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Rainbow in Berlin
Posted by paramita on Oct 30, 2008 in inspiration
The first rainbow I saw in Berlin. Beautiful and vivid. Here is the flickr link.
La Tigre e La Neve (The Tiger and The Snow)
Posted by paramita on Mar 9, 2008 in movies
A Roberto Benigni’s film, 2005. Starring Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, and Jean Reno.
Staying Happy and Healthy in Winter
Posted by paramita on Jan 21, 2008 in health
As someone who was born and raised in a tropical area, I never thought that such things really exists when my friends told me so. That is, until this year. It’s my 3rd winter in Bremen, and I’m feeling down. Am I suffering from winter depression?
Perempuan Punya Cerita vs A Thousand Splendid Suns
Hari ini gw terbaca sinopsis film “Perempuan Punya Cerita” di kompas online. Sayangnya kompas nggak bisa di-link, tapi sinopsis film dan trailernya juga bisa dilihat di http://www.kalyanashira.com/perempuanpunyacerita/.
4 cerita pendek. 4 sutradara perempuan bercerita tentang 4 perempuan biasa yang punya pengalaman luar biasa. Tapi kenapa dari 4 cerita ini, kok semuanya cerita penderitaan perempuan ya?
Please don’t let it be another depressing movie…
Old Photograph…
Posted by paramita on Jul 6, 2007 in love
of me, my hubby, and our friends in our first year of university. That was in 1997. 10 years ago… Wohoo I feel kinda old now 0.0.
It’s funny to remember that at that time he was just “someone from the same class as I”. Mind you, there were 78 of us (although only 60 are in the picture), so to get to know everyone personally was not a really simple task. We became good friends only 3 years after we met, half a year or so later we dated, and finally we got married.
So yes, I believe that love can grow. Or perhaps love was there all the time, but it will only reveal itself when we are ready.
Ayat-Ayat Cinta (Love Verses)
Posted by paramita on Feb 21, 2007 in books
Author : Habiburrahman El Shirazy
Published : December 2004, 406 pages
Genre : Fiction, Islamic, Indonesian
Lina recommended this book; she said it gave her mixed beautiful feelings. I peeked inside and I remember reading parts of this in a continuous story part in Republika newspaper about three years ago. Sadly, I did not know the ending because that was the time I went to Germany. I remember that it was beautifully written, especially for people who adores Islam or who wanted to learn and adore it and I was curious about the ending, so I bought the book.
The main character is an Indonesian student in Egypt. He was an exceptional student, with an exceptional akhlak (mentality?), a very kind person who always do the right thing according to the guidance of Islam, Al-Qur’an, and the Prophet Muhammad. He must be good looking as well (at least presentable enough), considering all the girls that was mentioned in this story fell in love with him (there are four of them, from different nationality and background).
It is a love story, but it was a love story written in a perspective of an Islamic scholar. True love between a man and a woman only comes after marriage. It is a guidance of how to love (and how to be loved) in ways that did not collide with the teachings of the Prophet. It is a book about Islam teaching, because it has explanations of Qur’an and Hadits. It is an idealistic portrayal of how a guy should react (and how a good moslem girl should act).
I kind of find it hard to swallow that the author made it that all the girls love the main character. But then again, it is a romance novel where everything is allowed to be over the top. The main character is totally flawless guy, a perfect person. A dream guy for a moslem woman.
In the end, I believe this book is only for those who love Islam or try to love it. For those who don’t it is probably too idealistic and unreal. The Qur’an and Hadits was a little bit too much and sometimes a bit forced upon. For me it is a bit boring to read all the quotes (*devil wink*)
Final rating:
9/10, if you’re a good moslem or would like to know/be one.
5/10, if you’re easily bored with preaching or you don’t believe in Islam that much.
(Bought: Gramedia Paris Van Java, Bandung on 1 February 2007, Read: 1-2 February 2007 (around 8 hours))
Match Point
Posted by paramita on May 10, 2006 in movies
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0416320/
A 2005 Woody Allen movie, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Scarlett Johansson, Emily Mortimer…
I watched it at home on May 10, 2006. Of course when I watched it at home, I tend to rate the movie lower than when I watched it in the cinema.
This movie has a quite high rating at imdb… I think it’s quite interesting, but I have to admit that I feel bored at the beginning of the movie… even feel tempted to do fast forward and hopefully getting to a more interesting bits. I like the story… it’s a bit twisted, but sometimes, that’s how life goes 
I like the characters, the emotion was quite intense… and in the end you do understand why they became what they are and do what they do.
Veronika Decides to Die
Posted by paramita on May 8, 2006 in books
A book by Paulo Coelho, first published in 1998
Read on: 07 May 2006, just in one seating
A wonderful book, I can’t put it down, therefore I read it all in one day. The story evolves around Veronika, a young women who decides to die. Not because she has problems, but because her life was just stagnant she found no reason to be alive…
I found it very much eye opening, made me think about my life, and how lucky I am that I actually do have problems in life. That I’m able to laugh with all my heart, and cry with all my heart. That I’m able to experience life ups and downs, forced to fight back, and in the end, when I looked back, I learned that it is actually a process of creating who I am.
Mistakes, sorrow, heart aches, anger, and pain are not there just because it will make victory and happiness much sweeter, but it is also written in the path of life. It is when you embrace both as a part of life’s path, not avoiding one part, or even shutting down your heart to emotions… we will be at peace, knowing that everything happens for a reason, and God never pushed you more than you can bear..
About Me
Astrid Paramita Mochtarram is currently living in Berlin, Germany. This year she vows to finish her first novel. She loves books, movies, traveling, and somehow addicted to (shoe) shopping. She is trying to control the addiction ;-).
