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Kisah Road Trip ke Bezděz Hrad, Czech
March 5, 2016
Jadi apa yang menariknya Bezděz Hrad ni?
Perasaan dia sama macam masa saya berkunjung ke Kellie's Castle dulu. Aura castle ni lain macam sikit. Mula dibina sebelum tahun 1264, jadi boleh kira betapa tuanya dia. 752 tahun! Dan dikatakan Bezděz Hrad ialah antara contoh terbaik untuk seni bina Gothic.
Pembinaan ni diarah oleh King of Bohemia, Premysl Otakar II. Dalam Instagram, saya pernah berkongsi tentang sejarah nama Czech. Sebelum wujudnya nama Czech Republic, ada Czechoslovakia (nama ni lebih famous dalam kalangan orang Malaysia) dan lama sebelum tu, tanah Czech ni dikenali dengan nama Bohemia.
Tapi kalau korang jumpa orang Czech, janganlah cakap "Ohhh, you are from Czechoslovakia?" For some people, they find it to be inappropriate. :) Czech is a country and Slovakia is another country. Okay?
Tapi kalau korang jumpa orang Czech, janganlah cakap "Ohhh, you are from Czechoslovakia?" For some people, they find it to be inappropriate. :) Czech is a country and Slovakia is another country. Okay?
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| View dari Bezděz Hrad |
Premysl Otakar II tak sempat pun tengok castle ni siap, sebab dia terkorban dalam perang dan istana tu jadi penjara untuk isteri (Queen Kunhuta) dan anaknya (Vaclav II). Ada versi yang kata kedua-dua queen dan anaknya berjaya larikan diri, ada pula rekod yang queen sahaja yang lari dan anaknya ditinggalkan di istana tu.
Kalau ikut versi kedua, Vaclav II ni pulak dibawa pergi oleh nobleman Czech dan bila dia dah besar, dia kembali ke istana ni dalam tahun 1283. Vaclav II beli istana tu dengan anggaran harga 30.36 juta Czech koruna (convert sendiri -_-). :O :O :O Nampak betapa istana tu bermakna untuk dia.
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| Monumen? |
Saya tak pasti adakah ini yang dimaksudkan dengan chapel (sebab saya ingatkan chapel ialah satu bangunan). Tapi dikatakan kawasan istana ni pernah dijadikan tempat keagamaan. Dan 'monumen' macam kat atas ni dibina sepanjang jalan ke istana.
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| Climb and climb |
Nak ke istana ni, kena mendaki sikit sebab letaknya 604m dari paras laut. Masa kami ke sini, memang terasa sunyi sebab istana ni tutup jadi takde orang pun datang. Sejuk tak terkata, boleh pulak turun snow masa ni T_T
Dari Bezděz Hrad, kami boleh nampak tasik yang agak besar. Kisah tasik ni bermula dalam tahun 1366-1367. King Charles IV arahkan untuk korek tanah dijadikan tasik buatan. Agak besar jugak tasiknya. Nama asal tasik tu sangat simple, Velky rybník (Big Pond). Tapi tasik ni jadi inspiration untuk orang seni berkarya, salah seorang namanya Karel Hynek Macha (penyajak) dan sekarang tasik ni dikenali sebagai Lake Macha (Machovo jezero).
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| Banyak betul itik. |
Ada yang mengatakan, kalau King Premysl Otakar II tak terkorban, Bezděz Hrad mampu jadi istana utama kat Czech ni, which means Prague may not be the capital city like today. :O Prague is famous for its Prague Castle, anyway.
Oh ya, yang membuatkan perjalanan kali ni lebih menarik ialah at the end of the journey when we were already back in Hradec Kralove, the car suddenly broken down. :O Nervous sangat sebab gear kereta tu tak boleh masuk masa kat simpang 4 yang busy! Fuh, kalau terdampar kat situ, buat drama betul nak kena tolak kereta tengah-tengah jalan. Syukur alhamdulillah, kami dapat 'park' kat tempat selamat sikit walaupun still halang laluan kereta lain lah.
Pasang lampu kecemasan....dan kami pun menunggu orang kereta sewa sampai. Kereta tu kena tarik dengan kereta lain balik ke syarikat dia. Dan alhamdulillah, kami tak kena charge lebih pun. Watch the video to see what happened :D
What a day....
Rujukan:-
[Novel] The Kite Runner - Beautiful One!
March 4, 2016
I just finished reading a novel entitled The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. It is an amazing book with stories that open up my mind, especially about relationship, love and hatred, friendship, survival and history :)
With the background of Afghanistan, or to be more specific the city of Kabul, the writer managed to portray how was the life of Afghans once upon a time before the country became unstable like today. Okay, let me share roughly what the book is all about.
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| Amir, Hassan |
There is a Pashtun boy named Amir who spend his childhood with Hassan, a Hazara boy. They are always together although in Afghanistan, Pashtun groups consider Hazara as low class people. They live in a house together with Baba (Amir's father) and Ali (Hassan's father). Amir's mother died when delivering him while Ali's wife was nowhere to be found. In the novel, it is nicely described how and why Amir felt his father dislike him.
Baba has a good friend, Rahim Khan who was also kind of his business partner. Amir feels that Rahim Khan know him better than his own father.
Baba has a good friend, Rahim Khan who was also kind of his business partner. Amir feels that Rahim Khan know him better than his own father.
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| Rahim Khan, Baba |
Back to the title of the novel.
I thought flying a kite is merely a hobby, but not in Afghanistan where it is more like a national sport. I learned that the fallen kites are like a bag of gold, where the kids would wait for the falling of kites and if they manage to catch any fallen kites - they are awesome. :)
There is a kite tournament in which Amir wins the battle. However, something happens to Hassan after that.
Why Amir behaves like that?
There is a kite tournament in which Amir wins the battle. However, something happens to Hassan after that.
"And that led to another understanding: Hassan knew. He knew I'd seen everything in that alley, that I'd stood there and done nothing." - The Kite Runner, page 98
Why Amir behaves like that?
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| Hassan |
Amir does something as well after the incident, trying to kick Hassan and Ali from the house - he was successful. However, Hassan admits the crime he didn't even commit. Why Hassan is willing to do anything for Amir? :(
5 years later, the Soviet Union (Russia basically) intervenes into Afghanistan. Amir and Baba leaves the house to Peshawar, Pakistan, and then to California. Baba works at the petrol station while Amir manages to pursue his study in writing. Then, Baba is diagnosed with a lung cancer - the invasive one. Before his death, Baba fulfills Amir's last favor - to ask Soraya's hands from her father. Who is Soraya and how they know each other?
After 15 years of happy marriage (without any children) and Amir already becomes a great novelist, suddenly there is a phone call from dying Rahim Khan. He asks Amir to come back to Peshawar.
Why Rahim Khan asks him to return? What kind of news he wants to tell Amir?
Amir learns a lot of new things in Peshawar. His mission now is to find a child, named Sohrab. Who is Sohrab and what is the relationship between Sohrab and Amir? What happens to Hassan? If Amir manages to find Sohrab, what would he do then?
The novel ends with a scene where Sohrab is already in America as a very quiet, depressed boy. He does not want to interact with anyone. What happens that make him to be like that?
Amir tries to interact with him - through a kite-flying moment. Some other boys try to challenge them but Amir and Sohrab wins!
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| Hassan |
5 years later, the Soviet Union (Russia basically) intervenes into Afghanistan. Amir and Baba leaves the house to Peshawar, Pakistan, and then to California. Baba works at the petrol station while Amir manages to pursue his study in writing. Then, Baba is diagnosed with a lung cancer - the invasive one. Before his death, Baba fulfills Amir's last favor - to ask Soraya's hands from her father. Who is Soraya and how they know each other?
After 15 years of happy marriage (without any children) and Amir already becomes a great novelist, suddenly there is a phone call from dying Rahim Khan. He asks Amir to come back to Peshawar.
"Come. There is a way to be good again." - The Kite Runner, page 177
Why Rahim Khan asks him to return? What kind of news he wants to tell Amir?
Amir learns a lot of new things in Peshawar. His mission now is to find a child, named Sohrab. Who is Sohrab and what is the relationship between Sohrab and Amir? What happens to Hassan? If Amir manages to find Sohrab, what would he do then?
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| Amir, Sohrab, Soraya |
The novel ends with a scene where Sohrab is already in America as a very quiet, depressed boy. He does not want to interact with anyone. What happens that make him to be like that?
Amir tries to interact with him - through a kite-flying moment. Some other boys try to challenge them but Amir and Sohrab wins!
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| Amir |
[Amir] "Do you want me to run that kite for you?"
[Sohrab] *nod*
"For you a thousand times over!"
:) :) :)
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The story is not typical, totally a fresh one. No cheesy man-woman love, it is more to friendship and humanity.
I learned a lot about differences between Pashtun and Hazara. Check here if you want to know as well :)
Oh yea, I just found out the novel was adapted into a movie! You can watch it here, but I think the book itself carries more values and deep lessons.
p/s - all pictures credit to the movie.
HK, Czech
160304
[PFTW] | No. 3 - 7 | Czech, USA, Malaysia, Lithuania
March 3, 2016
Rasa macam kakak / makcik pejabat pos tu dah kenal dah muka saya, balik-balik budak ni asyik menghantar poskad je. :) Biasanya saya minta orang pejabat pos tolong tampalkan setem, sebab saya still tak yakin setem yang harga berapa boleh guna (sebab bergantung pada lokasi negara) -_-'
25kc untuk sekitar Eropah. | 30kc untuk luar Eropah.
Kelakar je rasa bila poskad lagi murah dari setem. Haha.
Alhamdulillah, memang rasa gembira setiap kali buka peti surat. Kalau sebelum ni peti surat sekadar ada katalog Tesco, Kaufland dan supermarket yang sewaktu dengannya, sekarang ni ada poskad! Dan of course the thoughts on each of them are the most valuable. :)
The first one is from Bret, he's from Prague, Czech. Just a simple 'best wishes in 2016' like this can already make me smile for the rest of evening :)
The next two postcards are from USA.
I have no idea where in the world is Nebraska. It is actually one of the states, located in the middle of USA. Kalau korang boleh tengok kat gambar bawah ni, Nebraska letaknya betul2 kat atas tulisan United States.
The largest ancestry group claimed by Nebraskans is German American. The state also has the largest per capita population of Czech Americans among U.S. states. - Wikipedia
No wonder this girl, Renee has been to Czech 4 times! I bet there are very high number of Czech Americans who introduced a little bit about Czech in this state. :) Agaknya lah haha.
Dan ini pula dari Farah :D
She sent this from New York, when she went to EXO Planet #2 - The EXO'luXion in New York / New Jersey. No wonder I feel like I'm just next to her as she wore the tudung I gave her :D
The fourth one, unexpectedly from Wak Tiga Lalat. Hehehe, terkedu sekejap wak hantar poskad lagi. At the same time, I felt very happy. Thank you so much! InsyAllah kalau saya travel somewhere saya try hantar poskad ke Wak ye.
Yang terakhir untuk kali ni ialah dari Vilnius, Lithuania. Saya dah lama berhajat nak ke negara Baltik ni - Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia. Tapi tak berkesempatan. Cuti takde yang panjang, tiket pun takde yang murah. Jadinya, teruja jugak bila dapat poskad dari Lithuania ni. :)
I guess Virginija, the one who sent this postcard really read my post-crossing's profile well. :) She shared her thoughts on hiking and to be a nature lover - one of my favorite topics. Awwww. T___T
Okayy, that's all for today.
Jumpa lagi.
p/s - Seperti yang dijangka, photo challenge saya entah ke mana.... A photo a day la sangat :p
HK, Czech
160302
Most Beautiful Sights of Bohemian Switzerland, Czech
March 2, 2016
(removed / transfered from hanisnina.com)
Bohemian Switzerland was already on my list when I knew Narnia was filmed here, in Czech Republic. This is the second place after Adr?pach, famous for its Gothic Gate in Narnia :)
As a beautiful national park, it is also called as ?eské ?vycarsko Národní Park. It forms one of the three famous areas for Rock Towns - other than Adr?pach and Bohemian Paradise and all of them located in the north of Czech Republic.
Here are the most amazing sights of Bohemian Switzerland that I would like to share with you. :)
1. Prav?ická brána (Prav?ická Gate)
It is the most famous tourist attraction in Bohemian Switzerland. With the length of 26 meters and height of 16 meters, this makes Prav?ická brána as the largest sandstone rock arch in Europe. It becomes a special place for Czech people as a beautiful, natural monument of the country.
Have you realised the arch in one of the Chronicles of Narnia as I mentioned in the first sentence of the post? Aha, specifically in the first movie - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
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| Sources |
With a minimum thickness of the arch of 3 meters, the arch is no longer be climbed on - due to many visitors and risk of erosion and injury. So, the scene of where the kids walk on the arch was actually edited and with help of computer graphics, they acted in the studio and pasted them in.
With a fee of 75 kc for adults, and 35 kc for students, I think you can go and sit below the arch, enjoying the views with a cup of coffee or read a book. You can check the opening hours here.
2. Sandstone Along Gabriella's Path
As you keep walking from Prav?ická brána to Mezni Louka, you will reach the area of many rock formations. Unlike Adr?pach, if I'm not mistaken, the rocks do not have names but still, the stunning views can take your breath away.
If you really want to take a close view of the rocks as they are remarkable natural phenomenon of North Bohemia, you can try sandstone rock climbing lessons.
On my way there, I saw a signboard with picture of how the sandstone is theoretically formed. It is interesting to know as I never thought there was sea here!
Based on what I understand, this sandstone started the history of geology about 95 millions of years ago (1st picture). There was sea with lots of sea creatures. And the next 45 millions of years, the sea recessed (2nd picture) and then started to transform into rocks with trees on top of it also with beautiful gorges.
The 4th picture is how we can see Bohemian Switzerland today. In 10 millions of years, it is expected to be further regressed to a flat area. :(
3. Divoká soutěska (Wild Gorge)
4. Tichá soutěska (Edmund's (Quiet) Gorge)
These deep canyon of Kamenice River are partially accessible by boat - so, at the end of walking path from Mezni Louka, you need to take the boat to H?ensko or otherwise, you can return to Mezni Louka on foot to take the bus.
If you are from opposite route, you can also take a boat ride from H?ensko.
One of the gorges is named after an Austro-Hungarian Prince - Edmund Clary-Aldringen.
I must say that they are gorgeous gorges - must-walk-along places. The routes are really by the side of the water and there are few small waterfalls too :)
Interesting fact here is that, there is climate inversion that affect the flora here. The cold air here allows plants like two flowers violet and tree mosses to grow, otherwise can always be found on alpine areas. I'm not sure about the fauna, but it is said that invertebrate animal species that usually be seen in alpine areas, can also be seen here. :D
On top is the jetty for the boat. Aha, the boat rides are not free, but the price is reasonable. No worries. :)
So, will Bohemian Switzerland be the destination for your next trip?
:D
I will share about planning a day trip there in the next post.
Till then,
Assalamualaikum and bye.
I must say that they are gorgeous gorges - must-walk-along places. The routes are really by the side of the water and there are few small waterfalls too :)
Interesting fact here is that, there is climate inversion that affect the flora here. The cold air here allows plants like two flowers violet and tree mosses to grow, otherwise can always be found on alpine areas. I'm not sure about the fauna, but it is said that invertebrate animal species that usually be seen in alpine areas, can also be seen here. :D
On top is the jetty for the boat. Aha, the boat rides are not free, but the price is reasonable. No worries. :)
So, will Bohemian Switzerland be the destination for your next trip?
:D
I will share about planning a day trip there in the next post.
Till then,
Assalamualaikum and bye.
Hradec Kralove, Czech
150306
160301
150306
160301
A Man with Tears and Pearls
February 29, 2016
Kisah ni dipetik dari novel The Kite Runner. I love this book, thanks to its unique story that I haven't found in other novels. :) Khaled Hosseini really described the stories very well and I'm sure other people who read it will experience so many feelings through out the novel, just like I did.
Happy. Curious. Frustrated. Tenang. Lega. Penat. Semua ada.
Happy. Curious. Frustrated. Tenang. Lega. Penat. Semua ada.
That same night, I wrote my first short story. It took me thirty minutes. It was a dark little tale about a man who found a magic cup and learned that if he wept into the cup, his tears turned into pearls. But even though he had always been poor, he was a happy man and rarely shed a tear. So he found ways to make himself sad so that his tears could make him rich. As the pearls piled up, so did his greed grow. The story ended with the man sitting on a mountain of pearls, knife in hand, weeping helplessly into the cup with his beloved wife's slain body in his arms. - The Kite Runner page 29
"Well," he said, "if I may ask, why did the man kill his wife? In fact, why did he ever have to feel sad to shed tears? Couldn't he have just smelled an onion?"- The Kite Runner page 32
I don't why I really love this part of the novel.
Basically, the one who wrote the story was a boy, Amir who lived a wealthy life, thanks to his rich father, Baba. Amir spent most of his childhood with Hassan, a son of Ali who was only a servant to Amir's family. Baba also cared for Hassan in which that arouse Amir's jealousy.
Amir, loved to write short stories, with the aim of being a writer in the future. Meanwhile Hassan was illiterate, could not read and had never written a single word in his entire life. And Hassan's future may be only as a servant, keep the house tidy and prepare meal.
Despite of two different status, Hassan managed to 'criticize' Amir's story in a polite way with obviously strong statement.
*claps* :)
Kadang-kadang, kita perlu tanya pendapat orang lain tentang apa yang kita nak buat. Why? Different people think differently, with their own unique thoughts, perspectives, points of view what so ever. :) Pemikiran tu sudah semestinya dipengaruhi oleh cara hidup, latar belakang seseorang tu.
Setiap orang ada bidang masing-masing, yang walaupun berkaitan namun ada perbezaan. Contohnya seorang doktor mungkin tak semahir ahli farmasi dalam ubat-ubatan. Seorang pelumba kereta mungkin tak semahir mekanik dalam membaiki kereta yang rosak.
Moralnya kat sini, jangan pandang rendah pada orang lain dan jangan rasa diri kita tinggi sangat. T_T Tapi jangan pulak rasa diri kita tak berguna. Remember, we are special in our own way :)
HK, Czech
160229
Samsung Galaxy S7, S7 Edge
February 27, 2016
I love the complexity of Samsung but I also love the simplicity of iPhone. :)
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