Ria Nirwana's Home: July 2010

July 31, 2010

One thing that scares me in : July

I am still doing the 'scary' thing

once a month,

as a new year resolution,

and this month,

my resolution turns out to be

scarier than that roller coaster

I saw in the Ocean Park Hongkong.

I bragged about making journaling

(together with the kids, mind you)

and take picture EVERY DAY

for a month was easy.

And interesting.

It took about seven days

to realize that this is scary.

A week taking pictures

in a "week in the life" project

was interesting.

Stretch it for a month

and you'll know what I mean.

After about a week

the excitement was evaporated

into the thin air,

we forgot to journal for days,

and tried hard to remember

what happened in our life

just two days before.

Ask my kids,

they will tell you the truth,

the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth.

Fortunately the spirit

came back at the end of week two,

and I even took the papers

to Hongkong to do journal there.

And just after I thought

we begin to back on track,

my job as an interior decorator

took place in a brutal way,

two deadlines in a week,

and tons of preparation before,

made me just too dang tired

to think of this project.

Excuse me,

all I wanna do is sleep

at the end of the day.

No kidding.

But,

today is the last day.

And I really want to wrap this

project nicely in an album,

so last night and tonight

I set aside the unfinished

'to do list' till tomorrow,

I do the catching up with

the kids' support.

(Thanks kiddo!)

So, cheers!

I finished all the pages tonight,

and all I have to do next is

print all the 31 pictures

next week, after all this madness

of decorating is done.

Scary.

But so worth it.

I'll post the finished album

soon enough.

Posted by Ria at 7:30 AM | Permalink | Comments

July 30, 2010

Sagoo restaurant - Bogor

For two days straight,

me, my husband and our team

were helping our best friends,

Muljadi and Marisa

opening their fourth Sagoo restorant,

now at Botani Square, Bogor.

Above, me and Marisa,

at the end of such exhausting day.

Before, the place was looking

like these :

And after a hearty work :

Placing all the oldies ads :

Go back to the old times with

these memorabilia and sketches:

Which one is your favorite dishes?

And this picture sent from Marisa

after I got home,

she displayed the goodies,

old times toys and snacks,

ready to served people

who will come on August 1st

on their opening day.

Congratz, my dear.

Posted by Ria at 9:42 AM | Permalink | Comments

July 25, 2010

Kind over matter

Kindness is all that matters

Have you ever left something beautiful

for a stranger to find,

have you ever found

something beautiful yourself?

(Amanda Oaks & Jenn Gibson)

Isn't that so so true?

All we need is kindness.

The only rule is kindness.

You can't even love
without kindness.

I am that stranger who found

many beautiful things on their blog,

"kindness over matter"

and fall in love.

Thank you Amanda and Jenn

for such kind work to the world.

Truly,

kindness is all that matters.

I leave their mark here,

so you can hop off to their blog,
and enjoy their kindness too.

Now..go..

Posted by Ria at 6:37 AM | Permalink | Comments

July 24, 2010

-Do and Don't- from Hongkong with love.

Srrrt.....srrrrt.....

Dusting....dusting.....

I am back. I am back. I am back.

Phew.

I tried to record the journey here as fast as I could, (and I do it bit by bit, half of hour plus more hours on the other times combine with many glasses of ice coffee and late awake times that is.) plus the task to edit thousands of pictures (well, I split that task with my dear husband). I believe nothing can beat the goodness in cooking the freshest vegetables (also tips from my dear husband), so I believe that the freshest keep down memories are the best. Deal?

Where do I have to start to tell you about Hongkong?

(this is not post card,just so you know.LOL)

Hongkong is the real deal for someone who look for the sun and off from the screen, tell you. Well, while we all not that crazy for the tan, we could not avoid it while hopping on and off the games in Disneyland and Ocean Park. 35degree C is perfect to dry clothes, pillow, mattress, salted fish, 'kerupuk', but certainly NOT human being. And compare to the coziness 26degree C in our home town, Bandung, it just make the kids (and mom, and dad) get even crankier. *Sigh.

I am so glad to be back to our normal celsius.

As a first timer in Hongkong (yes, we wait until the kids are old and wise enough to go on a 4,5 hours flight without making the whole passengers in the flight hate us once we get off the plane and we wait until Adam is tall enough to get inside many games at Disneyland and Ocean park to avoid the sad face appears), we embraced everything new without any schedule strictly planned, we found many good surprises together with not so good surprises....so if I have to share the story of this Hongkong journey with you, who are interested, I will tell you in the "do and don't" ala our family. You certainly can agree with us, or not (since every families are having different personalities and secrets), but I hope the story will help somehow if you plan to go there in near future for the first time.

Are you ready?

Do go to Disneyland or any theme park available in the world just before or slightly after the peak holiday season pass. We are lucky enough to get different time for back to school day so we can go just after the local school starts. I am sure that choice of timing will lessen the long of queue by half or more, will not torture the kids too much, and will decrease the frequency of yelling, telling the kids to stay close, crying, loosing the kids, and head ache.

Do check the weather on the spot.

We were informed from several friends that go there before us that the place is hot as hot can be (which it is), so we only bring summer clothing. The morning on the bus to Disney, I met one lady from Bandung too, who went to Disneyland just the day before and she said, yesterday there was hard rain started from noon till night. She said better get the umbrella and raincoat ready. And I go, "What?" Turn out that Hongkong is alarmed to get hit by typhoon next week, so the weather started to switch. Oh, boy. Lucky us, we spend shiny (very very shiny) days in the next days till the day we go to airport to fly home, it started to rain heavily and didn't stop a bit even the plane delayed about 30 minutes to take off. And yesterday, when we all safe here in our home, Hongkong was hit by tropical storm from Chanthu. Oh, my.

Do stay at Disneyland Hotel instead of Hollywood Hotel (both are located inside the park), the first place is cozier and less crowded, as many tour's group stay at Hollywood for slightly cheaper price. We go by bus to Hollywood hotel to check out the place before we go to the city on third day, and crowded tour's group means crowded check out lines and crowded breakfast. We like the breakfast though. With Mickey waffles and Mickey potatoes, and Mickey onion ring. Definitely too much Mickey.

Do become excited with the cartoon characters together with the kids. Don't say such line like,"Why should we bother to queue this long just to take pictures with Mickey or Minnie or Buzz Lightyear?" Just don't. It will hurt their feeling.

Don't say this line too : "Why we should queue 45' to get into this roller coaster game that last only 5'?" Because....if the games is more than 5', you'll throw up. So, don't wish to have longer game anyway.

Do go for animal. Animal attractions, animal sanctuary, animal preservation tank, animal museum, anything with animal in it will delight the kids and the cool air conditioner inside will cool off the parents. Win win solution.

Do talk to stranger (especially while you queue) so you can know more about the place you are going to. Do ask for direction instead of go back and forth with less and less energy and patience. Do read maps. By doing this, you are giving the kids good example for life that they won't get from any book (maybe not even from school), because they learn more from what they see rather then what they are told to (so I read).

Do enjoy the present time to relax, with the kids. What's the point to go miles away from home and you do the same thing you did at home with all the internet, or chat with friends that you still can catch up after you get back.

Don't go to SOHO with lots shopping bags and over heated kids who also starving. Not nice. SOHO is. The other things I mention are not. I will be back to SOHO with my husband in the afternoon, without the other things I mention, and scroll the place up and down as we pleased. Yeah, someday soon.

Do go to The Peak. I suggest you to go around 5 in the afternoon. With all that queuing time, you will be at the peak just about sunset with that amazing glow, and you don't have to wait too long to see the city lights start to spark. Double view, I said. And the time when you say enough for the scenery, it's perfect for dinner. And ice cream. Yum. (We skipped the Madame Tussauds, sorry, we just thought that mom and dad will be thrilled to see Nicholas Cage or Angelina Jolie, but the kids won't know who are the most person there, so they won't be that excited. Just keep it for their own adventure in the future.)

If you are happen to be a member of a book worm's family like ours, do go to places like Book Buddy at Windsor House or Stanley Plaza, Page One at Times Square, and Kelly & Walsh at Pacific Place. The price of books in Hongkong are making us crazy. We first think Bangkok has the cheapest books. Boy, we're wrong.

Do go to Stanley Market. After considering which one to choose on the last day, Mongkok or Stanley, me and my husband decided to go to Stanley. The fashion and bargain lover may choose Mongkok, but with tired kids and else, we pass Mongkok this time. May be on the other journey. Stanley is a good place. And not too crowded. And we find a small but unique book shop (again) inside the market with air con. Nice escape.

If you are an IKEA lover like we are, maybe you do have to consider to stay at Park Lane hotel. IKEA just one elevator down from the hotel. Amazing.

Do check for some HMV store if you need some muse.

I do the journal with the kids every day. You may remember I am still in the process of doing 'a month to play, a month to learn' journal album, so I take the pages there too. Even if you are not know how the album will be recorded for the journey yet, I say you better make the journaling each day on the spot. Fresh vegetables, remember?

Do collect all of these for your future references, mini albums, scraps layouts or just to drive your husband nuts.These are only from day one and two. *grins

Last but not least, everywhere you go, do look up.........

and do look down too.......

because you just may find beauty and magic,

right there.

I end my story here.

Thank you for reading until this point,

I wish you too will

Have A Magical Day.

Posted by Ria at 11:03 AM | Permalink | Comments

About me

I am a woman who fell in love with papers and words long enough before with boys. Therefore, scrapbooking, writing, reading, and art journaling are just things that complete me. I live happily in Bandung, Indonesia, with my husband, Audy Kusnadjaja, and 2 adorable kids adore me. Isn't life sweet?

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Ria Nirwana's Home

Welcome to a home of one life artist who knew her limitations and then ignore them.

July 31, 2010

One thing that scares me in : July

July 30, 2010

Sagoo restaurant - Bogor

July 25, 2010

Kind over matter

July 24, 2010

-Do and Don't- from Hongkong with love.

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