I have noticed that I did not get any chance to write about our precious experience in New Zealand for the first few years (maybe I have not discovered blogspot yet that time haha)
I began to write only in 2008.
And I have been sorting out our pictures, and that will take about zillion hours to finish, as they are tons of them!
I am still somehow all bummed because there was no iPhone that time, if not, I am sure it will take forever for me to sort the pictures out now hahaha.
I think, I should write about our arrival in NZ and reminisce lots of happy moments there which I can vividly remember.
Lets just say I miss New Zealand so much!
We were the lucky seven ladies, selected by MARA, after numerous exams and interviews, finally I got to meet the other six ladies who will be my closest bunch of friends for the next six years and lifetime!
We flew to NZ in winter 2003.
I remember the first time we touched down in Auckland, waiting for our next flight to Dunedin.
It was freezing cold! Never did I experience such a cold whether.
I was trembling albeit wearing a blazer.
There were few New Zealanders that greeted us and made conversation with us.
They corrected how we pronounced Dunedin. haha
We arrived in Dunedin airport about 6pm, and..it was dark. and cold. and silent.
It was completely different experience. Back at home, at 6pm, we are still sweating like mad!
We were placed in Commodore Motel for two weeks as they prepare our accomodation in Salmond Hall.
During that, I remember we craved badly for rice, and we could not think of what to eat, and was hungry day and night!
We went searching for rice, and bought from chinese restaurant, and we ate it with chilli sauce!~~
I giggle while writing this, but trust me during that time, it was not funny at all. haha.
We were starving.
We then moved in to Salmond Hall, Melor, Udeq, Unai and I were placed in the K-Block (stands for kitchen block? oh my!) and Azza, Teh and Ailin were placed in the new block (jealous!!!)
I am gutted that I did not have any camera that time (oh sedihnya!) so I dont have any pictures of us in K-Block. I am pretty sure Azza or Melor got some pictures of us there, or else it will be only in our memory
I remember, looking at spinach pie and was like, is this dinner?
and..looking at fellow members of that Salmond Hall enjoying their dinner, eating steak, chicken, and lots n lots of veges!
There was steam rice, but it tasted bland and looked unadventurous!
It took them about 6 months to figure out what to serve us, and found halal butcher to supply halal chicken and meat, it was agonising for us to be vegetarian for that long haha.
There was one incident that I never forget, we were sitting 7 of us looking like aliens, with scarfs and wearing our traditional baju kurung n kebaya for formal dinner in Salmond Hall, and there was this guy, came out of nowhere, running towards me and hugged & lifted me in the dining hall!
And then he said sorry, and ran to his friends and gave them all high fives!
It was quite a shock to me, coming from Malaysia, and girls boarding school and suddenly bear hugged by a stranger for a silly bet!
There's our University Clock tower. My first impression was, wow it looks amazing. and it was.
We first get to know fellow Malaysians, and amazing friends from all countries all over the world.
We were amazed with the university library which was so high tech and unique. It was a huge library.
We walked around town and explored Dunedin, South Otago and the end of the world.
Words cannot describe how beautiful New Zealand was from my eyes as if I stepped into a postcard.
We learned about the Kiwis, the Maoris and get to adapt to their slang.
There was a guy on street, asking to borrow a pen to scribble something at cafe, and he pronounced it PIN! It took us so long to figure out it was PEN!
They pronounced E like I.
See you in the arvo..? Cant you just say see you in the afternoon? hahaha.
Its cold today ay? Whats up with ay ay ay in everything haha.
It took me some time to know that its like eh! Sweet as!
Ads for commercials, candyfloss for cotton candy.
Its interesting :)
Few early pictures of us in 2003
Here are: Kak Siti, Abg Yola, Uderque, Unai, Anna and Ailin.
This was the first time naik gondola, kat Christchurch, NZ.
We were at Kak Midah's house with the kiddies.
Now the kids semua dah grown up!
We were sweet 19 years olds in this pic~
This is a nostalgic shot of our first Aidilfitri in New Zealand, with fellow Malaysians. Look at Ayuni looking so young and pretty. And the kids!! They were so little and cute~~
My, my how you've grown!
I remember rendang tok, masakan Aunty Hasnah, Kak Lah, Abg Amin, Kak Ina, Kak Siti, Kak Nini, they contributed so much in making our Hari Raya abroad, a wonderful experience. Love you all dearly!
We went house hunting for the first time in early 2004 and after few weeks, we found this huge house, 6-bedrooms house at 773 George Street, Dunedin.
Later when the juniors and later batches arrived in Dunedin, the house was called Rumah MARA (the house of MARA students) hehe.
We allocated the rooms via voting, and I got the front upper corner room and I loved it so much!!
I remember singing thru the windows watching sunshine and birds haha while my other six girls studying in the library! I just could not concentrate my study in library, so might just stay at home and sing my heart out!hahahaha.zaman muda.
Lots of memories in this house!
I remember we were freezing in this house, and our first bill in winter was NZD 600 due to us being unaware that heater costs arms and legs!!
Makan nasik goreng hari2 sbb duit tak cukup, then Abg Amin, Kak Lah, Kak Ina, Abg Mad, Kak Siti, Kak Nini, aunties2 and ramai2 lagi Malaysians yang prihatin telah memberi sumbangan makanan for us, sedeh takkk?
Thanks so much!
Us, during our housewarming, I think.
Unai was cooking sambal pedas berapi yang buat semua org nanges!
From left: Teh, Azalea, Unai, Udeq and me.
I only know how to wash dishes during this time.
Clueless in the kitchen!
Haha.
First few pictures of us in the house, with Kakok and Kashani who were already there when we arrived in Dunedin in 2003.
We were all so very young and comot!!
Haha. I cant help but giggling.
And then, we started having good times, international parade, going places, roadtrips and roadtrips, endless makan-makan, as the culture of food in Malaysia is inseparable with us, Malaysians.
We get to know friends in Christchurch, Wellington, Mataura, South Otago and Auckland.
It was fun, you guys!
Malaysian students posed for the camera during International Parade 2004.
MARA and JPA students were seen in the pictures wearing traditional attire and looking bright!
Melor, Udeq, Anna, Teh and Azalea all smiley holding the Malaysian flag!
We are proud Malaysians!
I forgot the name of this lake, but it was serene.
One of the unforgettable roadtrips when we were young and free! haha~~
This was one of our favourite shot taken during road trips to south!
Jakun main snow haha.
Our first snow in New Zealand! Winter 2004. We went for roadtrips to Bluff, the end of the world, and played with snow like crazy!!
Us, at Bluff.
It was cold and gloomy winter.
But we were all happy chirpy teenagers haha.
These people are now doing some important jobs in our country, some still in NZ and look at us in this picture,
so like children!
Gosh this was like 11 years ago.
Felt like yesterday.
Love this picture of Azza! Look at that hungry faces! makan roti je ke?
2004 was a year of adventure and exploring New Zealand to the max.
We went to every places that we can reach in Dunny, Christchurch and Central Otago.
I cannot remember what was the name of this beach!
Love this shot!
Anna, Melor and Uderque in that Cathedral Square, Christchurch, before the 7.1 Canterbury earthquake that damaged the structure in 2011, two years after we left New Zealand for Malaysia.
At Moeraki Boulders~~
Huge spherical boulders scattered along the beach of Koekohe Beach, on the Otago coast.
Our Hari Raya Aidilfitri in New Zealand.
This was the day we got into second year of medicine, alhamdulillah.
Nostalgic pic in the Al-Huda Mosque, Dunedin.
Winter 2004, we bought kayu kayan since it was so expensive to use heater, and our allowance was just enough for rent, haish haish! I remember we were all gathered in front of the fireplace, and it was not warm enough. We had a cat, which I could not recall its name and we did not have any picture of it. But the cat will always cuddle with us, and sleep with us near the fireplace. I guess, the winter also was unbearable to him as it was for us.
We went to Roxburgh, Central Otago during summer 2004, to work at cherry farm. Packing and picking cherry were so much fun! Thank you to Kak Nini and family who brought us here.
Sambil packing sambil makan haha. The cherries were exported overseas, and now whenever I go to Cold Storage, i will be like, erghhh so expensive!!!
It was long summer, and I remember craving for maggi cup. We went to that small town shop, looking like in horror movie, hahaha.
It was during this that I began to develop my interest in cooking!
Masak sardin pun sodappp!
Thanks to Azza and Teh, my cooking masters!
And..when we got back from Roxburgh, we found that our house was broken into. They stole a whole lot of stuff including Melor's laptop. Mine was just next to hers, and it was brand new as my daddy just sent it to me, and it looked untouched. Lucky me.
2005. We then moved to this house across the street. 766 George Street. Our house was pretty and cozy that time, with garden and backyard. It has chimney and the green house next to us was the boys house! I moved in the house along with Azza, Udeq, Aini Cikhens, Ayuni Zen and Een. The house next door had Kashani, Cash Khairi, Hafriz and ....I cannot remember now! Because they kept on having some guests, that I could not keep up! Melor and Unai stayed in another house, while Teh was about to get married that time, and Ailin stayed with the JPA girls.
This house became the next MARA house.
There were so many events took place here. Of course it always involved eating!
The house always packed with people.
It was so difficult to have a weekend free of makan2!
It was happening almost every weekend!We were finding excuses to do gathering haha.
Org Malaysia boring nak cakap Melayu sesama sendiri hehehe~~
And this was taken during Kashani's farewell party in 2005.
Haha and that cheeky fella is Aseng or his true name, Firdaus. I dont know how he got that name Aseng!
Our Hari Raya Aidilfitri, buat cornflakes madu ramai2.
And then tawaf semua rumah untuk makan makan makan!
So meriah. Untuk mengubat hati yang lara sebab raya tak dapat balik Malaysia~~
But it was fun. The night before Raya, dah tumbuk2 kacang, pagi raya sibuk memasak, for friends yg akan crash our house, especially the neighbours. Priceless experience! Anyone yang studied abroad and celebrated Eid di perantauan will understand well hehehhe.Excited lain macam!
Our favourite restaurant was the Reef. Seafood Restaurant at George St.
Seafood platter everytime in.The last time we ate here was about 6 years ago~~
No restaurants have yet at par with the Reef, according to my taste buds..huhu
It was a happy year.2005. Look at us, all smiley.We were in third year of Medical School that time. And we were coping well, and had good time with colleagues at school. Our "mat salleh" and non mat salleh friends were all nice and helpful. Some were naughty, I have to admit, haha. We got questioned about Islam and Malaysia all the time, and I think we have tried to clarify certain things pretty well each time. Albeit there were always some arguments on this and that, but in the end, we have to respect each other's views and beliefs, thats the beauty of friendship.
Autumn 2005 was beautiful.
Pokok Bunga Sakura, winter sonata lagi tu kat Botanical Garden, Dunedin.
We loved this Botanical Garden, there were ducks to feed.
It's very calming.
Aunty Hasnah came to stay with us during 2015 to complete her PhD.
And we were there during her graduation!
That time, we were just halfway from MBChB.
From left: Ezaty (she is now currently working in the same building with me in the Ministry), Udeq (taking Master in Rehab Medicine), Jehan, me, and Diha. Lama dah tak jumpa!
Taken during Aunty Hasnah's graduation as well.
Aunty Hasnah, maintains her looks till now.
She still looks the same now.
She never ages!
Towards the end of 2005, we went for Biro Tatanegara (BTN) in Avon Christchurch! Ingat dah kat sana tak payah BTN lagi, ni after 3 years, kena BTN lagi! Anyhow, we had so much fun there, 7 of us before we were separated....huhuhu
We were relocated to three different medical schools; Dunedin, Christchurch or Wellington.
Half of us wanted to go to Christchurch, but I ended up going to Wellington along with Udeq and Melor. Azza and Unai went to Christchurch while Ailin and Teh stayed in Dunedin.
We have been together for about three years and knew each other through thick and thin. And suddenly, we have to move to Wellington. It was tough. We had farewell party and some pillow talks haha, and some karaoke sessions and of course, zillion of photos taken!
During our farewell party with the gals of 766 George Street.
It was one of the best moments.
2006. Was indeed a very tough year.
I remember Udeq, Melor and I stayed for two weeks in a small backpackers in Newtown, Wellington as we had troubles doing house hunting. We had no close friends there that time, and struggled with new demanding tasks in med school. We finally got an apartment in 152, The Terrace, to settle.
The apartment was small, 2-bedroom apartment. with small living room and kitchen.
It was way different from what we had in Dunedin.
Of course, it is the capital city of New Zealand, anyway.
We shared the bedroom, and sometimes slept in the living room.
We had to take 7am bus everyday at Wellington Quay to Wellington Hospital, and back at around 7pm. It was exhausting!
Had to take trains to another district hospital and GPs for attachments
Thanks to my groupmates who often picked me up from home for car rides ~~
Our little kitchen in 152 The Terrace, Wellington
in our cozy apartment.
The best about Wellington is its sunny days!
It usually so sunny~~
And it is warmer than Dunedin and Christchurch.
We usually out and about, enjoying the sun!
Our first Raya in Wellington, NZ. with new people. new friends. new network.
We enjoyed making new connection here.
Udeq, Anna, Melor with Aunty Ros and Yusuf during celebration of Eid 2006 in Malaysian Embassy, Wellington.
I cannot recall where was this picture taken!
Te Whare....something something?
Another sunny day in Wellington, and windy!!
Hence the nickname Windy Welly!
Forget about taking an umbrella with you, because it will blown away by the crazy strong wind in Welly!
And this was the reason cikhens tanak datang Welly..takut tudung tak lawa kena tiup angin! Oppsss!!!
And this was during Hari Raya Qurban in Wellington.
Us, three, taken in our cute little apartment in the terrace.
Missing these gurls!!
Udeq and me, walking along The Terrace, in 2006.
How did I ever get so thin???!!
2007 finally here!
Ayuni Zen, Wani and Nuha were joining us in Wellington Medical School and we were excited!
The gang is back! haha. We decided to stay together, and started house-hunting again!
After few houses, we finally settled in Drummond Street Complex, Newtown, close to Wellington Hospital.
It was 5-bedroom apartment, and it was super nice!
2007-2008, time of great trips across New Zealand~~
We had great great time here although our time mostly spent in the med school and the hospital.
What a life!
Aseng, Kak Aqish and Baam also moved to Wellington, so we were reunited! haha.
The roadtrips resumed to up north of New Zealand with Aseng. and continued to south again n again!
I remember Aseng made us all listen to his James Blunt songs, sampai now terngiang2 lagu2 James Blunt tu!
Trip to Rotorua.
Look at the blue sky!
And the pine trees~~
Cable car in Rotorua with the girls!
Gayat!
Breathtaking view of New Zealand i must say!
It all still fresh in my memory~~
The smell of fresh air,
The flowers,
Everything is so picture perfect!
This was during the road trip to Rotorua. I have no idea where was this!
At Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland, Rotorua
Another trip to Christchurch with friends! I love spring. So flowery ~~
Anna, Cikhens and Nuha at the Bridge of Remembrance, Christchurch, New Zealand
We were so young! And we are still young! haha..after all, age is just numbers. kan? So age gracefully
Colourful day during summer.
Playing pink monopoly with the girls!
Having good times of our lives~~ Alhamdulillah for this experience. That money will never buy.
There is no doubt that New Zealand has left a big impression on me.
I miss the slang.
I miss saying sweet as,
I miss interacting with wildlife.
I remember being bitten by penguins in Oamaru.
I miss the starry skies~~
Sheer number and clarity of stars overhead was something that I never tired of seeing..
I miss its mountains with personality.
I miss its carrots, apples, apricots, nectarines, berries, cherries, yes cherriessss!
I miss the Lord of the Rings location sites~~
I miss the friendly people in New Zealand..
Although, I've been chased by drunken man too many times,
I've been called Osama for countless times,
There were the days, people threw bottles at us, muslims, and said, go back to your country!
...And been showered with beers, soaking wet walking thru Albany Street.
But most of people in New Zealand that i met, they are the friendliest people on earth..~~ I thought I let you know.
New Zealand is undeniably a magical place.
I would love to go back there one day with my husband and Ammar.
because, in New Zealand, you are always about 15 minutes from somewhere spectacularly beautiful!~~
So, let's just say I miss New Zealand so very much!
