Brussels, Belgium

WAFFLES !!!! 

The waffles here are so good ! Especially from this shop called "Le Funambule". Its really near the Grand Place and they sell heavenly waffles from as low as 1 Euro ! So good that I insisted mum to take a picture of me both of the times I was eating there.

Anyways, since me and mum came during the post-attack, most of the places were closed and so were the metro stations so we couldn't do as much, but it was still alright though :)

Day 1 

We chose to stay at an Air BnB near Churchill which was pretty cool since they sell halal chicken at the nearest Carrefour ! Which is such a blessing cause mum decided to cook Asam Pedas Ayam for Lunch hehehe, Anyways, the first thing we did when we arrived, was to try the "OMG SO SEDAP" Waffles ! 

Told mum I wanted to go to Grand Place since it was one of the top places to go Brussels, but only to find out it was where people were mourning for the deaths and victims of the bombings...
(more pictures available in my previous post on that)

Then, everything else was within a walking distance ! 

And for those of you know me pretty well, you would know how randomly I love chocolates and elephants so I couldn't resist taking a picture with a combination of both !! 

Or even eating it....with that double chin though.....

And after burning all the calories I got from the waffles through our hours of walking around the central, we tried the "Los Churros" Belgian Chocolate Churros and it was heavenly !! It was so good !! It was 7 Euros though which was totally worth it :))))

And last but not least, we went to check out the famous Mannekin Pis... which I had to cover my nose since the boy has been peeing since the 1600s, so you know... *Just kidding*

Day 2

We checked out the famous Atomium ! Which took us almost an hour to get there so as usual, I fell asleep in the Metro all the way..... Also, we bungkus sandwiches so we ate on our way back hehe (saved a lot from eating at restaurants which would cost so much with my current appetite) 

Then, we checked out the European Commission and European Parliament buildings in Brussels ! There were armed military men at each entrance and the buildings were closed so I could only take pictures from outside. Hmmm, its okay, another reason to come and visit Brussels again (rather than just for the waffles) hehehe

Then me and mum went back to the City Centre and chilled there, buying waffles again from my favourite place! Went to Lush to get my facial wash stuff and they gave us 2 free fresh face mask which totally made my day even more !! 

But yeah, that's pretty much it :) 

Next stop, Antwerp ! 

Brussels: #PrayForBrussels

Hey guys, so a lot of my friends have planned their trips to Brussels but due to the recent incident, I've been asked if it is safe for them to travel so I decided that writing a blog post would help (at least as much as I can) so here you go,

It is pretty much safe so far, to me personally. People were standing together rather than against each other, despite the different believes and faiths everyone has. 

But most of the Metro stations were closed for today so it was quite a struggle to get from one place to another. We didn't have any issues with crossing from France to Belgium though, our passports weren't even checked. 

Also, mum got a bit worried if the immigration won't let us through so she wore a cap to cover her head rather than the usual hijab.... but only to find out that there were so many women in Brussels who were still out with hijab on and they didn't seem to be discriminated or mistreated. Infact, they were even there in the crowd standing with the others, mourning together. 

People were chanting and cheering each other up in the midst of the crowd mourning. No words could explain how I felt being there. Oh, and the goosebumps though.

There were military men everywhere. Most of the pictures were taken at the Grand Plaza, one of the most famous place to visit in Brussels and the building was closed, as so were there many other buildings so me and mum couldn't do much but walked around the city and had our little food hunting.

TV stations from around the world were there...and policemen were even guarding certain streets/corners

Upon arriving at Garu de Nord for our bus ride from Paris, I was investigated by the policemen who was checking my rugsack, and we had quite a conversation...

Policeman: Have you got anything dangerous in your bag?

Me: Nope

Policeman: Have you got any bad intentions with you today?

Me: Yeahhh, probably just eating lots of chocolates here in Belgium

Policeman: That's alright ;)

It was quite an amusing conversation though, hope that made him feel better with what his country has gone through... 

There were armed military man checking our bags and clothes at every station and shopping mall we entered. Most of the shops were not even opened. But this is as for today, shops and metro stations might be opened and will work like normal possibly in a couple of days I reckon. 

Since most of the train stations didn't work, the Central Station's entrance had a long queue that the queue extended till outside of the station ! People were all taking their public transports from there and all of them had their bags checked, so yeahhhh. 

Personally, I would say, it is alright to travel since they have really tight security now, which would mean that for anything to happen, would be pretty difficult. But you could tell, that the city was quite quiet and dead. I wouldn't wanna be completely liable if anything happens while any of you are travelling there, but my personal opinion would be is that, it should be safe. 

I was so moved by the spirit at the Palace though. Muslims were even standing next to other citizens/victims for Brussels, supporting their movement. It doesn't matter who you are or what faith you have or where you come from, no one, no country, deserves this. 

Paris: Day 4

Checked out the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Chateau de Versailles ! With my cousins; Ewanina & Ellysa, and my aunt, Aunty Khadijah 

We arrived at about 11.30 AM and bought tickets at the information centre rather than near the palace as we saw the queue. It was free entrance though ! For anyone studying in the UK with a student visa and anyone below 18y'old. 

We thought we jumped the queue since  we bought tickets earlier.... but we didn't ! There was another long queue upon entering the palace ! Which took us almost an hour ! So bear in mind, when you wanna plan your journey here, do consider that it might take more than half of your day. But it was beyond beautiful.......and so worth it 

Since me and mum were leaving for Brussels the next day at 5AM, we decided to stay in for the night again. Had really good Indian food for dinner with my aunt though :)))) 

Day 3: Paris

Since me and mum had so many days in Paris, we took our time visiting places which was pretty nice :) 

We didn't really do much on Day 3 really, just checked out the Louvre and Opera.

And the Opera was so beautiful ! Beyond words !! 

Also, we managed to grab our halal Indian food at a really cheap place, Cafe Bangla.

We decided to go back early and rest since we were out for the whole day, the past few days so yeah. 

InsyaAllah will be writing a post on the hacks and tips on how to get around Paris soon :)

Drunken Hostel Mate

Okay, here's the thing.

I really need to use the toilet but my drunken hostel mate fell asleep on the toilet bowl.... I honestly wouldn't mind assisting her and helping her to her bed (which I always end up doing for my uni mates or friends whenever they get too drunk) but she can't even speak English so I couldn't even be bothered.

And the worst part is,
She left the toilet door open with the lights on and her music blasting in her earphones loudly. Also, with her 'drunk people food' left on the table, opened, leaving the whole room to smell like some weird burger. Omg, can't imagine how my mum would react when she wakes up cause before we fell asleep, mum asked me, "Where is that source of music coming from? And why is the toilet door left open? Where is our hostel mate?" which I ended up telling my mum to drunk hostel mates since we will be staying in backpackers for quite awhile.

So anyways, I had to go all the way down to the lobby just to use the toilet at 1AM ! Now, I gotta control the amount of water I drink before I have to make another journey just to go to the toilet. Sheesh.

I'll just try to sleep so I wouldn't feel the urge to go to toilet anymore, hopefully. Nights.

Day 2: Paris

And finally, got to travel with my mum ! Also, back to waking up every morning at 6AM.... not sure if that is cause she's still jet lagged, or she just has pleasure in being the kind of mum who wakes her daughter up early every morning, but its cool :)

Anyways, we're staying at Lodge in M.I.S which we only paid 10 Euros per night, pretty decent eyy? It comes with free breakfast and the place is pretty clean ! 

Oh before I forget, the struggle was real though carrying my mum's stuff around from one station to another (to be specific, from Garu de Nord to Place d'Ivry). The luggage was broken so our skills in teamwork were being tested when we both had to carry the luggage up and down around the stations since they didn't have much lifts ! It was kinda funny though.... 

Moving on ! 

We went to La Vallee Village just to get a couple of Longchamp bags for those who requested from home. Was a bit cranky causse I'm generally not a huge fan of shopping.. like I do have my times when I can actually enjoy the idea of spending money for anything else besides food and travels haha.

Then we went to Notredame ! Due to food deprivation, we decided to just anywhere nearby the Notredame. It was a bit difficult at first to find cheap places to eat nearby, but we walked around into smaller alleys and Alhamdulillah, we found a halal kebab shop ! 

Really don't know what the luck was for me and my mum but we ate there for free ! Technically, we were supposed to pay for the meal but mum thought I paid, and I thought she paid, and the workers didn't even remember the fact that we didn't pay for our meals !! We even had a chat with them after eating and they didn't even seem to pass the bill hahaha. Mum claimed it was rezeki, while I was prepared to go all the way back just to pay....  

Anyways, it was then time to check out the Eiffel Tower :)

It was freezing cold !! We quickly took pictures before the sun went down. Mum wasn't so into the idea of going up the Eiffel tower so I thought I was gonna miss out on it as well. 

But then suddenly a guy came up to my mum and said, "Assalamualaikum Aunty!", and it was Fazmie and the boys again ! Hahaha talk about coincidence. And they invited me to go up the Eiffel tower with them while my mum stays warm at a nearby cafe, and it was worth the climb :) 

We went up by 6.30 PM but there was a queue going up the lift from the 2nd stage of Paris. Also, we were not as fit to go up the hundreds of stairs (or maybe it was just me slowing them down) but it took us awhile which we only made it back down at 8,55PM, having 5 minutes left to catch the Eiffel Tower being lighted up at 9PM. Yes, the Eiffel Tower is only lighted up with those blinking lights for 5 minutes only every hour and it was such a beautiful sight !

Then, I had to go to pick my mum up from the cafe she was chilling at before only to find out that apparently, she was falling asleep a couple of times at the cafe just waiting for me to come down from the Eiffel Tower. Teehee, sorry ma.