Journey to the North

27 days to go. Countdown time! I'll be back for good. Too little time, too much to explore.

Last weekend (15-17 August 2008) we went to the North of England. Actually, we didn't plan it at first. It just popped out from my head since we didn't have any plan for the weekend.

Remember our last trip? Journey to the West of England (Norwich - Birmingham - Manchester - Liverpool). That was 2-3 months ago. After that, I was being quarantine at home since my health condition didn't allow me to travel. My nausea really killing me!

I'm now in a 'safe pregnancy stage'. My nausea slowly gone and I'm strong enough to do a lot of things (except dealing with garlic). My pregnancy glow started to show and my mood swings are more controllable. Thank God. Alhamdulillah.

We started our trip on Friday (15 August 2008), around 4pm. Arrived at Bewick Hotel, Newcastle around 9.30pm. Check in for a good night rest.

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Saturday (16 August 2008), 7:00am - Full English Breakfast. Eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms and baked beans (without bacon and sausages of course!). Not to forget, orange juice and toast. Simple but delicious (..somehow I still miss nasi lemak and karipap for breakfast).


9:00 am - Check out. Headed a little bit South to see the famous Angel of the North, Gateshead. It is Britain's largest sculpture and believed to be the world's largest angel sculpture. It rises 20 metres and has a wing span of 54 metres - almost as big as a jumbo jet.



11:30 am - Arrived at Alnwick Castle, Nortumberland. Famous as the 'Hogwart', film location for Harry Potter, the Philosopher's Stone & Chamber of secret. It's huge and full with every little details inside. I was amazed with all the spectacular artworks, from the silk wallpaper, antique clock (still ticking), beautiful furnitures to the heavily crafted ceilings.


2:30 pm - Finally, arrived at Edinburgh, Scotland. It was cloudy with some sunny spells to remind us that it's still summer. Cold, windy summer. Again, I was stunned with all the beautiful and unique buildings there. I bet it's more beautiful than London. Our short vacation was really worth it! The journey to the North now completed.

11:30 pm - After a very long, tiring drive from Scotland, we arrived at Holiday Inn, Leeds.


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Sunday (17 August 2008), 9:30 am - Another English Breakfast. Buffet with additional delicious hash brown and fresh fruits.

11:00 am - Check out, headed back to South and stopped for some shopping at Nottingham.


3:00 pm - Continue journey along M1 motorway to the South, stopped at Kirby Muxloe in Leicester. A nice, small castle surrounded by water.

5:30 pm - Headed back to Norwich. Arrived home around 7pm. Exhausted but we were glad that we finally made it! Our final last days in England will be fully used to the max and wait until we explore the rest of interesting places in Europe, next week..


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** Updates for my little one **


Today is the first time I hear your heartbeat. My midwife is having difficulty to track your heartbeat since you move a lot. What an active baby you are!

I can feel little movements inside this morning. Is it really you?

My midwife, the lovely Ms. Allison Allen told me that I'm not immunize with Rubella. I thought that every young girl in Malaysia, including me is already vaccinated. That worries me a bit. Hopefully everything going to be alright. Stay strong and grow up healthily dear baby..