Europe Trip - Day 8: Bristol-London-Kuala Lumpur

Yes. My final post on this trip. I thought I would never made it. Haha. On this final day of the trip, thank God no unexpected event happened that day. We left the apartment slightly early since I needed to sort out the ticket issue. Turned out the return tickets were printed together at the machine in London. Talked to the man at the counter, he told me I needed to buy new set of tickets to London and filled in a form to ask for a refund, provided they could find the tickets that were printed at the machine. No running this time. We boarded the train comfortably.

Arrived at London Paddington one hour and 45 minutes later and went straight to baggage storage. It costed 9 pounds per bag. And we had 5 bags to store. Huargh. Better that than carrying the bags around London. Left our bags there and went shopping on Oxford Street. Bought souvenir home from Primark. Then mom felt bad that she didn't buy anything for this granddaughter so we stopped by Gap Kids. No lunch for us as we were still fasting. After covering the whole stretch, we went back to Paddington station. I left my family at one spot and went to the information counter to sort out the refund application. The guy there helped me to fill in the form. He said the person who was responsible to keep lost tickets was not around so he couldn't check with that person. Only if they found the lost tickets, they would refund back my new ticket expenses. Fair enough. Took me about half an hour to sort things out. Then, bought tickets to Heathrow and went back to my family. [I managed to get the refund back for this anyway. Yeay.]

While I was in the toilet to change Tricia's pampers, Shasa Ain arrived. Managed to meet [a very pregnant] her a short while only as we needed to catch the next train to Heathrow airport, which we actually missed. Waited half an hour for the next train at platform 18, only to be informed last minute that the train will be departing from platform 11 at the very last minute. I hate Britain's punctuality with their last minute changes. 

Checked in. Went to VAT counter for refund for hubby's birthday present i.e. Hugo Boss shoes. Should have submitted the form for Tag Hauer purchase but didn't know we needed to submit it here. Went through custom check and all and stopped at a restaurant to break fast. Managed to buy a couple of scarfs from TieRack too. Hehe.

I loved night flight compared to our incoming flight, which was in the morning. One thing for sure, we only needed to play with Tricia for awhile before she fell asleep. Loved the fact that we bought a seat for her even though she was still entitled for infant seat that time. Couldn't imagine having a 10 kg toddler sitting on me for a whole 13 hours. The Kuala Lumpur - London flight was quite a nightmare because we needed to entertain Tricia all the while. She only slept for like a couple of hours or so. Little that I know, travelling with a toddler was much more challenging than travelling with a baby because babies sleep much longer. 

Although we just had dinner, we still ate our food that was served on the flight for sahur. I was impressed that the captain on this flight announced imsak time, i.e. time to stop eating. The crew was also accommodating as they tried to serve us as much water as they could making it convenient for us to fast. We arrived in KLIA around 5.30pm and break fast in Eden KLIA. 

Europe Trip - Day 7: Bath

We were still taking it slow and easy on that day but decided to venture out a little to Bath by bus. First destination, The Roman Baths.

When we exited the Roman Baths, it was going to rain. We took shelter at some nearby shops for awhile and then, we took the bus to the Royal Crescent. Abang wasn't quite sure of the direction to the place but one kind local woman directed us there. Apart from the unique architecture, I couldn't answer hubby why we were visiting that place. Haha. Looks pretty normal but it is one of tourist attractions in Bath. But it was a beautiful day to be running around on the grass. 

27 weeks

Hello hello. Since we moved into the new office in KL sentral 2 weeks ago, I had been taking the KLIA transit from Terminal Bersepadu Selatan (TBS) / Bandar Tasik Selatan (BTS). I loved the idea of beating traffic especially on a rainy Friday night. But knowing me I always arrived just on time and that means I always need to RUN to catch the train. Sounds healthy eh? except I am heavily pregnant at 6.5 months and I think sometimes it is kinda dangerous for me to keep be doing that.

Mom has been worried that my legs are now kinda puffy since I am not even 7 months pregnant yet. She said it could be the beginning of Preeclampsia — a serious disorder characterized by high blood pressure and protein in your urine — most often shows up after 37 weeks, but it can happen earlier so it's important to be aware of the warning signs of this condition. Call your caregiver if you have swelling in your face or puffiness around your eyes, more than slight swelling of your hands, excessive or sudden swelling of your feet or ankles, or rapid weight gain (more than 4 pounds in a week). With more severe preeclampsia, you may experience other symptoms. Let your caregiver know immediately if you have a severe or persistent headache, vision changes (including double or blurred vision, seeing spots or flashing lights, sensitivity to light, or temporary loss of vision), intense pain or tenderness in your upper abdomen, or vomiting. Copied from http://www.babycenter.com

Went for check up last weekend with Dr Tan but he was very brief. He checked my blood pressure. Checked the size of my belly, which was normal for 26 weeks. Checked the position of the baby, the water level and everything was okay. But he didn't check my feet. Met him for less than 5 minutes, I think. I miss Dr Siti although it was just amazing that everything was done by 9.30am, when we only arrived there at 9am. Unlike when Dr Siti is around, we need to reach the hospital by 7am to get in front of the queue and we are usually done only after 11am or so.
So yesterday after I went back to KL to send abang's graduation picture, hubby massage my legs lightly and I could see great difference in my right leg. I can now see my ankle. Haha. Left leg still a bit puffy but I believe it was slightly better than before. Huhu. Don't know what else I can do to relieve the puffiness other than elevating my legs at office and when I sleep (which both I didn't do =p). Would exercise help? But isn't walking and running considered exercising. That was a contributing factor to all these. I don't know. One of my colleagues went on maternity leave so she temporarily grant me access to her parking. So no more running to catch the train now for me. And mom said no stress. Okay. Work has been pretty quiet so no stress at work too. Please pray that I have a smooth labour later and at least if it has to be early, at least let the baby be full term.. 36 weeks and above. To that, 9 weeks to go!

Europe Trip - Day 6: Bristol

Tired from all the running, the whole family decided to take a break for a day. All they wanted to do was just chill. I actually planned to go to the Stonehenge but since I didn't do any booking, I was fine with axing the plan. The night before hubby and brother went to watch The Wolverine. I wanted to follow but was too tired so I decided to just go to sleep. Mom woke up early and did her laundry. I followed suit and both hubby and brother slept in. After everyone woke up, we went for a walk at Cabot Circus. Went to a few shops and bought jeans for hubby since he left a pair in Paris.

As everyone was fasting, we just went back that. Bought some groceries and by 5pm, mom got bored and started cooking already, which was torturing because she was done with cooking by 7pm+ but maghrib only started around 9pm! All the smell was just too tempting. Haha. Went back out after berbuka to look for coffee but all coffee shops closed already by then, except for one near the cinema. So we had a drink there and went back to rest.

Europe Trip - Day 5: Paris - London - Bristol

Another hectic day in store for us today. Went out in the morning to LaFayette Gallery to buy hubby's Tag Heuer watch. Submitted form for VAT claims at lower ground floor and thought that was it. Didn't submit the form at the airport when we left UK later, which was a waste! Could have claimed nearly RM1K. Arghhh... Lesson learned.

And then, rushed back to the hotel, checked out and ran to a shop opposite The Louvre for some last minute souvenier shopping. Took a cab to Gare Du Nord from the hotel and arrived comfortably at the station. However, after filling in some forms and toilet break, we checked in less than half an hour before our departure time and was told we might not be able to catch our train. Oh No! Not again. So off we ran and ran and made it just on time. Phew. Strike two.

When we arrived back at St Pancras station, we had to look for lost and found station to find my bag. Got it but it took us about 20 minutes there. Rushed to Paddington station and again... nearly missed our 5pm train to Bristol... I thought my printed tickets were enough. When my brother asked me, I said I have printed my tickets already. Later, I found out the tickets I printed were only booking confirmation. So when we arrived at the station, I need to find a machine to print my tickets. We were counting by the seconds at the moment. I waited for the machine to print 3 tickets and off we ran again. We really thought we would have missed the train but we managed to board the train just on time!!! Strike three.

Arghhh. Even typing about it is making me stress. Hubby said next time could you please spaced the time in between further apart. I defended myself saying, if we hadn't left the bag, it was more than enough time... But still... I should have factored in all these unexpected events, right. Yeah, well. In the train, I realised I actually took only two tickets. The first one printed was the receipt. Lucky at the station, the man there just let us off.

Took a cab to Cabot Circus and settled down in our second accommodation. Premier Apartments Bristol Cabot Circus, booked through booking.com. When we entered the accommodation, everyone was so excited to see clean, spacious, bright environment. We were really glad we chose the apartment as it was near a grocery store i.e. Sainsbury and in the middle of Cabot Circus town. Had dinner at a buffet styled Halal restaurant in town and went back to relax. Had sahur before we went to bed and the next day was our first successful fasting through out the whole trip.

Tired but fulfilling weekend of BWM, BBW and EscapeRoom

Hello peeps. First day back at work after a 3-day weekend and I'm feeling extremely tired today. Took Monday off to rest and re-energised but it was exactly the opposite of what really happened.

Friday night

Hubby and brothers went for badminton session from 12-3am. I was SO sleepy already so I told hubby I'll just wait for him at home in Nilai. But when my little girl, who is nocturnal, looked at me and said let's go... I relented. After all, no work on Satuday. So I went and kept chasing her around until 1.30am or so when finally I couldn't take it anymore and fell asleep on the chair... in a sitting position. Went back home with Kak Azah around 2am and this happened:

Qys: Mummy, kenapa perut auntie Farah gemuk?

Kak Azah: Sebab auntie Farah mengandung.

Qys: Owh, auntie Farah makan byk sgt sebab tu laa mengandung.

Adesss... I ate too much and that's how I got pregnant. But what I LOVE about this conversation the most is the innocence in that statement. Kids are way TOO advanced nowadays... with rape/sexual assault commited by children as young as 7 years old, it is just worrying. So it is extremely nice to hear such an innocent statement like that coming from a kid.

Saturday

Woke up "early" around 9.30 or so to pick up our new baby. Arrived at the centre around 12 but only managed to leave the place around 1.30pm. That was only after I stormed out the office because we had been waiting way too long than I could tolerate. We already called one day earlier to say we were going to pay via credit card and when we arrived that day, they told us the machine broke down. Only when I stormed out he suggested to pay at another branch's office. Pfffttt. They love to test the patience of a pregnant woman, huh?

From Puchong to Cyberjaya to Nilai to Bangi to Setapak to Ampang to Setapak to Bangi to Nilai. Cost us RM90 petrol. Is that expensive? I can't tell... Went to Tamarind Springs in Ampang that night to have dinner with mummy and abang. It was a beautiful, BEAUTIFUL place but 4 plates of rice, 4 king prawns, 2 bowls of tomyam and 1 plate of fish cost us RM400! Damn expensive T_T. Went back to Nilai and had durian fiesta before calling it a night.

Sunday

No plan on Sunday. We just wanted to sleep in. Was supposed to call someone to clean the house but the woman didn't call back. Anyway, I asked my friend Uda to go to the Big Bad Wolf expo with me and we managed to arrive there at 8am. Here's my catch for the day. 15 books for RM111.15 after 5% discount with OCBC card.

Was a lazy day the rest of the day where we hang out in Nilai to pass the time and spend time with family.

Monday
Woke up in Nilai because we were going to Seremban to take Tricia's 2-year-old jab. It was for Hep A, first dose and an optional one. Had breakfast first cooked by my lovely MIL. Got no 15 and had to wait for 1 1/2 hours. Then, I rushed back and picked up Irna for our date with Cyan and Hudam for our escaperoom session. I called to ask which room was suitable for pregnant woman, and the guy who answered suggested we tried Mummy or Prison room. Since mummy's difficulty was lower than prison, we chose that one for this round. It was our first time and the experience was awesome although we didn't manage to crack the code for the last puzzle on time. We were given 45 minutes and we could ask for clue two times within the time limit, which we did use. Would definitely go again to try other rooms. More info at escaperoom Before I went, I was looking for cheatsheet or spoilers online. Lucky I couldn't find any as it will definitely kill the fun! So yeah, I am not going to be the fun buster and post any spoiler.

After that, we went back to Cyan's place in Damansara Damai for our cake and cupcake session. Went back, picked up Tricia and did a bit of cleaning that I could manage and woke up today feeling extremely tired. But all-in-all, I had a fulfilling weekend.

my girl on a date with her papa while I was away with friends

Kakak

I didn't expect my little girl would ever be ready to become a big sister. I didn't even expect her to understand the meaning of having a younger sibling now as she is still very young. But she does. 2 nights ago, I was accompanying her taking a bath in the jacuzzi. Hubby walked over and touched my belly while trying to talk to adik. When Tricia saw her father touching my belly, she stopped playing with her ducks, walked over and removed her father's hand from me, while shouting "Papa!!! No! Jangan kacau adik!" I was speechless. Whaatttt???????????

And then, over this 1 week, whenever we called her Tica, she would reply "Bukannn... Kakak!". She insisted people to call her kakak already. Oh my gosh... I'm so proud of you, my little girl. Maybe not so little anymore. My big girl. The kakak.

Europe Trip - Day 4: Frankfurt, Germany

We arrived pretty early at Gare de l'est station for our 9.10am train to Frankfurt. Train tickets were bought from Rail Europe online at EUR 473.60 return inc EUR 16 booking fee for 4 people. We had plenty of time for breakfast and boarded our train comfortably.

Reached Frankfurt at 1pm. First thing when we arrived: Nutella Crepe and Starbucks. Haha. And then, since I lost all my print-outs, went to the tourist centre and bought a compact map. Don't remember how much I bought the map for but I remember it was quite cheap.

First destination, the most famous tourist attraction Romer. We took the underground from Frankfurt Main HB (Frankfurthauptbahnhof) to Dom/Romer station. However, I had bad memory here. Going down the elevator, urine stench was so strong. I was actually standing in a puddle of fresh urine. Ewww, so unhygenic. What was really weird about their underground was that we went down straight to the platform without having to pay for tickets. Fearing any consequences later, my brother and I offered to go buy the tickets while my hubby, my mom and my daughter waited for us there. We had problems buying the tickets because we didn't have small change at that time. But what was even weirder was that we got lost finding my hubby and my mom. So confusing. But the staff was so helpful, he actually helped me put in my coins into the tickets vending machine. We bought the day pass so that it would be easier for us later. However, when we arrived at Romer station, we realised there was no barrier to insert the tickets at all. Wow. Amazing. Either they trust the people completely or they don't really need the income.  

Next stop was the Euro sign in front of the European Central Bank (ECB) at Willy-Brandt-Platz underground station. One stop from Romer. Considering that it was Monday and a working day, we didn't see that many people around. But even for a working day, Frankfurt seemed very quiet.

We then walked to Frankfurt Main Tower, which was closed by. View on the way to the tower.

Entrance fee is EUR 4.60 per person.

Panaromic view of the city from the top

This is the last place we visited here in Frankfurt before we left. Alte Oper. View from Main Tower. Hubby wanted to stop for a drink at the tower's restaurant but it was closed that time. Apparently we missed the lunch time opening and it was about an hour away from their tea time opening. So we went to the Alte Oper to have a closer look.

View on the way.

In front

Going for holidays with hubby now means no more crashing so many tourist attractions in one go but savouring each place that we managed to go to. So here we were ordering food and drinks before our train back to Paris at 7pm.

Bye, Frankfurt.