MY FIRST BREAKING FAST SESSION OUTSIDE THIS YEAR

I was invited again by an ex-student of SMK Taman Universiti, Mr. Mohd. Syazwan Shavarein, for an Iftar [breaking fast] session held by/for his father's company, Rosha Dynamic. We were here at the same place two years ago but last year there was no Iftar outside because of MCO.

At the same time, there was a birthday celebration for Puan Norazlina Sugang, Mr. Syazwan's mother.

Thanks again Mr. Syazwan for the annual invitation which was my first breaking fast outside session this year and might be the only one. And good luck in your endeavour for your new job in Kuala Lumpur.

TEH TARIK SESSION AFTER TERAWIKH PRAYER WITH A LONG LOST FRIEND

We are both from the same place and yet we have never met here in Johor Bahru, not even once. The last time we saw each other was when we were in Universiti Pertanian Malaysia more than 20 years ago, and only recently we got connected on Facebook. We decided to meet for supper after Terawikh Prayer at Yassin Restaurant in town, and I had my "teh tarik" and tosay [or some people spell it "dosai"]. The chat was of course interesting, reminiscing the time we spent in 4th Residential College and the people we knew. We could not stay that long to keep ourselves updated  as it was already midnight and we had to go to work the next day. However, it is not surprising when people our age talk about the sickness we [might] now have and our friends who have passed away.

Now that Mr. Mustafa Hussein is back to work in Johor Bahru, I guess I will have more chance of meeting him in person for supper, or other meals.

MY FIRST RAYA CARD FOR THIS YEAR HAS ARRIVED

The very first Eid greeting card for this year, 1442 Hijrah, has arrived. Thanks to my ex-classmate of Budiman class of SMK Sains Muar, Puan Hafizah Mohd. Noor, for the kind thought. Yours is on its way and hope it will arrive soon in your real mailbox. May the tradition of sending Eid greeting card continue for many more years to come.

A SUPPER SESSION WITH COLLEAGUES

A supper session was set with a few male colleagues [of SMK Dato' Jaafar] right after Tewarikh Prayers [longer prayers done at night during the fasting month]. The chosen venue was Wani Mee Celup, which was near my house but it was my first time there. There was also someone who has already retired and a housemate of two colleagues who was no longer a stranger to us.

The signature dish of this place is its "Mee Celup" - noodles submerged in soup. Unfortunately, my Mee Celup, as well as my other friends', was too salty and I did not enjoy the food at all. In the end, I tried to eat the noodles without the soup.

The gathering had to be dismissed a few minutes after midnight. Hopefully no one had left his glass slipper after the clock struck 12.

It is good to get the chance to sit and chat once in a while with the group. Looking forward to the breaking fast gathering - and hope that will happen.

WHAT DID I WATCH ON NETFLIX: "LION"

Based on a true story, "Lion" tells the life of Saroo, a 5-year old boy who was separated from his mother and family when he accidentally slept in an empty train coach and was taken away to another city in India, faraway from home. He was then brought to a shelter and after all the efforts to find his family were in vain, he was sent to Australia to be adopted. 25 years later, he tried to see if he could still get back to his mother using the technology, Google Earth. Eventually, he was reunited again with his long lost mother and other family members after all the hard work he had done.

I have actually watched the documentary of this story on Youtube and it was actually a miracle for Saroo to successfully trace the place he came from and later the people he was looking for after being separated for a long time.

One movie worth watching, with a lot of lessons to be learned by the end of it.

SPOT THE ERROR 159

The correct version:

I Want To Return To Bed.

VISITING RAMADHAN BAZAAR AT KAMPUNG BENDAHARA

16TH APRIL 2021 ~ This should be the newest Ramadhan Bazaar near my house, located in Kampung Bendahara. I decided to visit and see if there was anything interesting. The bazaar was operating on a road which was not yet opened to the traffic. There is still construction work nearby, building apartments.

The place was spacious and the stalls were far apart so people should not worry about physical/social distancing. Other than that, finding a parking space was not an issue. However, there were not many stalls so there would be less choice of food and drinks.

 Good thing I now have one more bazaar to go to, just in case I am too lazy to get to the more popular ones which are always crowded.

VISITING RAMADHAN BAZAAR AT KAMPUNG MELAYU

Ramadhan Bazaar is back. There was no bazaar last year because of the pandemic. This year, permission is given for the bazaar to operate with strict SOPs supposedly. The first day I came, there were just too many people and social/physical distancing was not observed. Yesterday, when I was passing by this area, I saw a long line forming at the entrance so I guess actions must have been taken to address this issue.

I was there as early as 4:00 p.m. right after school so as to avoid the crowd. There was already a queue forming at the check in "counter" and the staff on duty were more serious this time and allowed only a few people to get into the bazaar area at one time.

At the time I was there, everything looked under control and people were not yet arriving in huge number. They must have not got back from work yet and at the same time, it was raining. The only way to be safe would be to visit the bazaar as early as possible but some sellers were still setting up their stalls.

I got the curry puffs I was looking for and the rain was about to get heavier so I made my way home quickly. I would have to be more adventurous and visit other bazaars nearby next time.

WELCOMING RAMADHAN FOR THE YEAR 1422H

Ramadhan 1422H is here - the month Muslims all around the world have been waiting for, to fast and do all the good deeds possible. This year we are fortunate as we are able to perform Terawikh prayers at the mosque and the Bazaar selling food for breaking fast is given permission to operate.

With 29 more days to go, let's pray that we can still continue all the routine activities right till the end of the fasting month.