A Good Tourist Guide In My Chiangmai Trip

I had used the service of tourist guides in my overseas trips several times. Some of the tourist guides are really good and informative, describing almost every single detail of the places  and the do's and don'ts of their customs and cultures. However,  some really shows that they just work for the money without making much effort to promote their very own country.

SupanJay is one the best tourist guide that I had so far. He was my tour guide during my trip  to Chiangmai, Thailand. With the help of Jay. we truly enjoyed very much our holidays there. My family members were satified with the services given by Jay who had been very patient and helpful. 

What are his characteristics that made me appreciate his services? Firstly he made sure that we went to every place stated in the itinerary. This way we did not feel that we were cheated and trusted him as our tour guide. Once he had forgotten to take us to the museum on the day stated in the itinerary. He then apologized to us and took us there the very next day. 

Jay also explained in  detail the places that we went. Even though his English was not that fluent we understood what he expained and appreciated his effort to make us understand what he said. When we went inside the museum, Jay also explained some historic events related to the  exhibited items. From there we know that Jay knows a lot about the history of Chiangmai.

Jay was also particular about the food given to us during our trip. Besides making sure that it was halal as my famiy and I are muslims, he also made sure that fruits are given on every meal. If he happened to eat in different restaurant from us, he aways asked us whether the  waiter had given us fruits as deserts or not.

As muslims, we had to pray several times a day. Even though we were not sure of Jay's religion, Jay made sure that we had enough time to pray by bringing us to the mosques in Chiangmai and Chiangrai. Through his expressions we knew that he did not mind waiting in the vehicle while we prayed in the mosque. There were not many mosques in Chiangmai and Chiangrai, therefore planning ahead was very important so that we were able to visit the places according to the itinerary.

Even though Chiangmai and Chiangrai were not popular tourist destinations(in my country), Jay made our trip a worthwhile and enjoyable experience. His eagerness and willingness to show us around the places in Chiangmai and Chiangrai  gave us the good impression of Chiangmai people as a whole. We willingly gave Jay a tip for his service before boarding the plane back home.However,in a humble manner, Jay said, ," That won't be necessary."


Thumbs up to Jay for his good services.
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Travelog Pengembaraanku di Amerika Syarikat- Solat Jumaat Di New York

"Kenapalah nak hantar anak ke US? Kan kat situ ramai Yahudi. Nak solat pun susah!" begitulah apa yang diutarakan oleh adik beradikku yang belum pernah menjejakkan kaki ke sana. Namun berdasarkan pengalamanku empat tahun belajar di negara tersebut, aku merelakan pemergian anakku ke sana. Walaupun secara fitrahnya, seseorang ibu berasa berat hati untuk merelakan anaknya pergi, pendekatan agama yang aku salurkan sekian lama dan ilmu yang diperoleh daripada sekolah agama menyebabkan aku agak yakin melepaskan anakku pergi belajar di sana. "InsyaAllah," bisik hatiku, sewaktu membuat keputusan membenarkan anakku pergi.

4 tahun berlalu dan kini tiba masanya kami pergi ke konvokesyen anak yang telah habis belajar di Vanderbilt, Tenessee. Sebelum bertolak banyak persiapan yang perlu dibuat. Perancangan yang teliti agar tidak terlepas waktu solat selain daripada bekalan makanan halal agar tidak terputus bekalan semasa perjalanan perlu diambil kira. Kami pergi bertiga, aku, suamiku dan anak bongsuku. Lapangan terbang yang pertama yang kami jejaki di Amerika Syarikat  ialah New York. Penerbangan kami mengambil masa sebanyak 23 jam. 

" Ok. Selepas Central Park ni kita nak pergi solat Jumaat. Along, chek GPS kat mana masjid terdekat," kata suamiku kepada anak sulong ku. "Ok. Tak jauh. Lebih kurang 10 minit berjalan aje, kata Along.Anak sulong dan  anak keduaku mengikut kami selepas berjumpa di lapangan terbang New York. Di New York  kami hanya menggunakan tenaga empat kerat saja untuk berjalan- jalan. Maklumlah kami perlu menjimatkan wang kerana kadar pertukaran wang Amerika adalah 3 kali ganda wang Malaysia.  Selain itu lebih mudah untuk melihat kawasan persekitaran.



"Tu dia kita dah sampai.  Nampak bangunan yang ada restoran kat bawah tu. " kata anak keduaku, yang juga sedang belajar di US ketika itu. Rupa- rupanya masjid itu bangunan rumah kedai 4 tingkat yang mempunyai lif.  Ruang untuk kaum wanita terletak di tingkat 4.  Bergegas kami ke astas kerana khutbah Jumaat  telah bermula.Syukur, Alhamdulillah, kami sempat mengerjakan solat Jumaat bersama-sama sebahagian umat islam di sana. Ramai juga wanita muslim yang bekerja di sana kelihatan bersama-sama menunaikan solat Jumaat ini.

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The Eclipse of the Moon and Solat Gerhana

I must admit I am a person who adores and admire the natural phenomenon that God created. Just before dawn recently was the eclipse of the moon. Unfortunately the sky was cloudy and there were too much lights in the surrounding area that unabled me to view the spectacular God's.creation. Not far from home I heard people praying Solat Gerhana(the special prayers for the eclipse) at the mosque. I was busy preparing my sahur at that time. I had to fast that day to repay the days that I had not fasted in the last Ramadhan. 

I regretted, though that I had not refer to the Islamic resource book to enable me perform the special solat by myself. I remembered the first and only time that I had experienced Solat Gerhana was in one of the days in Ramadhan a few years ago. We were waiting to perform the tarawih prayers at the mosque and the imam informed us that we were going to perform Solat gerhana. That night was eclipse of the moon. It was rather exciting to perform the Solat Gerhana together with so many people.

A few years back there were no effort by the mosque officials throughout the country to perform the Solat Gerhana when there was eclipse. Some people who were interested in astronomy  flock together at certain high places or hills and brought along telescopes to view the eclipse. Even the national planetariun committee just organised gatherings to view the spectacular phenomena. Normal people just let the days go by without realising this very special event.

This year the National mosque together with the national planetariun organised the sigthing of the eclipse of the  moon. The eclipse of the moon was said to happen between 2 am and 5 am. They  then took a few minutes to perform the Solat Gerhana. This was indeed a commendable effort that would bring the muslims together and made them understand better the relationship between Islam and science.

I became interested in this God's creation when I held science tuition classes to secondary students. The eclipse of the moon was one of the topic in the school syllabus. I had the opportunity to witness the eclipse of the moon several times a few years ago. Therefore  the word 'umbra' and 'penumbra' was not alien to me. Since I was interested in Astronomy, I browsed the internet to  search for the eclipse images. The students seemed very interested in the amazing phenomena.


Once, at dawn, I had the opportunity to watch the changes in the shape of the moon within a few minutes..It was really amazing., MasyaAllah. At another time, the eclipse happened late at night. Since the changes from penumbra to umbra state was rather slow, I did  not wait for the eclipse till the end.

Witnessing the eclipse made me realized that human's creation with  will not beat the God's creation of the natural phenomenon. Human could make huge tall buildings, large enormous dams but God is the greatest creater.

Now, I'm wondering when and where I could have the opportunity to watch the aurora borealis....Alaska...Norway..? If God permits, InsyaAllah...InsyaAllah.

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Kenduri Anak Sahabat- Suatu Renungan

Menghadiri kenduri perkahwinan dua orang  anak sahabat membawa satu suasana yang agak berlainan bagi kami kebanyakan yang telah mencapai lewat 40an. Kalau zaman dua puluhan dulu kami hanya menghadiri perkahwinan sesama sendiri, kini senarionya lain kerana kebanyakan dari kami sudah berstatus makcik dan ada juga yang sudah berstatus nenek.

Sahabat- sahabat kami ini yang menerima menantu semasa cuti sekoah Jun 2011 sebenarnya rakan seperjuangan di sekolah menengah dahulu. 5 tahun kami tinggal bersama menyebabkan kami agak rapat dan kenal hati budi masing- masing. Kedewasaan(maturity) menunjukkan perubahan positif dari segi rohani dan jasmani masing- masing termasuklah penulis sendiri. Alhamdulillah, kedewasaan ini juga membawa kepada perhubungan ukhuwwah yang lebih rapat diantara kami.

Dulu semasa berumur awal dua puluhan, kami jarang berkesempatan untuk bertemu beramai- ramai dek kerana tugas dan komitment keluarga. Maklumlah sebagai wanita, ketika itu masing- masing  sibuk mengendong anak dan ada yang terpaksa berkejar- kejar dengan urusan anak yang masih kecil. Ketika itu teknologi komunikasi tidaklah berkembang pesat seperti sekarang. Hanya telefon rumah dan surat buat pengganti diri. Tiada telefon bimbit untuk menghantar sms atau komputer peribadi mahupun internet ketika itu.

Masa berlalu begitu cepat sekali. Dulu sibuk  mengimbang masa antara urusan sekolah anak dan tugas. Kini ramai anak masing- masing sudah naik ke menara gading  dan ada yang sudah bekerja. Tiba pula zaman terima menantu. Begitulah lumrah hidup. Kini sibuk pula dengan urusan kenduri kendara menerima menantu dan menimang cucu. Namun harus diingat seorang ibu adalah selama-lamanya walaupun telah menerima menantu atau tidak.

Bila sekali sekala berjumpa semasa kenduri baru baru ini, tampak perubahan di muka masing-masing, garis- garis halus yang menunjukkan usia kini dah hampir mejangkau separuh abad. Penat mengasuh anak dan urusan bekerja sedikit sebanyak memberi perubaan kepada fizikal masing- masing. Berumur lewat 40an memyebabkan stamina dah berkurangan meskipun ada yang tidak menyedari keadaan ini. Namun begitu kami 'excited' bertemu sesama sendiri. Oleh kerana kami jarang dapat berjumpa seramai ini kami mengambil keputusan untuk bergambar beramai-ramai dengan pengantin. Terkenang zaman persekolahan dahulu dimana kami agak suka mengambil gambar beramai ramai walaupun acara itu hanya membasuh sick bay (bilik sakit).

Kalau dulu masing masing sibuk berbicara tentang kerja kini dah tak sabar  menunggu zaman pencen(walaupun tak semua). Menikmati suasana yang lebih tenang ,kurang ke arah duniawi lebih ke arah akhirat, tempat tearkhir perjalanan hidup. Meskipun akhirat sepatutnya awal- awal lagi menjadi fokus utama dalam kehidupan, penulis merasakan kita masih belum terlewat memperbaiki diri dan keluarga. Amal ibadat seharusnya dipertingkatkan. Sedekah jariah diperbanyakkan disamping memastikan anak-anak sentiasa terarah kepada kehidupan islamik agar mereka inilah saham terbaik akhirat bagi kita sebagai ibubapa.

Down Memory Lane

The place where I used to frequent- Gurney Drive, Penang

Many people dream of being able to live in their own ideal places. Those living in the countryside often dream of living in luxurious bungalows and mansions. On the other hand, those living in the city prefer to  escape from the hustle bustle of city life.

Being born in an island but currently residing in the suburban where the sea is out of sight, I often get tired with smog and honking of vehicles in the early mornings.  I yearn for a smoke free, serene place where  I could woke up in the morning and breathe the fresh morning air, hear the sounds of overlapping waves and feel the cool breeze.

In my younger days, I used to take morning walks to the beach with my elder sister. The beach was only 10 minutes away if we by pass an abandoned bungalow that was in front of the sea. The yard was used to put the tin mining waste.  At that time tin was the major export of my country. Therefore there were a lot of tin mining activities in the mainland. However, I was a bit puzzled as to why they picked the island that I was staying the place to dump the waste. The waste formed like a small hill at the backyard. Yet this was an elite housing area.

Taking morning walks  was freshening  and  energizing. Normally I would see  many old Chinese men and women taking walks by the beach. Those with walking sticks walked slowly to strenghten their muscles .Others brought along companies which enables them to chat with each other as they jogged. Here nobody cares about hurrying off to work as exercise was their main objective. After finishing their one kilometer  walk, only  then they went back home to get ready to work. Back then there were hardly any jams. My father , a headmaster,usually took only half an hour to go to work and the school was actually on the other side of the island.

As a kid, I always go to the beach to take a stroll or to play. Nothing beats the joy of playing with the sand and small waves rolling onto the beach. Sometimes we dug the sand and collect  small mussels that could be brought home to cook. If it was quite early in the morning, the comfort of the cool breeze caressing my face can be really soothing.


Sometimes if I was early, I would be able to witness the stunning sunrise at the horizon. The view was really magnificent which made us realize how great is God's creation. MasyaAllah. Even the view of the sunrise can be therapeutic. Not to mention how useful the sun is to human beings.

As the sun moved up away from the horizon, the day will be warmer, I would normally started to walk back home following the same path that I did before.

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Ais kepal

"Tadi Ati pi kat sekolah tu. Ada orang jual ABC kat bawah pokok. Ati teringin pula nak makan ais kepal. Lani mana ada orang jual ais kepal. Ati minta juga orang jual ABC tu buat ais kepal. Dia kata dia tak tau nak buat macamana. Ati ajarlah dia macamana. Bubuh sirap macam- macam satu persatu. Tak boleh campur- campur. Nak tergelak pun ya jugak tapi dia sanggup nak buat tak palah. Slurrp...slurrp Ati hirup ais tu. Sedap... tapi tak macam dululah." mak saudaraku yang sudah pun lewat enam puluhan pernah menceritakan kisahnya melepaskan rindu makan ais kepal satu ketika dulu.

Dalam keadaan cuaca panas begini biasanya orang akan teringin nak makan makanan yang sejuk. Kalau zaman sekarang orang terus teringatkan ais krim.  Sekarang  ni ais krim mempunayai pelbagai jenis dan rasa serta bentuk? Anakku yang bongsu kadangkala nak as krim yang bukan berkrim tapi yang jenis bersirap seperti traffic light, icy grape dan tropicana. Ais krim ni lebih menghilangkan dahaga.

Aku rasa tak ramai yang mengenali ais kepal kecuali orang yang seangkatan denganku. Dah nak masuk kategori veteran atau lebih manis lagi kategori pertengahan abad. Yang berumur dua puluhan atau tiga puluhan mungkin tak mengenali desert ni.

Ais kepal ialah desert yang paling murah bagi budak-budak sekolah di zaman era enam puluhan dulu.  Harganya lebih kurang 5 sen ke sepuluh sen. Ia hanyalah ais yang dikisar sepertinak buat  ABC kemudian di buat bentuk bulat seerti bola dengan tangan. Ais kepal ini di curahkan pelbagai larutan pemanis seperti sirap dan sarsi. Biasanya ia dijual selepas sekolah oleh seorang apek(penjual cina) di luar pagar sekolah.

Ais kepal ni pegang dengan apa? Mungkin ini akan ditanya oleh generasi terkini. Kalau ais krim murah macamana sekali pun di zaman ini ia mesti bertangkai samada kayu atau plastik. Ais kepal tak ada tangkai atau batang untuk dipegang. Bila apek tu berikan pada kita, kita tadah saja kedua-dua tangan kita. samada sudah basuh tangan atau tidak. Itulah risiko yang harus diambil oleh pembeli ais kepal! Oleh kerana ia sangat sejuk, ais ini akan sentiasa berganti tangan, sekejap tangan kiri, sekejap tangan kanan.

Bagaimana nak makan bola ais ni? Ais ini  hampir sama dengan ais kacang yang kita beli zaman sekarang. Masalahnya bila dijadikan bentuk bola, ia menjadi agak keras! Mustahil bagi kita menjilatnya kerana ais ini tidak mudah hancur. Caranya ialah dengan menyedutnya perlahan-lahan. Untuk ais yang berharga 5 sen, Apek tersebut tak akan memberikan kta straw. Jadi kita terpaksalah guna tenaga yang ada di mulut  kita. Kita akan merasai kesedapannya bila kita menyedutnya perlahan-lahan air campuran sirap yang sejuk itu.

Sampai bila kita nak sedut air sirap tu?  Sampai habis air sirap tulah! Kadangkala aisnya hanya mengecil sedikit saja. Bila dah habis, air daripada ais kepal inilah yang digunakan untuk membasuh tangan agar tangan tidak melekit. Hmmm... Itulah yang keistimewaan ais kepal!






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