Happy Birthday!

Today I’m feeling grateful
Grateful for my health (for my cardiac ablation which went well)
Grateful for my family
Grateful for my closest friends
Grateful for being able to get out of a toxic environment (one year and 3 months is more than enough)
Grateful for being able to finally find some peace of mind

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No need to count how many birthday wishes
No need for birthday celebration
I’m just grateful for being able to feel grateful

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Happy birthday!
You have countless things to be grateful for!
 
May 17, 2023 

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The sky grows dark
The black over blue
Yet the stars still dare
To shine for you

from The Midnight Library – Matt Haig

monthly travel highlights - from jan 2019 to jan 2020

These are my monthly travel highlights during the period of Jan 2019 to Jan 2020

Jan 2019

A weekend trip to Pekalongan. From Jakarta to Pekalongan by train. 

To do: buy batik,  eat good food, stay at a lovely hotel: the sidji hotel.

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/01/another-trip-to-pekalongan.html

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Feb 2019

Exploring the heritage city of Lasem, 3-hour driver from Semarang.

To do: stroll around at desa karangturi, buy batik, and buy more batik :D

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/lasem-trip-part-2.html

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Mar 2019

In awe of the beauty of Zaanse Schans, Holland

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/zaanse-schans-netherlands-part-1.html

Apr 2019

A 3-day trip to Pontianak, West Kalimantan. 

Must do: try all the traditional coffee shops (warung kopi) scattered around the town

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/3-days-pontianak-part-6-coffee-shops.html

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May 2019

Savoring every second at Maya Sanur Bali

Must do in Sanur: sunrise at Pantai Karang

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/a-weekend-in-bali-maya-sanur-resort-spa.html

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Jun 2019

Having fun at Talang Indah Pajaresuk, Lampung

Must do in Bandar Lampung: try pempek at different places

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/bandar-lampung-part-1.html

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Jul 2019

Catching up on my writing.. at The Trans Luxury Hotel, Bandung

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/bandung-23-27-july-2019.html

Aug 2019

At Baluran National Park, one of the must-visit places in East Java

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/baluran-national-park.html

Sep 2019

A serene morning at Sanak Retreat, Bali. Loooveee this place. 

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/weekend-in-bali-sep-2019-sanak-retreat.html


Oct 2019

Saturday in Jakarta, at a latin-argentinian cuisine restaurant located at Menteng. Sudestada. 

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/06/jakarta-random-post.html

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Nov 2019

Soaking up the sun at the glittering Lake Linow, Tomohon, North Sulawesi

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/05/manado-trip-linow-lake-puncak-kai-santi.html

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Dec 2019

Another visit to Bali.. the beach of Ritz-Carlton Nusa Dua Bali

http://ritaaza.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-ritz-carlton-bali-part-1.html

Jan 2020

Visiting the beautiful Trang An, Vietnam

what travel means to me...

Not being able to travel this year makes me wonder what travel really means to me..

For me

traveling 

is definitely not only about the instagram feed :P

For me

traveling

is the most effective way for me to recharge

is about trying and exploring new things

is about meeting new people with different perspectives

is about testing your patience

is about knowing yourself better

is about experiencing other culture

is about finding new places.. hidden gems

is about laughter and enjoying life

is about sunrises and sunsets

is about visiting places people never heard of

is about adventure

is about trying to be a better version of yourself

is about learning to appreciate life more

For me

traveling

is never only about having the need to visit trending places

 

last but not least, for me, traveling is a mean to escape from the superficial people at the office

well, hope we can start traveling again soon! coz I need it!!

happy new year 2021

 31.12.2020   3.54pm

We’re at the end of the year 2020

The year that we’ll remember for the rest of our lives

A very very strange year. The year COVID-19 rules the world.

I practically spent 10 months at home. Can’t go to the office, can’t go to the mall, can’t go to the  coffee shop, can’t go anywhere

And it’s very excruciating for me, not being able to do the one thing that I love the most: traveling

 

Anyway, during that 10 months, I learned more about myself

How introverted I am

 

How I hate office politics

How I despise the blur line between small talks and lies.. between “being nice” and lying

How it seems that hypocrisy is a normal thing and even encouraged

How I want to quit working but can’t coz I need the money :P

 

And how I’m dreading the day when I have to go back to the office and forced to do all the small talks face to face.. no place to hide. Haha.. (well, let’s not worry about that today).

 

Today, I can only hope

Hope that everything will be better in 2021

Hope I can start traveling again soon

And hope I can survive the never ending office politics with all the superficial people in it

 

Most of all, hope that I can enjoy and appreciate life more

Meaning, more traveling and more time spent with friends (true friends) & family

And worry less about my office life... coz it’s just not worth it

 

.. Welcoming the new year with hope

independence...

17 August 2020

4.53PM

Getting a bit restless this past few weeks

Things aren’t going well with this 'work from home 24/7' thing..

Before covid, whenever I feel like I need to vent, I used to go traveling with a small group of friends

To recharge, to find strength to face another day at the office

But now I can’t do that anymore

Sigh..

Well..

I’ve always felt that I don’t belong (since my first years working in that place)

Mostly because of all the extroverted behaviours that I have to endure

Working in an environment that rewards extroverted behaviour

Makes me mentally-exhausted

Really.. there’s no room from introverts

Working from home for about 5 months now

I realize more and more that this is not the place for me

And I really really wanna get away from all this

But..

There’s nothing I can do

I have to face it and live with it

Coz I need the money..

Sigh..

Well, this is august 17^th

So I have to say: Happy independence day!

Hope I can feel free and independent someday

Hope someday..

I can make money by doing something that I love

Hope someday..

I can be my true self

Without ever feeling “not good enough”

Without always being overlooked and undervalued

At the end of the day..

I just wanna be surrounded by genuine people

Is it too much to ask?

note to self

26 July 2020

“in a truly peculiar time of covid-19 pandemic”

still staying at home

working from home

spending weekends at home

for nearly 4 months now

well, this is a note to myself when this is all over

when this is all over..

remember to try to enjoy your life better

live your life

try new things

travel more

pay attention more to your friends, instead of your phone

be present in the moment

feel your life

and when u get to do that one thing you love the most.. which is traveling

remember to...

savor every second of the minute

feel the sand on your feet when u’re at the beach..

watch every sunset.. even on a cloudy day

take a deep breath.. feel the fresh air

embrace the atmosphere

enjoy... 
feel...

before it’s too late

or..

is it already too late?



26 july 2020

9.37PM

“in an truly weird time of covid-19 pandemic”

random thoughts on June 20, 2020

“in a truly weird time of covid-19 pandemic”

I’ve been at home for nearly 3 months due to the pandemic

I live in an apartment.. and there’s just the two of us, me and my husband

It feels strangely calming and refreshing...

Not having to do small talks at the office

Not having to fake a smile at the office

Being given a total freedom to be “quiet”

(because in the office it’s like u’re being punished every day for being too quiet)

It feels strangely calming and refreshing..

and I complain less

a lot less

and I become calmer

I thought I was gonna be very bored

I thought I was gonna be restless..

Because I can’t do my favorite thing which is traveling

I can’t go visit the museums and the malls and all those instagrammable cafes

Turns out that I can control the boredom

And feel fine that I’m not able to go out

Even now when people are screaming new normal and suddenly storming the malls

and go to the streets to exercise (for a trending healthy lifestyle) and buy bicycles to bike to work or to bike wherever 

while the number of covid-19 cases is still increasing.

I’m still at home

Not feeling the urge to go to the malls

Or meet up with friends

I’m an introvert

And I’m figuring out that my life at the office used to drain my energy so much it hurts

All the pretending.. all the “have to speak up and be seen”... being forced to attend all those social events... talk to people when I don’t want to... smile to people when I don’t feel like smiling..

That’s why I’ve always needed that “traveling” or “trips” or "weekend getaways" every other week

Now that I’m always at home, I feel so much at peace

But 

it does make me wonder..

Will I have enough strength to go back to the office when the time comes?