personal ;

alya / cat lover / korean music enthusiast

[alyamdn]

“One Nation Controlled by the Media”

in this era of time, humans basically can’t live without four things; air, food, drink, and technology. even toddlers would cry in agony whenever their parents took away their gadgets (mostly ipads that are basically half the size of their own body).

as time goes by, people get more attached towards technology, even there’s a saying that this generation has been enslaved by the gadgets. it’s not even rare to find movies that are based around the topic about technology taking over humanity.

if we’re talking about gadget users, we obviously can’t leave out milennials from the topic, whom are the biggest amount of gadget users.

as a milennial myself, i don’t have the rights to say that i’m not included in the group of people that i just described on the few paragraphs above. i admit, most of the hours on the day i spend are used on using gadgets, especially my phone that i basically can’t leave the house without.

technology grows with time as well. as it grows people depends on it even more. i myself is trying to not get attached to it more than a normal basis. whenever all i wanna do is play my phone when i’m in a crowd of people, i try to avoid doing so.

but, technology isn’t all negativity, advantage may come out of it as well. whenever i find something new, i always want to get the most advantage out of it. most of the time i try to find lots of information so i can use them to add into a schoolwork and increase the education propped in them. i also

though the environment around me may get to attached to their own gadgets, i always try to get the best out those times so i don’t end up wasting time on something unuseful.

[alyamdn]

Hello!

My name’s Alya and since my name isn’t exactly an uncommon name, it’s not rare whenever someone gives me a nickname to differintiate me from other Alya’s. Some calls me Rania, Ran Al, and even my own chairmate calls me Medinah🙂. (fyi my full name’s Rania Alya Medina).

I’m turning 16 this year so I’m a bit late behind compared to the rest of my classmates.

I have a hobby of dancing and drawing, but nowadays I prefer dancing more because I’m a couch potato and it takes such a huge energy to waste for me just to get up from bed.

The reason behind me creating this blog is to share my daily life online to share with the world, so you may anticipate my next post!

[alyamdn]

Sherlock Whenever someone says detective, there are two things that pop out in my mind; Sherlock and magnifying glasses. Well, on 21st April, I get to be Sherlock for just one day. Our guide was John Adamson and he was with his friend named Hillary. At the beginning of the activity, he told us that today's winner gonna get Sherlock's "real" hat. Of course, that made me excited because who doesn't like free things? Right after, we were divided into three groups. And each groups were given the same mission which was observing the area that we're in which is the Regent's Park. Well, I didn't do much of a good job. For the second mission we were given a little booklet that had more stuff in it that we have to find and it was all about the objects that we can find in the park and this park was HUGE so we spent a lot of time doing this mission and surely, a lot of wandering around. And then the last mission were almost similar to the second one, we basically had a few things to do and these ones were more interactive because to actually finish the mission we had to interview strangers that were strolling around the park. In the end, our team didn't win but I didn't think about it too much because at the end everyone had a good time! (and chocolates). I feel that this workshop was super fun because we actually did it outdoors and we had more space that way and more freedom. I'm not sure if detective are my main passion because if I actually had to do this as a real life job I wouldn't enjoy it as much as I think.

[alyamdn]

The Guardian When I knew that we were going to go to one of UK's biggest media outlet, I'd be lying if I say I wasn't excited. When we entered The Guardian's building, we were greeted by a wall of photos from around the world and all the photo contained all variety of situations starting from a lion and her baby cuddling up in a bundle until a photo of a street covered in grey ash in a result of the eruption of Gunung Merbabu. After taking around a small stroll, looking at each photos on the wall, we were led to an empty meeting room and the person guiding us said that we were allowed to put our bags and coats there so it wouldn't be a burden because we were gonna be doing a tour around the office. Shortly after that, we were taken to another room and this room had computers! After being told that we had to sit in pairs, me and Dea picked one computer and sat down. Then, one of the people from The Guardian named Kelsey explained to us how the process of how news are released on a daily basis by the newspapers. Kelsey explained that The Guardian had 3 branches all over the world (Australia, New York, and London). So whenever the a branch are on a timezone where they should be sleeping, the other branches are working because in their timezone it's daytime so The Guardian is always aware on the news for 24/7. Then, we were explained the process of the making of newspapers and then Kelsey told us that today we're going to create our own headlines. At first I thought we had to make up articles of our own but turns out it's already prepared and all we had to do was make the front page of a newspaper that would invite people to purchase it. Dea and I chose the article about Doctor Who as the main headline because of the popularity that it has in the UK. We had a bit of a struggle trying to chose the headline but at the end we put 'Next Doctor might be a girl'. After we finished the rest of the front page, we got the print outs and we were pretty satisfied with the result! After that there were two more activities which were a tour around the office and one of the people from The Guardian told their story about how she got into journalism and the process of getting into one of UK's biggest media outlet. Truthfully, I enjoyed this activity but not as much compared to the other things we did. It's not that I dislike it, I just find it not as interesting as the others do. I'm not sure if I want to get into journalism in the future, but the knowledge that I've got from this workshop is definitely useful for future activities.

[alyamdn]

Afternoon Tea

Britain is of course well known for its biggest stereotype which was; they love drinking tea. And by the activity we did at 20th of April, I can say that now I understand why.

In the morning, we arrived at Milestone Hotel and we were amazed by the greatness of the hotel starting from the lobby which looked like it was made for billionares in the town only, and even to the bathroom that serves water and ice and even ladies’ needs.

Then we were led to the dining’s room and we sat down on the chairs that were available around a round table. After that, a lady wearing really nice 2 pieces suit clothing came in. She then introduced herself as an etiquette or manner coach named Emma Dupont.

She started out by explaining how the word etiquette itself was made; it was from a French word that meant ‘ticket’. A long time ago, King Louis XIV loved to throw parties at his palace but people were being very rude (jumping in the fountains, running around, etc) so he was very upset. Then he created tickets (or in this case; etiquette) that had rules that people had to follow if they want to get into the palace.

After she explained all about that, she continued on by telling us do’s and don'ts on introducing ourselves to new people and to be honest I never expected that I’d need this in my life. It goes unnoticed to me how often people say ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you,’ when it’s the first time they’re meeting someone, because to be honest; it’s not guaranteed that it actually will be a pleasure to meet them. That’s one of Emma’s most important advice for me.

She also taught us how they shake hands in England and even how to social kiss! (She put pressure on the sentence how social kiss are only for girls, not for boys).

In the midst of her talking, a few waiter and waitress shuffled in the room bringing a cake stand that had 3 levels and the first level had sandwiches, the second had scones, and the top level had small cakes.

I swear, when I saw those waiters came into the room my jaw almost dropped. Emma obviously saw our very oblivious immediate respond to the arrival of those sweets and she said, “Never I’ve seen someone finish all three levels by themselves but there’s always a first time for everything.”

After that, she told us how to eat the food on the bottom level which was the sandwiches. Of course having a stereotype of British folks planted in my mind already, I expected that we would be finishing all three levels using fork and knife but turns out you can eat the sandwiches only by your hand.

Then, onto the scones which were my absolute favorite. I chose the chocolate scones one and after snapping it in half we were told to spread the jams and melted chocolate in order and the scone had to stay on the plate and should not be lifted from it.

The last step were the cakes and we were allowed to use our hands or knife and fork, it’s all according to the type of the cake.

Throughout this whole activity I was feeling very curious and excited because it was something new and Emma was guiding us very well so we were able to follow quickly.

I’m sure that someday in the future this is truly something useful so I won’t be embarassing myself in front of other people during fancy dinners.

[alyamdn]

CSI Forensics I've seen TV shows based around criminal investigations and I'd never thought that I'll actually be able to do it myself but on 19th of April, that's exactly what I did. It was a sunny day and the winds were actually kind of subtle today compared to the days before. On this day we were doing a lesson about CSI Forensics and we were guided by this woman named Mikayla. She was very lovely and patient on leading us on each fase of investigating a crime. First, we were told to sit down and there were different sections in the room with different things to do. My group got to do the crime scene investigating first so there were lots of things spreaded across a small section of the place and they were very mediocre things that you see every day (glasses, comb, paper, phone, etc) and what we had to do was mark each objects with numbers and it had to be in order according to which object can lead us to the killer. The second step is to identify blood and there were two objectives that we did and the first one was to figure out which cotton bud that were swabbed from the crime scene that contained blood by giving it different chemicals and see if it has any color changes. After that we were given 3 samples of blood that were taken from the crime scene, each of them were coming from different sources. The third step was fingerprints. we were given 4 identified fingerprints from people who were related to the victim in some ways and we had to match one of those to the ones we've found at the crime scene. Later we actually matched it to the victim's daughter who was Kerri Wrights. The last step was footprints. There were identified footprints and even the actual shoes that belong to some that were related to the victim. We had to match it to the one that has been found at the crime scene and again, the one who matched was Kerri Wrights so we concluded that the murderer was her. Well, though I had doubts turns out we were right! I did learn of how different actual forensics is compared to the one that you see on TV shows or movies, even Mikayla gave us one example where she proved that forensics on TV weren't properly done right. Usually on TV shows or movies the victim's related are interviewed in the living room where the crime happens where most likely that's not allowed because only people with actual bussiness in the cordon can get into the cordon. I'm not sure if I'll be planning to study more forensics in the future, though it was lots of fun, I wouldn't necessarily name it as my main interest and make it as my primary hobby. But still it was quite an experience.

[alyamdn]

Punting This is the 4th day of my trip and today's plan of experencial learning is punting. Around 8AM we started the day by riding an hour and a half bus to Cambridge University and I planned to actually spend the whole ride sleeping but because of the beautiful views that can be enjoyed by the windows of the bus, I managed to prevent myself to not fall asleep for a bit and capture some of the scenery. When we arrived we were immediately welcomed by the strong winds and this time I'd actually brought my coat so I didn't suffer as much as yesterday. Then we walked to Mill Lane where the dock is. We got into each boats according to the group that we've been assigned in and we were given a quick short lesson on how to actually do the punting. Of course, knowing how we practically were noobs at punting and there might actually be a chance of the boat flipping to its underside, we were given these orange life jackets which were not only uncomfortable, but look hideous on photos. Then we started to do the actual activity and the one who did the punting first was one of my senior named Sandy and considering it was his first time, he was quite good. Well, of course we were stuck for a bit when we realized that the punter was supposed to be positioned on the back of the boat and we spent quite a while trying to spin the boat. Then, I actually tried to do the punting and one thing I didn't think about is how cold the stick was because it was made of some kind of metal(?). Anyways, I ended up sucking and my boat kept being stuck on one spot and I gave it back to my senior Sandy. To be honest, unlike my other friends who find this activity so exciting and challenging, I found it too difficult for my liking so I didn't quite enjoy it as much but it was definitely something new to experience of. What I did find quite fun was seeing the buildings of colleges and enjoying them from the river. However I did learn is how you can manuveur a boat by using only a pole, because I thought paddling is more effective but turns out punting needs less energy. But, if I say I'd do this again as a hobby, I'd be lying because it's just not for me. But maybe someday if I come across this type of activity again I'll be more experienced.

[alyamdn]

Smartphone Photography 101 Pretty hurts; that's a saying that shows up alot in the fashion industry whenever someone uses heels that kills their ankles, or wear a dress that's way too small for their size. Well, I'm no fashion person but yesterday I was considering whether should I wear my coat or not. Knowing how freezing it is outside, I definitely needed that coat. But the downside? When I take photos my outfit looks dead boring. I asked my roommates of their opinion and both of them agreed that I shouldn't bring my coat, and stupidly I followed with their suggestion. At this day, we were learning about photography using smartphones and we actually walked around London and the temperature were around 9-10 degrees celcius, and being an Indonesian where your life is surrounded by pouring heat and my body was definitely not made for that type of temperature (and plus points where I'm not wearing a coat), I was freezing at that point. So I could say that the common saying 'pretty hurts' applied to me on this day. We were led by this lovely woman named Jay/Jei who was basically a pro at smartphone photography and she guide us on objects that could look great in our photos. And at the beginning of the session we were given a small blue booklet and it had hashtags to guide us on the things that we were taking photos of. On the top of this post you can already see that I attached 3 photos that I took during this session. The first photo that I attached is based on the hashtag #MyLondonPostcard which means a photo that you would usually see on postcards that would be sold on the side of the streets. I chose this because it has one of London's icons which was London Bridge and if this picture doesn't say tourist attraction I don't know what is. The second photo is based on the hashtag of #ColorIllusion because you can definitely see how the red truck pops out from the rest of the scene in the photo and I think the pattern of the truck looks pretty too. And the last photo is based on the tag #ConcreteJungle and I think this is my favorite one because I took it at the right time; right when a part of the city is inside of the bubble. I did had to sacrifice bits of my hijab because of this photo it did got a bit wet. During walking around London and snapping pics while at it, I felt really excited and curious of what other object will come along the way for me to take a picture of. But the downside of this activity is how I keep complaining about the cold and it did distract me from actually enjoying the session. What I learned is how to take photos from unique angles and actually capture point of views that people don't see and also choose objects that can be the pinpoint of the photos. Jay also teached us how we can turn photos to look more dramatic by adding black and white or dull filters, or making things look more joyful by adding more saturation. After this session, I could definitely tell that whenever I travel I wouldn't be burdened with the feeling of having to bring my pocket camera anywhere to get good photos when in fact I could just use my phone that I always bring anywhere 24/7!

[alyamdn]

Public Speaking ala TED Ever since I came to London I've lost track of time and date, and I actually had to open the Calendar app to see what date it is today because I wanted to start my journal in a cool way of how travellers do because they always put dates on the beginning of the journal, but I already failed that. On Sunday, 16th of April we had a lesson of Public Speaking with one of the TED speakers named James Evans- which by the way, he was really great at drawing attention to the audience. We did a lot today and James was really good at engaging conversations with the audience and we did activities with groups and pairing. He explained everything about public speaking, starting from the myths that people believe about being good at public speaking and even to the extent of how you can maximize the climax of your speaking to get your message across to the audience. Throughout the whole session, I was feeling very interested in the topic in all its about. And what drew me in the most was how James himself was talking to us students because since he is such an experienced speaker he managed to not make anyone in the room sleep and actually pay attention to what information he's giving to us. I also felt really helped and definitely gained more knowledge not only from James, but from my seniors because we had a session where we had to work in pairs and our partner has to be someone in a different grade and obviously, being paired with someone who was way more better in speaking English than I do and actually had her own perspective and shared to me about it, was super duper helpful. What I learned from this activity is how a public speech is structured and ways to actually turn your nervous energy on stage into something that the audience would enjoy (for example: walking around the stage, more hand gestures, etc). What I definitely didn't know before was how there are trials to reach the actual core message that you're trying to spread and actually reach the climax and each trials gradually goes upward and reach more complexity in its content. From this activity I can definitely tell that I'll be more prepared if I had to do public speaking, considerig how in the UK if you want to get accepted in college you have to be well at it, and also James informed us that public speaking is one of a great aspect that a company can grow out so I'll definitely be taking more parts in public speaking in the future.

[alyamdn]

#1 Journal Entry

April 1st, most people know it as April Fools day but thank god I didn’t get fooled until now. Well, I did saw some posts on Instagram that managed to “fool” me, but that was it. In fact, I don’t know how to feel about today.

When I woke up, the only agenda that I remember was a meeting with the Vooya coaches so I was feeling pretty excited but then I remembered that today is also the day when I take my reports book with my dad, so I have mixed feelings about that. I remembered that the meeting starts at 08.30 but when I asked my friend if she’s already going to school, she said she wasn’t going to school, she was already at school. So I panicked because I was already ready to go to school but my dad was taking an hour to shower.

Finally, around 8.35 I arrived at school, thinking that I was late, but in fact the meeting hasn’t even started. Around 9AM it finally began, it started with the coaches explaining the overview of UnlockingYou project and all of that and then the parents were allowed to leave the room.

After that we were given a guidance book for the trip which has a really nice design and a pack of cookies which were shaped and colored like the letter ‘V’ on the Vooya logo. I find it really cute so I avoided to eat it because it would ruin the shape but because I haven’t eaten I ended up eating half of the pack.

After that I studied alot about creative writings, reflective writings, and even photography using handphones! Mr. Ivan (which was the Instagrammer who teached us about photography) was really cool and teached us how to take photos from a different perspective and even make people in the photos look slimmer and taller, so that’s useful.

I find the meeting to be very the useful and I gained a lot from today!