After six and a half years and two degrees later, our M1 is finally coming home. We are, of course, thrilled with her decision. There was quite a fair bit of anxiety for her trying to book her flight home because of the pandemic.
She had two previous bookings canceled by the airlines because of limited flights and transiting countries having strict regulations to deal with the pandemic. What was supposed to be an 18-hour one-stopover journey became a two-stopover and much more than that. Way much more.
The two-stopover flight with Air Canada did not go as planned! The delayed first leg of the journey caused her to miss her connecting flight to Narita Airport for the second leg. Dear, oh dear. And she could not wait for the next available flight out with the same airline as the Covid-19 test would become invalid after 72 hours from testing. Throw in the immigration restrictions of no more than 24 hours for transit.
It’s so stressful to add to the anxiety dealing with new issues like flight timing, and immigration, on top of health.
Thankfully, she found an alternative airline for the same day, but the journey is longer. Oh well, an extended flight is better than being unable to return at all. With cases on the uptrend again, there isn’t much choice. I will be tracking her path on flightaware.com as always. We have to wait another day until she arrives.
It’s a week already that M2 has returned and under quarantine. Staying in a modern and comfy room in the city, with three meals each day, I’d say so far, so good, although all she does is eat, sleep, talk to us, and not much else! At least when we talk, we are in the same time zone unlike, when she was still in Ireland on a seven-hour time difference with us.
Soon another week will go by quickly, and she will be truly home. Yay! We plan to have a celebratory garden barbeque for the occasion. Time, hurry on faster, please? I can’t wait!
Last Saturday marks the 8th Anniversary of my blog! Wow. I am amazed that I have persevered for so long to keep this going. But all this achievement is unattainable if it wasn’t for the support of all my readers.
The blog has certainly evolved from a journal to share the antics of my girls and my travels. Along the way, I picked up new hobbies, the girls grew up and went off to college, and the travel escapades were lesser.
The travel non-escapades were more evident in the last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic that has taken over the world and disrupted many things taken for granted.
Well, I certainly won’t take the things I do for granted and am thankful to every one of my readers as you follow me on my whimsical endeavors and daily musings. Happy Anniversary and happy writing to me!
I had a restless night tracking M2’s flight. She has another five hours of flying before arriving in Singapore for a short stopover of an hour and a half. Then another hour’s flight before arriving in KLIA as of this entry.
I cannot believe how fast time has gone. Last October, she went back to Ireland, and now, another year of college is complete.
But we won’t get to be with her for another two weeks as she has to undergo quarantine requirements at a hotel. So close yet so far still. Sigh.
Today our M2 is flying back from Ireland! Woohoo. She has completed her second year at university and is homeward bound for the summer holidays. The journey will be tedious as a result of the stringent requirements to fly due to Covid-19.
Unlike last year, when she came home in March for a six-month summer holiday and was home-quarantined, this time, a chartered coach will greet her at the airport and send her to a hotel to be quarantined upon her arrival. We don’t have to pick her up as these measures are in place for all arriving at KLIA to Malaysia.
We only have to monitor her flight on flightaware.com to ensure her journey is on time. She flies this late afternoon (her local time) which is equivalent to our past midnight time, so I guess I won’t be sleeping much to track her flight until her final arrival.
There have been several extensions to this year’s MCO, originally termed MCO 2.0. How do we categorize these extensions? Typically it’s a two-week duration, but the second nine-day one threw things out of order. Do we say version 2.3, 2.2.1, or part three for the latest extension for 14 days until 18 February? Sigh. Whatever it is, one thing is for sure, the coming Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year on 12 February will be very different with the latest MCO enforced.
No interstate travel back to hubby’s hometown up North to see his folks, no Reunion Dinner even with my Mom, my brother, and his family because we are well beyond the 10km distance allowed for in-state travel. Other secondary no-nos include the customary New Year golf game with hubby. The list can go on. A very muted celebration, if one can even call it a celebration.
Despite the bleak outlook, we have put up the customary red cloth at the house entrance to brighten the situation. And we will have to find a balance to keep well for the remaining MCO days until further notice.
M2 flew off yesterday evening. My heart was heavy, and there were tears, mostly mine when I hugged her ever so tightly. The time has come to let her go, now that her college is ready to welcome back returning students.
We arrived at the airport early and waited for a bit before the check-in counters opened. Most of the passengers were young adults, students like M2, returning to their respective universities.
The airport was not a bustling hive of activity like the pre-pandemic days. The place looked gloomy. The ever-popular KFC and McDonald’s were shuttered since 18 March, the start of the nation lockdown phases. So unfortunate.
My brave girl returning to college by herself
M2 arrived in Doha early this morning and in transit for the next flight. We managed to talk to her just only. She’s in good spirits despite feeling tired from a lack of sleep and having to wear a face mask and face shield provided by Qatar Airways throughout the journey.
We will be more at ease once we hear from her again the next time from Dublin.
It has been six months that M2 came back from Ireland at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic mayhem. And it was a good six months with her around; the house is not so big and empty.
But sadly, all good things must come to an end. Time has flown by so fast, and it is time for her to return to Ireland for her studies.
While we are worried about her journey, there are many precautions and SOPs taken by the airlines and airports to ensure a safe journey for every traveler. So we should be comforted by these new norm practices.
I will, as always, track her flight on flightaware.com and being unable to sleep through the night until I know she has arrived safely on campus. A mother’s worry is constant regardless of how old a child is.
Wednesday was a public holiday, being Malaysia Day, and we took the opportunity to do another day trip excursion. This time, we went to Cameron Highlands.
Mom came along this time for the little adventure. The journey started late as we couldn’t wake up early. But as we’re not in a hurry, it did not matter. The first stop was at Bidor for brunch.
Wantan Noodles for brunch
I was disappointed that I did not get to eat the Duck Noodles because the order taker was not very clear when she spoke in Cantonese to us. Nor was she attentive to recommend. We all ended up having Wantan Noodles instead.
After the quick meal, the journey continued towards Cameron Highlands. Traffic was not that heavy, and the drive was pleasant enough despite the winding road along the hillside. Along the way, we stopped to buy local produce – bamboo shoots and stink beans, or commonly know as petai.
Buying bamboo shoots and petai
By 12.30 pm we arrived at the Boh Plantation. The weather was cloudy, windy, and a wee bit chilly. Nice though. However, with the pandemic and SOP enforced, visitors had to be controlled for social distancing; we couldn’t stay too long, enough only for a quick tea and scone break.
The picturesque hills of the Boh PlantationThe scone
I felt the scone paled in comparison to hubby’s home-baked scones. It’s good to know though the quality and standard of hubby’s baking skills. As the factory tour has ceased due to the pandemic, there was no reason for us to linger. We left shortly for the Bee Farm, which was not too far away.
Bees and strawberries, and masks on!
It was a short visit as there wasn’t much to see. There was only one strawberry plant worthy to be photographed, and I did just that.
Vegetable farms on the hills
We left for Cameron Highlands for Raju’s Hill Strawberry Farm next. By now, traffic began to build up. Before we knew it, it was like every other car on the road was also going to Raju’s farm! The traffic crawl was a good hour or so. Not nice.
Look at the sky and traffic! It was like a long arduous drive into the abyss
By the time we arrived at the junction to turn towards the farm, the long queue in front change our minds. We decided to leave before the traffic built up again when everyone decides to leave the place.
Along the drive back, we stopped at the roadside to buy some fresh vegetables and more petai! The rest of the journey down wasn’t too bad as there weren’t that many cars yet.
More petai and fresh vegetables
We arrived in Tapah by 5.30 pm and had an early dinner. We were all ravenous as I realized we didn’t eat lunch!
A satisfying meal after a rather long and tiring day
The rest of the journey home was pleasant without much traffic build-up, and after sending Mom home, we arrived home safely. A wonderful day trip indeed.
Over the weekend, it was our first time doing a really short anniversary trip. Just two days and a night away, given the circumstances of the pandemic and protocols to contain the spread.
We decided to visit Malacca again after the last trip there to check out the Husky cafe with M2. This trip, sans M2, it was simply a round of golf at A’Formosa Golf Resort, food and playing tourist at Jonker Walk.
The front of Aava Hotel. The back entrance faces the riverfront.The lobby, breakfast room and waiting area. Room was big and comfy.
We stayed at Aava Hotel which was very strategic and within walking distance to the attractions. On Saturday evening, after golf and checking in, we explored the street market on Jonker Walk before and after dinner. People were all masked up and it wasn’t too crowded.
Pre-dinner was Cendol and SatayLovely anniversary tapas dinner
The next day, we even had time to do a morning walkabout again after breakfast. To our delight, we stumbled upon a morning antique market. Not as big as the night attractions, it was very interesting nonetheless. Some of the items on displays brought back memories of things both of us had seen or used when we were young. Lovely.
Colorful rickshaws on the road!
By eleven, we checked out and bade Malacca goodbye, to head for lunch in Seremban. Unfortunately, the famous Beef Noodle at the market was too long a queue, so we opted for something else instead. Oh well, next time…
Clay pot Loh Shi Fun
Next stop was Seremban International Golf Club (SIGC) for an afternoon round of golf before going home. It was windy, the fairways were hard and the greens were horrid to putt. Then it rained. Haish… we had to wait out the rain for about 20 minutes before we could resume our remaining seven holes.
All in all, the trip was short, sweet and very enjoyable. Sometimes it doesn’t have to be far and foreign or exotic but doing what we enjoy most together is best.
Angieneering 
Remarks