Memories...don't die on me!

Up to this moment...I still can't believe I have set my foot upon Paris land. 

Standing before the infamous tower in the world; Eiffel Tower. 

Looking forward for another solo trip this year end. I simply missed wandering around alone; getting lost & had no one to put the blame onto; talking to myself. Most importantly, during the trip I did a lot of self reflections. Muhasabah diri. Cari jalan untuk improve diri. 

eryantierdabdulkarim

Hostel: Absolute Hostel, Paris

Assalamualaikum. Bonjour.

Ngeh mood super rajin for the time being. This was the second hostel I stayed at during my solo adventure last June. Though I stayed there for a night only, I have to say that I am fully satisfied with their service. And also the room/hostels condition. 

I chose Absolute Paris because of it's location. Through the Hostelbookers' website, I saw many good reviews the hostel received from its previous guests. And that played a big part in my decision making as well. This hostel is barely 5 mins walking distance from the Republique Metro station. And yeah, it's so easy to locate this hostel. 

As I've mentioned here; I left everything I've printed about my Paris trip in London. Because of that, I got lost...and didn't make it to the meeting point for my day-trip to Versailles. My plan was to check in at the hostel after getting back from the day-trip. Since I didn't get to join the trip, I decided to go to the hostel instead because it's the only place in Paris that I was sure of the location. The direction from the metro station to the hostel is at the back of my head. Up to this moment, I still remember vividly. 

Thanks to my weird habit! I got 'to see' the real picture on how to reach the hostel through the street view  by Google Maps. One of the many advantages of people who enjoyed daydreaming like moi. Ngek. I usually do the street view just to have that bit of an excitement in advance. Orang bilang, ambil feel! Dang!!! Enough with too long an intro already. 

Here's the direction to Absolute Hostel. 

Note: First three images below are NOT mine.

Out from the Republique station, this is the view I first saw. The picture wasn't mine. It was drizzling when I reached there, thus I didn't take any picture. Or maybe because I wasn't in the mood to. The weather was a bit gloomy; as if it understood the feeling I had at that moment. Aku sesat; sebal ok! 

Anyways, from the station...I walked straight & left the monument behind.

From the direction in the website, I shall see the Habitat store on my right side. In the live street view map, this is what I should expect. (picture above)

But when I reached near the Habitat store, this was what lied before my eyes. Roads under construction, few were blocked with Pas D'Entrée signs. From the picture that I took (picture above), there was a community service event ongoing. Hot drink & food were served for the homeless.

 I walked straight...until I saw this. Exactly as has been described in their website.

The hostel entrance is next to the coffee shop. Refer to the arrow.

The entrance!

The reception.

The hostel provides three computers at the reception area for the guests. For free! They also have free wifi internet. I can access the free service from my room; super fast connection I must say. Password is different for each floor & I received my password upon checking in. Oh, that's Han in the picture. A friendly Chinese lady who is currently studying in London. I met her at the metro station...and we went to Versailles together. Little did we know that we're staying at the same hostel & in the same room! What a coincident!

 Mine was Room No. 37 - Third Floor.

There's two bunk beds in the room when I entered. The lower bed next to the window was already occupied so I settled with the one next to the wall. Unlike the dorm I stayed at in London, this room is more or less look like a hotel room to me. Except for the bunk beds of course. The upper bed belongs to Han; my new friend. She stayed there for two nights; she was in Paris doing a research for her final year thesis.

Narrow. Typical room in Paris. That door leads to the bathroom. Attached bathroom ya, no sharing sama bilik lain. Ngeh. And the entrance door is on the right; next to the bathroom.

Shower area pun memang super kecil. Lucky the debab moi can still shower comfortably.

View from my room. Immediately my tummy played the dangdut song upon spotting the kebab cafe! Dasar perut tembolok!

I noticed the alphabetical arrangement of the keyboard is somehow different from ours. Sudah serupa orang belajar menaip aku guna keyboard tu ya.

I thank Allah for my smooth journey throughout this trip. Hostels I stayed at were never too far from halal cafes. They were like everywhere. Pasal tu balik Malaysia, I successfully gained few more kg-s. Daging jak kan ditelan. 

Syukur. For 29 €, breakfast is included. The kitchen is situated at the basement level. It's a small kitchen. Lima meja jak disediakan. Tapi super cramped if all tables were occupied. 

Told u...breakfast aku memang meriah. Kalau boleh semua yang dihidang aku sapu. Ni pun gelas jus aku excluded ya. I left immediately after I finished my breakfast...the claustrophobic moi can't stay long under such confined space. Sesak nafas. 

I hop on the HoHo bus at a stop near the hostel. And pengembaraan jelajah Paris for halfday pun bermula. Petang tu departed for Amsterdam via Thalys pula. Hence akan menyusul Amsterdam Hostel nanti. Au revoir!

eryantierdabdulkarim

CutiCuti: Paris Day 2 - Musee D'Louvre, Luxor Obelisk, Champs-Elysees & Eiffel Tower

Assalamualaikum. Annyeong. 

Hihihi baru dapat semangat untuk sambung update my trip to Europe. Been super lazy lately. And fact that Miss Asus is no longer serving me...made it seems like I prolly had given up to continue scribbling about the trip. Lovely cousin lent me his laptop for the whole week so I guess 'no medium to update the blog' kind of alasan shall be put aside for now. I know I should take this golden opportunity to update, whilst the memories is still fresh. And of course, while I have the laptop with me. 

As I slowly lost my passion to scribble; my grammars & skills of writing gradually withered. Fuh, as if banyak sangat skill kau tu Bie. Oleh itu, straight to pics then. 

As said in my previous entry this is the Batobus that I took to cruise across Seine River...and enjoying the view of Paris from the river. 

Super long queue to go up to Eiffel Tower. I don't have the urge to join them; surprise not. Yet since it's not like everyday I go there...haruslah spent sometime wandering beneath the tower. Appreciating the beauty & lovely environment of Paris.    

For the children. Opposite the road to the tower. 

I planned to witness the sparkling Eiffel from Trocadero during dusk. Unfortunately the sun showed no sign of it going to set although it was already 10p. *sedih* Therefore I decided to made my way back to the hostel. Moreover I've been out since early in the morning I felt a bit uncomfy I seriously need to shower.  

The common arrangement of seating in almost ALL Paris' coffee parlors. The Parisians enjoyed their cuppa like this. The side walks or seat near the window are reserved at high rates. 

My second day in Paris; I woke up super early. Took my free breakfast at the hostel's cafe & walked myself to the nearest stop point for the HoHo bus. Map was among my most essential belonging during the travel.

A brilliant idea for sitting on the upper decks I got to see everything.

Architecture I admire! 

The Opera House. 

Creative decoration at one of the Metropolitan station near Louvre. 

One of the Pyramid in the Grand Louvre. The Da Vinci Code day dreaming no more for me!!

Alhamdulillah. Standing right before the Musee du Louvre. The most visited art museum in the world also the central landmark of Paris. 

Too long a queue I don't think I could squeeze in last minute plan to enter the museum into my itinerary. One day...insya Allah, one day I WILL visit Paris again.

As it's still early the shops on the streets haven't start operating yet. Maka berkubur impian untuk memborong souvenirs. 

One of the 37 bridges within Paris. 

The reason why I needed to enter the pharmacy was because blisters were everywhere on both my feet. Jalan raya super lebar. I can't simply cross the road without using the traffic light for pedestrian. Maka perlulah berjalan all the way towards the traffic light...walau destinasi berada depan mata.  

Yours Truly before the Luxor Obelisk; a high Egyptian obelisk standing at the centre of the Place de La Concorde. Originally located at the entrance to Luxor Temple, Egypt.  

Harus ambil peluang to stroll at the park on my way to the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. Taman dalam bandar, peaceful green environment.

Champs-Élysées is one of the most famous streets and expensive strips of real estate in the world with its cafes, luxury speciality shops & clipped horse-chestnut trees. 

Dedicated to all LV's lovers. Aku hanya mampu melihat dari seberang jalan. I can't afford to even purchase it's keychain. And memang ndak pernah berangan pun mau memiliki. I prefer to pamper myself with travelling & stuffs; lain orang kan lain kemahuan. Aku bab shopping ni kedekut sikit. 

No one near the area when I wanted to take full picture of me before the Arc de Triomphe Place de Gaulle. Terima lah keadaan half me + half the Arc. 

In Paris, bathroom does not include toilet in it. Toilet is to be found in Toilettes or W.C (Water Closet). Seriously regardless how much I want to, it never cross my mind to enter this pay toilet. Ever! This toilet has automatic door which open when you insert coins & are cleaned automatically once you exit. You've only got 15 minutes so don't dilly-dally. Satu hal lah kan kalau aku mau melabur...ndak pasal bersilat aku once the time is up. 

Before departing for Amsterdam I decided to visit Eiffel once more. Just to bid farewell. Poyo gaban!

And bazir duit makan aiskrim that cost me RM16! Bukan selalu kan...double twist of mix vanilla + strawberry super sedap makan di panas hari. 

Truth to be told, I was actually waiting for the Yellow Route HoHo bus bound for Moulin Rouge when I accidentally flipped over my train ticket to Amsterdam. It was 240pm at that time...and the departure time printed on the e-ticket was 1525. I seriously thought I was bound for the 525pm train! Pasal tu boleh leisurely berjalan berangan. Nasib baik lah ndak kena heart attack. Lucky enough Metro Stations are everywhere scattered around the city. I reached Gare du Nord 10 minutes before departure. Leaving behind my dreams to visit Moulin & Basilic, Montmarte.

Biarlah, bukan rezeki. Sob! Might be it's a hint for me to set my foot upon Paris land again...insya Allah. Manalah tau kan next time pergi sama chenta hati pula. Tetttttttt.

eryantierdabdulkarim