#but i still think that the direct meaning of their names being GREAT NORTHERN FORTRESS means. a fucking lot.

[ozzieinspacetime]

My mum & I have been debriefing abt the new protocol episodes and decided to look up the meanings of the names Chester, Norris and Augustus...

Together they quite literally mean 'Great Northern Fortress'. The main definition of Chester also states that it 'can be spotted as a placename element in cities like Manchester', where the institute WAS in this universe.

Their names literally mean the Magnus Institute. A Great Northern Fortress.

[lesbiansforboromir]

"Yet even so it was Gondor that brought about its own decay, falling by degrees into dotage, and thinking that the Enemy was asleep, who was only banished not destroyed. 

 'Death was ever present, because the Numenoreans still, as they had in their old kingdom, and so lost it, hungered after endless life unchanging. Kings made tombs more splendid than houses of the living, and counted old names in the rolls of their descent dearer than the names of sons. 

  Childless lords sat in aged halls musing on heraldry; in secret chambers withered men compounded strong elixirs, or in high cold towers asked questions of the stars. And the last king of the line of Anarion had no heir." 

Faramir's explanation for Gondor's ‘decline’ is... incoherent.. what the hell are you on about m’love?

The way this reads is so completely misleading when looking at the actual history and reasons for Gondor's receding borders and the loss of the watch on Mordor. Faramir puts the onus on Gondorian Kings wanting to live longer and not having kids... babe? Did you forget... the plague? Gondor WAS watching for activity in Mordor. For 1640 years! And then there was a plague so devastating that it turned the country’s most populous city into a near ghost town. It took 200 years for Gondor to recover, and even then it never truly reached the population levels it had maintained before. Osgiliath was never the same! And by then Mordor had taken the fortresses at the Morannon! 

There is absolutely no mention of Kings or Stewards who were desperately seeking to extend their life in Gondor’s history. Where are these tombs more splendid than the houses of the living? All the Kings not buried in Osgiliath are buried in the Silent Street... There is no mention of achingly elaborate tombs anywhere! 

There WERE however some Kings who did not marry or have children! ... Two, there were just two of them... out of thirty three. Narmacil I was Atanatar's son and reigned in the HEIGHT of Gondor's wealth. He essentially allowed his nephew Minalcar to run the country whilst he had a great time writing poetry and kissing men. And Minalcar did a really good job! He fought wars, he made alliances, he built the Argonath and when it actually came around to his time to be King, he had a nice and peaceful reign! And when his son Valacar wanted to marry a Northern Princess? Even though the worry in Gondor was that that would ‘weaken’ the King’s line and reduce their lifespan? He supported him! Gave his blessing! 

The other King who never married or had any children was Earnur! You all remember Earnur? Oh sure, he desperately wanted to extend HIS life past its natural limits! Fighting in two wars and then riding off into an obvious trap just because he'd been challenged really gives me a whole 'old man in his dotage fears death' vibe. And that was the ‘last king of the line of Anarion who had no heir’. You know WHY he was the last king? Because the King before his father Earnil II (King Ondoher) and his two sons had died! In a massive fuckall war with the Balchoth that nearly saw Gondor destroyed! PRINCE Faramir was TOLD to stay behind! But he was so anxious for his family and so wished to not simply sit and wait for death that he HID amongst the ranks of the Eotheod and went to war anyway!! AND DIED!! Asking questions of the stars??? Making strange elixirs?? Mused uselessly on heraldry??? WHEN? FARAMIR?? Was Ondoher daydreaming about stars and heraldry as he was cut down by a chariot??? Was Artamir brewing potions mid-battle?? WHAT are you talking about!!!

Where are these men fearing death who brought Gondor into it's decline that Faramir is talking about? Is he lying? No, I actually believe Faramir when he says he would not even snare an orc in a falsehood. The things Faramir says are things he believes. But then how, when he is so well known for his loremastership, can he be so misleading and plain wrong about something so basic to Gondorian history? Well I have a suggestion but it means Faramir’s at least a little homophobic so bear with me and I promise this is relevant.

So, obviously, the ups and downs of Gondor society in terms of queer liberation would be complex and rely upon a diverse number of factors. However, I’d say that, if you looked at an overall trend, it goes up in times of peace and takes a hit during times of strife. The basic reasoning for this is that one of the fundamentals of Gondorian society is the concept of doom and fate. This can give both correct and erroneous impressions of cause and effect throughout history. Gondorians tend to believe everything happens for a reason. And due to the (sometimes quiet but always present) elf-and-faithful-numenorean-ruled thinkers, who push ideas of proper marriage, celebacy, romance-superiority and other cis-het-normative agendas, the ‘reason’ that bad things happen is often blamed on the queer liberation of the times. The populace is open to being given reasons for bad things happening and Academia in Gondor is very much elf-revering, so it is often respected scholars who are pushing that narrative. 

HOWEVER, the queerness is rarely what is actually remembered or recorded in history, the wording of records are often bound up in the faithful numenorean rhetoric of ‘heretical kings’ and ‘they fell into the trap of king’s men ideology’ and so on and so forth. Scholars might understand what this means at the time, but it gets muddled further down the road and even academics in the future have trouble finding the intended emphasis. So! By the time we reach 3018 TA, the academic community as a whole has reached a general consensus that ‘the old sins of our past’ are to blame and that, whilst queerness was a part of it, it was more a symptom than a direct cause. 

So! The thought process I’m proposing for Faramir should be easy to guess at now, but I’m going to go more specific for the sake of... me uwu. 

GONDOR has not known peace for the last 500 years, not since Steward Denethor the first’s reign wherein the so called ‘watchful peace’ ended and Sauron returned to Mordor. NOW, before Denethor, his uncle Dior was the Steward and, as you’ve probably guessed, he had no children and nor did he marry. I would suggest that Dior lived through one of the most tolerant and open portions of Gondor’s history. I think he not only was open about his choice not to marry, but he also had a socially accepted partner and lived with him all his life with only a small, vocal minority voicing their objections. 

But then Sauron returned! And it was brutal, bloody and horrific. And that vocal minority saw an opportunity to use Dior’s life as a method to push Gondor once again into it’s regular crisis of conscience, faith and purpose. ‘We betrayed our founder’s’ and ‘We should have been ruled by Dior’s son but because of his weakness against his ill-fate we are doomed, he abandoned his duty! A pitiful fate but pitiful for us as well!’ And so on and so forth, there are reems of academic works written about it.

Now, this doesn’t have an immediate crushing effect on queer rights that one might fear. Denethor I loved his uncle dearly and would not hear a bad word about him, as did Boromir I! And Cirion? Cirion was almost more alternative than Dior. He sold off portions of land when the Stewards had been told to keep them IN TRUST for the king’s return. He made enduring and reciprocal alliances with the Eotheod ‘middle men’, he was very much anti-traditionalist! However, it was after his reign that Gondor truly felt the backlash of all this, spurred on by Cirion’s very alternative views, actions and methods. Because whilst he may have been an effective and charismatic Steward, Cirion had not found so much time to be a good father. And Hallas had been fifteen when his father had left him behind and ridden to war. He had a frightening and lonely childhood and was very open to the idea that his father was wrong, had gone too far, that things should be ‘brought back to normal’. Stability being key and all. The vocal minority had his ear. 

And since then, whilst opinion has still fluctuated, the constant unrest and simmering crisis of Gondor’s day to day has made progress against such concepts difficult and slow going. And it’s informed the opinion of history too, a lot more academic writing has compared Dior to Narmacil I (the first unwed and unmarried King) and has tried to find parallels between them and Earnur. Any explicit discussion of queerness has been relegated to Sindarin scripts (the language only really understood by academics and the upper classes), but the underlying tone is there HENCE! 

“falling by degrees into dotage, and thinking that the Enemy was asleep“ = Dior ‘abandoned his duty’ and Narmacil I ‘was indolent’.

“the Numenoreans still [-] hungered after endless life unchanging.” = A melding of heretical beliefs that occurred over centuries into one monolith that applied longing for endless life automatically.

“Childless lords sat in aged halls musing on heraldry; [-] compounded strong elixirs, [-] asked questions of the stars.” = This is all both reaching back to heretical practices in Numenor, whilst also harkening back to the periods of time in which Dior and Narmacil lived, peaceful times where more introspective and experimental pursuits could be indulged. 

SO! This is where Faramir’s erroneous and misleading opinions come from. And why he is at least a little homophobic. There, I told you all I’d get there. 

[themurphyzone]

104 Words for 104 Days: Dynasty Part 1: Princess

AN: Takes place in Doof Dynasty time period. Artistic liberties have been taken, and by that I mean a LOT of artistic liberties have been taken. Also, I really wanted to write something with Isabella as the protagonist and this seemed like a good place to do it. Since this turned out much longer than I expected, I decided to just divide it into two parts.

Dynasty Part 2 Coming Soon!

“Sir! Our defenses have been compromised!” General Carl shouted, rushing into the royal palanquin and collapsing into a dead faint in front of Regent Monogram.

Princess Isabella moved her ink pot before Carl’s head could smash into it. Sensing that the calligraphy lesson was over, she carefully put the materials away while Monogram waved a jar of incense in Carl’s face.

“General, don’t faint until you’ve given us the necessary exposition first,” Monogram scolded. “And especially not in front of the Princess.”

Carl nodded weakly. “Of course, sir. My apologies, Princess.”

“Accepted,” Isabella said. “What’s this about our defenses being compromised? Surely Master Perry wouldn’t leave our country unprotected.”

“Princess, are you sure you want to hear about this?” Monogram coughed. “You’re not much more than a ceremonial figurehead until you’re of age. Until then, it’s perfectly acceptable if you want to lavish in luxury and leave the worrying to the professionals.”

Isabella fixed him with an icy glare. “Regent, I respect you and your administrative decisions. But I’ve fought Doofus Khan in a terracotta warrior before and if you’ll pardon my unprincess-like language, kicked his sorry butt back to the steppes of Mongolia. Those commoner boys fought for the Tri-Province Area and me when they were hardly trained, and I intend to do the same.”

“How old is she again?” Carl whispered to Monogram.

“Older than a child but younger than a teenager,” Monogram whispered back. “It’s the bow, I think. Throws everyone off.”

“Your report, General,” Isabella demanded.

Carl stood up and bowed his head. “The commoner boys who saved the Tri-Province Area were building the northern tower of the Great Wall near the Large Bamboo Forest of Largeness when Doofus Khan kidnapped them. Master Perry is currently training at the Loud Waterfall of Loudness, which is notoriously difficult for even the most fleetfooted messengers to access. Doofus Khan left this scroll, most likely to demoralize us before swooping in for his conquest.”

He handed the scroll to Monogram, who unfolded it and grimaced at the ink picture of Doofus Khan sticking his tongue out with a finger above his lip in an obvious mockery of his mustache.

“This means war,” Monogram huffed. “My mustache and beard combo is highly fashionable in this day and age.”

“There’s a message at the bottom,” Isabella said, placing her finger in the blank space to avoid smudging the ink.

Mwahahaha! If you want the boys back (lousy defense system by the way, do you guys really not have a militia?), send Princess Isabella to my Inescapable Fortress of Inescapableness! I wanted to call it the Inescapable Fortress of Doom, but my new scribe is defensive of his names. Just head due north. That’s all the directions I’m giving you. Don’t worry, you can’t miss it. Or do worry, cause I’ll be taking the Tri-Province Area soon enough! Have a bad day!

Wishing you all the misery in the world,

Doofus Khan

“Without Princess Isabella’s undeniable charm, our country will fall to ruin!” Monogram groaned. “We can’t abide by this fiend’s terms!”

“You aren’t stopping me,” Isabella declared. “I’m going to save my friends and the Tri-Province Area!”

“But-“

Isabella held up her hand to silence him. “I appreciate your concern. But I can take care of myself.”

“Very well,” Monogram sighed, the scroll dropping out of his hands with a dull thud.

Carl raised a hand sheepishly. “Sir, I believe I have the solution. Lady Firesong has trained a squad of preteen girls in the art of bodyguarding, self-defense, survival, pottery, gator wrestling, and decorative cupcake making. This would make for an excellent training exercise for the girls. I’ll send her a message after I’m finished fainting for the second time.”

Then he fainted again.

“I still think we’re doomed,” Monogram muttered.

o-o-o-o-o

The training complex wasn’t anything grand, especially compared to what Isabella was used to, but they had enough equipment that would make an entire Roman army jealous. Many silkworm cocoons lined each plant in the garden, and Isabella plucked one off the leaf out of curiosity, slipping it into her flowing sleeves while Monogram’s back was turned. He led them through a lantern-lit path until they reached an ancient portrait, which depicted an elderly woman in a flowing purple robe.

To Isabella’s surprise, the portrait bowed.

“I am Lady Firesong. Welcome, Princess Isabella. I’ve received word that you wish to perform a rescue mission. The girls who volunteered to accompany you are highly skilled in many areas. I hope you’ll find their company adequate,” the elderly woman rasped, then turned and clapped her hands. “Alright, girls! The Firesong anthem for the Princess, just like in rehearsal! One, two, three!”

Five girls in matching orange robes hurried into formation, singing the cutest song Isabella had ever heard in her life.

“-and it’s not too terribly long!” they chorused with a banner of the Tri-Province Area in the background.

Isabella applauded, much to the girls’ delight. Monogram didn’t look too impressed though. “Yes, yes, that was great. Princess, will you be okay?”

“Failure is not an option,” Isabella replied.

“Good,” Major Monogram said, reaching into his robe and pulling out a ribbon-tied scroll. “Deliver this scroll to Doofus Khan, will you? I, uh, have a very important message for him.”

“You can count on me!” Isabella exclaimed, taking the scroll.

Monogram nodded in approval and left, confused at the angry looks that were thrown his way when he still didn’t acknowledge their song.

“Well, it looks like my work here is done!” Lady Firesong exclaimed, settling back into her chair. “I am so glad I can rest here and let children handle matters of national security.”

o-o-o-o-o

Isabella’s clothing was custom-made by a tailor who exclusively served royalty, so creating her own Firesong robe was an entirely new experience for her. If Regent Monogram could see her filling baskets of cocoons, he would be horrified at the manual labor that a princess of her caliber certainly shouldn’t be doing.

But if a princess could operate a terracotta soldier, then she could easily create a robe out of raw silk. Besides, it was a great opportunity for learning about the other girls. She committed Gretchen, Holly, Katie, Ginger, Millie, and Adyson’s names to memory, only mixing them up twice when she was too busy taking the silk threads out of the boiling water.

“-and that’s why Lady Firesong trains us from birth. As a result, none of us really know who our parents are, but the rewards are worth it,” Gretchen explained as Isabella removed the finished robe from the loom. “I’ve always been told I’m more of a second in command type anyway.”

“Are you sure?” Isabella asked, stepping behind a bamboo screen to try on the robe. It was shorter than what she was used to, just barely reaching her knees, but much less restricting than her royal clothes. “I wouldn’t want to take your leader position just because I’m a princess.”

Gretchen smiled. “No, I can give orders, but I lack the charisma of a natural born leader. I should know. I’ve been trying for the Charisma Patch for years.”

“Well, I can always teach you,” Isabella offered. “It takes skill, confidence, and taking advantage of our naturally cute dispositions, but I’m sure you’d be able to learn!”

“Thanks! So, what do you think of the uniform?” Gretchen asked.

Isabella pushed the screen aside, twirling in her Firesong robe. “It may look delicate, but it’s durable,” Isabella said. “Also, I never knew I pulled orange off this well. I’ll have to ask my tailor for more clothing in this shade.”

Gretchen nodded, then poked her head in the doorway. “Katie! Are the accessories ready yet?”

“Right here!” Katie shouted, hurrying into the room and handing an orange sash and hairbow to Isabella.

“These sashes are the most important part of the Firesong uniform,” Gretchen said, pointing to her own sash. Unlike Isabella’s, hers was decorated with several colorful patches. “They’re proof of our accomplishments and fairly useful in a fight. Plus, we pooled our silver pieces for a hairbow. We just thought it’d look good on you.”

“Aw, you girls didn’t have to go that far!” Isabella exclaimed as she put on the sash. She let Ginger tie the hairbow, since the girl seemed enthusiastic about touching her hair.

Now that she couldn’t be recognized as a royal, they were ready for action.

“Storm the base!” Adyson shouted.

“Bring lots and lots of weaponry!” Holly suggested, pounding her fist into her hands.

It seemed they didn’t have much of a head for strategy. But Isabella supposed that was what a leader was for.

“Our main objective is infiltrating Doofus Khan’s fortress and rescuing the boys so they can complete the Great Wall,” Isabella said, and silence fell instantly. “But we need to pack only necessary items because a giant desert lies to the north, and we’ll need to cross it in order to get there. In other words, no more than what a two-humped camel can carry.”

“Katie, fill the water flasks!” Gretchen barked. “Ginger and Adyson, grab the food! Make sure you include lots of ox jerky!”

Adyson groaned. “I really hate ox jerky...”

“It’s a start, but there’s a necessary stop we should take before heading north,” Isabella continued. “Master Perry is currently training at the Loud Waterfall of Loudness, so we’ll need to go there first and get his help. What do you girls think?”

“Let’s go!” Millie exclaimed. The other girls echoed her battle cry.

Ginger held up a lute. “I’m in charge of the travel music!”

The other girls glanced at her.

“What? Travel music and a montage are necessary items too!”

o-o-o-o-o

Ginger’s idea of travel music was playing ‘You Snuck Your Way Right into My Rice Paddy’ over and over again. Sure, everyone liked the song, but after two hundred repeats without taking requests from anyone else?

Not so much.

Everyone was relieved when the roar of the waterfall drowned out her lute. Unfortunately, it drowned out everything else too.

Relying on finger signals and other forms of non-verbal communication, they made their way through the lush undergrowth. Millie and Holly used sharp rocks to mark every tree they passed to make the return journey faster, Katie scouted ahead, and Gretchen and Ginger dragged Adyson between them, who was still recovering from a nasty fall in a ditch.

When they finally arrived at the riverbank, they found Master Perry meditating underneath a pounding waterfall.

“Master Perry! The Tri-Province Area is in trouble again!” Isabella shouted, but couldn’t make herself heard above the waterfall.  

Everyone except Adyson added their voices, shouting as loud as they could, but neither the platypus or panda were paying attention.

Isabella silenced them with a wave of her hand. It just wasn’t enough of a hook to nab Master Perry’s full attention. They needed something more.

Isabella inhaled and screeched in the deepest voice she could manage.

“YOUR FORMER STUDENTS ARE IMPRISONED IN DOOFUS KHAN’S FORTRESS!”

Master Perry’s eyes snapped open. He dove into the water, resurfacing with a topknot and traditional warrior’s outfit.

The group went back to the main road so they could talk without screaming over the waterfall. Adyson muttered something about salamanders, her head lolling against Gretchen’s shoulder as her sandals dragged against the leafy soil.

“How did you do that?” Holly demanded, her hair still frizzed from the waterfall.

“I’m excellent at breath control. Plus it’s great for scaring Regent Monogram,” Isabella said. She turned to Master Perry and bowed respectfully. “The Firesong Girls and I wish to accompany you to the fortress. It is my duty as a princess to protect my subjects, and I cannot do that from a palanquin. You’ve trained the boys well back when they rescued me from Doofus Khan’s evil clutches. I will repay the favor.”

Master Perry stared off into space, several vibrations rippling through the air.

“Is that an attack?” Gretchen asked. She pulled off her sash, looping it around her hand and twirling the other end in the air.

“Stand down,” Isabella ordered. “He’s having a flashback. Just wait it out.”

Gretchen reluctantly obeyed.

A few seconds later, the rippling dissipated and Master Perry bowed.

“He’s done, hopefully,” Isabella said. “Phineas mentioned he has a habit of doing this. So, guess we’re heading due north now. Do any of you know where we can rent some camels?”  

Master Perry gestured for everyone to follow him.

“Who’s ready for more travel music?” Ginger asked. She tuned her lute, smiling brightly as she strummed a chord.  

“NO!” Millie and Holly screamed.

“Hehe, the salamanders are doing opera,” Adyson giggled.

o-o-o-o-o

Turns out Master Perry knew a faster way to transport them to the fortress. One that involved a massive red dragon that resembled the ones at Chinese New Year (but since it’s China, they just call it New Year), but much larger, more metallic, and without relying on people’s feet for an energy source.

“Master Perry! So good to see ya! Finally come out of retirement, I see! ‘Bout time! Never approved of you giving up on saving China after one little incident,” a jovial woman exclaimed. “And you brought an entourage this time! Name’s Glenda, so don’t forget it! What brings you girls to the Dragon Train?”

“We’re going to Doofus Khan’s fortress to rescue our friends. But isn’t this a little advanced for 1542?” Isabella asked, pointing to the giant dragon that Glenda called a ‘train’.  

“Yes, yes it is,” Glenda said, her eyes widening. “Did you say Doofus Khan’s fortress, girlie? Don’t you know that place is inescapable? I deliver supplies there myself. Don’t look at me like that, a woman’s gotta make her living somehow.”

“It’s only inescapable because nobody’s ever tried it before. It’ll be completely escapable by the time we’re finished,” Isabella said.

Glenda slapped her knee and laughed. “I like your gumption, girlie! Climb aboard! It’ll take twenty minutes to get there, so just kick back and let the Dragon Train do the work.”

“Twenty minutes? That’s so fast! And I was planning on a day and a half’s hike,” Gretchen said.

“It’s coal-powered,” Glenda shrugged. “Convenient for us, but makes a heck of a mess in the air. Ah, well. Problem for a future century.”

“I’m game!” Adyson shouted, snapping out of her salamander delirium. “Never been on a train before, but who cares? Better than relying on ox jerky!”

“Man, I would’ve packed my mahjong board if I’d known we’d be taking a train,” Holly grumbled.

Isabella turned to the north, signaling Gretchen and Ginger to wave their fans behind her and produce a dramatic wind. “My name is Princess Isabella, and we’re going to defeat you once and for all, Doofus Khan! You won’t pillaging anything by the time we’re through with you!”

[sapphired17]

It feels surreal to me that we have passed the 2010s already. Time went ahead like an express train without a single stop. What’s more shocking, the first half of 2020 hasn’t  even come to an end but the hassles have been getting out of hand. It was peaked with the news of corona virus (COVID-19) outbreak since the beginning of January 2020 and is still an ongoing issue up to the present time, albeit, thankfully, we have also seen a lot of recovered cases. One of the biggest aftermaths of the outbreak is in the tourism department, in which most governments would put a temporary travel ban as a means of preventive measures.

And have I told you about my yearn of traveling, haven’t I? I wrote a post about my first-time-backpacking-experience in Singapore last year, and my journey didn’t stop there. I’m making my itineraries for my upcoming trips to Japan and South Korea already just to showcase my utmost excitement upon discovering brand new things. Unfortunately, the trip schedules are still on hold as I’m waiting until the whole pandemic comes to an end. As an self-comforting attempt, I decided to write about my previous one-week vacation in Malaysia last December 2019 so that I could reminisce a bit about the lingering feelings.

Day 1: Mind-cleansing and peace-making attempts

By the time one enters the pit of adulthood, there are endless things to do, and I really mean my words. Working earnestly, either to fulfill your or your parents’ desire; adjusting with the workplace and making sure to get along well with everyone; getting the work done without skipping meals or sleeps; socializing with friends even if it requires you to be present in tame parties or gatherings; building new meaningful connections while maintaining the existing ones; finding a lover and deliberating whether you both will make a great match, then proceeding to marriage if it is, or starting over if you are doomed; and also making more money; not to forget about looking after your family and attending family occasions to meet with relatives who might shower you with ruthless curiosities; also taking part in side volunteering activities in case you are a social person; then definitely making sure that everything goes well in between. Whoa, being a social being is surely busy, isn’t it?

Just like how humans need sleep everyday in order to stay alive, breaks are also needed so that we may keep living. I didn’t think too much on my way to Malaysia, only overwhelming excitement within. And my crazy journey slowly began.

I booked a direct morning flight with AirAsia without extra-baggage to save cost, then went straight to my friend’s apartment from KLIA2. There is a Skybus service that departs every 30 minutes on weekdays (and 60 minutes on weekends) from KLIA2 to various routes available daily, and I left for One Utama stop for MYR 15. It’s one of the biggest and most popular shopping centres in Klang Valley. My friend stays in a condominium nearby along with her co-worker, leaving a one-room space for me to sleep for the next three nights. Later that evening, another Malaysian friend took me to Tanjung Bungah Nyonya in Petaling Jaya’s SS2 area, known as an authentic restaurant to grab essential Nyonya dishes.

As for the public transport, Malaysians mostly use Touch n Go card to commute with train or bus services. You need to buy the card for MYR 15 with a purse value of MYR 9.80. This reusable card can easily be topped-up in convenience stores.

We had sweet fried chicken, fried tofu and sayur Paku, a vegetable dish known in English as wild fern shoots. I didn’t think I had ever had one in Indonesia but that one was pretty pleasant to my tongue. They all reminded me to my mom’s home-cooked meals.

We stopped by at Restoran Kayu Nasi Kandar SS2 nearby for this delicate roti canai and roasted chicken with dip-in curry sauce, not to mention this sweet roti tissue. Thanks to her, I went home with happy tummy and smiley face. 

Day 2: Fun trip, group trip

Haven’t I told you about the superb Couchsurfing app, have I? So basically I managed to gather more people for a one-day trip. Long story short, there were five of us going to popular tourist attractions like Batu Caves and Genting Highlands.

The history of Batu Caves is affiliated with Hinduism, and this is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, which was built in honor of Lord Murugan. If you are familiar with a huge statue at the entrance of Batu Caves, yes, that is the statue of Lord Murugan. Batu Caves itself is always swarmed with visiting tourists.

It cost me my bloody sweaty t-shirts and tanned complexion to reach the huge cave on top of the stairs.

The next destination was Genting Highlands. With the entrance fee of MYR 16, you can roam around the French village, Japanese village and also many other awaiting attractions. We stopped by Colmar Tropicale, a gorgeous Medieval French Village in Berjaya Hills. The cold wind was mild but humid and I indeed felt like leaving for a far far place.

One of the most fascinating experiences was visiting Amber Court, a 23-story apartment building known more as a haunted hotel in Genting. Legend said, a lot of gamblers committed suicide there after losing everything in the casino. If you look up on Google, you might find several interesting testimonies from people who once visited Amber Court. We, too, entered one empty room once and felt something creepy inside. It definitely isn’t a place you’d be comfortable roaming around.

To wrap up the visit, I visited Sky Avenue Shopping Mall and entered the Sky Casino, known as the largest casino in Genting Highlands. In order to make an entrance, you need to register the membership to receive a membership card. As part of the regulations, you are allowed to enter the gate unless you are underage, a Muslim or wear slippers. Photo-taking is also forbidden inside the casino, but it is definitely a huge-scaled casino. You can top-up the balance of the card in order to play the game. Machines are everywhere and people are busy gaining money under the supervision of CCTV cameras and security guards.

Later that night, my local friend took us to Restoran Tiong Hokkien Mee (non-halal) located around Damansara Utama to try the oriental Hokkien Mee there. The texture of the noodle is thick and coated with greasy seasoning, also added with seafood and samcan chops. Definitely a great meal to end day for only MYR 45 (a big portion for 3-4 moderate servings).

Day 3: Lone wanderer in Malacca

The days ahead were pure solo traveling for me. I took off at 7 in the morning to catch the bus to Malacca, a historic state located in the southern part of Malay Peninsula. There is a plenty of bus services that depart from TBS (Terminal Bersepadu Selatan) every 30 minutes with particular operating hours. I bought a TBS – Melaka Sentral bus ticket for MYR 11.4 (including TBS Passenger Insurance Protection for MYR 0.40). The trip approximately lasts for two hours, but the seats were comfortable to sleep on so it didn’t matter. December is still on the rainy season so I was told to bring an umbrella with me in case of any drizzles, which did happen upon my arrival there.

One of the most popular tourism spots in Malacca is Jonker Street, known also as the centre of Chinatown. Although it is mostly packed in the evening for the fabulous Night Market, some shops are also open during the day to welcome local or foreign visitors. Snacks, full meals, handicrafts and souvenirs are available along the long wide alley.

This is the widely-known chicken rice ball that I tried at Famosa Chicken Rice Ball outlet. the savory rice ball cost MYR 1.20 each and tasted like the Japanese onigiri. Added with a steam otak-otak for MYR 13, they made a mouth-watering palatable lunch menu to my mouth. 

In Malacca, you may discover gorgeous ancient landmarks and fortresses that spark British, Dutch and Portuguese vibes. It is a relatively small city but I only had half a day to roam around. Thus, I managed to witness several ancient churches and other buildings upon walking down the road from Jonker Street. Some buildings of walkable distance are Christ Church Melaka, St. Paul’s Church and A’Famosa Fort. No entrance fee required.

I ended my solo trip in Malacca at around 5 and went back to KL using the same means of transportation and the same bus fare as well. Upon my arrival, my local friend took me to Big Big Wantan in Damansara Uptown, Petaling Jaya for a bowl of warm wantan mee for MYR 6.5. I would say that it was one of the best wantan mee I have ever tasted with great thin mee’s texture and yummy pork dumplings, 10/10 lah.

*Not exactly a photogenic angle, if not an atrocious one, but yeah.

Day 4: A fresh start in Penang

I wanted to experience another side of Malaysia after spending some days in KL, and my choice fell on Penang, or known also as Pulau Pinang. It is a state located in the northwest coast of Malaysia Peninsula. Many people, including myself, probably have heard of Penang because of the prominent advanced hospitals. You can ride a bus, take a train or fly with a plane from KL to Penang. I flew with AirAsia airline for around MYR 80 and stayed with a host from AirBnB. It was a cozy room in an apartment located in Bayan Lepas, about 5-minute distance (by car) from Penang Airport. The rent cost about MYR 13 (including the service fee) per day. I think AirBnB does a great job in accommodating single or group travelers with clean cozy budget rooms in strategic locations of the town.

The capital city of Penang state is a city named George Town, or officially the City of Penang Island. It has it all; good signature cuisines, entertainments, night markets, malls and cultural heritages. Bayan Lepas, however, is a free industrial zone that contributes to the financial improvement of Penang as the financial centre of the northern part of Malaysia. It roughly takes around an hour or more to reach George Town from Bayan Lepas by bus. I had to go past more than 30 bus stops in order to get there, but staying close to the airport surely has its own perks.

The astounding breath-taking view from the window of my AirBnB room during the day.

And the rest of day was all about food-tasting experience.

This is the authentic hokkien mee from the Three Road 888 Hokkien Mee at Presgrave Street, George Town, and dawet cendol from the stall in front of the store. It comes with yellow noodles, bean sprouts, half a boiled egg and pork. The soup is thick and robust and everything else perfectly fits into places. 8.5/10 for me. And the dawet cendol makes an awesome fresh dessert.

There is this popular place to eat Nasi Kandar, a northern Malaysian dish that comes with well-spiced curry broth. Nasi Kandar is originally brought by Tamil Muslim traders from India that settled in Malaysia. Restoran Deen Nasi Kandar is quite well-known in George Town and the queue is crazy. I waited for around 20 minutes before being able to finally sit down and have a proper dinner. It is somewhat similar to Nasi Padang, one of Indonesia’s signature food from Minangkabau, North Sumatera. Regardless, if I have to compare the taste between Nasi Kandar and Nasi Padang, I’d say that Nasi Padang is more on the spicy side and Nasi Kandar is richer in spices. Both are delicious in their own ways. Prices are affordable depending on your choice of add-ons.

Lastly, my final culinary experience ended with a koay chap from a regular street stall in George Town’s night market. Made of hard-boiled egg, mushrooms, pork belly, pig intestines, pig skin, this is not a kind of food I would like to eat on a daily basis, but still acceptable as a culinary choice. It probably cost around MYR 10.

Day 5: A lost day in George Town

The next day was another solo adventure to George Town. Penang isn’t as advanced as Kuala Lumpur in terms of public transport, but they surely provide a lot of buses to hep people commute from here to there. However, the biggest downside of public transports in Penang is that they accept cash but do not give change.  I only  had the RapidKL  card with me, surely non-usable to tap in the buses in Penang. There is this Mutiara card which local people use as a top-up card, just like the RapidKL card. However, I believe that it’s only applicable for locals because you need to register with your identification card. Thus, I spent lots of coins and banknotes more than I should have done because they offer no change.

Another point to note if you are about to travel around Penang by bus is to pay serious attention to the bus stops mentioned by the loud speaker or written on the screen because there slight differences might occur with the guideline written in Google Maps. One time I received quite a backlash from a bus driver for being accused as a free-loader. I initially planned to visit Snake Temple so I checked the location via Maps and even memorized the stops. Unfortunately, I missed the stop because the names of the bus stops were unfamiliar (I was sure I did check the route of the correct bus number, though). I wanted to get off soon but the driver saw my bus ticket and he thought I purposefully checked in for Snake Temple for a cheaper fare. It was indeed a baffling situation for me and I ended up putting in more coins and got off in George Town. Nonetheless, that experience left a bitter taste in my mouth.

George Town is a beautiful town surrounded by classic yet historical buildings and polished by modern infrastructures. The weather was relatively hot but also quite windy, so walking down the long street is not exactly devastating. The sky and floating clouds offered a marvelous view along the horizon. And my first quest was all about food.

I found Yeap Noodles Cafe by accident while walking down Lebuh Chulia street. This is Yeap Noodles in Herbal Soup with pork slice, crab sticks, fish ball and beancurd skin for MYR 11.9. Not aesthetically pleasing, I would say, and it tasted quite bland in my opinion. Maybe I should’ve ordered different menu like the ones with thicker broth or the fried noodles. 7/10 since I was starving at that time, but I believe that the price was quite overrated.

And of course I didn’t want to miss the view of Batu Ferringhi Beach while in Penang. It took around an hour to reach the beach from George Town by bus (I took the bus from Komtar Terminal, where nearly all local Penang buses make a regular stop). Sky was disgustingly bright and clear at that moment, definitely a great place to clear your mind and rest for a bit. They offer banana boat and parasailing activities too!

If I had to mention a recommended noodle place in Penang, this is it. Hong Kee Wan Thun Mee (also known as Hong Kee Bamboo Noodle) in Lebuh Campbell, George Town. They seriously serve one of the most authentic Chinese mee in town. Thick and chewy in texture, added with yummy dumplings on the plate. I’d give 9.5/10 on this one, really. Spent MYR 8.3 and it’s really worth-it.

In the end, my lost day was impressive enough albeit I did spend hours roaming from here to there even with the guide of helpless Google Maps, or helpless me. I walked from here to there, even went as far as visiting Batu Ferringhi Beach by myself and made an entrance only to sit on the sand for hours with blank thoughts. I was exhausted and my legs almost gave in but somehow I managed to catch the bus and rest my body for an hour before I reached the apartment by 10 PM local time. It marked my last day in Penang and I felt that time flew too fast but I was fortuitous to have seen good things, eaten good food and met good people. I believe that I have found the true joy of traveling, which is all about good experience. And although getting lost was not exactly a pleasant experience, it has told me that as alone as I might have been, I still have myself and this self will never leave me in whatever mess I have gotten myself into. And that being said, I should take a really really good care of myself, and so do you.

Day 6: A Medan day

I didn’t have a particular reason for visiting Medan other than a short escape in an unfamiliar place. Medan is merely an hour away from Penang by air transportation, so why not? Coming back to place where people speak the same language as I do after quite a long time was finally breathing a fresh air after suffocation. There weren’t many things to do other than eating good food and sight-seeing good things. I booked a room for a night with a cool budget price from AirBnB.

I found Rumah Makan Tabona upon surfing on the internet to look up iconic food and places in Medan. It was established in 1983 with curry bihun as their signature dish. I ordered curry mee and it’s heavenly-tempting and rich in taste. The curry broth surprisingly matched well with the mee and I was really in awe. 9.5/10 and I believe everyone should have a try!

In the evening, I was recommended to try Kwetiau Ateng by a friend, to which I welcomed with an open hand. I mean, who doesn’t like kwetiau and the chewy texture that digests well in your stomach?

The complete set of kwetiau dish includes fishball, lapcheong, chasio, shrimp and egg. It’s inarguably 10/10.

Indeed one of the best kwetiau I have ever had in my life. A legit 10/10!!

Day 7: A night at KLIA2

In order to fly back to my hometown, I took multiple flights as following; from Medan back to KLIA2, then KLIA2 straight to my hometown. It had been planned beforehand as I had calculated lots of different options and this one was the cheapest, if not counting the extra-baggage cost that I paid later.

I woke up quite early in the morning and prepared myself for a brief adventure before an evening flight to KLIA2. The weather was great and the sky was as clear as crystals, so there wasn’t any reason to be dispirited.

As a choice of breakfast, I tried Soto Kesawan Medan, another prominent culinary option for tourists and locals. Usually soto is served as clear chicken soup, but soto kesawan comes with thicker broth (but different from curry broth) and is served with shrimp as the main menu (but chicken is also available so you can choose anything that goes better in your mouth). Personally, I don’t find soto kesawan mouth-watering enough to be willing to come over for the second attempt. 7.5/10 is enough. Not my cup of tea, I guess.

Before my flight back, I visited a historical place named Tjong A Fie Mansion, a classic residence located in a neighborhood called Kesawan, West Medan. It is registered as a historical landmark as well as one of Medan’s cultural heritage. Entrance fee is IDR 35k including tour guide-service to go sightseeing around the two-storey mansion. Tjong A Fie is a successful Chinese entrepreneur who literally built an empire in Medan that employed over 10,000 workers at that time. He became a prominent figure of Chinese leader respected by the people.

When the time was close to a farewell, I got back to the airport and waited for my upcoming flight. It was only like a short two-hour flight that I was already back in KLIA2 at around 5 PM local time. The upcoming flight to my final destination was early in the next morning, which marked my first attempt staying out in the airport. It was bothersome, anyway, to leave the airport and commute again so early, so I’d rather hold out until the final straw. It was a brand new experience beyond shadow of a doubt. I kept walking here and there without direction like a lost puppy.

The stores inside KLIA2 generally close at midnight and reopen at dawn, but there are a few food shops that open 24/7. When I was extremely used up after a long walk, I sat down on the floor near a charging outlet so that I may recharge my smartphone. There were also people beside me who did the same so it didn’t feel weird at all. I waited for a long time trying to stay awake amidst the fatigue and cold room temperature. Finally, I visited a food shop at 3 AM named Ah Cheng Laksa to digest something warm to my stomach. The one i ordered was Asam Laksa without any meat, and it turned out to be one of the worst food I had ever had all my life.

The distateful laksa that burned down my MYR 21 huft

Didn’t know exactly how an Asam Laksa is supposed to taste, but this one definitely made me lose my appetite. Thin soup with highly sour taste, bland laksa and fresh-looking veggies. Not gonna give any score because of how bad it was, sorry.

It’s an unfortunate thing that I haven’t been able to experience the real Malaysian laksa (that fits well to my appetite) during my visit to Malaysia.

Some traveling tips which might be useful for beginners (like myself lol)

Budget airlines are not exactly budget-saving if you plan on buying souvenirs, this is the most important thing I realized after I spent extra cost on over-baggage fee on the spot, which was almost twice the regular fee. AirAsia, for example, offers super affordable airfares compared to fellow airlines. However, they don’t come with baggage facility unless you add baggage to cart during the purchase. Not necessarily making the airfare pricier, but baggage cost does make a difference, so pay attention more carefully on it.

Bring yourself an umbrella when you travel around the end of the year. It rained occasionally in December when I visited Malacca, and securing an umbrella in the bag is surely much better than spending extra cost on buying one, isn’t it? Frankly speaking, I was lucky that my host was thoughtful enough to remind me to take her umbrella when I went out.

Always prepare extra small-denomination banknotes if you plan on taking public transports. Just like what I experienced in Penang, it would become an utter hassle if you run out of money just because you spend large bill only to be notified that the bus service doesn’t provide change money.

Anyway, let’s pray that the pandemic shall end soon so that traveling and face-to-face interaction no longer become impossible and let’s not take any relationship for granted. Stay safe people!

Total budget spent: around MYR 1,400k to 1,500k

Go Backpacking: 6D5N in Malaysia It feels surreal to me that we have passed the 2010s already. Time went ahead like an express train without a single stop.

[ponderingthenoonlight]

Adventures In the Land of the Vikings – Part 1

I just had to turn almost all the way back to the beginning of my stuffed journal to re-read this adventure.

In March 2017 I went on my first real solo trip, to Norway and the Faroe Islands. I’ll start with Oslo. Here is a little excerpt from my journal:

“I am well into my third month studying abroad, and our long awaited ‘winter’ break has arrived.

There is a screeching sound combined with a noise like metal springs being murdered, as the subway (above ground) pulls up to the Holmenkollen station where I am sitting. Of course, it’s going in the opposite direction from where my plans will take me. My subway should be getting here in about 15 minutes, but I don’t mind the waiting. I’ve gotten used to being okay with missing trains and subways in my time commuting from Täby to Stockholm and back in Sweden. After all, the wait now is giving me time to write this.

As the subway pulls away from me, it leaves me sitting across the tracks, a little less than 350 meters above the city of Oslo. Behind me are the sloping roads and drops offs leading down into the fjord which has a strange sunny mist playing over the whole thing. Birds are prattling on in the trees up here, and though there’s still some snow on the ground, I’ve already had to stuff my sweater in my camera bag/backpack. Spring is really coming.

…

I’m on my train now. It’s clean, un-crowded, and filled with sunlight. Nothing like the subways of New York underground. In my opinion, Scandinavia just keeps wining at the public transport game.

Man, it’s so sunny. To get the view of the fjord includes getting slightly roasted. Coat off.

Yesterday was the beginning of my truly solo Nordic adventure. One day in Oslo then a train-bus-boat journey of 2 days over to Bergen. Then 2 days in Bergen, and then flying off to the Faroes. …

Today, museums. Heck yeah archaeology.”

Peek at my journal

I’d flown from Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport to Oslo and taken the airport train to the Oslo train system. From there I got to my hotel. I’ll be open about the finances of this trip. Norway is ridiculously expensive, and I was ridiculously lucky to have financial help from my parents. They treated me to the stay in the gorgeous hotel at the top of the hill looking out of the fjord, and the wonderful meal I had there. For the rest of the time in Norway, I tried to eat at not so nice places, and didn’t do much souvenir shopping… much. But it’s still definitely a trip to save up for or to put on a Christmas list. It was certainly more affordable as I was just hopping over from Sweden. I also bought the Oslo Pass which give you deals on museum tickets, transportation, and more! I found it worth it to get a day pass for my day there.

It was just magnificent

I mean… Look at this gorgeous nordic castle of a hotel! I arrived the night before in the evening, and rose in the morning to see this place shine. I felt like possibly the luckiest college student in the world.

It was a daydream I was hesitant to leave, but there I was, as you read in my journal, at the subway station ready for a day of exploring Norwegian history.

My view, waiting for the train.

From the subway I walked to the harbor-side and hopped on a ferryboat which brought me to the “museum island” Bygdøy across the Oslo Fjord. The main highlights of the island are: The Viking Ship Museum, Norsk Folkemuseum, Kon-Tiki Museum, Polar Ship Fram, Norwegian Maritime Museum, and the Holocaust Center. I made it to four of the six before I returned to the mainland.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The Fram Museum

The Fram museum holds two of the world’s strongest polar vessels and a rich collection of polar exploration artifacts and stories. The Fram was the strongest wooden ship ever built in it’s day, and you can walk across its beautifully preserved decks. Around the outside of the huge room, one that reminded me of my dear Vasa Museum back in Sweden, was a huge timeline of the explorers that called this ship their home over the years. I highly recommend this place. Learn about the Northern and Southern expeditions, Nansen, Roald Amundsen, being trapped in the ice, and more. The Gjøa is the first ship that made it through the Northwest Passage, and sits in another building, also part of the museum. I could have spent hours in both. It was humbling and fascinating.

The Fram

I was a pretty happy camper as I left one maritime exploration museum for the two more…

The Norwegian Maritime Museum and The Kon-Tiki Museum

I have always loved boats. Especially wooden ones. Especially sailing ones. But I can still never imagine being on the open, I mean really open, sea. These two museums taught me a thing or two about being humble when faced with the ocean. The Norwegian Maritime Museum walks you through hundreds of years of history and the people who really make Norway, from sailors to pirates to the women who traveled with them, and much much more (see the last circle photo below).

The Ra

And the Kon-Tiki Museum… well it mostly taught me what a crazy bastard Thor Heyerdahl was. I kid, I kid. It gave me the upmost respect for Thor, who crossed the Pacific Ocean on the balsa raft called Kon-Tiki, in 1947. What a feat… He didn’t stop there, either, and built two more rafts (including the Ra). The museum itself is brilliantly set up, especially giving you a real feel for adventure concerning archaeology, as Heyerdahl also explored Easter Island and several other sites. Really fascinating stuff. I couldn’t recommend them more. Plus, these two are right across from each other!

  The Viking Ship Museum

Nothing really compares to walking into a museum and seeing the real-life artifacts that you’ve been learning about in class for months. Well, at least for an archaeologist. I’d spent three months already learning about viking archaeology at Stockholm Universitet, including ships, burials, art styles, and more. The Viking Ship museum (in Oslo- I’ll write about the danish one later) has it all. Well, specifically it features grave goods and ships from four main ship burials in Norway. Oseberg, Gokstad, Tune, and Borre. All these ships were used as “ocean-going vessels” before being used in burials. The ships, large and small, from these burials are magnificently preserved, as are the masterpieces of burial goods found inside them. After looking at them only in books, it was emotional and incredible to see them in person. (Actually, I had been here before, as well as the Fram museum, as a wee bitty child. It was interesting to see that I had combined aspects of each with each other in my vague memories. Nice to sort that all out again as an adult, and sad to see how much I had lost or gotten wrong in those childhood memories.)

It was almost impossible to get the complete ship in one shot. There are special balconies in the museum made for getting all the ship in one photo.

I won’t bore you by going into details of each burial, or the artifacts I took photos of, but one amazing fact I will share is that the largest boat, the Oseberg Ship, appears to the the burial of two powerful viking women. Their burial goods include not only the massive and gorgeously decorated ship, but also three sledges, a wagon, beautiful animal shaped headposts (incredible examples of the viking art style that actually got its name from this find), five beds, six dogs, fifteen horses, two cows, and more.

Gods do I love Viking Ships…

Hello, beautiful

Akershus Fortress

The last stop of the day before I headed back to the hotel – I had an early start on the next leg of my adventure the next day – was wandering along the harbor and exploring, and playing really, around the Akershus Fortress. I love a good castle-park-fort exploration and had far too much fun by myself; taking photos, posing with the statues that were part of an art exhibition at the time, and generally feeling like I was in another world. I’ll show the rest of the day with photos, because it was too gorgeous a place for me to describe.

Oh also, it’s free entry! – I never went inside any buildings, so not sure if those require entry fees or are even open to the public… there was so much to do outside and it felt like springtime for the first time! (You’ll see me without a sweater in a couple photos!)

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

I had a fantastic time. I think I’ll have to write a post about taking photos of oneself while solo-traveling, because this was the first step of that learning curve. It was a fun first step though, and I have some great memories captured now to show for it.

I remember one moment in particular. I was taking the photo (the first in this blog post) and there was that long beautiful avenue of trees on a hill above the main cobbled walking path below, and I thought the light was just perfect. So, I set up my tripod, set off the timer, and sprinted down the avenue of trees, away from the camera, to spin around and pose in that ridiculous but joyful moment you see above. Panting and grinning, I ran back to the camera to see how it had turned out, and heard a voice call out from below.

“That was so nice!”

A young man, maybe tourist maybe local, but with a Scandinavian accent for sure, was beaming up at me, having seen my skipping gullumfing moment. Apparently it had made his day. I shouted a thanks and he gave me a thumbs up before continuing on away with his friends. That one little comment made me feel a lot better and less silly for all the other photos I had taken before that moment.

I went back to the hotel exhausted, only to go out again as I was invited to the art-opening of a popular bar in the city. But that’s a whole other story. I finally got to bed exhausted, delighted, and feeling seriously empowered, excited to continue my solo journey across Norway.

A very happy Petra in the Fram Museum’s bathroom #noshameformirrorselfies

  A Day (of Museums and Castles) in Oslo - The first stage of my solo adventures in the land of vikings... Adventures In the Land of the Vikings - Part 1 I just had to turn almost all the way back to the beginning of my stuffed journal to re-read this adventure.