KTM Station, Kluang
Ever since I could remember, my favorite breakfast as always been toast and half boiled eggs from the coffee shop at Kluang’s KTM station, now known as Kluang RailCoffee. The joy in having my toast and seeing the people boarding and disembarking the train while the station master blows his whistle to tell people to hurry up as the train is leaving soon.
Now, the quality of the toast has gone down and the price has gone up. I no longer go there anymore for my favorite breakfast but I still love the hussle bustle of it when I send my bro off to Singapore by train.
Recently, I have been worrying that KTMB will suddenly decide to renovate Kluang’s quaint little station. So I made it a point to bring all my cameras back to Kluang and made a little trip to the station with WeiHar before we leave for KL.
Surprisingly, there were many people with DSLR…. and it don’t look like Joey or ChouMin’s type of DSLR. It was those big and expensive looking ones with huge lens. I felt really out of place with my Kiev and Lx5 . But I met this nice indian man and he made me feel better by praising Kiev XD
Although I went around taking as many shots as I could, using Kiev but I felt that my eye for composition is still pretty weak. Which was why I took most of my photos with Lx5.
I am still a little disappointed with my pictures. Someday, when I have improved, I’ll go back again to do justice to my hometown’s historical landmark. Hopefully there won’t be any changes by then.
Chinese New Year ’11
There is a reason why I love Chinese New Year so much. It’s not because of the ang pows nor the food (tho they are not that far down the list) but for the people.
The relatives we see once a year. Friends whom we only see on MSN/twitter/FB.
I miss my friends from Kluang. For some reason, life seems more hilarious with them, even if it is for a couple of hours. Now is the perfect time for to catch up with each other. Asking the typical questions
How is life recently?
How’s your new business/job going?
When are you going to graduate? How’s your research/uni?
Are you attached yet?
Oh HI!!! Whaassss…..You’re pregnant??!!
Somethings are a comfort to know. Despite how much in life they have moved on from those pinafore days, they still seem like a familiar face. We still can guess that June and Michelle with be the latest to arrive. Koh will always be the one to initiate a meet up. Ronald will talk like an Ah Beng about his financial plans and ways to make money. And YiChin still needs a ride.
Sg. Mengkibol
I was walking pass Sg. Mengkibol with YiChin, PingYi and Kris when I saw this man.
I cannot believe that there are people fishing for fishes in that smelly rubbish/sewage contaminated river.
Questions ran through my mind. Can they be eaten? Who would eat fishes caught from such a river?
I remember stories from teachers who grew up in Kluang, that Sg. Mengkibol was once a beautiful river with plenty of fishes for fishing. But looking at it now, I can’t picture it. There’s rubbish circulating in the river. People holding their noses as they scurried pass the river to get into town. Some just casually walk pass, ignoring the smell.
Having the bus stations, shops and malls near the river is not helping the river to stay clean. I wonder what MPKU is doing? Why aren’t they doing anything? Is there a need to use an electrical probe just to get the town council to be more aware of the situation?
It’s so human to demand a mile when they are given an inch. I doubt Mother Nature can give them those miles anymore. With only 3% of the drinkable water form earth’s 75% reserve. I wonder if we’ll die of thirst first or die from 2012.
At Home
The one thing I love about living in KL is the fact that I can come home to Kluang. I don’t think I’ll be able to appreciate it as much if I were to work in Kluang.
My friends use to ask
What is there is Kluang?
My reply is always
Kaya toast.
There really is nothing special. Kluang has the same thing that is found in KL and every other place in Malaysia. We have the char kuey teow, wan tan mee, roti canai, nasi lemak, and the list just goes on. They are not special and one can find the cooking style anywhere in Malaysia but for me, the food here taste of home and of childhood memories. I always return to Kluang with a list of must eat. I don’t get it eat them all the time but that makes me look forward to the next trip, right?
Ps: I do hate the 3.5 hours drive home ‘tho but I just as equally hate rushing for the bus. So someone please invent a teleportation thingamajig to get me back home without the drive.
A New Home
Its been three weeks since I moved to new place with ChouMin and AiLi. Life’s been good other than the fact that we live directly above a mamak. We didn’t move very far from the old house which we previously stayed and the plus point was that the apartment is a corner lot. Therefore, all the room’s windows face out into the open instead of the corridor or the living hall.
Fortunately, I got a good view of the dumpster…
FYI, it don’t really smell unless the stupid trash disposal company forgets to come and do their work (PS: I am starting to think that the idea of privatization would increase efficiency is a hoax in Malaysia).This time, instead of the smaller (middle) room, I got the medium sized one. Which I thought meant that I would have more place to put my stuff. As it turns out, it was only just right.
I enjoy the privacy after 3 years of room sharing and 3 months of people staring into my room. I hope that this does not mean I have to move again. I don’t enjoy the moving process. And with someone as blur as I am, I am always looking for thing after a move ‘cuz I just cannot remember where I put them.
Reluctant
I am not planning to go back Kluang for Raya holidays
I made that statement was made too quickly. It went from agreeing to a brief trip to Malacca to visit my grandparents to me going back to Kluang. Then it went from going back to KL as late as possible on a Tuesday to an acceptable 12.30pm on Thursday.
As the clock slowly ticks towards Thursday, I am starting to pray the the good Lord above so that he would just make every minute be as long as 24 hours (yeah right) or at least extend Raya holidays for another week. As busy as I am with the assignments in Kluang, I just don’t want to go back to metropolitan KL again and be lost in the crowd.
Perhaps it would have been better if I had not come back home.
Charms Cafe
Due to the sudden boom in development in Kluang, there are suddenly too many places to choose to go to yamchar with friends. Being out of town all the time, I was never too sure where to go when my friends wants to hang out. The safest bet would usually be Kluang Rail Cafe or Old Town.
From what I have heard was that there is this new cafe in Kluang Mall called Charms Cafe. Everyone in Kluang seems to be going there for gatherings or just to chill out. So after Irodori Sushi, WeiHar and I couldn’t resist going there (it so happens that we decided to go Kluang Mall to continue our hangout time). Everyone is telling us how charming the place is.
The place IS rather charming but only the sitting outside the cafe was charming.They had different size and colour lanterns which I thought was adorable. It reminded me of the charm bracelet that Kris got me a few years back.
And the main attraction of the sitting area was actually a rather large garden swing set.
The food was not very unique and was typical Asian. Neither were there a wide selection of drinks like some of the other cafes but it was all right for me and the prices were rather decent. The food wasn’t bad actually but since we were pretty stuffed from Irodori, we just got some things to drink (sparkling sirap bandung for me and cucumber apple for WeiHar and rojak munch while we yak the time away.
We also ordered cucur bawang and dippings for the cucur bawang was good but it depends on ones taste actually as it was made of lime juice, cili padi and vinegar.
There was a group who had ordered pineapple fried rice and the lamb *drools* which Charms Cafe was noted for. It really, really looks good. I checked the price. RM19.90 for the amount of lamb is an okay price.
While we were there, WeiHar mention that nowadays, teenagers no longer go hang out at mamaks. Everytime they say meet up, they will either be in places like this or at a lounge. Unlike us, when we say yamchar, we’d think of a place like Kak Esah’s to have a drink. But then again, when we were growing up in Kluang, there wasn’t even a cinema/cineplex. Plus, the only decent mall and meet up place was BCB plaza a.k.a bus station ‘cuz everyone takes the bus.
I guess it is either the older generation (us) are too kampung or the younger generation (my brother & co.) are just too pampered and have to much money.
Irodori Sushi
It was one of those rare weekends where I come back to good old ‘lil Kluang. The place is not so little anymore ‘tho. There are many places which a person, like me, who doesn’t come back often knows about.
WeiHar invited me out to try out a new sushi restaurant, Irodori Sushi. (Kluang is not such a backwater town after all, got Japanese restaurant le.)
We didn’t order a lot. Just a pair of octopus sushi,
and unagi chawamushi for starters.
We has the chicken teppanyaki set for our main which we shared. The main course was good. Uniquely, the salad was dressed with mango flavoured dressing which complements the dish surprisingly well. We definitely enjoyed our meal ‘cuz we forgot that both of us wanted pictures to commemorate our first time together here and ended up with only pictures of our empty plates.
I have a particular fondness of their utensils especially the cups. Maybe because of the oriental feel which it give out in that type of atmosphere.
The food there wasn’t something to die for lar but it is rather respectable for a tiny place like Kluang. The restaurant setting is rather peaceful and suitable for a relaxed chat with friend(s) but as we sat there for a couple of hours, I noticed that the customers just comes in, eat, pay bill and leave. Why the rush? They should kick back and relax. After all the place provides good customer service. The serveurs constantly refill our cups with green tea and remove the finished plates so that we can catch up with each other in comfort.
Immortality
My parents are forever yelling my name almost every minute of the day. Lecturing and nagging that I’m now an adult, I should be more responsible. The typical feeling – that childish, angry and insecure feeling – that I use to have as a teenager has emerged and was my constant companion throughout my one month stay at home. I don’t like that feeling. It reminds me who stupid I am then and how stupid I am now. I hate it here at home.
Yet as the day for for me to return to KL approaches, I have be having a mixed feeling. I am reluctant (weirdly) to go back to the city that I love. What is the cause? Maybe it’s the place that I’m staying. Maybe it’s because I have to start my lab and I’m unprepared. But I suspect that I’m not really willing to leave the nest.
My mom’s accident and my dad’s recent heart problem made me realised that my parents are no longer the “Mommy” and “Daddy” I remembered as a young girl. That they are not immortals. Someday, I’m not able to pick up the phone and call home for advices. Someday, I will come home and not see them (not like I see them very often when I home anyways but you know what I mean). And that it what scares me. That is what makes me reluctant to leave home.
A Somewhat Mundane Holiday
Life is pretty boring back here in Kluang. It is rather small anyways despite of the two new malls, Kluang Parade and Kluang Mall. Plus, everyone is either too busy to go out or out of town.
Plus, for the past one week or so, I was on an unwilling hiatus ‘cuz the Streamyx at home was on fritz (the horrors). Thus my days were spent alternately lazying on the bed and on the floor – when the bed becomes to damn hot. If not that, then I’ll be on the phone trying to get the ‘net to work. And my brother came home *sigh* causing limited car usage. Ergo, more staying at home.
Since I had that much free time on my hand, I finally finish arranging my books is alphabetical order *woohoo~* I KNOW. I know. It’s rather lame but hey, I need something to do other than lying down on that hot bed, reading and growing sideways. Now, I should start on my reading for the masters program but….. let’s procrastinate a little longer shall I?
Other than that? My dad had to go up to the National Heart Institute a.k.a IJN to get his angiogram done. Poor guy. The doc said no driving, no lifting of things heavier than 1kg, look after his diet AND if possible, get someone to feed him his meals. So all he has been hearing from everyone in the family was
“I’ll drive!”
“Don’t carry that! I’ll do it.”
“Hey, remember your wrist.”
“Don’t eat so much.”
“Are you sure you can eat that? I thought it is bad for you.”
From what I heard from my Dad, getting an angiogram it pretty scary but kinda neat 🙂 They slit your wrist at the main artery and insert the catheter. They actually prepared two sites to insert the catheter- the other was at the thigh. That it kind of a long journey to the heart ain’t it? However, the procedure according to him was quite painless and that he couldn’t feel the catheter at all.
Okay, so the holidays are not exciting so far… At least, TienLi is coming back tomorrow. Yeah! Supper and lim teh… finally, a social life.
Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day is a rather important day for everyone of us out there to show our mothers our appreciation. Personally, I have salute my mother. ‘Cuz even after the blood, sweat and labor of giving birth, she has to raise this monster for the 23 years to be a somewhat decent human being.
So in order to express my gratitude, I HAVE to get her a gift. I cracked my brains. I plotted and planned. I schemed. And guess what I got her? Nothing. *sigh* Because I forgot about Mother’s Day on the only day I went shopping at MidValley.
At the end, after all my determination to not buy her another Body Shop gift, I ended up buying her Body Shop shower gel and body scrub with the body butter. All expenses paid by Dad. So paiseh.
Home at Last
Finally, I have sent in my thesis. Whoopee….. So happy. I didn’t care any more. I don’t care if I had made any grammared mistakes, punctuation; errors., tpyos, weird sentences etc. Ok lah… I do care. I was pretty stressed when I went and got my four thesis printed out (What if something went wrong with the hardcover *cower and cringe*). The lady boss of the shop thought it was pretty hilarious that I was panicking over those few stacks of printed papers. Whatever. At least after this, I get to go home for awhile.
When I got to Pudu Raya today, I discovered I missed the 2pm bus home. Dammit. Nevermind, at least I manage to get on the 4.30pm bus. I fidgeted and played with the air-con through out the whole journey. I pity the guy beside. *sigh* I didn’t sleep throughout the journey. I couldn’t. Just couldn’t. Too psyched. I don’t know how Winnie does it, her not being able to go back for so long.
Soupy wan tan mee and spicy tang yuan never tasted so good. Tomorrow’s breakfast is sausages, eggs and pancakes 😀 When can I get my railway toast, I wonder.
Now, this heat roasted and 3 days internet deprived girl is going to enjoy her air-conditioning while checking her mail and lazying around her bed with a good book. There is really no place like home.
The Loose Screws 