There’s No Place Like.. Dai Nam

Posted on by Addin Khalid

#WeekendChillout. Some 40 km away from Ho Chi Minh City, lies one of the largest tourism complex in Vietnam, Dai Nam Park. The unique mega park is inclusive of a complete zoo, amusement park, a man made beach and religious (buddhist) sanctuaries.

My family & I enjoyed this place so much that we visited this place twice this year. The place, like many other Vietnamese theme parks, is large yet calm and not crowded. It’s perfect for my family that doesn’t like to queue up nor press around for space.

_DSC5452During our first visit, we covered most of the places in the complex; strolled the zoo, walked by the big temples, ventured around the amusement park & finally went for a swim at the artificial beach to close the day.

For our second visit, we spent the whole day only at the zoo & the beach, which are the 2 most interesting places, in my opinion.

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Never Tired of Vung Tau

Posted on by Addin Khalid

_DSC9533Vung Tau is a sea port city 100 km east of Ho Chi Minh City. There are shipyards, fabrication yards, supply base, ships & rigs in transit. But Vung Tau is also the place for tourism, a beach getaway & fine seafood.

My family & I made it to Vung Tau at least 3 times in 2013. We basically made day trips each time and almost repeated the same activities, but with different family guests from our home country. However , each trip never failed to excite us. In this post, I will share about our whole day trip itinerary and other optional activities in Vung Tau

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Kembali Ke Siem Reap 2013

Posted on by Addin Khalid

_DSC6231Mei 2013 – Alhamdulillah. Ini kedatangan kedua buat saya dan keluarga ke Siem Reap. Cuma kali ini kami membawa ahli keluarga kami yg terbaru, Aflah Muhajir, bersama. Berbeza dengan pengembaraan sebelum ini, kali ini kami datang menaiki Cambodia Angkor Air dan menginap di Le Meridien.

Kami dibawa mengembara oleh anak murid Ustaz Musa bernama Nasir. Kami tetap tak lepaskan peluang ke Angkor Wat lagi sekali dan pusing2 membeli belah di pasar baru dan lama di pusat bandar.

Pengalaman baru kami kali ini adalah kami ke Tasik Tonle Sap melalui terusan lain iaitu Chong Khneas. Laluannya kelihatan sedang dibangunkan untuk tujuan komersil berbanding sungai Tahas di Kampong Phluk yang kami lalui pada 2012 lalu.

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Ha Long Bay: 1/7 Natural Wonders Of The World

Posted on by Addin Khalid

_DSC9361Aug 2013 – A bit of an unorthodox Eidul Fitr for us as we happen to spend the 2nd day of Eid up in Ha Long for a cruise through Ha Long Bay, 1 of the 7 wonders of the world and a UNESCO-declared World Heritage area.

We rented a junk boat for a whole day private tour for our family. We were taken to the major attractions such as the Sung Sot Cave. We were also taken to a beach on 1 of the islands for a swim.

Alhamdulillah (praise to God) for the golden experience to witness one of the most beautiful & treasured sites in the world.

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Take your talent to where it’s worth!

Posted on by Addin Khalid

20130809_103134(0)Proud to have met Mr. Yusuf Ismail, a Cham professional singer. He has the ability to sing in 15 languages including Spanish, French & Malay. He is also younger brother to Hj Idris, Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City Muslim Representative Committee.

I happened to meet him at the airport on my way to Hai Phong. He on the other hand was off to a Da Nang for a performance. I interestedly listened to him talking about his passion & his pursuance. I believe he is happily at his best condition, self-determined, on the right course to achieve what he set out to achieve, disregarding bad perceptions & unbelievably pushing his limits; and to me that is all that matters for a person to be considered a success.

I wish him further success & hope he never gives up in his ventures.

Jejak Hidayah Phu Rieng

Posted on by Addin Khalid

20130706_130419Sempena Ramadhan tahun ini, kami komuniti Malaysia di Ho Chi Minh City mengadakan lawatan amal ke perkampungan Cham di Xa Phu Rieng. Perjalanan ke sana dari HCMC mengambil masa dalam sejam. Sesudah menyimpang dari jalan utama, kami terpaksa mengharungi jalan yang berdebu melalui ladang2 dan tanah kebun sebelum sampai ke kampung Cham.

Seperti tahun-tahun sebelumnya, kami menghulurkan bantuan asas untuk menghadapi bulan Ramadhan seperti beras & kurma, juga bantuan kewangan.

Tentu saja pilu hati menyaksikan nasib kaum Islam yang terpinggir dari kemudahan dan kemajuan zaman. Namun, kita hanya mampu membantu semampunya. Kalau ada peluang, sesuatu yang saya ingin berikan kepada anak2 Cham bukanlah semata-mata gula-gula, tetapi ilmu.

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The Emerald Isle (Ireland Trip)

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_DSC8323CORK, June 2013 – Our Europe tour 2013 continues with our visit to Ireland. We traveled to Cork to visit my eldest sister, Kak Azy & family who live there. The kids had so much fun meeting up with their cousins.

During our stay in Ireland, we traveled to Fota Wildlife Park, Titanic Experience Cobh, Blarney Castle, Charles Fort, & went shopping at Kildare Village Outlet.

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Paris: City of Love

Posted on by Addin Khalid

20130614_191546June 2013 – Alhamdulillah, finally fulfilled my wife’s dream to step in Paris. I, myself, have been here for a holiday back in 1995, so it’s definitely an excitement for me to be back too.

We spent 2 full days exploring Paris city. Having a good integrated metro system, we toured around the city by foot & by train. The toughest part was when we had to carry the double stroller up & down the stairs to the Metro. We stayed within walking distance to Sacre-Coeur. We shopped for souvenirs at nearby Rue de Steinkerque, and could catch a Metro anywhere along the nearby Boulevard de Rochechouart. There are also plenty of halal restaurants around the area convenient for us to catch a meal.

We arrived in Paris early in the morning. Upon resting & settling in our apartment for a few hours, we then kicked off our journey to explore the city of Paris.

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