… was alright. It always feel different coming back to a place knowing that you’ve aged another year; in this case, five years older. It’s been a while. Despite being Malaysian, I find it hard to think of this place as “home”, when I’ve grown up in Brunei my entire life…
My ye ye appears to be happier and healthier this time though – he’s bed-ridden, and is confined to sitting down most of the time, but his memory is still sharp, and his eyesight still bright. We didn’t visit my grandmother’s grave – some Chinese New Year pantang or what. It’s apparently not advisable to visit graves during CNY – but I guess to the Chinese, it makes sense, since there is the Qing Ming festival that’s in April this year where relatives visit graves and clean up and stuff, and Chinese New Year is, after all, a celebration and time for family and reunion.
I’m not particularly close to my dad’s side of the family – language barrier is one thing. I see my cousins grown up, and it’s almost hard to imagine that we played together once as young kids. It’s funny how as each year passes, and especially since we only see each other once in a blue moon, the distance grows, and we do nothing about it, simply because… it just is. There isn’t much emotional attachment, and I think we’re almost content to let it be. And frankly speaking, I can’t say I’m very fond of my dad’s relatives too, as ugly as that sounds. A question fleeted across my mind – that once my dad’s generation passes by, will that mean the end of “going back” to Ipoh? Will the relatives in Ipoh just become a distant memory? Because for my siblings and I, our home is already here. This is where we will always return to.
I think I much rather spend CNY in Brunei… it feels more like Chinese New Year here than back there.
We visited Cameron Highlands (again) on our way back to KL after a few days in Ipoh. (Highlight of the trip back: My dad let me drive the rented SUV! The horrible 5 hours in the jam from KL to Ipoh when we arrived, and coming down from Cameron Highlands after one night there, going back to KL.) Driving the bends and curves is no joke – I got a bit of a headache after a while of navigating curve after curve – felt like I was spinning round and round. The other “headache” came from the parents who constantly cautioned me to drive slower. Haha. I don’t think parents will ever stop picking at the way we drive. 
The tea plantation and the scenery is gorgeous, but I think after the first time, it loses a bit of the magic. Nevertheless, the scenery is still beautiful; it’s hard to imagine that all these are hidden away here, in the mountains, when two hours away, you have the bustling and busy polluted KL city. (That smog I keep seeing around KL is pollution right??)
When in Cameron Highlands, must have steamboat.
The obscenely fat dog in the restaurant.
Waterfall on the way down.
One of the highlights of the holiday. We went to El Cerdo at Changkat Bukit Bintang in KL. It’s this restaurant that specialises in pork dishes. It’s an interesting experience. My dad, sister and brother came here back in July last year upon the recommendation of my dad’s friend. Since my mom, my youngest brother and I haven’t been here, we came back here again. We treated three of my cousins who are working/studying here in KL too (my mom’s side).
“Nose to tail eating”… you’ll find out why soon.
The door… haha! What a sacrilege.
Unfortunately I can’t remember the details of what we were served, but suffice to say, it was all pork from start to finish.
I do like their mustard though… German, if I remember correctly.
The restaurant
I was like… whoaa. That’s cruellll. Poor piggie.
But before you devour into this though, there’s a ritual that you have to do.
First, two “victims” are picked… (in this case, my mom and brother).
…you “cut” the piglet (yes, piglet) with the plate… apparently the flesh is so tender that you can cut it with the plate. It was a very noisy affair from start to finish. Thump thump thump goes the plate hitting the wooden board to cut across the pig.
Then you make a wish – “money” or “relationship”?
Announce your choice…
And smash the plate in the bucket they provide.
Yes, you smash the plate.
Awesome. I almost wish I had a go at it myself. Haha. No, not the wishing part. The smashing the plate bit.
My brother failed! – he threw his plate into the bucket and it just landed without so much as a crack. The waitress laughed and asked him to try again.
We spent most of our time shopping in Pavillion. Lots of branded, high-end goods. Brrr. It’s such a materialistic world we’re living in now.
When we finally arrived back in Brunei after a week plus, I was never more glad to be home. Even if the weather sucks now, and I’m just content to stay indoors. With flooding and landslides occurring everywhere, it’s not a joke anymore. If it rains at night, don’t bother going out lest you can’t get back home anymore. My mom and sister got caught on that particular bad night a couple weeks back – they had to leave the car out near the main road and walk all the way back home in the waist-high waters. It was that same night that claimed a couple of lives..
Still… home really is where the heart is.
