My Kelantan Holiday

I set off for an eight-hour journey to Kelantan on the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia at 9am last Sunday. My heart ached when I waved good-bye to Mummy and Daddy. I suddenly realised all of a sudden that I would miss them despite the excitement of visiting my roommate. The bus ride was comfortable as I had two seats all to myself. On the way, I kept looking out for elephants as there were road signs stating to "Beware of Wild Elephants Crossing the Road". Much to my disappointment, there were none. I reached Kelantan at around 5pm in the evening. It was pouring cats and dogs and the roads were slightly flooded as I waited for Peck Koon and her mum to pick me up from the bus station. Thus, my holiday in Kelantan began.

Peck Koon's family welcomed me warmly and included me in everything they did. Her aunt, "ah yi", cooked delicious food...most of the food in the menu altered to match my liking...less spicy, more sour, etc. The food she laid on the table every meal were reduced to clean empty plates by the time everyone finished! No leftovers like we usually have at home. I was simply amused to see all of them tuck in. Their appetites were huge. Dinner was always noisy and filled with laughter. I was the odd one as I ate silently, my spoon and fork not making a single noise as I scraped my rice off my plate. They were tickled pink with my silent way of eating and my small appetite.

I was brought to visit her two aunties "ah yi" and "sa kim". Their families were very closely knit. It was a very nice experience for me. I was spoilt and pampered like a princess. Roommate's mum bought lots of my favourite sour fruits. There was a strange orange fruit which looked like a tiny mangoesteen and tasted out of this world! I loved it. Peck Koon's mum only managed to buy a few from the market place and we finished them off in a jiffy. The strange thing was no one knew the name of the fruit. And thus, I referred to it as the orange-coloured-fruit. We had sour mango almost everyday before meals "to increase my appetite" (but the opposite happened as I kept eating and eating =P). We tried Malay kuih as well at the Ramadhan bazaar. The akok was my favourite. =)

During my five-day stay there, I learnt how to make chai kuih. The making of the kuih alone took up the whole of our afternoon. It was fun! And our chai kuih turned out really delicious. In between, we also made pizza, spaggheti and ramen soup. It was fun.

My holiday ended very soon and the time came to say goodbye to Roommate and her family. This time, my heart ached to leave them eventhough I looked forward to seeing my family again. I don't know when I will be seeing Peck Koon again. Maybe next year...maybe in a few more years... Oh how I wish all my loved ones stayed together!!!