Tag: photography

Mabul Island, Sabah

Ahh! It’s been a while. Just a month ago, I graduated highschool. Since then I’ve been busy travelling, catching up on reading and deeply overthinking about my future. As you know by now, my post excerpts are often unrelated to the post itself. This blog is indeed a photo blog but I have to let you know that I have always been more interested in writing. In fact, I joined my school’s editorial board as a writer hoping to gain knowledge that would spur me on to achieve my dream of becoming a journalist. To my surprise, there and then was where I discovered my interest in photography too! After that, I decided that I wanted to be a photojournalist.

This leads us to the birth of this blog! It’s my virtual photography portfolio. When I took up journalling in December of 2020, I also began to enjoy writing in everything I did. I even started to enjoy writing 6 page school essays about how to encourage students to read. That’s when I decided to leave little pieces of myself whenever I wrote and that made this blog a lot more personal to me. I have so many thoughts and it’s much easier to organise my headspace when I put them into eligible words. Here I try to share the things that I hope you find relatable.

It feels good to know that I put my writing out there. I used to write short stories and I’ve made many attempts at participating in writing competitions. For the past two years, I’ve been on and off writing a novel. This slow pace frustrates me and I feel discouraged. “What if I never fulfill my childhood dream of publishing something for the world to read?” So here we have this blog, my hope! The little paragraphs I write here remind me that I’ve still got it in me. I love writing and no matter what I write it is of importance. A small step is better than no movement at all. Do wish me luck as I continue this writing journey and thank you for being here 🙂

Little India, Ipoh, Perak.

Some shots of India Street that I took when I was searching for some traditional wear. I live in Sabah right now and it’s hard to find traditional Indian costumes. Normally we’d get them from home- Semenanjung, but in the year of not going home due to the travel restrictions I outgrew my old costume and didn’t even get a chance to wear it out. So this trip, getting new costumes was on my must-do list. My dedication to getting a new outfit paid off. The dress code for my graduation from high school this year is traditional costumes. The year before the pandemic, there was a best dressed competition for our school’s Deepavali celebration. I didn’t take the chance to partake because I assumed I would have my senior year to join. If only I had known how much things would change.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the person I was 2 years ago and how much I’ve changed since then. There are people whom I haven’t spoken to since those 2 years and seeing them in person again this year is scary. To be honest, I do post a lot on social media. From just my instagram you’ll find out what I do on a daily basis. But you really can’t judge someone purely based of their social media. Social media tends to just show the highlights of life. There’s a lot more to me than what you see on a screen. I’m scared I won’t live up to the person I am online. I don’t want Aly online to be different from Aly in reality.

a cloud shaped like an elephant

I thought I’d start the year off with one of my favourite photos of the trip. It really does look like an elephant!!!

One thing I’m struggling with since coming back from holiday is adapting to the time. In KL sunset was at 7pm. Here in Sabah, it’s 6. One of my resolutions is to wake up earlier. Preferably at sunrise. I’m practically a plant. I thrive on sunlight and I love water.

I hope this new year spirit lasts throughout the year. I want to constantly be striving to be a better version of myself.

The biggest thing I learnt last year was “I am capable of doing anything I put my mind to.” Except, dancing it seems.

I wonder what I’ll learn this year.

Taiping

Taiping Lake Gardens, Perak, Malaysia felt like the most beautiful place on Earth for me. It was the perfect evening. Not too hot, not too crowded. I was surrounded with wonderful company and was kept busy cycling. The 45 minute drive to and from was lovely. The scenery on this highway is said to be the most beautiful of the North-South Expressway.

where to? home

From KK to Sepanggar, Ranau or Sipitang, you can travel by bus, taxi, grab or even foot if you’re crazy. From KK to KL it’s a bit more than 2 hours via flight. That’s why home feels so far. Home to me is somewhere that is accessible. Somewhere where you can be yourself and do things you want. I spent a long time doubting my every step. Being at home for close to two years gave me room to figure out my next move. That’s why home here is so special to me. I’m still uncertain about where home actually is. I use the phrase so casually: “Hey let’s go home,” referring to the hotel we’re staying at for a week in Taiwan. “This feels like home,” being at the beach resort that I really do consider a second home in Sabah even though I’ve only been there twice. Writing this makes me realise that home is where my family is. In Taiwan, I spent a wonderful week in an air bnb with Tata and Patti. At the resort, we spent our Christmas away from family. Kl is home because family is there. Ipoh too. Often my inner battle is between Sabah and KL. I refer to our trips to Kl as “going home,” but when in KL I know Sabah is home too.

I hope you have a great holiday season where your home is.

dec.

This was taken during my birthday trip during the end of October. It seems like such a short while ago. Right after this trip, church reopened, school -in-person began again and life seemed to resume as normal. I got caught up in the busy-ness of it all. Here we stand at the last month of 2021. Spotify wrapped is released, Christmas trees are put up, end year examinations begin and flight tickets to home are bought. Yet, it’s too soon for me to begin to re-evaluate my 2021 and plan my 2022 resolutions.

5 weeks left. Here’s to making the most of it.

3 years

Whoa! Just as I planned to update today, I received a notification that today marks my third year anniversary on WordPress! It’s been quite a journey. Blogging for me began as a trend. My two close friends started posting and that inspired me to have a voice as well! However, at age 13 I didn’t have much to say as I was still figuring myself out. My first two blogs were named after milkshakes and scents and had nothing to do with either of those things. I wrote about the most random of things from travel tips to new recipes.

Now as I look back, I’m so grateful to see physical evidence of how much I’ve grown. I started this when I was just entering the teenage phase and here I stand nearly at adulthood. I can definitely say that I’ve found myself.

Photography for me began on a whim. I joined my school’s Editorial Board because I liked to write and found myself taking an interest in photography. It started when I touched a camera for the first time, my dad’s Nikon D350, to take photos on Sport’s Day when there was a shortage of photographers. Even now, I’m one of the very few photographers n school. 13 year old me would have never imagined that I would become president of the Photography Club (newly formed this year!) in school.

To future me, at 17 I see how far I’ve come from 13. I know you’ll see me and feel the same. Life moves pretty fast so don’t forget to take a step back and take a pic to remember.