Random Photos from Glasgow #2

I'm back! Here are some "Summer specials" from my photo albums. You will notice some sepia tint on almost all my photos here because... well that was my intragram-est craze of placing filters on summer photos to make them look more summer-ish. Those were the days when I just found out how awesome Picasa was. Enjoy...

How often can you say "I was in a pack of Mentos Gum with my buddies"!

Magnify the clock tower, this was the first photo I shared with my parents telling them that it was still bright almost 10pm.

Gothic? What does that actually mean?

This garden was just 5 minutes walk from my residence, so beautiful during summer.

Our first visit to Glasgow Green with a football.

They turned George Square into Philadelphia to film the beginning scene of World War Z.

It isn't unusual to find people sitting quietly beside a river feeding birds at Kelvingrove Park

Does it look like Hogwarts? Some say yes, but I just don't see it.

The Monument of Maternity, another landmark just a stonethrow away from my residence

Come to think about it, this guy must have regretted becoming a bird toilet.

Again, please leave a comment if you like them. It is fun for me to revisit these photos and I hope it is fun to you too.

lalanandaFRY

1/5/15

Random Photos from Glasgow

When I was studying in Glasgow a couple of years ago, I didn't have a car and didn't have a friend who owned any means of transport. That meant that whenever I wanted to go somewhere, I either had to walk there or take some sort of public transportation. But the great thing is that it was always cool and comfortable. So sometimes I do enjoy just strolling around aimlessly, sometimes for hours during the weekends, bringing nothing but my camera so that I can capture some interesting shots along the way.

I was doing some spring cleaning on my PC when I came across a bunch of photos folders containing all these unsorted photos that I haven't seen in 3-4 years. Just clicking through them brought back memories of the magnificent year I spent in Glasgow. I'm sure some of the photos will resonate with other MPharm friends too. I present to you a kaleidoscope of random photos I took from my walks around Glasgow. Enjoy...

Little girl: Don't worry daddy, I can drive too!

I sat in a bus that had a car on it, could be even more awesome up there :)

Glasgow Cathedral just before Christmas is so beautiful

Walking on ice in the Necropolis during sunset

Very blue St Andrew's Suspension Bridge at Glasgow Green

Twisting down the Lighthouse

Old buildings still tend to stand out from the rest in my eyes

Something as simple as the Glasgow Green Tidal Weir can be beautiful too

Imagine walking in the park as leaves fall from the branches in Autumn

How about having a cup of java under the stars?

What do you think about my photos? Do you think I should do more of these? Please leave a comment if you like them. I may be doing more of these, or may be some from Malaysia too.

lalanandaFRY

26/4/15

Lanchang Untouched

I am a city kid. Born and raised in the city, studied in the city, worked for a while in a city. So when I was told that I would have to choose between a town or a village for my job posting, it was a tough choice for me. Well, I ended up choosing the village instead of the town just because it placed me much nearer to my family and the city. For the first few days at my new working place, I dreaded the village life and complained a lot about how far it is from my house. But now that I have been working for around 10 months at Lanchang, I learnt how to appreciate this quiet village.

Well, the intro is getting too long, let's dive into the few interesting facts about Lanchang. I somehow feel "responsible" to at least share something nice about Lanchang as the clinic pharmacist. I'll try to make it like one of those top X reasons to visit... hehehe... Let's see whether it works out!

If you search Lanchang on Google now, the first interesting that come out is always Kuala Gandah Elephant Conservation Centre. This is a center designed to take care of Asian Elephants that has been listed as an endangered species since the 1980s. Since it was built, the PERHILITAN management has been tracking down and taking care of these elephants until they are old enough to be released back into the wild.

The center is free to visit every day including weekends and public holidays and there are special shows every day around 1pm - 2.30pm including video documentaries and guided visits around the facility.

A short distance away from the Elephant Conservation Centre is another tourist attraction, a private park called Deerland. The location is quite odd for a family themed park/zoo in my opinion, but it sure attracts many tourists from all over the world with not only deer, there are many other animals in the park including snakes, hedgehogs, iguanas and many more, Something special about this park is the chance to get up close to the young deer and the opportunity to feed them with food provided by the care givers.

Deerland is a wonderful place for adults and children alike and it is totally worth the entrance fee of RM6 (adults) and RM4 (children below 12). The park is open everyday except Friday from 10.30am till 5.30pm.

Now for a basic history lesson. Malaysians out there who still remember your Form 2 Sejarah (History) may know this. There was a Malaysian warrior who fought a war against the British colonist at the very spot in the picture above, Lubuk Terua, Lanchang. His name was Dato' Bahaman, Orang Kaya Semantan. It was the 1890 when the British took control of Pahang while Dato' Bahaman was the Orang Besar Raja, a leader and administrator of land given by the Sultan. Tension was on the rise when the British set up a police station at Lubuk Terua and he was instructed not to interfere. Resistance against the invading forces erupted when the British forces launched multiple attacks on several local strongholds, resulting in what is known today as the Semantan War.

By 1892, the British instructed the Sultan to form a team known as Gerakan Sultan to attack Dato' Bahaman's forces in hopes that he would surrender out of loyalty to the Sultan. The plan did successfully remove his forces away from Semantan but only for a month before returning with help from Tok Gajah and recapturing Lubuk Terua. Unfortunately after months of defending their fortress at Lubuk Terua against continuous bombardment from the British, Dato' Bahaman's forces had to retreat and ending the war against the British in Pahang completely. He is regarded as one of the great Malay warriors and currently has two schools named after him in Lanchang. Currently there are no remains of his fortress at Lubuk Terua as they were destroyed by the British. However there is a huge tree at the Semantan riverbank said to be the site where the fortress was back then.

Lastly, for those who do not know where Lanchang is, here is a map of Pahang with Lanchang circled. If you want, do drop by the local clinic to visit another attraction, me... heeheehee!

lalanandaFRY
8/2/15

R&R in nature

There are many types of travelling. There are those where you go to a huge city and strut along the streets taking beautiful pictures of architectural marvels. There are also those where you go to famous tourist attractions and try to straighten the Leaning tower of Pisa. But most of these can sometimes be hectic and fast paced. How about a long weekend relaxing in a villa surrounded by greenery to rejuvenate and revitalise our weak stressed out bodies? Yes, we have these in Malaysia too.

Awanmulan

Sekeping Serendah

The Dusun

Shorea

Normally I would bore you with lots of words about my trip and how fun it must have been, but this time I'll just put it straight and clear... R&R in nature is probably the best trip any working adult would ever want. And now here are 3 reasons why...

1. No phone signal
OK, not exactly zero signal, but that is the whole reason for going far far away from civilization, away from reality. Being away gives a sense of freedom in that you know your boss wouldn't be able to call you back to work any time. It's sad that in most other trips, even overseas, we never really get far from anything that reminds us about our jobs. So being in the woods is definitely refreshing, to be able to turn off the phone and silent those annoying notification ringtones. Remember a time when there were no mobile networking?

2. Bonding
I have been to many trips with friends and as usual they take place in either historical cities like Edinburgh or super long trip like mine in Italy. Although it is fun fumbling with maps when everyone explore foreign lands together, nothing brings a group of friends together better than a long quiet dinner under the stars. There will always have ample time to relax and chat for as long as we want while waiting for food to cook in a steamboat. We even had time for a groupie!

3. Fresh air and clean water

I know it's really cliche to say this, but 'when was the last time you took a deep breath that made you feel great?'. It is easily the simplest point I can make... the air and water in any city will most certainly be polluted, so why not consider going for a fresh air therapy and have a dip in cool clean water from the upstream. Nothing much to add to the awesomeness, just close your eyes and imagine how amazing it must have felt...

*Honestly, I have been writing and re-writing this blog post many times over the past few months because I have no idea what to write. I went for a trip to Shorea with a bunch of friends almost a year ago and had a great time there. I miss that feeling so much! I never knew how much I miss the peace and quiet moments until I experienced it first hand, in the arms of mother nature.

lalanandaFRY
5/11/14

Closer To The Sky

Let me confess, I am not a hiker or climber. I have horrible stamina and I don't have any fancy equipment for hiking, not even a decent shoe. Despite being a noob, I have challenged myself again and again at 3-4 occasions to get a better view from a higher ground.

Disclaimer: To all hikers out there, don't be offended when I show my ridiculous footwear.

I remember my first climbing experience was when I went with a bunch of friends to Bukit Broga. It was a new experience for me to be holding a flash light with one hand and a tree branch with the other while the surrounding was pitch black. Every checkpoint we reached gave a sense of achievement I have yet to experience then.

We even had a crazy music video shoot at the third checkpoint where there were huge insects flying everywhere and some unusual rock formations. To get to the 4th and final checkpoint, we had to get up a path that was close to vertical with a conveniently placed rope. Then there was the thought, how do I get down from here?

I think the next time I climbed or hiked was at Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh. It hardly counts as a hike the path, with exception of the final stretch, were fairly gentle. It was new year's eve that time, it was freezing cold at 3-4°C and there was evidence of near gale winds for days all around Scotland. I started climbing the moment I arrived at Edinburgh from Glasgow, with minimal luggage. I did not feel any discomfort although I was wearing my worn out Fila shoes and one layer of windbreaker. The climb was very nice from the start till 3/4 of the journey, when strong wind was blowing against me and the temperature made me gasp for warm air like an asthmatic patient. I was lucky I chose the best time to climb because the sky was clear that day and the view was phenomenal.

Then after my finals, I went for a trip to Isle of Skye where there were tonnes of lovely places to hike. The guided tour brought me to a place called Bioda Buidhe, a hill around the north east portion of Skye. After watching so many documentaries about the natural wonders of Skye and seeing amazing sights like the Old Man of Storr, hiking up Bioda Buidhe was a dream come true. The air was fresher than anywhere I have been and the view was breathtaking. The hike was quite gentle also, though there some parts that were steeper. The biggest problem was avoiding sheep stool that may seem easy but they are everywhere.

Perhaps the most difficult climb I have ever experienced was at Bukit Tabur (Klang Gate). This limestone ridge along the corner of Kuala Lumpur also has one of the best panorama of the Klang Gate Dam as well as the city at certain points of the climb. My friend who lives around Taman Melawati guided us along the steep and slippery paths while telling us how dangerous the climb was. We did not actually reach the peak or some check point at the very top but I was personally satisfied with the view I captured with my camera. I think the hardest part of the climb was not going up but going back down. Climbing up had its own issues like getting hold of branches and balancing on narrow walkways. But the climb down goes with the flow of gravity and simple tasks like finding a safe and stable rock to lower our feet becomes much more important. It was much more tiring than other hikes but company of friends makes it much more rewarding.

Well climbing is always a lot of fun. I heard there is a nice jungle trekking area around Kuantan near Telok Cempedak. One day I'll give it a try...

lalanandaFRY
28/4/13

Embracing Beaches in Kuantan

Every time I visit a new place, I always have an urge to roam around, just explore the place no matter how uninteresting a place can be *ehem... Dumbarton.. Ehem...* It has been 3 weeks since I arrived in Kuantan and I have to say this

Kuantan is more awesome than it seems!!! - quote lalanandaFRY

Before coming to Kuantan, I read many online articles and blogs about stuff to do here. I am quite a boring person usually but when I am living alone in this foreign place, I tend to have the motivation to explore it, or at least get a feel of the place. I was chatting with one student doing attachment at the hospital and I found that she wasn't local either. However she has been here for many months now and she introduced several places to visit around.

She mentioned that Kuantan is a coastal town and that everyone visiting should at least reserve time for the many beautiful beaches. At that time, the only famous beach that came to mind from nearby was Cherating because of all the publicity for being the first Club Med in Asia. Little did I know that there were at least 4-5 locations within 10-20 minutes drive away from me. So yesterday I had a spontaneous urge to visit some of those.

This is main road leading to the beach

So my first stop was one of the most popular beaches here, Teluk Cempedak. I assume it is the most well known one because at least I have heard of it *I know I don't know much*. It is actually the most commercialized beach I have seen in Malaysia. Where else do you get McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Chatime and Tutti Frutti all within walking distance to the beach?

For the hell of it, I had Prosperity Burger at the beach!

Nothing much to say, just a beautiful beach and lots of monkeys!!!

My next stop was Pantai Batu Hitam. I have not heard about this beach before coming to Kuantan but I read about it recently and got me interested. If you know Malay language, you should already know that this is a beach with black rocks, similar to the Black Sand Beach in Langkawi but better. This beach is around 15 minutes drive away from Teluk Cempedak and is the total opposite in terms of commercialization. There were only 2 little traditional Malay restaurants there serving coconut water and simple food. But the interesting part is that I enjoyed it more than Teluk Cempedak, I have no idea why!

The atmosphere was calm and pleasant

There were some people fishing while standing on larger black rocks

With black rocks came black sand, and the sand was very fine and felt very comfortable slipping between my toes. Another thing I enjoyed about this beach was that there were a few Malay families with their children playing with water, flying kites and collecting shells, scenes that I like to capture with my camera.

After spending more than 30 minutes enjoying the breeze and taking photos, I decided to return home, stopping at the Jeti for a short stop for some photos. I was lucky the sky was clear and sunny the whole day although it was cloudy in the morning. Maybe I will visit some other places in Kuantan later... I have lots of opportunities later on!

View from Jeti Shahbandar along Sungai Kuantan

lalanandaFRY
27/1/13