20 February 2010,
Selepas hampir 4 bulan tak jalan ke mana-mana, akhirnya tamat jugak my first year in the university. As a foreigners yang bukan selalu dapat peluang berjalan kat negara orang, inilah masanya. Ditambah lagi dengan sumber kewangan yang steady, oversea trip is a must for me, while I'm still young and got plenty of times to spend. It's my first spring break since I came to Japan last year. After the 1st year final exam which ended last week (18 February), a trip I planned since December last year is finally around the corner. I planned to visit one of the most historical site in the world, also known as the land of the pharaoh, Egypt. In Egypt, many of my friends were a medical student at Cairo University. Besides visiting my friend, kos sara hidup di Egypt sangatlah rendah berbanding di Jepun ni. So, bila lagi nak merasa tempat orang? The journey then begins from the Chitose International Airport. I took the low-fare flight to Tokyo (Skymark) to visit my friend in Kanagawa-ken first. First time naik kapal terbang sorang2. Yeah, meter XP naik lagi. Disebabkan last flight, it took me almost 3 hours to reach Hashimoto-eki (橋本駅) from Haneda Airport (羽田空港). Memang seksa! Dengan knapsack dekat 15kg......
21 February,
Masih penat dari malam semalam. But still, cannot resist tarikan Akihabara. Akhirnya pergi jugak Akihabara dari Kanagawa ni. Sanggup...Ya, syurga otaku, anime, cosplay, apa lagi. Just name it. Gelaran Akihabara: Anime mecca. Dari segala jenis latest anime, game, console, semua ada. Pernah dengar istilah 'Maid cafe'? Cafe yang menawarkan pelayan2 yang comel2 dan geram2 belaka. Honestly, ikutkan hati memang nak try masuk. Mana ada kat Malaysia. Apa yang istimewa sangat Maid cafe ni? Takde apa yang istimewa sangat pun. Kita hanya akan dilayan oleh pelayan wanita yang memakai kostum maid (read:orang gaji) sahaja. Snek2 pun agak mahal. And bukan free untuk bergambar bersama mereka. Anda akan dikenakan caj tambahan. Servis lain? Entahlah. Mungkin ada. OK, not "that kind" of service. Tolonglah, jangan pervert sangat otak tu. It's legal ok. Baik makan kebab Turki. Ya, ada Turki kebab di Akihabara. Kelakarnya, ada 2 lori dari syarikat yang sama, sebelah menyebelah. Bezanya, satu halal, satu tak halal. Ramai orang Jepun yang beratur di bahagian yang tiada perkataan HALAL. No comment.
The Halal kebab
The non-Halal kebab (beware of the difference!)22 Februari,
Hang out with one of my best friend in Kanagawa. For the second time, we played Gundam kizuna at a Game Centre. For those yang tak tahu apa itu Gundam kizuna, it's a Gundam realistic simulator where you'll control a Gundam from the simplest control of to the hardest Gundam, but with and unlocked weapon and skills. Don't hope you'll get an Exia or GN0000. You"ll start with a. We're not talking about LCD screen. It's a breath-taking 180 degree POD (Panoramic Optical Display), with realistic sound. The gameplay is almost the same with what we can play with the PSP, but with this, you grab the real (read:typical) Gundam controller with thruster pedal. Each console is connected to servers across Japan. It means, player from Hokkaido can play with friends from Kyuushu in real-time. The price for the card is 300yen, but you just gonna have to pay it for the first time only. The game price is getting cheaper: 400yen. It's 500 yen when I played it for the first time. Warning, you can really get addicted to this game!
The Box
Cockpit view (It's not graphic!)
ID card (for data storage; rank, name, side - Earth Federation or Principality of Zeon)24 Februari,
At last, the day for the journey had come. Hari yang dinanti-nanti sudah tiba. From the Kanazawa Polytechnic University, I took train to Narita International Airport. 3 times train transit. Akhirnya sampai ke destinasi. Alhamdulillah, still can rely to my instinct. Why? Sebab Narita Airport ada 2 terminal, which I don't know where the Turkish Airlines check-in counter will be at. My instinct strongly urged me to get to the Terminal 1. Nasib baik betul, kalau tak... And for the first time I went to the Currency Exchange to change my Japanese yen to USD. Next, checking in. Alhamdulillah, it went on smoothly. The next thing, is a standard procedure untik you get inside the airplane. The flight was supposed to take off at 14:25. Later on I realized, we are going westward, which means, my "day" is going to be longer than usual. First time jugak dalam sejarah hidup, solat jama' maghrib dan isha' dua kali dalam hari yang sama (sama la kot). 11 hours and 20 minutes, that's my flight hours from Tokyo to Istanbul, Turkey. Love Turkish Airline's meal on-board. Memang kenyang dan tak perlu risau tentang status Halal. Spent almost 5 hours watching on-board movie, sleeping and on-board games. Pramugari pun taklah berapa menarik sangat kot. Ok, lupakan. Back to story.
Arrived at Ataturk International Airport (Atatürk Uluslararası Havalimanı). 19:25p.m. With no Turkish Lira, I went to convert my dollar to Turkish Lira. First time to see, hold and possess the Lira. Selepas setahun tak makan burger (yang sedap), dendam terbalas juga akhirnya. Akhirnya dapat jugak makan Burger King di airport. Ya, memang terharu. Memang seronok dapat berjalan kat negara orang. Semasa transit, ramai pelancong dari Jepun yang sama2 transit untuk ke Egypt. Malas nak menyibuk walaupun faham bahasa mereka. Selain dari Jepun, ada juga pelancong dari Indonesia, Europe dan dari seluruh pelusuk dunia. First time lagi, dapat tengok rabbi Yahudi. Selama ni, tengok kat TV je dan surat khabar. Transit flight to Cairo was scheduled to depart at 23:35, and I must check-in by 22:35. Masa tengah leka dengan laptop, baru tersedar yang aku tersalah boarding gate. Nasib baik sempat. Boarding gate at Ataturk International Airport memang strict.Almost semua mid-east destination passengers kena tanggal kasut. Plus, ada 4 je Security check-point kat airport tu.
Safely boarded the A340 flight for Cairo. Entahla kenapa tapi kenapa flight nak ke Egypt, kecik, sempit, and ada bau-bauan yang sedikit mengganggu. Ingatkan dah malam hanya dapat light meal je. Rupanya yang keluar nasi ayam. fuuhhh~~ .Turkish Airlines memang best. Dah kenyang, tidur. Lebih kurang 30minit before landing, nampak la jugak dari udara pemandangan Cairo city. Gelap berbanding Istanbul. Aku faham keadaan ekonomi Egypt and Turkey. Jauh bezanya. Dah selamat landing sampai keluar airport, terus bertolak ke Giza dengan seorang kawan lama and his 2 friends. Sampai rumah kawan, solat Subuh, terus qada' tidur.
25 Februari,
Taxi in Alexandria, black and yellow stripes. In Cairo, it's black and white stripes.Lepas bangun lebih kurang pukul 11:00 pagi, siap2 and terus bertolak menuju Cairo Train Station menuju ke Alexandria. Merasa jugak naik subway di Egypt ni. Memang tak seselesa LRT and KTM di Malaysia, apatah lagi trains di Jepun. Walaupun ada member, I was reminded to stay alert and beware against pick-pocket. Sampai di stesen keretapi, terus beli tiket and solat jama' zohor and Asar. Nak masuk public toilet pun kena bayar. Facilities agak menyedihkan, bagi sebuah negara yang sepatutnya maju kerana sumber minyak dan bahan2 mentah yang lain. Sayang, pemimpinnya menjadi cacai Zionis sehingga sanggup membiarkan saudara sendiri di Palestin menderita.
Cairo Train StationSurroundings in Cairo agak kotor dan berdebu. Sampah memang bersepah. Macam takde Majlis Perbandaran. My train departed at 15:00 and arrived at Alexandria at about 17:45. Alexandria, far better than Cairo. Maybe because it's once the capital of Egypt. The road was better, the traffic, shops and the people. Beaches along the city. Even the Alexandria University location overlooks the beach.
27 Februari,
Start to explore the Alexandria city from 11:00a.m. First destination, Citadel of Qaitbay. The citadel is located at the old site of The Lighthouse of Alexandria. In fact, the ruins of the lighthouse which was destroyed by an eatrthquake in 1303 and 1323 were being used to built the unique citadel. The location was very strategic. The Citadel is situated on the eastern side of the northern tip of Pharos Island at the mouth of the Eastern Harbour. For the admission fee, you're gonna have to pay 15L.E per person. As you step inside the double layer wall, you'll see a garden with rows of antique cannons. The citadel consists of 3-4 floors up until the top floor. Visitors may climb up to the main tower and enjoy the cool breeze of the Mediterranean sea. As for me, I'm quite surprised with the vandalism inside the historical citadel. Nak buat macam mana, macam tu lah perangai orang Mesir.
Citadel of QaitbayNext destination is Montazah Palace. The once grand residential area of the King Farouk I of Egypt, the last monarch ruler of Egypt is now a must-see tourist spot when you get to Alexandria. The admission fee per person and per car is 6L.E. Inside is a vast garden mostly with palm trees and flowers. There's two mosques inside the area and the main attraction, the ex-residential palace for King Farouk. As it is located near to the beach, it's great to enjoy the sunset there. As I came in the winter, the wind is quite strong and chilly. For the first time, aku berlari sepanjang benteng pemecah ombak kat kawasan pantai tu. Ya, memang kerja gila. Dengan ombak kuat, sejuk2 macam tu pun redah jugak. Takpe, itu pengalaman. Sekali pun jadi la. Egyptian pun tak buat, foreigners pulak yang lebih2. Tapi peduli apa aku. Nasib baik tak selsema. Dah la baju dan seluar basah separuh, jalan kat public dengan muka selamba lagi...
Montaza PalaceLepas penat ukur jalan kat Montaza Palace, headed for a dinner kat sebuah restoran makanan laut. Nama kedai dah tak ingat dah. Nasib baik kawan aku ni lancar cakap Bahasa Arab. Kedai seafood tu lebih kurang sama konsepnya macam di Malaysia. Pilih ikan ke, udang ke, apa2 makanan laut, kedai akan masak. Disebabkan kedai murah, pilihan masakan hanya goreng atau panggang. Habis dalam 80L.E. Makan saja. Itu pun tak habis makan. Egyptian sangat kuat makan. Mungkin bukan Egyptian saja, orang Arab memang kuat makan. Appetizer saja diberi capati dan salad. Bukan seorang sekeping capati. 5 keping!
28 Februari,
Went to visit once the biggest library in the world, The Royal Library of Alexandria Library. It is said that Ptolemy had went there. The design of the building is very unique with curvatures and blends of modern and ancient design. The library is located facing the Mediterranean sea. Inside, millions, maybe billions of books were there with a serene surrounding. Perfect for your revision and study, and sleep too!
Royal Library of Alexandria
Next destination, the Roman Amphitheater. At here, please be careful with the staffs at the entrance gate. Egyptian.... Although it was clearly written on a board:"Student 8L.E, Foreigners15L.E", I still got the price of 15L.E. Inside, you"ll find ruins of Roman amphitheater but still intact with the pillars, audience seats and stage. Unfortunately, you may not explore the place like kids, touching everything to get the feel of the history. In the same place, you'll get to see the Villa of the Birds. But don't worry, there's no birds there. It's just ruins of area of the ancient Roman, where you could see blocks of houses in rows.
Roman Amphitheatre, Alexandria.
That's it for Alexandria. At about 17:30p.m, we headed back to Cairo with a "Beyond my expectation" types of train. I mean it, literally. The train was dark, with little openings for the light, and extremely bad ventilation system. Really, it was indeed a typical local train, full of dusts and quite smelly inside. As it's the only available train, plus cheaper (10L,E), we hopped on the train. If the trip to Alexandria took about 3 hours, the trip back to Cairo took about 5 hours! Heaven! Inside the train was a nightmare for me. The worst memory ever in Egypt. As jobs are scarce in Egypt, everyone will try to do any job as long as they get the money. In the train, locals selling socks, belts and waters were the buggers I hate the most. As I forgot the Arabic (I've learned Arabic ok), I don't know how to react at that time. Even if you don't wanna buy their stuffs, they just throw some for you and walk away. The next time they come, you can give the stuffs back if you don't want to purchase. You won't get a 'peace' sleep inside. Locals tend to play musics from their handphones as if they're the only people who have the phone. It was very very noisy in there. There's only a single light bulb in each of the car...Sometimes, you'll notice the backdoor of the last train wasn't properly closed! Some of my friends told me that, if I'm lucky enough, I may have a chance to see locals bring along goats and chickens onboard. As for the security, sometimes 2 men or more, wearing black jacket (whom I suspected the Secret Police) will conduct a check on the passengers. Just don't panic and cooperate with them. God willing, everything'll be fine. The train alone was enough to give me a headache for the rest of the day.
To be continued...(lame style)
Went to visit once the biggest library in the world, The Royal Library of Alexandria Library. It is said that Ptolemy had went there. The design of the building is very unique with curvatures and blends of modern and ancient design. The library is located facing the Mediterranean sea. Inside, millions, maybe billions of books were there with a serene surrounding. Perfect for your revision and study, and sleep too!
Royal Library of AlexandriaNext destination, the Roman Amphitheater. At here, please be careful with the staffs at the entrance gate. Egyptian.... Although it was clearly written on a board:"Student 8L.E, Foreigners15L.E", I still got the price of 15L.E. Inside, you"ll find ruins of Roman amphitheater but still intact with the pillars, audience seats and stage. Unfortunately, you may not explore the place like kids, touching everything to get the feel of the history. In the same place, you'll get to see the Villa of the Birds. But don't worry, there's no birds there. It's just ruins of area of the ancient Roman, where you could see blocks of houses in rows.
Roman Amphitheatre, Alexandria.That's it for Alexandria. At about 17:30p.m, we headed back to Cairo with a "Beyond my expectation" types of train. I mean it, literally. The train was dark, with little openings for the light, and extremely bad ventilation system. Really, it was indeed a typical local train, full of dusts and quite smelly inside. As it's the only available train, plus cheaper (10L,E), we hopped on the train. If the trip to Alexandria took about 3 hours, the trip back to Cairo took about 5 hours! Heaven! Inside the train was a nightmare for me. The worst memory ever in Egypt. As jobs are scarce in Egypt, everyone will try to do any job as long as they get the money. In the train, locals selling socks, belts and waters were the buggers I hate the most. As I forgot the Arabic (I've learned Arabic ok), I don't know how to react at that time. Even if you don't wanna buy their stuffs, they just throw some for you and walk away. The next time they come, you can give the stuffs back if you don't want to purchase. You won't get a 'peace' sleep inside. Locals tend to play musics from their handphones as if they're the only people who have the phone. It was very very noisy in there. There's only a single light bulb in each of the car...Sometimes, you'll notice the backdoor of the last train wasn't properly closed! Some of my friends told me that, if I'm lucky enough, I may have a chance to see locals bring along goats and chickens onboard. As for the security, sometimes 2 men or more, wearing black jacket (whom I suspected the Secret Police) will conduct a check on the passengers. Just don't panic and cooperate with them. God willing, everything'll be fine. The train alone was enough to give me a headache for the rest of the day.
To be continued...(lame style)
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