germany
They Made It To The Top of Pet?ín Hill!
September 16, 2017
Finally :D
During their first trip to Czech in the middle of 2015, we ran out of time to explore Prague itself. Lol. I was so eager last time to take them to different cities in Europe and turned out I forgot to allocate more days to explore Prague itself. -__-'
But, alhamdulillah this time, more places checked!
Pet?ín hill, Czech
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| With Pet?ín Lookout Tower (Pet?ínská rozhledna) |
Finally they managed to get to the top! The queue for the funicular was not that short but I was glad we had few unplanned hours to spend. :)
The day after my graduation day was when our Europe road trip started. We were expected to pick up our pre-booked rental car at about 3pm when unexpectedly it was delayed till 6pm.
Early morning that day, I took a tram from our Airbnb to the city center to get my degree's translation done, together with the other Malaysians. Since the scroll was very big, we need to make a notarized, smaller copy (A4) - and of course it costs money. Then, we left the smaller copy at the translation office.
Guess what, the translator was extremely old and we were told that he is currently the one and only official Latin to English translator in Czech! We kept praying that he will remain healthy as long as he can :)
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| Summer with flowers. <3 |
Done with all procedures, I rushed back to the Airbnb to help with check out. With Uber, we took our luggages straight to car rental office and planned to store our luggage there for few hours while waiting for the car to be ready.
Things happened, plan changed.
So, the car will only be ready around 6pm.
What to do?
Let's explore Prague!
Of course not really by foot but public transportation :D Hehe
PET?íN - SCENIC VIEWPOINT OF PRAGUE, CZECH
click here to read and to enjoy the views from this hill :)
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| Main aci nyorok ;p This was how I enjoyed my parents' old school jokes... ambik je gambar nanti kacau diorang balik :) |
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| Sometimes, I feel like I am just a photographer for their trip. Haha. I wonder how older generation can maintain the sweetness and harmony in their relationship? T__T |
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| The queue for funicular. You can always use the same tickets for tram / metro as long as they are still valid. |
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| View from the funicular. |
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| My mum requested her picture with these roses :D |
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| Homemade lemonade - already missing this T__T |
This lemonade was nicely done and delicious! Always ask about the ingredients if you come to Czech as they sometimes don't consider wine / beer as alcohol (as these are totally normal for them). Don't simply ask about alcohol okay?
Does it have alcohol, beer or wine? Má alkohol, pivo nebo víno?
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| Ginger for ayah, lemon for mak, strawberry for me. |
Around 5pm+, the car rental company texted me that the car was ready for pick up. :)
RUNWELL Rent A CarJust for my future reference, in case I forgot about this.
Or you can try this car rental company as well :) I recommend it!
After checking the car and set the navigation, we finally leave Prague for a transit in Hannover before our next destination, Hamburg, Germany. :)
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| Sunset in Germany. |
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| SubhanAllah, isn't it beautiful? :D |
Till next post, insyAllah :)
SS, Perak, Malaysia
170916
Accommodation We Had Stayed In Europe (Part 2/2)
August 10, 2017
4. Odense, Denmark
Type: Private Room with Shared Bathroom & Kitchen
(click the link to get to its Airbnb's profile)
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| A room for 3 persons |
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| Hugeeee bathroom! |
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| The other side of bathroom. Trust me, it is as big as another bedroom! |
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| The kitchen. |
Lessons Learned:
- MY REVIEW: This amazing place is one of a kind. If you want a very calm, peaceful environment, this is a place to go - you can expect lots of wheat fields along the way to get here (my parents LOVE theseeeee so much) . The house is under renovation (no working was done during our stay) but it does not affect our activity at all. I think the room Tam provided to us was also after renovation, so it was actually MORE than what we expected. :) The bathroom was modern and amazing! It is about 8-10km from Odense, 25-minutes car journey to Egeskov, 15-minutes to Kerteminde. Not really sure about public transportation as we were there on a road trip. Tam is a very nice person who shared about places to go in Odense. He even helped us with washing machine & dryer. Put this Airbnb on you trip as you won't be disappointed! :)
- This place is honestly one of a kind especially because of the location. My mum would love to have a house surrounded by paddy fields, so... this place is quite close to her dream.
- In this house, we also stayed with the owner and his family but we didn't meet them (except the owner - Tam). Tam is actually from Vietnam but has already settled down in Odense. Kind of interesting to see how a foreigner can live very well in a foreign country. His house is seriously big!
5. Copenhagen, Denmark
Type: Entire Apartment / House
(click the link to get to its Airbnb's profile)
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| Mak in the living area. That was the couch I slept in. :D |
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| I seriously love the map! |
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| The kitchen :D |
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| The view from the balcony. |
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| A bed for my parents. |
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| Bathroom with toilet and washing machine. |
Lessons Learned:
- MY REVIEW: I stayed here with my parents for 3 nights. Our stay was really nice, with a good kitchen, perfectly working WiFi and secure neighborhood. The buildings look similar so a bit confusing at night. Haha. There is a bus stop (about 10 minutes walk) where we can get to the city center, supermarket and petrol station are also nearby. Good communication with Per as well. Anyway, I personally love the map on the wall at the dining area! It feels so great for morning motivation for me.
- We arrived this place at night, honestly there were at least 8 buildings that looks similar to each other. I forgot to check the building number in advanced haha so we kind of driving around the neighbourhood.
- This is a type of Airbnb that use self check-in. What does it mean? The owner will give you direction on how to get into the flat. Sometimes they hide the key somewhere that you need to find based on the clues. Sometimes, you just need to know the password of the door. It depends. :)
- An interesting part of this apartment was the rubbish hole. Haha. At the main door of each apartment, there is a hole that we can use to throw away the rubbish. Maybe I will show you in my posts of Copenhagen later.
6. Berlin, Germany
Type: Entire Apartment / House
(click the link to get to its Airbnb's profile)
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| A compact room for 3 persons to sleep in. |
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| Another view of the room. |
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| The bathroom and toilet. |
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| The kitchen. |
Lessons Learned:
- MY REVIEW: It was a nice 2-night stay for my parents and I. Everything is provided I must say, you just have to bring yourself. Full kitchen with plenty of groceries, Hardy even gave us chocolates. WiFi works perfectly. We didn't meet Hardy in person but he responded well to any questions. You can find lots of information about attractions and public transportations in Hardy's place, everything is provided for you.
- Actually, we had a problem with check-in that I have resolved it with the owner. What happened was we could not find the keys to get into the flat. Yes, another self check-in Airbnb. The owner had already sent the instructions but the keys were simply NOT at the mentioned location!
- It was a tiring night that we needed to get the spare keys at his office (7km away) as the owner was 400km away from us that time, obviously he could not come.
- Upon entering the flat, it was nice. Just we kind of afraid if maybe anyone else might have stolen the keys, so we basically brought all valuable stuffs while travelling around the city and locked all doors in the flat. T_T
- The rest was okay, alhamdulillah. :)
7. Prague, Czech
Name: Hostel Opletalova
Type: Private Room with Shared Bathroom
(click the link to get to its website) |
| The beds. |
Lessons Learned:
- I did not write any reviews yet on its website
- This was the nearest, cheapest accommodation quite close to the car rental company and the city center. Before returning the cars, we dropped all luggage at the hostel.
- It was funny to recall that time when we parked in front of the hostel (with emergency signal) as we just wanted to drop off the luggage. Then, a police car came and asked us to move the car. After explaining the situation, the policeman asked me to park properly at the parking lot (in which that lots are for residents living there) I told him that I didn't have the resident pass and fortunately, the policeman allowed us to park for 10 minutes. Fuhhh.
- Best points to consider if you want to get a room at this hostel are: (1) it is located IN FRONT OF Prague Mosque! (2) it means you have secured at least one halal restaurant. (3) close to main train station and Vaclavske Namesti (4) 24 hours mini market is just downstairs.
- The cons - no lifts (I felt bad every time my parents need to climb stairs T___T) , no kitchen, bathroom and toilets are separated.
Stay tuned for tips on how to choose a good accommodation. Well, my choices are not the perfect one but maybe you can learn something from my experiences and use them as reference :)
Till then,
SS, Perak, Malaysia
170807
Accommodation We Had Stayed In Europe (Part 1/2)
August 7, 2017
I think I will try to make a separate post on how I choose accommodation (like what aspects I put into consideration etc). So far, my favorite website to search for a good accommodation is Airbnb, followed by booking.com, hostelbookers.com and few other random sites.
In this post, I would love to share and recall memories with my parents in each apartments, houses, hostels around Europe.
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1. Prague, Czech
Type: Entire Home / Apartment
(click the link to get to its Airbnb's profile)
We checked into this apartment directly upon our arrival at Prague Airport. The check-in lady fetched us (with some extra fee) from the airport and drove us to this place. It was an interesting experience as she drove a BMW 5-series, haha I haven't rode any 5 series before. My parents too. :)
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| A bed for 2 persons. I slept on the couch. :) |
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| A big bathroom with toilet. Big enough you can put another single bed inside. :D My parents love Airbnb that provide washing machine that we can use for free. It is not that we did not bring enough clothes, but at least we don't have to separate used clothes and the clean one. :) |
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| A small storage area where you can find almost all equipment needed - iron, ironing board, drying rack, hanger, vacuum, broom, dustpan etc. |
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| The kitchen :D I love the idea of the fridge inside the cupboard. :D And a island in the kitchen is something I wish to have in my own kitchen in the future. |
Lessons Learned:
- MY REVIEW: This place is very lovely and as expected. Even my parents would love to make this place as a reference if we want to host a place in Airbnb! Most of the things are well-provided for the guest. WiFi works perfectly. The location is about 20minutes to city center, no worries as there is a direct tram in walking distance. Neighbourhood is nice, calm and peaceful. We were not on a roadtrip but I can see a lot of parking spaces if you are coming by cars. Sylva the check in lady, is a very nice person. She waited patiently at the airport despite our long Passport control queue and luggage reclaim. She even offered to drop by the city center. Basic things about the place were nicely explained. My parents and I really love this place and trust me, you won't be disappointed to book it. :)
- It is worth the money to use Uber instead to travel to- and fro- airport. From city center, it costs around 320kc/4 persons one way, in which you don't have to carry your heavy luggage from the nearest public transportation. This is applicable if you are travelling with the elder (I'm sure you don't want a lot of walking for them).
- This is the best Airbnb among the rest that we have stayed.
- This place is quite far from the city center - about 30 minutes by tram (the tram stop is just 5 minutes walk away). But, I prefer Uber more haha.
2. Hannover, Germany
Name: B&B Hotel Hannover
Type: Hotel
(click the link to get to its website)
A day after my graduation day, we finally started our road trip to Copenhagen. Started from Prague, Czech at about 6.30pm, we arrived Hannover about 6 hours car ride. We slept at a B&B Hotel, very close to the highway.
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| A bed for 2 persons (on the first floor) |
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| Another 2 single beds on the upper floor. |
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| The stairs. |
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| View from the first floor. |
Lessons Learned:
- MY REVIEW: This B&B Hotel is very close to the Autobahn, so if you are on your way across Germany, please consider to book a room to rest after the tiring drive. About 4 levels of building with stairs (I am not sure if there are lifts or not). Check in was VERY EASY as you were given password for your door, so once you are automatically check in, you don't really have to go to the counter for check in. And no check out needed. The room was compact with all basic necessities. 2 beds on 1st floor of the room and another 2 beds on the attic. The bathroom is small but do all the jobs! Overall, I would recommend this place!
- It was an amazing experience to stay in a double-storey bedroom. Maybe for next time if we want to stay at this place, we need to request for a room on the ground floor. There was no lifts so, it was hard to take our luggage upstairs.
3. Hamburg, Germany
Type: Private Room with Shared Bathroom & Kitchen
(click the link to get to its Airbnb's profile)
Hehehe, this flat was totally a new experience for my parents and I. Why? We were sharing the flat with the owner. We used to rent the same type of accommodation in London, but the owner did not stay there.
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| The bunk beds for 3 persons. |
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| The kitchen. |
Lessons Learned:
- MY REVIEW: This place is very good to stay a night or two in Hamburg, located about 10-minutes walk to the nearest S-bahn station (Harburg Rathaus). The kitchen is nice and the WiFi is very good! Alex was preparing for an exam during our stay but he still welcomed us nicely and explained about things around Hamburg.
- Although we don't have any specific problem with this flat, I can say my parents were not that comfortable staying there because they were a bit shocked. Haha. A reminder to me, try to find a entire apartment / house in the future, despite the price. :D
SS, Perak, Malaysia
170806
Goodbye Bingen! (Video)
January 9, 2016
Settle Koblenz, kitorang pun pulang ke Bingen. :) Dah nak habis dah lepak-lepak Bingen ni. T_T
Lepas packing barang semua, pulanglah kami ke Czech. Perjalanan sampai ke Prague dalam 5-6jam macam tu, rasa pendek sikit berbanding perjalanan masa mula-mula ke Bingen. Maybe guna highway lain kottt (skip Nuremberg)
Goodbye Bingen, goodbye Autobahn, goodbye Germany.
v Khaulah, HK, Czech
160106
Hari Terakhir di Bingen, Germany
January 8, 2016
Cik Juwaily yang drive masa ke Koblenz. Okay la jugak, sebab kalau kitorang yang drive, memang masuk highway la rasanya - tak merasa lalu sebelah sungai Rhein. Masa nak set up GPS tu pun, kena pilih alternative route, sebab route yang dicadangkan memang masuk highway.
Sungai Rhine kat sebelahhhhh :D :D
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Ni kat Bacharach rasanya. Town masa on the way dari Bingen ke Koblenz.
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Saya tak pasti betul ke tak, tapi apa yang saya perasan, lampu isyarat kat sini selalu merah tapi akan bertukar hijau bila kereta kita dah approaching traffic lights tu. Macam ada sensor je.
Bangunan2 kat area sini pun lebih kurang yang macam Rudesheim tuu :)
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Ada insiden sikit masa nak keluar dari carpark ni. Haha, geram ada tapi redha lah T__T.
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Ke mana kitorang lepas tu?
Bersambung :)
Bila dah sampai Koblenz, memang nampak tempat shopping merata-rata. Ada mall besar jugak yang kat sini kitorang meet up Aisya & Kak Atie lepas parking kereta. Carpark pulak, payah nak park kereta tepi-tepi jalan tuu, jadi, cari carpark yang macam building gini. Dalam 7 tingkat camtu.
Ada insiden sikit masa nak keluar dari carpark ni. Haha, geram ada tapi redha lah T__T.
Kat sekitar ni, boleh la nak shopping kalau nak. Saya takde apa nak beli pun masa ni, window shopping je :D Ada kedai ala-ala reject shop kat sini, kalau korang nak beli barang branded dengan harga murah. Periuk Tefal pun adaaa.
Lepas tu, terus cari makanan. Ramai jugak yang dah lapar. Dalam mall tu ada kedai makanan ni, bila Aisya kata ayam dia halal, memang aim ayam je. Mana nak dapat weh, ayam halal selain Turkish kebab & kedai Pakistani. Ni ayam bakar kot. :p
Saya order suku ayam dan nak add up cendawan, saya minta la 100g pastu nak dijadikan cerita orang kedai tu bagi seketul cendawan yang beratnya 100g. Speechless. Boleh bayangkan atas pinggan tu ada seketul ayam dan satu cendawan. Malas nak order lain, jadi saya makan je apa yang ada sambil rasa-rasa sikit salad, kentang orang lain. Hehe. Semua sedapp, cuma ayam masin sikit. ^_^
Lepas makan, terus hajat ke masjid untuk solat. Jalan jalan jalan cross bridge jalan lagi, sampai la masjid. Mula-mula dari jauh nampak dah pintu bangunan masjid tu macam buka, masa sampai depan bangunan, pintu dah tutup. Pastu kitorang ding dong bell rumah yang mana ada nama Islamic sikit. Ada seorang makcik nyahut dari tingkap dia. Kitorang yang tak faham Deutsche ni memang menyerahkan semua soalan kat Aisya, Cik Juwaily & Kak Atie.
Nak dijadikan cerita lagi, makcik tu pulak tak faham bahasa Germany! Hahahaha.
Makcik tu cakap bahasa Turki rasanya. Tapi dia baik sangat nak tolong guide kan kitorang ke masjid. Masjid dah pindah tempat lain sebenarnya :)
Kitorang tak dapat solat kat dalam ruang solat masjid, tutup rasanya. Tapi makcik tu bawak pergi rumah kawan dia. I guess, ni rumah orang yang kerja kat masjid rasanya. Sebab Aisya kata Cik Juwaily pun solat kat rumah orang lain.
Dan makcik ni pun baik jugakkkkk :) :) :) Siap sediakan minum2 petang. May Allah bless you!
Yang warna oren hijau tu, ubi keledak yang rasa macam labu. Ke labu yang rasa macam ubi keledek. Confuse dah.
Tapi semua sedap memang sedap.
Kat sini memang buat diri terfikir, bila berada kat tempat yang Islam ni minoriti, terasa ukhuwah tu bila berjumpa dengan saudara seIslam, Walaupun ada language barrier, walaupun tak pernah jumpa pun sebelum ni. That's the power of our same faith :)
Settle solat semua, kitorang singgah jap supermarket kat Koblenz. Mula-mula Netto, pastu Rewe. Yang uniknya, kitorang yang duduk Czech ni ingatkan supermarket Germany - yang macam Kaufland, Albert, Lidl tu dah cukup famous dah, tapi rupanya tak sangat kat Germany sendiri. Macam-macam supermarket besar lain ada kat sini.
Coklat Rittersport kat sini, harga 99 sen Euro. Murah murah! Dengarnya kalau ada promosi, lagi murah! Yang best, sebab banyak pilihan flavor yang takde sangat kat Czech. Boleh borong sakan kalau nak :)
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Ke mana kitorang lepas tu?
Bersambung :)
v Khaulah, HK, Czech
160106
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