My Ramadan 1440 Hijrah Trip: Part II

Sunday, 19 May 2019

Today, I planned to do some culture things i.e., visit the Art Gallery of South Australia and some museums. I left quite late as I wanted to check in for my flight back home (it sucked that you had to check in for the flight back when you’d only arrived barely 24 hours before). I took the tram to Rundle Mall tram stop and walked along Rundle Mall before crossing over to the Art Gallery. I spent about an hour there. I don’t usually visit art galleries, preferring museums over them. An hour was just nice enough to spend there.

After the Art Gallery, I went to visit the University of Adelaide very briefly before heading across to the South Australian Museum. It was interesting to note that the locals loved spending weekends with their families and significant others at galleries and museums. I spent another hour in the museum. The weather was dismal anyway and was drizzling on and off.

I went to check out the National War Memorial but didn’t linger long as it was starting to drizzle again. I walked back to the State Library and on to the Migration Museum behind. It started pouring very heavily then and I was glad I was walking beneath some shelter then. I waited out the rain and when it petered out, I hurried over to the Migration Museum. A man at the front desk greeted me cheerfully.

The Migration Museum was a compact museum on the settlement of the city and the story of the aboriginal people. It took me less than an hour to finish the museum.

The weather had not improved but at least it had stopped raining then. I crossed over to David Jones and walked through the Food Court. There was one stall selling halal food; unfortunately, the Food Court and the departmental store closed at 17:00 on Sundays and Maghrib was at 17:20 then.

I rested for a bit before venturing around Rumble Mall. I decided to buy some confectionery and even a bottle of fish oil (it was so dang cheap over there!). As it was getting late (the overcast dreary weather didn’t help), I rode the tram and walked back to the Airbnb. It was about half an hour to Maghrib when I arrived at the Airbnb.

I spent the rest of the evening resting.

Monday, 20 May 2019

I left after 09:30 and took the tram to Rundle Mall. I walked over to Art Gallery tram stop and rode the tram to Botanic Gardens. Today is nature appreciation day, heh. I spent a while here, admiring the landscape and enjoying the autumn weather.

I then took the tram to Exhibition Centre before returning to Rumble Mall and changing trams for Victoria Square. I returned to Adelaide Central Market and Chinatown. The market was supposed to close today but some stalls were opened. Nothing much caught my fancy so I took the tram back to South Terrace and walked back.

I didn’t have that much to pack so after that was done, I made further progress on my novel.

Tuesday, 21 May 2019

Well, it was time to head home already. I got up for pre-dawn meal and after my meal, I had a quick shower before performing prayers. I left at 06:40 and as I missed the earlier tram by a few seconds, I had to wait about ten minutes for the next one. This also meant I also missed the 07:16 bus to the Airport. I took the 07:32 bus and had to ask fellow passengers for small change for my note.

We reached the airport at 07:58 and I joined to bag drop queue. Just like at KLIA, it was a long slow process. I then went through security check and then browsed the duty-free shops. I had to go through another security check and clear passport control before getting to my gate (of course the officer had to remark on my LV bag, what a jerk). We boarded and took off on time.

I spent the time up in the air alternately dozing off and reading. I also performed prayers on board as I didn’t want to rush when I landed.

We landed at 16:10 and my left half of FitFlops decided to tear off so I had to shuffle along awkwardly all the way to the aerotrain, passport control, bag carousel and the KLIA Transit platform. I rode the KLIA Transit to Bandar Tasik Selatan and changed for the LRT.

I arrived in Ampang about 18:30 and it was drizzling. Dad was waiting for me and drove me back home.

So that was my short trip to Adelaide. It’s a small city and my duration was just perfect. Anything longer and I’d be yawning for the rest of my stay.

Oh, and guess what? I didn’t see a single cat during my trip. Not even a whisker.

My Ramadan 1440 Hijrah Trip: Part I

I had noticed the one working day squeezed in between two public holidays this month earlier in the year and after thinking long and hard, decided to visit Adelaide. I’d never been to Adelaide or anywhere in South Australia and I wanted to go somewhere where it wouldn’t be too tiring to fast. Any destinations north of the Equator would not only be too hard but also meant longer fasting hours. So I bought my ticket using Expedia and waited. I only applied for the visa a day before departure. You could apply for it online but it would cost AUD20 or so. You could apply for it at KLIA itself at the Ticketing Desk at the departure terminal and it would cost around RM30+. I managed to get the travel agent we use regularly to apply for it for me and the agent charged me only RM15. Alhamdulillah.

I had also managed to get my sister’s and my munchkin nephew’s agreement for him to come look after dad while I was away. I promised to pay him for his help. Well, I would have to pay for a nurse anyway and a nurse would cost more than double what I’d be paying my nephew. He received some pocket money while I paid less for the service that I otherwise would have to pay. So it was a win-win situation for us all.

Friday, 17 May 2019

Munchkin nephew sent me to the bus stop in the morning and I boarded the bus to work. I brought my suitcase along as I’d be heading to the airport directly from work.

I left the office just before 17:00 and took the 17:30 bus to KLIA. We hit the Ramadan peak hour though and only reached the airport at 19:15, 45 minutes late! I had something light to eat after freshening up and went to drop off my bag. Unfortunately, only a few counters were opened so we had to queue a bit. It took about 30 minutes before I managed to drop off my bag. I then cleared passport control and security check before taking the aerotrain to the departure terminal.

I had some noodles which I bought from the office café and it was extremely salty and just about barely edible. I threw half of it away; starving seemed a better option than taking all that sodium. I dropped by Hermès and came out poorer. Yikes.

It was time to head for the gate then so I made my way to C17. There were a lot of passengers but I was lucky to get the seat by the window and an empty seat next to me. Sure, it was at row 3x but at least I didn’t have to step over my neighbour to go to the washroom what with my wounded knees and all. Oh by the way, I had to wear my FitFlops for the trip. It was either that or Birkenstock as there was a wound on my foot next to my left big toe (from the incident on Tuesday) and I couldn’t wear covered shoes.

We took off on time and were shortly served supper. I chose pasta and almost regretted it. I then tried to sleep but you know me and sleeping in planes don’t go together. It also didn’t help that some passengers were noisy and restless, in particular the four women sitting across the aisle from me.

Saturday, 18 May 2019

We were served some sandwich and drinks about 90 minutes before landing. Oh boy, that wasn’t going to be enough for a pre-dawn meal surely.

We landed at 06:15, 45 minutes earlier than scheduled. However, the passport control took ages. There were only two counters opened to process us all and half an hour later, Singapore Airlines passengers joined the queue. After having my passport checked, I went to the carousel and was surprised to find only one carousel (at least I only saw one!) and that my bag had yet to appear after all that time. Thankfully, it appeared just a few minutes later.

I had declared that I brought in some medicines (more like my vitamins and supplements) and fruits (dates) and had to join a long queue to declare my food. The process was very slow too. I didn’t recall Sydney Airport being this bad.

I finally cleared the check and went out into the arrival level. After freshening up, I caught up with social media before making my way to the bus stop for the bus to the city. The bus came about ten minutes later and I paid the driver AUD5.50 for the ticket. It took about 25 minutes to get to the bus stop at Grenfell Street. I got down and walked down to Pirie Street tram stop for the tram. I had read that there is a free tram service within the CBD so I availed of this service and rode the tram for four stops to South Terrace (you need a ticket beyond this stop). I got down and walked one km to the Airbnb that I’d booked. It was an overcast start to Saturday morning and autumn was very much in the air.

I arrived at the Airbnb 15 minutes later and let myself in. The gate was unlocked and I took the keys from an empty flowerpot to open the front door. Check-in was later but the host had agreed that I could come and leave my bag in the living room. I wandered around the kitchen, used the bathroom and checked the bathroom up the steep spiral stairs (my room was at the basement and for that I would have to descend down steep spiral stairs and let’s hope I wouldn’t break my neck while doing that!). I even met Alice, the host, explained to her that I was dropping off my bags and then left.

I walked back to South Terrace tram stop but decided to walk on to the next tram stop. I walked on and on and before I knew it, I had reached Victoria Square Tarntanyangga. I crossed the road to take pictures of the fountain, met an elder Filipino lady who attempted to take pictures of me (she was the one who offered and insisted) and finally I told her it was OK just to put her out of her misery. I followed Gouger Street to Adelaide Central Market and was glad I did that when I discovered the market was closed on Sundays and Mondays. Say what? I would’ve thought people would want to do their marketing on Sundays too unless the locals are a pious lot and want to go to churches then.

I probably spent at least an hour there. Chinatown is just next door and I even visited two Asian supermarkets and bought some Chinese vegetables. I also went to Coles but decided to purchase my groceries later as I didn’t want to be lug them around. I also spent some time looking for honey to bring home for dad. Who knew there were so many types of honey?? In the end, I bought a bottle of honey from Kangaroo Island.

I walked on further until I reached Grenfell Street, turned right into the street then followed an alley that led to Rumble Mall, a wide pedestrianised street which is home to many stores. I walked into Myer Centre and wandered around. I didn’t want to enter the departmental store but browsed Chemist Warehouse. Then I spotted some benches and went to rest. I was already tired and sleepy by then from lack of sleep and even nodded off for some microsleep O.O

I got up and went to Woolworths and Coles to get some groceries. I wasn’t planning to cook much so I bought a long loaf of wholemeal bread, a two-litre bottle of milk, a box of cereal and a can of mushroom soup. Those are heavy enough and I already had a jar of honey but there aren’t any nearby supermarkets near the Airbnb unless you count the convenience store at the petrol station about 450 metres away.

I walked to Rundle Mall tram stop and waited for the tram back to South Terrace. I sat next to a Malay Singaporean student on the tram and chatted briefly with her.

Back at the Airbnb, I decided to fight sleep for a bit because I didn’t want to get up in the middle of night and not be able to sleep again. I made progress on my novel before finally succumbing to sleep.

To be continued

Adek In Sydney 2017- Part II

Friday, 14 July 2017

We had decided to go to Parramatta today and left our room at almost 10:00. We walked up to Circular Quay (took us 45 minutes), bumping into fellow Gooners along the way. After consulting electronic board, we went to the designated wharf and waited. There was a bit of confusion as the boards first showed our ferry departing from right side and then showed it departing from the left side. We departed later than scheduled too. It took one hour and 23 minutes to reach Parramatta by ferry but at least you get to experience riding the ferry. Parramatta is the furthest stop inland that ferry can go.

At Parramatta, we waited for the Parramatta Shuttle Bus that takes you on a continuous loop around downtown. We got down near Parramatta Park and left not long after. We then took the shuttle bus on another loop before getting down near Centenary Square. To be honest, I found Parramatta a tad underwhelming. We then went to Westfield Parramatta as we wanted to find free wifi – the mall provided it, Alhamdulillah! – to check in for the flight back. We’d only arrived a couple of days earlier and would already be departing after the next couple of days. Well, I didn’t intend to stay too long in Sydney anyway. It has become more and more expensive over the years and I sadly only earn Malaysian Ringgit.

I then went to browse some stores to find some wipes that my sister asked me to and after a dozen stores and spending 10 minutes on average at the wipes aisle of those stores, I concluded that the particular brand that she wanted was no longer in production. I bought some crisps and then went to check out Target before leaving. We got the train back to Central within 3 minutes of its departure and it took only 26 minutes.

Today was my last fasting day so after prayers, we cooked dinner at the kitchen a floor up.

  

Saturday, 15 July 2017

I slept again after Suboh and got up after 08:00. We left for Paddy’s Market after breakfast but didn’t buy any souvenirs. We came back at almost noon and stayed in. I took advantage of this and made progress on my book. We left at 17:30 after having dinner and performing prayers and went to Central station. This time, there was a direct train to Olympic Park. Even better!

We headed directly for the stadium and entered (hardly any queue by the time we arrived). Our seats this time were at the fourth row from the boards that separated the pitch from the spectators. The crowds around us were more vocal too this evening and there were always a few individuals trying to get us to start chanting. So much so, one bloke in front of missed one of the goals (he was too busy looking back and rallying us). I also heard another chap a few rows behind saying that we all just wanted to watch the match.

This time, the rush back to the station wasn’t as bad as on Thursday and we managed to squeeze into the first train that arrived. There were some vocal Gooners in the carriage we entered and we all sang our way back to Central station. Now that was fun!

Sunday, 16 July 2017

I woke up early this morning after the post-Suboh kip to finish packing. We had a late breakfast and left at 09:45. We followed the same route back to the airport that we took on Wednesday in reverse and arrived at the airport almost an hour later. After dropping off our bags and getting our boarding passes, we cleared security and immigration. There’s no prayer room once you clear immigration so I performed prayers in the parents’ room before making my way to the gate.

We took off on time and landed at KLIA at 20:00. The bags came out well after we finished performing prayers and we took a Grab back to KL.

So that was my third trip to Sydney and sixth to Australia. I doubt if I’ll be back because there are many more places that I haven’t been to. Thanks anyway Sydney for all the memories.

~~~~~~~~

Just a bit on my Airbnb: from the airport, you can take a cab or Uber (AUD20-40 depending on traffic and terminal (departing from international terminal would cost more), or you can take the Airport train to Central. The Airport train costs AUD16.22 from the airport to Central with an Opal card as you have to pay the airport access fee of AUD13.80 so we chose to walk to Wolli Creek instead. The Airbnb is pretty near Central station, about 15 minutes’ walk away. You can also take a bus from Eddy Avenue Stand C, routes 338, 374, 376 and 391; get off at Flinders St near South Dowling, cross at the lights and walk three minutes downhill to the front door. We chose to walk.

We had to get the keys from a locked box at the unit next door and after opening the door, walk up the stairs to the first landing where the bathroom and TV room are. Our room is one of the two rooms just a few steps up the landing and it overlooks South Dowling St. There is another flight of stairs up to the host’s housemate’s room, a bathroom and kitchen and another room above the kitchen (accessed from the kitchen). The two other housemates couldn’t be friendlier.

My comments are that the room is slightly dusty (those with dust allergy should avoid it) and the dustbin in the kitchen just overflew, and the housemates were not diligent about keeping the kitchen counter and sink empty so a few times I washed up their glasses and crockery. I know I wasn’t paying to stay at a hotel (too dang expensive and even this Airbnb didn’t come cheap what with inflated Sydney prices) but I would have appreciated a cleaner and tidier kitchen. Not sure how frequent garbage collection is there or why no one bothered to take the trash out. Those are my main comments.

Adek In Sydney 2017- Part I

This plan was hatched on 9 December 2015 when I first heard Arsenal were planning to go to Sydney. Then seven months later, in early July 2016, I received an email from Arsenal informing of a 48-hour priority window to secure tickets for the matches against Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers. So on 16 July 2016, with the help of CT, I tried and finally managed to secure tickets – and all whilst preparing drinks for guests who came to visit (it was a few days after Eid then). Having secured the tickets, I then searched for air tickets and finally purchased a return AirAsia ticket. Truth be told, I was planning to visit Sydney again having been there twice before, or any part of Australia as I’d been there 5 times before. But hey, never say never.

In mid-February 2017, I decided to search for MAS tickets instead and bought them via Expedia. I had made a booking at a hotel via booking.com before deciding to source a host via Airbnb. After having a couple of reservations declined and one cancelled, I finally managed to secure a room at a flat in Surry Hills. Phew, Alhamdulillah! Then it was just a matter of time of waiting for the tickets to arrive (electronically in my case) and applying for a visa.

Tuesday, 11 July 2017

I left office and got a ride from my dear colleague to KL Sentral. I was fasting today and broke fast at Le Meridien Hotel. After performing prayers, I had some char kuay teow (the taste left much to be desired though) before going down to take the bus. I had a sudden fear of the 21:30 bus being full so decided to take the 21:00 bus and it turned out to be quite empty. And I found out the flight was retimed to depart 20 minutes later than scheduled. Strewth.

We reached KLIA after only 50 minutes and after dropping off our bags, we went in. I had my main meal then as I was planning to fast the following day.

Wednesday, 12 July 2017

We took off after midnight and as usual sleep was elusive. I liked the area where I sat; the first row of economoney and there are only two rows in that space before the food preparation area. We were not business class but we were somehow isolated from the rest of the cabin class passengers. Sleep was elusive as usual and at one point, I got up and had some water as I was feeling dehydrated. I then asked one of the cabin crew, Miss Afiza, when breakfast would be served as I was planning to fast the following day. She told me it would be served 2.5 hours before arrival, i.e. about 07:30 Sydney time but 05:30 Perth time. I had checked that Suboh was at 05:50 in Perth then so technically if they served us on time, I would be able to have my breakfast as predawn meal. And what do you know, Miss Afiza came and served me ahead of everyone, including those with special dietary needs. She remembered our conversation! How thoughtful, sweet and considerate was that? I had my meal gratefully. Syukur alhamdulillah. She did tell me to hurry as Suboh was approaching. No problem, I thought.

We landed into a wet wet wet Sydney at 09:50 but our plane was made to wait on the runway (along with about 5 other planes ahead of ours). A while turned out to be 45 minutes and I was desperately holding my bladder throughout. We were finally assigned another bay as the plane occupying our designated bay was still there. I was worried that there would be a long queue at immigration but I needn’t have worried as the officers were pretty quick. We did have to queue to clear quarantine though but we cleared it without much ado.

After freshening up, we went to WH Smith to buy Opal cards. I’d done my research and AUD20 would be sufficient to load into our cards. The chap manning the counter was on the phone and looked and sounded distracted but he asked us what we needed and we told him. After asking for directions from a lady to Wolli Creek, we set off, passing by another WS Smith shop.

It was pissing rain and we walked about one km to Wolli Creek. It wasn’t far but it wasn’t much fun in the rain. At the station, we looked at the electronic displays before heading to the right platform to Central station, not realising the machine where we had to tap our Opal cards. I had to return back to the station entrance to tap and was not happy at all to find that one card had AUD40 value while the other had no value. I asked at a nearby kiosk and they couldn’t do anything either as Opal is run by a different private company. I was seething at this point and was angry that I had to part with another AUD20 to reload the empty card. Stupid WH Smith man. Damn you!!!

We reached Central station after about 12 minutes and I was not amused to find that the machine deducted AUD5.95 from my card when the fare should have been only AUD2.36. Seriously?! Barely a few hours after arriving and I was already pissed off. It was still pissing rain when we walked out of the station, crossed over to Foveaux St that climbed up until the Crown Street intersection (no wonder it’s called Surry Hills!) and continued on Fitzroy St until we reached our Airbnb room (an upgrade from this room just next door to the one we stayed at).

After freshening up and performing prayers, we left and walked out and walked up to Sydney Opera House. The weather was acting up again with brief spells of sunshine alternating with spells of drizzle. I broke my fast at Sydney Opera House and on the way back, we stopped at Gelato Messina at Gateway Plaza. We also dropped by Romeo’s and Aldi to buy food. We reached our room after 8 p.m. and rested.

Thursday, 13 July 2017

I woke up at 04:45 and had my pre-dawn meal. I had another kip after Suboh prayers and got up after 08:00. We left after 09:00 and headed out. It was a beautiful winter’s day with endless skies overhead and not a cloud in sight. What a welcome change from the day before! We stumbled upon The Salvation Army shop at Crown St and had a browse. It had a good selection of clothes, household items, toys and books and some shoes and accessories. After that, we went to check out Hermès (branded luxury goods cost more in Australia but I wanted to check out the offerings) before heading to Queen Victoria Building. Anyway, after The Salvation Army shop, I didn’t feel like browsing the departmental store or other high-street shops. We then went to Woolworths and then Coles before I detoured to Paddy’s Market. I spotted a few Gooners there in their Arsenal tops (I was wearing one too beneath the shawl and jacket). I stumbled upon the produce area (never been to that area of market before and it’s mainly run by Chinese Indonesians. I finally bought some broccoli but not before telling off the rude obnoxious seller not to be so rude. I then returned to the Airbnb. There are some road works going on in some parts of the CBD, just like around the airport on the way to Wolli Creek.

We left at 15:15 and headed to Central station. Our match ticket included free public transportation until early the following morning so we followed instructions and crowd to the platform. We took the train to Lidcombe where we had to change trains (and platforms) to Olympic Park. We arrived early enough and after walking around the food stalls selling various snacks and the various Arsenal kiosks, we decided to head over to Pullman Hotel. I broke fast there and even performed prayers at a small corner in the hotel lobby (no prayer room in the hotel). We only made our way to the ANZ Stadium after 18:15 and the stadium was still empty. There were a couple of giant screens showing highlights of goals etc. and after a while, a few groups of school kids decked out in their various sports attire came out and walked half-way around the stadium before disappearing into the tunnel. The stadium started filling up and the Arsenal lads finally came out to warm up at 19:35.

The match kidkced off just after 20:00 and we sat back to enjoy. Well, we did get occasionally frustrated with Theo and Welbz but we finally managed a 2-0 win. We left at 22:30 after battling our way out of the stadium to the train station and to the platform. This time, the train took us directly to Central station without us having to change trains at lidcombe. Alhamdulillah. We dropped by Woolworths Central as I wanted to buy some milk (Woolworths closes at midnight). Then we walked up the hill back to the Airbnb.

To be continued