India 2015, Part 1

Since starting 2015, I never plan for my trip anymore. Just get my bag and go.( if I have the budget)

After my sacred journey, I have a plan to have my get together with my Dubai's friend. So 2 months after my umrah am planning to go to Dubai.

My Umrah was on February so I'll go back again to Dubai on April. (sempatlah mak limah kumpul duit nok)

But, a lunch date on January with Along & the famous blogger Rose Dawson changed everything.

Damn! 

They asked me either wanna join them to India or not. Seriously, I always wanted to go to India. Because sort of my root and I want to feel the people. 

But this is not where the Taj Mahal area itself, this is where the famous Beriyani is all about----> HYDERABAD.

At 1st I was terrifying cause this is my 1st ever trip with total stranger in my life. It started with the visa application after my umrah and then yeah off we go. My ticket is not as cheap as all of them. With whom am going to travel with?

Along, ( my blogger friend), Rose and Toy Along's friend, Sheema Along's housemate and Sarah, Along's backpacking's friend. So everything is from Along. Hahahahaha....

I don't care as long as, this year, my red book will have a stamp from India is just enough for me! Weehooo...

Seriously I just followed the itinerary by Sheema. Enjoying every bits of it. Experience how to apply India visa ( Rose Dawson tolong isikan online form) and lotsa things.  This is total adventure.

I'll continue soon. This is just a teaser post. The details and fun parts will be described by Rose in her blog. ( blogger terkenal la katakan)

The Haramain, 2015

It's not a trip. It's a journey of the sacred placed for each individual Muslim.

I will not going write a long paragraph about my experience because everything I want to keep it with me. It's my 1st wonderful experience to be at the place that be in the top list of places I want to be in the world.

Makkah Al Mukaramah

It's a place, both when I feel I'm coming home. It's a place where I found lotsa love on the air feeling the love of Ar Rahman & Ar Rahim to His worshippers who came to perform Ibadah and to feel His love. A place where everyone trying to be the best, to be the best to grab all the bonuses when everything that been rewarded anywhere is being multiply by many.

Madinah Al Munawarah

Once you at Madinah, to see the green dome, you will feel the pain in your chest of missing that man so much. Yeap, our Prophet, Muhammad Pbuh.

It's a journey. It's my journey. I've no words to describe about my experience of being there. It's a soul thing. The images? U can google it up. To be there? Everything is just on your finger tips. What to bring what not? There are lotsa people sharing in the net. Even the list of things to bring.

For me, I want to keep it with me.

Ya Allah, invite me again for my Hajj and I want to be there many-many time before I die.Ameen ya Rabb.

Turkey 2014, Last Part

Back from Santorini.

Then off from Athens to Istanbul.

Stay a nite at Yilmaz Apartment, then last visit to Topkapi Palace then off to Dubai and then back to KL.

Topkapi Palace is a MUST for those going to Istanbul. There are lotsa of things that you can see and learn there.

Why we don't take a flite from Athens? It's all about cost.

We save around RM1k++  per person for the journey instead of direct flight from Athens to be back home.Plus we can still do our last minute shopping at Istanbul. 

This trip that will be the most memorable one. I miss Istanbul everyday and definitely will come again. It took my heart away. Done, done and done. So, I can concentrate on my 2015 trip.

Alhamdulillah!

Greece 2014, Last Part

After we spend a nite, we decided to go for the island tour. Of course the best place to be in Santorini is Oia. We checked out, put our bags at the reception, and off we go by bus. The bus stop is just in front of the villa.

Can't wait to be at Oia it's the nicest spot in the island.

Oia, pronounced Ia, is the most famous of all villages of Santorini. It is known throughout the world for its quiet life and fantastic sunset, and is certainly the most beautiful and picturesque village of Santorini. The village is also situated on top of an impressive cliff and offers a spectacular view over the volcano of Palia and Nea Kameni and the island of Thirassia. Oia is situated on the north of the island, 11 km away from Fira. 

It is a traditional village with charming houses in narrow streets, blue domed churches, and sun-bathed verandas. Its streets have plenty of tourist shops, taverns, cafes, and other shops. Oia is much more quiet that Fira and the busiest area is the main pedestrian that runs along its length. At the entrance of the village is a car park where visitors can leave their vehicle and enjoy long walks in the picturesque paths. The volcano from here is much less imposing but you can still get some gorgeous views.

Oia has several cultural attractions like the Maritime Museum which houses a small library, items from the maritime life of the area, and the vestiges of a Venetian fortress. Many artists fell in love with the area and settled there. For that reason, the village of Oia has many art galleries. Oia also has a small port, Ammoudi, which can be reached by a set of 300 steps leading down. There, small boats can take you opposite, to the island of Thirassia. The beach of Armenis is also located there. Taverns in Oia offer visitors tasty meals of fresh fish. 

Once there, we spend some time for photos then we back to the villa picked our bags and we took the 3.30pm cruise back to Athens. Then we spend a nite at Pireus Hotel before we back to Istanbul.

It's a short trip to Santorini, but it's worth it for me. I'll come again one day.Insha Allah!

Greece 2014, Part 3

The best and tiring part.

We're going to Santorini. What? Santorini? 

Yes, Santorini the famous island in Greece with the blue dome.

The famous island in The Sisterhood of Traveling Pant for those watching.

The famous island for the honeymooners.

But the Mamma Mia film is not in this island, it's at Skopelos. Believe me they have hundreds of Islands such as Naxos, Mykonos bla bla bla.

But who cares, I just wanna be at Santoriniiiiiiiii!!!

So our journey started really early in the morning for 8 hours trip in a big fat cruise. It stops at Pireus Port, and off we go. If you can't stand to be seated of sleep on the chair, please booked for the cabin room. Or else just loitering around for 8 hours in the the deck specified according to your ticket. Wifi need to be bought once you be in the cruise, if you wanna upgrade to airflite alike seat, then need to add more. Kalau tak mati kau 8 jam duduk kat kerusi meja makan je.

There are several pit stop before we arrived Santorini. We stop at Naxos Island, Mykonos, and another two stops which I can't remember before we arrived Santorini.

We booked earlier through Agoda.com Villa Fotini in Santorini Island.Once we arrived at 3.30pm we asked for free pickup at the port to the villa. Believe me, Maria is really sweet and the villa is just what we expected as advertised in the web. ( tapi dari port nak ke villa, jalan dia scary gila oi, jalan tepi lereng bukit tepi laut..phewww...)

Everybody was so tired. But me and my mom wanna experience the nice view of the place before the sunset. So we went to one of the coffee shop to have the view from the cliff there.As the weather is not that good, we can't view the beautiful sunset. But it's ok, as long you spend the moment with someone special in your life thats what matter the most.

At nite, we walked to the small town nearby called Thira,to buy some souvenirs and had some ice cream. I'm wearing my PJs. Too lazy to change in the cold weather.

Greece 2014, Part 2

Morning Greece,
We can view Acropolis at nite from our room at Soho Hotel. That's in my list today.

Before that we walked to the famous area of Monastiraki Square. (jauh gila ok)

We had our breakfast at a small cafe on the way to the square. Dah macam ayam itik bercakap. Kau tak tau cakap Greek dia tak tau cakap omputeh. Jadi berani ambil roti kosong dengan tuna je atau inti coklat. Hahahahaah..

Monastiraki (Greek: Μοναστηράκι, pronounced [monastiˈraci], literally little monastery) is a flea market neighborhood in the old town of Athens, Greece, and is one of the principal shopping districts in Athens. 

The area is home to clothing boutiques, souvenir shops, and specialty stores, and is a major tourist attraction in Athens and Attica for bargain shopping. The area is named after Monastiraki Square, which in turn is named for the Church of the Pantanassa that is located within the square. The main streets of this area are Pandrossou Street and Adrianou Street.

All of them spend their time shopping here while am queuing to buy the cruise ticket to Santorini as I have problem to book online. So, I went to one of the travel agency there and bought the ticket for us. Then the guy offering me a nice price for hop in hop up bus to be taken in front of the square. So  we decided to spend the rest of the day by sight seeing the city itself.

The destination will be the Acropolis itself. In my whole life, this place is always in my dream. ( why am into roman - greek ancient history I just dunno but Im lid dat!)

What is Acropolis?

The Acropolis of Athens (Ancient Greek: Ἀκρόπολις;^[1] Modern Greek: Ακρόπολη Αθηνών) is an ancient citadel located on a high rocky outcrop above the city of Athens and contains the remains of several ancient buildings of great architectural and historic significance, the most famous being the Parthenon. The word acropolis comes from the Greek words ἄκρον (akron, "edge, extremity") and πόλις (polis, "city").^[2] Although there are many other acropoleis in Greece, the significance of the Acropolis of Athens is such that it is commonly known as "The Acropolis" without qualification.

While there is evidence that the hill was inhabited as far back as the fourth millennium BC, it was Pericles (c. 495 – 429 BC) in the fifth century BC who coordinated the construction of the site's most important buildings including the Parthenon, the Propylaia, the Erechtheion and the temple of Athena Nike.^[3][4] The Parthenon and the other buildings were seriously damaged during the 1687 siege by the Venetians in the Morean War when the Parthenon was being used for gunpowder storage and was hit by a cannonball.^[5]

The Acropolis was formally proclaimed as the preeminent monument on the European Cultural Heritage list of monuments on 26 March 2007.^[6]

Too wordy? Ala Acropolis ni kota Tuhan Greek. Sapa tengok Percy Jackson, ke Hercules ke mesti biasa dengan nama The Athena, The Pathenon, bla bla kan? Keh keh..suka aku la kan.Aku suka buildings tu then membayangkan, how big the city once a long time ago. Plus how big is the people. Perghh.. Acropolis checked! From Senawang to Acropolis katanya kan?

Then we moved around Athens and stop at several pit stops. We ate nice fish and chips at one of the restaurants there and then we had churros. Sumpah sedap gila!

I have the kind of obsession a must try the city train in which ever county I'm in. Nice experience believe me, when you can list down the countries that you visited and the train system that you have experienced. Setiap orang kan lain-lain kehendak bila berjalan ni, macam I lebih suka feel the local, experience the local, barulah traveler. I nak jadi traveler not a tourist.

Greece 2014 Part 1

Believe me, this country is my dream country after Turkey. I'm that kinda weirdo I know, cause I love old buildings, historical places and ruins. Am kinda liddat..well take it or leave it.

We spend most of the hours at the Sabiha International Airport, which located at the European part of Istanbul.

We were too tired after almost 8 hours bus journey and off we go to the airport by cab. Then we separated our luggages, and keep it at the luggage storage at the airport as the airlines just allowed  us for only 20kg luggage.

The fare is quite ok, the luggage storage you can found it just one level under the McDonalds there. I found it through a guide by TripAdvisor earlier before I arrived Turkey. So once there, just asked the information counter, send all the big fat luggage and then off we go to Athens. ( not to worries cuz the fare is really cheap)

After 2 hours and plus journey we arrived Athens, the capital city of Greece.

Ok this is weird. The airport are empty. Like no business, no people at all.

Then we went out to get a cab.

Mind you am traveling with my mom, to bring her here and there. So, using the bus or train is not convenient, so we just took the cab. Can you imagine, the cab driver told us, that he waited almost 5 hours just to get a passenger. You can just google up about what happened in Greece as their facing some economic problems bla bla bla. This is my blog and am have no interest to talk about economy just about ma trip. *toink*

We stayed at one of the budget hotel near Omonia Area. To the Greek people, that area is Muslim area and it's not that safe. For me, it's ok and it's a just budget area for me and the group to stay for a nite before we're going to Santorini.

The hotel name is Soho Hotel and quite famous among the backpackers. But if you think to stay at very nice place this is not the one. Except the service by them to call the cab to bring us early in the morning to the Pireus Port is really reliable.Seriously I can't even remember anything except the tiny elevator that they have and scared my mom to death. Everything we booked thru Agoda.com or Booking.com.

One nite stay, there we cooked our food. As I went down to the nearest groceries store and bought some eggs and vegetables. Then went up they cooked rice, canned food plus the egg and vegetables that we bought. That's how we had our dinner that day. Tiring day but then we can't wait for our adventure to Athens.

Turkey 2014 - Part 9

After the really tiring day at Pamukale, now we hop again the bus and on the way to Ephasus.

We traveled from Pamukalle to Ephasus in a small coach. Once there we had a night a very nice budget hotel then we went to the full day tour of Ephasus and  The House of Virgin Mary.

Ephasus was an ancient Greek city. Mind ya, this trip is supposed to be trip as I'm dying to go to each of Roman - Greek historical sites. As all of them are following me, they have nothing to say except to accept the itinerary that I've arranged for them.

Early in the morning we went to the House of the virgin mary before we send to the Greco-Roman City of Ephasus. What else, ruins of buildings and stones. Don't expect too much if you are following me, as am into historical sites so that's what am gonna be. I'm a person who loves old buildings and architecture. The ruins especially made me really into the art of it. Don't ask about this, because each of us has their preferences while traveling. Mine? Old buildings, historical sites, ruins and unique doors.

After the visit to the Ephasus City, mind you it's a kilometres of walking, make sure you are fit enough to walk, to see that beautiful places.

Then after a visit there, we went to the ruins of Temple of Artemis, the seven wonders of the Ancient World.( kesimpulan cerita memang jalan tengok batu jea la lat Ephasus ni kan kan kan..nasib lay mak lima).

After one whole day we spend  there, we went to the local market before we off to Istanbul that nite.

We arrived at Istanbul really early in the morning, then we off to the airport before off to Athens Greece using Pegasus Airlines.

A Home Baker Who Travels

It took me ages, to continue writing in a blog of mine.

As am into my instagram nowadays, I prefer more on microblogging instead having a proper post in my blog.

Indeed, this blog just for my traveling purpose, no longer ramblings about my life.

Since the last post, pending about my Turkey-Greece post, then I went for Umrah, a short trip to Hyderabad India, then I went to Dubai ( again) and the I just came back for my Spring-Summer trip to Europe. Yeap, I've been to Germany and Austria. 4 new countries back to back in 2015 to be added in my list and now, indeed my traveling fund is draining like water. Hell yeah, need to find new project for back up.

Damn! I don't even have my moi time to fight my jet lag and been back to back working ever since am touched down last Thursday. I shouldn't complain right, but need to say Alhamdulillah.

In these 4 days, I've been around and meeting up inspiring people who happened most of them are my followers.

They seem to adore my way of life of being avid traveler and I'm as a homebaker.

To tell you the truth, I think am a traveler myself and then a homebaker. I love traveling more than baking.

People out there do think that my so called career as a home baker is where I got my traveling fund. To be frank, indeed yes but I have some other projects too which am not sharing all with you. Still am telling you, I'm not that kinda rich person, so I need to work hard for what am having now. Not living in posh & lavish life and am just a simple me.

So I can just work smart and travel whenever I want.

They said they need to be millionaire to help others, to give more to others, to get whatever they want, to buy whatever material they want bla bla bla...

But for me, it's how you define your life itself.

If you feel good and happy with everything then it's ok.

Believe me for one thing, money is needed in our daily life but it's not everything.

Once you get what I mean, then you know.

Don't see me as a successful person. See me as yourself.

It's  just, I've been given a hidden talent even though I'm not good as a baker to be cake artist, and my artwork is not that superb, even some says Ya Allah dia jual kentang je pun but jadi trend, it's what we called taking the chances. Being niche in the market. Be the trendsetter!

There are many people out there are looking forward to be in the F&B industry,  to gain extra income or to be full time homebaker as they said it's easy money. Indeed, but you need to remember, everything need to come with hardwork.

I use to remember in my journey to be what I am today, one friend said ( and I've stayed away from her cause she is too negative to be kept in my life) I think you'll feel bored of what you're doing now and you'll quit.

After years, here am I and alhamdulillah this is what Allah planned for me.

There is point in life that I do think that, in order to contribute to the society itself, you can do a lot.

Don't force yourself to be others,  just be you.

As far as I'm concern, I just be me.

Take it or leave it. You have choice in life.

Ignore those negative people in your life, avoid not hate.

Away, but not cutting off the friendship.

Plus don't be me, but inspired by me, cause I know you have many talents than mine. So be more than me. I know you can do it!

Am enjoying my life to the fullest, having my macbook with me, keep on writing, my iPhone as my source of connection to the world as am a social media addict, and my iPad for my traveling buddy with a cuppa tea, (So English kan) and a slice of dessert of my choice. 

A small reminder, we're the one who define our success not others.

I love to be laid-back, stay at home baker, not having my baking studio or what not, but I'll be supporting you if you want to be a step ahead or further than mine. I don't mind and happy for you too. It's just, I believe in one thing, the more I give  the more I get.

Anyway, in our journey to be what we want to be, remember, if you're Muslim, seek for Allah's blessing in all the things that we've done.

Keep praying and chanting Alhamdulillah for every ni3mah that He has given to us, no matter where and what and when, just say it cause everything happened for a reason.

May Ramadan this year give us all the blessings and indeed pray for me too. I hope that I can start my writing back here to share you all the my traveling journey with you.

Am praying that all of us always be in right path and be in Allah's blessing!

Ramadan Kareem to all!