HAPPY EID MUBARAK!!~

Mini Raya cards for my students..hehe..

Finally is Hari Raya!!~the day all my muslim friends are waiting for. After a month of fasting, it is time to celebrate!~haha.this raya is special for me as i got the chance to experience the festival with a Malay family, where i helped out during the eve of Raya and also on the first day of Raya.

My lecturer, Tuan Haji Muslim (who happens to be the one who interviewed me in Kuching before i went in UTM) invited me over to his house in Taman Perling. At the same time, his wife, Puan Nor Azian happens to be the Excellence Teacher of Biology of Sekolah Tun Fatimah where im currently doing my practical.haha.What a coincidence right? Actually, both of them invited me to their house.so i went over around 10am that Tuesday morning.

Guess what?

Since is my first time to Taman Perling and my lecturer's house, so i waited him at a Petronas station in the neighbourhood to come out and lead the way.Then, i felt something, so i came out of my car and checked. Yea, rite. A flat tyre!!~gosh...this is my first time for the sem to meet my lecturer and he changed tyre for me.hahaha..what an experience! finally, we managed to replace it with the spare tyre and drove to a nearby shop to repair the flattened tyre.Got a nail stucked in the tyre which caused all these.Luckily is just that nail and after the mechanic fixed it, my tyres are in good shape now.(just imagine, i may be driving a flat tyre for that past few days..=.=")

My super flat tyre...

finally, i reached his house.It was a really nice cozy house. I was greeted by his three daughters and two sons.(actually four daughters,Nurul; Akmar; Syazmin; Munirah; Amin & Hafis..=) the eldest one was at work at Singapore that day) everyone got job to do.the daughters are baking cakes, chocolate cakes!!!the elder son (now in Form 3) was asked to do his revision as PMR in just a matter of days after raya!!~while me and the youngest son (now 10 years old..very cute guy!) helped my lecturer with the ketupat..haha...seriously, i made them!! after done with around 70 ketupats, we started to fill in with the rice (just above 1/3 full will do) =) and then, boil in hot water for 4 hours!~ thats how you cook ketupats!~

Making the ketupats

After that, i also helped with the rendang and the sup tulang. i cut the vegetables and onions for tomorrow's cooking, ayam masak merah and lontong.haha.the house is filled with raya mood.im glad i was invited to join the family and helped out. it was fun and really warm to be around.hehe.thanks to my lecturer and teacher.we worked until almost 7pm and got ready for the break of fast.at around 7:02pm, dinner is served.=) i went back UTM after the dinner.

I slept like a baby that night. It was raining heavily and i was tired after a whole day of standing and helping out.haha.It was such a nice sleep.

the next morning, is RAYA!~since my lecturer asked me to reach his house around 9am, so i woke up before 8am and got ready.reached his house and had my "breakfast"~gosh..heavy breakfast!haha.but is a tradition to have ketupat and rendang for the breakfast on RAYA day.i had the ayam masak merah also.very delicious and spicy.then my lecturer came back from the mosque after the morning prayer.the colour theme for their raya this year is BROWN!~so everyone is wearing brown baju kurung and baju Melayu except me and the youngest son.haha..he wasn't in time to buy or make his clothes as he studying in one of the boarding school in Kelantan and me, no brown baju kurung. the nearest colour i get is ORANGE!~haha...

behind: Amin/Syazmin/me front: Munirah/Hafiz/Pn. Nor Azian

From left: Munirah, Akmar, Syazmin, me & Hafiz

before we go out to the neighbours' house for house visiting, my lecturer has a tradition which they practise every year with the family.my teacher told me they will "raya" with the family first. that is when they ask fr forgiveness from each other and show respects to the elders in the family.and i have the pleasure to be the camera girl to videotape down the event. it was really nice to see husband and wife, holding hands together, asking forgiveness and understanding for all the things they have done, father and daughthers & sons sharing thoughts ( hugss and kisses to his daughters and sons, Tuan Haji Muslim really showed his love to his children), mother and daughters & sons, sisters and brothers...im really touched to see the strong bond of family and the close relationship among them.It is a good practise and i admire them.Family is everything and the most precious of all.nothing will be a problem if we face it with our family.Tuan Haji Muslim showed me a good example of the meaning of family.=) really made me miss my family too narh...

well, after that, is house visiting!!~ we walked in a group to the neighbours' house. the auntie served us with her special sambal and ketupats and pulut. there's also rendang, curry and even Laksa Johor!~I never tasted Laksa Johor before so it was new for me..haha...it tastes very different from Laksa Sarawak (nothing close to Laksa S'wak actually...) and i think im still more into Laksa Sarawak!~haha..=p

Akmar, Hafiz and me...
Akmar is such a pretty girl and she's getting married this November!~

The brothers and I

My morning was well spent with house visiting and not forgetting, i got green packets too!!~haha..so nice of my teacher and the neighbours to give them to me...hehe...happy!~=)

Green packets!!!~

i stayed until 2pm and then thanked them for their hospitality and all the food.after that, i headed to my mentor's house ( also a teacher from STF) which is near to UTM. she served me with lotsa homecook too and everyone was delighted to see me. I went to her house once to help her with one of the Majlis Doa Selamat for her mother.so the family kinda knew me and was happy to see me again.hehe.she has three sons, Danisq; Zulhin & Zuki. haha.very cute boys.the eldest is only 8 years old.i stayed until around 430pm and thanked them before i leave. I was really full!~haha..but i really did enjoyed myself!~ too bad, my friends werent around, or else i can have companies to go house visiting together.

My day did not end there!~ haha..my friend, Louis who is working in Pekan Nanas finally having his holiday and asked me to join him for a movie. we went to Tebrau City Jusco to watch "EAGLE EYE" premier!~it was a good movie!~2 hours with actions.hehe.you guys should go watch for yourself~

that's my raya day!~after the movie, reached my room before 12am...wow!~ what a good day!~hehe..now, my one week holiday is almost half-way, i think today will be a day-off for me after all the rendangs and ketupats...haha....

Good day my friends!~take care and enjoy your raya!~ cheers!~=)