So, part two starts out, actually with a trip to a museum of some kind, but for some reason (plus, my pictures are in Labuan right now, but more about that later), but I do not remember a whole lot about it, however, it was probably a blast! However, after the museum we took a trip to the zoo!!
My friend Tracy, who previously lived in Europe, told me that it was a huge zoo and would be a good idea. As Adam and I both like zoos, we decided to check it out. It was incredible! The layout was fun and wander-y. The little food booth where we had lunch had menacing pigeons waiting eagerly for unwary visitors who left their trays for more than 12 seconds. The exhibits were attractive and it felt like if I was an animal I would actually enjoy living in one of them. Also, there was such a variety of animals!
Some of my favorites :
1) The vulture that does a creepy wing/dracula thing when it is intimidating others. Just the thought of the creepy hunch-walk just gave me the shivers.
2) A cheetah that was feverishly pacing the fence area where he could best attempt to stalk the numerous rambunctious 7 yr olds running rampant in the grass near his cage.
3) The exhibit-house for ton of different types of tiny monkeys. They were so adorable! Also, apparently I am not allowed to use flash in there...oops.
4) The hippos! There were two different exhibits for them and they were so close. And friendly. I want one!
5) The elephant, of course. My favorite animal ever. :)
It was such a good afternoon, but our feet were pretty sore, so we headed back to the hotel, relaxed for a bit, then headed to dinner. For dinner we walked for about 15 minutes looking for a cafe that looked just right, and happened upon a cozy one that had both spanish/english/catalan translations in menu. Woot! We lingered over some sangria, pizza, and lasagna, but eventually decided against a club and ended up going back to watch Big Bang Theory instead. There, after watching several hours of Big Bang Theory, as most of you already know, Adam surprised me by getting down on a knee and asking me to marry him!! It was a awesome moment, in the perfect place, and the ring fit perfectly even though I've never told him my finger size. :) It is crazy because I feel like the realization of this is still just hitting me. And though it may sound cheesy, I never expected to be this happy with someone, regardless of where he and I are located and I keep on waiting for this to be just a dream. However, life rocks because I know that it is not!
Ok. Done gushing. I know you don't actually read this blog for the gushing, so I really do try to keep it to a minimum :)
Anyway, the next day we got to do one of Adam's favorite things of the trip : Take a cable car up to Castle Montjuic! However, there was only one problem...when we got off the metro, there was no cable car tower in sight. I did see one about 3/4 of a mile away, so I dragged Adam toward it. It was not the right one. However, we did see some cool supposed-to-be-there graffiti on a wall along the way. We gamely turned around and walked back, changing our strategy slightly to involve asking for directions at a hotel. We found out that there was a metro car in the very metro station we came in, that would take us to the cable car station on the side of the mountain. It was my (and I believe his as well) first cable car ride! So fun!!!
The castle itself was gorgeous. There were gardens, a drawbridge, ramparts, cannons, a high walls, arches, and stairways. The view from the top of the castle was inspiring and beautiful, and we took way too many pictures of everything. I'm not sure it would it be the coziest place to live, but it would be pretty incredible. The people we saw all around were interesting as well. There was a soprano sax player who played a lovely rendition of Auld Lang Syne. There were also some men illegally selling scarves that the Catalan police had to chase down as they ran away with scarves trailing behind them. The joggers impressed me the most, as I am pretty sure they ran from the bottom of the trails up to the top of the mountain.
Next we went to the National Museum of Art, which not only was huge and had some incredible art, but also included A LOT of steps going to the top. There was a lot of art directly regarding saints, but this makes sense, considering the history in Spain and the time-periods that the art came from. I don't adore art museums, but this one was actually really nice. By the end we were both ready to give up on the feet business. So sore!!! After 2 or 3 days of constant walking everywhere, our out of shape feet needed a rest. This was highlighted even more the next day, when I some how got an incredibly painful ingrown toenail (another first!) and we spent that afternoon packing stuff up, downloading pictures, and getting ready to head off for our respective destinations.
So, an amazing week, in a great location, with a wonderful traveling companion, and now.....my fiance!!
And now, I am in Brunei waiting to head to my first rig! Things happen pretty fast in my life sometimes (after months of going slow), and I am enjoying the change of pace. We'll see how it goes :)
Love you guys,
Becca
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Back from Vacation
It is difficult to find the right people to vacation with. Once I went to New York City on spring break with a friend from Massachusetts. Longest 3 days of my life. She complained about walking about, visiting museums and libraries, and had a creepy obsession with wanting to visit a museum dedicated to sex toys. I mean, NYC was a great place, I just went with the wrong person. Same with a mission trip I went on in Mexico over Christmas one year. My poor brother (only 15 or 16 at the time) got to be traumatized by people who basically yelled in tongues and would wake him up by praying over him with a Bible and flashlight in the middle of the night. We definitely drove straight home after they dropped us off in Oklahoma, turning down their offers of an extra place to stay (to be honest I was also afraid of spontaneous exorcisms occuring).
Sometimes we vacation with people who like outdoor activities and want to be constantly moving, other times we find friends who want to lay on the beach. I find my parents have one of the funniest/adorable vacationing relationships I've ever seen. When we went to Florida as a family, I distinctly remember that they would both get up early for a walk on the beach, then dad would do things like reconaissance on the bus routes in Florida, while mom would come back out to the beach after breakfast and soak up sun for most of the day. Also amusing : the fact that dad would get up so early and then take morning and afternoon naps. This might not be an accurate re-telling, but this is always how I will remember it in my mind. For the record, I absolutely loved that vacation. Getting to spend so much time with my family was absolutely wonderful!
However, this is not about NYC, Mexico, or Florida. This is about Barcelona. :)
Barcelona was my first trip to Europe that I actually remember. And though I would love to go back to Germany with my parents and do some remembering there, I've gotta say that Barcelona left an amazing first impression! To begin with, the city is so clean! There was a bit of trash here and there, and some graffiti in random places, but overall I was surprised at how tidy it was.
It was also fun to get lost in. My parents and Adam can both attest to how stressed out being lost causes me to be, but it wasn't so bad there. There was always a metro close by, and it was laid out in such a way that it was generally not bad to find your way to a known landmark if you are patient enough. Also, people were quite helpful whenever we broke down and asked them. Adam can also do N/S/E/W pretty well, so he was pretty good at keeping us on track. I know being bad at directions is an annoying stereotype to fit in, but in my defense, the gene for being good absolutely skipped me. What happened G'ma and Mom??
Also amazing...the food!! Even the "fast food" from a restaurant called Pan or Pans was pretty good. I love sandwiches and the bread at every place we stopped at was very good. I liked eating at completely random shops and cafes because undoubtedly no matter what you ate would be delicious (and sometimes a surprise as we couldn't decipher some of the Catalan/Spanish menus). Also, the sangria in Barcelona was amazing. Pretty much tasted like carbonated grape juice. Our favorite restaurant was run by a British guy and it was called "Ben." We happened upon it right before visiting the National Museum of Art (soooo much ART!!) and came back the next day because the food was incredible.
I don't even know where to start on the site seeing. We saw the Aquarium which was fun, winding, and full of interesting fishes. There was even a huge shark tank (you can take a dunk for 400-ish Euros) and a sting ray tank that you can look down into and watch stingrays swimming a foot from your hand. We tried to go to an IMAX theater nearby, but it was closed, so we braved a Spanish shopping mall instead, which was pretty nice. We tried on fun (and crazy looking) clothes, Adam found a nice shirt and I found a cute pair of shoes to wear.
On Tuesday (I think) we went on a 4 hour tour of Barcelona starting at 11 am. We were supposed to meet the guides in a plaza in the city center, but as we had never been to that part of the city before (and a lot of places in Barcelona have plaza looking areas!) we got a little lost and had to ask directsion twice. However, we did eventually find our guides, got bikes (no helmets, though there is a city law about wearing them) and then we were off (but then, you knew that...). It was actually the first time I'd ridden a bike in about 5 years. Took a little getting used to. We then proceeded to bike everywhere! We looked at historical buildings such as the Sagrada Familia, Opera House, several war memorials, city walls (which are pretty cool if they are hundreds of years old), and some neat fountains and parks. Our tour guide was an Aussie who was fun and told stories in a interesting way. He had dreads and spent the entire tour, when not socializing or telling stories, hitting on a French girl who was also on the tour. It was awesome to watch! At the end of the tour we stopped at a bakery down by the beach and had lunch. The beach is SO windy!! There were a ton of people windsurfing and parasailing, but they were all in wetsuits because it was also extremely cold. Ok. Maybe only 40 F, but that is still cold! We had spinach lasagna, focaccia (sp?) bread, and a pitcher of sangria. All were delicious, and I am actually salivating remembering them now.
Anyway that is all for now. I will add pictures to the next blog post about the last half of our trip which includes : (a) a castle, (b) a proposal, (c) some fun museums! Oh,and a movie adventure.
Later.
Love you!
Becca
Sometimes we vacation with people who like outdoor activities and want to be constantly moving, other times we find friends who want to lay on the beach. I find my parents have one of the funniest/adorable vacationing relationships I've ever seen. When we went to Florida as a family, I distinctly remember that they would both get up early for a walk on the beach, then dad would do things like reconaissance on the bus routes in Florida, while mom would come back out to the beach after breakfast and soak up sun for most of the day. Also amusing : the fact that dad would get up so early and then take morning and afternoon naps. This might not be an accurate re-telling, but this is always how I will remember it in my mind. For the record, I absolutely loved that vacation. Getting to spend so much time with my family was absolutely wonderful!
However, this is not about NYC, Mexico, or Florida. This is about Barcelona. :)
Barcelona was my first trip to Europe that I actually remember. And though I would love to go back to Germany with my parents and do some remembering there, I've gotta say that Barcelona left an amazing first impression! To begin with, the city is so clean! There was a bit of trash here and there, and some graffiti in random places, but overall I was surprised at how tidy it was.
It was also fun to get lost in. My parents and Adam can both attest to how stressed out being lost causes me to be, but it wasn't so bad there. There was always a metro close by, and it was laid out in such a way that it was generally not bad to find your way to a known landmark if you are patient enough. Also, people were quite helpful whenever we broke down and asked them. Adam can also do N/S/E/W pretty well, so he was pretty good at keeping us on track. I know being bad at directions is an annoying stereotype to fit in, but in my defense, the gene for being good absolutely skipped me. What happened G'ma and Mom??
Also amazing...the food!! Even the "fast food" from a restaurant called Pan or Pans was pretty good. I love sandwiches and the bread at every place we stopped at was very good. I liked eating at completely random shops and cafes because undoubtedly no matter what you ate would be delicious (and sometimes a surprise as we couldn't decipher some of the Catalan/Spanish menus). Also, the sangria in Barcelona was amazing. Pretty much tasted like carbonated grape juice. Our favorite restaurant was run by a British guy and it was called "Ben." We happened upon it right before visiting the National Museum of Art (soooo much ART!!) and came back the next day because the food was incredible.
I don't even know where to start on the site seeing. We saw the Aquarium which was fun, winding, and full of interesting fishes. There was even a huge shark tank (you can take a dunk for 400-ish Euros) and a sting ray tank that you can look down into and watch stingrays swimming a foot from your hand. We tried to go to an IMAX theater nearby, but it was closed, so we braved a Spanish shopping mall instead, which was pretty nice. We tried on fun (and crazy looking) clothes, Adam found a nice shirt and I found a cute pair of shoes to wear.
On Tuesday (I think) we went on a 4 hour tour of Barcelona starting at 11 am. We were supposed to meet the guides in a plaza in the city center, but as we had never been to that part of the city before (and a lot of places in Barcelona have plaza looking areas!) we got a little lost and had to ask directsion twice. However, we did eventually find our guides, got bikes (no helmets, though there is a city law about wearing them) and then we were off (but then, you knew that...). It was actually the first time I'd ridden a bike in about 5 years. Took a little getting used to. We then proceeded to bike everywhere! We looked at historical buildings such as the Sagrada Familia, Opera House, several war memorials, city walls (which are pretty cool if they are hundreds of years old), and some neat fountains and parks. Our tour guide was an Aussie who was fun and told stories in a interesting way. He had dreads and spent the entire tour, when not socializing or telling stories, hitting on a French girl who was also on the tour. It was awesome to watch! At the end of the tour we stopped at a bakery down by the beach and had lunch. The beach is SO windy!! There were a ton of people windsurfing and parasailing, but they were all in wetsuits because it was also extremely cold. Ok. Maybe only 40 F, but that is still cold! We had spinach lasagna, focaccia (sp?) bread, and a pitcher of sangria. All were delicious, and I am actually salivating remembering them now.
Anyway that is all for now. I will add pictures to the next blog post about the last half of our trip which includes : (a) a castle, (b) a proposal, (c) some fun museums! Oh,and a movie adventure.
Later.
Love you!
Becca
Friday, March 25, 2011
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm engaged!! Though I am sure you have heard about this already, I needed to repeat-tell you because I am so excited!! Best vacation ever! I have had incredible food (every. single. meal. ), wonderful sites, fun adventures, an incredible amount of walking, and now I also get to marry someone who I absolutely love and cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with. :)
There are not enough words...
I promise to tell more soon.
Love you.
Becca
There are not enough words...
I promise to tell more soon.
Love you.
Becca
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Hola!
So I cannot promise length with regards to this post as I am super tired right now. We just got back from watching Adjustment Bureau (we think!) in the theaters and it was awesome!! We weren't sure (a) if it was going to be shown in English or (b) if it was going to be worth the trip over to that side of the city. It was both! It was in English with Spanish subtitles, and it was such a good movie. :) Also, I am beginning to think that the adventure is just worth the adventure, regardless of the ending. I loved riding through the metro rails and getting a bit lost on our walk through the city. Also fun was having to ask for directions to the cinema, deciding on which of the random restaurants with menus we couldn't decipher we were going to eat from, and simply spending a fun relaxing evening having what felt like the most normal date possible (this is exciting for me because I don't get to have a "normal" date very often).
Anyway, the entire vacation so far has been so much fun! We've visited the aquarium, been on a long and super fun bike tour, figured out the metro and bus systems, had amazing food and gelato, and gotten lost our fair share of times. Adam has taken the role of "protector from potentially scary things and people", as well as "direction figure-outer," and done a remarkable job. I always hate figuring out how to get to where I want to go, and he is quite good at it, and doesn't get upset when we get lost occasionally. Also, he is very good about getting us un-lost again! We both love the metro, and I cannot think of a reason I wouldn't want to ride it every day! It is clean, and doesn't smell. There are also very few creepy people on it.
The aquarium was very interesting. There were, of course, fishes and other sea animals from all over the world, and the entire set up was very flowy and relaxing. At one point there was a huge tank that was full of sharks and other huge fish that was surrounded by a slow moving path we could stand on. This path is probably mainly there to help the flow of traffic, but it was so much fun to get to stand on while taking video of the sharks and rays passing by the glass. There were a lot of children at the zoo that day, which is completely fine. Little kids yelling in European languages are way less annoying than little kids yelling in a language from Asia or America. Not sure why...Anway. After the aquarium we went to see if we could watch a movie in the IMAX theater next door, which sadly wasn't open. Instead we wandered over to the adjoining mall to do some window shopping and hopefully find an adapter that would work with Malaysian computer cords. Success was found!
This morning we went on a bike tour that took us all over the old part of Barcelona. It was long, fun, and definitely felt really nice to be out and about. We saw cool historical sites, cathedrals, the Sagrada familia (a story in itself), and other fun sites. We learned that Barcelona is actually a part of Catelonia (sp?) which has its own completely different and unique culture from Spain. Consequently, because it is so different, it has hundreds of years of rulers trying to squash that uniqueness out using death, torture, laws, bombings, etc. It is so interesting! Our tour guide was Australian, and near the end of the tour he took us to the beach and told us to drink, eat, and drink. We did exactly that, and had cheesecake (not as rich as American cheesecake), lasagna, foccacia bread, and a pitcher of sangria! Deliciousness :)
On the subject of food....it is all SO GOOD! The desserts, the pastas, the sandwiches, the gelato, and....everything else is absolutely wonderful. :) Especially all the breads! I wish we had bread like this in Malaysia. I would be so large they would have to airlift me from my house.
And as for tomorrow? We are going to try to hit the zoo and several different museums/sites of interest. Wish us luck! Hopefully there will be more gelato in the future....
Love you all!
Becca
Anyway, the entire vacation so far has been so much fun! We've visited the aquarium, been on a long and super fun bike tour, figured out the metro and bus systems, had amazing food and gelato, and gotten lost our fair share of times. Adam has taken the role of "protector from potentially scary things and people", as well as "direction figure-outer," and done a remarkable job. I always hate figuring out how to get to where I want to go, and he is quite good at it, and doesn't get upset when we get lost occasionally. Also, he is very good about getting us un-lost again! We both love the metro, and I cannot think of a reason I wouldn't want to ride it every day! It is clean, and doesn't smell. There are also very few creepy people on it.
The aquarium was very interesting. There were, of course, fishes and other sea animals from all over the world, and the entire set up was very flowy and relaxing. At one point there was a huge tank that was full of sharks and other huge fish that was surrounded by a slow moving path we could stand on. This path is probably mainly there to help the flow of traffic, but it was so much fun to get to stand on while taking video of the sharks and rays passing by the glass. There were a lot of children at the zoo that day, which is completely fine. Little kids yelling in European languages are way less annoying than little kids yelling in a language from Asia or America. Not sure why...Anway. After the aquarium we went to see if we could watch a movie in the IMAX theater next door, which sadly wasn't open. Instead we wandered over to the adjoining mall to do some window shopping and hopefully find an adapter that would work with Malaysian computer cords. Success was found!
This morning we went on a bike tour that took us all over the old part of Barcelona. It was long, fun, and definitely felt really nice to be out and about. We saw cool historical sites, cathedrals, the Sagrada familia (a story in itself), and other fun sites. We learned that Barcelona is actually a part of Catelonia (sp?) which has its own completely different and unique culture from Spain. Consequently, because it is so different, it has hundreds of years of rulers trying to squash that uniqueness out using death, torture, laws, bombings, etc. It is so interesting! Our tour guide was Australian, and near the end of the tour he took us to the beach and told us to drink, eat, and drink. We did exactly that, and had cheesecake (not as rich as American cheesecake), lasagna, foccacia bread, and a pitcher of sangria! Deliciousness :)
On the subject of food....it is all SO GOOD! The desserts, the pastas, the sandwiches, the gelato, and....everything else is absolutely wonderful. :) Especially all the breads! I wish we had bread like this in Malaysia. I would be so large they would have to airlift me from my house.
And as for tomorrow? We are going to try to hit the zoo and several different museums/sites of interest. Wish us luck! Hopefully there will be more gelato in the future....
Love you all!
Becca
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Bored in KLIA Post :)
So, it came to my attention today that I don't know a lot of basic Malay words. So I looked some up and decided to share them with you.
Family Terms!!!
Mother = Ibu
Father = Ayah
Sister = Saudara Perempuan
Brother = Saudara
Aunt = Bibi
Uncle = Paman
Niece = Keponakan
Grandma = Nenek
Grandpa = Kakek
I am a Bibi!!! And I have a keponakan.
And because I there is a lot of English overlap within the Malay language : I give you the months of the year.
January = Januari
February = Februari
March = Mac
April = April
May = Mei
June = Jun
July = Julai
August = Ogos
September = September
October = Oktober
November = November
December = Disember
And all of the above are pronounced phonetically, so they will be easy for you guys to learn (cause I know it is a top 10 on your list of things to learn today!).
And now onto other things!
Becca
Family Terms!!!
Mother = Ibu
Father = Ayah
Sister = Saudara Perempuan
Brother = Saudara
Aunt = Bibi
Uncle = Paman
Niece = Keponakan
Grandma = Nenek
Grandpa = Kakek
I am a Bibi!!! And I have a keponakan.
And because I there is a lot of English overlap within the Malay language : I give you the months of the year.
January = Januari
February = Februari
March = Mac
April = April
May = Mei
June = Jun
July = Julai
August = Ogos
September = September
October = Oktober
November = November
December = Disember
And all of the above are pronounced phonetically, so they will be easy for you guys to learn (cause I know it is a top 10 on your list of things to learn today!).
And now onto other things!
Becca
Friday, March 18, 2011
Pre-Vacation Post
Here we go, folks, as of 7:30 am tomorrow morning, I will start my next travels. This time they are from Labuan to Barcelona, by way of Kuala Lumpur and Singpore! And since Singapore is yet another country I've never been to, I get to add that to a list! I will try to remember to take pictures from the airport windows :) I am about to start packing right now, but I am currently waiting on a batch of cookies to finish cooking. It seems like I might've needed to add a bit more flour than I originally did. We'll see if I can fix it. If not, well, I'll just have to deal with it.
I gave my work computer to my boss today before I left the office. We are encouraged to do this (or put it in the company safe) as SLB computers have a way of disappearing while employees go on vacation, whether they take them with them, or leave them in the house. Plus, it is so heavy! I definitely don't want to lug that to someplace that is supposed to be enjoyable.
Update : 3/19/2011
I started packing then fell asleep, so I epically failed at finishing the post. Currently I have made it through my first flight and am now in KLIA waiting on some Roti Canai (sp?) and Chicken Curry. And, in honor of Amanda....Ice Blended Mocha! I will take a picture of the gloriousness of it all. Then I am going to go to a spa in the airport and get a manicure because they are awesomely affordable in this part of the world (get on the ball, America!). Now if only I could get my skype to start working....
There we go. Working. I think after the manicure I will spend the next 6 hours watching tv shows and movies on my computer, possibly buying a book from a shop, and working on word searches. I considered going out into KL, but it takes an hour to get into and out of the city on the train. I also am not familiar with KL at all, so I feel uncomfortable running around there by myself. Especially with a huge bookbag and my purse. Snatch theft on foot and on motor bike is very common in this city and I would rather not have that experience to my the beginning of my vacation not-so-fun.
I just callled Adam and he is all packed too! He is also bringing me yarn (thanks Aly!). I was going to bring him homemade m&m cookies, but due to my not accounting for the humidity in my part of the world they turned out kind of..flat. And not very pretty. I refuse to give people sub-par cookies, so, no cookies for the boyfriend.
Now for plane flight schedule :
Malaysia to Kuala Lumpur. 7:45am-10:05 am, MH 2633
KUL to Singapore, 8:30 pm-9:25 pm, SQ 0119 (Singapore Airlines)
Singapore to Milan Malpensa, Italy, 11:45 pm to 6 am, SQ 0378....Some kind of stopover (I think to refuel)
Milan Malpensa, Italy to Barcelona, 7 am-8:45 am, SQ 0378 ................WOOOOOHOOOO!
I hope you all have a lovely weekend.
Love you
Becca
I gave my work computer to my boss today before I left the office. We are encouraged to do this (or put it in the company safe) as SLB computers have a way of disappearing while employees go on vacation, whether they take them with them, or leave them in the house. Plus, it is so heavy! I definitely don't want to lug that to someplace that is supposed to be enjoyable.
Update : 3/19/2011
I started packing then fell asleep, so I epically failed at finishing the post. Currently I have made it through my first flight and am now in KLIA waiting on some Roti Canai (sp?) and Chicken Curry. And, in honor of Amanda....Ice Blended Mocha! I will take a picture of the gloriousness of it all. Then I am going to go to a spa in the airport and get a manicure because they are awesomely affordable in this part of the world (get on the ball, America!). Now if only I could get my skype to start working....
There we go. Working. I think after the manicure I will spend the next 6 hours watching tv shows and movies on my computer, possibly buying a book from a shop, and working on word searches. I considered going out into KL, but it takes an hour to get into and out of the city on the train. I also am not familiar with KL at all, so I feel uncomfortable running around there by myself. Especially with a huge bookbag and my purse. Snatch theft on foot and on motor bike is very common in this city and I would rather not have that experience to my the beginning of my vacation not-so-fun.
I just callled Adam and he is all packed too! He is also bringing me yarn (thanks Aly!). I was going to bring him homemade m&m cookies, but due to my not accounting for the humidity in my part of the world they turned out kind of..flat. And not very pretty. I refuse to give people sub-par cookies, so, no cookies for the boyfriend.
Now for plane flight schedule :
Malaysia to Kuala Lumpur. 7:45am-10:05 am, MH 2633
KUL to Singapore, 8:30 pm-9:25 pm, SQ 0119 (Singapore Airlines)
Singapore to Milan Malpensa, Italy, 11:45 pm to 6 am, SQ 0378....Some kind of stopover (I think to refuel)
Milan Malpensa, Italy to Barcelona, 7 am-8:45 am, SQ 0378 ................WOOOOOHOOOO!
I hope you all have a lovely weekend.
Love you
Becca
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
More Evacuations
I decided this afternoon that if I didn't realize how connected the world was before, I certainly have a better idea of it now. It seems like every major world event directly effects who I work for. Today my company is pulling out all the expats from both Japan and Bahrain, as well as encouraging the home country employees to not go to work. I believe in Japan they even closed all the offices, and in Bahrain they suspended all drilling operations (due to unrest and martial law being imposed). This comes after over two months of continual updates about unrest situations all around the world and the evacuation of employees from at least four or five other countries. Is the world just going crazy, or has this been happening continually for my whole life? Maybe I just lived in a lovely "me" bubble for that time period (which is probably the case), or maybe it has always been a little like this.
Whatever it is, it is definitely interesting.
On a happier sidenote, even though the business in Japan is so sad, I am glad that they found that little 4 month old baby girl still alive!! The fireman's smile while he is holding her is absolutely heartening.
I'll write more tomorrow. Love you all.
Becca
Whatever it is, it is definitely interesting.
On a happier sidenote, even though the business in Japan is so sad, I am glad that they found that little 4 month old baby girl still alive!! The fireman's smile while he is holding her is absolutely heartening.
I'll write more tomorrow. Love you all.
Becca
Sunday, March 13, 2011
My experiment in picture posting
In order to combat my unreasonable fear of mixing pictures with words, I have decided to post a picture heavy blogpost. It will range around a favorite topic of mine...FOOD! So let us begin. I have run into many interesting food things here, and they can be categorized in 3 ways : Food I Love, Food I've Made, and Food I Will Never Eat. Let's start with the former!
Food I Will Never Eat :
There are actually many things in this category. However I feel this can of flower-flavored drink best personifies the entire business. Flowers should stay as flowers, and should not become drinks. I believe that everything has a place in life and it should not cross it's boundary unless there are extreme extenuating circumstances. So, flowers should not cross the line towards the food category, and chunks of meat shouldn't be worn as clothing (Yes, Lady Gaga, I am talking to you).
Fish O's at KFC. I shake my head in sadness at this business. With chicken, this sort of thing is acceptable. Fish is like that sad little sibling that tries to copy everything their older sibling is doing. And they are failling miserably at it. Yes, I judge you o acceptance yearning Fish O's...
Food's I Love!
These are so good! Way back when Hari Raya (Muslim holiday) was going on, there were cookies and treats galore hanging around the office. They were all shaped like pineapples and hearts and stuff. However my absolute favorite were these strawberry ones. I have been searching for the recipe for them for thee past 5 months and have yet to find it, but when I do....
This should be under it's own category of "Favorite Malaysian Meal". This is Kway Teoh Goreng (Kway Teoh are the noodles, Goreng is "fried") with chicken and prawns. My favorite version of it in town comes from the Food Park in the mall. With it is Teh O Ice(sp?) (Tea with sugar and ice in it). I would recommend it to anyone who ever came to Malaysia. Make sure to ask them to leave out the fish cake (yeah...you again, o pathetic weird fish...).
Food I've Made
I am especially proud of this meal because I had been craving chicken soup for so long! I got the recipe from Helen and then crossed my fingers and it turned out so well! The biscuits are simple drop biscuits that actually cook pretty evenly in my oven. Since then I've made cheese and garlic biscuits as well. Plus a lot of cookies (which, sadly, I keep forgetting to take pictures of!
I am really happy about these wontons because not only did they tast awesome, but they were made from scratch! Ma Jing (my housemate)'s mom was here a day after she went to the rig, so she made me dinner when I got home. I asked if I could help and she showed me how to make them! I can't wait to get to do this again (aka, have the guts to try it without parental supervision!).
Finally, this is not a food, but I am very excited about it! A square of my first blanket I've made since last spring. I have missed crocheting so much, and I am sooo happy about the yarn showing up. Here it is, a KSU themed blanket, btw, which you can hopefully tell from the square.
I hope you are all having a wonderful Sunday, and I love you all!
Becca
Food I Will Never Eat :
Food's I Love!
Food I've Made
I hope you are all having a wonderful Sunday, and I love you all!
Becca
Friday, March 11, 2011
Tsunamis, Pineapple Tarts, and Yarn
Hello peoples of not this part of the world :)
First, I would like to say that, yes (if the thought crossed your mind anytime in the past couple days), Labuan and I are both safe. I feel sad for the people in Japan who were owned by the 30 foot tall waves from tsunami, though. It reminds me (on a much smaller scale) of the 2004 tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands of people in ten countries, around here, the majority being from Indonesia.
Last year I took a Geography of Natural Disasters class and we discussed how something became a "disaster" because volcanos, tsunamis, earthquakes, mudslides, tornadoes, and massive forest fires occur every year and there is nothing that we as humans can do to prevent them. We came to the conclusion that a "disaster" only occurs because humans are involved. WE are the ones that cause disaster, not the random 70 mph tornado. We choose to build our homes on the banks of rivers, edges of oceans, sides of mountains/volcanos, in flood plains, and near active fault lines. Then we are shocked and devastated when our houses, belongings, and family members are lost in them. Is this preventable? To some degree, if you can actually choose to live someplace else, I would say yes, it is your own fault if you choose to build your house on the side of a mountain and then it is destroyed in an eruption or landslide. It is also your own fault if you don't heed warnings from weather and government officials telling you to evacuate until it is too late. However, my goal here is not to say that the people in Japan deserved to be part of a tragedy, because this isn't true. They were raised and have lived there for many years without horrible things happening. The same is true for many tragic situations. And a lot of people in this part of the world especially are extremely poor and are trying to live in severely overcrowded situations. They really don't have a lot of choice about where they live, and what they live in. Also in poor countries people are afraid to leave their houses due to the fear of looting, or the fact that tsunami shelters in Muslim countries might not have separate sleeping or bathroom facilities for men and women, so the women stay home. It is always a complicated and multi-faceted situation. However, going back to disasters : sometimes I think how funny it is, that if no one lived on that island, those huge waves and tremors would be just that; a really cool natural occurrence. It's too bad.
On another note, the reason you will never need to worry about me being swept away by a wave in Malaysia is because Malaysia is naturally protected. I believe this contributes to the country being so politically and economically stable. Malaysia is protected from the surrounding open oceans and active tectonic plates there by Indonesia, Philippines, and Southern mainland Asia. It's like we're the small kid in the middle of a bunch of other kids, protecting us from the bullys on the outside. This means that these countries also act like barricades, taking the brunt of any massive natural hazard, and often losing a lot of people in the process. There are also no volcanoes, or tectonic plates in Malaysia, so we can feel tremors from Indonesia sometimes, but very rarely. Due to the blessing of being protected, the most we were expected to have after the tsunami was elevated seas and some rough water. Plus, Iive on the highest point of Labuan, so I'm good. :)
Ok, Pineapple Tarts!! The Chinese shop keeper across the street had random recipes that his supplier (a hotel) gave him, and yesterday he photocopied it for me and let me have it. I am so excited because it contains a pineapple tart recipe that I've been searching for since last fall. Hopefully I will not ultra fail while trying to create them this evening. Also, it is a huge recipe, so I'm going to have to do some cutting down to start with. I will try to take pictures and post them, but I am still not sure how to do that on here. Wish me luck!
Finally, I got my yarn on Thursday and have been crocheting madly ever since. I can't help it! Crocheting is therapeutic and relaxing. I really really miss getting to do it and I am so glad I found that Hobby Lobby ships overseas. Currently I am working on a granny square quilt that is made of squares that have layers of purple, gray, and black in them. It is for my friend and former (awesome!) housemate who lives in Chicago. I will try to take a picture of my progress there and post it as well.
I hope you are all sleeping well.
Becca
First, I would like to say that, yes (if the thought crossed your mind anytime in the past couple days), Labuan and I are both safe. I feel sad for the people in Japan who were owned by the 30 foot tall waves from tsunami, though. It reminds me (on a much smaller scale) of the 2004 tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands of people in ten countries, around here, the majority being from Indonesia.
Last year I took a Geography of Natural Disasters class and we discussed how something became a "disaster" because volcanos, tsunamis, earthquakes, mudslides, tornadoes, and massive forest fires occur every year and there is nothing that we as humans can do to prevent them. We came to the conclusion that a "disaster" only occurs because humans are involved. WE are the ones that cause disaster, not the random 70 mph tornado. We choose to build our homes on the banks of rivers, edges of oceans, sides of mountains/volcanos, in flood plains, and near active fault lines. Then we are shocked and devastated when our houses, belongings, and family members are lost in them. Is this preventable? To some degree, if you can actually choose to live someplace else, I would say yes, it is your own fault if you choose to build your house on the side of a mountain and then it is destroyed in an eruption or landslide. It is also your own fault if you don't heed warnings from weather and government officials telling you to evacuate until it is too late. However, my goal here is not to say that the people in Japan deserved to be part of a tragedy, because this isn't true. They were raised and have lived there for many years without horrible things happening. The same is true for many tragic situations. And a lot of people in this part of the world especially are extremely poor and are trying to live in severely overcrowded situations. They really don't have a lot of choice about where they live, and what they live in. Also in poor countries people are afraid to leave their houses due to the fear of looting, or the fact that tsunami shelters in Muslim countries might not have separate sleeping or bathroom facilities for men and women, so the women stay home. It is always a complicated and multi-faceted situation. However, going back to disasters : sometimes I think how funny it is, that if no one lived on that island, those huge waves and tremors would be just that; a really cool natural occurrence. It's too bad.
On another note, the reason you will never need to worry about me being swept away by a wave in Malaysia is because Malaysia is naturally protected. I believe this contributes to the country being so politically and economically stable. Malaysia is protected from the surrounding open oceans and active tectonic plates there by Indonesia, Philippines, and Southern mainland Asia. It's like we're the small kid in the middle of a bunch of other kids, protecting us from the bullys on the outside. This means that these countries also act like barricades, taking the brunt of any massive natural hazard, and often losing a lot of people in the process. There are also no volcanoes, or tectonic plates in Malaysia, so we can feel tremors from Indonesia sometimes, but very rarely. Due to the blessing of being protected, the most we were expected to have after the tsunami was elevated seas and some rough water. Plus, Iive on the highest point of Labuan, so I'm good. :)
Ok, Pineapple Tarts!! The Chinese shop keeper across the street had random recipes that his supplier (a hotel) gave him, and yesterday he photocopied it for me and let me have it. I am so excited because it contains a pineapple tart recipe that I've been searching for since last fall. Hopefully I will not ultra fail while trying to create them this evening. Also, it is a huge recipe, so I'm going to have to do some cutting down to start with. I will try to take pictures and post them, but I am still not sure how to do that on here. Wish me luck!
Finally, I got my yarn on Thursday and have been crocheting madly ever since. I can't help it! Crocheting is therapeutic and relaxing. I really really miss getting to do it and I am so glad I found that Hobby Lobby ships overseas. Currently I am working on a granny square quilt that is made of squares that have layers of purple, gray, and black in them. It is for my friend and former (awesome!) housemate who lives in Chicago. I will try to take a picture of my progress there and post it as well.
I hope you are all sleeping well.
Becca
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
In Which Some Events Transpire, and Other Events Do Not
First I promise: this post will be decidedly more upbeat than the last post.
To paraphrase a John Wayne phrase: To the rat killing!
So some things are new: I now have a vacation for the 19th through the 26th of March! A couple of weeks ago I was talking to my manager and requested (since we will be busier in April and May) to have 7 days of vacation over Adam's spring break. He said that was fine, depending on where I would be (ex: if I went to America, no vacation). And as America fell tragically through my fingers and it seems I am now staying here, I brought the subject back up earlier this week. I asked for his advice on whether it was still advisable to buy plane tickets for the event, since I am supposed to be going to a rig sometime this week. He said, "Why not? It's a land rig, and they'll be drilling til the middle of May, so you've got time. Go ahead and order your tickets." So I excitedly shared this with Adam the next morning (his time) and we set about deciding where we wanted to go. Tropical is fun, but I already live in tropical, neither of us wanted cold, and we both think Africa is a bad idea for the time being. So, we looked at European countries. After considering the Ukraine, Germany, and Greece, he suggest Spain and it just clicked! The weather is nice, it has good food, history stuff, and is relatively warm. Then we looked at cities in Spain and Barcelona seemed like it would be so much fun!! So we booked hotel, his ticket, (and finally today!) my ticket. I am pretty excited :) I don't remember Europe from when I was a baby, so it will be fun to officially visit it as an adult. And, along the way I get to fly through Singapore :) As for activities, we are looking at a bike tour of the city and visting a castle that has been turned into an art museum. Promise, pictures will be taken.
The rig business has not changed. I was supposed to go out on Monday of this week, and then possibly Thursday, and "definitely" by Friday, but there is nothing confirmed yet. And regardless of when I go out, I am definitely coming back next Friday in order to fly out Saturday morning. Its kind of a convoluted mess, however, they have had 8 months to get their business together so at least it is a convoluted mess that isn't my fault.
While waiting for life to sort itself out I have been busy. I have made several batches of cookies and given them to the techs, my other coworkers, my managers, and the Chinese shop keepers across the street. Though they are not amazing, they are much better than Malaysian cookies (which tend to be hard and crusty) so I think if this job doesn't work out, at least I can open up a cookie shop here. I will be rich!
Also, in the last week my the video and wireless cards in my Dell Malaysia computer have completely gone out causing me to be unable to access the internet/skype from it. I am currently waiting on a Dell Malaysia employeed to get to Labuan so he can work on it again (he previously replaced the LCD screen/cable 1 week ago).
I am also having fun being kind of pushy (My catchphrase:I want to speak to your manager. NOW.) to the Post Malaysia (postal service) and Customs employees here. I am waiting on a package containing yarn and it is currently in no system that anyone knows of, but we do know that it has gone through customs. So I talked to several managers today and said that they need to stop blaming the other organization for their inability to know where it is, and that it needs to be found. NOW. I am supposed to get an answer from the manager in Customs, tomorrow morning, and Post Malaysia, on Friday.
Update : I just called the Post office 5 minutes ago and the package has magically appeared in Customs computers again. However the guy in the office won't answer his phone. I will prevail! Or just alienize those working the public service sector.
Next up: I have ordered an iPod Touch. "Why?" you ask. Well, because it can access iTunes as well as skype, so as long as I have a wifi connection I can skype on that instead of dragging out my PC, which is currently not working. It should be here between the 11th and 16th. I am pretty excited for its potentially getting here!
Tonight we have another calibration, I think, so that should make life interesting. We are not sure when/what time it will occur, but I am hoping for sooner rather than later. I hope it goes smoothly! Or else, I will still be up at 1 pm your time :)
Have a good day guys.
Becca
To paraphrase a John Wayne phrase: To the rat killing!
So some things are new: I now have a vacation for the 19th through the 26th of March! A couple of weeks ago I was talking to my manager and requested (since we will be busier in April and May) to have 7 days of vacation over Adam's spring break. He said that was fine, depending on where I would be (ex: if I went to America, no vacation). And as America fell tragically through my fingers and it seems I am now staying here, I brought the subject back up earlier this week. I asked for his advice on whether it was still advisable to buy plane tickets for the event, since I am supposed to be going to a rig sometime this week. He said, "Why not? It's a land rig, and they'll be drilling til the middle of May, so you've got time. Go ahead and order your tickets." So I excitedly shared this with Adam the next morning (his time) and we set about deciding where we wanted to go. Tropical is fun, but I already live in tropical, neither of us wanted cold, and we both think Africa is a bad idea for the time being. So, we looked at European countries. After considering the Ukraine, Germany, and Greece, he suggest Spain and it just clicked! The weather is nice, it has good food, history stuff, and is relatively warm. Then we looked at cities in Spain and Barcelona seemed like it would be so much fun!! So we booked hotel, his ticket, (and finally today!) my ticket. I am pretty excited :) I don't remember Europe from when I was a baby, so it will be fun to officially visit it as an adult. And, along the way I get to fly through Singapore :) As for activities, we are looking at a bike tour of the city and visting a castle that has been turned into an art museum. Promise, pictures will be taken.
The rig business has not changed. I was supposed to go out on Monday of this week, and then possibly Thursday, and "definitely" by Friday, but there is nothing confirmed yet. And regardless of when I go out, I am definitely coming back next Friday in order to fly out Saturday morning. Its kind of a convoluted mess, however, they have had 8 months to get their business together so at least it is a convoluted mess that isn't my fault.
While waiting for life to sort itself out I have been busy. I have made several batches of cookies and given them to the techs, my other coworkers, my managers, and the Chinese shop keepers across the street. Though they are not amazing, they are much better than Malaysian cookies (which tend to be hard and crusty) so I think if this job doesn't work out, at least I can open up a cookie shop here. I will be rich!
Also, in the last week my the video and wireless cards in my Dell Malaysia computer have completely gone out causing me to be unable to access the internet/skype from it. I am currently waiting on a Dell Malaysia employeed to get to Labuan so he can work on it again (he previously replaced the LCD screen/cable 1 week ago).
I am also having fun being kind of pushy (My catchphrase:I want to speak to your manager. NOW.) to the Post Malaysia (postal service) and Customs employees here. I am waiting on a package containing yarn and it is currently in no system that anyone knows of, but we do know that it has gone through customs. So I talked to several managers today and said that they need to stop blaming the other organization for their inability to know where it is, and that it needs to be found. NOW. I am supposed to get an answer from the manager in Customs, tomorrow morning, and Post Malaysia, on Friday.
Update : I just called the Post office 5 minutes ago and the package has magically appeared in Customs computers again. However the guy in the office won't answer his phone. I will prevail! Or just alienize those working the public service sector.
Next up: I have ordered an iPod Touch. "Why?" you ask. Well, because it can access iTunes as well as skype, so as long as I have a wifi connection I can skype on that instead of dragging out my PC, which is currently not working. It should be here between the 11th and 16th. I am pretty excited for its potentially getting here!
Tonight we have another calibration, I think, so that should make life interesting. We are not sure when/what time it will occur, but I am hoping for sooner rather than later. I hope it goes smoothly! Or else, I will still be up at 1 pm your time :)
Have a good day guys.
Becca
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
The Unpleasant Business of Waiting...
Some things in my life are worth waiting for; Adam, plane flights to exciting places, revolutions, ice cream cones, cookies that are baking, and rainstorms. However, there are so many things that I feel are not. Opportunities that I have already worked for, information that has been promised, and the chance to actually start my career after working in a company for 7 months. Yes, I have worked for SLB for 7 months and I am still stuck on this island in Malaysia doing very little related to my actual job. I was thinking about it today, and I don't think I am upset because I am waiting to go to rigs. I am upset because I uprooted my entire life and everything that I've previously known because I was promised a job opportunities and the chance to accelerate my career by working internationally. These things haven't been fulfilled in the slightest yet. They said the JOB would be a challenge. The job, is not a challenge right now. And even living here isn't that much of a challenge anymore. I've found meat, cheese, dishes I can eat. I know how to get most medicines and clothes I need. I have conquered the fear of running outside, and I am even learning squash.
However, this is not the challenge I wanted. If I wanted a lifestyle challenge I could've gone on a mission trip to Ghana for 2 months. If I can't be on rigs for this long, why didn't they just leave me in the US? Then I could talk to my family in their own timezones, visit my baby niece once every two months, and spend time with my boyfriend that is not strictly over skype. I could save a ton on shipping stuff over here, and at least whent he technicians discuss stuff in the shop, I would be able to understand them because they would be speaking English.
Yesterday we had a visit from the VP of Personnel who works in Paris or something. She asked questions and requested that we answer them as honestly as possible. I was incredibly honest. In response to, "Are there a variety of activities to do in Labuan?" I replied in the negative. Also mentioned that there was very little to do unless you felt comfortable watching blatant sex trafficking in clubs in the evening. In response to, "Does the inside of the book match the cover you were shown by the recruiters," I also said yes and no. And then I told them about never going to rigs, and that, honestly, I am basically just waiting until my first year is up so I can quit. Not because I can't leave before then, but because I promised myself one year. If something doesn't drastically change in the next 4 months, I will just pay off my student loans and come back to America.
So, I do apologize for my negativity this evening, but I am just so tired of waiting and being at the mercy of these random managers and their managers and their associated personnel people that seem to not care because I am trainee and no matter how politely and forcefully I push....I seem to get not-very-far.
Updated News :
As of today Total (oil company) has given me permission to come to their rig in Brunei, now we just have to wait on my visa to come through. This could be 1 day, or this could be 4 days. However, as the permission was suppose to have come through last Tuesday, lets just say that I am lacking some faith right now.
America? Well they are still being silent. The personnel manager for Malaysia called my manager today and talked about them/me with him, but I have heard nothing. I asked him what she said and he replied that she was supposed to call me this afternoon. Obviously, did not happen or else there would be other news here.
So, that is where we stand. Cross your fingers for me, and we'll see what happens this week.
Love you all.
Becca
However, this is not the challenge I wanted. If I wanted a lifestyle challenge I could've gone on a mission trip to Ghana for 2 months. If I can't be on rigs for this long, why didn't they just leave me in the US? Then I could talk to my family in their own timezones, visit my baby niece once every two months, and spend time with my boyfriend that is not strictly over skype. I could save a ton on shipping stuff over here, and at least whent he technicians discuss stuff in the shop, I would be able to understand them because they would be speaking English.
Yesterday we had a visit from the VP of Personnel who works in Paris or something. She asked questions and requested that we answer them as honestly as possible. I was incredibly honest. In response to, "Are there a variety of activities to do in Labuan?" I replied in the negative. Also mentioned that there was very little to do unless you felt comfortable watching blatant sex trafficking in clubs in the evening. In response to, "Does the inside of the book match the cover you were shown by the recruiters," I also said yes and no. And then I told them about never going to rigs, and that, honestly, I am basically just waiting until my first year is up so I can quit. Not because I can't leave before then, but because I promised myself one year. If something doesn't drastically change in the next 4 months, I will just pay off my student loans and come back to America.
So, I do apologize for my negativity this evening, but I am just so tired of waiting and being at the mercy of these random managers and their managers and their associated personnel people that seem to not care because I am trainee and no matter how politely and forcefully I push....I seem to get not-very-far.
Updated News :
As of today Total (oil company) has given me permission to come to their rig in Brunei, now we just have to wait on my visa to come through. This could be 1 day, or this could be 4 days. However, as the permission was suppose to have come through last Tuesday, lets just say that I am lacking some faith right now.
America? Well they are still being silent. The personnel manager for Malaysia called my manager today and talked about them/me with him, but I have heard nothing. I asked him what she said and he replied that she was supposed to call me this afternoon. Obviously, did not happen or else there would be other news here.
So, that is where we stand. Cross your fingers for me, and we'll see what happens this week.
Love you all.
Becca
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