Journey to the Lapland

Happy New Year! Its the new decade and a new adventure shall begin.

Truth be told, there are a couple of trips that I went that has yet to be written. There are so many lovely photos and so many new experiences to be shared. One of them was an unforgettable adventure in the land freezing temperature!

                           

                     

We flew in Helsinki on one cold February morning and hopped on a train the next day to Kemi after a short tour in Porvoo. Porvoo is a typical village full of charm under a thick blanket of snow. The overnight train ride was a novel experience itself. We have no problem getting a good sleep even with the rattling and chugging of the train. The challenge we had were taking showers in the tiny cubicle and also doing our prayer in a very limited space amidst the shake and rattle.
             

Our first stop and attraction was the Polar Explorer Ice breaker Cruise in Axelsvik which was actually located not in Finland but a part of Sweden. What it actually is a ship that traverse the frozen water breaking the surface several feet thick with ice. Its no ordinary ship. They are specially built to break the ice as they glide through the sea. Its really an incredible sight that filled us in wonder. The ship actually stopped in the middle of the Bothnia Gulf and we were allowed to walk down on the frozen sea.

We then made our way by bus to Rovianemi, a popular tourist town in Finland. This is where the Santa Claus Village can be found. And the virtual Arctic Circle line passed though this village. We spent almost half a day here taking in all the crisp air and fresh snow that we could get. After lunch and prayer we visited the Arktikum Museum. Oh. I almost forgot to mention that we went on a ride on the sledge pulled by a reindeer! It was quite a long ride with a pitstop for a hot cup of berry juice beside a campfire. I don’t know about the others but I found that it was kind of thrilling, I must say.

After two nights in Rovianemi and all the excitement with the reindeers, we hit the road again northbound towards Saariselka with a stop over in Ranua to visit the zoo. The zoo has many animals that are not found in our country like the polar bear and arctic fox. And also there a shop that sells Frazier chocolate at a fraction of the price sold in the city. And buy we must!

After a night stay in Saariselka we hit the road again and made our way to Kirkenes, a little town in Norway north of Finland. And this was when we got lucky with for aurora hunting. During our bus ride, we made an unplanned stop when an aurora was sighted in the sky. The bus driver was obliging enough to find a suitable and safe lay by for us to take a good shot. As it was our first sighting it was thrilling for us. Little did we know that we would see a grand sight when we reached Kirkenes. When we stepped out of the bus to check in at the hotel, the sky was decorated with green lights. Lucky that we took time to admire the grand sight and take photos because they were all gone when we came out later after we checked in.

Unfortunately for us that was the last sighting we had.

But then we had another highlight of the day. King crab fishing! Boy! We were shocked with the size of this crustaceans. They are bigger than our head. We didn’t actually catch the crab but we were shown how it was done. And yes of course we get to eat the crab later. They were so fresh and succulent that we are now spoiled with the taste that no other crab can compare. Wonder when I shall ever get to have that taste again.

The next day we head southbound with a stop over in Inari where we went ice fishing. Unfortunately none of us caught any fish. Not a single one! But that did not stop us from having fun on the vast frozen lake. And the snow mobile ride is part of the fun. And later on we even enjoyed the husky ride. A friend said that the best ride she ever had! The huskies were real fast and the road was bumpy so it was like a roller coaster ride!

Unfortunately we didn’t have photos of the huskies or the ride because it was dark and at the same the bumpy ride did not give us the good opportunity for great photo shoot.

We were almost at the end of our journey. We hopped on the train in Rovianemi for another overnight train ride and spent one more night in Helsinki before our flight home.  All in all I had a marvelous time and thrilling first time experiences. One of my daughters came with me on this trip hence I am able to reminisce the nostalgic moments with her every now and then.

With this trip, I have planned to take a break from traveling to spend time with my first grand child. Till next time!

Travel date: February 2018

Balkan Tour Part 2

So sorry peeps. My excuse is no excuse so I shall not elaborate. Hahahaha.

Anyways, since I do not travel much these days, the late posting will be sort of fillers for the rest of the year.

To continue  where I last wrote, there cities that we went to in this trip and each city was beautifully memorable. It would have been even more if we had a brighter weather but then again it has its charm. 

Montenegro in the country borders to Albania in the south, and Bosnia & Herzegovina to the north.  We stopped over at two old cities namely Budva and Kotor guided by a lovely and enthusiastic lady. I really enjoyed the old city with the rustic buidling. Its known for its well-preserved medieval walled city. Budva is actually one of the oldest settlements on the Adriatic coast. Kotor has also one of the best preserved medieval old town and is a UNESCO world heritage site.  I have posted the photos in the last post but I shall include them again. 

BUDVA

KOTOR

From Kotor we travelled to another town near the Adriatic Sea in the country of Croatia. The city of Dubrovnik has also joined the UNESCO list of Wprld Heritage site. It rained during our tour but it didn't dampen our excitement to walk around the old square. I simply loved the ambiance of the city.

DUBROVNIC

After two nights in Dubrovnic we made our way too the last but certainly not the least, country in this trip. Bosnia and Herzegovina. We went to few historic towns in this country and the first one being a little town in Pocitelj where we had lunch in a lovely rustic restaurant sitting by the Buna River Spring. (see top right hand corner of the photos below). And immediate after we proceeded to Mostar, the fifth largest city and known for the Bosnia and Herzegovina's most recognisable landmark with the Old Bridge. The Bridge was built by the Ottomans in the 16th century and considered one of the most exemplary pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans. We also had time to walk around the cobbled little village and even stopped by one of  the oldest mosque, Mehmet Koski Pasha Mosque. 

POCITELJ AND MOSTAR

We made our way the day after to the largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Sarajevo is rich in history of religious and cultural diversity. Its the fastest growing city after undergoing post-war construction. We visited the Tunnel Museum and the town square. The following day we stopped over at two towns where we stopped by at the Etno Village and Plava Voda Spring in Travnik and visited a malaysian sponsored mosque in Jajce. We then spent the night in the loveliest hotel in Bihaj. Not only the room was superb but the view from the balcony was amazing. See the photo on the top right hand below an dyou onow what I mean! 

SARAJEVO, TRAVNIK, JAJCE, BIHAJ

Finally we made our way to the last city Zagreb, Croatia. On our way we spent a day in Pittvice National Park. Due to the altitude the park was covered in snow. I was told that its a lovely place to be in the spring and summer but I do enjoy the view and feel of the crisp cold weather and beautiful scenary painted with snow. We didn't feel the cold since we had to walk quite a bit and mostly uphill and anyways the surrounding was surreal to me that we forget about the cold. Btw, the park is not only the oldest and largest parks in Croatia but it is also added tot he UNESCO World Heritage site. 

PITTVICE NATIONAL PARK

After the adventure in the park as well as a long but wonderful journey on the bus we spent our last night in the city of Zagreb. We spent the last day of our trip with a short tour of the capital city of Croatia namely the town square and the market place. And after lunch and prayer at the city mosque we made our way to the airport. 

ZAGREB

Phew! Quite a journey eh? It was one of the longest trip I have been but it has been totally worth the time (and money) spent. As mentioned before not only all the place that we visited were beautiful and full of history but the journeys between the cities were very picturesque and breath taking. Believe me. 

Travel date: 6-19 November 2017

Balkan Tour Part 1

It's long past the new year of 2018 and yet I have not done with the last update of my travel for 2017. I had the pleasure of visiting the Balkan countries or some of the Balkan countries and it was such a wonderful trip and a fitting end to wrap up the year.

The Balkans is a region that includes countries on the Balkan Peninsula in the southeast of Europe, including most of the former Yugoslavia. A tour to the Balkans has become popular because not only the cities that we visited  offers beautiful sight and historical architecture and background but the bus journeys between the cities or countries were made really pleasant with amazingly beautiful and picturesque view and scenary. 

The first city we visited was Athen. I guess what comes to mind with the mention of this city is of course the Acropolis. Am I right or am I right? 😀

So, of course those are the places that we went, the old ruin from the era of the Bronze Age way back in the 4th century BC. To be exact we went to the tourist sites such as the Acropolis, Parthenon, Erectheum and Temple of Zeus. We also had time to visit the Greek ancient market and shop for souvenirs at Syntagma Square

After two nights in Athens we made our way to another Greek city Kalampaka (pronounced as Kalabaka; the "mp" is like a "b". It was funny how we had a little argument on how it's to be pronounced and spelled. Tee hee...)

Anyways, it's a quaint little village known as the Kastaki Village, famous for the meteora which features one of the biggest if not the biggest Greek Orthodox Church built on top of one of the meteora hill. It was not a long climb to the top and the incredible view was worth the while. A walk around the village at the end of day brought the visit even more memorable. 

    

We left Greece the next day and made our way northbound to the city of Ohrid in Macedonia famous for the beautiful Lake Ohrid, the deepest and oldest lake in Europe. We went on a boat around the lake after a short tour of the little town. Its such a quaint little town but with some seriously fascinating architecture. With a beautiful lake and all if I have a wish to be granted, I would definitely choose this place as a place I would retire.  Even the dogs were friendly! (We had one quietly followed us around as if looking after us. At least I like to believe so. 😊) 

Anyways, you may not capture my feeling with the photos below but I hope you get the picture! No pun intended. 😉

After a night's rest in Ohrid we left for another country for a short stop for lunch, prayer and a brief city tour of Tirana, the capital city of Albania. Albania is a small muslim country bordered by Montenegro in the north, Macedonia to the east, Greece to the south and the Adriatic Sea to the west. Its a small city with the main attraction centered at the Skanderbeg square. The famous Skenderbeg Monument stood proudly to reflect on history of the Ottoman era. The clock tower, national library, City Hall, National Historical Museum and a few Ministry offices can be found around the square. In one corner stood an 18 century mosque with Ottoman archicture. Et'hem Bey Mosque is a significant building to depict the Muslim country of Albania. 

If I recall correctly, Balkan trip is the longest tour that I ever participated in. I keep wondering whether to break the updates into 3 postings. Or remain in 2 postings as I usually have done.There are several more places and more interesting stories to tell. As I am writing this I am recalling those places and the happy faces that I met. So we shall see.

Maybe I should stop here for now and continue later. But meanwhile as a teaser the next country that we went to is Montenegro, covering two cities and shown around by a pretty and enthusiastic guide.

So stay tune....! 

   BUDVA MONTENEGRO 

    KOTOR MONTENEGRO 

Travel date : 6 - 19 Nov 2017

     

Fall Foliage Road Trip Part 2

On the fourth day we started to drive further inland towards  Maine, New Hampshire. Along the way we started to see the colours of fall on both side of the road. But it wasn't until we reached Mt Washington state Park that we get to see the glorious autumn colours almost at its peak. Subhanallalh. We were in awe with the wonderful sight.

Alhamdulillah. I couldn't have asked for more. Its simply beyond my expectations. I feel truly blessed. Nature at its best. The change of colours from green to deep red as can be seen below is as good as anyone can get as a testimony of Allah's great creation.

I shall end my post with some photos of people and places which has left me with fond memories 

Insya-Allah we will meet again perhaps on another road trip. You will never know. 

Travel date : 4 - 12 October 2017

Fall Foliage Road Trip

I have always longed to visit New England USA ever since I knew that it is one of the top 10 regions famous for their Autumn colours. And my wish came true thanks to a good friend who is currently living in Dallas. 

For those who are as ignorant as I was to geography of the USA, New England is a northeastern region of  the USA comprising the states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode  Island. We didn't  go to all the states mentioned though as we focussed our travel to follow the trail of the fall foliage as it was about to peak in some states. 

After a few days rest in Dallas, we flew to Boston and from there the journey began. 

We stayed one night in Boston and after a short visit of the largest city of New England (photos above), we started our road trip heading east towards Bar Harbour. On the way we made a short stop for lunch in Portland where we had our first lobster meal. We stayed in Bar Harbour for two nights and spent the time during the day around Arcadia National Park.  

 

On the forth day of our trip, we started to see more of the fall colours on the way to Maine and we were pretty excited with the beautiful foliage and the abundance of deeper shades of the leaves along the way. 

    

    

Whenever there was a good opportunity for us to stop, we would excitedly exit the car and take photos. We struck gold in one partucular stop where there was a completely still water reflecting the autumn trees. 

Masya-Allah. It was breathtakingly beautiful. 

But, little did we know that an even more beautiful sight was yet to come! It made us feel so blessed to have out feet on this part of the world. I shall save those photos in the next posting though. And you will see what I mean.

To be continued...

Travel date : 4-7 October 2017

A trip to Turkey (Part 2)

Hello again! 

Before I continue, I have a confession to make. All this while I thought Cappadocia is a state or city and I was searching high on low for it on the map that we were given on the bus. It was only a couple of days later when I googled that I found that Cappadocia is actually a region in Central Anatolia which include  Nevsehir, Kayseri, Kirsehir, Aksaray and Nigde provinces. No wonder I couldnt find it on the map. Duh...

I have heard so much about Cappadocia and apart from Pamukkale it is a popular tourist destination because of its uniqueness in geology. Due to the eruption of ancient volcanoes million years ago as well as erosion in the course of time, the earth produced hundreds of spectacular pillars and minaret-like form. Actually, they look more like mushrooms to me. You know, Korean king mushroom!!! Anyhow, there are still visible traces of ancient houses carved from the volcanic rocks. There are also cave hotels and cave restaurants available for tourists.

The best way to view the amazing earth natural formation is either on the hot-air balloon or the jeep safari. Either you get a birds eye view from the high above or up close and personal in the valley. We were all excited to experience the much-talked-about hot air balloon but alas the weather was not on our side. Thats how we ended up on a thrilling jeep safari. (If you wonder whats it like, its actually like being on a short bursts  of roller coaster ride. He he). 

After all the exciting adventures in Cappadocia we went northbound, by-passing Ankara, the capital city of Turkey and broke the journey in Bolu. The hotel that we stayed for the night was located in the middle of a pine forest near a lake and a mountain as the backdrop. It was so picturesque and peaceful that we wished that we could stay longer. 

The last leg of our tour was centred in and around Istanbul. We had a great weather during our city tour but unfortunately the sky was grey during the Bosphorous cruise. 

We spent sometime at most of the tourist spots like the Blue mosque, St Sophia Museum, Topkapi Palace, Al Fatih mosque, and shop at the Spice Market and Grand bazaar. And I thoroughly enjoyed the cruise despite the unfavourable weather. 

All in all, it was a wonderful trip. If anyone ask me which country that I would recommend to go on a holiday, Turkey is definitely on top of the list. 

And on top of that the people that I travelled with were wonderful too. Complete strangers in the beginning of the trip who later became friends. 

That's  one of the advantages of a group tour. We get to meet and make new friends. And this particular bunch of people are really great. Honestly, I have been to a few group tours and more often than  not there would be at least one who can be annoying or picky, but not this time. And you know what? A good tour leader and tour guide also made a lot of difference. And this time around both of them were excellent! 

Alhamdulillah. I have been blessed. 

Will update on a couple of short trip real soon so meanwhile stay fit and be happy! 

Travel date : 6-18 May 2017

A trip to Turkey

Last May I joined a group tour to Turkey. I have been to Istanbul on a 5-day-visit as a stopover from Paris to Kuala Lumpur and managed to explore some places of interest in Istanbul. But I have always wanted to visit again and explore other parts of Turkey especially Pamukkale and Cappadocia. And that I did.

Spring was almost over during our visit but we managed to catch the last bloom of tulip. But what caught my eyes were the roses. They were as big as saucers and in vibrant velvety colors. They were such a delight! 

Anyways, immediately upon arrival we made our way to Bursa and visited a couple of historic mosques. Ulu Mosque or Ulucami, was built during the Ottaman empire and has a unique architecture as well as a water fountain inside the mosque for ablution. It was said that this huge mosque with 20 dome was built instead of 20 small mosques around the region for a significant reason.

We also made two other stops: the Green mosque and The Green Mausoleum (second photos below).

The next day we head out to Pamukkale. One of the two places that I was looking forward to see. The antique city of hierapolis is an ancient city on hotspring in the southwestern Anatolia (adjacent to Pamukkale). It is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site.  

Hierapolis was founded as a thermal spa and became a healing center where doctors used the thermal springs as treatment for their patients. The remaining structure that we see today was mainly built during the Roman empire, destroyed by wars and earthquakes. The well preserved Roman ruins and museum are said to be underestimated as its being overshadowed by the natural wonder of the hot spring. 

The area is more well known tourist attraction for its large white limestone formation of the hotspring. Indeed, the natural formation is one that we have to see with our eyes. Not only the mineral rich water and milky pools shaped over millennia present a beautiful site but the view of the vast mountain is also a splendour. I wish I could stay all day here just to bask in the view with my feet soak in the theraupic water.

After spending a night in Pamukkale we travelled east towards Cappadocia. We made a stopover in Konya to visit Mevlana Museum which is also a mausoleum for a Sufi mystic known as Mevlana. 

Its a pity that it was a cloudy day for the building structures and the garden around were so camera-worthy. And the tulips garden was still blooming in riot! 

We also made a short stop at an ancient pitstop for weary traveller of the olden days. The roadside inn is called caravanserai. (Four top right photos below). And at the same I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed the modern day pitstops that we had throughout our 10 days journey. (The rest of the photos below). The food was good, the rest rooms were clean and the mosques were beautifylly decorated. 

We spent the next 2 nights in Neysehir for the adventure in the Cappadocia. But first we must visit a historic underground city. The closest one was Kaymakli underground city. Like all underground cities they were built in the early century for protection. 

What I find amazing is how the earth remain in position over centuries without collapsing! 

There are a lot more stories to tell and many more photos to share but I shall put that on hold for now. 

Too many good things all at once will be too much too handle 

See you later. 

Travel date : 6-18 May 2017