Red Nose Day

Salam and good day!

One of the many reasons why I love living in the UK especially in London is because there are many events held here. One of which is the Red Nose Day campaign held on Friday the 13th.

I first found out about this when I was at a car rental service and the staff offered a red nose. I didn't think anything about it and just took one for me and my bestie. Only a few days after I caught the curiosity bug and started searching what this thing is all about.

It is actually a campaign to help the lives of millions in the UK and in Africa. You can find our more here. What they do is simply raising funds through comic relief. Making it more fun to raise money.  

The idea is simple and so entertaining that made a lot of people want to get involved and actually have an enjoyable time while doing it. 

Cute little buggers aren't they?

My red nose. hehe...

This is a video of their highlights for their fund-raise this year.

Amazing!

I'm sure you must know the song Lay Me Down by Sam Smith. It's actually the single for Red Nose Day 2015. 

A lot of other important people has supported and were involved for Red Nose Day 2015 including the master of comic in England..yes..you guessed it, Rowan Atkinson. 

He's performing as the archbishop of Canterbury as a comic relief.

You can still do your part by clicking here.

Make giving fun!

Until next time...

Lab Retreat

Salam and good day!

Last month, my lab held a retreat for everyone in the lab (staff and PhD students). Everyone went which gives me a chance to get to know more people working in the lab.

Eventhough I did my masters at Imperial College as well, during my 6 month project, I followed my supervisor to UCL and did my research there instead of at IRDB (Institute of Reproductive and Developmental Biology).

The retreat was held at Lane End Conference Centre. The coach picked us up at Hammersmith Hospital at 9am.

The drive was magnificent with gorgeous view of the countryside. It took about 45 minutes to arrive at the venue.

Where else can you find a sign to look out for crossing ducks? haha...so cute.

The conference centre is an amazing place too. Very suitable for a retreat and team building activities.

This is where we go for lunch

One activity included was poster presentation from all team from the department. 

This is my team. Stem cell differentiation lab. So proud to have my name alongside these people. Except, they misspelled my name. huhu...no more Aminah. =P

The scenery of this place is breathtaking as well. There's a golf course here. My dad would love it. Lol

There are seminars and presentations from various people sharing their projects and recent findings which open up a new perspective on other people's research, not just your own. 

There are also sharing moment from the heads and reps of the department. These people are so laid back, you wouldn't notice that they are the big guns of their field. They make you feel so appreciated and important to the whole team.

There are a few booth opened by the Lifetechnologies company to show their machines and products. I took one sample with me. This cutie is actually a virus called Norovirus. Norovirus is the bug that'll make you puke and purge all day long. It's painful and commonly known as stomach flu. They made it to be so cute...=P

They also have E.coli, flu virus and many more known to be eeky..but made to be cute and fluffy. 

This is the accommodation chalets. I only found out that the heads of the unit or teams have stayed here for the past 2 days with various activities on how to improve the department. Us PhD students were just invited for the last day sessions. Oh well...at least they included us in the end.

I would really love to be involved in these kinds of activities some more in the future.

Until next time...

The sad thing of being abroad

Salam and good day!

During this Chinese New Year holiday, my family on my father's side decided to held a family day at Huda's Haven resort, Batang Kali.

I have a huge family on both my parents side, but my father's side is the largest. We have 4 (or maybe 5) generations living now! The family which is from my grand dad's siblings or the children of the late Hj Omar b. Buyong got together to bond.

The place is gorgeous!

A whole lot of my family came. They even made these t-shirts for everyone!!

My crazy sis n bro in law.

They held a lot of activities

There's football tournaments..

There's ping pong. Zafirah is playing against the top gun. =D

A lot of fun games for the kiddies too...

Zafirah's plane is the nearest one.  huhu..

Fishing for the oldies...

"Onyang (great grandfater) tangkap fish ke??"

The best is having to meet a whole bunch of our family members and just talk and reconnect where people usually just meet their families once a year if they're lucky.

Families that stays together and pray together will be happy forever (it's that a saying? haha..i made it up)

Sharing between aunty and niece. How's that possible? well..the girl witht the orange dress is my aunt's daughter, thus making her my cousin. Zafirah is my niece, hence making her the niece. Zafirah is even an aunt now. haha...complicated.

My big BIG family on my daddy's side. 

Huaaaa!!! I'm so sad I didn't get to join. The last time I went to one of these family day was when I was very little. I get to skype with them on the last day before they all go home. 

I hope we can get together like this again once I'm back home. 

Until next time..

ONLINE BOUTIQUE MALAYSIA

Salam and good day!

Since I've started my PhD, it has been harder for me to go out and shop even for essential things like groceries and toiletries, let alone to browse around shops or boutiques for clothes and stuff. 

I am surely not alone in this because nowadays, people are finding a hard time to squeeze in for any sort of activities and this includes shopping due to work or study like me. Like all shopaholic would say, shopping is a type of therapy for the mind. With the existence of various online boutique in Malaysia, men and women can enjoy a wonderful shopping experience through the internet. The sensation and pleasure of shopping is the same minus the hectic traffic and sweat from overcrowd. 

HERE's 3 REASONS TO SHOP ONLINE

1. No hustle and bustle 

The best thing about shopping online is that it saves your time and energy. Working the whole entire week may be tiring and sometimes you just want to rest during the weekends. If you still want to enjoy shopping for new clothes, for example, you can simply sit in front of your laptop or tablets and order away.

This goes to the stay at home moms or wives too. Hey, it's not a simple task being a home maker. With online shopping, you do not have to go through the fuss of being stuck in traffic and stuffing through crowds in malls.

2.  Killing more birds with one stone (Disclaimer: don't kill animals for no good reason)

Shopping online allows you to scan through all the items available and compare the prices. Online shopping websites normally offers special deals and discounts for their customers to enjoy. If you want to shop for affordable fashion items such as t-shirts, dresses, shoes, bags and more, online shopping is the answer. This way you get to avoid the burden of walking in and out of different retail outlets to get the best deals.

3. No lines!!! Click click. Tadaaa...parcel received. =D

Online shopping is where you do not have to wait in a long waiting line to pay for your items. With just a few simple clicks, you could have all your favourite items delivered to your home in only a few days. Select the items you adore, add them into your online shopping cart and enjoy the various payment methods available. 

If you are wondering where to start an amazing online shopping experience, check out ZALORA as they offer a wide range of fashion products online from various well-known brands. From browsing alone will get your heart melting. Life made easy with online shopping. Try it yourself. Just don't get addicted (you can try though, I find it very hard. haha). 

This article was approved by Zalora Malaysia

Until next time...and happy shopping!

Credit pictures: Google

After SPM

Salam and good day!

As recently the result for SPM has just came out, a lot of the students will ask what will they do next? The thing about the future is it is a scary thing to think about especially when you don't really have a clear idea in mind. 

This time, I would like to share to you some of my insights and my experiences and may they help you to figure out your future endeavors. 

For me, I have never had to worry about my result because I had the opportunity to enroll to Darul Quran, Jakim for their certificate programme a few months after I've finished my SPM exam. However, I did fill in the UPU form as I'm sure most if not all students will do the same. 

There are a lot of ways that you can go after you have finished the exam, depending on your passion and opportunities. 

Some people will immediately get the opportunity to further to Bachelors degree after SPM either in a public university or private. If previously you have applied to a university and received an offer, the best thing to do is to accept it because you are the creme de la creme. This opportunity only be given to a small number of students.

If you received offers for foundation studies (pre-university) and matriculation centres under the ministry of education, I would suggest you to go to foundation studies because that will secure your place in the university. 

However, if you only get an offer from matriculation, that will be a good choice too. It's just that you will have to fight for a place at the universities with other prospective students from STPM, SPM and other matriculation centres all over the country. If you did not receive any offers from public university, private uni will be just as good (only much more expensive) or go back to school for STPM.

Some people (or most) will only take STPM if they did not receive any offers from universities. This should not be the case because my bestie took STPM and we found that the syllabus that you learn can sometimes be more extensive and difficult than the ones you learn from pre-u or matrix. 

STPM will also give you a more secure prospect for jobs if you wish to work afterwards which you can;t do if you are taking pre-u or matrix. 

Another good option after SPM is diploma. Although you have to sit for three whole years for it, at least at the end of the course, you'll have something to show for. It'll maybe take more time to finish study, but you'll surely gain more too. Sometimes, if you excel in the first few semesters, you'll be offered a chance to immediately convert to bachelors degree. 

Another issue is between studying abroad and studying in Malaysia. Studying abroad have their perks but not more than studying locally.

If you think you can benefit more by studying abroad, by all means do that. Some of the perks that I find by studying abroad is:

1. Getting new experiences (living in a different environment and culture will definitely give you a broader perspective)

2. Learning from the best in the field that you are taking (you have to find where in the world that has most progressed in the field that you are interested in.

3. If it's something new or non existent in Malaysia, you will be the pioneer that brought home the knowledge. 

There are a lot more benefits that you can find by sharing from seniors experiences. Learn from those before you, so that you will not make the same mistakes and will repeat the excellence that they've achieved. 

That's all the sharing that I can think of right now. Other pressing questions can be directed to my email. Before I forget, congratulations to all students, regardless of your result. Every result is great in their own way. Because it will help to give you an idea what you should do next. I have to get back to work...until next time..