Saturday 30 June 2012

Tips on the phases of relocating from London to M'sia

Life is good Alhamdulillah. I have learned that life is always good if we remember to be grateful to Allah SWT and to have complete trust in Him.

Since I came back to Malaysia, at least another eight of my friends have also returned and not to mention so many others whom have returned before me. I am certain there are many whom I do not know of but have also decided to relocate back to Malaysia.

I have come to a conclusion that there are several things in common amongst those who return from London to Malaysia. Therefore, I would like to provide some tips based on our experiences to those intending to return to Malaysia.

1. When you first come back you will experience the feeling of complete excitement. After all, for most of us, we were born here and grew up here. You will enjoy the 'honeymoon' period, you will appreciate all the little things such as the sound of Adhan (well, I did and still do), the prayer room at every shopping mall and petrol station, the pasar tani, the variety of food and fruits, the 'Teh tarik', the scenery, the people. Everything is new and yet, reminds you of your past.

2. After the 'honeymoon' period which may last up to 2-3 months, you will start to experience some amount of frustration as you encounter things like government agencies, visa issues, work issues and bureaucracy. You will experience the stress of driving and wish that you were back in the UK. You will start to miss certain things like proper driving, efficient system and professionalism. Well, I call this the 'adjustment' period. Things are different here but different doesn't mean better or worse.

Somethings are definitely deficient but other things are better and may compensate for the things that you are missing from the UK. During this period, you may not be able to exactly pin point what are the things that you miss or why you miss them but it doesn't matter, your feelings are validated. You have spent a certain amount of time abroad whether it is 5 years or 17 years (like myself) but you are used to a particular system and now, you have to re-adjust yourself and your expectations. It is not easy and you might feel the resistance to change. Resistance is good because you need to hold on to the good things, the good aspects of UK that you have developed in yourself but you need to let go of other things which may not be so good in order to accommodate yourself in this new environment.

3. This adjustment period may last up to 2 years. It maybe quicker for some people to adjust especially for those who return earlier and it is certainly easier for children to adjust compared to their parents. During this period, you may sometimes wonder "Why the hell did I come back?" You may start to doubt your decision. You may consider moving back to the UK. Indeed, some people do end up moving back to the UK or seeking their fortunes elsewhere in the world.

During this time, it is actually advisable to go back to the UK for a visit. In fact, most of us including myself did exactly just that. No matter how organized you are, you will need to go back to the UK at least within the first 1-2 years of your return to Malaysia. You may need to pick up your tax return check, pay your last bills, sort out your bank account and the most important thing is to go back and remind yourself what you left behind.

There was a real good reason why you decided to leave your built up life of x amount of years, shipped all your possessions half way across the world, drag your children with you and leaving all your friends behind. So, go back and remind yourself why you left. Whilst you are there, use the opportunity to visit your friends, go back to your favourite hang-out place and restaurants, do the things you enjoyed previously and eat the things you loved to eat. You will remember the beautiful life you had, the good times but you will also remember why you decided to leave. (or if not, you may decide you want your old life back)

Well, I thoroughly enjoyed my short visit to the UK seeing all my friends again, eating Ryvita with cream cheese and smoked salmon but...I knew I didn't want to live there anymore. I had 17 wonderful years but I'm ready to move on.

4. Finally you will get to the 'settling' phase. This is where I am now. I am finally settled. Some may never get to this phase and if so, you may decide to move away. It doesn't matter cause the most important thing is that you have tried. However, if you do reach the settling phase then it is important for you to keep the good things that you have learned from the UK. Not everything from the UK is good. There are many not so good things which I can talk about but that will take a few more posts.

When I say the good things I mean the good attitude such as discipline, punctuality, professionalism, politeness, straight to the point, no pussy-footing, being civilized, treating others equally and with respect. It doesn't matter if you are surrounded by hooligans but it is your behavior and attitude that is important. You do not need to step down to the level of others.You define who you are and remember, Islam defines who we should be.

So, you will start to rebuild your life here in Malaysia. I believe there are so much more opportunities here for you and your children especially when your family are here and your friends are here. No doubt, it is a very strange, colourful and bizarre place; but if you are the type of person who enjoys a busy social life, to experience new and strange things, to spent most of your weekends surrounded by family and friends, to travel and see the most beautiful beaches and natural environments, to improve your skills in dealing with difficult personalities then, this is the place for you. It is a place full of challenges. One thing for sure, life is never boring! 


Sunday 3 June 2012

A trip to Paradise Island, Pulau Redang


Sunrise at Redang Island

I started dreaming of water during my teenage years, clear blue sea water...it has been a dream of mine, a quest to find a place on this beautiful planet where the sea water is crystal clear, where you can see the sand beneath your feet. Finally...my dream became a reality.

We left Kuala Lumpur at 5 o'clock in the morning. We took the DUKE highway and joined KL-Karak Highway. We stopped at Genting Sempah R&R to pray Fajar. It was still too early to get breakfast as the restaurants were shut. We continued our journey and joined the Lebuhraya Pantai Timur. We stopped at Temerloh R&R for some breakfast.

The R&R are big pit stops with petrol, restaurants, surau (praying area for Muslims) and toilet facilities whereas the smaller stopover areas do not have petrol stations. The last ferry from Shahbandar Jeti, Kuala Terengganu to Redang Island leaves at 3pm. We had to get there in time. The journey was smooth. We reached Kuala Terengganu at 12.30pm. We managed to get a parking inside the Jeti compound and had to pay RM10.00 per night. At least, it was secure.

We had lunch and prayed Zuhur/Asr and caught the ferry at 3pm. The sea water within the Jeti was dirty grey but as we got further away from the shore, the water became dark blue. The journey on the ferry took around 2 hours and we needed to change to a smaller ferry when we reached Redang Island to get to Redang Lagoon Resort.

We were greeted by this view at Redang Island
We checked into our room which had a double bed and another double mattress on the top floor. It was a cozy little room with basic amenities. The resort was made out of wood and looked pretty exotic.

Redang Lagoon Resort


The children immediately rushed to the beach and jumped into the water. The water was the bluest shade of blue and crystal clear like glass. We spent the entire evening at the beach until it was time for dinner. The package included three days and two nights, with breakfast, lunch, dinner and snorkeling activity.

The next day, we joined the snorkeling group. The lifeguards took us to a marine farm to swim amongst the coral fishes.

The lifeguard told me that the Island is only open to the public from March until October. It is closed during the monsoon season (November - February). This is because the waves are too dangerous for swimming. The water is slightly murkier during March as there are still strong underwater currents and in September, the waves start to get stronger. Hence, we had chosen the best time to visit this beautiful Island.

Leaving Lagoon Resort towards the Marine Conservative Area for snorkeling


Marine conservation area - swimming with the fish
Baywatch

We spent around two hours swimming amongst the fish. We had our life jackets on as the water was very deep. Although the lifeguards were jumping into the deep end from the Jetty and made it all look so easy. I couldn't quite get the hang of the snorkeling breathing apparatus and decided to simply use the goggles. We went to the deep end and saw a variety of colourful fishes, yellow stripey ones, blue ones, small ones and larger ones. Fortunately, we didn't come across any scary fish. It was the most beautiful feeling on earth. It felt like we were in one of those National Geographic under water ocean scenes.

We got back to the resort, had lunch and rested whilst the sun was directly above our heads. Later in the day, we went swimming again. There was a small coral reef near the resort and we went swimming there, there were a few fishes and we were just swimming away like dolphins without our life jackets as the water was shallow. It is important to consider safety as it was still an open sea (South China Sea) and the currents can easily drift one away from the shore. We spent our time swimming and lazing by the beach until sunset.

Unfortunately, my baby developed high fever. I was fortunate that I brought some liquid paracetamol with me although the lifeguard told me there is a clinic at the Island. I thought I could manage his condition, so just gave him some medicine and tepid sponge him. That night he kept waking up every so often with bouts of coughing. It reminded me that even though I felt like I was in Paradise but this is no Jannah, this is still earth...a place of test, of illness, of disease, of pain, of hurt, of sorrow.... Alhamdulillah.

The next day, he was feeling slight better. We had breakfast, packed our bags, sat by the beach and relaxed waiting for the ferry to arrive at 11am.

The crystal clear blue waters of Pulau Redang

We were loaded onto the ferry and was so exhausted that we all fell asleep for an hours journey ride. We felt so relieved to get back to the car and took a detour to Masjid Kristal to pray Zuhur/Asr before making our long journey back to Kuala Lumpur.


I dosed myself up with coffee to keep me awake during the 7 hours drive. The journey back towards Kuantan was a mixture of double and single lanes and was dangerous at places. It is better to have patience and be stuck behind a bus. Once we entered the Highway things were smooth sailing. We stopped again at Temerloh for dinner and to pray. The scariest part of the journey is just before reaching Genting Sempah as the roads are winding and there are slow moving vehicles. It is best to go slow along that stretch of road. We finally reached Kuala Lumpur at 10.30pm.

This was the best holiday ever...we definitely plan to go back to Redang Island next year InshaAllah.

IN SEARCH OF THIS TRUTH

  I am in a quest to search for THIS truth. People ask, 'why are you still searching for the truth?’  You have found Islam.  You believe...