Best Western Wellington

Beds: 3 queens (2 separate units)

Price: $290 per night (6 adults)

This was another screw up, but I’d consider it a minor screw up cuz we still had a room for the night huhuhu we made reservation for a 2 bedroom unit (just like everywhere else on our trip), but once we reached there, they said the room was not available but they have 2 separate unit on the same floor.. malas nk argue and we were tired so layan kan je.. izad n fiq took one unit with a queen size bed while we took the other unit.. one queen bed in a room and the other in the ‘living’ hall.. and since the photog is izad, there was only a pic for one of the room, which is hers.. so just imagine another unit, with a bedroom for the other version ok hehehe

The other unit had a kitchen area to cook.. can't remember if this one had too.. photog fail sket.. pic bathroom xde hehehe Since we had separate units, we sorta have 2 bathroom so it’s easier to get ready, xyah ‘queue’ panjang hehehe the bathroom was quite spacious as well tp xleh lawan matamata la.. kitchen area was ok, just that it wasn’t near the window so ventilation kureng sket..

the hotel wasn’t really easy to find since you have to be aware of this small junction that leads to the hotel but once you found it then you’re all set.. I missed that junction after the roundabout so we had to do a u-turn.. it’s in the middle of the town however, so the supermarket was nearby.. we didn’t go except for izad n fiq who went for a stroll in the town that night but only for a while since most of the shop closes rather early.. the countdown supermarket was less than 5 minutes’ drive from the hotel.. overall was quite a comfortable place to stay in, so I’ll rate it 7/10..

Plateau Lodge

Beds: 1 queen, 2 singles, 2 pull-out sofa

Price: $280 per night (6 adults)

packing.. let's go in..

It was super cold here in Ruapehu and after the long drive and disappointment of not ‘finding’ the Tongariro National Park, we were glad to be some place warm.. the town itself is very secluded and we weren’t sure we were going the right way.. but once you reached the town, it was quite easy to find the lodge.. can’t remember if there was any supermarket nearby cuz we didn’t do any shopping (or none that I remember of, anyway) the rooms were quite small, but comfortable enough.. mama n papa took the queen size bedroom while izad n fiq took the other room with the single beds.. it was yaya n my turn to sleep on the sofa bed..

the sofabed that yaya and i slept on.. nape pic blur izad?? hehehe 

One bathroom with a shower.. The kitchen area was quite small so good thing xdela beria sgt masak.. 4-seater dining table as well but luckily the living hall was comfortable enough to eat there.. Watched tv a bit sambil minum teh cicah biskut again.. sedapnyeee minum panas2 time sejuk2 hehehe I rate the place 7/10

Arista Motel

Beds: 1 King, 1 Queen, 2 Singles

Price: $300 per night (6 adults)

Next up, is the Arista motel.. this was a last minute booking seeing that it was the Easter weekend.. plenty of motels around the area and there was a screw up for one of my reservation earlier.. thankfully the place had one available unit left which could fit 6 people.. see the sign above? by the time we got there, no vacancy.. so we were lucky..

the outside area, while we were checking in..

It was a two floor unit where the beds were all upstairs.. it had one King, one queen and two single beds, so just enough for us all.. not really a fan of stairs cuz sian mama kne naik turun tangga but luckily the stairs weren’t that high (unlike the one kt Queenstown huhuhuh)..

couldn't see the rest of the beds, but basically, you walked up the stairs and all the beds are laid out here..

Bathroom was downstairs and had a heater inside too.. they had a small hot tub at the back which we didn’t use but I’d think it’ll be fun if there’s kids around.. didn’t check out the back much cuz it was cold…

The kitchen area wasn’t that big but enough space for us to cook.. the dining table was a 4-seater only so couldn’t cater all 6 of us at one go.. the living area was just nice.. boleh lepak tgk tv even with all our bags lying around..

 

 the small living area where i spent the night makan biskut cicah teh yummm the right side is the small kitchen..

The motel is about 5 minutes’ drive to the supermarket and quite easy to find with the help of a GPS hehehe overall it was quite ok, for a last minute booking.. I’d rate the place 6/10..

packing up to leave.. 

Matamata Motel

*****
 All my post weirdly disappeared so i had to re-draft some of these post.. bummer..
*****
Now that I’m done with my NZ post (finally right hehehe) it’s time to move on to quick review of motels that we stayed there.. before we start, I wanna give a shout out to my baby sister who not only just helped take the pics of all motels, she was even the one who did all the survey & browse for the best possible places to stay.. she included all in the itinerary with the type of beds and rate, and all I had to do was made the reservations.. some we had to change cuz the ones she listed were fully booked cuz I was slow *boo* but even so, thank you so so much for all the effort hehehe ok, so first up is the Matamata Central Motel.. this motel sets the bar really high for the rest of our trip..

Beds: 1 King, 2 Singles and a pull-out sofa

Price: $260 per night (6 adults)

Matamata is a very small town but perhaps because of Hobbitton, they did have a lot of motels around the area.. we chose a two bedroom unit with a pull-out sofa and this was basically the standard units we were looking for throughout our vacation.. my parents took the king size bedroom while yaya n I took the two singles which both were just big enough to put our luggage.. each room have a small cupboard to hang our clothes as well which we didn’t use much since we were there for one night only..

the only downside to most of the motels there is that they only had 1 bathroom so we did have to take turns to shower n all.. but the bathroom here is the best one out of all.. it was very spacious and had a separate bath and shower.. again, it was a bummer that I didn’t forced myself to use the bathtub cuz that’s one of my favourite things to do when staying at a hotel hehehe and most importantly, the bathroom had locks on the door hahh!! Who would’ve thought that locks weren’t really a must-have on bathroom doors there.. (whuuttt?!??)

luas.. boleh tido sini kan hehehe

the unit had a nice kitchen area for cooking and a 6-seat dining table, so it was perfect for our first meal together.. the living room was quite spacious but we didn’t hang out much there since we were tired and slept most of the time.. of course izad n fiq conquered that area cuz they had the pull-out sofa to sleep on.. I hope it was ok for u two hehehe

Location wise, it was very easy to find.. it was located just opposite a supermarket which was very convenient cuz we needed to do grocery shopping.. we took a car there but it’s actually about a 5 minutes’ walk only.. we didn’t want to carry all the groceries across the street seeing that we might buy a lot of things.. overall, we were very satisfied with the place and service.. if I were to rate the place itself, I’d give it a 9/10 cuz really, it did set the bar high for the rest..

As Always

As always, it's been a while.. i miss this space so much that i'm actually smiling typing this down.. life so far has been very hectic, i need to step back and take a breather.. a few things have been going on with me.. i've had my ups and down a lot and it's just a quarter into the year.. but i won't dwell on that, not now anyway.. now i just want to stare at my screen and remember the time i've spent all these years just writing random stuff and ranting away.. i miss that feeling of just saying whatever is on my mind at the moment or how i feel, and knowing no one is ever gonna read it.. i miss having that avenue where i feel free and not giving a care to the world.. i need this.. i need this to keep me sane.. 

before i settle down, there are still a few things i owe here.. it's been a year now.. i should get them up by now, so that's my aim this week.. i hope you're ready..

Food for Thought

Which will you consider to be a more dangerous situation? Being in a 'bad' environment but within your control or out of your control.. i've been thinking recently, if you attend a concert and there was a possibility of drugs passing around, would you be cautious of the situation? Or will it have no impact on you since you know for sure it's not something you're interested in and no amount of 'peer pressure' will persuade you to do it.. how about if you're in a country where there might be suicide bomber or kidnapping? Will you be afraid to go there or would you think that bad things can happen anywhere so there's nothing to worry about..

You see, these two are very different scenarios but some people worries about the 1st situation and won't mind about the 2nd.. whereas others won't mind about 1st situation but will freak out about the latter.. ultimately, both could result in your death depending on the severity of the situation.. what differentiate between the two?

Trust.. to me, if you have to warn me about drugs and the possibility of it being passed to me, it shows that you don't trust me enough to make good judgement and say no.. to me, it means that you have doubt on me and think that it is something that i am capable of doing.. whereas if you warn me about the 2nd situation, it shows that you don't trust others.. no matter how cautios i am, other people's action will dictate the result..

So which one are you?

I am on my way I can go the distance 

I don't care how far somehow I'll be strong 

I know every mile will be worth my while 

I would go most anywhere to find where I belong

Ramblings on Good vs Evil

It's a battle i've been struggling throughout my life, just as anyone else.. Normalcy.. what do we know about being normal? Just as much as what others are willing to share.. but what about things that you keep to yourself.. how would you know that what you're experiencing is normal? I wonder, have you ever had a thought bothering you so much, an option to choose from where you know one is the right choice but it's very hard to do (isn't all right things hard anyway) but have you had battles with yourself where you question your being? Where you doubt your own capability and worthiness? Two split roads, the right will bring you inner peace and happiness.. you know it's the right road to get where you want to be but in order to go through it, you need to fly.. the left road takes you to another kind of happiness, one that you are used to.. to get through it, just walk.. the battle of thought is not which road to choose but how do i fly.. and when you can't find your way to fly, walking is so tempting.. but then there's time where you know you won't be able to fly and you don't want to walk.. so rather then going left, you chose to stay where you are.. and when you stay, those two roads won't stop staring at you and calls your name.. and at a point, you just can't take it anymore and you want it to end.. you don't want to choose.. but you can't end it cause you're too afraid to.. ending yourself hovers through your mind but you can't bring yourself to do it cause the other side is scarier to you.. so what do you do? How do you cope with it? 

Ending the year has been tough for me.. i keep feeding the wrong wolf..

Help  




My version of flying was always to jump off a high building, so should i? 

New Year Resolution.... Again...

It’s that time of the year again.. 2014 is ending and usually there’ll be a recap of the year’s highlight.. then there’s the new year resolution for 2015 that we probably might not keep up with.. aren’t we tired of it yet? So anyway, I thought I might as well just combine both in one post with a slight twist seeing how consistent I am on updating my blog hehehe

2014 Recap

Didn’t update much this year but there are a few things that should be highlighted.. first will off course be the family vacation we had this year, with an additional member to the family.. we went to the lovely New Zealand which pretty much took me ages to update (even as I write this draft, the motel reviews aren’t up yet).. if ever I have extra money to spare and already cover pretty much other countries on my ‘to go’ list, I wouldn’t mind going there again.. off course, having said this, I’ve only ever been to two other countries worth noting of so whether other places can top it off and catch my attention more, is still unknown..

Also, I think I’ve made some kind of progress with my health.. or a better way to put it, my workout routine.. I’m more aware of what needs to be done and hopefully I can be more discipline about it.. having a buddy working towards the same thing does helps a lot..

And finally good news, insya’Allah if all goes well, there’ll be another new member to the family next year and I’m super excited about it woohoo..

2015

Speaking of next year, I’ve got a few things in mind for 2015.. Basically, it’ll be the year of experiment.. I want to test out a theory.. I’ve been reading a book call The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg (courtesy of Shay’s recommendation) and thinking about how I can influence myself by creating habits that will eventually work towards accomplishing my new year resolutions.. I haven’t fully figure it out yet, so will have to work on a plan later.. quite an interesting read for a non-fiction book which isn’t really my cup of tea but somehow this one manages to catch my attention..

Basically the book talks about how researchers study habits.. how it is formed and what makes it stay.. why is it that out of all the people who makes ‘going to the gym’ as their new year resolution, only a handful of them are able to pull through and accomplish their goals.. why are some goals easier to accomplish compared to others.. it’s funny (not funny hahah) to think that there are people who study these things for a living.. but as I read through the book, it does makes you wonder about all those questions post by the researchers.. the book ends with a ‘framework’ provided by the author on how habit works and ways to shape or change them.. so I thought perhaps the start of a new year is a good excuse to test this out..

So what am I looking into? Basically, when we mention the word habit, what we have in mind is something we do repeatedly and automatically without putting much thought into it right? So this is what I want to try to accomplish next year.. embedding a routine into my daily life that will ultimately become a new habit.. for example, I want to be able to choose to eat healthy, or drink 3 litres of water a day, or keep my room clean as a habit.. I want it to be something that become accustomed to me without having to put too much thought into it and without having to constantly remind myself to do it..

How can I accomplish this? Well, the whole book revolves around a concept which is the loop system (repetition) and this ‘system’ comprises of 3 processes, the cue, routine and reward.. once a cue is given, we automatically conduct a routine in order to get the reward.. for example, you feel hungry so you go and find something to eat.. the cue here is the sense of hunger you feel, and after detecting the cue, your routine is to find something to eat (regardless whether it’s heavy or light).. after eating, you won’t be hungry anymore and that’s the reward.. seems simple right? Who would’ve thought that eating is a habit.. but it is or rather it make sense if you think about it from that perspective..

so as the ‘framework’ states, in order to shape or change your habit, you’ll need to, 1) identify the routine, 2) experiment with the reward, 3) isolate the cue, 4) have a plan.. identifying a routine means just that, identifying what habit you want to create, the task that is done repeatedly.. next, what sense of reward would you want to feel each time you complete a task? For example, do you eat (or munch) to fulfil your hunger or are you just bored and feel like doing something? Once you acknowledge the reward you want, find out what causes you to start a routine.. isolate the cue as it’ll be easier for you to start your routine.. sometimes cues happen subconsciously.. you might feel hungry or maybe your brain tells you that it’s dinner and you need to eat something.. or maybe you’re thinking about someone and you automatically open their facebook / blog / twitter / instagram to see what their up to (itu stalker namenye tau!!) once you’ve identify all 3 process, plan out the whole loop..

write it down.. to me, I would say this is the most important part.. writing things down does help you accomplish your goals.. it helps you visualise the whole process and also let you see the bigger picture.. for me, I would really want to start writing a journal.. hopefully, by really jotting down my plans and what I have accomplished, I’ll be able to tick off more items from my bucket list.. it’s tough but I’ll consider this as my first step towards achieving my new year resolution.. as what Shay would say about ‘Starting’, “sometimes this is the hardest part to get to”.. well that’s my plan for next year.. I’ll do my best to make more conscious decisions and if I ever do manage to hold up for a month or two, I’ll still consider that a victory.. remember, it doesn't matter if you fall off the bandwagon.. it doesn't matter if you missed out a day.. what matter most is that you get back up and start again.. so au revoir and i'll see you next year.. *hugs*