About Me

My photo
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
I am married to my loving husband for more than 40 years now. I am a mother to 3 beautiful children, until years ago when I lost my youngest son. Since then my life is forever altered but yet unbroken....

My Travel Journal

"There isn't much I haven't shared with you along the road and through it all there'd always be tomorrow's episode" - Elton John

I started traveling around the world since early 80s when I had the opportunity to combine business trips with vacations. Then later when my rezeki is in abundance, there were numerous other trips along the way for vacations, most of the time with hubby and the kids when the timing is right. I have also started to compile the journal and photo-pages covering almost more than 45 years of world wide travel. Some destinations I visited just once, others many times. Many of those places are the obvious famous places people would like to visit but some, the casual traveler doesn't even think to try. I have placed links to my travel at the side bar of my personal page, My Life Reflections, and will be updating them from time to time.

My wish is to continue my travel and complete circumnavigate the globe, insyaAllah…

Wednesday 16 December 1998

Saudi Arabia 1998: Makkah - Our 4th Umrah and Ziarah Trip...

"The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything..."

Makkah al-Mukarramah
(16 - 26 December 1998)

(Iwan and Ja with their abah)
(All in the family at Masjid Tanaeim)
(The 3 kids with Atok Abah)
(Sara, Iwan and Ja at Jabal Rahmah)
(Ja with his Abah and Tokbah)

Sunday 13 December 1998

Saudi Arabia 1998: Madinah - The Runaway Travel Agent

"Every day do something that will inch you closer to a better tomorrow..." - Doug Firebaugh

Madinah, Saudi Arabia
(13 - 16 December 1998)

(Ja at Jabal Uhud)
(At Jabal Uhud)
(At Masjid Quba')
(The 2 emak stranded at Madinah Airport)

👈 1998: Makkah, Saudi Arabia

Wednesday 9 December 1998

Egypt 1998: Alexandria - Shining pearl of the Mediterranean...

"Be as smart as you can, but remember that it is always better to be wise than to be smart..." - Alan Alda

We had a day tour of Alexandria and Abu Dzar, my nephew who was studying in Cairo joined us in the tour.

The second largest city and the main port of Egypt, Alexandria was built by the Greek architect Dinocrates on the site of an old village, Rhakotis, at the orders of Alexander the Great. The city, immortalizing Alexander's name, quickly flourished into a prominent cultural, intellectual, political, and economic metropolis, the remains of which are still evident to this day.

(A family photo in Alexandria)

It was the renowned capital of the Ptolemies, with numerous monuments. It was the site of the Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, as well as the Great Library. It was along these shores that history took a tragic turn at the time of Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, and Octavian.

(Iwan and Ja at the Old Lighthouse ruins)

Alexandria lies north-west of the Nile delta and stretches along a narrow land strip between the Mediterranean Sea and Lake Mareotis. It is linked to Cairo by two major highways and a railroad line. It is one of the most notable summer resorts in the Middle East, for, in addition to its temperate winters, its beaches, with white sands and magnificent scenery, stretch for 140 km along the Mediterranean Sea, from Abu Qir, in the east to Al-Alamein and Sidi Abdul Rahman, in the west.

(Ja at the guard house to the Palace)

Much of ancient Alexandria is covered by modern buildings or is underwater; only a few landmarks are readily accessible, including ruins of the emporium and the Serapeum and a granite shaft called Pompey's Pillar. Nothing remains of the lighthouse on the Pharos, which was one of the Seven Wonders of the World , and the site of the royal palace lies under the older harbor.

(The two of us)


Egypt 1998: Cairo - Tombs of the ancient Pharaohs...

"Good things come to those who wait. But better things come to those who work for it..."


This is our family umrah trip with a few days stop-over in Cairo and Alexandria, Egypt. We brought along our three kids with us and also my parents and my Mother-in-law.

The heart of Egypt for more than 1000 years, Cairo demonstrates the dichotomy of all things Egyptian. It's in Cairo where the medieval world and the contemporary western world come together in a confusion of earthen houses and towering modern office buildings, of flashy cars and donkey-drawn carts. Nobody really knows how many people live in Cairo, but estimates put it at about 16 million, and the city's many squatter camps and slums alone accommodate around 5 million people. Housing shortages are terrible and the traffic is appalling, but the government has begun a campaign to ease these pressures, opening an underground metro system and constructing satellite suburbs.

(A journey on camels to the Pyramids)
(Iwan and his Abah)

Islamic Cairo, which is no more Islamic than the rest of the city, is the old medieval quarter, and stepping into its neighborhoods is like moving back six or seven centuries. This is the most densely populated area of Egypt, and probably the whole Middle East. Districts like Darb al-Ahmar are full of tiny alleyways, mud-brick houses, food hawkers, and goats, camels and donkeys. The streets are lined with mosques and temples, and the air is filled with the pungent smells of turmeric and cumin, animals and squalor.

(Sara and the three Pyramids)
(Ja visiting the tomb in the heart of the pyramid)

Some of Islamic Cairo's highlights include the Mosque of Ibn Tulun, dating from the 9th century and the city's oldest intact and fully functioning Islamic monument; the 15th-century Mosque of Qaitbey, considered the jewel of Mamluk architecture; Al-Azhar Mosque, the keystone of Islam in Egypt; and the Citadel, an awesome medieval fortress that was the seat of Egyptian power for 700 years. The Citadel has three major mosques and several museums.

(A family photo)

River alive!
by Alun Buffry

Whether we laugh, or whether we cry,
the river of life goes rushing by,
down the hills and mountain sides,
into valleys, long and wide,

The happiest of people don't necessarily
have the best of everything;
they just make the most of everything
that comes along their way.

1997: Hong Kong 👉