Tips on how to get a job in the Netherlands

5th March 2017 -

11 min read

Disclaimer: The tips below are solely based on my own experience as a Netherlands bachelor graduate and an employee of 4 years in this country.

Some people asked me about how I manage to get a job in the Netherlands. There is no such thing as lucky, but surely there is a mental preparation on when the time should eventually come. The thing that I suggest for all people to own, is to have their own ONE THING. I recently just listened to Book Audible (by Gary W. Keller and Jay Papasan – totally recommended). They both are entrepreneurs, hence the tendency to relate the ONE THING to career and business perspective. However it is so deep that it is actually applicable for so many other aspects in life. This ONE THING is a vision that we should have when we do something that will generate a shorter goals which will lead you to your ONE THING.

My ONE THING from a long time ago is to be a blessing for other people, and one of the things to get me there is to be a sociopreneur (Social entrepreneur – Urban dictionary: An enterprising individual that starts a venture not merely for profits but for inclusion of the communities that so far have been left out of the main stream). I know that in order to get myself to that point, I have to determine a few sets of short term goals. I decided to save up and collect knowledges from the actual business industry that has been established for a long time as well as with a start up. Why in Netherlands? Because the country has been developed which gives a result to a more modern, open-minded citizens. I intend to learn from the goodness and fruitful actions that most of the people have. A good business does not only necessarily need a good CEO or board of management, but also values from their chosen employees.

I have not been a sociopreneur, but that is ONE THING I want to aim.. And yet I wanted to have a career first elsewhere, to prove that not only western people can work for multinational company, Indonesian too can do it. I realized now, too many unreasonable admiration towards western world from Indonesian people. The sad thing is, this creates and under-estimation of their own self (yes yes of course I was not thinking this deep back then), but I do realize I took a good decision by being persistent and having my ONE THING on 2012-2103 to find a job in the Netherlands. I HAD TO. NO OTHER CHOICE, PERIOD. and plus I wanted to make my parents proud and save up in a bigger amount so I can realize my plan sooner!

THAT’S IT! HAVE VISION and YOUR ONE THING. PRIORITIZE IT! Think about the intention of why you want something as I believe, good whys lead you to good ways.

I read somewhere that achievers always work from a clear sense of priority. And have a vision will help us to guide to our set of priorities. Well actually, after you have picked your one thing, your number one priority should be protecting the time you use to work with your ONE thing. Extraordinary results are determined by how narrow we can make our focus.

Those above are more mental preparation, and below will be the practical extent (some of them are suitable not only to get a job in the Netherlands, but also everywhere)

Get yourself a few internship before actually graduating.

In the Netherlands, if you study in Hogeschool like me (A Dutch polytechnic, college; a higher education institution of lower rank than a university, yet resulting in Bachelor degree no different than university) you will most likely are required to do a work placement in the professional field in the 3rd or 4th year of study. Use this wisely, as this will shape or determine where or how you will work after your graduation. I had a thing with fashion since I was a kid, I always wanted to study fashion and worked in the fashion industry. I did not make it to fashion school because of late enrollment, but I believe it happened for a reason that I needed to taste a broader study. I took International Business and Management instead. Yet, I wanted to work in the fashion industry nevertheless to have some flavors. It took me more than 10 applications until I get an acceptance at MEXX (Dutch brand) in buying/production team. I know, this will lead me to a similar area or position in the future. I actually liked it! I tried and helped several fields as well and told myself I had to get another internship in fashion industry in the similar year on my final year.

2. NETWORK!

It’s not only in Indonesia you need a good network to get you somewhere, here is as well of course. Recommendation and reference is important everywhere. I actually got my internship at Calvin Klein in my final year through my former supervisor at MEXX. Surely as an intern, you would not know everything, yet that is the perfect timing to get as much knowledge by being curious and enthusiastic. Build a good relationship with your colleague especially your supervisor. The best things are to learn from someone older who has more experiences than you. You will take the best out of their experiences. And you’ll be surprised on how networking works out. Most of the people I know get their job now somehow through the chain of networking.

3. Shape your CV well, concise and clear. Adjust your CV to the needs of the job you are applying.

You should only write the relevant points in your CV. Writing a lot is easy, writing concise yet informative at the same time is challenging. DO NOT make it 3 long pages experiences. No need to write your elementary school, junior high school or even high school. The recruiter would not care, they will only care about your MAJOR STUDY AND MOST IMPORTANTLY EXPERIENCES/ PROJECTS. Putting pictures are okay. Here are some of the CV layouts you can choose from.

FREE

Free Resume templates: 412 professional templates in Word

Non Free

https://designshack.net/articles/inspiration/the-best-cv-resume-templates-50-examples/

4. Surround yourself with Motivating people that will lift you up!

It is a self-explanatory

5. Make 4-6 hours of your day to focus on looking for a job

You certainly are allowed to have a side job/ part time job (that is what I did, I considered this a must as I did not want to depend on my parents anymore. I graduated, gotta live my own life!). But one thing you still have to remember is your ONE THING! Create times every single day to complete this goal, send 5-20 CVs a day. Earning a little money for yourself feels good, but earning much more in the field you always want feels much better. Never settle for less. It will allow you to do things you are not able to do, it’s about persistence!! Forget about holiday, shopping, whatever, you’ll get this once you get a job!

6. Don’t be too focus with interview lessons in the internet

Learn it, but do not learn it literally. Most of the interview lessons you can find in the internet is mostly American-adapted. We do not need this in the Netherlands, obviously except when you have an interview with American company. People here are quite straight forward, they will show what they expect from you. You do not need to show off yourself too much, Dutch does not really like that attitude. If they want you to show yourself, they will tell you so. Do not forget to ask back the interviewer, show that you are enthusiastic about the job and to know more about the company and what is going on. However, you have to develop elevator pitch. Your answer to ‘tell me about yourself’ has to be powerful.

7. Don’t send applications to any job

Focus your search on jobs that you’re qualified for. You’ll have a better chance of getting selected for an interview. Sending out random resumes and cover letters is just going to be a waste of time. Before you start job hunting, take the time to decide what type of job you’re seeking. Come up with a target list of companies you’d like to work for

8. Market yourself good out there

Shape all your social media profile especially Linkedin or even Facebook as these days the recruiter can access you anywhere and judge you based on that.

And most importantly, BE YOURSELF. Characteristic cannot be bought, skills/qualities can be learned. Do not try too much as it will put you into a terrible situation as they will judge you based on the vibe they get during the interview. And if you are significantly different than the impression you give, it will be difficult for both parties especially for you…. however if you know you have the potential, FAKE IT TILL YOU FEEL IT. But commit to yourself that you will actually do what you say you will do to yourself.

And when they say what is the purpose of your life, to be happy is not exactly right. As you will seek for more and more and more. Happiness happens on the way to fulfillment……..

Good luck!!

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Dreams Europe Hidup di Belanda Netherlands

Skydiving in Texel Netherlands

14th August 2016 -

14 min read

The day had finally come!! Skydiving has always been in my bucket list for so long and this year I promised myself to get it over with!

It surely is a scary thing, yet exciting just come to think about it. Damar and I were already dating when I saw this discount offer in Groupon.nl. I had been eyeing Groupon for discount in this particular thing and one day I came across “Paracentrum Texel 100eur korting”. The deal was buying the voucher for 20eur, and we got 100eur discount in the original price. The original price for Experience Package (including documentary) was 344eur. Thus total amount would be 264eur for this whole package.

I proposed this idea to Damar and he immediately agreed. All we needed to do was making the reservation. As much as I was excited, I kept on postponing it until at the moment I realized that I just had got to call, reserve and wait to the day. Honestly, we bought the ticket on March and made the reservation last week LOL. We thought to make the reservation for week after so we did not have to wait that long and did not have time to get nervous. WRONG! I was still nervous!

In fact, I was already nervous on Friday on my way from work to the office, my head was dizzy and my stomach was tickled. It was a mixed feeling between excitement and anxiety, predominantly the anxiety. That Friday night we spent resting and chilling at home, as the next day we had to go to Texel very early in the morning to assure that we would get our initial time slot (09.00-11.30). The next day, of course, we overslept for an hour 😛 but we knew we would still be on time. That’s the perks of giving buffer time!

We woke up at 6.30, got ready, had some leftover Rendang fried rice from last night and left the house at 7.10 to catch the bus at 7.23. First, going to Zaandam (25 mins), then take the train to Den Helder from Zaandam (60 minutes). Apparently, Damar and I arrived earlier so we had times to buy ourselves lunch and drinks for on the way. As the Texel Airport was in the middle of nowhere, we anticipated that it would be rather difficult to find what we want, even if there is, it would be pricey. We took bus number 33 and arrived in the harbor. The ferry is called TESO and it had everything inside i.e proper cafeteria and toilet.

The journey took 20 mins, it allowed us to enjoy ourselves in the ferry. That morning was very beautiful and the sky looked blue. Seemed like a good sign! We were hoping that it’d stay that way the whole day..

This is how the Ferry looks from the inside, quite spacious huh

WhatsApp Image 2016-08-17 at 23.33.31 (1)

Could be an idea to feed the seagul with some breads, they will come over around you. Look at that blue sky!

Still fresh and full of energy! Who know what was inside my head.

Once we arrived in Texel harbor, we were already being waited by Texel Hopper bus, the only bus that would take us the the airport. It was 3 euro/person and the reservation needed to be made online at least an hour before the schedule of departure. The list of which can be checked online. It was a mini bus and it could accommodate like only 8-10 people. I started getting anxious and could not stop holding Damar’s hand. Actually a moment before that I realized my gum, where the stitch made after wisdom removal surgery 2 weeks ago, felt weird, apparently it got bigger. But hell, the nerve was dominating my feeling.

We went directly to the reception and told them we made the reservation. Unfortunately there was one thing we did not consider that they might ask for the Groupon voucher. And yes they did. Actually it should have not been a problem but it was because at that very moment, Groupon website decided to be down! The timing could not be more right *eyeroll* I could not connect and find my voucher anywhere in my mail. We struggled for one hour, called people at home, until Damar’s lil bro at home could find the voucher in my laptop somehow. Fuhhhh!

But by the time we were ready, the skydivers were on standby due to the low cloud and we had to wait until 3 pm. We killed the time by having coffee in the Hotel Texel Restaurant next to the airport or what divers call ‘dropzone’. We sipped the drinks, read, moved here, talked superficially, moved there, talk deeply, ate, took a nap, then we got so boreeeeeeeed and needed to move so we went outside.

WhatsApp Image 2016-08-17 at 23.33.30 (1)

Still okay.. Reading is good

The look of my ‘getting bigger’ cheek. It started getting a bit hurt.

WhatsApp Image 2016-08-17 at 23.33.29 (1)

Coffee and reading. GOOD! for the first 2 hours.

It was such a good idea to (buy) bring some snacks for the wait. At 15.30, the sky looked not so gloomy anymore and the crew started to call out people’s name meaning they started to send skydivers up again. Oh my God, after the rest, my heart was jumping again. The first plane went up and 20 minutes later, we saw black dots came down from the sky, 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, people with parachute getting closer to the ground and eventually arrived safely. My head was full with excitement!!!

After 5 rounds, they put on standby again as the cloud was not as clear, but forecasted the condition would be better at 18.00. So we waited again. By then, I was laying my back down the bean bag, no energy and plus my gum was painful. I laid down in the big hangar where the divers practiced and folded their used parachute. I was watching them and trying to investigate what they did 😛 One thing I learnt, those people seems very free-spirited and happy. Looks like they enjoyed what they are doing and they get paid for their hobby.

The clock turned to 19.00, Damar came back from checking our name in the board and he said it got closer to our turn. Okay, I was a bit shaky but EXCITED!!!! 5 minutes 10 minutes, I heard my somebody called my anme and asked to put our stuff in the locker. Here it is…. (could not feel the pain of my gum anymore, as my mind was distracted).

We put on our astronaut’s clothes with the gears and was explained what we could expect up there. We had to wait until the plane picked us up while in the mean time we met our tandem. My tandem was Alexandre, we did not have so much chances to chat. I was so worried because I did not know the guy so well, who knows what could happen righttt?. I think it’s a good thing to get to know your tandem to build the trust. Obviously, I did not get it in the beginning. All I did was surrender.

However at the end, I discovered that he’s nice and quite cynically funny whom the joke I could get. We went on the plane and was videographed the entire time, guessing my fear face could not be covered anymore lol. Damar and I had our own videographer, we were practically followed by them.

On the airplaine, we were instructed by our own tandem what to do. The good thing about doing the jump with tandem is that we do not have to worry about opening the parachute and so on. We are supposed to just relax and enjoy the view. Alexandre started getting ready, he made sure I saw that he hooked the locks which connected both of us. I was apparently the first one that would be jumping. Basically, all I had to do was getting on Alexandre’s lap, leaned on him and when jumping turn my head to the left as well as pulled the legs to the back. Before we noticed, the airplane reached 9000 feet (3 km), the plane door was opened and we had to jump!

WOWWWW.. I still remember the feeling of adrenaline! Alexandre tapped my back twice and it means that it’s the time to spread my wings 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

The feeling up there was incredible, I could not really put it into words. It was very quiet, heart full of gratitude.

The freefall took about half minutes and I posed to the camera trying to make heart shape, but FAILED big time. My weight is too light to force the pressure of the wind lol. It was cold up there, and I could not see anything as we went through the white cloud. 30 seconds later, I could see the lands, and Alexandre opened his parachute. It pulled us up gently and let us hang there for minutes. Worst thing is before landing, he had to make the turn (going round) to stir and avoid all of us arrived in the drop zone at the same time. That made me dizzy badly, I promised I could vomit. So one tip: close your eyes when it happened, it reduced the feeling of vomitting. Anddd we landedd!!!!!

I was so happy! Apparently Damar was already there. Glad to see each other again! We promised to meet again on the ground, and there we were! Alhamdulillahhhh!!!!

It was totally worth the wait!!

So, what to prepare before skydiving? It is no big deal, big deal, but I did some of these before skydiving, and it helped

Before scheduling the day, check the weather forecast and how to go there
Healthy fitted body! It will certainly be unenjoyable when you are ill, and the pressure might worsen the sickness. (Dont jump with swollen cheek or stitches in your body!)
Tell all the family, especially parents. Their motivation and admirance will be very positive to have approaching to the day of skydiving
For me, prayer is one of those things that can make me calm, thus do whatever it is that makes your nerve a bit more loosen up, e.g meditation
Bring some snacks/food and a bottle of water (that you can refill), drinking water can help to freshen the mind. Also, like in my case, you’ll never know with the cloud condition, all those will be useful when you have to wait for the entire day
Documents that you will need for registration in the front desk (in my case, Groupon print out/email)
Wear the most comfortable clothes that you own in your wardrobe, wear sneakers that are very tights to avoid it getting lose and fall from the sky
Tie up your hair!! It will be very hardly windy up there, and last thing you want to do is to annoy your instructur with your long flying hair
Take off whatever is valuable and detachable (I removed my wedding ring for example)
Feed your mind with positivity
And last but not least, happy mind, face and SMILEEEE! After all, you will be able to scratch off your bucket list! For me, that is very motivating

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Europe Hidup di Belanda Life Netherlands

Life in Amsterdam

7th August 2016 -

10 min read

Ever since I moved my luggage of life to the Netherlands in 2009, I had always been living in The Hague, the third biggest city in the Netherlands. It truly witnessed my struggle during college life. I adapted-adopted with things about being ‘Dutch’ since day one in that friendly city. I call it friendly because it had everything I could ever asked for as an Indonesia foreigner. As pathetic as it sounds, I still wanted to have a piece of Indonesia in where I live, and The Hague has the largest population of Indonesian (mixed blood, half blood, veteran, pure, etc). No wonder, it is practically very easy to find things that can eliminate longing feeling of my beloved home country, such as food, spices, cultures, as well as the people. In every meter I walked, I could find one or 2 Indonesians, to be roughly calculating. And I found it astonishing.. I felt like I was not alone, even though I clearly did not know all of them. Though, I made friends who then become family, I made a place who then become a home (one, two, three, four moving around, with and without my sister). I made myself an independent young woman in this very city, I watched myself grew from a spoiled little girl to be a responsible adult woman. This city was also a place that beheld the sparks between Damar and I…. whom at the end I ended up marrying to and whom the reason I had to move from this old city…..

Never had I thought, I would move to the only city I never wanted to live in, the city of tourists, Amsterdam. By only being a guest for a couple of times, I concluded that I would never live there. Oh well, I jinxed it. I started daily working and commuting The Hague-Amsterdam from 2014, hence the intensity spend in the city. I started falling in love with its beauty; the flow of its canals, its modern people, it’s old yet modern architecture, its expats life, its culinary, its parks, its easiness to access whatever. Most importantly, it allows people to have the balance life, where people could have fun and relax at the same time. Oh yes, and ultimately the fact that it is a shorter distance to work.

Well, here I am… since I got back from Indonesia after the wedding, I moved and started living together with Damar. He has been living here from 2012. We are living in the North of Amsterdam which is likely underrated even by myself, earlier. But actually, it has a big potential, and it is exactly when I describe ‘have fun and relax at the same time’ because the neighbourhood is calm but it is still Amsterdam and I can get to the city to find madness if I’d like.

I wanted to share a sample day living in this beautiful city…

Yesterday was marked as the Gay Pride Festival. The city was all of the sudden fully packed with tourists, local people, and people from throughout the Netherlands to celebrate the freedom of choosing gender preference. Damar and I did not really want to be part of the crowd, but already planned to go the city with our bikes (YES I GOT A BIKE, TRYING TO BE A PROPER AMSTERDAMER! :P) to get ourselves to a glasses showroom of a brand called polette.nl. I am in the need of a new pair of glasses as I am getting blinder and blinder everyday. This is again what I like about Amsterdam, this kind of hippie brand, you will not find in any other cities. Amsterdam is always the first place to open something cool haha. I heard about the brand from my colleague, she said it’s very affordable with a high range of trendy, classy, cool options. I thought we could buy it right away in the store but apparently, I could only check my eyes (for free! and according to the shopkeeper the machine is one of the most expensive and accurate). I ended up finding out that my eyes are sooooo bad. Anyway, the concept of the store is to only try on and fit the glasses, to be subsequently order online. Not a problem at all! I found the winner!

polette-indonesian-amsterdam-dutch-holland-xxx

With my so not amused husband :p

We cycled through Amsterdam North, getting ourselves to the Ferry (because the connecting tunnel between the central and North is closed due to maintenance). FYI, Amsterdam North is a separate island, hence the need of connection/water transportation, and hence the underrate (haha). It was a hot sunny beautiful day, everybody was just simply smiling and happy. I almost forgot why it was more crowded than usual until I saw the rainbow flags fluttered in every corners. Here we go again, the sign of freedom 🙂 I am constantly reminded of differences between people, than we have to stay open-minded and being non-judgmental. Every body really have their own stories and people here just simply mind their own business. Let’s say, it is easy to have a true colour here, to differentiate between you and other people.

Bicycle is the first transportation in Amsterdam, just because Amsterdam is not big, and people like to save their money. Actually it was trended because at one point, the Netherlands were full of traffic jam and the government promoted the use of bike. Anyway, it has become part of the culture for so long, and as the infrastructures support bikers, every body just gotta own it. We went through the small streets, seeing little houses and bars, and the crowd of gay pride. We stopped at a traditional market in the Old West of Amsterdam to buy some fruits. Note: if you want to buy fruit in Holland or in this case Amsterdam, buy it in the traditional market, sooo much cheaper and fresher. What I like about being in the traditional market was not only because of the price, but also the whole experiences, the life that comes with it. I liked seeing the vendors who were shouting loudly about the price their offer competing with the other vendors next to them, seeing the different people walking through the market alleys for the sake of walking, window shopping or groceries (dutch word: ‘bodschappendoen’). We ended up buying 3 different kind of fruits in a big bowl; blueberries, strawberries, and nectarines. Those are my favourite fruits that are now currently the season. We only paid less than 5 euros!!!! In Albert Heijn or Jumbo (the name of popular supermarkets), it would be like 8 euros I guess.

After fruits (and flowers) shopping (and strike posing), we cycled back to the city towards the crowd and found a very very very nice organic salad bars (again: only in Amsterdam, this kind of lots of place options are possible :)). The place is called SLA (in English, it means ‘lettuce or salad’). We fuelled ourselves there with a powerful meal! It was super good.

There goes our Saturday and we will keep on exploring the nice new places every time we could… Seems like, the size of the city does not define the richness inside it 🙂

I am glad I have got the chance to move to Amsterdam and live as an Amsterdamer.

XXX

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Europe Hidup di Belanda Love life Netherlands

Marriage life

5th August 2016 -

4 min read

Most people ask about how does it feel to be married. It just sounds to me like a very excessive step to do in life by how people perceive and by the kind of inquiries asked in regards of handling marriage. I was worried in the beginning as when people ask the very first question after getting married, I thought there was something wrong with my answer that was always as flat as a pancake. My answer was around ‘it’s okay, it’s good, it’s nice‘. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I still consider getting hitched, especially with Damar, as the best decision I have ever made by far. But, seems like the word ‘marry‘ is by nature a burden for a lot of people. And to be honest, I don’t think it should be seen that way. No doubt that getting married meaning you will spend the rest of your life with this one (supposedly special) person, but the process of selection has passed, decision is made, so being married is about walking the dreams, giving effort in loving each other, being our true self with at the same time, respecting one another. I don’t think getting married should stop doing what you like or start doing something you don’t like, unless we are willing to do it , noted: not only for our spouse but for ourselves. Nothing should be a strain when we do it sincerely with the aim of making the marriage work, again, not for anybody but yourself. Hence, I do not sense any force to abandon something.

It should be each other’s responsibility to put efforts in the process of understanding and actually, I do think discovering something new in the blastoff married phase is very much intriguing. As intriguing as finding out Damar does not like to close something he opens (drawer, tooth paste tube, etc) *eyeroll*. But I told him my dislike for the habit, and he has tried to correct it, no nagging involved! Because I trust him that he is trying. It is absolutely something that needs to be cherished, as the moment of such kind will not necessarily re-occur in the future.

Ok, so I think I know what to answer for the next person who asks me how does it feel to get married, “nothing much change, only everything becomes nicer. Feels good to know I have someone worth going home to” . And plus, I wake up in every morning willing to be a better person, for me, for Damar, for us.

*the above post-wedding pictures were taken during our first Ramadhan together (June, 2016). Our goal is to take capture good moments of two of use and dismiss the opinion that ‘pre-wedding’ picture should only be taken prior to the wedding.

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Europe Family Hidup di Belanda Life Milestone Netherlands

Idul Fitri 1437 – Lebaran di Belanda

18th July 2016 -

3 min read

Alhamdulillahhh akhirnya melewati hari kemenangan juga. Puasa selama 1 bulan penuh terbayar dengan makanan yang berlimpah di hari raya 😀

Damar, saya, dan mas Argo (kakak Damar) memang sengaja ngambil cuti tanggal 6 Juli kemarin karena kami pengen merayakan hari Idul Fitri dengan proper. Apalagi kan tahun ini adalah lebaran pertama sebagai istri, jadi pengen banget masak masakan Lebaran yang serius. Dan tahun ini ceritanya mau bikin menu Lebaran yang beda, karena keluarga suami yang berdarah Medan. Menu yang biasanya lontong opor, berubah jadi lontong gule nangka dan rendang. Untuuuuunggg banget mamanya Damar super baik bawan bumbu gilingan gule dan rendang, jadi gak perlu terlalu repot bikin semua dari scratch. Dan pastinya terbebas dari potential error hhaha. Jadi cuma tinggal nambah-nambahin sedikit spices dan santan, bikin lontong, bikin sambal balado, dan nggak ketinggalan opor (pengen banget!).

“Lebaran sebagai minoritas hanya bisa dirasakan lewat suasana yang diciptakan sendiri”

Jadi di hari H-nya, kami bangun pagi-pagi, sarapan, pake baju muslim yang akhirnya sukses bikin orang-orang dijalan ngeliatin kami haha padahal belum lengkap sama jilbab dan kopyah lho. Sepi banget rasanya hari itu, nggak ada kumandang takbir atau apapun, sama sekali nggak kerasa suasana lebarannya. Tapi ini lebaran ke-7 saya di Belanda, jadi sudah lumrah. Kami pergi ke masjid komunitas indonesia di Amsterdam yang namanya Al Ikhlas. Sholat ied disini dimulai jam 09.00 pagi. Setelah selesai, kami dibagikan goreng-gorengan dan lontong opor. Alhamdulillah rejekiii! selama ini saya selalu sholat ied di Den Haag dan setelah sholat nggak ada dibagikan lontong opor karena pukul 13.00 ada makan siang dengan sajian lengkap menu lebaran di wisma duta (rumah duta besar).

Hari itu penuh dengan makan, makan, dan makan. Makanan yang full dengan santan *elus-elus perut* dan akhirnya bisa menikmati kue kering yang sengaja disiapkan jauh-jauh hari hihi. Sorenya saya beli kue spekkoek di toko Oriental untuk dibawa ke kantor, ceritanya berbagi dan merayakan idul fitri bersama-sama, supaya mereka aware soal kultur islam yang suka bersyukur dengan cara berbagi. Besoknya orang-orang senang sekaliiii dibawakan kue indonesia, dan banyak yang mengucapkan selamat idul fitri ke saya. Indahnyaaaa!!

Foto-foto di bawah ini adalah foto-foto yang diambil di akhir pekan, saat kami berkumpul di rumah kerabat dan akhirnya bertemu dengan mbak Vicka (kakak perempuan saya) sekeluarga. Suddenly feeling like home. Itu ada foto saya sedang skype dengan bapak mama di rumah 🙂

Taqabbalallahu Minna Wa Minkum – Taqabal ya Kareem

Lebaran

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Europe Hidup di Belanda Life

Ramadhan di Belanda

4th July 2016 -

7 min read

Nggak kerasa sudah memasuki hari ke-29 di bulan Ramadhan. Kalau dilihat ke belakang rasanya cepet juga dan sedih mau ninggalin bulan yang baik ini. Begitu banyak janji-janji yang belum bisa terselesaikan, seperti contohnya baca terjemahan hingga khatam. Tapi insha Allah masih punya waktu untuk nyelesein sampe tahun ini habis. Paling engga janjinya untuk nyelesaiin di tahun 2016. Bismillah, semoga masih diberikan kesempatan.

Alhamdulillah, kali ini Ramadhan-nya sedikit berbeda. YES I AM A MARRIED WOMAN NOW! hihi dan juga lokasi tempat tinggal yang berpindah ke Amsterdam (artinya lebih dekat dengan kantor dan bisa bangun sedikit lebih siang dari biasanya). Menjalani bulan Ramadhan sebagai istri itu sangat menyenangkan. Rasanya semangat setiap hari mikirin dan diskusi bareng mau buka pake apa. Seneng mau masak apa aja, ada yang dengan senang hati dan tulus ikhlas habisin. Sesederhana itu… 🙂 Di kantor bawaannya juga semangat, semangat buat pulang 😛 nggak sabar rasanya cepet-cepet sampai rumah dan cuddle sebentar. Biasanya Damar selalu tidur setelah jam kantor dan baru bangun jam 21.00 untuk bantuin saya masak. Sedangkan saya cuma tidur-tiduran sebentar terus bangkit dan “ngapa-ngapain”. Ya ngerjain projek, baca buku/berita, liat vlog terbaru dari vlogger yang menginspirasi atau dengerin podcast. Ohya dan pastinya, google untuk cari ide untuk berbuka. Biasanya saya cari di cookpad, tasty, masaktv, atau kokikutv, atau sebenernya simply google aja. Nggak bisa diem banget deh pokoknya walau agak lemas.

Kebetulan karena bulan Ramadhan terjadi di musim panas, puasa di Belanda jadi jauh lebih panjang dari puasa di Indonesia. Totalnya sekitar 19 jam, dari pukul 03.00-22.00. Setelah sebelumnya research, saya memutuskan untuk mengikuti puasa dari terbenam hingga tenggelamnya matahari. Dari hadist yang saya baca, kita baru boleh menjalankan puasa lebih pendek jika tidak ada waktu terbenam matahari, contoh seperti di negara-negara Scandinavia. Di kondisi seperti itu, kita boleh mengikuti jam buka di negara islam terdekat (Turki atau Arab). Tapi itu semua tergantung preferensi dan kepercayaan masing-masing ya, yang berpuasa mengikuti jam Indonesia juga adadan sah-sah aja. Tapi itulah indahnya perbedaan, kita cuma perlu toleransi dan menghormati. Karena bukannya itu poin penting bulan Ramadhan? Anyway, saya jadi sadar gimana powerful-nya the power of mind karena sebenernya semuanya itu bermula dari niat dan mindset. Saat kita yakin kita bisa, kita akan bener-bener bisa dan cari cara untuk menyempurnakan niat kita. Saya percaya bahwa segala sesuatu yang terjadi di hidup kita itu adalah hasil dari manifestasi proses kita meng-attract sesuatu yang baik untuk datang ke diri kita. Saat kita menjalankan sesuatu setengah-setengah, maka begitu pun juga hasil yang akan dituai. Life has so many things to offer, let it offer you good things by thinking good. Saat kita bersyukur dan punya niat yang baik akan sesuatu, maka kita pun akan diberi lebih-lebih oleh hidup. Rasanya akan bahagia terus, karena kita jadi terbiasa melihat sesuatu dari perspektif yang baik.

Bagi saya, ajang puasa nggak cuma jadi ajang untuk beribadah tapi juga untuk mempromosikan agama islam. Bahwa islam nggak melulu hanya soal terorisme. Banyak teman-teman bule yang nanya tentang puasa, Ramadhan, dan alasan kenapa saya harus melakukannya. Ini kesempatan yang tepat banget untuk menjelaskan ke mereka tentang agama saya, gimana islam sangat mengedepankan kasih dan toleransi. Walaupun mereka selalu melihat saya dengan pandangan iba, sudah kering kurus kecil gini, tapi harus nggak makan dan minum selama 19 jam haha Saya berusaha ngejelasin dengan bahasa yang sesimpel dan nyampe ke pikiran mereka yang nggak percaya dengan Tuhan. Saya ngejelasin bahwa ini adalah sarana untuk belajar ngekontrol pikiran kita, dan karena niat yang kuat saya jadi nggak ngerasa kesulitan (padahal kadang haus juga hahah). Saya bilang ke mereka bahwa saya juga jadi jauh lebih bersyukur dan nggak take things for granted karena saya menahan lapar dan haus seharian with knowing kalau malamnya saya bisa masak dan makan enak. Sedangkan orang-orang di negara bagian lain harus menahan rasa haus dan lapar endlessly karena mereka nggak tahu kapan bisa makan/ minum. Kolega-kolega saya di kantor sih mengangguk-angguku terkesima. Semoga itu membuka sedikit pikiran mereka bahwa ada contoh muslim yang menjalankan kewajibannya dan tetap open minded dengan segala perbedaan. Karena gimana-gimana saya adalah agen yang bisa membagikan hal-hal baik terhadap sesama.

Perbedaan puasa di Belanda di Indonesia

1. Panjang durasi- 19 jam

2. Ta’jil dn makanan buka yang harus disipakan dan bikin sendiri

3. Nggak ada kue kering! kecuali buat sendiri

4. Azan nggak akan kedengeran (karena disini dilarang) kecuali denger dari Youtube atau dari islamic Finder. Biasanya kita melototin jam kalau udah deket-deket waktu buka

5. Dulu di Indonesia, saat Ramadhan kita semua berlomba-lomba untuk tarawih di masjd. Kalau disini, kecuali mau begadang dan nggak tidur, baru bisa. Karena tarawihnya pukul 12 malam

6. Jarak antara berbuka dan sahur hanya 4 jam

7. Suasana kosong melompong, biasa aja kaya nggak ada apa-apa kecuali tinggal di neighborhood orang Turki atau Maroko

By the way, kemarin saya seneng deh akhirnya tercapai untuk bikin kue kering. Kemarin bikin Nastar dan Putri Salju (dari Resep NCC dan dari resep sahabat saya, Tania). Enakkkkk, tapi cuma bikin setoples dan nggak boleh dimakan sampai Hari Raya. Di sini, ambience Ramadhan dan hari Raya cuma bisa diciptkan sendiri, dan saya bersuka cita sekali melakukannya. Rencananya pengen bawa manis-manis ke kantor hari Kamis nanti untuk berbagi ke mereka dan untuk cerita bahwa saya sukses berpuasa sebulan penuh (minus seminggu). Di Belanda itu sebutan hari Raya adalah Suiker Feest (english: Sugar Festival), so it’s always associated to a day full with sweets, hence the plan. Ah we’ll see!

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Europe Hidup di Belanda Life Netherlands Thoughts

Dutch – Indo Cross Culture

21st December 2015 -

10 min read

Setelah resmi keluar dari pekerjaan, aku punya waktu 2 minggu untuk berlibur sebelum mulai bekerja di TOMS. Aku memutuskan untuk nggak berlibur ke luar negeri, mengingat bulan Februari aku berencana untuk berlibur musim dingin untuk mencari Aurora di Islandia, jadi sekarang waktunya untuk menabung karena katanya Islandia itu mahal banget. Dan juga, di pekerjaan baruku, bulan Januari nanti, ada beberapah hal yang aku harus pelajari untuk menunjukan performa maksimal hihi maklum anak baru. Selain itu juga, aku sedang dalam proses mendapatkan permanen residen di Belanda. Dan step yang harus aku ambil adalah mengambil tes Inburgeren (Bahasa Belanda). Tesku dijadualkan tanggal 8 Januari, jadilah aku harus mempersiapkan tes yang jumlahnya 6 itu.

Jadi ceritanya kemarin aku lagi latihan di website inburgeren.nl. Dan banyak menemukan pertanyaan tentang perbedaan kultur Belanda dan negara asalku. Asik juga kayanya nulis diblog tentang ini.. Terutama buat orang-orang yang berencana tinggal sementara, sekolah atau menetap lama di Belanda. Ini bisa jadi persiapan dan antisipasi untuk cross cultural barrier.

Jadi menurut kesimpulan aku yang sudah beberapa tahun tinggal di Belanda, berikut adalah perbedaan paling menonjol dari kultur budaya Indonesia dan Belanda:

1. Belanda itu tepat waktu. Indonesia suka telat

Indonesia terbiasa dengan orang-orang yang nggak menjaga janjinya. Telat itu adalah sesuatu yang lumrah. Saat sesuatu dianggap normal, maka pada saat itulah perkembangan kultur baru akan melejit. Semua orang akan berpikir, kalau semua telat, kenapa kita harus ontime? Orang jadi meremehkan arti waktu dan jadi memiliki asumsi tertentu kalau acaranya pasti telat, pasti molor dsb. Aku pun juga begitu, karena kalau semua orang terlambat, acaranya pasti molor, dan kalau kita nggak ikut acara sampai selesai, kitu juga ikut rugi. Serba salah yah.. Yang jelas kalau disini, orang sangat menghargai waktu dan semua terencana dengan baik. Aku tidak menyalahkan, mungkin banyak faktor eksternal di Indonesia yang membuat terlambat, seperti macet atau tidak adanya jadwal transportasi publik yang jelas, jadi pada akhirnya semua orang menghadapi masalah yang sama. Sedangkan disini, semuanya tersedia online dan memungkinkan untuk merencakan perjalanan. Mungkin saat Indonesia sudah memiliki ini semua, mentalitas soal waktu juga bisa ikut dibenahi. Mudah2an… Tapi tetep, menurut aku telat itu adalah pilihan, bukan alasan.

2. Belanda itu direct. Indonesia suka ngalor ngidul dan pemalu

Dulu saat pertama kali aku sampai di Belanda, teman satu grup pernah konfrontasi soal kecewanya dia saat aku nggak membela dia di suatu grup diskusi. Saat itu kelihatan dari mimik mukanya kalau dia marah banget. Tapi setelah itu dia baik lagi, mengajak makan bersama di kantin. Aku kaget karena nggak biasa menerima konfrontasi langsung. Bingung harus ngapain. Tapi karena dia santai, aku pun juga santai. Di Belanda, orang akan menyatakan maksudnya pada saat itu juga. Iya iya, enggak enggak. Kalau nggak suka mereka akan bilang, begitupun sebaliknya. Tapi yang aku suka dari mereka, direct-nya mereka nggak menyebabkan fraksi di hubungan profesional atau pertemanan. Nggak ada yang taken personally.. Positifnya dari kebiasaan ini adalah, aku jadi tau secara jelas maunya apa dan harus ekspektasi seperti apa. Juga, aku jadi nggak usah bingung dengan hipokrasi, karena saat mereka bilang A, maksud mereka adalah A, bukan ABCDE…. Saat mereka bilang mau membantu, mereka akan mengerahkan segenap jiwanya untuk membantu. Bukan menawar-nawari dengan setengah hati berharap tawaran bantuannya ditolak, hanya karena menawari adalah hal yang benar haha pengalaman pribadi.

3. Di Belanda, semua orang punya hak dan diperlakukan dengan sama. Di Indonesia, tergantung bawaannya apa

Mau kamu naik mobil, naik sepeda, naik angkot, dll, semua akan diperlakukan sama. Nggak banyak yang namanya kesenjangan sosial disini. Jadi jarang tuh ada orang pamer setelah dia beli tas Hermes atau mobil Lamborghini. Kalaupun mereka punya, mereka akan biasa saja, karena pertemanan atau pemberian servis di toko atau mall tidak didasari dari bagaimana orang berpenampilan dan dari status seseorang tersebut.

4. Di Belanda, cara hidup mereka sangat individual. Di Indonesia, sangat berbasis kekeluargaan dan gotong royong

Orang Asia khususnya indonesia, suka banget sama yang namanya kumpul-kumpul, arisan, makan-makan. Saat kamu tinggal di suatu perumahan di Indonesia, kamu akan mengenal tetangga sekitarmu dan mereka akan dengan senang hati menerima kamu. Itu adalah salah satunya pilihan yang bisa dilakukan dan juga the right thing to do. Di Belanda, mereka punya pilihan untuk terbuka atau tidak. Di Indonesia, saat terjadi sesuatu dengan kita, kita merasa tenang karena orang-orang disekiling sangat ramah dan mengenal kita. Sedangkan di Belanda, orang-orangnya cenderung tertutup dan hanya akan terbuka dengan teman yang sudah dikenalnya lama. Disini kita harus sedikit berhati-hati, karena orang Indonesia cenderung banyak omong dan juga suka berkomentar. Orang-orang bule tidak terlalu mengapresiasi hal ini, apalagi kalau belum dekat.

5. Di Belanda orang-orangnya perhitungan. Di Indonesia sangat royal.

Orang Indonesia menganut faham banyak memberi banyak rejeki. Hal ini juga diajarkan di agama. Sedangkan di Belanda, planning adalah everything, mereka tidak biasa mengeluarkan sesuatu yang tidak terplanning atau untuk sesuatu yang hukumnya nggak wajib. Saat kamu diundang oleh orang Belanda di suatu acara, jangan lupa makan dulu dari rumah, karena mereka biasanya tidak menjamu tamunya dengan makanan. Hanya minuman dan snack ringan. Ada cerita lucu dari kakakku yang diundang ke pernikahan temannya orang Belanda. Untuk kita, pernikahan adalah ajang makan makanan-makanan enak dan gratis. Jadilah, dia berangkat dengan perut kosong. Eh ternyata, di acara pernikahan itu tidak sedikitpun makanan disuguhkan. Hanya minuman keras, soft drink air putih, juga cheese dan olive. HAHAHAH Dan itu saat musim dingin, jadi dia pulang kedinginan dengan perut kosong. Akhirnya besoknya dia masuk angin.

6. Di Belanda, acara ulang tahun, adalah acara untuk menyelamati semua orang dan duduk melingkar. Di Indonesia, acara ulang tahun adalah untuk menjamu tamu undangan

Saat diundang di acara ulang tahun orang Belanda di rumah, kamu harus masuk dan menyelamati semua orang yang ada di rumah itu dengan ucapan ‘gefeliciteerd’. Ini adalah tradisi Belanda. Di dalam rumah akan tersedia kursi-kursi melingkar, minuman, dan juga kacang atau chips. Setelah itu disambut dengan obrolan-obrolan, kemudian pamit pulang. Bosen yah? Sedangkan di Indonesia sebaliknya banget. Ah yaaa, dan di Indonesia saat kamu mengundang orang ke acara ulang tahunmu di luar rumah, maka yang bertanggung jawab membayar adalah orang yang mengundang. Di Belanda, orang yang mengundang atau ulang tahun-lah yang harusnya ditraktir. Lucu ya…

7. Di Belanda, kamu bisa berteman dan hang out bareng dengan bos. Bisa ngomong apa aja ke dia. Di Indonesia boro-boro…

Di Belanda, kamu bisa panggil guru atau bos kamu dengan nama depan mereka. Berpengalaman kerja di Belanda, membuat aku jadi mengerti bahwa hierarki itu hanya struktur organisasi yang nggak membuat kita nggak bisa berteman dengan bos kita. Mereka bukan orang yang suka dipuja-puja, hal yang berkebalikan sekali di Indonesia.

8. Planning is everything, agenda di tangan. Indonesia angin-anginan

Semua orang disini punya agenda di tangan. Jaman sekarang sudah pake ponsel yaaa, jadi nggak perlu buku lagi. Orang Belanda sangat menghargai waktu, jadi mereka membuat rencana hari-harinya dengan baik. Itulah mengapa mereka selalu menepati janji, karena waktu mereka terencana dan dibukukan. Jadi saat mereka membuat janji dengan seseorang, mereka akan cross check dulu dengan agendanya dan tidak ada yang namanya membatalkan di hari yang sama atau 1 jam sebelum ketemu. Jangan kaget kalau buat janji dengan orang Belanda, biasanya mereka sudah memiliki jadwal sebulan atau dua bulan ke depan. Dari sisi ini, aku suka banget, karena aku dasarnya emang perencana, jadi hal ini aku adopsi dengan cukup baik.

9. Di Belanda gift giving bisa menciptakan ketidaknyamanan, di Indonesia gift giving sangat lumrah

Ini terkait lagi dengan orang-orang Indonesia yang suka memberi dan loyal. Dengan atau tanpa tendensi, orang Indonesia suka sekali memberi dan membuat orang lain senang. Seperti contohnya oleh-oleh souvenir yang harus dibawa saat pergi jalan-jalan. Seperti mamaku, semua orang di kompleks harus dapet. Satu sisi, memberi adalah habit yang baik selama itu tidak merepotkanmu sendiri. Lain halnya dengan orang Belanda, aku pernah cuma ngasih teh 1 kotak ke salah satu kolega karena aku tau teh itu baik buat dia yang susah tidur. Dengan sopan dia bilang, terima kasih sekali tapi lain kali jangan membelikan dia apa-apa, karena itu membuat dia nggak nyaman. Uhmm okayyyy.. Orang Belanda akan merasa harus membalas budi jika menerima sesuatu dari orang lain tanpa occasion tertentu (ulang tahun, dll)

Seru banget sih punya pengalaman hidup di 2 negara yang bertolak belakang tapi juga punya banyak keterkaitan. Pikiran aku jadi lebih terbuka dan nggak gampang menghakimi. Dunia ituu kaya bangettt.. Akan sangat baik, jika kita bisa eksplor dan meninggalkan hati di beberapa tempatnya.

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Europe Hidup di Belanda Netherlands

Giethoorn trip – a day before Ibnu going back for good

16th April 2015 -

5 min read

I have always been wanting to go visit Giethoorn. It’s a little village in the province Overijssel, East-Holland. It’s known as the Venice of Holland because of the fact that most of village part is water/lake. There used to be no transportation except boats, and looks like they are trying hard to keep it that way although now of course there are buses which can take us from Steenwijk (nearest big city) to Giethoorn. The disadvantage is that once you miss the bus, you will need to wait for 1 hour. Also, because Netherlands does not have the best climate habit in the whole world, it’s a little tricky to arrange a trip, because in Giethoorn, the nicest way is to rent a boat and ride it along the way under the sunshine while reading a book or even just contemplate. Imagine when it suddenly rains or wind storms, they enjoyment will stop just like a finger snaps.

Anyhow, that day was a really beautiful day, considered as one of the most beautiful day in Holland so far that I decided to take one day off. It is also because coincidentally Ibnu, one of our good friends were leaving to Indonesia for good and he also planned to go to Giethoorn that week. I guess universe really conspires when you really want something. I also brought a long my brother in this little trip, feeling good to enjoy and share happiness.

Thus here we are, in a very beautiful sunny day after travelling for 2.5 hours total. Walking through the canal, and found the second boat-rent we could find (cheaper than the 1st we saw in the entrance). We took the offer for 15 eur per boat/ hour, and we paid 30 eur as we want to chill for 2 hours to go further. Although, we ended up getting lost and near-to-death experience (AGAIN!) but this time I am exaggerated a little bit. It was actually hilarious that keeps cracking me up until this point. Fega was trying to take over the driving seat, of course we wanted everyone to experience the ‘captain’ moment. We just realized that not for once he had any experiences in taking a control of a vehicle, he can’t drive car nor motorcycle, thus he didn’t have the instinct of making the right/smooth maneuver on the lake. Not only that, but it was indeed confusing with the fact that turning right the stir means the opposite of where the engine moves. So couple of times he hit the side walk roughly but graciously, because he was so calm haha we kept on saying right right right, and he turned to left, we said reverse, he turned front (going forward, like stepping on the gas fully). Ibnu who was the frontman was couple of times almost having a heart attack, because the first person got hit will be him. But thank God we’re all okay. And we closed the day by eating a great waffle and dutch pancake.

Below pictures were all taken before the incident happened, happy faces….

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Hidup di Belanda Thoughts

5 Juni – Pesta Demokrasi

6th July 2014 -

5 min read

Akhirnya memutuskan, akhirnya menyatakan ketegasan..

Kemarin di Belanda sudah dilaksanakan pemilihan Presiden, lokasi tepatnya di Kedutaan Besar RI di Den Haag. Saya tebak Pilpres kali ini jauh lebih seru dibanding Pilpres2 yang pernah digelar sebelumnya, karena kuatnya masing2 calon. Tapi saya tidak menyangka, animo masyarakat di luar negeri amatlah luar biasa. Walau ada 2 pilihan cara untuk memilih, dengan surat dan dengan partisipasi langsung ke TPS, pemilih yang datang langsung ke Den Haag sangatlah membludak. Panjang antrean mencapai 400 meter, antre sendiri bisa sampai 3 jam, bahkan ada yang pingsan karena lagi bulan puasa.
Tapi tidak saya dengar sama sekali orang mengeluh dan menyia-akan kesempatan ini dengan balik badan dan pulang. Mereka mengerti di hati yang paling dalam, jika mereka mengambil keputusan itu, tanah air kita bisa jatuh ke seseorang yang menurut mereka tidak pantas. Mereka merasa ini worth the consequences, the effort, and sweats.
Berada di dalam antrian, saya menemukan berbagai macam warna kultur indonesia. Mereka ramai berbisik-bisik menyatakan bahwa ini adalah kali pertama mereka menyumbangkan suaranya untuk pemilihan presiden. Ada yang datang dari Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Eindhoven, benar-benar dari segala penjuru Belanda 🙂 Dan saya pun tersenyum bangga, bahagia, dan penuh harap. Ohya, saya jadi dapat beberapa kenalan baru saat mengantre. Begitulah guyub-nya indonesia, tidak individual dan sangat peduli terhadap siapa pun disekitarnya. Selalu bertegur sapa.. Sayang sekali jika keberagaman ini dibuat menjadi seragam. Tawa canda karena perbedaan itu akan ikut musnah. Kebanggaan indonesia yang berbhineka akan hilang. Mari sama-sama menolak itu… menolak keseragaman.

Kembali ke tingginya animo para penduduk di Belanda yang berkebangsaan Indonesia, bukankah kita semua ingin perubahan dan indonesia lebih baik? Harapan baru itu bukan omong kosong….
Sikap semangat dan tak kenal lelah para pencoblos inilah yang membuktikan dan memecahkan tempurung keputusasaan dalam melihat harapan Indonesia ke depan. Mengapa? Mereka melihat dari calon yang diusung…

Saya bukan orang yang doyan berdiskusi komprehensif mengenai politik, tapi kala ini, saya tidak punya pilihan lain. Saya harus berusaha dan mengerti 2 pilihan yang dijajakan. Hasilnya, menurut pendapat objektif saya, kedua calon pemimpin ini sangatlah kontras. Saya merasa saya berkewajiban untuk menyatakan ketegasan saya karena kekontrasan keduanya terlalu lantang, 1 si pemberi instruksi atau 2 si pengajak kolaborasi.

Dengan ini saya menyatakan pertanggungjawaban atas pilihan saya #akhirnyapilihjokowi
Revolusi mental itu sangat perlu di negara yang sudah hampir kering dihisap oleh benalu penguasa ini (dikutip dari Dewi Lestari).

Saya menangis terharu melihat aksi orang2 yang berasal dari ekonomi bawah mengelu-elukan sosok Jokowi, karena mereka merasa aman dan tentram dipimpin oleh sosok yang berasal dari mereka pula. Sosok sederhana, biasa, yang selalu menyebarkan rasa nyaman kepada yang dibawahinya. Sesosok yang membuat orang-orang seakan faham akan makna revolusi, dia yang teruji dan bekerja, tidak hanya berjanji dan sibuk berkuasa. Walaupun saya berada di luar negeri, saya dengan sangat mudah dan rasa aman memberi amanah kepada Jokowi untuk memperbaiki negeri dan menyongsong indonesia yang lebih baik. Mudah-mudahan!!

Saya menepati janji saya, saya tidak golput jika Jokowi maju menjadi Presiden #salamduajari

Photo live dari TKP

1. Suasana di dalam yang penuh sesak dan pengap, tapi masih bisa mengembangkan senyum

2. Pada saat antre dengan semangat membara untuk memilih (Aqila with her pose choice :P, mbak Iris, mbak Vicka, dan mas Holly)

3. Bukti kami telah menggunakan hak dan kewajiban untuk memilih (dengan kenalan baru yang bertemu di Bus :D)

4. Saya sedang menggendon Medina, bercengkrama dengan beberapa teman lama yang dipertemukan di acara ini. Salah satu cara untuk kill the time dan menikmati antrean puanjaaang. Iya, itu sampai belakang situ..

#untukindonesialebihbaik

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Events Family Hidup di Belanda Milestone Netherlands

Quality weekend with Mom Dad

30th March 2014 -

7 min read

Minggu, 22.57 malam

Seperti biasa, weekend rasanya cepat sekali berlalu.. Sebodohnya ini terdengar, tapi saya pengen begadang sampai besok pagi demi memiliki quality time dengan saya sendiri dan demi punya waktu lebih panjang untuk berwiken. Nggak mau hari seninn.. hikshiks but hey reality strikes and will never experience what I have experienced this week if there is no Monday. *Cheering myself up

Anyway, it has been a good productive week for me and I should be really grateful for that. Hari Selasa, saya dan sahabat-sahabat dekat datang ke konser YUNA. Gosh, it was totally magical as I have been admiring her ever since I discovered her existence in this planet, back on 2010 if I am not mistaken. She has such a pure incredible voice, I guess she was born with such talent. She sings genuinely and what is more important for me is that she speaks her soul out. I consider one to be very lucky to be able to sing out her feeling beautifully.

It is such a great night that I will always remember. Especially, I got the chance to have a little conversation after concert with the star whom I fell in love deeper to due to her humbleness. I am very luckyy!!! Oh, and I got to take a picture together with her.. 🙂 Alhamdulillah

Left to right: Nadya (whom by accident I bumped into), Prita (it was her bday that day), YUNA, me, Alda

ps I held my tears when I was with those people, but when we said goodbye, I cried my heart out like a baby calling my ‘bestfriend’ to tell him how bad I miss him. It is wonderful how such a star could give an influence.

And this weekend is the last weekend my mom and dad will stay. I do not have the time to be sad as I merely want to focus on how to make them enjoy their last days, at least I wanted to take them to places they have never been. Moreover, these last 2 days, the weather has been amazing, temperature is very warm. I am very much grateful for that as it really determines their enjoyment and excitement of them in wandering around hihihihihi

I took them to a petite city nearby the city where I live. It is called Leiden. It is one of the oldest cities in The Netherlands, it is located on the Old Rhine. Back at the 18th century the won the first place as ‘superlative, I forgot what it is’ and offered a huge amount of money, however they were more focused on educating their local people, that’s why they bargained to build the Leiden University instead of having the money, which has become as top 50 university worldwide and took part on creating the first map for colonializing Indonesia. What an ironic story.
It was 20 degrees that day! super amazing.. bought an ice cream for Aqila 🙂 we are all happy nevertheless, although not everything we got to see as we were there already late that the cruise we wanted to ride was already gone. On Sunday, I took them to Amsterdam visiting Rijksmuseum, the first National Historical museum in the Netherlands. It is fulled by paintings of amazing artists, mainly Dutch, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, etc. Surprising thing acquired from this visit is that now I know a lot of arts movement particularly in the Netherlands, was inspired by the Art Nouveau (new art) from France, which was influenced by Japanese, which mainly got an effect from INDONESIAN ART. We’re steps forward back then!
But hey even though nothing is perfect and not everything came as expected, the most essential thing is, we enjoyed and cherish the moment. What’s the meaning of a vacation if we’re rushed by the time, is the journey and the enjoyment that matters.. Every time passes is permanent, why not seize it instead 🙂 Carpe diem.

Dad and Aqila are using the binocular in the middle of a impeccable view between lake and mill

In front of a Dutch typical home, yet it was decorated more in an artsy and colorful way

Spring has sprung.. Such a beautiful color

Me standing with my javanese face among lots of Nias islanders’ faces during colonial period 🙁

My kind of painting, me with Aqila who wanted to stick with her Tante that day

With mommy on NS train towards Amsterdam. Will miss this ‘bawel’ lady 🙁

Us on top of the windmill De Valk, Leiden. Awesome place!

Again, me and Aqila (who keeps being a photobomb in any of the selfies I tried to take that day hehe), this one is inside an old windmill (de Valk) who was built in 1611. The stairs were terrifying, but we (a 4 year old and a pair of 60s people) gratefully made it hihi deg2an pisan euy

Currently enjoying days with loved ones… counting the days before their departure.

Love them! I am happy that I could bring smiles upon their face although just a little 🙂

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