Midvalley - The Last Outing

26^th Jan 2007 (Fri)

Ok, I know it’s outdated already but I still want to blog about it =D

Many AUSMATians hanged out in Midvalley today. I’m glad fate brought us together one last time: The Monash group, The Family group, Merlin’s group, Yee Hong’s group, etc. I didn’t know there were so many of them in Midvalley until Nooi Hoay messaged and told me that Ling Weng, Chean Ying, Ryan Lee, Wai Hong, Chau Wang, Calvin Woon, Siaw Tze, and herself were playing bowling. Chau Wang generously let me play one of his three games (Early bird promotion: RM10 for three games). Thanks a lot, Chau Wang!

Next, the group proceeded to watch Death Note 2 while Jia Huei, Christine Tan, Christine Tan’s brother, Wen Jun, Michelle, Chean Yeaw, Sze Ching, Wai Hong, and I watched Epic Movie which turned out to be such a lame show; pretty much like Scary Movie 4. Thank God it didn’t spoil our day that much.

At night, while having dinner, Yee Hong, Yi Chiann, Yi Jia, and Sze Huey came and say goodbye. We also met Doreen, Chau Wang, Ryan, Ling Weng they all again before leaving. Towards the end, many shed tears. And more boys did so compared to gals. Touching.... All these moments made me think that crying is such a pure thing to do. It shows how much the person you’re crying for means to you. Thus, crying is not a weakness. But then again, if you don’t cry, it doesn’t mean that you care less. It’s just that some people don’t usually cry.

Oklah..i’m crapping d…lets move on to some pictures =)

With Ling Weng at the bowling alley

With Ryan in front of GSC. The one in green is Jessica =p

First group picture

Yee Hong taking a picture with my mobile phone. My, look at his eye brows.

Yi Jia is good at discovering my phone. After this nice picture was taken, she framed it into....

this...haha..cute rite? Nice work, Yi Jia =) and of course nice picture too.

The boys

Second group picture

The sleeveless-es

Christine, Nooi Hoay, Jia Huei

While I was penning this entry, I explored my mobile phone’s memory stick and was so shocked to see Sze Ching’s video(recorded during a day before Midvalley Outing) in it.

It goes like this this, “Hi, Yeam. You might realize the video when we don’t have a chance to meet each other again so I just wanna say that it’s a pleasure having you as a friend and housemate. So bye bye!”

Gosh, his prediction is super correct. It was only just now that I discovered this video. All his words were aptly used. Now why didn’t I explore videos in my phone that day. Haha, Sze Ching, thanks a lot for the video. It’s really meaningful and I will for sure, treasure it. It has been nice knowing you as well. We have been close especially in Year 12 and during vacations as well. Haha, my vacation-mate =D

- First Ipoh Trip
- Penang Trip
- Sarawak Trip
- Alor Star Trip (Late night chats till 4am every night =D )
- Second Ipoh Trip

The thing in common for those five trips is both of us =) Me doing all the talking (especially with the adults) and you do all the analyzing. Haha..

May our friendship last for a lifetime, Sze Ching. Cheers…

First Time Being a Female

31st Jan 2007 (Wed)


I asked Stephen from IDP to email me my CoE(Confirmation of Enrolment) from ANU only to discover a shocking mistake that has never before occured to me.

Quite funny also lah actually. They have already stated my courtesy title as 'Mr" and yet I can become a 'female'. To all AUSMATians, please check your CoE properly ya. If there's anything wrong, email the uni.

No More Braces

30th Jan 2007 (Tues)

I’m officially braces-less. It has been with me 24 hours a day for long four years and I’ve also lost four teeth because of it. But of course, my teeth are all straightened because of it.

Brushing my teeth is so fun now without those braces.

And one thing..hehe..I can’t stop smiling.

Cheese!!!

When Honesty Backfires

24th Jan 2007 (Wed)

One problem I have since I was small is being too honest at times. Today, this ‘habit’ resulted into two unwanted situations.

The first incident made me sound so dumb that I hesitated to blog about this at first. But if my sister could blog about her silly experience (exchanging currency in Midvalley), why can’t I? I went for my medical check up today in Drs. Catterall, Khoo, Raja Malek Dan Rakan-Rakan, Petaling Jaya. As what other students do, I HONESTLY filled in the form (Part A) before the appointment. I wrote that I have a chest pain averagely once every week for a few months already. (Well, the bad thing is I haven’t seen a doctor regarding this). It was like air stuck at the upper abdomen and I feel relieved each time after burping. I suspect that this is caused by indigestion.

Upon looking at my form, the male doctor went.

“Aiyoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo”

It was literarily long, which reminds me of Russle Peter’s,

“Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo, I can’t do thirty dollars.”

And the doctor repeated that “Aiyo” when the nurse was checking my height, weight and eyesight, so many times that I lost count.”

“This doctor is so not positive-minded. Instead of looking for solutions, he keeps on aiyo-ing and aiyo-ing,” I thought to myself.

Doc: How am I going to blank-ko this you tell me?
Me: Er, well, you don’t have to blank-ko it. You can just right an explanation down there saying that it’s not serious.
Doc: (Didn’t respond to my suggestion and his eyes were glued on my form) Aiyo…………………….
Me: Speechless.
Doc: Do you have another copy of this form with you?
Me: (Assuming that he’s going to ask me to go back and print another form but praying that he’s not gonna say that) Yeah, I have it in my email.
Doc: Where to do live?
Me: Shah Alam.
Doc: Aiyo………………

Finally, he wrote a short explanation in the form saying that it was merely indigestion and some other details which indicates that it is not a heart attack/not anything serious.

Doc: You ah..Chou yan em hoh yi kam lou sat keh. Wan em tou seik ka….(“you cannot be so honest. Can’t earn a living one” in Cantonese) Next time, if you don’t know how to feel in a form, just ask the doctor. Don’t simply feel in.
Me: Oh………..

I felt so dumb dumb after that. I bet some of you are laughing at me already. I was merely stating the truth but I guess the chest pain that really needed to be stated is those suffered from heart attack, not something as minor as indigestion.

Oh, the doctor was actually quite nice. He seems like those who complains and sighs a lot but won’t take it into heart. Quite nice to talk too as well. He occasionally included some Cantonese phrases during our conversation. I assume that’s how he keeps to his roots =p

The second incident happened when my uncle called me, saying that he’s going back to Taiping by bus. I recalled that my cousin will be driving, thus, invited my uncle to join us back instead of taking the bus. Again, I took the wrong action as my cousin beih syok (not syok in Hokkein) with this uncle one. But since I’ve invited him, my cousin has no choice but to go along with this new plan.

My cousin: Ah Yau, next if you don’t know anything, don’t simply say things.
Me (monolog): What do you mean I don’t know anything? I know that you’re driving back what. And I also know that this uncle is nice to me (although he has his obvious bad side). So what’s wrong with offering him a place with us wor. One person in the bus all the way back to Taiping very boring one you know. Somemore senior citizen already.

Of course, I felt bad that I offended my cousin by inviting my uncle straight away without asking my cousin first. But I was merely trying to help. Perhaps I should practise the “I dunno” policy.

These two occurrences left me felt disappointed with myself at the end of the day and lost some appetite during dinner. It was also a day of self reflection after what had happened. People keep saying that honest people can’t survive in this world. Well, I’m honest and I’ve survived twenty years in this world. Alright, alright, perhaps I have not really stepped into the ‘real’ world yet.

The real one is where most people lie, cheat, and backstab others to achieve their goal (Cousin 2007).

Uh, it sounds so cruel. And it also made Chean Yeaw’s, “I’m a pawn in this cruel world” sounds practical. But I refuse to believe in this kind of world. I know there’re still good people out there. In fact, everyone is good. It’s just so happen that you see the bad side of them. Moreover, most of the friends I hanged out with (Ipoh Trip, Kedah Trip, Sarawak Trip, Taiping friends) are nice people and to imagine them backstabbing each other in the future is simply too uh indescribable.

To all my friends, I hope you all won’t change. Ok lah, lets be realistic. Everyone will change as time moves own. Just don’t cross the line and kuih ki oh oh hah peng (go to the dark side). I always believe that I can survive by being honest as much as I can and minimizing the lies. No doubt, lying can also be for a good purposes. If I were to lie a bit today, that two things would be avoided. Hence, in the future, if my kid asks me,

“Dad, is it bad to lie?”

“Er… read my blog” (instead of saying “YES”)

And when you look at things from a positive or perhaps a simpler point of view, the world will be a better place, as stated in Sze Huey’s blog, ‘Simplicity Is Life’. I end this entry with a forwarded message from Peifei (Nooi Hoay, I spell correctly =p )

Positive thinking is like this;

A little bird in the sky,
You look up and it shits in your eye,
You don’t mind and you don’t cry,
You just thank God that cows don’t fly.

Thank you for reading!!!

The Great Adventure of the Terrific Ten

8-12^th Jan 2007

I like Jing Guo’s suggestion. Hence, there is a new title for this picture. =p Hehe.

Location: Ipoh

Places visited: Gunung Lang, Perak Tong, Kek Lok Tong, Jia Huei’s Uncle’s Pottery Factory, Kinta City, Ipoh Parade, Polo Ground, Lost World of Tambun, Taman Dr. Seenivasagam, Kedai Kopi Nam Chau, Kedai Kopi Kong Heng, Kellie’s Castle, Tea Break Kopitiam, and some other coffee shops.

Hosts: Kok Jia Huei, Christine Tan Hui Wen, Wong Jing Guo

Co-host: Dyan Tai Yee Hong

Participants: Ang Nooi Hoay, Toe Wen Jun, Ng Chau Wang, Tan Sze Ching, Nathaniel Alagan (it means handsome) s/o Kovalan, Yeam Shin Yau.

This trip was the last one before the ten of us fly. Thank God, it was a memorable one. Nevertheless, it could’ve been better if IDP’s briefing were to be held later. The fact that its briefing was on the 13^th has caused a premature end to the trip for Sze Ching, Nooi Hoay, Nat, and I (the trip was initially scheduled to end on 15^th). It kinda ruined our plan. But, huh (punch), sad stories aside. Lets flash back those happy moments =)

This is Sze Ching (Dec 21^st) and Nat (Dec 17^th) with some of their birthday presents. The little piggy Sze Ching was holding and the cute little turtle on Nat’s hand were from me =D The pink cell phone holder was given from Sze Ching to Nat.

SC: I’ve searched the whole place for the best pink item that I could find.

Don’t misinterpret. It’s not that Nat likes pink. Erm, Sze Ching just wants his present to be ‘memorable’. =p Right, Sze Ching?

Oh, and of course the cell phone on the pink holder is not a present =p The rest of the gang bought Sze Ching and Nat presents as well and not forgetting Wen Jun whose birthday is today, 22^nd Jan. Hehe, but we had an early celebration for him. On the last night, we gathered everyone in the living room and three of them received their birthday gifts. Nat got a white cap, Sze Ching was given a penguin soft toy while Wen Jun received the biggest present of all – a green dog-bone-shaped pillow. You should’ve seen Sze Ching’s expression when he discovered the penguin.

“OMG, Happy Feet!!!” (Eyes opened wide, mouth opened big big). Sze Ching has soft spot for Happy Feet =D

This gathering session was the only time we really sat down and talked. Most of the time, we were busy getting ready and doing our own stuffs. Hence, Nooi Hoay finds this gathering the most special moment during the trip =) Haha, for me, the funny part was waiting for Chau Wang to finish bathing =) Everyone was already sitting down in the living room and he was the only one upstairs, bathing. Couldn’t blame him though. The tap sot sot tei (gila gila in Cantonese) d. Sometimes, no water one.

Oh, I forgot to mention that we stayed in a house owned by The Pings. They (Christine’s church friends) were generous enough to lend us their house free of charge. And it was complete with furniture, toiletries, washing machine, air-cond and even detergent =) There was possibly nothing else we could ask for. If you are reading this (if…..) Mr. and Mrs. Ping, we would like to thank you all so much. Wasted we didn’t get a chance to meet.

Also, congratulations to Nat as he managed to book the masterbed room for himself, Sze Ching, and I despite the strong protest by the gals (and yes, I mean strong!) although it might not seem obvious. But it might be a blessing in disguise for the gals you know. The bed was quite hard so if you all were to sleep on it for a few nights, you all might complain about backbone pain (although I do remember that one of you drink anlene). See, three of us were actually doing you all a favour. =)

Three cute dolls (each bought from different places) in Jia Huei’s house.

Sze Ching, Nat, and I during our first breakfast in Ipoh.

We went to Lost World of Tambun on Tues (as planned) only to find that this water park closes on Tues, which explains the number of cars there at that time. But hehe, since we were already there, the guys decided to snap a picture together. =D

Gunung Lang. This area was only assessable by boat. A two way ride cost us RM 3.

Wen Jun didn’t bring his camera while we were in Gunung Lang. Hence, I borrowed him mine to snap a few shots. He was attracted to this particular flower as there was a grasshopper on it.

Wen Jun trying to kill himself for not bringing his camera.

Haha..no lah, he was actually climbing up to one of the display house like some of those in Cultural Village, Sawarak.

The one behind this camera was er..not an ordinary person. See, there was initially no one in the house so Chau Wang and I were setting timer to snap a group picture. Then, there came this man with two other people into the house. In a well-mannered way, I asked his help to snap this picture.

Coincidently, we saw him again in Lost World of Tambun. He was walking with two men behind him which made him look like a Very Important Person. During our conversation in Gunung Lang, he once referred Lost World of Tambun as “my place” so we assumed that he must be one of the owners.

Oh, did I mention that we played hide and seek in Gunung Lang? =p

In the boat.

In Perak Tong. We climbed up so so many strairs. Nooi Hoay counted as she climbed. It was about 400 steps. No wonder she didn’t chai (respond in hokkien) me when I talked to her =(

Climbed up so high enabled us to enjoy the magnificent view of Ipoh.

The one at most right looks like a little gal.

On the way down from the top.

The rocket in front of Jia Huei’s house. Took this picture while Chau Wang was heading into her house to get a good rest as he was getting sick.

We proceed to Kek Lok Tong despite the rain and Chau Wang’s absence. On the way, we passed by Ampang Baru and Sze Ching had a strange kind of feeling. Most probably because he’s from Ampang. Same name ma…

Oh, as it was raining and both Sze Ching and I had been there before, we’ve decided to stay in the cave and chit chat while the rest meredah hujan and go kai kai around Kek Lok Tong. I didn’t regret staying behind as I found out some facts that I didn’t know before this during my conversation with Sze Ching.

Room 204 in Kinta City.

Played badminton the next day.

Sze Ching holding a cute soft toy in Ipoh Parade. This picture curi-curi take one, which reminds me of Christine’s which I illegally snapped at the Crocodile farm in Sarawak.

My shop opposite Ipoh Parade. =)

Dinner in Assam House. Wang Lee Hom has been here before!!! Wow..and prepared to be shocked by the price. Thank God Jing Guo has a discount card which enabled us to evade the 5% government tax =p Oh, and the food was not bad.

Nat emitting his aura in Polo Ground. It’s a spooky place at night…..

Next morning, in the playground,

SC: Wah, playing swing is so fun!!! Especially when you’re standing =)
WJ: (Interested) Really?? I also wanna swing…

And so..

Both of them swing together.

The one responsible for influencing them was Jia Huei. Haha, she taught them how to swing while standing =)

In Lost World (again) At the end of the day, I got sun burnt which is a rare occasion for me. =( so geli!!! And not to mention, painful as well. It was like a changing skin process and i took more than a week to recover. I should seriously consider using sun block.

Chau Wang and Sze Ching having fun.

This picture is so unique!!!

I was shock to learn that there were tigers in Lost World. We were able to catch both the feeding times and had an experience which is hundred times better than going to zoo. Mr. Zul was kind to show us a baby tiger which turned out to be very very active. Hence, if you’re interested in tigers, pay Lost World a visit! You’ll get to see how intelligent tigers are.

In Taman Dr. Seenivasagam. Another of my favourite pictures. Sze Ching found this place familiar as he has seen it before in a Mandarin text book many years back when his mum taught him Mandarin. Talk about Déjà vu!

Posed under an ‘ancient’ traffic light.

Sze Ching’s new Nike shoes made him suddenly wanna dance. Wow….

The place where we had nice curry mee.

The coffee shop in which Sze Ching drank three glasses of While Coffee. He wasn’t satisfied with the first two glasses. “No, this is still not the real while coffee that I’m looking for.” He, then walked to another coffee shop, Seng Fatt and bought another White Coffee. Finally, he was satisfied!

Kellie’s Castle. Seriously, this place was a bit disappointing. We paid RM3 each to see this place but I personally felt kinda cheated as there wasn't that much to see. The magnificent view from the front was super deceiving. It gives you the impression that there are many ancient things to discover behind/in this building. Perhaps it is famous because of the story behind it, kinda like the Taj Mahal story. It was built by William Kellie Smith for his wife, Agnes. Sadly, the contruction was have way done as Kellie succumbed to pneumonia in Lisbon (1926). It would've been lovely if the contruction was completed.

One thing though, it was in this place where I found out who Jaishree likes.

See what I mean? =D

This is the part of the castle which I like the most. Imagine if it's a tennis court.

Like this picture too =)

When we were about to leave, Wen Jun and Christine refused to follow and ran away from us. Reminded me of Hindi movie in which there are many scenes in grassy areas where they lari-lari here and golek-golek there.

If wasn’t long before they realised how important friends are in life and they came back to us. =D

Note the word Gerenti....pinjam bahasa again. My dad once joked, if information is informasi, why not nation becomes nasi?

Oh, Jing Guo is a very brave and skillful driver. This black Sentra was driven by him. Of course, Jia Huei was not a bad driver as well but as her Nissan Sunny is a manual car, it’s pretty hard to catch up with the fast-paced JG. Haha, but seriously, kudos to both of you for enduring so many days of driving. It wasn’t easy. Driving can be super tiring. And you could’t sleep in the car when everyone was. =p

A mini tower built using the menus in Tea Break Kopitiam. We hanged out there for a while after sending Nat off. A while later, Nooi Hoay, Sze Ching and I headed to KL for IDP briefing the next day.

In the bus, Nooi Hoay suddenly asked me to look at this particular bus. No plate: WJG 5555

NH: Tell me what so special about this bus.
Me: Oh, it must be the four fives loh.
NH: Wrong!!
Me: Could there be anything else?
NH: WJG = Wong Jing Guo

Haha…Nooi Hoay, salute you!!!

Before I end this post, I would once again thank everyone involved in making this trip a success especially to Jia Huei, Christine and Jing Guo. All of us appreciate your hospitality and your effort taken to plan our activities during the whole trip. Thanks for spending time with us despite your personal commitments. Ok, there were some kelam-kabut moments but hey, we had fun and untimately, that matters the most. =) Time really flew and without us realizing, it was already the end of the trip. Also, a special thanks to someone who gave me a call and sincerely talked to me for a long time at one of the nights in Ipoh. I didn’t expect that call but I’m so happy to have received it and know that you care. Thanks again!!!

Readers, thank you for reading!

P/s: To the participants, hope I didn't disappoint you all with this entry =)