Calling Muslim ladies in Tokyo and its surrounding areas (including but not limiting to Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa prefectures…)
We are having a Ladies Night in Dar Al Arqam Mosque in Asakusa on the night of Sumidagawa Hanabi Taikai. Yes, I’m referring to the one of the largest firework displays in Tokyo. Yes, the major one which is shown on TV.
It’s happening this Saturday, 29th July. The fireworks start at 7.30 pm, therefore you might want to come before 7.00 p.m. so that we can pray Maghrib together. The ladies will view the hanabi from the rooftop with the kids, while the husbands/male colleagues may view it from the 3rd floor (the mosque floor) or they can go for a walk along Sumida River. Sakurabashi, the bridge where the platform for the fireworks will be erected, is only about 10-15 minutes walk from the mosque.
It’ll be fun, meeting and mixing with Muslims from different backgrounds. It’s a pot-luck thingy, so just bring a plate of food to share. It doesn’t matter if you just bring some 100-yen cookies.
Just come.
How to reach the mosque? Well, take the Ginza line to Asakusa. Then, take the Matsuya/Tobu station exit in Asakusa eki. There’s a bus going to Minami Senju stopping right in front of Matsuya (the depato, not the food stall). Take this bus (fare is 200 yen) and you can either stop at Imado or Higashi Asakusa. If you stop at Imado, turn right as you exit the bus and you’ll see the yellow signboard of Dar Al Arqam Mosque on your left in about 2 minutes time. If you stop at Higashi Asakusa, turn left as you exit the bus and you’ll see the signboard of the mosque after 1.5 minute.
We’ll pray Maghrib at the 2nd Floor and gather at the rooftop after that. Don’t forget to bring your shoes/slippers to the rooftop. I’m thinking of putting on my newly bought yukata that night. Any guests wishing to do the same are most welcomed. Don’t worry too much about what to wear though.
Just come.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Friday, July 21, 2006
Introducing Adan Photo
An old high school classmate is now a wedding photographer and has asked us, his old schoolmates, to spread the word around. So, here I am, doing my part to introduce his photo blog at http://adanphoto.fotopages.com/ and his business homepage at http://www.adan.biz
Some of the shots look pretty amazing. And I've heard that the price is affordable too - RM699 for videography can be considered a bargain judging from the pictures alone...
He might not be Kid Chan or Ikram Ismail (as yet), but his work seems promising. Really.
Some of the shots look pretty amazing. And I've heard that the price is affordable too - RM699 for videography can be considered a bargain judging from the pictures alone...
He might not be Kid Chan or Ikram Ismail (as yet), but his work seems promising. Really.
Thoughts on this and that...
In no particular order...
Mior Atiqulrahman’s case;
Am terribly disturbed by the fact that the judge mentioned Abu Jahal as a yardstick of people wearing the serban knowing fully well that the defendants wore the serban as a sunnah of Rasulullah. Like somebody wrote elsewhere – “serban nabi itu akan digunakan untuk memberi syafaat kepada orang yang kehendakinya di padang mahsyar esok manakala serban Abu Jahal, dimasukkan ke neraka dengan tuannya sekali”
.
Lina Joy’s case:
She and her legal team are being provocative, and they know it. If her case is given the go-ahead, it probably will open a floodgate of people renouncing Islamic faith openly, not limiting to just being part of over 2-meter-high stack of murtad cases pending in Mahkamah Syariah.
Muslim men cheating on their wives:
Jordan of Macvaysia contributed an article worth pondering in Rentakini.
Post World Cup 2006:
Here’s hoping that Zidane would not be stripped of the best player title by FIFA after all.
Hubby is pretty lucky because he married someone who would not fight for the remote to watch something other than a soccer match because I’m a fan of World Cup too. (I once watched a Brazil-England match during World Cup 2002 at the office, just because I could not wait to watch a re-run later on) World Cup has always been a big thing in my family – we would usually hang the World Cup planner courtesy of Berita Harian or Utusan Malaysia on the wall and noted every single match’s point till the end. Of course it’s a lot easier nowadays since we can always refer to the Net for updates, but sometimes, it can be more fun doing it the old style.
This year have seen World Cup allowing Christian to make headlines such as highlighting that the Pope cut short his visit to Spain to watch the World Cup final and his soccer loyalties was questioned when his native Germany lost to the Italians in Dortmund in the semi-finals, not to mention that SAT-7, a Christian satellite network, used the World Cup as a pretext to produce a series of programs about Christian sports heroes, dubbing them into Arabic to air in the Middle East and North Africa.
When I read how over-religious Mullah had asked someone to put down Brazilian flag from his shop’s window in war-torn Iraq and how two innocent men were gunned down in Somalia due to watching the ‘banned’ World Cup – it’s really sad. World Cup could have been a great opportunity to show that Muslims are everywhere and trying their best to achieve peace – like how the the Toure brothers in Ivory Coast team contributed towards stopping the Christian-Muslim conflict in their country. Or that Muslims are present even in European teams, not just in Saudi and Iraq teams, with Franck Ribery (France), Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Rami Shaaban (Sweden), Robin van Persie and Khalid Boulahrouz (Holland). For good measure, maybe people should note that Bruno Metsu and Philippe Troussier – both French, the former, the coach for Senegal while the latter a former coach for Japan – are Muslims too.
Siti and Datuk K:
It’s her life, she’s an adult. If it is a mistake, let her make her own mistake.
Oh, by the way, this song dedicated to Siti and Datuk K is hilarious.
Summer break:
Two more papers to submit next week and then - Natsu Yasumi… Yatta!!!
By the by, yes Yana, with all the flash floods, mud-floods, land erosion and the continuous rain, it certainly doesn’t feel like Natsu after all, kan.
Mior Atiqulrahman’s case;
Am terribly disturbed by the fact that the judge mentioned Abu Jahal as a yardstick of people wearing the serban knowing fully well that the defendants wore the serban as a sunnah of Rasulullah. Like somebody wrote elsewhere – “serban nabi itu akan digunakan untuk memberi syafaat kepada orang yang kehendakinya di padang mahsyar esok manakala serban Abu Jahal, dimasukkan ke neraka dengan tuannya sekali”
.
Lina Joy’s case:
She and her legal team are being provocative, and they know it. If her case is given the go-ahead, it probably will open a floodgate of people renouncing Islamic faith openly, not limiting to just being part of over 2-meter-high stack of murtad cases pending in Mahkamah Syariah.
Muslim men cheating on their wives:
Jordan of Macvaysia contributed an article worth pondering in Rentakini.
Post World Cup 2006:
Here’s hoping that Zidane would not be stripped of the best player title by FIFA after all.
Hubby is pretty lucky because he married someone who would not fight for the remote to watch something other than a soccer match because I’m a fan of World Cup too. (I once watched a Brazil-England match during World Cup 2002 at the office, just because I could not wait to watch a re-run later on) World Cup has always been a big thing in my family – we would usually hang the World Cup planner courtesy of Berita Harian or Utusan Malaysia on the wall and noted every single match’s point till the end. Of course it’s a lot easier nowadays since we can always refer to the Net for updates, but sometimes, it can be more fun doing it the old style.
This year have seen World Cup allowing Christian to make headlines such as highlighting that the Pope cut short his visit to Spain to watch the World Cup final and his soccer loyalties was questioned when his native Germany lost to the Italians in Dortmund in the semi-finals, not to mention that SAT-7, a Christian satellite network, used the World Cup as a pretext to produce a series of programs about Christian sports heroes, dubbing them into Arabic to air in the Middle East and North Africa.
When I read how over-religious Mullah had asked someone to put down Brazilian flag from his shop’s window in war-torn Iraq and how two innocent men were gunned down in Somalia due to watching the ‘banned’ World Cup – it’s really sad. World Cup could have been a great opportunity to show that Muslims are everywhere and trying their best to achieve peace – like how the the Toure brothers in Ivory Coast team contributed towards stopping the Christian-Muslim conflict in their country. Or that Muslims are present even in European teams, not just in Saudi and Iraq teams, with Franck Ribery (France), Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Rami Shaaban (Sweden), Robin van Persie and Khalid Boulahrouz (Holland). For good measure, maybe people should note that Bruno Metsu and Philippe Troussier – both French, the former, the coach for Senegal while the latter a former coach for Japan – are Muslims too.
Siti and Datuk K:
It’s her life, she’s an adult. If it is a mistake, let her make her own mistake.
Oh, by the way, this song dedicated to Siti and Datuk K is hilarious.
Summer break:
Two more papers to submit next week and then - Natsu Yasumi… Yatta!!!
By the by, yes Yana, with all the flash floods, mud-floods, land erosion and the continuous rain, it certainly doesn’t feel like Natsu after all, kan.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Umi No Hi
"A mountain is composed of tiny grains of earth. The ocean is made up of tiny drops of water. Even so, life is but an endless series of little details, actions, speeches, and thoughts. And the consequences whether good or bad of even the least of them are far-reaching."
-Anonymous
It's public holiday in Japan today - umi no hi. "Hari Laut" in Bahasa. Wikipedia refers to it as Marine day, probably because Ocean Day or Sea's Day doesn't sound as good.
Below are some shots taken at the not-so-beautiful Kannonzaki beach in Kanagawa prefecture which we visited during Golden Week holiday last May.
By the by, there's this one nasyid, Secerah Pawana, that keeps playing in my mind whenever I visit a beach. Probably because it began with the sound of waves crashing on the shore. It's an old nasyid, sung by The Zikr, the group which later became known as Raihan. This was back in the days when they were still donning big serbans, colorful jubah and wore celak on their album cover, when the album itself could be bought for less than RM10. Mestica includes a new version of Secerah Pawana in their Layar Keinsafan album, but I still prefer the one done by The Zikr.
-Anonymous
It's public holiday in Japan today - umi no hi. "Hari Laut" in Bahasa. Wikipedia refers to it as Marine day, probably because Ocean Day or Sea's Day doesn't sound as good.
Below are some shots taken at the not-so-beautiful Kannonzaki beach in Kanagawa prefecture which we visited during Golden Week holiday last May.
By the by, there's this one nasyid, Secerah Pawana, that keeps playing in my mind whenever I visit a beach. Probably because it began with the sound of waves crashing on the shore. It's an old nasyid, sung by The Zikr, the group which later became known as Raihan. This was back in the days when they were still donning big serbans, colorful jubah and wore celak on their album cover, when the album itself could be bought for less than RM10. Mestica includes a new version of Secerah Pawana in their Layar Keinsafan album, but I still prefer the one done by The Zikr.
Secerah Pawana
Seindah sedamai pantai melambai gemalai
begitulah hati merindu kasih yang padu
bagaikan pepasir basah disimbah lautan
begitulah perjuangan ini
biar basah dengan iman dan ukhuwwah
kita ingin segalanya indah
sebersih pasir pantai memutih
seindah dan secerah pawana
berseri ukhuwwah dipupuk kasih
kita ingin segala terlerai
dengki dan dendam kesumat musnah
biar keikhlasan berbicara
di dada hati luas saujana
Seindah sedamai pantai melambai gemalai
begitulah hati merindu kasih yang padu
bagaikan pepasir basah di simbah lautan
begitulah perjuangan ini
biar basah dengan iman dan ukhuwwah
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Women are like apples on a tree
Yet another lame e-mail spin- off entry. Jaja, this one is especially for you.
Women are like apples on a tree.
The best ones are at the top of the tree. Most men don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt. Instead, they just get the rotten apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy...
So the apples at the top think something is wrong with them, when in reality, they're amazing. They just have to wait for the right person to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree.
Women are like apples on a tree.
The best ones are at the top of the tree. Most men don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt. Instead, they just get the rotten apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy...
So the apples at the top think something is wrong with them, when in reality, they're amazing. They just have to wait for the right person to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Tanabata and Chugen
Huzaifah turned 10 month old on Saturday, so hubby decided to spend the whole day sightseeing and cancelled his Quran class. It so happened that Rika-san, the mother of the three kids was not well, so she received the news rather gladly.
Went to Shimbashi and bought one-day ticket for Yurikamome line, which had always reminded me of Putra LRT, except that they still have lots of seats in Yurikamome trains. First we went to Kokusaitenjijo-seimon. A lot of people were there to attend the Tokyo International Book Fair 2006 – incorporating, among others, Digital Fair, Gifts and Variety Fair and Education Book Fair. Unlike KL International Book Fair with no entrance fee, there’s an entrance fee of 1200 yen each for those who came to Tokyo International Book Fair without any invitation. Everyone is duly registered, by completing a long registration form and attaching 2 business cards. No, one does not have to be an executive to have a business card here since even housewives in Japan carry their meishi (business cards) in their purses. Many students in Waseda have business cards too, often self-made and printed by computer printers, rather than being made by a proper business-card printer.
Anyway, we only discovered that we needed to pay and submit our business card (non-existent at the moment) only after we had walked all the way to the halls where the exhibition was held, and since I was only hoping for a glance at the books with no intention of buying anything, we decided not to go inside after all. Anyway, we saw lots of people carrying goodie bags, but many of them were busy disposing a lot of brochures and pamphlets at the entrance, perhaps unwilling to carry unnecessary ‘garbage’ all the way back home (probably by train or other public transports.)
Prior to that, we went to Panasonic Center, the place where Panasonic showcases their latest products as well as educating the public on their innovations and their contributions towards maintaining a sustainable environment. I liked it. Hubby enjoyed it. Even Huzaifah was not easily bored since they had lots of different areas with different features and displays. We also happened to be there on the first day Panasonic decided to distribute some souvenirs of the Osaka Gamba, a soccer club receiving their sponsorship. So, after completing stamp marking the three forms at 4 different areas of the 2-floor hall, we went to claim our souvenirs. The muffler and the t-shirt looked pretty cool, but we only managed to get two note-books and a lousy eraser.
In conjunction with Tanabata, there were assistants in traditional yukata, distributing papers to be hung as both decorations and wishes on bamboo trees on the far-end corner of the spacious building. Tanabata, a celebration which originated from China, is supposed to be one of the most romantic days celebrated in Japan, and according to my Nihongo sensei, due to its history, in the old days, people used to hope for romantic wishy-washy stuff on Tanabata. Nowadays, the wishes written on paper strips hung on bamboo trees are for various purposes – safety, health, wealth, promotion, being accepted by university – to name a few. Kindergarten kids who were there were encouraged to make various decorations, with all the necessities – papers of various colors and sizes, glue, scissors, wet tissue, tissue – being provided. Mothers assisted and waited patiently by their children as they earnestly worked on their very own Tanabata decoration project.
We were keener on seizing the opportunity to take photos with the colorful oh-so-Japanese-scenic background. We even had two photo postcards printed there courtesy of Panasonic – and I really love the one with two Nihonjin girls in yukata, with me holding Huzaifah on the center making peace sign a’la Nihonjin pose. (Seriously – in Japan, people of all ages - from kindergarten kids to grandpa - just love making peace sign while posing for the camera). Too bad hubby didn’t snap that pose on our own camera.
From Kokusai Tenjijo, we went to Daiba, to Shell Museum. No, it is not a museum featuring sea shells, rather it features Shell-Ferrari F1 collaboration. It was closed on Saturdays (open everyday but Saturdays. Duh!), so we just took some pictures of what was visible – pictures on the wall, Schumacher’s hand prints, bridgestone tyre used at one of the F1 races in 2004, etc. No F1 racing car though on display though – that’s reserved only when the museum-café is open. Hubby was so engrossed in taking photos that he didn’t realize that he already went beyond the allowed area and set off the sensor alarm. An elderly Nihonjin Pak Guard on duty came to check what had set off the alarm and when he saw we were snapping some photos, politely advised us to be careful since the sensors in the area were rather sensitive. I was a bit embarrassed – yelah, baru gambar kadbod Schumacher je, bukannya dengan Schumacher in person pun dah excited tangkap gambar sampai bunyi alarm, heheheh…
Aqua City was our last stop, stopping at Deck’s on our way there. Many shops were having summer sale – Gap, Comme Ca Ism, Next - to name a few. No, I am not a brand conscious person, but if I can get a 600 or 900 yen items for Huzaifah at branded stores while they are on sale, I wouldn’t mind buying them compared to paying the same amount for items with questionable quality elsewhere.
We returned at dusk, bidding farewell to the Odaiba’s Statue of Liberty and the colorful nicely lighted-up boats with lighted-up Rainbow Bridge in the background. Our feet ached from all the walking we did, but all in all, I would say that we had fun. Even Huzaifah seemed to enjoy his day out very much.
Oh, by the by, I managed to snap some photos of summer gifts, also known as chugen, or mid-year gift. Wikipedia said that it's celebrated on July 15th, but I have been told that it started as early as late June and ends as late as early August. There’s a Japanese saying that claims “siblings are the beginning of strangers”, thus an anthropologist professor of mine claimed that, the chugen gift custom is a chance for people to make up for not meeting or calling relatives and friends often, yet still maintaining good relationship with them. A Nihonjin friend offered a simpler reason though – since summer is always blazing hot, everybody just gives everybody else some gifts to cool each other down. Yeah, that’s why a lot of Nihonjin send fruits, soft drinks, tea leaves and instant coffee powder in nicely decorated boxes as chugen gift. Sometimes they even send cooking oil as chugen gift – to fry tempuras or prepare yakisoba to be consumed together with cold drinks.
I was thinking of sending a gift to Kawaguchi sensei who wrote the recommendation letter for my Waseda application. However, since chugen gift receiver usually feels obliged to give something in return to the sender, chugen might not be the best time for me to send a gift to Kawaguchi sensei. Hmm, maybe I should get something from Malaysia as a simple thank-you gift. But what should I get him, huh?
Went to Shimbashi and bought one-day ticket for Yurikamome line, which had always reminded me of Putra LRT, except that they still have lots of seats in Yurikamome trains. First we went to Kokusaitenjijo-seimon. A lot of people were there to attend the Tokyo International Book Fair 2006 – incorporating, among others, Digital Fair, Gifts and Variety Fair and Education Book Fair. Unlike KL International Book Fair with no entrance fee, there’s an entrance fee of 1200 yen each for those who came to Tokyo International Book Fair without any invitation. Everyone is duly registered, by completing a long registration form and attaching 2 business cards. No, one does not have to be an executive to have a business card here since even housewives in Japan carry their meishi (business cards) in their purses. Many students in Waseda have business cards too, often self-made and printed by computer printers, rather than being made by a proper business-card printer.
Anyway, we only discovered that we needed to pay and submit our business card (non-existent at the moment) only after we had walked all the way to the halls where the exhibition was held, and since I was only hoping for a glance at the books with no intention of buying anything, we decided not to go inside after all. Anyway, we saw lots of people carrying goodie bags, but many of them were busy disposing a lot of brochures and pamphlets at the entrance, perhaps unwilling to carry unnecessary ‘garbage’ all the way back home (probably by train or other public transports.)
Prior to that, we went to Panasonic Center, the place where Panasonic showcases their latest products as well as educating the public on their innovations and their contributions towards maintaining a sustainable environment. I liked it. Hubby enjoyed it. Even Huzaifah was not easily bored since they had lots of different areas with different features and displays. We also happened to be there on the first day Panasonic decided to distribute some souvenirs of the Osaka Gamba, a soccer club receiving their sponsorship. So, after completing stamp marking the three forms at 4 different areas of the 2-floor hall, we went to claim our souvenirs. The muffler and the t-shirt looked pretty cool, but we only managed to get two note-books and a lousy eraser.
In conjunction with Tanabata, there were assistants in traditional yukata, distributing papers to be hung as both decorations and wishes on bamboo trees on the far-end corner of the spacious building. Tanabata, a celebration which originated from China, is supposed to be one of the most romantic days celebrated in Japan, and according to my Nihongo sensei, due to its history, in the old days, people used to hope for romantic wishy-washy stuff on Tanabata. Nowadays, the wishes written on paper strips hung on bamboo trees are for various purposes – safety, health, wealth, promotion, being accepted by university – to name a few. Kindergarten kids who were there were encouraged to make various decorations, with all the necessities – papers of various colors and sizes, glue, scissors, wet tissue, tissue – being provided. Mothers assisted and waited patiently by their children as they earnestly worked on their very own Tanabata decoration project.
We were keener on seizing the opportunity to take photos with the colorful oh-so-Japanese-scenic background. We even had two photo postcards printed there courtesy of Panasonic – and I really love the one with two Nihonjin girls in yukata, with me holding Huzaifah on the center making peace sign a’la Nihonjin pose. (Seriously – in Japan, people of all ages - from kindergarten kids to grandpa - just love making peace sign while posing for the camera). Too bad hubby didn’t snap that pose on our own camera.
From Kokusai Tenjijo, we went to Daiba, to Shell Museum. No, it is not a museum featuring sea shells, rather it features Shell-Ferrari F1 collaboration. It was closed on Saturdays (open everyday but Saturdays. Duh!), so we just took some pictures of what was visible – pictures on the wall, Schumacher’s hand prints, bridgestone tyre used at one of the F1 races in 2004, etc. No F1 racing car though on display though – that’s reserved only when the museum-café is open. Hubby was so engrossed in taking photos that he didn’t realize that he already went beyond the allowed area and set off the sensor alarm. An elderly Nihonjin Pak Guard on duty came to check what had set off the alarm and when he saw we were snapping some photos, politely advised us to be careful since the sensors in the area were rather sensitive. I was a bit embarrassed – yelah, baru gambar kadbod Schumacher je, bukannya dengan Schumacher in person pun dah excited tangkap gambar sampai bunyi alarm, heheheh…
Aqua City was our last stop, stopping at Deck’s on our way there. Many shops were having summer sale – Gap, Comme Ca Ism, Next - to name a few. No, I am not a brand conscious person, but if I can get a 600 or 900 yen items for Huzaifah at branded stores while they are on sale, I wouldn’t mind buying them compared to paying the same amount for items with questionable quality elsewhere.
We returned at dusk, bidding farewell to the Odaiba’s Statue of Liberty and the colorful nicely lighted-up boats with lighted-up Rainbow Bridge in the background. Our feet ached from all the walking we did, but all in all, I would say that we had fun. Even Huzaifah seemed to enjoy his day out very much.
Oh, by the by, I managed to snap some photos of summer gifts, also known as chugen, or mid-year gift. Wikipedia said that it's celebrated on July 15th, but I have been told that it started as early as late June and ends as late as early August. There’s a Japanese saying that claims “siblings are the beginning of strangers”, thus an anthropologist professor of mine claimed that, the chugen gift custom is a chance for people to make up for not meeting or calling relatives and friends often, yet still maintaining good relationship with them. A Nihonjin friend offered a simpler reason though – since summer is always blazing hot, everybody just gives everybody else some gifts to cool each other down. Yeah, that’s why a lot of Nihonjin send fruits, soft drinks, tea leaves and instant coffee powder in nicely decorated boxes as chugen gift. Sometimes they even send cooking oil as chugen gift – to fry tempuras or prepare yakisoba to be consumed together with cold drinks.
I was thinking of sending a gift to Kawaguchi sensei who wrote the recommendation letter for my Waseda application. However, since chugen gift receiver usually feels obliged to give something in return to the sender, chugen might not be the best time for me to send a gift to Kawaguchi sensei. Hmm, maybe I should get something from Malaysia as a simple thank-you gift. But what should I get him, huh?
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Isn't that a blessing?
Dear Kakaq and Ahkak,
Went to UniQlo last week and one nice olive fitting t-shirt in the sale bin caught my attention. Its caption reads:
“I have a glorious life. I can do anything I want, go
where I want, be alone if I want, travel if I want
and sometimes I don’t want anything
Now isn’t that a blessing?”
I found it kawaii just like the two prayers.
While I know it doesn’t apply to me anymore (what with a 10-month-old baby who is going through a rather critical stage of separation anxiety – nak pergi tandas pun punyalah susah),
I bought it anyway.
Went to UniQlo last week and one nice olive fitting t-shirt in the sale bin caught my attention. Its caption reads:
“I have a glorious life. I can do anything I want, go
where I want, be alone if I want, travel if I want
and sometimes I don’t want anything
Now isn’t that a blessing?”
I found it kawaii just like the two prayers.
While I know it doesn’t apply to me anymore (what with a 10-month-old baby who is going through a rather critical stage of separation anxiety – nak pergi tandas pun punyalah susah),
I bought it anyway.
Friday, July 07, 2006
Re: A Request - Denied
Assalamu Alaikum.
I am muslim.I was eagerly looking for a japanese muslimah.I did complete my Masters in Computer Science and just join in a company. I have found japanese people arevery polite and they have a very good hospitality.Sometimes I feel very sad why they still do not enter in Islam. Itwould be very great for them. In world japanese products are very famous and japanese people are doing hard to supply the good items. But why they are not receiving the most essential thing (ISLAM)??
Secondly, i have found many times converted muslimsare more pious than by born muslims. So, I am lookingfor japanese converted muslimah for my life partner.Would you please help me in this purpose...
May Allah bless you. Allah Hafiz
#####
Dear Brother B,
If you are interested in finding a Japanese Muslimah to be your life partner, I may not be the best person to introduce you to one. Honestly, I have never been quite successful in matchmaking people. More importantly I would NEVER introduce some stranger to a worthy colleague of mine . You might have a Masters degree, a good job and maybe even not bad looking – but this thing called ‘life partnership’ is not just about the above-mentioned. There’s this thing called ‘personality’, and there’s another thing called ‘compatability’ and yes, there’s also that thing called ‘the One factors’.
Personality includes traits such as kindness, honesty, trustworthiness, understanding, caring blah blah blah. Compatibility is where one looks at the chances of two being able to pull it through as a couple – their similar or differing opinions in outlook of life, hobbies, financial standing, family background, blah blah blah. As for “the One factors”, they differs for different individuals – but these are the major criteria they look for in their partner. Some may look for high education, good pay and good look while others look for charisma and a good sense of humor, while there are yet who simply look for a "good, religious person", whatever that may entails.
After having listened to horror stories of foreigner husbands – I’m sorry, but this is what I’ve gathered so far - mostly of Pakistani origin, I’m definitely not keen on introducing yet another to an innocent Japanese muslimah. What if you are just interested in marrying a Japanese to ensure you get spousal visa? What if you are just interested in marrying a Japanese for financial gains? What guarantees can you give that you are sincere in marrying a new revert? That once married, you will never abandon her, instead, love her with all your heart and soul and take good care of her until death do you part? I don't know you and therefore I'm not going to take any uncalculated risk...
Yes, I agree that there are many muslim reverts who more pious than born muslims. That’s why it’s scary sometimes to think how many born muslims have spoiled the chances of nurturing another good muslim by not properly educating nor setting good examples for their muslim-revert partners. What guarantee can you give that you will not fall into the same category with other born muslims I have seen who has not taken up the responsibility to educate their wife themselves, or to at least send their wife for proper education in Islam?
I am sure you have met many Pakistani friends here who have married Japanese muslimah. Perhaps you stand a better chance to seek a single Japanese muslimah through your connection with them. If you are indeed sincere in building up a life with a pious Japanese muslimah in this country, I wish you all the best and may Allah guide you and bless you in your endeavor. (Otherwise, I pray that Allah protect all single Japanese muslimah from any potential hazards)
Yours sincerely,
A.Z. Haida
I am muslim.I was eagerly looking for a japanese muslimah.I did complete my Masters in Computer Science and just join in a company. I have found japanese people arevery polite and they have a very good hospitality.Sometimes I feel very sad why they still do not enter in Islam. Itwould be very great for them. In world japanese products are very famous and japanese people are doing hard to supply the good items. But why they are not receiving the most essential thing (ISLAM)??
Secondly, i have found many times converted muslimsare more pious than by born muslims. So, I am lookingfor japanese converted muslimah for my life partner.Would you please help me in this purpose...
May Allah bless you. Allah Hafiz
#####
Dear Brother B,
If you are interested in finding a Japanese Muslimah to be your life partner, I may not be the best person to introduce you to one. Honestly, I have never been quite successful in matchmaking people. More importantly I would NEVER introduce some stranger to a worthy colleague of mine . You might have a Masters degree, a good job and maybe even not bad looking – but this thing called ‘life partnership’ is not just about the above-mentioned. There’s this thing called ‘personality’, and there’s another thing called ‘compatability’ and yes, there’s also that thing called ‘the One factors’.
Personality includes traits such as kindness, honesty, trustworthiness, understanding, caring blah blah blah. Compatibility is where one looks at the chances of two being able to pull it through as a couple – their similar or differing opinions in outlook of life, hobbies, financial standing, family background, blah blah blah. As for “the One factors”, they differs for different individuals – but these are the major criteria they look for in their partner. Some may look for high education, good pay and good look while others look for charisma and a good sense of humor, while there are yet who simply look for a "good, religious person", whatever that may entails.
After having listened to horror stories of foreigner husbands – I’m sorry, but this is what I’ve gathered so far - mostly of Pakistani origin, I’m definitely not keen on introducing yet another to an innocent Japanese muslimah. What if you are just interested in marrying a Japanese to ensure you get spousal visa? What if you are just interested in marrying a Japanese for financial gains? What guarantees can you give that you are sincere in marrying a new revert? That once married, you will never abandon her, instead, love her with all your heart and soul and take good care of her until death do you part? I don't know you and therefore I'm not going to take any uncalculated risk...
Yes, I agree that there are many muslim reverts who more pious than born muslims. That’s why it’s scary sometimes to think how many born muslims have spoiled the chances of nurturing another good muslim by not properly educating nor setting good examples for their muslim-revert partners. What guarantee can you give that you will not fall into the same category with other born muslims I have seen who has not taken up the responsibility to educate their wife themselves, or to at least send their wife for proper education in Islam?
I am sure you have met many Pakistani friends here who have married Japanese muslimah. Perhaps you stand a better chance to seek a single Japanese muslimah through your connection with them. If you are indeed sincere in building up a life with a pious Japanese muslimah in this country, I wish you all the best and may Allah guide you and bless you in your endeavor. (Otherwise, I pray that Allah protect all single Japanese muslimah from any potential hazards)
Yours sincerely,
A.Z. Haida
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
One quiet mosque
“Jom solat kat bawah” means hubby wants me to join him two floors below, praying at the mosque. He seldom gets any makmum on working days. Normally there’s an Indonesian who prays Zohor and Asar here and, there’s a Pakistani at Isyak. That’s it – a total of two makmums in a day, sometimes just one, if one of them doesn't show up.
This mosque is nothing like a typical mosque in Malaysia. I mean, seriously, can anyone name a mosque in Malaysia which is located opposite a Sports Toto shop? As for us, we are getting used to seeing the long queues of obaachan and ojiichan buying Loto lottery ticket at the stall right in front of the mosque.
The jumu’ah prayer normally has less than 40 male makmums, but then, this part of Tokyo is not exactly buzzing with people. Asakusa is rather secluded, filled up with mostly elderly, living on their own, because it’s not customary anymore for the elderly to be looked after by their children. Note that I used ‘elderly’, not ‘old’ because in Japan, people neither get ‘old’ nor ‘fat’. Hence it’s normal to find obaachan (grandma), errr, I mean obachan (auntie), who dyed their hair garish purple, refusing to sit when a younger one offer his or her seat on the train for them. They try their best not to look frail in any way - 'nicely' made-up with thick layer of foundation and bright lipstick, wearing a'la Sophia Loren sunglasses with blouses and matching jackets that screamed ‘custom-made’. Even if they have to ride a tricycle instead of a bicycle, no they don’t exactly look ‘frail’.
Anyway, back to the mosque.
Did I mention that we receive weekly female congregation for jumu’ah? Oh yes, we do. New muslim sisters normally used to go to their jinja (shrine) to pray. Or even when they are at home, they used to have a special area for ‘spiritual’ activities. And since modern Japanese are not usually very 'spiritual', that means they are not used to praying often. The concept that one can pray anywhere, any place, at specific times day in day out used to be a foreign concept to them when they first discovered Islam. Some of them find it difficult to pray five times a day alone at home, so they make it a habit to at least come and pray once a week at the mosque. Of course, some of the sisters who attend the jumu’ah prayer do pray five times a day at their home, but at least for those who need morale support, this is where they come to every week.
Wassim, the Pakistani guy who tries to be at the mosque for Isyak daily, once told hubby that this mosque used to be rather popular about five or six years ago, but things changed drastically after September 11. Taking their cue from their ‘big brother’ in the US, the police in Japan raised their alert for any sign of ‘Muslim terrorists’ hiding in Japan. That meant increased police patrol near mosques areas. And a lot of people going to the mosques were stopped, their Alien Card checked and rechecked. Some were detained for further questioning upon finding that they had overstayed, others were simply harrased for simple stuff such as the ownership of their bikes (which they received from their friends who had left Japan, and thus they were not the ‘legal’ owner of the bike as recognized by the Japanese law).
The mosque used to have people coming from as far as Kita Senju, two towns away from Higashi Asakusa. But after September 11, after being subject to close scrutiny of policemen from the nearby Koban (police kiosk), people stopped coming ever since.
Hubby is trying to figure out how to imarahkan this mosque once again. Instead of going to Gyotoku, he’s thinking of holding a biweekly Islamic discussion (not limited to Fardhu Ain stuff only) here in this mosque. Yet at the same time he’s worried that people might not come since Asakusa is a bit remote. He’s been trying to invite others to make use of the BBQ facility at this mosque’s rooftop. He’s been trying to promote the usage of this mosque for any gathering or Islamic discussion, but has yet to receive any favorable response.
This is definitely one quiet mosque.
This mosque is nothing like a typical mosque in Malaysia. I mean, seriously, can anyone name a mosque in Malaysia which is located opposite a Sports Toto shop? As for us, we are getting used to seeing the long queues of obaachan and ojiichan buying Loto lottery ticket at the stall right in front of the mosque.
The jumu’ah prayer normally has less than 40 male makmums, but then, this part of Tokyo is not exactly buzzing with people. Asakusa is rather secluded, filled up with mostly elderly, living on their own, because it’s not customary anymore for the elderly to be looked after by their children. Note that I used ‘elderly’, not ‘old’ because in Japan, people neither get ‘old’ nor ‘fat’. Hence it’s normal to find obaachan (grandma), errr, I mean obachan (auntie), who dyed their hair garish purple, refusing to sit when a younger one offer his or her seat on the train for them. They try their best not to look frail in any way - 'nicely' made-up with thick layer of foundation and bright lipstick, wearing a'la Sophia Loren sunglasses with blouses and matching jackets that screamed ‘custom-made’. Even if they have to ride a tricycle instead of a bicycle, no they don’t exactly look ‘frail’.
Anyway, back to the mosque.
Did I mention that we receive weekly female congregation for jumu’ah? Oh yes, we do. New muslim sisters normally used to go to their jinja (shrine) to pray. Or even when they are at home, they used to have a special area for ‘spiritual’ activities. And since modern Japanese are not usually very 'spiritual', that means they are not used to praying often. The concept that one can pray anywhere, any place, at specific times day in day out used to be a foreign concept to them when they first discovered Islam. Some of them find it difficult to pray five times a day alone at home, so they make it a habit to at least come and pray once a week at the mosque. Of course, some of the sisters who attend the jumu’ah prayer do pray five times a day at their home, but at least for those who need morale support, this is where they come to every week.
Wassim, the Pakistani guy who tries to be at the mosque for Isyak daily, once told hubby that this mosque used to be rather popular about five or six years ago, but things changed drastically after September 11. Taking their cue from their ‘big brother’ in the US, the police in Japan raised their alert for any sign of ‘Muslim terrorists’ hiding in Japan. That meant increased police patrol near mosques areas. And a lot of people going to the mosques were stopped, their Alien Card checked and rechecked. Some were detained for further questioning upon finding that they had overstayed, others were simply harrased for simple stuff such as the ownership of their bikes (which they received from their friends who had left Japan, and thus they were not the ‘legal’ owner of the bike as recognized by the Japanese law).
The mosque used to have people coming from as far as Kita Senju, two towns away from Higashi Asakusa. But after September 11, after being subject to close scrutiny of policemen from the nearby Koban (police kiosk), people stopped coming ever since.
Hubby is trying to figure out how to imarahkan this mosque once again. Instead of going to Gyotoku, he’s thinking of holding a biweekly Islamic discussion (not limited to Fardhu Ain stuff only) here in this mosque. Yet at the same time he’s worried that people might not come since Asakusa is a bit remote. He’s been trying to invite others to make use of the BBQ facility at this mosque’s rooftop. He’s been trying to promote the usage of this mosque for any gathering or Islamic discussion, but has yet to receive any favorable response.
This is definitely one quiet mosque.
Monday, July 03, 2006
High Tea in Hilton
Kamarol called me Saturday at around noon, “Jom, pegi high tea kat Hilton, aku belanja.”
I just laughed at his feeble attempt of trick, since I was aware that the Malaysian Embassy would be organizing one such function in conjunction with a Minister’s visit. Kamarol was invited by Nafisah, the girl in charge of Human Resources at the Embassy, who asked him to invite others as well since there were still vacancies for the tables booked at the hotel.
Consulted hubby and he said ok. “Jumpa pukul 4.30 kat lobby Hilton. Jangan lewat. Jangan Menteri lak yang tunggu engkau,” Kamarol warned.
The thing is, I have known about this high-tea some time ago, but was not initially interested in joining because of two reasons – one, reluctance to bring Huzaifah to such function; two, because hubby has to teach some kids at 3.00 p.m, which normally ends at 4.00 p.m., and so I was worried that we might not be able to be there in time.
Just then, the mother of the hubby’s Pakistani-Nihonjin students called us, saying that she would like to have a change of schedule this week and is 10.00 o’clock Sunday morning okay with us? We said okay and I was glad that it seemed we would be able to be in time after all.
But at 2.15 p.m, the mother called again, telling me that oops, tomorrow is not okay, and they would be at the mosque at 3.00 p.m. today, as usual.
I got ready, preparing Huzaifah as well. Asked hubby if he brought any suit to Tokyo, he said no, and no, he wasn’t keen on wearing a suit although I advised him that the function would be a formal one. Hubby said he would take his chances by just wearing a black working shirt and if he’s not allowed to enter the function, then he’ll just return home. I know better than to further argue with him, after all I can’t help but agreeing with hubby’s claim that some people take all the trouble to dress up to meet orang besar but not caring much what they wear when they meet Yang Maha Besar.
We were late. At 4.00 p.m., hubby was in the middle of giving shukudai to the kids, and he hadn’t pray Asar yet. Huzaifah and I waited as he wrapped up the class and prayed Asar. At about 4.30 p.m., we boarded the train from Asakusa to Nishi Shinjuku, transferring once to Marunouchi line at Akasaka Mitsuke. Prior to that, I sent a c-mail to Kamarol, advising him to go ahead and join other people because I had no idea when we would arrive at Hilton.
We arrived at Nishi Shinjuku eki at about 5.10. Kamarol told us that there’s an exit to Hilton from Nishi Shinjuku eki but we used another exit by mistake. As a result, it took us 15 minutes to reach Hilton, and along the way hubby was busy snapping photos although I insisted on quickening our pace.
Yes, we were very late, and Datuk Seri Shahrizat had almost came to the ending of her speech as we were ushered to the far end corner of the ballroom. Hubby realized he was really the odd one out as every other guy in the ballroom seemed to be wearing either suits or batik, while he even wore casual slack. I almost said “I told you so” but decided not to. Let him learn his own lesson.
It wasn’t long before the MC declared “jemputlah makan” (instead of the more polite expression of “silalah menjamu selera”) and everybody made their way to the buffet table. Hubby and I opted to go straight to the snacks and dessert tables since we were both still full from eating my first attempt of beriani rice (using Maggi instant flavor) and Bombay beriani mutton (Ahmed’s spice) with the normal jelatah.
Huzaifah had lots and lots of pastry and cake (because it’s easier and less messy to feed him such food), while I had my fair share of satay, California rolls and strawberries. There was a chocolate fountain (instead of dip) for the fruit slices (melon, strawberries and pineapples – mind you, all these three are expensive fruits here though pineapples and melons are not that expensive in Malaysia), but I have never been a chocolate lover anyway, so it was not a big deal for me. Nevertheless I noticed a lot of girls appeared to be mesmerized by that chocolate fountain, leaving lots of the cake, pudding and tarts untouched to my delight. And I did not miss much for not taking rice, because according to Apid, the only tasty lauk was the ayam masak kicap, and I can cook a decent ayam masak kicap myself. I was really glad to see satay though since I have been missing them greatly due to the fact that yakitori is a popular summer snack around here.
Huzaifah was the only baby present and I was really glad that he behaved well throughout the whole evening. You can never tell with babies, they can throw tantrum in a matter of minutes and the cutest baby can turn into a frightful monster. Alhamdulillah Huzaifah chose to be rather quiet; perhaps a bit overwhelmed since he’s not used to seeing lots of people gathering in a dim place. Lots of people came to play with or hold him – including the Minister, some big shots, but mostly undergraduate students, both male and female. Huzaifah used to prefer playing with oniisan than oneesan, but nowadays, since he had gotten the separation anxiety thingy, he refused to be held by others for long.
I took the opportunity to look for other postgraduate student who were attending the function apart from Kamarol. Someone pointed out two girls, both named Ina - one doing her Masters and the other pursuing her PhD. Since the Ina who was pursuing Masters was busy taking picture, I asked to be introduced to the other Ina. And hey, turned out she reads my blog regularly and need not much introduction because she pretty much knew me already. Or my blogger self, anyway.
According to her, she’s been an avid reader of my blog for a long time. In fact she had seen and recognized me when I went for Aidilfitri prayer at the Embassy last year but was rather shy to say hi to me. Well, it did felt rather weird to hear a perfect stranger recalling what I’ve written on my blog in front of me, but coming from her, it sounded friendly as against frightening (“macam stalker” as Apid put it) Anyway Ina, hope you’ll keep on being my reader and yes I am going to find out your blog too soon. It’s a small blogging world after all. And though I am serious about the invitation for Hanabi session and Tobu World Square, I forgot to get your contact details amidst our chat, so please feel free to email me your details, okay?
I was looking for Pak Abas, a former SUB at my old office who is now the TKSU at Datuk Shahrizat’s ministry. Unfortunately he was not around, so I sent my regards to him through an officer named Hasnah, who used to study in Tokyo and lived in Ichikawaono. It would be good to meet Pak Abas – he was one of the fatherly figures we had in the office apart from ayahanda (Dato’) Nadzim, who retired as Deputy State Secretary of Perak. They both helped giving the office some positive ambiance with their generosity and I believe, despite their shortcomings, they would always be remembered kindly by those who used to work under their supervision.
Anyway, the high-tea ended with goodies being handed out – courtesy of Malaysian delegation. We each got a bag consisting a packet of keropok, serunding daging, and the integrated encyclopedia of the Holy Quran CD-Rom plus the unavoidable brochure of the Malaysian Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development.
Hubby spent some time chatting with his own peers – those working under Education scheme. “Aku dah jumpa geng aku. Kau tak yah berlagak, kat sini takdak PTD.Kami semua DG,” Kamarol stated. They even took a group photo chanting “D-G” instead of the normal “chii-zu”.
All in all, a tiring day, but the less-than-a-thousand yen hubby and I spent to go there was definitely worth it.
I just laughed at his feeble attempt of trick, since I was aware that the Malaysian Embassy would be organizing one such function in conjunction with a Minister’s visit. Kamarol was invited by Nafisah, the girl in charge of Human Resources at the Embassy, who asked him to invite others as well since there were still vacancies for the tables booked at the hotel.
Consulted hubby and he said ok. “Jumpa pukul 4.30 kat lobby Hilton. Jangan lewat. Jangan Menteri lak yang tunggu engkau,” Kamarol warned.
The thing is, I have known about this high-tea some time ago, but was not initially interested in joining because of two reasons – one, reluctance to bring Huzaifah to such function; two, because hubby has to teach some kids at 3.00 p.m, which normally ends at 4.00 p.m., and so I was worried that we might not be able to be there in time.
Just then, the mother of the hubby’s Pakistani-Nihonjin students called us, saying that she would like to have a change of schedule this week and is 10.00 o’clock Sunday morning okay with us? We said okay and I was glad that it seemed we would be able to be in time after all.
But at 2.15 p.m, the mother called again, telling me that oops, tomorrow is not okay, and they would be at the mosque at 3.00 p.m. today, as usual.
I got ready, preparing Huzaifah as well. Asked hubby if he brought any suit to Tokyo, he said no, and no, he wasn’t keen on wearing a suit although I advised him that the function would be a formal one. Hubby said he would take his chances by just wearing a black working shirt and if he’s not allowed to enter the function, then he’ll just return home. I know better than to further argue with him, after all I can’t help but agreeing with hubby’s claim that some people take all the trouble to dress up to meet orang besar but not caring much what they wear when they meet Yang Maha Besar.
We were late. At 4.00 p.m., hubby was in the middle of giving shukudai to the kids, and he hadn’t pray Asar yet. Huzaifah and I waited as he wrapped up the class and prayed Asar. At about 4.30 p.m., we boarded the train from Asakusa to Nishi Shinjuku, transferring once to Marunouchi line at Akasaka Mitsuke. Prior to that, I sent a c-mail to Kamarol, advising him to go ahead and join other people because I had no idea when we would arrive at Hilton.
We arrived at Nishi Shinjuku eki at about 5.10. Kamarol told us that there’s an exit to Hilton from Nishi Shinjuku eki but we used another exit by mistake. As a result, it took us 15 minutes to reach Hilton, and along the way hubby was busy snapping photos although I insisted on quickening our pace.
Yes, we were very late, and Datuk Seri Shahrizat had almost came to the ending of her speech as we were ushered to the far end corner of the ballroom. Hubby realized he was really the odd one out as every other guy in the ballroom seemed to be wearing either suits or batik, while he even wore casual slack. I almost said “I told you so” but decided not to. Let him learn his own lesson.
"Our students in Japan must have been the smartest, most brilliant, prettiest, gorgeous, bla, bla, bla.... (insert typical bodek by politicians)"
It wasn’t long before the MC declared “jemputlah makan” (instead of the more polite expression of “silalah menjamu selera”) and everybody made their way to the buffet table. Hubby and I opted to go straight to the snacks and dessert tables since we were both still full from eating my first attempt of beriani rice (using Maggi instant flavor) and Bombay beriani mutton (Ahmed’s spice) with the normal jelatah.
Huzaifah had lots and lots of pastry and cake (because it’s easier and less messy to feed him such food), while I had my fair share of satay, California rolls and strawberries. There was a chocolate fountain (instead of dip) for the fruit slices (melon, strawberries and pineapples – mind you, all these three are expensive fruits here though pineapples and melons are not that expensive in Malaysia), but I have never been a chocolate lover anyway, so it was not a big deal for me. Nevertheless I noticed a lot of girls appeared to be mesmerized by that chocolate fountain, leaving lots of the cake, pudding and tarts untouched to my delight. And I did not miss much for not taking rice, because according to Apid, the only tasty lauk was the ayam masak kicap, and I can cook a decent ayam masak kicap myself. I was really glad to see satay though since I have been missing them greatly due to the fact that yakitori is a popular summer snack around here.
With Hisyam, a postgraduate under UNIMAS Sponsorship and his wife Wani
Huzaifah was the only baby present and I was really glad that he behaved well throughout the whole evening. You can never tell with babies, they can throw tantrum in a matter of minutes and the cutest baby can turn into a frightful monster. Alhamdulillah Huzaifah chose to be rather quiet; perhaps a bit overwhelmed since he’s not used to seeing lots of people gathering in a dim place. Lots of people came to play with or hold him – including the Minister, some big shots, but mostly undergraduate students, both male and female. Huzaifah used to prefer playing with oniisan than oneesan, but nowadays, since he had gotten the separation anxiety thingy, he refused to be held by others for long.
Huzaifah being mugged with attention every now and then
I took the opportunity to look for other postgraduate student who were attending the function apart from Kamarol. Someone pointed out two girls, both named Ina - one doing her Masters and the other pursuing her PhD. Since the Ina who was pursuing Masters was busy taking picture, I asked to be introduced to the other Ina. And hey, turned out she reads my blog regularly and need not much introduction because she pretty much knew me already. Or my blogger self, anyway.
According to her, she’s been an avid reader of my blog for a long time. In fact she had seen and recognized me when I went for Aidilfitri prayer at the Embassy last year but was rather shy to say hi to me. Well, it did felt rather weird to hear a perfect stranger recalling what I’ve written on my blog in front of me, but coming from her, it sounded friendly as against frightening (“macam stalker” as Apid put it) Anyway Ina, hope you’ll keep on being my reader and yes I am going to find out your blog too soon. It’s a small blogging world after all. And though I am serious about the invitation for Hanabi session and Tobu World Square, I forgot to get your contact details amidst our chat, so please feel free to email me your details, okay?
One for the album - Ina, her two kohai, Huzaifah and I
I was looking for Pak Abas, a former SUB at my old office who is now the TKSU at Datuk Shahrizat’s ministry. Unfortunately he was not around, so I sent my regards to him through an officer named Hasnah, who used to study in Tokyo and lived in Ichikawaono. It would be good to meet Pak Abas – he was one of the fatherly figures we had in the office apart from ayahanda (Dato’) Nadzim, who retired as Deputy State Secretary of Perak. They both helped giving the office some positive ambiance with their generosity and I believe, despite their shortcomings, they would always be remembered kindly by those who used to work under their supervision.
Anyway, the high-tea ended with goodies being handed out – courtesy of Malaysian delegation. We each got a bag consisting a packet of keropok, serunding daging, and the integrated encyclopedia of the Holy Quran CD-Rom plus the unavoidable brochure of the Malaysian Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development.
Hubby spent some time chatting with his own peers – those working under Education scheme. “Aku dah jumpa geng aku. Kau tak yah berlagak, kat sini takdak PTD.Kami semua DG,” Kamarol stated. They even took a group photo chanting “D-G” instead of the normal “chii-zu”.
"Dee Gee..."
"Gaya seorang penghibur jalanan"
All in all, a tiring day, but the less-than-a-thousand yen hubby and I spent to go there was definitely worth it.
A Swedish Tourist in Asakusa
Once in a while, this mosque we call home, receives guests other than the normal Jumu’ah congregation. Last Friday, it was Ertan, a Swedish with Kosovan Albanian origin, who has married a Swedish who’s half Japanese. He and his newlywed wife are in Japan to visit his wife relatives, staying in Tokyo and Osaka for about 2 weeks.
Hubby invited him to our home for tea and they had a long exchange on Muslims in both Japan and Sweden. Ertan used to work in a school and is worried about the future of Muslim children who are being sent to public schools. “They are being taught that their parents has no right to touch them, that they can always report to the agency involved if there’s so much as a tap at the back of their hand. I have seen a Muslim mother being sent to jail for 6 months because her child called the agency after she hit the child’s hand. That’s not right. Parents have the right to discipline their children, within reasons, so long as the children are not harmed.”
Yes, while it’s true that no child should be abused, parents should be allowed some space to use some measure of punishment, including hitting within reason, to discipline their children. I’ve seen destructive children creating havoc in other people’s houses and their parents never said anything just because they feel that their children must be given the freedom to do whatever they want to do in order not to disrupt their creativity. I guess, there must be balance in everything – while I support that children must be allowed some freedom to advance their creativity, it’s important too to instill respect for others, especially adults.
Since it was only Ertan’s second day in Tokyo, hubby asked if he would like to tour around Asakusa since we were thinking of going out anyway, we might as well be his tourist guide. Ertan was glad to hear that and so we went to Asakusa together after Asar, on bicycles (hubby gave Ertan a ride on the back of his bike until we reached Asakusa, which is illegal, but we hoped that we could get away with it and alhamdulillah we did)
After the normal sightseeing along Sumida river, Sensoji temple (oldest temple in Tokyo area?) and buying some souvenirs at some stalls along Nakamise street, we took him to a 100 yen shop, and my, did he had fun there. He bought a lot of daily stuff – house thermometers, drinking glasses, some candies, even torchlight, repeating again and again his amazement at how cheap everything was. Which reminded me of my own Mak and aunties buying lots of everyday stuff at 100 yen shop – bowls, knives, place mats - before they returned to Malaysia too.
Ertan, who bought a Tokyo Metro subway's one-day ticket, then followed hubby to Gyotoku, for his biweekly class for adult. They happened to meet Imam Salahuddin of Hira’ Mosque who was instructing a Quran class for some children. Imam Salahuddin, a Libyan, has been very kind and supportive towards hubby, sharing some Jumu’ah sermons in Arabic and asked hubby to feel free to contact him anytime we need to.
After Isyak, hubby brought Ertan to another 100 yen shop in Gyotoku. He had another shopping spree, but kept saying that his wife must’d been greatly worried by his late return. He bought some food – bread, soft drink, snacks - for his wife, while exclaiming his amazement at how cheap food is in the supermarket. But then again, food is a lot cheaper in Gyotoku than in Tokyo. And food is almost always a lot cheaper in the supa than the konbini…
Hubby invited him to our home for tea and they had a long exchange on Muslims in both Japan and Sweden. Ertan used to work in a school and is worried about the future of Muslim children who are being sent to public schools. “They are being taught that their parents has no right to touch them, that they can always report to the agency involved if there’s so much as a tap at the back of their hand. I have seen a Muslim mother being sent to jail for 6 months because her child called the agency after she hit the child’s hand. That’s not right. Parents have the right to discipline their children, within reasons, so long as the children are not harmed.”
Yes, while it’s true that no child should be abused, parents should be allowed some space to use some measure of punishment, including hitting within reason, to discipline their children. I’ve seen destructive children creating havoc in other people’s houses and their parents never said anything just because they feel that their children must be given the freedom to do whatever they want to do in order not to disrupt their creativity. I guess, there must be balance in everything – while I support that children must be allowed some freedom to advance their creativity, it’s important too to instill respect for others, especially adults.
Since it was only Ertan’s second day in Tokyo, hubby asked if he would like to tour around Asakusa since we were thinking of going out anyway, we might as well be his tourist guide. Ertan was glad to hear that and so we went to Asakusa together after Asar, on bicycles (hubby gave Ertan a ride on the back of his bike until we reached Asakusa, which is illegal, but we hoped that we could get away with it and alhamdulillah we did)
After the normal sightseeing along Sumida river, Sensoji temple (oldest temple in Tokyo area?) and buying some souvenirs at some stalls along Nakamise street, we took him to a 100 yen shop, and my, did he had fun there. He bought a lot of daily stuff – house thermometers, drinking glasses, some candies, even torchlight, repeating again and again his amazement at how cheap everything was. Which reminded me of my own Mak and aunties buying lots of everyday stuff at 100 yen shop – bowls, knives, place mats - before they returned to Malaysia too.
Ertan, who bought a Tokyo Metro subway's one-day ticket, then followed hubby to Gyotoku, for his biweekly class for adult. They happened to meet Imam Salahuddin of Hira’ Mosque who was instructing a Quran class for some children. Imam Salahuddin, a Libyan, has been very kind and supportive towards hubby, sharing some Jumu’ah sermons in Arabic and asked hubby to feel free to contact him anytime we need to.
After Isyak, hubby brought Ertan to another 100 yen shop in Gyotoku. He had another shopping spree, but kept saying that his wife must’d been greatly worried by his late return. He bought some food – bread, soft drink, snacks - for his wife, while exclaiming his amazement at how cheap food is in the supermarket. But then again, food is a lot cheaper in Gyotoku than in Tokyo. And food is almost always a lot cheaper in the supa than the konbini…
Introducing Ujai-kun
We had this idea of having a blog exlusively detailing Huzaifah's development months ago although it wasn't until late May when I started a new blog for this purpose. Was too lazy to maintain it though, but now that hubby is well versed with the working of blogspot, it's up and running.
So, feel free to browse Ujai-kun, and yes, comments are highly appreciated.
So, feel free to browse Ujai-kun, and yes, comments are highly appreciated.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
