An Epic Trip

Recently, my parents and I made a very short tour to United Kingdom. Our trip was 9 days including the days when we were on train and on flights transferring here and there.

I will blog about our trip and hopefully you will find it useful for yours. This time around I just want to talk about the hotels we stayed in London and Paris.

London

In London, we stayed at Hotel Athena. It was a B&B (bed and breakfast) place. The room given to us was a quadruple room in which there was one double bed and two single beds. The room is very small yet it could fit all three beds and three big luggage. Of course we have to move carefully so that we don't bump into each other. 

In the room, they provided hot water kettle, cups, coffee and sugar. Also, they gave us three different password and it expires at the end of each day. The connection is very good.

It is a short distance from Paddington Tube station (in London, people call their underground station as Tube). It consists of many line and each is colour coded. It is reliable and very fast. The only thing is we were afraid we might get lost, hence we only used it once when my uncle and aunty brought us to have a look at Primark.

This is the basement of the hotel where we had our breakfast every morning. It is just open for breakfast and not any other time. 

This is the only picture I took of our room. This is the view of the window from my bed (single bed). Beside the window on the left, there is a reading light. I only used it for one night and on the other night I was too tired to read. There was plenty of power points to charge your phone, power bank, portable wi-fi and whatever you want to charge.

This is where we took our breakfast (basement) at Athena Hotel in London.

Paris

Next, is the hotel in Paris. It is Villa Alessandra  in 9, Place Boulnois, 75017 Paris. They can be reached at alessandra@leshotelsdeparis.com or +33(0) 156332424.

The hotel is situated at the far end of this road. We stayed at Level 1 and they have a small but reliable lift to carry people up and down. Again, the dining hall is at the basement. It is very small but enough to for all its occupant. The dining is only open for breakfast from 7-10am. 

There, we met a boy from Belfast who was working in an IT company. He is staying there for three months to work and then will be transferred back to Belfast. We saw him on both days when we were there but doesn't seem to like chatting much.

This is the view from the room looking outside.

The hotel has equipped each room with a smart phone which we can use as long as we stayed in the hotel. It has good connection. Any French number can be connected to it but it was in Arabic so I relied on my phone most of the time. The above picture shows the phone together with its charger.

There was one general password for wi-fi in the hotel. If any one of us uses the internet, then the rest of has can't get a connection. This is what we found lacking. Also, the taxis found it hard to go to the hotel as it was hidden from the road. I think we felt safe that way. On another note, the hotel was close to Champ Elysees and a walking distance from Arc de Triomphe.

We were satisfied with both the hotels as the food was edible, the rooms was clean and the people were hospitable.

All the bookings was done by my cousin at Far East Travel. You can contact them or you may search online for the hotels.

Solve your Problems

Image from Google

This post is something that I have to work on because usually when it comes to solving problem, i tend to avoid it.

First of all, it is probably because I want to avoid conflict that I think might be the result of going face to face with a problem.

Two weeks ago, an intern counsellor at our school organized a talk and in that she spoke to students about problem solving.

I did not attend the session but later on I managed to get some important points from her. She told me there are a few steps to problem solving.

 First and foremost, one must decide to face the problem. She said, the stress and anxiety an individual faces in life is sometimes caused by unsolved problems or by avoiding problems.

Once you decide that you want to resolve an issue it is already the first step to problem solving.

Define the problem
So the next step is for you to define your problem. What is it that is bothering you? What needs to be solved? List it down.

Brainstorm solution
After you had listed down your issues, brainstorm the solutions that comes to your mind. Sister Hafsa, the counsellor, said list down all solutions even if it sounds crazy.

For example: if your friend is not speaking to you, your possible solution is to
a) avoid her
b) dont come to school
c) expand your circle of friends
etc

Choose a solution
From the list of possibilities you created, choose one solution that is the best. Hafsa said the student should choose a solution that is best for her now and future.

Lets say you decide to avoid your friend for now, you might end up in the same working group in the near future. So, it is wise to think of the future while choosing this solution.

Try it out
Nothing works if you don't try it out. So, test your solution.

Evaluate
Once you tried it out, evaluate how the situation has turned up. Did things with your friend became better or worse? Was your solution the right one?

When you evaluate something, you know whether it has worked for the better or not. This is where you have to be honest and assess the situation. This step will help you to make a choice in the future.

If your choice of solution didn't work, go back to your brainstormed list and try again.

So, these are the steps to problem solving. Do share your own tips if it has worked for you.

Hatta Dolmat Raya Collection: East meets West

This picture is one of Hatta's Raya collection. It is named Hillary and among many of the line ups for this Raya collection, this captures my attention. 

During a conversation with Hatta, I asked why did he decide to name his Raya collection in English and his response was he wanted to market this collection internationally. His intention was to mix the East and the West and give his Raya collection a fresh new look.

If anyone has noticed, he has inserted a splash of flamboyant into his line ups. His are all very exclusive and glamorous with a hint of style.

The colours from this collection of his derived from the vintage colour scheme and that is why perhaps Hillary captured me. Its play of soft pastel colour with bold ornament is subtle yet very daring.

I found my favourite and maybe you will find yours at www.hattadolmat.my 

Mahsuri: A Legend Revisited

Malaysians are very familiar with Mahsuri. Ever since we were young, we were told about this tale. At first I thought it was just a story but after paying a visit to the Mahsuri Museum in Langkawi, I knew it was more than a story. It was a struggle of a woman to survive. It was the usual jealousy and back stabbing among the royal.

Mahsuri's tale is nothing new. It seems like we never learn from this. In our society, we hear the same tale only in different times, in different situation.

At the museum, there was a kris on display and that was the special kris used to assassinate Mahsuri. According to the reenactment of the story, Mahsuri couldn't be killed by any sword. After days, of stabbing by a normal kris, Mahsuri felt tortured. She felt weak thus she revealed the kris that could actually take her life. Before her last breath, she cursed Langkawi to be barren for seven generations. True enough, Langkawi was attacked by the Siam government and it was barren.

Now, Langkawi is a world attraction and true to its word, it is a beautiful island.

Mahsuri had a daughter and she was taken either by her grandparent of her father to some place in Southern Thai. It could be Hatyai or Phuket, I can't remember it clearly now.

Recently, Mahsuri's great great granddaughter came for a visit. She is a beautiful lady and married with one child. The old dispute has calmed down and Mahsuri's descendant was celebrated grandly when she came.

Mahsuri's family tree. Mahsuri's great great grand daughter and hubby is on bottom right.

Mahsuri's grave

Traditional houses in the Mahsuri museum's compound.

Old trunks. Remind me of appa's in India.

Feeding the Needy

There's no need for a reason to reach out and help someone. Under the leadership of Nor Adzua Yaacob, our head of Co-Curriculum Department, IISM (S) organized a community service with Feeding the Needy (FTN). 

Feeding the Needy is an NGO who has been distributing food and toiletries to street friends. They have been doing this for two years and on every Thursday. They are on Facebook at Feeding the Needy (FTN) and on Instagram at @feedingtheneedy .

The work started weeks earlier from the day of event and our students, especially the grade 11 helped with packing the items. Mainly we were dealing with toiletries. Our products came from TESCO and GIANT but kak Adzua had to scout around before she finds what was necessary.

This programme would not be a success if the other teachers did not lend a hand. Truly a teamwork makes the job easier. 

On the day of event, we reached in front of CIMB, Jalan Chow Kit at 8.15 pm. As we arrived we found a group of street friends already waiting. The students arrived with bus later at 8.30pm. However, we did not start until its 9pm. 

The volunteers at FTN we arranging the space and they were very systematic. Everything was laid out properly and our students started transferring the toiletries to the designated space.

Then, students were assigned with duties and everything was carried out smoothly. Some students were distributing food, some were in charge of toiletries, some were giving out milk powder packets. 

Some students were taken back when they were not allowed to give the milk packets to those who came and ask. The FTN team has a voucher system where a piece of paper was given to the street friends. The street friends were then given certain items according to the voucher. No second round is entertained. FTN wants to accommodate the crowd who turned up and the team doesn't want to disappoint anyone.

After the distribution, the son of a volunteer, Firdaus took us to see the other section. At the back alley, mothers and children are gathered and given a class on Art and Craft. Firdaus informed us that Miss Nina and Faizal Tahir came for a light entertainment on one session.

After the night calmed down, we were separated into three groups for cleaning up. We were given one glove and a rubbish bag. Carefully our team leader instructed us to collect what we can see. She reminded us not to put our hand where we can't see anything visible. This is because we might find needles and syringe. On such occasion we were instructed to alert out team leader. We were also told not to grab the rubbish instead pick it up with our fingers.

Lastly, feedback session. We were told that the FTN team had to stop four fights that night. This happened because the bread distribution team missed out a few street friends. FTN team leader, Puan 

Mimi Liana Nasharuddin reminded us that to the street friends, each meal is precious. Hence, when they start to compare with their friend's who got the meal they didn't get, they become upset.

Although I joined the FTN two years earlier with my cousins, it was a completely different experience to do it with our students. I am sure our students will treasure this memories and I hope they will learn to appreciate the things they have in life.

If any of you are interested to volunteer with FTN, just sign up at their FB page Feeding the Needy (FTN). 

Third batch arrived on a day of the event. This batch is from GIANT Batu Caves.

All the bags were arranged in a group of ten 

Items were loaded into Co-Cu room

The grade 11 who helped with packing

ISSB General Manager, En Kaharuddin with IISM (S) Principal, En Zulfan Haidar and Kak Adzua with the students

List of attendees

Look who turned up that night

Unloading of the toiletries and water from the bus

That was our spot on 23rd March 2017

Baby Zharif also turned up that night

Abdalla Sabir's girls were also there to help

Cleaning up session. Each were given a glove and a rubbish bag

We were expecting rain. All praises to Allah for the clear sky 

Returning the volunteer vest

Closing with Puan Mimi

Tr Jalal with some advice

Principal with his advice

Before clearing the spot, we have to take some photos for the memories