Pensionistas

I cannot believe it has been 10 days since we left TO. So much happening in the past 10 days that I am in that proverbial blogger conundrum...not having time to blog when there is just too much to blog about. I shall try my best to provide little excerpts...

Last night, we decided to have Tepanyaki dinner in the Andaman resort Japanese restaurant. When we were seated the 5 occupants of the other seats nodded politely and sipped their sake. We were not about to give up this opportunity to have a chat with people other than ourselves, so we set about asking questions. How did they decide on Langkawi as a holiday destination? Where are they from? The 3 women on our left, self described Pensionistas (love this new term), were from Germany and instead of the usual girls night out, they travel the world for weeks on end. One chatted with D about his favourite German city, while I had a discussion with another about our Indian experiences. The couple on our right were from Estonia and they chatted with D's dad about the Bolsheviks and the culture in Bali. Globalization at its best.

We arrived in Langkawi yesterday afternoon and D's dad (FIL)finds it difficult to reconcile the modernity and pace of Kuala Lumpur with the lush tropical rain forests and the pristine beaches surrounding Andaman resort. He has always found D to be the more travelled of all his kids, and I sense that he has taken pride in the fact that a kid from Winnipeg has chosen a unique lifestyle that involves moves across continents and, how shall I say this nicely, a distinctly exotic wife (ehm, ehm)...but I think now that he has visited Malaysia and Hong Kong with us, he sees D's travels and life from a whole new perspective, in that what he finds astonishing, D takes forgranted. He marvels at D's adaptability in situations and I suppose his worldly outlook. He has had a glimpse into our lives and commented that "this is a far cry from Winnipeg". I don't think he sees D as the baby of the family anymore.

During our plane ride from KL to Langkawi Island, there was a baby sitting with us in Business Class. And he cried most of the 55 minute flight. There were a quite a few irate passengers, who I guess, unlike us, paid good money to get away from that element. We on the other hand cashed in airmiles and had just left our 2 year old daughter with her doting grandparents for the duration of our week long holiday. We were just relieved to hear a baby cry, and it wasn't ours. It was kind of nice in a perverse sort of way to just sit back and sip our drinks...

D, FIL and I enjoyed a massage this afternoon. I had the pregnancy massage, which just means I was not able to have the aromatherapy oils, the post massage tonic and no squishing of tummy. D and FIL had the full on aromatheraphy massage. The spa is situated within the rain forest, and we were massaged while facing the Andaman Sea. Life doesn't get better than that. It was pricey but then when else will we all be back together in Langkawi to enjoy such an experience. One of my greatest regrets in life (and I do not have many) is not splurging on the hot air balloon ride over the fairy chimneys in Capadocia, Turkey, thinking that it was a bit to much for my budget at that time. My chances of going back there with 2 kids in tow are pretty slim now.

I have decided to rent a car and take FIL around the island tomorrow morning, take in the gondola ride up the mountain and have lunch at Bon Ton, my favourite restaurant. He thinks we should take a hotel limo because he is not overly confident with my driving abilities. Neither am I actually as I have not driven a car for 2 years...but then hey, I say this is part of the adventure. As long as I remember that the driver's side is closest to the line in the middle of the road we should be fine.


On the way back to Kuala Lumpur, we stopped in Hong Kong for a couple of days. We spent one day at Disneyland Hong Kong. Well, half a day as it is rather small....actually maybe even 4 hours. I liked Disneyland HK. It is probably an absolute waste of time for anyone over the age of 5 as there are hardly any rides that older children would enjoy, but as a parent of a two year old that recognizes Mickey Mouse only from the front of her diaper, it is perfect. The wait times for rides was 10 minutes, compared to 2 hours at North American Disneylands. It was less commercialised. But then this may be because Sash is too young to be an avid consumer so we did not buy her a single souvenir. Oh wait, we bought her a rain cover. Because it was drizzling at one point. It was dead easy to get there by MRT (underground transit) and at the Sunny Bay station, we boarded a special train which had Mickey shaped windows and other Mickey related decor. It was an interesting expeience. Been there, done that, did not have to buy the overpriced T-shirts.