P Ramlee The Musical

When I first heard that P Ramlee the Musical was going to be restaged, I immediately thought of Alysha, my partner in crime when it comes to going to concerts and musicals. We have attended dozens of concerts as well as musicals such as P Ramlee and Cuci (I don't remember why I kept missing PGL). We first met in the Sri Inai school back in 2004 and due to our common interest in music, singing and the entertainment industry, we normally end up going to these concerts and theatres together. 

I went to her house in the evening to catch up with her since it has been so long since we last met and  started to get ready at about 5.30pm. We had early dinner at home together with her mum, Aunty Suliana and we left the house to pick up Abang Kazran and Kak Ema before heading off to Istana Budaya. Abang Kazran checked Waze beforehand to avoid any jam and we managed to arrive at Istana Budaya just in time to pick up tickets and take photos before entering the theatre. 

#OOTN photo before we left for Istana Budaya

Ready to enjoy the show

The entrance to the theatre, P Ramlee days feeling sudah mari

View from our seats. Sat behind Deborah Henry...she is so tall ! Spotted my senior from Sri Utama school, Adib who was there with his family, Erra Fazira, Umie Aida and hubby, who sat one row behind us, Dato' Sri Shabery Cheek and a few other politicians. 

We gave a standing ovation for the amazing cast, ensemble, back stage/production crew and the Enfiniti team at the curtain call. Every time I leave Istana Budaya after watching a musical, I am inspired by these passionate people who painstakingly hone their craft and present to us an entertaining piece of art.

This season, the scenes with his respective wives : Junaidah, Norizan & Saloma and his first love, Azizah has been reduced but nevertheless with the new cast, we got to see something slightly different in the characters that they portrayed.

Tony Eusoff who played the legendary P Ramlee sounded so much like P Ramlee when he sang. His acting is no doubt, superb! Lisa Surihani acted as Junaidah and I must say I have never seen her being this gedik. It's my first time hearing her sing live, it was really good! Tiara Jacquelina played Norizan, the consort to the Sultan of Perak who left the life in the Istana to be with P Ramlee. We could feel her loneliness and frustration during her big fight with her husband which eventually led to a divorce. Nadia Aqilah Baijuri who acted as Saloma, was the star of the night. When she started singing, I had goosebumps! She hit the high notes effortlessly and was so professional even when her dress sangkut at the heel after she stood up from a sitting position. I've been her fan since the Emil Emilda drama days and I was privileged enough to have a chance to sing in front of her at Alysha's birthday party a few months back. In fact, I was seated next to her at the table and we talked about music and she motivated me to keep working hard and that she liked my song 'Fly High'.

Even though P Ramlee's first love, Azizah didn't have many scenes this time round, Ruzana Ibrahim played her role really well. She stood out in the other scenes as well as part of the ensemble together with Safia Hanifah, who was my senior in Sri Utama school. There was something about them that captures your attention. P Ramlee's best friend, Sukardi was played by Iedil Putra. He was outstanding and brought a more youthful interpretation of Sukardi. Dia punya lawak memang buat hangpa ketawa. Pak Nil (Aznil Hj Nawawi) played Junainah & Junaidah's father, D Harris. He was hilarious especially the scene where he made P Ramlee choose the coffee so that he could marry him off to Junaidah. If you have watched the previous seasons, you would probably have realised that Chedd (he played Sukardi in the earlier seasons) had a cameo role as the Tok Kadi when Junaidah and P Ramlee got married. #SukarDiLupakan

The few favourite scenes would definitely be....
1) The scene where P Ramlee leaves Penang with his best friend, Sukardi. The train with TJ 1010 (which is Tiara Jacquelina's number plate btw) appears and you can hear the audience clapping away
1) The scene where the Shaw brothers throw a party to congratulate P Ramlee on his marriage to Norizan. 'Lamree ah Lamree...' and the Cantonese parts in that scene

2) P Ramlee's conversation with his second wife, Norizan
Norizan : You balik lambat, I keluar!
P Ramlee : You keluar I balik lambat!

3) P Ramlee and Saloma singing 'Gelora' and they kept going P Ramlee...Saloma...P Ramlee....Saloma until one of the guys had to say sudah mau cut ke belum?? Hahahaha

During the intermission, Alysha managed to queue up at the photo booth and 'we travelled back in time to Studio Jalan Ampas' with the help of the props that were available. It was a fun night out, ended it with a sleepover just like old times. 

Let Your Inner Beauty Shine

I've been a firm believer of 'beauty is what you feel about yourself not about what you see in the mirror'. My late mother would always remind me that it is more important to be beautiful inside, to have a heart that forgives others, to help those who are less fortunate than you, rather than having a pretty outer appearance, nice clothes on but have a bad attitude. After she passed away, I valued these principles that she taught me even more and aspire to be like her as I grow older. 

There was a time during my teenage years when my face was very oily and filled with pimples. I would be embarrassed when I meet people because they had flawless complexion and here I was with a face that 'shined bright like a diamond'. K that was lame, sorreh. Thank God by the time I was in Form 4, my pimple issue was resolved and my skin was less oily. Hip hip hooray! 

As the years passed, I slowly learned to appreciate myself including my flaws because God had created me the way I am for a reason. By doing so, I began to become a more grateful person, I stopped comparing myself to others and I started to live life one day at a time at my own pace. Trust me, it feels really good when you're comfortable in your own skin. Don't listen to what people have to say about you because you must be doing something right for them to start talking about you. 

People who have known me for a long time would know that I'm the laziest person when it comes to make up and dressing up. Most of the time, I'm in t-shirt and jeans and my friends would complain that it is so hard to see me in a dress! I can actually count the number of times that I've worn a dress in the past few years.

In April this year, I was shortlisted to be part of a reality singing contest on Astro. During the time I was part of the contest, we attended singing, dancing, make up, styling, body language and communication classes. We were advised on how we should carry ourselves in the outside world in terms of personal grooming, our daily outfit and how to present ourselves to people that we meet. It was really interesting to be able to ask questions to industry professionals and to gain knowledge from them. 

Singing classes with Bo Hwa lao shi 

Media communication classes with MY FM DJ Jeff Chin

The profile shoot for Top 18 of Astro Star Quest 2014 

Nowadays I spend a little more time to choose what to wear, put on basic make up for outings with friends but that's about it. I don't intend to change my style 180 degrees right away because that would not be me, that would be a totally different Liyana so I just pick clothes that would suit my body shape and my taste. I tend to go for light colours, white being my favourite colour for tops but there are times when I venture out of my comfort zone and buy clothes that are more colourful. I normally go for the casual chic look, a simple top paired with skinny jeans and flats and I'm ready to go. 

Yesterday's purchase, the Porefessional primer which I normally use for outings and the Gimme Brow in medium/deep (it's the Chinese side of me, I have sparse eyebrows). I only use the Gimme Brow for events. Got a sample of their new product : they're Real push up liner

Siem Reap, Cambodia (Day 1)

It all started with Nadia sending me a Whatsapp message which sounded like 'Ticket to Siem Reap on Airasia murah, RM 298 je'. At that particular time I was running errands outside so once I reached home, I immediately checked the Airasia website and booked the tickets for both of us. Honestly, I didn't know what to expect from this trip because I do not know much about the country except for the fact that it is home to many ancient temples such as Angkor Wat and also the Tonle Sap lake. I would normally plan my trips way in advance but this time round I decided to just go with the flow. I did check up the 'must visit places' on Tripadvisor and a few other backpacking sites for ideas of what to do when we are there.

 While waiting to board the flight

Arrived at the Siem Reap International Airport after a two hour long flight at 4pm local time (Cambodia is GMT +7). We were greeted by our tuk tuk driver, Radi who brought us to The Siem Reap Hostel which was a 20 minute ride from the airport. This is a complimentary service for guests at the hostel (please remember to email them to request for pick up service). Checked in and was brought to the 6 bed Deluxe Dorm that we booked. The rates are USD 10 per night and I would highly recommend this hostel for those of you planning to go to Siem Reap on a budget. Comfy mattress and pillow, spacious room, air cond & ceiling fan, reading light, lots of power outlets and the most important thing for me : clean toilet, bathroom, water heater and good water pressure! #win We didn't spend much time at the hostel anyway, it was just for sleeping at night, there was no point booking a hotel for this trip.

We were the first two occupants of this room, later joined by others from US and Scotland

We unpacked and went downstairs to get some leaflets to decide on what temple tours to take the next day and also to ask for directions to the nearest restaurants as we were very hungry! We kind of got lost and walked into a quiet street with guys offering us to get on tuk tuks to go to nearby makan places which we declined and turned back the opposite way and continued walking until we managed to get directions from a stranger to get to Pub Street. Thank god! I was quiet worried at one point because it was only two girls wandering around a place we have never been to but alhamdulilah all was good.

Pub Street, Siem Reap

Our first meal in Siem Reap was vegetable soup with noodles, a bowl of rice and fried eggs because we couldn't find a Halal restaurant and this place we went to served things like frog and pork so tutup mata and order je lah while keeping fingers crossed. Gobbled down the food because we were too hungry! After that we walked around the area and found many shops offering manicure, pedicure and massage services and it was dead cheap! To top it all, they had free wifi! We walked in and sat down to enjoy a mani pedi session and Nadia did a foot massage while waiting for my nails to be painted. Yes, I have that girly side of me at times hehe...

Thank God for Instagram! Immediately after posting a photo of Pub Street, we received comments suggesting where to go and what's good in Siem Reap. Dina Zaman, who goes by @cikdina on Instagram suggested cool cafés such as The Blue Pumpkin and Kaya Café. Yes, this is THE Dina Zaman, award winning writer whose articles I've been reading since I was 11. Thank you for the suggestions, Kak Dina! We were in need of good ice cream to cool down on a hot day. Right after our pampering session, we went hunting for the cafés suggested and managed to find Blue Pumpkin.

We later found out that this is the smaller branch of Blue Pumpkin. They only serve ice cream and a limited selection of bread and pastries. A single scoop ice cream costs USD 1.50 and we decided to try the coconut ice cream, it was so sedap! The ice cream cone wasn't as good as I expected, though.

I have made it a habit to bring a book along during my travels. Finishing up the Ampun Tuanku book 

Beautiful pop up cards with many different designs going for USD 2

Abang Baki also suggested two different restaurants which we didn't have time to go check out, maybe during my next trip

We later walked over to the Angkor Night Market nearby and shopped a little bit. At 9pm, we made our way back and nearly lost our way in the dark but luckily we managed to get our bearings right and made it back to the hostel in one piece! Phewww....survived the first few hours in Siem Reap. Alhamdulilah

One of the shops which sells 100% cotton and silk products hand made in Cambodia 

Jalan Jalan di Kuala Lumpur (Part 2)

We walked back to the National Mosque after spending about an hour at the Islamic Arts Museum. Took some photos and explored the outdoor compound of the mosque. 

I was wondering where the Makam Pahlawan was as I've been wanting to visit Arwah Uncle Ghafar's (the late Tun Abdul Ghafar Baba, Malaysia's 6th Deputy Prime Minister) grave which I have never gone to since he passed away in 2006. He was my late mother's boss when she was working at Pegi Malaysia Berhad back in the 1980s. I grew up knowing him as Uncle Ghafar and he called me Miss Kong's baby. I remember sending him back to his house in Jalan Duta after having dinner at the restaurant in Lanson Place together with Uncle Eng, Uncle Kamal and my parents. There were several occasions when we visited him at his Bukit Pantai house and the time we attended his 81st birthday party at Prince Hotel in KL. He surely was a very nice person who inspired me to take an interest in politics (at some point, I even wanted to be the first female Prime Minister of Malaysia).  Don't ask me what happened to that political dream of mine. 

We discovered a staircase leading up to the Makam Pahlawan. Unfortunately, the area under the dome where the graves of the late Prime Ministers (Tun Abdul Razak & Tun Hussein Onn) as well as Deputy Prime Ministers (Tun Dr. Ismail & Tun Ghafar Baba) are was locked. I could only say a silent prayer outside the locked gate. May their souls be blessed by the Almighty. Al-Fatihah

The area outside the covered dome where the graves of other national leaders such as Tun Syed Nasir Ismail, Tan Sri Khir Johari, Tun Ghazali Shafie (King Ghaz), Tun Omar Ong Yoke Lin etc are. 

Ok, Nad, where to next ? 

Walking back to the bus stop

Only had to wait for about 5 minutes for the bus to arrive. Air cond, we needed you badly!

Next stop, Sultan Abdul Samad Building. My favourite building in Malaysia mainly because of it's Mughal architecture (I am no design/architecture expert, source : Wikipedia)

The building was declared as a National Heritage in 2007 by the Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage, Datuk Seri Utama Dr. Rais Yatim

Any building with red bricks like this, iLike!

The best shot of our national flag, the Jalur Gemilang at Dataran Merdeka. Selamat Hari Malaysia, tanah air tercinta! Semoga bendera kita terus berkibar megah di persada antarabangsa.

Next stop, KL City Gallery. I didn't know about the existence of this place. You should definitely check it out the next time you're in town as you can learn a lot about the history of KL especially.

A video of the installation of our very first Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Duli Yang Maha Mulia Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhammad (not to be confused with our first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman)

Managed to find it on Youtube. What a gem!

Other historical events that were categorised by the year

I know it's senget but it's the only photo I have of this. We did it! If you don't have anything to do on a weekend, I suggest you go on a tour in KL just like you would when you go overseas. If you can do it in a foreign country, why not do in your own 'tanah tumpahnya darahku' ? You will appreciate the beautiful buildings, see things you never slowed down to see and learn something new about this amazing city that we live in.

Got our 'semangat patriotik' all pumped up! 

That's the Royal Selangor Club on the left

KL Tower in the background

Syafiq with his hat, all of us in sunglasses and with a camera hung on my neck, TOURIST mode : ON!

It was about 5pm when we decided to call it a day. Waited for the bus for nearly 20 minutes, turned out it was their break time. 

Based on my observation on that particular day, the GO KL bus was mainly used by Malaysians of the lower income group with a few exceptions : a Korean couple who happened to sit in front of us and I overheard them talking to each other in Korean, a Middle Eastern couple who brought a shopping trolley filled with things and us, the youngest riders on the bus for the day. Our bus ride back to KL Sentral took us around half an hour and since we were sweaty and hot, we decided to go to Bangsar for ice cream! Took the LRT to the Bangsar station which was one stop away from KL Sentral and walked all the way to Inside Scoop in Jalan Telawi. At least we burned off the calories before having the sinful desserts! Hehe

Waiting for our waffles & ice cream and resting our tired legs

 Nadia and I shared this. Green tea ice cream for her and salted caramel ice cream for me

Syafiq ordered the blackberry ice cream

Walked back to the Bangsar LRT and went our separate ways back home. The next day I KO-ed with cough and flu. Glad we went for this heritage walking trail though. Would love to walk around other parts of KL in the future. Anyone wanna come with me? :)

KLCC on a hazy Wednesday evening, a day before Syafiq left for JB