Feeling Fragile

Oh God, another Monday. I'm not ready to face this week.

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Went back to my parents' place for the weekend. Abah and Mummy not looking all that well. *Sigh* I just wish I can somehow help reduce their pain. Sometimes I wonder if I made the right choice by moving out. But I've spent enough on my current residence, sure, it doesn't look like any of those glamorous homes you admire in those magazines, but hey, it's still my second home. And I have spent enough. On the renovation [both times], furniture and fittings, electrical stuff... so it's really a shame if the place is left vacant til God knows when. [Initially I thought I'd live there after I get married but since that's not going to materialise anytime soon if ever, I might as well move in and start living there before I die and other people get to enjoy the fruits of my labour!]. And I don't think it's right for my elder siblings to expect me to sacrifice for them by staying home and looking after my parents, just because I'm not married. They also have their filial duty, their role, their obligation. And they cannot, should not, must not absolve themselves from that responsibility just because they have families of their own. If anything, my brothers [and I have enough of them, in every sense of the word] must take care of my parents. If I sound selfish, aren't my siblings selfish too for leaving the responsibility solely to me?

I asked Mummy last night whether she was upset when I moved out and she said no. After all, I stay close enough. And I visit them often enough. And even if I had stayed on with them, there's only so much that I can do in the non-working waking hours left after I get home from work. I still won't be able to do enough to ensure their welfare is well taken care of. And if they do get ill, will my being there actually help to reduce the pain? But Mummy and Abah are like that. They love me too much, I suppose, to want to stand in my way. And besides, at times I think it's best if I stay On My Own. Because I'm such a moody, short-fused girl and I'm not a good daughter most of the time. I fear that I only cause disappointment to my parents. I don't want them to think that they have failed in raising me to be a good Muslim; it's not their failure, it's just me being moody and cranky and annoying. My fault, not theirs.

Abah seemed to be losing weight. Actually, I can't really tell. I'm bad at telling if people have reduced weight (so if you ask me if you've lost weight and I hesitate, it's not because I don't want to tell the truth. It's more 'cause I can't tell]. And though he seemed to be sleeping a lot more over the weekend, he looked a bit haggard. I fear that he may be having diabetes, he is exhibiting some of the symptoms though. I got mad and asked Mummy why he (and she) never go to the clinic first thing after suspecting they're not well and she just brushed the question off. But Mummy and Abah are Always like that. Always waiting until the last possible minute before going to the clinic. I'm not a doctor and I can't stand to see them complain so I Always wonder why can't they just get professional medical opinion? And Mummy and Abah are Always positive and thinking good of God. That it's just another test from Him. That it's natural to get ill as the body goes into wear and tear. I'm not saying their thinking is wrong but still... don't you want to know what's wrong with yourself and try to nurse your body back to health as soon as possible? I think they just don’t want any of us to worry about them. But I do worry about them, I do. All the time. Surely they know that their baby worries about them.

I wish I could be there for them everyday. I fear of losing them. Oh God, not yet. Please. Not yet. I'm not ready to lose them.

I love you, Abah and Mummy.

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Met up with my good mates, Lin and S yesterday. Both of them just celebrated their birthdays, a day apart. So we decided to meet up, have fun, go window-Shopping etc. S wanted to buy a new handbag so we traipsed around KLCC. We even managed a free lip gloss session for ourselves, hehe. That was fun! S Finally decided to buy her bag at Isetan and we then went for some tea (none of us had tea though, I had chocolate shake). Then we resumed window shopping. In the end, I got myself a pair of wedges on offer [and I don't mean potato wedges!], Lin bought a skirt and S bought a suit [yes, in addition to the handbag].

Each of us needed the therapy for our own reasons.

Must do it again and I suspect I'll be the one spending then! [Likely to meet again to celebrate my birthday in the month of Julius Caesar].

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Gotta work. Like it or not. Because I have to take care of myself.

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OK, latest news from the home front: Abah will be admitted into the hospital tomorrow due to his sudden diabetic increase. I have to go back to my parents' house from tomorrow evening to keep Mummy company. Oh well, that is the least this girl can do. Besides Pray.

Being

I thought hard about my situation last Saturday and resolved that enough is enough for me, that I should stop moaning about my marital status, about catching that elusive Mr Right, about thinking that marriage will definitely happen for me. Because I've been holding on to this false hope for the better part of my life now, silly me, and it's taken this long to realise that maybe I'll always be the wrong girl at the wrong place at the wrong time and that's all I'll ever be. And hence, I should just stop hoping and instead devote my life to a better cause. Because love doesn't last forever, because marriage is not the cure-all, there is no such thing as everlasting marital bliss in this fast-paced life anymore 'cause people fall in and out of love all the time and infidelity is now the norm.

I have decided that I don't want to give a care anymore for the male population and I couldn't be bothered anymore. I'm just exhausted and fed-up and bored. I think I've tried my best but it's not bearing fruit and I should just move on. With or without guys. And maybe I am better off without a man. God knows what's best for me and if it's best for me to be alone, well, I'll have to accept it and reda.

From now on, I'm going to move on with my life. 'Cause It's My Life, not anyone else's. And I want to do so many things before I die like travelling. There's so much of the world still to see, experience and discover and I want to try do as many of that as I can, God willing.

Having said all that, if I suddenly find someone later somehow although I very much doubt so, then maybe it's Finally my time. For the moment and the foreseeable future though, the above is true. I'm swearing off men. I don't want to have anything to do with any guy. I don't want to know any new guy. I don't care. I'm sick and tired of waiting and hurting and hoping. Enough is enough is enough. I have my life to live and I'm going to do exactly that. Yes, that's my sole aim now. No more mixed priorities. No more moaning [about marital status only. I shall still moan about every other thing!]. No more.

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There's this one elderly lady who lives near my parents', she must be in her late 60s or early 70s. She's never been married and lives by herself in a relative's house (on ehsan, bless the relative). She used to babysit the neighbours' children for income. Now she receives zakat once a year and I think (and hope) some monthly allowance from JKM. But I don't suppose it's enough for her to buy good quality food, or afford an annual visit to the doctor [let alone the occasional one] or what not 'cause she is now so bent, I think she's suffering fr osteoporosis. I Always think she's just brave to go through life alone with so little. And in KL too, where everything is just so blinking expensive not just for a single old lady but for most people [I know non-KL folks always have the impression that all KLites are well off but it's not true. There are poor people in KL living in cramped flats and they have to somehow survive on so little. And like most other people, they have to send their children to school too and in KL, that means lots of dosh involved from the school bus to school fees etc etc].

Mummy said the old lady was ill early last year [when I was in the Holy Land performing my Haj. I did think about her when I was there and prayed for her too], so ill she could not leave her house. She used to walk alone to the night market for her groceries, and occasionally she braved the dark night to go to surau Alone. And able-bodied me hardly go to surau too. Yes, I feel ashamed whenever I think about that.

I paid her a visit one fine afternoon last year, and brought along some vitamins/minerals/food supplements. She was at first suspicious of me: why did I come to visit? What was the purpose of my visit? Why did I bring her the supplements? To be honest, I don't really blame her. Perhaps she's just being wary and exercising caution. Somehow I don't think a girl comes to visit her on a regular basis. After a while, she warmed up to me, even offering tea but I declined for I couldn't bear to trouble her. I was glad to see that she did eat and not starve herself [sometimes elderly people lose their appetite]. She confided that she had fallen a few times before. She talked and talked and I just listened for I understood that it's not every day that someone pays her a visit and give her company and lend an ear to her life happenings. And as I listened, I couldn't stop my tears from falling. I felt for her. And I have some idea of what she's going through. She loves plants and gardens quite a bit. The plants were thriving well, never mind that they were only planted in rusting tin cans. She's amazing, she's blessed with green fingers. She has some cats to keep her company [and somehow I'm sure they don't do their business as they wish. Well, at least I really hope they don't trouble her unnecessarily] and occasionally some Indonesian lady who lives nearby would pop in for a visit and make sure she's ok.

I find myself thinking of her every now and then. I don't know why. Maybe because I'm Alone too, just like her. And when I think of her, I wonder if I can do the same thing, going through life Alone. But she's survived so far, hasn't she somehow? She's a real brave lady. And while I wonder about how I could make it Alone in life later, at the same time, I have this fear of commitments. And I'm not sure if I want to have kids anymore and raise them in this world that's becoming less safe each day. Even if all I wanted once was to have my own pair of children. But the later I get married [if ever] and have a child, the riskier it is, not just to me, but to the child too. So, no, it wouldn't be wise and advisable to have children late in life especially for a first-time mother; in fact it may even be selfish. I admire this old lady, she never married, never had children but could take care of children. I can't say the same for myself. I even get impatient with my nieces/nephews!

Yes, I'll have to somehow manage living Alone later. But this lady has done so, so far, hasn't she? And she has managed so far, hasn't she? And with no fixed income too.

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There may be hope left in this world. Check this out. Amazing! How does she do it?

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Oh, growing up sucks. Being an adult simply sucks. And somehow I suspect even married people feel the same.

Moan Day

They really should call it Moan Day instead of Monday.

Had a mixed weekend. Of course, there was the inevitable house-cleaning chores on Saturday, including pulling off weeds off the front lawn. Am not gonna bother with the backyard yet though - saw some of the neighbour's rabbits occasionally there; hopefully they'll eat all the grass and save me from having to do it. Then only did I tackle house-cleaning, scrubbing, washing, ya da hey di da before finishing at noon. No, unlike Samantha Sweeting, I'm not an undomestic goddess. [Although I still dislike cooking and can't cook to save my life. But cook I must as I need to manage expenses since I just return from holidays and only earning MYR. Besides eating out means (sometimes) paying the earth for some greasy, MSG-and-sodium chloride-laden, cholesterol-rich food which don't taste anywhere as good as Mummy's cooking anyway.]

Had a well-deserved nap then went to Bangsar Shopping Centre in the evening. Inflicted some damage to my MasterCard, among others, I bought an anklet at KM Oli to replace the one that dropped off without me realising it in March/April. Yes, only a blurred, dazed, ditsy person like me can walk without realising her jewellery is falling off her.

Some stupid cats have again decided to do their business at my balcony - and by business, I mean big business, not the territorial mark of urine which I could just rid off with a strong room spray or air freshener - so an early Sunday Bloody Sunday morning was spent cleaning them up. Now, weeks ago, some cat had decided that it was cute to leave me some 'altar offering' in the form of a rodent's [I can never tell the difference between a mouse and a rat] dead body at the balcony and I had to remove it of course, almost gagging in the process. Really Bad cats! I almost vomitted twice! The significance of this earlier unpleasant discovery of a dead body means the disturbing existence of rodents in my area and fortunately or unfortunately there are enough cats around to ensure that the rodent population will not multiply that fast [yes, maybe I do need cats after all if only for that purpose] but I don't relish removing more dead bodies every now and then. Why did the darn cat[s] have to leave it on the balcony instead of in some drain where it could conveniently be washed away? Anyone knows how I can stop the cats from using my balcony as their playground (or toilet, more like!) and offering altar, let me know. Similarly, to anyone who knows cat repellent. Hmm, wonder if eBay has anything that can answer this need?

Went out to KLCC after that to catch The Da Vinci Code with a girlfriend. I managed to get the 1130 slot [after at least five times of ringing TGV]. The phone booking collection queue was very long, if anything it looked longer than the normal queue. The unfriendly countergirl keyed in the wrong ref no. TWICE and then said I had no choice with the allocated seats - the seats allocated were at row D - to which I replied sarcastically, sth like fine, whatever, 'It's not as if I have any say anyway, do I,' and stormed off. Bought wedding present for an upcoming wedding at Isetan [of course] and later some crystal stuff, just to add more damage to credit card. Hey, I've been a really frugal and not been really Shopping for the first 4 months of the year! I deserve it! [now I sound like Becky Brandon nee Bloomwood. Yes, I can totally relate to her but she's worse than me. Yes. Really]. Anyway, I know my friends know me enough, enough for one of them to ask me once whether I'm a high-maintenance girl. My reply was, 'No, not really. I don't think so', before adding, 'But I love GUCCI!'

Alas, the weekend flew way too fast and it was back to the office yesterday. Like I have a choice. And a Moan Day it turned out to be too. Suffice to say that I simply hate people who put other people down. And to achieve what, I wonder? To boost your ego? Improve your reputation? I don't think it will make people Respect you that way. If anything, I think it's pathetic to make fun of another in front of an audience. Simply pathetic, spiteful and petty. Crude, mannerless oaf, attempting a cheap shot at what he thought was a joke. A mean, tasteless joke, no less.

How and to whom do I forward my suggestion for Monday to be renamed? Let me know.

Shopaholic Abroad

As promised, this is my (rather long) account (or mini dissertation, more like) of my recent trip.

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Disclaimer: You have been warned of this post’s length. DO NOT continue if you have short attention span or Attention Deficit Disorder. Adek holds no responsibility whatsoever to any three of you readers for boredom, eye ache, back pain, neck pain, headache, migraine or whatever pain suffered as a result of reading this post.
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Yes, there was some problem with the camera battery charger [and thankfully, not the camera]. Hence, had to buy a new charger that Friday, but hey, better to part with MYR than with Euros trying to find an identical one. As planned, paid off credit card statement and dropped by at Isetan for a short therapy [never am able to resist a good bargain] before going to the moneychanger. Continued last-minute packing, had a little dinner – I needed all the energy I could get – and met Auntie who then dropped me off at University LRT station and from there, I caught a train to KL Sentral for the train to KLIA. It started to pour just after I boarded the train.

Met Lin and friend, checked in our luggage and had a drink before making our way to the boarding gate. Full flight so that dashed our hopes of stretching our legs. Departed at 2345 hours. Managed to get some badly needed sleep but still not enough. Oh well…

Arrived at 0530 hours on Saturday, 29 April 2006, into Flughafen Wien, Osterreich or Vienna International Airport, Austria. Hello (ooo) Vienna Calling, calling… A wet morning it turned out to be too. [Both Lin and I had visited this city previously on separate occasions and all the different times we were there, it rained!] Took our own sweet time [let’s just say that if we were entrants for the Amazing Race, we probably would have been the last to arrive at the pit stop - but we’d arrive in style] collecting our luggage, freshened up and as we missed the first possible half-hourly coach we could logically catch had we hurried, I decided to change some Euros into SKK, HUF and SIT [and good thing we missed the coach too for I discovered the bureau de change lady short-changed me by 20 Euros! That’s enough money for a night’s lodging, man!].

Boarded a coach to Wien Westbahnhof (trains depart from here for France, Switzerland and Germany) ‘cause that was where our hostel was although we were supposed to leave the next day from Wien Sudbahnhof (trains depart from here for Eastern Europe, southern Austria, Italy and former Yugoslavia countries). Saw the beautiful Belvedere from the coach. Good thing we managed to buy ticket for Bratislava at Wien Westbahnhof. Went to the hostel to drop off our luggage and initially encountered a hiccup while checking in – can you believe it, the hostel listed our arrival on 28 April [instead of 29] and wanted to offer us a dorm instead as compensation? I wasn’t feeling too pleased and told Lin we should be adamant and insist the hostel find us a room no matter what, especially since we had booked the room at least a couple of months earlier. Finally, they managed to slot us in – we somehow got an en-suite room, which was better than what we booked, hurrah! After lugging our heavy luggage [and the journey had only started too, tsk tsk tsk…] up two flights of stairs, we were Finally off to explore the city.

The Rain continued doggedly on and we had no choice but to walk in the Wet Wet Wet weather [turned out the spitting rain continued until the end of that day. Well at least it wasn’t the torrential kind]. Felt like kicking myself many times for not packing my umbrella. We took the U Bahn to Stephansplatz located at the heart of Vienna where the St Stephan’s Cathedral is. Being centrally located, it’s a good place to sit and watch Viennese life go by around you but yes, it was raining so we didn’t linger long. Instead, we followed the early Saturday shopping crowd along Karntner Strasse, the elegant shopping street which extends from St Stephan’s Cathedral to the Staatsoper (State Opera House), stopping at times to take capture evidences [i.e. taking pictures] at the Donner Fountain and admiring the various wonderful store displays. Pretty soon, we came to the Hofburg or the Imperial Palace complex, which includes the Albertina Museum State Rooms, the Austrian National Library Papyrus Museum, the Imperial Apartments/Sisi Museum, and the Spanish Riding School. Feeling somewhat famished after all the walking and Singin' In The Rain, we stopped first to have a light meal near the complex’s Butterfly House.

After satisfying ourselves exploring the complex, we sauntered over to the Naschmarkt, which is sited adjacent to Karlsplatz. As it embodies the multicultural character of the city, it’s a must visit for visitors to Vienna. Here, you can find stalls selling varieties of fresh fruit and vegetables standing side by side to that selling fish and meat. There are also some stalls selling kebab and other ready-to-eat food. Further ahead is the Flohmarkt, the flea market that is open every Saturday where you can find antiques, furniture and bric-a-brac to vintage clothing. The weather had however dampened our Shopping spirit and we left empty-handed.

After lunch at a kebab eatery, we travelled to Schloss Schonbrunn where the Schonbrunn Palace is. We reached there just in time to catch among the last few guided tours in the palace. Left shortly after 6 pm and took a tram back to Westbahnhof to our hostel at Felberstrasse. Bought some mineral water at a supermarket which turned out to be carbonated [euwww!]. Dinner at the hostel kitchen.

Sunday, 30 April 2006. Woke up with a slight temperature. Oh uh. The day was as cloudy as the day before and threatened to rain. Had breakfast and took a tram to Wien Sudbahnhof. Auf Wiedersehen Vienna, hello Bratislava!

‘I have devastating news for the aesthetes: old Vienna was once new.’ – Karl Kraus, 1911.

The train ride to Bratislava took only slightly over an hour. Now, Vienna and Bratislava, being only about 75 km apart are the two most nearest capital cities in the world. And apparently (possibly due to this reason), there’s an hourly train service from Vienna to Bratislava and that probably explained why we had the whole carriage all to ourselves. Arrived at Bratislava-Petrzalka station after 11 am [we were rushing to catch our hostel landlord] and yes, in the pissing Rain. Took bus to the city centre and hopped off onto a tram to Dunajska, where our hostel was. Our hostel was located very near Tesco and we Finally found it after walking up and down the street armed with our maps, with a little help from a local kid. Just about managed to catch the landlord as he was leaving, a very nice chap he turned out to be too. And good news, there was a lift in the building!

We then hopped onto another tram and ventured out into the city centre. Turned out to be a pretty charming city. We started off with Bratislavsky Hrad or Bratislava Castle, the symbol of Slovak national pride, which towers over the city and overlooks Dunaj [local name for the River Danube]. We discovered that there was an excellent exhibition on Leonardo da Vinci in the castle and took advantage of it [and also to take shelter from the shower that was starting]. I was beginning to wonder 'Oh, God, Why Does It Always Rain On Me’?

After exploring the castle and its grounds, we walked past St Martin’s Cathedral where the kings of Hungary were crowned for three centuries. See, Slovakia was dominated by the Hungarian Magyar and Austro-Hungarian Empires for many centuries and Bratislava was, for those three centuries, the capital of the Hungarian Kingdom. Nearby was the 13th century Michalska Brana (St. Michael’s Tower), the only preserved gateway from the city’s fortifications. The cobble-stoned Old Town is a mere short stroll away and is home to small cafes and several Baroque buildings. The Primate’s Palace, where Napoleon and the Austrian Emperor Franz I signed the Peace of Pressburg is also here. It was getting late and we walked back to the hostel [turned out to be pretty near the Old Town!] after buying some kebab [yes, again] to go. Two consecutive days eating kebab, boy, did I feel like a carnivore.

Monday, May Day 2006. As we were already informed that most places close on May Day, we decided to go shopping at Aupark, a modern shopping centre across Dunaj. But first things first: went to Tesco to buy umbrellas for ourselves as we were getting a little tired of being wet. I told Lin that I was sure it would be sunny after our umbrella purchase, mark my word. Next, we went to Bratislava Hlavna stanica (main station) first to buy ticket to Budapest for the next day then caught a bus to Aupark. Bought something similar to Lemsip for my fever and flu and cough and had a wonderful lunch there. And shortly after, the sun finally emerged from behind the clouds to grace us with its sunny presence and it turned out to be a wonderful afternoon after all… now, what did I tell you? Went back to the city and took pictures of sunny Bratislava. Were so happy with the improvement in weather that we bought a gelato each.

Tuesday, 2 May 2006. Oh uh, shouldn’t have had that ice cream. Woke up feeling worse, it was like taking one step forward with medication only to fall behind two long steps. Sheesh. Out to buy last minute souvenirs and then we were off to the main station to catch our train to Budapest. Goodbye Bratislava, I had a good time visiting you.

My left contact lens decided to do a disappearing trick and went AWOL just before we left the Bratislava flat. Now this had happened before, not often, but there has been some history and the previous couple of times it happened, the lens reappeared again after an hour or so from its voyage around the eyeball. So, I thought, not to worry, it’d reappear again soon. Not so this time. I had to travel relying on one contact-lensed eye all the way from Bratislava flat to Budapest apartment!

Reached Budapest Keleti Palyaudvar [palyaudvar, often abbreviated as ‘pu.’ means station and Keleti is the city’s east station] some 2.5 hours later. Lugged our bags up and down the stupid stairs to Keleti pu. metro station – seriously, you’d expect a train station that’s connected to the city Metro (by the way, it’s the oldest Metro in continental Europe) to at least have some escalators for the convenience of weary travellers like us! – and travelled to Blaha Lujza ter, a Metro stop away but alas, after having found the hostel, we were told to board a bus to another apartment located near Nyugati pu. Groaning, we had no choice but to do as exactly told. Turned out we had the whole apartment all to ourselves, cool! Dinner was fish burger from Burger King. Later that evening, I finally managed to coax the left contact lens out and guess what? Only half of the lens appeared; it somehow managed to tear itself along the way. Seriously, with a burning body, I was on the verge of losing my voice, patience and sanity! Good thing I packed some extra lens supply but oh dear, they were all of different colours [yes, I can be so vain]! Lin had also contracted fever and cough by then [no doubt unselfishly supplied by me, sorry dear!] and we seemed to be coughing the night away.

Wednesday, 3 May 2006. Off to explore the city that was created with the joining of Buda and Pest, yes, me with different colour contact lenses and all. [I felt like an odd-eyed cat for the rest of the journey. Meowww!]. We took the Metro to Deak ter and walked over to Szechenyi lanchid or the Chain Bridge. We crossed the Dana [local name for the Danube] over to Buda and rode up the funicular to the Buda Castle Palace, which now houses the Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest History Museum. Next, we headed for Halasz Bastya (the Fisherman’s Bastion), near Matyas templom (the Matthias Church). Interestingly, the church was converted overnight into a mosque when the Ottoman armies seized Buda in 1541. The Hafsburgs defeated the Turks 145 years later and reconverted the church. Here, you can get a clearer view of the Parliament across the Dana but now you’ll have to pay for this privilege. We walked until we reached Maria Magdolna Torony (Mary Magdalene Tower) and turned and headed back to Pest.

After lunch, we strolled down Vaci utca, the main artery of Pest, all the way to Budapest Central Market Hall where Hungarian produce and merchandise are sold. Then we hopped onto tram no. 2 to Margitsziget (Margaret Island) in the middle of Dana, passing the impressive Parliament structure along the way. The island is quite sizeable for the KL visitors and we then hopped off onto a bus to bring us around the island. *Sigh* Yes, Budapest is indeed one of the most beautiful cities in the world and I hope to visit it again. But as most other Eastern European folks, Hungarians are passionate about cigarettes – it seemed to be the national pastime [wonder what the death rate from smoke-related cancer is?] – and they also love dogs, big, strong, spoilt canines they keep as pets over there and bring everywhere, just like another family member.

Thursday, 4 May 2006. An early start to the day as we needed to catch the 0825 train to Ljubljana, Slovenia. The day started off with a very light shower. We decided to take the Metro over the tram and that meant an extra few minutes must be allocated to account for lugging the luggage up and down the stupid stairs. For the life of me, I could not understand how the few clothes I packed and the few possessions and toiletries I packed could possibly weigh like a bomb. We got help from a porter who turned out not to be so sincere after all, demanding a huge tip from us. Miserable sod, taking advantage of two helpless, hopeless, hapless girls! Seriously, have genuine acts of chivalry kindness gone out of style?

It was a long train ride, lasting over 8 hours. We only discovered that we would travel through the rest of Hungary into Croatia [which we didn’t expect and hence was a pleasant surprise, yeah a bonus country!] before going into Slovenia (and the train would continue to Venice, its Final Destination). Every now and then, the train conductor or the police/border guards would come to inspect our tickets and passports. The landscape alternated between towns and villages, farm fields, lush jungles, rivers, industrial areas… and occasionally we could see the Hungarians and later the Slovenes working their land, even under noon and, later, the early afternoon sun. We got down at Zagreb to capture the hey-we’re-in-Croatia moment and almost missed the train as it suddenly pulled away from the station!

It was a lovely ride into Slovenia, heading for Ljubljana from Zagreb. The train track runs parallel to River Sava and I admired the huge, green river. It was a pleasant experience sitting in the afternoon sun in the train corridor, looking down into the mighty river. It was as close as I could get to nature then and all that separated me from the green waters then were the train glass panes and the shrubs that grew along the track. It felt almost magical.

Finally reached Ljubljana later that afternoon. We only planned to spend a night there and wanted to travel the following evening [and get to sleep on the train] to Venice but alas, we discovered to our dismay that there would be train strikes in Italy commencing from 9 pm the next day and would last for 24 hours. So we had no choice but to buy an earlier ticket to Venice; otherwise we’d risked being stranded in Ljubljana until after 9 pm on Saturday evening and we didn’t particularly relish arriving in Venice at such a late hour, not to mention having wasted a day.

We checked into Hostel Celica, which used to be a prison, no kidding [Celica in Slovene means 'cell']! Hey, it was a unique experience all right. The stress of the day was beginning to get to me and I was starting to feel weak. Lin had to help me haul my luggage up the stairs and to our assigned cell. After a brief rest, we ventured out to find food. Dinner was at a restaurant selling halal chicken burgers. Upon returning to the hostel, I sent a desperate email to Venice, enquiring the possibility of checking in a day earlier. We then retired to our cell. The hostel proved to be popular among the locals, with many patrons visiting the restaurant downstairs and gregarious fun was heard all the way to our room. Now, Slovenia is the most prosperous of ex-Yugoslav states and its per capita GNP is far above that of most other Eastern European countries. And the hostel we stayed at was our second most expensive after Venice.

The next day, we set off to explore the city. As visiting hours had now been reduced ['cause we needed to catch an earlier train to Venice], we were anxious to visit as many sites possible. But not to worry: Ljubljana turned out to be a pretty compact city and we managed to complete our sightseeing just before lunch. We visited Zmajski most (Dragon Bridge), walked along the banks of the narrow River Ljubljanica to Tromostovje (Triple Bridge) and Presernov trg (Preseren Square), climbed up the hill to Ljubljanski grad (Ljubljana Castle) – sadly, it was not opened and looked to be under some construction or renovation – went down and visited the market where we bought some souvenirs. Next, we strolled down to Cevljarski most (Cobbler’s Bridge), walked all the way to what little remained of Rimski zid (Roman wall), then meandered along the narrow lane past Krizanke Summer Theatre, the Slovene Academy of Sciences and Arts and the National and University Library. Before we knew it, we were already at Univerza v Ljubjani (University of Ljubljana) and Kongresni trg (Congress Square). Had a filling lunch at nearby Maximarket at Trg republike (Republic Square). The Slovene capital tour was done.

Back to the hostel to rest and check email – the confirmation from Venice only arrived just before we left the hostel [Thank You, God. At least we wouldn’t be homeless that night!] for the train station. Bye Bye Bye fellow inmates! Left Ljubljana just after 5 pm - the train was delayed - and we arrived at Venezia Santa Lucia after 9 pm. Ciao Italia! Struggled with our bags over Ponte di Scalzi, which spanned over Grande Canal. I was tempted to attempt floating my bag across the Grand Canal [but it may sink instead under all that weight and I had no idea how deep the canal was, and I can't swim/dive to save my life to retrieve it should it sink] but some girls [si, shame on you signori!] were thoughtful enough to ask if we needed help. Found our hostel after wandering here and there and stopping at a pizzeria to ask for directions. Overlooking Rio Delle Muneghette, it was a room with a view. We decided we deserved a late night snack [and lunch seemed a distant past then] and went to the pizzeria for some pizza (what else?!).

Saturday, 6 May 2006. A leisurely start to the day. We didn’t really need to Rush Rush out as we were waiting for a mate who was flying into a nearby airfield to join us. Our little trio finally set off shortly after 11 am and we strolled up and down through the maze of canal bridges [Venice is seriously NOT a disabled-friendly city] past Campo San Rocco, Campo San Polo, little winding back-streets and alleys all the way to Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge), stopping occasionally to admire the window displays of Murano glassware and accessories, salivate over the various sumptuous offerings of charming little cafes, check out the various street stalls for souvenir prices and just enjoy the crowd. Being a city consisting of many little islets, connected to each other by hundreds of bridges with hundreds of canals winding through, what is noticeably missing are the vehicles. Yessir, it’s just gondolas, water-taxis and vaporetti (waterbuses). Anyway, back to the Rialto Bridge, which is one of the three bridges or so that span over Grande Canal: it’s a bit like Ponte Vecchio in Florence in that it’s pretty wide and lined on both sides with shops. Rialto Bridge is probably the most famous bridge in Venice [although I couldn't be sure whether I visited it the first time I was there] and is undoubtedly one of the architectural icons of Venice. On top of the bridge, you could admire the dozens of vessels cruising up and down the Canal.

This wasn’t Lin’s first visit either to Venice. My previous visit was At The Height Of Summer many summers ago and I didn't have too fond memories of the place: the canals were stinking , it was scorching hot, there were too many tourists thronging around, and even the water looked a suspicious shade of green - I had to be persuaded to take the gondola ride, warning that I'd need to stand under the shower for an hour should I had the misfortune to tip over and fall into any of the stinking canals. Thankfully, this time around, it's still late spring and the canals had yet to start their horrible stench.

We then made our way to Piazza San Marco (St Mark’s Square): Basilica di San Marco or St Mark’s Basilica [an amazing Byzantine structure of a church decked out in a riot of gold, marble and mosaic], the Doges’ Palace, the Moors’ Clock Tower are all here, as were hundreds of pigeons [think Trafalgar Square, only multiply the pigeons there by 10]. A gorgeous view of Chiesa della Salute and Isola San Giorgio Maggiore could also be enjoyed here. We spent some time here clicking our cameras away, yes, just like any other tourist. Then we decided to travel by style [take a water-taxi that cost many times that of a vaporetto] to the island of Murano, where Venetian glass is blown. We were given a mini demonstration and taken on a little tour of the impressive ‘factory’/display house/shop. I parted with some Euros here [only to find out later that other shops on the island and even in Venice itself offer more or less the same thing for much less]. We then had a lovely lunch before heading back to Venice. Alighting from the vaporetto, we walked over to Ponte Della Paglia, sighing at the sight of Ponte Dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs). The Bridge of Sighs [also couldn't recall whether I've sighted it on my previous visit] received its name in the 19th century, thanks to Lord Byron who helped to popularise the belief that the bridge's name was inspired by the sighs of condemned prisoners as they were led through it to the executioner on the other side and would most likely see the beautiful sight of the lagoon and the island of San Giorgio and freedom for the last time. (In reality, the days of inquisitions and summary executions were over by the time the bridge was built, and the cells under the palace roof were occupied mostly by small-time criminals).

Navigating our way back to the hostel proved to be trickier than when we started out to Piazza San Marco – I’m pretty sure we took a lot of completely different routes back. But we somehow made it back. Dinner was had at a nearby restaurant, where we were served by a snotty and bored-looking maitre d’. It wasn’t the best dinner I had, more so because the service was somewhat wanting.

Sunday, 7 May 2006. We checked out today – checkout time is an early 10 am but as there was a considerable queue for the (one and only) bathroom, we managed to ask for a 10.30 checkout time. We headed to Santa Lucia train station where we bought tickets to Como [in Lombardy region, half an hour away from Milan]. I remember very well telling the snobbish ticket lady that we wanted a train ‘after 10 pm tonight’ [I did my homework beforehand and knew there are daily train services to Milan – where we have to change trains for Como – that depart at 10.52 pm and if we board this train, we’d reach Como the next morning so the plan was to sleep on the train and save one night’s lodging]. We then stored our bags at the station and took a leisurely walk to Galleria dell’Accademia (The Academy of Fine Art aka Accademia). After paying Euro6.50 for entry, we spent a good part of almost two hours around. There are two dozens of exhibition rooms in all. While English translations were made available, they mainly describe the origins and history of the paintings and artists, how the paintings were obtained and the 'journey' of the paintings before they all landed up at Accademia, rather than what the paintings described/the messages of the paintings. So really, after a while, I was beginning to lose interest, not to mention, having seen enough versions of Madonna and the Child to remain etched in my memory for some time. We got separated but not to worry, Lin and I could tell where the other was based on our cough (haha, but true).

We Finally emerged out into the afternoon sun and deciding it was time for lunch, shared a lovely pizza at a corner pizzeria outlet. Lin and I looked longingly at all the gelati but after that lack of restraint in Bratislava which we were still paying for, we decided we gotta exercise some discipline and would only have that dream ice cream in Rome. The rest of the afternoon was spent trudging up and down yet more canal bridges and finally resting at Giardino Papadopoli, watching kids play in the park. After the much-needed rest, we agreed to check out the Ghetto where the local Jewish community is concentrated. We then had dinner at a trattoria, this time trying out the menu turistico. A superb meal was had by all and the service was very good too [we met the friendly maitre d’ again at the train station later and he actually exchanged light banter with us].

It was time to leave [or so we thought]. Collected our bags and waited to board the train, only to find out at the eleventh hour [and it was literally close to 11 pm too] that our ticket was meant for travelling that morning’s train to Como – now isn’t it simply coincidental or just pure bad luck that there is also a 10.52 am train service that could deliver us ultimately to Como?! What to do? After consulting some officers who looked like they knew what they were talking about despite the language barrier and resorting to sign languages, we were made to understand that we could change the ticket and/or be able to get some refund – but only if we change it at Santa Lucia itself. And the ticket counter was already closed and would only re-open at 6 am the next morning…! Lo and behold, from a one-night stay in Venice as originally intended and planned, we now had to spend our third night there, yes, in the city with most things at highly inflated prices! [The first night lodging which was secured at the last minute cost us Euro40 each, can you beat that?]. It didn’t take long for us to decide camping at the station [for how else could you find accommodation for three people at 11 pm in Venice without forking out wads of Euros?]. And mind you, train stations, especially in Italy [and I believe almost everywhere else] are not exactly the safest places in the world to be at, at night]. Oh well, safety in numbers. We even joked about having sentry duties. And it was Good Night, And Good Luck to us.

The station was closed at 0030 hours [that’s half an hour after midnight] so we had to camp outside. We sought refuge behind two marble pillars right outside the station, at least it would shield us from the chilly night winds [and this was definitely a better choice over some freezing stone-marble benches that were stinking of urine]. So there we were, under the fresco ceiling of fish seemingly swimming above us, slowly and surely getting chilled to the bone by the cold marble floor [that seemed to get colder by the minute and I was in my summer slacks] and the canal breezes, accompanied by dodgy-looking and behaving characters that seemed to dart around us [probably preying on us] and the sound of the occasional vaporetto and other nocturnal noises of thing that go Bump In The Night, all the while willing time to go faster. I couldn’t quite shake away visions of the king-size beds I sleep in at my current residence and at my parents’. Camping outside Santa Lucia is certainly an experience I won't forget in a hurry!

Finally, at 4.30 am, the station was opened and we rushed in thankfully. Alas, the seats in the station weren’t that comfortable either and cut through one’s skin but hey, at least we escaped the chill already! Beggars can’t be choosers, right. Another wait for the ticket office to open and yes, we managed to change our ticket to that very morning’s train service at a minimal penalty. As the train was ready at the platform, we quickly boarded it, chose our couchettes and fell into an exhausted slumber… for me, all the way to Milano.

Had to change trains at Milan for the train bound for Stuttgart. Bought some muffins at the Milan Central station for breakfast. The train ride to Como took only half an hour and at long last, after all that adventure, we arrived in Como, knackered and dishevelled. Now, Como is an ancient silk-producing city on the southern tip of Lago di Como (Lake Como). The city seemed to be shrouded in a haze [of high moisture in the air] when we got there and the view was a bit obscure. We somehow managed to locate our Como hostel, about 20 minutes’ trudge away from Como San Giovanni. As check-in time was from 1 pm, we walked along Lago di Como (Lake Como) to try to find out the water-bus schedules [it takes you to small villages along the lake and who knows hopefully, maybe we could also sight George Clooney’s villa or if we’re luckier, Clooney himself]. We returned back to the hostel, checked in, got shown to our room and practically just got Knocked Out. Not even the alarm that I set for a potential ferry trip could entice me from the sleep I badly deserved and needed.

At last we stirred, having rested and ventured out for a meal [yes, we were practically fasting the whole day]. A lovely dinner was had at a Turkish-owned pizzeria and I had Turkish pizza [delicious!!!] and after having regained our strength and energy, took an evening walk along the lake. A simply stunning setting for a romantic getaway, you just Can’t Help Falling In Love with the place [and no, you don’t need the ferry ride after all to love the place].

Tuesday, 9 May 2006. A rainy start to the day but not to worry, we each had umbrellas! So rain or shine, we were going to stick to our plan for the day, which was pure hedonistic Shopping pleasure...! Bought slices of pizza from a nearby supermarket and walked to Como San Giovanni. Purchased tickets for the day and also the next day’s travel. We had ample time for breakfast while waiting for the train to Chiasso, just a few km away. Yes, we were crossing over to Switzerland and from Chiasso, we needed to change trains for Mendrisio. We had to buy tickets to Mendrisio at Chiasso [funny, I once managed to buy return ticket from Milano to Mendrisio] and so had to pay for the purchase in Swiss Francs. The counter lady confidently told us to go to binario 13 [if my memory served me right] for our train [due to depart shortly] so we hurried over, but not before I checked the schedule board, where it stated that the train would normally depart from platform 4. Nevertheless, she sounded like she knew what she was talking about, plus she worked there. We waited and waited and I thought, funny, I don’t think Swiss trains are that inefficient for it was 5 minutes past the scheduled partenze time and yet, no train in sight! When we checked with someone else, we were informed that we had missed the train [which arrived at binario quattro after all] and that the next train would come along in half an hour. Duh! That wasn’t exactly going to help restore my confidence in silly, misinformed train personnel! No choice but to wait and that was when I found out that Arsenal had secured 4th placing in the EPL after beating Wigan and Spurs being beaten by West Ham, thanks to the Swiss daily someone left in the waiting room.

Finally, the train arrived and we reached Mendrisio a few minutes later. Walked to FoxTown factory outlet. Now, this isn’t anything like the factory outlets you get in the States with the normal GAP, Aigner and Jockey stores but one that has premier brands under its roof: think GUCCI, Prada, Ferragamo, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Bally, Yves Saint Laurent, Armani, Cerruti et al rubbing shoulders with Adidas, Nike, Puma, Reebok and other brands like Samsonite, GUESS?, Diesel etc etc etc. Yes, definitely my kind of place – and I think we deserved it after the misfortune in Venice. Spent a few hours there, happy in my element, Shopping or at least feasting my eyes away. Btw, they accept both CHF and Euros [though if you pay in Euros, they normally return the change in CHF] and of course, plastics are also acceptable. I didn’t inflict any damage to my plastic, you’ll be happy to know, but I did spend. No shoes though, wasn’t able to find any to my liking. We were so engrossed in the delights of FoxTown that we almost forgot to eat [well, at least I wasn’t feeling hungry until I’ve made a purchase]! We left the place at around 5 sth, a few hundred Euros poorer, but definitely happier with the bargains we found. Yes cara, I’m a serious bargain hunter!

Took the train back to Como [no additional Swiss stamps in our passports, alas]. By now, the rain had stopped and it helped lifted the haze. Back to the hostel to store our purchases and after performing prayers, we took the funicular up to the village of Brunate [I don’t think it merits the town status] where we had a good bird’s eye view over Como and the surrounding towns and villages. On a clear day, you could even sight Turino and Chiasso. Spent about an hour up there exploring life on the high side [new term I just coined] and went down again. I must admit I was a bit terrified of going down; I always prefer going up, uphill, up the cable car, up the funicular, but never enjoyed going down. Had dinner at the same Turkish restaurant, it seriously served good food though I wouldn’t know if Anthony Bourdain would be interested in dropping by. Back to the hostel to shower, pack etc and had an early night.

Wednesday, 10 May 2006. Left Como early in the morning; we planned to stop in Milan for a few hours en route to Rome. Reached Milan 9 sth and after storing our luggage at the left luggage, we bought the 3 pm tickets to Rome [journey to take 4.5 hours]. Then only did we set off for the city. Before I forget, the Milano Centrale is a pretty impressive building and pretty huge too.

Walked along Via Vitruvio to Corso Buenos Aires [where many stores lined up the street, awesome window displays!] and continued to Corso Venezia and Corso Vittorio Emanuele II before reaching Piazza del Duomo. Duomo, one of the largest Gothic cathedrals in the world is sited here and to the north of of the Duomo is La Scala at Piazza della Scala, the famous opera house. A statue of the genius Leonardo da Vinci in his thoughtful pose stood nearby. Oh, not to forget the magnificent Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, just a few metres away from Leonardo. The Gallery houses premier luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, GUCCI, Tod’s and Prada. We then strolled to Castello Sforzesco.

All that walking made me real hungry and we had lunch at the most unlikely place, a Chinese restaurant! Turned out the maitre d’ is from Malaysia [though he didn’t seem to understand the concept of halal, and he’s only just started working there for 1.5 months, fie on your ignorance]. The meal was nothing to shout about but at least it was edible.

Rushed back to the station and since the train station is so huge that you could see it from a distance, it seemed to take Forever to reach it. Boarded the train as soon as the binario information was displayed and my oh my, the train was really full! Each seat was taken and no couchette this time so that dashed any hope of a sprawl. We travelled through Lombardy into Emilia-Romagna [the train stopped at Bologna] to Tuscany [it stopped again here at Florence] before finally reaching Lazio. The train was somehow delayed for about 15 minutes in arriving at Rome. Tutte le strada portano a Roma – All roads lead to Rome [and railway tracks too!] and we finally arrived at the Eternal City.

From Roma Termini, we walked down Via Giovanni Giolitti to find our hostel. I wasn’t too impressed with the cramped flat, much less at the sight of the messy room turned dormitory [shared by seven females (or so)]. Turned out that we were supposed to stay elsewhere three blocks away. Phew! What a relief! [Now why didn’t you just let us know that earlier in the email?].

We were brought to our new lodging place at Via Napoleone III, which looked more respectable but lo and behold, there was a Snoop Doggy dog which answered to the strange name of Egor (spelling?) in residence there! [And a lot of shrieking was to be heard for the next couple of days from yours truly at any close encounter with the four-legged creature]. Our room had five beds bunk-style but at least we had it all to ourselves. One downside we soon discovered: the apartment had eccentric hot water supply: you need to shiver close to the streaming cold water shower before hot water dripped down for a few minutes in which you really need to hurry showering before the water scald your skin. And no, you can’t adjust the water dial ‘cause just a little twist to the right and you’d risk getting hypothermia from the freezing water that instantly spouted out. It took a bit of exhanging tips, strategising and later standing close to the shivering cold or scalding hot water before you get the right water temperature which lasted briefly anyway. I can’t quite explain this strange ‘phenomenon’ and I’m not sure if any law of physics could either.

During dinner, we befriended a friendly Australian couple. The other lodgers however shied away from us and kept to themselves.

Thursday, 11 May 2006. Turned out there were quite a few lodgers sharing the same apartment as evidenced by the long queues for the shower and bathroom. At one point, I wondered out aloud how many were there for I had lost count. Arneil, the Filipino girlfriend of Dino, the apartment owner, said there were enough people and she’s even taken to sleeping on the couch in the living room if there are too many guests! We weren’t sure if she was pulling our leg but there seemed to be some element of truth in her statement. Oh well, I sure hoped she knew how many lodgers were camping out in the apartment, you never know when such info may come in handy, like in the case of fire for example. You need to know that you’ve managed to evacuate everyone to safety and not let any of your lodgers [and dog] perish, although somehow I suspect Egor the dog would be the first to be evacuated.

Anyway, back to happier thoughts. We took the Metro to Scalinata di Spagna at Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Steps) with the beautiful Fontana della Il Barcaccia (Fountain of the Old Boat), both at the foot of Chiesa dei Trinita dei Monti. There are many boutiques around the Spanish Steps [think Dior, Tiffany, Bvlgari…]. Next, we checked out a nearby discount outlet – it stocked branded clothes, shoes, handbags and accessories [my mate was amazed how we managed to find out about the place, well, I reiterate, I am a serious bargain hunter!]. Spent some time there but left empty-handed. Took a bus to a departmental store on Via del Corso then walked past Piazza Colonna, Piazza di Montecitorio to Pantheon at Piazza della Rotonda [this amazing structure was started in 27 BC and was a temple to the gods for over 600 years before becoming a Christian church in the 7th century] and continued on to Campo de Fiori [there’s a market here] before checking out Piazza Navona. It was beginning to pour and we were prepared with umbrella [thanks to weather updates courtesy of BBC Weather]. Yup, everywhere you go, you always take the Weather With You…

We then headed back to the Pantheon area for lunch at this charming place. Lunch was another menu turistico, which was quite good. The rain finally cleared and we spent the rest of the day window-Shopping and searching for last-minute souvenirs. Lin and I have been to Rome before and had visited Colosseo (the Coliseum), Arco di Costantino (Arch of Constantine), Platino (Palatine Hill) and even the Vatican City on our previous visits. We still couldn’t resist visiting the fountain of Rome, what else if not Fontana di Trevi at Piazza di Trevi (the Trevi Fountain)! Now when in Rome, do as the Romans do, so of course we didn’t join the other coin-throwing visitors for Romans would never throw coins into Trevi, right? [And we still manage to return to Rome so far regardless.] Next, we went to get ourselves the promised reward of a great gelato from Fragola e Limone on Via Giustiniani, near Pantheon.

After traipsing a bit more around the citta and feasting on the ruins – including Tempio Adriano – and new structures such as Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II (Monument to Victor Emanuele II), we headed back to the hostel. I just love this city and its buildings – I can never tire of looking at beautiful buildings, be them ruins or new structures. In fact, I just love Italy [I didn’t much like it when I first visited it though]. Besides buildings and ruins, there are just so many eye candies around you to ogle at [don’t worry, I usually just about manage to stop myself from grinning stupidly when I ogle], even when they are clad in boring old navy blue or black business suits.

Back at the hostel, we packed for our departure the next day – ahhh, Funny How Time Flies (When You’re Having Fun)! It was an early night for us.

Friday, 12 May 2006. Our last day in Rome. Somehow I managed to pack everything into my duffel trolley bag, three cheers for me! We left the hostel just before 10.30 am and walked to Termini where we planned to take the express train to Aeroporto di Fiumicinio (aka Aeroporto Leonardo da Vinci). We were in time for the 1052 train and as I was boarding the train and struggling with my bag, a girl offered to help me. Turned out her comrade was behind me trying to open my backpack [and succeeding]. I only realised it when a girl shouted at me, ‘Hey, watch out! Watch your bag!’ I turned and true enough, it was opened [crafty, sneaky girls] but alhamdulillah nothing was missing. The two girls pretended like nothing happened and calmly walked out of the train. The thing is, they looked like they were locals, not the sort you’d expect to be involved in such acts [I’m not a racist or prejudiced , but they don’t look like the type you normally associate as pickpockets such as gypsies or drug addicts].

The train was slow in its departure and when it finally left the station, it travelled pretty slowly [for an express train! We took the same service before in our last trip and I didn't recall it taking that long then]. We only reached the airport about an hour later and there were so many people already waiting restlessly at the platform to board the train that those alighting had difficulty fighting their way through the impatient crowd. A few people even jumped down the next track and climbed out from there – it certainly looked faster, but I wasn’t about to follow suit with my oh ever-so-heavy bag.

Check-in was a breeze and we immediately went through the customs to the duty-free and tax refund. Bought chocolates [great ones!] at Venchi chocolate shop and then we took the skytrain to our gate. Our flight took off slightly a few minutes later than scheduled and I somehow dozed off during take off [now, that was the first time] and when I next opened my eyes, we were already airborne.

The good thing about MAS flights from Rome is that they are usually not full so you get to change seats and stretch yourselves. But the route is over the Arab peninsular and there was bad turbulence over that area [also happened the last time we flew out of Rome] probably due to the air pressure resulting in air pocket. I was coughing [still] and that was exactly what I was doing in the bathroom when suddenly I threw up [and that hadn’t happened for a long, long time]. Gosh, it was a bumpy ride and I felt almost ill throughout. Also, they only serve you lunch and the next meal is breakfast. I was really famished and had to ask the air hostess to supply me with some crackers.

Saturday, 13 May 2006. We touched down at KUL at 0730 hours. Our bags were out early so much so that I managed to catch the 0815 ERL train to KL Sentral and from there, cabbed it back to current residence.

And that just about summed up our little adventure.

I found Rome a city of bricks, and left it a city of marble. ~Augustus Caesar

Adek’s travelling tips:

Book your flights early; take advantage of ticket deals [we took advantage of the MAS travel fair in February; we started planning for this trip in December 2005. Hey, after all, need to save that dosh, man]. Sometimes though, you may get a good deal from last-minute purchases as the airline tries to fill its empty seats but I think this is quite rare.

Book hostels using the Internet [some seasoned travellers take the chance and find accommodation only when they arrive but I can’t do that ‘cause as a girl, I gotta be extra careful] and book early to avail of better deals ‘cause prices tend to go up the nearer you are to check-in date.

Have a great travelling partner who complements you – Lin and I have been travelling together a few times already, Just The Two Of Us: She’s calm, I’m not. She’s patient, I’m a short fuse. She’s careful, I’m such a scatterbrain that I’ve lost tickets here, there and everywhere and had to pay fines even! [so all tickets were handed to her for safe storage]. She packs light, I seem to bring half the wardrobe along with me [and I get to share her luggage quota, cheers mate!]. She keeps an eye on me and helped me from being pick-pocketed once in London, and I keep an eye on her too [even when my left contact lens did the disappearing trick]. I am a good travel planner and read maps better than she does usually [ahem! Look there's got to be something I'm good at, besides Shopping ok!], she tells me where to go and I lead the way. Etc etc etc. Yes, we really click. Gosh, we’ve shared so many experiences together, haven’t we. Remember, have a great travelling partner. Don’t travel with someone for the sake of company ‘cause you never know when you’re going to have that fall out and it wouldn’t be great at all to have that in the midst of your trip with a lot more ground you hope to cover. Also make sure you have the same interests ‘cause you don’t want to be quarrelling over what/where to visit once you’ve reached your destination.

Save money. Loads of it. And have plastic on the ready and if need be, have an extra card or ask for a temporary increase in credit limit. But do stick to your budget [and do have one!] ‘cause you don’t want to be spending the next few months miserably paying off your credit card balance. But money is not just for shopping but also emergencies like if you suddenly get ill or if you need to pay for an unexpected unbudgeted extra night accommodation in Venice.

Do your homework. Work out the routes, agree on them and then try to find airlines or trains that can transport you from point A to point B [unless you wanna drive or hitch hike!]. Yes, it is possible to work out the train time table, trust me. I managed to do all those [it’s just pure coincidence coupled with bad luck that there are 10.52 am and 10.52 pm trains leaving Venice for Milan, ok!] and find a few travelling times possibilities ‘cause you never know when you gotta be flexible and reschedule your carefully well-laid plans. Also do your homework on the city. Everything possible, not just the sights to see, places to explore, things to do and local cuisine to sample etc. But you must also know roughly the city transportation system, where/which part of city is the railway station located, how to get to/fro airport/train station to the city or your hostel and the cost of that travel, the location of your hostel [in high-risk area? Near any metro route?]. Also you need to weigh the cost of staying at the outskirt of the city and paying lower for accommodation against travelling costs into the city. Don’t forget also your choice of sleeping arrangement. Single travellers always have to pay more but do you really want to share a dormitory with a dozen other strangers? Yes, it’s a good way to make new friends but how safe do you feel? Are you particular about having an en-suite room or do you not mind sharing the bathroom?

Always be on your guard. Be wary of suspicious characters. Having said that, both Lin and I had been subjected to such misfortune before, she almost being pick-pocketed in Barcelona and me in Prague and London and more recently Rome [and yes, my handbag has been snatched and I’ve been pick-pocketed in good ol’ KL]. But some locals can be really helpful and eager to help, although don’t be surprised or disappointed should more locals ignore you even as you struggle with your map and trying to read the street name in Slovak or whatever non-English language.

Try to eat well before and during the trip. Also get enough exercise ‘cause you’re going to be doing a lot of walking all over the place – best way to explore and discover any place is on foot! Pack some pills also if necessary.

Mix with the locals, get to know their culture, history, learn a bit of the language, buy local products. Must be socially responsible tourists. Also, conserve resources as far as you can.

The above list is by no means exhaustive, just the few things I can think off the top of my head at the moment. If you have any other travelling tips, do share [I still got a lot to learn myself, like how to pack light!].

Last but not least,

Return ticket on MAS to Europe: RMxxxx

Accommodation, Food, Transportation: Euroxxx/SKKxxx/HUFxxx/SITxxx/RMxxxx equivalent

Retail therapy damage: Euroxxx/SKKxxx/HUFxxx/SITxxx/CHFxxx/RMxxxx equivalent

Good times had, adventures shared, experiences gained etc: PRICELESS

For everything else, there’s MasterCard.

Ciao, Adek
[already thinking of the next trip]

Back To Life, Back To Reality

It's back to the grind for me after a nice, wonderful, fantastic two-week vacation. Slept poorly for two consecutive nights since touching down on Saturday morning and hence it was a zombie-like me making my (re)appearance at the office yesterday. Hunger set in quickly after tackling my accumulating work emails [managed to clear my web-based emails when I was away. What? Check on my work emails while on vacation? You Gotta Be kidding me] and clearing some workload and I finally went to see my new boss at 11-ish [after having some miso soup to nourish the famished working soul]. That took a good part of an hour so it was good thinking to have that soup after all or I'd risk collapsing in the midst of discussion [yes, I'm sure I'm capable of that. For some reason, sometimes I Get Weak all of a sudden, especially after exerting myself].

I had no choice but to clean the house when I got back Saturday morning 'cause I just couldn't unpack, rest and sleep in such a dusty environment! Call me a health/hygiene freak but then again, as someone advised me previously, the best way to cure jet lag is to stick to the local hours. To test me further, my clothes rack had collapsed during my absence, along with my already-ironed work clothes, so I (tearfully, for this newly discovered unpleasant discovery was not a welcome addition to my already exhausted state) had to do some DIY work to fix it up. Finally collapsed into an exhausted sleep at 2 sth in the afternoon.

Woken up on Sunday by my parents who dropped by at 9 am on their way home from PD [yes, they must have checked out just after a very early breakfast, they normally do that kind of very early travelling]. Abah's car left some marks on the porch and I had to clean [read: wash and scrub] the porch after they left. Been meaning to do that anyway. It was off for some grocery shopping after that - the fridge was empty save for chocolates and bottles of fruit juice - and I wasn't about to start having instant noodles as my staple diet.

Went to do some toiletries and groceries shopping after work yesterday. I don't know about you but my toiletries and food supplements somehow seem to run out at the same time. Now, Ain't It Funny having to replenish them simultaneously? Talk about coincidence!

I need a Holiday to recover from my Holiday...! Ahhh, but now it's Back To Life, Back To Reality...sob!

Coming up next... Passport To Europe ... with Adek [no, not with Samantha Brown].