Actions speak louder than words. Much louder. Be the person that inspires and enlightens others.
Tetibe aku ter-inspire dengan kata-kata ini. Mungkin benar, kita perlukan vibes positif di sekeliling kita untuk menggerakkan kita melakukan sesuatu yang positif juga.
Salah satunya adalah janji. Bukan saja janji pada orang malahan janji pada diri kita sendiripun sering kita abaikan.
Selalu aku janji2 akan updates blog ini, updates cerita2 kembara ala kadar ku - namun impian itu cuma jadi kenyataan sekali dan sekala. Lepas tu seribu sesalan (Ning Baizura) kerana banyak perkara-perkara menarik yang ingin ku ceritakan terlupa. Semakin meningkat usia semakin pendek span ingatanku. Plan dah lama dah.
Back dated to 31st Dec 2017.
Hari ini aku terbang ke KLIA dari BKI untuk mengejar flight seterusnya ke Amsterdam. Dengan menaiki pesawat Malindo Air aku landed di KLIA jam 7:35PM. Seterusnya menaiki Emirates Airlines via Dubai sebelum melanjutkan leg seterusnya ke Amsterdam.
Aku menyambut Tahun Baru 2018 di atas udara bersama ratusan penumpang pada malam itu. Worth mentioning : staff2 Emirates ini ramah2 belaka boleh gelak2 dengan kitorang.
Menunggu Boarding memang perkara paling boring
Friendly Emirates Staffs
Easy Going and Friendly Emirates Staffs
Yay...
My first time naik Emirates
Cubaan untuk tidur gagal. Aku memang paling sedih malas tak suka rimas kalau terpaksa transit. Semacam gangguan fizikal dan mental. Apakan daya, nak kejar tiket murah. Hi Hi Hi. Tau takpe.
Perjalanan ku kali ini bukan ke negara yang belum pernah ku jejaki. Amsterdam, Belgium dan Germany telah beberapa kali kaki ku menginjak tanahnya, namun yang dulu2 itu mostly macam touch n go. Sekadar transit dan di situ-situ juga. Kali ini, aku akan menjelejahi bandar-bandar di setiap negara itu, bukan sekadar di ibu kotanya sahaja.
Dan kalau dulu2 setiap kali aku kembara bila balik bag pasti beranak namun semenjak dua manjak ni perkara itu tidak berlaku. Malahan semasa kembara ku ke Norway ~ aku langsung takde masuk mall2 di sana.
Yang penting sekarang melihat tempat bukan shopping.... sob sob sob sedihkan...
Landed di Dubai. Terbang lagi ke Amsterdam. Sampai di Schipol Airport sekitar jam 12:45PM. Ada teman tolong jemput dan menghantar ke hotel tempatku menginap semalaman sebelum meneruskan perjalananku ke Rotterdam.
Setelah check-in dan mandi, aku keluar untuk ke city center menaiki tram. Mahu ke HRC. Mahu ke Damrak Square. Mahu makan dan mahu melihat kilauan lampu-lampu neon di sepanjang canal. People watching dan mahu merakamkan gambar2 menarik untuk dijadikan bahan blogging.
Lodewijk van Deysselstraat tram stop is 160 m from XO Hotels Blue Square
Mengimbas kembali kenangan pertama kali aku jejak kaki di Belanda pada tahun 2010
Suasana malam di kota Amsterdam
Walaupun sebenarnya masih penat setelah lebih 19 jam hidup antara terminal, kaki ku masih gagah melangkah. Mahu cari makan.
Sesekali bila ada spot menarik aku rela berhenti untuk berfoto
Akhirnya sampai di HRC Amsterdam tapi Full House. Terpaksa tunggu 45 minit lagi
Beli baju dulu lah....
Finally!.. Ada nampak aku gembira???
This . boots made for walking!
Selepas makan, terus menapak ke Damrak Square. Agak jauh juga dalam 20-30 minit jalan kaki. Sampai di sana, terdetik dalam hati "macam tak happening lah... dulu lagi best".
Hujan lah pula. So naik tram untuk balik ke hotel penginapan ku XO Hotel Blue Squares. Review hotel ni nanti aku buat berasingan. Malas mikir.
I took my last trip almost 2 months ago ~ A week in Dubai. Anyone who knows how much I am used to travelling will readily see that for me, this seems like an eternity..... oh..okay... I'm exaggerating.... lol....
There is a good reason for my hiatus, and I have plenty of other things to keep me busy at the moment, but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t missed traveling just about every day since my last trip.
Addicted To Travel
I miss the thrill that travel gives me. I miss being out of my comfort zone. When we travel, I get a real sense of accomplishment when I have to think on my feet to solve a problem, or the way that being in a new place can help you to see things in a different way.
Saving For My Travel
I miss the anticipation and anxious months of planning a trip. Having a trip out on the horizon to look forward to becomes like an addiction, almost as much as the travel itself. I miss spending spare moments looking in travel books for ideas and putting together itineraries that I almost never actually stick to.
The airport is always an exciting place for me, and I miss the familiar airport rituals and the incredible sense of sheer potential that I always feel when in an airport to travel somewhere. I imagine the airport as a portal to a whole new world of new experiences. The airport is always the beginning of a new adventure, and I love knowing that infinite possibilities for adventure lie before me when we step off of the airplane.
Lastly, I miss coming home. I miss that first night home in my own bed, and thedifference in perspectivethat traveling gives you about the place that you live. It makes you appreciate my space in a new way and usually gives me a renewed sense of passion and purpose in my life. I love the feeling of returning home, refreshed and ready to take on life again.
And for now... I'm dreaming of these few places. I'm working hard to make it a reality! So ~ please pray for me.
It is the third largest lake in France, after the Lac du Bourget and Lac de Grand-Lieu, if the French part of Lake Geneva (which is also partly in Switzerland) is excluded. It is known as "Europe's cleanest lake" because of strict environmental regulations introduced in the 1960s. It is a popular tourist destination known for its swimming and water sports.
The lake was formed about 18,000 years ago, at the time the large alpine glaciers melted. It is fed by many small rivers from the surrounding mountains (Ire, Eau morte, Laudon, Bornette and Biolon), and from a powerful underwater source, the Boubioz, which enters at 82 m depth.
Squeezed into just 200 hectares (2.8 sq km), this confetti principality might be the world’s second-smallest country (the Vatican is smaller), but what it lacks in size it makes up for in attitude. Glitzy, glam and screaming hedonism, Monaco is truly beguiling.
Although a sovereign state (Monaco has its own flag and national anthem), the principality's status is unusual. It is not a member of the European Union, yet it participates in the EU customs territory (meaning no border formalities crossing from France into Monaco) and uses the euro as its currency. Citizens of Monaco (Monégasques) don’t pay taxes. The traditional Monégasque dialect is, broadly speaking, a mixture of French and Italian.
Eze France
Your jaw will drop at the gorgeous view of the Mediterranean from Eze, a charming hilltop town on the Cote d’Azur. Its beautiful cobblestone streets and hot-pink bougainvillea are a far cry from the glamour of Cannes or St-Tropez—and for travelers who could care less about celebrities and megayachts, that’s quite appealing. Shoppers will delight in the many local perfumeries and art galleries.
Cannes France
Basking in the sun of the French Riviera, Cannes sparkles with glamour and exclusivity. This legendary seaside resort has all the glitz and allure of the Côte d'Azur: private beaches, marinas filled with luxury yachts, stylish boulevards, elegant Belle Epoque hotels, and fashionable restaurants. In an enchanting setting on Golfe de la Napoule bay, Cannes is blessed with a balmy Mediterranean climate. The weather is mild year-round and perfect for sunbathing by the beach from May through October. Leafy palm trees grace the streets of Cannes, and subtropical flowers flourish throughout the city, giving visitors the impression of being in paradise. The prestigious Film Festival of Cannes has been an important event since it began in 1946. Drawing famous movie stars from around the world, this annual red-carpet gala has earned an international reputation for promoting the art of filmmaking.
Now let's fly to Amsterdam for my Tulips!
The Keukenhof theme for 2016 is “The Golden Age“, the era when Holland became rich through worldwide trade.
The highlight of the theme year is the flower bulb mosaic beside the Oranje Nassau Pavilion. This shows a Delft Blue tile on which the trade across the seas and the rich canal-side houses of Amsterdam are depicted. The mosaic covers an area of 250m2. There are 100.000 flower bulbs used; tulips, grape hyacinths (muscari) and crocuses.
The Golden Age provides the inspiration for the flower mosaic and for many of the flower shows in the Oranje Nassau Pavilion. New in 2016 are a Golden Age inspirational garden and a Delft Blue garden.
Dates Flower shows 2016
24 March - 29 March Tulip show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
24 March - 05 April Hyacinths show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
24 March - 28 April Flowering Shrubs show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
24 March - 16 May Potted plants show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
24 March - 16 May Amaryllis show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
24 March - 16 May Bulb-on-Pot show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
24 March - 16 May Permanent Lilies show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
31 March - 05 April Freesia show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
07 April - 12 April Gerbera show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
14 April - 19 April Roses show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
21 April - 25 April Daffodils and Special Bulbs show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
25 April - 01 May Tulip show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
27 April - 03 May Alstroemeria show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
29 April - 16 May Perennials show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
05 May - 10 May Chrysanthemum and Calla show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
05 May - 16 May Lilies show: Willem-Alexander Pavilion
12 May - 16 May Carnation and Summer flowers show: Oranje Nassau Pavilion
The Hague
The Hague is a city on the North Sea coast of the western Netherlands. Its Gothic Binnenhof complex is the seat of the Dutch parliament, and 16th-century Noordeinde Palace is the king’s workplace. The city is also home to the U.N.’s International Court of Justice, headquartered in the Peace Palace, and the International Criminal Court.
Geneva Switzerland
Geneva is a Swiss city that lies at the southern tip of expansive Lac Léman (Lake Geneva). Surrounded by the Alps and Jura mountains, the city has views of dramatic Mont Blanc. Headquarters of Europe’s United Nations and the Red Cross, it’s a global hub for diplomacy and banking. French influence is widespread, from the language to gastronomy and bohemian districts like Carouge.
If time permit..... Interlaken
Located between two Alpine Lakes (Brienzersee and Thunersee), Interlaken is a popular base camp for outdoor sports and travel in the surrounding Bernese Oberland Alps. While Interlaken itself is not that scenic it serves as a good base to discover the neighbouring valleys, mountains and lakes, since it holds all the infrastructure and can be reached quickly from major Swiss cities by train and car.
