turkey 2010

these are only a few out of the 7,000 photographs in which we brought home as memories of our 9 day turkey trip, from 5 different cameras. the pictures are not in order of the places we visited and more are up on my facebook.

turkey, in short, was beautiful. i'm an adrenaline-rush enthusiast and despite the lack of adrenaline pumping activities, i loved the trip all the same and i wish we could have stayed there for longer. i fell in love with the cool weather (ranging from 0-18 deg), God's creation of picturesque landscapes, majestic monuments and mosques, turkey's rich culture and history, their friendly people, the beautiful, chubby and tame felines and of course the delicious food.

i tipped the weighing scale back at home and i gained 2kg throughout our stay in turkey. we were fed like kings! the trip there gave me a chance to catch up on my reading, and i found myself soaking in the bathtub of tripolis hotel, pamukkale, and completing elif shafak's 'the bastard of istanbul'. how ironic! it was a brutally honest and realistic read - i did not realise that i had stayed in the tub for 3 hours and came out with my toes all wrinkled.

my only regret was that we did not get to experience the hot air balloon ride over the breathtaking landscapes of cappadocia. it was quite costly (at USD 190) and even if we parted with that amount, the weather for that day was not suitable for the sky balloon ride. or else, it would have been a once in a lifetime, mind blowing experience.

i would definitely want to come back, i miss turkey already. maybe we'll head to troy next.

you know the thing about relationships?

they mess people up.

being in love and committing to someone - building dreams together, writing our own happily ever afters and your voice is my favourite song. and when things go wrong, dreams crumbled, our fairy tale was left without an ending and we speak to each other no more.

but

every relationship is an experience. you learn something new each an every day, you become stronger.

and you will fall in love again.

thank you God, for still loving me, in a way no one ever could.

A little boy asked his mother, “Why are you crying?”

“Because I’m a woman,” she told him.

“I don’t understand,” he said.

His Mom just hugged him and said, “And you never will.”

Later the little boy asked his father, “Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?”

“All women cry for no reason,” was all his dad could say.

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry. Finally he met an old man who would surely know the answer. And he asked him: “Old man, why do women cry so easily?”

Old man sad: “When woman was created, she had to be made special. Allah created her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world, yet gentle enough to give comfort. She was given an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children. And a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up, and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue without complaining. Allah gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very badly. She was given strength to carry her husband through his faults and she was fashioned from his rib to protect his heart. Allah gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly. And lastly, Allah gave her a tear to shed. This is hers and only hers exclusively to use whenever she needs it. She needs no reason, no explanation, its hers.”

“You see my son,” said old man, “the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides.”

By: Muslim Marriage

on short hiatus.
krabi in 3 hours with bb ♥s!

be back soon, insyaAllah,
please pray for our safety!





footnote: i really wanted to upload the beautiful faces of turkey here but i seriously had no time. i went through a major selection haul of almost 7,000 photographs to a down-sized 170 to be uploaded on facebook. i didnt sleep a wink and im still in the midsts of packing!

and! i almost forgot,
welcome, twenty eleven! (:

short hiatus.


i just got back from turkey, and ..
.. i fell in love.

still jet lagged and the body clock's screwed but it was worth every S$/lira/USD spent, every single moment spent there. i'll post up the pictures once i get around uploading them from the camera.

turkish time: 8.43 pm

merhaba!

its freezing cold at 6 degrees in bursa, turkey. the time difference between here and singapore is - 6 hours and therefore i need some time to adjust my body clock. it is such a lovely country with many really beautiful and friendly people. love the food here, especially the way they cook their rice with butter.

finally hit our hotel in the late evening and the wifi is screwed up here. so i had to resort to using the only computer with an internet access near the lobby. and i am really struggling to type this out since their keyboard is really different and their entire interface is in Türkçe. hopefully i can get wifi in the other cities.

really jetlagged. can barely open my eyes, got to bounce and hit the sack.

elveda!
singapore time: 2.59 am

straight through my heart, a single bullet got me
i cant stop the bleeding, oh
straight through my heart, he aimed and he shot me
i just cant believe it, oh.

soldier down.

on board SQ to turkey in 4 hours time

have to reach T2 in 2 and

the maxi's coming in 1.

the room is still in a mess, our luggage has yet to be locked, im still in my telekung (post-isyak prayers), hand carry cabin bag not packed, toiletries, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc.

this is the cheapest kind of adrenaline rush!!

got to get off the laptop pronto!

dear Allah,

please protect us,

let us see, feel, experience and enjoy your beautiful creations and

keep us safe.

amin.

will always be my favouritest boys throughout the years.

islamabad, pakistan.
the most mesmerizing pairs of eyes i have ever laid my eyes upon.

subhanAllah.

just last night, i had a conversation with a friend and i told him that it had been quite sometime since i felt really at peace with myself. he prodded on to ask what i mean by that.
.. i just want to feel calm, carefree and free of any worry and everything else which may weigh me down. simply serene and tranquil - and just contented. performing the wudhu' and our prayers at lake tekapo, new zealand, back in 2006 was exactly the way it felt.

alhamdulillah, last afternoon marked the end of examinations and the semester in which we went through and the moolah which complements every shopping needs/wants and holiday plans.

bittersweet endings to 2010, God willing.