Kembara Ramadhan Vol 6

“A man who gives alms with his right hand, he hides his charity to the point that his left hand does not know what his right hand is giving away...” - Imam Bukhari

Do the years seem to be going ridiculously quickly now? Time is catching up too fast and we are already into the first ten days of Ramadhan.

Ignoring my painful ankle and creaking knees, I managed not to skip iftar and tarawih prayers at our Masjid At-Tayyibbin Taman Bidara. For the second ten days of the fasting month, we already made plan for a Kembara Ramadhan where we would be on a 1,750 km journey to visit and perform our tarawih prayers in the mosques of Southern Thailand. We plan to cover Hat Yai, Songkhla, Phatthalung, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surat Thani, Krabi, Trang, Pak Bara and Satun. If time permitting, we will also visit a few mosques in Perlis and Kedah on our way back to Kuala Lumpur.

During our Kembara Ramadhan we will distribute sets of telekong/sejadah and infaq some funds to all the mosque we are going to visit, insyaAllah…

  01 Kembara Ramadhan - Hat Yai👉

01 Kembara Ramadhan - Hat Yai

"Talent is nothing without education and discipline. And education and discipline is a talent in itself..." - Luke Campbell

(Nuruddeen Mosque Hat Yai)

Day 01: Saturday, 1 April 2023
Route: Kuala Lumpur - Hat Yai
Distance: 534 km
Hotel: Golden Crown Hotel, Hat Yai

For a week, hubby has been busy packing all the necessary things for our trip. And I have been busy ticking the checklists. No matter how thorough we are, there will always be items to stuff in our bags last minute.

We started from Bidara house about 8.00 am. Stopped for a rest break at Taiping Hentian Sebelah about 10.30 am. We drove non stop northbound. By 1.30 pm we reached Changlun and changed another Rm1.5k for B11,530 at the kedai kopi bawah pokok.

(The start of a 10-day Kembara Ramadhan)

(A rest stop at Taiping Hentian Sebelah)

Border crossing on Malaysian border was smooth. At the Thailand border, only drivers remained in the cars. Passengers had to get their passports stamped in the immigration terminal. About 2.30 pm we completed border clearing and paid a fee of B30.

In Danok we stopped at the roadside phone shop to top-up our Dtac Thailand hp for B200.

(Heavy traffic heading towards the border)

(Smooth border crossings on both borders)

(Entering Thailand on a beautiful clear day)

Drove direct to Nuruddeen Mosque Hat Yai also known as Na Khuan Lang Mosque for solat jamak Zohor/Asar. Masjid Nuruddeen is situated along the main road in Hat Yai city. It is conveniently located for travelers to stop by to pray and rest. The surrounding area and toilets and ablution areas are clean. There are a few halal eateries near the mosque but they were closed. We were early and the stalls will only be opened in the evening. This three storey mosque is spacious but parking area is quite limited.

(Masjid Nuruddeen in Hat Yai town)

(Solat Jamak Zohor/Asar)

(A mosque for musafir, spacious and clean)

We checked in Golden Crown Hotel at B800/night for two nights. We were disappointed that Khaled Restaurant, our favorite eatery next door was closed for renovations for the whole month of Ramadhan.

While I took a rest in the room, hubby walked to Centara Hotel Tunnel Market to pack murtabak ayam, roti pisang and kopiko for breaking of fast later.

(Buying murtabak ayam and roti pisang at Centara Tunnel Market) 

(Varieties of mouth-watering halal food at the night market)

(A cosy place for a simple iftar)

After Maghrib/Isya jamak prayers in the room, we drove to Masjid Nuruddeen Hat Yai about 5 km away to perform the Tarawih prayers. A brief tazkirah in Thai was delivered before the 21 rakaat prayers. It was full house tonight. I chose to pray on the upper level as it was cooler. The floor is not carpeted so almost everyone would bring their own sejadah.

(Night view of Nuruddeen Mosque)

(A tazkirah before Tarawih prayers)

(The muslimat at lower and upper floors)

We completed 8 rakaat followed by witir. We were back in the hotel around 10.15 pm. We rested well for the night and set the alarm for 3.45 am for sahur.

(Hotel Golden Crown Hat Yai, our lodging for the night)

       02 Kembara Ramadhan - Hat Yai👉

02 Kembara Ramadhan - Hat Yai

"When you light up the path for others, you light up the path for yourself. Live unselfishly...”

(The Central Mosque of Songkhla)

Day 02: Sunday, 2 April 2023
Location: Hat Yai free and easy
Hotel: Golden Crown Hotel, Hat Yai

Sahur was nasi, sambal sotong and ikan bilis goreng. After subuh prayers, recited a juzuk of the quran and went back to sleep.

(Our sahur this morning)

Woke up late. After zohor/Asar prayers, we walked in the hot sun to Sawasdee Massage & Spa for an hour of strong foot massage. Rested in the room for the rest of the afternoon.

(An hour of strong foot massage)

Around 5.00 pm we drove about 10 km towards Songkhla to visit the Central Mosque of Songkhla also known as 'Thailand’s Taj Mahal'. The Central Mosque was built in 2001 with elegant architectural and art styles. The mosque used to be one of the most famous worship centres. It has a peaceful and tranquil surrounding atmosphere. There is a large pool in front of the majestic building.

(The Taj Mahal of Thailand)

(The sun is setting quickly on the horizon)

Today, this impressive building looks abandoned and neglected. The mosque is opened to visitors only from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm and there is no Tarawih prayers here. As there was no eateries around the Central Mosque we ended up breaking fast with some kurma and mineral water.

(A large pool in front of the Central Mosque)

(A beautiful sunset reflections on Songkhla Lake)

(A smaller mosque near Songkhla Central Mosque)

We drove around Songkhla town and found a few mosques but there were no proper parking areas around these mosques. We ended up driving back to Hat Yai and performed our Tarawih prayers at Nuruddin Mosque.

(The Tahfiz students and the jemaah)

After Tarawih, we bought special beef burgers and fries from the Halal stalls for our late dinner.

(A few of the many Halal stalls near our hotel)

                 03 Kembara Ramadhan - Nakhon Si Thammarat👉👉

👈👈01 Kembara Ramadhan - Hat Yai

03 Kembara Ramadhan - Nakhon Si Thammarat

“Lets not deal with people as if they are perfect. Allah made us humans not angels. We all have shortcomings...”

(The Jamek Central Mosque of Nakhon Si Thammarat)

Day 03: Monday, 3 April 2023
Route: Hat Yai - Phatthalung - Nakhon Si Thammarat
Distance: 330 km
Hotel: Grand Park Hotel, Nakhon Si Thammarat

(Driving out of Hat Yai)

Sahur with nasi and maggi with ikan bilis kacang and sambal daging. After subuh and tadarus, we slept again for an hour. By 8.45 am we checked out and drove towards Phatthalung Provincial Central Mosque located at Pak Phayun town area. We drove on Route 4, then onto Route 4181 and Route 4049. Pak Phayun is a district in Phatthalung. There are many eateries around the mosque area. We performed our dhuha prayers here.

(Passing through small towns on tertiary roads)

(A photo opportunity with a gorilla)

(Arriving at Phatthalung Provincial Central Mosque)

(Located at Pak Phayun by the Thale Luang Lake)

(A beautiful and clean mosque, Musafir-friendly)

(Spacious main prayer hall)

(Internal view of the mosque)

To the east of Pak Phayun is the Thale Luang lake, which through a narrow strait opens into Songkhla Lake south of the district. We crossed the bridge to Ko Mak island but did not explore the island further. 

(Crossing the bridge to Ko Mak Island)

(Crossing back to the mainland)

(Looking out for the right direction)

Before we drove out of Pak Phayun, we stopped at two more mosques in Pak Phayun. Masjid Ansor Rus Sunnah is a new modern mosque located at the foot of a hill. It has two floors and quite spacious, peaceful, and clean. A religious School, Madrasah Ansor Rus Sunnah Al-Khiriat is located at the hilltop. From the top you can see a beautiful panoramic view of the Lake. Another mosque visited was a small old Masjid Darul Aman situated at a corner of a busy intersection.

(The empty street of Pak Phayun)

(A new modern mosque of Masjid Ansor Rus Sunnah)

(External and internal view of the mosque)

(Local prayer time, the minaret and the mimbar)

(Madrasah Ansor Rus Sunnah on top of a hill)

(Masjid Darul-Aman)

(Located at a corner of a junction)

From Pak Phayun we drove on the alternative coastal road towards Nakhon Si Thammarat. We stopped for solat jamak zohor/Asar at Masjid Quwatal Islam in Singha Nakhon. This was our second time here. We made brief detours to the Muang Nam beach and the windmill farms along the way.

(Navigating around the lake towards the coastal road)

(Masjid Quwatul Islam in Singar Nakhon)

(This mosque is formerly known as Masjid Yamal)

(Jemaah waiting for Zohor prayers)

(Muang Nam Beach and a lone windmill)

We reached Nakhon town about 4.00 pm and visited the Pasar Ramadhan located next to the Jamek Central Mosque and bought food for iftar. It was nice to see the Muslim community in Nakhon coming together to celebrate the month of Ramadhan.

(Decorated pedestrian crossing at a busy junctions)

(A beautiful mosque located in city centre)

(The history of two prominent mosque in town)

(A brief description of the building)

(Pasar Ramadhan next to the Jamek Central Mosque)

(Mouth-watering food at the Pasar Ramadhan)

Checked in Grand Park Hotel at B600/night around 5.15 pm. Iftar was in the room. After Maghrib/Isya' jamak prayers we walked about a kilometer to Jamek Central mosque for Tarawih. The 8 rakaat prayers were fast and without selawat. Completed our prayers by 8.40 pm.

Walked back to our hotel, sweating profusely and rested well for the night.

(A full moon at the Jamek Central Mosque)

(The tazkirah after Tarawih prayers)

(We skipped the tazkirah and walked back to the hotel)

(The Grand Park Hotel)

(Our lodging for the night)

          04 Kembara Ramadhan - Surat Thani👉

👈02 Kembara Ramadhan - Hat Yai