The 8th Wonder

Birthday Bearrito

A Breath of Fresh Air

Midnight Diner

Who Let the Dogs Out?

Cheese Streak, Cheese Party of Fries and Dogstar

Turning Over a New Hijoo Leaf

Live Like a Tourist

Sagaleh Sajo Daulu

Life Is More Bun-Tastic When You're Around

Plant-Based: Tiasa

Freedom Is About Perspective

Noodling All Day with You

Plant-Based: Sprout

Boba Baby

A Moment of Peace in the Storm

 Balkoni

Last weekend my sister and I tried out a new place to eat. We stumbled upon it partially by accident, but it was such a quaint corner that we welcomed it. The place was rather small, but big enough to contain at least 20 people. The interior was very cozy and rustic. The light hits the place just right, especially around the time of our visit. They have such a unique selection of food and beverage too. Personally, I love their pasta dish—particularly the Spaghetti Alfredo. The cream is perfectly measured and matched with the chicken very well. I also tried their Yuzu Iced Tea, while my sister ordered their Es Kopi Gula Aren. Love the taste of both! Not to mention the cute can-like glass that they use for the coffee. I'll most likely come again—at least for the pasta alone. Lastly, let me just say a word or two about this t-shirt I'm rocking. It has Ranma and Akane on the front! A former co-worker of mine got it for me from Japan—although he ended up forcing me to pay for it in the end. Finally, a tee with my first love on it! 

Gifted t-shirt // vintage skirt // old hat + purse // thrifted loafers // photos by my Sis

Lately, I feel like I haven't had the time to really unwind and relax. Caught between my full-time job and other commitments—not to mention bouts of melancholia—I often don't feel like I could indulge myself in my leisurely hobbies anymore. When was even the last time I had 30 minutes to bury myself deep in a book? Honestly, it's crazy when you think about it. Yes, it's as stressful as it sounds.  I think it's partly due to the demands my work entails and partly due to my own negligence towards my own mental health. People don't realise sometimes that it can be quite tricky when you're an ambivert—you both want to constantly stay in people's company, but get absolutely drained when you don't get enough me-time too. Luckily, my partner-in-crime at work—and all of my beautiful, sweet interns—are very helpful and kind, so it lifts my mood a lot. They always become the highlight of my day. No matter how tired and stressful you are, when you can laugh with your friends like this, doesn't that make it worth your while somehow?

Hiding in Plain Sight

 Yamalu

June is almost always a special month for me, because it's the month of the most birthdays in my family—with my Stepmom, sister and brother having their birthdays three days in a row. Last weekend—right after Eid—was their birthdays. We didn't really do much to celebrate, but my siblings and I did nip out for a bit of a chat. My sister and I have been wanting to visit this small café not too far away from where we live. It's a road we often pass by—even as a child on the way to our primary school—so it was kind of surprising to find such a gorgeous, luscious place here. It is like a refreshing corner as a break from the highly congested and polluted city. Absolutely beautiful! The place was pretty packed when we arrived—clearly, I'm not the only one who was thinking of photo op. I can't say they weren't on the pricey side, though, but it's hardly a surprise for a place like this. Although it was their birthdays, I forced my siblings to take my photos—lol sorry and thank you, guys! Read my thorough review here, if you're curious—sorry, Indonesian only.

Vintage dress (from a friend) + purse (hand-me-down) // thrifted loafers // outfit photos by my sis and bro

Can we talk about this outfit for a second, please? I know I rarely talk about my clothes anymore—strange for a fashion blog, huh?—but this is one of the newest additions to my wardrobe. A friend of mine gave it to me one day, although it won't come for free. I still owe my friend for it, making it one of the first items I'm purchasing in two years or so. At first, I wasn't sure I was going to like this piece, but my friend was so kind as to let me try it on before taking it with me. It turns out to fit my figure and complexion rather well—inevitably I fell in love. When I see this dress—or, rather, me in it—I can imagine my Mom rocking this getup too when she was younger. That alone makes me feel much closer to her in it—and probably one of the reasons I ended up holding this number close to my heart. Oh, wow, just listen to me prattle on about a dress! How cliché for a blogger, am I right?

An Oldie but Goodie

 Kedai Kopi Tenong

Yesterday I had a day off work—after staying up all night earlier this week for a corporate event—and decided to use the chance to catch up with one of my buddies. We decided to meet up at this coffee house in the midpoint between both our houses—just so you know, our houses are actually quite far apart. It was one of the first ones to come up when I searched a place to eat in the area, organising it in a ascending order of price range (lol). What I didn't expect was to find such an antique-laden, local-tasting coffee house and/or restaurant—with a pretty good price range too. Fun fact: It derives its name from tiffin boxes—tenong means tiffins in Javanese, apparently. It is adorned with tiffin boxes on pretty much every corner, it's immaculate. There were a lot of vintage motorbikes too—which are just bloody awesome! I absolutely love how they arrange the counter too, really cute and homey-like. I ordered their Nasi Goreng Shirataki Kampung—which consists of rice-substitute made out of tubers—and I think it was rather tasty. I'd like to return again someday.

Thrifted shirt + loafers // Book of Deer dress // outfit photos by Iqbal

Now, about my friend Iqbal. We haven't seen each other in months, so it was really nice to catch up. As is usually the case when I hang out one-on-one with someone, let me sing praises of them. He's starting a new project now and he thought I could probably help him out. In the end, however, he ended up teaching me more about things relating to it (lol). We always have a ton of laughter when we get together—his sense of humour is one of the few that I've always truly enjoyed. Often, however, with friends like this, you never get past the surface; with him, it's different—or maybe it's my age. It was very rejuvenating to be able to have a great balance between comedy and deep, stimulating topics. I feel like Iqbal is a really sincere guy—when he does something, he does it with meaning. It may not always last very long or work out very well, but he rarely half-asses anything. It always makes me want to root for him. So here's for you, buddy! I wish only good things for you.