MSSJ 2013 - THE SECOND DAY (PART 1)

The second day would be the best time to start taking photos, but it had to be early in the morning when the temperature in the stadium was still tolerable. And on the second day, we had worn our first team t-shirts which were striking red.

The competitions were held in the courts and the seats would be the place for the teachers and parents to wait for or manage the players before and after each round. After some time, the place would get very hot and uncomfortable but we had no choice but to live with it.

 

To get the photos of the players at the tables taken was also another challenging thing. Nobody was allowed to enter the competition area when the games were in progress so I had to quickly snap the photos before the games started.

I have more photos of the second day but I will have to hit the sack real soon. It will be in part 2 later. 

MSSJ 2013 - THE MORNING BEFORE THE MATCH

The state level chess tournament started yesterday.. On the second day, we went to the famous Kluang Railway Station for the breakfast as early as 7:00 a.m. However, it is not the main outlet that is situated at the railway station. The restaurant is very near to the hotel we are staying.

Now I have to think where to bring the kids for breakfast tomorrow.

CENTRALIZED TRAINING FOR JOHOR BAHRU CHESS TEAM

20th February, 2013 ~ Today was the third day of the centralized training held for the Johor Bahru Chess Team. Wish us the best of luck for the tournament in Kluang from the 22nd until 25th of February.

 

ISTANBUL DAY 2 - SULTAN CAFE AND RESTAURANT

We went into the cafe twice to get our cups of hot Nescafe really very early in the morning after our Subuh prayer at the Blue Mosque. It was situated right outside the mosque overlooking Sultanahmet Square so it was easily spotted.

The morning was really cold and we could only go for breakfast at 7:30 a.m. at the hotel. We would hang out at the Square and this was one choice that we had. The shop operated 24 hours a day so that was why it was opened in the wee hour of the morning.

sugar cubes inside

We went there only twice but on the second day, the owner already knew what we wanted when we entered the shop.

I just love the lights on the ceiling

The Nescafe here was thicker in a smaller cup and I guessed fresh milk was added instead of condensed milk or creamer like we use to do in Malaysia. It was the best cuppa I have ever had. If you wonder how much does a cup of Nescafe cost here - it was 7 lira. We did not mind paying for a simple pleasure in life.

I wonder whether people from Nescafe or Nestle will see this and pay me for the free advertisement. :)

AL-FATIHAH TO NURUL ALYANI ARIFFIN

Nurul Alyani sitting on the right, wearing a green shirt.

Picture taken in 2010 at Hutan Bandar Mutiara Rini in November. She was playing host for a class party of 2KP1, and she was the form teacher.

We first heard about the accident in which Nurul Alyani Ariffin, her husband and daughter were involved on Monday when someone saw the status update on her Facebook wall. And today, we received the news that she was not with us anymore, leaving us forever, after being unconscious for six days.

She started teaching in SMK Taman Universiti in January 2008 until December 2010 when she left for Sandakan, Sabah, to be with her beloved husband who is working there. One of the things I told her when she applied for the transfer was my hope to go and visit her and her family in Sandakan one day and I know now that is never going to happen.

It is a very sad news for everybody in school indeed. If I were to write about my experience working with her, I know it would only be about all the good things as I could not find anything negative about her.

We will all miss you, a lot. And we pray, may Allah bless you and your soul be placed together with the believers and faithful ones.

AL-FATIHAH....

ISTANBUL DAY 1 - FALLING IN LOVE WITH THE BLUE MOSQUE AT FIRST SIGHT

The Sultanahmet Camii of Sultan Ahmad Mosque is one of the prominent landmarks of Istanbul. It is popularly known as the Blue Mosque because of the beautiful blue tiles that could be found adorning the walls, pillars and domes of the building.

This place is opened to the Muslims and non-Muslims alike so I was quite surprised and a bit lost when I saw too many tourists in the mosque. I was there for the first time to perform my prayers of the day. 

The non-Muslim visitors could only enter the mosque up to a certain limit to prevent them from disturbing the worshipers while the Muslims who come to pray could enter the praying hall like any other mosques. Before entering the building, people need to get a small plastic bags for their shoes at the entrance and while they are in the mosque, they could just hold their shoes (most probably to prevent shoes from being stolen) or put them on the shoe racks provided. There are Turkish policemen keeping watch at the mosque so things are still under control even though there are a lot of people. 

Entrance is free of charge but there is a donation booth if you feel you want to contribute.

waiting for the call for prayer in the hall

The Blue Mosque is distinct in its own way and people come here as if they are visiting an art museum. People just stand there at one spot and observe the fine work of the Turks' architecture in awe.  I could not stay there for too long for the first time but I was glad that I had the opportunity to spend quite some time in the mosque for the prayers as the hotel was just a walking distance away. The mosque is not opened to the tourists during prayer times so the best time for Muslims to be there would be for the evening or morning prayers when the place is almost tourist-free. However, there were still very few tourists when I was there waiting for the evening prayers and I overheard a police officer telling them, "It is alright if you want to sit down" instead of shooing people away.

the Blue Mosque viewed from a place near the hotel,
 at night

almost at the same place, during the day

I have more pictures of the magnificent mosque snapped throughout my short stay in Istanbul. Do come back for more.

ISTANBUL DAY 1 - HAGIA SOFYA PART 2

As you can see, the building is a huge one and there was another level. To go up one level, instead of climbing a staircase, we had to climb up an escalated flat floor, this first of its kind I have ever encountered. Even going down was similar, there was no staircase so we just walked down a steep flat floor.

On the higher level, visitors could see the remnants of the original church where there were pictures of religious figures on the walls which have been conserved.

 

After reading the history of Aya Sofia, the building has undergone many stages of conservation and renovation and it is still here for the present generation to see. Make sure you go into the museum when you go to Istanbul. It is worth the 25 lira that you have to pay for the entrance fee.

other related posts:

ARRIVING AND BLOGGING FROM ISTANBUL 

TASHKONAK BOUTIQUE HOTEL, ISTANBUL

ARASTA BAZAAR IN ISTANBUL 

ISTANBUL DAY 1 - EXPLORING SULTANAHMET SQUARE

ISTANBUL DAY 1 - HAGIA SOFYA PART 1