Day 3 - Trip to Malaysia - LANGKAWI Island

I had mixed emotions on my third day in Malaysia. I was sad because it was my last day in Alor Star and it's time for me to say goodbye to my friend Esther. She will also fly back to Finland on the 8th and I'm not sure if we will ever see each other again after this.(sigh)

Anyway, on our last day, I ate lunch with her and Jermo's family in a Hongkong resto. Evelyn was kind enough to be with us as well.

huge bottle of iced tea no? and it's super sarap!

the newly wed wearing the couple shirt given by Ken!:-)

Evelyn drove us to Jetty, thanks for everything dear! :-)

our last hurrah! hehehe

Inspite of sadness, Jade and I left Alor Star with excitement as we travel to Langkawi Island.This is a side trip and stress reliever for both of us.We love exploring and going to the beach. Wohoo!!!

We arrived an hour and a half later at Langkawi's Jetty and headed straight to AWANA BEACH RESORT. The place was really nice! I enjoyed the set up and basically the whole ambiance. Grabeeeee!!!! eventhough I was very tired already, I still had the energy to join Jade to the beach.

AWANA BEACH RESORT

the view infront of the resort
sunset
We went to Cenang beach and we were very disappointed that the water is not clear! booo!!!

After the beach, we went to visit the nearby shops to get some souvenirs!

nice hotel no! mukhang OLOPPS nga lang! hahaha

At dinner we took more pictures of the resort. It was really a very nice place and the food was great too!!!

si Jade, dalaga na! hahaha

my tago moment in Langkawi! hehehe
this is where we had dinner!

feeling photographer lang! hahaha

dinner is served! yum, yum!

I will never forget what Jade did this night. I badly needed a password to get connected to the Internet and in this resort, they will only allow you to get connected if you order a drink. And so, I did order but I didn't check carefully. When my order arrived, I took a sip and I knew from the taste that there's alcohol in it. A little later I found out that I actually ordered a cocktail drink with Vodka! hahaha :-) I'm so sorry, I didn't know! And since I don't really drink any liquid that has alcohol content, Jade took it (Sayang daw kasi 'yun money!hehehe) Guess what happened a few minutes later? Her face went so red and I couldn't speak with her sensibly anymore. NALASING ANG LOLA ko! hahaha wawa!

Day 2 - Trip to Malaysia - The Wedding Ceremony

It's Day 2 of my Malaysia Trip, the D Day! The very main reason why I actually went to Alor Star is because of my dear friend's wedding. Esther and Jermo's love story is truly an inspiration to me.Can you imagine how this "Finnish Guy" fell in love with this "Chinese Girl?" Allow me to share it with you.

Esther was selling photocopying machine to one company in Malaysia when she saw this guy Jermo. At that time, Jermo was sent by F-Secure Finland to Malaysia for a short work assigment. As common practice in the business world, Esther gave out her business card to people in that said company including Jermo and had a quick chat with him. At one point of their very casual conversation, Esther asked until when he will be in Malaysia and Jermo said 1 more day and he'll go back to Finland. Esther followed up with, "have you been around?" and Jermo said no.Esther then asked if he wants her to tour him around the next day as she finds it too bad for him not to even go around Malaysia before he leaves. Jermo said yes, and that's where it all began..............

My gosh, time and again, their love story assures me that if married life is for me, my prince charming will come and NO ONE can ever stop him. hahahaha

the bridal car! (yes, indeed! hahaha)

the groom and his family starting to do the task as part of tradition

It was my first time to witness a Chinese Wedding and I tell you, I enjoyed the whole ceremony. There was a chasing game for the groom. Jermo together with his bestman and family members were asked to do some "tasks" before the groom can even have the bride. It was followed by all sorts of other rituals like giving of "ang pau", respect to elders, praying with incense, eating, exchange of vows and rings, picture-taking etc.It was such an interesting and lovely experience.

one game the bride made for his groom

how sweet!!!!


throughout the ceremony, respect to elders was very evident
the groom's family with the couple

the bride's family


It's me while my friend teases me with her bouquet! hahaha funny!
my favorite shot!

Congratulations to my dear friend Esther and Jermo! May you have a wonderful marriage life ahead of you!

THE WEDDING BANQUET

Held at STAR CITY HOTEL, Jade and I were very excited! But as much as I want to relax and enjoy the food and the whole celebration, I couldn't help but feel so uneasy because I was asked to sing. My CD didn't really work well with their sound system but by God's grace, I managed to get through my number. It was my first time to sing in a large crowd after how many months, whoa what a night!

Jade and I ready to go to the banquet!

my gosh, my friend is very pretty!!!!!

esther's niece, so cute!!!!
ako naman pa-cute! hahaha

evelyn and moi!
I can't believe how addict my friend is for pictures. Imagine, after the very tiring and long event she went to my room and asked for more pictures together. Grabeeeee!!!!! :-)

kuleeeetttt di ba? hehehe
ang sexy! di ko kinaya si esther! hehehe

I WILL TRULY MISS YOU MAH!!!! THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WONDERFUL MEMORIES!

LUV YAH! :-)

Day 1 Trip to Malaysia - Esther's Dinner

It was a very exciting day for me. I travelled to Malaysia to attend the wedding of my chinese friend Esther. Actually, it was more of an adventure for me and Jade because we didn't exactly know where to go. Thanks to Ken who lend me his Malaysian sim card so I can call when I needed help and to woon chun's map. hehehe thanks men!

We left Singapore at 6:10am and was in Kuala Lumpur by 7:10am. We took a bus going to KL Central to visit Petronas Tower. My friend Jade was very insistent in going there and so I accompanied her.We took some pictures but didn't go up anymore because there were a lot of people lined up and we really needed to be in Alor Star by 7pm the latest.

PETRONAS TWIN TOWERS

a view from the train station

the city: Kuala Lumpur at noon time
jade and I at the bus on our way to Alor Star

We took a bus going to Esther's place.It took us 7 hours to get there! My gosh! We were so tired, sleepy, and messed up when we get to Esther's dinner but nevertheless, we managed to still take a quick shower and made ourselves presentable. It was so nice to see her again after 4 long months and I finally got to meet his husband! She grew thinner but nevertheless still very pretty and sexy! my oh my!

above: Jade, me, Esther and our new found friend Evelyn
below: Jermo (esther's husband) and his family

After dinner, our new found friend "Evelyn" toured us around Alor Star. First she brought us to a Telecom Tower.Located in the heart of Alor Setar, this tower is a prominent and modern landmark that signifies the rapid development in the state of Kedah. It functions as both a telecommunications tower and a tourist attraction. From the top, one can enjoy the sensational view of Alor Setar.Too bad we got there past 10pm so we didn't get to go up. Sayang! huhuhu
Then we went to ISTANA ANAK BUKIT. Istana actually mean "palace" and Anak Bukit is the name of the area. Istana Anak Bukit is the royal seat of Kedahan Sultan. It is the largest palace in northern Malaysia. Located at a royal town of Anak Bukit, this palace complex consists of Residential palace, Balairung Seri, Balai Pertabalan and a football field (Sultan Abdul Halim, the current Kedahan Sultan is the no. 1 fan of Kedah Footbal Association or Kedah FC).This palace only opened to public when Hari Raya (muslim celebration after fasting in Ramadhan). After this Evelyn brought us to the 2nd to the largest mosque in Malaysia - Zahir Mosque. Officially opened in 1912, this state Mosque is an architectural landmark as it is one of the largest and grandest mosques in Malaysia. Built in the tradition of the Moorish architecture, it has numerous arches and columns that are an epitome of grandeur. The state of Kedah's annual Koran reading competition is held in the premises of the Mosque. Then we went to one of the oldest mosque in Malaysia and pass by the very small airport of the town.

MENARA ALOR STAR (telecom Tower)

ISTANA ANAK BUKIT

Zahir Mosque - the 2nd largest mosque in Malaysia

one of the oldest mosque in Malaysia
an old clock, nice no?

The Kedah State Art Gallery was set up with the objective of fostering interest in and an appreciation of art in the state. Its collection includes paintings, photographs, musical instruments and handicrafts. Temporary exhibitions are held at regular intervals.
This building was the earliest modern government office that was built in the town of Alor Setar. Its construction was spearheaded by Muhammad bin Lebai Tambi, an architect from the Kedah State Public Works Department. The construction of the building began on 21 January 1893, and he was also responsible for the restoration of the Balai Besar building.
This modern building with eastern and western architectural elements was initially the High Court and was officially opened by Sultan Abdul Hamid Shah. This building was closed to make way for the special entertainment hall for very important people during the wedding ceremony of His Royal Highness's five princes and princesses which lasted for three months (June until September 1904).
In 1912, a number of offices were located here such as the office of the His Royal Highness's Sultan, the treasury and audit office and the British Adviser. In 1914, most of these offices were relocated to the Wan Muhammad Saman building. The building was later occupied by the Public Works Department and the Department of Drainage and Irrigation. In conjunction with the celebration of the Silver Jubilee of the reign of HRH Tuanku Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah, this building was converted to the Balai Seni Negeri (State Art Gallery) which was officiated by His Royal Highness on 25 July 1983.

Balai Seni Negeri (State Art Gallery)

There were not much to do so at midnight we went to Star City Hotel where we checked in co'z that's where the wedding banquet will be as well.Esther dropped by to our room before she went to sleep. I showed her the video I made for her and I tell you she was laughing and crying at the same time! Crazy! hahaha, She also enjoyed and was very thankful for the couple's shirt given by Ken and the "ang pau's" from us and woon chun.

Esther while watching the video
the mah and me! :-)
the mah enjoying our gifts to her
Me, Jade, Esther and Jermo