As we know that North Korea is one of the most mysterious countries in the world. Not many books tell about it. This is the first book about North Korea to be published in English. Written by Hyejin Kim based on her work with North Korean refugees living in villages along the Korean-Chinese border.
A story about Jia, a little girl who spent her childhood in a gulag with her grandparents and sister. Later on she escaped and began her dangerous voyage started from an orphanage in Pyongyang then continued to a dancer school that brought her dancing before the foreign visitors and the Great Leader himself.
This story is a cry to the world to recognize what is going on in China-North Korea border. I had little knowledge of North Korea and this book was a great introduction. It's worth a read. Beside that after finishing this book, I guarantee that you will at last realize what a blessed life you lived.
Already translated by PT Elex Media Komputindo on 2011.
Jia, Sebuah Kisah dari Korea Utara
Yes, We're on Ramadhan Bazaar
After celebrating Batik Najlazea online shop 1st birthday last month, I guess its time for it to move forward and do something different. Finally I decided to try our luck on Ramadhan Bazaar. We'll be joining the bazaar tomorrow, Thursday-Friday, August 18-19, 2011 from 9 am- 4.30 pm at Gedung Dhanapala, Dept. Keuangan, Lapangan Banteng, Jakarta. Please do come and visit us, we'll be on booth no. 92.
Yay...It's blooming
Our mangosteen tree (Garcinia Mangostana) at the front yard is finally blooming. Since it is a slow growing tree, we are very happy to welcome the fruits. There are around 10 flowers there, hopefully all will turn into fruits. Can't hardly wait for its harvest time.
Lampuki
Not many authors tell about Aceh, my place of birth and one of the provinces in Indonesia. Arafat Nur tried to tell a story about his own place, his own people, Aceh. The setting is Aceh during the riot after the falling down of Soeharto era.
From the author narration we could learn how a rebellion can happen. What the reasons behind it and how actually people think about it. As usual the conflict between the government and the rebels cause nothing but long suffering for innocent people. Reading this book is like exploring a history book. Many new facts are revealed and I guess those are mostly factual narration since the author himself lives there, in one of the conflict area.
What I learn so far, the root of all problems there is simply justice. Just like in other conflict areas, e.g. Papua now. Aceh people know that their area is very rich with natural gas and many more but they feel that government has used them up. Instead of enjoying high welfare, they just feel that their lives are getting more and more miserable. Giving justice for all is absolutely not an easy thing to do. Whew.. it seems that my review is getting more serious here.
To wrap it up, this is a different genre of novel. Even the writing style is not common. It has more narration than dialogue. You need patience to digest it. This novel has been awarded by Dewan Kesenian Jakarta 2010 as the winner of novel writing contest.
Happy Birthday, Ayah
Dear hubby,
You're the one who has made me laugh, wiped my tears, hugged me tight, saved my life, watched me succeed, seen me fail, cheered me on, kept me going strong, put up with my mood swings, has said everything will be alright when things get tough and keeps me sane
You're a promise from God that I'll have a friend forever
Happy birthday, dear Ayah...
Ramadhan in the Eyes of Kids
This Ramadhan is special since it is going to be the first time for my 6-year-old daughter, Najla, learning how to do fasting. On the first day, she was fasting until 1.30 pm but on the next day she made it, she could finish until Maghrib, way to go girl.
I thought that it's going to be very hard for her moreover she also needs to go to school. But I guess mommy has too much worries because she is just fine. She enjoys the fasting. In fact everytime she arrives home from school, she looks even more cheerful.
So the conclusion is just let the kids do fasting as long as they want it. No force at all. Last but not least especially for mommies let's leave our worries behind and trust our kids wholehartedly. They can make it. Hakuna matata!!!
This conversation between Najla and Zea (4 yr old) happened yesterday on a critical hour (5 pm):
Najla: Hah? Kok kamu bilang2 ke aku sih? Aku kan jadi kepingin..
Zea: Kepingin itu apa sih kak? *muka lempeng*
Najla: *speechless*
Have a blessed and peaceful Ramadhan, everybody:)
Yoga, Je t'aime
Last Friday my yoga club, Padma Yoga, visited Bandung to have a yoga practice at Yoga Leaf, a yoga studio owned by international yoga master, Pujiastuti Sindhu. We had a two-hour yoga practice. A tiring yet very inspiring practice. We got a lot. Not only the yoga movement accuracy but also its high philosophy. This practice made me love yoga even more.
