Guide To: How To Survive 3 Weeks Without A Mobile Phone

Go on, read about how I survive 3 weeks without a mobile phone and the many days to come. 

The Story

Three weeks ago, my dad was here in London for a course sent by the government. Something about justice. That is all that I can remember. I went to London with a friend to meet him on a Sunday and that afternoon, as I was walking with him back to Brunei Hall, my friend texted so get my phone from my pocket and texted back. Then, my phone slipped and fell into a small puddle. To assure you, it was a dry sunny day and it was the only puddle that I came across that day. My phone was floating and I thought at that moment. "it's dead". I was right.

The Problem

Mobile phones in UK are a lot more expensive than in Brunei so I asked my parents to buy one. Since my relative is coming, I asked to post it to me but after my parents bought the phone my relative's visit was cancelled. Now I'm relying on my mom's friend who should be in UK this week or next week but still unsure when is it going to reach me. Getting really impatient lately but i'm doing fine.

As an alternative to phone, I turn to;

ü  Facebook Chat

ü  Blogging

ü  Friend's Phone

ü  Skype

ü  My Asus tablet

Alarm Clock : Tab and ipod. Yes I have to sleep with my tablet every night because of my fear that the tab can slip from the bedside table ( after I broke my phone, I broke my glasses because of this ). Or ask a friend to wake me up for Subuh or school.

Contact friends: Facebook is the place to go. I was never this active in Facebook before but my friends are a bit busy right now with their exams that I didn't really have anyone to chat with most of the time. Twitter is useful too although I don't really tweet much anymore.

Share stories: So I have a lot of stories and I turn to blogging to blab about things.

Call Parents : My friends' phone but of course using my own calling card and Skype every weekend. Now I can call my parents for free in Brunei Hall. That is one of the reason to love Brunei Hall.

Listen to music: When I have a fast working internet, I turn to YouTube. If I don't, I'll just use my Ipod.

Camera: I rely on my friends to take pictures for me if I want one. This a problem sometimes.

The Habit

I found an article from CNN that asked. 'Do you obsessively check your mobile phone?'. After my phone broke, sometimes there were times when I forgot that I broke it and every now and then try to find it. I try finding it on my pockets, handbags or under the bed. This might be the case from the article that said that I  might be a habitual checker. Your hands will feel itchy to hold your phone at least an hour after you put it away. 

The CNN author's story;

"(CNN) -- There I was at a long-awaited dinner with friends Saturday night, when in the midst of our chatting, I watched my right hand sneaking away from my side to grab my phone sitting on the table to check my e-mail.

"What am I doing?" I thought to myself. "I'm here with my friends, and I don't need to be checking e-mail on a Saturday night."

The part that freaked me out was that I hadn't told my hand to reach out for the phone. It seemed to be doing it all on its own. I wondered what was wrong with me until I read a recent study in the journal Personal and Ubiquitous Computing that showed I'm hardly alone. In fact, my problem seems to be ubiquitous."

From the article there are only three ways to get rid of this problem

1. Acknowledge that you have a problem - "We can be conscious of the habit of checking. We can unlearn its habits," says Sherry Turkle, a psychologist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self.
2. Have smartphone free times.
3. Have smartphone free places

 But at the moment my biggest desire is to get my new mobile phone quick. I hope it'll be here soon.

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Trip To Another British City

Trip to Birmingham

There are 3 parts of this journey:
(1)Brunei Hall to Euston Station
(2)Around Birmingham city
(3)Euston Station to Brunei Hall

14 of Brunei A level society students went on this Birmingham trip to see Maher Zain concert and tour the center of Birmingham.We planned to take the cheapest and fastest mode which is to use bus 205 to Euston station.

2 hours from Euston Train Station to Birmingham New Street Station.ton 

As we arrived, we ate lunch at Buffet Hut restaurant. It is an all you can eat buffet that cost £5 per person +  £1 for drinks + it's Halal! The first thing I realized about Birmingham was that it is a modern city which reflects from it's architecture. I started realizing it inside the train when we arrived in Birmingham station. 
I also realized that there are so many friendly people especially the elderly. They are really sweet and patient. 

The place that will ultimately mark that Birmingham is a modern city is Bullring which is a shopping complex. It is the "Westfield of Birmingham" but it is very modern looking and the exterior are mostly made of glass. Some parts of it reminds me of stadium from far but when I go nearer, the design actually looks like big thumbtacks. We wonder how they construct them. 

What is the history of the name "Bullring"?

We were also really curious about the name " Bullring". Our theory is that it was once a place where bull fighting were held but it sounds ridiculous. I searched and found that decades ago it was a place used for bull betting and was a sport that even the Queen was interested in. Hmmm. I don't really understand what it is. 

    

BULLRING   

We checked in into Travelodge to spend the night in. 3 rooms which is 5 girls in one room, 5 more girls in the other room and 4 boys on the next room. At about 5:10 out on the windy weather we took 2 taxis and went to The New Bingley Hall. For what?

MAHER ZAIN CONCERT!YAAAAAY!

It was my first concert and it was an awesome one. I really love Maher Zain's music and just know most of his songs by heart. I missed the concert years ago in Brunei due to exams but now I was able to enjoy and watch one live with friends in the city of Birmingham. We were ecstatic about it and sang along to his songs (clapping all the way I can feel my arm aching after that). We managed to get his autograph on his album. He spoke to me but I was just speechless but now I regret it. My friend described that he has a charisma that can make people speechless.It's true.He's now officially my favourite singer ( been so long since I had one ). 

At 00:00 when the date changed to 26th of October, my friend Aliana turns 18. We sang her a Happy Birthday song while walking back to the hotel. We planned a surprise birthday party but there was a problem with the pizza delivery that we had to cancel it because we were all so exhausted.

In the morning, we had a nice breakfast that we bought from nearby tesco and then went window shopping at Bullring. It is a really big shopping centre, we didn't have a chance to look all around the building. We drank bubble tea at Moocha stall inside Bullring. I ordered Taro Bubble tea but the waitress asked if I want to include tea in it. I was so confused. I thought it was meant to have tea in it?Bubble tea? 


It was really hard to plan a party when the person to be surprised was tagging along all the way. It eventually went well when we get back to our hotel and surprised her with a birthday cake and her present from the "Babus". What a great time even though there was a big shock at the end of it. I cannot mention what it is here, no I cannot. 

We get back at Brunei Hall at 5 and then had a nice " Nasi Penyet" dinner!

The concert
Maher Zain's songs he performed;

1. Baraka Allahu Lakuma
2. For The Rest Of My Life
3. Number One For Me 
4. InsyaAllah
5. Allah Hi Allah Kiya Karo
6. Ya Nabi Salam Alayka ( International )
7. I love you so 
8. Mawlaya
9. Man In The Mirror ( not his song)

And some duets.

Some other things that stands out was Omar Regan the comedian from USA. His jokes are quite funny such us his Hijab jokes and his funny " MaaaasyaAllah". He was confused with Chris Tucker from Rush Hour 2 but he was actually his double on that movie. I have never seen the movie though.

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Top 5 Universities

Spending my first day of half term break resting because there are just too many things to do in the next few days. Recharging.

My last academic year which is when I was in lower six was pretty challenging. I was new to United Kingdom and for the first time, being away from family and home country, Brunei. Now I feel much more relax and confident to be in UK especially in London, Harrogate and some other places.

This year I came into the process of applying to my right 5 universities in the UK. Being in UK 2 years before going to university gives me a great opportunity to choose wisely places that I will be comfortable to study and live in the next 3 years. I traveled to so many places in UK just find the right universities and now I am able to choose my best 5 and my choices are pretty interesting.

Universities in UK

So I went to so many different universities and cities even those that I am not applying to because I was just so curious.

Warwick University

The first university that I went to was Warwick. I went with a friend of mine last academic year ( but still 2013 ) for an open day. It was incredible. The university's facilities are amazing I immediately fell in love with it. However, they do not offer my course. Too bad. I described it as a university village with it's own supermarket, different cafeteria and even movie theaters all in one place. We went on tour to the different choices of university accommodation. It is really interesting that you can choose from a variety of unique accommodation from normal flats to a small house for a group of students although you need to be the sort of person who don't mind sharing with other people. The university is quite far from the town, it takes about 30 minutes by bus. We were not really sure that we went to the correct center of Coventry but it is a really good town. There are a lot of shops and restaurants although we couldn't find any halal shop but maybe because we were in a rush.

King's College London

So our plan was going to Warwick University then King's College then Manchester University then back to Harrogate in 3 consecutive days because of it's open days date. King's College is in center on London. There are many different campuses but are divided by River Thames. Some may love this university because of it's place " Come on, it is LONDON".  Yes it is in London and you will get great views of the famous river Thames while you study or get a cup of coffee (why does it have to be coffee?)from one of the buildings. I just went to the strand campus and the nearby campuses but did not go the the Waterloo campuses which is on the other side of river Thames. The university does not offer my course so why I am even visiting this university? 

University of Manchester

After visiting these two universities in London and a day out in Piccadilly Circus my friend head back to Harrogate while I went to University of Manchester the next day to meet up with another friend for the university open day. At first look, I really love the buildings ( I really love observing buildings ). The university is also in the center of a city. We walked from the station to this university because there were a lot of student ambassadors around the corner to help us. We went for our course talks and were amazed that they even have a museum of their own which is beneficial for students studying archaeology or even zoology. Apparently we were just too excited about the museum's stuffed animal section. It was just too realistic.

University of Leicester

Hahh~ It was a good day. I've been to Leicester with my family but it was my friend's first time. You can find Halal restaurants everywhere in Leicester. I was very happy. I really like the university because it is just warm and friendly. I love the buildings (not again, Husna) especially the library. The student union building is very modern and colorful where they have their own grocery store and even Starbucks. While we were in the town we met Bruneian students that are currently studying in the university. Since we met while crossing a road, we managed to ask their phone number but forgot to ask their names. 

University of Newcastle

We've been in Newcastle once. We even stayed there for a half term break. This time we went with our school to Newcastle university. It was not like an open day but there were some basic talks and a tour around campus. We didn't get the chance to visit the town but since we've been there before we know the city is fantastic! The river and the bridges reminds me of London and of course I love this one big area in the city center where the buildings are just..... magnificent!

University of Durham

It was the same school visit as the Newcastle university. It was on the same day. Some of the buildings are modern and some are a bit historical which I really really love. I was getting excited with the fact that some of Harry Potter scenes were filmed in their church. Unfortunately we can't go inside it that day because of some event going on inside it. I just wanted a little peak inside. We went walking around the town and bought a sandwich for lunch. Luckily Subway is everywhere in UK serving tuna sandwiches ( no halal restaurants in Durham ). 

University of Sheffield

I seriously love Sheffield university and the city center. I know that renting apartment or houses in Sheffield is easy and cheap. The city is fantastic. The university is awesome. It must be really nice to live here. I went to the art tower and played on the paternoster.It is like multiple smaller open elevator where we can jump in everytime one reaches your floor. It was a 17 floor building so we went up to the highest floor and then back down. It was so interesting. I managed to get into the 17th floor with that and look at the beautiful view of Sheffield.

Lancaster University

This is our first time visiting a university, not on their open day. We managed to look around and find the university amazing. I love how the campuses are close together in one area. The facilities are growing and they are investing millions to improve this great university into a spectacular one. The accommodation is simply modern, for the first time I feel like I can live in a university accommodation and doesn't have to find a house. I'll think about that later on but to end this whole open days and visiting university thing ( This is the last university visit for now, fuhh ). The visit to Lancaster university and it's town ended very well although it was the shortest visit as it was not an open day.

To conclude..Which 5 did I choose? Actually I have chosen only two of the above university. HAHA The three others is seriously not from the above. There were many reasons because choosing those universities were very hard. Some, I just visited to get the feel of university life or even because I was really curious to the different places in UK which develops different culture which reflects from their towns or cities, buildings, people and even transportation ( The tram in Manchester excites me ). I am looking forward to more visits in the future especially after I start to get offers. So I may tell my 5 university choices next time.

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Funniest Jokes of All Time **

Half Term break will start this midday! As usual we will have to go to Brunei Hall, Paddington, London.

Kata mama: Siuk jua tu, macam balik kampong.

No comment. Anyway to cheer myself up last night after a long night of packing I came across shorts jokes that made my night.

Found a list of funniest jokes of all time from Daily Record and just share some that I think are quite amusing.

• I went to the doctors the other day and he said: "Go to Bournemouth, it's great for flu." So I went - and I got it.
• Went to the corner shop - bought four corners.
• So I met this gangster who pulls up the back of people's pants. It was Wedgie Kray.
• I tried water polo but my horse drowned.
• A lorry-load of tortoises crashed into a train load of terrapins. What a turtle disaster.
•  I swear, the other day I bought a packet of peanuts, and on the packet it said "may contain nuts". Well, YES. That's what I bought them for. You'd be annoyed if you opened it and a socket set fell out.
• I went down to my local supermarket and I said: "I want to make a complaint. This vinegar's got lumps in it". He said: "Those are pickled onions."
• I was having dinner with Garry Kasparov (world chess champion) and there was a check tablecloth. It took him two hours to pass me the salt.
•  Four fonts walk into a bar. The barman says: "Oi - get out. We don't want your type in here."
• I'm in a Chinese restaurant and this duck comes up with a red rose and says: "Your eyes sparkle like diamonds." I said: "Waiter, I asked for a-ROMATIC duck."
• I'm in a great mood tonight because the other day I entered a competition and I won a year's supply of Marmite - one jar.
•  A sandwich walks into a bar. The barman says: "Sorry, we don't serve food in here."
• Slept like a log last night. Woke up in the fireplace.
• I rang up BT. I said: "I want to report a nuisance caller." He said: "Not you again."
• "My therapist says I have a preoccupation with vengeance. We'll see about that."
•  I went to buy camouflage trousers but I couldn't find any.
• Two aerials meet on a roof, fall in love and get married. The reception was brilliant.
• A woman gets on a bus with her baby. The driver says: "Ugh, that's the ugliest baby I've ever seen." The woman walks to the rear of the bus and sits down, fuming. She says to a man next to her: "The driver just insulted me." The man says: "You go up there and tell him off. Go on, I'll hold your monkey for you."

More Daily Record 50 funniest jokes of all time.

An Indonesian joke:
Suatu pagi lewatlah seorang penjual daging."Dageeeng! Dageeeeennngg! !!" teriaknya. Seorang ibu rumah tangga yang

sedang sakit gigi sewot banget mendengarteriak an si tukang daging. Ibu : "Hei tukang daging!
Lu kagak punya otak ya....!!!???
"Tukang daging : "Wah
kebetulan gak punya, Bu. Hari ini daging semua..."

(copied from http://www.lokerseni.web.id/2013/09/Cerita-Lucu.html )

A Malaysian joke:

SAM: Dol, aku dengar bunyi batuk kau makin teruk!
DOL: Iya ke? kalau macamni aku kena banyak berlatih agar dapat batuk dengan lebih baik lagi.

(Copied from http://kelakar-habis.blogspot.co.uk/ )

Nick Helm (Won Funniest joke of 2011 Edinburgh Fringe Festival)

 -"I needed a password eight characters long so I picked Snow White and the Seven Dwarves."

Terry Clement

“Fear public speaking? Imagine your audience with clothes on. More clothes. HEAPS MORE. Now it’s like you’re just talking to a pile of laundry.”

Brendon Burns

“I’m on that 5:2 diet, you eat what you like for five days and for two days you basically eat nothing. I’ve been doing it for five days, it is brilliant.”

My Further Maths teacher just told me a joke just now. What is this, is it tell jokes day? Here it goes:

-"A man walks into a bar. OUCH. Get it? A bar? A pole?"  

Hahaha classic.  I find that funny & find it hard to stop laughing.

Bruneian joke? Maybe next time.

Running Man

One of the things that always cracks me up every single week is the korean variety show, Running man (english subbed by Kshownow )which airs every monday afternoon ( UK time). Running man makes my Monday night really enjoyable. They are just too hilarious, I never laugh that much before. Thank you Running Man.  It is quite famous because of their different funny characters. They are already on their 168th episode now and still are awesome. I'm proud to say I've been watching and following this show since their first episode was aired back in 2009. I dread the day that Running Man will stop airing. But we don't have to think about now, do we? They are still doing tours and such. I don't think Running Man will be cancelled in the near future. 


                                   GO Running Man!

NigaHiga

The next thing that makes me laugh at loud for real is Ryan Higa. Should I say he is a Youtuber? Yes he is. This is a bit subjective because some may not like him but I do I do I do. Almost every night I will go to my YouTube account and check whether he has upload a new video. He usually uploads once a week. His videos are usually based on random things like  "Honest Commercials" , "How to sing like your favourite artist", "Immature guys" and many others. His recent videos are really of good quality filming and are getting better. He's the the best YouTuber out there in my opinion.

NigaHiga YouTube channel

The Ellen Show & Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

This two talk shows have got to be the funniest talk show ever hosted by the funniest hosts around. I love the random things Ellen talk about such as "What's wrong with this photo" segment where their choice of pictures are pretty interesting or talks with cute little singer like Kai who sang for now, 3 Bruno Mars' songs cutely.

On the other hand Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.. Hmm let's just say every word that comes out from Jimmy Fallon is just plain hilarious including his monologue. Even his monologue about United States government shutdown cracks me up. I'm not sure if he has musical background but interestingly he can sing. Below is a very funny lip sync battle from the talk show.

Cheer up guys. It is time to laugh now.

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City of Freedom, Pancakes and Paintings

 

We got the chance to go to Amsterdam in a few more days. The capital and the most populous city of Netherlands. This time we were not prepared in terms of learning their language ( We learned italian language before we went to Venice). What can we do in Amsterdam in 3 days? I looked it up on the internet and to summarise it, the things that attract me are:

The Anne Frank's House 

I read the book once before and I cried at the end. It is a true story of Anne Frank, a girl who wrote down stories of her life in a diary during the second world war. Their family hid above an office's attic for two years hoping they won't be caught. They have to remain silent everyday. At the end of it they were caught and separated in a concentration camp. At the end of WW2, Anne Frank's diary was collected and published due to her inspiring tale about life and love during the 2 year silence. Jacqueline Wilson book 'Secrets' taught me about Anne Frank and then I eventually read a book about her. I cannot believe I will be there at the exact place. Well, everyone knows about Anne Frank through Justin Bieber Belieber case now. How exciting. Haha

Van Gogh Museum

Not really an artistic sort of person. Sometimes I don't even understand what some paintings meant. However I tend to recognise some famous paintings from movies or books and Van Gogh museum which is actually from the name of the artist 'Vincent Van Gogh'.He painted some paintings that I am familiar with such as..

I just know he painted these but not sure if they are exhibited in Van Gogh museum.

Amsterdam Canal Cruises

In Venice, they have Gondola. In Brunei we have Perahu ( Laughing out loud at this one ). In Amsterdam we have Canal cruises! To enjoy full scenery that you may not get through just 3 days of walking around the city, Canal cruises are definitely a must! Amsterdam is known for beautiful classic scenery and we can't just ignore this opportunity. NO. Is the below picture an exaggerated one because wow what a stunning picture. Is it just a picture or is it real? We'll know when we get there.

I Amsterdam

So I found a picture of

    

I don't know how to describe that but I think we MUST take a picture with this giant word. This is just a big piece of evidence that we've been there.

Adidas Store

I've not seen this in lists of 'Great thing to do in Amsterdam' but I think this is a must. So why Adidas store. Do I not find one in London? Yes I did but in Amsterdam there is a giant shoe box ( picture below ) but there's none in London. Haha. My friend showed me this and suggested to go. Of course! I have no plan to buy shoes or anything. I just want a picture please?

Pancakes

Amsterdam is famous for their pancakes (see below picture). I remember when we were in Venice we ate Gelato and pizza everyday that we got sick of it and when we got back to UK we did'nt eat any ice cream or pizza for a loooong time. So what about these delicious looking pancakes?

Inntel Hotel, Amsterdam

This is not the hotel that we are going to stay in but I found pictures of this awesome looking hotel on the internet. It reminds me of Lego houses and by saying that, that reminds me of the song by Ed Sheeran 'Lego house'. Hehe.

I've never been to Amsterdam before and these are just the things that I am looking forward to next week. Expectations are high but let's just see next week once I get there. I heard safety precautions everywhere we go is needed. Pickpockets are everywhere so be cautious!

*To get back to the main page of blog please click on 'HAPPY DAYS' on the left top corner* or Click Here For Main Page 

*and click here for video of Ed Sheeran- Lego House lyrics *

Other related post

• Secrets & New Year Hopes 
• I am crazy about you
• Back In United Kingdom

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Secrets & A New Year Hope

I've been watching a lot of korean dramas lately. *Kalaulah mama tau*  Well after reading this post, she's going to know anyway. Haha. I was so surprise of how fast internet connection in UK is that I streamed a lot of korean dramas last year. Yes I did. Talking about Korean dramas, this reminds me of one of my FAVOURITE korean drama. The best ever.

                                      

                                            

Secret Garden. After Harry Potter, this is the second thing I'm so obsess about. Can't stop shrieking, laughing and crying. I can watch it a lot of times and still never got enough of it. The ending was the best of all korean dramas. Fullstop. 

So I watched a couple of dramas like

• Rooftop Prince
• Gentleman's Dignity
• Gu Family Book
• That Winter The Wind Blows
• The Moon Embraces The Sun
• I can't remember all at the moment but I am sure there were more

I sound like I had no social life back then. But honestly, I just forwarded most of them because I'm the sort of person that just can't wait for the endings, I don't really care how the middle part goes sometimes. But if I really watch all of them that means I really love the drama ( Like Secret Garden <3)

Oh yeah, I even watched Winter Sonata. Who even watch Winter Sonata nowadays? 

Just me I guess.

                                 

I bought new glasses this week. Since it was a buy one free one offer so I got two glasses now. I can't really choose which one to wear. I'm so indecisive!This is my first time buying  full frame glasses. I usually bought the semi rimless glasses. A new look for a new year then. But I usually wear lenses though.

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Example of semi rimless and full frame glasses. 

I can't believe it is October already. It is almost the end of 2013. What have I been doing this year? AS level work and late night korean dramas. Now I am working hard for the upcoming A2 exams which will be in May and June 2014 and have been stressed out with the UCAS application which is the UK university application for 2014. I am really excited for university next year but choosing 5 universities was a pain. But now I am being optimistic and have decided on my 5 universities. I know I can do this thing!

I hope I got the offers.

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I am crazy about you

Everyone (close family, friends) knows that I am obsess to one thing since I was in primary school ( Maybe this part some may not know )

                    

Harry Potter franchise of course. The movies, books and other stuff related. I've watched the movies and read the books countless times. I finish all the seven books then get back to the first, and there goes the cycle. I'm now studying in UK and I still bring along my Harry Potter books although I don't have enough time to read them anymore. But, obviously I'm crazy about it. Now im in UK and educated in a boarding school system, I feel really lucky and become much more crazier about Harry Potter because now I can relate to some of the scenes.

I remember when I first bought the first Harry Potter & the Sorcerer Stone Original DVD in 2001 and cannot stop telling my parents how I love it. Their response? "We don't think it is a good movie" <--English translation. I grew obsessed about it,there was nothing people or my parents can do. I bought the first book and was still in primary school. I was proud of it and thought that I finished a really really thick book! But now my textbooks are thicker.....

I brought my dad once to watch the 6th movie, I was so excited but on the other hand, my dad was so bored.

Like other crazy fans, I can remember some lines in the movies and books. Once, I tried to memorize the spells. 

Now people ask, 10 years from now will you still be crazy about it? It was a hard question. But now that I come to think of it. Maybe I would be less crazier about it but still be a great fan because It have been a part of me as looong as I can remember.

Oh Harry Potter <3

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