So before 2011 screeches to a halt, I would like to say that this year has been another fabulous year for me. I've been truly blessed with so many amazing people and opportunities in my life. It hasn't been an easy year, but every challenge made me stronger and willed me to try harder. I know I gave my best and I'm proud of my accomplishments.
Here are some of the highlights of my year :)
SAN FRANCISCO
Ushered in 2011 in San Francisco with Dana and Ming! I was in San Francisco for a week and I fell in love with the city upon arrival.
The view of San Francisco before landing
Ming and I arrived early in the morning and we were extremely tired because we'd stayed up all night packing for our San Francisco trip. We barely caught much sleep. I remember us waiting almost an hour at the airport for our shuttle to arrive.
My favorite dude
San Francisco was as awesome as I imagined it to be. I was never bored. Not once. We were always on our feet, hopping on and trams and touring new destinations. There was so much to do and see.
We went to Fisherman's Wharf...
There were many touristy shops selling candy, goodies, souvenirs and more.
Me filling a glass bottle with colored aromatic sand
...Chinatown...
Had my first dim sum platter in months.
... Alcatraz Island...
Ming and I taking a very windy picture while trying not to freeze
... Japanese Tea Garden...
Pagoda
And when it was time to leave, I caught a glimpse of the gorgeous sunrise as we were hovering above San Francisco.
Snow-sprinkled sand dunes in Nevada.
GOT INVITED TO ALPHA CHI, A NATIONAL COLLEGE HONOR SCHOLARSHIP SOCIETY
All that because I scored straight A's and made a 4.0 :) I even got a cert and badge! Tee hee.
EXPERIENCED SNOW FOR THE FIRST TIME
Malaysia doesn't have four seasons, but America does. I was really excited to see, touch, and TASTE snow. About a month after it started snowing, the snow got heavier and classes were cancelled for a week!
The view from my dorm in Baridon Hall
SAW THE COUNTRYSIDE
CELEBRATED EASTER WITH THE NEALS
I've only dyed easter eggs twice in my whole life. Once when I was in kindergarten, and once this year during Easter! Lol.
MINI PHOTO SHOOTS WITH FRIENDS
I started experimenting with photography on a deeper level this year, trying out new angles and colors to discover my style. I quickly learned that I favored retro/vintage photography and high-contrast shots :)
Winter Wonderland: (with Dana)
more here.
The Holga series:
more here.
Latoya Marshall:
more here.
Summer Love: (with Katrina, Taylor and Kaitlin)
more here.
Weekend in Greenbrier:
Blessings: (with Holly, Andrea and Dana)
EXPERIENCED SPRING FOR THE FIRST TIME.
more here.
MET AN AWESOME BUNCH OF D-GROUP GIRLS.
I miss them all.
WENT FOR THE TOADSUCK DAZE CARNIVAL
more here.
This was an annual carnival that Conway holds yearly.
Got my first "henna" tattoo.
WENT TO MY FIRST ESTATE SALE!
Estate sales are pretty common over here. They are similar to yard sales, except estate sales usually occur when nearly everything in the house goes on sale because the owner is moving to a new place, etc.
Found a whole collection of Beanie Babies!
VISITED MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE.
WENT BACK TO MALAYSIA OVER SUMMER.
I was really thrilled to be home after about 9 months of not seeing my friends and family.
Met both of my best friends' boyfriends.
Tim and Vivian
Guan Lim and June
Celebrated my 21st birthday with my best friends and Tim at Serai, a fancy Malaysian restaurant.
My birthday pavlova
Also had a pre-birthday gathering with my Subang cell group :) Sarah Ann baked this yummy thing for me!
AND I GOT MY VERY FIRST FEDORA FOR MY BIRTHDAY! :) :) :)
*I'd wanted one for MONTHS*
Astrid
Deb and Anusha
My besties!
Spent quality time with my dearest parents and brother.
(This was taken at the airport before I returned to Arkansas, with the Malaysian flag in the background)
Did LOTS of eating, of course. Malaysia is a food central.
Had my first macarons on my birthday :) Fell in love with them ever since.
In fact, I'm craving them right now.
Salmon mentai at Sushi Zanmai :)
Dumpling soup
Fried pork
Fried cantonese noodles
Did a little photo shoot for my best friends and their boyfriends :)
VISITED MY RELATIVES IN SINGAPORE
My cousin Calvin took me around Orchard Road one sunny day and we met up with our other cousin, Sabrina. Also got to spend time with my other relatives, whom I greatly treasure.
FLEW TO MELBOURNE FOR A MONTH.
Ming is an amazing person and I'm so glad I got to see him one last time before flying back to USA.
I miss you, boyfriend. <3
A very happy me at dinner time. I'm always happy at dinner time.
Maggi goreng!
Did more eating :)
Delicious xiao long paus
See all the macarons on top? I bought all of them.
Nah, just kidding. I wish I'd bought all of them.
Took a roadtrip to Healesville Sanctuary with Ming and his family.
I liked the countryside
Took another roadtrip to Phillip Island, this time with Ming's friends and my best friend Vivian who'd joined us in Melbourne for a few days.
Stopped for breakfast on a farm
Lambs are really cute until they start chewing on your clothes
Had a lovely time when Vi was there. Of course, we took a lot of pictures.
I miss strolling in the park with the boyfriend under the sun with the breeze blowing gently (and sometimes harshly) in our faces.
I MISS MELBOURNE.
BOUGHT MY FIRST DSLR AND NAMED IT KYLE.
I was taking a photography class last semester and I needed a good camera for my assignments.
One of the first pictures I took with Kyle
This class also granted me the opportunity to shoot various types of pictures, ranging from portraits and features to sports and news worthy shots.
A feature photograph of a student at Starbucks
Volleyball
Football
For my final project of the semester, I had to choose a feature assignment to do about so I picked Pitza 4 2. Someday, I'll blog about how awesome and dedicated this pitza place is. I got the chance to interview the owners of the restaurant and they shared their inspiring story of how the restaurant came about.
I'm really glad I took that photography class because I've learned so much about photography
and cameras in just a couple of months!
Plus, I had a cool lecturer and he was one of my favorites.
VISITED TUNICA, MISSISSIPPI.
more here.
Put up in a casino for the weekend
Won $100 on 3-card poker the first day, lost $70 the next. Well, luck doesn't always stay in the same pot.
VISITED CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.
The Field Museum
FELL IN LOVE WITH FALL ALL OVER AGAIN.
Taken on campus
Fall is my favorite season of the year. There's so much beauty vested in the colors of the leaves.
DRESSED UP FOR HALLOWEEN
more here.
It was fun! Everyone came in costumes - one of my friends came as Dumbledore. And she's a girl. She went to all that trouble to wear a fluffy white beard, large purple cloak and a pointed hat too big for her head. People really make the effort to dress up here. I've never dressed up for Halloween, simply because it's not a celebrated event in Malaysia.
LIVED TO SEE MANY GLORIOUS SUNSETS.
FOUND OUT THAT CERTAIN ALCOHOLIC DRINKS DON'T TASTE TOO BAD.
I was never a fan of alcohol. Always gagged at the bitter taste while my friends mused over cocktails and margaritas. Even when I had sweet cocktails, I still cringed at the bitterness. Then I had a strawberry daiquiri several months back. It wasn't bad at all. It quickly became my favorite drink. It tasted a lot like a strawberry smoothie with a hint of rum that was barely noticeable beneath the layers of strawberry, whipped cream and sugar.
Strawberry daiquiri
The Mudslide
The mudslide at Red Lobster tasted like a chocolate milkshake. I could barely taste the alcohol at all! It was sweet :)
DEALT WITH GUNS.
Guns are illegal in Malaysia, so it isn't common for people to have guns stashed in their homes or cars. However, the rules are different in Arkansas. Nearly every Arkansan family owns a gun because hunting is a common sport here. And guns are legal.
That's me in Taylor's garage, holding up one of her dad's unloaded rifles.
The man has NUMEROUS guns.
They took me to a shooting range the next day and I fired my first revolver :)
CELEBRATED CHRISTMAS WITH MY AMERICAN FAMILY.
more here.
I spent Christmas with the Neals and they treated me like their own. They bought me presents, took me to visit their relatives and made my Christmas a memorable and enjoyable one in every way.
I had a lovely 2011. I couldn't have asked for a better year, because I had one of the best years of my life.
May 2012 be another great, memorable year filled with His blessings! :) Cheers.
2 comments:
I always love looking at your pictures, Carissa. I'm glad you had such a wonderful year. Bring on 2012 :D
Thank you Colleen! Yes, may this be a superb year for all of us :)
PS: Didn't realize you had a blog until I saw this. It's great! Keep posting :)
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