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)
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.
