c'est la mademoiselle

Maktub

2012-03-11T23:46:00.004+07:00

Ciao, ragazzi! My Emergency Room rotation has been starting since last Monday and I'm having day-offs until next Thursday. Yes, people, the pleasure of not having to wake up at 4 am in Monday and go for 3-hours drive is truly a bliss. I've been feeling twisted about this 4 months I'm gonna spend in ER. We'll have so many day-offs, for sure, but being stuck in the same room for a long time could be really boring, don't you think? However, I'm still feeling excited about tomorrow. I've been making my to-do list, gonna run some errands I've been holding back all along.

Yes, I'm a professional procrastinator :D

Not much update from Palabuhan Ratu. I've finished my rotation in surgery ward and had some more seafood fiestas with the doctors. I kinda had a mood drop in the last days of my week, because my patient died. I know, I should start feeling empathy instead of sympathy. I know I know, crying over every single one of your dead patients will cost me my tears, feelings, and it changes nothing. So I gotta harden this soft-side of me and try to embrace the reality that some things are just not under my control.

I know, my life in 2012 been extremely dull. I haven't done anything exciting. Well, actually, I did apply for some academic & non-academic stuff, because I want to explore something new, meet new people, and to challenge myself further. But well, I can't brag about it until I finally have it, right? Let's keep the hopes high and we'll see if any of those work out for me.

Anyway, have you ever felt you have so much to say in your mind you can't choose which one to speak out? I got so many stuff going on in my mind. Well, I've always been a deep thinker, an over-thinker sometimes. But lately, I've been thinking much about life. How my past & people around me have shaped me. Every single thing, good or bad, happened for a reason, and now -probably because I'm getting older I'm getting wiser(?)- I can finally fit all the puzzle pieces into one frame and see the big picture. I see life in a different perspective. Well, I can't tell you about it here because it would be a long, boring, more-like-preaching blog post. If you wanna discuss some heavy topics, I'm here :). I've been trying to find a partner to talk about these absurd things because it's not the kind of topic that you can have in brief brunch conversation. So it's been really hard to find a 'debate' partner for me. Found one, lost him. But, lately I found another guy who can relate to my jumping thoughts. I just wish I get another chance to spill out all my thoughts with him before it gets rotten inside.

Okay, enough with the blabbering. Tomorrow, I'm participating in #NoComplaintWeek held by @newsplatter. You can read more about it here. Not that I complain so much, but sometimes, it's good to be a part of something positive. Have a good start tomorrow.

xxx

Plastic Heart

2012-02-21T23:28:00.000+07:00

Hi! Sorry for the prolong absence!! Honestly, there’s nothing much going on with my life. I’m still working in RSUD Palabuhan Ratu. I already passed the pediatric ward, interna ward, high care unit, and now I’m in the surgery ward. This ward is so much better than my rotation in HCU. It was very depressing, since some of my patients died there. I know, it was inevitable, but still.. it sucked all my happy feeling for the rest of the day. Moreover, there was too much leisure time, I ran out of things to do. I finished my follow-ups at 9.30 and simply got nothing to do until my shift ended at 2. But now, I get to scrub in to almost every surgery every day. So after I finish follow-ups and writing statuses/resumes, I can assist surgery with the surgeon. The nurses are all friendly & funny, so there’s never been a dull moment in the surgery room.

However, I’m so not looking forward to March when I’ll have my rotation in the Emergency Room. Yes, I’ll be stuck there for another 4 months. I know, it’s not as hectic as the ward rotation and I will have sooooo many day-offs. But come on, 4 months in the same room? That’s gonna be plain boring. I don’t even know what to do during my day-offs. All of my friends will be working as well and then… I’ll be idle all week long. Urgh.

So anyway, enough with the whining. I’m sorry, blame it on the hormones haha.

Now it’s time for some good stories. Palabuhan Ratu is at its best nowadays. The sun is shining brightly during the day, it makes the sea shimmers in greenish color. It’s so pretty. If only the waves aren’t so dangerous, I would’ve swum on hot sunny day. We’ve been having some great culinary trip too. Last week we had a lunch treat by a pharmacy, that was surely the best seafood galore we've had so far. We also tried some fresh mini lobsters in a local restaurant on the beach which was owned by our patient. Actually, there isn't much variety of food here. So, it’s always a pleasure to try a new restaurant while strolling around the city.

As for weekend.. I’ve been having great rendezvous with my best friends. I went to Jakarta… almost every weekend in the past 4 weeks. It’s been tiring, but thankfully, every trip I made was worth the quality time. I’m so looking forward to this weekend, ‘coz one of our colleagues is getting married and we’re all going to come. So... big YEAY for the big reunion! Oh yes, and I am now in a desperate need of a quick getaway to Cisarua or Bandung. That’d be a great intermezzo in the midst of this flat phase of my life.

Talk to you soon. Hopefully when I’m in a better mood. Enjoy the rest of your week! Bacio.

PS: I miss my mother so much, thank God she’ll be back next month. :)

I wish that you were here or I were there or we were together anywhere

2011-12-06T21:00:00.001+07:00

Had a lovely visit from my friends today in Palabuhan Ratu. Well, actually they're visiting their lovers here, I'm just the sidekick. But who cares, I can still hang out with them. LOL. Took them to our favorite seafood restaurant by the beach and spent the entire evening playing with the waves and watching sunset. I've been procrastinating the assignments for next Thursday. Skype-ing with my mom and best friend were definitely a better way to kill the night. I am now chatting with my little long lost Argentinean brother, Fabio Basso. Gosh, I miss my beautiful people. Okay, I'll post something later on the weekend, hopefully I'll be doing something fun. Hahaha. Ci vediamo, ragazzi! xx

Rendesvous avec tout le monde

2011-12-05T03:42:00.001+07:00

Ciao! It's almost 4 am here, and I'm wideeeeee awake. Hahaha. I went to sleep too early and I was restless because I had so many things to do. So here I am finishing my to-do list one by one. I had a lovely weekend with many of my universities friends, and of course, my best friends. It's amazing how we easily miss each other after only a month being separated. Guess we took our presences for granted back then when we used to have 200-students in a room. :)

So anyway, it's gonna be my last week in ObsGyn ward in RSUD Palabuhan Ratu and I have too many deadlines! Argh. I'm going to have a panic attack sometimes this week. Wish me luck and buonanotte. xxx

Get to zero

2011-12-01T19:13:00.002+07:00

Yep, it's World AIDS Day today. I know I don't contribute a lot in organization or committee or whatever.. But, I've been trying to treat patients with HIV positive equally with the rest. So, hopefully 0 new HIV infections, 0 discrimination, and 0 AIDS-related deaths.

I'm currently thinking what I'm gonna do for this Christmas-New Year holiday. Any good idea of where to go and what to do for the end of 2011? :)

It's weekend already. Yeayness! xxx

November 30th

2011-11-30T19:56:00.002+07:00

Hello dearest readers! Sorry for the absence but I'm just... not inspired lately :p. My life was plain boring here but I'll try to write a post as a closure of this month and to sum up my life so far.

Since I moved to Palabuhan Ratu, life's been very peaceful and quiet. By peaceful I mean; no anger towards any of my colleagues, no stress due to overwhelming assignments, no pressure from the consultants or other doctors in hospital. Everything here is in the proper quantity. We work, we learn, and yet we have leisure time. I'm not super happy nor that I'm desperately sad. My life doesn't fluctuate that much, but it's been constantly above the 'content' threshold.

This week work in ObGyn ward has been fun too. On monday, I helped 3 curettage. On tuesday, I helped spontaneous delivery with vacuum extraction. And today, I saw a surgery of dermoid cyst.

I'm at the point of missing Jakarta too much. I haven't been in the city for a month. I'm so looking forward for this weekend, we'll have a wedding reception of one of our colleague and everyone is coming from their internship cities. I can't wait to hunt some cute desserts with my beloveds, reunion with all FKUI 2006, and sleepover with my girl besties!!!

Okay then, I'm going to watch LA Galaxy vs Indonesia Selection now. Talk to you soon.

Big kisses.

Last drop of happiness

2011-11-27T18:10:00.001+07:00

I terribly miss Paris. I'll see you soon :)

Pics by Darrell Fernando using Nikon D90.

First day of internship

2011-11-14T22:38:00.000+07:00

Working as the doctor in RSUD Palabuhan Ratu been... super fun!!!!! I'm still trying to adapt from being the stupid medical student to the real doctor. Sometimes I didn't answer when the nurses called me, because they were like, "Doc.. Doc... dr. Laura?" Hahaha. Feels weird being called dr. Laura. Ahh and they treat me very nicely, like really really nice. You know as medical students you're used to be shouted at, to do orders by the residents, or simply to be commented harshly by the consultant. Here... everyone is sooooo nice. They give you The Seat, so I don't have to write the medical record standing in some corner all alone. They talk about everything with me and ask for my opinion. Ahh it's soooo good to be treated... humanly. Hahaha. Okay then, I'm done studying my patients for the ward round tomorrow. Wish me luck. Buonanotte! x

Visit Indonesia

2011-11-11T08:42:00.000+07:00

The one thing I need to do before I die. Indonesia is too beautiful.

Stop faking a smile, it's okay to be sad sometimes

2011-11-10T19:22:00.001+07:00

Home sweet home. Ahh feels so good to be back in my gloomy hometown. The doctor gave us a day off to deal with the "unfinished business" in Jakarta. So, here I am, after 3 hours on the car, finally back in my comfort zone (since I don't have any business in Jakarta haha).

Other than that, I set some new goals for myself. I don't need New Year's Eve to make goals, I think it's never too late (or too early) to try something new. My favorite lines is echoing in my head now: dream big, aim high. Even just thinking about the possibilities makes me very excited. Ohh and I'll be working in the Obstetrics & Gynecology ward starting next Monday. I have to re-read my long lost & forgotten textbooks because the nurses said the consultant is pretty serious. I'm excited!!!!!!!!! This holiday nearly killed me in boredom, my gray matter craves medical!

Okay then, I have to get ready 'cause I'm going to watch Real Steel with my baby brother. Kiss.

Life on the coast

2011-11-08T20:19:00.004+07:00

Time goes unbelievably slow here. We started the day at 8 at the hospital for the orientation (again, haha). We met the doctors, nurses, midwives, and took a tour around the hospital. Afterward we went to the beach with lots of gigantic reefs on the shore. We had a super delicious sea food in the nearest restaurant and took some shots on Karanghawu Beach. It’s been cloudy too here, like in Bogor, 2 pm felt like 4. And we pretty much ran out of idea of what to do to spend the rest of the evening other than sleeping or eating. This is what makes us homesick, real bad. Sometimes the nature can only do so much when you’re accustomed to the modern technology. Must. Adapt.

Mi mancate. Bacio. :)

Single Ladies

2011-11-04T07:13:00.002+07:00

Bonjour! It's 7 am and I'm writing this post. My circadian rhythm is killing me. It wakes me up at 4 am everyday. I went to sleep at midnight and at 4 am I'm wide awakeeee! What the hell, body? Can't you just make the most of these last days of my holiday? I even got dizzy this morning because I forced myself to sleep 2 more hours. Gee, this doesn't feel good. Thank God for Facebook and Blogger.

What else? Hmmm Bogor is having its autumn weather. It's always cloudy, windy, and so gray in the morning. In the afternoon, it's raining cats and dogs. I'm loving this kind of weather. The perfect moment to go around with my chunky knit sweater and wedges and to have a cup of warm tea at 4 pm with my babies. I will miss this city, I will miss my car.

Ci vediamo. I miss you Catania! I miss you even more Paris! x

Things change, friends leave, and life doesn't stop for anybody

2011-11-01T22:36:00.002+07:00

I just got back from Bandung for my upcoming internship briefing. It's getting closer to D-day and now I'm torn in between sad and excited. Excited about the new city, the new people, the new culture, and the new routine in the hospital. Sad about leaving behind my hometown/Jakarta for more than a week or so and not being able to see my friends who are all scattered in isolated cities in West Java. We already went to Palabuhan Ratu last week, it's a very very tiny city. The hospital is right in front of the mountain and just 5 mins-drive away from the beach. Nothing much to do to entertain yourself other than doing outdoor activities. But hey I can adapt very easily and I'm really looking forward to working in the hospital as a doctor. :)

October has passed, too soon (yeah well, time always flies so fast for me). Probably one of the lamest month this year. Done with my job in Obstetric & Gynecology Department, done with errands, done with appointments with my beloveds, but not done with my gloomy feelings. Ergh. I'm having too many emotions at a time in my heart, I couldn't even write it down. Point is, I need to get over this real soon. I don't need anymore pointless heartache, enough is enough. I believe there's someone for everyone and I will have my own happiness in the end. I'm sure it will be beautiful in time :) As I wait for Mr. Right, I'm gonna need to create my own mood booster to preserve the happy feeling. Yep, stop depending on others, Laura! Surely November will be much much better.

Just some random questions:

Can you be overwhelmed with too much happiness (in such enormous amount) you want to throw up? Can people be so positive the whole time or is it just me being so negative now?

Have a lovely November, lovefools! Kisses.

Pre-internship Madness

2011-10-24T22:27:00.002+07:00

Hello! Quick update. I just received the latest information about my internship. I will be spending the next year in Pelabuhan Ratu. Yes, people. There, down south below of Java island. You see in the map? It's very near to the beach, very hot, of course, and ummm (thankfully) only 3 hours drive from my hometown, Bogor. I happened to be in the same group with Darrell, yeah I guess we're meant to be together... so he can bully & hit me whenever he wants and I can enjoy the pleasure of being mocked (& the bruises).

So anyway, there will be me and 9 other friends there, we already had information from our seniors who spent a year there. So far sound so good. But uhhh we have to prepare so many things; bed, TV, refrigerator, air conditioner, utensils, and so many other things I can't mention here. Basically, we're moving to a new house in a week!!! Yeah, my to-do list is a never-ending-list now. I have to buy this and that and bring this and that. Urgh. But I hope it's gonna be fun, spending a year with these 9 guys. Hahaha. I'm looking forward to living under the same roof with them.

Okay, I have to go to sleep now. I need to wake up at 5 am tomorrow and catch the train to Jakarta at 6.20. More errands await me until I return to Bogor at night. (My dearest legs, please bear with me for this one hectic week). So little time, so many things to do. But I'm up for this challenge and this new chapter of life. See you real soon. Ciao!

Pic: see the distance between Pelabuhan Ratu (A) from my hometown Bogor & my beloved Jakarta.

Happy pills, please?

2011-10-21T20:18:00.003+07:00

Hello, long time no see. Been awhile huh? I'm running out of my good mood. The happiness from the last summer is nothing more than mere sweet memories. Life's back to normal.. well almost. I'm commuting Bogor-Jakarta-Bogor now, competing for a seat with the barbaric train passengers every morning. But meeting up with my dearest friends (& some residents) in the hospital makes it all worth it. They're my daily mood booster.

It's been very stressful these past few days. I've been making presentation for the doctors when laundry is taking most of my time when I'm home. And I'm currently pretty anxious about the upcoming internship, they reschedule it 2 weeks earlier. So we're leaving in 1st of November. I'm not really looking forward to it, noticing the fact that we'll be isolated in small city for a year, not sure I can have good signal for the internet. But uhh.. let's hope for the best. I know I will learn a lot from this experience. Be positive, Laura :)

Another depressing things that suck my happiness are the possibility of failing in achieving one of my biggest dream. I'm still trying to work on it, so keep your fingers crossed. The other thing is that sometimes I think I'm too bubbly, I'm disturbing people. Mi dispiace. I know some people can't handle me even at my best (I bet they can't stand me in my worst for sure). That's why only a few sticks with me for years. So anyway, I wouldn't stay for those who take me for granted anyway, but it's been nice knowing you guys.

Btw, yesterday Oct 20th is probably the happiest day since I got back in Indonesia. I had super fun shopping spree with Inda in Grand Indonesia and caught up with King Hans & Karina Ayu Putri in Plaza Indonesia later in the evening. I love Jakarta and its beloveds, sure I'm gonna miss you as hell.

Catch you later, hopefully before I go for the internship.

Have a lovely weekend, loves. x

Grazie mille

2011-10-14T19:22:00.000+07:00

Featured in Blogsofnote. Pretty shocked by the flooding comments and rocketing blog hits.

Thanks for stopping by and dropping comments, readers! Have a funny weekend. Kiss.

Party Rocking!

2011-10-13T20:33:00.000+07:00

Soooooooo happy to finally have my karaoke time! After months being isolated from music updates, last weekend we went out for karaoke treat by my beloved bestfriend, Chika. I lost my track of the latest local and international songs, since I only knew Danza Kuduro and Mr. Saxobeat in Catania. So it's very fun to sing some fresh (lame) Indonesian songs with my karaokewhores. Hahaha :D

It was Bruno Mars' 25th birthday too that night, so we sang Lazy Song as a tribute for him. And not to forget, the room-wrecking dance song: Party Rock Anthem. Hahaha we were all sweating because of the vigorous shuffle dance. Ahhh it's always soooooo nice to catch up with all my long lost high school friends (well, one of them is even my elementary school mates).

So anyway, earthquakes strikes off Bali today. It was pretty strong. Chika was there, but thank God she was okay. Let's hope this will end very soon, we don't need more tsunami or any other catastrophe. Amen :)

Until that... Keep shufflin' people!

I miss you so much it hurts

2011-10-12T22:32:00.002+07:00

Okay, I should be searching journals about perioperative pain now, but as usual I got distracted by Rumi Neely and Facebook and Tumblr and of course, my own thought. It's been 3 weeks since I left Catania but I still can't get over it. Stalking the Italians in GoogleLatitude makes it even worse. I needed distraction. Coincidentally, there's a job offer in Obstetric & Gynecology Department, so I'm working there now... starting today. It's good now that I'm doing so many things. I've been spending this whole week in my house and the boredom nearly killed me. I realized that I needed to learn how to cook after I successfully burnt frying stupid onions. I must cook, sooner or later. So now I'm having a daily cooking lesson from the maid in my grandmother's house after I go back from hospital. It's been super fun! :D

Okay then, time to get back to Power Point. Talk to you later. Kisses.

Sukhsant wan keid!

2011-10-10T15:55:00.000+07:00

Yesterday was Darrell's 21st birthday (and yes, he's already graduated as a doctor...). I went all the way from Bogor to his house in Karawaci with the other guys to surprise him. Apparently, he already knew that we were coming, but.... he didn't know that we made Thailand banners with his pictures in it!!!! We even edited his face into the Thailand female's traditional outfit. Hahaha :D Kudos, guys.

Thank you for the shabu-shabu treat. Thank you for the laughter. Thank you for such quality evening.

Treasure you(s)! x

Photo courtesy of Darrell Fernando.

Octobliss

2011-10-10T13:43:00.001+07:00

Buongiorno! Last weekend I attended a wedding party of my classmate when I took the French course in Centre Culturel Francaise (CCF) Salemba. The concept was pretty different from the usual grand-ballroom-indoor reception, it was a garden party. Ahh I really liked it, it was delightful enjoying the meal outside and bonding with the nature at the same time. Love the fountain.. I also had the chance to see all my long lost CCF mates. Time flies too fast, I didn’t realize we met 5 years ago. So anyway, congratulations for the wedding Vicky & Jeffry, hope life showers you with lots of happiness and babies! x

Personal update:

I’m so happy I could still keep in touch with my IFMSA friends and the SISM committees. Thank you digital technologies, our life would be simply disconnected without Facebook, Blackberry Messenger, WhatsApp and Skype. I owe you my friendships!

The last update of my upcoming internship has arrived; we will be leaving between 1 – 10 November 2011 to either Jawa Barat or Banten (I'd probably choose Jawa Barat). I’m so excited and scared at the same time, coz I’m so bored staying in my house all day long doing domestic chores without any pressure from my medical routines. But I’m also scared because I’ve never done any clinical works without any supervision from residents or consultants. But hey, there’s always the first time for everything, right? I already feel the urge to use my gray matters again. Can’t wait, can’t wait!

Have a nice day and I’ll see you later.

Ciao, bisous, and hugs! :D

Photo courtesy of Rizky Danurwindo.

Bye September, you were such a blast!

2011-10-04T01:17:00.005+07:00

So now, October’s just started. We held our Obstetrics & Gynecology seminar yesterday in Hotel Sofyan Betawi. It was quite a success and everything went smoothly – except the technical problems in the beginning. But it was good to have such cooperative speakers and residents, and of course a great team. Thank you, all 7 of you!

BUON COMPLEANNO, SANTI TROVATO!

JOYEUX ANNIVERSAIRE, MADE PERWIRA!

Talk to you later. Ciao!

Mourning the happiness

2011-09-24T22:57:00.003+07:00

Earlier this morning, we were cheering for our doctor graduation. We took the Hippocrates Oath and make the title "Dr." official to ourselves. The air was filled with gratitude and you can see nothing but a big bright smile on everyone's faces.

But late in the night, we were mourning for the loss of our colleague... Steven Wijata. The calm boy/drummer/bassist/devoted Christian from Cirebon, died in his apartment just now. What an irony to have this tragic loss in such joyful day. Rest in peace, W. No words can describe this state of feeling. I just wanna say, have a nice long sleep there. We'll miss you. x.

Green Christmas

2011-09-20T22:20:00.004+07:00

Dear dearest dear,

Thank you for the perfect days we spent together. It was too sweet I couldn't ask for anything better. Thank you for all the jokes, the ride around Catania with Little Michele or Moto Guzzi, the hours we spent for one-on-one conversation on balcony, and everything more.

You're right, we are lucky to have the opportunity to meet each other in our 23 years of life. I'm blessed to know you for such brief period of time. It hurts thinking the possibility of not seeing you again, but if life wants the other way around, we will meet again someday somewhere somehow.

So take good care in Catania. Drive safe, less cigarette, less alcohol, more sleep, and more study. Good luck for everything you want to achieve in your life. Hope you find the surprise love you've been looking for. The memories of you and Catania will remain in a special part of my heart.

Big hug and warm kisses from Paris. Enjoy the cuddle weather! :D

I left my heart in Sicily

2011-09-17T00:34:00.005+07:00

Argh, it’s so hard to write this post. Today is Friday, Sept 16th. 3 days left in Catania and I’m feeling blue already. Sorry I’ve been away for more than a week. But it’s been a busy time here with the other exchange students and IFMSA committees. We went everywhere.. We went to Agrigento which definitely has the most beautiful beach and ancient Greek sites. We had a football match between the Italians and Argentineans. We also came to the Coldplace concert, which was a tribute to Coldplay. Good times. So much fun.

I spent my days in my hospital, I was with the residents visiting patients, doing pap smear, doing colposcopy, watching spontaneous delivery and section caesarea, also watched a histeroscopy therapeutic for endometrial polip yesterday. Coolness. In the evening I go out with the other guys, sometimes we ended up shopping in via Etnea, crashing one of the Italian guy’s houses, or trying the typical Catanian food; arancino, canoli, horse meat, and the last one was aperitivo. Molto bene.

Last Wednesday, we went to Nicolosi for some Mexican food. I love the city because it was cold that we had to wear jacket. It was a good intermezzo in the midst of Catania’s heat. The Mexican food was delicious and spicy but the portion was huge! Later at the night we hang out at Palomo and stay up until 3. I know it was fun, but when you do it in 2 consecutive nights and you have to go to hospital at 9 the next morning, you were so close to be a zombie.

Hah… okay. I’m not feeling so good now, because it feels like the clock is ticking faster. I wish I could stay here. I love this island. I love the people. It’s just.. too sad. I’ll write again soon. Ciao! x

Andiamo Ragazzi!

2011-09-05T08:14:00.006+07:00

So guys, this is the end of my first week in Catania. Can’t believe I only have 2 weeks left. Argh. I’m starting to love the people and the islands itself. This week, I spend the day in hospital; it’s such a big achievement that I can find my own way to the hospital, which is 40 minutes walk from my hostel (I don’t mind walking here because there’s no pollution, only the scorching heat). Thanks to my holy bible, The Map of Catania, which happened to be slipped under my door a few days ago, by I-don’t-know-who. But whoever you are, thank you very much. Bless you for your kindness. This map means a lot to me.

We went to Palomo the other night for cocktail and some chat. We went bar hopping last Friday, which was extremely fun. We also had a balcony party every other night and just chat. You know, Italians are very expressive communicators, they use lots of expressions and gestures so you won't get bored talking with them.

I also went to a public beach yesterday which is not a good idea because I got darker than I already am now (Can you imagine? Duh). Today we went to Taormina, which is definitely one of the most beautiful spots in Sicily. You would love to see the whole view from the tower of Isola Bella. The Greek Theater also offered a spectacular view of the island.

Now I just got back from dinner in Caverna a Mastro Birraio which served so many different beers. It was a farewell dinner for Flo, Kathi, Paulo, and Giuseppe. Aaaaaaawww I’m too sad that 2 of my favorite boys are leaving. Paulo is my partner in crime; no, actually he bullies me all the time and gives me rude gestures. Meanwhile, Giuseppe is my Italian teacher, my favorite tenor singer, and the Mr. Ping. Have a safe flight/12-hours-drive and I’ll see you guys in Bali! :D

Okay then, I must make the most of my day here…. But, no more beach. I hate bikini line, and FYI, my tanned skin is irreversible, until a few more years... I guess. So, Buonanotte!

Due cento venti quattro

2011-08-31T20:01:00.006+07:00

Hi, this is my 4th day in Catania. Things have changed so much from the last time I write a post, that is errr 3 days ago? Yeah, now I got lots of new friends... like 30ish new friends :D. They are all very very nice and friendly. By the way, yesterday Gabriele and Salvo drove me to the hospital, Santo Bambino Hospital. I met Professor Pafumi and he put the resident in charge, dr. Salvatore Di Leo, as my supervisor.

I'm starting to love this city, the people, more specifically. I'm still in a culture-shock state though, well kinda. You know, the cheek-kissing, the hugging, the intense physical contact.. I'm still trying to get used to it. But I'm sure I'll adapt very soon. Oh and even one of the guys kissed my hand like they do to princess in a movie! Hahaha... that was very flattering. We don't have it in Indonesia so yeah, it's pretty shocking at first.

By the way, people in Catania really know how to have fun. They love to party and dance all night long while drinking and chatting. Last night we had a farewell party for some of the students that are leaving today, it was very fun.

Okay then, I'll write some time soon. I miss each and every one of you. x

Ohh Happy Ied Mubarak for all the Moslems out there. Kisses from Catania.

Buongiorno from Catania!

2011-08-29T15:28:00.008+07:00

Hello, hello people! Gah, I’ve been isolated from internet for 2 days and it feels like ages, especially when you can’t contact anyone via phone or text, more especially when you’re stranded in a small island in a foreign country with no skill of the native language, and most especially with no friends at all. Yep, the story of my life in Catania. So yeah, I just landed here yesterday morning from Paris. For those of you who are wondering, I am having my research exchange in Gynecology Department here for a month. Teehee!

Thankfully, the IFMSA committee –Gabriele– picked me up on time at the airport and drove me to the hostel. I got my own room, which was pretty spacious, but… very dirty. They said the cleaning service didn’t come because it was Sunday. So I did a little bit of cleaning yesterday, unpacked my stuff, and tried to make it a little homier. Good to know that I’ll be having my dinner and lunch for free in hostel’s canteen. But errrr… I’m pretty sure my last meal was pork, but uhhh no biggy. :p

Yesterday evening I met some students from the August exchange, there was like 45 of them, but now there are only 13 people left (they said there will be 16 student for September exchange). I went out for dinner with them in Trattorria: Le Tre Bocche. The pasta was really really delicious. And I had a lot of fun getting information about Catania from them and just chatting about each country.

So now I’m in the study room. Gonna hit the market afterwards to buy some detergent, tissue, and else. Will try to get to know the city better, there's too many via and piazza here, it's overwhelming. I’ll catch up with you guys later soon! (Coz I’m so lonely here I terribly miss Jakarta, Bogor, and its beloved). Ciao.

Paris nights, New York mornings

2011-08-24T07:38:00.003+07:00

Hello, this is my 301st post. I'm writing from Paris, in my sister's apartment. I've been strolling around the city for four days, went to almost all tourism spots you could name, have sore legs every night, and culinary trip for my greedy tummy. I'm loving the city and its ambiance. Mysterious and romantic at the same time. Some of the things I especially love from the city are the talented street performers and the cute puppies. It's not something you could see in everyday life in Jakarta. Ohh and the Parisians themselves are so fashionable and pretty. I love their messy and unique hair do.

So anyway, I still have a few days left until Sunday because Darrell is leaving tomorrow, planning to spend the time with my parents' friend. Gonna post some more pictures. Stay tune! xoxo :)

Create a playlist at MixPod.com

Double green bands

2011-08-15T14:28:00.000+07:00

Yes, I'm graduating (again) this September... as a doctor. Boohooooo! :]

FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT

2011-08-11T23:35:00.000+07:00

twntythree

2011-08-10T21:16:00.001+07:00

Hello hello, welcoming my most favorite month of the year... August! This year's Ramadhan happens to be celebrated in August as well, so it's a double bliss! And what day is today?

My 23rd birthday! Woooohooooooo!

*confetti time, now*

I received so many birthday wishes from friends and relatives via Facebook, Twitter, BBM, phone calls, and text messages. Thank you thank you guys for all the good things you pray for me. Hope they all come true :)

Anyway, this August has so much to offer.. other than my birthday, of course. I had the National Competence Examination for Indonesian Health Professional last Saturday in order to join the 1-year internship this November. It was pretty difficult, but uhh we did our best so let God do the rest.

I finally got my Schengen Visa after coming back and forth to the Italian embassy 4 times. Phew. Sooooo relieved. Now, I have to make myself busy with all the packing. Not to mention the hectic preparation for my graduation day. It's so hard to find a taylor this day since it's getting near to the holy Ied celebration. Plus, some more errands to run for the rest of these last 2 weeks before I take off at August 19th.

So for a better or worse August, may the bliss of this holy month be with you guys.

All the Leos out there.... PAWS UP! x

July favorites

2011-07-27T17:47:00.002+07:00

Catatan Harian Si Boy (Indonesia), superrrrr love Andi! Loser Lover (Thailand), irresistible cute lips of Arak. Hello Ghost (Korean), unpredictable ending. Andien - Pulang, current favorite driving song.

Btw, August.. is around the corner. So is Ramadhan. Happy fasting for you! x

Stereo hearts

2011-07-19T13:54:00.000+07:00

Currently back in my hometown... for good. Moved out all my stuff from Jakarta last week and now my living room is a shipwreck. Have to re-pack all those junks in my bedroom ASAP before it grows into compulsive hoarding. Btw, my bangs all longer now, which brings me back to my old habit: no washing my hair for days. LOL.

Last week I attended 2 wedding receptions with my friends, was extremely fun, ate a lot, and laughed too much. I had a rendesvous with my bestfriend in Bogor in a sushi restaurant. And just recovered from cuteness overdose when I discovered this Maltese pup a few days ago. This is the perfect cuddly fluffy puppy for me. Come on.. how can you resist those eyes?

Have a wonder-fool week, loves. ♡

Breath-taking

2011-07-16T10:40:00.000+07:00

Top Comments:

Thumbs up if u moved on but u still think about him/her sometimes and you find yourself in this perfect song.

July go fast, I want August

2011-07-09T11:50:00.001+07:00

First thing first:

My 5-years medical school is OVER. Like, seriously, overrrrrr over!

Geez so friggin happy. Had my exam of Community Medicine rotation last Thursday, aced it, well, I guess...whatever. Haha. And ummm what else? I don't know but bad things just keep coming in my life lately.

I was overwhelmed by my visa application. Hopped from one embassy to another, asked for another school letter, and emailing the CP back and forth for the remodeled Invitation Letter.
My mom is now hospitalized because she just had an accident last Wednesday and had 30 stitches on her head. Poor her. It's good to have her stay put for a couple of days though, let her gain her strength back.
I just crashed my car to a stupid fence yesterday. Yeah yeah, my bad. Now the car looks horrible with the big scratches on the right door. Telling this to my father afterwards is even more horrifying.
My graduation day was rescheduled, again. So I had to break this bad news to my dad, again. Just got the tickets all rescheduled and emailed the CP, again.
Currently confused of how to design my seminar poster. I'm not a pro in designing. I might as well put too much purple into it. Hahaha. Anyone knows anyone good in designing posters? Thanks for the help.

But despite all those bad things, I strongly believe, nothing lasts forever, not even bad luck.

So I keep my spirit high, stay positive and keep smiling. 'Coz remember, happiness attracts more happiness. Thanks for reading guys!

My first day of 4-months holiday. No more medschool assignments/ night shifts/ case presentations await.

BOOYEAH!

Bittersweet June Updates

2011-06-27T03:02:00.003+07:00

Sorry for the absence, life and all the drama has taken me away from virtual world. A lot of things have happened since my last Singapore post. Currently stuck in Pertamina Medical Center Rawamangun, struggling in my case study and community diagnosis, running errands here and there for my Schengen Visa, gym classes every evening, and catching up with long lost friends in school.

Anyway, I just got back from Garut (if you don't know where it is, Google it up =]). We were there for a social work in our junior's event. Had so much fun along the way -enjoying the scenery, munching chocolate-dodol, karaoke-ing to mellow songs, and throwing sarcastic jokes to each other. Great quality time.

Seriously looking forward to my summer trip.

Oh gosh, who else is in a desperate need of a getaway and a fresh start?

Current playlist: Maroon 5 - Moves Like Jagger (ft. Christina Aguilera) // Little Dragon - Constant Surprises // Corrine Bailey Rae - Paris Nights/New York Mornings // Michael Giacchino - Le Festin (OST Ratatouille) // Katy Perry - Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F) // Black Eyed Peas - Just Can't Get Enough // The Bird & The Bee - Preparedness // Bedouin Soundclash - Brutal Hearts // Joshua Radin - Paperweight.

Singapore getaway

2011-05-25T13:56:00.006+07:00

HOLLA! This is a quick post of my brief Singapore trip. Hope you enjoy! :)

First day, I visited the world-famous Max Brenner in Esplanade. It was either overrated or I wasn't in a good mood because I found it mediocre. And I didn't really enjoy the long trip, well probably just wrong traveling partners. Anyways.. highlight of the day was of course the night out. I met up with my long lost karaoke buddy, Dimas, and my junior high friend, Katherine, in Clarke Quay. Had my chicken wings dose in Hooters and tried the Turkish Ice Cream for dessert. Good laughter, good food, and good photo-shooting. Thank you guys! I'll see you soon in Indonesia!

Second day I went to Universal Studio Singapore. Immediately fulfilled my adrenaline hunger in Battlestar Galactica. I rode the Human coaster and Cylon coaster afterwards. Ohh I'm so Team Cylon. Anything else just felt like merry-go-round compare to those monstrous roller coaster. Haha. Rendesvous with my cousin from Malaysia for a late lunch in Food Republic. Hang out with his bff later in the evening to see Songs of the Sea and grabbed late night dinner in somewhere-so-far-away-i-don't-know-where-it-was-and-had-sore-legs-for-walking-too-long. I had fun sucking bloody bone marrow and overhearing/discussing boy's stuff over beers. Goooooooooood times!

Last day went to the Mint Museum of Toys, bought packs of Royce' chocolate, and spent the rest of the day in airport. So that's it. Hope I didn't bore you. Still working for another exciting trip this summer. Wait for it guys! Hahaha. x

"Night out with Singaporeans always makes me end the day with a smile from ear to ear."

Another all-time favorite

2011-05-17T09:51:00.001+07:00

For I am the first and the last

I am the venerated and the despised

I am the prostitute and the saint
I am the wife and the virgin
I am the mother and the daughter
I am the arms of my mother
I am the barren and my children are many
I am the married woman and the spinster
I am the woman who gives birth and she who never procreated
I am the consolation for the pain of birth
I am the wife and the husband
And it was my man who created me
I am the mother of my father
I am the sister of my husband
And he is my rejected son
Always respect me
For I am the shameful and the magnificent one.

-Hymn to Isis-

Bangs back, baby!

2011-05-09T16:25:00.008+07:00

So as some of you may know I love messy hair look. Not that kind of oily messy hair that'll make your face look so... umm not fresh or whatever. I like a "messy-in-purpose" kinda look. Yeah it's true I don't wash my hair everyday.. I try to wash it like 3 days or 4 days top because it looks better the longer it's unwashed. It is, right?

So luckily I don't have that kind of oily hair with all the frizz and tangled parts that would definitely make you look like you haven't taken shower for weeks. Nah. That's disgusting. My hair is very cooperative, it's long, very smooth, straight (except for the front side), and not easily got tangled. So even though I don't brush it for days, it'd still be so silky straight. Well actually it's too straight I kinda lack of inspiration of what to do with it. I personally like bun. It's the easiest hair-do for busy woman like me. I rarely let my hair down in campus because urgh it gets in way everytime I examine patients or writing etc. Just so you know, I have a very thick hair so it's pretty much everywhere when I let it down. But unfortunately, everytime I make a bun it always looks so clean and formal. That is... until I find this Beauty Guru in YouTube. Yes, she's my savior. Oh God, yesterday I spent like 2 hours watching all her videos. Because she's too funny and so humble.. and of course so pretty.

I learned about this messy bun from her and decided to give it a shot this morning before going to campus. And voila! I really really really love it! Just the perfect mess I've been trying to pull. As she said, "Like you just woke up in a trash can thinking 'woaahh who just took advantage of me last night?' ". Yes baby, yesss! I just woke up in a trash can. Boooohooooo. Ahhh I love you, Jarmaine.

So anyway, bliss just keep coming in my life, which is pretty overwhelming but I'm so grateful though. I just got the result of my first TOEFL test and I scored pretty good. And.. I just received a very good news last night. I'll be doing something exciting but I'm not going to tell you guys... yet. Haha. Just keep reading because I'll update and of course write about it just right here! Oh ohh and something exciting (and refreshing) is about to happen in two weeks! Booyah! x

So-called rendezvous day

2011-05-08T16:33:00.001+07:00

Last Friday was probably the funnest friday ever. I had a chance to meet up with friends/beloveds in my dearest hometown, Bogor. It was bright and sunny in the morning but then Bogor revealed its true ambiance later at the day. Nothing is better than driving around the city or having a quality chat in cafe while watching the pouring rain. ♡

A view from the back of my house. Fluffy clouds and mountain.. Gorgeousness.

Had to do some errands with Ajeng, the beloved princess who can't even drive her own car.

Lunch in our favorite Chinese noodle restaurant, YunSin. Ahh it was worth all the sweat due to driving under the unbearable heat outside. Superb.

The Bogor Presidential Palace. Looked fiercely beautiful in such sunny day.

Ahhh green-ness. I love it.. This is one of the reason why I love Bogor, the countless trees. I love roads with tree on the side. So refreshing, right?

Some narcissism along the way is never a crime haha!

More big fluffy clouds more blue sky more trees...

Hopped to another restaurant with different cliques. Yes I know I was such a wh*re. Hahaha..

These are my campus friends. The came all the way from Jakarta by train. Spared their tummies for culinary trip in Bogor. Sounds like a great plan :p

The Batagor was good, probably because they served it hot. Though it's not as much as I expected. #greedy

The well-known Sop Buah (fruit soup). It's got too much ice in it. I'd still prefer Bubur Buah Rahat though..

My G-Force buddy/karaoke-bitch/dance-partner/double-chin twin/alay/and so much more. Yeah, Agung is the pimp, people!

Caught up with my senior, Kak Liza, she just had a shift in a hospital in Depok and came to Bogor just to see me (and drove back to Lebak Bulus afterwards). Wow.

The delicious Carbonara Fettuccine, yes I ate the egg yolk whole. What's wrong with that? It's sooooo good. Who's with me?

The Fruit Salad which was ordered by Kak Liza. Come on.. How many calories in there? You gotta be kidding me. No wonder she's petite.

Finally met my neighbor, the urology resident, Gampo. He sneaked out of his parents (who were busy doing groceries shopping) and had a little chit chat with us. Tsk tsk bad bad boy.

Thank you so much for the lovely evening, for the treats, for the stories, and for the laughters. Yes you made me happy Kak. See you soon!

So that's a wrap. Sorry for the blurry/out-of-focus pictures. It was taken in such a rush. I'm having my elective module tomorrow, Pediatrics Forensic. Still have no idea what they have to offer but I hope it's gonna be fun! Have a nice weekend guys! x

Eye/Ear Candy

2011-04-28T01:06:00.002+07:00

Finally.. a blog post. I know I know, been ages since the last time I post something worth-reading in this blog. But life's been very hectic. Sorry. I simply didn't have time to write after I got back from Tangerang. Oh and Tangy has been nice though.. as always. I learned a lot from handling our own patients there, had a few superb night-outs, and had a nice rooftop photoshoot in our last day there. Exam weeks came afterwards. Last week I had my pediatrics MCQ -which was an epic failure. We'll see the result a few weeks from now. Let's just cross our fingers, people.

Today I just had my oral examination in Harapan Kita. I had patient with acute diarrhea (with no dehydration) ec viral infection dd/ antibiotic-associated diarrhea dd/ cow's milk allergy, mild malnutrition with malabsorption, incomplete immunization, and suspect tuberculosis. The examiners were angelic, thank God. It was like a gigantic rock has been lifted off my shoulder after I finished the exam. I felt like screaming and smiling all the way back to my campus, but my migraine hit me and the traffic dropped my mood a little. Okay, let me scream it here... PEDIATRICS I'M DONE WITH YOUUUUU! Phew. That's better.

So anyway, I just watched Maroon 5 concert. This was completely unplanned but I decided to hit the cab and drove through the traffic to the venue anyway. It didn't disappoint me.. at all. The band was energetic, great vocal, amazing crowd, and epic lighting. I enjoyed this concert so much than my last Bruno Mars concert. I had the spot in the back of the festival area, but it was very spacious -we had fun dancing during the whole concert. So soooooooooooo good. Adam Levine is definitely the man. Yes, he's got the voice, the beard, the 6-packs, and the tattoos. Gosh, it's just so much to see in one guy. Too beautiful to be true. They sang all the hits with some old songs improvisations here and there. Ahh I'm just speechless. Seriously.. bery bery good. Thank you God for today. Been a very blissful day. Holiday is waiting.. hope you guys enjoy the rest of the week! I'm going back to Bogor tomorrow. Adios!

P.S: This is my Onrop! Musical CD. Originally signed by the director itself, Joko Anwar. And.. I got the Golden Ticket to Onrop Island in 2020. Curious!

So is this goodbye?

2011-04-10T08:32:00.002+07:00

Can't believe I just had my very very last night shift as co-ass in RSCM Emergency Department. Didn't realize it until my friend told me. Didn't realize I'm in my fifth year, my last clinical year as medical student. Didn't realize I'm in Pediatric Rotation, my last major rotation. Didn't realize I'm in the end of my 6th week already. Didn't realize I won't have any more night shifts in RSCM. I'll be spending next week in Tangerang and return to RSCM for the exam week. Time surely flies.. too fast.

Well, a week in RSCM always gone too soon though.

Okay, maybe I'm being too melancholic, but you gotta admit, there's no place like home. RSCM is the only place where you know most of the consultants, residents, co-ass, nurses, security guards, employees, and even the snack seller. The place has taught me so much and has a special place in my heart for always being there, and offering me with knowledge, experiences, laughters, and new friends. I know some of you don't feel this, I know some of you take your presence (or its presence) for granted. You might only remember all the bad things happened in the ED, or the doctors you hate, or the never ending patients being admitted. But not for me. I treasure this kind of feeling -the feeling of security and accepted- that's why I enjoyed every moment I spent there. Good times and bad times (4th year was surely my worst year ever). Aaaaaaa can't believe it's going to end soon. It's gonna be awhile until I come back there and have more night shifts as resident *amen*.

So as usual, last night, when I arrived at 6 pm, the Pediatric ER was empty. It stays at status quo until... 3 am, when a baby was admitted for coughing. Other than that, I spent the whole night writing my notes, listening to iPod, snacking, having midnight instant noodle, wandering around, and checking on the babies every once in a while. I guess my repellent aura is getting stronger. Ohh and the best thing is.. I got to meet 2 of my long lost friends yesterday! I met Kiky, my CCF friend/best friend, who is now so busy with his activity as freshman in Hubungan Internasional UI. I also met my junior high school friend, Danti, the daughter of my parents' bestfriends, who is now working and in a relationship with a sweet guy. So glad to meet both of them.

Okay, enough for the melancholic post. I'm currently feeling overwhelmed with happiness because something that I've been expecting for 2 weeks have finally came last night. Whoop! I'm gonna take a shower and a power nap afterwards because I have to pack and go to Tangerang this evening. Good morning, have a lovely Sunday, lovelies!

Surreal

2011-04-06T08:30:00.002+07:00

April 5th 2011, Bruno Mars Concert in Jakarta, Indonesia. Unfortunately, I just found out later at the evening that there was a problem with the ticket, our tickets, to be exact. Can't spill the details here but it made us all panicked, disappointed, and yes, shed a tear. I was crushed in every possible way when I heard the possibility of not watching Bruno. But then, my best friend tried to make it up to us, and finally successfully got the tickets, for some of us. I felt sorry for my friends who are left behind. I'm sure it's heart-breaking.

But on the other side, I'm so happy to finally make it to the venue... and in front of the stage. I was about a meter away from Bruno. Yes, he was so close, I was in awe for the first couple of minutes, trying to absorb the reality that he's actually here. Well, despite the fact that the concert was very brief (75 mins), I'm satisfied with the performance. The vocal was perfect, the stage act was sexy, and the sound system was superb. Bruno is a hell of a performer too, he's talented, he's good with audience, and he's very entertaining. Kudos.

At first, I was trying to take pictures of him but my camera somehow thinks too slow so the shutter won't close right when I click it. So I got desperate and too tired to try to take any more pictures. I decided to just enjoy his performance, sing along, and dance with the beat. The hell with memories. I have saved every detail of Bruno in my hippocampus. Kinda regret I took the Festival area though, I was so fed up with teens pushing around, the sweat, the smell, and the pain my legs have to bear for hours. But the view was of course so much better than in Tribune. Well you lose some to get some, right?

Anyway, during the show, all of the sudden, I was reminiscing why I adore Bruno so much. That's because of his personality. When I started to like him, which was a year ago, I watched so many of his shows and interviews. He was this type of funny guy who likes to joke around everytime and smiles a lot. He seemed so lovable. His cheerfulness infected me and so I became this cheerful girl you all know now. Yes, he showed me life is fun and we should be loving and enjoying what we're doing... and to be grateful all the time. He showed me that life is more than just mourning your long lost ex-boyfriend, it's about finding the real you, exploring more of your talent, and to always embrace the world with positivity. I love you, Bruno. Thanks for coming all the way from Mars.

See my pictures in my Facebook album here.
Been a long day, so I'm off to bed now. Bonne nuit. x

I grew up to these

2011-04-04T16:06:00.001+07:00

Shout out to my father who introduced me to all my music/dance heroes. I watched the exact same video (except the Toto ones, of course) every night with him.. These songs always remind me of him. x

Bali Ha'i

2011-04-03T09:36:00.001+07:00

We continued the Batavia Trip after lunch in Dapur Babah. Jakarta was being super friendly yesterday. The sun was shining, the wind was blowing, the sky was baby blue, and the clouds were all white and tubby. I've been taking lots of sky pictures since morning in Bogor and apparently the weather was still nice until I arrived in Jakarta. It was so much like Bali (and Dayenne loved it so much!).

So this is our National Museum, with lots of Hindus statues and traditional clothes/daily tools/music instruments/handicrafts/etc from each tribe all over Indonesia. Darrell found his statue (the one with a beer belly) and so did Roel (the gigantic penis, it is). Hahaha. I was reminiscing the last time I went here... which was about a year ago with my sister and my campus friends. We took a trip to Old City and rode onthel around with the guide. Good ol' times :')

Anyway, I just got back from my last night shift in RSP. No newly admitted patient during the whole night. I was busy having culinary trip with Iyos instead. Guess I should start writing diary about each night shifts I have, as a memory of how good I am as patient-repellent. Hahaha :D

So I'm planning to sleep the day off, unless someone's asking me out for something interesting. Have a relaxing quality Sunday peepol!

Currently playing over and over and over again: The Script - Nothing

We get wasted then I taste it then I waste it again

2011-04-03T08:42:00.001+07:00

I'm terribly sorry for being such a terrible blogger. I know, it's been more than a week since my last post. Been trying to find the time to write, but ummm I don't know, my clinical life is keeping me away from my virtual life. Anyway, what to tell huh? It's been a hectic week, for sure. I want to write about my week here, but for those of you who aren't interested in medstudent life, you can jump right to the last paragraph :)

This week I was having my rotation at RS Persahabatan Rawamangun. It's always a busy morning there. We had to follow up patients, write statuses, ward round, write the prescriptions, resumes, and many other administration things. I think we get so spoiled in RSCM that we don't usually care about this whole economic-social things, that's why it felt so overwhelming at first (..well it still is). Anyway, time flies so fast in RSP. I never got a chance for brunch or whatsoever, it's always lunch by the time we finish our job. But the good part is, we get to go home very early there.

On Monday, I returned to RSCM to do something.... umm what it was... I can't recall. Afterwards, I spent the whole evening working on my self-reflection for Comprehensive Test. On Tuesday, I went back to RSCM after lunch to run some errands and finally done dealing with the essay. On Wednesday, I went to a wedding reception of a senior in Balai Sudirman with Denia. The traffic was chaotic and so was the parking lot. Pandemonium is the correct word. Grabbed dinner in BK Sarinah and got fined afterwards in Bundaran HI for not turning on the light. I sleptover at Dede's apartment that night, been ages since I last came there :')

On Thursday, I had my night shift in RSP with Ciput. The patients were all safe and sound. I basically just watched infotainment with the nurse, talked about my hometown, read my books, wrote my status, etc. I went out for late night fattening snack with Denia. Just in time when the lights in the ward went off (lame, I know). We had siomay and martabak and went back at 11 pm. The lights were on at around 11.30 and I had a newly admitted patient to check on. Then I went to bed at 1 am till morning. Haha what a night shift!

On Friday, I finished my job at RSP at 4 pm (phew, too busy to even have lunch!) and my father picked me up at 6 pm. Was completely wasted and slept like a baby. On Saturday, I did my weekly groceries shopping with my Mom, and bought some cakes for my friend. I returned to Jakarta at 12, wanted to stay at my room, until Darrell asked me out. So here I am...

This is the picture taken yesterday, when I crashed into King's Batavia trip with Roel and Dayenne. It's Dapur Babah, located in Jakarta Pusat. Never been there before, but the place is finely decorated in ancient Chinese which looks beautiful and creepy at the same time. Lots of red, statues, paintings, and they even use the old spelling from Dutch imperial time. However, the food was pretty pricey. But it's quite decent for a date... I guess. Sorry for the bad quality pictures. It was very dark there and I was trying not to use the flash so I didn't ruin the whole calm ambiance. Anyway, hope you have a funny weekend guys! x

Divine Dutch-Rider Stranger

2011-03-23T01:25:00.003+07:00

Just had the most fun night out with my 2 favorite boys and 2 new friends from Netherlands. Yep, that's Roel, I told you about him in my previous post. That's his friend, Mischa Barton a.k.a Dayenne, who is currently attending the ophthalmology rotation in my campus. Me and Darrell basically spent the entire day at campus with Roel talking about things you don't wanna know and yes we learned so much from him! LOL.

So anyway, me and King took them to the antique shops in Surabaya street, which we haven't been there ourselves before. They sell lots of antique stuff, and I do like them, but it gets creepy if you had all those things in one small room in your house. Nah.. not recommended.

We were planning to get some junk food at Burger King and grab some beers at Melly's afterwards but we decided to go to this German restaurant instead, Yaudah Bistro. I went there with King long ago and we loved the sausages! I had Beef Farmer Bratwurst and Dayenne had the Mushroom Soup, it was very good. And Roel finally had a great time with his long lost buddy... Bintang Beer. Lol.

We drove all the way to Loewy, Mega Kuningan, to treat ourselves with some cute desserts. It is the perfect place if you want to die in heavenly hyperglycemic state after having desserts galore. Everything there is... superb. The apple tart was very crispy, the creme brulee was definitely less sweeter and so much better than the one I had in Ninety-Nine, King's dessert (the one in the picture, I forgot what the name was) was also very mouth-watering, and my suffle grand marnier was... out of the world delicious! It's not chocolate like I usually have, obviously, but it has liquor in it. And it's so sooooo good!! (Okay, I'm trying not to use the word orgasmic, since Roel asked me not to overuse the word. But I'm kinda running out of vocab here haha).

So anyway, we went to Ranch Market afterwards to buy some stuff and headed back home. I'm currently struggling with my presentation since I'm going to present it in English to honor our guest. Hahaha. So I'mma pull an all nighter tonight. Wish me luck! x

Ecstatic Night

2011-03-17T22:41:00.001+07:00

Sorry for abandoning this blog. Life's been chaotic this week. I am currently stationed at RS Fatmawati (which is farrrr farrrrr away from my place in Salemba). I'm not gonna grumble about the hospital here... I just wanna say that, I don't feel like I belong there.

So yeah, nothing interesting to write about my life so far. The only good thing that kept me going was last weekend, I had a full body massage with Ibu, lots of nyummy foods at home, and ended the weekend with super random fattening dinner (Sop Kambing + Sate Kambing + Durian) with him. The rest of the weekdays are just... Hell. I wake up at 5 everyday and take a cab at 6 to get there. And I get home pretty late because of the distance. I even had to walk under the rain yesterday because it was raining heavily in Jakarta and finally returned home at 9ish (with loads of reading to do). I was read-sleeping (is there any such vocab? haha whatever) and pretty much zombified this morning and *urgh* things were still not getting any better in RS Fatmawati.

That's why I decided to go out tonight and let all the stress out. I almost went all by myself to have a cheesecake-icide, but then my friend, Gladys, BBM-ed me. She was fed up as well with the rotation, so she agreed to go out with me. Ahhh it's sooooo refreshing to go someplace nice having girl talks over cute cakes. Sweetness of life. I'm happy. Now I'm going straight to dreamland and pay back all my sleep deprivation. Still one more day in RS Fatmawati! (and a night shift on Saturday, but the hell with it..). Wish me luck and good night dearyosss!

Kiss & Tell

2011-03-08T20:59:00.006+07:00

Ajeng, a.k.a Ms. Koala, with my pink pediatric stethoscope and my koala puppet and my Koala March snack :3

Just spent a lovely afternoon talk with my 2 beautiful half-mates. Ajeng came all the way from her campus to my campus. We just met (exactly!) last week in Pizza e Birra, but well, a lot can happen in a week right? And girls can never have enough of girl talks ;) So she decided to take a cab after class and arrived safely at RSCM (newly renovated) Emergency Room. Hahaha yeah I know random, but it's the best meeting point in a hospital, no?

We had a quality chat in Dunkin Donuts Public Wing RSCM over croissant and jelly chocolate drinks. King joined us after a while and asked us to continue the kiss&tell session in Cafe Oh La La RSCM Kencana. I've never been there myself, so I was pretty impressed with the architecture, the hygiene, the view, and ahh well everything is obviously so much better than the old RSCM... Even better than the relatively new Public Wing ward.

So what else is better than to spend your afternoon with random talks about boyfriends, volcanoes, psychic things, and some porn? Oh I absolutely undoubtedly in love with this guys! We lost track of time and finally decided to go home at 7. Ajeng took the cab and is currently on the train back to Bogor. Huge huge thanks for coming today! x

Oh and by the way, I am currently in my 2nd week of Pediatric Rotation. Been struggling not to fall asleep during class every morning. Oh my God, after 9 weeks of morning ward rounds in Surgery Rotation, it's unbelievably hard to keep your eyes wide open for nonstop lectures from 7 to 3. Gosh. The drowsiness is unbearable. Trying to focus is hard enough, so I'm pretty much putting all the effort to understand what the professors are saying. Argh. We also have an exchange student from Netherlands, Roel, who'll be staying for the next 6 weeks. It's nice to have him around. He makes us gather for lunch and tour around campus. Okay, gotta get back to books and charts for upcoming tests. We'll see what Pediatric has to offer next ;)

Was full and tired and happy

2011-03-05T13:40:00.002+07:00

This is probably one of a very few Friday nights I spent in Jakarta. Had a night out with a friend and decided to try a new place recommended by my best friend, Ninety-nine in Grand Indonesia. It has such beautiful decoration, great ambiance, and satisfying service. I ordered spaghetti aglio olio which taste so good with abundant delicious olives. He had a beef sandwich and a very sweet pistachio crème brûlée for dessert. Such a delightful dinner :) Watched a Thailand movie "A Crazy Little Thing Called Love" in Blitz Megaplex afterwards. The movie was hilarious despite the teenage stupidity here and there. The main casts are very beautiful btw!

It was midnight when the movie ended so I had to get back to my place ASAP due to the night hour :p We made a stop at the drugstore first, to buy myself something for this annoying sore throat/runny nose. Apparently I already spread the virus everywhere, sorry :(

So yeah, I had a loooooooong relaxing uninterrupted sleep last night, with fragments of random dreams. I was so tired I even slept with my make up on and clothes thrown everywhere. But I felt so much better this morning. No more runny nose, just a little bit itchy in my throat. I'm back in Bogor now and probably gonna spend the rest of the day with my mom. Hope you guys have a pleasant weekend! x

Lesson of the night:

High heels can do very much when you're walking with an extremely tall guy. Proven!

My pacemaker heart cells are all smiles today

2011-03-01T23:59:00.001+07:00

Had a perfect dose of laughter at campus, then off to a perfect quality catch-up, with the perfect girl friend, at the perfect meet-up spot, over those perfect spicy el diablo chicken wings, in a perfect gloomy afternoon, and... a perfect surprise in my BBM at the end of the day. March 1st, you've been what I call "a perfect day".

You make my heart have premature ventricular contractions. What?

You make my heart skip a beat.

Can't handle any more shoeporn

2011-02-28T23:13:00.002+07:00

I'm sorry, shoes are just my kryptonite. I'm definitely a sucker for this one. And I can't not share this with you guys. Big shout out to all the geniuses out there who invented this epidemic of ugly shoes. Aren't they irresistible? *haven't blinked for hours staring at these babies*

Jeffrey Campbell - Skate

Jeffrey Campbell - So Much

Jeffrey Campbell - XXL

Minimarket - Wooden Drapped Suede

Minimarket - Space Shoe Pump

Iris van Herpen x United Nude - Iris Shoe

Irregular Choice - Eat Me Whole

Friis Company - Ulrikke

Friis Company - Una

Dolce Vita - Persius

Gee Wa Wa - Flora

Gee Wa Wa - Shannon

source: solestruck.com

Breakfast at Tiffany's Theme

2011-02-26T20:22:00.004+07:00

So I decided to re-take a photoshoot for my yearbook. The previous one (click here) was kinda disappointing for me, because my hair had completely lost its wavy look and I had to make a pony tail instead. I was inspired by Audrey Hepburn, because I was thinking something simple yet long-lasting. Well you all may already know that her beauty and elegance are simply timeless. I googled many of her pictures... Decided I'm not going with the gloves since I don't have one. Also left the tiara and big pearls. I just took the biggest earrings I own and vintage eyeglasses of my mom. Coincidentally, my friend who also took a photoshoot today, brought a black hat which suited with my look perfectly. Aww thank you Jupe!

I did the make up and hair do all by myself, I know it's pretty plain, but I like it that way. It's supposed to be a b&w picture anyway. I hope the simplicity of this theme will lasts for years, that it won't disgust me whenever I see this picture 25 years from now. What do you think? ;)

Currently playing over and over: Christina Aguilera - Impossible (ft. Alicia Keys)

Adios Surgery, muchos gracias!

2011-02-25T17:03:00.007+07:00

If you happened to read my last blog post, surely you're aware of my workload pressure this week. Well, here I am, at the end of that dreadful last week of surgery. Almost surreal to know I passed all the dues and assignments -with a little bit of luck and prayers- and finally make it to Friday still alive. This is definitely one of the most memorable week in my life, I thought I had to blog this out. So here it is... prepare yourself for a massive post!

Monday: almost lost my sanity getting all the assignments. Thoracic surgery wanted us to follow up every patients for the Tuesday ward round (which we will be the one presenting) and made statuses for the discussion on Thursday. Vascular surgery asked us to made a paper of a patient for a case presentation in Wednesday, started with brief vascular anatomy lecture from each one of us. I was soooooo stressed out. Spent the rest of the morning examining the patient and writing status -which I had to do twice because of a misunderstanding with my friend. Also had a tutorial with the residents afterwards, preparing for the upcoming ward round. At the afternoon, just when I wanted to type the paper, the lights went off. And I was so fed up with my unfortunate day, I decided to go out to a cafe in Cikini with Inda. By the time I had ordered dinner, they told me that the internet connection was currently off. I was like, "Gee, what the hell? What did I do wrong that everything goes wrong today? F." And so I just read books, trying to calm my nerve, and decided to do it one goal at a time this week, or else, I'd lose my sanity.

Tuesday: the doom's day. Ward rounding with the famous horror consultant of thoracic surgery. It wasn't that bad though. We just had to walk very fast, behave very appropriately, and speak very politely to him. The round itself was pretty brief (compare to the ones in Interna Medicine). He just asked about the diagnosis and a bit of the theory/pathogenesis. In the middle of the hecticness I still had to deal with some unfinished businesses of my seminar. Some participants got the CD broken, wrong name in the certificate, etc. Blargh I was in such bad mood I felt like banging someone's head to a door! Also decided to not participate at all in the case presentation for vascular because I already did half of the job, so umm I let the boys have their turn (of making the paper haha). At the afternoon, had a group study for OSCE with Fajar and Ae. We were stitching and discussing things the three of us didn't even understand. It was dumb and dumber in the making LOL. My mom & dad came all the way from Bogor to deliver me some snack and my favorite beverage, Teh Kotak. Awww aren't they sweet? *merci beaucoup* Had a tutorial at 11 pm from someone who kindly stopped by at my place and spent 30 mins of his time taught me everything I asked. Went to bed feeling extremely stupid and desperate, trying to find a way to finish all the tasks on time.

Wednesday: OSCE examination. I did pretty good, though I'm sure I failed at the Urology and lipoma station. But well never mind what's passed. We celebrated the freedom by having group lunch in CFC. Can barely remember what I did the rest of the day, probably attending a case presentation or whatever. I finally had a proper nap at the afternoon and felt so much happier and more energized than ever. At 9 pm, spontaneously decided to hang out with my beloved Chinese boys, King and Darrell. Since we've all been under so much pressure and simply needed stupid laughter over a good dinner. We did have a great time talking about friends, residents, and stuff in Oenpao Sarinah. Awww I love love them! Back to laptop doing case presentation and studying for the next day afterwards.

Thursday: waited nervously for a discussion with the horror thoracic surgeon, but luckily, he had an emergency surgery and had to postpone the discussion. Another consultant finally replaced him and we had a very educating (no swearing) discussion. Had a night shift in Emergency Room afterwards. It should've been a crazy night with 2 crazy junior residents. But unfortunately they switched shifts with their friends soooo I ended up being bullied by another crazy junior residents. Hahahaha. It was a second best night shift ever (after a week ago) by the way. There were only 4-5 patients and we basically had nothing to do since 1 am. But since we're such diligent coass(s) we decided to take shift sleeping. I took a shower at 1.30 am which became such a big fuss for the resident. Hahaha. I slept for about an hour and back to the ER until morning. Hmm well it was a good night shift.

Friday: My zombification was almost complete due to prolonged sleep deprivation. Meh. Had an MCQ exam in the morning and another lucky moments, when our tutor in vascular surgery wasn't available to have a discussion. So we had tutorial with another consultant who was so angelic. Sweet Lord. This is just our luck. Haha. Sneaking in to coass room for some quick nap in between classes. And my mood dropped because I couldn't come back to Bogor tomorrow. I had to take photoshoot for yearbook on Saturday, damn. Still have balance sheet to do and some other stuff. I need a real weekend for God's sake! Gah. Well, I'll go out with my girls tonight. Hopefully I could finally have a smile on my frowny face. Btw, this just happened a moment ago, just when I was on my way home:

I was walking down the hallway with my 2 luggages, thinking to walk all the way back home to enjoy my jumping thoughts, the sunny windy weather, and the loneliness... when I accidentally saw her. She was obviously Bataknese, short stature, seemed moderately ill with her jacket, scarfs, and jaundice (yellow-ish) appearance. She was standing still at the end of the hallway just finished talking to someone and then was looking at me. When I approached her, I smiled at her, and she said, "Are you a doctor?" I replied, "Yes". She said, "You're pretty and you're a doctor, how fortunate your life is." Tried to leave her, I replied, "Thanks Ma'am" (still walking away from her). But she seemed to insist to walk with me, so I just thought. "Hey, what's wrong with being nice sometime to a stranger?" And as we were walking through the Emergency Room she interviewed me, "Are you a doctor?" "Umm well, I will be in a few months." "Do you have a boyfriend?" (I silently replied) "Nope." She stopped, stared at me, and said, "You're lying." (Geez, how many times do I have to explain this situation.. And to a stranger?) "No, I'm not. I am currently single." And so she saw my expression and believed me, she continued her interview, "Where did you come from?" "I'm from Bogor." "So you go all the way to Jakarta to practice here?" "No, I'm still a student and I currently live in Paseban." "So where do you actually come from?" "Well I'm Javanese, Sundanese, and Bataknese." "Ha? How could it be possible?" "Yeah, well my parents like to mix it all. Haha" "Which one of them is Batak?" "It's my mom. So Ma'am, are you here checking up or visiting a patient?" "Well, I am an outpatient here, but my friend's happened to be hospitalized here. So I visited her and checked myself up too." "What's your problems?" "Ah well, doctor told me it was about the liver and stuff and told me to just stay at home instead." (Ahh so she is in terminal stage of a liver disease.... And I wanted to come back home ASAP to get some sleep, so I said). "Oh sorry, but I gotta run." "Okay, you take care of yourself. Don't be too skinny." "Thanks, bye, Ma'am." And so I was like, "Wow that is the weirdest conversation with a stranger everrr." But it left me with an indescribable feeling inside. I don't know.. Imagining how it feels to be her, to be diagnosed terminally ill and simply wish a young doctor the best of her life. Or a tiny drop of gratitude inside my heart knowing that I am blessed? Total weirdness. All the best for you and your health, Ma'am. God Bless You.

So, goodbye Surgery Department. Bye surgeons, residents, scalpels, and forceps. You've been a real bad ass. I'm gonna miss all the testosterone, carelessness, and laughters. x

It's a wrap!

2011-02-20T18:04:00.001+07:00

The last day of EMPIRE Seminar had been uber funnn. Not as hectic as the first day, plus we actually had snacks for brunch (yeay)! I even sneaked out with Inda to Atrium to buy ourselves french fries and burger. Hahaha. Btw, I didn't know who were the lucky participants to get an iPad as door prize. But I'm pretty happy grabbing as many folders and pens as I could lol. And ummmm I'm too tired to think about the aftermath balance sheet. Blergh. Gee, I can't believe I lost my weekend, it's like a 7 days of weekdays to me :s

Okay so now... I'mma get myself a proper shower, a loooong relaxing sleep, preparing my steel heart for the upcoming dreadful last week of surgery department -full of OSCE & MCQ exams, ward rounding with dr. Wur, and case presentations- and probably be a love fool in between :)

It's Saturday night and I'm blogging

2011-02-19T21:02:00.002+07:00

Hello, it's EMPIRE Seminar! Finally the big day we've been preparing and waiting for so long. I woke up at 4 am, got ready, and hit the hotel at 6 am. Some participants were already there so we started the registration anyway. Hadn't had breakfast, snacks, or beverages until 9ish -when we had already talked to almost a hundred participants. I'm dehidrateddddd! But thankfully I was sitting, or else, I'd be fainted already. Haha. Never expected to hit 300 or whatsoever, but surprisingly, we did!

So glad to have some of my friends come over to held their own stand. Still doing registration and payment until after lunch and just wandering around afterwards. Oh don't you just love my batik skirt? It's super pretty and unique, thanks Denia for lending it to me in last minutes!

Currently stuck in my mind: Flight Facilities - Crave You (feat. Giselle) ;)

Welcoming the birth of my baby

2011-02-19T20:13:00.002+07:00

Been having a busy week as we're getting closer to my seminar. Last Friday was chaotic: had to go back and forth to the bank to transfer money, printing checks, fax-ing it to the pharmacies, answering phone calls, preparing goodie bags, buying name tags in traditional market, and ended the day in the venue trying on the program used for registration. Phew. But I had fun doing it because the team is so much fun and very very cooperative. Returned to my place after midnight then had a shower and finally slept at 1.30 am. I'mma keep you updated with the D-day in the next posts. Oh and I also had my lovely mood booster in between my work! Hah finally I'm smiling from ear to ear. x

A thin line between gratitude and solitude

2011-02-17T16:49:00.004+07:00

Sorry I've been a terribly lazy ass blogger. Didn't have that much time to write and nothing interesting to write anyway. I just had a trilogy of one-on-one meet-ups (which is definitely how I define 'quality time') with 3 different persons, 3 days in a row: a funny rendezvous with a resident over beers and pizza, a heart-to-heart talk in Valentine's eve with long lost best, and a blind date with my virtual girl friend over lunch in The Goods Dept. I had 2 examinations these past 2 weeks, a case presentation, and a postponed discussion with an urology consultant. Stressful!

What's the latest? Yeah, me picking up phone calls every 5 minutes from participants of my seminar. I know I should be thankful when I had almost 20 persons enrolled themselves today. But repeating the same template and answering the same questions over and over again could be frustrating. Not to forget the additional workload about a poster competition coming up in March. Damn. Note to self: be grateful, life is good. I'm pretty much lost track of my favorite bloggers and movies in cinema. I also had a little turbulence of my self-esteem regarding of a man who suddenly walked in and out of my life. By the way, so happy to have my best friend come over to the hospital the other day and got a chance to show her around my world. And just had the best night shift ever, with lots of jokes with the surgery residents and enough dose of sleep in Kamar Koas. Precious.

Not so Valentine-y day for me

2011-02-15T01:00:00.002+07:00

Lovely dinner with my bestfriend to celebrate Valentine (the only day when I hate being single -mehhh). Finally, something heart-warming to close the messed up day. Yeah I know the outfit is wayyyyy beyond girly, so not my style (and age-inappropriate), I stole it from my sister's closet. Haha :D

P.S: Congrats to Bruno Mars for his first Grammy. He killed the show don't you think? x

Another time-killer

2011-02-07T21:35:00.000+07:00

Childhood favorite!

Feb 14th should be omitted from the calendar

2011-02-06T19:35:00.001+07:00

Ahh I'm so not looking forward to this year's Valentine (as always haha), because currently I don't have anyone special. I hate it that people will have romantic candle light dinner with their lover, get a chocolate, or a bouquet of roses, and I have to see the pics in FB/BBM or even listen to their stories. Argh. Yes, yes, I know I am single and available and happy and looking, but please.. I'm not strong enough to face this conspiracy all by myself.

Well I used to love (and celebrate) Valentine back then -not that I am a dark & twisty person or whatever- but I still had a boyfriend years ago that'd totally do something sweet at that particular day. But.. hmmm, I honestly haven't been a big fan of V-day since the past 3 years. So any idea how am I suppose to spend that night? Doing papers? Watching DVDs? Probably buy a voodoo doll, name it, and stab it until it tears apart? Hmm what should I do to make it to the next morning alive in one piece? Urgh I wish we could just skip Valentine.

Unless.. someone's kind enough to take me out? ;)

My lovely doo-wop & hooligan

2011-02-03T23:33:00.000+07:00

Had a karaoke night out with two of my most favorite persons on Planet Earth: Fransiska Darmansjah and Dimas Kelvianto, who are scattered in Bali and Singapore, respectively. This was a tribute to Bruno Mars for his 7-hours sold out upcoming show in Indonesia (whoop!). And of course, did sing our anthem song, Jay Chou - Fa Ru Xue. I'll see you soon, doods! LOVE.

"Lorrr, it was so totally rockin just now! Thanks homieee." - Dimas Kelvianto (via BBM)