Not too long ago, more like a month or so; we i.e. Jeannie and I started with Christmas preparations. It was more Jeannie than me.
For starters, she put up Christmas trees, yes…plural in “tree”. Not one tree, not two trees, but three trees. There were decorations in various parts of the house that was put up earlier on.
Laura, her boyfriend, Praga; Jeannie and I had a nice pre-Christmas dinner at Chili’s. The food was good – we enjoyed it. I had a Margarita for the evening. It was kinda of o.k., could have been better. It was a good evening.
The next evening, we. meaning Laura, Praga, Jeannie and I; were at St Thomas More Church, Subang Jaya, for mass. We made sure we were early, especially to avoid a possible downpour of rain (it has been raining almost everyday. Reverend Father Simon La Brooy presided at mass. The time at church was wonderful.
One of the traditional events that we are involved in and participate is the gathering of siblings and their families at mum’s and dad’s home in Klang for dinner on Christmas evening. I think we have been doing this for as long as I can remember.
Notice the little lighted Christmas tree?
Shirley, Sarah and her boyfriend, King; were the first to arrive. We (Laura & Praga, Jeannie and myself) were the next to be at the scene. A few minutes later, everyone else started arriving.
There was a wide spread of food, including lamb and shepherd’s pie. We also had Christmas fruitcake flown in all the way from Canada, courtesy of Ray and Susan.
ALL IN THE FAMILY Front row, right to left: Praga (Laura’s boyfriend), Laura (Jeannie’s and my daughter), Jeannie, Shirley, myself. Middle row, seated; right to left: Susan (Raymond Arnold’s wife), Uma (Malcolm’s wife), Dad, Mum, Mabel (Terence’s wife), Sarah (Shirley’s daughter). Third row, standing; right to left: Raymond Arnold (Behind Susan), Jay (Ashley’s husband), Ashley & Alana (both are Terence’s and Mabel’s daughters), Terence, Malcolm and King.
Malaysians – a must for their food.
The youngest and the eldest.
The youngest and the eldest of brothers.
The middle one.
The Three brothers👆
And the caroling began…
Christmas won’t be Christmas at the Atkinsons if there was no caroling. Malcolm and Jay took the lead. Everyone whipped out their phone song sheets. How convenient. No real flipping of paper pages unless you add the soundlike flipping of pages sound to your whatsapp thread when you search for song lyrics.
There was a mix of Christmas carols and non-Christmas carols – favourites.
Dad, recording with his smartphone. He’ s almost like Santa Clause. He knows who is singing in time and who isn’t. The proof is in the recording. Everyone’s getting presents.
The singing goes on.
Christmas seemed a bit different this time round. It seemed brighter, with lots more laughter and joy. Yes, we are all slightly older this time round, probably wiser, too. Christmas with family is an integral part of our lives, I guess. We remember Jen and Nigel, who were with us in spirit; too.
As we got on the northbound LRT train towards Gombak (the other way is southbound, heading towards Putra Heights); I still hadn’t reached that “Yay! let’s go to KLCC” mood level yet. I was quite apprehensive that it was going to be overly crowded. Getting on the train itself met with quite a bit of a crowd. We managed to get seats as we got in.
Throughout the journey, the train met with near full capacity status. At one of the stops, an elderly couple got on board. Jeannie and I immediately got up to offer our seats. A couple of young ladies got up to offer their seats to us; we, who were slight-ly older than them.😉
We were at KLCC soon enough. Sure beats driving down to K.L. which usually requires a lot of energy sapping concentration due to the usual heavy traffic.
The shopping mall was as expected – crowded. However, we still could move around without physically bumping into people. We walked to the happening place, where the main Christmas decorations were up. The whole shopping mall was in Christmas mode with all its decorations, music and festivities. I will always love toys. What better way to know the latest and the greatest is when they are introduced just in time for Christmas. I figure that toys are an excellent way to get kids and adults away from screens – phone screens, pad/tablet screens, tv screens, cinema screens.
Here I am 🎅👆, in the two pictures above; inspecting the gingerbread train. Got such thing, meh? (Local English for: “Oh really! Is there ever such a thing as a gingerbread train?” You may be forgiven to think that this a subtle “Teva” brand advertisement (hint, hint).
Santa was not too good this year, so he was punished to sit up in the clocktower for a couple of hours. Poor guy. He did not realise that they removed the hands from the clock face. So a couple of hours could be eternity.
Since Santa was punished, up in the clocktower; we had to send our Christmas wishes by post. Mine is a Rolls Royce Spectre (not Sceptre – that’s a clone copy) – the real thing.
No, our day is not over… yet. Taking a break from all this Christmasing…more like from all the walking.
We had to take a break from the festivities of walking the length and breadth of KLCC Shopping Mall for a while. Jeannie bought some curry puffs and other delights. Just before this break, I managed to find a writing instrument at Kinokuniya Book store for my mini folio.
The mini mechanical pencil fits nicely in the zip-lock sleeve which I keep towards the back of the folder.
The eats from “Kampong Kravers” was very, very tasty. You guys, if you ever do come to KLCC, should have a go at the variety of food they have on offer. At reasonable prices, too. Jeannie got a couple of can-packed coffees, both from the Pokka brand. Their premium rich coffee was quite nice. It did not have that bitter after taste that comes with most coffees in a can. Their Mocha was quite nice, too; though I stuck with their premium rich coffee.
Some drinks while resting. The Pokka Premium Rich Coffee is pretty good.
My wife, Jeannie; as usual, signed us up for the gingerbread decorating session. “Why, or why?”, I kept asking myself.
Some people around me may have thought I was a bit whacky, what with the waving my hand this way and that, raising and lowering it, opening it and closing; all these actions in front of my phone, sort of hand gestures with the hocus-poke us, abra-ca-de-bra magic mantra saying, trying to get the phone to do something. In this case, it was to take pictures.
When, the decorating session started, Jeannie and I were the two oldest amongst the children. Before long, we could hear kids telling their parents, “Stop helping me. I want to decorate on my own”. Those parents may have thought either their kids needed help to compete against us, or they themselves wanted to decorate gingerbread cookies but were to shy to come forward on their own. Now, they made it seem that they were “helping their children”. How mischievous could that be?
Jeannie’s work (top) and mine.
Jeannie told me that we weren’t (old word, not used in a long time. Pronounced as “weren’t”. However, locally pronounced as “wer-ren’t”) decorating gingerbread cookies. There were actually butter cookies.
My work of art, minimalist, yet edible.
That was fun. Especially getting to eat the decorated cookies after that. We were soon on the LRT train heading back towards Putra Heights, but had a stop to do, which Jeannie kept insisting we had to make. And that was to “Pasar Seni” or Central Market, where the artsy people gather to sell and buy stuff. It was only 4 stops from KLCC.
The weather held up pretty good, as we had to walk about 5 minutes (including crossing the very busy streets where vehicles do not respect pedestrian zebra-crossings at all.
Resting at the newly opened grocery store and a food court style eating place.
With a bit of patience, we managed to get across the busy street. When we got into Pasar Seni, we were greeted with a new, large grocery store, surrounded with many eating places. There was as usual, a wide variety of foods that one could choose from. Pasar Seni, besides the new grocery store and eating establishments, was as usual, a hive of activity.
Was trying to use the “magic wand” S-Pen to turn the butter cookies to gingerbread cookies. But I Kept getting a message on my phone that the S-Pen was connected to: “Unavailable. Maybe, in the next S-Pen software upgrade”.
Before long, (actually it was quite a long time), the Batik Influencer, Jeannie; had canvassed some of the grounds at Pesar Seni for what was new on the batik scene. She purchased several pieces of batik and a very traditional blouse for herself. She was happy.
I, in the meantime, came across Koopi, a new coffee brand in town. The booth was manned by Kate Poon and her mother. They were promoting their new brand (at least to me, it was new) by giving out taste samples.
Kate is a very approachable person. She was full of passion for her product. She was not trying to sell coffee. She was promoting an experience, a wonderful experience at that. A business that she runs with her father. She comes from three generations of kopitiam business. From the samples I tried,I liked the coffee. I purchased the different types of coffee they were promoting. Keep a lookout for my review on Koopi coffees.
We had to make our home as it had been quite a long morning and afternoon expedition. The train ride back home was not as crowded as when were we heading to K.L. We reached home with just enough time to freshen up and meet Laura and her boyfriend, Praga; for dinner.
It was a very relaxed morning. The scene was a bit laid back. Maybe, due to it being a public holiday. Whatever it was, it was good.
The weather was not too hot. However, it was still humid.
Laura had made arrangements to meet a fellow Millikin University student, who had arrived in Malaysia on a holiday a few days ago with his family. He was at the university for a semester and they had kept in touch ever since.
Their arrangement to meet was at the KLCC Shopping Mall, which is part of the Petronas Twin Towers – once the tallest building in the world. We, Jeannie and I offered to drive Laura to the Mall. The mall was expected to be crowded because of the holiday.
We got to the Mall at about 4.00pm. Getting a car park space was surprisingly easy. We got one almost as soon as we got into the building.
Laura was in contact with her friend, found out where they were at the mall, gave our location and finally met.
From Right to Left: Isabel, Lucas, Vera, Manon, Peter, Sacha, Jeannie, Laura, Youri and me (Alan)
Youri and his family are from the Netherlands. They had just come back from the island of Borneo after a short visit. They visited the town of Sandakan in Sabah. Sabah at one time was referred to as “North Borneo”. It is one of the 14 states of Malaysia. The states of Sabah and Sarawak which make up East Malaysia; are on the island of Borneo. The other 12 states make up Peninsula Malaysia (or West Malaysia).
It was tea time. The Bouwsema family were game to try local food. One of the best places that offered local kuih (cakes), pastries and drinks was “Nyonya Colours”. Jeannie is undoubtedly the food expert (besides being the renowned Batik Influencer). She, Laura and Youri picked out a variety of the kuih and currypuffs, probably a little bit of everything that was on display. As for drinks, local coffee and tea in the various offerings were ordered. The exceptions were: Lucas had soda (Coca-Cola) and Laura, plain water.
We got to know each other a little bit better. Peter is an Operations Director for an international manufacturing company and Manon works at Flight Control (Ground). It is exciting work where she directs aircraft or helps them maneuver between and around other aircraft and land vehicles on the ground. Their children are in various levels of education. Youri wants to be a pilot.
Manon and Peter. Peter is looking at the beautiful view through the glass roof at the centre of the KLCC shopping mall.
“Saint” Peter (his halo is behind him) enjoying Malaysian delights. “This is what I call a currypuff”, at least his facial expression says it.
Expert with the chopsticks.
Lucas, a penny for your thoughts? Manon is about to try a different kuih with Vera.
The Bouwsema family made bookings to visit the Petronas Twin Tower Skybridge on the 41st floor and the Observation Deck on the 86th floor later that evening.
So, what’s next after tea? We did the most natural thing – planned for dinner. Manon and Peter were keen for more local cuisine. They wanted dinner to be at the Mall so they could be in time for their visit to the Skybridge and Observation Deck. Jeannie suggested we dine at “Serai”, a restaurant that offers both local as well as western cuisine.
We headed to the restaurant which is located in the Signature food court area. To get there is easy. At the entrance of the food court, you turn right and Serai restaurant at the end of it, about 150 meters walk. Jeannie helped make a reservation for 10. The head waitress said that they do not usually accept reservations. However, they would make an exception for us.
We then, had about an hour before dinner on our hands. We split up to shop at the places we were most likely to intertest us. I did a quick tour to the IT (everything technology) section. I am quite keen on the idea of getting the Insta 360 X3 action camera. I want to explore fun, action simple cameralogy, sort of a new hobby to alternate with journalism, perhaps. The X3 is a great improvement from the X2 model I had 2 years ago.
I started heading to the restaurant with 15 minutes to spare before time. It was easy to find out reserved table as Peter, Manon and Jeannie were already seated there.
One of the first things that caught the attention of some of us at the table were the large mirrors on the ceiling, above our table. Very interesting. What an easy way to take selfie pictures! Place our smartphones on the table and start tapping the camera shutter button.
My dinner – Mamak Mee Goreng, with strips of fried egg, vegetables and other condiments; served on banana leaf. It was as oily as it looked. It was as delicious as it looked, too. Squeezing the small lime (top, 11 o’clock on the plate) added just that tinge of uniqueness to the taste. Not only did it look delicious; it tasted delicious, too.From what we’ve been told, Peter is quite the selfie expert. Here, in this selfie or “wefie” picture taken by him, he shows us that he is an expert at selfies. This is a beautiful shot worth keeping. From Right to left, starting with Peter: Peter, self (Alan), Manon, Laura, Youri, Sacha, Lucas, Isabel, Vera, Jeannie.Everyone, cameras…er I mean phones with camera mode on, on the table.Look up everybody. You can see the top of the Petronas Twin Towers from here. (No, you can’t 😏)People around us must have been wondering why we were so excited, looking up the ceiling. 😁😂
It was a good thing that the service at Serai was good and all our meals were served quite quickly. We all enjoyed our meal and had a great time getting to know each other more.
Alas, the time came when we had to go our separate ways. The Bouwsema family had a high speed lift or two to catch for the next leg of their holiday visit to Malaysia. In the next few days, their holiday expedition would include a trip to Georgetown, Penang and Taman Negara (National Park) in Pahang. We wish them the very best for the rest of their holiday vacation. We look forward to meeting them on their next trip to Malaysia. Or, we visit them in The Netherlands.
It’s one of those times in the year when I seem to feel groggy throughout the day. I have a light, nagging or annoying perpetual headache that does not seem to go away.
So, I know it is that “time of the year” or period. I seem to get into this situation at this time, every year. I don’t know why, really. There are no snow blizzards here where we are hemmed in or holed out at home or any place we are at. For me, it is the raining season. Though it rains throughout the year in Malaysia due to its tropical climate, from this time in November, right though to January or February each year; this dull mood, sense of dej-a-vue sets in.
At times. or most of the time; it sets off the sinus problem I have. Most of the time, pain accompanies it. So, you know, it can be miserable. Several trips to the doctor during this period to get medication to soothe me or lessen the pain or even remove the pain. But cure does not seem to be available.
Maybe, it’s something in the air.
As I write this, I can hear the rumbling of thunder in a distance. It is raining, a soft-to-slightly strong, drizzle. The time now is 1.07am.
It can’t be the cooler temperatures in general that we usually experience annually this period of time. I have climbed Mt Kinabalu in Sabah (also known as “The Land Below The Wind”), Malaysia; twice. It is the tallest mountain in South East Asia at 4095 metres high. Temperatures are single digit Celcius cold. Accompanied by the winds, colder still.
On top of Mt Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. This is South East Asia’s highest peak.
On my first trip up; it was heavy rain and super strong winds with visibility at about zero due to the low hanging clouds, which made the climb to base camp challenging; and that’s putting it mildly. No issue then, except for the unnerving cold, the strong winds and the rain. But no sinus issues then.
This picture of Mt Kinabalu was taken across the valley, at the Kundasang War Memorial. We were on our way up to Mt. Kinabalu.
On an occasion, when we were in Perth, Australia; my cousin, Brendon Surin and his wife, Ruth; thought it’d be fun to go to the beach just out of Perth. They took my late brother, Nigel his wife Shirley, my wife Jeannie and I there, but at midnight, in the middle of winter. Duncan, Brendon’s youngest brother (my cousin brother. Well, in Malaysia; that is how they describe [My] your cousin’s brother, literally.), joined us, too.
Isn’t my cousin’s brother my cousin as well?🤨 Just saying.
That night at the beach, where we sat with our backs against the ocean to block the blizzardly styled winds from blowing onto our faces; we hardly spoke. We were too busy chattering and shivering. These Aussies have a weird sense of enjoyment. Haha.
Well, with all that bad weather (at least to us, it was); I did not had any sinus issues. Maybe, it was because it was in the month of August?
Italy was in winter when we on holiday there. It is a beautiful country with lots and lots of postcard sceneries. The cold winter was fine with me. We spent time at Bormio, a town in the north of Italy with the picturesque southern part of the Swiss Alps as its backdrop. Bormio is 3 and a half hours away from the Swiss border.
Postcard style, scenery. On our way to Bormio, from Milan.
Snow in Bormio. Laura experienced snowfall for the first time.
Winter in Bormio, North Italy.
Bormio, Northern Italy; from our hotel.
Winter in Vactican City
Winter in Vactican City. Resting against a pillar, just under the Pope’s (Pope Benedict) apartment.Notice how sunny it is here?Winter – another very sunny day. At the Coliseum – no, not the relic at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (though it looks about the same age). This is in Rome, Italy.Winter – At a cafe in Pelugia. The staircase leads to the toilets! That’s it. Period.
In all these pictures, you see me having a good time, no indication of the suffering soccertash…er, I mean sinus.
I have come to deduce that it is not the cold weather or even the wintery weather that affects me and sets off my seasonal sinus. And it is not in any other country, except here, in Malaysia; during this monsoon season….I think that the monsoon winds and rains that blow over this part of Malaysia brings together with them, something in the air, that affects me. That “something” has not been identified… yet.
Does anyone else have this issue? Please let me know in the comments.
