Penang 3

Day 4 of our vacation started on a rather uneventful note. It was our final day so we really didn't have anything planned for the day and judging by the state of fatigue which most of us were already in, doing more things would just knock us out cold. Not that it is a bad thing but would you want to see 7 lethargic teenagers passed out by the side of the road? But anyways, the day started with Maryanne being the first one to wake up. I think I woke up slightly later because when I had woke up, I saw her walking back to her room, going back to bed. But through my dazed state, I did manage to say good morning to her. The clock showed that it was already 8.45. Sleep any longer and I might end up with a head ache. So to avoid that, I quickly got up and took a shower. Since the rest of them were sleeping, I decided to take a long shower. Something which I had not been able to do since I arrived in Penang and with good reason as well. Then after taking a bath, feeling slightly hungry, I decided to scout for some food but upon realising that there was no food I decided to watch television. Fortunately for me, there was something interesting on the history channel. It was about the Ice Man Cometh. I found it to be a riveting watch because the way the theories and stories were put across toward the audience, made it really informative. Then while watching, I heard the sound of footsteps come from behind me. I turned around and it was Maryanne. I think she had already taken a bath and had nothing else to do. So, she sat down and we started talking for a while. Then after some time, the rest of the gang came down stairs with the exception of Justin and Nickie who were both still sleeping despite the godly hour of 10.30. Once the program was over, we tried looking for more interesting things to watch. And after some channel surfing, we arrived at the Hallmark Channel. They had a movie on. And believe it or not, it was a movie about how a son reunites his father and mother after they both were yanked from each other when the mother got pregnant at the age of 15. Yes, it was a chick flick, but we watched it anyways.

Anyways, after some watching, we realised that we had still not had one bit o eat for a very long time. Then, when all of us pronounced our apparent hunger, we decided to wake the sleeping beauties so that we could all go out and have breakfast. I was given the task to wake them up. Once they had all gotten up, we decided to vote on what to eat and the ballot went to the choice of Domino's Pizza for brunch. We ordered three large pizzas which in the end were just about enough for all of us. The price came to a whopping RM 90 something. That's about RM 16 per head. Then once we had eaten our breakfast, Maryanne's grandparents returned home. We cleaned the place up and proceeded to upstairs to do some packing. And after some packing, Ignatius and Nickie decided that they needed a haircut, so we went out to get them one at a saloon. But unlike Kuala Lumpur where a saloon would be found somewhere along shop lots, this one was operating from a house and the interior looked every bit like a professional saloon. And they charged RM 12 per cut. After an hour or so they were done and we proceeded home to complete our packing and to do all our last minute necessities. We helped the grandparents to do some furniture moving then we went up to play some card games. After some playing, the taxi arrived to take us to the bus station and it was time for us to say our goodbyes and leave this wonderful place which we called home for the past four days. Leaving it was a very sad affair because personally, I had come to fall in love with the place and I was quite fond of Maryanne's grandparents. But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end and so to an end came our tenure at their house and at Penang. And to add to our heavy hearts, the skies started to shed tears.

Upon reaching the bus station, we got our stuff down and proceeded to our bus, but it was locked so we stood there while we waited to be allowed on board. In the meantime, a couple of them went to go and get some junk food for the trip back home.

The trip back home at first was rather uneventful as all of them were sleeping at the middle section of the bus. I decided to go behind and let my thoughts find its way to wherever it may want to go. And it fiund itslef stuck at a crossroad. One with the sign "Happy Thoughts" the other saying "Mixed Thoughts". It did choose a path in the end but I really don't know which one it chose because I just didn't know what to make of my thoughts.

Then, along the way, we made a stop at a petrol station. We got down to stretch our legs and stock up on supplies for the remainder of the trip back home. We managed a few moments at the petrol station before boarding the bus. It was then things started to get funny. Since a couple of us were at the back of the bus, the rest of the gang decided to join us as well. So we sat at the back of the bus telling jokes and asking each other riddles. The funniest part was when Ignatius incited the wrath of the sick co-driver. You see, most buses have a compartment behind the bus where tired crew members can sleep. So what happened was that it just so happened that one of the co-drivers was sleeping. Then while playing, Ignatius unwittingly pushed the curtain where the dude was sleeping and within seconds, a big brown head popped out from between the curtains saying "oi, apa hal?" and it was at this moment that all of us started laughing. It took us quite a while to stop laughing though it still does make me laugh now. And it certainly made the trip seem much shorter.

Upon reaching the bus terminal, we got down and took our bags from the bus. We gathered them by the side and said our farewells to each other. But we only bade farewell once we had taken one last group shot together. Then all of us parted ways and returned home with so many fond memories which we will keep until the day we draw our final breaths.

So, coming to a conclusion. This trip really was both an extremely enjoyable and an emotional one for me. Because spending this much quality time with the people that you love so much can really do wonders for anybody. I also realised just how much this trip has allowed us to bond and become much closer to each other in a certain way. Some of us even found out more about the other one. And personally, I feel blessed to have had the honor of travelling with and being able to proudly say that I am friends with these people and I really do look forward to maintaining this friendship for the rest of my life and who knows where we might possibly end up? Perhaps 10 years down the line we might all meet up again and organize trips to other destinations which we can once again affirm the strong bonds of friendship which we have for each other and bask in the glory of the magnificent memories which we have made and are still making throughout the course of our journeys. But as for now, we still do have some plans coming up. One calls for a sleepover at Leonard's house just so that we can have some good food and definitely more fun as well. But until then I look forward to everything good which I am sure will light our paths.

Justin, Nickie, Shin Ying, Maryanne, Leonard, Chong, Sek Khong and Ignatius, you guys are awesome.