The Sweet Escape Tour: Fourth Leg

Tuesday, 3 May 2011
TUN-MXP; MXP-CGN; CGN-FRA
I Want My Money Back
I woke up early this morning as I had decided to attempt another trip to Carthage to find those ruins. It was a comparably smoother journey today (there was still that wait at Place Republique for the train to Tunis Marin). I reached Carthage Presidence station at 8.30 and walked. And walked. And walked. It was a while before I sighted any ruins (damn those books and maps). Finally, I went to find the Antonine Baths and this at least saved my morning. Entrance cost TND10 (which included entrances to other sites which I couldn’t locate).

I left at 10.30 am. Got the 10.45 train out of Carthage Hannibal and was back at the hotel by 11.35 am. I checked out and took a cab to the airport. No way was I going to haul my bag down to Place Republique, buy ticket, haul the bag down up and down those stupid stairs to validate my ticket and wait endlessly for the train to Tunis Marin from where I need to walk to find the bus station for the bus to the airport. No, I still had a lot of Tunis Dinar so I would take the cab.

The cab ride only cost less TND4 - I saw from the metre (the hotel told me it was TND10 and had asked for the money; had I known, I would have just flagged down a cab myself). I checked in - no passengers wanting to share their life story woes with check-in personnel this time - and checked my emails while waiting to board.

The flight took less than two hours. I was seated next to a couple with a wailing child who wouldn’t stop screaming at the top of his young lungs for all the blinking 20 minutes from when we were seated until we were airborne. Seriously, I now know why some parents murder their own children. I was close to committing infanticide myself that day. I knew the toddler was either hungry or tired hence the ultra-noisy tantrums but couldn’t the parents have figured that out?! Thankfully it was all peace and quiet until we landed at Milan Malpensa. Oh and unlike the trip out of BRU, this time they only served us drinks. No meal whatsoever. I want a refund for my ticket!

I had some time kill before my next flight out and wondered around the airport. Again, WiFi is not free. Duh.

I checked in as soon as the check-in counter was open but waited before I went in.

The flight took off on time and we landed at Cologne-Bonn Airport at 9.30 pm. I was not amused to find the upper part of my suitcase wet but thankfully my clothes inside were dry. Spent time in the washroom freshening up.

My 2308 Intercity Express train to Frankfurt Hbf was delayed by two minutes (there was a sign announcing delay). I had bought the ticket online earlier. Oh my, I was so impressed with the train. There were normal seats and there were seats in compartments (like couchettes but I don’t think anyone spread out in them like I would). There was an audio service for which you’d need to purchase headphones. There were also service plugs for you to charge your devices. Fantastic. Brilliantly thought of piece of engineering and design.

Wednesday, 4 May 2011
HHN-OSI; OSI-SJJ
We pulled up at Frankfurt Hbf at 0023 and I spent some time in the freezing cold looking for the stop for my bus out to Frankfurt-Hahn Airport early in the morning. Finally located it after remembering where it was belatedly (I had taken a bus out to Hahn two years prior).

I went back to the station and tried to make myself comfortable. Not easy when the temperature was hovering around the freezing point. At 2.45 am, I left and braved the frigid morning cold to catch the 3 am bus to Hahn (cost €13). We reached the airport about 1.5 hours later. I had ample time at the airport to re-pack my suitcase as it was over the 15-kg allowed by RyanAir.

Our flight out took off on time and I spent most of the time up in the air catching up on my sleep.

We landed at Osijek Airport at almost 10 am. I had no Croatian kuna and there was no money changer at the airport. Thankfully, the taxi mini-van driver accepted Euros. I decided to change only €10 (I recall €1 was around 7 kuna from my last trip). It took a 25-minute ride to the city and we were dropped off at the train station which suited me just fine as I needed to buy a train ticket out anyway. The said train ticket cost me 157 kuna (I used my plastic). Unfortunately, there was no left luggage facility in the train station (outrageous!) so I had no choice but to drag it with me. It was about a 10-minute trolley bag-dragging walk to the centre. The city has some beautiful buildings, among them the Croatian National Theatre, restored after the 1990s Balkan conflict, but now sullied by the McDonald's restaurant at the ground floor. The Co-Cathedral of St.Peter and St.Paul, the tallest church in Croatia, is at the main square and very near to the Tourist Info. I also walked down to the Drava River before checking out the broad tree-lined Europska avenija (European Avenue) on my way to Tvrda.

Tvrda is an 18th century complex of cobbled streets, grandiose buildings and squares. It was built in 1687 when the Hapsburg armies kicked off the Ottoman forces out of Osijek and turned the town into the military nerve centre of eastern Slavonia. At the centre of Tvrda is Trg svetog Trojstva (Holy Trinity Square). I was there briefly and also checked out the Parish Church of St Michael (a former mosque) before moving on. Cobbled streets are bad for my trolley bag!

I took another route back to the train station and waited there for my 1458 train to my next destination. The train arrived at 3 and there were only two carriages. I took the second carriage which was made up of couchettes (the first carriage consisted seats only). I shared a couchette with a Chinese American girl who was travelling from Budapest for work.

We were delayed at the border for more than an hour. As a result, we only arrived at Sarajevo at 10.15 pm, more than an hour behind schedule. I managed to change my remaining kunas at a shop to local Marks for the tram ride.

Tram #1 was already outside and I boarded it (it cost 1.8KM from the driver or 1.6KM if you buy it beforehand but the kiosk from where I could buy it was already closed). I wasn’t sure where to get down and ended up riding back to the station. This time I got the stop right and a couple with kind souls helped walk me to my hotel right in Baščaršija. The reception then led me to the hostel a few metres across the street.

I finally reached my room well after 11 pm. It had been such a long, long day and I was knackered. Three countries and cities in one day!

To be continued

Getaway 2010: Episode 5

Thursday, 27 May 2010: LED - CGN

Time Flies When You’re Having Fun

Well, all good things come to an end and our Russian trip came to an end today. A light drizzle greeted us this morning and we left the apartment after 8 am, walked to Gostiny Dvor metro station and rode the metro to Moskovskaya station. From the station, we took bus #13 to the airport for our German Wings noon flight to Cologne-Bonn. And thank God we got through immigration without being questioned about not ing our visas. The flight was rather uneventful except when we were about to descend, we felt the plane climbed up again. ‘Back to St Petersburg,’ remarked the lady next to Lin and we shared a puzzled smile. The pilot then explained that they sighted another plane about to descend to the same runway and they pulled up again to avoid a collision. Wow, talk about German efficiency. It’s nice to have the pilot explained everything to us and assured us all was well again.

From the plane, we boarded the airport shuttle but Fifi had to switch to another shuttle bus along with the few other passengers who were continuing on with their connecting flights (she was flying back to London Stansted by the same airline at 1425) so we said our goodbyes then. Lin and I bought some food at a supermarket at the airport (good food at last! And in a language we could understand!) before walking to the connecting train station for our 1444 train to Düsseldorf. We had already bought the ticket online and purposely chose this time. We had to change trains at Cologne however but being Germany, there are lifts everywhere for the convenience of travellers. No one came to check our tickets though.

We arrived at Düsseldorf after half-past three and after collecting maps at the Tourist Information Office, walked to our hotel. After checking in, I went out alone to check what the city has to offer. It’s a charming compact city and so I managed to cover quite a bit of ground. And the shops!!! I never knew Düsseldorf has very good stores – from high street stores to luxury goods boutiques. I can happily settle there. Oh and I sighted some Porsches and Ferraris too – all in the short few hours I was out and about.
Met up with Lin after 8.30 pm and we had dinner at a Turkish restaurant. I had lahmacun or the Turkish version of pizza. Lovely but not as delicious as the one I had at Lake Como. A short stroll after dinner ensued before we headed back to the hotel.

To be continued
~~~~~~~~


The World Cup 2010 kicks off today!!! Contrary to the last World Cup, I will not be rooting for England (I don’t have any problems with Capello, just with some players in the squad). I will be watching out for the SIGN i.e., Spain (they’ve really improved since the last World Cup), Italy (if only for the hawt-looking players), Germany (they have always been consistent) and the Netherlands. Of course I would try to watch and catch up with as many teams as I can (I definitely don’t want to root for only one country), well except for Argentina and France (I have issues with Maradona and Raymond Domenech Dominatrix).

Who will you be watching out for?

No Reservations

I wish I can say it like Anthony Bourdain: I’m Adek Graffiti, I write, I travel, I eat, and I’m hungry for more. I know I can’t write well though (still trying) but I shall still attempt to write about my recent travels so bear with me.

Thursday, 30 April 2009

I left for KL Sentral at 8.40 pm. Such a humid night and I was beginning to perspire just waiting for a cab. It didn’t help that eve of public holiday traffic was heavy but I reached KL Sentral just in time to catch the 9 pm bus to the airport.

I was already half-asleep when we reached the airport - the result of watching an early morning footie match and was not pleased to discover that the flight was rescheduled to 1 am the next morning. I fell asleep almost immediately and even slept through take-off. I was even too sleepy to get up for the late supper meal opting instead for some juice. It was the first time that I had ever managed to sleep longer than an hour in any long flight.

Friday, May Day 2009

Mainhattan

We landed at a very foggy Frankfurt Airport an hour or so later than originally scheduled and because of the thick fog, the plane had to circle and circle before it could descend and land, and even then the plane taxied on the runway for half an hour before finally reaching the designated gate.

After freshening up, I took the S-Bahn to the city. Thankfully the fog had lifted by then and it was a perfect cloudless spring morning all around. At the Hauptbahnhof, I purchased a city map from the tourist info office and walked down Kaiserstrasse. The streets were quite deserted, it being a public holiday. Now Frankfurt was heavily bombed during the Second World War so the buildings, skyscrapers rather, are all modern, sleek, sophisticated and chic.

I walked to Europäischen Zentralbank (European Central Bank) and Commerzbank before deciding to take a detour and walk along the River Main. I walked until I reached the Eiserner Steg (Iron Bridge), a pedestrian bridge buit way back in 1869. You can get a fantastic view of the Frankfurt skyline here and it is this that gives the city its nickname Mainhattan.

I then made my way to Römerberg where the Römer is. There were some peaceful demonstrations around the area today.

I left the crowd and walked to Paulskirche (St. Paul’s Church), the seat of the first democratically elected parliament in Germany in 1848, and Liebfraunkirsche (Church of Our Lady) then to Kaiserdom (Cathedral) before retracing my steps back to Hauptbahnhof.

There were several stalls in the station and even a food hall (selling all kinds of food from sushi to noodles to Middle Eastern fare to pastries) where you can eat or buy light snacks for your journey.

I caught the 1 pm bus to Frankfurt Hahn Airport for my flight out. The journey took 90 minutes.

My 1640 flight out only took off about 30 minutes later but we managed to land at Madrid airport on time. From the airport, I made my way to the hostel via metro (it was suchhh a long trek to the metro station). Now, Madrid has a very comprehensive metro network with lots of lines crisscrossing and zigzagging each other. It costs 1 Euro for a single journey although if you board it from/to the airport, it costs an extra Euro. The direction to the hostel was very vague and I was huffing and puffing my way around, dragging my luggage behind me. And oh it’s a pretty hilly city too as it sits on a plateau at an average altitude of 650 metres.

The Spanish Inquisition

Saturday, 2 May 2009


Going MAD*

*MAD is the airport code for Madrid

I checked out after breakfast but left my luggage at the reception. Set off to explore the city. Walked to Puerta del Sol (Gateway to the Sun) where the Casa de Corres (Post Office), built in 1768, with its clock, was. Madrileños usher in the New Year to the chimes of this very clock. In the square too is where you can find Madrid’s emblem, el oso y el madroño, or the bear with the madroño tree, and not far from this, the Real Madrid store.

I continued walking along Calle Mayor to Plaza Mayor (Main Square) which takes its name from the start of the 16th Century. I spent some time here before continuing on to Plaza de la Villa (Town Square), Palacio Real (Royal palace), Jardines de Sabatini (Sabatini Gardens), Plaza España and finally Gran Via (one of the main arteries of Madrid).

Gran Via is to Madrid as Oxford Street is to London and Champs de Elysees is to Paris. It was such a hot, hot day, the only difference with KL was that it was not humid.

I continued on to Banco de España, a beautiful building, too beautiful to be a bank in my opinion. Fuente de Cibeles and Palacio de Comunicaciones were just nearby. I turned here and walked on to Museo del Prado (Prado Museum) but no time to visit I’m afraid, passed Fuente de Neptuno (Neptune fountain) and Jardin Botanico (Botanical Gardens) on my way to Madrid Atocha station where I bought a ticket to my next destination. Unfortunately, very few people in Madrid speak English and certainly not those selling train tickets. Bloody idiots, do they expect everyone to know Spanish? Hurried back to the hostel to get my bag and walked back to the station for my train out.

After more than four hours, I finally reached Granada. Though the hostel gave directions, I was not able to find the bus stop and so I walked on boldly until I reached a hotel (I made it a point after that to just stop at hotels where at least one staff can speak English at the minimum). She helpfully directed me to a bus stop where I took a mini-bus all the way to my hostel (there are two types of buses in Granada - the regular bus and the mini-bus).

The room was oh so tiny; in fact I think the Tokyo hotel rooms I stayed in were significantly larger. But hey at least there was a heater (and it was chilly at night in Granada).

Thanks to dear SK and Zara for texting me the footie results.

Sunday, 3 May 2009

Grand Granada

I checked out and again left my luggage behind while I went to explore Alhambra. The entrance to Alhambra was all of 20 metres away from my hostel. Thankfully I had managed to purchase a ticket online a few weeks ago after attempting for days (and hence not have to queue for hours for it).

And Granada was magnificent. There was Alcazaba (Fortress) with its Jardin del Adarve (Garden of Adarve); the Palacio Nazaries (Nasrid Palaces) with its hauntingly beautiful courts, rooms and halls all engraved with Quranic verses along their walls (oh if only the walls could speak); Palacio de Carlos V and Generalife and Palacio Generalife (Palace Generalife).

I can’t find the words to describe or explain the beauty of this place and I walked through it with a mixed feeling of wonder, awe, amazement and some sadness too. It could all have been a different kind of present day but history changed everything. I spent close to six hours at Alhambra alone.

After that, I walked (yes, walked) to Albaicin, an ancient Arab neighbourhood with winding streets and houses dating back to the 14th century which together with the neighbourhood of Sacromonte also form part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site (as is Alhambra). There was some sort of festival going on with girls from all ages donned a long layered dress with ruffled sleeves. The festivity also meant that there was hardly any bus service and any bus service that operated didn’t run its normal route so I had to walk back to the hostel. And as the bus didn’t go to Calle Via, I had to get down and walk to the train station... where I bought a ticket to my next destination.

I had a good feeling about my next destination, Córdoba, and I was right. I got a bus to the hostel almost immediately after emerging from the station and the hostel was so charming and tastefully decorated too. I ventured out after 10 pm in search of food but was not successful.

Monday, 4 May 2009. Happy birthday to Cesc!


Sweltering Sevilla

I took a bus to the train station and bought a train ticket to Sevilla. I was informed by the helpful ticket person that there are three types of tickets: one costs Euro59, one costs Euro15 and the last costs Euro9. A bus trip would take slightly longer and cost more than Euro10. Bought the Euro9 train ticket.

I walked to the centre of Sevilla from Santa Justa train station. It was another bright, scorching hot day. I walked to Prado de San Sebastian and on to Plaza de España. Then I walked back and passed Universidad de Sevilla (previously Antigua Fabrica de Tabaco or Tobacco Factory of Seville), the beautiful hotel Alonso XIII down Avenida de la Constitucion to Reales Alcazares at Place Contratacion.

I also spent time walking along the winding streets of Barrio Santa Cruz (Jewish Quarter) before going to Catedral y Giralda. Now La Giralda, the large and beautiful minaret tower of the cathedral, was originally intended for the chief mosque. It is now a symbol of Sevilla.

My last stop before walking back to the station was Torre de Oro, a 13th century tower.

Back at Córdoba, I shopped for some groceries and went back to the hostel to deposit them. After prayers, I went out again and took the winding little alley streets to Mezquita Catredral (Mosque Cathedral). After walking around it, I walked to Puerta del Puente and took the Puente Romano (Roman Bridge) across Rio Guadalquivir to Torre de la Calahorra and back again. Then I walked to Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos (Fortress of Christian Kings). I also passed Banos Califates (Caliphates baths) but it was mainly covered.

Next I walked along the city walls and passed Sinagoga (Synagogue), one of three left in Spain (the other two are in Toledo), before heading back to the hostel.

Tuesday, 5 May 2009

Cool Córdoba/Living On A Prayer

I woke up early today and checked out. Walked to Mezquita Catedral to visit the interior. The ticket costs Euro8 but is free if you visit between 8.30-10 am on certain days. Spent an hour there, again filled with sadness and awe. Headed to the Synagogue to have a look - I didn’t expect it to be so small - then walked to the station to buy ticket back to Madrid and return ticket from Madrid to Toledo.

Hurried back to the hostel to collect my bag. The bus was late, it only came after 1130 and my train was at 1156. I was beginning to panic of course. It reached the station at 1152 and I practically jumped down and ran all the way to the platform. Thankfully the train hadn’t arrived yet. Talk about Living On A Prayer.

At Madrid, I was again involved in another running session. See, I only had 10 minutes to change platforms/trains after arriving and I ran and ran. Again, Living On A Prayer.

The ride to Toledo took half an hour. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite enjoy Toledo because (i) I had to drag my bag with me everywhere (no baggage storage facility that I noticed) and the streets were mainly cobbled not to mention hilly and steep at some places; (ii) it was a hot, hot, hot cross bun day; and (iii) most importantly, my right Crocs button came off. So much for pricey footwear. I’ll stick to my trusted Converse next time, thank you very much.

I had to go to a departmental store back in Madrid to find some strong glue, in the faint hope that it would work. It didn’t and as a result, I had to buy a new pair of footwear. Dang! Give me Converse shoes again, any time, any where. The whole shopping trip cost me time which I could have spent better in Prado Museum (it’s free between 6-8 pm Tuesday-Saturday or something like that).

Navigated the metro system again back to the airport (Terminal 4) for my next flight out. Tried to sleep on the plane but not successful this time. Oh, and thanks to my mates for texting me the result of the disastrous match between Arsenal and ManUre. Silly asses. Grrr...

Wednesday, 6 May 2009

Malteser Time
Landed at Malta Airport at 0125. Yes, an ungodly hour. I was shivering in the night breeze and when someone called out to me, ‘Feeling cold?’, I was a bit startled. Oh, to hear English being spoken again!

Malta Airport was not big and clearly whoever designed it didn’t have backpackers in mind for there was hardly anywhere to rest one’s weary bones and take a kip. Finally managed to doze off after morning prayers. Took bus #8 to Valetta (you have to pay for your bag too on this bus) and changed buses for Sliema, where my hotel was. Now Malta may speak English as one of its languages but its roads and places are predominantly in Maltese so it was a bit tricky trying to locate my hotel. I managed to check in at 10 am and after freshening up, went to explore the vicinity before deciding to take a ferry across the bay to Valletta. All buses go to/from Valletta by the way so if you're going to be here long, it’d be wise to invest in a bus pass.

Valletta is a pretty hilly city (it’s also a UNESCO World Heritage City). Walked to Fort St Elmo (it has limited opening times), the Siege Bell Memorial, and Lower Baracca Gardens for a view of the Grand Harbour and the Fish Market.

Then I walked to Triq Il-Repubblika (Republic Street) to the Grand Master’s Palace and Armory and the National Library. A cute bloke tried twice to entice me to some free Dead Sea cosmetic trial but I declined him as I decided to visit Rabat and Mdina. So I walked to the bus terminus and took a bus to Rabat. From Rabat, I walked the short distance to neighbouring Mdina. Mdina was the capital of Malta at one point and it still has beautiful buildings. I walked in the grounds of Vilhena Palace before going back to Valletta and Sliema.

Thursday, 7 May 2009

I checked out after breakfast and walked around Sliema. Boarded bus to Valletta and then the bus to the airport. My flight out was an Air Malta co-sharing with Emirates so I was served a light meal.

Landed at 1900 local time (GMT + 2 hours). Unfortunately, there was no more bus service to the city at that hour so I had to take a cab to my hotel and was charged a hefty Euro10. Dang! The journey took all of five minutes if not less. After checking in, I walked to Makenzy Beach about 200 metres away and found the bus stop to the airport (for the trip back to the airport).

Friday, 8 May 2009

The Isle of Aphrodite

Checked out after breakfast and walked along the seafront to the city. The Fort of Larnaca marked the beginning of the city perimeter. The Grand Mosque of Larnaca is just opposite the fort. Walked to St Lazarus Church (and me being the curious puss even went to check out his tomb but there was nothing in there. Hmmm). Then I went to the Municipal market and bought some souvenirs. Next stop was the Cyprus Handicraft Service centre then Larnaca Marina before heading back to the city. Passed Picrides Museum and walked on to Larnaca Archaeological Museum (didn’t enter) and Kition Walls (nothing much left).

Back to the hostel and tried to find something to eat but finding none, walked back to the mosque and bought a shawarma from Al Zahra, a halal Lebanese shop. Despite the title of this blog entry, I do have reservations about buying food from a place that has pork kebab on its menu!

I must say that Cypriot men are really friendly, too friendly in fact. I lost count of the number of Adonis who said hello and tried to chat me up/buy me a drink. One even offered me a lift to the airport. And err there were also some middle-aged guys who also tried to chat me up/offer me chocolates/take me to dinner/buy me a drink/offer me a ride on their bikes. One even stopped, slowed down his car and wound down his window to talk to me. My reaction was ‘Oh God, oh dear God!’ and ignored him as I walked past.

Maybe they don’t meet too many Asian girls travelling solo. Maybe they don’t meet too many Asians period. Oh I was also asked if I was a Filipino (me, a a Filipino?!) or a Chinese. Me, neither. A truly Asian I am though. Anyway, back to the hostel and picked my bag and took the 1730 airport bus (last service for the day) and guess what, the airport was just around the bend from Makenzy Beach. Dang, dang, dang. Euro10 for a cab-ride (you should pay me Euro10 to ride in your bloody cab!).

Reached the airport at 1750 and settled down for a long, long wait, for my next flight out was only in the early hours of the next morning. Really, whoever designed that schedule ought to be shot.

Saturday, 9 May 2009

Vienna Calling
Our flight out was slightly delayed – turned out the outbound flight from Vienna was delayed. So we arrived at Vienna about 25 minutes later than scheduled, enough to make me miss the first direct train to my next destination (dang, dang, dang) and so I had to take the next (indirect) train with one station change, lasting 2.5 hours longer and costing Euro 37 more. Ouch ouch ouch - I don’t earn Euro after all. But well, the next direct train would only reach Zagreb well after 10 pm so I settled in for the long train journey.

Managed to catch about an hour of sleep before joining passengers woke me up. Finally I gave up on sleep and admired the Austrian countryside instead. Train change was at Villach Hbf and I tried frantically to find the right platform for my next train which would depart only six minutes after my first train arrived. Tried to read from the electronic board but it turned out there were two trains departing at the same time and so I still came no closer which platform I should head for.

Asked some train officials and was directed to the right platform, phew. Now if that had happened in Spain, I doubt I’d be able to even ask anyone.

Another four-hour train ride to enjoy. We travelled through Slovenia next.

Dynamo Zagreb
* Before I forget, I’d like to express my gratitude to Fifi who helped provide me with links particularly the Croatian bus timetables without which planning for this leg of the journey would be a lot trickier.
Arrived at Zagreb Glavni kolodvor at 1657 and walked to my hostel – even with the vague map provided on the website, it was easy enough to locate. Went out to explore the vicinity after prayers.

Walked to Katedrala then to Trg bana Josipa Jelačića (Ban Jelačić Square) then turned into Tomiceva and walked up the stairs (you can take the funicular train if you want) for a view of the city. Then I walked to the nearby Croatian Museum of Naïve Art, St Mark’s Church and Kamenita vrata (Stone Gate) before going to Trg Zrtava Fasizma where a former mosque stood (now the Hall of Croatian Artists of Fine Arts). Retraced my steps back to the Main Square. Dinner was had at Nokturno Restaurant right in front of the hostel.

Sunday, 10 May 2009

Woke up at 5 am today for prayers. Packed for lunch and left at 6.15 am (already starting to get bright). Took tram #6 to Folnegovicevo stop and walked to Ulica Gavellina at the end of which is where the Zagreb mosque is (they call it jamia). It is quite a big structure but with my luggage, I didn’t really explore it. Left at 7 and went back to the tram stop to for the tram to Autobusni Kolodvor (bus station) where I bought a ticket to Plitivce Jezera (or Plitvice Lakes National Park. Bus was bound for Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik) for 76 kn (but to store luggage inside the bus, you need to pay an extra 7kn. WTH!). My kn are really depleting already...

Water World

Arrived at Nacionalni Park Plitvička Jezera, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, at 0945 and bought entrance ticket after storing luggage. Walked to Kaluderova Jezero, Novakovica Brod Jezero, Verliki Slap (Veliki Waterfall), Gavanovic Jezero, Milanova Jezero and Kosjak Jezero. Took a boat at Kozjak Jezero to the other side of the lake (at 82 hectare square, it sure was one large lake!) Spent hours at the Lakes.

Took the 1710 bus to Zadar and arrived at Zadar at 1920. Croatian buses are amazingly punctual. Walked to the city centre after buying ticket out and storing luggage. There was a lovely marina and Zadar enjoys a good waterfront view. Went to Trg Narodni (National Square) before checking out the Roman Forum near the Church of St Mary (because I just love ruins) and then the waterfront.

Back at the station at 2130 and waited for the bus out at 2245. Oppps, I spoke too soon about the punctuality because our bus only pulled up at 2255.

Monday, 11 May 2009

Pearl of the Adriatic

Those who seek Paradise on earth should come to Dubrovnik.
– George Bernard Shaw -

Lousy sleep, no thanks to bumpy journey. And just as I was about to fall asleep, I was awaken. Here’s the funny part, Dubrovnik is part of the Croatia but to get there by land (alternatively, you can take a ferry to Dubrovnik), you need to cross into Bosnia-Herzegovina. So I was awaken by the border police twice. We finally reached Dubrovnik bus station at 0545. After freshening up, buying ticket for my next trip out and storing my luggage, I took the bus to the city centre. You can buy a day pass for 25 kn from the bus station or pay on the bus (slightly more I think) or walk – for 40 minutes.

I walked in the Dubrovnik Old City starting from Gradska vrata Pile (Pile Gate), passed the entrance to the City Walls, Big Onoforis fountain, and along Placa (Stradun) (main street) up to Orlando’s Column, Bell Tower and Bell Lounge and out to Gradska luka (Old Port). Then I took the City Wall entrance to explore the neighbouring Victorija area.

I returned back to the Old City via the north city entrance and walked along Ulica Prijecko which is at an elevated level to Placa. Indeed flat area in Dubrovnik is limited so one needs to be really fit to climb all those steps (just like in Valletta)! Then I walked back to the old port and around the bend to St John Fort where I met a local bloke who chatted me up (and tried to ask if he could start a relationship with me - hey mate, that’s much too soon surely!). I quickly fled.

Spent the next few hours exploring Gundulic Square where there was a local market selling handicrafts and fruits and also visited the mosque at Ulica Dzamija (even prayed there).

Lunch was had at Dundo Maroje. Things are really expensive here and one practically has to pay for everything. My lunch cost three times more than my dinner in Zagreb (and you’d think you’d pay more in the capital city).

A last stroll through Placa was enjoyed before boarding the cramped bus back the station. My bus departed at 1415 and as before we entered Bosnia-Herzegovina and even made a pit-stop there. We journeyed along the Dalmatian coast with a fantastic view of the sea on our left and barren rugged hillside on our right.

We reached Split at 1845 (funny sight when the bus pulled over at the station was a group of ‘aunties’ rushing forward to entice new strangers into the city to their respective lodgings). Walked to my apartment and went out for a brief stroll later at night.

Tuesday, 12 May 2009
Woke up at 5 am for prayers then at 7. The café opposite the apartment had already sprung to life before 7 am. Left before 9 and went to Diocletian’s Palace entering from Srebna vrata (Silver Gate) and walked to Peristil I Katedrala (Peristil Square and the Cathedral) down to the Diocletian Palace and Basement Halls; out to Riva (waterfront), back to Kastel (Castle – nothing much though; Pjaca (the Square now known as Narodni Trg); Hramovi (Jupiter’s Temple) which was an ancient Roman temple and now St John’s Church (there’s a sphinx in front of the temple and is one of the two brought from Egypt by the Roman Emperor Diocletian); Zlatna vrata (Golden Gate); and back to Peristil. I also found the Islamic Society of Split but it looked more like a centre/school than a mosque.

A chap was chatting me up – met him twice (coincidence? Or was he stalking me?) – and he told me he was a local lad but now staying in Japan. He knew a few Bahasa Indonesia, Chinese and of course Japanese words and was chatting me up in them. He said he loved Asia and everything Asian. Hmmm, maybe we should change places. Anyway, I told him I wanted to check the ferry timetables to Hvar Island (timing not favourable) so we parted ways. Then I walked to the bus station and took a bus to Trogir, about 32 km away. Trogir is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site like Split.

I didn’t spend long in Trogir. The historical city of Trogir was quite compact anyway. Took the bus back to Split not knowing it was a regional bus that stopped at every Tom, Dick and Harry stop. Walked to the train station and bought a train ticket to Rijeka departing that night with a change at Ogulin and a three-hour-plus wait for the next train. Oh joy. (I could of course take a bus but as it would cost a lot more and I slept poorly on the bus before, I decided to take the train instead). It would be a 12-hour journey compared to a seven-hour trip by bus. Anyway, I made up my mind, train it would be. I was warned that there might be a possibility of travelling to Rijeka by bus due to works on the rail tracks.

Thankfully the train had couchettes (two rows of three seats facing each other) where I could stretch out (no way can I do that on a bus). Still couldn’t sleep much though.

Wednesday, 13 May 2009

River City
Woke up at 4 something for prayers. Got down at Ogulin and prepared myself for a three-hour wait. There was a group of six lads also in the waiting room and each claimed a bench.

Train to Rijeka arrived at 0815 but we had to change for a bus at a stop after a thirty-minute train ride (as had been warned to me). The bus ride took us through lush Croatian countryside with forests and narrow streams. Charming, I must say. It had rained earlier so there were still fogs and morning mist still embracing the mountains.

We reached Rijeka train station after 10 am and I made my way to the bus station after asking a Niko Kranjčar doppelgänger at the train station (handsome, you’re wasted behind the counter!). After depositing my luggage, I set out to explore the city. The name Rijeka means River in Croatia due the river flowing into the city and underground springs. It’s a pretty small compact city, one you can cover in an hour (imagine how bored I’d be if I had arrived at 0530 by bus!).

Despite my flight out being rescheduled from 1715 to 2025, I decided to go to the airport early. Rijeka Airport is really tiny and not very disabled-friendly (and not friendly to those travelling alone with a heavy luggage like me). There are stairs instead of lifts or escalators (there’s that ‘machine’ to help a wheelchair-bound person up and down but not helpful for people like me with a bag to haul up and down those stairs. To make matters worse, the washroom is at the lower ground).

Settled down for a long wait. This day had turned out to be a day of waiting/relaxing after all those hectic walking of the past few days. It was also the first day that the day had been cloudy/overcast.

Arrived at Köln-Bonn Airport at 2200 and took the 2234 bus to Koln Hbf. I had decided to spend the last two nights at both Koln and Bonn (besides all hostel rooms in Frankfurt had run out much earlier. I suspect there was a fair going on) and tonight I would sleep in Koln - in a six-bed room at a backpackers’ hostel to be precise (single room no longer available).

Thursday, 14 May 2009


Scented City

After checking out and storing my luggage at the storage room, I set off to explore Cologne. My, it was a chilly day today and I had to return to the hostel to get my jacket. Struggled for a while with the map supplied by the hostel before finally figuring it out. There are surprisingly a number of Roman walls still remaining in the city and I tried to seek them all out. I also went shopping at 4711-house (the most famous brand of Eau de Cologne 4711 got its name when Napoleon counted every house during his occupation of Cologne - and the building was number 4711).

I only returned to the hostel at 4 pm. Took the 1632 train to Bonn Hbf (journey time was only 24 minutes).

City of Beethoven

Walked to the hostel from the station (about 15 minutes). Went out again after 6 to explore the city. It was a small city, smaller than Cologne and quite charming. Unfortunately it started to rain halfway through my walk so I had to hurry before finally seeking refuge in a departmental store. It was also getting dark so I left just before 8 and headed back to the hostel.

Friday, 15 May 2009
Was rudely woken up at three something in the morning by stupid, irresponsible, inconsiderate oafs who were in such a state of drunken stupor and boy, the racket they made. Every few seconds I’d hear a door slam somewhere and footsteps and knockings/thumping. Sounds were vibrating and reverberating throughout the whole building. Not unlike a herd of elephants, I think. It seemed to go on and on and on and just as I thought they’d finally fallen asleep, the noise started again. I actually felt afraid to walk the five metres down the hall to the washroom to take ablution and had to wait a long time for the noise to subside.

Left the hostel at 0730 and walked to the station. The train arrived promptly at 0814 and departed a minute later. I’d bought the ticket online a few months ago and was lucky to purchase it for about half the normal price. It was not an express train but the trip took us through the beautiful Rhine Valley and along the Rhine. Awesome and fantastic views! You should sit on the left side of the train to enjoy the view the view better.

The train took us direct to Frankfurt Airport (how smart and cool is that?) before continuing on its journey with Vienna as the final destination. From the train station, I took a shuttle to Terminal 2 to check-in.

Alas, I couldn’t sleep on the plane...

Saturday, 16 May 2009

Well, this is it. After 16 days, I’m back home. And would you believe it, I only saw masked people at KLIA and not anywhere in Europe!

Every now and then, go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work, your judgement will be surer. Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller and more of it can be taken in one glance and a lack of harmony and proportion is more readily seen. – Leonardo da Vinci -

Not Your Average Traveller

I had decided to go on this trip alone. My travel partner, Lin, is in England at the moment and I couldn’t seem to be able to get anyone else to join me. Hence, before embarking on this trip, I knew that I had a few challenges in store, which include the following:

- I’d have to be even more alert, careful and wary travelling all alone. An Asian girl – make that a Muslim Asian girl - travelling solo would stick out like a sore thumb and might attract unwanted attention. I told myself to be mentally prepared for prejudice, racism and xenophobic reaction. And there would be no Lin to look out for me. Oh my first trips to Prague, Barcelona and Milan were all solo trips too but they were of the 5N 4D kind of trips (though I arrived in Prague and Barcelona at almost midnight too).

- I had to tell my parents about my trip. And I wasn’t too surprised that they didn’t withdraw their permission; I always think they trust me more abroad than if I were in KL - go figure! They did wonder though if it was safe for me. To be honest, I wondered too. But I’d never find out if I didn’t do it. And I didn’t want to cancel the trip just because I didn’t have a travel partner.

- There were two countries that I was sure I’d have communication problems. Poland last year was bad enough.

- I’d be taking a few intra-Europe flights and RyanAir particularly imposes a strict baggage limitation of 15 kg. It was definitely a challenge for me having to pack for a 2.5-week trip with that restriction. Although it’d be good in the long run because I’d have to haul my bag all by myself.

And the following is my account of my trip.

Thursday, May Day 2008: Sleepless in Skavsta

I woke up real early this morning – too early in fact. Abah came at 0530 – he insisted on sending me to KL Sentral - while I was watering the lawn. We left after morning prayers and thankfully the long check-in queue at the KL CAT that we had to endure last year didn’t recur. The plane took off on time and almost 12 hours later, we touched down at Stockholm Arlanda Airport. This time, I’d only be in Sweden for 16 hours – or so I thought. After collecting my luggage, I made my way to the airport chapel which was really a multi-faith prayer room to perform prayers.

Took the airport bus to the City Air Terminal where I bought a ticket to Skavsta airport. I then walked along Barnhusviken and eventually found myself at the Stadshuset (City Hall) which overlooked Riddarfjärden and Rygerfjord, the hotel that Lin and I stayed at last year. After that I returned to the station and went to a nearby kebab resto for an early dinner before boarding the 1940 coach to Skavsta.

We arrived at Skavsta some 80 minutes later. I performed prayers in the baby changing room before settling down for the night. It was a basic airport and (I suspected) built to discourage travellers from sleeping there. Of course sleep didn’t come anyway for me: I could never sleep in planes – even if it was a 24-hour flight – or bright, noisy areas like airports. Couldn’t wait for the early morning flight out where I hoped to catch up on sleep during the scheduled two-hour flight.

Friday, 2 May 2008: The Terminal

Alas, our 0650 flight was delayed due to technical problems. We were made to wait. And wait. And wait. First it was scheduled for 1145 then 1245. I had planned to visit the area surrounding Frankfurt-Hahn but it was not meant to be. Other passengers came and left for their various destinations and we were still there. Finally at 1100, we were served light refreshment at the airport bar.

I was getting restless and increasingly worried as it approached 1245 and there were no sign of imminent departure. See, I had another flight to catch from Frankfurt-Hahn that same evening and if the delay was prolonged, the rest of my plan could derail. I prayed hard and finally we boarded the plane and took off at 1320.

We landed into a light drizzling afternoon at Frankfurt-Hahn at 1510 and I barely had enough time to collect my bag and freshen up before joining another queue to check in for my next destination.

I left German soil barely 2.5 hours later. This time, the flight was packed and my fellow travellers were mainly young adults who were quite noisy. The bloke next to me was especially noisy and barely had I managed to doze off when I was awakened again by his loud voice. A few times I opened my eyes to see his friends standing over us talking to him. Already I was getting bad impression on some Finns.

We finally landed at Tampere Pirkkala Airport shortly after 2100. This was the land of the midnight sun and it was still light outside. But as Tampere is not exactly near the Artic Circle, the sun did set shortly after I boarded the coach for the city. From the railway station where we were dropped off, it was a short walk uphill to my hotel. This was the most expensive lodging I had to pay for my trip: there were a limited number of hostels in Tampere and they had all run out of single rooms as early as February! I was just so glad and thankful to see the welcoming bed.

Saturday, 3 May 2008: Fine Finland

I left the hotel for the railway station just after 0900 and bought return tickets to Helsinki. As I’d missed the earlier Inter-City train (it costs less than the other service but takes slightly longer as it stops at various stations), I wandered along Hämeenkatu street first. The stores were already opened at that hour but they all close at 1800 on Saturdays. It was a mild spring morning with the temperature at 0930 reaching a bearable 18C.

We passed Finnish countryside, farms that were still barren, small towns and breathtaking lakes on the way to Helsinki. After picking some brochures of the city, I hopped onto tram 3T right in front of Rautatieasema (Central Railway Station). Tram 3T takes you around the city and covers a lot of landmarks such as the Lutheran Cathedral (Tuomiokirkko) which is the unofficial symbol of the city, dominating the central Senate Square; Olympia Stadion; and Hakaniemi kauppahalli (Hakaniemen Market Hall). Tram 3B takes the same route but goes the opposite way.

After getting down the tram an hour later, I walked along Mannerheimintie Street (or Mansku for short). It is lined with shops and restaurants. I finally had lunch at Unicafe Ylioppilasaukio which was quite tricky to locate. This was Helsinki and everything cost a premium including food. Unicafe is a student restaurant and cafeteria and if you own a Finnish student card, you pay minimal price for your meal. You need to clear your tray yourself though.

After lunch, I walked to Hakaniemen Market. Unfortunately, most stalls at the market were already closed. The ground floor of the market sells groceries while the first floor sells souvenirs and handicrafts. But like I said, the stalls in the market were mainly closed and I only managed to buy some postcards.

I then walked to the waterfront before returning to Mansku. Oh yes, I also found a halal stall by the name of Habibi serving Middle Eastern food at the food court of the Forum Shopping Centre.

I boarded the 1806 train back to Tampere. It was raining along the way but not in Tampere, I strolled down Hameenkatu again and walked to the Tammerkoski rapids. These rapids run from Lake Nasijarvi in the north to Lake Pyhajarvi in the south via Finlayson historical industrial factory area. The height difference between the two lakes is 18 metres. After some Kodak moments, I took the long way back to the hotel passing Tullintori Shopping Centre and the University of Tampere.

Sunday, 4 May 2008: Werder Bremen/Beautiful Stranger

This morning, I checked out at 0800 and rushed to the railway station to get the coach to the airport for my 1005 flight to Bremen. The airport was really tiny and after checking in your bag, you need to carry it to the conveyor belt all DIY. It was a warm morning when we boarded the plane and I managed to get the second row. I felt a little odd when no one came to sit next to me until a couple that was among the last few passengers to board. For a while, I wondered why: was it because of my skin colour or complexion? Or was it my appearance? The way I looked or how I dressed?

We landed at Bremen at 1115 and after collecting my bag – it was actually the first one out! - I walked out into the sunny weather. I was very happy to discover that just around the airport building was the main airport complex and there was also a tram service to the city centre which only took 11 minutes. Cool! So I hopped onto one, my luggage and all. The city of Bremen is charmingly compact and clean and as most other German cities, it is serviced by an efficient network of ground transportation. German efficiency at its best again.

At the city centre, I snapped photos of St Petri Dom (St Peter’s Cathedral), Rathaus (Town Hall), Bremer Roland (Roland Statue), Bremer Stadtmusikanten (Bremen Town Musicians), the west side of Marktplatz (Market Place) and Böttercherstraße. The city centre tour over, I headed for a kebab resto near the tram stop for lunch.

I arrived back at the Bremen airport just in time to check in for my flight to Milan Orio al Serio or Milan Bergamo (the locals call Milan ‘Mailand’). Actually, I could have taken a direct flight from Tampere to Milan Bergamo but it cost more even after taxes and charges, hence I decided to break my journey at Bremen. And I am glad I did so as I enjoyed Bremen.

We arrived at Milan 10 minutes early and I had about three hours to kill before my next flight out. I thought of checking out Bergamo city but the bus to town takes about 20-30 minutes and runs only every 30 minutes. After working it out, I realised that I’d have very little time to explore the town due to the bus times and plus it was a Sunday so services may even be less frequent and reliable. So I stayed in the airport and performed prayers in the airport chapel. And this time, it was really a chapel so I borrowed a few square metres of the chapel for my prayers.

The flight out of Milan was delayed so we arrived half an hour later than scheduled at Bucharest-Baneasa airport. There was a very long queue of about two hundred people ahead of us so it was another long wait before we cleared immigration (and even longer for me since I wasn’t a local). There was only one conveyor belt (as at Tampere) and after waiting a few more minutes, I was finally reunited with my bag and emerged out of the airport into the dark Bucharest night; it had obviously been raining hard before for the ground was wet and there were puddles of water everywhere. Not exactly an encouraging welcome, I thought, and ignoring all the cabs (what little I read of Bucharest warned against taking the cab from the airport) and struggling to ask people for directions, I put on a bold look and marched to find the bus stop as described in my hostel page. Of course this was all a front but to appear scared and timid would no doubt make me an easier prey.

After a few minutes, two chaps came up and I asked if they could speak English. One replied in affirmative so I asked him where I could get the bus to Gara de Nord. He consulted his friend and they told me they didn’t know where the bus stop for that particular bus was and in any case, it was possible that the bus had finished its service for the day.

A bus came along and the chap who spoke English invited me along, saying they were going to ride the bus to somewhere and try to get a cab from there. The cabs at the airport were all intent on ripping people off and one actually quoted 10 Euros to get to Gara de Nord when it should only be 5 or 6 Euros. I threw caution to the wind and went along with them. Heck, what choice did I have anyway.

At some square, we got down from the bus and hailed a cab (we had agreed to share the cab and split the cost). I decided to ask the English-speaking guy to tell the cabbie to bring me direct to where my hostel was instead and off we went. Bucharest was obviously a massive city because we were driving on and on and I was beginning to feel anxious as it was nearing midnight. At one point, the guy even turned to me and said I shouldn’t trust everyone I meet and I replied, well I had to try my luck and pray for the best. Then I thought, what if they decided to kidnap me? I don’t speak the language and very few of the locals evidently speak English. I wondered aloud how much further we needed to go and the chap (I never did get his name but he was kinda cute, cuter than his mate) told me that Bucharest was indeed a big city.

Finally we came to a series of old Communist-style identical-looking apartment blocks. My heart sank at the sight of them. The chap offered to help me locate the right block and so there we were, at almost midnight, going around avoiding puddles and peering into the dark starless night for the right block. It was a good five minutes later when we finally located it at another group of apartment blocks. And so I arrived safe and sound at last and without any Dracula bites on my neck. The flat was surprisingly neat and modern despite the outward appearance of the block. Thank God for that.

Monday, 5 May 2008: Steaua Bucureşti

I met three other lodgers (they all shared a big room that fit three bunk beds) at breakfast. I only set off into the city well after 10 am. And as I walked to the metro station, I was glad that I had taken the cab directly to the hostel the night before instead of taking it to Gara de Nord and taking the metro and walking from the station to the hostel for I doubt I would have been able to find the hostel that way. The area was indeed a typical Communist-style neighbourhood with grim buildings and shop houses. And I’d read of the stray dogs of Bucharest but thankfully, I didn’t meet many of them.

I took the metro to Gara de Nord to buy train ticket for tonight. As Romania is still very much reliant on cash economy, I had to scout for a moneychanger first to change further Euros into Lei before buying the train ticket. Thank God the lady behind the counter could speak English (we’d had problems communicating in Bratislava and Krakow before).

After all that was settled, I took the metro to Palatul Parlamentului (Parliament Palace). It is a huge massive gigantic structure and is actually the second largest building in the world after the Pentagon. After checking out the surrounding area – there were very lovely buildings around the place! - I decided to take the English tour at 1400.

The tour lasted for almost an hour. There are 15 storeys to the building including five underground levels and it is presently 90% completed. It took 20,000 people on 24-hour shifts six years to build it – until the dictator Ceauşescu was thrown over. He bulldozed 1/6 of Bucharest to accommodate the massive building and had the people relocated into apartment blocks (no surprises there). The resources to build the palace were mainly local – marbles, velvet curtains weighing tonnes, long carpets also weighing tonnes, glasses for the chandeliers, wood for panelling, etc, etc, etc. The insides were quite bare though (our tour only took us to 4% of the building!). I thought it was such a shame to have such a gigantic building built from Romania’s finest resources and yet have its citizens living in ugly apartment blocks.

After the tour, I strolled around the area to the opera and then took the metro to Eroii Revolutiei to search for the Turkish mosque I read was located there. I finally found it with the help of a local girl; it was a small mosque alright. I couldn’t enter the mosque though and there weren’t any signs of Muslims about either.

I took the metro back to the hostel and after performing prayers and freshening up, I left the hostel and took the metro to Gara de Nord. After an early dinner at a Turkish kebab resto, I returned to the station and boarded the 1953 train for my next destination. I shared my sleeper cabin with a girl from Sofia and thankfully got the lower bunk. It was quite fun travelling by train that way although I didn’t manage to sleep well as usual. The border police came on twice to check our passports.

Tuesday, 6 May 2008: The City of Wisdom

We arrived at Sofia Gare Centrale at 0605. An overfriendly elderly guy was insistent I followed him to the Information Centre but after a while, I got wary of him. There were suspicious-looking characters in the station at that early hour and there were some who looked like gypsies too. The Info Centre opened late – apparently the lady misplaced the office keys. After changing some Euros into Bulgarian Lev, I took the tram to my hostel . It was a bit challenging as Bulgarians use the Cyrillic alphabet (like Russians) but I managed to locate the hotel after figuring out the early initials of street names. It was on the tram when I figured it was a special day as the tram had to stop for quite a while to let army tankers pass. It was at the hostel when I discovered that Bulgarians celebrate Gergyovden (St George’s Day) or the Day of the Bulgarian Army on 6 May every year.

After checking in, shower and breakfast, I left the hostel and headed for Hram-pametnik Aleksandar Nevski (Alexander Nevski Memorial Church), passing the Pametnik Tsar Osvoboditel (Monument to the Tsar Liberator – it honours the Tsar who, by declaring war on the Ottoman Empire in 1877, liberated Bulgaria). Then I walked to Dzhamia Banya Bashi (Banya Bashi Mosque) which is the last surviving mosque in Sofia; Tsurkva Sveta Petka Samardzhiyska (Church of St Petka of the Saddlemakers which is a fourteenth-century church in the middle of a semi-submerged mall); Statuya na Sveta Sofia (Monument to Holy Wisdom); Rotonda Sveti Gerogi (Rotunda of St George) located in a courtyard behind the Sheraton Hotel; Naroden teatar (National Theatre); Natsionalna hudozhestvena galeriya (National Gallery) and Tsurkva Sveta Sofia (Church of St Sofia). Some of the churches were at some point used as mosques during the Ottoman reign.

I was starting to feel a headache due to lack of sleep and after having lunch at a vegetarian resto (not easy to locate), I headed back to the hostel to rest. I ordered a lot for lunch and had the resto pack the unfinished portion for dinner. I ended up chatting to Iana, a Bulgarian girl who now resides in Canada and was back in the country for holidays.

Wednesday, 7 May 2008: Strangers in the Night

Another early morning today. Checked out at 0700 and walked to a bus stop at a nearby park to catch the airport bus. I was flying off to another destination but had to transit for a few hours in Vienna.

Having been in Vienna twice before, I knew the city was darn expensive and yet I managed to spend. Oh dear! Took the airport bus to Schwedenplatz and walked to Hofsburg. Met a Malaysian couple there too. After that, I walked to Heldenplatz, Alberttina, Staatsoper (Opera House) and crossed over to Naschmarkt where I had lunch. There were a few halal stalls at the market.

After lunch, I strolled along Karnther Strasse to Stephansdom (which is like the landmark of Vienna) and even walked to Donaukanal. I returned to the airport and checked in at almost 8 pm. Looked frantically for the airport chapel but couldn’t locate it so performed prayers in the baby changing room instead. Boarded the 2130 plane to my next destination, not realising it would be a 3.5-hour trip as the country was an hour behind the rest of Western Europe.

We arrived at the Lisbon airport at midnight and I was a bit apprehensive, as I knew there were no more airport buses running at that hour. I chatted up a fellow passenger as we were waiting for our bags and she told me she had someone meeting her. Well, I had prepared myself mentally to take the cab but I just didn’t fancy being cheated and besides, I don’t even take cabs that late at night in KL.

I was checking some information at the kiosk when the lady I talked to earlier approached and asked if I wanted to get a lift from her friend. I was so thankful for that offer and accepted it gratefully. There I was, an Asian girl, feeling shunned at times as everyone went to sit elsewhere but beside me or everyone looked at and then ignored (or so I felt) and suddenly I got an offer of a ride when I needed it most by people I didn’t even know.

It was only a twenty-minute ride to the city and the kind driver, a Yankee who had already been residing in Lisbon for some time from the sound of his lingo, dropped me near my hostel.

Thursday, 8 May 2008: Sporting Lisbon

I left a bit late today and it was already bright when I left the hostel. The city was a bit windy but other than that, it was a mild early summer day. I took pictures at Praça D. Pedro before walking down to the Tourist Info Centre at Praça do Comercio, passing Elevador de Santa Justa on the way (Lisbon is built on seven hills just like Rome hence elevators like these come in handy so one doesn’t need to climb those hills). After getting useful advice from the lady at the Tourist Info Centre – the lady was in Malaysia a few months ago on her honeymoon and was gushing on about the warm hospitality of Malaysians, the efficient way we do things (eh? This should serve as a hint as to how they do things in Portugal) and the wonderful service of MAS. I just couldn’t help feeling warm and proud.

I then took tram 28 up to Castelo de São Jorge. The chap at the castle ticket office asked if I had a student card (!) which of course I didn’t regretfully (dang!). He was an eye-candy and in my opinion, wasted sitting in there. Anyway, back to the castle: it was built by Muslims atop a hill near Alfama and from there, you could get a bird’s eye view over Lisbon, Rio Tejo (Tagus River) and the Ponte 25 de Abril (25 April Bridge, which is the sister bridge of the Golden Gate in San Francisco).

After exploring the castle, I explored the Alfama neighbourhood before having a late lunch. I then took tram 25 to Belem to the Padrão dos Descobrimentos (Monument to the Discoveries), Mosteiros dos Jerónimos (Jeronimos Monastery) and Torre de Belém (Belem Tower).

Before leaving Belem, I popped over to the infamous Pastéis de Belém for the famed pastries (also featured on Samantha Brown’s Passport to Europe when she visited Lisbon).

As if that walking around wasn’t enough, I took the metro to San Sebastio to find Mesquita Central de Lisboa (Central Mosque of Lisbon). Before taking the metro back, I shopped for groceries at El Cortes Ingles. I then tried out the elevator (not Santa Justa though) before returning to the hostel.

Friday, 9 May 2008: Scintillating Sintra

I decided to take the train to Sintra today. Sintra is a UNESCO World Heritage town a 38-minute train ride away from Lisbon. From the station, I boarded the tourist bus to Palacio Nacional da Pena (Pena National Palace). The ticket was expensive so I only bought the ticket to the park. Then I walked to Castelo dos Mouros (Moorish Castle) and spent time climbing the ruins. It drizzled on and off in Sintra but not enough to dampen my spirits (pun intended!). It was almost four by the time I took the bus back to the town centre. I finally boarded the 1800 train back to Lisbon.

Saturday, 10 May 2008: A Sort Of Homecoming

I overslept by 40 minutes this morning – I must have somehow slept through the alarm or turned it off without realising it – and hurried like crazy packing my stuff. That was something I didn’t consider – sleeping through the alarm (although I slept through many alarm clocks during my varsity days that even the clocks gave up on me and just stopped ringing)! The airport bus came just after 0800 and when I arrived at the airport, it was crazy, I just had time to check in, go through immigration (oh the stupid queue) and another stupid queue to board the plane.

We landed at Luton Airport at noon and I was lucky to be able to get through immigration and got reunited with my bag quickly. I was able to catch the 1236 coach to Marble Arch and walked to my hotel in Bayswater. It was a beautiful and unusually warm spring day for London.

Left the hotel at 1600 and went to Oxford Street – there were 2.3785 million serious shoppers thronging Oxford Street that day all with shopping bags – Oxford Circus and even walked to Leicester Square (all the way from Marble Arch). Like I told my mates later, I wasn’t sure if my feet were killing me or if I was killing my feet!

Sunday, 11 May 2008: Day At The Museums

Another fine cloudless Beautiful Day today. I walked across Kensington Gardens to Exhibition Road in Knightsbridge and headed for the Victoria & Albert Museum. Met up with Fifi, Adam, Farah and Nor shortly after and we spent time in the Natural History Museum across the street. After that, we split up: they headed to the Science Museum and I headed back to V&A. We met again after 4 pm and took the tube to Bayswater. Had a late lunch at a Chinese resto serving halal food (except for the duck). We parted after that but would meet again the next day. I spent time walking up and down Queensway before heading back to my new room (changed room today).

Monday, 12 May 2008: Another Day At The Museum

This morning, I took the bus to the British Museum at Russell Square. Spent some time there before making my way to Covent Garden. I missed a few turnings which cost me 20 minutes. Met up with Fifi, the twins and Nor again and we walked to Trafalgar Square before walking down to the Westminster Bridge, crossing River Thames. Spent some time in the park near the London Eye and walked along the river to the Tate Gallery where we had another rest. I noticed two small ‘beaches’ along River Thames and there were a few people down there sunning themselves, kicking sand and dipping into the river. The sand was surprisingly almost white. It was low tide then.

After the rest, we crossed the Millennium Bridge and walked to the Tower Bridge before parting ways at the Tower Hill tube station.

Tuesday, 13 May 2008: The King And Us

Lin came over this morning and we left after 10 for The O2 in North Greenwich to check out the King Tut exhibition. Thankfully the crowd wasn’t large today. I enjoyed it and thought it was worth every penny.

We then took the tube and London Overground to Hackney to check out the Burberry outlet there. We left empty-handed though. After lunch, we took the London Overground to Highbury & Islington and walked to the Emirates Stadium. It was almost 6 pm then and very windy around the stadium too.

Wednesday, 14 May 2008: A-R-S-E-N-A-L!

We took the tube before 0900 today; Lin headed back to Coventry and I went back to the Emirates Stadium. There was only one tour today, the Legends Tour by Charlie George. I was debating whether I should part with my dosh and finally thought, what the heck. I was already there, I actually returned back to the stadium with every intention of joining a tour although I was hoping to join the standard tour. And so I swiped my plastic (it wasn’t cheap, not for me because I’m not earning pound sterling or even Euros) for the ticket and joined the 75-minute tour.

We were taken to the Directors Box, the dressing room, the tunnel, the pitch, the press room... and the ticket also entitled us a tour of the Arsenal museum. Cor! Too bad Fàbregas wasn’t there.

I left some hours later – savouring the time around the stadium and in the museum – and took the tube to Harrods. Didn’t spend long there though and headed back to Oxford Street (incidentally a site for murder just two days earlier). Had my long-awaited jacket potato late lunch before heading back to the hotel to pack.

Thursday, 15 May 2008: Farewell London

Woke up real early this morning – I feared I might oversleep again – well, actually I slept poorly. It was chilly the night before and I was trying hard to get warm under the duvet. Was surprised to find the radiator warm this morning – the first time since I got in London.

Left at the ungodly hour of 0320 and took the bus to Marble Arch. Because of road construction, I had no choice but to use subway to cross over to Hyde Park Corner. Scary but what was a girl to do. It was deserted and I tried to push the thought of someone walking behind me.

Took the 0350 coach to Luton Airport. We arrived just before 0500. There was a group of crazy British lads all decked out in beach wear and beach gear: one had on snorkelling mask; one had on toy inflatable arm grips; a few had on beach towels; one was topless but for a pair of plastic coconut shells covering his chest and Hawaiian aloha skirt over his Bermuda shorts. They were a sight alright and I couldn’t help smiling at the sight of them (wonder how they’d get through immigration at their destination though).

Our flight took off late – almost an hour after scheduled time so we only landed at Rome Ciampino at 1140. Took the coach to Roma Termini – the driver was an eye-candy and seriously did not belong behind the wheel. From Termini, I went to my B&B at via Principe Amedeo. It was on the fourth floor – thank God there was a lift! – and my room was charmingly and tastefully decorated. As in London, I had to change room the next day.

I left the B&B at 2 something and had a late lunch. Took the metro to Flaminio and walked through Piazza del Papolo down via del Corso; detoured to Piazza di Spagna, Piazza Colonna and Fontana di Trevi before walking down to Colonna Traiana, Mercati Traianei, Foro Romano, Colosseo and Arco di Constantino. I just love ruins and Rome is full of them. The city is like an open-air museum to me.

After that, I walked back to the hotel taking Via Cavour. Had a pizza dinner near Termini.

Friday, 16 May 2008: Rome Roam

Had breakfast at the lovely breakfast room. An American fellow lodger told us he got pickpocketed the day before in the subway. Left at 1030 – I was in no hurry really. Took the metro to Spagna and walked to Mausoleo Augusto but the area was cordoned off. Walked down to Piazza Navona but the Fontana dei Quattro Fuimi was under restoration. What a shame as my last photo there was taken in the rain. Walked down to Campo de Fiori and after spending time there (Fàbregas Arsenal jersey only cost 10 Euros there!), I went to the Pantheon. Had gelato for lunch from the Gelaterie Buccianti at via Giustiniani as usual.

The sun finally struggled out from behind the clouds but it was still a bit cloudy by the time I left Pantheon at around 4. Even Tempio Adrianno was under restoration. Walked over to Fontana di Trevi – who knows when I would next visit Rome? – and walked back to the B&B,passing the four fountains at Quattro Fontane. Grabbed some pizza for tea on the way back too.

Saturday, 17 May 2008: Ciao Roma

Left shortly after 10 and took the express train to Rome Fiumicino. Golly, time seemed to have flown and now it was time to return home. As usual, couldn’t sleep on the plane.

Sunday, 18 May 2008: Home Sweet Home

Arrived at KLIA at 0735. Thank you God. I did it, God, I did it! I travelled solo, I got help from strangers when I least expected them and needed them most. I managed to catch up with my mates in London too who kindly came down to meet me. Nine countries and 2.5 weeks later and I am now back home.

OK, this is a seriously long post. I need to catch up on sleep and readjust myself to the local time!

The Holiday

Casts: Adek and good friend Lin

Genres: Comedy, Holiday, Horror

Running Time: 2 weeks

Rating: PG-13 for some strong language

And this is how the story goes...

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28 April 2007

Frantic Panic
The adventure started this morning at KL Sentral. Bought tix for both myself and Lin and joined the dozens of people queuing to check in at KLS. It was a long, slow process and it was a good, or rather bad, half hour before we got to the counter.

Only to be told that as there was less than two hours before our departure, the system had been blocked and that meant we could no longer check in at KL Sentral. I was furious and told the lady that we had been queuing for so long and it wasn’t right for her to imply that we had been queuing for less than the minimum two hours required. Lin, being the calm girl she always is, reasoned that we should just head for KLIA so we rushed down but the train was only leaving at 7.30 am. Which meant that we would only reach airport at close to 8 and a mere 50 minutes before departure time.

I pointed this out to Lin and voiced my fear and concern that we may not be able to check in, or worse, board, as we’d be too late. After all, even AirAsia closes its check-in gates 45 minutes prior to departure.

And what do you know, there were literally thousands of people at the airport; long queues everywhere so much so we didn’t know where one started and one ended. In panic, we searched for an airport official and Lin managed to locate him first. He assured Lin not to panic and to proceed to counter D17 or something for immediate check-in.

Phew!

Somehow the 12-hour flight didn’t seem so long or unbearable. We reached Stockholm Arlanda airport at 3.15 pm. The custom was smooth and before long, we were reunited with our bags. We decided to take the airport coach into the city over the Arlanda Express. After all this is Sweden and not at all a cheap destination. This is my second visit to Stockholm.
We arrived at the City Terminal 40 minutes later and took the Tunnelbanan or T-bana to Mariatorget station and walked down to our hotel-boat. Yes, we thought we might as well do it in style and stay in a boat/ship! Hotel Rygerfjord is anchored at the north part of Somermalm Island overlooking the stretch of water that is Riddarfjarden. Our cabin was a charming double-decker ‘room’ overlooking the river and was directly across the river from the City Hall, which dining hall is used for the banquet hosted after the annual Nobel Prize award ceremony.

After shopping at a nearby supermarket for our stock of mineral water and fruits, we rested. I bought carbonated mineral water by mistake [euwww!].

29 April 2007
Hardly Stockholm Syndrome But Overall Swede Experience

This bright and sunny albeit cold morning, we ventured out to Gamla Stan or Stockholm’s Old Town. We walked up and down the pedestrian-only street and found the narrowest street in Stockholm, Mårten Trotzigs Gränd. We then came upon Stadshuset or the Parliament and followed the waterfront to Kungliga Slottet or the Royal Palace. We walked on and decided to take an ‘Under The Bridges of Stockholm’ boat tour that took us under some 15 bridges of Stockholm and lasted close to two hours.
After all that sitting, we walked to the Royal Palace and bought tickets to enter the Hall of State, the Royal Apartments, the Apartments of the Orders of Chivalry and the Royal Palace Tre Kronor Museum. However, we had less than an hour before its scheduled closing time so we only covered Tre Kronor and the Royal Apartments.

Next, we walked to Stortorget, which is the old square of Stockholm. The buildings here are featured in many Stockholm postcards and fridge magnets. It is also the location of the Stockholm Stock Exchange Building, the seat of the Swedish Academy and The Nobel Museum.

We were sufficiently famished by this time and went for a late kebab lunch. Feeling more energised, we crossed over to Norrmalm and walked up and down the streets.

30 April 2007

Checking Out Of Stockholm; Checking Out Checkpoint Charlie

Another bright and sunny morning but oh how cold! We left the hotel after breakfast and took T-bana to City Terminal. Farväl Stockholm, we are now heading for our next destination, Berlin.

We were reunited with our bags shortly after arrival at Berlin Schonefeld. We then walked to the S-bahn station and then navigated the seemingly complicated transportation system before reaching our hotel at Sickingerstrasse, near the Beusselstrasse S-bahn station.
After freshening up, we left and took a bus to Hauptbahnhof, which looked really modern and recently renovated. From there, we took an S-bahn to Kohlstrasse where Checkpoint Charlie is. We took the usual tourist pictures before entering the Museum.

As you probably know, Berlin was reduced to rubble in the Second World War. Then in August 1961, the city was cut into two by the notorious Die Mauer (The Wall) which split life on either side between the two political polarities. Ironically, the scant remains of the Wall where so many people died not long ago are the tourist attraction today.

We only returned back to the hotel at 10 that night[!]. There was a beautiful full moon which reminded me of the full moon in Rome in May last year.

May Day 2007

Zoo Station

This bright and mild spring morning, we decided to go to Museum Island or Museumsinsel, but not before checking out Zoo Station first. Not to visit Cute Knut at the Zoo though. At Museum Island, we explored the Altes and Pergammon Museums [the latter houses collections of Eastern and Roman artefacts]. Both museums were huge, massive, and gigantic and I was feeling a bit tired after all that. We didn’t even go into the Bode Museum [it houses Egyptian works]. By the way, very strict guards patrol the museums.
After an Indian buffet lunch at Oranienburgerstrasse, we took the Bahn to Brandenburg Tor or Brandenburg Gate. We then strolled over to Reichstag, i.e. the Berlin Parliament. It was a hazy sunshiny day and there were loads of people sunbathing in front of the Parliament[!]. We then walked down the street along Tiergarten to Siegessäule or the Victory Tower [yes, it was featured in U2’s Stay (Faraway, So Close!) music video]. It was about two kms away from Brandesburg Tor.
We most definitely walked for miles, burnt thousands of calories and fat and developed serious leg muscles this day!

And even then, we walked on further and discovered to our dismay that while the museums were opened on May Day, Kurfurstendamm (Ku’damm) which usually pulsates with life late into the night and Berlin’s premier department store (KaDeWe) were devoid of action.

Watched Liverpool play Chelshit but was too knackered to see the game ‘til its end and only found out the next morning that Liverpool had advanced to the final match after beating Chelshit at penalty. Good job Liverpool!

2 May 2007

Auf Wiedersehen Berlin

Today we left Berlin for our next destination. Took the bus to Haupbahnhof and changed for S-bahn to Berlin Schonefeld.

This time the plane ride was longer - close to 3 hours. We landed at Athens International Airport [Elefthérios Venizélos] at almost 5 in the evening.

Took the suburban train into the city to our hotel near Larissis station. Shortly after checking in, we went out in search for food and some groceries and found to our dismay that Greeks sure love their meat, particularly pork.

Dinner was finally had at a deli at the railway station served by a surly waitress.

Watched AC Milan beat ManUre tonight. Yee haa! Go Milan!

3 May 2007
Greece Enlightening

Greece is the word

Greece is the word, is the word that you heard

It’s got groove, it’s got meaning

Greece is the time, is the place, is the motion

Greece is the place we are in

What’s worth seeing in Athens are all clustered around the old town or the Plaka district. So, this morning after checking out shortly after 9 [any minute later and we’d be swamped by the hordes of other tourists and schoolchildren], we took the metro to Acropolis station and walked up the hill to Acropolis. They sure didn’t call it city on a hill for nothing. We joined the hordes of other tourists and schoolchildren admiring the ruins of Parthenon, Erechtheum, Propylaea and the theatre of Dionysus. The temple Parthenon, dedicated to the goddess Athena, is held up as the epitome of architectural perfection.

We then went to Ancient Agora located to the north of Acropolis [it was the marketplace and still has the remains of the old administrative centre], then walked past Hadrian’s Library before walking to the Roman Agora. All that walk and being Indiana Jones made us hungry so we decided to go for lunch, but not before stopping by at the Parliament at Syntagma (Constitution) Square to watch the changing of guards which takes place every hour on the hour.

Lunch this time was served by a gruffy waiter. I remember commenting to Lin, ‘What’s wrong with them? They are so bad-tempered around here. It must be the climate.’ Honestly, I didn’t recall them being so rude during my previous visit.

After trekking around the city, we returned to the hotel, performed prayers and set off for the airport. We later performed our evening prayers at the airport, in a chapel – probably that explained my two earlier dreams of praying in chapels. Our flight out of Athens was to take off the next morning at 4.30, yes, talk about an ungodly hour. I couldn’t sleep well in the airport as I kept coughing.

4 May 2007

Cracking Krakow

We arrived into Krakow, Poland, this morning at 6.15 am. We spent a considerable amount of time waiting for immigration clearance. Evidently not many Malaysians had arrived at this airport hence the long process. Anyway, I have been wanting to add Poland as the 40th country I have visited.

It was still a bit cold in Krakow (also spelt as Cracow); after all it was still barely 7 in the morning. We took the train into the city; it took only 14 minutes. The lovely mild spring weather and splendid scenery outside helped to lift my moods. We then discovered that not many Poles speak good English, some don’t speak any English at all! [which I had discovered earlier by watching The Amazing Race: All-Stars]. We were lucky there was a girl who helped us to buy tickets. We then somehow took a tram to our hostel.

After freshening up and breakfast, we walked to Wawel Castle but as the tours that we bought would only start later, we decided to go to Rynek Glowny or the Market Square first. Rynek Glowny, Krakow’s central market square, is the largest medieval market square in Europe. There is the Renaissance mercantile Cloth Hall and Cathedral, some museum and of course, hundreds of pigeons.

We then returned to the Wawel Castle for our tours, had a light meal in between, walked around the castle grounds and even went down to the Wisla River before returning back to the hostel, knackered and beat.

5 May 2007

Salt Mine Tour

This morning, we decided to join a tour to Wieliczka Salt Mine instead of to Auschwitz Birkenau, site of the largest concentration camp in Hitler’s final solution. The weather which had been kind to us all along took a change and was dull, grey and cloudy today.

The salt mine at Wieliczka is an amazing complex of underground mine of miles of corridors [the miles of corridors are supposedly as long as the distance between Krakow and Warsaw!], with many chambers and even chapels built down there. The guided tour lasted for two hours. We first went down 387 steps to 64 metres below ground and as we explored further into the underground complex, we descended further and further into earth’s belly until we reached 120 metres below ground (if my memory serves me right).

I would summarise the visit to the salt mine as fantastic. I was really glad we went there.

We returned back to Krakow and had lunch at an eatery that served seafood [how rare!] before shopping for some souvenirs.

I wasn’t pleased though to discover, on my return back to the hostel, that my freshly laundered Mango long-sleeves tees AND my contact lenses case were missing from the bathroom where I left them when we returned to the hostel. Spent some time hunting for my missing tee to no avail.

6 May 2007

Sunday Bloody Sunday

Spent some more time tracking my tee before deciding to call it quits. Left the hostel shortly after 11 am. Another cold, bleak, dreary morning. Waited for the tram and it didn’t show up. At 1140, we started panicking as our train was due to leave at 12 noon, even contemplated taking a cab to the train station.

But of course, Murphy’s Law prevailed and no cab was to be found when you needed one. We walked like cartoons - I would have won a walk-with-your-suitcase walkathon if there ever is one - and finally we took another tram after walking about a km or so. Got down the tram and walked like mad to the station; it was already 1158 then. The funny thing was - although at the time I barely had time to appreciate the funny side of it - I was at first leading the way, then Lin caught up with me and Suddenly, she overtook me and it was me who was then lagging behind. As she got to the station first, Lin found out that the train was delayed by 5 minutes but still it would have to leave from farthest platform. To my dismay there were flights and flights of steps to be ascended to reach the platform [but of course] and my lungs were about to burst by then. I somehow managed to summon enough strength to drag my suitcase up those bloody stairs and climbed into the train, panting and gasping, and yes, we only had seconds to spare before the train pulled away.

The train was crowded and although apparently we had seats in carriage 11 [we were in carriages 1 and 2 respectively], we decided to stay put as it was impossible to walk through the human traffic blocking the narrow passageway. So there I was perched on my suitcase [for the entire journey which took close to three hours], hanging on for dear life while trying to catch my breath. After a while, I managed to Relax enough to read my novel.

And oh do the Poles love their nicotine. Some chaps who shared the corridor space with me decided to light up [yes, in the train] and I started coughing and coughing. Thankfully, they took the hint and moved to the space in between the carriages to finish off their sticks of cancer-inducing pleasure.

We reached Warsaw (Warszawa) Central at almost 3 pm and it was raining cats and dogs. We walked a bit before taking a bus then walked some more in the rain before finally reaching the hostel. As I didn’t have enough Zlotny left, we told the receptionist that we would pay for our room after having a meal and changing our currencies. Our late lunch was had at a restaurant serving international cuisine.

Later at the hostel, we found out that Monsieur Nicolas Sarkozy had been officially announced as the new President of France. And my bomber jacket had a faint nicotine smell to it too. Bugger.

7 May 2007

Unpolished Poles

This morning, the sun sneaked out after 9. We took the bus to Stare Misato and shortly after getting down the bus, I discovered to my horror that I had been pick-pocketed. Yes, all my dosh - Euros, USD, MYR and even PLN and oh, also my credit card, gone. Just like that. I was now penniless.

Thank God I still had Lin. Somehow I found the strength not to cry but by then, I had lost all desire to sightsee. I hated all Poles then. How could they do that to me? Why couldn’t I be left alone without having to be a victim?

We went to a Tourist Information Centre and Citibank but the people there were all expressionless, blank and compassionless when I told them my plight. I felt like shaking them and said, ‘Hey, Cry Me A River, will you?!’ Lin then helped to call Citibank and I reported my card loss. Then I decided I could perhaps contact my friend and asked if she could wire some Euros to me that I can access at our next destination.

We then visited the Royal Castle and viewed the exhibitions. Warsaw’s past is bloody and tragic [just as I was feeling bloody annoyed too and my situation as tragic]; Hitler in 1933 ordered that no stone of Warsaw should be left standing. Patriotic Poles had since rebuilt replicas of the original 19th century structure. After exiting from the castle, we explored the centre of the old town, the beautiful Rynek Starego Miasto (Old Town Square).

After lunch at Nowe Misato (New Town), we took the bus to Lazienki Park and took pictures of the Palace on the Water and Chopin [music composer Fryderyk Chopin was a native of Warsaw].

8 May 2007

The City of Light
After breakfast, we took a leisurely stroll around the hotel area to the square before having lunch. Didn’t buy anything today. Not in the mood at all despite earlier daydreaming of buying Polish crystals.

After lunch, we took the bus to the airport for our next destination, The City Of Light. We only landed at Paris Orly at 8.25 pm and after clearing immigration and collecting our bags, we took the Orlybus to Denfert-Rochereau. From there, we walked to our hotel at rue de Moulin Vert.

9 May 2007
Printemps in Paris
*Printemps means ‘Spring’ in French
An overcast morning greeted us today. After breakfast, we went in search of La Poste, the French post office from which I could retrieve the Euros wired to me. With my extremely limited French, I was somehow able to communicate to the lady at the counter and thankfully she was helpful and knew some English. I also discovered that morning that the area we were staying at has a lot of branded store outlets. Alas, we didn’t manage to visit them as they opened too late and closed too early.

We then took the metro to Invalides. The beautiful church of Les Invalides with its golden dome contains the mortal remains of Napoleon. Spent some Kodak moments there then crossed the River Seine, walked past Petit Palais to Avenue des Champs-Elysees. Now, Champs-Elysees is the most prestigious and broadest avenue in Paris and one of the most famous streets in the world [Guerlain also has a perfume by this name]. I suppose it’s like what Oxford and Bond Streets are to London and Fifth Avenue is to New York.

We walked on to the Charles de Gaulle Etoile which is the great circle at the western end of Champs-Elysees. There are twelve avenues radiating out from CDG Etoille, much like a ‘star’. In its centre is the massive Arc de Triomphe, Napoleon’s thank-you to his army.

We then took the metro to Printemps and Galaries La Fayette at Boulevard Haussmann. The restaurants and cafes in Printemps however didn’t seem too accommodating to our taste, so we ventured out to a restaurant in the vicinity. And my, meals in Paris sure cost a lot in comparison to other cities! And do the Parisians love to smoke too! Our non-smoking table was just metres away from the smoking area. Duh! And as in Krakow, we were asked if were from Korea [cool! That’s the first time for me to be referred to as a Korean] and when we said no, we were asked if we were Vietnamese instead [how not cool! Well, I suppose better that than being asked if we were Filipinos or Thais].
After indulging ourselves to window shopping, we took the metro to the Georges Pompidou Centre. The Centre is a modern multi-cultural art centre conceived by Georges Pompidou and opened in 1977. This eccentric structure houses a cinema, galleries, museums and an excellent library.

We returned to the hotel in the evening stopping by at a supermarket on our way and had our dinner at an Italian restaurant much later near the hotel.

As with Stockholm, Berlin and Athens, it was my second time here. And while I am happy to report that the French are not as snotty as I found them to be the first time, I was dismayed to discover that there were noticeably less handsome or good-looking French guys around.

10 May 2007

Paris Highlights

An early morning in comparison as we read that the queue to the Eiffel Tower is normally long. Yes, that was among our planned destinations today.

We reached the Eiffel Tower shortly after 9 am and the ticket counters were not opened yet. The queue wasn’t too long either. There are three stages to the Eiffel Tower and we bought tickets to all three. You can buy tickets to just the first floor, or first and second floors, or to all floors. Or you can also scale the stairs up to the second floor and the ticket for this is cheaper [not sure if you can ascend all the way up by stairs should you wish to]. We got whisked up to the first and second floors by an elevator then changed at the second floor for the elevator up to the third.

The view from the top was superb and I was glad I wasn’t dizzy with the height. It was still a slightly breezy morning after a late night shower [which we slept through] so the weather wasn’t too kind to those in short sleeves and shorts which thankfully we weren’t in.

We descended down after an hour to the RER station and took the train to Saint-Michel Notre Dame. We crossed the bridge to the Île de la Cité, the tiny island where Paris began in pre-Roman times. The eastern part of the island houses the Gothic 13th century Notre Dame Cathedral. The Cathedral is the first church in Paris and this was where Napoleon was crowned.

After some Kodak moments and a stroll through the church, we walked to a cous cous restaurant for lunch. It was during lunch when we found out that Mr Tony Blair had announced his intention to step down as the Prime Minister of the UK.

After lunch, we decided to walk to the Musée Du Louvre. Because it was previously a royal palace, it is a massive structure alright and our feet were aching just trying to get to Louvre itself! The once-controversial 21-metre high Glass Pyramid dominates the courtyard of Louvre. And once inside, we decided to concentrate on the more important and interesting sights [at least to us!].

Among the treasures if the Louvre is the Venus de Milo and the famous Mona Lisa. We also visited the Islamic Art section of the museum.

After that, we headed to a shopping place but as we didn’t think it was all that exciting, headed back to Printemps and Galeries La Fayette. I didn’t have much appetite for Shopping though; besides I much prefer Italian brands to French.

11 May 2007

Au Revoir

Another early morning. We checked out at 7.30 am and took the metro to Denfert-Rochereau and from there, the RER train to Charles De Gaulle Airport. I have a complaint here: Why, oh why, can’t they build escalators?! German technology far impresses me. Oh and another complaint: the train sucked big time. The train from Rome Termini to Rome Leonardo da Vinci Airport was wayyy better. And it wasn’t a direct train too; we had to change trains at a station, thankfully to another train on the other side of the platform [or we’d have to haul our bags up and down more stairs!]. We reached the CDG RER station and changed for another train to Aerogare 1 [Terminal 1].

The airport is huge and massive but hardly impressive.

After checking in, we checked out the very few duty-free shops there and bought some chocolates. Not much choice as Belgian and Swiss chocolates seemed to dominate the chocolate store. No Venchi chocolates sold by weight... *boo hoo*.

Plane departed shortly after noon. It wasn’t a full flight, not unlike the flights out of Rome. Some turbulence was experienced but not too bad.

12 May 2007

‘... to all Malaysians, Welcome Home’

Landed 10 minutes to 6 in the morning. As I decided to perform prayers first, my bag was already waiting for me next to the already stationary conveyor belt. Rushed to take the 0630 ERL ride to KL Sentral and reached micasa before 0715.

*Sigh* As Nelly Furtado sings it, All Good Things Come To An End.

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