Hello... Am officially back in Luanda. And it is rainy here!

Gotta catch up with backlog at work but also to upload some pics from my vacation. It was a nice one so would like to share the photos with you.

 This is one pic that I have uploaded... So can you guess where I was? Hehe.

I'm taking a 2-week break from work and from blogging. Happy easter to anyone who celebrates easter.

In the meantime, I bumped into this video. Somehow it gives this warm feeling.. Or is it just me again? :)

Speak to you later.. !

Biarpun tinggal di Luanda banyak nggak nyamannya.. yang berisik, yang susah belanja, yang nggak banyak sayur-sayuran segar di supermarket, yang suka bau pipis dimana-mana, yang apa-apa nya mahal banget, yang semuanya ngomong Portugis jarang pada ngomong Inggris apalagi bahasa Indonesia, yang kerjaan di kantor sejibun dikali seribu... tapi kok hati bawaannya lepas dan gembira yah?

:) 

Maybe we have discussed before that Angolans like to party. And yes they do, A LOT. And that means you will hear one of your neighbours play party music all night long 9pm to 7am and the other neighbours also play other party music all night long. You would say that it sounds fun. I would say yes you are right... unless when you are not invited.

It seems like a common practice here in Luanda to do that, and no one can do anything like reporting to police or so. There is simply not such system and looks like it is not part of the culture to report to police when your neighbours are noisy during the night. It is just a common practice and of course the only thing you can do is to accept and appreciate.

We are so blessed (or cursed, in some nights) that we are surrounded by fun-loving neighbours that have lots and lots of relatives and friends. There are always parties with DJ's and complete sound system. Again, by saying complete sound system here means festival or mini-rave party scale. Mind you, this does not happen every 6 months or so, but rather close to every 2 weeks in average. We are so used to it that everytime this particular neighbour having a party we move our bed to the living room since our bedroom is too close to their house (like 100m distance) we can even feel the vibration of the soundwave in our room as if we are sleeping in a bajaj!

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Just 2 weeks back from a too long vacation.. just got a chance to take care of this little blog of mine.

First of all, I don't like the theme anymore. It was too dark, does not really reflect the writer, don't you think? hehe. Hope this one stays longer than the previous one.

Second, it is so hard really to get into the blogging mode again after a long time of hiatus.. :) but i'll catch up for sure.

Talk to you later, temans!

As we are approaching the Holiday Season, I'd like to say Happy Holiday to all. Actually by today, Sat 22Dec, the holiday season has officially started. At least, here in Luanda. The school days have been temporarily stopped to welcome the Christmas and New Year and most companies will be officially closed in 24-25Dec.

Major religion in Angola is Catholic, so Christmas celebration is a big thing here. Started from the second week of the month of December, there have been lots of parties going on. Christmas dinner, party and even Christmas lunch have been conducted in and outside office. I bet this is no difference compared to what happens in let's say, Europe, every year, maybe the only difference is in the type of songs and dances they play in the parties in Luanda. I have to say, I love being in Luanda for their parties and dance culture. Hehe.

Holiday Season is supposed to be the nicest and most relaxed time of the year for every employees? Not so much, for oil & gas company workers, I believe.

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It's a bit late actually, as I had been in semi-hiatus mode lately.

Then since last week, I started to do blogwalking again and I stumbled upon my friend's blog, and one of her many postings was this Rockin' Girl Blogger awarded to me. Wow, that's so cool girl, thanks! And now I 'd like to pass it on to  5  female bloggers whose writings never fail to inspire me:

 1. Fitri Mohan. Her blog is in the top list of my must-reads. She's an Indonesian girl living in New York, and her writings are just so witty and funny. Always succeeded in  capturing meaningful thoughts into  a light reading, after reading her writings you'd be left thinking and in the same time feeling entertained too. Four thumbs up, Fit! :)

 2. Ika Natassa. I know her in person when we were together in this cosmopolitan fun fearless female quarantine. She was also one of the finalists. She has a high demanding job as a banker in a top Indonesian state-owned bank, yet she still has time to blog, and most importantly, to publish her own novel. Congrats, babe! Love her writings. Now, I have to contact her quickly how to get her book from Angola, hmm.

3. Nancy. I recommend you to visit her blog. She likes to write about the importance of opening your heart. Her blog is calm and spiritual, reading it makes me reminded all the time to look inside more. Thanks for sharing with us, Nan. Love it! (L)

4. Ade Rita. She's such a sweet character and her blog shows it. The air of this Multiply blog is sassy, honest and open. No wonder she has lots of loyal readers!

5. Nila Tanzil. Need to say more about this blog? This is the blog that was rockin' the blogosphere when one of her postings was commenting the Malaysia Tourism Board based on her personal experience and got a hard reaction from the Malaysian Tourism Minister himself, literally! Can you imagine: an Indonesian blogger got a hard reaction from a Malaysian Minister??  How many times have it ever happened in history? That's what I call "ROCKIN'". For one period of time, the nationalism of all Indonesian bloggers were touched heavily. She also got a lot of support by Malaysian bloggers that were embarrassed by their minister. Nilz, thank you for being so brave and honest. Outside the blogosphere she is also such a sweet friend... Miss you lots, dahling!

Now pass this on, ladies! :)