Journey of a Muslim

Introduction.

*to get better picture of the places mentioned, please refer Google Map ^_^
From the historical buildings with Gothic architecture, to wonderful nature walks in the parks, lochs and hills, Edinburgh is a wonderful city. It was selected as one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites besides being ranked second in Tripadvisor top 25 places to visit in UK (pergh!!).

Meanwhile, the University of Edinburgh was founded in 1583 and today, it is hailed as one of the most prestigious universities in Europe. The two main campuses are in the George Square and King’s Building. Pre-clinical year medical students together with IT, Arts, Law, and Architecture students are mainly based in George Square. The King’s Building is located 30 minutes walking distance from George Square and it serves students under the School of Engineering and Biology ie Biotechnology, Chemical Engineering etc.

Lastly, medical students in clinical years will spend most of their time in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh or Western General Hospital, each located around 20 to 30 minutes bus ride from the city centre.

Facilities
As other universities in UK, UoE provides great facilities for its students. The main library is located in George Square together with external computer labs while the sports centre is located at the Pleasance, 10 minutes walk from George Square and Teviot Place. This centre is equipped with gym and fitness centre, together with multiple venues for various sports including basketball, squash and badminton. However, students are required to pay a certain amount of fee to use these facilities.

For Muslims located in the Central Area, the Edinburgh Central Mosque is located at the heart of the area. Hence, performing solat would not be a problem. There is also a comfortable prayer room located in King’s Building for Muslims who study there. In terms of transportation, there are shuttle buses prepare for students to travel from Central Area to King’s Building with frequency of 15 to 30 minutes depending on the days.

Course

There are various courses available in UoE, but most of the Malaysian undergraduate students here are doing Medicine, Biotechnology, and Engineering course. There are roughly around 10-20 Malaysian medical students per year and we usually hang around with the Singaporean and other Asian students.

There are usually less than ten people in other courses and even only one or two students doing courses like Architecture and Physics. Besides that, we also have around 20 postgraduate students who are doing their Masters or PhDs here and most of them live here with their families [which makes things more fun!].


Accommodation

Normally, the first year students will stay in University Halls which are scattered throughout the city. The university will usually inform the future students through email regarding the halls, so look out for those emails. Now, choosing the right hall might be a bit difficult as you might not know the area well enough, hence it’s advisable to contact the seniors first before making your choice. Most of us live around the city area though. In addition, a catered hall will cost more than a self-catered hall.

For some who prefer to stay outside, there is an option of asking the seniors help. Usually, most of the seniors houses are fully occupied but they might be able to lend a hand in finding a place to stay. However, we can’t give full assurance that we’ll be able to help as the process to rent a place here is quite tedious and it will involve a large sum of money.

Life as a Muslim

Alhamdulillah, living in Edinburgh and UK generally, gives the opportunity for us to experience the true meaning of being a practising muslim. Edinburgh is blessed with quite a big muslim community with mostly migrants from Pakistan and other Muslim countries, and they have stayed here even before we were born.

We have a relatively huge central mosque which is strategically located in the city, with a few smaller mosques in different parts of town. Hence, performing solat Jemaah or solat Jumaat is not a problem as long as one willing to do so.

The muslims are friendly and helpful. Thankfully, incidence of Islamophobic acts are unheard off in Edinburgh so far. In fact, some of the local students showed such an astounding support for causes such as the freedom of Palestine, even making us feel ashamed of our small efforts.

Food

If you are concern about finding halal food outlets, worry no more as there are many halal restaurants available in the city especially in the area close to the mosque. Most of them serve authentic Turkish or Pakistani dishes such as kebabs and briyanis, together with one or two Chinese restaurants.

And if you are bored with eating these food, and are craving to eat Malaysian dishes, there is always the option of cooking =) When else will you get those hands to start chopping some onion and stirring some gravy. Ingredients? Halal chicken and meat are available in a number of shops owned by muslims and you can get spices and everything else at the same shops or supermarkets such as Tesco and Lidl.

There are also few shops especially the Oriental shop that sell Malaysian favourites such as Maggi and Kicap Cap Kipas Udang [the two most important food items in UK, trust me]

Malaysian community

There are almost 200 Malaysians in Edinburgh with undergraduates and postgraduates (with their families) each making up half of the population. These include students from other universities ie Heriot Watt University, Napier University and Queen Margaret University.

Out of around 100 undergraduates, there are 30 to 40 muslim students. Due to the small number, we sort of know each other quite well and interact very well with other Malaysians through activities such as sports and cultural celebrations.

Most of the postgraduate students live quite a distance from city centre due to cheaper cost of living. Hence, we do not see them that often. However, all of them are very friendly, and the undergrads always attend their events [especially when there are free foods ;P]. As long as you are willing to approach them, you’ll definitely enjoy being around them, especially when you get the chance to play with their cute children =)

Preparation

Preparation-wise, it’s similar to wherever you go in UK. But to be more specific, for medical students, it is advisable to get your books and stethoscope in Malaysia as they are much cheaper there.

Find out what books are used from the seniors. In terms of food, you might want to bring some ikan bilis, cili kering as the one sold here do not really fit our taste buds. You can also bring some serunding, rempah kari, kurma and rending as well, bearing in mind of the weight limit for luggage.

It might be useful to have a listen to some videos on Scottish accent just to give you some ideas on how the Scottish speaks. But do not worry, as people in Edinburgh do not have thick accents as in other parts of Scotland. Not all. Make sure to bring all important documents requested by your university together with some passport-sized photos. Not to forget, bring a Malay Quran Translation with some religious books in Malay as it will be helpful at times. Learn some basic Fiqh of Travelling as well.

Others

Most of the students enjoy their stay in Edinburgh. Although the weather could be unpredictable at times, the city itself is lovely. So, if you have opted to come here, look forward to it and prepare yourself well; physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Lastly, make the most of the time you have in Malaysia, visits your relatives, teachers and friends, and do not forget to give a big hug to your parents and siblings, as they might miss you more than you miss them. ^__^

Contact details:


Abdul Karim Jamaludin
Medicine
kabita_karim@hotmail.com
karim_supreme (Skype & YM)
+447899055752 / +60123713034

Muhammad Mujahid Pahmi
Biotechnology
mujahidpahmi@gmail.com
mujahidpahmi (Skype)
syahadah99 (YM)
+447926958361 / +60139859632