Skydiving at UK Parachuting-Beccles Airfield Elloungh, Beccles, Suffolk

Assalamualaikum...

It has been half a year from my last post...its not that I have nothing to share with you guys, but I was so busy with my current status as a PhD student...I have lotsss of things to share but as I have just jumped from an airplane yesterday, I think its worth mentioning as the first post for my comeback...ahaks!

source: Muslim Hands page

this event is conducted by Muslim Hands, a charity NGO in UK...my bestie found this event through their website and persuaded me to join eventhough she knew that I am scared of height...at first I was reluctant to register for this event, but somehow after continuously persuaded me into it, she register my name and pay the fees without my knowledge :p

we register a month before the event and there is not a second of the day before the event that I keep mentioning to my bestie that I am scared and I don't think that I can make it up there...I might pass out or ask the instructor to not jump with me...haha...and this event is actually just right after we came back from our easter break from Italy which I will post all about Italy after this...

since the event is conducted outside of London, Muslim Hands provide transportation from their office at Limehouse to the venue of the event which is at Beccles Airfield in Suffolk...we need to gather at their office at 5am and the journey will start at 5.30am so that we can make it exactly at 8.30am at the site...since from our house to go to Limehouse which is situated at East London is quite far and we need to change quite a few buses to go there past midnight, me and my bestie sleepover at our friend house at Shadwell that will only took us 20minutes by walking or 6 minutes by bus to be at the Muslim Hands office...

exactly at 5.30am, we start our journey by a minibus rented specifically for this event by Muslim Hands...the journey took around 2h30mnts and we reached there around 8.30am...we were brought to the office to hand in the 'Parachuting Student Declaration Form' and 'BPA Medical Form' to the parachuting staff...right after that, we were headed to the next station to hear a briefing if we want to sign up for a video and photograph, captured by the staff as we are not allowed to take any sort of devices during the parachuting even gopro...if we want them to capture the moment, the charge is £99 all inclusive...the fees is quite expensive therefore, we didn't sign up for it...

next, we were headed to the tandem briefing area whereby we were briefed on how to suit up for the skydiving, our leg, hand and body position when we board the plane and landing...after the briefing we just need to wait for our turn as there were only 2 female skydiving instructors available on that day...

 

after almost 3 hours waiting for my turn, which I am the last person to skydive on that day, I was called up to suit up for my turn... 

 

 

all suited up!

then I just need to wait until the plane comes back and fetch us and bring us up in the air...there were 3 of us that has instructors tied to them (tandem) and few single skydivers whose diving alone...total up I think can only accommodate around 15 people in the plane...

the plane has come back! its time!

since there were only 2 female skydivers instructors on that day, I was the last double that board the plane since I need to wait for my female instructors landed to the ground as she was on the air with another participants...(the red arrow is me) waiting to board the plane...

the double board the plane first and accompanied by the single divers...since I was the last double board the plane, I was the first double that leave the plane...it was scary watching the single divers leaving the plane and that was the moment when I was about the tell my instructors to go back...hahaha...but since I am the first double that need to leave the plane, I just follow my instructor lead and leave the plane...I closed my eyes! and when I open my eyes, gosh I was up on the sky with the fullest speed, and I was flying!...its hard to breath and trying to apply the breathing technique that my bestie thought me since her turn was before mine...all I can remember was gasping as much air as I could up there before my instructor open the parachute...it was around 10 seconds before she opened the parachute...and it was sooo cold around -10 degrees

once she opened the parachute, she asked me to remove the goggle, and I refused! haha...but then she insisted me to remove the goggle as that's how you can enjoy the view the best...and she was right! the view was spectacular, gorgeous, beautiful! at 10,000 feet, she let us fly for a while and I can feel that I was up there quite a while as compared to other people...I am lucky! hehe...then I know when my bestie told me that I was the last double that landed since it was my instructor last slot :D

 Alhamdulillah, I manage to combat my fear of and go on with this challenge...I am so thankful to my bestie as she is the one that persuaded me into doing it...if its not because of her, I don't think that I will ever do it in a million years!

therefore I could say: I have jumped 13,000 feet with UK Parachuting

we were given 2 certificates; one from Muslim Hands and one from UK Parachuting...once I landed, we started our journey back to London around 2.30pm...once we reached the minibus, the bus driver told us a bad news, the minibus is out of battery but with a good news that someone is coming over to help him with the jumpstart...once jumpstarted the minibus, the journey was quite smooth and I was half asleep until suddenly the bus stopped again...and the bus driver told us that the bus is totally broken down and he already contacted someone to pick us up and send us back to London...around 6pm, we hop on to another bus and continue our journey back sound and safe and we reached London around 8.30pm...

I would like to give full credit to the organiser especially the leader of this event, whose so calm and so organised in contacting us by phone and email every now and then...thank you again Muslim Hands for this opportunity.

Bye~ ^_^v

p/s: the normal price for skydiving is £200+

How to Remove "Subscribe to Atom"

Assalamualaikum...

for ages I have been searching on how to remove the Subscribe to Atom at the bottom of the blog...luckily I found one blog that explain it in a simple way

this tutorial will teach you step by step on how to remove it from the blog in just 3 steps...enjoy!~ ^_^

1. Go to Template and click 'Edit HTML'

2. Using the CTRL+F function, find the code below from the template:

<b:include name='feedLinks'/>

3. Once you find it, delete it from the template. And you are done!! 

The easiest and shortest tutorial ever I have done...

Happy blogging!

Easter Break | Keukenhof Gardens

Assalamualaikum...

its a must if you come to Amsterdam during spring to come and visit Keukenhof for its Tulips! Tulips only bloom during the summer in certain part of the world and Holland is one of the well known country for its Tulip during spring...

our plan for the next morning was to Keukenhof

  

we woke up quite early and took some photos of the beautiful scenery at our accommodation area...Subhanallah...

then we continue our journey to Keukenhof which took only 30 minutes from our accommodation....we reached there around 9.30am

there were only one full row of cars and buses at the car park area...so thankful that there were not so many people when we arrived...haha

the first photo with Tulip ^_^v (my profile pix for the blog as well...hee~)

check out the scenery inside...

its so unfortunate for us because that was not the optimal time for the Tulip to bloom...most of the Tulips were still in budding form when we came -_-"

the optimal time where the tulips will reach full blossom is between late of April to middle of May

since the flowers at the park mostly still in the buddy form, there is one building called Willem-Alexander building where they showcase variety of flowers which of course Tulip were the most abundant :D

  

we then have a quick snack just outside this building with the windmill as the background

finish eating, we went up the windmill...its free!!!

  

the windmill was built on 4th April 1957...the year of Malaysia independence day :D

wefie picture is a must! we conquer the windmill...haha...

we then walk around the park...there is small boat cruise that you can try along the river that opens in May...since its so romantic, we took the picture on the boat! looks like in Venice...haha

and there is lots of decoration using the different kind of lowers...just amazing and so colourful~

and a small petting zoo with sheeps, goats, peacock, chicken and of course piglets!

the park is huge...since we don't have much time since we were rushing to go to another place, we didn't cover the whole park...maybe you need one whole day if you are not rushing and take your own sweet time to cover the whole park...

there are lots of souvenir shops here as well...as we were walking back to our car, we stop buy at a flower shop...they sell numerous different types of flowers either it be the full bloom flowers or the seeds...so me and my bestie go for 2 pots of Tulips seeds with each 5 seeds inside the pot...we bought 2 different colours; white and purple with Euro5...according to the owner of the shop, it will bloom next year during spring but, the flower already full bloom last May during my master graduation! haha...but I was so sad because I didn't take the full bloom Tulips since I was busy with my mom and my bestie family during their visits to London -_-" they were sooo beautiful~  

Bye~^_^v

Parkside Farm Pick Your Own (PYO)

Assalamualaikum...

I have been planning for fruit picking activity with my bestie since the beginning of spring and that's the season where all the fruits riping deliciously =D

but since we were quite pack with other activities and labwork and all sort of other reasons that I could possibly type in, at the end, last Saturday, on the 22nd of August, me my bestie and 5 other of my friends went for fruit picking at Parkside Farm Pick Your Own (PYO) at Enfield

we took Piccadilly line train from Hammersmith station and hop off at Finsbury Park station...and we need to change here to National Rail train (Great Eastern line) to Potters Bar station...actually its only 1 stop from Finsbury Park station and the journey only took 10 minutes...so since its only 1 station and the area is still in London, we thought that we can use oyster, and there was no problem from Finsbury Park station when we use our oyster card...somehow, at Potters Bar station, when we touch our oyster card, there is an error saying "seek assistance" at the display machine...so went to the counter and ask him and he says that we need to but a different ticket from the ticket machine and we can't use oyster! haha...sorry sir we don't know that...but since we were already at the station, we don't need to pay for the fare...we just need to buy another ticket when we want to go back...

from the Potters Bar station, we need to take 313 bus and hop off at Roundhedge Way bus stop station and walk for about 15 minutes to the venue (our pace since its very hot and we walk slowly so as not to sweat! :p)

from afar the first thing that catch my eyes were the "Please Take A Leaflet" sign...straight away I took one leaflet because I know the leaflet will be so important in our journey later as you know farm would be so big and you will lost your way if you have no direction, I know it eventhough I don't have any experience with farm before...hihi...its just my instinct guys~instinct~ ^_*

so just for you guys, I took a snap of the leaflet...all the info is written in the leaflet...

  

the thing to take note here is: there is no entrance fees! but, each person need to spend a minimum of  GBP3 as I have already highlighted in red box above from the leaflet

this is the map for the whole lot of the farm! very big :D

and the sign of the opening hours are also written on a signboard at the entrance of the farm...the fruits and vege that's available at the time that we went were also being displayed...

once we entered, we need to queue...not to pay but to get the baskets and plastic bag to put in all the fruits and vege that we pick

in order to make their work easier at the cashier later at the exit (the cashier centre is just behind the lady in apron), we need to separate the fruits and vege in their respective baskets

the green basket is for fruits

the blue basket is also for fruits

and for vege, they will give you plastic bag to put it in

systematic and easy for them! so I took one green basket, one blue basket and 2 plastic bags same goes to my bestie...

then there goes our exploration inside the farm~

  

the first destination was to pick Blackberries

there were few blackberries that's already fully ripe and there were some still not...and we realise that most of the ripe blackberries were situated at the bottom as I think the logical reason would be other people already pick the ripe ones on the top

and there are few of this signs scattered on this farm...it means that they have just planted it so DO NOT PICK! hehe

next, we went to pick Spinach

  

that's the plastic bag that I was referring to for vegetables

we thought of picking some onions but when we reached this area, the onion is not pickable since there is a sign not to pick it...but as you can see there are lots of onions there...there were other area that you can pick it but since we were on different path from that area, we were so lazy to go there...haha...

next we went for Plums

if you realised, on the 8th photo in this post, they have written it down on the board that only few left for the plums...but still we went there just to try our luck and to experience it ourselves...hehe

and yeah not many left on the trees...the one that's left were the one that's still greenish...there were few that's fully ripe but its wayyyy on top of the tree...and I am not dare enough to climb the tree branch as the branch doesn't look promising enough to hold my weight...haha...end up we just picked the one that looks a bit reddish in colour and just hoping that it will ripe by its own in our house before we can eat it! :D

after we have explore the left side of the farm (refer the map above), we went to the most right side of the farm (refer the map above) of where we can pick french beans and sweetcorn...

we went for French Beans first

we only picked 1/4 of the plastic bag just for our own use...

then, we went for Sweetcorn

it is one of my bucket list to walk in between the corn field myself as I have seen it quite a lot in the movies...and here I was!! hehe...

I have no idea on how to pick the corn...my bestie told me that she learned it from a movie that when you see the brownish hairy-like fibre on top of the corn (red arrow), that's when you can pick it up...when I went back home and I peeled off the skin, all of the corn were fine and fully ripe! you are right bestie! haha

and last but not least was to pick Tomatoes

  

cherry tomatoes...

we don't pick any strawberries as I have done it before in Malaysia so I went for the things that I don't have any experience on picking them up yet>.<

just before we went back, we pay all the fruits and vege that we picked and we bought some ice creams to quench our thirst!

the total damage?? 

-_-"

we surely pass the minimum spend...oh btw this was both for me and my bestie since we live in one roof ^_^

(p/s: the lavender is from our backyard! :p )

we only spend almost 3 hours inside the farm...but we didn't explore the whole area...so you can manage your time if you are planning to explore the whole area in this farm...you might need more than that :D

all I can say is that I really enjoy the activity and Alhamdulillah the weather was so nice eventhough we were sweating inside the farm...hahaha...now I feel the farmer...love you farmer! <3

till then...

Bye~^_^v