A day at the Roman's Kingdom

Assalamualaikum,

Okay, here comes the sightseeing part! Selama ni bila orang cakap Rome, mesti dok nampak Colosseum je kat dalam kepala kan? I seriously never bother about the existence of other interesting places apart from the Colosseum, maklumla, tu je yang termasuk dalam wonders of the world. 

But when I read my cousin-in-law's blog about her trip to Rome not very long time ago, I become all excited sebab rupa-rupnya ada banyak lagi tempat yang ada dekat Rome tu selain Colosseum. haha. Kesian gila kat orang macam I yang kurang pengetahuan ni. With her travel tips and reviews, we manage to go to almost all interesting places within 1-day! Thank you so much Kaklong!! :)

Benda yang paling kitorang appreciate sangat-sangat is how to skip the massive and crazy long queue at the Colosseum entrance. Kalau tak baca blog Kaklong, mesti kitorang pun jadi macam orang lain jugak beratur tunggu turn nak beli tiket dekat Colosseum. Bukan sikit-sikit tau, there were thousands of people in line, siap melingkar-lingkar ke luar bangunan lagi. 

What we did was, we bought the same ticket from Foro Romano with only less than 5 people in front of us. The price is 12€/pp that includes Colosseum, Foro Romano and Palatino. Semua tempat ni just next to each other so you can decide which one to enter first. This ticket is valid for 2 days, tapi dalam sehari boleh masuk sekali je.

The entrance to Foro Romano & Palatino

See!! Pendek je kena beratur.
Line to enter Colosseo is thousands times of this one here.

The entrance ticket for Foro Romano, Palatino & Colosseo.
12€ per person.

So lepas dah beli ticket, kitorang pun start la masuk dalam kawasan Foro Romano tu. Tempat ni kira macam kawasan pentadbiran kerajaan Rome la suatu masa dulu. It is just like a really really big rectangular plaza, surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings. I got sooo thrilled the moment I stepped into the Forum, because EVERYTHING there is beautiful.

I imagined there was like a gigantic royal residence during the Roman's Kingdom placed at the center, and then there must be places for the citizens could gather for commercial, political or religious. Looking at the location of the Roman's Kingdom at the heart of ancient Rome, it must be one of the most important meeting places in the world, and in all history.

Nampak kesan bengunan runtuh dekat belakang tu?

Vary beautiful

I forgot the name of this building. :p

Kalau datang sini, kena spare at least 3-4 hours baru boleh habis pusing keseluruhan tempat ni. Tu pun dah jalan habis laju dah tu. Kalau nak betol-betol baca sejarah semua tempat, rasanya sehari baru boleh habis. Semua tempat nampak sangat cantik, jadi tak tentu arah kitorang dibuatnya. Pictures really don't do justice here, trust me, you got to witness them by yourself. 

Royal residence palace

Sebahagian dari runtuhan bangunan

The stairs to the House of Augustus, the first emperor of Rome

Rome city from the balcony of House of Augustus

Stadium di Palatino Hill

Lepas dah beberapa jam dekat Foro Romano and Palatino, dalam pukul 11 lebih macam tu kitorang start berjalan ke Colosseo pulak. Bila makin dekat dengan bangunan bersejarah tu, tengok manusia punya la ramai tengah beratur dekat luar bangunan untuk beli tiket. Ramai gila!!! Rasanya belom tentu semua orang kat situ ada chance nak masuk. Kitorang pulak berjalan masuk macam VIP sebab dah ada tiket yang beli dari Foro Romano pagi tu. Seronok gila!!

Approaching Colosseo. A lot of excavation works going on here and there.

And bila dah masuk kat dalam Colosseo tu, yes, it was indeed the biggest and most beautiful amphitheater with greatest work of Roman architecture and engineering. Disebabkan bentuk bangunan ni yang elliptical, kita pusing kat arah mana pun tetap akan nampak seakan-akan pemandangan yang sama.

At level 1. Sangat kagum dengan setiap perincian bangunan.

Still at level 1. Antara bahagian yang selamat dari runtuhan.

They have a lot of spaces like this all around the building

Level 2. Kat atas sekali tu kerja baik pulih (yang batu putih) sedang berjalan.

Colosseo ni dulu mainly tempat untuk gladiators bertarung dengan binatang buas. Dalam tu jugak ada macam ruang macam penjara, quarters, and macam kubu pertahanan pun ye jugak. The huge building has partially ruined because of earthquakes. And after a while, it becomes one of Rome's most popular tourist attraction. Tahun 2007 baru dia tersenarai dalam 7 wonders of the world. Memang layak!

Pandangan keseluruhan kawasan yang runtuh. Luas gila, macam padang bola.

More picture of us. :)

Pandangan dari luar bangunan.  Kitorang datang balik pagi-pagi esoknya
Hari sebelumnya tu terlampau banyak kepala manusia. :p

Kawasan yang runtuh dari luar bangunan.
Semalam kawasan ni semua penuh dengan orang beratur. 

Perhaps that's a little bit of everything about the interesting places you might want to visit if you are visiting Rome. Sekali sekala melawat tempat bersejarah memang menarik. Rasanya lepas ni nak pegi melawat other wonders of the world la pulak. hehehe.

Okay, I guess that's enough for now.

I still have a few other things to share about Rome.

Hopefully I have time to write more.

Till then, have a great week ahead people!

Tata. :)

General information about visiting Rome

Assalamualaikum,

Hai hai semua!! How are you? Phewwww, now only I have time to share with you about my recent trip to Rome last weekend. But err, I think I have to separate the story into a few entries because there are sooo many interesting things to tell. So please bear with me yea!

Okay let's start the warm up first, shall we? I nak cerita pasal our trip to Rome secara general dulu lah. Later baru masuk cerita pasal tempat-tempat melawat yang super cantik yang ada kat sana. We were there only for the weekend (too little time to explore everything). I would suggest you to spend AT LEAST 5 days there, termasuk jalan-jalan, shopping apa semua.

A welcoming greeting from Aeroporti di Roma.

Our Rome trip was a very last minute decision. Bila last minit tu paham-paham la kan, mana nak dapat flight/train tiket yang murah? We were very lucky because our flight searches brought us to this one online ticket seller, Flugladen.at. The price comparison feature helps us to find tickets at the cheapest price. So, once the tickets were confirmed, we went like, okay, this is serious, WE ARE GOING TO ROME!!

Thank you Flugladen.at. You made our dreams come true.

Next, we booked our hotel through Booking.com. Our main concern every time we travel is, an accommodation that provides microwave or kitchenette. Sooo, we narrowed that down in our search, and finally we decided to stay at Aquarius Inn (near central station) because that was the cheapest we could find. Masa tu pasrah je la, macam mana pun rupa tempat tu pun tak kesah, maklumlah nak tumpang makan and tido je pun. I'm gonna tell you more about this place in a separate entry. :)

An Italian Bed&Breakfast at the center of Rome. Highly recommended!

Flight tickets? Checked. Hotel? Checked. Sooo next thing to do is to plan the trip la, apa lagi kan? We have less than 48 hours to include everything in our itinerary, so we have to utilize our time to the maximum. Tak boleh buang masa walau sikit pun kalau tak nanti confirm menyesal. huhu. Bila dah balik Malaysia nanti memang harapan je la nak pegi Rome tu kan. Tak pernah berangan pun sebenanye. Eh tipu. Berangan tu ada, cuma ala-ala mat jenin je la. hehehe. :p

Bila dah naik flight, kena fikir jugak cara macam mana nak get connected to the city centre (Termini Central Station) to/from the Fiumicino Airport. There are three ways of getting to the central station from the airport; train, metro and bus. We chose to ride on the bus (Terravision) because it is the cheapest (16€ for two return tickets) and the travel time is around 40minutes. Bas sentiasa ada you can even buy the ticket before boarding, cuma kalau beli online murah sikit la. Selagi boleh jimat, kitorang jimat. hahaha. :p

The online ticket, and the boarding card you need before getting on the bus.

Termini Central Station. Lebih kurang macam KL Sentral la.
Train, metro, bus semua ada kat sini.

Underground Metro station at Termini.

Dari segi living cost pulak, I reckoned Rome has quite a moderate life. Not too high nor too low. Kira boleh jugak la nak survive as compared to Copenhagen yang mak datok mahal bukan main tu. Tapi kalau dah nama pun matawang Euro, walau murah macamana pun, kita tetap akan kena bayar mahal dalam RM kan? So kitorang takdela berbelanja sakan sangat kat sana. Utamakan yang perlu je. Kalau tak perlu, pejam mata and jalan terus tak pandang kiri kanan. hihihi. :p

Umm, what else? Ohhh ya, kalau korang pegi sendiri (without tourist guide) and rely solely on the public transport, go grab a 1-day ticket that will cost you 6€ per person. Naik la bus ke, tram ke, metro ke bape kali pun tak kisah, ticket will only expire at midnight. So berbaloi sangat la. Tapi kalau untuk family yang bawak anak kecik or senior citizen, I think public transport is not a very good choice. Too crowded, pastu nak kena naik turun tangga yang sangat banyak. Better hire tourist guide yang sediakan transport or consider renting a car!

The 1-day ticket

The ticket counter. Practically the same in almost every country around the world.

Outside Colloseo Metro station

Perhaps these are the things that you might need to know before planning on your trip to Rome. If you ever have the chance to visit Italy, please please make your time to go to Rome. You'll never regret, trust me. Terlampau banyak keindahan yang boleh dihayati dalam kemusnahan satu empayar yang besar satu masa dulu. I will show you more about that in the next entry yea? 

Till then, have a good night people.

Assalamualaikum.

Interesting places to visit in Copenhagen

Assalamualaikum,

Okay, now let's continue with the interesting places you might want to visit if you have 24 hours in Copenhagen. Sebelum keluar tu pagi hari Sabtu tu, kitorang dah siap makan nasik kenyang-kenyang so ada a lot of energy untuk jalan-jalan. Dalam pukul 9am, kitorang start berjalan, meredah pagi yang berangin dan super sejuk tu. 

Our cold morning in Copenhagen

Copenhagen Central Station

Salah satu Hard Rock Cafe yang paling santai yang I penah pegi.

The famous Tivoli Garden. Ada amusement park dalam ni.

Lepas dah dapat sikit maklumat sikit and beli City Pass dari Tourist Information Counter, kitorang ambik bus dari Central Staion. Our first stop was Rosenborg Castle. Tapi masa sampai tu askar depa dok tengah marching, so tak dapat nak walk around the castle. Dapat tengok dari luar pagar istana yang terbina dari tahun 1806. Orang cakap kat dalam istana tu diorang sediakan perkhidmatan sewa baju-baju traditional Denmark, so kalau yang berminat boleh la masuk dalam tu. :)

At the main entrance of the Rosenborg Castle.

Lepas tu kitorang jalan kaki ke Royal Garden dekat sebelah Rosenborg Castle. It was a reallllyyy beautiful garden, walaupun penuh diseliputi salji, pokok semua pun botak, tapi tetap nampak cantik jugak in my eyes. I am pretty sure the garden will become more beautiful in spring season with colorful blooming flowers and fresh green leaves.

Beautiful, isn't it?

Garden of Red Thorn Roses

From there, kitorang terus berjalan sampai ke Nyhavn Canal. This place is very famous for their boats service and beautiful buildings surrounding the canal. Dekat situ jugak ada banyak kapal vikings yang ala-ala dalam cerita perang zaman dulu-dulu tu. Tapi disebabkan cuaca yang terlampau sejuk, sungai dah bertukar jadi ais, kitorang pulak sikit lagi nak jadi ais berdiri keras kat situ. Kaki, tangan, muka semua kebas kalau orang tumbuk pun confirm tak rasa sakit.

See that icy-water? Nak senyum pun tak larat dah masa ni. Muka kebas!

Extremely cold this time.
Duduk dekat toilet yang warm adalah saat paling indah masa ni. :p

Gagahkan diri berjalan walaupun kaki, tangan semua dah tak rasa dah. 

Viking ship at the back

So, sebelum kitorang membeku jadi sculpture ais dekat Nyhavn Canal ni, we decided to leave this place and go back to our hotel for prayers and refreshment. Sebelum keluar balik, I pakai jaket lagi satu (2 lapis baju tebal, plus 2 jaket tebal), pakai stokin 2 lapis, glove 2 lapis baru rasa lega sikit nak berjalan dalam cuaca yang macam tu. Hadoiii susahnya dok negara beriklim macam ni. Asal nak keluar rumah je mesti berat naik berganda-ganda sebab baju tebal sangat. T__T

Sempat singgah di Stroget. Kawasan membeli-belah yang mewah untuk orang-orang kaya.
Me? But lintasan hormat sampai depan Hermes je, tu patah balik. hahaha. :p

So lepas tu, we went to The Kastellet, a military fortress that was built before peperangan antara Danish Vikings dengan English Army. Dulu ni kubu pertahanan la, tapi sekarang dia bukak jadi taman untuk orang ramai. Kat sini ada Red Windmill Tower yang diorang guna untuk berperang. Tapi sekarang jadi tempat tarikan untuk pelancong.

Pintu gerbang masuk The Kastellet.
Ala-ala pintu gerbang yang dalam cerita Lord of The Ring masa perang-perang tu.

Res Windmill Tower

Hidung saya merah. kahkahkah.

Lepas dah pusing-pusing keliling Kastellet tu, kitorang naik bas pergi Copenhagen Opera House pulak. It is situated at another zone near the harbour. Tapi cuaca dah gelap masa tu, so tak banyak sangat gambar menarik yang boleh ambik. Plus dah hujan and kitorang pun dah kesejukan yang terlampau, so we decided to leave early.

Copenhagen Opera House
Dah mula hujan rintik-rintik masa ni

But the night was still early, we didn't want to waste the 24-hour ticket we bought earlier, so kitorang sesaja naik metro pegi airport. hahaha. Takde keje betol. Tapi bagus jugak, boleh check in siap-siap pastu pusing-pusing kat dalam airport tu. Esoknya flight pagi takdela rushing sangat. hehe. 

Lepas dah balik bilik tu, masak nasik dengan maggi, makan kenyang-kenyang berlaukkan telur dengan sambal tumis ikan bilis nyum nyum, pastu dua-dua terbongkang kepenatan sampai esok pagi. hahaha. Esok paginya kitorang keluar dalam pukul 8am terus pegi airport, ready for our flight back to Austria. :)

Gambar kat bawah ni semua masa kat airport sebelum boarding. We don't know when will be our next trip to Copenhagen, but we surely know that we had a really great weekend getaway here. InsyaAllah kalau panjang umur dan dimurahkan rezeki, I definitely want to come back. But not during winter. That's for sure. :)

Train to airport.

Pengaruh Scandinavian di mana-mana.
Wood panel floor tu ciri-ciri binaan Scandinavian

Somewhere in the airport

Near boarding hall

Thanks for having us Copenhagen.
We had a great time! :)

So I guess this the wrap up to my Copenhagen trip.

I hope this will be a useful entry to those who is vising the Danish land.

Till I see you again next time.

Assalamualaikum. :)