WARNING: since this post is drafted first before being uploaded, this entry might be super long with heavy loads of pics. It is advised to be read little by little to avoid the brain damage. haha!
Assalamualaikum.
Yeah. Finally I have the motivation to at least draft this straight into my dashboard rather than writing it down on paper and then misplace it and eventually forget about it. =.='
Hmm... Where should I start? I guess, I'm still on my vacation mood. Even the piles of works seemed to be slowing down these few days. kekeke! :P
Actually, the trip to Gold Coast, Australia was meant to be our; Aisyah and me, vacation besides paying our dear beloved friend, Puan Nurul and family, a visit. Sambil menyelam minum air lah kaedahnya ini. I was supposed to meet Aisyah at Gold Coast itself since she was supposed to be going to GC straight from Tasmania then. Unfortunately, some technicalities has occurred which then forbids Aisyah from joining the trip and there I was on my very first solo traveling. From Malaysia, to Gold Coast, with lots of Love. ecewah! sempat bermadah bagai kan.
Anyhow, how well we plan things to go for us, Allah is still the One who decides on the path. He decided that I was to be destined to be traveling alone to GC, and Alhamdulillah, by that, one of my wishlist, which is to travel alone, is now accomplished. It was such a precious experience, and i really thank Him for giving me such meaningful gift. :)
Let's cut the crap, and jump into the journal, shall we?
10.11.2011
9.40pm (Malaysian time). Departs from LCCT. Sent off by Mummy and Abah.
Feelings? Mixed.
Takot. Excited. Happy. Nervous. Nak nangis pun ada. Macam nak berpisah bertahun je ngan parents, padahal 6 hari je. sunggoh la dramatic. Tapi berjaya mengubah emosi feeling sedih bagai kepada yang positif. well, after all, I was the one who asked for it, no?
Nothing much on the plane. Just lucky enough to get the three seat all to my self. yay!
11.11.2o11
7.40am (Queensland time) Arrived Gold Coast Airport. Coolangatta.
Tips: Avoid bringing any kind of food for a smooth check-out. Bukan tak boleh bawak, certain things, you have to declare. Kalau tak bawak sebarang bentuk makanan, memang lebih laju nak check out. Alhamdulillah, proses check out dari airport Gold Coast tu amat smooth.
Being blank, no idea what is the next move, i just simply "scan" the airport for a short while. and finally decided to take the Return Airport Transfers package by TRANSlink. errr...not quite sure how to explain this, but i bought the package just at the counter at the airport. the Gold Coast tourist shuttle. Cost me 35AUD for the Return Airport Transfers. They'll send you straight to your destination (in my case, it's the International Beach Resort) and 24-hours prior to your flight back, just leave them a call to book your return transfer,daripada mana jua anda
berada. if they'll guide you to the location u shall wait for the shuttle and worry not, they'll locate you to as near as possible to your accommodation you're checking out from.
Tips: get yourself a map. and the tourist magazines from the tourist booth (kat airport itself pun ada) for free. Selain amat bermanfaat untuk kau decide where to head to, it contains lots of vouchers bagai. and pretty useful for your walkabouts too!)
Arrived at the accommodation for the night, International Beach Resort at about 10.15am. Well, it was not even close to the check in time yet, but i was just trying my luck and Alhamdulillah, since my booked room was vacant, they let me in right away. Nurul's husband helped with the bookings, by the way. Cost of the Studio Room was 126AUD inclusive of taxes etc. They'll eventually will ask you for your credit card as a cagaran for the room bagai (erk. sorry, bab
booking2 cagar2 hotel ni aku first time buat. so amat naive. i believe you people is better than me on this. hehehehe) since i have no cc, i deposit 200AUD cash (which depends, receptionist tuh not supposed to take any cash but was again, my luck kot. Alhamdulillah).
pic: kononnya nak mark kat mana nak explore whatsoever.... konon....ku bilang lagi....konon........
So then, i went straight to my room and took a goooood rest then. yeah. so much for trying to plan where to head to, end up dozing off!! mana tidak, tengok laa....bilik menghadap laut. bunyi ombak menderu deru membuai perasaan. alkisah jet-lagged sama. la la land la aku deknon!
biar je pintu balkoni terbukak, memang masyukkk wa cakap lu. musim spring, angin sejuk sepoi bahasa tepi laut tu. oh. did i mention that the hotel was in Surfers Paradise? bilik aku memang menghadap laut, the best ever! tak perlu kipas, biar je angin laut tu menderu masuk. oh. terbang ke langit tinggi aku! ye, dan ada aku sebut tak bunyi ombak memang terapi sangat membahagiakan?
pic: view dari balkoni tempat penginapan. andaikata angin dan bunyi pun dapat capture dalam kamera, you'll definitely understand betapa tenangnya melayan perasaan sensorang....:P
at 12pm, finally forced myself up to get some food. went out sight seeing. and food hunting. within that 2 hours, memang dah boleh siap tawaf dah Surfers Paradise tuh. Berjalan sahaja. tak perlu bas bagai. Cuaca? Alhamdulillah ketika itu angin sedap je, dan cerah. ha kau! sedar-sedar berbelang nyahh! hahaha. but tak apa, janji puas. Takat kulit muka gelap, apa sangat lah der. But please dear, be careful not to overexpose to the sun sangat waktu2 tengahari cenggitu. tak elok, boleh jadi cancer.
Tips: Be sure to apply sunblock before setting off. and at Surfers Paradise, it's not that hard to find halal food. Biasanya, kedai makanan India or Kebab ada sijil Halal. seafood, tak sure, should be okay but since that was my first time traveling alone at a foreign country, i was being safe, just followed the tips given by Nurul.
Had Chicken Kebab (which costed about 8-10AUD). Mak aihh! portion dia serius bapak gajah! I guess, kalau belah dua atau tiga, satu kebab tuh boleh bikin makan seharian; breakfast, lunch, dinner. cukup. err....untuk aku lah. since dah conscious sangat sejak dua menjak ni tentang amount of food intake. kononnya! Tapi sebab kebulor sangat, dek breakfast pun telan air teh je bancuh ketika sampai di bilik hotel, sebijik kebab size gajah tuh sedar2 dah habis. sekian. haha
By 2pm, dah siap tawaf Surfers Paradise tu. Oh. did not start any shopping then. berpatah balik ke bilik untuk atur lebih teratur aktiviti siang hari itu.
Namun, dah ku bilang, bilikku menghadap laut dan cuaca musim spring sangat indah, dengan deruan ombak seakan muzik menyapa telinga, aku terbungkang sekali lagi, beralaskan bantal dan map depan hidung, beserta sebatang pen dan sehelai kertas yang kononnya menjadi medium perancangan. ceh.
About 5pm, finally, after battling with sleepy-head-mode dengan excited-jenjalan-mode, keluar dari bilik dan jalan tepi pantai. er. but not exactly TEPI, but tepi lagik. kat pedestrian walkway tepi pantai instead of kat pasir pantai tu. Alasan; pakai sport shoes. malas nak kotor2 masuk pasir bagai. aku ni dah la pantang jalan kat pasir pantai, sure gatal2 nak melata tepi gigi air. lagipun, jalan jalan petang tuh pun sekadar to kill off time sementara tunggu activiti Glow Worm Tour malam itu.
pic: lepak tepi jalan. eh. tepi pantai dikala menanti tour-guide tiba...
Tips: boleh sewa basikal. macam macam jenis basikal hado. aku tertarik dengan basikal yang jenis ala ala beca yg boleh dikayuh oleh 4 orang sekali tu. About the price for hire, am not quite sure though. but i guess, if i were to spent more time in Surfers Paradise, I would've considered hiring one then.
pics above: pedestrian-friendly. ample space to walk-around. jenjalan di Surfers Paradise. Kawasan clean. Selesa dan selamat berjalan jalan. i even saw people walking barefooted. confident amat. from what i observed, pemandu kat sini tahu hormat pejalan kaki. (dan pejalan kaki pun tahu maki pemandu kuang hajau! hahaha. di Malaysia tak kurang juga pemandu sopan yg reti hormat pejalan kaki especially at zebra crossings, but....hmm...maybe i haven't seen enough.....)
Cuaca di petang hari memang sangat sejuk (err...at least for me). mungkin sebab lokasi bersebelahan laut mungkin? i don't know. buat i just love the atmosphere. :)
At about 6.30pm, the tour i have booked...err....again, with the help of Nurul's husband, from Hinterland Tours came picked me up from my accommodation. Well, most of the day tours they offered start off as early as 7.45am. so, i end up going for the evening one (Tour 09: Evening Glow Worm Tour and Springbrook Observatory). The tour was of a small group, though. Only 7 of us (excluding the bus driver cum tourist guide) on board. The day tour cost me about 94AUD.
That night was a full moon, so, we managed to enjoy the sight of the moon through the telescope at the observatory. Subahanallah, indah ciptaan Allah.
and managed to see Jupiter too! weeehu! p/s: gambor time
tour tuh malas nak upload sebab skill amek gambor time malam wa sangat hampeh. heh heh heh.
Info: About the glow worm, unlike the fireflies who glow to attract mates, the glow worm glows to attract their food. The adult of the glow worm has no mouth, thus, can only live up to 10 days approximately only. The tour, if to describe, was much like star gazing, except that it was done in a sort of cave ke camne tah rupa dia. (it was too dark i couldn't recall whether it was underneath a rock or was actually a small cave whatsoever).
At about 11.53pm, i was safely back in the room and could not hold my eyes any longer.
Therefore, there goes my Day 1 in GC. (al-kisah, balik tu bergolek sambil pegang pen tulis journal perjalanan...lah konon! alih-alih, faham faham sahajalah, bagai orang mengantuk disorong bantal.... hihihi)
Kos Hari Pertama:
1. Airport transfer: 35AUD
2. Accommodation: 126AUD + 200AUD (Deposit)
3. Glow-Worm Day Tour: 94AUD
4. Meals: 16AUD
Total: 471AUD
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