Kerana Terpaksa

My Humble Apologies

2008-04-18T03:33:00.000-07:00

I am sorrylah people. I keep getting ten minutes internet access yo since i left Poland. I will update this blog once the Spain leg is over. Don´t miss me too much. heh heh heh. I am now in Malaga, Spain. By the beach and all. Best.

p.s.: Nochaz, got people waiting issit? kembang.

Jalan-Jalan Di Krakow 3

2008-04-03T15:14:00.000-07:00

2 April 2008 - We are up early to siap, pack and check out. It is our last day in Poland. The 3 girls looking after the hostel are really nice. Should have tipped them tapi lupa. We leave our bags at the hostel and take the bus to Oswiecim from the main bus station which is just behind the train station. Its a 2 hour bus ride (18 zlotys for a return ticket). We reach our destination and its pouring. Hujan lah pulak and of all the days its the day we decide to go to Auschwitz which obviously is going to have a lot of outdoor walking.

The entrance to the State Musuem Auschwitz-Birkenau is free but we pay 39 zlotys per person to have a guide. Auschwitz was the largest German Nazi's Concentration camp. But the killing was mostly done at Birkenau (Extermination Camp) where they had the gas chambers to kill and ovens to burn the bodies. We first watch a short movie. That was already hard to watch. Then the guide takes us around Auschwitz and we are given the history of what happened. How they sufferred. What they were asked to do. What they wore. What they ate. It is way too horrific. Then we take a bus to Birkenau and we are given a run down of Birkenau as well. This place is even more depressing. But the gas chambers and ovens were mostly burned down by the Nazi's when they kalah already to rid of evidence. Its a big camp, a long walk past their barracks, past the train tracks to the actual extermination area. The rooms (the barracks) are horrible the toilets torture gila. Like berpuluh holes beside each other and they were given seconds to use it.

Most of them who came to the camp were given a letter kononye they had better opportunity for work and to live here pastu sampai terus kena sound and divided into groups that were exterminated straight away or those who were choosen to provide hard labour till they died. The stuff i saw was too sad and depressing so am not gonna write about it in detail. You can however google it on wikipedia if you wanna know more. It is accurate. We are there when its raining and everything just looks bleak. I hope hope hope that this event that marks inhumane characters in the human race never ever occurs again. Everybody knows and has heard about the Nazi's and these Concentration camps. But being there and actually seeing it and hearing about the individual Nazi's (like the generals and the scientists/proffessors) and what they did to the people especially the kids was a different experience altogether. Tempat nie depressing sial. Zanita and I can't believe we actually set foot at this place. Who would have thought we got to actually do this trip and see all these places yang sebelum nie we angan2 only.

By the time we get back to Krakow its 7ish. We are cold, hungry (the last meal being brekkie) and wet. Jeans basah. kasut basah. socks pun basah mat! penat gila. So its back to the hostel. Another kebab and fries meal. Gantung stoking and kasut at the heater. Check internet. Tengok tv. Then we walk to the train station to catch out 1025pm train. The train is pretty empty so zanita and i tak yah share bilik ngan orang lain. Comei je the room. Tapi kalau betul lah ade 6 orang mane ade space. our bags je took up half the floor and our bags are of normal size. My shoulders by the way is killing me. Backpack looks cool and is convenient but it hurts (sebab kena jalan jauh)! Our friends from Prozak are on the first class cabin. We should have spent a bit more lah kan sebab bilik first class ade cupboard and sink (both takdek in ours obviously), ade duvet (ours selimut biasa) and comfy pillows (ours is so nipis baik tak yah kasik pun takpe). But anyway we are so tired, train bergerak terus tidor baek punya. We are to arrive Prague keesokan paginye. Bye Bye Krakow!

My Phone Number

2008-04-03T15:11:00.000-07:00

Kawan- kawan, I don't carry my Malaysian phone much. So as requested this is my number. Been using it since I got here and will use it till I leave. Its + 44 7594 335 085. I had it on Facebook. I didn't know that it stays for only a week on your Facebook main page. Sorry.

Jalan-Jalan Di Krakow 2

2008-04-02T12:12:00.000-07:00

1 April 2008 - We are up early. Well I am up early. Its my turn to wake up early. Its a Tuesday. We have lots to cover today. We have breakfast first at the hostel. Its much better than Edinburgh. The cheese and chocolate spread are yummy. When we arrived on Monday we had already gone to the information centre at the Cloth Hall at the Main Square to get the free guide book The Visitor. There are several other free Krakow guide books, just ask the information centre. The Visitor guides you through walking tours so you can do it yourself.

Dah makan pagi, with The Visitor Guide Book and The Lonely Planet Guide Book we walk to Wawel Hill. It is easy to find. On Wawel Hill is the Wawel Castle and Cathedral, symbols of Poland. The royal family (when royals existed) and the Presidents resided here when Krakow was the Capital of Poland. There is lots to see here but semua ade cover charge. So we decide on 2 places that is highly recommended. The State Rooms (15 zlotys no guide) and The Royal Private Apartments in the Castle (22 zlotys got guide). This Wawel Castle and the Cathedral, its very interesting. Its not one type of style or architecture. Dia macam rojak of different styles and colours but somehow it works. The courtyard has a very communist feel to it. Its grey, blocky and too structured. The guided tour was pretty good cause they give a rundown of Polish history. The royal bathroom has a kick-ass bathtub. Macam swimming pool. We meet friends we met the night before at Prozak and walk around the compound of the castle, the rest of Wawel Hill. On one side of the hill you get a fantastic view of the City and Vistula River.

We finish Wawel hill around 1pm. We then walk to Kazimierz the Jewish Quarter. In the 15th century Jews were expelled from Krakow and forced to resettle in a prescribed area which is Kazimierz. We do the walking tour using The Visitor Guide Book. I am the tour guide. Zanita is my only customer. Muka macam kena paksa. Macam sial. hehehehehhe. We go to the Jewish New Cemetry, Temple Synagogue (the only one with laki p'puan duduk skali), Plac Nowy (the Jewish square with a pasar since 1900), Centre for Jewish Culture, Izaak Synagogue (Baroque style), Wysoka Synagogue (famous for having 10m high walls), Krakow Historical Musuem on Jews and Remuh Synagogue and Cemetery (the most important Synagogue here). All these places we went to the buildings are old but dijaga dengan baik skali so they are beautiful and they are different. The Jewish town is comel and quaint with some really cute joints and back alleys. Like got Singer pub with Singer sewing machines on the tables. There is this cool place The Alchemist in a really old run down building. People are wearing the Jewish kopiah. Restaurants are Kosher. And we see hebrew everywhere. Oh we had crap lunch so am not gonna bother writing bout it.

Kaki dah nak patah but we have one more walking tour to do which is the Old Town walking tour. Zanita dah memang nak give up tapi i jadik Nazi and force her anyway. We go to St Andrew Church (Romanesque style) and The Church of St Peter and Paul (Baroque style). We sit on the steps between these 2 churches and I read out loud to Zanita the history of these 2 places. Kaki dah patahkan. Plus we is not young anymore. Ponek. Then we heave our asses of the steps and go check out Franciszkanow Church (Gothic style). Opposite this church there is a yellow building with the late Pope John Paul II punye gambo besar gila on the 1st floor. He was from Krakow and when he came this place had some symbolic meaning. People are berkerumun di depan gambar Pope praying and using prayer beads and candles. Then we cross over to Collegium Maius the oldest building of learning (Krakow Academy) in Poland. It is a lovely place with a really cute courtyard. As you can tell by now I am not a good writer. Vocab kureng banyak. So bear with the description of cantik ok.

Then we're off to the main square that houses the Cloth Hall in the middle (used to be a street crossing the market from north to south), Church St. Wojciech (the smallest and oldest church in Krakow, if you don't read you'd just miss it), Town Hall (a symbol of Krakow), the main market (the flowers sold are so pretty they look fake) and the Church of the Holy Virgin Mary (with 2 impressive towers not of the same height cause one used to be a watch tower. Dulu a horn called Hejnal was blown as warning for enemies coming. Now they still do it midday but midway it stops in remembrance of a guard who got shot with an arrow when he blew it). Next stop was the Czartoyski Musuem one fo the oldest musuem in Krakow. This big yellow building. The we walk to right to the Florianska Gate once the main city gate. Opposite it is the Barbican a Gothic Style building built by King Jan Olbracht with a 26 meter wide moat around it. Now the moat takde lah. Got park instead.

Then we go to Planty this huge park with big trees (yg botak lah kan now) and lots of grass and seats to lepak on. We grab a waffle (mine with cream, zanita's with toffee) and sit for a bit. The waffle is nampak tak sedap tapi sedap gila. Then we walk to the main railway station to buy our tickets for the train to Prague. Its a sleeper train with beds. Either you pay 250 zlotys for 1st class (2 beds) or 200 zlotys for the 2nd class bunks (6 beds to a room). We decide to go cheap. Zanita asks me whether i can sleep on the train. I can't remember the last time i took a train.

Needless to say our walk back to the hostel (only 5 minutes) was horrific lah sebab sakit gila kaki. badan penat. macam nak pengsan lah jugak. We decide to just tapau food cause it was about 7ish and we wanted to rest first before going out malam tu cause we janji with our friends from Prozak we'd go out. We buy kebab (apparently they say its their national food. sejak bila tak taulah kan. tapi banyak gila gerai kebab) from this Tunisian dude. And we buy fries from Mcdonalds. We go up to the hostel kitchen and we eat the kebab. Mak ai kebab dia sedap gila. It is generous with its meat and they put this yoghurt like sauce and spicy chilli sauce. Damn good. We lepak, layan internet, layan tv (semua alih suara to polish tapi suara omputih still on. pastu laki ke p'puan ke alih suara dia suara laki. macam alih suara orang pekak).

Then we force ourselves out again. Dah tua2 pun nak tengok gak club. Actually cause the clubs are all around our hostel like 2-3 minutes walk pasal tu lah nak kisah. Kalau kena naik transport ke added effort ke dah lama tido. Anyway, ministertwo is full of rap like hip hop kids with seluar londeh nampak seluar dalam and hoodies so of course we don't stay. We go to frantic instead (dapat free pass from another awek polish cun). Frantic and Ministertwo suppose to be happs lah for Tuesday. And frantic is cool. The crowd is older and waaaaay cooler. Ke kitorang dah tua tak cool tak taulah. apo-apojelah. Frantic is also like an old complicated wine cellar. Also multi levels also with various lepak areas and music and dancefloors like Prozak. But Frantic has an rnb hip hop room too. We had a good time eventhough we were pretty tired. We leave early and tido sebab esoknye nak pergi Auschwitz.

Oh you can check our Zanita's album on Krakow on Facebook. Than you can put a picture to what i wrote. Apparently i can put picture on this blog. Thats just far to complicated for me lah.

Jalan-Jalan Di Krakow 1

2008-04-02T11:58:00.000-07:00

We arrived here on a Monday like I wrote in my post Safe in Krakow. After dinner and lepak at the hostel we decide to venture out and see the clubbing scene of Krakow. Zanita has been wanting to visit the clubs which are underground in Eastern Europe. Most of the clubs here in Krakow are underground. So we're walking past the main square - Rynek Glowny and this chick (pretty hot, polish chicks are HOT) comes up and gives us this booklet on the nightlife of Krakow (tiap-tiap malam got place to go) and gives us free passes. So Monday nights is Club Prozak night. We get to Prozak, its a tiny little door and the queu is panjang sampai ke luar. Standard melayu malu tak tau nak masuk ke tak. Tapi adventure punye pasal we queu. Macam susah je nak masuk. But hey presto the free passes gets us in easy. Terkejutlah bila masuk. It was surreal. The place is actually huge and it goes another 3 floors down. Its like being in a huge complicated wine cellar. There are different rooms with different music, banyak corners, tempat lepak (huge sofas) and the weirdest was the lowest floor. It was like some middle eastern joint. Lagu arab, minah2 gelek arab, shisha, the works. The music is pretty good at the main room. House music. We hang out there. We make friends. I can't stop staring at this Polish chick I talk to. Lawa gila. Gaya pakai tie is big with the Polish dudes though. But this place had lotsa travellers also lah. Not suprising since it was a Monday night. Oh and the Polish people are big on Vodka. Pretty good night. Quite an experience.

Alkohole

2008-04-02T10:53:00.001-07:00

We see lots of ALKOHOLE signs. Its actually alcohol. I dunno why but Zanita and I just find it funny and always say it out loud when we see it and ketawa. Again and again. Macam tak bosan dengan lawak Alkohole.

Zanita wants to get her eyebrows waxed. They hardly speak English here. So there is a lot of sign action going on. Finally Zanita decides not to do it. I tell her what if they get the signs mixed up and they do something else to her and I tell her to bring back the saloon menu and ask the girls who look after our hostel where to go wax. True enough what the saloon ladies pointed out to her was eyebrow henna colouring. Nasib baik tak buat. Tapi kalau Zanita dah terbuat pun takpe. I boleh cheapkan dia they whole trip. Muahahahahahaha.

In Krakow there are plenty of street vendors that sell bread that look like pretzels. There are a variety of different types of these bread like pretzels. These vendors also sell bread made like a ball and put through a string like a necklace. One rantai has about 10 roti bola So I told Zanita this is one rantai I would really love to wear. Cause I am always lapar, kalau keluar pakai rantai nie gila best. Bila lapar je makan lah satu bead (roti bola). Cool or what.

As promised the name of the Polish restaurant we went to on the first night is U Babai Maliny. Its on Bastztowa Street. Our Krakow trip ends in 2 hours. We are waiting to take our night sleeper train to Prague. I am cold cold cold cause it rained today and my jeans, shoes and socks are wet. Ergh....

I wish we had one more day in Krakow cause we didn't get to go to Wieliczk Salt Mine. Its on Unesco's World Heritage List. Not enough time. But Auschwitz is on the List too. We got to do that. I knew that on this trip we won't be able to do everything. Wish the trip was longer!

We have enjoyed Krakow. Its different and not very touristy and very very clean. The people are friendly eventhough they don't speak much English. They just keep on speaking Polish macamlah we can faham. It would be cool if I could come back again someday.

Safe in Krakow

2008-03-31T13:29:00.000-07:00

31 March 2008 - We finally arrive in Krakow, Poland. Our journey starts here. There are hardly any signs here in English but we manage to take the free shuttle from the airport to the train station (its in the middle of nowhere, there is no station, just a train and its tracks). Took a train to Glowny Station near the Old Town (centre). And walk from Glowny Station to Florianska Street (within the Old Town area) to our hostel, Hocus Pocus. It is right smack in town. But it is on the top floor on top of shops and restaurants. And no lifts. So yay we get to naik turun tangga everyday for the next three days. This hostel is really cute. Macam rumah. We're in a 4 bedded room. There is a living room with tv and dvds. Kitchen with brekkie included. 3 bathrooms to choose from. And free internet. For a night its about 50 zlotys which is about 10+ pounds.

For your info: The free shuttle to the train station from the airport is in front of the airport. Just keluar from the airport. Walk straight up and you'll see a queu for a bus that has no counter or tempat beli tiket. It drops you at the train station. The train to Glowny Station is 6 zlotys about 1+ pounds. Then from Glowny Station walk across the mall and you'll see signs leading you to the Old Town area right to Rynek Glowny the main square. To change money Malaysia takdek lah. Got to change here with Euros or Pounds or other major currencies.

Our flight arrived petang tadi so we've just ventured around the Old Town to get our bearings. So far we have actually seen a couple of attractions but we'll do it properly tomorrow. But from what we have just seen it is gorgeous here. And so far we have seen no other Asians so we are getting some strange looks. Oh and kastam punye beleklah kita punye passport. Lama gila to clear passport control. Every page of the passport was checked.

Recommended by the Hostel chick we had dinner at a Polish joint. I'll update the name of the place nanti. Left it in the room. The place is 3 floors and is really really cute. You get a number and just like at immigration your number will come out at the screen and you go pick up your food. Then you go send back your dirty dishes. Anyway we try Pierogi a classic Polish dish. Its made out of floor and has filling. The most popular being pork or cabbage/mushroom. We try the laterlah kan. Its sedap macam samosa but served on a huge bread made like a tray. I told Zanita that the bread was a real plate and she was going to have to pay for the 'destroyed plate' cause she ate the sides. We had that for starters, our own mains and with a drink it only costs us 43 zlotys. Thats about 5 pounds per person. Cheap.

Trying to decide what to do now. Laters.

What I Got Up To In London

2008-03-31T12:43:00.000-07:00

Bunked over at Sasi's place in Bromley-by-Bow. Sasi's got a cozy little one bedroom apartment. My lugagge blocks the path to the living room. Sorry Sasi. I got to watch an episode of Gossip Girl the night I got there. Kat KL dah ade dvd Gossip Girl ke?

Lunch at Pret-A-Manger. If i opened a place like Pret or EAT in KL, boleh laku tak?

Went to Farringdon, EC1 business district to meet up with friends for after work drinks. Lots of bars for after work lepak session around the offices. Boleh jadi alco if you work here. I'd take my roti canai and limau ais at Warong Maybank anyday.

Dinner at Wagamama. The food is ok ok. Did Wagamama open in KL once?

Lepak with Nik Riz and Shireen and their kids Zarea and Idriz at Turnham Green. Their new house is smaller but is so much cozier than the old one. Zarea and Idriz share a room and its sooo cute. Idriz is soooooo comel with his winter jacket and all. Both him and Zarea loved their kereta control present. I love love love spending time with the 2 kids.

Lunch at Bonda (Paddington) with Shireen and family. Its a Malaysian restaurant. It used to be Nahar. My cousin Shireen is nasi girl so she wanted to eat there. Macam kat Malaysia. Ambik nasi lauk sendiri. Food is pretty good. Serving is HUGE.

Tea at Selfridges with my used to be budak neighbour Dahlia who has grown! She is taller than me now. How did that happen?? Dahlia showed me the threading place at Selfridges. Gila lawa. After threading they put lotion and all. Eyebrow threading for 17 pounds. Mahal nak mampos. I found out from Sasi (she found this joint) there is a cheaper threading place (3 pounds for eyebrow) at Whitechapel. Get off the tube at Whitechapel, turn right and go straight down the road till you see a Sari shop called Ranee's. Kat bawah is the saloon. I have helped many a Malaysian during my short stay here with this new found info on threading. heh heh heh.

After work drinks with friends at Swan Bar same building as KPMG on Farringdon Street. Cheap drinks. Good crowd.

Dinner at Strada an Italian chain off Farringdon Street. Really good food. Must try the Strawberry Tart with fresh Mascarporne Cheese. Delish.

More drinks and aktiviti tari menari over at the Alibi, a short walk from Strada.

Explored Bromley, Whitechapel and Stradford. Kampung side of London.

Dinner at Mongolian BBQ at Convent Garden for Rabin's Birthday. Amran organise. I didn't know it was buffet so when I got there happy gilalah. Choose your meat/seafood, choose your veggie, choose your spices and sauces and send it to be cooked. Also includes soup, bread, noodle and rice. Sedap gila and kenyang kron. Fantastic combo. Oh and the ice-cream and choco fudge cake is divine. Caroline, if you're reading this Angel has put on soooooo much weight. Angel a.k.a Mr. Pudgy now cannot be in the top ten list anymorela like this.

Jewel (very nice place, bling bling interior, decent crowd, lagu best) and Cheers (the crowd was dodgy but the music was awesome) at Picadilly Circus for a night out in London.

Movies at Canary Wharf. Took a stroll around Canary Wharf and had tea by River Thames (sort of lah, it leads out to River Thames). I love the this area. Must go for jalan-jalan and lepak. The place has changed and is done up very well now.

Lepak at Ladbroke Grove with friends for a night. You think there are no apartments skali ada. Besar plak tu and cantik. If only it was not so messy.

Lepak at Tower Hill for a night. Zanita's last free apartment from Ernst & Young before our departure to Poland.

Oh and lupalahkan Shopping at Oxford Street. heh heh heh.

p/s: All the places I mentioned is accesible by tube. The stops are of the same name.

London Baby

2008-03-26T19:41:00.000-07:00

After resting and doing nothing but watch tv, read and lepak at Birmingham for a day plus I am now back in London. After Edinburgh and Birmingham, London tarahal. Macam bilik air cond je. Riak. I know. I will suffer eventually. Oh but I bought a 2 pound sweater from Primark ok. Its a damn good sweater. Same Price as a bottle of water at the Petrol Station. I took the bus to London. I learned that if you check on the national express website for fun fares you can get 5 pounds ticket to London. Murah gila. But Zanita forgets to untick insurance so I pay 6 pounds. Anyway if you ever go on National Express must check for fun fares. The bus in London stops at Victoria Coach Station. I had to find my way from there to the Underground. Adventure. With lugage and all. heh heh heh.

I have 4 days in London. No set plans. Leaving for Krakow on Monday. What shall I do??

Excuse Me Mr. Bagpipe Part III

2008-03-26T19:06:00.000-07:00

Edinburgh, Scotland

Its Easter Sunday. We cover the rest of the Royal Mile. One end of the Royal Mile is the Edinburgh Castle. The other end is the Palace of Holyroodhouse which is the official residence in Scotland of her majesty the queen, my cousin. Opposite the Palace is the Scottish Parliament. The Parliament has funky twigs on it. Weird. We go in the Palace. 9 pounds plus audio guide. Its charming. I am very intrigued by the Mary, the Queen of Scotts. Her room is on display. Her life is damn happs. 3 husbands and then she gets killed. She apparently murdered one of her husbands. The highlight of the palace is the ruins of the 12-century Abbey. It is very pretty.

By the palace is Arthur's Seat a dead volcano. On Easter Sunday locals go up Arthur's Seat and throw eggs. I expect to see eggs rolling but am dissapointed. I see no eggs.

The musuems and galleries in Edinburgh are all free. I LOVE the fact thats its free. The National Musuem of Scotland: the roof top has one of the best views of Edinburgh. We talk to Patrick the old dude penjaga roof top. I think dia dah lama tak borak sebab all I asked was where was Dolly the cloned Sheep. Pastu he couldn't stop talking. We enjoy the Science (which has Dolly the Sheep) Section of the Musuem. I learn that I cannot carry my own weight. We go to the History Section. I love history sections. And we find foldable chairs. Cool.

The Tass on the Royal Mile and Jefferey St serves pretty decent food. And the Fudge Shop on the Royal Mile has some delish choc, vanilla and toffee fudge.

Things to not Miss in Edinburgh:

1. Old Town and Grassmarket for its attractions, shops, resturants and bars

2. Musuem of Scotland for a Journey through Scotland

3. Walk the historic Royal Mile from the Castle down to the Palace of Holyroodhouse

4. The Scottish Parliament

5. Georgian New Town (go to Georgian House in Charlotte Square)

6. Traditional Bars at Rose Street and Shops at George Street, both at New Town

7. National Galleries of Scotland

8. Royal Botanic Gardens

9. For city views, walk by Salisbury Crags, Calton Hill or Visit Camera Obscura on Castehill

10. Leith for Seafood

11. Explore 'Village Edinburgh' - little shops at Stockbridge

12. Water side setting of Dean Village

13. Highlands, Lochness etc

Wish we had time for 7,8, 11-13. Maybe I'll find my way back to Edinburgh. Despite the membunuh wind and braving the cold, I loved my trip to Edinburgh. Its beautiful, it is rich with history and Its a warm friendly place. Plus I had great company. And yesterday kena marah by Ed cause I didn't tell him bout Edinburgh. Sorry Ed. He didn't do anything at Jersey Island during Easter. I forgot. It would have been loads more fun if Ed had come. I would have had one person to make fun of and bully.

Oh and if you must shop got factory outlet - Livingston Designer Outlet dekat highway. Google it for directions. Zanita wanted to go find lugage at Samsonite. But i end up buying shoes. 15 pounds per shoe. bargain.

Excuse Me Mr. Bagpipe Part II

2008-03-26T18:05:00.000-07:00

Edinburgh, Scotland

First thing to do in Edinburgh? Go for the free walking tour by New Edinburgh (http://www.neweuropetours.eu/). You just have to tip the guide at the end of the tour. Amount to tip is up to you. It starts at the Royal Mile. Just as the tour started I bump into Aznul and Amri. Ade aje orang Malaysia. Have not seen them in ages and I see them in Edinburgh. Aznul was my school mate, college mate and office mate and Amri was my childhood friend.

I highly recommend this free tour. You get your bearings (New Town and Old Town seperated by a bridge etc). You learn a bit of history (William Wallace, the Scottish Royals, Robert the Bruce etc). Get a lesson on Edinburgh (must act cool when they fire the canon at 1 pm from the Edinburgh Castle, must eat Haggis etc). Hear local stories as you walk around (damn a lot of dodgy people in the old days, high profile criminals, a real life Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde etc).

We covered part of the Royal Mile at the Old Town (St. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh Castle, Merkat Cross were announcements were/are made dulu and now). We checked out Grassmarket (the hip part of Old Town, but dodgy di zaman dahulu kala). We hung out at Greyfriars Kirkyard this way cool cemetery which is oddly beautiful eventhough its basically grey. At one end of the Cemetery you get the view of an old school now a private school. This is apparently the landscape for Hogwarts, Harry Potter. Bobby the famous dog that came to see its dead owner at this very cemetery for 14 years is buried at the entrance. And there is a statue of him. He's of course famouslah here. We passed by the Elephant Cafe where J.K.Rowling apparently started writing Harry Potter. Passed the museums. And ended up in New Town at the Princess Street Gardens. It started snowing when we were at the Gardens. Very Pretty.

After the tour ended we decided to walk to Ediburgh Castle. The walking tour does not bring you into places yah. Go pass the bridge from Princess Park and climb up (sort of) to Edinburgh Castle. Now the son of Robert the Bruce and his men managed to capture Edinburgh Castle from the English by climbing up the castle from the side off the very steep old eroded volcano. As we walk up the hill to Edinburgh Castle we were wondering how the hell they did it. Dulu mane ade rock climbing technology. It must be the power of the kilt.

Anyway, went into Edinburgh Castle. Its bout 11 pounds. Has a free tour guide every hour. Had a bit of fun in the compound. There is the royal military and war museum inside. Has a prison underground for 1,000 people. We had an hour before the free tour so we covered most of compound including the oldest part which is the church. We actually covered the whole place but the castle. heh heh. tak baca map. After the tour which brought us to the castle building itself we went around lah and finally saw the highlight of the castle which is the stone of destiny.

This stone is so important to the Scottish people. Apparently were the stone lies the Scottish rules. All kings/queens are crowned on the stone. And everytime the stone gets back to Scotland (the English stole it, the Scottish stole it back, finally now in Scotland), the Scottish rule in some waylah. Anyway, the Stone is kept in this glass block together with the Royal Crown and Jewels. There is a massive line to see the Stone and when we finally get there I see the Crown and the Jewels and totally miss the Stone. Boleh tak. So I had to patah balik, lie to the guard and looked at the stone. Its a stone. A normal slab. No wonder I missed it. Ceh. But anyway, if Queen Elizabeth dies and Charles is crowned the stone will be there and I can say I have seen the blady stone of destiny.

The Edinburgh Castle closes at 6pm so with tired freezing feet we walk back to Old Town. Zanita is still energized and walking into shops. We ended up at this bar called The Advocate, its at Hunter Square by the Royal Mile. Damn good food. Lamb Shanks, Roast Chicken and Haggis with Neeps and Tatties (Turnip and Potatoes). Haggis is like the traditional Scottish Meal. The free tour guide was describing how gross it is because it is made out of all parts of the sheep including the lungs a.k.a paru-paru. Obviously I am not disturbed by this fact. Sambal Paru with Nasi Lemak is the bomb! Haggis taste alright. I kinda like it. We shared a table with some locals. Haram tak paham ok half the things they were talking about. Colin with the Irish accent I thought was hard enough. Scottish lagi tak paham. It took me a good ten minutes to figure out they were saying tourist. heh heh heh. After a while boleh lah paham. The Advocate is a pretty cool pub to hang out. But also check out this pub at the end of Rose Street, I forgot the name. Its Old. Its Beautiful. Its got a good crowd going and live music.

Excuse Me Mr. Bagpipe Part I

2008-03-26T17:22:00.000-07:00

Edinburgh, Scotland

2 cars to Edinburgh. Car Espanyol lead the way. One of them in Car Espanyol spoke with a Spanish + British Accent. It was really weird. Massive traffic to Edinburgh. Mainly due to it being the Easter Weekend. Got accident also. Really bad one. The bomba was trying to get the man out. Freaky. At one point cause the cars tak gerak langsung people got out of their cars. Exactly like Malaysia except more organised and less sunny. And people were more patient. Because the accident took up the right lane, there were signs that indicated the right lane was close. Dari jauh people started avoiding the right lane and moved to the middle lane. Never would I see that in Malaysia, cause yours truly would also use the right lane and bila dah dekat baru squeeze into the middle lane. Come on you guys do it too.

I told Colin i would pay him 10 pounds if he lifted the kilt of a Mr. Bagpipe to see whether they do go commando. He said that only girls are allowed to do that. No, i didn't do it. It was far too cold. For me and for a Mr. Bagpipe.

6+ hours later we arrive at Globetrotters Inn. Its a 4 star hostel bout half an hour from the city centre on the south shore. Jauh sikit but we had a car. You can check it out at http://www.globetrotterinns.com/. The place has its own bar with a view of the Firth of Forth (Scotland's River Forth that flows into the North Sea). Very self contained. Got convenience store all. We stayed at a 6 share. 3 double deckers. Each bed with its own lampu and curtain and a little shelf. The curtain works wonders cause it traps heat. Pretty cool. Not cool was the place lacked hot water sebab full occupancy. Most of the time it was about 2 degrees or less in Edinburgh and most of the time we had cold showers. Bestnye. It costs us bout 50 pounds per person for 3 nights. Includes breakfast. Nothing fancy. Just toast, cereal, juice and coffee/tea.

After checking in and resting for a bit we checked out the New Town of Edinburgh. It was late already so we settled for Chinese. It was still open. Golden Dragon on Rose Street that served yummy sweet chilli beef. Walked around Rose Street (pubs and restaurants). Headed back to Globetrotters Inn and hung out at the bar. Cheap drinks. Lots of people. Standard bar music. Does bar music not change at all? Its the same songs they played at bars in Brisbane 10 years ago. I like.

Freaking Cold

2008-03-20T12:06:00.000-07:00

Arrived safely in London on the 19th of March 2008 at 1730pm. Had to go straight to Birmingham from the airport. You can either take the train or the bus to Birmingham. If you take the train you have to change at Euston. I decided on the bus which goes straight to Birmingham Central Bus Station. Malas nak tukar-tukar. £28 one way. From Heathrow Terminals you can walk to Heathrow Central Bus Station where you can catch coaches to basically all destinations. Its a short walk. Go to http://www.nationalexpress.com/ for coach details and http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ for train details.

As soon as i got down from the bus at Birmingham (bout 2200pm) i was shivering like mad. Dahlah lapar gila. Zanita picked me up. Forgot how much i missed her. Went to her place, a service apartment at Saco House, Hagley Road. This place is rented by Ernst and Young for employees so needless to say it is very very VERY nice. Plush interior. I like it. I like it even more cause Zanita had pasta daging pedas and thai red curry chicken with rice prepared. Yummmmmmmmmmmmmm. Oh and this place has a tv in each room. Lagi lah happy. :)

I forgot how best it is to sleep during winter/cold weather. I forgot they showed Neighbours and Home & Away here. I forgot how good the banofee pie at EAT is. I forgot how good the milk here is. And i forgot that I had the FANTASTIC ability of stuffing my face with chocolate and biscuits all day.

It is FREEZING.

Koh Phi Phi

2008-03-17T13:24:00.000-07:00

How to get there:

You can take the bus to Hat Yai (refer to Post on Koh Phangan). From Hat Yai you can take the bus or rent a van to Krabi (refer to Post on Phangan). Krabi is also an ok place to cuti-cuti the main beach area is Ao Nang Beach. You can also take the boat to Railay from Krabi. Railay is small and quite but if you're there go check out Phranang Cave. It is gorgeous (the beach) and in the cave there is a carved penis. No joke. Its some sort of offering or something. It takes about 5 hours from Hat Yai to Krabi Jetty. The boat to Phi Phi is about 2 hours. Google the boat schedule to organise your arrival and departure.

OR you can wait for Air Asia Super Deals and take a flight to Krabi (better than Phuket) than from the airport its a short ride to the Jetty. The flight back from Krabi to KL is in the afternoon. If you take the first boat out from Phi Phi you will be able to catch your flight back. No waiting.

From Krabi you can also go to Koh Lanta. Good diving. Pretty Quite. Hardly any Asians. Lotsa families. Its a 3 hour journey to Koh Lanta from Krabi with 2 ferry rides.

Where to Stay:

Phi Phi is quite expensive in terms of accomodation. You won't get a beach front chalet for a reasonable price compared to Koh Phangan. So if you wanna spend bout 800 baht (RM80) per room than kena carik guesthouse which are not beach front.

If you walk from the Jetty into town, just go straight until you reach a 2 story massage place on your left (opposite a dive shop). Turn left there and you'll see Baan Thai Guesthouse. I never got to stay at Baan Thai Guesthouse cause sentiasa full but some of my friends have life membership there. Its run by Miss Lee. There is like a common area in front to lepak with other travellers. Walk past this Guesthouse, pass 7-11 heading towards Phi Phi Viewpoint you will find a lot of options for accomodation. Just have to go in and ask them whether there are rooms available. I stayed at Anita's. Its decent. Sacha's is ok too and the White Room.

What to do:

You must go to the Viewpoint cause the view is unbelievable. But the treck up is not easy. Very steep lotsa tangga. But its worth it. Spend your time at Loh Dalam Bay. Its sorta the main beach. You can cuci mata. Rent a Lilo (they have the double ones for 2 people). Have a fruit shake or pay 200 baht to use the infinity pool which has a bar and loud music. There's the regular beach activities ie island hoping, snorkelling and diving. There is also Cliff Jumping. They give you boots and gloves climb up and jump down. Starts from 6 metres all the way up to 16 metres (but to do this you have to climb a tree). It is fun but can be very dangerous if you slip and fall the wrong way. When you jump at this height you have to jump in straight. Senget sikit and touching the water is like slamming into concrete and you will be bruised. What else? Massage, Shopping, Makan, Lepak etc... There are flyers and booklets on Phi Phi there for further info on what to do.

Not to miss on the makan front is Tuk's BBQ. Ikan Keli, daging bakar, chicken wing, the works! Its sedap and its halal. The fried rice and tom yam at the resort/restaurant by the beach at Ton Sai Bay is pretty good. Must try the pancakes in Phi Phi. Its like roti canai with topping. The best is nutella and peanut butter. And the best pancake in Phi Phi in my opinion is at the stall on the same row as Baan Thai Guesthouse. Don't miss out on the Orange fruitshake. Go to the pasar for cheap nasi lauk. And for breakfast find Uni's. They make fresh bagels every morning. Check out D's bookshop near 7-11. Decent food and a great place to people watch.

At night go to Rolling Stoned for live music (the band is pretty good) and a game of pool, Reggae bar for muay thai, Carlito's to dance and Hippie Bar (spot a melayu fire show boy who is the mc with an accent) to Chill. There is also this place called Carpe Diem but i prefer it during the day because you can sit on the upper deck and enjoy the view (of the beach). There are also buckets in Phi Phi like Phangan. But Phi Phi is more maju because not only do they have the normal sand castle sized bucket, they also have the BALDI. But do take into account the fact that once the BALDI is filled with your choice of poision and ice you can't really move around. berat.

If you have nothing else to do you can get a bamboo tatoo of the sun. heh heh heh.

For further queries please do not hesitate to direct them to the Comment Box.

Koh Phangan

2008-03-17T12:02:00.000-07:00

How to get there:

If you want it cheap and you don't mind roughing it take a bus from KL to Hat Yai (can get bus tickets from the various outlets in the Pudu area). I have only taken the S.E. Express to Hat Yai. Its ok lah. Contact Number 2072 3148. But i once saw this fancy bus go to Hat Yai. Single seater with tv. Dunno what bus. But am sure if you scout Pudu you can find it.

From Hat Yai take a bus or rent a van to Surathani. You can buy the bus tickets to Surathani when you reach Hat Yai. For the Van get in touch with Cathay Tour/ Guest House 074 243 815, 089 466 2591 or 089 466 2592. This lady Chom runs the place. She's nice. You can get the ferry tickets and schedule from her in advance so you can work out your arrival and departure. Its i think bout a 5 hour Van ride to Surathani. Could be less.

But if you have time in Hat Yai go eat at Krua Talay Seafood (18/4 Pradungpakdee Rd). Sedap nak mampos esp the curry crabs and the deep fried black pepper sotong.

Donsak Pier is the Jetty at Surathani. From the Jetty it is an uncomfortable and lembap nak mampos ferry ride to Koh Phangan. Takes about 4 hours. It arrives at the main Pier in Koh Phangan which is in Thongsala. To get to Haad Rin beach (the main beach in Phangan) its another 1/2 hour Tuk Tuk ride.

So if you take this option to reach Phangan, say you take the night bus from KL at 11pm you reach Phangan at about 6pm the next day.

If reading the above sounds exhausting than take a flight to Koh Samui (Berjaya or Fire Fly, you can google the number). From Koh Samui airport (which is like a resort btw) take a cab to Big Buddha Pier which is 10 mins aways from the airport. The boats are pretty regular to Phangan. The journey is less than an hour. Easy Peasy.

Where to Stay:

I have only stayed at Haad Rin Nok. There are many other beaches in Phangan. Its a big place. But Haad Rin is the main beach area so got makan places and night spots and kedai-kedai. All walking distance. Haad Rin is kinda small. But now the chalets by the beach at Haad Rin dah maju. Most of them have a swimming pool. Air conditioned rooms, daily cleaning service, tv, patio/balcony the works. When i first went there most of the beach front chalets where basic at 300 baht (RM30) per night. Now these beach front chalets have turned fancy and are about 2000+ baht per night. But for the price you pay you get a pretty good deal. A pretty fancy place with breakkie. The last place i stayed was Tommy Resort (http://www.phangantommyresort.com/). Can email them at tommyresort@hotmail.com or call them at 66 77 375 215, 66 77 375 216. The lady in charge is Joy. Macam tak friendly tapi friendly if that makes any sense. There are still cheap accomodation for about 600 baht a night. You have to walk around Haad Rin lah and its not by the beach. You can find some di atas rumah kedai ie above the restaurants etc. They have rooms for rent. But most of these cheap places you can't call and book.

What to do:

There's the beach, renting the Lilo, sewa motor, go to the waterfalls, shop, massage (damn cheap), snorkelling, diving (not that great) dan macam-macam lagi. Once you're there go get the small booklets on phangan. Gives you info on what to do or what you can do. The last time i went to Phangan i did nothing as usual.

Malam walk along Haad Rin Nok beach. Plenty of bars sort off. Choose which place blasts your kinda music and party there. I do like Cactus. Lotsa memories there. But the toilet at Cactus is really nasty. Buy the bucket to quench your thirst. But be warned the buckets are dangerous.

As for the full moon, half moon, black moon and all other moons google it to find dates. There is a cover charge to these events but you gotta go try them even if you're not into the rave scene. And be prepared for the changes in dates ie not the same as when you google it. They adjust the dates according to reasons unknown to me.

Makan, well they do cater to the mat salleh taste and i have not eaten at that many places. But K's in front of Mama's Schnitzel is pretty good. The falaffel is damn nice. The nasi goreng at Tommy's is sedap. And always buy battery water to hydrate yourself and try the fruit shakes without sugar or kurang manis sebab gula dia ya amatlah kuat.

Oh and to the melayu's out there Koh Phangan banyak anjing tapi anjing pulau nie tersangatlah lepak. You won't kena kejar lah.

For further queries please do not hesitate to direct them in the Comment box.

Pulau Perhentian

2008-03-17T11:35:00.000-07:00

How to get there: Take a flight to Kota Bharu which is closer than Kuala Terengganu. Or take a bus to Kota Bharu which is damn penat. Then take a cab to the jetty (which takes less than an hour). Either Kuala Besut or Tok Bali Jetty. Both also safe. Both also life jackets not mandatory on boats. It should be RM60 return for the boat.

Where to go: Perhentian Besar in my opinion is lebih untuk keluarga. Perhentian Kecil lebih untuk anak-anak muda like me. hehehehehehehe. Its a small strip of beach with i think has bout less than 10 different chalets and a couple of kedai makan. Aside from the regular beach activities ie island hoping, snorkelling and diving the best thing to do in perhentian kecil is buat tak tau ie do nothing. Its amazing how one can do nothing from 9am to 6pm at perhentian kecil. Eat, Sleep, Swim, Read, Stare into Space, Berangan and just Chill. Don't expect a happening night life. Every year the place changes but every year there is one place that opens late and has loud music. If you want a happening night life than bring your happening friends. If you're with a group of happs people anywhere also can pening. takdehal.

Somebody asked me whether got Jet Ski and Banana Boat in Perhentian Kecil. Takdek and once that happens I probably won't go there again. Go soon though cause its not as clean as before. Dunno whether they will fix that. Oh and don't litter. Got tong sampah there. No worries.

Where to Stay: I would recommend Mohsin. Go to http://www.backpackjoe.com/ for info. Or you can call the KL office 2163 0963. Or you can call Awie who runs the place at 012 9285237. Mohsin can be a turn off when you see the flight of stairs leading up to the place. But don't worry its fine. Even smokers can go up the stairs. It is not that steep. It has the best view on Perhentian Kecil and its clean. But it is getting pretty pricey. You really shouldn't pay more than RM150 for an air conditioned room.

If there are any queries please do not hesitate to direct them to me at the Comment box.

It Works!

2008-03-17T11:28:00.000-07:00

Not bad man. This actually works. Saya yang buta IT pun berjaya!

I was not born with the flair for writing. This blog is created kerana dipaksa oleh kawan-kawan. Hence the title of the blog. Apparently by doing this my friends will disturb me less when they want misc info on travels.

Before i leave for my 6 week backpacking trip i will write 2 entries one on Thailand and one on Perhentian cause as I type I already got calls asking bout these places. Roaming mahal ok so for the next 6 weeks i might not pick up your calls. Tengok moodlah. Muahahahahahahah. So next time you people call to find out stuff i will direct you straight to this blog wokeh. And yes i will be updating my Europe Adventure here too. Enjoy!

Buat Kali Pertama

2008-03-17T11:20:00.000-07:00

Assalamualaikum. Testing Testing. Bola satu ke bole dua. Over and out.