HALLO from Nederland!

Middag! (Afternoon!) I'm still in the midst of getting internet connect at home. So for the time being, here are some pictures. Will post some blogs when connection is up and running! Till then, Daag!

When in Rome.....

My family and I flew home to Kuching last Monday just in time for the grand Merdeka (Independence Day) celebration. The trip was largely meant to spend time with my husband's family before we go to the Netherlands.

I like going back to Kuching since it offers me a respite from the hustle bustle and frenetic lifestyle of KL. However, my palate being 'slightly' different from the locals, locating food that fancies my tastebud is an adventure in itself.

Back when we got married in late 2004, my husband told me about this nice cafe situated inside one of the upscale hotels in town - Merdeka Palace Hotel. The place is called Seattle Coffee and Tea and serves a variety of delectable coffee concoctions and mouth-watering savoury pies and sumptuous desserts.

Being a caffeine addict back then and a recidivating coffee connoisseur at present, I confer relishing a great cuppa as my favourite pastime.

With the dearth of cafes to hang out at and the non-Starbucks atmospheric conditions, SCT is a much welcome haven for yuppies and tourists alike. However, its location within the Hotel's walls translates to pricey food and beverage lists that are more or less equivalent to the ones quoted at Starbucks or Coffee Bean And Tea Leaves (CBTL).

Oh yeah, Kuching does boast a CBTL outlet but I deem the drinks there unsatisfactory in terms of its robust caffeine quotient. In other words, the powdered-based concoctions run counter to my hankering for pungent espressos.

A surprising discovery in Main Bazaar of Kuching is Deli Cafe, which my husband and I stumbled into in May 2005. We were on our bi-annual visit to Kuching and this happened right before I got pregnant. (Maybe the cafe has the key ingredients to stabilise my hormonal levels. Haha)

Deli Cafe offers a range of coffee drinks, sandwiches and pastries which are quite tiny, in my opinion, that they're almost bite-size. I like their brews which are served in home-grown cups and mugs and decorated with interesting swirls on top of the foam. The copacetic and restful setting also adds to a feeling of warmth and being grounded. And of course, the friendly staff is of great import in making each visit a memorable one.

As such, I gladly recommend that those who step into Kuching to visit these daily grinds and bask in the moment of sheer contentment and relaxation. :-)

My hapless Sony Ericsson J230i

My cell phone got stolen today.

Well, technically I left it at this cafe where my husband, baby and I went for breakfast. We decided to go to KLCC thereafter to do some last minute shopping before our trip, when I realised my mobile phone was not in its place in the baby-friendly bag.

In a harried fashion, I doublechecked the bag for the blasted thing. We even went down to the car again to see if it had fallen into the floor. It was nowhere in sight!

We then drove back to the restaurant - Kluang Station in Tesco Ampang and inquired the busgirl and busboy and even the cashier if any of them had seen my lovable phone.

Everyone answered in the negative but the manner in which one of them replied made me suspicious. She looked nervous and fidgety. I didn't have anything to back me up so I let it pass, much to my annoyance and anger!

I was so upset that it happened nearing my departure date for Holland! And this is compounded by some last minute problem that cropped up with respect to this trip.

To appease to my dispirited state of mind, we subsequently bought a new phone. Of course it is nice and carries more features than the one that went missing. But that is not the point.

Something of sentimental value had vanished from my presence. It has some memorable photos and text messaging of people that I love. I'm furious! Grrrr!

Now that this fateful day almost ends I have slowly come to terms that my time with Sony Ericsson J230i is meant to be short-term. I will chuck away the phone charger lest the new phone might think it's a rebound phone.

This incident marks the second time I've lost a cell phone. The first one was 3 years ago when someone stole my handbag in the prayer's room (or surau) in KLCC whilst I was performing the ablution (or wudu'). Naive me - I had left my handbag on the prayer mat to take wudu' and when I returned it had disappeared!

I am angry that a person could do that in a surau - I lost faith in the decency and honesty of fellow mankind that day. And history repeats itself today when I am harshly reminded by the reality of people's bad and at times cruel intentions.

Well, my track record isn't half as bad as my husband though. That also helps to put things into perspective. My beloved has lost 12 cellphones ever since he owns one back in 1998! Thanks dear for cheering me up and let's hope the curse we set on the perpetrator comes true!

Addendum Galore

Additions and new updates to my old blog postings:

1) Shortly following the burglary last month, we realised that another item was filched by the ratchet thief - my husband's grey fleece jacket! I did see someone - hooligan-looking - wearing shorts with the same kind of jacket in Pekan Ampang once - two days after the dreadful event. Perhaps it is the rage now amongst gangsta crowd?

Incidentally, two weeks back, toward the end of a week, a patrol police car parked two parking bays from ours followed by loud banging of grilled-like cages being installed on a Saturday morning. Another robbery I believe had taken place.

2) I was told by my friend Rizal that Contact is based on a book of the same name by a prolific sci-fi writer, Carl Sagan. Silly me - I'm not so well-versed in area of literary prize winners or bestsellers.

3) Sadia is now 6 months old now and is so full of energy and 'bounciness.' She can bounce 20 times in a row at times.

4) We are now busy packing, consolidating and cataloguing our assets, items and the whole works before our trip. If my blog becomes too few and far between, I hope to write more from wherever I (and family) will be settling.

For now, the drama before the departure date, continues. By hook or crook, we hope we will get there in one piece, albeit world- and travel-weary!

Sadia pixs at 6 months!!!