When
Pearly, my second sister, and her daughter, Melanie, decided that they wished
to make another trip to Malaysia, their plans for a trip from UK to Asia was
discussed months ago.
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| Pearly [Left] with her family in the train on their visit to the city, Kuala Lumpur |
Her
most recent trip was in December 2022 when she travelled alone to witness the book
launch of My Johor Stories 3: Proudly Johor, Then and Now, the final
instalment that completed the trilogy of My Johor Stories books.
As
Pearly considered their travel dates and itinerary, she realized that August
2024 coincided with the 10th wedding anniversary of her son, Jamie,
who married Kimberly in 2014, an event which my siblings and I witnessed in the
UK.
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| Pearly [Left] and Melanie [Right] with the grandkids, Jamieson and Thea at the hotel pool, Singapore |
Their
time with us as young adults gave this Aunty the opportunity to share with
them, some unforgettable experiences in a travel itinerary that peaked at
Gopeng with a wet and wild ride in a white-water rafting adventure on the
Kampar River.
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| Cousins together again: Then and Now, Jamie holding Amanda with Melanie [Right] |
Pearly
then initiated further discussions with her family about the travel plans that
would match with her two grandkids, Thea and Jamieson, aged five and eight.
Over
the next few weeks, they were able to flesh out an itinerary that worked with
arrival and departure through Singapore and destinations that spanned from
Johor Bahru, Kuala Lumpur to Kuala Gandah, back via Melaka and to Desaru in
Johor.
Once
the flight tickets were booked, they did extensive online research to secure reservations
at destinations, places-of-interest and hotels in locations like Singapore,
Kuala Lumpur and Legoland Malaysia Resort and Pulai Springs Resort in Johor.
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| Jamie & Kimberly with Jamieson and Thea at the Mak's, Singapore |
While
they were in Singapore, the family had an itinerary to visit some
places-of-interest like the Aquarium at Sentosa Island and a meet-up with
relatives in the Mak clan.
Since
their retirement, the senior Mak's have been on globe-trotting adventures – from
motorcycle convoys to mountain-climbing – with a recent stopover in London
where Pearly met them in the city.
In
Singapore, the hospitable Mak's had graciously invited Pearly and her family for
a sumptuous feast on local delicacies.
While
their travel date into Johor was right smack within the weekend where Singapore
celebrated her National Day, it was a relieve for everyone that the
border-crossing into Johor went rather smoothly.
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| Thea leaving her instructions to my brother and his wife on the care of Missy Kissy |
Over
the years, my sister had stayed in touch with us through regular video chats
and made every effort to let her grandkids get acquainted with their
great-grandmother (our mother!) and grand-aunts (our eldest sister and I!) through
such video chats.
So
when we finally met physically, the experience was not overwhelming for the
kids who had already grown familiar with us via video chats.
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| Durian for dessert; Jamieson pinching his nose! |
Prior
to their arrival, my sister had indicated her desire for a taste of durian and
as we were still within the season, I made advance arrangements to satisfy her
longing.
None
of the UK visitors knew that this fragrant fruit, packed in sealed airtight
containers, was chilling in the refrigerator until they were opened and served
for dessert after our dinner.
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| Ready to head up the Twin Towers |
When
the eating started, her son excused himself from the table to be with the kids
while his wife, Kimberly, was a good sport, ready to give durian a try.
At
her first taste of durian, Kimberly found it’s sweet and creamy texture so
agreeable that she went on to have her second seed, followed by a third. After
her fourth seed, she decided that it was enough for her. When she left the
table, we congratulated her for scoring full marks in her first encounter with
durian.
My
sister’s family visit was also a time of reunion with my brother’s family who
graciously hosted their stay in their home both in Johor Bahru and USJ,
Selangor.
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| Browsing the street market, Petaling Street, Kuala Lumpur |
While
reminiscing about that trip, someone shared a charming photograph where Jamie
carried baby Amanda in his arms while his sister stood next to them.
When
the three posed together for a current photo memento, we saw that Time had
certainly passed so quickly because the cousins were adults now.
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| Melanie and Jamie with Grand-Aunt Dato Sylvia |
When
Jamie heard my question, his spontaneous response was, “Let’s get it done
then!” And they captured a special Then and Now memory for everyone.
Our
time together was also a wonderful opportunity to interact with the grandkids,
a boisterous pair who – by God’s grace – was spared any insect bites or ill
health in their new experiences travelling to various destinations in our
tropical weather.
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| Feeding an elephant at Kuala Gandah, Pahang |
It
was a pleasure to meet Missy Kissy, a baby doll belonging to Thea, that looked
surprisingly real and which could exercise bodily functions like drinking and
peeing.
When
the family went for their overnight stay at Legoland Hotel Malaysia, Thea was
advised to leave Missy Kissy at home as there was plenty of Lego to play in the
hotel room.
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| Being 'fed' to a crocodile at Teluk Sengat, Johor |
I
was also happy to meet with Jamieson’s pet hamster – which did not move because
the battery had gone flat due to too much activity – but I was more than
pleased when he showed me the illustrated and handwritten adventures of his
legendary hamster.
He
gently warned me that the beginning of his book was sad and it was indeed very
sad because the opening line read something like this: “On the day that I was
born, my parents died…”
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| Close encounter with a lobster! |
As
he turned the delicate pages to read with me, he reached the final page of the
first episode that opened up into a large poster of his legendary bulging-muscled
hamster!
I
was delighted that creative writing lives on in young Jamieson and when I
encouraged him to continue with the next exciting episodes – after his holiday
experiences – that feature this hamster enjoying its Asian Adventures, Jamieson
seemed to seriously take my ideas on board …
So
starting from Singapore, the family from UK arrived in Johor Bahru before
heading to Kuala Lumpur where they visited relatives and landmark destinations
like the Petronas Twin Towers.
They
had made advance reservations for a 6pm visit so that they could enjoy an
aerial sunset view of the Kuala Lumpur city skyline.
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| Lunch treat: Chicken Rice Balls in Melaka |
Their
visit to Kuala Lumpur then continued with a walk through the touristy Petaling
Street to enjoy the sights and sounds of the Malaysian street market.
On
their return drive from Kuala Lumpur to Johor Bahru, the family took a detour
into the historical city of Melaka to visit the landmark A Formosa monument.
While
the weather was fine, the humidity certainly took a toll on the youngsters
whose energy was sapped and waves of lethargy caught up with them. Everyone
welcomed a sit-down lunch and were soon rejuvenated by a meal of chicken rice
balls washed down by refreshing drinks.
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| With nephew Jamie and grand-nephew Jamieson and grand-niece Thea |
Back
in Johor Bahru, the family rested and repacked their bags and headed off to
Desaru for a beachfront holiday with a visit to the Crocodile World in Teluk
Sengat and seafood feasts at Sungai Rengit.
Their
stay with us in Johor Bahru continued with a downtown walk to explore heritage
streets with me before packing again to go for another staycation, this time at
Pulai Springs Resort.
The
family, holders of annual passes to Legoland Malaysia Resort, have been back to
the theme park several times to enjoy the rides, the waterpark as well as
SeaLife.
From
feeding elephants to meeting crocodiles, from climbing the Petronas Twin Towers
to building a ginormous castle with moat on Desaru’s sandy beach, my sister’s
grandkids certainly had such a wide range of experiences to jot down in their
holiday dairies along with many new memories made with family and friends here.
All
good things must come to an end – especially on fun holiday trips – and then it
was time for farewells, a long flight and the return to work and school.
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| Farewell at Departure from Changi Airport, Singapore |
P.S.
Meanwhile, Jamieson has declared that he would like to live in Legoland. After
playing the slide on the swimming pool at Mont Kiara where our Aunty Dato
Sylvia lives, he said he would like to stay there for the rest of his holiday.
Then
while enjoying countless rides down the slide at the swimming pool in the Pulai
Springs clubhouse, Jamieson said he would like to work there and shared his
ideas on how he could improve the arrangements for a better pool experience…
P.P.S.
My sister and her daughter extended their stay for a further 10 days to spend
more time with us and to celebrate our mother’s birthday in early September.
Love your writing, Peggy
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