Bon Voyage to me.
Leaving in less than an hour to Genting Highlands, my home away from home, with a group of five other friends.
So if I am MIA for the next four days, you should know why.
Packing was such a pain in the arse. Constantly having to scurry to and fro just to grab all the necessities even though yours truly had a fully prepared checklist at hand. Yet, nothing seems to make the task of packing any easier since menial work is still involved anyway.
So now I have a gigantic sized bag to carry everything in. And only for four days. Hurhurhur. And I’m certain that bag is going to double it’s size once I arrived home due to all the shopping I’m going to do there.
And this timing of this trip is a good example of one of the perks of being a university student.
You can simply pack and leave the country, laughing at all your younger counterparts because this is the period where they still happen to have their school examinations!
Ah, the joy of having an early and extra-long vacation.
Anyway, I’m hoping to catch up on my much needed sleep during the long drive up to Genting Highlands. 6 whole hours motionless on my bottom, and I am sure I’m going to wind up with a flat backside once I reach there.
Had a restless night last night, having spent more than five hours tossing and turning before coming to terms with the fact that I just can’t get to sleep.
Tried counting sheep jumping over the fence. (Who doesn’t?) However, them imaginary sheep simply refused to jump and so yours truly had to resort to something else.
Ah well, I’m off. For a shower, that is, then I’m leaving for Malaysia.
I’m back from Kuala Lumpur. T’was an amazing trip, both company-wise and shopping-wise. Can things get any crazier when you have eleven youngsters + children staying together in the same suite? It’s little wonder if we are even able to get any peace and quiet, because it was ever so chaotic.
Accomodation?
Due to the sheer volume of distant relatives who went (A grand total of 49 - and we even got to have our own bus to ferry us there), five suites were booked in Mi’Casa Hotel, each that could house up to ten people.
The accomodation was pretty good. The beds were ultra-comfortable, there was a VCD/DVD player in the living room, there were two luxurious bathrooms and cooling air conditioning that was completely under our control - but the service was crap.
I headed to the bathroom on the second day because I needed to do ‘big business’, only to find that there was no toilet paper because the room service staff had forgotten to top up the supply.
And a couple of blankets were confiscated from our room on the second day, leaving the boys to shiver on the second night - as those kind souls had sacrificed the remaining blankets to the girls.
Ah well. All those weren’t important. What matters most is that all of us enjoyed ourselves tremendously.
Activities?
There wasn’t a moment of boredom, since my distant relatives kept me entertained for 100% of the time. We had our own countdown party on the first night (Christmas Eve) within the suite, with our very own ‘Christmas Exchange’ where each of us had to draw a name of another person, and purchase a gift for him/her.
When it comes to gift exchanges, I hereby declare that girls can do that a lot better, because we knew exactly what the guys liked. The guys, on the other hand, gave us the money and made us buy our own presents because they were too lazy to look around.
It was sheer chaos within the hotel suite. We shouted, we sang, and we screamed the place down. It was a miracle that none of the other residents in the hotel lodged a complaint against us.
Furthermore, all that din happened between 1-3 a.m. in the morning.
The Shopping?
I can safely say that Kuala Lumpur is one of the best cities around when it comes to budget shopping. Every shopping centre we went too, there were huge signs advertising sales and big discounts calling out my name. I had to summon up every energy not to buy anything on impulse.
Thank goodness for that shopping list I had written up before I left for Kuala Lumpur - it kept me on track with what I had to buy.
And I must say, I saved quite a lot. 7 T-shirts, a sling bag, a harversack, a wallet and 3VCDs for only Singapore $130, when it would have cost a lot more if I bought them locally. And of course, a few gifts for family and relatives as well.
Needless to say, I am one contented shopper.
And disaster strikes!
The trip, on the whole, was a very smooth one, apart from some minor quirks here and there. Such quirks included, two cases of food poisoning among the younger children, and so they had to be cooped up within the suite throughout the three days while the rest of us were happily galavanting outdoors.
The second quirk was a more major one - which included our bus breaking down in the middle of the highway en route home. We had to thank our lucky stars that it wasn’t the Malaysian Highway where it broke down, but rather, the first expressway upon reaching Singapore. Hence, it was much easier for us to seek alternative transports back home.
Thankfully, I have videos and photos to capture those memorable moments in Kuala Lumpur. Without further ado, I hereby present the photos.
And so, we’re finally back. From Genting Highlands, that is. I can safely say that this is of the 1547572148th times I’ve ever been to Genting in my entire lifetime, since we travel there roughly 2-3 times a year.
However, this was the best trip I’ve ever had as compared to all the previous holidays in Genting Highlands. Everything went smoothly, nobody fell sick, and the weather was on our side for almost all four days there.
On another note, is it my imagination? Or are the adults seemingly becoming more and more paranoid? First things first, for the uninitiated, Genting Highlands is well known for it’s roller coasters. And all my cousins and myself are, how do I put this? Thrill-seekers.
Apparently, several of my uncles and aunts were rather worried for us after the accident two weeks ago which involved two girls flung out of a roller coaster, and they expressed to us strictly that we were not to go on any dangerous rides, or do anything else risky.
Since more than 50% of the rides in Genting Highlands were thrill rides, where did he expect us to go? On the merry go round?
Great. I can be one of those little toddlers sitting on those plastic horses, and waving at their parents as they go round and round and round.
We still went on the thrill rides anyway, and even went rock climbing - my very first time. That experience was certainly one to remember.
Most of the memorable aspects of the trip were recorded with the video function on my video camera, and later edited with sound effects and texts and various transitions to produce an overall 10-minute video. I’m planning to write them onto several CD-Rs and hand them over to the respective members of my extended family as memorabilia.
When my Uncle saw the video, especially the scenes of us on the roller coaster and while rock climbing, he shook his head and exclaimed.
“Aiyooooooohhhhh! The dangerous things you all do when we’re not around.”
The only thing that I disliked about the trip was the crowd. Genting Highlands never fails to be as packed as a can of sardines whenever the school holidays comes about. As a result, the place with packed with kids, as well as the screaming, crying, and the mayhem they cause.
As a result, these kids have bumped into me several times as I made my way around Genting Highlands with my cousins.
The next time I go there, it will be during a non-school holiday period.
Now that I am back in Singapore, boredom looms ahead. No more rock climbing, no more good food, and no more exciting theme park rides. Furthermore, my favourite cousins are no longer around me to entertain me with their endless humour.
Boohoo.