Melbourne Zoo

The kids looked lonely after Tok Wan left. So we decided to bring them out. After all it had been quite a long time we didn't go out to have a family trip. So we decided that a zoo must be a great day out for the kids and the parents too.

Here are some of the photos.

I think their elephants must had been imported from Indonesia and Thailand. They brought together not only the animals' surrounding nature and habitat but also the local human culture. See the 'warung' (Malay word for village cafe'), with the Indonesian and Thai words.

The zoo celebrates the recent birth of their baby elephant, named Mali. It brings such a joy to the all too.

The same applies to the Orang Utan. The Malay words, the language of the peoples of the location where the animals originate are used here too.

What a lovely animal! It is so cute and friendly too. It looked at the public and it seemed as if it talked to the people. It's truly amazing.. and it was never enough to see this little tiny cutey bird..

Yes, it was such a great day except when Ammar started throwing tantrum. Luckily it happened at the end of the wonderful excursion. He might be too tired for a day long trip.

For those who plan to visit the zoo, we paid AUD$55.50 for a family of 2 children. Child below 4 years old is excepted. Extra $7.00 for each extra child. There is a carousel park inside alluring the children for a ride - $3.00. A good walking shoe is a must for the need to walk a long distance. Bring a lot of foods for kids easily got hungry and the foods sold here are quite expensive, by students standard - such as us... . The toilet is not up to satisfaction. Bring a stroller. Kids got tired easily. There is no mini train ride round the zoo as we have in the Malaysian National Zoo. By this term, I would give our National Zoo more stars!

Tok Wan was here

We, especially the kids, were so happy last week. The reason? Their grandpa together with the grand-uncle and grand auntie were here coming all the way from Malaysia to visit us. And Farhan started to find reason to skip school only to be with Tok Wan :-)

Now reaches 6 months and 3 weeks. She is now able to crawl successfully, so carefully and slowly. We can hear she laughs and she starts to use her voice to express herself. But still she doesn't like strangers.

Growing interest of drawing

A zoo

Family and Tok Wan. He is at the side of Tok Wan.

Describing his buddy at school, Thomas.

A poster of his name

A greeting card to the family..

When I ask him, where is his sister Ainaa, he said, she's sleeping.

How sweet!

Excited ..

Over-excited seeing the ripe grapes at the backyard of En Din, our colleague. He welcomes anyone who would like to have this scene as a photography background.

Jewels of the eyes

On 21 February 2010, Farhan, our first son, reached 6 years old. He has grown up and will be a handsome gentleman. Happy birthday, son. We wish you to have a great life ahead with Allah's blessing.

No celebration though. To mark the important day, we just prepared some special dishes and get him to distribute some to Iman and Aqil’s families who are his classmates and our home country neighbors in the vicinity.

This must be an important year for him - started schooling in an Australian school, different language, peoples, cultural and social environment which he seems to cope well. Additionally, mainly to give him religious education as well as to preserve our social culture, we also get him to attend a religious school which is about 10 km away from home operated every Sunday by a group of volunteers from 3 neighboring countries: Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia with minimal fees. He really seems to enjoy both schools.

So, on week days, he spends almost the whole day at school since the school period is 9.00 am to 3.15 pm. On Sunday, the school hours are 10.00 am – 1.30 pm which finishes with congregational zuhur prayer.

As to Ammar, reaching 3 years old last November, is yet to attend kindergarten. We tried to apply for it to have some social exposure but the waiting list is too long to see any hope to get place for this year. For being the second in the siblings, as well as for the age, I think, he is quite ‘rebellious’. In contrast to her older brother, he is so determined, insisting, brave and will do whatever he wants to do. Always quick to find reason and the good thing is also quick to remedy things when he makes mistakes. Out of quest for attention, he also loves to find reason to make Ainaa crying.

Always I find him in dilemma and becomes quiet especially when her brother comes back from school and tells things non-stop about his day at school. Poor Ammar, but we always try to get him to join the conversation by asking things involving him.

The guru for him now is the laptop that we bought for the kids to avoid them interfering with ours. Since we arrived here, he is so affected with trains that he would cry to get us passes by the train railway every time we go out. So, his current favorite is to watch any kinds of trains moving in youtube and ‘Thomas and friends’, ‘the trains with faces’, he said.

Our lovely daughter, Ainaa also has reached age of 6 months by the end of February. She is now learning to crawl, likes to smile as if she is shy.

On Monday, Tuesday and Friday afternoon, we send her to a child care centre not far from home. We only afford to pay for the 2 and half days considering the cost which is so expensive for us that it takes almost a third of our allowance here. At least we can have some times to concentrate with our study because a little baby such as her requires constant attention. I do not know that a baby recognize colors. She only likes her Indian babysitter and refuses to be with the whites.

I admit that sometimes I feel so tired with so many works and commitments that time is so restricted. Before this, we have a maid to help us with the house chores that we just focus on the children and work. But now, everything has to be done by ourselves. But the children even at times give us headache, always heal the stress. They are the jewels of our hearts.

About blogging

Sometimes I am struck by questions relating to blog writing. Why do I blog? Are there any implications resulting from sharing personal matters that I failed to contemplate? Am I nurturing 'self-centredness' in myself which is the threat against future generations currently posed by the culture of blogging?

I found no easy answer for those. I myself am new to this. It actually started with a suggestion I found during IELTS preparation, that writing blog is a good way to improve English writing skill. So I started this blog mainly for that particular objective which is crucial for my work especially the current commitment and become fond for it. Hence, this is also the reason for the 'formal' manner of writing that you may find here. The choice of language also follows from the same reason - not to undermine my own mother tongue, the national language of my beloved country - I am the patriotic sort, that is!

Since I do not have much time to update this blog frequently, many posts in here were produced in train or while waiting for the train. So, I wrote anything surrounding my life that come to my mind except those which are too personal or too political. I am no preacher of my own opinion (at least not in this blog..).

I think in the next century, blogs may be another source for historians and researchers to understand our life, perspectives, perceptions, opinions and way of thinking. At the least however, if this continued, and of course if it did not lose in the giga billion of data in the internet brain, our children will have some account of their parents's life when rising them rather than us who sometimes found our parents' old diaries in an old box under the bed with occasional notes on certain expenses and important events like our birth - which surely marked a watershed in their life. It did tell us something. What's more with pictures and what not that we have now.

So, hopefully there is nothing negative about this.