Thanks for the memories, Gold Coast (Part 2: The Journey Begins)

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

Dengan nama Allah yang Maha Pengasih lagi Maha Penyayang.

Okay. Hari ni ada masa terluang sikit. Habis dah vacuum satu rumah dan mop. Kita dah start countdown untuk Ramadhan kan? Cepat betul masa berlalu ye? Mudahan Ramadhan kali ini kita lebih istiqomah dalam beribadat, lillahita'ala.

Jom sambung cerita pasal trip Gold Coast yang dah lama terbengkalai ni. (sorry korang!)

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29 JANUARY 2015 (Thursday)

So, sampailah hari untuk fly tu, flight kitorang malam tau. Gerak dari rumah petang and then had early dinner. Texas Chicken (yes I know you're thinking of the recent controversy which I think is ridiculous by the way *facepalm laju2*). Flight at 10 pm from KLIA2-OOL (Coolangatta Airport a.k.a Gold Coast Airport). ETA lebih kurang pukul 6 am local time.

This is the first time we're flying out of the country together. All the while we had short honeymoon trips within the country. So after 2+ years of recovering from our wedding reception (we're talking about ka-ching here), we've decided this will be a romantic getaway, and thus, let's splurge!

Taxi : macam biasa, we love using the MyTaxi app (now known as Grab A Taxi). You can download this app from Playstore or Appstore. Easy to use. Straight forward. Just make sure you give an accurate address. The driver might call you to confirm location but all else is good. You can also leave a comment on their service after on the app. According to the husband, drivers who got bad review will be kicked out of the taxi app group. Took us only 20 minutes to the airport. Yeah, he was that fast.

A little bit about KLIA2 Airport. Super huge. After dinner, we walked pass the first immigration checkpoint. The direction board says it will take us about 40 minutes walk to our departure gate. (they're not kidding). Passport checkout was super fast too as it was done electronically and you just step into the booth and follow instruction on the screen. We passed by a row of free duty shops and decided to stop for prayer. One last phone call to my parents before the long flight.

Yes the walk was 40 minutes. I had to catch my breath and we took a toilet break halfway after the second immigration checkpoint. All liquids is not allowed to pass through so I gulped down the whole bottle not wanting to waste any.

The flight journey was ok I guess. We got middle aisle and I have a quiet Australian lady on my right. For the long flight we packed light blankets and neck pillows. Blankets purchased at IKEA at RM9 and neck pillows from DAISO at RM10 each. I read for the first two hours and then decided to sleep. Lights out except for reading lights. Reading: For One More Day by Mitch Albom.

It was almost a year since the Malaysia Airlines MH17 flight disappeared from the radar. To be honest I was a little nervous about the flight. Weather forecast showed good weather ahead. Asked for friends and family to say a prayer that we go and come back safely.

30 JANUARY 2015 (Friday)
I woke up to the sound of the captain's voice. Window seat passengers started to roll up the window shades. Sun began shining in. Wow. That was fast. Australia - Gold Coast is about 2 hours ahead of Malaysia (no jetlag there). I decided to freshen up in the toilet. Need to move them legs after sleeping in a sitting position for  6 hours. I remembered sliding off my seat and subconsciously corrected my posture a few times throughout the night. Before disembarking the plane, there was an announcement about bringing in plants/animals/restricted items into Australia. There was an Ebola breakout during our trip there so upon landing, the flight attendants sprayed insecticides? all over the plane. Then another team came in and just quickly use infrared scanners to check everyone's temperature. The ones with cough/flu will probably be escorted to a holding room for further checks.

Good morning Gold Coast. I was still a little groggy. Picture taken at the airport's car rental parking bay.

The husband rented from Hertz. Arrangement all done when we were back in KL. Before you leave the airport, do stop by a convenience store at the other end of the airport to purchase OPUS SIMcard with free internet. The reception is good and the internet is fast. SIMcard comes in micro (for most Android users) and nano (for Apple people, woot!)

A Toyota Corolla hatchback for only AUD30/day.

Australia is right-hand driving so shouldn't be a problem ya? Did a quick check on the car (be sure to capture photos of any dent/mark on the car). Waze was super helpful (I say super alot don't I?) Along the way we dropped by Robina Town Center for lunch. For Halal food restaurant list, you can use this website: http://www.halalsquare.com.au/gold-coast/ . I stopped by at an Apple Store just to borrow their SIMcard tray pin because I forgot to bring mine. Off we go to the hotel!

The drive from airport (Coolangatta) to Broadbeach. Can't remember which highway was this though.

Here we are. You can view the room from any website online like booking.com, etc.

The view from our balcony on 27th floor. Pacific Ocean for the win baby!

Oh! Don't forget to buy the power socket adaptor. They use a different type of 3-pin sockets. I got them at Ace Hardware for RM20?

Had our afternoon nap and then out for dinner.

Of course I have to have rice. Else I die. (kidding). This was Curry Express, I think, right in the centre of Surfers Paradise on Clifford Street.

Took a walk through the night market along Surfers Paradise beach. Was tempted to buy handmade candle.
Cool breeze from the Pacifics. I just love being at the beach!

The night was uneventful. 

The first night was a pretty laidback day for us. Stopped by at Coles to pick up some fruits, bread, and drinks. It was halfway through summer when we were there. (the initial flight was during fall, sobs). Even if it is windy and slightly chilly, just remember to stay hydrated as if you're back in the tropics.

Sebenarnya ada la jugak interesting thing happened. Time parking kereta kat tepi jalan tu and isi coins dalam machine dia, husband ada cerita nanti kat pantai we might bump into the Parking Angels. Diorang ni minah-minah yang dress *coughs* minimally and kerja diorang ni tolong isikan coin kat parking orang supaya tak kena saman. Huhu. Tapi tak ambik gambar diorang sebab... aurat... Tapi sexy la. Hahaha!

We decided to call it a night and head back to Broadbeach. Surfers Paradise ni a little drive up north je. Helpful jugak sini after working hours dah sunyi dah so takde traffic jam pun. Oh, since kedai semua tutup awal, most restaurants tutup pukul 9 some sampai 12, mostly lepas tu tinggal bars and pubs je. Takkan nak duduk situ pulak kan? So makan awal. Tapi tengah malam macam biasa lah lapar lagi. So beli lah roti! Bila beli roti tu bolehlah cari roti halal macam ni : Nina Hamdan Blog , ada gambar sekali kat blog dia. Credit to her so I decided to post je blog address dia sini.


To be continued...

xoxo

Thanks for the Memories, Gold Coast! (Part 1: Preparation)

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

This is the long overdue post for our trip to Gold Coast (GC) in February 2015. Enjoy!

Ceritanya begini.

One morning in 2014 (dah tak ingat bulan apa), I woke up seeing husband smiling at me. Nice view la kan. Berbunga je hati ni. Haha! He told me that dia dah beli tike pergi GC semalam time I dah tido.  I tanya why didn't he wake me up. Dia cakap takpelah. Nak buat surprise.

The ticket was from AirAsia's yearly big sale and the travel period will be a year away - February 2015. Lamanya lagi! Tapi takpelah. Boleh kumpul duit dulu supaya tak payah nak berbajet-bajet sangat nanti time bercuti, kan? Pening sebenarnya nak shopping/berjalan kalau asyik fikir pasal currency exchange ni. Kalau visit countries yang currency dia weak confirmla rasa kaya tapi kalau sebaliknya, susahlah sikit sebab nanti tak enjoy.

In 2014, tiba-tiba plan berubah lah pulak kan sebab pregnant la pulak! Estimated due date (EDD) time tu memang ngam-ngam during the week after we were supposed to return from GC. Tapi, kalau awal seminggu atau lewat seminggu pun it will not make any difference sebab bila dah 8 months pregnant confirm dah mengah and doctor dah tak bagi fly kan? So we thought takpelah. Burn je lah ticket tu. Tak mahal pun. For two person on return flight tickets total semua RM1600 je.

Then miscarriage lah pulak (aku rasa tak payah sugarcoat kot, past is past kan?). So the plan is back on.

Tapi ada lagi satu surprise. Sister-in-law (SIL-husband's only sister) decide nak kahwin. Bila? Yes! If korang dapat teka, memang story ni predictable. Hehe! Of course la pulak diorang terpilih tarikh yang kitorang supposed to fly to GC tu la kan?

Bincang punya bincang, husband dah tak nak delay lagi dah, so we bought another ticket (terpaksa la menanggung kerugian sikit but hey, this is meant to happen kan?), and brought forward the travelling date. Time SIL announce tu dah October/November, I think? Tanpa berlengah, husband beli tiket on the earliest possible that he can get, and that's in January. Alamak! Banyak stuffs nak kene arrange nih. Reason that he chose January sebab time tu projects masih slow and he can get away from the office lama sikit.

So, mungkin post kali ni kita cerita pasal preparation nak ke GC la ye?

PASSPORT RENEWAL
Passport kitorang dah nak expired dah and for us to obtain the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) tu requires a valid visa because all information will be linked to our passports. Prepare a credit card sebab nanti nak buat payment and it will only cost you AUD$20. Nak suruh agent buat boleh jugak but I can't remember berapa.  (Oh, jangan lupa check anda blacklisted tak untuk travel abroad - read: tak bayar PTPTN and blacklisted).

Nak apply for ETA: Please check this link.

Macam ni la rupa pengesahan daripada Jabatan Imigresen nanti.

ETA tu nanti tak payah print pun but boleh jugak simpan just in case. Sebab all information should be available dah when they scan your passport. Passport Malaysia ni canggih jugak sebenarnya. Nak tengok ranking safety passport-passport di dunia boleh tengok sini.

ITINERARY
For activities, kitorang mintak je itinerary from friends yang dah pernah travel to GC ni. When you compare to what travel agents are offering, lebih kurang sama je the visits to all tourist attractions. Bezanya, anda lebih bebas memilih aktiviti. Yang paling penting, pengalaman kitorang pergi one of the parks, terlampau ramai sangat orang dalam satu tour group sampai ada yang merungut tak tengok habis lagi tapi tour guide dah tiup wisel panggil suruh gerak.

TICKETS TO PARKS
So, apa benda yang best kat GC? Of course lah it is famous for its theme parks! Jangan lupa check online for best offers. Some ada package untuk all 3 theme parks yang famous tu (Wet'n'Wild, MovieWorld, SeaWorld). Others macam Currumbin Wildlife Park, Paradise Country Farm, climb up Q1 tu korang boleh beli on the spot. Tak mahal pun.

Website untuk beli tickets: Please check this link.

FLIGHT TICKETS
Yang ni, ada kerugian sikitla sebab terpaksa beli entirely new flight tickets which costs us additional RM1500. Nangis sikit di situ. Reminder ye: jangan terlalu di brainwash oleh low-cost carrier offers. Kadang-kadang national carrier boleh je ada superb offers that you might miss! Read: check la airline lain jugak jangan gopoh okays.

ACCOMODATION
Yang ni kitorang taklah memilih sangat sebab husband cakap since it is our first trip overseas, nak honeymoon special sikit. So he gave me a list of hotels yang dia dah usha awal-awal (semangat sungguh dia ni), so that I can screen them using TripAdvisor. We decided that we would like a cozy apartment-hotel-ish place to stay with the best view of the Pacific Ocean. So we narrowed down to two hotels. Husband cakap let's stay in one for a couple of days and then move to the other one, saje-saje nak tukar angin. Meriton Serviced Apartment on Broadbeach was our first place. Nanti boleh tengok gambar. Then we moved to Soul on Surfers Paradise. Initially I wanted to stay on Q1 supaya nanti boleh climb up - husband gayat + faktor cuaca + faktor harga = in the end tak jadi lah pulak.

CREDIT CARD LIMIT
Yang ni penting jugak in case nanti nak pakai untuk hotels / fine dinings or even shopping ke kan? Mine tak boleh nak increase to the amount that I wanted. Additional 50% je from the current limit. Hmm. Okaylah, peringatan untuk beringat bila berbelanja. Nak uruskan, senang je, call your respective credit card establishments and the request can be done over the phone. Approvals will not take more than 24hours rasanya.

MONEY EXCHANGE
Kitorang decide perlu jugak ada duit sikit untuk emergency kan instead of depend on credit cards je. I went to IOI City Mall's money exchange booths. The rates are ok la. 2.9 at that time. Remember to get them to break it into smaller change.

INSURANCE
Please understand what type of insurance do you have or what does the insurance that you have bough from your airlines cover? On board sahaja atau onboard, on-land coverage. Kalau hospitalization, sampai berapa? Kalau lost baggages, berapa? What are the procedures? Important contact numbers saved on the phone. Penting ni sebab malang tak berbau. In your travel plans please also ensure you know where is the nearest hospital/medical facilities/police station/embassy contacts ye?

Hmm... Apa lagi ye?

IMMUNIZATION
Check if you need to be cleared off from any particular sickness/diseases or require jabs before entering a country. Countries like Australia is very strict on this including dalam flight nanti mesti ada announcement pasal the offence of bringing in any plant/animal which can introduce diseases into the continent. Iyelah, Australia continent yang besar. Kalau terbawak masuk virus terus habis pupus haiwan dan tumbuhan diorang, siapa nak bertanggungjawab?

Website such as this: Please check this link.

Yang penting, jaga kesihatan. Tak mahu la time travel nanti sakit ye tak? :)

Teringat pulak dua tahun lepas travel ke Thailand. Seminggu lagi nak pergi baru ada budak sound kenapa korang tak ambik lagi jabs tu before fly? (suntikan tu perlu ambik dua minggu sebelum travel). Tak tahu pun ada protokol gitu. Balik je dari Thailand, memang demam habis la sakit tekak bagai. I got cough and flu since Aug 2013-March2014. Sampai jumpa dua specialist, satu ENT and satu lagi Respiratory Physician sebab diorang dah suspect Tuberculosis. Na'uzubillahiminzalik. In the end they agrees it was only acute bronchitis, sent me home with inhalers dan ubat lain. Alhamdulillah sekarang dah sembuh. Tahun bersejarah jugak sebab first time pakai nebulizer kat klinik sampai nak tertido.

Kita sambung lagi nanti.