Salam.

okay so my blog was left to rot with internet dust. i thought i'd give it a little wipe with a little update.

yes people, i'm in brunei. it doesn't take a genius to actually figure that out but then i thought, who'd actually bother to keep themselves updated with whats going on with me. unless one day they realised they haven't been here since a decade ago or maybe there's no more famous poklen videos on youtube left. haha.

the transition from studying to working worked out well. didn't have much difference. just that i actually have to drive to work rather than walking to school. the drill is the same. being there from 8 to 5 every weekdays with nothing much to do except few hectic days. only that 25th of each months seem to be a holy grail. if you get my drift. hoho. my position in RBA? AO - FLT OPS's SVP's Secretary's secretary. haha. yes, mind twister i get it. but the plan is to wait for my type rating which i hope is somewhere around next year. wish me luck on that as i need it most.

it has been over 2 months now. so you'll be seeing me around and so will i. a part of me is missing uk especially those mouth watering kebabs. but nothing beats the company of this awesome family. salam everyone. (:

flying part of the story.

i've been wanting to update. but then i just can't be arsed to pick a few pictures out of like thousands to upload. which in the end i'll just decide not to update. but ohwells. i haven't been doing this for a while but i think you'd like a proper update.

first thing first. i passed my pt4. i can officially call myself a pilot after throwing myself into this course over a year ago. commercial pilot license, that's what i get after passing that exam. funny thing, it feels normal. i think i went all giddy when i got my driving license last time. but i feel like i just passed another progress test and a step closer to home this time around. that's about it.

7 of 11 passed the exam already. yes, it's 11. we've got Abang Rosli now. joined us around march last time. a great man with great advice. with a but of course. but we'll keep that in the circle. karang di"kurang asam"nya ku. HAHA. another 2 will be the doing pt4 very soon. so as the other 2, pt3 might be done in two flights. wish us luck? thanks!

the wait for pt4 was miserable i tell you. i went up a few weeks ago for my pt4. only to see yellow warning popped up after 10 minutes airborne. "R coolant LVL". that moment, i knew my pt4 wasn't going anywhere. went back to land. 2 slots given for pt4 only to be cancelled due to bad weather. the fourth one, i was quite lucky really. the weather was not meant to be good on that day. we took off the moment i heard the cloud was above my comfortable altitude for navigation and landed barely 5 minutes before heavy thunderstorm hit cranfield. rusty and lapses but i managed to pass. i can live with that.

oh btw, congratulations to those who will be going off to uk around september to start off their respective course. =D and anyone knows bila kami ada junior? it's already august.

oh and incase you ever wondered. these are the aircrafts.

we started off flying in PA28. [pt1 + pt2]

before converting to Diamond Star DA40. [pt3]

now we're flying Diamond Twin DA42. [pt4]

Mom's 50th.

23rd july. Hajah Noralam. Happy 50th. another birthday of yours without me in the picture. but we gave you an advanced celebration in Manchester! =D enjoy your day ma. i miss having you around. i love you.

i'll be back soon enough. take care mama!

Reality.

AL ain, AL adilah, AL aqib, AL aimi, Liau, norALam, AL afif and AL amin.

Family.

uk is so dull and boring now. i've nothing to look forward to anymore other than finishing this course of mine and head home. two straight weekends with the family. with mom. with dad. with the siblings. now homesickness is kicking in FAST. sigh.

i can start talking about the weekends but i'd bore you. panjang tu. it wasn't even close to awesome. it was way beyond that. i guess nothing beats family. but now it's back to reality. school and flights. exams and sims. oh wells. that's what i'm here for to begin with. so good weather, be with me.

Up A Step.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to KAKA FEEZAH! knowing that you turned a year older, i actually feel a bit younger. somehow. haha. have a good one ka. second consecutive birthday sudah ku miss. i dont like this. the next one mesti aku ada! =D

AND AND AND!! a big CONGRATULATION to Pahrey for passing his PT2 and completing the QXC. doing awesome there my friend. get pt3 done sooooon!! all the best! =D

been doing night flying. infact i just got back around half an hour ago. its awesome. its the same thing that you do when you "cruise" around late night. just that we cruise 3000ft higher. hoping to do pt4 soon. goodnight UK and goodmorning Brunei.

Brunei, here you'll come.

Paaaanaaaas. UK's getting hotter. i know, you'd probably say "eh ambung jua eh. macam inda biasa saja. orang brunei atu buat macam orang brunei". but paaanaaas. since we're flying and the only thing that stands between us and the sun is the windscreen. and dead bugs. i have three toned arms. hand to elbow, uber tanned. half of my upper arm, quite tanned. atasnya putih tia. brief explanation? uniform - football jersey.

i cant waiiiiiit to see the family!!! i still have the multi engine piston paper to do. which i think i'll do tomorrow. been trying to avoid it but howells. i'm tired of worrying about it. and and and PT4 to do soon. as much as i am nervous, i want to do it as soon as i can so weekend with family will actually be a real weekend without it bugging my mind. ps; i wish i have the legs of a horse to keep the rudder in. HAHA.

i've assym circuits tomorrow petang. night flying terus malam di Coventry. how good is a distraction when it takes you back? have a nice day!!

then. [25th june 08]

now. [25th june 09]

Lush - Muris.

CONGRATULATION!!! semoga berkekalan ke anak cucu. haha. i virtually attended my cousin's wedding. awesome! have a good weekend people! =D

bersama pengantin and the rest.

Afifah Safar. tukang bawa aku jalan jalan.

Another 24th passed.

24th june 08. last year. the day 10 little bruneians left brunei hoping to be 10 little pilots. it's been a year now and we're still fighting for it. killing them written exams. earning them stripes rightfully. hoping to finish this course by the given deadline. to be away from home that long. to not see the family [except the two sisters and a few cousins]. to not taste the food. to not attend all the family gathering. i want to be home. everyone's heading back to the kingdom of unexpected treasure. i want pun. even though i know what to expect di mall. haha. but that's not the case here.

internet wasn't working in the afternoon. sister texted saying ia video call sama family, dorang bekumpul ramai ramai. kusutku. i went online late only to know most of them balik already. but i managed to talk to a few of them. tomorrow lagi dorang ada gathering, but i'll be having a flight in the afternoon. hopefully i'll get the chance to talk to them.

pictures. one year. ago.

Anak Liau and Liau.

minus mom.

not a fan i take it.

HAHA.

Arif Koh.

minus Azeef, Afif and Kyle.

i miss you. dad.

Off The Crank.

it's monday afternoon. waking up from afternoon nap isn't the best feeling out there. i feel OFF. i guess monday blues kicked in late. kuuusuuut ku! plus my monday wasn't productive, assuming nothing's gonna happen in the next 5.5 hours. i didnt have a slot, i came in late, i a-checked a plane before coming back home for lunch, read around 10 pages of the multi-engine piston, watched big bang theory [which i think can't beat how i met your mother] before i ended up sleeping. oh lord. i dont feel awesome!

progress wise, members of "the famous 8"; as we are labelled - are now flying the twin. the progress is rather slow but we're getting there. kri's catching up fast and kyle passed his pt2. so it's all going well. its the 22nd of june. we left brunei on the 24th june last year. can't believe we've been in this for almost an odd year. this day last year, i was having doa selamat. i miss mom's cooking. i miss the family. awwwwwhatever right? but i do. haha.

oh and i realised some of the links i have on my sad little blog doesnt work anymore. so i guess i'll remove it for now and fix it whenever i have the time to. do keep me updated if you guys changed the link yes? and i just realised how awesome skype can be. HAHA! enjoy the rest of your week people. take care!

Listen.

our class photo. when ground school was the shit. its been around 6 months now.

a lot happened in between. but most importantly, we're progressing well. or so i think. i've been flying so much that i think i'm getting mentally old. i really am tired. there are a lot of things going on. no, i'm not saying i want this to stop. Barney wants to listen to Robin's, can i have Robin to listen to my rants? anyone would do really. are you all ears?

Brave Face.

awesome! ineffably awesome! =D

Sunny Day.

it's sunday. it's 2.15 pm. and im still rotting in bed belum mandi but i had lunch already. you can call me buntu for short. what's your name?

i went to london yesterday. sitting down with poklen uk menunggu si zudin di oxford circus when my phone rang. "qiib! banyak orang telanjang! orang telanjang pakai biskal." i thought that was random. sekali around 5 minutes after that. i saw this group of people cycling, BUTT NAKED. not the picture you'd expect to see in london. haha.

met syafie and gave him his life [you're welcome cameraman]. met izyan and she explained the dramas. makan di wasabi. yes yes wasabi! =D jumpa uncle warden di brunei hall [reminder, ia kirim salam mama]. it was just a day trip. went alright.

and now im sitting on my bed typing down shits as i dont look forward to tomorrow because i know it'll be a day my ears start complaining for a whole week from all that words from Mr. Bethell. but i'll get through alive, i hope.

pictures of naked people soon. pictures of spongebob and patrick is on my facebook. good day people. =D

Dead End.

is everything going too fast for me? can i cope? i started asking such questions as i landed from what i thought was one of the shittiest flight ive ever been in. trust me, even i'm disappointed as he took control to land. my mind wasn't working eventhough i know what the procedures were. people often say "it's just not your day", but as negative as i am, i think it's me. not prepared. aargh. pak this.

i went home a little early just to see my laptop playing bluescreen as if i've got a bluescreen playlist on repeat. i dont know how long it'll last this time but i hope it's gonna be okay. i love you DELLathan. HAHA. no i dont have a name for the laptop.

i've pictures of spongebob and patrick flying with me on my last 1.2 hours of solo flight and i recorded the video of my landing. ill upload when i actually have the mood. for now, everything's in grey and black. i don't even have anyone to talk about it to but my poor dull blog. HAHA. good day people.

Phase.

Update update update! well there's nothing much going on. still as busy as ever. flying here and there. getting scolded from the moment you roll until the moment you open up the canopy. in school from 8 to 5 - at times, 7. it's still the way it is.

i passed my PT3 exam last week. leaving me with an addition of another silver stripe on my shoulder making it 3 stripes now. thank god it went quite well. medical check renewal yesterday, nothing interesting to talk about there. or are you interested to know that my haemoglobin count is 169? haha.

i've been pushing hard to get everything done as soon as i can. but losing something awesome on the other side of the story. but well. you can never get everything you want can you? unless you spell LIFE differently.

i look forward to July. mom, come UK already. i havent seen you for almost a year now. 20 days before it reaches an odd year. gosh it has been a while. this time ill show you where ive been hiding my neck. haha. take care people! =D and oh, nada pictures. sorry. kapih ku kan bali camera baru. haha.

ps; do you know how i can get a penguin to sing on youtube for me?

Britain's.

went up Birmingham during the weekend to meet up with the sister. havent seen her since december. so i thought why not. was pretty kusut along the week anyway. more reason to go. haha. stupid sales made me even more kusut. i was close to buying a new pair of football boots. or a new set of perfume. kaka ain wasnt helping either. "mun ada duit, bali taaah". hmmmm. but howells, it was fine.

mirror-ed Tigra.

Apparently, ada the Britain's next top model show for birmingham. so we went to tengok for a bit. everyone was taking picture with the women. kami inda tau apa apa, so kami lintasi saja. sudah tengok the show, rupanya judges, host and models. HAHA. barutah kami ikut ikut.

the host. yes yes, i look silly.

cycle 5's Kasey.

and the bull. no i wont climb on it this time.

Echo of My Own Voice.

thanks everyone for the greetings. much appreciated. never been a big fan of my birthday but i accept gifts with arms wide open. haha.

there were no family to hang out with. or to have dinner with. had a bad flight in the morning. awesome birthday i must say. haha. not looking forward to spend another one alone.

cant believe im 19 now. oh wait, its twenteen. sounds older than i feel. haha. take care everyone!

Summer Scent.

milton keynes after months. a few changes here and there but its more or less the same. went down and watched wolverine. not bad, not bad at all - as Gary Bethell would say.

but one store annoyed me. it started with the fragrance shop. i tried the new CKIN2U Heat. id love to get one. and then there was Diesel Summer in superdrug. can i get one of that too? and and 'i am king' by sean john. haiyah. busit. why kaaan. as if i dont have enough already. but yes, one by one. haha. so to my beloved sisters, did i mention recently, that all of you are the best, EVER?! HAHA! thanks! =D

lazy sunday, all in all, fairly okay. and before saya lupa. Selamat Hari Ulangtahun kepada Kylie "Minogue" Bevon Singh Sekhon. hope you had a good one. thanks for dinner big guy. best of luck with flying.

Ingletera.

back to english speaking crowd. back to proper kebab with proper chilli sauce. back to sports. back to going away for the weekend. most importantly, back to you.

can't say there would be a lot of things i'd miss. but i will certainly miss flying around Espana. infact, i am missing it already. can i go up for one last time? please?

no, don't ask me how i got the town looking so flat.

ill try catching up with you guys. one thing after another. okay? see you.

Partially done.

the plan is to pass our PT1 and PT2 here in spain before going back to uk. 8 bruneians now have two stripes on their shoulders. but only one has enough hours to actually say "yes ive done what i need to do in Spain". the rest passed the exams but lack flying hours thus explaining the title. its been great so far. passing the exam and doing our cross country to Reus which 5 of us did today. pictures soon. cant be arsed to take the pictures from them. =) full story soon. UK next week! awesome.

"it feels different without you around. now there's no point in delaying everything by 5 minutes. solely missed. terribly."

Series of Unfortunate Events.

another spic flight to reus. this has to be the longest, i repeat, longest day ever. we took off just before 11 and landed in valencia half past 6 in the afternoon. BUT, we were only airborne for 4.5 hours. geddit geddit? banyak problems here and there! bah i start from pagi lah.

planning. we decided to wait for a few hours before taking off. had to make sure weather will be good enough. tengok the table, penuh with everything.

the reason why I.R did his flight planning on the floor.

so yeah. we took off just before 11. we took a different aircraft this time around, my baby, G-CEEN. ahaha. but yeah, its a good plane. we brought a lot of snacks since last time kami kelaparan dalam plane. guess what? we ate a lot even before taking off! HAHA! so its T.B as the instructor, Z.A, A.K and me. this time, Z.A took off to Valencia.

lalala. so what. im fat. HAHA!

the view from Requena to Valencia.

weather didnt look that bad initially.

in Valencia. quote "one day. you."

and another problem in Valencia. these two guys had to take a piss. so they went to the terminal with the passport setaie. thing is, you've to show them your passport AND flight plan if you want to enter the apron. so kana tahan lah. plus, most of them dont speak english, put aside to even know what/where Brunei is. T.B had to go to the terminal and help them settle everything. this took around half an hour. the we took off to Reus, my flight this time around.

these two. Z.A and A.K.

no one sleep in my flight and get away. tengok the video pun! haha!

i had to fly in cloud for at least an hour. flying in IMC is fun but its quite tiring. you see nothing but just cloud outside the plane. scary though. its funny how your brain works. i thought/feel the plane is flying straight and level. but its actually banking to the side. so i had to concentrate on the instruments. goddaym.

in Reus. we had passport issue. something to do with the visa. they took us around. here and there. bla bla bla bla shit. basically we bruneians understand nothing. but the idea is that our visa only allows us to stay in Spain for 3 months AS tourists. not students. sekali bla dibla dibla. akhirknya they asked "are they coming back Spain after going back UK?". instructor said no, guess what. "oh! if its like that. then its no problem". talor! they wasted around an hour of our precious time for that. susah susah!

the trip from Reus to Valencia. its my turn to doze off. A.K's flight.

half past 6. we reached Valencia. another problem. our flight plan from Valencia to Requena was not approved due to bad VMC condition. so we had to land and call another instructor to fetch us di Valencia Airport.

we waited until 8.30 di sana then we bought some more junk before heading home. we reached home quarter to 10. now thats a long day.

BTW, Congrats to S.H and T.B for passing your PT1. HAHA!

you need to improve your high glide.

more accuracy with map reading please. and dont be shy with the rudder. HAHA!