Loy Krathong

Last nite, Damuan river were transformed into the Chao Phraya where the Thai community in Brunei gathered to celebrate the Loy Krathong (or Loi Kratong, Thai ลอยกระทง) under the full moon.

According to Wiki;
"Loi” means “to float”. “Krathong” is a raft about a handspan in diameter traditionally made from a section of banana tree trunk (although modern-day versions often use styrofoam), decorated with elaborately-folded banana leaves, flowers, candles, incense sticks etc. During the night of the full moon, many people will release a small raft like this on a river. Governmental offices, corporations and other organizations also build much bigger and more elaborate rafts, and these are often judged in contests. In addition, fireworks and beauty contests take place during the festival.

More to come...

Glitz and Sparkle

On National Day weekend, I had the pleasure of having dinner among the stars to celebrate the coming of age of a debutant. Me and her go back long ago, my partner in photo outings back in W2 all the way to Canary wharf.

Thanks for letting me be the paparazzi. *Wink.*

On a roll

What a wicked weekend! Saturday night; attended a friend's dinner party; tasty food and a good dose of music from the rocking live band. Sunday; the next day followed with the raising of the gigantic National flag ceremony in bandar....and Tonite; attended the birthday bash of a dear friend with a big heart. I will post the photos from tonite soon. Happy Birthday Mr Qlap!

Music is good for the heart and soul....

The Nippon Maru Experience Part 2

Last nite was one of those hot November night but that didn't stop anyone from having a good time. The PY which stands for Participants Youth as I was told by an ex-PY, were very sporting with their songs and other performances backed by the live band made up of cabin crews. Yes, I was surprised too plus they were good. Almost all the guests joined in and dance with every performances even the host, Nur and family dance the night away.

The party was also a gathering reunion for the local ex-PYs who also performed. There was also a special performance by a famous local artist too, who himself is an ex-PY. I think me and my friends are the only one who is not an ex-PY, even The Daily Brunei Resources is one of them.
This gathering is an annual ritual for Nur's family.

I was invited to the previous years but only had a chance to attend this one. I am definitely coming to the one next year...

This afternoon, I had a chance to observe from a distance the Nippon Maru at Muara Port. The ship were strewn with streams of ribbons held by the PY's on the ship and the other held by the PY's foster parents at the berth, slowly departing Muara Port as it moves further and further from the berth until the ribbon snaps. *Remember that opening scene in the love boat....

The Fever..

2.30 pm: "Satu hari di Hari Raya....." by M. Nasir on the radio.

Right then, it only registered in my cerebrum that raya is just 5 days away...

9.00 pm: "The sound of thunder woke me up from my sleep... Wait a minute, false alarm. A loud BANG followed by an echo, I think that's the ban 'Thunder Clapper'.A distant away some colourful fireworks in the nite sky.

Wanted to scream being woken up from my sleep but this is the norm at this time of the year..

11.00 pm: Watching CSI with the background of firecrackers and on top of that house smells like a bakery with mum's baking ...

More signs that raya is near....

The new moon will be sighted this Sunday, to determine a Monday or a Tuesday start of...I hope its the later.

Hari Raya or Eid Mubarak is the biggest Muslim festival. It is a time Bruneian get dressed up in their newest and sparkliest outfit, a day they open their homes to welcome visit from friends and relatives, a time to come together in unity for forgiveness, peace, love and brotherhood.

The first day is usually a family day, for me a day spent at the Gran's, where all the uncles, aunties and cousins will congregate and spent a day from lunch till the evening, eating, welcoming visiting relatives and friends, eating and more eating. The next few days that followed will be hectic with more visiting houses and being a small country with a small population community, everyone is somehow related or friends of another, you can just imagine the number of houses to visit.

We Bruneians tend to go overboard with Raya especially now with the Brunei Grand Sale coinciding with the festivities, its hard not to ignore the amount of money spent and the debt accumulating.( afterall according to statistics, the population is a 'credit-card/loan economy' and we are in debt in the Billions.)

Hari Raya celebration will continue for a month even during office hours where colleagues will take turn having open houses inviting the whole department, so a low productivity level during the month is a norm. With all these 1001 things leading up to the first day of Syawal, its hard not to feel the festive fever......

Alarmingly it is a season of accidents, Bruneian spent about 60 percent of their raya time traveling on the road hence greater risks and exposure. Let us not be one of the statistics, lets do our part Insya Allah... Drive Safely & Buckle Up! Selamat Hari Raya...

Monday Moan

A peek into my day;

1. The sun came out today after a holiday with Pluto, apparently escaping the haze.
2. Started the day with an exercise not the sweaty one but an emergency exercise; refreshing/demanding/thinking outside the box-ish.
3. Updated the London-based Web.
4. Had to do some investigative work into an incident involving a minor mishap. I like to call it the-putting-on-my-CSI-cap; involves long hours of work, interogation, facts, evident and all that kinda stuff. To be continued tmrw again. Fortunately for me, all that hours infront of the tv watching CSI comes handy at this session.
5. Sleep/Sungkai..
6. Gym session, saw Mr Qlap playing a game of Basketball and his team won.Pfweeeeeeet!
7. Finally come to my senses to sell my other car, my black circa 1998...
8. I decided that new Beyonce's song 'Ring the alarm' is crap so what does that says about the album.? Funny how artist try to sell bad music with over the top video, hers was inspired by Basic Instinct complete with the scene where she was interogated by the police, white dress, crossed leg minus miss beaver. Sorry boys.
9. I want Kristal FM to ban that Irwanshah songs already. So annoyingly unbearable...
10. I want to take action against all these shops that actually muck up their price and claiming it's cheaper. Maybe I should create a You-Cheating- Prick.Com for them..
11. I cannot stand that caller who rang for the one or 2 missed call, an indication for us to ring them back. You wish.
12. I shut up now....