Dugaan di Waktu Sahur

Hari ini aku bangkit jam 4:45 pagi. Niat di hati ingin bersahur dengan makanan berat seperti nasi berlauk atau pun set sarapan McDonald's kerana hari ini aku akan menyertai acara berbuka puasa bersama masyarakat setempat di Masjid Hadhari, Paka anjuran tempat kerja aku.

TakBolehBlah

Jadi dengan langkah yang malas, aku mencuci muka serta menyarung jaket dan seluar untuk bersiap-siap untuk keluar. Aku capai kunci TakBolehBlah dan tergesa-gesa menuruni tangga hanya untuk mengetahui bahawa rakan serumah meletakkan keretanya betul-betul di hadapan rumah dan menghalang aku daripada mengeluarkan kereta aku. Sememangnya kawasan perumahan tempat aku tinggal mengalami masalah kekurangan tempat letak kereta yang serius dan aku amat maklum akan hal itu.

Kereta milik rakan serumah

Tak mengapa, aku naik ke bilik untuk mengambil kunci motor BuJanG ku. Masih ada ruang untuk menyelit keluar jika aku menaiki motorsikal. Aku terus ke motorsikal ku, membuka mangga kunci yang terpasang di tayar hadapan dan terus menghidupkan enjin motorsikalku. Enjin motorsikalku dihidupkan, memecah keheningan pagi di Kerteh yang aman damai ini. Tetapi bila aku mahu bergerak, aku sedar tayar belakang motorsikal BuJanG ku pancit. Mungkin cubaan Ramadhan bagi aku hari ini. Aku harus bersabar.

Pancitlah pulak!

Aku amat memerlukan tenaga tambahan semasa bersahur kerana hari ini aku menjadi ahli jawatankuasa untuk majlis berbuka puasa anjuran tempat kerjaku. Aku harus berfikir pantas tentang sumber tenaga yang aku perlukan semasa bersahur. Aku terus ke dapur dan mengambil tiga biji telur untuk ku buat telur separuh masak.

Telur ayam gred B menjadi penyelamat

Mudah dan cepat disediakan. Rendam telur di dalam air panas selama lima minit, dan makan bersama lada hitam dan kicap lemak manis cap Kipas Udang. Gabungan kurma dan sekotak susu turut menjadi santapan di kala bersahur. Syukur, aku masih boleh bersahur. Dugaan di bulan Ramadhan datang dalam pelbagai bentuk, dan ianya tidak bukan adalah untuk menguji kesabaran hamba-Nya. :)


p/s: Besok balik Banting! (BBB)

Boobs from Paris?

Yes, I managed to have a taste of Parisian's bosoms while having iftar (break of fasting, berbuka puasa) in Awana Kijal recently. Well, did I really done that perverted act in this month of Ramadhan? I really want to say yes but it is not! The picture tells it all.

Ignorance feeds the troll

Actually, the dessert was wrongly spelled due to the ignorance of the hotel staff and the chef too. This, of course is the good source of LOL for me but a quick browse through the net tells me the real name of the dessert is Paris-Brest. This dessert was created to commemorate the 1200 km cycling race starting from Paris to Brest and back to Paris again. The first race took place in year 1981. Back on the dessert, it is basically a circle of choux pastry, filled with whipped cream and the shape is meant to resemble a bicycle wheels. You can read more about this here.

The taste? Well, I'm not really a food critique, as long as it is edible and tasty, it is deemed good enough for me. C'est bon! The cake lover would want to try this and to make it more meaningful, eat it after you done cycling. What's more important was my stomach practically bloated and it was a very satisfying gastronomic moment. Happy Ramadhan to all!

My Second Ramadhan

Time flies very fast; it has been a year since I started working in this beach town Kerteh, Terengganu. I still remember I reported into one of the petrochemical plant owned by our very own NOC in the final week of Ramadhan. The challenge was substantial, being thrown into new place alone with limited amount of money and was struggling to adapt to the new atmosphere and culture.

Bazar Ramadhan Kerteh

Today, here I am, still here and manage to make myself live comfortably although the environment is very different from my hometown, Banting. I hear and speak the different dialect, learning to eat local food and starting to enjoy it, slowly accepting the different culture and norms of the locals; I find myself being slowly assimilated into the laidback lifestyle of sleepy town Kerteh.

I bet the Flying Squad uses this to fly

However, the story is different when I step into the office. The workload had started to get bigger day by day, but thankfully, I have a bunch of supportive colleagues and bosses that always ready to offer assistance when I need it. I started to get immersed and stressful at work, but thanks to this sleepy town, I can de-stress once I call it a day in my office although a lonely life will greet me once I am home. Somehow, I can accept the calmness of this town as tranquilizer that keep me calm after stressful day at work.

The patrons flocking the small Ramadhan Bazaar

Ramadhan come again, and this is my second time fasting far from home. Truthfully, I still miss my mom’s cooking but here I have to celebrate this blissful month alone most of the time. The bazaar is not as big as one found in Banting. The food choices are limited and the price is exorbitantly expensive. Yet, it provides me with a whole new perspective about the Ramadhan in the East Coast, not literally. Most obvious thing is I can see a lot of people wearing coveralls with various colours that drop by to get some food for breaking fast. Yes, they are just like me, petrochemical plants workers and contractors from the nearby petrochemical plant complex in Kerteh. Somewhat I feel that we are like the Teletubbies wearing coverall with different colours. That is the most obvious thing that I cannot see in Banting. At least I know that I am not alone, most of them are like me, celebrating the month of Ramadhan far from family.

Standard drink with local distinct taste

Rotating chickens

I hope I can improve myself to be a better person in this year’s Ramadhan. I will fight my way to survive in this town; it slowly becomes my second home where I could rely on should I need a tranquil retreat. This town teaches me how to adapt to changes fast, being dynamic and inculcates a good working culture. To my family, I hope all of you are fine there and I am doing very fine here. Nonetheless, I still miss all of you days and nights; I look forward to see all of you and celebrate Hari Raya together. Happy fasting and I pray that all of you are blessed in this month.