Perjalanan Surabaya-Leeds (Bagian 1)

15:24:00

Apa yang akan Anda lakukan pertama kali jika (secara mengejutkan) anda harus menjalani 30 jam perjalanan++ dengan seorang balita dalam 36 jam ke depan? Upaya pertama saya dalam menjaga kewarasan adalah minum teh kesukaan, menyesapnya dalam-dalam, dan mencoba tidak memikirkan apa pun. Yah, yang terakhir ini tidak berhasil karena kepala saya berputar tak terkendali dengan semua pikiran tentang apa yang akan terjadi.

Sebelum perjalanan dimulai.
Saya cukup terkejut, jujur. Karena saya pikir penerbangan saya adalah di tanggal 20an Juni. Tapi kenyataan berkata lain. Ketika visa saya datang, saya harus siap terbang seminggu lebih awal atau hanya punya waktu kurang dari 2 hari untuk bersiap-siap. Membersihkan kekacauan rumah, mengucapkan selamat tinggal pada tetangga, menjual sepeda motor, memeriksa dan memeriksa ulang semua dokumen yang diperlukan, dll.

But life must go on. Dibantu banyak oleh orang tua & keluarga, saya & Hayu akhirnya terbang pada 13 Juni. Apakah saya takut? Iya. Ini adalah penerbangan pertama saya ke luar negeri, dan bersama balita pula. Saya berkata pada diri sendiri, "Ini pasti akan berlalu" berulang-ulang. Penerbangan pertama adalah Surabaya ke Hongkong. Semuanya berjalan dengan baik. Hayu sangat senang karena hiburan dalam penerbangan Cathay Pacific cukup mumpuni. Satu penerbangan selesai, dua lagi.

Diantar Uti tersayang ke Juanda.


Sampai jumpa, Surabaya.
Pemeriksaan imigrasi di Hongkong sangat menantang. Tas saya masih berat berisi makanan untuk Hayu. Ia tidak ingin membawa tasnya sendiri, jadi ada satu tas ransel di punggung saya, satu tas ransel anak-anak di tangan saya dan jaket di bahu. Jaket adalah persiapan darurat karena pak suami mengatakan sangat dingin & hujan melulu di HK. Pengecekan barang dimulai. Saya mendapat petugas yang mengatakan "Kamfiltah" kepada saya. “I’m sorry, would you repeat it?” “Kamfilta!” “I’m really sorry but I can’t understand what you are saying.” “KAMFILTAH!” Sementara dia memukul kertas tipis dengan gambar laptop di dalamnya, berkali-kali.


Ah, ternyata yang dimaksud adalah Computer atau laptop. Saya terlanjur pias & terhenyak karena bentakannya. Bergegas saya keluarkan laptop saya dan meletakkan di bak yang akan dimasukkan ke ban berjalan, pun dengan tas dan barang bawaan lainnya. Petugas berikutnya mungkin iba melihat saya, ia pun menunjukkan jalan sambil mengucap terima kasih dengan nada yang manisss sekali.

Imigrasi selesai, kami pun beranjak. “Buk, laperrr…” Panggilan alam dari Hayu. Oke, mari kita cari makan. Sebelumnya saya sudah browse, tempat makan apa yang halal di HKIA (Hongkong International Airport). Tertulis di lantai 6, oh itu sudah terlihat banyak jajaran took & tempat makan. Okeh. Dua kali memutar lantai tersebut, mengapa tidak ada tulisan Popeye (nama restorannya) sama sekali? Teringat bahwa di tas saya masih ada yoghurt sisa makan pagi di pesawat sebelumnya. Saya tawarkan kepada Hayu. Setelah dimakan satu suap, “Huek! Kecut! Emoh aku Buk!” Hm, baiklah.

HKIA, transit berkepanjangan.
Setelah terlihat ada petugas yang sedang lowong, saya bertanya di mana sebenarnya letak Popeye ini. Kejutan! Karena ada renovasi besar-besaran di area makanan, tenant ini tutup sodara! Okay, lalu apakah ada opsi tenant penjual makanan halal lainnya? Ada! Letaknya di East Wing, sedangkan saya di West Wing. Tidak apa-apa, bisaa lah, berapa sih jaraknya? Sepuluh sampai lima belas menit berjalan kaki katanya. Hm, jika berjalan bersama balita, rumusnya adalah kalikan 2. Kuatkah Hayu berjalan setengah jam dengan derajat kelaparan seperti ini? Mari kita coba. 

Ternyata Hayu kuat berjalan 45 menit. Kabar buruknya? Kami kesasar, hahaha. Kalau diingat-ingat lagi sekarang sih konyol & lucu karena ngotot untuk berjalan sejauh itu, tapi saat itu pusing dan capek mendera jadi tak bisa berpikir jernih. Mengapa? Karena sebenarnya saya punya P*pmie di tas, seperti disarankan pak Rendy untuk dibawa sebagai bekal di HKIA karena banyak fasilitas “water zone” yang menyediakan air panas & air dingin untuk umum. Akhirnya kami menyerah, duduk di boarding area yang paling dekat dengan “water zone”, menyeduh P*pmie dan teh tarik. Alhamdulillah.
Wajah hepi Hayu.

Kami transit di HKIA selama 9 jam. Awalnya saya berencana untuk pergi ke kota untuk melihat-lihat Hongkong atau beli eggtart. Rencana ini saya batalkan karena cuaca & ternyata memang keputusan yang tepat karena saat itu adalah waktu demo atas hukum ekstradisi yang akan diterapkan oleh Carrie Lam (pemimpin Hongkong saat ini) mengalami ekskalasi. Demo ini adalah yang terbesar dalam sejarah pemerintahan Hongkong. 

Selama transit, Hayu menolak untuk tidur atau sekadar memejamkan mata. Saya khawatir ia akan tertidur tepat saat kami boarding dan dengan bawaan yang ada di tangan, tak mungkin menggendong anak 4 tahun ini. Sedih tapi perkiraan saya akurat. Satu jam sebelum boarding gate dibuka, ia tertidur lelap. Tapi memang hari itu adalah hari yang sangat panjang, telah ia mulai sejak pukul 4 pagi. Agar tidurnya sedikit lebih panjang, saya tak membangunkannya sampai antrean masuk pesawat mulai menipis. Kami adalah penumpang terakhir yang masuk. Saya berhasil membangunkan Hayu meski ketika  berjalan sempoyongan layaknya dewa mabuk. Tak apalah, yang penting kami selamat sampai di tempat duduk pesawat.

14 Juni 2019 00.15 waktu Hongkong, pesawat kami take off. Perjalanan ini masih menyisakan 16jam lagi untuk ditempuh. Ya Allah, nyuwun kuat kaliyan sehat.  

daily

Decluttering You

23:19:00

Sometimes I feel my life is seasonal, and as every "real" season, it has particular theme. My nowadays season theme is decluttering. If you followed me in my personal Instagram account you'll see my post about learning zero waste, and I happily practicing what could I do. One of the goal is declutter my home, sift the real need and skip the others. 

As daily physical life, I think we also need to declutter our social life. The toxic people, the negative blabbers, the pessimistic buddies. I don't think all of them needed in my life. "Misery looks for company" is real. Sometimes some people just really annoyed if a person choose to be happy and they want to drag him/er down to be stay at unhappiness. 

At past, I'll be angry or my vision blurred to their intention. But now I'll choose to skip skip and never let them to hassle in my own life. It's simple and not wasting energy. Let use the energy to essential things and keep moving on. 

resensi

Review #belajarzerowaste Menuju Rumah Minim Sampah oleh DK Wardhani

03:10:00

#belajarzerowaste Menuju Rumah Minim Sampah#belajarzerowaste Menuju Rumah Minim Sampah by DK Wardhani


Awalnya tertarik karena baca review buku ini dari Kakak Ocy. Karena penasaran akhirnya pinjam dulu lah, hehe. Eh, ternyata isinya banyak pengetahuan baru dan tips-tips praktis yang dapat langsung diemplementasikan. Akhir minggunya bikin komposter, hari ini akan membuat eco enzyme. Kelebihan dari buku ini adalah, membuat usaha untuk meminimkan sampah itu mudah & bisa langsung dimulai. Dan itu menunjukkan bahwa pesan yang ingin disampaikan berhasil, karena pesan terbaik menurut saya adalah menjadikan gagasan menjadi sebuah aksi nyata.

View all my reviews

lesson

Depression

22:49:00

In the last week of May 2018, the world shocked. Kate Spade ended her life by suicide. Not too long, Anthony Bourdain did it too. I was shocked and lost by Bourdain's death. If you happened read my review in his book here, you know how I inspired by his writing and bravado. That's why I cried instantly after hearing the sad news & expressed it in my IG stories. I asked people for asking help if they suffered. Surprisingly, there's a friend who respond it in contra-view. She argued how it impossible for the one who suffered for asking help. Because she had post-partum depression and when she try to communicate the symptoms, the rifles of depressing thoughts she had the respond will be like : "Don't act it such a drama." "Everyone has the same problem, don't overreact."

The discussion between us became deeper. The biggest hunch of her depression came from the decreasing time for herself after having child. I could relate this so much because I felt the same way after had Hayu. But I'm not really upset or anxious about it too long because I had the antidote. As you know in my previous post when I met Diana Rikasari, I asked how she could juggling between works, business, motherhood, home. Interestingly, one point is she only working outside the home 2 days in a week. She maximized those 2 days with all the meetings, interviews, and another things needed to do outside home. She told me how in a day she could do until 9 meetings. It's a huge number and it shows how effective she managed her time outside home at once. I mean, we could see how her shoes brand UP grows, and now with Schmiley Mo and writing books too. It's possible. 


Then, I DM-ed Diana to say that I really hope she'll write a book with Motherhood theme, or how she does her business because I believe the book will help women especially for mother (like me) to be more productive and sharing her tips on time management etc. The conversation went along, she shared how she could handle the stress. The next day I read her post about it, it is really touche and well articulated. 


These rifle of incidents made me realize how important mental health to be discussed further and how shallow my knowledge on it. I want to learn self-love more and more. I want to connect better to myself, so I could do the same to other. To God. To my family. To you. 

fave

The Hottest Duo Right Now: Loco & Hwasa of Mamamoo

23:46:00

This pair came from a variety-music program "Hyena on The Keyboard" which shows how musicians collaborate to make a song. Loco has been a Hwasa's fanboy since several times ago, so when he did the show, he's super cute timid yet mushy and stealing any chance to step up. And it's REALLY ADORABLE!

The series available in YouTube, just search "Hyena on The Keyboard episode 7 and 8" then it'll show. Watch and get smitten in love with these two!

daily

#RamadanMenulis : A Challenge to Grow

12:27:00

It's been 20 days since the beginning of Ramadan, I followed a challenge from IG account @muslimahsinau to write a post each day in Ramadan with a predefined theme. Many times I was late but thankfully I still manage my commitment to write everyday. The themes varied from Islam to general interest. After such a long time not committed into writing, this challenge helps me to revisited my writing ability. It shows the tenacity conquer all, hehe. It's only 20 days, with the average time between 30 minutes to 1 hour, but I've felt growing so much. Now I have the step by step skeleton to approach any theme. I have to push my own laziness and reluctance, but doing it daily made it as habit, and doing it as a habit made it easier. Something's missing if I haven't write & pour my ideas. 

Today's theme is "How do you define beauty?". Because I've transformed a lot lately into more positive light, self acceptance, self love, it made my definition of beauty also shifted. Here I write my definition. Follow my IG @vinkamaharani if you're interested into daily dose of positive thoughts. =)

How Do You Define Beauty?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Beauty is honesty. Beauty is choosing the truth path no matter what. It knows that mask will never conceal & the righteousness is the only thing to reveal⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Beauty is kindness & empathy. It understood how to see the bright side even in the dark. It's ready to spread love as happy as Skylark.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Beauty is acceptance. It embraces what's less and quadruple the strength. Beauty is at ease within yourself & at peace with anything else. Beauty's fuel are passion and run it by compassion.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
.

Beauty is you.⠀

bisnis

Personal Branding & Learning Curve

22:59:00

First quarter of 2018 just passed and I could said it's a time full of learning. Have you experienced when you're committed to something then universe pour you its blessing? I just feel it after made a  decision to learn harder this time. I met fabulous mentors and they taught me a lot. 

It's always hard when you admitted mistakes you made, especially when you believed it for long time. For the last 2 years I believed I built @braavosknit in right direction, separated my business with my personal life. I was so confident because I believed I've already had enough knowledge in personal branding & marketing things. Later I should admit that was wrong move and sorting all of it again, put all the pieces puzzle from beginning, starting again. Integrating my personal life/branding with my business is my goal for now. The goal's met when I don't have to say/introduce/telling stories about what I did when meeting someone who knew me. 

Vinka Maharani = Braavosknit/knit/knitting/knitwear designer/yarnshop owner. 

So if you saw me learn to write by doing #RamadanMenulis challenge in @vinkamaharani, bear with it ;D. Now I'm taking step back so I can move forwards for my future life. =)

I'm leaving while give you my recent favorite musician, 10cm, because his voice is sweet and he wears cute purple knitting sweater. 

marriage

Convo #5: Tiptoe Through The Tulips

23:40:00


C: Don't you feel afraid?
B: Off course I'm afraid.
C: Don't you feel like "I'm really happy, but I shouldn't happy. Yet. Not now"?
B: Indeed. This will be a long way. 
C: It even hasn't begun. *sigh*


daily

I'm Back!

22:13:00

Wow, it's so dusty here! Hehe. Usually I'll say regret for not posting in a span of time, but I won't do that now because I'm happy! I'm happy because I know that I wasn't posting anything while focusing on my goals. I put more efforts than usual and all the feedback are amazing. I planned on my knitting project, did selfish knitting, made knitting related video and even the latest video have good response (100+ views in less than a week, I've already so proud, hahaha). And the best thing is I feel so energized to wake up everyday, feeling grateful because God gives me another day, another chance to make my goals closer and closer to become true. 

I feel more positive lately and I'll try to keep it up. Living to the dream is definitely the best way to live. How's your life dear fellas, anyway?

P.S.: Be my fellow in knitting journey in my Instagram @braavosknit. Kisses!