This blog will be deleted very soon as I have switched over to WordPress.

To catch up on the latest & future posts, please head to :

http://www.aliciahazeline.wordpress.com 

Thank you! xx.

Welcome back to Part 2 of my Penang trip! :) 

So the first stop we went to for breakfast/lunch/brunch was Ah Lai Kopitiam. According to a friend of mine, they have 'instagrammable' food.... but maybe I just have really bad photo taking skills. Oh and by the way, the hotel I stayed at offers breakfast but it was really not my cup of tea (they served hot cakes, toast w/ butter/jam/marmalade, fried maggie mee, fried vegetables, fish fingers, baked beans, eggs and hot beverages). 

Curry-flavoured Maggie Mee w/ Cheese.

I did not try this dish because I'm not one who can handle spicy food but I was told it was just like your average bowl of instant noodles. 

Toast w/ Kaya & Butter ; Toast w/ Half-boiled Eggs. 

I had this for breakfast instead! Nothing special though, but the yolk of the half-boiled egg was almost fully cooked although it was supposed to be runny. 

While we were eating, there was a man who I think was a little crazy(?) because he suddenly stood outside the coffee shop and shouted in a foreign language and it seems like he was talking to himself. It was really an unpleasant experience because I really did not feel comfortable as he was standing right next to my table. However, if this ever happens to you, just ignore him & mind your own business, he will walk away after a while. 

Foamed(?) Coffee. 

I cannot remember what the name of this coffee was on the menu but my friends told me it was really good but too sweet for their usual taste. If you're not a fan of sweetened coffee, do remember to tell them to go light-handed on the sugar syrup! 

After we ate, we went to walk around the places nearby & stumbled upon an ice-kacang shop!

I know that there's a sign there that clearly states "Do not touch" but a local that happened to be standing outside the shop told me that I was allowed to hold the spoon to take pictures! 

This was the original photo before I was told that I could hold the spoon :)

After more walking, we finally reached the cafe that our friend wanted to show us. 

It's called "Sekeping Victoria".

Take a look at how beautiful this place is! 

I did not order anything because I was super full from the toast I had earlier on but I heard the coffee's good! I went to walk around the streets of Penang while my 2 other friends stayed to do their assignment.... Thankfully all the tourist spots were right around the corner! 

P/S: You may have to queue to take this picture & the queue can get really long especially with inconsiderate people that keep cutting the queue and pretending that they're not aware of what they're doing!! 

CAUTION : DO NOT LEAN ON THE PAINTED DOORS BECAUSE IT WILL OPEN! 

If you don't believe me, here's what happened..... 

The beautiful thing about Penang is that there are many many street murals that are really pretty! E.g. this cat I stumbled upon outside the Owl Shop! :) 

Another cat.. 

That was the last picture I took w/ the street murals because it was getting really really hot (it was around 12-1pm) so we walked back to the cafe to meet the rest. :)

I cannot remember exactly where we went and what happened but we stumbled upon this shop that sold "Hot Puthu"! They're Indian-style rice cupcakes (made w/ rice flour) served with gula apong (palm sugar) and desiccated coconut!  The stall is located within Hock Poh Lye Cafe, at the junction of Penang Street and China Street according to online sources. It operates daily from 5:00pm onwards. 

I really loved it & it was served steaming hot! Remember to grab a little bit of everything & eat them together! :) 

One of the shops we stumbled upon while walking around. It's a shop that sells rugs made out of animal skin. I didn't dare to enter because it just felt so terrible as if I was walking into a room of dead animals. Oh the guilt! 

*Do take off your shoes before entering this place. 

Chendol.

We had chendol at a place that claimed to be the most famous chendol stall in Penang w/ pictures of famous people like Jimmy Choo with the owner of the stall. Chendol is a sweet dessert w/ coconut milk, worm-like pandan flavoured jelly, red kidney beans, shaved ice and also sweet palm sugar! 

Fried Oyster.

We went home to get some rest before heading out for dinner!  

Koay Tiaw T'ng.

This dish is basically noodles and soup along with duck meat, chicken, fishcakes, vegetables and some other spare parts (pork blood cubes, liver etc). 

The food in Penang is almost the same everywhere with the common foods being char koay tiaw, koay tiaw t'ng, fried oyster, chendol and hokkien mee. 

Thanks for reading & hope you enjoyed!

xx 

Details on the place(s) I went in Day 2! :

Ah Lai Kopitiam

Address: 15, Lebuh Gereja, George Town, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia. 

Operating Hours: Monday-Saturday [9am to 3pm] ;  Sunday [7am to 1pm]

Contact No. : +60 16-477 1332

Never would I have expected that I was going to Penang over the last weekend. & with me saying this, you'd wonder, how did it happen?

Bernard & a friend of mine asked if I was up for a road trip to Penang and at the time, I seriously thought they were joking because driving down to Penang from K.L takes about 4 hours!! Little did I know, they were serious..... and we left the condo at almost 6pm. 

After 4 hours of being in the car, we finally arrived Penang! We checked in around 10pm at Hotel Malaysia in George Town (we booked the hotel on the day itself through Booking.com). 

We booked the Premier Deluxe Room that was meant for 4 adults (but we had 5). It was RM530 for 2 nights inclusive of miscellaneous charges (we added an extra bed on the second night) but stated as RM401+ on the website. 

After checking in & putting all our stuff in the room, we went for supper at Sg Pinang! We did stop by earlier on  in Ipoh for dinner :) 

They have all kinds of food like porridge, noodles, char koay tiaw, grilled seafood, fruits etc. but we got there pretty late so there wasn't much food left.

Hokkien Prawn Mee. 

Definitely a must-try in Penang! One of the best broths ever. 

Char Koay Tiaw.

 Also one of the must-try's in Penang as this is one of the dishes they are famous for. 

After supper, we went for a drive around Penang & all the way to Batu Ferringhi area. We went to a super super nice Starbucks, definitely the nicest I've ever seen! 

There's a beach at the back & a small shop(?) that has shisha / hookah. & for those who are afraid of getting your feet dirty w/ sand, don't worry, there's a small area where you can rinse your feet clean! :) 

& that sums up Day 1 of my trip! Will update on Day 2 in the next post, sorry for disappearing for so long and thanks for reading!

xx

Details on the hotel :

Hotel Malaysia, Penang

Address : 7, Jalan Penang, 10000, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia.

Website: http://www.hotelmalaysia.com.my

Took a short trip back to my hometown & I swear I have never felt better! (That's also why I didn't blog)

 For the past 2 weeks before I went home for my semester break (1 week), I couldn't sleep and my mood was al over the place lol. I sleep around 1-2 hours or if I'm extremely lucky, 6 hours every night. But yeah, mostly around 2 hours and you can imagine how tired I was the next day for class & the cycle repeated for two freaking weeks. 

No, I did not take an afternoon nap. 

I tried many ways :

1. Drink hot green tea

 2. Drink hot/warm honey

3. Drink warm milk

4. Count sheep

5. Read a book

6. Watch videos until I felt tired

7. Medication

AND NONE OF THEM WORKED!!!!! 

[So if anyone of you have any suggestions on how to fall asleep, please do tell me. I need it desperately.]

It was not until I went back home was I able to fall asleep, peacefully for the entire week!! :)))

Being back home was amazing, I missed my family, home-cooked food, my car, and the familiar faces back home :( And to those who know me, I am aware of the fact that I'm only 1 hour and 45 minutes or less away from my home but it still sucks being so close yet so far. :( 

However, all good things have to come to an end and therefore, I am now sitting at my desk in hell writing this post. I have a ton of deadlines to meet and tests coming up in this week itself so please pray for my poor soul. 

 On the bright side, check out the view from my room!! :) 

Okay so I'll head back to doing my assignments & stop procrastinating! Just wanted to drop something on my blog to keep it alive. 

P/S: I still need advice & tips on how to fall asleep every night so your suggestions are extremely welcome. <3 

I got my very first tattoo on 13 November 2015, in the middle of my SPM. It was a really spontaneous and sudden thing and I didn't actually give it much thought before getting it permanently inked onto my body. But if you're planning to get something inked, please think and evaluate carefully before you actually get one. 

No, I do not regret it at all. The tattoo has a really deep meaning to me and I love it.

Initially, I had this tattoo sketched out with a friend who planned on getting the exact same thing (I know, don't judge). Fast forward to the end, I was the only one who did it at last.  :)

The tattoo as a whole was supposed to be XCVIII which stands for 98 in roman numeral.
I replaced the V with a diamond though. And the dot at the beginning of the tattoo is NOT A TATTOO, IT IS A MOLE. It just happened to be there and I was like oh I guess I could connect the tattoo from there. 

The Diamond : Diamonds are beautiful, beautiful rocks that are so shiny and it's also the hardest material known to man. They are precious and crazy expensive! Diamonds are made through tons and tons of pressure and at very high temperatures. Basically, it's a daily reminder to me, telling me that it will all be worth it. Whatever hardship I'm going through, no matter how painful, it will be worth it.

P/S : It's like all of those Facebook videos and all that tries to deliver the message that the tests you go through in life are going to make you strong in the end but this is my version of it. 

XCVIII : As I said, it stands for 98 in roman numbers. I was born in the year 1998 and that's why I got 98. Nothing fancy here. 

Pictures : 

This was the sketch! 

The actual tattoo.

Ok before you think like "OMG the ending is crooked!", no it isn't. I know it looks like it is in the picture but it healed nicely and it isn't crooked. Believe me, I had a major heart attack when I saw the picture. I totally freaked out and I was like this cannot be happening... 
But it healed alright and it looks like how it's supposed to. 

As for where I got it done, it was done at a tattoo parlour called Nam Tattoo & Body Piercing Studio (Kuching). 

Price : RM160-180 (I cannot remember) 

Tattoo Artist : Normen 

They have a Facebook page as well so you can go search for it & see their other works! They also do tattoo cover ups, and really big pieces (full back or even full body). 

That's all for now! Thank you for reading :)
xx

Why do we try so hard to live up to society's expectations? 

I'm sure everyone at some point in their lives have tried in one way or another to fit in, to be 'cool', to please someone and most of the times, to no avail.

I have to admit, for many years of my life I tried so hard to fit in. I wanted to be accepted and I wanted to feel like I truly belonged. I conformed to the standards of society & people around me that deemed me to be 'cool', I hid how I really felt and what my true thoughts or opinions were because I was so afraid of rejection.

For me, I feel like the main reason why I tried so hard to fit in was because there was nothing I hated more than to be left alone. If you knew me well enough, you'd know that I am someone who cannot bear to be alone (simply because I felt awkward and outcasted). 

I would never go to the movies alone, have meals alone, or basically go out in public alone.

The environment I grew up in was one that was not only academically competitive but also competitive in the field of sports and extracurricular activities (clubs, uniform bodies etc.).
Being in this situation, I had no choice but to take part in the following as well to make sure that I didn't fall short. I tried to be the all-rounder (that obviously did not turn out well).

It wasn't until one day, I received a birthday card that was incredibly sweet, encouraging and filled with love that I finally decided to stop trying to please everyone.

The one sentence that hit me was : 

"Why do you try to fit in when you were meant to stand out?"

I am truly grateful for this friend of mine who made the card for me around 2-3 years ago (you know who you are).
I guess I have become one of those who have been brainwashed by society that after a while, the flaws are all I see. I failed to see the tiniest bit of good in me because all I saw was the bad.

Just like what many people say, you can do a million good things but people will only notice that one bad thing that you've done.

That's when I decided to draw the line, to start making myself happy instead of having to please everyone; to live my life the way I want to and to finally express my true opinions.
At first, it was hard and in this process of discovering myself, I have lost many many people in my life. Even those I thought would always be a part of my life. 

But I knew it would be worth it, I knew that this was the right thing for me to do. 

Always fight for what you believe in and never suppress your identity because only then will you be able to truly discover who you really are. 

To anyone who ever reads this blog: 

I'm not one to constantly update my blog after a given time span. I do have to catch up with my studies as well and hence the lack of updates. I also can't write everyday because I must have a lot of interest in something or opinions for me to be able to write about it. However, I will post whenever I feel like I have something to share! 

Fall in love with a man who loves you more because he will love everything you hate about yourself, every single flaw,  even the tiniest of them. He is the man who will be able to look past your flaws and accept you for who you are. He will be the only one who can put up with your pettiness, your short-tempers, your mood swings and also how unreasonable you can be when you are frustrated.

Fall carelessly, fall deeply.

Make plans for the future and believe that he is the "Mr.Right" that you've been searching for all along. 

Become involved with his family, as well as him in yours. Love his family, build bridges; learn to be a part of his life. The man who loves you more will always fight to be in your life even if his family or yours disapproves. He will do all he can to make them see the good in you. He will constantly try to appease your parents, to gain their trust and to give them a sense of security whenever you're with him. 

The man who loves you more will be kind to your mother despite her disapproving looks and he isn't afraid of your father but rather treats him with respect. The man who loves you more will treat your siblings as his own, he will never find them annoying and he will be the one who picks them up from school just because. 
The man who loves you more will love your family as much as you love them. 

The man who loves you more will always make time for you, and make you a priority in his life.
He will be the kind of man who will try his very best to satisfy your cravings for desserts even if it's in the wee hours of the morning, simply because he loves you. He will be the man who catches you when you fall, holds you when you're on the verge of falling apart, and loves every broken piece in you. 

The man who loves you will give you your space to grow, to discover yourself with an open heart and an open mind. He will be patient, he will be tolerant, and he will be supportive in every step of the way. He will never be the one who sets boundaries or puts up barriers around you. He will never be the one holding you down. 

The man who loves you will never leave when things go wrong. He will be the man who sticks with you through thick and thin. He never yells and he never lets you go to bed mad. He will be the one who holds everything together when it starts to fall apart; he will be the foundation of this love you have found. He never gives up.

The man who loves you more will love you unconditionally, no strings attached. He will love you even when you're at your worst. He will find you beautiful no matter what you wear or how you did your make up. He will laugh with you, and he will also hold your hand when things go bad. 

Time passes, and as you continue growing with the man who loves you more, remind yourself that he is the perfect man for you. Never fall into the trap of letting yourself be convinced that you are 'bored' because no one will treat you better than the man who loves you more.
This man, the man who loves you more, will be willing to sacrifice just about anything for you. Hence, the following advice is crucial.
Never take advantage of the love that he has entrusted you with, because this love is rare, and is one that should be treated with the utmost care and love, the kind that this man has provided you with. Never be selfish, never be calculative, never dismiss his love for you as clinginess or attention seeking; Treasure every moment as though it is your last, love furiously, love fearlessly. 

One day, the fights will not be as heated, as fuelled and as passionate as when the both of you started out. The butterflies in your stomach will eventually fade, the way your heart skips a beat whenever you see him will also disappear. This does not mean that you do not love him, or that you love him less. Do not take this passion that you both once had as the indication of the strength of the love you both have, because passion is something that will fade away, passion is not forever. 

All this simply means is that the both of you have gone past the stage of infatuation, and that your relationship with him has now transcended into a deeper form of love and that you are entirely comfortable around him. 
Gone are the days when you had to hold your fart because you were embarrassed, or tried to ignore each other's burps and pretend they never happened, or when you had to act all prim and proper to make sure that you didn't scare him off. You no longer feel the need to act like someone else in front of him, you no longer have to suppress your true identity and the mask you once used to wear has now fallen off. 

When the man who loves you more asks for your hand in marriage, take the opportunity without any hesitation because no one will love you better than he does. No one will understand you better than he does; no one will tolerate your short-temperedness or emotional mood swings better than he does. 
Build a beautiful family with this man, raise your children to be like him and be a role model to your children; be the pair of loving parents you never had. 

Finally, the man who loves you more will never leave you thirsting for his attention, he will never make you feel like you have to earn his love. He will never make you compete for his love. He will never fall into the temptations of sin despite the suggestive strides and oscillating hips of those other women, simply because he is devoted and loyal to you.

This man will make you feel like you're the only woman in the world, and the most beautiful one as well. To him, you will never fall short of any other women.. To him, all he sees is how the entire universe sparkles in your eyes and how ravishing you look no matter how much time passes. He will be the one who loves you when you're no longer young and beautiful. 

To him, you will always be enough. 

The game that everyone has been raving about! 

This incident made me realise that Pokémon Go really does help people connect.

(Not mine - but this is what Sightings look like & if you haven't already got these Pokémons, it would appear as a shadow of the Pokémon)
While we were walking and about to give up, the most random thing happened. This guy approached us and this was how the conversation went :
"Hey, are you guys playing Pokémon Go?"
"Yeah we are, why?"
"I'm playing too and my GPS is lagging. Do you see a dragonite in your sightings?"
"Huh? Is is this one? *Shows him the new Pokémon in our sightings (its just a shadow before you catch it so we didn't know what it was*"
"Yeah that one! It's a Dragonite!"
Bernard : "Wow really?! If you didn't tell me I would've went home already, now I'm going to go around to look for it."
"Do you mind if I tag along?"
"Why not?"

And that was how we gained a new friend. Little did we know, he lived in the same place as us. We exchanged names, and walked around for another 20 minutes+ just to search for Dragonite.
Btw, this is how it looks like (and its super rare according to them)

But yeah to give you guys an idea of how it looks like. 

Fast forward to the end, we did not manage to find it even though we walked like literally around the whole area. It just disappeared from our radar :( After that, we just decided to go home and called it a night. But that night, we made a new friend. :) 
I guess what I'm trying to say is, despite all the people who dislike the idea of Pokémon etc., I find Pokémon a really great game, it gets people to go out and walk around and interact with each other. 
I know that Pokémon Go is a controversial game and this is just my personal opinion, so don't take any offence if you disagree with what I'm saying. 
To those who are not fond of the game, don't be a wet blanket and let others enjoy it. Just because you don't like it, it doesn't mean that everyone else feels the same way so don't be a killjoy. 
And to those who are playing the game, do try to play with caution and avoid causing road accidents by LOOKING WHERE YOU WALK and AVOID PLAYING WHEN YOU ARE DRIVING.
My final thoughts:
I love the game, love the idea of it and love how it encourages people to get out of their beds (by having to walk to hatch the eggs, to catch Pokémons and to look for Pokéstops). I love how it's a game that encourages people to socialise with their friends (because what fun is there in going Pokémon hunting alone!?). I feel like it's a game suitable for all age groups and can even be used as a bonding activity with just about anyone (w/ your friends/family/partner) & I hope you guys like it as much as I do (at least give it a try before you decide to rule it out). 
xx
Alicia