Category: life

The next day, Cart and I headed to Apkim for our Marriage Guidance Course.

In Singapore, it was compulsory for a Muslim couple to undertake the marriage guidance course before marriage, so as to prepare the couple of life after matrimony. Although I’ve already attended in April, Cart hasn’t.

Might as well go again, together this time, for the extra knowledge.

It was a full day course. We were ushered in an office and found that we were the only couple there. I presumed that we would be in a group. There was no where to hide. And I started to feel nervous again.

We were introduced to the marriage councillor and soon after we started our session.

It was a lot different compared to the Marriage Guidance Course at the Assyakirin Mosque. At the mosque, the lessons followed its various modules, while at Apkim, it was more personalized.

Most of the morning was discussed about Cart’s personality and mine. With that, we were adviced on how we would be able to get along with each other in time of conflict.

And later after lunch, we were asked about some basic questions about each other that made me more aware of each other. As well as advices on finance which was a big reason as to why divorces happen as well as the journey that was ahead of us.

At the end of the day, Cart wrote a sort of love letter to me, about how he was looking forward to our life together.

And I left it in Singapore!

• Part 1 – The ROMM Interview
• Part 2 – The Marriage Guidance Course
• Part 3 – The Solemnization
• Part 4 – The Wedding Dinner
• Part 5 – The Bersanding

In Singapore, before a Muslim couple could get married, among other things, it is compulsory for the couple to complete the Marriage Preparatory Course and then have an interview with the Registry of Muslim Marriages.

To what I know of, the interview was to check that the couple were both sound of mind for marriage as well as to check that the marriage was consensual.

Cart and I were at the Registry of Muslim Marriages, on Monday morning, together with my family.

After registering at the counter, we were all asked to wait outside the office upstairs. This was a very familiar place to me, having gone there a couple of times for relatives’s wedding.

That’s my dad there peeking inside the solemnization room. Inside the room is a raised platform with a dais and about 100 seats facing the dais, for the guests.

Shortly after, the kadi asked for my dad first.

I was feeling a little bit nervous. I wondered what the kadi would be asking me. Was this an examination? And if I did not answer him correctly, does that mean that we would not be able to get married?

It didn’t take too long till it was my turn.

Gingerly, I knocked on the door and entered. The air felt serious. Throughout the entire duration, the kadi didn’t smile, and was sombre. He looked at the piece of paper in front of him, asked me to confirm my name was, my dad’s name as well as my future husband’s name was.

He made me raise up my right hand and solemnly swear that all the details that I had written down was true. I thought it was a strange ritual. Nevertheless, I did as he asked and the interview was over. That was it.

Then it was Cart’s turn and like me, his interview went on smoothly too.

With time to spare, I decided to spend the day buying wedding exchange gifts. We headed to Geylang, which had plenty of good foods as well as nice shopping.

Cart and went to ‘Everest’, a jewellery shop that my mum liked. Mum splurged on a beautiful bracelet and ring and I bought one of my hantaran set and splurged on a heart charm bracelet. Till now, I can’t believe at how impulsive I was.

Regardless, after consulting with Cart over their rings, this is now my wedding ring.

Shiny!

• Part 1 – The ROMM Interview
• Part 2 – The Marriage Guidance Course
• Part 3 – The Solemnization
• Part 4 – The Wedding Dinner
• Part 5 – The Bersanding

Cart is so very very sweet.

It costs 230 euros as taxes to retrieve the computer. Ironic when its a gift

After all the hassle with the delivery service, he took the time during his lunchtime to drive all the way to the post office delivery headquarters to retrieve back my computer and my boots. Twice! On two separate days.

I was so excited that I leaped at the box and pulled the computer out. How long I’ve waited!

As you can see from my huge grin, I’m really happy to have finally have my computer with me. Can you believe that it took over 4 months to have it shipped here from Singapore? I still remember the HP Touchsmart unboxing livestreaming that I did with my brother in August 2008. 4 months is a long time and this makes me feel rather unconfident of having anything delivered overseas to Rome.

But regardless, I’m relieved that the computer arrived in one piece. And now it’s sitting pretty in the study room right next to Cart’s compy! We would probably evolve into a non verbal relationship where we communicate solely by plurk and msn even when sitting next to each other, but no matter!

Doesn’t it look good? Took some time to re-explore the interface all over again as it had a MS Vista OS instead of XP which was something that I was used to. Moreoever there were a number of installed programs that was very amusing to me.

One of them being the Youcam function which allowed me to take pictures like the one above. It was similar to my logitech webcam as well as the Mac Photo Booth.

There are also other games that are distracting me like Diner Dash. And very soon I’d like to install Premiere Elements! It has been a while and I’m looking forward to do some video editing. I’ve missed that 🙂

And I finally got my Ugg Boots!

I’ve been jonesing it for the longest time after the first time I laid my eyes on them. After fruitlessly searching for them in Rome, I bought them online. It’s a little daunting when there were so many fraud websites that was really hard to tell if the website is offering genuine merchandise or not.

I saw a number of websites selling branded shoes, bags and designer jewellery. While some was easy to tell that it was fake, there are others which are not so easy due to the pricing. Fakes should not be so expensive right?

So I choose a respectable looking website and when it arrived, thank goodness it was a perfect fit. There are furry insoles which are rather nice to touch. But putting on the ugg boots feels strange, though comfortable, it doesn’t feel as if there is support at the base. When I walk, it feels as if I’m walking with flip flops rathter than sturdy boots.

With how rough I am with shoes, I’m not sure how long these will last

To make a long story short, my eyes felt irritated last weekend and there was a white spot that formed in my cornea.

A visit to the ophthalmologist says that it was a Corneal Abscess and that it was probably my contact lenses that was giving me problems. I was given 5 different types of medication. 3 of them were eyedrops that I had to use every waking hour.

It was rather fastidious. One of them in particular, gave me a strange bitter taste in my tongue when I drop it in my eye. It was so unpleasant that even nutella tasted bitter. And I’m increasingly photophobic with the medication.

In the end, the Lab Analysis came back and reported that there wasn’t anything wrong with my contact lenses. But they threw them away anyways.

And now I’m wearing an eye bandage. All I need now to complete the look is a parrot.

There is a festive mood all around. Everywhere you go, there would be little symbols to show that a holiday was coming such as after my aerobics, I heard people wishing each other, “auguri”.

Shot with Samsung Innov8

In supermarkets there will be huge crates of really big chocolate eggs and chocolate bunnies and there were throngs of people rushing to buy chocolate eggs.

Cart and I got the chocolate eggs that our niece and nephew wanted as well as cute little chocolate bunnies for ourselves.

I didnt have the heart to eat these cute bunnies.

The next morning, we got ready to go to Cart’s sister’s house. I passed my chocolate bunnies to the kids and was pleasantly surprised to get a chocolate egg of my own!

I dont have the heart to eat this one either

I was a little amused to see the kids smashing the chocolate eggs excitedly to find the ‘sorpresa’ inside. One of them was this superman toy (with an impaired hearing bunny)

We were joined with Cart’s parents for an easter morning meal together.

And we had a relaxing day, watching the kid’s antics, chatting with each other. I felt very comfortable that I was getting better at speaking Italian. Its not perfect, but its a starting step.

Just change ‘Auguri’ to ‘Selamat Hari Raya’ and the chocolate eggs to ketupat and of course with the family meal together, it feels somewhat like Hari Raya.

Now I’m totally excited to make a hari raya celebrations and invite my in-laws in September. And totally wear a baju kurong even if Cart refuses to wear it 😛

Sidenote : Razor burn = pain