Oh Summer!

Musim panas di Melbourne. Bagi yang tidak pulang ke tanah air, meneruskan kehidupan di Melbourne di saat ketiadaan ramai rakan-rakan mungkin amat memilukan. Namun semua itu bergantung kepada siapa anda ajukan soalan itu.

Bagi yang telah merancang  masa sebaiknya untuk menghabiskan masa di Melbourne tika matahari mula rancak memancarkan cahaya, selamatlah dia. Setiap detik di Melbourne akan terisi dengan sesuatu. Summer school mungkin tonik terbaik untuk 'membunuh masa' di samping mungkin meringankan beban anda bilamana semester baru membuka tirai.

With a little help from our friends

From ASAM at the Park Potluck

2009 draws to a close, and what a roller-coaster ride it has been. To mark the end of the year, the ASAM Team decided to throw a modest shindig and meet the people who matter to us most: YOU!

a very ASAM production

hey guys, how've you been? great? splendid! step right up, look sharp and listen up!

you should know by now that we at ASAM, when we're not looking for awesome chillout coffee shops around Melbourne or just sitting down judging passers by based on their fashion sense (okay, maybe that's just me), we're thinking of new ways to get people together and exploring people's abilities. why? because we're heroes like that. if you've got a talent or even if you're feeling a little bit crazy and want to see how creative you can be, we'd like to help.

Meet the radiostar

In this first edition of ASAMTV, Azrina caught up with Izmir Bahawi, longtime host of 3ZZZ's Suara Malaysia Melbourne program. Izmir shares his stories and ideas for Malaysian radio in Melbourne and Azrina learns to use the control panel!

Asam in the park

THE ASAM TEAM is inviting you to ASAM in the PARK, our final event for 2009. It has been a great first year for ASAM, and what better way to celebrate it than to have a picnic, ASAM-style!

There will be acoustic performances, games, and food (if you don’t forget to bring food).

Availability of food will be on a strictly potluck basis, so we urge attendees to bring along light refreshments and other picnic paraphernalia for full enjoyment of the evening’s event.

In respect of the diverse dietary observances of Malaysians, please clearly mark whether your food is halal/vegetarian/vegan/etc.

Details of the event are as follows:

Venue: Carlton Gardens

Time: 4.30-6.00pm

Date: Sunday December 27 2009

Feel free to contact me for any questions at asam dot melbourne at gmail dot com

See you there!

Lutfi Hakim

A SINGLE MAN by Christopher Isherwood

Finally my academic term has ended and I get to return to my reading list. One that is of particular worth of mention, firstly because of the subject matter; and secondly for the style of writing employed, is "A Single Man" by Christopher Isherwood. Oh and did I mention that there's film adaptation which stars Colin Firth? mmmmmmm...

Suzuki Night Market, jom lepak.

Saya suka Melbourne. Dari hari ke hari ikatan emosi saya dengan bandar penuh warna ini semakin menebal. Rabu lepas, Melbourne sekali lagi memberikan sebab kenapa saya perlu jatuh cinta padanya. Suzuki Night Market ialah 'pasar' yang telah menjadi tradisi Melbourne setiap kali datangnya Musim Panas.

Fashionosophy: Leggings

Guest writer: Syazwina Saw


I have a nose to pick with leggings.

What was once a ubiquitous underwear essential has suddenly become this new phenomenon, with various young Hollywood washouts releasing fashion lines consisting entirely of leggings. I do not deny the power of a good pair of sturdy black leggings – it provides an extra layer of insulation on winter days, it holds certain flesh more firmly, it looks good with a dress. But oh dear me, when did it become acceptable for leggings to be worn in place of pants?

I'm talking about people who wear short tops that end well above the navel, followed by leggings (of varying opacity), followed by.... footwear. Leggings were never designed to flatter any part of the body above the knee. Unless you're pre-pubescent or a Russian ballerina, this look just doesn’t make sense. I mean, it's UNDERWEAR! Only Superman wore underwear that visibly, and he's fiction!

ASAM on Suara Malaysia Melbourne 3ZZZ

Tanpa segan silu saya dan Azrina telah ke udara untuk mempromosikan ASAM di dalam program Suara Malaysia Melbourne. Program tersebut disiarkan oleh radio 3ZZZ Melbourne. Anda boleh mendengar rakaman tersebut di laman mereka (pilih Malaysian dari drop down boxnya).

Suara Malaysia Melbourne ke udara setiap Ahad dari 10-11PM.

VLOG dari pandangan seorang yang daif...

Gua disaran tulis dengan gaya yang lebih profesional, tapi gua dah lame dah tak tulis macam ni jadi tulis mcm biase sudah...

Blog; Facebook; Twitter, semua bendalah ni kita gunakan untuk ceritakan dekat masyarakat tentang diri kita, tentang aktiviti harian kita. Selain dari benda-benda dekat atas yang aku cakap tadi, ade jugak benda yang orang pangil VLOG atau nama IC dia Video bLOG.

Melbourne for the lonely: State Library of Victoria

It's been raining a lot recently. A welcome change, i think, for this bleak city. Its almost summer now anyway, so some wet weather's always welcome.
It's not everyday that anything at all is nice to you. Not in Melbourne.

MELBOURNE FOR THE LONELY

A wise man once wrote that the problems of men stem from their inability to stay quietly alone in their rooms.
A boy can try though.
There's the internet, Youtube, and SBS for those late nights when none of your friends are around for you, 'busy' with 'school', 'work', 'girlfriends'. A few minutes for coffee is much too valuable it seems.

Why chase zombies when you can play golf instead?

I hate gore. I stay away from anything that requires me to sit through watching people get cut into pieces. I find no joy in the portrayal of various kind of dying, dead and undead persons.

There is of course an exception to this rule. If a film is so good that is almost universally well-received by the movie geeks then it no longer becomes recommended to avoid it but perhaps even wrong, gore or no gore. Zombieland fits that bill.

Explaining Nur Kasih

If I were to ask you readers whether or not you watch Nur Kasih? Chances are half of you would have never heard of it before this, and the other half would feign ignorance. Such is the stigma associated with watching Malay dramas that no one in their right mind would admit to it in polite company.

Thing is, people do watch these oh-so-fashionably derided programs. In Nur Kasih's case, it would be hard to not find someone who hasn't seen the show if the ratings prove accurate (59% of viewers for the finale - apparently that's more viewers than TV3's Buletin Utama). Even the shows creators didn't expect the show to be this big a hit.

Papadom mengecewakan?

Pastinya ramai peminat filem Afdlin Shauki meletakkan satu harapan yang tinggi keatas filem arahan terbaru beliau, Papadom. Aku sendiri tidak terkecuali.

Maklumlah, dari Buli, Buli Balik ke Baik Punya Cilok, setiap karya beliau pasti tidak mengecewakan. Keunikan filem-filem beliau ialah jalan cerita dan lawak yang bukan dari jalur filem malaysia kebanyakan. Pasti sahaja wujud babak pelik dan selamba yang beliau selitkan. Berani, mungkin itulah perkataan paling sesuai untuk menggambarkan  karya-karya beliau.

Summer Romance

Sunday.Cruising around the beach, the park and everyone's favourite street with full of culture in Melbourne.
Accompanied by my good friend Holga 120CFN, with a little bit of investment to feed her 120film with only 16 exposure that cost a bomb.No drama in this because she will always do her best and makes me smile looking ay the photos once they've developed.

Isteri si pengembara masa: dari kaca mata seorang lelaki...

Gua baru lepas pegi tgk cerita tu, sekarang masa untuk review atas paksaan dua orang manusia (Bro MLH dan juga Dol Petik Bawang). First gua nak kasi tau, kesalahan pertama yang diorg buat adalah menayangkan filem ini ketika mana filem-filem yang besar seperti Gerhana Baru (New Moon) dan 2012 klua. Memang salah besar.

Secara kesimpulan nya movie ini, mencerita kan tentang seorang manusia yang mempunyai keupayaan untuk mengembara ke masa silam dan masa hadapan tanpa mampu menguasai kuasanya itu., dengan kata lain, beliau akan pergi ke masa hadapan atau pada masa lampau nya dengan tiba-tiba (automatic)

Brown's Bakery Carlton

Kepada pencinta kopi dan apa yang terhasil dari biji kopi, Melbourne adalah tempat yang tepat untuk meraikan kecintaan itu. Berjalan di barisan cafe-cafe ketika pagihari sambil menghirup udara aroma segar kopi dan hasil roti membangkit satu perasaan yang sukar untuk diungkapkan dengan kata-kata. Buat hari ini, mari kita bertandang ke Brown's Bakery Carlton.

"Ado ko dia nok buvi gewe dio ko saing hok jahak.. "*

Orang Kelantan ni, macam mana nak kata, sering dijadikan bahan tawa orang ramai.

Suasana semasa, prejudis lapuk, dan cercaan media semuanya berpadu untuk menjadikan rakyat negeri Kelantan bagaikan si dogol - village idiot, bak kata orang. Segala nama dan adjektif yang negatif bagai automatik dikaitkan dengan negeri Che' Siti Wan Kembang ini. Tak macam orang Terengganu. Orang Terengganu semua baik.

Rosin dari kacamata orang biasa

Era 90an, Malaysia digegarkan dengan sentuhan kumpulan-kumpulan vokal yang meruntun jiwa-jiwa yang tenang seperti Innuendo, 4u2c, indigo dan lain-lain (seingat aku la). Aku memang suka kumpulan-kumpulan vokal ni, bukan nak kata suara aku sedap, tapi sebab aku suka keharmonian paduan suara diaorang. Kalau aku yang menyanyi mahu pecah amp, hancur microphone.

Siapa tak suka lagu Ratu Hati nyanyian Innuendo dan the all time favourite, Belaian Jiwa yang sampai sekarang tidak hilang lagi sengatnya (at least for me)

Tapi aku bukan nak fokus pada band-band 90an ni. Aku cuma nak review band Radiostar yang sekarang ni dikenali dengan nama Rosin. Apa rasionalnya aku bagi mukaddimah band-band vokal 90an tu? Sebab lead singer band Rosin ni adalah teraju utama Innuendo iaitu Pot Amir.

Crash of the Conchords

I love the Conchords, I really do. Ok maybe I don't keep a cut out of Jermaine's lips in my wallet, or spend much time recreating Bret's helmet hair, but I did watch every episode of  their TV series, twice, and I have obsessively listened to  their entire pre-HBO fame catalogue , to the chagrin of close family and friends.

So it really does not give me any pleasure to rip through 'I told you I was freaky'.

Fly by Night Bookstore

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The place is called Fly by Night Books and most people will know it as ‘that book-place under the Workshop Bar’, nestled between the corner of Elizabeth St. and A’Beckett St. and open every day, from 9 morn till 7 in the evening.

Fly by Night Books doesn’t usually pack the latest titles, but their prices are fantastic if you’re on a low budget and if you’re like me, you’re always on a low budget. They stock all sorts of genres, from popular fiction to art and history. You really have to take your time and go through each shelf because every once in a while, you’ll find a gem. Just a few weeks ago I picked up A Wolf at the Table by Augusten Burroughs for a fantastic 15 bucks; in which, the moment i came out of the store, i punched the air and told myself, "i just beat the system".

So drop by, take a look-see, go crazy. Before you leave make sure you sign up for their newsletter to receive regular email updates of their new stock.

Asam Siam