Holiday Blues

I am back after away for 26 days. I had to leave the UK on Christmas Eve. I kinda felt lonely and sad as people on the street were doing last minute Xmas shopping, buying presents for family and friends, or going to a Xmas dinner, and I... what was I doing? I was carrying my suitcases zooming across London to Heathrow airport to take the flight out. Even one London Underground staff said this to me, "It is kinda late heading home now, isn't it?" That made me even sadder.

Oh well, I am home now, suffering from holiday blues....

The following are the highlights of my trip of the countries I passing through:

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
- Stayed at a hostel, right opposite Bukit Bintang monorail station. If you know the Giodarno big billboard, it just covered my room window. So you know how central I was in KL.
- Did a bit of shopping at the Pavillion
- Applied my Turkish visa application.

Dubai, UAE (Click here for pictures)
- Free transit stop for 9 hours with free hotel, free breakfast, free lunch and free transport to and from the airport
- Rain in this desert city

Istanbul, Turkey (Click here for pictures)
- Arrived at nightfall and our tram stopped in front of the magnificent Sultanahmet (Blue) Mosque
- The annoyance is the haggling of shopkeepers and the expensive entrance fees to sights
- A tiring uphill "climb" to the shopping district - Taksim square
- Apple tea at the Mosque cafe, next to a cemetery
- Fish kebabs, lamb kebabs, Chicken kebabs
- Nice Turkish hairstyle for the guys, but all look the same to me
- Turkish delights and sweets
- Belly dancing at the hostel
- Free breakfast at the hostel - Olives, cheeses, bread, eggs, cucumber, tomatoes and no kebabs

Sofia, Bulgaria (Click here for pictures)
- Very Soviet atmosphere
- Mosque, synagogue, churches stood side by side
- Waited in the cold at the Turksih - Bulgarian border at -5 degrees at 1am, while waiting for the Bulgarian border guard to check if our passports were genuine
- Cheap cheap stuff, especially fruits and vegetables and food
- Very nice hostel (Hostel Mostel) with free breakfast and free pasta dinner
- Was given free drinks by the guests from the next table at a local restaurant
- Strange grocery shop below street level, and the customers had to squat down and order goods from a small window
- Very COLD!

Prague, Czech Republic (Click here for pictures)
- Cheap beers. Actually Pilsners and Budweiser are Czech names.
- Met wonderful Czech friends from Istanbul Hostel who took me out dining in the evenings
- Lots of handmade handicrafts and puppets to buy
- Sir Toby's is a wonderful hostel with very rustic atmosphere.
- Billa supermarket opens from 7am to 9pm was our twice daily stop for stocking up for breakfast and dinner
- Lots of dogs of all shapes and sizes. Some people even donated a dog in a carrier bag and a man picked it up before entering a tram
- Vietnamese residents selling clothes at the Prague market. We had Vietnamese fried noodles there
- Saw a woman walking a pig and a dog
- Favourite stores - Billa, Manufaktura and Blue

Leeds, UK
- Very multicultural city with halal food at almost every corner. Even the Chinese takeaways are halal.
- Clean and user friendly Leeds Bradford Airport
- Love the supermarket Morrison and the market.... Cuppa tea, luv?
- Very near to the city of York (where I used to work) - only 25 minutes train ride
- Could have shopped more if I had more space in my luggage

Hallelujah! It's December - The X Factor final

X Factor announces its winner every December, making the single designated to be UK's Christmas No.1 song.

2005 - Shayne Ward "That's my goal"

2006 - Leona Lewis "A moment like this"

2007 - Leon Jackson "When you believe"

2008 - Alexandra Burke "Hallelujah"

This year song was a cover version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" which is No.36 in the chart. The Jeff Buckley's version is at No.2. Basically there are 3 versions of "Hallelujah" in the Top40 Chart. The first time I heard the song was by Jason Castro at American Idol 2008.

Hallelujah (Click here for video link)

i heard there was a secret chord

that david played and it pleased the lord

but you don't really care for music, do you

well it goes like this the fourth, the fifth

the minor fall and the major lift

the baffled king composing hallelujah

hallelujah...

well your faith was strong but you needed proof

you saw her bathing on the roof

her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you

she tied you to her kitchen chair

she broke your throne and she cut your hair

and from your lips she drew the hallelujah

hallelujah...

baby i've been here before i've seen this room

and i've walked this floor i used to live alone

before i knew you i've seen your flag on the marble arch

but love is not a victory march

it's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah

hallelujah...

well there was a time when you let me know

what's really going on below

but now you never show that to me

do you but remember when i moved in you

and the holy dove was moving too

and every breath we drew was hallelujah

well, maybe there's a god above

but all i've ever learned from love

was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you

it's not a cry that you hear at night

it's not somebody who's seen the light

it's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah

hallelujah...

Turkish Mystic Music and Dance

Last night we attnded the Sufi Music Concert and whirling Dervishes Ceremony. It was conducted by the Sufi group of Istanbul. It was very interesting and strict rules of no flash photography and talking was heavily enforced.

Apparently that was their form of praying to God. I have attached the short film clip of the ceremony.

Dubai Dubai - Wet wet wet

"Rain falls on every corner of the earth" is really true. When we arrived in Dubai, it was raining. I was travelling with Emirates airlines and free hotel and meals (buffet breakfast and lunch) were included.

So basically we did nothing but ate and rest in the airport hotel.

Our visit also concided with the UAE National Day celebration, when tea and dates were served by a local Emirati at the airport. It is abit like Open House kind of ritual.

Annoyance in Kuala Lumpur

No, no, no I am not talking bad things about KL. KL this time is great (surprisingly). Lots of sales and things are cheaper than expected. However, I cant shop a lot as I dont plan to drag my shopping around Europe.

So what I was annoyed about then? The visa application to Turkey was not as straight forward as we expected. I dont want to give too many details here, as someone may be offended. So in the end, we just hope we will get the visa on time for our flight tomorrow evening. So we also make contigency plan if we dont receive it on time. So maybe fly to Romania instead. We'll see.

To compensate all this annoyance, I managed to buy few CDs: David Archuleta, David Cook, Il Divo and Josh Groban. Also my KL friend and I went to a fantastic Vietnamese restaurant La Lot at the KL Pavilion. Sorry not my own photos here as I forgot to bring the camera with me. I 'borrowed' the pics from http://www.hungrygowhere.com/. We had spring rolls, famous Vietnamese noodles and coffee...Total RM83.50 for 2 of us hahaha

Tomorrow, I am gonna treat myself a Taiwanese-japanese fusion lunch :) I dont want to have my mood spoilt, I want to enjoy myself... by eating!

So again, not a good start for my trip ...

My Adventure in December School Holiday

School's out. As an annual tradition, I NEED to travel.

This December, I will visiting several countries from 1 to 26 December 2008.

KL, Malaysia - Turkish visa application

Dubai, UAE - 9 hrs transit. Emirates provides free stop over hotel :p

Turkey - Istanbul, the city that is located in both Asia and Europe

Bulgaria - Sofia, the capital

UK - London, my flights in and out of the UK

Leeds, I will be meeting up with some SMSO scholars

Czech Republic - Gonna travel with Azrin from Leeds and spend 1 week in Prague

I have to use all sorts of currencies this time: Malaysia Ringgit, UAE Dirham, New Turkish Lira, Bulgarian Lev, British pound and Czech Koruna. My September trip was much easier, only Euros :)

Mexican Fiesta @ Sheraton Utama

On Thursday 27 November, we went to the Mexican Fiesta at Sheraton. I was surprised that the buffet was of limited choice. Normally, the buffet extended till the poolside. Then I realised that the price was $29+ per person, while on Fridays and Saturdays, it was $36+. Maybe that was why the buffet was of 'limited' choice.

I will try to remember as much menu items in Spanish as possible. 2 choices of soups (Salmon Chowder or Pimento), fried rice, prawns, fish, chicken, lamb, aztec tortillas, chili con carne and all kinds of tortilla and assorted Mexican desserts. Lots of vegetables and could be very healthy.

Okay, what is so big deal about the different varieties of tortillas as shown in the picture above. Burritos, enchiladas, tacos. Actually they are all almost the same. It is called different names by the way it is wrapped or fold in different ways. hahahaha.

We tried to take pictures with the 2 Mexican guest chefs but they left the restaurant much earlier than we expected. So, we ended up borrowing the mexican hat and took photos with it. So what is the big Mexican hat called? The answer is revealed after the next picture.

SOMBRERO

Blogger of blogs

I have not been blogging on this blog for a while. Normally the reason given will be either be lazy or busy. However I am not happy with either of these two 'excuses'.

In addition of posting in this blog, I am also 'responsible' for the other 2 blogs about my school.

SMSOthman

SMSO Careers

As in one of my previous posts "Some facts about blogging",

Scientists have long known the therapeutic benefits of writing about personal experiences. Blogs provide another convenient avenue for writing about personal experiences.

I guess I have taken the therapeutic benefits in writing the 2 SMSO blogs. So by the time I am thinking of writing here, I have nothing more to share or am infected of something called writer's block.

Since school will be out for 1 month with no activities to report, I guess I will be more active in writing here. Let's see what happens ...

Facebook or Friendster?

Here are some facts about Facebook:

• Facebook was launched on February 4, 2004.
  


• Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook while he was a student at Harvard University.
  


• Website membership was initially limited to Harvard students.
  


• The website currently has more than 110 million active users worldwide.
  
  
  However, in Brunei, Friendster seems to be more popular.
  
  Here are some facts about Friendster:
  
  
• Friendster was founded in Mountain View, California, United States by Jonathan Abrams in March 2002.


• It currently has more than 85 million members worldwide and is mostly used in Asia.

• it caters to men and women interested in meeting people due to different reasons.

Actually these social networking sites are meant for members to find friends or connecting with old friends...so I dont understand why people like to use nicknames etc. Are they trying to let people NOT finding them? In that case, why on earth did they join in the first place????

The land where architects' wildest dreams come true

On my way back from Europe during my last holiday, I had 2-day stopover at United Arab Emirates (UAE). For most people, UAE is Dubai. Actually UAE consists of 7 emirates, namely Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ras al-Khaimah, Ajman, Fujairah and Umm al-Quwain.
Burj al- Arab

It was quite fortunate that one of my former colleagues, David, is now working in Ras al-Khaimah (RAK); and I was invited to stay the night with his family. It was very nice of him too to pick me up at Dubai International Airport.

The car journey to RAK was about an hour. After the drive past by rocks, deserts and sands, we finally arrived at his home. The windows of the houses in the area are designed in such away that you will not be able to look into the houses of your neighbours. In Brunei, we tend to know what is going on next door hahaha

There are lots of great stories about the trip to UAE, but I don't want to bore readers by giving full description.

My visit to UAE this time is very different from my last trip there in 2003. Dubai is almost 10 times more developed than 5 years ago with lots of high rise buildings and they are still building. Resorts are being built along the coast in most emirates. The Dubai bus-stop is air-conditioned. Dubai is ever so crowded.

Air-conditioned bus-stop

The high rise buildings in Dubai

Burj Dubai, the tallest man-made structure on Earth

"Dubai Creek" inside a hotelShopping Bazaar inside a hotel

Skiing inside a mall

This time, I managed to get out of Dubai and saw where the locals lived and shopped. The pace is much slower and a stone throw away from mountains and the sea. Many thanks to David and his family for showing me around. And it was great to meet them again after they left Brunei last December.

Road to the mountains

Spending my not-so festive seasons

Halloween today! I have cooked (experimenting) some dishes and invited some former students to come to my place for dinner last night. The menu was: Devilled Eggs, Crispy Chricken with Tomotoes and Basil, Baked carrots, Strawberry Chesscake and Toffee Apples. I tried to make the dishes more Halloween themed.

Raya this year is almost over. It started on Thursday 2 October 2008 this year.

I have only gone to fewer than 8 open houses this year - 6 exactly (Cg Hamidah, Cg Noriana, Cg Mashiti, Cg Taufik, Cg Masdiana and Erwin). I nowadays feel less inclined of visiting open houses.

I have the same 'problem' when it comes to Chinese New Year. I should be even more joyful during the Chinese New Year. Again, I take it as a holiday to rest and homebound, rather than outbound.

As for Christmas, I am always away travelling. This Christmas, guess where I am gonna spend it. I will be sitting on a plane on Christmas Eve flying from London to Dubai on Emirates Airlines.

New Year - Last year I was on the RBA plane from London to Dubai. And we didnt know where the time zone was when the clock striked 12...which clock? Which time zone?

Come to think of it, it is rather sad (lol) the way I spend the festive seasons.

Bibliophilia - hobby or illness?

I love books. I have a whole cupboard full of books.

I don't just buy any books. I love novels written by Anne Rice, travel guides and cookbooks. I was watching an episode from Hell Kitchen and the lady was telling Gordon Ramsay that people buy cookbooks as if they are buying porns.

Anyway, I just bought the following books from Amazon UK. With our favourable exchange rates with teh British pounds, things are cheaper than it used to be.

Lonely Planet: Eastern Europe

Since I am travelling to Czech Republic and Bulgaria this December, I will travel with one of my favourite lonely planet guides

Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food

I have all Jamie (JMe) Oliver's books. Hahaha, what a name - Ministry of Food! This book has a step-by-step pictures for the recipes. It is not difficult to follow his recipes. Excellent for beginners to cooking :) Healthy yet delish!

Nigella Christmas

Christmas is near and I am thinking of cooking a Christmas feast sometime (this year or in future). Again I have all her books, so this one is not to be missed, especially for people who are cooking for Christmas or any parties.

The Man in Seat 61

Mark Smith has an excellent website on http://www.seat61.com/ which gives excellent information on train travel in different countries. One let down of this book is that it focuses on European travel and very UK-based. So it is not that suitable for travellers planning to travel from other countries.

One thing for sure, I am NOT a bookworm.

The Land of Ideas - Deutschland

Germany has always been one of my favourite countries. I met 2 German brothers during my tour around Scotland, who invited me to spend Christmas with their family. So Germany is the first country I travelled to when I was a student in the UK.

Ever since I spent my Christmas in Germany, I fell in love with the country. Germany is a land of contrast, with sea and beaches in the north, Alps and lakes in the south and the fairy-tale towns and cities and the beautiful Christmas markets in between.

I have been to Germany 5 times in separate trips. And Berlin is always my favorite German city. It has tragic past over the last 60 years: Nazi's rule, Cold War, and reunification.

Then the food: the world famous Schwarzwalderkirschtorte (Black Forest cake), Pork Knuckles, more than 1500 types of sausages, beer, and chocolates!!!!!!

In September 2008, I visited 3 cities: Bremen, Dresden and Berlin (again)

Bremen : a small historical town famous for the Grimm Brothers' fairy tale of Town Musicians. It is also the starting point of Fairy Tale Road.

Dresden: was almost totally destroyed by Allied bombing in 1945. Now it has been rebuilt with the former Baroque grandeur. Lots of chocolate shops!!!

Berlin: The cheapest of all the Western European cities and very arty. Kebab is B$5, a plate of vegetarian fried noodles B$4. The buildings in the former East and former West can be quite distintive. The shops in former East Berlin even though selling the latest fashions, still housed in former Communist Russian style squared buildings. You just have to be there to experience it :) Art galleries can be found in unexpected alley ways...

I will indeed go back to Germany again....

Tickets to the nights of entertainment

Until now, these are the PAID concerts I have been:

Belinda Carlisle @ Brighton, UK

Cyndi Lauper @ London, UK

Westlife @ Brunei

Celine Dion @ Las Vegas, USA

Blue @ Brunei

Madonna @ Paris, France

Sticky and Sweet, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock....

When I was asked how Madonna's concert was, I actually did not know what to say. I have previously written a post soon after I watched her concert in Paris, but it was kinda vague. Why didn't I feel that excited after the long awaiting concert? Maybe I was overwhelmed at that time, , or because it was my first time watching her and I didnt know how to 'enjoy' the show, or the Parisian autumn was just too cold for me, or the delay of my luggage actually spoilt my excitement, or a combination of all these factors.

This will be my last post on my blog to mention about Madonna's Sticky and Sweet concert (I hope). There are lots of concert pictures on Madonna Tribe.

Finally I am reliving my moment at Stade de France in Paris on 20 Septmeber by looking at some of the youTube videos :)

"Like A Prayer" is when the concert turned the stadium into a giant dance floor.





The following setlist is obtained from Hard Candy Music website.

The show features four main section. The show opener, Candy Shop, has now a longer intro compared to the promo tour version. A musical intro a la Drowned World Tour, with bits and pieces of song form Hard Candy that we will be hearing later in the show fades into the "C-A-N-D-Y" intro from the promo tour.

The clock ticking theme from 4 minutes can be heard several times during the show. In the show intro, in Vogue and in the "Get Stupid" interlude, which reminds of the Confessions Tour's Sorry Video interlude. In Get Stupid there are samples of Give It 2 Me, 4 Minutes and Beat Goes On and it's about our chance to save our planet from the various damages we created.

The use of music samples is very big on this tour. Many of the classic hits are musically re-arranged as mash-ups and the songs are sung on musical tracks heavely sample-ing other dance songs. Like A Prayer, for example, which, as previously reported by M-Tribe, has entered the set list is now replacing Impressive Instant and it's delivered using musical parts of the 1992 dance hit by Felix "Don't You Want Me".

Into The Groove, that contains a small sample of Madonna's Jump, is also delivered using musical parts of another dance song "Toop Toop" by Cassius, while Borderline is a great "rocky/ska" re-invention of the classic 1983 ballad.

The first video interlude, a fast and speeded up version of the James Bond theme Die Another Day, features exclusive new footage of Madonna as a boxeur, from the brand new photoshoot by Tom Munro for the Tour Book.

The second video interlude mashes up Madonna's Rain with the Eurythmics' Here Comes The Rain Again, using their original version and leading to Devil Wouldn't Recognize You. Originally supposed to play the piano herself on this song, Madonna will now be placed on the piano, reminessing a bit the Sooner Or Later performance from Blond Ambition.

Sticky & Sweet Set List

Intro/Candy Shop
Beat Goes On
Human Nature
Vogue

Video Interlude - Die Another Day
Into The Groove
Heartbeat
Borderline
She's Not Me
Music

Video Interlude - Rain/Here Comes The Rain Again
Devil Wouldn't Recognize You
Spanish Lesson
Miles Away
La Isla Bonita/Lela Pala Tute
Doli Doli (Live interlude - Romanian folk song)
You Must Love Me

Video Interlude - Get Stupid (About saving the planet)
4 Minutes
Like A Prayer
Ray Of Light
Hung Up
Give It 2 Me (Finale)

Talk Madonna with Radio DJ

It was the usual morning drive to work with Pilihan FM on my car radio. It was DJ Izan again, but surprisingly there were not many call-in listeners this morning. Maybe this is the examination periods and everyone is busy, busy, busy.

She played "Give It to Me" by Madonna, then she talked bout Madonna and Guy Ritchie splitting up. So, since it was a quiet morning, I decided to give her a call ON AIR.

Here is how it went...

Using a hands free kit,

I: Hello

DJ: Hello

I: Hello

DJ: Hello

I: This is Charles

DJ hung up the phone as she couldn't hear me

Then I tried for the second time ...without hands free kit

I: Hello

DJ: Hello, your hands free kit so lousy one. Made in China kah?

I: No lah, I use the original one, which came with the hand phone

DJ: Are you driving as I can hear the echo?

I: (winding up the car window). Ok now

DJ: So what can I do for you?

I: As you were mentioning about Madonna just now, I just wanna say I went to her concert in Paris a couple of weeks ago

DJ: No kidding! So how was it?

I: It was very good.

DJ: Tell me, I want to know everything

I: She sang about 20 songs and the concert lasted for about 2 hours. She changed the music to most of her songs so we weren't able to recognise the songs at first. It was a bit controversial.

DJ: What do you expect? That is Madonna. So any souvenirs for me?

I: Nothing...hahahhahaa.

DJ: You ah. Went to her concert and nothing for Izan. You are making so jealous of you now. I am like licking my wounds. How is the traffic?

I: The traffic is fine as I am driving on the highway from Bandar to Tutong.

DJ: Yeap, of course not much traffic on the highway. So, any song requests?

I: It is okay since you are playing songs from 80s and 90s. Those are my favourites anyway.

DJ: Ok, you have a nice day. Bye

I: you too. Bye

Now I think of it, so weird. And I was actually dumbstruck and sounded monotonous. She must have thought I was boring. What to expect as I was driving!!!!

Hostelling - a Crime?

Whenever I tell someone that I stay at hostels during my travels; I always get this astonishing look on the face. Most people presume hostels are dirty, cramped and full of weird hippies who smoke and take drugs.

There are various types of hostels: party, quiet, family-friendly hostels. Also, the thought of sharing room with total strangers can be daunting as well as the issue of security. Some hostels again offers various types of rooms: single, double, family or dormitory. Basically hostels are for everyone, not for backpackers only.

The reasons I like to stay at hostels are to meet other travellers, cook my own food. You'll be surprised how good facilities are provided in some hostels. Some hostels are even better than hotels.

The followings are reviews of the hostels I stayed during my European travel in September 2008:

1) Paris: Bureau des voyages de la Jeunesse (BVJ)
It is situated at Latin Quarter, near to the University of Sorbonne. A district, full of bookshops and cafes. The receptionists were helpful in providing local information. Rooms were not very clean. The shower 'stand' was very small with no curtain. So someone sleeping on certain bunk beds will have full view of the person in the shower. Talking about the openness of French. No lift, and my room was on the 5th floor. The spiral staircase is beautiful, but not so when you have to carry your luggage up to the room. Breakfast was a really BIG bowl of hot drink (tea, coffee or chocolate), buffet cereals, French bread (baguette) with jams and butter. The baguette was delicious. Bed price: €28 per night.

2) Luxembourg City: YHA Luxembourg City

Situated in a beautiful location underneath a railway bridge and next to a river. Reception is huge with lots of information. Rooms are very clean with new furnished IKEA-styled room. All rooms are accessed with key cards.Very comfortable with fluffy pillows and mattress. Everyone is provided with secure locker to store luggage. Shower and toilet facilities are abundant. Though there is no kitchen facilities, there is a very good restaurant serving reasonably priced meals. A 3 course dinner cost only €8. Buffet breakfast is included in the room price. Breakfast consists of all you can eat cereals, breads with jam, cheese and cold cuts and tea/coffee. Bed price: €20. The best hostel I have ever stayed in my life.

3) Bremen: GastHaus Backpacker

It is located very closed to the train station. Gender segregated communal shower. Excellent kitchen with dishwasher, means we don't have to clean up after cooking. €17

4) Dresden: Kangaroo Stop
Very close to Dresden Neustadt train station in a quiet and leafy neighbourhood. Hostels have excellent kitchen facilities. The shower is again communal. Rooms are decorated in a very cosy and homely design. Bed per night: €15 excluding breakfast.

5) Berlin: The Circus Hostel

This is the second time I stayed at this hostel, due to its location near to cafes and restaurants. The takeaways places around the hostel serve cheap and delicious meals. It is also very near to the main train station as well as next to the subway station.
Free WiFi is available in lobby as well as in the rooms. Excellent bathroom and toilet facilities. All rooms are accessed with key cards. Though breakfast is not included in the room price, the buffet breakfast is more like a brunch and cost €5. Bed price per night: €21