Rebirth of An Istiqamah Attempt : My 4th Solo Trip to Seoul, South Korea @ My 35th Birthday!

2019 is all about my spiritual revelation. My birthday was on 1st June 2019 and that marked my 35th years of age (Gasp! Haha!). So, I wanted it to be a very spiritual event and coincidentally, it was during Ramadhan and school holidays. Initially, I was aiming for Perth but being an eleventh-hour person, I was hesitated took my own sweet time to deliberate the decision. But the price kept increased and finally circa 2-3 weeks prior to the date, I make the decision to book the ticket and saw that the price was more or less the same with South Korea’s. Since entering Australia is quite tedious with its rigid documentation and all, I decided to go for Seoul (although I wasn’t particularly horny about it!) and since Kat is now based there, perhaps I could also pay her a visit, no?

From Alor Setar’s ETS Station to KLIA2 Tune Hotel on the 30th May 2019.

The journey wasn’t the typical tourist-y; it was just a brief spiritual one. I also had that thought of spending my Eid there but Kakak wasn’t keen on the idea. She told me that Ayah and Mak would definitely feigned the nonchalant reaction but they would definitely not be happy if I wasn’t there especially since Kakak and her family would spend the 1st Eid at Pahang. So in the end, I opted to go for 3 days 2 nights.

The Incheon Airport, Korea. Futuristic-styled of architecture.

School holidays commenced 5 days prior to 31st May 2019. I went back to Jitra, Kedah first to spend Ramadhan with Mak and Ayah. Then on 30th May 2019, I took the ETS from Alor Star to KL and spent night at KLIA2 Tune Hotel as my flight was scheduled at 6.30 a.m. so I needed to be at the airport approximately 3 hours earlier (to be on the safe side!). On whole, Tune Hotel was a comfortable lodging recommended for travellers! It was a 6 hours journey and I arrived at Incheon Airport circa 3.30 p.m. Initially I was contemplated to rent the pocket WIFI but after finding out that I needed to pay US200 as deposit (RM1000) from various blogs, I thought I would simply rely on the public internet WIFI – after all, it was only for 2 nights! Haha!

My lodging for 2 nights at Seoul, The Hamilton Hotel. Cozy, comfortable and strategically-located at Itaewon.

The best thing about Seoul in comparison to Perth is that the former is hassle-free in terms of documentation than the latter. A Malaysian simply need to fill in the visa-upon-arrival (make sure all the particulars and the address of your lodging at Korea is accurately stated!). Being the klutzy me, I am prone to be reckless in all these stuffs but apparently, the experiences of travelling with Kakak all these times and seeing her managed the documentations somehow rang some senses in me to prepare at least a legible itinerary prior coming to Seoul, Korea. Once I passed through the immigration, I purchased the T-Card which is more or less like our Malaysian Touch ‘N’ Go card – it can be used in every transportation; so it is advisable for a tourist to get it. The T-Card is around 4,000 won (RM20) and you then, you can top up the card according to your need. Since I was going to rely heavily on the card, I put approximately 60,000 won (RM200) for the card and I could refund the money back once I am to leave Seoul.

I’ve been waiting for the right weather to wear this Brook Brother’s coat. Well, although it was summer in South Korea, fortunately it was 21 Celsius on the day I arrived. So, I had legit reason to wear this. LOL!

Since it was during Ramadhan and a spiritual journey, I decided to lavish myself so the lodging was not really a cheapskate accommodation (unless if it was for a tourism mission, being cheapskate is a must! Haha!). I booked 2 nights at Hamilton Hotel due to its strategic location; just a stone-throw away from Itaewon Metro Station and not that far from the Mosque – which is my main reason of visiting Seoul. So, from Incheon Airport, I took :-

• Airport Express (There are two types; I took the All Stops, coloured in blue) from Incheon to Gongdeok (approximately 5,000 won or RM21);
• Seoul Metro Station Line 6 from Gongdeok to Itaewon (approximately 2,000 won or RM7).

I arrived at Hamilton Hotel circa 5.30 p.m. It was really a comfortable place with good WIFI – but of course quite pricey for a budget traveler like me; approximately RM350 per night. But it was all worthy! I received WhatsApps message from Kat that the Malaysian community there was having an Iftar and an invitation was extended to me. Initially I was a bit hesitated but in the end, I thought why not, right? At least I could see how the Malaysian community in Seoul interacted and witnessing the lives of our Malaysian diaspora abroad somehow is intriguing – this would be the second time I am to experience such interaction – the first one was at Leeds, United Kingdom when I visited Kakak during her one year stint of Master’s Degree in 2014 and also during her convocation in 2016.

Get yourself this map and you’ll be alright!

My friend Kat is working at the Malaysian Ambassador and the Malaysian community members are mostly housed circa Hannam-dong which is merely two stations away from Itaewon. It was so nice to finally meet her and we had so much to talk about! It was surreal that I finally was at Seoul given the fact that I am not a K-pop fan and Seoul is no where in my Wishlist ever! Haha! It was an experience meeting the Malaysian community and after that hanging out with Kat as we had our night-walk from Hannam-dong to Itaewon! It was a reminiscence of our USM days when we used to have night-walk circa 2.00-3.00 a.m. (after karaokeing! Hahah! wow, life was good back then with less problems to think, no?) from Sungai Dua to Bukit Gambir! I also get to see that as a member of Malaysian ambassador, life is hectic and sometimes could be very stressful. as outsider, we only see the designation as somewhat prestigious and glamorous but the responsibility that comes with it could be overwhelming. Nevertheless with all the commotions, Kat and Francis still make effort to spend time with me and I was very touched by that.

Thanks Chica for spending time with me although you are leading sucha a hectic life at the Embassy! Hugs!

The next morning, I woke up late – right after Subuh, I slept. I was supposed to commence my itinerary at 8.00 a.m. but I woke up at 10 a.m! 2 hours late from the schedule! This was crucial as I wanted to call the day off at 5.00 p.m. so that I could have my iftar at the hotel and performed Tarawikh at Seoul Central Mosque. But anyway since this was my own spiritual free-and-easy trip, I took it as a flexible tour. My first destination was the famous Cheonggyecheon Stream; a supposed 9 km river that flows through the heart of Seoul. Used to be a polluted river, it is now a tourism spot and serves as a mind-rejuvenation haven for the people of Seoul who are definitely leading hectic lives. From Itaewon, you can go to Gongdeok and then from there, you can take Line 5 to Gwanghwamun. It was definitely a tranquil place.

Cheonggyecheon Stream.

Not far from there, you can see the Gwanghwamun Plaza where the status of the Great King Sejong is located. As I am all interested in history, I was amazed by this. Apparently, he was the one who had popularized the Korean alphabets known as Hangul and is considered as a revolutionist of modern Korea. From Gwanghwamun, you can simply walked to Gyeongbokgung Palace but apparently, I didn’t have the energy to do that so I took the metro train. From Gwanghwanum, I stopped at Jogno 3 (sam) ga and then changed to Line 3 to Gyeongbokgung. As a historical freak, this is my must-go place! If you are wearing the Korean traditional attires, you don’t have to pay the entrance fee but if you don’t, the entrance fee is only 3,000 won (RM11). Growing up, I never knew about Gyeongbokgung Palace or the Joseon Dynasty – I only knew the famous Forbidden City of China! Thus, it is somewhat interesting to discover that Korea also had its own regal dynasty and boasted such beautiful palace. Of course in comparison to China, Korean palace complex is somewhat less grandeur as Chinese influence is eminent but still, one could not help but feeling quite fascinated by the palace. It took me approximately 2 hours to complete the Palace tour.

King Sejong’s statue at Gwanghwamun Plaza. A very respectable king.

Majestic Gyeongbukgung Palace, the landmark of Joseon Dynasty. I love history!

By that time, my head was already throbbing as it was scorching hot and I was fasting. I resumed the journey to the next destination which was Bukchon Hanok Village. From Gyeongbukgung station, I stopped at Anguk Station and then I had to walk circa 1 km up the hill. Since I did not have any internet connection, the Naver application (it is like a Korean Waze) that I downloaded was useless and I had to rely on my instinct, my screenshot snaps and also direction boards! Haha! Very traditional. Apparently Bukchon Hanok Village is somewhat a hidden elevated residence located up the hill. It was tiring but somewhat therapeutic to see the traditional element blended with modernism. After that, I planned to visit the Jogyesa Temple and I had to walk passed the Anguk Station towards an opposite direction. Perhaps I was too tired and forcing myself to walk while fasting wasn’t a good idea – I was lost and before I knew, I was already 1 km away from Anguk Station and nowhere near any of the supposed landmarks of Jogyesa Temple. After wasting time for about 40 minutes, I decided to call it a quit. After all, perhaps visiting a temple during Ramadhan wasn’t a great idea? My head was throbbing and my legs were aching.

Bukchon Hanok Village. The traditional Korean settlement. I like how Korean government utilized its culture as part of the tourism attraction in the midst of the Hallyu (Korean Wave) craze!

It was already 3.00 p.m. and I also planned to visit the Myeong-dong Cathedral and Starfield Coex Mall Library. I only have two hours to spend so that I could visit the Seoul Mosque before Maghrib/Iftar as I want to make sure I know the way to the mosque to perform Tarawikh on that night itself. It was apparent that I have to ditch the cathedral (It was a shame; I am such a cultural aficionado. Perhaps, some other time?) and opted for the big library at Coex Mall. The journey itself was quite long as both locations were separated by the Han River and took approximately 1 hour to arrive :-

• From Anguk Station to Chungmuro;
• Changed to Line 3 to Seoul University of Education;
• Changed to Line 2 to Samseong.

The ridiculously enormous library at Starfield Coex Mall! Geeks and bookworms like me simply adore this view.

I arrived at the sophisticated shopping mall around 4.15 p.m. and found the amazing big library! It was surreal seeing Koreans spending time with their books in the middle of the shopping mall. Splendid! Anyway, heading back to Itaewon took me around another hour so by 6 p.m., I’ve arrived at Itaewon Station. I make my way towards the Seoul Central Mosque and after a few try-and-error, I found the mosque. It was isolated but once I entered the arch and climbed the hill, it was beautiful and a serene sight to the eyes. Located at an elevated terrace, one can see an aerial view of Seoul. Alhamdulillah, I have the opportunity to perform Asr there and I could see preparations made for the Iftar. I wanted to join but seemed like the tables prepared were quite limited and I saw a lot of Muslims were thronging the mosque – perhaps were counting on that iftar. So I thought it would be best for me to have my own iftar at the hotel because I had my own financial mean in comparison to these people who were perhaps menial workers forking their lives for meager salary. I bought a Tandoori-and-rice takeaway at a Halal shop and then back to Hamilton Hotel.

The Seoul Central Mosque, Itaewon. Alhamdulillah, I made it there on my 4th solo trip. The 1st trip to Singapore (The Sultan Mosque); 2nd trip to Brunei (The Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque); and the 3rd trip to Bangkok, Thailand (The Foundation of the Islamic Centre of Thailand). Yeay!

The view of the mosque during Tarawikh. Amazing sight to see Muslims performing the prayers together. After Tarawikh, there were drinks and sweetened desserts a.k.a. “kuih-muih” prepared by the Muslimahs.  Alhamdulillah!

It was a great experience to perform Tarawikh at the mosque. It was a clear-cut prayers of 8 Rakaat without any lengthy Doa(s). Seeing Muslims in Korea performing Tarawikh was amazing; most of them are of South Asian descents and then they were also the Nusantara people (Malaysia and Indonesia) and I also noticed some of the Eastern European features. The commotion at the mosque was festive. Children were playing while the adults were mingling with each other after Tarawikh. I went back to the hotel around 10.30 p.m. Kat and Francis came around 11.30 p.m. and they even brought the Laksa Sarawak they made for the Iftar Carnival at the Malaysian Embassy that I couldn’t attend. So nice of them, really. We chatted until 2.30 a.m. They must be exhausted selling the Laksa Sarawak but they came to me and brought me food for my Sahur? Amazing friends, they are.

Iftar prepared by Seoul Central Mosque. But I didn’t join because I thought there were other brothers who really needed them. I didn’t feel good about that because I had my own financial means for my iftar. Let the ones who need the most savoured the food.

The next morning on the 2nd June 2019, I was scheduled to fly home. Initially I thought of taking the trains but Kat and Francis were adamant to drive me to Incheon Airport by car so that I could have some landed views of Seoul. The immigration was such a breeze and hassle-free. Honestly although it was a brief stint and a solo spiritual trip, I was so touched by Kat and Francis’s effort amidst their hectic schedules. Love you both! And perhaps I would be there again with Effy, who knows? Haha! I am also happy that I make the decision to do this solo spiritual trip. This is my 4th solo trip after Singapore, Brunei and Thailand. I am looking forward for another solo adventure! Amin!

There was a Robotic Helper at Incheon Airport where you could take photo and it will be sent to your email. So we used it to take our photo! Haha! Thanks guys! Appreciate your thoughts and efforts to spend time with me albeit your hectic schedules. Hugs!

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A Tribute to My Faithful 8 Years Ride @ Goodbye Dagny Taggart, Hello Christine!

My second blog entry in 2019; 5 months after the new year! Haha! Whoa! Virtual spiderwebs all over, eh? Anyway, I can’t ignore this event which I feel like I really need to force myself to immortalize it in the blog. After 8 years, I finally bid farewell to my dear ole’ fuchsia Myvi, Dagny Taggart.

Goodbye, Dagny. You have been such a faithful friend and accomplice. So many memories throughout these 8 years, despite the sarcasm thrown by my colleagues and pupils! They were conservative ignoramus lot.

For the past two years, Dagny started to show a lot of ‘tantrums’  – so many parts to be fixed and some were starting to get loose and damaged : Brake pads, brake discs, air-conditioner, tyres, etc. I am a noob in the mechanical parts of the car and I dread of spending a lot of money to the workshops for the sake of Dagny’s maintenance. But I am a frequent traveler (off to UPM or any other parts of Malaysia!) and I need to be able to feel secure whenever I am on the road despite being the noob. So, I thought – rather than splurging money fixing Dagny; I might as well just grab a new car – and that came spontaneously like 3 weeks ago; –

• Listed down all the potential cars that I wanted;
• Went back to Kedah to have some sorts of physical scouting and test-drive sessions;
• Negotiated with Bang Lan, my father’s contacts at Alor Star Tandop (a seasoned car consultant);
• Signed the agreement with BSN;
• Sold Dagny for meager amount RM13,000 (inclusive of all the defunct parts and scratches on her body! Sigh) – well, what do you expect; a car is a liability. it is a depreciating asset! I actually had a split initial intention either to buy new apartment or a new car; although buying an apartment/house is an appreciating asset but being a single person, I don’t think I have the time to manage two residences – so for the time being; having a new ride is more suitable with my life as if for now.

4th May 2019; the last day of Dagny Taggart. This picture was taken at the highway shoulder near the Alor Setar Selatan Highway Exit. You will not be forgotten!

I have to say I had that mixed feeling. Reminiscing the bittersweet beginning of unable to accept her due to the colour fiasco (REFER to my writing dated 26th February 2011 at https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2011/02/26/fuchsiamagenta-one-of-a-kind-introducing-dagny-taggart/) and then all the memories of life with her ;-

• All the long night journeys from UPM back to Serendah and then Batang Kali during my Master’s Degree years 2014-2016;
• Travelling to the north, south and east coast of Peninsular Malaysia;
• The colourful memories with someone who used to be a significant other in my life from 2010-2017;
• Rendezvouses sessions circa end of 2017-2018.

Throughout the 8 years of service, I never had any accident – except for the expensive gasket and coolant fiasco due to ‘Ayah’ erratic last-minute checking of Dagny (He has this habit of wanting to check my car and Kakak’s car before we start our long journey back home from Jitra; it is admirable BUT, he likes to do that at the moment we announce it is time to leave – let say 5.30 a.m.; the moment we are ready to drive; that’s when he would be adamant checking them and nag, nag, nag for about 30 minutes!). I immortalized it in the entry dated 17th September 2015 at https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2015/09/27/the-car-coolant-the-gasket-my-car-breakdown-incident-km-250-7-plus-north-south-expressway/. He is a great father and I love him but nobody is perfect. As a son, I learn to weather his antics; after all, he is MY Father!

To Dagny, thank you so much!! I would never forget WUT 2185 although I heard your colour will be repainted to attract a wider spectrum of potential buyers – fuchsia or any pinkish hues are still taboo amongst conservative Malaysians! Goodbye Dagny; and welcome Christine; my HRV Honda I named after the possessive haunted car in Stephen King’s novel. 

Picture courtesy of Paultan.Org. My Christine is an HRV Honda Passion Red. 

Goodbye 2018, Hello 2019 : The Year of Spirituality & Epistemology @ 2019.

Today is 1st January 2019. I am writing this piece of entry at my class 4 Bayu in SK Serendah. This year I am 35 years old (although of course, I still have another 6 months to be a legit 35 years old but I guess it is better to acknowledge that and embrace that. Haven’t y’all heard Hermione Granger (in the movie) or Dumbledore (in the novel) said “Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself”?); also it is my 9th year to serve as a primary school teacher; and my 5th semester in my PhD journey. I am looking forward for another tremendous life journey in 2019 but of course 2018 was somewhat a year of Savoir Vivre! Just as I predicted a year ago, 2018 was indeed an “experiential, varicoloured life” (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/01/27/myn-2018n-ressoolutions-the-year-of-savoir-vivre-the-experiential-varicoloured-life-good-childlike-gone-bad/).

So, a 35 years old, huh? My hair is whitening. Haha. It is God’s gentle reminder that I am no more a youngster. Who am I kidding? Have to embrace the fact. 

Looking back, there are of course ups and downs throughout 2018. For personal associations, I admit that this year was somewhat an experimental year for me. I am no saint and neither an angel. The wanton alter-ego was a domineering persona and I admit I had fun to commit all that “persuasive games”. To be entangled with those who are already in legit matrimonial relationships – would that make you a harlot? But well, it takes two to tango. Nevertheless, I intend to cleanse myself in 2019. This year, I am going to treat my body as my temple. Hopefully, I can be “istiqamah” on that. Amin.

As for PhD journey, I am quite nervous. After meetings with my lecturers, there have been so many drastic changes. Only early this March (my second Committee Member Meeting) after 4 semesters that my lecturers decided studying Angelina Jolie’s speeches would not resonate strong academic contribution as opposed to other credible speakers, for example Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/04/09/my-22ndd-research-committee-members-meeting-the-phd-research-diverged-rhetorical-criticism-focus-group-discussion-approach-goodbye-angelina-jolie-hello-dr-mahathir/). So you could imagine the topsy-turvy situation! I have to re-unearth the possible research angles as well as the possible speeches to be analyzed. On top of that, my writing is still quite amateurish and non-academic as it lacks “critical thinking” values. Sure, I have a lot of citations but those are meant to be peripheral statements as opposed to the “critical analysis.”

I passed my Comprehensive Exam!

Nevertheless, of course if I were to rant on my “self-criticizing” moments, that would be endless, no? On the contrary, I do have good points throughout my PhD journey this year. For example, :-

• I’ve managed to ace an “A” in my Advanced Qualitative Research Methodology subject (which I thought was freaking difficult!);
• I’ve presented a paper in 12th Biennial Convention of the Pacific & Asian Communication Association (PACA) 2018 in Universiti Malaysia Sabah at Kota Kinabalu, Sabah (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/07/12/suunn-sea-studyyy-sabahhh-my-virgin-communication-convention-12th-biennial-convention-of-paca-2018-universiti-malaysia-sabah-ums-the-spontaneous-island-experience-manukan-island/); and
• I’ve also passed the dreading and difficult PhD Comprehensive Exam which comprises Oral and Writing tests (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/08/15/4th-semeester-shaahrills-rrror0oad-to-phd-passing-the-comprehensive-written-oral-exams-acing-advanced-qualitative-research-methodology-exam-presented-paper-at-first-communication-conve/)!!

Before entering the examination room! I was nervous!

I also managed to get an “A” for my Advanced Qualitative Research Methodology.

When I reminisced that all these were achieved as a person who pursues PhD while working full time – I am quite satisfied and feel that I need a pat on my own back. I should minimize that sense of “self-criticizing” and starts to focus on the positive sides rather than dwelling in the negativity. Looking back, I feel “-

“Hey, not bad for a person who has to juggle time working full time and on top of that, being entrusted with quite heavy responsibilities at working place, no?”

With the Philippines’ delegates.

I presented a paper in a convention. I guess it was OK for my virgin experience as an amateur who also work full time while pursuing PhD.

As a school teacher, I have been entrusted with a few heavy responsibilities throughout 2018. Usually, a teacher is to teach only one core (UPSR) subject to the year 6 pupils but I didn’t know why that the school had asked me to teach both English and Science?! This meant that in comparison to my other colleagues, I had to put double effort to :-

• attend the weekend additional classes almost every week (since Science and English are in separate weeks; English+Malay slotted for 1st week whereas Science+Mathematics on the 2nd week);
• school holidays programmes (Kem Menjawab Soalan Peperiksaan);
• UPSR Gerak Gempur activities (Permata, Berlian, Champion, whacchamaccalit)

My 6 Samudera 2018 pupils. Great kids. I am going to miss y’all.

And on top of that, I was also chosen to be the class teacher for Year 6 Samudera. I am the only teacher in the school who was chosen to be the class teacher and also to teach 2 core UPSR subjects!!! Being the class teacher for Year 6 means that there are tonnes of documentation stuffs you have to settle for your pupils as they were about to migrate to the secondary school – so you have to attend to their :-

• testimonials;
• the “Sjil Berhenti Sekolah”;
• health books;
• teeth cards;
• counselling profiles;
• immunization papers;
• their Dana Tahun 6;
• the NILAM records, etc. 

I have to be honest. It was suffocating. And I felt like the school didn’t show any mercy towards me although they know that I am pursuing PhD which is a total different game than degree or Master’s degree (I am not being pompous but that is the truth). But since the school revoked my post as the PIBG Treasurer 2017, I accepted the new posts as token of gratitude. It was an unspoken “barter” / give-and-take” common sense. But it wasn’t easy. But indeed in the end, I am glad that I accepted the challenge. My 6 Samudera pupils who are the “academically-abysmal” lots did their best in UPSR. There were only 5 pupils with all Es (6E) in comparison to the previous year in 2017 with 8 6Es. So, in a way, this helped the school’s percentage and I am glad that my pupils tried their best. Certainly going to miss them as I have been their class teacher since 2017. Overall, it was a fruitful year as a teacher for me.

During announcement of UPSR results.

I also had the opportunity to travel twice to Thailand this year. The first one was to Phuket with my sister’s family and the other one was my spontaneous solo trip to Bangkok. I didn’t even had the time to blog about my Bangkok trip! I went there after Aidiladha just to experience the Islamic culture there. I booked the renowned Islamic hotel al-Meroz and went to the nearby Bangkok Islamic Centre which I first saw in Mizz Nina’s Instagram account. As a historical freak, I also went to the Grand Palace and really, it was a mind-blowing experience and I felt like Anna Leonowenns! I also made new friend on the way to Suvarnabhumi Airport. I am proud of myself for doing this.

Exquisite Grand Palace at Bangkok!

Islamic Centre of Thailand. Subahnallah! Great place.

At Patong Beach, Phuket with my sister and my two nephews. My brother-in-law arrived a day later.

So, what’s up with my new year resolutions? I have fulfilled 90% of my 2018 resolutions as per below:-

1. To solidify my PhD journey – Yes, I got an “A” for Advanced Qualitative Research Methodology; I presented a paper in conference and I passed my PhD Comprehensive Exam!;
2. To give my best as a teacher – I managed to help my pupils to reduce the number of 6Es candidates and helped to boost the school’s percentage;
3. To read 6 celebrated books/novels – I didn’t achieve this. I merely read 5 celebrated books according to my Goodreads account (“Natrah : In The Name of Love”; “Rosemary’s Baby”; “Robert Kuok : A Memoir”; “Empress Cixi : The Concubine Who Launched Modern China” and “Billion Dollar Whale”.)
4. To participate in 3 running events – I didn’t achieve this! Did not participate any running event at all!
5. Travelling @ Wanderlust (Domestic/Abroad) – Went to Thailand, twice!

So for this year 2019, what are my goals? I intend to :-

1. Publish an article & accelerate the progress of my thesis ;
2. To excel as a teacher (Class Teacher of 4 Bayu, Ketua Panitia Pendidikan Moral & Ketua Penasihat Bulan Sabit Merah Malaysia) ;
3. To read 5 celebrated books/ novels;
4. To travel @ wanderlust – or perhaps visiting Makkah again for Umrah? Goodness knows;
5. To dedicate more time with my parents ;
6. To be a better Muslim by cleansing myself from any vile attractions.
7. To participate in at least one running event.

On whole, I hope to become a better version of myself this year and to be a better Muslim. I think it’s already enough fooling around with all the experiments. It is time to cleanse myself and draw myself closer to spirituality and piety. So, 2019 is going to be the year of Spirituality & Epistemology. Amin.

Amin, hopefully 2019 will be the year of spirituality and epistemology for me. 

4th Semester @ Shahrill’s Road To PhD : Passing The Comprehensive Written & Oral Exams, Acing “Advanced Qualitative Research Methodology” Exam & Presented Paper at First Communication Convention.

Alhamdulillah, I’ve passed the dreading PhD Comprehensive Exam (CE), which is one of the UPM requirements for PhD candidate to graduate!! According to the UPM rules, CE must be taken by the 5th semester; so, taking this CE in the 4th semester validates that I am still on the track. BUT of course, it was not bed of roses. I have to deliberate and juggle the time here and there to make it work – and now everything’s over, I am kinda relieved, for a while. It was quite mind-boggling as the CE comprises both Written and Oral parts. For the Written, the three supervisors will each give the PhD candidate a question with the sub-questions (Method, Theory and Rhetoric – since I am doing that!) and the PhD candidate needs to compile these answers into three separate booklets with pages no more than 10-15 pages. After corrections are made, the Oral session will be held where the candidate to be quizzed orally on their knowledge; more or less a precursor to viva.

To pass the Comprehensive Exam (CE) is a requirement for UPM PhD candidate.

According to UPM, there are basically 5 stages of requirements for the PhD candidates to undertake prior to graduation:-

1. The Proposal Defence;
2. Comprehensive Exam (Written & Oral);
3. Publish two articles in journals;
4. Produce the full thesis;
5. Presentation of the thesis (Viva).

So, I have passed both Proposal Defence (in my 3rd semester; REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2017/12/16/my-ph-d-proposal-defense-an-unarmed-academic-duelling-battlefield-the-self-discovery-of-my-own-strength-the-power-of-mothers-doa/) and now the Comprehensive Exam (in my 4th semester). People may think that it was just ‘an exam’ but only the UPM PhD graduate understand the struggle that I’ve went through just to make it work – especially since I am doing PhD while working.

McCroskey’s “An Introduction to Rhetorical Communication” is my bible.

I have been discussing the possibility of doing my CE with my Supervisor since late March after my 2nd Committee Members’ Meeting (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/04/09/my-22ndd-research-committee-members-meeting-the-phd-research-diverged-rhetorical-criticism-focus-group-discussion-approach-goodbye-angelina-jolie-hello-dr-mahathir/) dated 29th March 2018. Nevertheless after the meeting, my supervisor asked me to produce a new proposal on Dr. Mahathir. He gave me two weeks to produce the proposal and after I’ve shown the proposal, he asked me to do pre-analysis on Dr. Mahathir’s speeches. So, that alone consumed probably 5 weeks and to make matter more complicated,  I was involved as the Election Clerk in my school on the 9th May; so that whole week was blocked out; and that was really tiring (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/05/15/malaysia-a-new-chaepter-the-historical-malaysian-14th-general-election-episode-1-fulfilling-duties-as-a-responsible-malaysian-postal-voting-the-voting-clerk/). In the mid of May, I met my supervisor again to negotiate the dates for my CE. He told me that I needed to assemble the three supervisors (my Committee Members) in one session for the 3rd Committee Members Meeting and only then, we could set the dates for my CE.

Juggling responsibility as Year 6 Class Teacher and teaching 2 core UPSR subjects (English & Science) while doing PhD is quite challenging. People may think being a primary school teacher is easy – in those days, maybe. But now, it’s all about TONNES of administrative/clerical documentations to be done. The two boys in the picture are my 6 Samudera pupils – Aiman (Malay) and Andry (Orang Asli). They are good kids; especially Andry- always come to my table when he sees I am so occupied with my PhD books – “Sir buat apa?” (What are you doing, Sir?).

So, I set the date for my 3rd Committee Members Meeting by asking my Supervisor’s PA and the other two supervisors. It was agreed that the meeting would be taking place on 6th of June 2018 at 10.00 a.m. Since it would be held on working day, I had to apply for Cuti Rehat Khas Guru (the 10 days per annum) from my Headmaster. My 2nd co-supervisor was doing a research abroad so she wouldn’t be there; therefore, the session would be attended by my Supervisor and my 1st  co-Supervisor. On the 5th of June 2018 (a day prior to the meeting), I called my 1st co-Supervisor to remind her about the meeting on the next day (6th of June). Nevertheless, she probably forgot about it or her PA didn’t tell her (because I also called her PA after she gave consent for 6th of June) – she told me she couldn’t make it and I had to find another date! It was impossible for me to rearrange the schedule as I had already applied for the school leave and slotted the date to focus on my PhD affair because during that time, I also had to mark my pupils’ Mid Year Examination papers (approximately 200 sets of question papers)! In the end, she said she would send the questions to my Supervisor – so, I proceeded the 3rd Committee Members’ Meeting with my Supervisor. It was agreed on that day that my Written CE would be taking place on 21st June 2018 and I would have to submit the 3 answer booklets on the 28th June 2018.

The Written CE questions by my supervisors. 

I had to cut short my Eid-Phuket trip with my family (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/06/21/thee-islamics-side-of-promiscuous-patong-a-monsoon-beach-life-discovering-the-malay-diaspora-phuket-thailand/) for the CE written exam. I flew back home on 20th June night and arrived at Fakulti Bahasa Moden dan Komunikasi, UPM at 9.00 a.m. on the 21st June 2018. My supervisor gave me the questions and I’ve to sign the acceptance letter. Like I said, the questions comprised of theory, method and rhetoric. The questions were tough and I have to say that I was confused but of course, I made the attempt to answer the questions. I was lucky because the school holiday was on 9th June-24th June and I could concentrate on my Written CE, for the first half of the 7 days. I submitted the answer booklets on the 28th June 2018 to my Main Supervisor and 1st co-Supervisor (an email to my 2nd co-supervisor).

One of my CE answers. 

It took around a month before I was called back on 19th July 2018 (after the PACA Convention at Sabah; refer to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/07/12/suunn-sea-studyyy-sabahhh-my-virgin-communication-convention-12th-biennial-convention-of-paca-2018-universiti-malaysia-sabah-ums-the-spontaneous-island-experience-manukan-island/) . I thought it was going to be my Oral CE examination – so, I’ve requested Cuti Rehat Khas from my Headmaster to prepare for the session at 2.30 p.m. Turned out that it was a session catered to discuss the correction for my Written CE. I was given another 7 working days to submit the 3 answer booklets. So happened that my 1st co-Supervisor couldn’t make it on that day and had asked me to meet her personally at the office at 10.00 a.m. on the next day. Initially I thought of texting my 1st co-Supervisor to negotiate the time because I would have to WORK on the next day – but I thought that perhaps, her schedule must have conflicted and furthermore, I should not waste anymore time as the due date for Comprehensive Exam was approaching. So, with the THICK SKIN and awkwardness CAST ASIDE, I requested for another Cuti Rehat Khas via WhatsApps (which was informal!) from my Headmaster. I knew that my Headmaster was a bit hesitant but he gave me permission – NONETHELESS, it was I who felt emotional because I had to take another day off, leaving my gullible UPSR pupils as I thought leaving the school for merely ONE DAY on the 19th July would be sufficient – but no, I had to take ANOTHER DAY OFF. Sigh. Anyway, on the next day 20th July 2018, I went to see my 1st co-supervisor at her office at 10.00 a.m. and she explained my weaknesses that needed to be corrected.

Health deteriorated. This was a #TrueStory. The struggle is real. The thing that no one out there realized. 

I submitted the correction of my CE answer booklets on the 26th July 2018 and 27th July 2018. Finally, my Oral CE session was decided on the 30th July 2018 at 2.30 p.m. at the faculty. Honestly, I was GRILLED by my supervisors and I am quite disheartened by my lack of confidence. Some of the questions/ remarks were :-

• Which process of reasoning did you use in the research? Deductive or inductive? Why? Can we use both approaches in the same analysis?;
• You don’t have to create two separate codebooks although you are attempting to study Dr. Mahathir’s speeches during and after his premiership;
• How sure are you that your criticism is rhetorical criticism and NOT rhetorical analysis?
• How do you mitigate bias in rhetorical criticism?
• Personally, would you suggest any rhetorician to apply Holsti’s Intercoder Reliabity formula?
• Can you name the Greek traditions that conceptualized rhetoric? How rhetoric was born in the Greek ages?
• Just name one MUST-READ rhetorical journal; a “bible” in your rhetorical criticism;
• Name other rhetorical criticism approach which you have encountered in your research, apart from the classic neo-Aristotelian.
• Why did you choose Mahathir as your artifact? Support your answers with legible citations. 

The feedback from my 1st co-supervisor which I must pay heed. Actually I really appreciate her feedback because these are so on-points and at this PhD level, academic writing is not simply a “sophisticated cut and paste” but to synthesize from the various research findings! I’ve got so many things to improve.

The session went for an hour 30 minutes. I wasn’t confident and hesitated in my answers. That was because my knowledge was still far beneath and I was intimidated by the presence of these three “heavyweights”. Nevertheless, that was the reality. I HAVE to face this and would be forced to sing the same song again during the dreading viva, no? I was frustrated with myself that I did not perform well in the oral – I felt that I disappointed my supervisors; I wanted to impress them with my polished answers but it seemed like I am still way beneath from the expected level. Their remarks and comments were very on-points, meant to improve my research and I appreciate that immensely. My supervisors suggested that I should do the annotated bibliography and peruse the pros-and-cons between other approaches used in comparison to the classic neo-Aristotelian – and I am to present that to them in the upcoming session. I have to say that I was feeling VERY DISAPPOINTED with myself after the oral session – I’ve got a lot to improve (my methodology and my Q&A demeanour in oral session). 

Hectic 4th semester but I managed to get an “A” for my Advanced Qualitative Exam! Alhamdulillah!

So you could imagine how ecstatic I was to find that I have PASSED the Comprehensive Exam!! I guess that my Written Exam compensated the flaws of my Oral Exam. And my supervisors actually wanted me to excel – I know that they want me to excel by pushing the envelope. I have this yearning that I badly want to get their approvals (which is a normal syndrome experienced by all PhD candidates, trust me!) and there is just no other way than to work harder than ever!

The result from the SGS Portal. Alhamdulillah! After all the thorns. Thanks to my three supervisors!

On whole, this 4th semester was very hectic (February 2018-June 2018). I have :-

• Nailed an “A” for my Advanced Qualitative Research Methodology exam;
• Attended my first Communication Convention at UMS, Sabah; and
• I passed my Comprehensive Exam!!!!

All these were juggled in the middle of the chaotic year being Year 6 class teacher AND teaching two UPSR subjects namely Science and English! I have to say that I am quite in awed (and grateful, Alhamdulillah!) that I survived this semester. But I’ve got so much to learn and to read on Rhetoric. Hopefully if I were to have the chance to wear the PhD regalia one day and read this, I would be smiling and gush on the challenges I have faced throughout this PhD journey. Amin.

It wasn’t easy but yes, Alhamdulillah!

The Homecoming Tale of A Malay Seafarer : From Kampung to Liverpool @ “Pulang”, The Movie Review.

Yesterday, I watched the much-anticipated Malay movie “Pulang” (Homecoming) at TGV Cinema KLCC after I did my jog at Taman Tasik Titiwangsa. Knowing Kabir Bhatia’s previous works such as “Kekasihku Seru” (about the practice of having demonic guardian among the Malays) and “Nur Kasih” (an Islamic religio-romantic story), I was curious with the outcome of the film. The trailer, of course was enchanting, but what about the whole film?

The film poster.

The film was about a Kampung Malay guy named Othman who was an angler at Serkam, Melaka. He married a lady named Che’ Tom and had a son when Japan occupied Malaya. Othman “came back from the dead” twice, slithering his way out from the odd, impossible situations and Che’ Tom never thought Othman would leave him again – until, Othman saw the potential of lucrative future in becoming as a sailor of British ships. Determined to provide a better future for his wife and son, Othman sailed on Swyre around the world. Being the only Malay Muslim proved to be difficult in terms of dietary as most of the sailors and cooks were Chinese and their favourite were of course, pork. Othman befriended a Chinese, Lum as he saved Lum’s life from the Japanese atrocity. Lum was the one who provided him with the vegetarian meals, etc. When the act was discovered by the main chef of the ship, Lum was dismissed and Othman was left alone to survive on the ship. He refrained from consuming the pork and had to eat the mouldy bread in order to sustain his strength. Many months and moons passed and Che’ Tom was desperate for her husband. She raised money and set for Hong Kong alone as Hong Kong was the last known harbour stop for Othman. Nevertheless, it was in vain. Othman was never be found and Che Tom nearly duped as prostitute. From then on, Che Tom decided it was best to forget Othman’s existence although she still longed for him.

Life of an angler turned into a sailor around the world.

I will not elaborate the whole plot of the film (don’t worry) but all I could say is it was a movie to be proud of. Sure, the first hour of the film was SOPORIFIC – with all the lovey-dovey dialogues ala TV3’s Malay telenovela, I couldn’t help but yawned several time and I was thinking – “I’ve wasted my money on this”. But, the dynamic of the film evolved as Othman began his journey outside of Malaya. I couldn’t help but feeling awed with the strength of the character, portrayed by Remy Ishak. Physically, Remy suits to be this Kampung Boy as he possess that “good-old-farm-boy routines and facades” but what about his acting? I have to say that his portrayal was immense. You could see the maturity and intensity Remy put for the character Othman. You can’t help but feeling empathy and sympathize the character. The cinematography of the film was undeniably breathtaking. Kabir Bhatia as usual managed to capture the beauty of virgin Malaya and colourful lives of Kampung.

Powerful performance by Remy Ishak. However, I found that the newcomer Puteri Aishah was “too beautiful” as Che’ Tom. Not bad but didn’t exude memorable scene, for me.

This film was an inspiration from a true story. The protagonist Othman was apparently Datuk Ahmad Izham Omar’s grandfather who left Malaya and died in Liverpool, United Kingdom. I remember reading one of Kak Zaharah’s stories (Zaharah Othman is our Malaysian London-based journalist who has been playing pivotal role in tracing the cemeteries of our Malay forefathers in United Kingdom and contributed to the research for this movie! Thumbs up, Kak Zah!). I guess that by having prior knowledge about the real existence of our Malay forefathers in United Kingdom triggered the overwhelming melancholy feeling. While watching Remy Ishak portraying the agony of Othman, I couldn’t help empathizing our real-life Malay sailors who ventured out from Malaya and now residing in United Kingdom, forming the little Malay diaspora enclave away from Motherland. Did they also experienced the hardship faced by Othman? I wish one day if I have the chance to revisit London for the third time, I want to visit the cemeteries. Perhaps this time, on my own; doing my solo trip to London. That is my wishlist.

Datuk Ahmad Izham Omar and Kak Zaharah! The superpowers behind the film “Pulang”.

On whole, the film started as quite dull and boring but the second half proved to be very engaging and heart-wrenching. The scene where Othman nearly drowned in the ship reminded me of “Titanic” while the scene where Japanese bombed Melaka somehow was a “Leftenan Adnan” reminiscence. The film wasn’t perfect but as a Malaysian, it is somehow a pride to see such masterpiece produced and I have to say that this film heightens my “Malayness” – it makes me ever so proud to be a Malay and meaning of strength in order to survive the odds. Inalillah to our demised forefathers. Remember that Henry the Black or Panglima Awang (Magellan’s Malay aide/slave who continued the mission to circumnavigate the Earth after his demise)? Now these Malay sailors are just like Panglima Awang; our unsung heroes. 

I found this book excerpt written by Dr. Bunnell entitled “From World City to the World in One City : Liverpool Through Malay Lives”, chronicling the story of Othman Haji Alias @ Ohtman Laji; who happened to be Ahmad Izham Omar’s grandfather and the inspiration for this movie “Pulang”. It’s amazing. I love history. It reminds me of the struggles of my Malay forefathers. I have high respect for them. 

The film trailer.

Sun, Sea & Study @ Sabah : My Virgin Communication Convention @ 12th Biennial Convention of PACA 2018, Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) & The Spontaneous Island Experience @ Manukan Island!

So, it is official that I already had my virgin experience (pun intended!) participating an academic discourse – the 12th Biennial Convention of the Pacific & Asian Communication Association (PACA) 2018. I flew with the delayed-for-nearly-3 hours Air Asia on Tuesday night dated 3rd July 2018 as the registration and the first day of PACA was slated to be on the morning of 4th July 2018. For all of these, I have applied the Cuti Kursus Sambilan which is slated for government civilians who do part-time studying.

My tag as the presenter! And my supervisor, Prof Dr. Abdul Muati @ Zamri who also happened to be the president for Pacific & Asian Communication Association (PACA). Well, he surely didn’t tell me about this. Haha!

I managed to listen to the keynote speakers namely, Prof. Dr. Seon Gi-Baek from Korea and Prof. Datuk Dr. Ahmad Murad Merican from USM on the first day at 4th July. Both presented interesting perspective – Prof Seon presented a study on the Hallyue (Korean Waves) phenomenon whereas Prof Merican fathomed the genealogical dimension of decolonizing communication paradigms! I have to say that although at certain parts, the session became dry and soporific – the contents were really interesting and as both pop-cultured enthusiast (but I am not a K-pop fan. though!) and historical fanatic; both keynote speeches were very stimulating to my interest, I say.

Prof Seon Gi-Baek elaborated on the Korean Wave phenomenon (Hallyue). I am always interested with pop culture although I am not a K-Pop fan. I wonder if Malaysian communication academicians too, embrace this niche of academic study?

Prof Dr. Ahmad Murad Merican delivering his keynote speech on decolonizing the communication paradigm. I enjoyed his speech as it revolved on history and I am a historical aficionado. But of course, his ideas were somewhat quite ironic with communication academicians and practitioners but like Dr. Siti Zobidah said – “it’s all about celebrating the beauty of academic differences.” 

We had the Welcoming Dinner at The Klagan Regency which was merely a stone-throw away from my Tune Hotel lodging (hahaha!) and it was nice to have a layback session with my fellow lecturers. Thanks to the UMS Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Heritage for giving us extraordinary insight on the cultural performances by the students. I was enthralled to witness the “Daling-Daling” dance which is apparently a Mindanaoan dance and fascinated to know that the background song was sung in an audible Malay Language – an apparent testimony that the Malay diaspora is legit; not merely confined within the Peninsular and East Malaysia but also to the Southern Thailand region (as per my previous Phuket blog at https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2018/06/21/thee-islamics-side-of-promiscuous-patong-a-monsoon-beach-life-discovering-the-malay-diaspora-phuket-thailand/) and also Southern Philippines – probably a remnant of the Sulu Sultanate glorious days!

With my Supervisor. He is such a cool person and exudes charisma. He never use any sort of “belittling approach” but he let me explore the world of rhetoric. He is cool.

With Dr. Akmar and Dr. Moniza. I appreciated their mentoring throughout this PACA 2018. It was nice getting insights from these two humble lecturers. I guess they understood the plights of a student as they were once students, as well. As a teacher myself, I understand that there has to be a barrier between student and teacher but when a teacher shows empathy and or an effortless, nonchalant but earnest mentoring to a student who is still crawling in the dark basking for a beacon in the tunnel – a student would always remember that and respect the teacher and see the teacher through a very special lens from the heart. Thanks to both of you!

My session was on the 2nd day dated 5th July 2018 at 2-3.30 p.m. Haha, there was a funny story behind this virgin paper presentation. Initially I had this naive thought that by sending papers to the conference of particularly this PACA Convention, I would already secured a guaranteed place for paper publication which happens to be one of the  UPM PhD graduation requirements! So, being a naive, late-bloomer and klutzy PhD candidate, I nonchalantly sent THREE abstracts to PACA 2018, namely :-

• A Rhetorical Criticism of Angelina Jolie’s Selected Speeches on the Rights of Refugees;
• A Rhetorical Perspective on Islamic Speeches Among the Abrahamic Religions in Malaysia; and
• Understanding the Meaning of Goodwill in Mahathir Mohamad’s Malay Rights Speeches during and after his premiership.

Oopsie! Hahahaha! Technical glitches, folks!

Among of all three abstracts, I would say I was mostly prepared for the Angelina Jolie’s paper due to the fact that it used to be my thesis project (before the decision to shift the artifact from Jolie to Che’ Det!) but not the other two. It didn’t occur to my mind that having three papers to be presented in an academic convention (a virgin experience, no less!) was quite far-fetched – until I saw the list of programme tentative sent by the PACA Secretariat via email and the titles of my three papers were aligned consecutively back-to-back within one session! And so happened that then, I bumped into Dr. Akmar at the faculty and asked her opinion on that and she suggested that if I wasn’t ready to present all three papers, I could call the PACA Secretariat to assuage the situation. So to cut the story short, I called the Secretariat and decided that I would present only one paper which happened to be the Jolie’s paper.

Both speakers were already established academicians! Eeeek! But it was a great experience.

Courtesy of one of the Philippines delegates. Thanks to Miss Lola Quindoza for this picture. Hehehe.

I have to say that it was wise to present only one paper as it was after all, my virgin experience attending and presenting in an academic discourse and prior to that, I had the least idea of what to expect or to do in such programme. Anyway, my session was held at the Magunatip Studio and was led by Associate Prof Dr. Hamisah Hasan and there were only three presenters in my session (including myself):-

• Dr. Bahtiar Mohamed from Universiti Utara Malaysia on “Determinants of Community Involvement : An Empirical Explanation”;
• Associate Professor Dr. John Hayrold Coronel Malonzo from Polytechnic University of the Philippines on “The Historical Delineation of the Socio-Political Violation and Its Influences to the Fictional Communicative Discourses.”

Honestly, I was feeling a bit intimidated as the other presenters were already established academicians whereas I was just a PhD candidate. But then again that is all about the learning curve, no? And all academicians would have to start from a humble beginning, no? So as I was presenting my Angelina Jolie paper nonchalantly, suddenly Prof Seon Gi-Baek who happened to be one of the keynote speakers entered the room! Darn! Haha!

With Prof Seon Gi-Baek from Korea. Thanks for the feedback, Prof. I am taking notes on them.

I elaborated my analysis based on The Classical Theory of Rhetoric on the Canon of Invention where I touched on:-

• Topoi (topics) selection based on McCroskey’s The Aristotelian Topoi of Good and Evil;
• The three rhetorical devices – Logos, Pathos and Ethos

;- and on the Canon of Organization where I analyzed Jolie’s speeches arrangement based on:-

• Monroe’s Motivated Sequence

I have to say that my slides were quite a lot – well, you know being a virgin presenter, you had the tendency to squeeze EVERYTHING in the presentation! Anyway, I thought that my presentation was dry (and soporific! Haha!) and I saw Prof Seon was closing his eyes – perhaps he was sleepy after listening to my virgin presentation. Haha! But I was quite astonished when he posed questions on my presentation – which clearly showed that he did pay attention. Well, he is a Professor, isn’t he? Prof Seon asked :-

“Why did I chose the Neo-Aristotelian which is the classical approach for rhetorical criticism? Why not the newer contemporary approach as the former is considered to be outdated?”

Perhaps it was because of my first experience participating in an academic discourse involving international academicians that I’ve forgotten the necessity to “tailor the words”; so being an earnest novice, I replied that it was because that this classical approach is the most popular approach and according to Sonja Foss, Neo-Aristotelian is used by many aspiring rhetoricians as it is easy to be understood and able to yield comprehensive evaluation. Furthermore as a PhD candidate, I would have abundant of academic resources as references since there are a lot of rhetorical criticisms using Neo-Aristotelian approach.

With the Philippines’ delegates and Dr. Akmar at the front of faculty. 

Prof Seon suggested that I should perhaps want to consider adopting the newer contemporary approach; I replied that I would consider other approaches such as  Burke’s Identification or Fantasy Theme approach which is based on Symbolic Convergence Theory. In the vein of that, Dr. Hamisah quipped that as a PhD student, I should not reply that the reason of choosing Neo-Aristotelian was just because it was “easy” – I would want to exude the idea that as a PhD student, I have exhausted all methods that are possibly suitable for my research and NOT BECAUSE it is EASY. I took note of that constructive comment and that should be a learning process for me on how to respond in an academic discourse. Anyway right after the session, I asked Prof Seon a few questions and we reached consensus on few points. Thanks, Prof Seon!

It is also interesting to hear the presentation from Philippines as Dr. John Hayrold discussed about literary criticism – which somehow more or less comes from the same root as per rhetorical criticism. The difference between both is that literary criticism is all about understanding WHAT ARE THE TEXTS WRITTEN whereas rhetorical criticism is about HOW THE TEXTS ARE WRITTEN although the commonality point for both is that both study texts per se. It was great and refreshing insight. On the other hand, Dr. Bahtiar presented a quantitative approach and it was interesting that he brought up the matter of epistemological differences between quantitative and qualitative in the discussion session. Of course like any other positivist researchers, Dr Bahtiar admitted that he found it hard to digest the qualitative studies of which both Dr. Hayrold and I presented and was asking about the validity, significance and contribution of our studies to the world. I didn’t respond to that as I felt that this was my virgin session so might as well just observe the heavyweights antics – Dr. Hayrold, of course presented his defense.

Beautiful UMS Mosque. Had the opportunity to perform my Friday prayer here.

One thing I have learned from attending PACA 2018 is that as a researcher and academician, you must not let emotional or sensitivity “feeling” to dominate you. Feedback and critical responses are essential to improve our studies and not to belittling us on personal level. Of course our studies are our babies – we nurture and we paid attention to them and we got a little bit ‘taken aback’ when a stranger comes and say – “Hey, your baby is fugly!” (Hahaha!). But then, this is academic world – you can defend your baby by justifying the strength of your baby to refute the accusation BUT it’s all in the name of to enrich the body of knowledge. I think I will be writing more on the epistemological differences in my blog, if I have time. Haha! And like what Dr. Siti Zobidah said when I asked her why is it that scholars always pit against each other’s epistemological perspectives (positivist Vs post-positivist) – “That is the beauty of academic world. We accept different opinions for the enrichment of the knowledge”.

With the entourage of my lecturers, Dr. Moniza’s fiance and mother. It was a great, casual occasion. Prof Salleh and his wife also were very humble. And I like Dr. Siti Zobidah’s style as well – nonchalant, low-profile but very sharp. I didn’t have the opportunity to take her class during my Master’s Degree. Apparently she originally hails from Batang Kali! 

Anyway, done with PACA 2018. On Friday afternoon, I took GRAB car (Haha!) to Dr. Moniza’s house at Kampung Tanjung Aru Lama for her Aidilfitri Open House. It was nice hanging out and getting to know the lecturers on the personal basis. They were really genuine and humble people and I loved hearing their advises and stories on the reality of Malaysian academic world. Plus, Dr. Moniza’s mom was so cool! She used to be a teacher and quite a gungho lady (Hahaha!). She was just a straight-talking kinda person and loved to crack jokes. Along with Dr. Moniza’s aunts, it was entertaining to hear the stories until Maghrib! Hahahaha! Apart from Dr. Moniza, I am also grateful and touched by Dr. Akmar’s mentoring throughout PACA 2018. I appreciated her patience and humility as a lecturer to spend time answering my trivial questions and shenanigan. You know, that kind of extra-touch is the one that students would always remember and treasure, especially for students who are still crawling in the dark waiting for beacons to light up the tunnel. Thank you so much Dr. Akmar – may ALLAH SWT bless you.

This Durian-cheese (tart? custard?) cake was the BEST!!!!!! Gosh, writing about this is making my mouth water – simply by reminiscing the delicious authentic Durian flavour melt under my tongue. Precious! Thanks to Dr. Moniza’s gutsy-and-friendly mother! Haha!

With Dr. Moniza’s mother and aunties! They were fun lot. Sabahan elder ladies were full of stories! Love them! Haha!

On Saturday, I hanged out with Efy (Efesius Abu Constantine), my USM amigo and one-third of Doncha Club (Hahaha!). Now that he is teaching at SK Stella Maris, Kota Kinabalu after 6 years in the rural Tongod – I guess he is adjusting with his new life as an urban teacher although he is a city boy from KK! Efy is always a great host (unlike me! Haha!) and we spontaneously decided to have a peekaboo on the islands circa Kota Kinabalu. We went to Jesselton Point and decided to go to Manukan Island which cost RM30 per person per ride. The journey took us circa 20 minutes as it went to Sapi Island and then proceeded to Manukan Island. The sea was blue and people were swimming joyfully. Had lunch at a Malay stall on the island and like usual, we just savoured the surrounding chit-chatting and taking pictures. It was a spontaneous, low-key trip.

The historical Jesselton Point. Jesselton was Kota Kinabalu’s old, colonial name.

Feigning as a tourist. Coconut, anyone? Tropical ambiance. Haha!

The pier/jetty.

To Manukan Island! Quite a bumpy ride, though.

Nice turquoise-kinda sea. Malaysia has beautiful islands, indeed. This makes me wants to explore other islands in Malaysia! #Wishlists are Perhentian Island & Mabul Island!

Beautiful luxurious chalet. I wish one day to return and spend night here in Manukan Island. Hehe. (,”)

There was even a marine education center at Manukan Island! Kudos to the Sabahan government for this. Educating the tourists. Unfortunately it was closed when I was there. 

Sunday on 8th July 2018. My last day at Kota Kinabalu after spending approximately 6 days at the beautiful capital of Sabah. I checked out from Tune Hotel and waited for Efy. We had lunch at Koki Bandung Nasi Ayam Penyet – which happened to be the place I went on my first visit to Sabah in 2016 (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/mmy-spontttaneous-virgin-borneo-adventure-sabah-the-land-of-beautiful-nature-beautiful-people/). And then we went to Kota Kinabalu City Mosque (I have that affinity towards mosque. It’s the #ShahrillsJejakMasjid! Haha!) and then just hang around Servay Hypermart Likas as Efy wanted to scout some working attires (and I grabbed two! Hahaha! Kachings!) and then had teh tarik at a Mamak Restaurant (Amin Maju, I think?!) before heading towards Kota Kinabalu Airport.

Koki Bandung Nasi Ayam Penyet at Kota Kinabalu. Where else but Alamesra? Haha!

My second time visiting The Kota Kinabalu Mosque, Likas. I love the spacious and airy architecture.

Serenity.

Although the boarding time is 9.00 p.m. but I thought of arriving early to settle all the baggage red tapes, etc. Apparently I have to pay RM70 as my baggage exceeded the 15 kg weight (1 kg was charged for RM35)!! Arghhh! Should have picked 20 kg instead! Anyway, while waiting for the departure time, I had opportunity to have coffee with a friend Judah Iskandariah who happened to be in Kota Kinabalu as he studies part time there while working in Lawas. It was a brief tete-a-tete but a relaxing conversation. Boarded the plane at 9.55 p.m. and arrived at KLIA2 circa 12.30 a.m. I missed the ERL  due to baggage claim so I had to call Kakak who borrowed my car – to come to KLIA2. We arrived at Precint 14, Putrajaya at 2.30 a.m. and I met Mak who is here to take care of my nephews – and then drove all the way to Batang Kali and arrived at 4.00 a.m. I have to say that I WAS FEELING VERY SLEEPY AND DIZZY as I then had to wake up at 6.00 a.m. to go to school – to WORK!

#OOTD mood at Servay Hypermart, Likas. Well, not that bad. I love the colours. I bought the peach and the black. There went another kachings! Haha!

Had a brief kupi-kupi session with Judah Iskandariah here in WHSmith at the Kota Kinabalu Airport. Everything was in hurry but was touched that he came all the way to the airport for this. 

On whole, it was a great moment for me to relax and gained knowledge as well as bonding with friends. Unfortunately I had to use my own money for this. If only I were under scholarship and all my academic discourse expenses were  sponsored, no? Then again, it is just my unlucky moment that I am pursuing study in the era where Malaysian economy was not as fruitful as the 90s where scholarships were given to those who aspired to further studies. Well, I guess by using my own money would make me more alert that I MUST STUDY HARD because the money siphoned are all hard-earned, no? Haha.

Shots via Efy’s Vivo 9. Well, well, well. It’s all about the Bokeh function. For once, I feel like Siti Nurhaliza. Hahahaha!

The Islamic Side of Promiscuous Patong : A Monsoon Beach Life & Discovering The Malay Diaspora @ Phuket, Thailand.

Asean offers a lot of adventures and new places. I admit that I used to have that “colonized mindsets” that to explore the world was to venture out the Caucasian-dominated countries – Europe, Australasia, etc. But last year’s experience to Vietnam (REFER to https://undomiel84.wordpress.com/2017/07/06/my-vietnam-eid-experience-ho-chi-minh-the-asean-halal-tourism-the-grandeur-of-french-indochina-architecture-the-american-conquest-of-miss-saigon/) had changed my perspective and I now know that each country has its own gems to be savoured and appreciated. Anyway, it was actually an eleventh hour plan. My sister and I had that mutual consensus circa on the 24th Ramadhan and it was agreed that we would be flying off to Phuket, Thailand of the 4th Eid of Syawal (18th June 2018).

The Andaman Sea tidal was so ferocious! I have never seen wave like that!

I flew solo via Air Asia while Kakak flew with both my nephews via Malindo Air. Abang Zam, my brother-in-law, however, would fly over to Phuket on the day after via Air Asia due to some professional errands. I arrived earlier at Phuket International Airport as at 7.05 a.m. and waited half an hour for my sister and nephews. We then negotiated with the car dealers at the airport and decided to take a Toyota Vios from ASAP (REFER to the website at https://www.asapcarrent.com/en) for 3, 354.45 Bahts throughout 3 days. By using Waze/Google Maps, we drove all the way from Phuket Airport which is situated at the north side of the island to Patong Beach, situated at the west side of the island. The journey took around 2 hours, given the nature of weather and traffic.

Look at them. So brave! Hahahah! Very nonchalant and couldn’t care less about the waves. Eeeks!

We explored Patong Beach as we arrived early at the area and our hotel check-in time was at 2 p.m. It was so intimidating and eerie seeing the ferocious wave of the Andaman Sea crushing the beach but you could see that some tourists were nonchalant by that – they kept swimming and to the extend of going towards the middle parts of the ocean! Perhaps, they were good swimmers? Anyway, it was also ethereal to experience that kind of atmopshere – and I had that spontaneous empathic feeling, wondering what must have been like to be trapped in an area when the deadly 2004 tsunami hit the shore of Phuket? Nauzubillah.

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Our budget hotel, The Capitano Beach Hotel. Do check it out, folks! My sister is good with this. 

The cafe. But there is no service at night. And my room with Rifqi.

As it is now a monsoon season, rain and strong current of the ocean are already expected (so, island-hopping was definitely a no-no). We got the shock of our life when we saw the tidal became too ferocious and the splash could be seen at the terrace brink of the beach! Haha! Our lodging, Capitano Hotel was a budget hotel with Grecian influence. You could see the vivid Greek flag colours – blue and white dominated the interior hues of the hotel. Rifqi and I were in a room with 2 single beds (as I would be going back two days earlier than them due to my UPM’s Comprehensive Exam) while Kakak and Raess were in a bigger room with two Queen beds. The hotel was cozy with cute balconies to hangout. We just spend our first day being the lazy sloths as we were so tired.

 

Kusuma Seafood Alley Restaurant. A Halal-certified place. It has only small kitchen but the service was rather swift.

Nevertheless we had another experiences when the hotel suddenly experienced electricity glitch! Everything was pitch black and we could hear the wind was howling like crazy outside! When I looked outside, I saw leaves of the coconut trees blown by the monsoon wind, and I have to admit that in my heart I was praying – “Ya ALLAH, please don’t let it be another tsunami!” We couldn’t use the tab or taking bath as perhaps the water refilling was electrically-controlled by the machinery? Anyway, it was solved around 40 minutes although we actually experience two times of these electrical fiasco (my sister was thinking of moving to another hotel!). That night, we went to a Halal stall named Kusuma which was a mere stone-throw away from our hotel. It is amazing to converse accented-Malay with the owner and savouring the same familiar Thai delicacies just like back in Malaysia. I guess this was an eye-opening experience for me on the breadth of our global Malay diaspora population (all this while, I only watched these in TV documentaries or read but this time, I witnessed this myself). 

Patong Mosque, Masjid Nurul Islam.

 

The exterior design, the minbar and the staircase leading up to the prayer hall. All for #ShahrillsJejakMasjid craze.

The ablution section and the interior design of the dome.

On the 2nd day, which was on 19th June; Kakak fell ill. Her stomach was feeling very uneasy and she became lethargic, pale and nauseous. Since she is the leader of the pack and I couldn’t drive a Vios (would learn this later on using my mom’s Vios!), our mobility was almost crippled. So, I thought of just walking to the Patong Mosque as I estimated that it wouldn’t be that far (saw the building in the car on our first day). So, Rifqi and I walked; by relying on the public WIFI which occasionally disappeared! We were walking for 40 minutes and it was raining heavily – and I realized we were actually walking to the opposite direction away from the mosque! Haha! So, Rifqi and I practically ran under the rain and took a shelter at a shopping mall called Jungceylon. It was a memorable experience, though, bonding with my nephew. Haha! We finally arrived at the mosque via the car as Kakak managed to pull strength to drive – since a Halal restaurant was nearby the mosque. It was nice seeing the Islamic element though you are far away from Malaysia. The feeling of unison was eminent.

Enchanting architecture, isn’t it? The beauty of Siam.

Can’t help but felt as if you are in the film “Anna And The King” or “The King and I”. Haha!

We went to visit The Chalong Temple Park to see the Siamese magnificent revered architectures. I instantaneously had that “The King and I” moment where Anna Leonowenns, the British governess who came to Siam to teach King Mongkut’s many children – in my mind! Haha! It was another ethereal experience. By the time we got back, it was already 7.40 p.m. and Kakak became more ill as we had to face congested traffic and rainy weather. I had to bring Rifqi to Kusuma to buy foods for them while Abang Zam who was scheduled to arrive at Phuket circa 9.40 p.m. would have to travel alone via mini taxi to Patong Beach as Kakak couldn’t muster any strength to drive anymore. Around 10.45 p.m., Abang Zam arrived at our lodging.

The alley where promiscuity at its paramount moment. Not suitable for kids, please!

The sin city and its famous transportation.

Since that would be my last night at Phuket, I thought of exploring the nightlife – not for any promiscuous activity but to observe the commotion. I went out alone to explore the Patong Beach boulevard and alleys and it took me around 45 sweaty minutes. I could see prostitutes and ladyboys coaxing horny blokes (mostly Arabs! Haha!) and some table dancers with skimpy clothes. Hooters waitresses also were wearing their “official costumes” to serve the people. Now, seeing these sex workers doing their own bidding to keep breads on the tables make me ponder. We, the “holier” people always see them as filthy or dirty. But the truth? We are worse – only that we do not parade our wrongdoings so vividly in the public. We move behind the curtains in discreet. This reminds me of A. Samad Said’s “Salina” and the Broadway’s “Miss Saigon”. Truthfully, there’s always an untold, deep story behind every sex worker – as to why they chose that and what prompted them. And we are not holier than them. We SHOULD REMEMBER that, no?

The scenes at Patong Beach, Phuket Island. Is that the Phuket’s version of David Hasselhoff in Baywatch? Haha! Go, lifeguard!

Black is the epitome colour to hide your figure. You can become skinny if you wear black. If you are a scrawny addict who think having bony 52kg and lower weightage is attractive, just wear black all the time! Hahahah! But not for me, I don’t wanna balloon up but I also don’t feel my old weight of 52 kg is attractive. Nay.

On my last day 20th June 2018, the weather was still rainy and Kakak was still bedridden and threw up couple of times. Possibly food poisoning? To kill time, I explored Patong beach with Rifqi and we played chess and hanged out at the beach together. I explained to him about the 2004 Phuket tsunami and showed him the video as we witnessed the dark clouds and ferocious wave of Andaman Sea. During lunch time, Abang Zam drove the car to the Halal resturant, Saveena (situated opposite the Patong Mosque) and around 6 p.m, we made way to the airport. By right Kakak was thinking of bringing me to the Tiger Kingdom but the plan didn’t materialize as she was feeling very weary. It was raining heavily with congested traffic. Initially Kakak was stubborn to drive but she couldn’t go any further and stopped at Patong Seaview Point and finally let Abang Zam drove. Finally after 2 hours and a half, we arrived at the airport. They had to rush back to Patong once they dropped me. I was touched seeing them weathering the traffic and all to send me.

Do visit this Saveena Halal Restaurant. Just opposite the Mosque!

The Air Asia flight was delayed and I only got to fly circa 11.00 p.m. I arrived at KLIA2 around 1.30 a.m. and Putrajaya circa 3.00 a.m. So, I already collected my Comprehensive Exam questions (will be writing about it later on!) at my supervisor’s office at 9 a.m. On whole, I am looking forward to have another vacation in Thailand. Khap Khun Krap.

Beautiful Patong Beach lookout Point. Goodbye, Phuket. Maybe I’ll be back!

An Eid reward for myself – a Tommy Hilfiger. To give my body that nice smell. Miaow. Haha!