Kembara Iman Bosnia 2017 - Part 1

As salam, it has been ages updating my blog, with the last one being done half-cooked :) So, I have promised myself not to be lazy and start writing again before my brain starts to rot.

Kembara Iman Bosnia, that's what our Ustaz Aidil wants it to be called, deemed as appropriate. And so the story begins ........

I remembered vividly that it all started with a WhatsApp from a friend of mine, Rox asking if I was listening to IKIM FM at approximately 6.35 pm while I was driving home. She told me that there is a promotion on a Balkan trip as she knows well that Balkan is one of the countries on my want-to-go list. Since I was listening to another lecture on a national radio station, Rox has kindly forwarded me the contact number of the person for me to get further details. So, the query session started until we left Malaysia on 5/9/17.

The meeting point was at counter F11 at approximately 8.00 pm. The first couple who had approached me was Uncle Kamaruzaman and his wife, a very lovely couple who are businessmen residing in Damansara Jaya. Check-in of luggage was done and I had a quick bite at KFC with a newfound friend, Kak Fatimahton. Very witty and talkative but with so much traveling experience. 

Flight to Istanbul was TK0061 at 11.35 pm and seated at 45K, while the one to Sarajevo was TK1021 at 7. 15 am seated at 19A.


Day 1 - 060917 (Bosnia Herzegovina)

We left KLIA for Istanbul although a bit late, safely landed before taking another plane to Sarajevo. It is quite a tiring flight but all seem to be better once we have reached Sarajevo and all ready to hop onto the bus. At the airport, we were welcomed by our travel agents in Sarajevo and is led by Mr Mehmet Kemal Koksal @ Kemal, a Turkish guide who is residing in Bosnia after settling down with a Bosnian woman. Others were Mr Serkan and a Malaysian, Zaim.

Lucky us as we were able to check into the hotel earlier. So, we headed to our hotel called Hills Hotel. Beautifully located within the high mountains and near the airport, we were greeted by two red men at the entrance. Dobrodosli means Welcome in Bosnian language. Hello there red man, I hope you do not get the backache for standing too long like that :)

Rooms were then distributed, fortunately for me as I am traveling single, I am allocated to a room all by myself. Was not expecting anything great until I opened the door to room no. 4001.  It could fit a king and his entourage :) The interior details of the room were fantastic. Materials selection was tastefully done, sanitary fittings are Italian made. Awesome and just lost for words.

        

As we were given a few hours to freshen up and I took the opportunity to update my FB post and took some pictures quickly, uploading and saving at the same time. I changed my clothes and left the room for the bus. The next destination was the City Centre and we were all so excited.

After being picked up at the hotel, our dear driver, Sayed drove us to Turkazz Cafe where we had our Ta'aruf or ice-breaking session. The view from the cafe is awesome as I was able to see ducks dipping themselves in the water and the crystal water flowing through the stream. However, during the session, I was harassed by a local beggar who was then chased away by Kemal.

For the first time, I tasted Bosnian coffee which is quite strong for me. It will take a while before I can start enjoying drinking it I suppose :) Next, we headed towards the city center where we were all dropped for our walking exercise. Along the way, we could see the remains of the buildings which were attacked during the war in the 90s, some of which are the museum, university and library.

When we reached the city centre, I could not take my eyes off from the surroundings. It was absolutely beautiful, reminded me of Amsterdam, as the setup is similar along the river with so many bridges across the stream. I just fell in love, speechless. Subhanallah.

Inat Kuca - House of Spite

Named as the ugliest building in the city

So, what awaits you after a not-so-long walk? Yes, FOOD! Typical Malaysians we are. When it comes to that four-lettered word, we became extremely excited. We stopped over at a famous shop where we had a taste of Burek. It is like murtabak I would say, but very saltish. Some have cheese, some with minced meat and others.

The Original Burek

The modified Burek - East Europe meets Asia 
Burek meets its long lost cousin, ketupat palas and serunding

Will continue in Part 2

ISLAMIC CRUISE 2015

11/12/15 (Day 1)

We left the house at 5.10 am and headed for KL Sentral. The pakcik was driving us around and around when it was supposed to be a simple route. We performed solat Subuh at the Surau downstairs and there is where I met Makcik Naemah and Jiha. It was a second reunion for us after meeting on Deepavali day. After solat we had problem indicating where the meeting point for all Jemaah of Pelayaran Islamik is since different people heard different thing, and we could not be bothered to actually refer to the venue mentioned in the boarding pass, which is at the Terminal Udara, Tingkat 1.

While waiting to see what was gonna happen next, we were greeted by a man who was holding the “PI” flag whom had asked us to follow him. So we went up and waited outside the building at Level 1 with the rest of the group. The waiting was a real boredom. Many complaints were heard of – from the way things are being managed by the organizer, the absence of the “kain rentang” despite a big group, the absence of representative to welcome you at the focal points at an earlier hour, no information was given on the coaches that will take you to Singapore etc. Lucky thing Makcik Naemah has her list of coaches and Jemaah for me to refer to. So, all of us belong to Coach no. 2. It was led by Syahir, a young lad from Melaka but has received his pondok education in Terengganu. He is new to the company, thus, he is vulnerable to give inaccurate information about the excursion.

 

There was no breakfast provided, goodie bags were distributed only after the journey begun and everyone had to wait for some food until we reach Seremban R&R. It was a rush stop as we were informed that we only have 15 minutes to sort out our breakfast. So, it was a quick purchase of pau for myself and waited on the bus, only to discover that the rushing was not worth it at all since we have to wait for the couple who had misplaced their passports in the morning. It was frustrating if not, we would have taken all our time to have a proper breakfast with seatings etc.

 

So, the couple had arrived and had apologized to everyone on the bus on the delay. The wife had explained to us on what had exactly taken place. So, we started off the journey again to Gelang Patah and stopped over for lunch before resuming the drive to Singapore. It was raining heavily and the traffic to the Causeway was totally horrendous and it took us more than an hour to cross Tambak Johor to the immigration Complex. Everyone was so exhausted but quickly emptied the bus, took their luggage and headed towards the Custom’s counters. We were the first to complete the whole verification process and once again, had to wait for everyone else in our bus and the other buses before continuing the journey.

 

The next stop is a mosque for us to perform our Jamak prayers, however, the journey seemed to be endless. We had passed by the Masjid Temenggong Daeng Ibrahim at Telok Blangah Road quite a while and finally we were dropped by the road to cross over to the mosque. It was a disappointment since the driver should have just dropped us a while ago instead of getting all 40 odd of us to cross the many lights to get over to the other side of the road. Motorists were honking since Malaysians find all convenient ways to cross the road without following the pedestrian walking, but I think the Singaporeans are so used to our “tak ikut law” attitude.

 

I am amazed to see the old kubur of the Royal Johor family members in Singapore and a mosque named after JDT there. I was guessing that the land must have belonged to the Johor Royal Family and has been allocated as “tanah wakaf”. Mosque is clean but looks like it needs a bit of repair on the roof due to leakages. I must admit that Malaysian Muslims are so lucky to have mosques located almost everywhere, unfortunately, they are empty most of the time. When you have things in abudance, you will often take things for granted and would only appreciate it when you lost them. Most of us are like that.

 

We had left for the Harbour Waterfront, a place so familiar to me since that is where our Aeroline bus had dropped us off before Rohani picked us up home. So, I basically know which shop is located where and I had decided to get a cuppa at Dunkin Donuts.

We checked in to the ship and I was so scared that the iron which I have in my bag will be confiscated. Alhamdulillah, nothing was taken out of my bag and we set our foot on board Costa Victoria. The moment I went on board, reminded me of my first ferry trip to Amsterdam a few months ago but this time without my cute niece, Sofea. We were given cabin 90525, located at deck 9. Coincidentally the same deck as my P&O ferry trip. The cabin is quite roomy for me & Sheli except that it does not have a window like P&O.

 

We were all exhausted by the time we have access to our cabin, we performed our jamak taqdim and headed to Pizzeria at Deck 12 for dinner. After dinner, we were all forced to attend the safety drill. It was a tremendously long and boring one since there were so many languages and versions of it. We were all near to being collapsed, it was so hot and stuffy with our life jackets on. After the drill, we headed to the Plaza at Deck 7 for a get-to-know session with the organizer team and invited ustaz. And finally, time for bed afterwards. We slept like babies after a real long day on the bus. Nothing matters after that.

 

12/12/15 (Day 2)

Qiamulail is part of the programme for all Jemaah at 3.30 am. Unfortunately, we were too exhausted to join and had our Tahajud and Subuh prayers at the cabin. Sheli had decided to go for the kuliah Subuh and so we walked towards Deck 14. I went to check things out there but Sheli had gone back to the cabin. Kuliah was by Ustaz Singapura, Izhan but it was towards the end. The ground was wet since it rained the night before so you can see sejadah being hung all over the deck railings. A rare sight which can be seen. Had breakfast and abah took the opportunity to mingle and take pictures with Ustaz Norhisyam and Dato’ Badli Shah. Something that is not easy for us to experience.

 

Kuliah Dhuha had started at 9 am at Deck 7. It was about Syukur and all four speakers had shared their views on the topic. We went back straight to the cabin to take a nap since our eyes are still tired from the long journey yesterday. The nap continued until 12 noon and I was rushing to the Zuhur Jamak prayers at Deck 7. By the time I reached the Plaza, it was already time for qamat. Alhamdulillah, had managed to join the Jemaah followed by a tazkirah by Ustaz Aziz.

 

Lunch was a bit late around 1.15 pm and surprisingly there were still a lot of people whom had not had their lunch. I was feeling a bit nausea due to watching the ship moving while having my meal. So, I thought I would need lots of fresh air and decided to sit at the rear of the ship, on the sun loungers at our Deck. I was accompanied by a bottle of the asam I bought from the R&R. Alhamdulillah, it helped a lot. I started this journal till it is time the laptop battery needs to be recharged. And so, back to the room again and this time for a peaceful nap. This time, I really slept well and felt like I had slept for almost a day. Sheli was not in the room since she has gone out to do her assignment. Sorted out my laundry and got ready for Maghrib prayers.

 

Subhanallah, it is such a breathtaking view of the sun set couple with the string wind. And it was my first time praying in the open on the very top deck of a ship, with the endless view of the skyline and ocean. It was something which I would not be able to witness if we were not part of the Jemaah. Prayer was led by Ustaz Syed Norhisyam and the doa that he had read was so beautiful that it touched the hearts of most Jemaah. A tazkirah Maghrib followed through with topic on Doa, Resipi Makbul. We had dinner after almost everyone else had left. And since there is nothing much to watch in the room, me & Sheli had decided to lepak at the open deck. I updated my journal while Sheli crawled into an “Udang Kena Bakar” position next to me, sleeping. I just wish that I would be able to do this everyday or at least once a week - sit in the open space, breathing in all the fresh air with the waves hitting the ship, although you can’t hear the splashing of the waves, and feel tranquil with the wind blowing into you face now and then. Such a great nikmat that I would not trade for any other things in the world.

 

The clock is now showing 10.52 pm Thai time. I guess it is time to bid farewell to the day. Targeting to join the Jemaah for Qiam tomorrow, hopefully the weather will be fine tonight. Tomorrow, we will be docking at Phuket, insyallah and there will be programmes lined up including a visit to a Pondok and shopping activities. So, we shall catch up tomorrow with more news. Good nite!

 

13/12/15 (Day 3)

Subuh was at Deck 7 due to the wet ground at Deck 14. It was a full house since the Plaza is quite tight with so many furniture within the room itself. The kuliah Subuh was presented by Dato’Badli Shah. As usual, he is so informative and entertaining at the same time. It was about how it is difficult to spread Islam in Asia. He talked about Jawa, being the most stubborn ethnic within the continent. Well, it somehow or rather explained why we were like that. Funny but true. We had nasi lemak for breakfast but this time a bit too soft but am not complaining much.

 

We left for Phuket at 9 am via a tender boat and then walked over to the bus station before leaving for Wittaya Islamic School. Our bus guide is Tim, a Muslim who is very intelligent I must say. He has a lot of general knowledge, am able to tell by the way he shares his experience. We were greeted with Salawat by the occupants of the School, a large group of students. Hall is big to accommodate everyone although I think that they should serve everyone with drinks upon arrival as the speeches were quite long and it was quite warm. Food was excellent – Thai flat noodles, tom yum (best ever), cendol (double thumbs up) and nasi ayam (the one that we had in Krabi last year). Hospitality is the best ingredient to the exciting experience in the school. I had sedeqah an amount of RM 150.00 to the tabung they had.

 

After visiting the school, we were brought to the Phorntip Food Store where you can find all sorts of junks and dried food. However, mind you, the price is a bit on the high side and I have spent around 2700 TB, with one purchase of a wrong item (a buttered cashew that had cost me a fortune). Had an iced coffee from the coffee shop just outside the store, it was 98 TB but it was superb, so have no complaints about it. Gave abah and ibu each 2000 TB for shopping, although it is only RM 400.00 in total. Hope both had used the money in a good way.

 

Next stop was the t shirt shop, where a tee costs from 100 TB onwards. Since I am not a tee person, spending money there would be unusual. So, I hoped onto the bus and waited for everyone else to return. It was quite a long ride back to the Patong Beach and most of us had slept throughout the journey. I can’t remember what time we reached the beach but was sure that the tender boat came after 5 pm. So, it is not so much of “You will be left behind if you are late and will be sent to Penang directly”. It was so exhausting by the time I reached home since the weather was so hot plus the activities involved are tiring - I am referring to the endless shopping. Sheli left for Maghrib prayers while I decided that I’ll stay at the cabin for prayers instead.

 

Another day is over and I look forward to tomorrow to come.

14/12/15 (Day 4)

We started the day with qiam and a tazkirah Subuh. At 9 am, a ForumPerdana was held, all 4 ustaz were up there, with Ustaz Nuzhan as the moderator. Unfortunately, I had a very bad tummy ache which had lasted till afternoon. And to make things worse, my Nokia Lumia went kaputed and it has driven me crazy. The LCD display may have gone way beyond repair. If it is going to cost a bomb, I would opt to buy a new Lumia, the latest in the market. The afternoon was spent with quality sleeping, ironing of clothes for the dinner and packing of bag.

 

Maghrib was at Deck 14, ustaz Mesir was the imam and while performing our second rakaat, it started drizzling but Alhamdulillah, even though the Kumulus Nimbus were everywhere, it didn’t rain heavily. So, we had our jamak all way through. After prayers, everyone was rushed to the Fantasia Restaurant where we were all seated for a course dinner. Menu – prawn cooked in dry curry, penne, salad, lobster and last but not least, coffee mousse. Our waiter is Leon, good looking guy and as usual, Filipinos are friendly. Overheard that his mum-in-law has reverted to Muslim. Alhamdulillah, and may Leon be opened to do the same, insyaallah. The event was finally over at 11 pm and we had a photo session with all the ustaz before we left. I had the opportunity to take a picture with Abah’s new student, a SDARian very pleasant form 4 student. Also had pictures taken with Syahir and Lubna, Ustaz’s daughter, lovely as usual.

 

It felt that we have known everyone for a long time instead of just meeting them 4 days ago. Everyone is now so attached to each other, strangers are now friends. Went back to the room and did all the packing before placing the luggage at the corridor. Still had a lot of stuff left behind. And so we went to bed slightly before 1 am and had snored throughout the night, slept like babies.

 

15/12/15 (Day 5)

Our last day on board. Tummy was still not okay completely, so I had to take wudhu a few times before it is time for Fajr prayers. Tazkirah Subuh was by Ustaz Syed Norhisyam - dua kalimah yang berat pahala, ringan disebut dan disukai Ar-Rahman. I was a bit sleepy though but had struggled to stay awake. After Subuh, we had our last breakfast. Met the couple we met last night, from USJ2. I am just loving meeting all the retirees, talking to them etc. Had the opportunity talking to the Singapore family, she reminds me of Along, Rohani’s sister. Everything about her, her size, the way she talked, her appearance etc. I am also happy to be meeting many Singaporeans, all of them are friendly. I even made friend with an elderly lady who is on walking stick, another Singaporean I call nenek. She reminded me of arwah Nenek Moyang.

 

So, it was a last packing for us and we had to leave the room by 10 am. It is a wet ground outside and so we had decided to stay at the library while I am trying my best not to fall asleep. Had our last lunch on the ship (with kesempatan talking picture with kakak Singapore and Afiq, the son of Encik Suhaimi) and then our solat jamak Zuhur at the Concorde Plaza, Deck 7 before we disembark the ship. I can’t wait to get my handphone fixed, I can’t even get my watsapp now. And RC had just missed call me on the other phone.

 

It is now time to bid farewell, this time my blog is complete unlike the others. I love the experience on board but not the dizziness it offers. I wish all the cruise members all the best. I talked to a Vietnamese couple (Hong is the wife) last nite and was told that they work on board for 8 months and then gets 2 months off and work again. I told them that I respect them for being so dedicated coz I doubt I can be as strong as them. Even two nights on the ship had driven me up the wall. I just feel like the floor board is trying to swallow me and that it turns up and down all the time.

 

Alhamdulillah for the ease throughout my journey with my parents and Sheli. This is one of the rare opportunities we had far away from home. Usually it is either just either one of us with Abah & Ibu, hardly both. Adios all and I hope that you like this post.

UK Trip 2015 - The Journey

The journey began with a pleasant flight to Heathrow Airport from KLIA via MH001, our national carrier. I was being served with utmost politeness by a steward called Fadzil (I think so). I must say that MAS has given priority to its' Muslim flyers by offering a space for prayer. Sitting at the tail end was an advantage for me since it is easier to access to the designated area without having to go through other people's seats.

So, it was Heathrow, London in particular is an alien land to me. Having to sort out things on your own was not fun but I was glad that I had managed to do so, although once a while I had gotten lost. Upon arrival at Heathrow Airport, I made myself familiar with the place and headed for the local sim card counter. They had problem fitting the sim card into my basic handphone but Thank God I had my smartphone with me, and so the new sim card went in there instead.

I followed the instruction given by the host on which tube to take and where to stop. The place is Turnpike Lane. It is the few last stops to the end of the line. It was quite a long ride but it has been a new unforgettable experience for me and I had enjoyed it. The only thing that I hated was to have to carry my 25 kg suitcase up the steps since the station did not have any elevators or escalators.

Turnpike Lane  is amazingly gorgeous although I have to look for the Mini Cab place high and low until I finally found it after searching for almost 10 minutes. It cost me 5P to the host's house, which is just 10-15 minutes away by foot, depending on how fast you walk. We went to the wrong house at first, and finally got the right address at 90 Downhills Way.

 

My host is a Chinese lady, Yongyi whom have quite limited English proficiency. The room was not ready when I arrived since the other guest has just  checked out. So, I waited at the room downstairs since there is no lounge to sit around. Kitchen was not clean though, not so pleasant sight to see. Yongyi was then busy running around cleaning the place and I had managed to chat with her a bit although with much difficulty. I was a bit shocked when she said she is suffering from cancer and that she is receiving her treatment accordingly. Then only I realised, that may be one of the reasons she may need to earn that extra dough for living by renting rooms in the house to strangers.

So, when I finally got the room, the adventure had begun. I had to carry my 25 kg luggage up the 18 steps staircase which nearly killed me but Yongyi was nice enough to help.

Stairs that nearly killed me

Room was nice, just to fit a little gal with a big bag. It was not so spacious but I still had some space to move about. What I love about it is that it has its' own window that oversees the road and the houses fronting our house. Beautiful sight to watch, with lines of trees and plants along the road.

My little room

The view from the window

We only have one bathroom to share amongst all occupants, so, no long showers are allowed. And being Malaysian, a dry toilet is difficult to achieve but I had managed it well. So, I got ready for Zuhur prayers and Jama' Asar too before leaving for the city to hunt for tickets to Sheffield.

I braved myself in the cold down the street not knowing which way to take to the Undergound station. So I had taken the wrong turn but a man was kind enough to tell me that I was in the wrong direction. And so I walked through the other side of the road, trying to remember exactly what the man had told me - go straight and you will see a green house with a big bird and there will be some allotments there too, and go all the way straight and you will see the station. I was trying to figure out what is the green house and the big bird is all about and was so amazed to actually see the house he had meant - the side of the house was painted green with a mural of a big bird on it. Awesome and I love it so much.

So I walked and I walked, admiring every single view that I see since it is new to me. Murals were seen along the walls to the station, very nicely done. Some black kids were seen playing at the side of the road. This area is a black area but they were all nice people who only mind their own businesses. And finally I had reached the station after that confusing walk I had.

 

I was not sure which train to take to Victoria Station and just like before, a nice man at the station (a Singh guy) had helped me sorted out where I should stop and change the trains etc. So, I took the train to St Pancreas and bought the train ticket to Sheffield that had cost me GBR 40P and then based on the map that I have, I walked down to Victoria Station. It was quite a walk away and I had decided train will be a better option to travel to and from Sheffield than by a coach.

It was already late and I had decided to make my way back to Turnpike Lane. So, I took the train back home and with a growling stomach, I walked down to a Halal Kebab Store. I ordered a big kebab serving and had ended up having to pack half it which then I had it as my breakfast the next morning. Performed both Maghrib and Isya' prayers before hitting the sack since I am to  tour London the next day, on my last day.

To be continued

Sabah Earthquake 050615

It has been a while since the worst ever quake had hit us, particularly in Sabah. And it has been almost 15 days that some of the features of Mont Kinabalu had been deformed. Although there were many lives taken away during the tragedy, I am thankful that many of them were saved and yes, my Mountain Guides or Malim Gunung namely Rowdy and Nickles were also safe. And Rowdy Junik, one of our MG was one of those who had rescued the climbers who were trapped at the mountain peak and Laban Rata.

It was nearly 3 years ago when I was at the peak, admiring the amazing creation of Allah s.w.t. One of the wonders of the world to me, amongst the many other wonders of the world that I have witnessed. The climb in the future would not be the same as what I have gone through before. The excitement would not be there anymore. There will be fear and extreme cautious to be undertaken by all. There would not be anymore comfort of not taking any food or drinks up to the peak as you would not know if you would be able to have your breakfast at Laban Rata since you would not know if you can descend. One thing for sure is that the Donkey Ears would not look the same anymore.

The Muslims always believe that things happen for a reason and the disaster could be a result of the disrespect and indecent acts by some visitors at the mountain top a few days before the quake. But whatever is the reason, I strongly believe no matter how advanced you are and whatever beliefs you hold, respecting each other's custom and culture is vital. If you have committed a sin, just apologise for the behaviour and offer to rectify the situation, even if you cannot bring the deads back to live.

Mount Kinabalu would always be part of my life since it was where I had proven to the world if you put that extra effort in your life, you will succeed no matter how ugly is the route. It has given me that self confidence that I had never had before. It has taught me that beautiful things are always located somewhere which is not easily accessed and that hard work is necessary to obtain them.

To all the MGs, you are always our superheroes, better than the imaginary Superman or Batman. Thank you for taking care of our heritage and making us proud of your unselfish acts. God blesses you all and protects Malaysia from any harm and destruction. Ameen