will i am's delayed diary

Bright and early the next day, KH and I had hand-drip coffee and pastries, before starting our road trip. Didn't make any proper stops until we reached Bidor. Explored the morning market a bit, and shared a bowl of noodles.  Roamed around the thoroughfare on foot, admiring the old shop lots. Even took a brief look at the tacky Petai Lane, and a giant fruits monument ( something that small town councils like to do ). Based on a recommendation in Google Maps, we had our second Bidor breakfast at Restoran Mee Wah . The wantan noodles were supposedly good, but it was NASTY! Generic kopitiam wantan noodles in KL taste much better. I couldn't touch the noodles after one bite. Horrid lye water after taste. And the meat can't be described as charsiew . Made a run for it after the old man at the goldsmith wasn't too happy that I took a photo of his shopfront. Perhaps he thought I might be scoping out the place for a robbery!  Continued our journey towards the limestone hills of

The second day of CNY fell on a Sunday, so we were at church for the second day in a row. From church, we immediately set out to Teluk Intan for a day trip. My body was creaming for coffee, so we made a short stop at one of the larger Shell stations along the North-South Highway for Costa. Truly an overpriced cup of coffee. Weak. The moment we exited the highway at Sungkai, we saw a huge commotion by the side of the road. Loads of people of were stopping to have lunch at Nasi Bambu Sungai Klah . Heck, why not give it a try. My brother loves Malay food anyway. The place is like a huge mess hall. Although it's open air, the interior was super stuffy. Twin queues start right at the entrance. There's small table stacked with large stainless steel trays in between both lines. Mum and bro took the left queue, while I took the right queue. The right queue was for the grilled section. Among the specialties there were kambing salai buluh perindu , ayam percik , ayam nusantara

A month before, received a wedding invitation from a cousin from my mother's side. My mother was amused that when he came, he didn't bother to call up whether we were home. When we picked up the invitation card from the letter box, mum was amused for a second time because she was addressed directly by her name. Rules, rules, rules. Anyway, the wedding was on a Sunday night, so we planned to go after church, and return on the night itself. SK tagged along. It was good to have another driver on such a journey. Before the long drive, we had lunch at Nyiru Cafe , the new name for Cafe Kesom. Food seemed similar. Nasi Kerabu was as good as I remembered it, but the Nasi Dagang sucks. We made good time, and arrived at Teluk Intan during tea time. Made a stop at Alex Tea House , a random choice. The exterior was made to look like an old village house, with the entrance flanked by a pair of mulberry trees. The interior was very dark, and every time the door opened, a slash of s

On the final day of our Kuantan trip, we got up early to pack up and prepare to check out of the homestay. We met up with Mr and Mrs Y at Wong Ah Jang to visit Mrs Y's bedridden mother for a little while. She was alert, but needed an oxygen concentrator to breathe properly. Ventured out of town for our breakfast. For the best food, one must be willing to travel. Mek La 's scrumptious Kelantanese cuisine is located at Permatang Badak, a village located outside of town. The place was huge, able to accommodate a hundred or more customers. Must try items there are the nasi kerabu , nasi minyak , laksam, and pulut ikan kukus goreng . And they make a great teh tarik too. After breakfast, we ventured back to town for frozen seafood. The original plan was to go to Beserah to get fish from the fishing villages there, but Mrs. Y gave us an easier option. The frozen seafood seller was practically hidden in a stationery shop. One would never guess that there are fish and prawns

On Sunday morning, we attended mass at St. Thomas Church, while Gratitude went to have a leisurely breakfast at Kuantan Kopitiam ( the sign is so faded that you will never guess its name ). He picked us up after mass ended, and we went back to Kuantan Kopitiam! At that late hour, the place was quite chaotic and crowded. Thanked our lucky stars that we bumped into Kit there. He had just finished eating, so we took the table he vacated. SK swears by the curry noodles there. For his second round, Gratitude wanted kaya butter toast, but they had surprisingly run out of bread. Stock was so low, that some people didn't even get their curry noodles, causing temperatures to rise. Once we had finished eating, we went to Chen Hing to buy dried seafood products. A short distance from the shop in Jalan Besar is Kuantan's latest attraction~ Laman Teruntum . Its a waterfront of sorts along Sungai Kuantan, with Mercu Teruntum observation tower as its focal point. The tower isn't op

Out of the blue, I received news from ex-Sixers ( Form 6 classmates ) that my alma mater was organising a reunion dinner for old students. My old physics teacher was on the organizing committee, and he spread the word to those who were still in Kuantan. After some deliberation, we decided to attend. Would be good to see how my upper secondary school looks today. The night before the dinner, we received word that there's a theme. Whatttttt?! On my way home from work, I made a stop at Bukit Bintang hoping to find something that fits "Gold and Glitter". H&M was right outside the MRT station, so that was my first stop. Luck was on my side because I immediately spotted a black T with ornate golden decals across the neck. Was in and out of there in less than half an hour. Back home, had a quick dinner before starting my last minute packing. The road trip to Kuantan was joined by SK, Gratitude, and my mum. We started before 7 AM ( just a short stop for a meh breakfast

Timing was perfect this year because All Soul's Day fell on a Saturday. On Friday evening, Bro, mum, and I attended All Saint's Day Mass, and early the next day, we pushed off to Teluk Intan. We made good time because we started out just a little after 6 AM. No delays at all. In a break from routine, we ate breakfast at Bidor Wet Market. Kedai Kopi Pun Sim was a recommendation from BIL. They discovered the place during one of their many road trips. Go for their fresh YTF, very crispy and delicious. The kopi was a little off though. After eating, mum went exploring in the market. We arrived at Teluk Intan before 9:30 AM. Still had time to pack some CCF and glutinous rice for dad. All Soul's Day Mass was in progress at St. Anthony's Church, while the cemetery was a hive of activity. Not often that we catch the 'rush hour' crowd. After getting dad's grave cleaned up, we presented his favourite food, and lit candles and incense. This year, Little Monste