HOUSE  NIGHT 2015

Shouts of ‘Clear the house!’ abounded Irinah as us Irinah girls swarmed out of the packed common room, and into the two waiting buses. Since it was Ruo Yi’s birthday (an upper sixer), most of the upper  six were put on one bus.

It was all fun and games until the bus pulled over into the restaurant … that’s when the real hunger games began! Us famished teenagers, as well as the staff, were delighted to find steamboat stoves awaiting us, complete with the necessary ingredients, like fishballs, prawns, vegetables, not to mention the succulent crab meat!

As we dug in and started getting into the mood however, we had a little steamboat scare,  as one of the pipes on the stove had gotten loose and the table cloth caught on fire. Luckily, everyone was alright as the staff quickly dealt with problem, and Shazlin, who was sitting right in front of the stove, escaped with singed eyelashes!

Although we were quite shaken up for a bit, our joyful spirits were soon restored once we tried the delicious ‘muar chee’ which was being sold. I myself dropped one whilst eating and was extremely eager to get another. Some of us then ventured out to the seaside where the view was startlingly tropical and dazzling. It was so bright and sunny that everyone was soon taking multitudes of pictures on the wooden bridge behind the restaurant.

Not long after that, we went to visit a bird’s nest farm. At the bird’s nest farm, we watched a very informative video about the origins of bird nest farming in South East Asia, particularly in Malaysia. Unfortunately the video was in Chinese so most of us were forced to rely on the sporadic and sometimes rapid fire subtitles but it was all in great fun.

In conjuction to the bird farm, we also visited the small neighbouring animal farm, where we saw porcupines, koi fish, deers, rabbits and peacocks, just to name a few. We then proceeded to explore the street cuisine of Tanjung Sepat, and I can certainly vouch for the delicious fare, primarily the kaya bao, red bean bao, kuihbaulu, char kuey teow and we even watched people roast coffee beans. To top it all off, we splurged at a local chips factory (including trying way more of the food samples than we should have) as well as a delightful seafood-themed dinner. My personal favourite was the fried squid! After an exciting albeit tiring day, we all climbed back aboard the bus, sweaty and aching but determined that we all safely reach Irinah to begin another crazy, exciting day.

After all, we love our bread, we love our butter but most of all we love each other. Go, Irinah dynamites!

Written by Maneesha, (L6)

House Singing 2015

When you start hearing low hums of melody coming from all the boys’ houses, you definitely know what time of the year it is. Yes, it’s Irinah’s most anticipated House Singing competition!

Rife with friendly, sometimes extreme rivalry, it remains one of KTJ’s most honoured and lasting traditions. This year was no different; in fact, each house actually stepped up their musical game, especially the boys’ houses.

Nadzaruddin got the whole auditorium applauding with their energetic dancing and quirky song choice of ‘Love Runs Out” which landed them in second place. The champions, Naquiyuddin, ended the show by bringing the house down with an adorable act which transported viewers into the African safari then wrapped it all up with their pumped up version of Uptown Funk.

 

Irinah too, put up an astounding effort and we took breaths away from the very first note we sang. Our rendition of Some Nights, Walking on Sunshine and Edge of Glory blew the audience away because of the infectious energy radiating from our beloved Irinians! To put it colloquially in the most tongue-in-cheek way, we were ‘on point’ with our synchronisation. The night was filled with enthusiastic cheers for the amazing, jaw-dropping performances showcased by each and every house.

We came in third this time round but it did not come without hard work and dedication from all our committed Irinians from the Form Threes to the Upper Sixers. It took many sessions of singing practices, dancing rehearsals and planning to get up ‘pitch perfect’. In the short span of just three weeks, the juniors put in their all to do well to learn the songs and perfect the moves while the seniors were knee-deep in some hugely intense discussions on what would be best for our performance ranging from harmonising to costumes to choreography. But all of us would agree that, without a doubt, it was all worth doing it for the house with our unique Irinian spirit in the end.

However, none of it would have been possible without the undying support and much needed guidance of our housemistress, Miss Angie, Madam Yeoh, Miss Pathma and Miss Rachael who gave us constructive criticism. A big shoutout also to all the Upper Sixers for their efforts in pulling everything together as a group and enduring the gruelling instances when times got tough. We all definitely bonded throughout the three weeks we spent singing and dancing together. From laughing at each other when we broke our voices to making fun of each other for our weird dance moves. In those moments, we all came together as one and learnt what being an Irinian is truly about. Don't forget, Irinah will always be the house to beat! Don't mess with Dynamite!

Written by Maneesha and Ke Li, (L6)

                              Swimming Gala 2015

         There was a moment when an athlete or a coach walked onto a pool deck for a big meet where awe and anticipation set in. At that moment, we felt part of something big. It was the moment where our focus should be on our team, our event and the payoff. On the 23^rd of May 2015, we, the Irinian girls have had personally experienced the moment and its magic.

          Yes, it was none other than the annual swimming gala. We had put a lot of effort in hope that the event will be a successful one. Ever since a month prior to the big event, the swimmers attended continuous trainings despite their upcoming examination. There was a time when they had to force themselves out of their warm bed at 6:30 in the morning in order to practise. Their strong determination to train for perfection had even failed the scorching hot sun from discouraging them to get down to the pool. It was never a smooth journey throughout the training!

        And there came the day for the actual game.The seniors and teachers ensured that everything was well prepared and gave words of encouragement to the swimmers. The rest of the girls were rooting for their friends and series of cheers exploded as the competition progressed. Giving their best effort, the senior girls managed to secure second place and the juniors came in close as third. Nevertheless, a few of us Irinians had proven themselves to be dynamic as they broke several school records.

       
        
          All in all, I would like to thank all the teachers for their guidance and the girls for doing their best and not giving up to make this year swimming gala a memorable one.

                                                                                                               Written by Chin Wai Teng, L6

BASKETBALL 2015

Training began two days after the last term of the academic year began, for both the senior and junior girls in our house. The best of the best had been chosen to represent Irinah House in the Annual Girls' Inter-House Basketball Tournament. Our players trained their hardest, even when the pressure of exams loomed over their heads. Their commitment to and love for the house was apparent when they gave up their free time after school and had to rush their dinners down in order to get back to the house in time, due to extended training sessions. Without complaints, and full of determination, our girls never gave up and continued to do their best during the two week long training period and until all the games were over on the day of the tournament: 25th April 2015. 

The day we had been waiting for had finally arrived and all the Irinians were decked out in orange by lunch time. We all assembled in the MPH, nerves and excitement running high amongst the players and the spectators alike. The competition started off with two junior games playing simultaneously; one of them being Irinah vs Jawahir. Unfortunately, we lost against Jawahir but our spirits remained sky high and rightly so, as our senior team did us proud when they won against Alia in the game that followed. The senior game that followed, Irinah vs Jawahir, was neck and neck until the very last minute, when Jawahir took the lead and won the game by only 2 points, placing the Irinah senior team in 2nd position. 

Although the Irinah junior team fought their hardest and gave it their all, they fell short of being champions. But we won’t let that bring us down; we’ll learn from our mistakes this time around and do better and win the trophy for the house next year.



                   
                                       Written by Rauwa, L6