When we were led from the reception to the villa door, we honestly thought we were stepping into the lobby cos of the space that engulfed us.
RowdyRudy and i were like, woah… how fucking awesome is this!!!
We maintained till Windy (the receptionist) left us, then we started running around and whooping like kids on crack.
That’s the bedroom on the left, and two suntanning beds on the lower right.
Hericopter.
The view from the bedroom when we wake up.
View of the still pool at night.
Look how much space there is to run around!!!
And roll around!!!
And dance!
And play hide and seek!
Kitchen. Where we don’t cook ourselves ‘cos they send in two chefs to cook breakfast for us when we rouse.
Warm bathroom i spent ages in last night, pampering myself.
Rain shower! Ahhh… *hugs self*
Flower from Toys R’ Us i stuck on the tree for added kooky colour.
Mr. Elephant debut
Okay. I have something to confess… i left Mr. Elephant to bask in the sun when we went out to meet SmallSerena and BoltwomanLiza.
And while we were at Anantara, it started to rain. 0_o
“Shit… it’s raining…” i said to RowdyRudy, “I left Mr. Elephant out in the sun just now… he’s going to be so pissed at me!!!”
I apologised when i got back. And promised not to assume it’s not going to rain when i leave him next to the pool again :p
We went to a new place that’s launching next month, called Anantara.
And it was so fucking beautiful to the point it was surreal.
Imagine.
Spreading both your arms on either side of you. On a magenta sofa that spreads your entire body span and beyond.
And the sky is spread across. Stars sprinkled. Clouds forming shapes you can’t stop staring at.
You’re on the top floor of a brilliant hotel, a lit bar with such a crazy view – they light they the waves from all the way to the left to all the way to the right so you can see them.
Powerful lights that push and magnify the clouds with varied patterns and colours.
An infinity pool spread in front of you, with LED lights that change colour.
The best fries in the universe, sweet and we couldn’t fathom how they managed to get them like that.
Delectable cocktails constantly sent to us from the bar, concocted by mixologist Lomas (previously from KL Hilton).
It’s one of those moments that it’s authentic when one says ‘there are no words to describe it’ (or probably i cannot do it in my state).
We sat there. And i felt weird. Like something’s off.
I pushed the feeling away. And drowned in it all.
RowdyRudy spoke up, “This is too great. I’m so happy right now. It’s illegal. I swear.”
RowdyRudy and i almost missed our flight.
I was so sure you can check in two hours to a half hour before the flight (i just flew last month and that was the case, c’mon!) and we arrived at the counter 35 minutes before flight time.
When we were told that we were late and ours jaws dropped in oh-my-god-no-way disbelief.
“You said check in was 30 minutes before!” RR turned to me.
“I read it on the email! I swear!”
Luckily the girl behind the counter recognised him and got strings pulled to rush our luggage in.
“For once, i’m glad you got recognised man…” i meekly said to him.
We checked into Masa Inn, where i stayed on my first trip to Bali, for a night before moving into Bora Bora.
The private villa is brilliant.
“We NEVER have to leave! Private pool! Wifi! Big space to run around in! All the stuff we need!” we ran around swinging this fluorescent twirly spinner thing we bought from Toys R’ Us.
Will blog later when we’re back in the villa.
Going to meet SmallSerena for lunch at Mades Warung (she’s here too yay!) and buy more giraffes to place around the villa.
Mr. Elephant will like that.
I borrowed him from his owner to travel with me so i can hug him to sleep in some sort of desperate replacement.
Drove DatinTini to head office ‘cos her car’s in the workshop.
“Oh my god. Your car is like zoo negara.”
Eh. Want people to fetch you, be a bit more polite can.
Anyway i have no choice but to remove all my shoes, books, CDs and leftover lap sap from the car tomorrow cos i have to return it to the company.
That will, no doubt, take some time.
Chucked her off, and ran to catch up with GarfieldChak in Delicious 1U.
I have to stop patronizing Delicious and La Bod so much.
We exchanged what’s been happening with us in the past couple of months (plus the fellow doesn’t read my blog so all the better) and i told him about the tak-jadi snatch theft incident.
“I never bothered going for neighbourhood watch meetings before, but i actually went the other day,” he said, before revealing that the section between SMDJ and Atria (roughly 200 houses) encountered eight robberies in the span of 12 days (Jan 14-26).
“Come on, i’m a big guy and even *i’m* scared nowadays okay.”
Chak’s big enough that when he dressed up as Frankenstein last Halloween, it was more then perfect.
I told him how JappyCalvin’s car got broken into a couple of weeks ago and they nicked his GPS system and other stuff.
“Last time everyone would know someone who kena-ed something like this. Now, it would be everyone has kena-ed something.”
We changed topic after that, how his emceeing on NYE at 1U went (he emcees as well now. contact him at chakster@gmail.com) with FlyFM’s Basil, how the other business is going, my current lifestyle of traveling (Chak: “Ley mou cho kung ar?” I could understand that!), and other stuff
He told me how someone we know is planning to get married.
Me: What! Wow. So many engagements suddenly… Man, everyone’s either getting married or robbed these days.
Chak: Hahaha!
***
A stretchable bracelet (its beads are like tiny silver cups strung together) from Ginger boutique in Chiang Mai i’ve been wearing every day since i got back.
Super cool + unique.
IceCalvin said local designer Daniel Chong has the same thing for sale in the form of necklaces.
(i actually wrote this the day after the accident, before Thailand, and forgot to put it up)
Snatch theft is not a new thing in KL, or Malaysia for that matter.
You read about it in the papers, you hear how your friends’ bags got snatched, you see ads for bags with detachable straps.
A couple of years back, i remember MaryBerry and Debbie got scared shitless by guys on motorbikes with knives outside a friend’s house. And it wasn’t like they were simply lepaking outside the house. They just got out of the car and were waiting for their friend to open the gate.
Last month, QueenKanch got robbed in Bangsar just outside Nirwana. She wasn’t alone, a group of guy friends were standing just a few feet away from her when a car stopped next to her. A guy got out, asked for her bag and in shock, she gave it to him instead of putting up a fight (which was obviously better lest she got hurt!). This can’t even be called ‘snatch theft’ wei. It’s ‘take theft’ :p
As someone who spends so much time driving themselves around alone, i’ve received my appreciated share of advice and i *do* follow it as much as i can.
I lock the car doors the moment i get in.
Nowadays, i try not to put my handbag on the seat next to me (the Zouk ppl told me how some thieves have taken to smashing your passenger window and grabbing your bag while your car is stationary at a red light/jam, before zooming off).
I don’t walk in lanes alone and look around and behind me for motorcyclists.
I try to walk on pavements instead of the side of the road.
I wasn’t even alone the night someone tried to snatch my bag.
NickIsTaller and StephTheVolcano were with me.
It’s just that sometimes, yes, i slip.
I had that moment when i wasn’t careful to walk on the pavement instead of the road.
I had that moment where i walked without listening out for a motorbike.
I had that moment when i was careless cos i thought nothing would happen to me.
And in that bloody small window of Joyce-Being-Careless, someone was able to grab that opportunity.
I was walking two steps towards my car when in a whoosh and a knock, i found myself lying flat on the road.
It happened so quick that the first thing i thought was, “OW… Owwwww… man, that HURT. What was that!?”
When i realised i was on the road and that i stung in places i hadn’t yet discerned, my first thought was that i’d got knocked down by a car.
Till i looked up to see a motorbike speeding off in front of me.
“The fellow was trying to get your bag!” said NickIsTaller.
No shit.
“Oh my god! Are you okay!?” asked StephTheVolcano
“Yeah.” I was pretty much in shock and wanted to sit down.
Hobbling to the pavement, i lowered my stinging (cos that’s how it felt!) body to sit.
Admittedly, i cried for 15 seconds like a kitten (it was only less then half a minute, i swear) cos it was so painful as they inspected my injuries.
My left hand was so painful i couldn’t even close it properly and my right knee was bleeding.
But that was about it and it wasn’t a big deal.
Steph told me she kept on asking whether i wanted to get a bandage for it but all i could do was crow how the fucker didn’t get my bag.
Which was lucky.
Cos i was going to purchase a new phone (which i didn’t have time to in the end) so i had over a K in cash on me, two phones, my digicam, cards, all my keys, ARGH imagine the MAH FAN-NESS if i had lost all that!
I would have been crying for 15 hours instead of 15 seconds sial.
I’m really lucky cos i didn’t get hurt too badly.
And my Anya with all its contents didn’t get stolen.
Remember the Rule of Three?
How the bloody thief made me terbabas on the road like that… one day he’s going to get knocked down by some car with three times the injuries, i swear. Or worse, cos i’m sure he’s inflicted more pain on other women as well.
This is a good lesson.
To remind me to be more careful, and not to take my good luck for granted all the time.
And now i know what Mary and Kanch meant about being paranoid after a robbery. 0_o
***
I got reminded of this post i left in drafts when i read about Lainie’s recent accident.
And it’s not just us, there’s been a lot of shit happening recently, what with the female/child kidnappings and all.
Just last week i was introduced to a girl who asked what was wrong with my knee and i told her.
She retorted with, “Oh, someone snatched my bag in SS2 two weeks ago!”
Also, please read about the recent bus crash that occurred on Friday.
Excerpt from the Star Online:
Nian Ning, 21, a Public Service Department (PSD) scholar at the University of New South Wales in Australia who was on her way to visit friends in Kuala Lumpur, was among three passengers who perished when the driver lost control of the bus and slammed into a divider.
“We learnt that the driver had 13 summonses against him. Why had the company not screened him and realised that he was not competent to drive that bus? I wonder why the authorities still allowed such a monster to roam our streets?” asked Nian Ning’s distraught father Lee Hock Chuan, 50, a company human resources director.
The family plans to take action against the bus company, read more about it here.
