LOVERS IN JAPAN

- Coldplay -

….blooming snow pink….

 

Spring in Japan – BIG TICK

SUMMER BREEZE

- Seals & Croft -

....for Shaista....

 

....from the quaint tiny streets of Zanzibar....

See the curtains hanging in the window

In the evening on a Friday night

A little light a-shining through the window

 Lets me know everything's alright

Summer breeze makes me feel fine

Blowing through the jasmine in my mind

Summer breeze makes me feel fine

Blowing through the jasmine in my mind

See the paper laying on the sidewalk

A little music from the house next door

So I walk on up to the door step

Through the screen and across the floor

Summer breeze makes me feel fine

Blowing through the jasmine in my mind

Summer breeze makes me feel fine

Blowing through the jasmine in my mind

Sweet days of summer, the jasmine's in bloom

July is dressed up and playing her tune

When I come home from a hard days work

And you're waiting there, not a care in the world

See the smile a-waiting in the kitchen

Food cooking and the plates for two

Feel the arms that reach out to hold me

In the evening when the day is through

Summer breeze makes me feel fine

Blowing through the jasmine in my mind

Summer breeze makes me feel fine

 Blowing through the jasmine in my mind

ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE

- The Beatles -


"So, are you ready for the dive today?"


"NO", she said, half asleep and rolled over in bed, ready to get back to sleep. It's 7.30 a.m.


"It's just another dive," she thought. But since it was going to be a while before they'd be out diving again (but they did 6 already!), she decided she might as well tag along. Besides, it's her buddy.


****


The sun was out but the swells were unforgiving. At least the motion sickness pills were working. There was quite an excitement throughout the boat ride as the captain carefully maneuvered out to sea to the Bwejuu reef. There's only a narrow passage where the boats are able to past the barrier reef safely. The boy, the girl and Sufi, the dive master, clung on tightly to the boat.


A sharp 'pssssssshhhhhhhhh' jolted everybody on the boat.


Her BCD unexpectedly disconnected from her tank. Sufi immediately came to fix the leak. She lost 50 bars from 200 bars of air. It meant that she may not be able to dive as long as the boy and Sufi. Sufi reassured everybody that everything's fine. She remained calm. They had the spare tank ready, but it was unnecessary.


Like any other day, it was paradise down below. The graceful manta rays, the masters of camouflage; the octupuses, the schools of fishes; big and small, the plethora of colours.


Her tank was down to 70 bars. He was wondering whether they should ascend by now.


A beautiful manta ray swam past them. Sufi was pulling her down to the ocean floor while the boy was trying to deflate her BCD.



"Oh, we're going to wait for the manta ray to pass again," she thought gleefully.


The boy took out a slate from his pocket and showed it to the girl. She was expecting the boy to write something about the manta ray but on it was already written....

WILL YOU MARRY ME?

She wanted to laugh with joy and amazement but she couldn't. She wrote back....

You bet

:)

Now, where's my ring?!!!

"It was a bangle in my pocket - gone," he replied. The wooden African bangle must have floated away in the sea, and in the confusion all she managed to figure out from the sentence was 'goat'.

But it all didn't matter; bangle, gone, goat. The wooden African bangle now forever one with the mighty ocean. The moment became the sea's new treasure. The memory part of its mystery.


She was too happy. Those little things never matter.


On the boat they all had champagne.



That evening, she saw a shooting star, as she proudly wore a replacement bangle around her wrist.

....And they live happily ever after....


(That last line was deliberately stolen from another tale, but all tales should end that way, shouldn't it?)

C'EST SI BON

- Janet Siedel -

I've been meaning to write. In fact, quite badly so. The day goes by and the next, and the next and the next and yesterday I've spent most of it in the shanny, down with the cold. Feeling a bit useless in bed, literally watching the tulips bloom in the vase. Then I remembered that I have postcards to send, so that left me occupied for a solid two hours, Winnie The Pooh stamps taste a hint of cloves or something. It could be that I was munching on Cadbury's all morning. 

Just don't try to eat those little blue By Air Mail stickers. Trust me on this one.

Yeah, I'll write soon.  

HAPPY DAYS

- Pratt & McClain -

Just

another day

at



the office

:)

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I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

- Bing Crosby -


Tomorrow.


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JEZZEBELLE

- Too Phat -


That Thursday morning I was up by 4 a.m. For the second time in a row. I almost had everything packed the night before and yet I forgot my hat. Sun lotion. No hat. Genius.

I drove myself to KL Sentral to catch the bus to LCCT. I asked Deb to wait for me just in case the buses are full. Luckily I managed to get a seat and the bus won’t be leaving for the next 15 minutes. I had time to kill. Then I realized I forgot my earphones. Double genius. No McDonald’s cone sundae, I sat there hoping to catch some sleep. I actually did, on and off, when the bus wasn’t trying to turn a sharp corner.

The flight was smooth. I had my coffee and that was enough to keep me happy. As I walked out of the airport, I scanned the airport lobby for Song. He said he’ll be waiting for me with a piece of paper with my name on it, but I never saw it. I quickly called him and there he is amongst the many tuk tuk drivers waiting for their customers. I shook hands with Song (force of habit), forgetting that they greet people slightly different in Cambodia, I hoped he didn’t mind. On the way to Tara, where I’ll be staying for the next 3 days, I let the breeze run through my fingers and my red scarf blowing in the wind. It sure feels like being in a 60s movie, driving around in an old convertible. What I didn’t have is a pair of Jackie O sunglasses.

The welcome drink in Tara is lemongrass tea, I love that stuff. In fact everything smells of fresh lemongrass.

Then Rizwan showed up. A face I hadn’t seen for….less than 24 hours.

The room wasn’t ready so we decided to go for a bit of sight seeing and we decided on Kampung Pluk. It’s a village just about an hour out of Siem Riep and to get there you’ll need to take a boat. It’s USD30 per head for the half hour boat ride.

The houses on Kampung Pluk are built on high stilts. During the wet season the road is submerged underwater and the villagers get around by small boats. There are places very similar to this especially in East Malaysia, the only possible difference is that Siem Riep is just flat land as far as the eyes can see. We had to cut short our trip and head back to Tara, for the rest of the day, I slept with the TV on, while Rizwan left for a meeting.

The next day was another early morning. By 5 a.m. we were on our way to Angkor. We were (well, maybe I was) adamant to catch the sunrise. The crowd kept coming and I guess that took away a little bit of the excitement. It wasn’t the best sunrise, but I have absolutely no complaint about the company. That morning Rizwan and I just walked around Angkor Wat, for most part it was just the two of us. Where the crowd disappeared to bewilders us still. It was quiet, it was beautiful and the sun was just coming up. I especially love how the early morning light penetrates lazily through the temple cracks. To think it’s been doing that for centuries now, and to think how many have actually gazed out through those same stone openings, is just beyond captivating.

Then we said goodbye, temporarily, to have breakfast back at Tara and nap. We were back at Angkor later that afternoon, until sunset. We stopped by at the local funfair on the way back. It was so colourful and vibrant. We played a round of shoot the balloons each and won prizes. We let Song choose one for his children, and he picked a lovely doll for his daughter. What I found cool were the mats they laid out along the road near the food stalls. What you can do is pay a small fee to sit and enjoy your food there, out in the open and equipped only with a candle. Back to Tara after that. End of Day 2.

The last day was spent wandering around the streets of Siem Riep, trying out the food, just a chilled out day, taking more photos. We had lunch at Khmer Kitchen and dessert at the Blue Pumpkin – simply awesome! We maximized our time before the long bus ride to Phnom Penh the next morning, where I’d be catching my flight back to Kuala Lumpur. We ended the evening by attending the Beatacello concert and drinks in town.

I hate when trips like this feel like it goes by too quick, this one was no exception. But that was outweighed by how everything falls in place nicely. The flight back was bumpy, but all I see is the slow transformation of light to darkness, aptly marking the end of my journey, and I can’t wait to embark on a new one.

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TIGER TANK

- Lalo Schifrin -

Gong Xi Fa Cai, Xin Nian Kuai Le!

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AULD LANG SYNE

....to all leng chais, for colouring my world....


Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And days o' auld leng chai

For auld leng chai my dear
For auld leng chai
We'll take a cup of kindness yet
For auld leng chai

....Hello 2010!

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THAT CHRISTMAS FEELIN'

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TIME STANDS STILL

- All American Rejects -

I'm baking cookies, much to Mom's delight that I'm finally making myself worth the home-cooked dinners and useful this Christmas.

The recipe book must be 200-years old.

What I find more interesting is that between the pages, the evolution of yours truly's handwriting over a period of more than 20 years is exquisitely preserved. The days when I copy recipes for Mom with my bright multi-coloured magic pens. That's a piece of history, right there.

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THE GREEN LEAVES OF SUMMER

- Nick Perito -

My last road trip for 2009.

And Fifi's wedding.

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BRIGHT AS YELLOW
- The Innocence Mission -




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THE TRACKS OF MY TEARS
- The Miracle -

....hell yeah I love the beach....


Spending the evenings gunning down baddies in Time Crisis and race in Daytona.

Sharing a club sandwich on the porch on a hot hot afternoon.

Wake up in the wee hours of the morning to catch the sunrise, only to realise later that the sun comes up on the other side!

Pina coladas.

Playing with cuttlefishes and turtles.

Morning kayak.

Nap on the beach.







Till the next great escape.

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