VACATION: DUBAI & ABU DHABI, 2013

Dah lama gilaaaa tak update blog and hari ni nak cerita pasal Dubai Anniversary Trip 2013

It was actually a business trip for me, but since tak pernah berenggang dengan Azad more than 12 hours, kitorang decide to make this our anniversary trip. My flight ticket, accommodation and meals were sponsored by company (during official duty), so expenses incurred cuma flight tiket Lan, Azad, meals..and yang lain2 tu macam taxi, souvenirs, tourist attractions entrance fee, shopping..

Terima kasih daun keladi to Kamal Nor yg jd tourist guide, tukang bwk kereta & baby sitter Azad masa kat Ferrari World.. and also Erwan aka Apam sebab memberikan penginapan percuma kepada kami anak beranak. Thanks a lot!

Details of our trip

Date:   14 - 22 December 2013 

Flight:  KLIA to DXB via Emirates Airline (approximately 8-hr journey)

Hotel:  Chelsea Tower Hotel Apartment

Places/tourist attractions we visited/seen

1. Dubai Mall
2. Dubai Fountain 
3. Dubai Aquarium 
4. Candylicious 
5. Burj Al-Khalifa 
6. Dessert Safari or Dune Bashing
7. Mall of Emirates 
8. The Souk
9. Ferrari World Theme Park, Abu Dhabi 
10. Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi

Useful Tips:

1. Dubai Mall
• Very huge, one of the largest malls in the world! Wear comfortable shoes coz u may need more than 5 hours to cover all area
• Siapa yg suka branded clothes ke handbags ke, bole la shopping kat sini. Banyak gila choice.. duit je tak banyak..
• Metro Station: Burj Al-Khalifa/Dubai Mall - distance from metro to mall entrance agak jauh; 15-min walk
2. Dubai Fountain
• Outside Dubai Mall, the biggest choreographed fountain system in the world
• The fountain show is 5 minutes, but the interval between one show to another is 30 minutes
• The best view is from TGI Fridays Restaurant but the queue is super long.Alternatively, cross to the other side of the fountain (the Souk)
3. Dubai Aquarium
• Inside Dubai Mall, the largest acrylic aquarium panel in the world
• Entrance fee: AED80 for adult
• Personally, i think it's not worth it..enjoying the view from outside is enough. But if you have money and time, why not kan?
4. Candylicious
• Opposite Dubai Aquarium, the largest candy shop in the world. 
5. Burj Al-Khalifa
• The tallest building in the world (so far)
• Take both day and night view pictures
6. Desert Safari or Dune Bashing
• Not baby friendly, but it was the highlight of our vacation!
• Can book via internet (beware of scam!), but we recommend to book via hotel. Insyaallah tak kene tipu because sure la hotel nak jaga nama baik kan? 
• Fee: AED200/adult (can get as cheap as AED150 i think, but we booked thru our hotel so a bit pricey)
• Package include transportation from/to hotel, Dune Bashing (naik 4-wheel drive), camel ride, BBQ dinner, magic show and belly dancing show
7. Mall of Emirates
• ala-ala Mid Valley wing lama.. kedai takde la se-grand Dubai Mall so nak masuk pun tak segan sangat hahahha!
• Metro Station: Mall of Emirates
8. The Souk
• Located in Deira, it is the place to get cheap jubah, shawl, spices, arab perfumes, dates etc. Usually shops are open until 10 pm.
• Negotiate the price, at least start at 30% of the price the shop put
• Metro Station: Baniya's Square
• Take the water taxi , AED1/person to cross the river and find more shops
9. Ferrari World Theme Park
• The largest indoor theme park in the world
• Fee: AED240/adult and AED195/kid-below-1.3m (General Admission)
• Must-try: Formula Rossa (the world's fastest roller coaster) - 240 km/h in less than 5 secs! And take the front seat!
10. Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosques
• a must-see if you visit Abu Dhabi, the largest mosque in UAE and the 8th largest mosque in the world
• the chandeliers are magnificent! 

Other Useful tips (based on our experience)

1. Buy the Dubai Metro silver ticket (AED 20). Kalau beli single ticket, fee jadi mahal.. 
2. December is considered "winter" season. It can be quite chill and windy, so you may want to bring jacket/sweater..
3. Kalau duduk apartment and nak masak, groceries price comparable with Malaysia..cuma ayam mahal gila (around RM30)
4. Can buy choco-date at the Dubai Airport kalau tak sempat beli kat the Souk. Price ok and sentiasa ada discount..
5. Malaysia's Driving License is not valid, so kalau nak pegi Abu Dhabi etc, can take taxi or tour package that comes with it..

And here's some of our pictures!

Dubai Airport

Good morning Dubai!

The Souk

Azad with a Ferrari Car in the Ferrari World Theme Park

Formula Rossa's track in Ferrari World

Ferrari World Theme Park

High-end baby shops inside Dubai Mall

After the Dune Bashing

Shoe heaven inside Dubai Mall

Our hotel; 3-bedroom with kitchen, laundry etc

Sheikh Zeyad Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi

Armani and Vogue Cafe inside Dubai Mall

Burj Al-Khalifa

Interior of Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

The Souk

Us with Erwan aka Apam

The famous Dubai Fountain

Inside Dubai Mall

Wall inside the Grand Mosque

Panoramic view of the Grand Mosque

  

HELLO ZIYAD!

Alhamdulillah our little family is getting bigger! Introducing our 2nd baby; Ziyad Bin Hazlan. Born on 8 February 2015, at 4.24 pm. Birth weight was 2.26 kg only (now after 1 month is 3.2 kg yeaayyy!!) Still kecik compare dgn baby org lain lahir2 dah 3-4 kg but yang penting sihat walafiat :) Will continue to breastfeed him insyaallah until 2 years old..

4 days old

1 month old

Azad (left) vs Ziyad (right)

AMALAN BERPANTANG

Pantang bagi setengah orang sangat menyusahkan tapi aku enjoy je berpantang ni. Enjoy mostly sebab ada orang tolong urutkan dan mak masak sedap2 (bila nak kurus ni??) J Both pantang anak 1^st and 2^nd kat Kedah. Entry ni nak cerita pasal amalan berpantang ikut cara orang sini for my own future reference and maybe those yang tak pernah ada experience. Also some reviews on set berpantang Tanamera and Leesa Formula.

AMALAN BERPANTANG YANG DIAMALKAN (personal experience):

1. BERURUT – selama 3 hari berturut-turut. Function dia untuk melancarkan peredaran darah, mengeluarkan darah kotor, buang angin, mengecutkan rahim dan mengelakkan meroyan. Lepas urut memang terasa banyak darah keluar..makcik urut ni nama Cik Yah mmg hebat. Before urut rasa sakit kat belah kiri (dia cakap rahim "lari" or senget ke kiri). pastu lepas dia urut terus hilang sakit. Tapi hazab la masa urut tu! Hazab lagi satu masa dia tekan kat tempat cucuk epidural. Ya Allah sakit! dia ckp kalau tak keluarkan nanti sakit belakang. Pasrah je la....
2. MANDI HERBA – sekarang ni dah banyak jual sekali dengan set berpantang. I bought set berpantang Tanamera so ada sekali herbal bath yg dlm paket, rebus je and mandi pakai air rebusan tu. Senang! Tapi, aku cuma guna Tanamera Herbal Bath ni after 2 weeks confinement sebab mak sediakan air rebusan daun serai, inai, pandan, dan macam2 daun lain during the first 2 weeks tu..kat kampung senang la nak carik daun2 tu. Kat KL kang kene pegi FRIM pulak nak carik daun2 tu :D
3. AIR GARAM/FEMININE HERBAL WASH – rendam miss V with air garam (dalam 10-15 min) macam yang hospital suruh sebagai antiseptic bunuh kuman and cepatkan proses penyembuhan luka.. Tanamera feminine Herbal Wash guna after 14 days..
4. BERTUNGKU – amalan ni lain negeri, lain cara dia. Sekarang pun dah ada tungku moden panaskan pakai elektrik/stim/microwave etc yg bole beli dgn set berpantang. Orang negeri lain guna “batu sungai” tapi kat Kedah ni pakai “batu besi”. Tiap2 pagi mak akan panaskan guna api dapur, pastu akan balut dengan daun mengkudu and kain batik. Lepas berurut dan mandi herba, start la bertungku tu. Fungsi dia untuk kecutkan rahim, bagi badan panas, keluarkan darah kotor dan keluarkan angin.
5. BERBENGKUNG – fungsi dia untuk kempiskan perut (banyak fungsi lain lagi kot). Lepas dah bertungku, kene pakai bengkung plak. Tapi pantang kali ni tak pakai bengkung pun, pakai corset je. Corset murahan beli kat Pasaraya Yawata Jitra lepas offer RM55 je. Tiap2 malam sebelum tidur sapu kapur + limau nipis kat perut then pakai corset tu.
6. STOKING/SOCKS dan MINYAK PANAS – stoking/socks mmg setiap masa pakai sebab takut sejuk (padahal Kedah panas gila kot!). Minyak panas ni sapu lepas mandi kat betis, tapak kaki and perut.

SET BERPANTANG FOR 2^ND CONFINEMENT:

Brand	Item	Price (RM)	Review
Tanamera	Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO)	102.00	Minum since 37-week pregnant lagi utk mudahkan bersalin. Berjaya minum sikit je sbb malas :D
	Brown Formulation Soap		Ganti sabun/shower foam. Sgt best sebab ala2 scrub..
	Herbal Feminine Wash		Ganti normal feminine wash. Sgt best sebab cepat sembuhkan luka jahitan and segar je lepas tu..
	Herbal Bath		Badan jadi wangi je.. sgt best! But as mentioned above, Cuma guna lepas 14 hari. Awal2 tu guna daun2 yang mak rebus..
Yusmira	Minyak Panas (Halia + Limau Nipis)	20.00	Utk sapu kat tapak kaki, betis or mana2 tempat yg rasa sengal.
Leesa Formula	Tablet Haruan Complex	49.00	Tak sanggup telan pati ikan haruan, so pil ni mmg membantu cepatkan penyembuhan luka jahitan faraj..
	Tablet Prawan	75.00	Masa 1st confinement tak makan pun, yang 2nd ni gatal nak try. Try pun lepas baby confirmed jaundice/kuning dah kurang sbb takut panas. Kesan paling obvious sekali lepas makan pil ni adalah nak buang air senang :p Dalam website Leesa Formula dia claim benefits as below: ·Menguatkan rahim dan mengecutkan kembali saluran peranakan. ·Mencuci darah dan melancarkan perjalanan darah nifas. · Melegakan masalah senggugut, melawas pembuangan air. · Mencegah masalah meroyan. ·Menambah tenaga dan menghilangkan muka pucat selepas bersalin. ·Menghilangkan sengal-sengal sendi dan bias-bisa tulang.
TOTAL		RM 246

So that's it. Sekarang ni dah sebulan dah pantang. Ada lagi 14 hari je nak merdeka yuuhhuuu!! Pastu nanti balik KL lepas 100 hari nak start exercise! Berat sebelum beranak 62 kg. Lepas 1 week jadi 55 kg. Ni dah sebulan jadi 53 kg. Ada lagi 6 kg nak kene turun! Mampukah??