Happy Holiday everyone in Malaysia...What a perfect ending for all of us, Malaysians! We won the AFF Cup plus an extra gift, Today is the Public Holiday! Pejam celik - pejam celik dah nak masuk tahun 2011. So far, what have all of us done, achieved, travelled, learned and not done yet? As for us, The Year of 2010 has been the most meaningful and shocking year...of all time.
We started our 2010 with traveled to Jakarta and ended up with Seoul. In between two places we have been to Singapore, that was the last with arwah mak. Then we went to Hong Kong and Macau, but in between that we had the most shocking lost, my mom. She was my inspiration to travel far and see the world. She always remind me not to be afraid to take new challenge and live life to the fullest! Eventhough she's not well educated but for me, she had a vision that sometimes PhD holder couldn't think of. She and my dad have given me and my brother a life that full of challenges and obstacles. Maybe some of you might think, kenapa perlu hidup susah? That's the beauty of it...Bila kita biasa susah kena boleh hidup dua zaman, tapi kalau kita biasa senang, bila susah kita menggelabah... Mak selalu pesan buat baik dengan orang, selalu bersedekah tak kira sikit atau banyak...Jangan prejudis, jangan sibuk hal orang...Dan kalau kita buat tu semua, hidup kita sebenarnya tak akan luak walau sikit pun...Malah kita akan dapat balasan di kemudian hari nanti...
It's been 6 months my life without arwah mak, but every single day of my life now, i go thru with her courage and determination. Recently we've been to UK and Iceland, as you can read on our earlier post, but this time we spent half of our time with family and friends around UK.
Just before Liverpool and Iceland, we actually spent time with our families and friends in London, Luton and Derby. In London, I'm sure most of you guys have heard and know about London, mana lagi tempat kegemaran orang Malaysia kalau bukan London? Kebetulan masa kitaorang kat sana, they had this special exhibition about Jimi Hendrix, marking the 40th anniversary of his death. The exhibition was held for 2 weeks in this old building called Handel House Museum, where Jimi Hendrix used to stay when he was in London. The most expensive exhibit was his Gibson Flying V guitar (worth milions in pound) but we couldn't show it because camera was not allowed. But there's one thing I just knew about him is he can draw, I mean he sketch and scribble at the same time. Whenever he writes song he will sketch or scribble, I scribble too but not draw especially bila dah tak de idea..he..he..
If you asked us, what is the most beautiful place to visit in central London? I guess it must be Hyde Park. Being one of world largest urban park in the world, Hyde Park is the relaxation and recreation park for Londoners. Fill with activites like Speaker's Corner, cycling, jogging, football and etc, it's a never dull moment here. Even if you're just sitting or looking at their beautiful landscape and lake.
In London, you don't have to worry about food because halal food is everywhere, especially in Edgware Road going to Marble Arch, Bayswater (Taza Kebab is my favorite, just next to Queensway Tube Station). Kalau dah mengidam makanan Malaysia, apalagi Malaysia Hall la di Queensborough Terrace, ataupun di Corus Hotel, Hyde Park (kuetiaw goreng diaorang sedap!) Ada lagi kalau ke London during weekend, head to Portobello Road, there are two cafes(halal) that owned by Malaysian. One is Makan cafe and The Grain Shop, where Notting Hill movie was shot here on this street. From the Travel BookShop, the market and the house, all here on this area! So go and have a look!. As usual, music will be Faizal center of attraction wherever he goes. Rough Trade Records is one of the "not to be missed" spot for music lovers. This famous independent record label started in 1978 and known as a label who signed The Smiths. If you're looking for music instrument such as guitar, saxaphone and etc.., Denmark Street is a place worth to look at.
One thing for sure, London is the shoppers paradise where all the brands from low to high class you can find here, especially in Oxford Street, Picadilly Circus and the latest is Westfield in Shepherd Bush. (Woodlane's tube station). Besides that, there are so many attractions in London that you can explore. If you hop on the Sightseeing bus, we can even explore more. We've been on that bus before..(I think 6 years ago, so we didn't bother to go again).
But 6 years ago, this is the one place that we missed out. It's Hard Rock Cafe at Old Park Lane. (Camna boleh lupa kan...) As usual, Anna was at the pin section while Faizal was browsing thru the shop memorabilia. One thing special in HRC London is "The Vault", the rock museum fill with rare collection of rock n roll memorabilia. Both of us tak lepas peluang checking it out and sempat berposing ala2 "rockers kangkang"... Biarpun kena 10 pound (official pic) but the experience -"priceless"..
Our next stop was Luton, this area is not meant for tourist but people come here for its airport which links to all over places in Europe. Tapi yang bestnya small town like this, the price more cheaper and less hassle compared to London. At the same time we celebrated one of my aunties' birthday in Milton Keynes. I was so happy because all my aunties, uncles and cousins were there!
After Luton, we headed to Derby towards north so it was getting colder, but the view was getting nicer. While we were in Derby, we had a chance to go to Bakewell,Derbyshire history place for pudding(?) Pada tahun 1820 (lebih kurang la...), ada si orang kaya ni yang menyuruh tukang masaknya buat jem tat, tapi dah tersalah buat tapi jadi sedap dan popular since then. Tapi kalau tengok rupa memang kureng tapi rasa memang tak hengat sedap!
Kat sini jugaklah Ana boleh tertinggal handbag dia, bayangkan duit, passport, tiket semua ada dalam beg. Dalam punya panik yang memang ultimate tu, there was an angel who found and kept it for her. I was so thankful and speechless at the same time...I thought the world is running out of good people..I was wrong...After almost 3 hours I've got back my handbag without a penny lost! Tak nak cerita lebih, traumatize lagi...
Kat Derby ni pun ada Westfield jugak but smaller than London tapi cukuplah nak koyakkan poket! Kat sini yang bestnya all over England, they have many secondhand shops cum Charity shop like Oxfam, British Heart Foundation, Salvation Army dan macam2 lagi la...Kitaorang memang suka masuk kedai2 macam tu. Oh ya!, if you guys are English Premier League fanatics, Derby also famous for their football team, known as Derby County FC. Their home ground is at Pride Park Stadium and currently their club captain is Robbie Savage (ex-Blackburn Rovers).
Walaupun separuh daripada 18 hari kami kali ni dipenuhi dengan melawat ahli keluarga kami tapi keseronokkannya tetap sama bak kata pepatah..."Air Dicincang Takkan Putus" Dengan siapa lagi tempat bermanja kalau bukan dengan mereka, Betul tak?
Oklah, untuk keseluruhan bajet kami selama 18 hari di sana, RM8000 seorang. Tapi ini semua all in termasuk shopping sekali! (tapi this time half of accomodation free! He..he..itu yang shopping lebih sikit tu!) For those who has plan to go, Plan Early and Book Early!
So... as for us, this year alone to be able to travel to 7 countries was an amazing gift and experince!. We have travelled,learned,lost,cried,laughed and gained back our life, in this 2010! A Year that will be remembered forever!
Don't be afraid to have a Dream and Live Life to the Fullest! Happy New Year Everyone!
