements - offering - commitment - reciprocate with commitment - action from United States - what can we do? - stern action - special crisis task force to deal with the threat - new diplomatic push - what happens now? - dilemma - statement from the White House - the data - blatant - grave concern - recklessly challenging the international community - Brown condemned the test - isolation - analysis - security breach at Buckingham palace.

IT'S JUST WORDS WORDS WORDS!
NOTHING BUT WORDS!

As usually, nothing will happen! No action, no change! A big fuss for nothing. And the old evil Kim will laugh today, when he'll take a crap and read the newspaper reports on the international reaction to his missile test. He's mocking the whole world and noone does anything. G8: You're pathetic!

Ideas, Ideas, Ideas

Ideas, duh! Where are your ideas, people? Be original, be consistent, get over yourselves. What I lately hear from people in my environment (oh, they're so close), is a load of... crêpe! Check your sources, check your senses. Be real. Be yourselves. I can't always pull you out of your... crêpe. I can't always be there for you when you have your brain on vacation and trying to recycle some vintage stuff and sell it as something original. It only makes you look like fools. I'm not the one who's losing his face. So, wake up already and do something on your own. I'm sick of being your crutches. I won't be anymore. Take my slippers off and start walking on your own.

She or he or it knows. Boo!

人生的意義是什么?

人生就像西遊記。前進的道路上有許多“惡”的東西分散和誘惑你。我相信我們每個人都是天使，發送到互相幫助，在直道上住宿和窄的路，直到我們達到"西"方。

Life is like Journey to the West. Along the way are many "evil" things which distract and tempt you. I believe each one of us are angels, sent to help one another stay, on the straight and narrow road until we reach the "West".

[CANTONESE CHINESE version and Eng. translation by Lai San, her Yahoo blog]

อะไรคือความหมายของคำว่าชีวิต

We're always asked about "what is the meaning of life" and we're always going back to ask ourselves what it is. In fact, in our daily life we seldom ask ourselves what "life" is. We live our lives without being concerned about the meaning of it. I'm also someone who usually doesn't ask herself what life is. However, when I get this question, I take some time to think about it and come to the following answer: No matter if my life will be a success or failure, no matter if my life will be happy or somber. It will still be my life and this is the meaning of my "life", because in life we are born to learn, we are faced with various feelings and experiences. That's how colourful life is.

[THAI version and Eng. translation by Kanchana Intarajorn, her blog kAncY's SitE]

人生的意義是什么?

人生 - 人要活生生.

If people want to have a life, they need to be alive.

[MANDARIN CHINESE and English by my dear friend Cherry Lai, her MSN space blog]

Ano ang ibig sabihin ng buhay?

Para sa akin, hindi ko talaga alam ang ibig sabihin ng buhay. Madaming tao sa mundo nato ay nagtatanong rin nito pero di nila pa-rin masagot. Baka ang dahilan kung bakit tayo ay nandito sa mundo nato ay dapat wala talagang sagot. Baka ang buhay natin ay ang sagot sa tanong nito, yung ginagawa nating araw-araw, kung paano nating ginagalang ang iba, at ang mga modo na palagi nating kinakayang isunod. Pwede rin na wala talagang tunay na sagot sa tanong nato. Baka ano ang gagawin natin sa ating buhay ay ang sagot o baka may posibilidad na tayo ANG sagot.

What is the Meaning of Life? For me, I really don't know the meaning of life. There are a lot of people in this world that also ask this question but they still can't answer it. Maybe the reason why we are here in this world really doesn't have an answer. Maybe our life is the answer to this question, what we do each day, how we treat others, and the virtues that we try to follow. There can also be no real answer to this question. Maybe what we do in our lives is the answer or maybe it's possible that we ARE the answer.

[TAGALOG version and Eng. translation by Rica Nolasco, her blog Embrace The Laughter]

The Meaning of Life series

Yesterday just before falling asleep, I was thinking about some new ideas for my blog. I got the idea to do something interactive and in many languages. Since I know people from all over the world who speak various languages, I thought why not ask them one question and let them answer in a blog post and in their own language. I was wondering what that question could be? It had to be something universal, something that connects all of us as humans. And I finally came to this question: What is the meaning of life for you? Just tell me what comes to mind when I ask you that question. It is not simple to answer. It takes time and a bit of thinking. It should be something around 5 sentences. I sent this request to various people and I hope they will respond and write their answers in their native languages. In the end, I will write about the meaning of life in my own native language Slovenian. If you read this post and you want to participate, feel free to tell me. If the language you speak, is not yet covered, you will be free to represent your language. Let's see what's the meaning of life for you.

[Photo: Source]

Renovating our house (part 1)

Today in the morning, we continued with the cleaning our house. This year my grandpa died and my mum inherited this big house where we already lived before. But now my mum owns it and we can finally remove all the things my grandpa liked to keep. Before he would not allow to clear up anything. And now, after 40 years of gathering everything it's literarly tons of trash to throw away. Luckily we have a guy from the neighbouring small town, who has a pick-up and for some small money, he comes over and helps us with whatever we need, be it driving away trash, bringing sand and cement and some other things. We're cleaning and renovating now for almost 5 months. It's so different than before and in my future posts I will put up some before and after photos of various projects I finished. Now there's a lot of things unfinished. Sometimes it's my hayfever preventing it, sometimes I'm lazy or sick of it, then again it's too hot or rainy. Nevertheless, we still did a lot, especially in March. Now I'm fixing the road and trying to make a pavement, a fence, paint all the old doors... Seems like just few things, but it's a lot of work. But somebody has to do it. Let's hope I have enough motivation to finish all that.

[Photo by MKL, 2009]

In the beginning man created god

New atheist bus campaign will be soon launched in Indiana and
Chicago (USA). I like the ad:

In the beginning man created god.

[source] Sometimes simplicity is the best way to approach complex
things and make people think. Hope this campaign will be a success.

Hot Chinese girl at the temple

Because some people always need to look good

I browsed through my old photos of my stay in Malaysia. I was there during Chinese new year. The celebrations last for 15 days and we went to various temples many times. I noticed that the local Chinese girls really dress up sexy when they go to the temple. I saw many beauties there and managed to snap a photo of one. She was there with her boyfriend and a bunch of other people. That was in Segenting, a fish village near Batu Pahat.

"Do I look good before I enter?"

"Wait, let me clean my shirt."

[My MALAYSIA page][My BATU PAHAT page][All photos by MKL, 2009]

The ultimate Asian women by nation clash

My post about Alexis Sy Go, Miss Manila, had many comments from various people discussing wheather she's beautiful or not. As always, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and people have all kinds of preferences, so we can't say who's wrong and who's right. That's why take this post lightly, because this is pure tabloid stuff. I give you to choose from few of my favorite Asian countries. Each will be represented by a beautiful girl of my choice. This is like Miss World Pageant, hehe. Just for fun, k ;-)

Here are the contestants:

Representing Japan: Riyo Mori (森理世) [born 1986] She was Miss Japan 2007 and eventually chosen Miss Universe 2007. A classic beauty. Uberhot sex appeal some say.

Representing South Korea: Honey Lee (이하늬) [born 1983] She was Miss South Korea 2006 and representing Sounth Korea on the same pageant like Riyo Mori, the Miss Universe 2007. She was the 3rd runner up. She's clearly very sexy and one of my all time classic beauties.

Representing China: Zhang Zi Yi (章子怡) [born 1979] She is a world famous actress. And here she's not only representing China, the country, but all other countries and states with Chinese population (Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia). Zhang Zi Yi was nude on a beach once!

Representing Vietnam: Tianna Ta [born 1981] She is not a very known model, but she definitely looks beautiful. Vietnam was for a long time a secluded society. Only in recent years it's opening up and we can see, how beautiful women are there.

Representing Thailand: Bongkot 'Tak' Kongmalai [born 1985] She is a famous Thai actress. She clearly strikes everybody with her beauty, doesn't she? There's a nude photo by Ai-Fak.

Representing Philippines: Valerie 'Bangs' Garcia [born 1987] She's a Philippine actress and famous for being a cover girl for Maxim and FHM. Sexy hottie, don't you think?

I hope you enjoyed this light post for your amusement. Happy voting :-)

Batu Pahat: Memories of my 2nd home

I dedicate this post to all the nice people I've met during my stay in Batu Pahat, Malaysia (2008-2009)

I miss Batu Pahat. I want to dedicate this post to this Malaysian mid-sized town in the state of Johor in the southern part of Malaysia, where I stayed 3 months and to all the people who made my stay there an unforgettable experience.

Batu Pahat - first encounter

Batu Pahat is not a beautiful town at first glance. But it grows on you. I remember when I first came to this part of Malaysia (in 2007), I was a bit shocked. I came from Penang, the so called Pearl of the Orient, one of the most beautiful Malaysian cities. I drove 9h from to Batu Pahat on a bus and reached there in the early morning. I was all groggy and sleepy. It was one of the toughest rides in my life. In the early morning Batu Pahat looked like a ghost town to me. Wide streets with run down facades, it seemed dirty and neglected. It was so different from any other Malaysian town I saw before. I only stayed 2 days there, so it couldn't really grow on me. At that time I was in love with Penang (but that's another story I may post one day).

Batu Pahat - second encounter

And then came 2008 and my second visit to my girlfriend's hometown: Batu Pahat. I spent 3 months there, although I didn't know at first how long I'll be staying.
So at first, I had same feelings about Batu Pahat. I felt lost, had no orientation. Batu Pahat has no real centre of town, but many small ones spread all over the place. It seems as a small town, but it actually has around 150.000 inhabitants in the town area (if you include the suburbs 450.000). When I found out about that, I thought that's a lot of people for such a seemingly small town. It has even more inhabitants than our Slovenian capital Ljubljana. But I never heard about Batu Pahat before, it is not very well-known. Not even in Asia. But currently it's one of the fastest growing Malaysian towns. That's certainly true, because I could see a lot of progress since my 1st visit in 2007. They put new asphalt on the all main roads, but most of them have no sidewalk. Batu Pahat sometimes looks like an American town in the Midwest with wide (and not pedestrian-friendly) roads, that are only made for cars. And that's another thing typical for Batu Pahat. People only walk in shopping-malls. Everywhere else they're driving - either in cars (mostly Chinese) or on motorbikes (mostly Malays).
And now we come to the best thing that Batu Pahat has to offer. People. (Second one would be food). There's a lot of Chinese there, maybe 40%-50%, that's why you'll see a lot of shops, as the the Chinese traditionally have small businesses, while the Malays work in factories. Chinese in general in Malaysia, have a higher standard of living, better salaries, drive cars, send their kids to private (own Chinese) schools and go to the private hospitals. Besides that modern Chinese usually have 2-3 kids, while Malays can have 5 or more. Chinese overall make 1/3 of the Malaysian population, but in future that may change. Regardless of the race, I always encountered friendly people in Batu Pahat. I didn't have so much contact with Malays this time. I did go to some Indian hawkers that had very delicious food. Yea, as I said before, food is the second best thing in Batu Pahat. Well, most of the time I was in a Chinese environment. I lived in a Chinese family, everywhere I went was Chinese, in shops, cafés, hair saloons... Chinese have everything for themselves. Only policemen, construction workers and factory labour are predominantly Malays or Indians.

Batu Pahat - being in a Chinese environment

So, there I was, in this Chinese environment in Batu Pahat. I saw almost all shopping malls and temples. My girlfriend drove me around whole town, I saw everything. And one day I even walked. When I came home, my girlfriend's mum was really worried, because I was probably the only white guy walking in Batu Pahat and she was afraid that I could be a possible target for some muggers. People there are always afraid of criminals. Luckily I never experienced anything bad, I felt safe all of the time.
The best part of my Batu Pahat experience was the Chinese new year. I was never part of such a wonderful celabration. I met so many people, my girlfriend's relatives and friends, I visited so many places during that time. It was awsome. I even collected many red packages with money inside (angpao) given to visitors during Chinese new year for good luck. I made many new friends and I was a great 'uncle' to my girlfriend's nieces and nephews. They all loved me. And I loved them. They were sometimes unbearingly naughty, but then again, so many times they wanted to play with me, talk with me, they shared their stories, shared their food with me, even bought ice cream for me. That's why I want to write a little something about them.

Michelle (Ah En) - a special bond

I really miss Michelle, she's a 11 year old niece of my girlfriend. We had a special bond. She was not always very liked by everyone. She has a sad story of a neglecting father and mother. So maybe she brought up some fatherly instincts in me, but her story touched me. She opened up to me and loved to spend time with me, even taught me some Chinese, while I helped her with her English. She's a very loving girl, that just seeks attention by being naughty. If you spend time with her and if you show her that she's appreciated, she will give you love and affection in return and even tell you she loves you. It was a very touching moment, when 2 weeks before I had to go back, she would come to my room and tell me:"Uncle Nino, you have to go back to your country soon. I will miss you." And the more the day of my departure was coming closer, the more she reminded me how she'll miss me and how she'll cry when I go. It was tough to leave. I remeber the last few days she was so nervous, even calling me when I went to cinema with my girlfriend: "Uncle Nino, what are you doing? Are you coming home soon?" So cute and unexpected. I guess she really liked me. Even now, she would sometimes send me a text message.

Bubuleh - everybodie's darling

Besides Michelle, there was her little sister, the 2 years old Bubuleh (her nickname). She was such a cute little Chinese girl. Very smart for her young age and already a strong character. She would surprise people sometimes. I remember one moment, when my room's door was open and I was doing something on my laptop sitting on the floor. I said: "Bubu, lai la. Wo yao ni de bao bao!" (Bubu come, I want your hug). She was obviously headed somewhere or to someone, but suddenly stopped, came in my room and hugged me and then went back to where she was headed. What a touching moment. She loved to stay in my room. She loved to touch all the things and ask: "Zhe ge shi ni de?" (Is this yours?) "Zhe ge shi si yi de?" (Is this fourth aunt's? - her fourth aunt was my girlfriend). I always had to tell her: Don't touch, this is mine or fourth aunt's. Then she would let go. One day when she was in my room, she suddenly said in English: "Uncle Nino, I love you." Someone taught her this phrase, but who knows if she understood what she was saying, but it was so unexpected and cute, that I won't forget that. Her Chinese was better than mine. But I could communicate with her. Sometimes she would take my hand when we walked in the shopping mall or I would carry her. She was as light as a feather. But she also had a bad side. When she was moody, she could be very stubborn. She would start crying instantly if she didn't get what she want. Well, regardless if thatm the cute side prevailed.

Ah Teng and Vivian - the other two kids

Besides Michelle and Bubuleh, I have to mention Ah Teng and Vivien. They are brother and sister and Michelle's and Bubuleh's cousins. Ah Teng is a 7 years old boy and can be very naughty. He's sometimes hyperenergetic and can't stand still, but he has his moments when he's very calm and polite. He loves to play games. Vivien is the shy 12 year old, but she looks much younger. She's smart and her English is excellent. I could communicate in basic English with her normally, which was helpful many times, as she would be the translator between my girlfriend's parents and me. I liked her temper, it was usually very calm. Only if she felt she was treated unjust, she could show some hot temper. I think she will be a very successful girl later. And I miss her and her brother a lot, too.

Jie Fu - the pub and snooker buddy

I also have to mention my two buddies, Jie Fu and Kenny. Jie Fu is the first sister's husband, Kenny is second sister's husband. I went out with Jie Fu a lot. His English was not as good as Kennie's, but we could communicate and have fun. And he treated me ALWAYS! Never saw such a generous person in my life. Wherever we went, pub or snooker, he would always pay, even if I begged him not to. He said: "When I'm in your country, you treat me." I remember we went to that Soho pub, where you usually order beer in small buckets with ice cubes. Usually there's 4 Tiger beers inside (0.33 bottles) and it's quite expensive. I think it was 50RM for 4 beers (10€). We went there early, maybe around 8, it was almost empty. So the waitresses, who were Malay or Chinese, were dressed up in skirts and high heels and they would come to you, open the beer bottle and pour the beer for you and also chat with you. I remember I met a Malay girl named Anna. We chatted about her life and where I'm from and what I'm doing in Malaysia. It was a nice conversation and her English was great. Unfortunately I never met her again. I think she was 30+. Later the pub really got crowded and people danced and drank, the music was awful though. Mostly some dance or trance and too loud for my taste. You couldn't talk, only scream into each other's ears. I remember I really got wasted at that time and even danced with one girl: Ah Jia. Jie Fu called one of my girlfriend's sister and she came to the pub with her friends and introduced me to Ah Jia, she's around 19 years old Chinese girl. She loves to dance and she kept pulling me to the dance floor. I guess I was wasted enough and gave in. But in the end it was fun, I won't forget it (btw, Ah Jia got pregnant few weeks ago and is now married... That goes fast sometimes). Another time me and Jie Fu went out was an outdoor bar with some karaoke screen where people would drink and sing. You have a lot of these places in Batu Pahat. Jie Fu and me were early there and a Vietnamese girl sat at our table, looked mid twenty, with high heels and skirt and spoke perfect Chinese. So Jie Fu talked with her and she asked about him and me and some other things. I forgot her name. But she was really talking a lot (and lying as well, as Jie Fu noticed). She kept pouring our beer, I could make one sip and she poured some more. My glass was always full and I really don't like when they do that, but it was my first experience of that kind, so I just let it be. She loved that kuaci (a seed, eaten like peanuts in the West) and while she was talking, she kept eating it all the time. When there was more people coming to the bar, she had to leave. After she returned, she said she wanted to play a game. She brought two dices and said if the number is even, I have to drink, if the number is odd, she has to drink. Of course she drank our beer, but we didn't mind. I liked to compete and it was fun at first. I lost many times and had to drink a lot. Suddenly her luck changed and she had to drink a lot. I saw on her face that she was not very pleased with that. She went to tend another table and soon after that, we left. Besides pubs and bars, we would love to go play pool billiard or snooker. He was a very good player and it was many times very even. We played until 4 wins, it was usually 4:3 either for me or him. It was a lot of fun. I miss hanging out with him. That was my great time with Jie Fu.

Kenny - the thoughtful friend

Kenny is different. His English is excellent and we would sometimes talk a lot about everything: about Malaysia, about life, about movies and gadgets, business and family matters. He invited me to two cultural events. I saw the best dragon dance in my life and many other excellent performances. Kenny is a very deep and thoughtful person, a mix of modern and traditional Chinese. The one who's proud to be Chinese in general. And he loves movies and American series like Prison Break and 24. I remember few days before I had to return to Europe, we went to the movies with him and his wife (the second sister a.k.a. Er Jie) and saw Underworld 3. It was not a bad movie, but more of a special effects flick than something plot-driven. Anyway, I had a nice time with Kenny.

The father - cared like a real father

The third male person, that really liked me, was my girlfriend's father. I couldn't hang out with him, because he mostly spoke hokkien (a Chinese dialect) and I spoke English. So we used sign language or sometimes he would say few words in English and surprise me. He's an almost 60 year old Chinese man, he's very skinny and loves to be shirtless, because it's so hot. That's why his skin is dark brown (almost like Malay). He loves to smoke and drink coffee. Since I like coffee, too, he would always make some for both and just bring it to me or he'd invite me out for coffee. Aside from that, he'd bring me fruits and sweets and food and drinks. He would always offer me something, even bring me somewhere out to eat. People sometimes said we were like 'chicken and duck'. It's a Chinese saying, implying that 2 people spend time together who don't speak the same language. Anyway, if I'd speak some of his language, I'm sure we could bond more and have some conversations. I remember when I got sick around new year, he would always check on me, if I'm ok, if I need something. That showed me that he really cares about me. Even if sometimes was hard to tell him that I wasn't hungry or thirsty, I still thought better a possible father-in-law that cares too much than too little. He was also the initiator of the big surprise the sisters staged when they bought me the new Nokia E66. I will never forget, how he gave me the Nokia in a box and I was totally astonished. Since I wanted to buy it with my own money, I didn't expect that they will surprise me with a farewell present of that kind. That's still unforgettable for me and thank you all and special thanks to the father who had this idea.

The Chinese sisters

And now to the female part. My girlfriend had 7 sisters! No a single brother. Then it's no wonder that it was sometimes loud and messy, but if they didn't argue, it was tons of fun. I really felt that all of them became my sisters, from the smallest (Xiao Mei, 17) to the eldest (Da Jie, 30). I had fun with most of them. The ones who spoke English were easier to approach for me. Among them were Da Jie, the big sister and Ah Wen, the 7th sister.

Ah Wen - the funny sister

Ah Wen is 19. I really like her. She's the most funny of all the sisters, her English is sufficient to have a nice chat. And she's a very warm and approachable person, who loves to chat. It was the easiest for me to ask her, if I needed something. She would always bring me some food from the hawker. I don't know who payed, but I'm sure she treated me many times, although she didn't have a job and was usually short on money. I wanted to giver her the money for the meal, but she always rejected it. I remember when I ask her: "How come you always bring me food?" she replied: "You are my future bro-in-law, you are part of my family, so it's normal that I will do that." That was very touching for me. I know she will be very successful. She's pretty, very outgoing and smart. She dreams of being a stewardess, but wasn't lucky so far. I hope her dream will come true. I'd be so happy for her. I miss her a lot. She is still texting me sometimes and I'm very happy about that.

Da Jie - the big sister

Besides Ah Wen, there was Da Jie, who chatted with me a lot. Her English was just enough to communicate. Even though she struggled with it, I always felt very comfortable talking to her. She's a warm person as well. She had 2 kids (now already 3) and is married over 12 years. She's the big sister and I can understand her role, since I am the big brother to my two sisters. She cares about everybody. She likes to be involved. Some didn't like that, but to me she was always very kind and would always help me, be there for me. I really like her. I remember we had many conversations during some trips in the car. That was fun.

Xiao Mei - the little sister

The other sisters weren't fluent in English so much, that's why I couldn't communicate with them as much as with Ah Wen and Da Jie. I could ask something in Chinese and would understand their answer, but was hard to have a good conversation. Regardless of that, I knew they liked me. There was Xiao Mei. She would be my guide when we went to temples or shopping malls. If I wanted to buy shoes or pants, she would be my girlfriend replacement. She would help me out find stuff and telling me if it looks good. She's the 'slow sister'. She likes to enjoy everything slowly and her sisters tease her that she's too slow and lazy. She loves to watch TV, mostly Taiwanese shows and reading Chinese novels. She's very cute and popular with everyone.

Ah Ling - the 6th sister

The 6th sister, Ah Ling, is 21. She has a boyfriend who would always drop by at the house, his name is Ah Juan. He's a very funny guy. They mostly spend time together. She was the one, who rarely spoke with me, because she was shy to speak English, so I really didn't get to know her until Chinese new year, when we played a lot of mahjong together. She opened up and I think she's a very nice girl.

Ah Juan - the second funny sister

And then there's Ah Juan! She is the one who can be very loud and funny, usually both at the same time. The first days she was a bit reserved towards me, but she soon warmed up and I had a lot of fun with her, especially when we played mahjong during Chinese new year. One time we played almost all night and she and Ah Wen were so funny, that we were laughing out loud in the middle of the night, while other's were sleeping. That was some crazy time I won't forget.

San Jie - the third sister

Then there is the 3rd sister, San Jie. She's Michelle's and Bubuleh's mother. She didn't live at home anymore, but she would visit a lot. She didn't speak English, but she treated me food many times or invited me out. Thank you for that, I won't forget. She had the Nokia E66 and when I saw it, I checked it out and decided that this is the cell phone I want. And in the end I got it, thanx to all the sisters (read this post). Amazing.

Er Jie - the second sister

The last one of the sisters is the 2nd sister or Er Jie. She is the tallest and skinniest of all of them, but also the loudest. She really has a hot temper I never saw before. You have to experience it to see what I mean. She's Kennie's wife and sometimes I really felt bad for him. But on the other hand, he was really a lucky man, because when she was happy and relaxed, she was such a sunshine and fun to be with. She really has 2 sides and you better stay away from her when she's under stress. She fetched me and my girlfriend from Changi Airport, when we returned from Hong Kong and she also accompanied us to Kuala Lumpur airport when we left. I remember I snapped a photo with her when we waited for my plane back to Europe. She's a nice girl and I wish her well.

The mother - a great mom

I have to say something about my girlfriend's mom. She's really such a dilligent hard working woman you'll seldom meet anywhere. She has a small food stall that keeps her busy every day. She cooks for everybody, cleans the house, washes and irons. And everybody loves her, especially her grandchildren. She is a traditional Chinese woman, but she allows her daughters more than the father. She's the centre of the family. When the girls have problems, they would come to her and tell her what's on their minds. She would never tell or gossip, she would listen and advice. And the girls really love her for that. She is such an amazing lady. She always cooked such a great Chinese food, which I really miss. She always looked after me, asked me if I needed something. She would just ask me in Chinese and when I learned some more, I replied in Chinese as well. Even if we had communication issues, I always felt welcome. Thank you, auntie. I miss you.

A great girl

And to round up my Batu Pahat experience, I have to write something about the girl whose family hosted me, the girl who was the reason I came to Malaysia, to Batu Pahat. She is now my ex girlfriend, but I am not used to this ex when I'm talking about my time in Batu Pahat. She was my girlfriend at that time and that's why I dropped the ex until here. Well, if you follow me on my blog, you have noticed we broke up recently. Nevertheless, that won't tarnish my fond memories of that time. It was one of the best times I ever had and I'm really thankful to you. You are a great girl and I always had tons of fun with you, when I was there. You were busy a lot, but when we had some free time, we mostly enjoyed it. I won't forget our happy days and unforgettable nights, our trips to KL, Singapore, Hong Kong, Genting, Kluang and Muar... We really had many ups and few downs, but it won't change how I feel about this time: I feel happy and filled with unforgettable memories for life. That's why I had to let these emotions out here on my blog. Whatever will happen in the future, whichever direction our lives will go to, I will always cherish this time, our time, and everything that I recieved. I felt being part of a big family. At least once in my life I was that lucky. This gave me strength for the future. All the kids and all your sisters, who liked me, gave me something money could never buy: love, care and true friendship. I can't thank you enough and I can't tell you enough how much good luck I wish to you and to your whole family, to the all of the people I've met and learned to like and appreciate. I miss you all very much. 谢谢你们!

[My MALAYSIA page][My BATU PAHAT page][All photos by MKL, 2008/09]