Marine Cove

On Saturday night, 21 October 2006, I went to Marine Cove, East Coast Park with my wife and Inka, to watch After Five on stage, upon invitation from Tyty. After Five is a jazz group band which three of its personnels are Indo-Sing community members: Audi, eRBe and Gani. We also met Tyty, Erina and Evie, who also gave their supports by watching their husbands' performance. :)

After watching their performance, we stopped by to have a not very nice chocolate frappe at Gelare Cafe, before proceeding to the amusement park nearby. Inka was having a great time trying all the rides there, such as the merry-go-round and the pirate ship.

Hari Raya Open House

Pada hari Sabtu, 28 Oktober 2006 yang lalu, saya dan istri mengadakan acara Hari Raya Open House di rumah. Saya mengundang beberapa teman kantor dan mantan teman kantor, beberapa teman saya dari komunitas Indo-Sing, dan beberapa temen istri saya dari komunitas IndoSing-Mums. Acara berlangsung dari jam 1 siang sampai jam 6 malam, walaupun masih ada tamu hingga jam 9 malam.

Duddy, Ellen dan Iffah adalah tamu pertama kita. Sayangnya, saya tidak sempat mengambil foto mereka waktu itu, mohon maaf sekali Aa Duddy dan Teh Ellen. :) Mereka mampir ke rumah sebelum berangkat ke acaranya Iif di Sengkang.

Beberapa saat kemudian, mantan teman kerja saya, Natalia, datang bersama kedua anaknya, Nigel dan Ernie. Sayangnya, Eric, suami Natalia, tidak bisa datang karena beliau harus mengikuti acara company retreat di Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Muda Ikhsan datang tidak lama kemudian, bersama calon istrinya Hani, dan calon ibu mertuanya (ibuya Hani).

Tetangga terdekat kita, Pambudi dan Dini, datang bersama Ilma dan Adrian, walaupun tanpa Nadia yang tidur di rumah. Tidak lama kemudian, Enon Laila dan Satya juga datang bersama Danin. Pada saat itu, XBox di rumah sudah dinyalakan dan anak-anak pun asyik bermain XBox, sementara para orang tuanya asyik ngobrol.

Salah seorang teman kerja saya, Yat Keen, datang hampir pada saat yang bersamaan dengan kedatangan Emir Faisal, salah seorang IT geek-nya Indo-Sing. :) Sayangnya, pada saat Emir tiba, Ikhsan sudah keburu pulang. Namun kemudian, Audi, Erina dan Rifa pun datang bersama-sama dengan eRBe dan Tyty (kebalikan dari Ellen, mereka ke Sengkang dulu baru ke rumah kita), disusul dengan kedatangan Yolli dan Baby. Salah seorang teman kuliah saya waktu di UI dulu, yang juga adalah member pasif dari milis Indo-Sing, Henry Palit, ikut bergabung.

Tamu berikutnya yang datang adalah teman kerja saya, Zulkifli, yang datang lengkap bersama istrinya Syarifah, dan tiga anaknya, Asma, Muhammad dan bayi Hilwa. Natalia senang sekali menggendong bayi Hilwa, sementara Asma dan Muhammad ikut bergabung bersama Inka, Nigel dan Ernie bermain XBox. Irza sendiri sudah keburu tidur siang, mungkin karena capek. Walaupun demikian, anak-anak yang lain asyik bermain dan tidak kelihatan capeknya. :)

Salah satu teman kuliah waktu di Gunadarma, Boyke, juga datang bersama istrinya, Dety. Kebetulan, mereka sedang berlibur di Singapura setelah berlebaran di Kuala Lumpur, dan alhamdulillah mereka bisa menyempatkan diri untuk mampir ke rumah untuk acara tersebut. Beberapa saat kemudian, Lia juga mampir bersama suami dan kedua anak-anaknya, Amjad dan Sheerin. Tamu terakhir kita pada malam itu adalah Linda, salah seorang teman istri saya di komunitas ISM.

Alhamdulillah, cukup banyak teman-teman yang datang, dan secara keseluruhan, acaranya berjalan dengan lancar. Atas nama seluruh keluarga, saya dan istri mengucapkan terima kasih kepada rekan-rekan yang bisa datang ke acara tersebut.

Foto-foto lainnya bisa dilihat disini.

[English version]

Hari Raya Open House

On Saturday, 28 October 2006, I and my wife conducted a Hari Raya Open House at our place, inviting some of my colleagues and ex-colleagues from office, some of my friends from the Indo-Sing community and some of my wife's friends from the IndoSing-Mums community. The event was conducted between 1pm and 6pm, even though there are still some guests who stayed up to 9pm on that day.

Duddy, Ellen and Iffah were our first guests to arrive. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to take pictures of them while they were at our place (very sorry Aa Duddy and Teh Ellen).

Moments later, Natalia came in together with her children, Nigel and Ernie. Unfortunately, Eric, Natalia's husband, was not able to come because he had a company retreat in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Muda Ikhsan followed in shortly, together with his girlfriend, Hani, and his future mother-in-law, which is Hani's mother.

Our beloved neighbours, Pambudi and Dini, came in together with Ilma and Adrian, followed by the arrival of Enon Laila and Satya, who came in with Danin. By that time, the XBox had been activated and the kids were happily playing XBox, while the parents had a very nice and inspiring chat. :)

One of my colleagues, Yat Keen, came almost at the same time as Emir Faisal, Indo-Sing's IT geek. Unfortunately, by the time Emir arrived, Ikhsan has left already. However, Audi, Erina and Rifa, as well as eRBe and Tyty, came in, followed by Yolli and Baby. One of my ex-classmates who's also a passive member of Indo-Sing mailing list, Henry Palit, joined the fun.

The next batch of visitors were my colleague Zulkifli, who came in full-force together with his wife Syarifah, and their three kids, Asma, Muhammad and baby Hilwa. Natalia were having a great time carrying baby Hilwa, while Asma and Muhammad joined Inka, Nigel and Ernie playing XBox. By that time, Irza had went to bed for his nap, it might have been a very tiring day for him, but not for the rest of the kids!

One of my ex-classmates Boyke, came in with his wife, Dety. Coincidentally, they were on a holiday trip to Singapore after spending Hari Raya in Kuala Lumpur, and fortunately they were able to drop by at our place. Moments later, Lia also dropped by together with Amjad, Sheerin and her husband. Our last guest for the day is Linda, one of my wife's friends from the IndoSing-Mums community.

Overall, it was a very successful event, and on behalf of our family, I and my wife would like to thank everyone who has come to the event.

Update on 1 November 2006: Other pictures also can be found here, courtesy of Tyty.

[Indonesian version]

Merayakan Idul Fitri di Singapura

Pada hari Selasa, 24 Oktober 2006, kami sekeluarga untuk pertama kalinya merayakan Hari Raya Idul Fitri di Singapura, setelah 6 tahun terakhir kami tinggal di Singapura, kami selalu pulang mudik ke Indonesia untuk merayakan Lebaran bersama keluarga dan sanak saudara disana. Untuk tahun ini, kami tidak bisa pulang mudik ke Singapura karena Inka sudah mulai sekolah di primary 1 (SD kelas 1), dan pada hari ini (Kamis, 26 Oktober 2006) dia harus menghadapi ujian akhir tahun untuk kenaikan kelas ke primary 2. Mudah-mudahan, tahun depan jadwal ujiannya tidak bentrok dengan Lebaran supaya kita bisa mudik ke Indonesia dan berlebaran disana, Insya Allah.

Kita memulai Hari Raya tersebut pagi-pagi dengan melakukan shalat ied di lapangan seberang stasiun MRT Bukit Gombak, sekitar 15 menit dari rumah. Kita sampai di lapangan tersebut sekitar jam 7:45 pagi, dan shalat ied dimulai pada jam 8:15 pagi, dilanjutkan khotbah yang disampaikan dalam bahasa Melayu. Acara selesai sekitar jam 9 pagi, dan kita pun pulang ke rumah, untuk saling bermaaf-maafan dan bersiap-siap untuk pergi ke tujuan pertama kita, Hougang.

Kita sampai di rumah Tyty dan eRBe di Hougang sekitar jam 10:15 pagi, dan ternyata kita adalah tamu pertama yang datang berkunjung kesana. :) Sekitar 15 menit kemudian, Muda Ikhsan datang bersama Hani, salah seorang teman (atau "teman"?) satu kos-nya. Audi, Erina dan Rifa menyusul kemudian. Sayangnya, Yolli yang tadinya udah janjian sama saya untuk ketemuan disana, baru datang jam 12 siang jadi tidak sempet ketemu.

Disana, Inka asyik bermain Playstation yang disediakan oleh om eRBe, sementara Irza malah sibuk bermain-main dengan gitarnya om eRBe. Walah, kunci gitarnya diputer-puter sama Irza. :) Terpaksa deh nanti om eRBe harus setem ulang gitarnya kalo mau main lagi, hahaha. Maaf ya om, Irza baru pertama kali mainin gitar sih. :) :)

Saya sendiri sibuk mencoba semua makanan yang disediakan oleh tuan rumah Tyty. :) Masakan yang saya coba adalah gudeg Yogyakarta (menurut kabar yang saya dengar, gudeg adalah salah satu spesialisasinya Tyty) dan semur daging, yang alhamdulillah nikmat sekali. Walah, perut saya sudah terasa penuh, padahal kita belum sampai di Tampines!

Foto-foto di Hougang bisa dilihat disini.

Kita meninggalkan Hougang sekitar jam 12 siang, bersama-sama dengan Ikhsan dan Hani, dan menuju tempat tujuan kedua, Tampines. Ini adalah acara halal-bihalal terbesar untuk komunitas Indonesia di Singapura pada hari itu. Diselenggarakan oleh tuan rumah Ellen, Wiwie dan beberapa anggota geng Tampines lainnya, acara tersebut diselenggarakan di sebuah communal hall tepat di samping blok 727 Tampines Street 71.

Kita sampai di Tampines sekitar jam 12:30 siang, dan langsung bersalam-salaman dengan yang saya dan Ikhsan kenal. Harap maklum, banyak sekali orang-orang yang berada disana, tidak mungkin saya bisa kenal dengan semua orang. Serunya, ternyata banyak juga orang yang mengenali Muda Ikhsan dari namanya, karena beliau sering aktif di milis Indo-Sing. :)

Communal hall tersebut berlokasi tidak jauh dari sebuah playground, sehingga tentu saja, Inka dan Irza asyik bermain disana dengan teman-temannya. Saya melihat Irza langsung bermain dengan Zidan, sementara Inka, seperti biasa, membutuhkan waktu (kayak mesin disel, nunggu panas, hahaha) sebelum bisa bergabung dan bermain dengan teman-temannya, seperti Hanifa, Hanan, Aily dan Athaya. Selain itu, banyak sekali anak-anak lainnya yang berada disana. Saking banyaknya, sampai saya pun tidak tahu nama-nama dari anak-anak yang saja jepret dengan kamera saya. :) Untungnya, Mbak Lia mau menjadi informan untuk membantu saya memasang nama (caption) di foto anak-anak yang saya tidak tahu namanya. :)

Bagaimana dengan makanannya? :) Jangan ditanya... :) :) Banyak sekali makanan yang tersedia, bahkan dengan segitu banyaknya orang sekalipun, suplai makanan terlihat terus berjalan dan tidak pernah habis. Saya sendiri menyempatkan untuk menikmati rujak aceh-nya Nonong, dan mie bakso spesial-nya Wiwie. Bahkan ketika acara berakhir, masih banyak makanan yang tersisa sehingga seperti biasa, para ibu melakukan ritual "penjarahan" mereka untuk "menyelamatkan" makanan-makanan yang tersisa. :)

Foto-foto di Tampines bisa dilihat disini.

Acara selesai sekitar jam 2 siang, dan kita pun memutuskan untuk pulang dulu ke rumah, sebelum berangkat kembali menuju tujuan berikutnya, Braddell. Kita sampai rumah Hany di Braddell sekitar jam 4:45 sore, dan seperti halnya di Hougang, kita adalah tamu yang pertama datang. Hore! :) Ini berarti, kita adalah tamu pertama yang menikmati sate Braddell yang terkenal itu. Inka dan Irza pun langsung bermain dengan Hanan dan Haifa. Sayangnya, Iwan sedang tidak ada di rumah karena mendadak harus kembali ke kantor (coba ya, hari Lebaran gitu loh!).

Duddy, Ellen dan Iffah, bersama double Iif dan Ika (tapi tanpa Izan), plus Fivtanto datang beberapa saat kemudian. Dan pada saat itu, saya sudah menghabiskan sekitar delapan tusuk sate, and still counting... *lirik Om Iif dengan tampang puas*. :) :) Inka dan Irza pun asyik membantu Tante Hany membakar sate. Inilah yang namanya "regenerasi". :) Selain sate, tuan rumah juga menyediakan soto betawi yang alhamdulillah enak sekali. :)

Foto-foto di Braddell bisa dilihat disini.

Beberapa tamu lain pun datang menjelang malam, dan kita pun pamit untuk pulang kembali ke rumah selepas Maghrib. Kita sampai di rumah sekitar jam 7:45 malam, dan apakah acara kita selesai sampai disitu? Tidak juga! :) :) Tetangga satu blok Pambudi dan Dini, beserta putri mereka Nadia, datang ke rumah untuk bersilaturahmi dan makan malam. Dengan obrolan-obrolan seru khas Pambudi, makan malam pun berjalan dengan asyik. Sayang sekali, mungkin saking capeknya, kita tidak sempat membuat foto-foto pas makan malam itu.

Alhamdulillah, hari yang indah sekali. Walaupun kita terlihat capek, tapi semuanya benar-benar senang merayakan Hari Raya pada hari itu. Merayakan Hari Raya Idul Fitri di Singapura ternyata tidak separah yang diperkirakan. :)

Lebaran in Singapore, Part 3: Braddell

After attending the Lebaran events in Hougang and Tampines, we were a bit tired so we went back home first to have some rest. My wife even managed to have a quick nap, while I used the opportunity to shower and refresh. How about Inka and Irza? There seems to be no such thing as "tired" applicable to them. Reaching home, they immediately played XBox together, and didn't take a single nap until we were ready to go to the next destination, Braddell.

We reached Tante Hany's place at around 4:45pm. Similar to the case in Hougang, we were the first guests to arrive. Horraay! :) This means, we were the first to have the famous Braddell satay.

Duddy, Ellen and Iffah, as well as double Iif and Ika (but without Izan) plus Fivtanto came a bit later, and by that time, I have finished about eight skewers of the famous Braddell satay, and the number was still counting. *lirik Om Iif dengan puas* :) :) Other than satay, the host also prepared a very nice Soto Betawi.

We left Braddell after Maghrib, and reached home at around 7:45pm. Are we done yet? Not yet. :) Our same-block neighbours, Pambudi and Dini, came to the house, together with Nadia, and had dinner with us.

Alhamdulillah, what a great day! :) We were very tired, but everyone really had a great time. Spending Hari Raya in Singapore is not really that bad, after all. :)

Lebaran in Singapore, Part 2: Tampines

After Hougang, our next destination for the day is Tampines. This is the biggest halal bihalal (Eid gathering) event for the day. Hosted by Ellen, Wiwie and the rest of the Tampines gang, the event is conducted at a communal hall next to Block 727 Tampines Street 71.

We reached there at around 12:30pm. I and Ikhsan greeted those we know. Mind us, there are many people there, it's not possible for us to know everyone there. :) Surprisingly, a lot of people recognize Muda Ikhsan from his name, since he's quite an active member of the Indo-Sing mailing list.

The communal hall is located next to a playground, therefore of course, Inka and Irza were happily playing there with their friends. I noticed Irza immediately played with Zidan, while Inka, as usual, needed some time before she can mingle with her friends such as Hanifa, Hanan, Aily and Athaya.

How about the food? Don't ask. :) There's plenty of food, and despite a lot of people, supply of food seemed to be always in order. Even when the event ended, there's still some foods left so as usual, para ibu performed their usual "penjarahan" ritual to save all the leftover food. :)

The event ended at around 2pm, and we decided to go home first to have a rest, before going to our next destination, Braddell, in the evening.

to be continued...

Lebaran in Singapore, Part 1: Hougang

Tuesday, 24 October 2006, is a big day for us, since it's the Hari Raya Idul Fitri day. And for the first time since we moved to Singapore 6 years ago, we celebrate Hari Raya Idul Fitri in Singapore. For this year, we didn't perform our usual "mudik" ritual by going back to Indonesia to celebrate Hari Raya with family and relatives.

We started our big day in the morning by performing the Eid prayer at an open area in front of Bukit Gombak MRT station, about 15 minutes' drive from home. After prayer, we go back home first before we start our journey to our first destination, Hougang.

We reached Tyty and eRBe's residence in Hougang at around 10:15am, and turned out to be that we were the first guests to arrive. :) About 15 minutes later, Muda Ikhsan arrived, together with one of her roommates, Hani. Audi, Erina and Rifa came in later.

Inka was busy playing Playstation provided by Om eRBe, while Irza was busy with Om eRBe's guitar. :) How about myself? Well, I was also busy having all the foods provided, such as gudeg (which I understand from eRBe that it's Tyty's specialty) and semur daging. Yummy. My stomach was already full and we have not even reached Tampines yet. :) :)

We left Hougang at around 12 noon, together with Ikhsan and Hani, to our next destination, Tampines.

Update on 1 November 2006: Other pictures can be found here, courtesy of Tyty.

to be continued...

Hari Raya Idul Fitri on 24 October 2006

Both the Singapore and Indonesia governments have announced that Hari Raya Idul Fitri falls on Tuesday, 24 October 2006, this year.

In Singapore, the Singapore's Mufti has announced that based on hisab estimation, the crescent moon cannot be sighted after today's sunset because it's just 1 minute over the horizon. Therefore, tomorrow (Monday, 23rd of October 2006) will be the completion (30th day) of the Ramadhan fasting month, and that the Hari Raya will fall on Tuesday, 24th of October 2006.

The Indonesian government also announced today that Hari Raya Idul Fitri will fall on Tuesday, 24th of October 2006 because the results of rukyat in 29 places in Indonesia show that the hilal (crescent moon) cannot be sighted during sunset at those 29 places, with hilal of between zero degree and 30 minutes below horizon and one degree over the horizon.

The results are different from Muhammadiyah's announcement, which has decided that the Hari Raya will fall on Monday, 23rd of October 2006 based on its hisab estimation. In this case, the government of Indonesia expressed hope that such differences will not cause any frictions among Muslims in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, the government of Saudi Arabia has announced that the Hari Raya Idul Fitri will fall on Monday, 23rd of October 2006, not because they also have sighted the hilal, but because they have started their Ramadhan fasting month one day earlier, based on the crescent moon sighting result for the start of the Ramadhan month. So today (22nd of October 2006) would be their 30th day of fasting month, and since there's no such thing as fasting for 31 days, they will celebrate their Eid ul-Fitr tomorrow.

Again, I would like to wish all Muslims all over the world, a Happy Eid ul-Fitr celebration. Eid mubarak, Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri, mohon maaf lahir dan batin.

Zakat Fitrah

Earlier today, I and Irza went to the Ar-Raudhah Mosque at Bukit Batok East, about 10 minutes drive from home, for us to pay zakat fitrah for this year. This is the first time we paid our zakat fitrah in Singapore, since we will be celebrating Hari Raya Aidil Fitri in Singapore. In the past 6 years during our stay in Singapore, we always went back to Indonesia for Hari Raya, and paid our zakat fitrah there.

Zakat, or paying alms, is the third of the Five Pillars of Islam, and refers to spending a fixed portion of our wealth for the poor or needy. There are two main types of zakat:

• zakat on traffic (zakat-ul-fitr, also known as zakat fitrah in Indonesia), which is a per person payment equivalent to cost of around 2.25 kilograms of the main food of the region (this may be wheat, rice or dates, depending on the place), which is paid during the month of Ramadhan by the head of the family for himself and his dependents to the zakat collector (amil). The payment of zakat fitrah is obligatory for all Muslims.
  
• zakat on wealth (zakat-ul-mal, also known as zakat maal or zakat harta in Indonesia), which comprises all other types of zakat, such as on business, savings, income, crops, livestock, gold, etc. The payment of zakat on wealth is not obligatory, but as an act of voluntary charity (sadaqah).

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) has appointed some mosques in Singapore (but not all mosques, take note) to become zakat collection centres where we can pay for our zakat fitrah there. The list of the appointed zakat collection centres can be found here. We can actually make zakat payment over the Internet (using the e-payment function), but in my opinion, it's best and more afdhal if we just go to the nearest mosques and pay for the zakat directly to the amil.

We can come to any of the mosques which has been appointed as a zakat collection centre, and look for the "Pungutan Zakat" sign. Note that the head of the family will have to pay for the zakat, meaning it's best for the father (instead of the mother) to come to pay for the zakat. The signage will lead us to a room where the amil will then collect the zakat money and give us the zakat receipts. We also have to read the niat (intention) script, which is provided by the amil, in Malay (bahasa Melayu).

For this year, the zakat fitrah rate in Singapore is $3.50 per person for normal rate (based on average grade rice price), and $4.50 per person for premium rate (based on superior grade rice price). The zakat fitrah has to be paid before Hari Raya, otherwise the zakat payment will become sadaqah. Therefore, we need to ensure that we pay for the zakat fitrah before Hari Raya, especially for those who intend to celebrate Hari Raya on Monday instead of Tuesday.

Hopefully this article will be useful for those who want to pay zakat fitrah in Singapore.

Tour de Toa Payoh

About a month ago, exactly on the 16th of September 2006, we went to Toa Payoh Central for just sightseeing and a little bit of shopping. Toa Payoh is a suburb located just north of Singapore city centre, and about 15 minutes drive from home, via the PIE. The main destination in Toa Payoh Central is the HDB Hub, a very big heartland shopping mall, which is integrated with HDB office tower and the Toa Payoh bus interchange.

There's also a display of the Fabric of the Nation. More information about the Fabric of the Nation can be found here. Inka and Irza were also having a great time at the park in the middle of the Toa Payoh Central complex.

Happy Diwali and Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri

Wishing all my Hindu, Jain and Sikh friends a Happy Diwali.

Wishing all my Muslim friends, Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri 1427H, mohon maaf lahir dan batin.

Buka Puasa Bersama Lagi

Alhamdulillah, ternyata menjalankan ibadah puasa di negara kecil ini ternyata tidak seberat yang dibayangkan orang. Paling tidak, saya yakin menjalankan ibadah puasa disini tidak akan seberat menjalankan ibadah puasa di negara-negara benua lain seperti di Eropa atau di Amerika Serikat. Selain karena di Singapura banyak warga Melayu Muslim yang juga sama-sama menjalankan ibadah puasa, disini juga banyak sekali orang Indonesia yang bermukim di Singapura, dan sama-sama menjalankan ibadah puasa.

Selama dua minggu terakhir ini, tercatat sudah beberapa kali saya dan istri menghadiri undangan buka puasa bersama dari rekan-rekan komunitas warga negara Indonesia di Singapura. Setelah beberapa minggu lalu, kami menghadiri acara buka puasa bersama di rumah Aan (sekaligus farewell beliau dan Wiwied) dan di rumah Emil dan Nonong (yang alhamdulillah hari ini baru saja melahirkan anaknya yang keempat), minggu lalu kita juga menghadiri undangan berbuka puasa dari Pambudi dan Dini, serta dari Judhi dan Ami.

Pada tanggal 11 Oktober 2006, tetangga kita pasangan Pambudi dan Dini mengundang saya dan istri, juga rekan Satya dan Enon (Laila), untuk berbuka puasa bersama di Sakura Japanese Buffet Restaurant di kompleks Omni Theatre, Singapore Science Centre, Jurong East. Pilihan makanan yang disediakan ternyata cukup banyak dan bervariasi, mulai dari makanan khas Jepang seperti sushi, tempura sampai teppanyaki yang dimasak langsung, appetizer seperti oyster dan kerang, makanan utama seperti ayam teriyaki, kambing bumbu herbal, nasi goreng, hingga dessert berupa cheesecake, chocolate cake, dan es krim.

Acaranya juga lumayan seru dengan topik obrolan yang bermacam-macam, benar-benar refreshing mengingat kita memang cukup jarang bertemu dan mengobrol seperti itu. Ditambah lagi acara selingan berupa permainan sulap dari Pambudi (beliau bersama putrinya, Ilma, adalah tukang sulap yang handal). Kebetulan Ilma juga hadir di acara tersebut, dan dia ikut membantu Bapaknya untuk menghadirkan acara sulap sebagai selingan. Foto-fotonya bisa dilihat disini.

Pada tanggal 14 Oktober 2006, kita sekeluarga berkunjung ke rumah Judhi dan Ami di daerah Geylang East, Paya Lebar, untuk menghadiri acara buka puasa bersama disana. Acara tersebut juga dilengkapi dengan sesi "pencerahan" (khutbah) dari Pak "Ustadz" Duddy yang membahas tentang "ilmu", yang dimulai tepat setelah kita sampai sekitar jam 6 sore, dan selesai tepat sebelum waktu berbuka puasa.

Sementara para orang tua asyik menikmati semua hidangan yang disajikan oleh tuan rumah, para anak-anak asyik bermain bersama. Inka dan Irza asyik bermain dengan teman-teman mereka di sebuah tempat bermain (playground) yang terletak tidak jauh dari ruangan club house tempat acara diadakan. Beberapa teman yang mereka temui disana diantaranya adalah Aily dan Algo (tuan rumah untuk malam itu), Marsya, Fadzil dan Naira, Abang Dzaky, Athaya dan Alita, Hanifa, Iffah, dan beberapa teman lainnya.

Foto-fotonya bisa dilihat disini.

Berita Gembira dari Gleneagles

Baru saja dapat kabar gembira dari rekan Emil, bahwa istrinya Nonong, salah satu teman kuliah saya dan istri yang juga bermukim di Singapura, telah melahirkan bayi laki-laki pada hari ini (Senin, 16 Oktober 2006) di rumah sakit Gleneagles pada jam 3:02 siang waktu Singapura.

Alhamdulillah, bayi dengan berat 3.83 kg dan panjang 53.5 cm tersebut, beserta Bunda-nya dalam keadaan sehat wal'afiat. Saat ini Nonong masih berada di labour ward, Insya Allah dalam waktu sekitar 2 jam lagi akan dipindahkan ke kamar.

Atas nama keluarga, saya mengucapkan selamat kepada Emil dan Nonong atas kelahiran putra mereka, semoga putranya selalu berada di bawah lindungan Allah SWT dan menjadi anak yang sholih dan berbakti kepada agama dan orang tua.

Update - 17:45hrs SGT:

Bagi rekan-rekan yang ingin menjenguk, silahkan ke rumah sakit Gleneagles, 6A Napier Road (sebelah Botanic Gardens), di kamar 502. Waktu berkunjung dari jam 9 pagi sampai jam 9 malam.

Buka Puasa Bersama at Om Judhi's Place

Yesterday (Saturday, 14 October 2006) evening, we went to Om Judhi and Tante Ami's place at Geylang East (Paya Lebar), to attend a "Buka Puasa Bersama" event, a gathering event for Muslims to hang around and having dinner (to break the fast for the day) together.

Pak "Ustadz" Duddy delivered a very good sermon (khutbah, or "pencerahan") just before break fast time, after which everyone performed their Maghrib prayer (shalat) just after sunset.

While the parents enjoyed all the nice foods and drinks provided, the children were having a great time playing together. Inka and Irza were having fun playing with their friends at a playground nearby. Some of the friends they meet include Aily and Algo, the hosts for the day, Marsya, Fadzil and Naira, Abang Dzaky, Athaya and Alita, Hanifa, Iffah and some other friends as well.

Tour de Sengkang (part 2)

Last Sunday, 8 October 2006, we went to Sengkang to visit Tante Shinta, Om Wisnu and Aidan. This is the second time we visited their home, after our first visit on the 2nd of April 2006.

As usual, our visit to their home will mean a visit to the two playgrounds nearby, as well. :) Inka, Irza and Aidan were having a great time playing at the playgrounds.

Hazy Business at Vivo City Soft Opening

On Saturday, 7 October 2006, I took Inka and Irza to Vivo City, a brand new shopping mall in Singapore, which is just opened on that day. The new big shopping mall is located just next to the Harbourfront Centre, near the ferry terminal where the ferry to Batam departs. It's also located just beside the gateway road to Sentosa island. It's also located just above the Harbourfront MRT station, on the North East Line of the MRT line.

Vivo City is reputably the biggest shopping mall in Singapore right now, beating rival Ngee Ann City and Suntec City. Some of the anchor tenants include Tangs, Marks and Spencer, Giant Hypermarket and three big food courts, Kopitiam, Banquet and Food Republic. It also has an outdoor playground on the second floor, and a "sky park" on the third floor, which is near the waterfront facing the Singapore Cruise Centre and Sentosa island.

Unfortunately, the haze in Singapore was on its worst on that day, with PSI reading went up to 150 on that day. As you can see on the pictures below, the skyline was very hazy, we couldn't even see the sun.

We spent most of our time in VivoCity at the outdoor area, such as the water fountain area in front of the mall (facing Telok Blangah Road), along the waterfront (facing the sea), in the playground on the second floor, and around the SkyPark on the third floor, facing the waterfront. As a result, Inka fell sick the next day due to fever and cough, and skipped school for three consecutive days. The doctor confirmed that it's due to the haze. So, my fellow Indonesians, you can see that not only Singaporeans and Malaysians suffer from the haze, we do as well!

From the waterfront and the sky park, we could see Sentosa, with its Merlion and Calsberg Sky Tower, plus the cable car towers, despite the haze. We also saw the Sentosa Express monorail, which was still under trial run (see picture below).

In the evening, we went to Harbourfront Centre, which is connected to VivoCity by a bridge on the second floor, to break our fast with the kids' favourite menu: New York Pizza. The pizza counter is located within the Singapore ferry terminal complex in the second floor.

Rujak Aceh dan Buka Puasa Bersama

Beberapa minggu yang lalu, istri saya dan tetangga satu kompleks Dini pergi ke rumah Nonong di daerah Eunos, timur Singapura, untuk mengikuti acara cooking class cara membuat rujak Aceh. Nonong adalah teman kuliah saya dan istri sewaktu di Universitas Gunadarma, dan sekarang beliau tinggal di Singapura bersama suaminya, Emil, dan ketiga anaknya, Marsya, Fadzil dan Naira. Saat ini, beliau sedang menantikan kelahiran anaknya yang keempat.

Rujak Aceh adalah salah satu masakan spesialisasi Nonong, mengingat beliau yang memang berasal dari Aceh. Cooking class sendiri adalah acara yang sering diikuti oleh istri saya bersama para ibu lainnya untuk mencoba memasak satu jenis makanan tertentu, lalu hasil makanannya dinikmati sendiri dan kalau ada lebihnya, dibawa pulang. Waktu itu istri saya membawa rujak Aceh-nya pulang, alhasil menu makan malam pada waktu itu ditambah dengan dessert rujak Aceh yang alhamdulillah, enak sekali.

Kemarin malam, saya, istri, Inka dan Irza kembali berkunjung lagi ke rumah Nonong dan Emil, kali ini untuk mengikuti acara buka puasa yang diadakan disana. Saya berharap rujak Aceh-nya akan menjadi salah satu menu yang disediakan disana, dan alhamdulillah harapan saya terkabul. :) Dan ternyata bukan cuma itu, juga ada banyak makanan-makanan lain yang disediakan disana, seperti mie goreng, sup bakso dan sosis, sambal goreng, ayam bumbu rujak dan lain-lain. Bagaimanapun juga, semua sepakat kalau rujak Aceh-nya adalah merupakan "signature dish" untuk malam itu. :)

Inka dan Irza, seperti biasa, senang sekali bertemu dengan teman-temannya. Inka malahan sampai tidak mau makan karena keasyikan bermain. Selain Marsya, Fadzil dan Naira yang menjadi tuan rumah pada acara tersebut, beberapa teman mereka lainnya yang ada pada malam itu diantaranya adalah Aily dan Algo, Abang Dzaky, Athaya dan Alita, dan juga Iffah. Selain itu juga, mereka bertemu dengan beberapa teman baru, diantaranya adalah Hanifa (putri dari Om Dicky dan Tante Kandy) dan banyak lagi teman-teman lainnya, yang sayangnya saya juga tidak tahu nama-namanya, saking banyaknya. :) Ini juga adalah kesempatan pertama saya bisa ketemu langsung dengan Dicky, "tetangga kantor" di Science Park, setelah sebelumnya hanya berkomunikasi lewat e-mail, setelah dikenalkan oleh Roni.

Berikut adalah sebagian foto-fotonya, mohon maaf, ada beberapa foto dengan kualitas kurang baik karena di-capture dari moving video, dengan lighting yang kurang, karena lupa bawa video light.



Aily dan Athaya, dua orang teman yang cukup akrab dengan Inka karena sudah beberapa kali bertemu di berbagai acara. Aily adalah putri dari Om Judhi dan Tante Ami, sedangkan Athaya adalah putri dari Tante Wiwie.



Hanifa dan Inka. Ini adalah pertama kalinya Inka bertemu dengan teman barunya itu. Hanifa adalah putri pertama dari Om Dicky dan Tante Kandy.



Algo dan Alita. Algo adalah adiknya Aily, sementara Alita adalah adiknya Athaya.



Fadzil, salah satu tuan rumah. Dia adalah adik dari Marsya, dan merupakan putra dari Om Emil dan Tante Nonong. Sayang, Marsya sendiri tidak berhasil ke-jepret kamera.



Iffah, putri dari Om Duddy dan Tante Ellen. Iffah lebih pendiam dan tidak banyak bermain dengan teman-teman lainnya yang "super heboh" sampai mengacak-acak kamar.



Dzaky, abang-nya Athaya dan Alita. Karena kebanyakan teman-teman yang datang lebih kecil, Abang Dzaky tidak punya teman bermain yang "sepantar" sehingga akhirnya bermainnya dengan para Bapak-Bapak, yang juga ikut bernostalgila (masa kecil kurang bahagia?) dengan bermain bola di dalam rumah *walah!* :) :)



Baby Ica, adiknya Hanifa. Jadi "primadona" di acara tersebut dan dikerubungi oleh banyak anak-anak lainnya.

Foto-foto yang lain bisa dilihat disini.

Buka Puasa Bersama at Tante Nonong's Place

Sunday, 1 October 2006:

In the evening, we went to Tante Nonong and Om Emil's place at Eunos, and having dinner (to break our fast for the day) together with our friends there. While the fathers and the mothers had chats downstairs, the kids were having a great time playing upstairs.

Inka and Irza also met some of their friends, such as Marsya and Fadzil (the hosts), Athaya and Alita, Aily and Algo, and also Iffah. Other than that, they also met some new friends, such as Hanifa (Om Dicky and Tante Kandy's daughter) and some other new friends, which unfortunately I also didn't know the names, since there were too many of them.

Nevertheless, the kids were having a great time! :) And so were the parents, of course... pampered with all the great foods, including the signature dish: Tante Nonong's Rujak Aceh.