EDIT: NANOWRIMO STARTS TODAY!
October 21
I forgot to say that the day before, I played ping pong with my mom and chased the loose ball, I fell and bruised my knee so bad that it turned into a green-purple continent on my flesh. Happy times.
So, today we visit Kedah in Malaysia! I actually woke up early because I was told that we were going at the break at dawn. Of course, that was so that I would wake up and be ready in time. I turned out to be the first to shower, eat breakfast and finish packing.
Getting to Kedah was an OK trip. I fell asleep half of the way and they really loved to stop at rest stops. So we ended up at the hotel a little later than the car that was driving later than us. The view as we went up higher on the mountains were breathtaking. It's a pity they couldn't stop at the views to take pictures outside of the car.
We went to an old fort museum in the afternoon however… the museum was doing some renovations so we didn't get to see much of the old fort. We got to see old canon balls which my dad thought were light but turned out to be heavier than they look! We saw some old ceramics salvaged by the archeologists and the difference between old bricks and the new bricks. Apparently, the old bricks also contained coral, eggs and honey! We also received a gift each from the museum. It's sweet and I think it's hand-made.
We then went around some small roads that led to the villages. My father really loves looking at villages and the way they live. He loves to see how much little villages change and how they cope with modern times.
We got to visit another museum, which I could not for the life of me remember what the name is, where the old monarchs married and lived. Everything from the Sultan's weapons, passports, wedding furniture, traditional wedding jeweleries and even the Sultan's sports equipment!
When we returned to the hotel, we had dinner with one of the people my father was to meet up with. It was a nice dinner but it was incredibly oily and the space was quite small that the waiters almost elbowed everybody. I feel like the waiters that attended to us were new and awkward with formal dinners. I really love the prawns and the vegetables they made, though! The place I stayed at was called Sentosa Regency Hotel.
October 22
In the morning, we had a small buffet breakfast before heading to the small roads to see the padi/rice fields. The person who met with us for dinner the night before led the way to the National Rice Museum and on the way there I got to see the rice fields; some before they grew, others where it wa plush and green. The fields looked like soft carpet!
We didn't stay too long at the museum. Saw some stuff, heard some background stories about the Keriang Mountain and how the padi culture continued from the old days. I would have loved to visit the mountain but we didn't actually have enough time to do so because right after the museum we had to rush out to of the city towards Penang!
OH! Did I mention that it had been raining a lot while I was in Malaysia?
So, on our way to the hotel we were staying at in Penang, we again visited small villages. We even got to visit one of the previous Malaysian Prime Minister's house. I was too exhausted to get out and take photos though so I ended up staying in the car, napping.
When we finally arrived at the hotel I felt like as if I didn't belong at all! The hotel was incredibly huge and amazingly beautiful. It had a few restaurants, live music nights, a pool, a pond full of koi and a reflexology path that's surrounded by trees! They even have a golf range! The Hotel Equatorial Penang is almost heavenly.
Honestly, I don't remember much on what I did while I was at Penang. I remember spending most of the day searching for this place that sold different varieties of chocolates and coffees. Ended up spending over RM$600 when we finally got there and then spending the rest of the night in bed, not eating dinner and sleeping after watching a movie on TV.
I do love, though, some things that I saw while we were searching for the place. Some signs on the roads and the fact that people mostly use motorcycles that are old and puttering.
October 23
We started the day with a beautiful buffet breakfast. Toast and pao. Delicious! My parents went back to Kuala Lumpur in the morning because my father wasn't feeling too well and so I ended up staying back with the others. We visited a junk market near a road called Jalan Kulit, which literally translates to Skin Road. There were quite a few awesome things for sale but I was really interested in old radios because that was the task given to me by my parents.
I arrived in Kuala Lumpur late in the afternoon and an hour later I left again to visit a shopping mall with my cousins and their son. The drive there was full of laughter and lots of jumping around in the car. The following three images courtsey of their son's flash photography talent~!
That night, I spent my time packing up my stuff with my mom because she and my cousin asked me to bring stuff back to Brunei for them.
October 24
Honestly, the day I left Kuala Lumpur, I didn't even get to say good-bye to my parents. I flew back home after buying chocolates for my aunt at the airport and spent the day being exhausted after being picked up by little sister.
// One hit K.O.!
