Better Not to Miss That Cute Tarzan

I was sceptical when I entered the tent. I was really not quite into animal thingies, as I had expections on some acrobatic show. Sure, those tigers were graceful (and they brought my fear to a new level seeing that one of them could actually climb THAT high!), those puddles were beyond cuteness, those dancing elephants moved so awesomely ignorant with their lazy eyes and enormous size (I wondered why there was no safety barriers/cage at all on the elephant show. Didn't they know that a moody elephant could throw a dangerous tantrum and flatten people to the ground with one step of their huge foot?).

This show had a storyline of Tarzan. (For more information, please click on the above picture). And when it was about Tarzan, amidst the jungle of Africa, yes, there were plenty of ethnic music and dance, acrobatic stunts and aerial dances. With no safety wires. Yihaaaaaaa!!!

** Tarzan swinging around. His curly hair was way cuter than the puddles.
** Tarzan's mom playing hula hoops. Hoops were not that simple, my friends, not that simple. (Vids from YouTube)
** Tarzan's dad playing the "German Wheel". I could only capture a short moment. Wow. Just wow.
** Tarzan and Jane. I lost the recorded file .. frown .. Let's see if I could steal from YouTube.
** Tarzan's mom dancing the "Aerial Cube". This one was so stunning .. and I lost the file too. Double frowns! (Got it from YouTube, it's dark, but you can get the picture)
** The Pole Climbers. This was worth mentioning. I didn't record it because it was hard to take my eyes off it. They climbed the poles, literally in styles that could put monkeys to deepest shame.
** Tarzan and Jane, Reunited. The bravest aerial dance in pair I'd ever seen. No wires, I recalled.
** The closing. I got it when one kid audience entered the stage and danced together with all the casts. This kid would be a star one day.

In general, this circus would catch more adults' than kids' attention, because there were less animal acts and more human acts. They performed more acrobatics with exhilarating background music (including the relentless drum player). This is why I love it .. and I love Tarzan.

Christmas Songs for Shrinks

**Christmas Songs For Shrinks**

Schizophrenia: Do You Hear What I Hear

Multiple Personality: We Three Queens Disoriented Are!

Narcissism: Hark! The Herald Angels Sing About Me!

Dementia: I Think I'll Be Home For Christmas

Paranoia: Santa Claus Is Coming To Town To Get Me

Mania: Deck The Halls and Walls and House and Lawn and Streets and Stores and Office and Town

Depression: Silent Anhedonia, Holy Anhedonia, All is Flat, All is Lonely

Personality Disorder: You Better Watch Out, I'm Going to Cry, I'm Going to Pout, then maybe I'll tell you why!

Obsessive Compulsive: Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Swing, Jingle Bell Swing, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Swing, Jingle Bell Swing, Jingle Bell Swing Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bell Rock

Suicidal: Thoughts of Roasting On an Open Fire

Passive Aggressive: On the First Day of Christmas My True Love Gave to Me (then took away)




*<[:{) Santa!

Simplified

A dog named Woofie, he barks, "Woof! Woof!"
A dog named Louie, he barks, "Lu! Lu!"

Nothing can amaze me more than a simple mind of a kid.

Something Smurfy This Way Comes

~ The Invitation Card ~
Since Mat was so into Smurfs, we prepared a Smurf theme for his birthday this year.

~ The Cake ~
We tried to get a Smurf cake for him, with epic fail at first attempt. We browsed three bakeries and they didn't have this theme. They suggested us to give them a sample or picture for the decoration, and they would try copying it into the cake. Toys were not included, meaning we had to provide them too. We found this pretty cake from this site. Since the toys on that cake would cost us too much (yeah, we did find them available for sale at one store in Senayan City), we decided to use Mat's collection of Smurfs, courtesy of McDonald's Happy Meals.

Plus, Grandma bought a Baby Smurf for Mat to place on top of his cake, together with Papa Smurf.

We showed the cake picture and Mat's Smurfs to Venesia Bakery at Lippo Karawaci. They accommodated our request amazingly ..

~ The Souvenirs ~

We browsed many souvenir stores, looking for smurfy ones. Couldn't find it. So we changed the target. We started looking for the ones that could make customized or personalized souvenirs. Found it available from this site. We sent some images and wordings to them, alongside the names of Mat's cousins, classmates and teachers. They re-designed it. We were happy with these towels ..

We also prepared additional souvenirs, small packages of colourful jelly beans mixed with chocolate candies.


~ The Smurfday ~
Mat's 5th Birthday party started at 9.30 am. His teacher told the students a story of Mat, using his pictures aging from newborn to current.

Then Mat held a globe and walking around his birthday cake while his classmates and teachers singing "Happy Birthday". He blew the candles, cut the cake and shared it with two of his friends and with us as well.

Teacher conducted 6 round of musical chair games. I had prepared the gift bags consisted of bubble in bottles, cute name stickers and bookmarks, fancy mini paper punches and stamps. The good thing about me being a clutterer, I had a collection handy for last minute gifts. And knowing children were easy to please, the more cute things we tossed in the bag, the more excited they were to open it. The game was so funny, we saw students pushing each other to get the last seat. The music playing was the one for Mat's upcoming Christmas performance. So there he was .. dancing at the background .. with his younger friend, Christine, joining in.

Snack time started after the game. Mat's birthday cake slices were distributed to all students. I placed one icing flower/pumpkin/lettuce/pineapple to decorate each plate. The way kids been puzzled and wondered if they could eat that was priceless. Of course it's edible.

As mentioned above, a Christmas performance was coming. The kids had been practising after school everyday, and this day was not an exception. Mat was so secretive about his dance, he'd been keeping it from us all this time, he wanted us to see it for the first time on the performance day. But now we got a sneak preview. We saw Mat dancing to Crazy Frog's "Last Christmas" and "Jingle Bells". (For the real performances, click here and here).

The celebration ended with Mat calling for his friends one by one and gave them the souvenirs. Then we headed back home, presents awaited for him to open. He was excited and happy for the day. We were, too.

Happy 5th Smurfday, Mathieu!

It seems like yesterday when you were born, when everything about you was so tiny. I'm taking this moment to recall a tribute ..

His fingers are so tiny, so marvelously perfect. Soon they will reach out to touch the smiling faces of everyone around him. These little hands will explore, discover and bring the world to him for his inspection and delight. With these hands he will throw balls, capture bugs and build castles in the sand. He will use them to open books and unlock the doors to knowledge. These are the hands that may someday sculpt, make music or cuddle children of his own. His hands are so tiny now, and yet within them lie the future and the fulfillment of all his precious dreams. So hold him gently and watch with pride as he reaches out in love and joy to all of life.

You're definitely smurfin' there, my boy.

Pantara for the Fun and the Fearless

It was unanimous for this year's company gathering destination, that we'd like to go to an island. And since a trip to Bali would be too complicated, it was set to Thousand Islands instead.

This would be the second time I visited Thousand Islands. Second time only, since I was born, living and working in Jakarta. The first time was a day-trip to Ayer Island, when the resort was just newly opened for public, years ago. And it's been six years since the last time I rode on a boat crossing the open water. History had proven that ocean scared the hell out of me.

But when the management had approved the plan to bring the whole family and after browsing so many tempting pictures of Thousand Islands, I wouldn't want to miss this just because of seasick and jaws threats.

We worked together with Lita from Wijayatama Wisata to organize our trip. Pantara Island was the final choice (after a tight competition with Putri Island). It was mainly decided for these reasons: Pantara was mentioned as "The Bali of Thousand Islands", it was known for its high-rated facilities and Putri Island was fully-booked on December 3-4. The only thing that concerned me, it was a 2-hour boat trip. Waks!

So .. after cursing harshly on the freaky Friday evening traffic jam, catching last minute shopping, arriving home very late due to heavy rain, tossing and packing everything in full speed, I only got approximately one and a half-hour to sleep before I had to wake my family up for the gathering day. It's gotta to be a good weekend, it's just gotta be, cause I needed a getaway to the max. Let there be sun and fun.

Things didn't go quite smooth on the departure. First, we missed the proper exit to Ancol. Man, two seconds I took my eyes off the road to read texts, then I look up and saw Ancol area was already appeared on the left side of the toll way. Kyaaaaa .. for so many times we'd visited Ancol, we'd never took any wrong way before. This was certainly not cool when we're such in a hurry. Luckily, the next exit was not too far away. We managed to arrive at Marina Pier 22 in time.

Second, it was windy and the tide was high. The waves were raging. I thought the sea was supposed to be calm in the morning. Fear enveloped me. Not only for me, but also for Mathieu. This was his first time riding on a boat. I didn't know if he would be able to stand it or not. I observed the boat, it was a speed-cruiser with 50-pax capacity. Quite big, but wouldn't be big enough to tackle the wavy motion.

The moment we were on board, I distributed Antimo to my family. I reminded Andri to keep his whenever-wherever-forever-Blackberry in his pocket, he'd better not playing with anything that could trigger sickness. The cruiser left Marina Ancol around 9 am. For sure, the trip was rough. It felt like we were on a ride at some theme park. Mathieu grabbed his armrest so tight, he was terrified. I was, too. I could see the waves swept our cruiser constantly. Poseidon was flashing in my mind. Please, don't flip .. do not flip ..

In a short moment, some passengers on board couldn't stand it. There were unmerciful jackpots everywhere. I looked at Mathieu, the meds had kicked in fast, he was asleep. I saw Valen, my niece, was already asleep too. That was when I decided to go to the deck before my stomach gave me up. Outside, the wind was strong, the grey ocean was scary, but the fresh air helped me a lot. I stayed there for about 10 minutes. Then I felt sleepy.

I went back inside and I saw Andri's face was pale and sweaty. He told me the cabin was hot. I told him, it was a sign of seasick and he'd better go outside. If he waited any longer, it wouldn't be pretty. So, outside he went. When he went back in, I was already half-asleep with Mathieu on my lap.

Mathieu was awake at around 11 am. I thought we're supposed to arrive at Pantara that time. But the trip took 30 minutes longer than that. And those extra minutes was too much for him. Just when the cruiser stopped at Pantara pier, he threw up. Ooooo .. I'd look at the bright side. At least he waited till the very last minute, so it didn't get worse.

Getting off the boat was a relief. It was such a peaceful surrounding, and a delight to see the sea was blue and green, regardless the cloudy sky above us. Our group instantly joined into narcissism. Who could resist, anyway?

Really .. I was so tempted to jump into the water right away. But I still felt a bit drowsy and I heard a saying, "Never get into the water while you're drunk".

After snapping some pictures and got our key, we headed off to our cottage. It was a studio-type cottage, with a king-size bed. The bedroom was big enough to accommodate up to 5 persons with additional single-beds. The bathroom was semi-open, equipped with bath tub. The most important thing of all, it was clean and cool.

Buffet lunch was served at the restaurant. Nice to have warm food while enjoying the seaview through the open windows.

At around 2 pm, we approached the water sports area at the beach. Unfortunately, though it was cloudy, the sun still burn. So all activities would have to wait for another hour. Mat joined my colleague's kids at his age to play with sandcastle equipments at the beach for a while. We brought him his water-shooters and he shared the toys with his new friends. I walked farther in the shallow water to see the corals till one staff suggested me to wear sandals. Apparently, there were many urchins and corals threatened to cut feet. Then we moved to the swimming pool. It was nice to have a pool when some people (and kids) might not enjoy swimming in the salty seawater.

One hour later, we were the first who returned to the water sports area. Our target: the jetski. Lita offered Mat a jetski ride. Wasn't he a little to young for that? Pantara had a rule for jetskiers: we were not allowed to ride it alone. One instructor had to accompany us on each ride. This was to avoid accidents that could be caused by invisible reefs underneath the water. So Mat would have to ride it along with a total stranger. To our biggest surprise, he nodded his head. He didn't mind. Wow! That was the first. I guessed Pantara had spread its spells that could persuade a 5-year old, who had always been reluctant in trying new things.

Mat got his lifejacket on, hopped on the jetski with the instructor, and off they ran. I was worried. The last things I wanted to see were the jetski stopping in the middle of the ocean, flipping over, or to hear Mat's cry over there. None of these things happened. I stood at the very edge of the pier, turned my camera on to record him. Mat's jetski passed me by over and over, I could see he was enjoying his ride. When they were at the farthest side, they looked like a tiny orange dot on a water painting so wide.

When they were riding nearby a big ship that was previously used as a floating hotel for the last SEA Games 2011, there .. a "David and Goliath".

Mat returned to the pier with his hair looked like it had been blown by typhoon. Good to know that the lifejacket had kept him warm. Andri was next on the line. He rode the jetski like a pro. So fast, I rarely got decent pictures from his adventure on the sea.

By this time, our company group had all gathered around the pier. Some riding the banana boat, some canoeing, some teaching their children how to float in the shallow water, others just did the cheerleading part while waiting for their turn. Mat refused to join a banana boat ride. He had enough and couldn't wait to get back to the pool. There he went with his kiddie friends, as the adults were still attached to the sea.

Then it was my turn. I couldn't remember the last time I rode on a jetski. Perhaps when I was still in college, and I was never the one pressing on the accelerator. So yeah, considered this was my first time ever. (And had I told anyone I was terrified of the open water?).

I was too close to the reef at one point, at another point I was too close to the banana boat until the waves they left behind sweeping my jetski. Huaaaa. I was thankful for the instructor, eventough he let me taking control of everything (he only laughed when I made my jetski "flying" against the waves), with him around I felt safe. All in all, it was cool.

Coffee break was set right there on the pier. Hot coffee, hot tea, two savouries and one sweet. Served in a windy afternoon, surrounded by water. The best coffee break ever. Ever.

Oh. Would you look at this?

That was a sun deck. For sun-bathing and watching sunset/sunrise. We might not be able to see the sunset. But we could wait for the sunrise at 5 am the next morning.

I was challenged by Ryan, my colleague, to join his group for the banana boat ride. They would do a fast ride and the banana would be flipped twice. No big deal, right? But in the end, I didn't get a chance to get on that ride, because there were still many others waiting for their turns, and it had to be done quick before it was late. So I just watched them.

A banana boat carried 5 persons on each ride. The safety of the ride depended on how fast the boat was pulled, how well we could hung onto the handles for the bumpiest ride, and how prepared we were to fall into the water - preferrably in style. One boat returned to the pier with only 4 persons on the banana, while one more person stayed in the speedboat. Turned out the water was too cold for him to continue the ride after it'd been flipped. Then another returned after only took off for a short while, the young girl in the group couldn't take it and she was crying. So we needed to find someone else to fill in her spot.

And Ryan's banana boat returned without Ryan. He was sitting in the speedboat instead, his leg was injured. There was an accident at the second flip. He bumped against Supakdee, our colleague from Shanghai, on the fall. A medic took care of him, but still, he ended up unable to walk for the rest of the trip.

One lesson learned: whoever said that jetski-ing was dangerous, should try riding on a banana boat with Ryan's group.

I spent the evening at swimming pool with Mat and Valen. Mat was so reluctant to get out of the pool, we literally had to drag him back to our cottage to prepare for dinner time.

Dinner was served at 7 pm at the beach. Chefs prepared barbeque for us. I loved the grilled fish, it tasted really fresh. There was bonfire, games and door prize time. Shopping vouchers, gift vouchers, chocolates, candies, cookie jars, lunch box, Parker pen, and iPod Shuffle were well-distributed. As predicted, none of our family members nailed one.

Pantara had music room called Musro. It served as a discotheque and karaoke room. I went there with Valen and some colleagues. Mat went back to cottage with his dad, it was his bedtime already. In the karaoke room, the songs collection were old. It didn't matter. The singing continued till midnight.

I was determined to see the sunrise. I did wake up at 5 am. Looked outside the window, it was still dark and no sign of sun at all. I went out to the beach. Boy, it was so quiet. I looked toward the sun deck at afar. I really wanted to go and wait there, but it was kinda creepy walking to the pier at this hour alone. So I stayed put for about 30 minutes. The sun was invisible, however, a burst of golden colour started to fill up through the clouded sky. Knowing it would not be a clear sunrise, I gave up. I went back to cottage and continue sleeping till 8 am.

The morning was pleasant. Sky was clearer, sea was blue in various tones. Breakfast was served at the restaurant.

The sun was inviting. We smeared lots and lots of sunscreen before we continued the activities. Mat and Andri headed off to the swimming pool. Valen and I headed off to the water sports area. I saw some people already had an earlier start for canoeing and snorkeling. Valen rode on the jetski, while I put on my lifejacket and snorkeling gears .. and jumped into the water.

I could only hear my breathing through the snorkel. Other than that, it was a peaceful silence. The water was warm, visibility was really good. People said that watching fish swimming could relieve tensions and stress. I got it now. Colourful fish scattering around the corals. I found some urchins lying at the bottom. They're so black, but they had some dots of shocking bright orange and blue. Snorkeling could lose one's sense of direction. I almost got my head knocked against the reef. When I looked up above the water, the reef was just inches away in front of me. Phew. I turned around immediately, and got myself caught in the shallow water. So shallow I could touch the dancing corals, but too shallow I had to be extremely careful not to brush myself against any sharp objects. But this spot was the best. It was beautiful, I regretted I didn't have an underwater camera.

Valen soon joined me. It was her first time snorkeling. I held her hand and we floated side by side.

Time flew fast. So did the sunscreen. I could only tell it was nearly noon by the heat of the sun burning on my skin. A sign to get off the sea.

I shot these corals from the pier.

And as if it was never enough for us, instead of going back to the cottage, we gave a quick visit to the much beloved swimming pool. Mat was still there. I tell ya', Mat and warm pool water were a perfect match. We stayed there for a while until it was time to clean up and pack our things for checking-out.

Our group met at the restaurant for lunch before departure. We were also preparing for the trip back to Jakarta by taking Antimo ahead of time. By 1.30 pm we all gathered at the pier and took some more pictures.

Last sights of Pantara.

We didn't want to leave, but we had to.

Trip to home was nicer, thankfully. The ocean was tamed. Five minutes after the boat took off, Mat was asleep. So did Andri and Valen. The aircon inside cabin didn't work well this time, it was hot. So I enjoyed some time sunbathing on the deck, chatting with the others, before I went back in the cabin for sleep.

We arrived at Marina Ancol at around 4 pm. Mat was stirred awake and crying. He told me he didn't want to get off the boat. Huh? I guessed it was the meds talking. Andri carried him out and promised him we would go around Ancol area afterwards.

So after we said goodbye to our group, there we went .. round and round in Ancol area. Nothing new to see. We missed Pantara already. Two days one night spent on the island seemed not enough. And it felt so far away when we're back to reality, to the hustle and bustle of the big city.

Thousand Islands had never been our holiday destination before this trip.

It is now.

Countdown to Titanic

On April 6, 2012, to commemorate 100 years of the doomed ship, Titanic will be re-released in 3D.

I've looked it up on my calendar. It's next year Good Friday, a public holiday. And happens to be my birthday as well (yes, I've looked up on my birth certificate too, I swear).

James Cameron presented the exclusive premiere of the new trailer last Thursday, exclusively on Facebook.

After double cinema visits, countless peeks on TV, multiple viewings of my Titanic (Three-Disc Special Collector's Edition), I hereby am starting a countdown and hoping that the local cinema schedule won't put it into any kind of ridiculous delays ..

I once had written a very long post about this James Cameron's Titanic to its defense. True, not all people like or love this movie. Regardless the subjective nature of movie-watching experience, I've heard 3 main reasons that caused Titanic losing some of the love:

1. The cheesy love story - yes, it is cheesy indeed.
2. The miscast of Leonardo DiCaprio - yes, but look how good he is now as an actor.
3. The over-length of its running time - no. We already got used to watch epic movies that tend to run long.


A repost with additional links - Watch out for major spoilers!

Dulu banget .. tahun berapa sih Titanic ini masuk ke Indonesia? 1997 ya? Tahun segitu tuh, gue murni milih film berdasarkan kata hati aja. Jadi belom kenal yang namanya milis film, belom pernah yang namanya baca-baca review kritikus lewat internet (paling dari koran aja, itu juga kalo pas nemu .. atau dari Cinema-Cinema RCTI yang banyak spoiler tapi masih rajin gue tonton waktu itu). Minimal banget gue kena hype.

Of course, sebelum gue nonton, gue udah pernah liat poster Titanic di lobby-lobby bioskop. Gimana ga mau liat, wong posternya itu gede dan keren.

Gue tau Leonardo DiCaprio main di sini. In my book, Leo is not a bad actor, karena gue pernah sampe terlongo-longo ngeliat dia di serial Growing Pains sama film The Basketball Diaries. Yang terakhir ini, gue ga suka sama filmnya, tapi aktingnya Leo was a blast. Gue ga tau Kate Winslet itu siapa, ga peduli juga. Apalagi sama sutradaranya. Tau James Cameron aja baru beberapa tahun setelahnya .. hehe ..

Jadi apa yang bikin gue tertarik nonton Titanic? Kisahnya dong. Gue tau Titanic itu kapal terkenal yang tenggelam, yang memakan korban sampe ribuan orang .. that's it. Detailnya gelap bener. Padahal sih tertarik banget buat tau lebih banyak, cuma gue ini paling males sedunia buat ngubek-ngubek berita. Nah, mumpung dibikin filmnya nih, dan gue bisa nonton .. jadi gue pasti nonton lah. Juga biasanya film-film bencana itu seru.

Satu hari di hari Selasa siang .. gue lupa tanggalnya .. gue diajak nonton sama cowok gue (sekarang udah mantan) di Hollywood KC 21. Kita ga tau mo nonton film apa, jadi go show aja gitu. Malah ga liat poster yang dipajang di atas Hollywood KC pula. Jadi masuk lobby, langsung ke loket milih film. Pake free pass VIP, yang berarti, ga perlu rebutan nomor kursi karena buat VIP ini udah dialokasikan satu baris seat pas di tengah-tengah studio. Asik kan? Lebih asik lagi, baru ketauan kalo pas jam segitu, ternyata filmnya Titanic (belakangan gue liat di poster depan, ga ada lho Titanic dipasang. Berarti ini seperti sneak show gitu ya?). Jadilah kita berdua beli itu. Wuih. Nggak disangka, nggak dikira .. Studio juga cuma isi ga sampe setengah.

Begitu film dimulai, perhatian gue udah ditarik sama ilustrasi riak-riak air yang kelam, penumpang yang melambai-lambaikan tangan di atas kapal megah .. dan musiknya yang sendu banget. Kegembiraan yang terselingi dengan isyarat-isyarat tragedi yang menanti di ujung kisah, karena warna-warna sephia-nya seperti melukiskan masa lalu gitu. Film baru mulai aja gue udah merasa pahit banget .. gue pikir, waduh, ini mereka semua nanti bakalan mati tenggelam .. anak-anak, orang tua, suami, istri, kekasih .. terus waktu adegan ganti baru deh lumayan cerah dikit.

Kalo mo dibagi jadi dua bagian, Titanic punya present and past. Yang present, menurut gue biasa-biasa aja. Gue ga gitu peduli sama team penyelam yang dipimpin oleh Bill Paxton. Paling yang menarik waktu bangkai kapal Titanic dan remainings-nya di-link ke gambaran kemewahan Titanic sewaktu belum tenggelam. Sampe muncul karakter yang diperankan Gloria Stuart, yang sampe saat ini masih gue kategorikan sebagai "nenek centil" karena dandanannya yang sophisticated di usia setua itu (liat aja, masih pake nail-polish .. hahaha ..). Narasi dan ekspresi Old Rose waktu menceritakan kisahnya itu baguuuuus banget.

Bagian past yang mengambil porsi terbesar dari film ini, merupakan bagian yang luar biasa. Warnanya soft, hangat, penuh cahaya emas (jelas ini sebelum tabrakan yang langsung mengubah warna menjadi biru, hitam dan dingin) .. mewah dah. Rose pertama kali gue spot waktu dia turun dari kereta kudanya. Hoo .. jadi ini yang namanya Kate Winslet. Biasa aja kok ya? Gemuk pula. Terus muncul Jack. Hehe .. Leo is Leo, no further comment. Dan kisah mereka berdua yang mengalir sesudahnya .. er .. terus terang, gue sadar kalo gue salah menilai Titanic .. awalnya gue pikir film tentang bencana, ternyata ini film tentang cinta berlatar belakang bencana.

Yeah, kisah cinta antara Rose dan Jack yang mengambil fokus utama. Gue ga punya masalah sama love stories .. tapi ini .. kayaknya ada yang salah. Rose terlalu dewasa buat Jack. Atau Jack yang terlalu boyish buat Rose. Pokoknya ga cocok deh. Tadinya gue pikir yang salah casting itu Kate Winslet. Ternyata .. seiring dengan jalannya film .. karakter Rose itu semakin berkembang. Dan di mata gue, Rose berubah dari sosok yang angkuh dan gempal .. menjadi sosok yang vulnerable, tapi punya pribadi yang kuat .. dan Kate Winslet sebagai Rose Dawson semakin lama keliatan semakin muda dan cantik. Sangat cantik. Buat gue, Kate Winslet memberikan beberapa adegan yang paling memorable dalam film ini. Gue ga bicara tentang adegan meludah ya .. yang selain lucu, tapi tetap menjijikkan .. euw .. =D. I'm talking about these .. ga ada yang bisa mengalahkan sesaknya isak tangis Rose waktu dia bertengkar dengan tunangannya yang keren itu (o yeah, Billy Zane emang keren .. hehehe ..) sampe meja dilempar terbalik, ga ada yang bisa menandingi innocent-nya (dan panasnya) Rose waktu dilukis, atau perasaan campur aduk yang tersorot dari mata Rose sewaktu dia ada di dalam sekoci dan memandang Jack yang masih ada di atas Titanic .. or .. *sigh* .. pedihnya ngeliat Rose yang susah payah nyebur ke air dingin, terus niup peluit .. ngiris banget ..

Sedangkan Jack Dawson .. well .. begitu-begitu aja. Gue ga ngeliat pesona Leo di sini. Malah sempet heran juga sama penonton-penonton yang berseru kagum di adegan Jack didandani sama Kathy Bates. Akting Leo pun standar banget. Di adegan Jack teriak "I'm the king of the World" yang harusnya bisa ngangkat lepas sampe di titik tertinggi kegembiraan, ga nyampe banget .. ekspresinya artificial. Waktu Jack ngajak Rose dansa terus diputer-puter sampe gue yang nonton jadi mabok, ketawanya Jack juga jelek banget. Malah di bagian akhir, waktu Jack dan Rose mengucapkan perpisahan, dimana adegan itu dimaksud menguras air mata, gue malah merasa itu adegan yang paling menggelikan. Karena Jack .. karena Leo .. Leo mesti diajarin lagi gimana cara bicara sambil menggigil kedinginan yang baik dan benar. Paling yang dapet nilai bagus di mata gue waktu Jack menegur Rose "How could you be so stupid???" Sayang banget ga sih .. karakter Jack Dawson yang harusnya menjadi sumber inspirasi dan sumber kekuatan untuk Rose (bahkan kalo mau diagungkan lagi .. bisa menjadi serupa legenda yang magis karena katanya ga ada catatan nama Jack di daftar penumpang), ternyata cuma dibawain segitu aja sama Leonardo Di Caprio.

Tapi memang ya .. yang bikin kagum itu pas mulai kapal nabrak gunung es, sampe detik dia tenggelam. Gilaaaaa .. itu kayaknya panjaaaaaaaang banget, ga abis-abis .. Detil dan bikin depresi. Menonton adegan Titanic berada di posisi nyaris tegak lurus .. gue serasa ikut berpegangan bersama Jack dan Rose di railing kapal .. dan melihat orang-orang terpelanting ke bawah .. terus ikut tersedot pusaran air sewaktu Titanic akhirnya tenggelam. Sisi-sisi kemanusiaan yang digambarkan (termasuk kelompok pemain musik yang bertekad akan terus menghibur penumpang sampe mereka sama sekali ga bisa bermain lagi, pasangan suami-istri tua yang berpelukan di atas tempat tidur pasrah menanti ajal karena mereka tau ga ada lagi yang bisa menyelamatkan mereka, ibu yang masih sanggup menghibur anak-anaknya di dalam ruangan kelas tiga, desainer Titanic yang bertanggung jawab dan berbesar hati menerima konsekuensi tenggelam bersama hasil desainnya), walaupun getir masih mampu memperlihatkan kepahlawanan dan pengorbanan cinta di sana-sini. Bukan dari karakter utamanya, tapi dari karakter-karakter tanpa nama. Fakta-fakta yang dibeberkan bikin gue ikut-ikutan menyesal banget-banget, menyadari Titanic tenggelam karena keangkuhan manusia juga.

Hal-hal inilah yang menguras emosi penonton. Kalo dibilang Titanic menjual detil tanpa memperhatikan perkembangan karakter dan cerita .. ya memang betul. Dari sisi kisah cintanya, ga ada yang istimewa. Malah berkesan agak seperti roman picisan .. hitam-putih, si kaya dan di miskin. Karakter utamanya tenggelam dan ga mampu bersaing dengan kemegahan setting serta kisah nyata Titanic itu sendiri. Yang outstanding hanya Rose Dawson (thanks to Kate Winslet, juga Gloria Stuart .. terbukti mereka meraih nominasi Oscar). Keberhasilan film ini di ajang Academy Awards juga karena aspek-aspek lain di luar akting. Mungkin ada juri yang kebawa sama sisi romantisme-nya .. ada juga yang kebawa sama sisi true story-nya .. atau ada yang menilai dari keseriusan dan kerja keras para pembuat film ini dalam menghidupkan Titanic dan tragedinya.

Gue sendiri, menilai keberhasilan Titanic untuk pribadi, karena gue merasa sangat terkesan begitu film selesai. Gue ga nangis seperti banyak penonton-penonton cewek lainnya, ga overwhelmed dengan ketampanan Leonardo DiCaprio seperti yang begitu digilai oleh para ABG (sampe gue baca ada yang mau boikot acara Academy Awards hanya karena Leo ga masuk nominasi) .. it's true that some things in this movie don't work very well for me. Tapi ada impact yang sulit dilukiskan begitu film berakhir. Gue langsung kepengen sharing film ini ke keluarga gue .. jadinya gue ajak semua anggota keluarga gue buat nonton rame-rame seminggu kemudian. They all love the movie. Gue sendiri merasa Titanic tetap fresh ditonton untuk yang kedua kalinya, dengan excitement yang sama sekali ga berkurang .. dan anehnya, gue merasa bangga banget sama film ini karena berhasil membuat keluarga gue terkesan (padahal bukan gue yang bikin film, bukan gue juga yang jadi aktrisnya .. hehe ..). Titanic ini langsung nempel dalam sekali nonton, dan kayaknya bakalan nempel till indefinite. Ada aja gitu yang keinget. Dari klip, dari sekelumit score .. Bahkan untuk adegan yang norak sekalipun, seperti .. you know, "I'm flying, Jack!" .. yang bikin gue mencibir ga keruan waktu pertama kali nonton .. tapi belakangan, waktu adegan ini sering diulang-ulang (bahkan sering diparodikan), berasa banget kalo adegan ini merupakan salah satu highlight of the movie yang sama sekali ga gampang dilupakan .. karena lagu "My Heart Will Go On" yang disenandungkan .. karena angle kameranya .. yang membawa penonton percaya apa yang dirasakan oleh Rose waktu itu. Juga teriakannya Jack yang terkenal itu .. siapa yang ga inget gambaran dia berdiri di buritan (atau haluan?) kapal, ngacungin tinjunya .. teriak-teriak .. ada lumba-lumba .. hehehe .. denger score-nya yang megah itu aja, kayaknya emang dia itu pantes merasa sebagai raja dunia yang berdiri di atas kapal termewah di jamannya. Atau senandung indah yang selalu membayangi dalamnya air laut yang dingin, really haunting yet so beautiful. Itu gue tuh. Kalo bokap .. bokap yang anxious banget ngasih tau gue soal kemenangan Titanic di Academy Awards 1998 ("Filmnya dapet 11 piala. Mecahin rekor. Hebat!") .. bokap yang sampe naik ke kamar gue nanya gue lagi nonton apa, padahal gue waktu itu cuma lagi masang soundtrack Titanic ("Kirain nonton film. Lagunya seperti di film.") .. dan bertahun sesudahnya, pernah "kecegat" sama video klip Celine Dion yang lagi nyanyi di atas kapal, bokap ngira Celine itu si Rose Dawson ("Ini film kapal tenggelam itu kan? Ini si cewek itu kan, kok bisa nyanyi?") .. =D =D =D. (I wonder what he would say should he saw this on TV).

Film ini udah menyatu banget dengan kisah kapal Titanic itu sendiri. Ada-tidaknya Leo di sini, ada-tidaknya kisah cinta dan dialog-dialog yang ga penting .. gue ga peduli lagi, karena sepertinya gue "dipaksa" untuk menilai film ini secara keseluruhan, dan melihat bahwa memang film ini dikemas untuk menarik perhatian penontonnya. Gue sama sekali ga heran Titanic menjadi salah satu film terlaris sepanjang masa. Film ini bergulir seperti dokumenter yang diperhalus dengan fiction drama, yang akhirnya bisa memperluas target penonton. Yang ga suka sama Leo dan drama cinta, bisa menikmati kapal tenggelam. Yang ga suka ngeliat kapal tenggelam, bisa menikmati Leo dan drama cinta. Yang ABG (anak baru gede) bisa ngeliat Leo dan Kate .. ini Leo pasti bersin-bersin namanya disebut-sebut terus di sini .. yang ABG (angkatan babe gue) bisa ngeliat Gloria dan Titanic. Yang ga suka sama semuanya, masih ada musik James Horner. Masih ga suka juga .. ya, terima nasib uang dan waktu terbuang percuma selama 3 jam (tapi pasti kagum juga kan sama kapalnya? Hayooo .. =p). Setidaknya Titanic berhasil menandai keberadaannya di dalam ingatan .. baik secara positif, maupun secara negatif .. sebagai film yang mendapatkan catatan tersendiri di buku perfilman Hollywood (dan dunia). That's so-called memorable .. and for some people, it's so-called great, because it lingers.

Old Rose: Fifteen-hundred people went into the sea, when Titanic sank from under us. There were twenty boats floating nearby... and only one came back. One. Six were saved from the water, myself included. Six... out of fifteen-hundred. Afterward, the seven-hundred people in the boats had nothing to do but wait... wait to die... wait to live... wait for an absolution... that would never come.

I am never fond of 3D movies. But for this, I will bear wearing those heavy goggles and paying surcharges.

10+2 Duets of a Lifetime

There are thousand of duet songs.  Some of the songs managed to be the greatest. And every now and then, we find some performed live in such perfection, or just simply memorable, that even the singers themselves may find difficulties to top that again in this lifetime.

Presenting my favourites, in random order (O yeah, I happily include duets with boybands too ^_^):

ONE SWEET DAY
Performed by Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men
Live at Madison Square Garden, New York 1995

This is Mariah at her finest, golden moments in her career.  Look at her!

Others: Official Music Video, Acapella version, Live at Grammy Awards 1996

THE PRAYER ~ OST Quest for Camelot ~
Performed by Celine Dion & Andrea Bocelli
Live at the 71st Academy Awards 1999

Though this song lost to "When You Believe" (how could it be? HOW??!), for me it was the highlight of the evening. Won my heart for its simplicity, tenderness and modesty. I was glued in front of my TV watching Celine & Andrea - breath-taken.  One of the best performances ever in all Oscar ceremonies.  "The Prayer" has been rendered by numerous artists ever since then, but none can beat this one yet.

Others: Celine Dion & Josh Groban, Charlotte Church & Josh Groban, Celine Dion & Andrea Bocelli Live @Central Park 2011, Katharine McPhee & Andrea Bocelli, OST "Quest for Camelot"

MUSIC OF MY HEART ~ OST Music of the Heart ~
Performed by Gloria Estefan & 'N Sync
Live at CBS Special 2000

Saw this performance on TV, it convinced me that 'N Sync could really sing.  Really good indeed. And Gloria was wonderful, as always.

Others: Official Music Video, movie clip

WHEN YOU BELIEVE ~ OST The Prince of Egypt ~
Performed by Whitney Houston & Mariah Carey
Live on The Oprah Winfrey Show, 1998

Just as Oprah said, I once had an endless argument with my friend on who's better between Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.  Then came this duet, as if someone had enough of us arguing and decided to throw this right at us.  I thought their performance in that Oscar 1999 was not a top-notch and they shouldn't win. Not until later I found they had performed it live for the first time on television, a year before, on The Oprah Show. A winning vocal showdown. It's a dream team. My friend and I finally made peace.

Others: Official Music Video with movie footage, Official Music Video, Live at the 71st Academy Awards 1999, OST "The Prince of Egypt" (A far superior, touching rendition by Michelle Pfeiffer & Sally Dworsky)

CHANGE THE WORLD ~ OST Phenomenon ~
Performed by Babyface & Eric Clapton
Live at MTV Unplugged NYC 1997

Of all Eric Clapton's songs, this one sits on top of my list. I caught this on TV and I enjoyed every seconds of it.  Until now, not a single moment when this song is playing that I don't sing along, moving my head and toes (yeah!!), because it's so groovy. (Updated: Ah, shoot. Just revisited the link and it's now "not available in my country"? I'll keep looking and repost. Meanwhile, the audio is here.

Others: Official Music Video

CINTA ~ OST Tentang Dia ~
Performed by Ruth Sahanaya & Titi DJ
Live in Konser 3 Diva, Jakarta 2006
Click here.  Enough said.

Others: Official Music Video with movie footage

YOU RAISE ME UP
Performed by Wang Leehom & Westlife
Live in "Heroes of Earth" Concert, Taipei 2006

I was watching the concert DVD, and when Leehom introduced Westlife, I jumped off my seat and screamed like a teenage schoolgirl meeting her idol in flesh.  Unbelievable. I even considered looking for a map to measure the distance between Ireland and Taiwan.  How could these lads end up performing in Leehom's concert?   It was just way beyond my imagination.  That is one of the reasons why I put this track in here.  The other reasons, are too many to list.

Others: Official Music Video - Westlife, Official Music Video - Josh Groban

MENGHUJAM JANTUNGKU
Performed by Citra & Tompi
Live in Top 3 Spectacular Show, Indonesian Idol 2010

I've never followed Citra or Tompi individually, but this duet looks and sounds very professional singing.  They did everything right.

(Warning! Low audio-video volume)

Others: Official Music Video - Tompi

NO MATTER WHAT
Performed by Westlife & Boyzone
Live at A Tribute to Stephen Gately, 2010

One of my friends tried confusing me by mixing up Westlife's and Boyzone's song.  I would never fall into it.  But right after that, I stumbled into these two groups merged into "Westzone" or "Boyzlife", and I wasn't so sure anymore.  Does Nicky Byrne belong to Boyzone and Ronan Keating belong to Westlife? Or are they both just switchable?

Others: Official Music Video - Boyzone

TELL HIM
Performed by Celine Dion & Barbra Streisand
Official Music Video, 1997

Why can't I find any live performance video for this? I don't think there is any at all. Looks like it's an almost mission: impossible to see these two divas sharing the stage. I love this song very much. And seeing how they did in the music video, I don't have any doubt in my mind they will do excellence in every single live performances.

Others: Making of Video "Tell Him"

Bonus features:
Am not gonna say anything, I just had to post the following in here ..

JAZZ VS. CLASSICPOP
Performed by Michael Buble & Josh Groban
Live in "Caught in the Act" Concert, Los Angeles 2005

TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART
Performed by Ellen DeGeneres & Josh Groban
Live on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, 2009

Now excuse me, I said I wasn't gonna say anything about these last two duets. But I can laugh, right?

Hahaha. Hahahahah.

The Accidental Midnight Artist

Last night after wrapping up the activities, I went to Mat's room to check on him. He was sleeping. I gave him a kiss and was about to exit the room when I heard some mumblings. Mat did talk in his sleep often when he'd had too much of his day. But this time, I recognized this ..

.. am I supposed to leave you now .. when you're looking like that ..

I was dumbfounded. Then I listened closely ..

.. am I supposed to leave you now .. when you're looking like that .. I can't believe what I just gave away, now I can't take it back ..

I bursted out laughing. I had my Blackberry in my hands, was in the middle of chatting with Ema .. and I just couldn't continue typing except "hahahahahahahahahahaahah". It was so hard to restrain the sound of my laughters, till I managed to reduce it into endless gigglings. Still, it stirred Mat up. He stared at me half asleep and said, "What?", as if I somehow had mocked him. So I had to put everything away - the giggles, and the berry - and tried to put him back to sleep. While wondering if I would get more Westlife's songs from him for the rest of the night. No luck, though. He was fast into soundless sleep.

Previously:
Earlier in the evening, just before Mat's bedtime, I played a Westlife karaoke DVD, and sang together with Mat for about 30 minutes. I passed the microphone to him and asked him to sing his favorites songs on his own so I could record it with my mobile phone. He requested "Uptown Girl", which ended in total silent. Then "Flying Without Wings", which after seconds past, he asked me to sing along and he joined in only at I'm flying without wiiiiiiinggsssss. Then "When You're Looking Like That", he got the refrein and asking for one repeat. Then "My Love"', which I decided to play with the audio control button to fill in the verses he couldn't sing.

Here's the recording result for the last two songs:

When karaoke session was over, he drank a glass full of water in one take. Afterwards, his Dad took him to bedroom. I heard his chatters, as usual, and an encore of "When You're Looking Like That" for a couple of times before all went quiet.

Then he decided to sing in his sleep.

.........


Next:
We will conquer the "World of Our Own". For now, Mat is happy singing it lalalalalalalalala, lalalalalalalalala, lalalalalalalalala, what am I doing without you ..

Nothing is Impossible

‎There is a quote:
~ Whoever said nothing was impossible never tried slamming a revolving door ~

I say:
Who's the idiot trying to slam that stupid door?

Westlife Gravity - Drama Epik di Kelas Festival

Begini percakapan antara gue dengan Ema lewat BBM sehari sebelum konser. Ema dan anaknya (Monita) rencana dateng ke Tennis Indoor Senayan jam 4 sore. Padahal konser baru dimulai jam 7-8 malam.

Gue: Kita masuk ga usah rebutan. Tennis Indoor kecil ko.
Ema: Teteup maunya paling depan hehe.
Gue: Kalau festivalnya berdiri, paling depan itu bahaya.
Ema: Oh kenapa bahaya?
Gue: Kejepit! Konser di Indo ga kayak konser di luar. Penontonnya barbar.
Ema: Ga seru ah kalo ga di depan, sama2 kejepit juga.
Gue: Kalo kita berdua sih gpp. Body sekel. Kasian Monita.

Jadi Ema berbicara atas dasar pengalaman nonton konser di luar negeri yang tertib biarpun kejepit. Sedangkan gue berbicara atas dasar pengalaman nonton konser Westlife "Where Dreams Come True" tahun 2001 yang digelar di lapangan sepak bola GOR Soemantri Brojonegoro Kuningan, konser yang dipadati belasan ribu penonton di siang hari yang terik, dimana banyak remaja barisan depan yang sukses tumbang satu per satu. Sampai semburan water jet yang sudah disiapkan oleh para tentara pun ga efektif menolong mereka yang dehidrasinya poll.

Gue sempet heran. Konser East Meets Westlife (2000) di Istora Senayan, banyak yang pingsan. Konser yang kedua di lapangan bola terbuka, lebih banyak lagi yang pingsan. Konser yang ketiga, Face to Face (2006) di Tennis Indoor katanya ga terlalu rame. Apakah karena itu sekarang Westlife konser lagi di tempat yang sama? Apakah dipikir penonton/fans tambah sedikit lagi dibanding lima tahun yang lalu? Tapi kok jauh-jauh hari nyari tiket kelas tribun ga dapet, entah udah sold out ato ga dijual di ticket box. Anyway gue ga khawatir berdiri di kelas festival Tennis Indoor, mengingat terakhir kali gue di sini waktu nonton konser Michael Learns to Rock yang nyaman dan bisa diliat dari sudut manapun.

Ternyata itu semua tinggal teori.

Di hari yang bersejarah itu, dari jam 4 sore BB gue dah ribut berbunyi.

PING!
Ternyata udah rame.. Banyak juga die die fans ahaha.
PING!
U better be here now. Udh ngantri.

Omigod, omigod. Grabak, grubuk, jebret, bziiinggg, zaaaaaappp, woooooooshhh, secepat mungkin gue nyelesain kerjaan ditemani oleh "pinging pinging, BBku berbunyi, pinging pinging, begitu bunyinyaaaaaa .." lalu meluncur ke Senayan.

Memang!! Rame!! Banget!!

Fans berbagai usia dan kalangan numplek blek di luar gerbang stadium. Ya buset dah. Trus pake acara berebutan pula masuk ke lapangan sebelah dalam buat nunggu pintu stadium dibuka. Ngantrinya nih ya, gue kasih tau, kayak yang lagi di dalam metromini abis pada pulang kerja. Merapat, merapat! Ga diatur, ga ada tali ato rantai antrian, seenaknya mau berdiri di mana. Rombongan tentara cuma berdiri petantang-petenteng. Ga keliatan ada security ato panitia yang ngatur. Screening gate di depan cuma ada dua, tapi yang antri mau masuk udah 5-6 jalur. Wow.

Udah gitu lagi tengah-tengah antri, MC sponsor yang dari tadi berkoar-koar melempar game bilang gini: "Yang pegang tiket tribun atau festival yang ada cap Telkomsel/Simpati tidak perlu antri. Bisa langsung masuk lewat sini!" WTF??!! Gue pengguna Telkomsel HALO sejak tahun 1997 (masih inget getoo). How come I didn't get any information of such promo??!! Darimana dan gimana?? Dan seperti mengejek kita yang udah capek nunggu, itu MC berulang-ulang tanpa perasaan empati bikin pengumuman kalo yang punya tiket itu udah pada masuk semua dan GA PAKE ANTRI!!! They had taken the best spots. Padahal kita yang bayar lebih mahal. Grrrraaaaaahhh!!! NEPOTISME!! DIMANA LETAK KEADILAN???!! Teriaklah para pemegang tiket festival yang frustrasi: "BUKA!! BUKA!! BUKA!!!!!"

Antrian semakin merapat. Aliran oksigen di antara kita semua mulai kerasa terhambat. Hih. Sempat tercetus kekhawatiran gue, jangan sampe di dalam sana over-kapasitas. Terdesak di ruangan terbuka masih bisa dapet udara, tapi terdesak di ruangan tertutup .. bisa mateeee kita niiiii .. Gue sama Ema udah kasih petunjuk ke Monita. Kalo sampe ada yang dorong or menjepit, sikut aja. Injek aja kakinya. Jangan ragu-ragu. Daripada kita yang kejepit or kedorong, mendingan kita yang duluan nyikut.

(Kids, do not try this at home without adult's supervision, ok?)

Pintu akhirnya dibuka, dan kita masuk sekelompok-kelompok lewat mulut botol - if you know what I mean. Kita bertiga sampe mundur ke barisan yang paling belakang karena ga guna didesak dari arah depan dan belakang. Eh malah disuruh ikut merapat ke depan sama satu sekuriti karena katanya bentar lagi kelompok yang di belakang udah mau maju. Heh! Lo ga liat apa di depan itu masih bertumpuk?? And it was sooooooo slooooowwww .. Pas giliran gue di-screening, saking keselnya, gue iseng nanya ke yang robek tiket gue: "Tiketnya dirobek, ada door prizenya ga?" Sukses dijawab hanya dengan senyum simpul. Mungkin dipikir gue salah beli tiket kale, ini mau nonton Westlife ato nonton acara tujuhbelasan, pake door prize segala. (Tujuhbelasan aja kalo mau dapet hadiah mesti ikut lomba balap karung dulu, bukan yak?).

Masuk ke dalam stadium .. Wuih legaaaaa. Adeeem!! Gue perhatiin situasi festival depan panggung udah padat. Mereka menempati area dalam dua barikade, yang satu dipasang untuk membatasi area panggung dengan area penonton, yang satu lagi dipasang untuk membatasi penonton di barisan depan dengan .. er .. Not really sure. Buat apa sih dipasang barikade di tengah-tengah?

I assumed the people occupying the front rows, were mostly the promo-ticket holders. *shrug*.

But standing there, in between two barricades, inside a small stadium, to watch a boyband concert, whose members were absolutely gorgeous .. Really, guys?? It's like joining in the death row. Kalo terjadi sesuatu di area situ .. bisa pada minggir kemanaaaaa????

Tidakkah ada yang cukup pintar untuk belajar dari pengalaman-pengalaman sebelumnya? Panitia? Penonton? Security?? Helllooooo???

Belum lagi ditambah adanya indikasi penonton yang terlalu antusias, ada yang lari memasuki kelas festival, mungkin takut keabisan spot bagus padahal hall bagian tengah ke belakang masih lengang .. dan .. GEDEBUG!! Jatuh!! Entah kesandung atau kepeleset .. but that was a nasty fall. She laid down on the floor for some minutes, kita udah takut tangan or kakinya ada yang patah, or gegar otak gitu .. untung akhirnya dia bisa bangun dan jalan pelan-pelan nyari tempat.

Jadi .. kita bertiga berdiri jauh-jauh agak ke belakang. Begini layout-nya.

Nunggu konser dimulai sambil duduk-duduk di lantai stadium, menghemat tenaga. (Kayaknya seru juga nonton konser kalo semua penontonnya duduk di bawah, kayak anak-anak di mal yang lagi nonton Barney show .. hihihihi .. Tar Westlife bingung, ini kok penontonnya lesehan .. apakah ini trend baru penonton di Indonesia?). Ngukur-ngukur jarak pandang ke panggung. Mengawasi kelakuan penghuni stadium. Ada banner bertuliskan "Garuda di Dadaku dan Westlife di Hatiku". Ada pula cewek yang pegang banner bertuliskan "Pick Me Up. I'm Beautiful Tonight."

Dipotret dan memotret .. aaaa, crap .. gue ga bawa kamera .. I'd go old-school then.

Jam 7.30 lampu-lampu mendadak dimatikan. Yang duduk langsung berdiri, yang berdiri langsung merangsek lebih ke depan. Ternyata yang muncul sebagai pembuka adalah XO-IX, boyband lokal yang beranggotakan 9 orang. Terus terang, mereka ini berani mati tampil di hadapan ribuan fans setia Westlife. Diteriakin "BOOOOO!! TURUN!!" dan diacungin jempol ke bawah .. Kejam! Tapi XO-IX nyanyi terus pantang mundur. Di lagu mereka yang pertama suasana masih penuh aura skeptis dan praduga, lagunya gue ga tau. Lalu mereka menyanyikan lagu Cinta 'kan Membawamu, nah kalo yang ini mah gue tauuuu. Baru kedengeran jelas kalo vokal mereka itu not bad lhoo. Cuma gayanya aja yang gak nahan. Korea bangeeeeett!! Penonton mulai terbawa. Apalagi dilanjutkan dengan medley lagu-lagu Backstreet Boys, New Kids on the Block (i.e. I Want It That Way, Larger than Life, I'll Never Break Your Heart, The Right Stuff, Please Don't Go Girl, etc.) .. mm .. was there any Boyzone n N'Sync? Ga tau lagi deh. All I could say, they made a very smart choices. Most of us grew up with those boybands and songs. Oh, dan satu lagi: Lightingnya cantik! I loved it. Loved it.

Selesai pembuka, masih ada jeda beberapa waktu. Festival area tengah ke belakang juga mulai padat. Ternyata aliran penonton masih banyak yang masuk dan menempati setiap celah. Ga kebayang situasi penonton di depan sana. Gue liat ke arah tribun, lho, malah masih banyak tempat duduk yang kosong. Ga imbang banget. Tsk.

(Note: To my surprise, gue nemuin beberapa clips rekaman konser Gravity di Jakarta di YouTube dengan kualitas yang bagus. Yang lainnya gue ambil dari berbagai sumber. I put it for bookmarking purposes. You may open at your own risk ^_^. Credits to all video owners/uploaders. Thank you so much).

Jam 8 lewat dikit .. jreng .. Fosfor sticks dan lampu headpieces menyala. Berbagai jenis gadget mengacung di udara. You name it, we had it: pocket/professional cameras, video cameras, mobile phones, Blackberrys, iPhones, Samsung Galaxy Tabs .. and it was just a matter of time before I really caught an iPad in action. Semuanya bersinar dalam kegelapan hall. Pemandangan yang spektakuler. Seandainya gue seorang fotografer yang canggih *sigh*.

Dan Shane, Mark, Kian dan Nicky muncul, menghentak dengan When You're Looking Like That ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} dari album "Coast to Coast (2000)". This was the opening song, I really couldn't put that in words. So I just had to insert all the videos I could find .. and you got the picture, right? Penonton festival-nya .. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!! I got goosebumps all the way hearing that.

(This song is one of Mat's favorite. I usually sing this while he's jumping along with a microphone in his hands. This time, it was Westlife who sang, and I was the one who jumped along. No microphone in my hands. I couldn't even hear my own voice. The crowd was INSANE!!).

Lanjut dengan World of Our Own ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} dari album "World of Our Own (2001)". SING IT, INDONESIA!! We got a little world of our own, I'll tell you things that no one else knows, I let you in where no one else goes, what am I doing without you ..

Dan aliran penonton kelas festival terus bertambah. Di sekitar gue banyak yang berseliweran sampe gue kesel, sebentar lewat di depan gue, sebentar lewat di belakang gue. Ini orang-orang pada mau ngapain sih .. couldn't they just stand still and watch the concert??

I thought Westlife did their homework from their previous concerts. And they knew their Indonesian fans quite well since the beginning.

@KianEganWL

Indonesia here we come!!! It's one of Westlife's favourite places to play a concert! Fan's are the craziest in the world! Bring it on!!!

Indonesia tonight. Can't wait. It's normally the highlight of the Asia tour. Crazy crazy fans!!!!

@nickybyrneoffic

Indonesia welcome at airport as crazy as always ... Mental !

Nicky pula yang pertama kali menghimbau penonton supaya ga saling mendorong.

Lalu Westlife menenangkan suasana dengan What Makes a Man ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "Coast to Coast (2000)" dan Safe ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "Gravity (2010)". Di antara lagu, kembali mereka bergantian untuk mengingatkan penonton supaya mundur sedikit dan ga mendesak yang di depan.

But it's in our nature to try to get closer to our idols, right? Gue rasa penonton di depan juga ga murni saling mendorong. They're having fun, they're too excited, they forgot to watch their distance. Mereka terus bergerak, diperburuk dengan ruang yang sempit, ditambah dengan stamina yang sudah habis karena mengantri masuk stadium sejak siang harinya. Dan ga boleh bawa masuk minuman pula. Jadilah yang kurang tanggap mengantisipasi hal-hal ini pada tumbang.

Westlife melanjutkan dengan Home ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "Back Home (2007)". Lagu ini aslinya ditulis dan dipopulerkan oleh Michael Bublé. Setelah lagu selesai, Mark meminta satu panitia untuk naik ke atas panggung dan meminta penonton mendengarkan apa yang hendak disampaikan oleh si panitia.

Uh-oh. Not good.

Bener aja. Si panitia meminta penonton yang di kelas festival buat mundur dua langkah. Semuanya. Karena kalo ga pada mau mundur, Westlife akan menghentikan konser.

Mari, Pak, Bu, Mbak, Mas .. sini gue kasih gambarannya.

Kita mau disuruh mundur kemana lagi?? Terutama yang menempati danger zone di depan. Sampe ada cewek yang naik ke atas barikade tengah dan melempar protes keras ke arah panggung. Udah sama sekali ga ada jalan keluar. Akhirnya disuruh menyebar ke samping. Ke samping mana?? Seriously, guys. Yang di tengah udah mundur-mundur, sampe kita yang di barisan belakang pun mendadak jadi sulit bergerak. Satu baris lagi posisi gue pasti mentok ke box tempat operator sound system dan lighting. Ga mau sampe gue yang kejepit di sana dooooongg!!! Udah gitu dengan bodohnya, atau saking ga tau lagi mesti digimanain, kita semua yang di kelas festival disuruh duduk dulu. Yeeeee .. kalo suasananya lengang seperti waktu konser belom dimulai sih oke aja. Lah, sekarang? Berdiri aja sempit, mau duduk lagi? Kakinya mau dilipet di mana coba? Gue coba duduk ga bisa, cuma dapet jongkok setengah kaki. Er .. ya, begitulah .. Akhirnya gue berdiri lagi.

Beberapa penonton dari arah depan dengan susah payah mencari jalan keluar. Mereka udah basah kuyup oleh keringat dan mukanya pucat-pucat. Ada yang bilang, "Aduh, udah ga kuat lagi deh. Mau pindah ke tribun aja. Bisa ga ya? Lewat mana dong?" Kita yang di belakang juga udah ngomel-ngomel ga karuan. "Panitia goblok! Promotor tolol! Makanya jangan maruk jualan tiket festival! Mana sekuritinya?? Manaaa?? Itu kelas tribun masih kosong, atur dong sebagian buat pindah ke atas!!" Rugi, rugi deh, daripada Westlife beneran ga mau nyanyi lagi.

Panitia di atas panggung masih terus meminta penonton buat mundur ato minggir. Kesannya penonton festival keras kepala ga mau bergerak. Mungkin yang duduk di kelas tribun atau media atau siapapun yang ga berada di bawah sini berpikiran seperti itu. Coba, nyemplung lah ke festival dan rasakan sendiri situasinya. Tennis Indoor berkapasitas 4500 orang, dan denger-denger penonton yang memadati stadium sejumlah 6000 orang. Namanya over kapasitas, disuruh minggir kemana juga ga bakalan muat. Hmmmfff!! Di samping gue ada kameramen dan reporter TV One. Di belakang gue ada beberapa crew radio Oz. Tanyakanlah kepada mereka kita ngoceh apa aja di belakang.

Crew/staff Westlife pun masuk ke panggung dengan membawa beberapa kardus air minum dalam botol ukuran 600ml. Dilempar satu per satu ke arah penonton. Gue hargai pertolongannya, tapi .. kasian ya yang kena lempar botol, itu kan lumayan berat =D.

Di belakang Ema ada pasangan cewek orang Indonesia dan cowoknya orang bule. Nah si bule ini kocak lho. Begitu liat botol-botol minuman dilempar di depan, dia teriak dalam bahasa Indonesia, "Saya juga haus dooong!! Saya mau pingsan!!" Kita yang dari kesel sampe ngikik-ngikik dengernya. Terus Ema ngelanjutin teriak, "Saya mau minuman yang berwarna!!" Gue ikutan juga, "Saya minta Coca-Cola doooongg!! Ato Pocari, Pocari!!" Ga bakalan kedengeran sih, tapi lumayan lah daripada gondok karena konser terhenti cukup lama tanpa ada solusi.

Terus Westlife pun muncul kembali ke panggung. Mereka juga keliatannya nyoba bantuin cari cara buat ngurangi kepadatan massa. Dan akhirnya .. taraaaa .. disuruh pindah ke tribun!! Sambil berulangkali bilang kalo mereka itu cuma ga mau ada yang terluka. Gue rasa kalo ada kejadian kenapa-napa, Westlife juga ga mau sampe dituntut. Dah gitu, Nicky masih sempet-sempetnya merekam situasi ini dengan kamera sakunya. Halaaaah ..

Berbondong-bondong deh sebagian penonton naik ke tribun. See? Nurut kan? Kita bertiga sih karena sejak tadi memang udah mentok posisinya, masih bertahan sambil liat situasi. Ratusan penonton mulai memenuhi area tribun. Dan ternyata .. masih ga muat jugaaaa! Kyaaaaa!! Si cewek Indonesia pasangan bule itu sampe balik badan ke arah box operator sound system sambil menuding, "Mana panitianya? Kamu ya??" Terus menuding ke arah crew radio Oz, "Kamu panitianya bukan?" Langsung yang dituding geleng-geleng kepala, "Bukan, bukan saya!" Si cewek ga gentar, "Tapi kamu semua nih, yang pake kaos seragam, pasti kenal panitianya kan? Ngaku ga kalo kalian semua jualan tiket terlalu banyak? Ayo ngaku!" *lol*.

Gerakan penonton yang berjalan menaiki tribun pun ga luput dari sasaran kamera TV One di sebelah gue. Sementara karena diliat kelas festival masih penuh aja, kita masih tetap diancam dengan pemberhentian konser. Shit. Ga ketahan gue teriak minta refund ticket, "BALIKIN!! BALIKIN!!" Biarin deh Westlife batal konser, biar lagu Home beneran menjadi lagu penutup .. let me go hoooooome .. Beberapa orang, termasuk Ema juga ikutan, "BALIKIN!! BALIKIN!! BALIKIN!!". Jangan disangka gue suka jadi provokator ya. Tapi ini gila lhoo .. mereka ga liat apa kalo kita udah ngalah. Udah ada yang rela pindah ke tribun yang notabene harga tiketnya lebih murah, udah kejepit-jepit, masih juga diancam dan dipersalahkan?? Udah ga ada lagi yang bisa diperbuat. Di satu titik kerasa banget kalo kita semua tuh (baik yang di atas panggung dan yang di bawah panggung) udah bener-bener frustrasi. Sampe akhirnya entah siapa yang mulai, teriakan "INDONESIA!!" pun membahana berulang-ulang memenuhi stadium. Ini serasa lagi nonton pertandingan tenis Indonesia melawan Irlandia. Geram, tapi seru eyyyy.

Gue masih nyumpah-nyumpah, 20 menit terbuang begitu aja. Dan gue nengok ke arah kameramen TV One, "Panitia goblok!! Catet ya, Mas. CATET!" Si Mas Kameramen nunjuk ke arah lensa kameranya, "Udah kok, kita udah catet lewat kamera." Hahaha.

Akhirnya Westlife, melalui panitia, bilang mereka mau trial satu lagu sambil liat kondisi. Kalo kita-kita bisa tertib, konser akan diteruskan. Kalo ga, ya mereka pulang. Oceeeh! Dan My Love ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "Coast to Coast (2000)" pun mengalun.

Siapa yang bisa mengalahkan fans Indonesia dalam hal menyanyi bareng idola? Siapa?? Lepas dari tertib atau tidak, this was really a-w-e-s-o-m-e. I bet with all my heart, Westlife wouldn't want to leave us in the middle of this concert.

Setelah lagu ini, panggung kembali kosong selama beberapa saat. Ngkali di belakang sana Westlife dan panitia lagi ngadain voting, mau terus ato cukup sudah.

And .. we had joy, we had fun .. on and off. Pastinya .. lanjut terus, Mang! Seasons in the Sun ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "Westlife (1999)" dilempar. Lagu ini kalo ditelurusi sejarahnya sudah terkenal sejak jamannya ortu gue. Dan gue yang biasanya kalem (kaya lembu) kalo nonton konser, masih menyimpan sedikit dendam gara-gara pemogokan sementara tadi .. jadi begitu Kian mulai nyanyi, gue teriakin, "KIAAAAAN!!!", sampe penonton yang di depan gue nengok ke gue sambil senyum-senyum. Terus, "NICCKKKYYY!!" Terus, "SHANEEEE!!!" Terus, "MAAARKKKK, I LOVE YOUUUU!!!" Sambil ditingkahi sahutan ribut ala Indian. Heh. Pecahkan saja gelasnya sekalian biar ramai.

(For the record, sebenernya Shane-lah andalan gue. But anyway. It did sound so good to shout that "I love you" after Mark's name).

Paduan suara nasional berlanjut mengikuti You Raise Me Up ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "Face to Face (2005)". Awalnya lagu ini diciptakan dalam bentuk instrumentalia dengan ciri musik tradisional Irlandia, lalu disadur dan terkenal baik sebagai lagu gospel, maupun pop ballad. Amazing. Sumpah gue terharu. It was so cool. And the choir was so surreal.

Lalu Westlife memperkenalkan I'm Already There ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} dari album "Back Home (2007)". Lagu ini aslinya ditulis dan dipopulerkan oleh kelompok band asal Amerika, Lonestar, yang menceritakan kerinduan seorang pria terhadap anak istrinya. Ini lagu bagus banget, liriknya menyentuh. Sayang gue ga apal. Shane's vocal was great at this piece. I'm already there, take a look around .. I'm the sunshine in your hair .. I'm the shadow on the ground .. I'm the whisper in the wind .. I'm your imaginary friend .. And I know I'm in your prayers .. Oh I'm already there .. and I'm meltiiiiingggg ..

Dilanjutkan dengan I Will Reach You ^{[1] [2]} dari album "Gravity (2010)". Psst. Did you know that Mark was one of the writers? Pantesan canggih ya nyanyinya.

Dan satu lagu yang ga boleh ketinggalan di setiap konser Westlife, lagu kebangsaan mereka .. admit it, who couldn't identify Flying Without Wings ^{[1] [2]} from album "Westlife (1999)"? Nicky membawa bendera Irlandia ke atas panggung, dan dia sibuk merekam penonton dengan kameranya. Raaa .. Nicky .. stop recording and start singing, will ya? Mengingat sebelumnya Nicky bilang ke penonton kalo dia mau upload video yang dia ambil malam ini, dan kita diminta buat follow official twitternya Westlife .. Ema nyeletuk, "Nicky bawa BB ya? Boleh bagi PIN-nya gaaaa?" Wakaaakakakak. Needless to say, semua penonton nyanyi dari awal sampe akhir, termasuk si cowok bule kocak yang nyaris pingsan tadi itu. Best fans in the world, yeaaaahh!

Selesai lagu ini, Westlife pamit. Lho kok, lho kok? Gue lirik jam, udah hampir jam 10 sih. Tapi ga rela kalo konser udahan. Pasti ada encore. Pasti. Dua lagu lagi. Gue ga tau kenapa, feeling gue semalaman itu hampir semua terbukti. Dan gue masih nunggu kemunculan lagu-lagu favorit gue .. yang rasanya ga mungkin ga dinyanyiin ..

Westlife muncul lagi dengan mengenakan jas formal, membawakan What About Now ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} dari album "Where We Are (2009)". Lagu ini dipopulerkan oleh kelompok band Daughtry - dengan pentolannya Chris Daughtry yang merupakan jebolan American Idol Season 5. Yay. One down.

Disusul Uptown Girl ^{[1] [2] [3]} dari album "World of Our Own (2001)", lagu yang aslinya ditulis dan dipopulerkan oleh Billy Joel, tapi Westlife yang membuatnya tambah meledak dan menjangkau lompatan generasi. Gayanya Westlife kalo nyanyi lagu ini selalu lucu. Two down.

(Another Mat's favorite. So he got the opening song and the closing song).

Akhirnya konser beneran berakhir. Jam 10 malam. That's it. Is that it?? 13 lagu keliatannya terlalu singkat buat sebuah konser. Ema membandingkan dengan konser lain yang menampilkan 28 lagu. But yeah. Sempet curiga juga, karena waktu di awal konser katanya ini akan memakan waktu dua jam. Lah, tadi kepotong 20 menit .. ga diganti ya?

Not until later I knew they cancelled 5 songs from the list:
Beautiful Tonight ^{[1] [2]} dari album "Gravity (2010)".
Viva La Vida ^{[1] [2]} yang dipopulerkan oleh kelompok band Coldplay.
Only Girl (In the World) yang dipopulerkan oleh Rihanna
Time of My Life / Bad Romance yang dipopulerkan oleh The Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga.

Beautiful Tonight? Mereka membatalkan lagu Beautiful Tonight??? NOOOOOOO!!!

Lewat BBM:

Gue: You're right. It should be a longer concert. They cancelled 5 songs. And one of the songs, is my favourite =(.
Ema: Mestinya gue minta balikin duit gue.

Buat kita, 5 lagu itu sangat berharga.

Belum lagi ditambah ngebaca pemberitaan media yang menyudutkan penonton di kelas festival. Plus tuduhan-tuduhan ga lucu lainnya, yang gue yakin banget berasal dari orang-orang yang ga ikutan nonton konser. Tapi ada beberapa pula komentar pedas yang datang dari penonton kelas tribun.

So I put this on my Facebook status right away:
From my point of view, who stood at the back of festival class amoung thousands, the 20-minute chaos happened was not our fault, nor was Westlife's fault. It was the promoter's fault. So, people sitting at tribune class, who got most of the tickets free of charge, who didn't know the exact situation, STOP JUDGING US!!!

Penonton/fans Indonesia memang terkenal ganas, dan kadang-kadang ada yang ga berpikir panjang. Tapi yang terjadi di Tennis Indoor Senayan malam itu bukanlah dipicu oleh kelakuan barbar dari penonton. Semuanya terjadi karena sikon yang memang sudah ga memadai sejak awal. Kurang kontrol, kurang pengamanan, kurang antisipasi, kurang tanggap. Bzzzzttt!

Tweets dari Westlife berbunyi:

@nickybyrneoffic
Video from show,Which we had to stop for 30mins tonite due to overcrowding, Scary but everyone ok we're informed.. http://twitvid.com/KRCBB

@KianEganWL

We had to stop our show in Indonesia for 30 min for the safety of out fans. We feared some one would die. Thankfully no one did.

Westlife will never give up on our Indonesia fans. Sorry the concert was dangerous. We will come back. Thank you for all your love. Xxx

Sorry Indonesia fans for what happened. We couldn't perform the medley for safety reasons. Next time we will make sure it dose not happen xx

@MarkusFeehily

The the fans in Jakarta,miss u already you guys were so amazing and full of energy.Don't worry we will always love you,big kiss xxxxx

(after he thanked all countries for the tour, except Indonesia, and one fan sent a protest to him) Haha Jakarta Indonesia u deserve a massive THANK YOU too!! I typed it out but must have deleted by mistake,you guys were awesome as usual! X

@ShaneFilan79

Love to all the Indonesian fans .. Thankyou and see u next time!!

Dan tweets dari promotor berbunyi:

@marygopsstudios

Untuk semua pengunjung #westlifeJKT, kami mohon maaf atas segala kesalahan yg terjadi dan semua ketidak nyamanan selama konser @WestlifeIndo

Sekali lagi kami mohon maaf atas kekecewaan yang dirasakan penonton #westlifeJKT kami harap dapat memeberikan lebih baik untuk nantinya

*sigh*

Epic drama. Epic evening. Epic Westlife!! Ga sia-sia dulu gue sampe berbusa-busa membela Westlife yang disebut hanya sebagai boyband yang jual tampang. Yang di konser pertamanya nyanyi masih pada fals sana-sini. Yang disangka ga bakalan bertahan lama karena cuma ngikutin trend boyband semata. You see, it's been 12 years since they launched their first album. Sewaktu gue mengutarakan mau nonton konser "Gravity" pun, satu dua temen gue masih membelalakkan matanya, "Ya ampun, Jul! Westlife?? Masih??"

Yeap. Pembelaan gue singkat aja. "They're not just a boyband anymore. They're already beyond that". Dan seperti itulah yang gue liat. Mereka sudah dewasa, vokalnya sangat mantap, gayanya classy, lagu-lagunya everlasting. And they still care for us, their fans.

Sopir taksi yang mengantar kita bertiga pulang sempat bertanya, "Westlife itu, yang disuka karena apanya? Tampangnya? Suaranya? Lagunya?". Jawaban kita sama, "Ya tampangnya, ya suaranya, ya lagunya. Semuanya."

You lads rock! Totally! I miss y'all already too.

*add
After begging, pushing, forcing, bombarding Ema through Blogger and Facebook, her review's finally up on her blog .. here.