will i am's delayed diary

In August, I took one week off work to accompany mum on a pilgrimage to Bali. Yes, quite shocking when I heard about it because Bali is predominantly Hindu. During my last visit in 2009 , I didn't notice anything other than Hindu temples. For some of the participants, it wasn't their first trip out there. One lady told me that it was her 6th trip to Bali! The flight out was at 9AM, so we were out of the house by 5AM. The tour was organized by 72 year old gentleman, by the name of Uncle Jacob. With the help of his daughter and son-in-law, he had helped us get the boarding passes and luggage tags before we even arrived ( don't know how he did it ). All we had to do was use the self-service baggage drop.  Thank goodness there weren't any delays because Air Asia is often sucky these days. Ngurah Rai Airport's new terminal was really impressive. It did take a while for us to get out because the immigration officers were really 'not into it'. Also wasted more time...

Agong's birthday gave me a long weekend, but what does a long weekend mean during the MCO? Work and chores. In the afternoon, mum was suddenly inspired to paint the living room. I took SimonLover's advice and bought a mini roller for the job. It really did make the job easier, and there was less wastage. Although we just painted two walls, I was aching in several places the next day. Just as we finished cleaning up, Sis asked us over for a steamboat dinner. A perfect end to a busy day.

The MCO put a big damper on Hari Raya Puasa for the second year in a row. Because no visitations were allowed, the Muslims needed an alternative way to celebrate. The answer: fireworks, lots of it. From night flowers to red crackers. No holds barred. The super shaky photo is of my neighbour's kids playing sparklers in front of their porch.   On the first Syawal morning, Muslim men also missed out on their congregational prayers at the mosque. So what to do after breakfast? Put on your pretty clothes and go to AEON! At least one can get a little Raya feel there because the staff are in baju Melayu  and baju kurung , and Raya songs are blaring over the PA system.   In the evening, I received Raya cookies from my neighbour. Raya complete. 

What to do on the first day of 2021? Go eat dim sum of course! Nearly half of the people of Kuala Lumpur had the same brilliant thought. Mum and I arrived at Oriental Treasure , The Sphere at a little before noon. The situation was out of the ordinary because there was a long queue at the door. Opps. Many had made called earlier and were checking their reservations. Although mum and I were walk-ins, it was easy for us to secure a table because we were only two. From our table we could see more and more people arriving by the minute. By noon, we put in our order. Our appetizer of wasabi jellyfish came pretty quickly. The wu kok took much longer than expected. The staff were running up and down. They were obviously understaffed. Then we saw a very peculiar scene. One of the large tables close to us had asked for the bill. There was only tea on the table. At about a quarter before one, the staff started turning people away at the door: "We have run out of dim sum!" Oh! I never...

On Deepavali, KH came over to chill at my house. But the heat convinced us that we should get out of the house! KH suggested that we go to Queen Beans Cafe at Taman Cheras-- a cafe by bears for bears... and of course non-bears la. The owner realized that mum's MySejahtera app was showing "High Risk", and they refused entry. Turns out that when setting up her account, she was missing some health declarations. Funny that the app didn't make it mandatory. After some fiddling, her app finally showed "Low Risk". Learned something that day. Queen Beans offers an eclectic range of cakes. The selection changes weekly. We ordered one of their signature fruit tea coolers, a strong cup of Americano, a Philadelphia cheesecake topped with fruits, and a Golden Misu which is actually chempedak x Tiramisu. An interesting combination.  Didn't stay long at the cafe as KH had an appointment. Mum and I decided to venture to the nearby Eko Cheras Mall before dinner. The mal...

Weeks of CNY marketing culminates in a lavish reunion dinner. Always way too much food for three of us to finish. But then, that's done on purpose to symbolize abundance. Check  out the Year of the Rat's centerpiece! Tired of the lou sang style, so did something different this year. YouTube is really the place for all sorts of DIY guides.

Once again, mum and I attended the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers' Hari Raya Open House at Sri Perdana. I had no wish to use the park 'n ride facilities, so I put my kiasu mode on and drove there early in the morning. Managed to secure parking at a field close to the entrance. But then, we had two hours to kills before they let people in, and the sun was climbing steadily. Luckily there was a food truck outside serving ice-cold Milo. At 10 AM, all hell broke loose. The earlier queues disintegrated. There was one geilou behind me who kept bitching that Malaysians had no manners and didn't know how to line up, but ironically he ended up far in front of me. What a hypocrite. The bottleneck was the security check. All water bottles, umbrellas, pens ( yes, pens ), knives, and other restricted items were to be left outside. Once we cleared security, it was smooth sailing. Compared to last year, it was much easier to get a place to sit, and there was no m...

Started our day with breakfast, then morning mass at the hotel function room. Then it was off to Amman Citadel located on Jabal al Qal'a, one of the seven hills that make up the old city. It provides an amazing vista of the city where houses cover the hilly terrain like white moss. Sami says that there is a law, that states that buildings in the area must be constructed from white stone or painted white. From up there, we also got a great view of the Roman Theater , a landmark from the 2nd century. Historically, Amman Citadel was occupied by several great civilizations. The Romans left the ruins of the Temple of Hercules . There's also Byzantine ruins, and an Umayyad Palace . Next was a visit to CityMall for some shopping, but the mall was pretty dead. It was 10 am, but no shops were open with the exception of Carrefour. We spent most of our time raiding Bzuriyeh, a shop that sold premium dried fruits, nuts, and spices. Bought more Medjoul, figs, and macadamia. We...

Morning mass was celebrated in the hotel function room. Then we set out to Petra . Halfway there we had a toilet stop at a souvenir shop that sold really pretty trinkets, intricate mosaics, and furniture. Then we had a short visit at Wadi Musa , purportedly where Moses struck a stone with his staff and water gushed forth for the thirsty Israelites. The spring was enclosed in a small building, and it was extremely cool inside. Locals come to take water from it. Not too sure about the cleanliness though... I spotted rubbish in the spring. Our lunch stop was at Silk Road Hotel where we had typical Middle Eastern fare with flatbread. From there we headed out to Petra Visitors Centre on foot. Our priest and several who were unfit, stayed back at the hotel. When we arrived at Petra Visitors Centre, the sun was shining brightly. We patiently waited for Sami to settle our tickets which were at USD50 a pop. Petra is actually a large archaeological park, but we only had time t...