Time flies so fast!

it has been a month and i miss them :(

"A good friend is hard to find, hard to lose, and impossible to forget..."

Saying good-bye is the hardest word to say. 42days flew so fast!

there are not just friends, but family. we came from different country, with different culture and different language. we met in Lviv, for same the project, live together, to get to know each other, and be tolerant. how lucky i am meet those awesome people here, in Lviv.

I am having a good time with good people, here.

but in every Hellos there will be a Good-bye in the end. i hate to say Good-bye to people that i love the most, i hate to hold the tears and i hate to know that distance is the biggest problem of it now and i hate that can't hug them for the last time in the railway station. it was a saddest goodbye :(

They are who i love the most, and they're who always be with me.

There are some people in life that make you laugh a little louder, smile a little bigger, and just live a little better.

Bruno

My lovely brazilian brother, my savior. Bruno, is the loveliest person i've ever met. he has not a negative thinking to people. he's so lovely, even i ever broke his favorite knife but he never get angry with me. he such a wise person. Bruno likes to fix anything, but he can't fix my broken heart (Bru, i've asked you to fix it. haha) who doesn't loves Bruno? everybody loves him. he knows when i got a bit upset of something, even i didn't say it and even everyone didn't noticed it. he just looked into my eyes and said "laras, are you okay?". oh Bru, i will miss you when we did mimic game and you showed those Nemo face, i will miss you when we sang Spice Girl - Wanna be, i will miss your hug and kiss on my cheek. i love you, Bruuuu! you're my the best brother that i could possibly have. i was lucky to meet you.

Heiki

The meanest person i've ever met! but you're so missable. he love his country so much, Estonia. he didn't like to be a "courtesy" people, he will say what he didn't like. he never get angry, even i ever left him in the club (i know i was so mean to you) and he loves niki! i will miss you when you sang "ice cream and cake and cake" i will miss you when you said "Laras, why you so retarteded??" and i will miss your words "hmmm kinda... a bit" with estonian accent. i love you, Heiki.

Nathalia

My sister, my midnight-chat-partner, my lovely brazilian girl. Nathalia such a wise person. i am lucky for being her friend. she likes to scratch me and it reminds me of my mother. she always hold me when we walked together, because she hates to see me walked so slow and i miss the way she called me "Otak Udang". even she only stayed for 2 weeks in our project, but she will stay forever in my heart. i will miss you, Nathalia.

Money

My chinese Fatherrrrrsh! fist time i saw him, he doens't look like a chinese boy, i thought he was from singapore or something, but he's originally from chinese! i'll always remember when you call my name "laRRRRas" you want to prove that not all chinese people can't pronounce R and your jokes about "i'm hungRRRRRRRy" to imitated you-know-who. i will miss you when you put Fuck in every words and i will miss you when we sang Meteor Garden Soundtrack together! i will missssss youuu, Money!

Aysel

My turkish motherrrrsh! i thought you were a shy girl, but....... i was totally wrong! haha. i remember when you asked to everybody "can we go to the club this weekend?"and it was so funny when you get drunk! you don't even remember that you ate snow. i will miss you when you said ukrainian words with turkish accent, i will miss you when i woke you up and you said "ok, give me 5 minutes to sleep" then you back to sleep again. Ayseeeeeel, we will meet in Istanbul. but i miss you already!!

Orin

I know her for almost 4 years, we attended in the same University, in the same faculty, in the same year but in different class. actually, we're not a close friend in university. but since when we arrived here, everything changed! we always together like everyday, we slept together or even took a shower together and we always share everything. even our parents get to know each other and has a good relationship during our internship. Oring Utan! it was so sad when people had no idea about our jokes, we always laughing like a drunk guy next door. i'm so lucky to have you here.

ok, i'll write in Bahasa Indonesia, because it's hard to explain in English.

senaaaaaang banget gue bisa pergi bareng lo kesini, ngurus ini itu bareng-bareng. sampe ribet bareng-bareng. hampir ketinggalan pesawat gara-gara kebodohan dan kesotoyan gue. hahaha. gue bakal kangen banget ribet-ribet kaya gini. mungkin gue suka bikin lo kesel, tapi yaa gitu deh namanya juga scorpio ketemu sama sagitarius (apa sih) gue bakal kangen AADC sama Eiffel i'm in love. kangen ngobrol ngalor ngidul engga jelas, belanja bareng, fitting baju abis belanja. aaaaah ORIIIIIIN! jangan sombong-sombong yaa abis selesai exchange ini. i love you like a love song, baby!

Chacha

My chacha! .... i started cried when i wrote this part. i remember when i called you Chacha, in the first time i said it you didn't like, because Chacha is the name of georgian vodka (if i'm not mistaken) but today, you love that name that i gave to you! even when you introduced yourself in the opening of language school you said "hello i'm Alexandra, but you can call me Chacha" yes, it sounds better than Shasha right? it will be confusing you when ukrainian people say "what" with "shasha" ehehe

and i remember when you got angry with me and orin because of you had waited us for 30minutes for King Kros! you send this sms "you're lazy interns! i will kick your ass" but, i know you really love us and you can't get angry with us for a long time, right? haha

chacha, i will always remember you. i will miss our gossips time. you will stay in my heart FOREVER! you're my best sister, my best friend. i love you with all my heart! I LOVE YOU VEY VERY VERY MUCH!

Christina

Titinaaaaaaaa, my lovely friend! ... oh i can't hold my tears.

you're the second ukrainian people that i met after Andrew who picked us up at the railway station. Titina, you're the loveliest person i've ever know. i remember when you brought me to High Tower and i felt almost die in that time, because i climbed a hundred stairs after that you brought me to High Castle. why you love to bring people to the highest place??? you're so meaaan!

titinaaaa, i will alwaaays love you! i will miss you, miss you food. miss your flat! miss our gossips time. you told me your secret, and i will keep it until i die. I LOVE YOU, TINKAAAAA!

Danilo

i don't know how to say..... thank you for being my one night movie boy! it was so lovely that we can spent our time together. i love the way you hug me, the way you hold my hands, the way you tell a funny story, the way you play poker, the way you play with Niki, and the way you call me "funny sist". i will miss your silly jokes with and your silly face. i wish i could meet again someday. thank you for sweet memory :)

Friends find the sweetest sense of happiness by simply being together.

(click to play the video)

Goodbyes are not forever, goodbyes are not the end. the simply mean i'll miss you until we meet again! hugs and kisses :)

The Best Valentine's Day Ever!

Valentine's Day, it doesn't mean you have to spend with boyfriend. it's beyond amazingly amazing when you know that you're not perfect, but your students love you perfectly :')

My favorite one, Yura :)

When Your Eyes Meet Mine.

That moment when you look into someone’s eyes and it’s almost as if you’ve been reborn. You suddenly realize that this is the person you’d want to spend the rest of your days with and there can be no other.

that bittersweet feeling of excitement and nervousness makes you weak in the knees, your stomach heavy with butterflies, but bring a smile on your face ear-to-ear. a scary but euphoric feeling, like some kind of drugs.

There are moments where life seems to be amazing but sooner or later things spiral downwards. still, it doesn’t really explain what happiness is, does it? i guess happiness is when your surrounded by people who care about you, doing the things you love, without a care in the world. happiness can be when everything seems to be worth wild, perhaps falling in love has happiness in it, meeting new people, or doing something new? there is no definition to what it really is or how to find it. like everything else happiness comes from your heart. tacky, i know, but it is an emotion that fills your heart with pleasant feeling that you wish you could just bottle up and keep forever. its like a drug that you want to overdose on. sucks that you can’t do that though. happiness comes and goes just like everything else, and when you are truly happy, just hold on to it as long as you can. when things seem down remember how it feels to be happy because sooner or later it will come back and everything will fill your heart again with the happiness that you craved.

:)

Lviv The Little Paris.

I'm so in love with this city. The people, snow, architecture, food, transportation, everything! Too much too tell. i just love being here.

Lviv Chocolate Festival

Welcome to UK.....raine : Here We Are, Lost in Translation.

After 15 hours flew and had good food in plane...

Me and Orin finally landed safely here! semua proses imigrasi alhamdulillah lancar!

WELCOME TO UKRAINE!

First impression pas sampai disini itu, kanget ngeliat bandaranya kok kecil banget, dan yang lebih kagetnya lagi biaya taxi dari airport ke pusat kota itu 250 Hryvnia, 1 Hryvnia itu Rp.1.100. hampir 250rb rupiah untuk bayar taxi. why we didn't take a bus or metro? it becauseeee, bawaan koper yang segede dosa dan angklung. so, mau engga mau we decided to take taxi.

Kesan pertama ngeliat kota Kyiv, ini ibu kota lagi perang apa gimana yah? soalnya bangunan-bangunan di Kyiv ini ajaib-ajaib. bangunan sisa perang Soviet nya banyak yang dibiarin gitu aja dan banyak sekali gedung yang engga teurus disana, sayang perjalanan dari bandara ke kota pemandangannya kurang membuat gue berdecak kagum.

oiya, suhu disana pas kita dateng itu masih +3 tapi dinginnya udah kaya -20 buat gue. dingin banget! bahkan salju pun belum turun disini, tapi dinginnya udah menusuk tulang sampai hati pun ikutan beku.

ha ha

Tujuan pertama kita pas sampai di Kyiv adalah mengunjungi KBRI di Kyiv.

oiya, awalnya kita sempat engga boleh di ijikan menginap karena satu dan lain hal. tapi setelah kita berunding via email akhirnya Pak Bowo, staff KBRI sana mengizinkan kita udah menginap semalam disana sebelum kita pergi ke Lviv besok malam. alhamdulillah, at least kita engga usah nyewa hostel dan luckily, pihak KBRI Ukraine baik-baik.

sesampainya kita di KBRI, ada satpam yang menyambut kita mukanya sih sumeringah melihat kedatangan kita, dia engga ngomong bahasa inggris cuma menggerakan tanggannya seolah-olah meyuruh kita "ayoo sini" pas udah di depan gerbang dia bilang "press 10". gue sama Orin masih cengok liat-liatan, trus dia ngarahin kita ke kode bell di depan pager "ten" dia bilang lagi. trus gue sama Orin langsung pencet angka 10. akhirnya bell bunyi, tapi kok engga ada suara yang keluar. (ini bell semacam di film-film korea)

1 menit berlalu...... engga ada tanggapan. akhirnya kita pencet lagi angka 10 nya.

5 menit berlalu...... masih engga ada yang jawab bell dari dalam. jangan-jangaaaaaan pak Bowo engga nyampein pesan kalau kita mau datang pagi ini ke yang piket! gimana nih?? mati beku diluar.

kita nanya ke si satpam "is Pak Bowo there?" trus si satpam mengangkat bahu seolah-olah bilang "mana gue tau, nyong". mari kita coba lagi... gue pencet lagi angka 10 nya.

......... tetap engga ada yang jawab. matilah, mana si mas satpam engga bisa bahasa inggris, ditanyain malah blah bloh. hampir 15 menit berlalu, kita nungguin pintu pager dibuka. dingin banget angin siang itu. udah pakai baju 4 lapis, celana 2 lapis, boots + gloves dinginnya masih aja nembus ke badan.

ayo, di coba lagi deh pencet bell nya.... semoga kali ini berhasil!

kita pencet lagi angka 10 nya....... dan tiba-tiba.. terdengar suara dari dalam "hallo..."

alhamdulilaaaaah! "bapak, kami mahasiswa dari indonesia Kharisma dan Orin pak".... trus bapaknya cuma bilang "oh dari AIESEC yah? sebentar"

engga lama ninggu akhirnya pintunya dibuka juga. alhamdulillah....

Indonesian Embassy di Ukraine ini menurut gue bagus banget! kantornya minimalis, punya basement, ada liftnya dan ada ruang sebagunanya. ternyata kantor ini baru pindah, kantor yang dulu engga sebesar dan sebagus ini kata beberapa teman yang udah berkunjung ke KBRI sini.

ah senang banget disambut hangat oleh pihak KBRI sini.

Besoknya, kita di ajak jalan sama Pak Bowo untuk beli Tiket ke Lviv, ah sebenarnya masih mau berlama-lama di Kiev, tapi serem kalau tinggal disini. entah kenapa orang disini semuanya pada dingin-dingin. Kita dapat kereta jam 10 malam, dan sampai di Lviv kira-kira jam 6 pagi.

habis dari Tempat pembelian tiket, kita diajak ke supermarket untuk belanja ini itu, karena pak Bowo, mau masakin kita sesuatu.

sesampainya di KBRI, pak Bowo ngebuatin kita ikan goreng dan untungnya gue bawa sambel terasi ke Ukraine. maha dasyat sekali ini sambel. berasa di rumah. ditambah lagi si Orin bawa Rendang dan yang paling penting.... kita makan Nasi disini. alhamdulillah.

lebay sih, padahal baru 2 hari di Ukraine tapi udah kangen aja sama nasi. hihihi

Malemnya, kita dianterin ke Rail Station. gue berasa orang penting disini, didampingin sama 3 orang staff KBRI, Pak Bowo, Pak Rully sama Mas Fachri. sebenernya agak ngeri juga perjalanan menuju Lviv. soalnya menurut cerita senior yang beredar, di dalam kereta itu orang-orangnya suka mabuk dan suka malak. udah jiper duluan kan yah nih gue. tapi pas masuk di dalam kereta ternyata gue sama Orin sekamar sama kakek-kakek paruh baya. alhamdulillah, si kakek juga engga bisa bahasa inggris. bentuk keretanya lucu, semacam kamar gitu. jadi mengingatkan gue sama keretanya Harry Potter.

dan perjalanan 10 jam menuju Lviv dimulai....

THE DAY IS FINALLY COME!

what do you feel when your dreams come true???

finally, after 22 years of waiting the day is finally come! i'm going to Europe today! not that excited, because i'm going to Eastern Europe, which is Ukraine! and i didn't get Schengen Visa, this kinda sad. hehehe

but, i'm so excited to teach and learn about culture. yes, i'm going to teach Junior High School there. i'll teach English and Indonesian culture of course, i bring a set of Angklung then i'll show them how to play it and we're gonna make a little Orchestra there. ihihi.

hah, i feel nervous yet excited.

i can't believe this day will coming, the day that i only have when i start dreaming about Europe and Snow and finally it become truuuue! Alhamdulillah....

it takes like 24 hours from now and i'll be in Ukraine and feel the winter atmosphere! YAY!

2012!

Praise The Lord :')

After 17 days of waiting, my Invitation Letter is finally out todaaaaaaay. i almost teared up when i got it on my email :'''')

Thank you, Ustyna.

Perjalanan masih panjang, ayooo semangaaat!

Waiting For Invitation Letter Take Much Patience.

Enggak ada yang lebih menyebalkan dari pada menunggu revisi Invitation Letter. sebenarnya gue udah dapet Invitation Letter dari pihak AIESEC Ukraine 12 hari setelah gue dinyatakan lolos interview buat mengambil project di Ukraine. 12 hari itu termasuk proses yang sangat cepat untuk sebuah invitation letter, teman gue pernah nunggu selama 1 bulan buat secarik invitation letter. beruntungnya gue cuma butuh waktu 12 hari buat ngedapetin itu, tapi omongan ini keluar sebelum penderitaan dimulai.

Begini ceritanya, Tazky (si agent dari AIESEC bandung yang ngurusin buat kepergian gue exchange) ngirim email ke gue, ternyata itu adalah invitation letter. gue unduh filenya, dengan mimik yang girang banget. gue mikir kalau gue bakalan ngurus visa lebih cepat dari perkiraan gue sebelumnya. this is miracle! sampai akhirnya gue buka file yang abis gue download.

jeng jeng....... nama Orin Octary muncul (orin, dia temen satu fakultas gue yang kebetulan banget dia exchange disatu kota yang sama dengan project yang berbeda di Ukraine)

ah, aman nih Orin udah dapet IL (invitation letter) nya. saatnya gue buka file ke dua.

dan...... jeng...jeng.... nama Orin Octary juga yang muncul tapi kali ini tanggal lahirnya kok tanggal lahir gue "Orin Octary 12/03/89" i smelled something uncool.

dan ternyata benar aja gitu, namanya salah. langsung buru-buru gue online skype buat ngobrol sama pihak Ukraine nya.

gue : "Ustyna (nama si bule Ukraine) i thought you made a mistake on my IL, you wrote a wrong name, you wrote Orin Octary on it."

si Ustyna balesnya lama ajaaaaa yah, jadi geregetan sendiri loh gue. engga lama ngedumel akhirnya dia bales chat gue.

Ustyna : "fuck"

buseeeeet kakak, gue dikatain fuck sama bule, sekali seumur hidup nih dalam sejarah. gue pikir dia marah sama gue gara-gara gue ngomong kaya gini. akhirnya gue langsung ngadu ke agent Tazky.

gue : "Tazkyyyyyy, gue dikatain Fuck dong sama si Ustyna, padahal gue cuma ngasih tau kalau dia salah nulis nama di invitation letter gue"

Tazky : "haaaah? masa? coba sini chat lo copy-paste-in ke gue"

sehabis gue copy-paste-in chat gue ke Tazky.

Tazky : "ini gimana sih lo anak linguistic engga bisa bedain penuturan, ini pragmatic ras! hahaha. si Ustyna engga marah, dia malahan marah sama dirinya sendiri. nanti coba yah gue omongin ke dia"

adeuh deeeuh, dasar bule. bikin panik aja. akhirnya setelah gue ngadu ke Tazky, si Ustyna ngechat gue lagi.

Ustyna : "laras, sorry it's my mistake. i'll fix it soon. i'll sent the IL tomorrow or the day after. you don't have to worry"

nah gitu dong kakak. setelah dia bilang dia mau benerin IL gue. agak lega, cepet ini pikir gue.

Penderitaan belum berakhir pemirsa...

setelah si Ustyna menjanjikan pengiriman IL gue besok atau lusa, gue sebagai orang yang sangat tepat janji pastinya gue tagih dong yah, karena sampai detik ini itu IL belum mampir ke email gue. iya sampai detik ini loh, detik dimana gue nulis blog ini. ini udah hampir 2 minggu gue diiming-imingin kata "you don't have to be worried" yaaa kali deh, Us! gue harus banget apply visa sebelum christmas. karena pas natal orang-orang pada ribet liburan. begitu juga pihak embassy, dan yang paling bikin deg-degan adalah gue harus jalan tanggal 6 Januari. kalau gue apply visa bulan Desember belum tentu visa bisa keluar 2 minggu kan? visa Europe itu terkenal sedikit "menyebalkan". belum lagi gue harus booking ticket, dia enggak tau apa yah ticket pesawat ke Eropa saat peak season menjelang natal dan tahun baru itu harganya ngalah-ngalahin harga motor? entah kenapa, gue bawaannya jadi emosi. kemarin pun gue ninggalin offline messange ke dia bilang "Ustyna, how is the invitation letter? has it done? cus i'm in rush, i have to apply for the visa before 26 of november. because in indonesia kinda difficult to make the visa. thank you, Ustyna.", tapi yang ada chat gue di diemin loh, dan engga ada offline message balesan satupun dari dia.

Dear Ustyna, bete banget loh rasanya nungguin Invitation Letter yang engga dateng-dateng. sama betenya kaya nungguin pangeran kuda putih buat bangunin Snow White yang habis makan apel. eh engga deh, lebih bete nungguin jodoh gue yang engga kunjung datang. loh ini apaan kok jadinya malah curhat? -__-