You know, it’s pretty much like reading my blog in a feedreader :)

I have a feeling it will speed up the loading process, and hopefully keep you from tearing your hair especially when the wifi connection is not very stable (OK, it’s to keep me from pulling my own hair out).

In one of the forum threads, forumers were discussing the availability and the cleanliness of public toilets in India, and the thread quickly led to forumers sharing their toilet experiences.

It initially started as a few innocent questions:

“Are most of the toilets squat-down holes in the floor? How do you clean your… well… you know? Is there paper or water? If so how do you dry? How do you apply the water? What are toilets like on trains?”

And then a forumer came to the rescue:

“Squat toilets, no toilet paper. If you want to use toilet paper, you’ll have to carry it with you. Please do not put toilet paper into a squat toilet. Squat toilets were not designed for toilet paper and it clogs them. Throw the toilet paper into a trash can if there is one (rare) or carry ziplock baggies with you to deposit the used toilet paper in and throw it away as soon as you find a trash can. There is usually a tap with a bucket by the toilet. You can use that water to clean yourself, then you just air dry. Trains usually have Western toilets which empty straight onto the tracks. Many mid- to upper-range class homes/hotels/hostels have Western toilets, too.”

And another forumer explained the mechanics behind not using toilet paper after going to the toilet:

“Fill the small plastic cup with water from the faucet. With the right hand, pour the water on yourself at about the base of the spine, just above the “hoohah”, whilst cleaning with the fingers of the left hand. Refill the cup if you need more water. As has already been mentioned, wash your hands afterward.”

But of course, somebody also shared a link to Indax, a website that provides a more comprehensive guide to a “tissueless existence”:

“If you do feel adventurous, here are some basic tips. You’ll need about a litre of water. All Indian bathrooms have a little mug and a tap or a bucket of water. When you have finished, reach behind you and between your legs with your LEFT hand and, holding the full mug of water in your RIGHT hand, pour the water slowly into your left hand. You can pour from the front or the back – which ever feels most comfortable. Use the water in your cupped left hand to wash yourself. Repeat as many times as necessary. Air dry. When you are done, wash your hands well with soap.”

You know, the more I read, the more I laughed at the responses and how funny the thread has transpired into. In all honesty, this lack-of-public-toilet issue does put me off a little but at the same time, I am sooo looking forward to my first experience to Incredible India.

So yeah, come what may :D

So one day, I decided to tag along.

We took a short walk about 150m towards the beach, some of the younger kids cycled there but some others strolled along. As soon as we were about 20m from the sea, the boys started removing their T-shirts and were getting ready to jump into the water. And not long after, the girls followed suit :D

Kimi, the 7-year-old boy on the foreground in the picture above, is a very adorable kid. He knew he couldn’t swim very well (or maybe his parents/grandparents asked him not to go to the deeper waters) so he was seen playing only by the beach. His routine would be to run as fast as he could from the beach and jump into the water as the waves hit the beach. He would then get up, run back to the beach and repeat his “waves-breaking” act :D

The older kids would skin-dive a bit, and swim a bit but for the most part, they would just be playing in the water. Occassionally they would get onto the beach, roll on the sand, make some funny faces and then they would return to the sea.

While you think that they would enjoy themselves so much and forget about the time, these kids would surprise you by knowing when to get out of the water and go home in time for the maghrib prayers :D

Chinese New Year this year wasn’t very much more special than Chinese New Year last year, but I guess with age, I tend to appreciate more the people whom I celebrate with, and I tend to ensure that my “presence of mind” was where I wanted it to be, instead of just passing by the days with little interest in things that didn’t really interest me.

A few days before CNY, I got news that one of my girlfriends’ younger brother had passed away. He was 27. I wanted to cry, not because I knew the deceased very well, but my heart was broken into pieces because this had to happen to one of my friends. The following days as we were preparing to usher into the new year, I kept thinking about how my friend would be coping and how unfortunate that many of us weren’t there by her side when she needed us most. And every time I thought how this could happen to any one of us, I fearfully shook my thoughts away.

My sister has left for Brisbane, though not before crying buckets, LOL. We arrived at KLIA a few hours before the flight and spent some time playing Truth or Dare at McDonald’s, which was funny and hilarious. One of us had to have his hair tied until his next turn, one of us had to do a Macarena (which was super funny) and I had to get a phone number from an uncle seated a few tables away from us.

I proceeded to Penang to spend the last days of my CNY break. I visited a CNY bazaar somewhere near Pitt Street, and the bazaar really reminded me of Jonker Walk in Melaka. There were a lot of stalls and people were selling food and drinks, books, sugar candy, and there were also mini stages where (older) people sang karaoke :D The highlight of the bazaar must definitely be the Khoo Kongsi building, which looked so majestically beautiful especially when the lights were all switched on!

The following day I visited Kek Lok Si temple before sundown and managed to take a couple of really nice photos of the temples during the day. Shortly after, at about 7:30pm, the lanterns were lighted and Kek Lok Si once again turned into this beautiful and colourful temple that people all over the world flock to during Chinese New Year :)

It has been exactly a week since I have returned to Kuala Terengganu, and I am sorely missing the company and fun I have had during my CNY break. I still go through the pictures taken during CNY once in a while and smile at them, wishing I had the power to turn back time so that I could enjoy it once again. But I guess the world doesn’t work that way :(

And since all good things must come to an end, I shall look forward to more greeeat stuff in the coming days :) I hope you too, had a blast during CNY and I wish you a new year filled with lots of joy, happiness, good luck and love :D

You know how some people say “Chinese New Year isn’t Chinese New Year until you hear some Chinese New Year songs”? Well, I think I am one of those people, LOL. I am not in the CNY mood yet though my loooooong CNY holidays begin tomorrow.

I am looking forward to seeing my grandparents and relatives in Ipoh because the last time I met them was during mid-Autumn last year. I am looking forward to meeting my BFFs in Melaka because like I said earlier, I have never spent any CNYs in Melaka with them before. I am looking forward to spending more time with J because he’s back in Malaysia for a month (though I’d only be able to see him for 9 days). I am also looking forward to spending some time with my sister because she will be leaving for Aussie-land in a little more than a week.

OK lah, I really should get going. My clothes and shoes won’t miraculously walk into the luggage by themselves. And I need to catch the 8:20am flight to KL tomorrow morning.

So if you don’t see updates in the next 2 weeks or so, just assume that I’m enjoying myselves, LOL.

Happy Chinese New Year and Happy Holidays to you guys. Drive safely, and take it easy on the Carlsberg and Tiger beer, OK?