I'm Baiti.
I'm 20 years old, 3 weeks and 3 days old.
I'm a Muslim.
I'm a daughter.
A sister.
A friend.
And an aunt to 6 months old baby Khawlah.
Last year, I traveled 6572 miles from home,
To pursue my study in the United Kingdom,
It was my childhood dream to be where I am now.
And honestly I'm still digesting the fact that I am in Liverpool.
First few months weren't really nice,
I was so homesick,
I wanted to go home,
Regular critique sessions scared me,
Locals intimidated me,
Being an introvert made it harder,
And I had many embarrassing moments in class,
I thought I could not do architecture,
Adapting to cold weather was not easy as well,
In fact, I used to sleep in my winter coat.
I started to cry and cry for weeks,
I started missing my mom and dad,
I started missing my warm bedroom,
I started missing Malaysian weather,
And above all, I miss Malaysian food.
Few weeks later,
Things got a bit better,
I made a few friends with the locals,
And talked more to my tutors,
I did well in my crit,
I was getting better with my anxiety.
Leaving my nest and my comfort zone,
Has taught me many things,
That managing finance on your own was not easy,
And you got to discover your weaknesses and strengths,
And your mother is always right,
And that you can cook proper dishes,
And being an adult is unbelievably scary and overwhelmingly daunting.
And tiring.
2015 has been a spectacular year,
A year of ups and downs,
A year of a beginning,
Of an amazing adventure ahead.
I'm Baiti.
And this is 2016.
And I'm moving forward.
