Thursday, June 12, 2008

A Much Waited Friday

Last entry before I scoot off to KT...I think. With KP's meeting scheduled tonight and it, normally ending late, I don't know whether I can get on-line later. And woe me...I can't even join the Pemuda PR's march tomorrow. Been a very long while since I put on webtv8 hat, and I would really love to cover the event. But my priority is with emak. InsyAllah on 12 July though, come smoke and water, I'll be there. And I hope my friends will join too.

InsyAllah, by 9am tomorrow morning, emak and I will be going to Gombak to her sister's house, and perhaps by 10 only we'll be making our way. With emak and her sister sitting at the back, it sure would be nice to have someone else sitting up front with me. Don't get me wrong though. I don't mind the sitting arrangement, just that...well, I think my friends understand.

I do so love long distance driving especially along scenic highways. Unfortunately Malaysian authorities being what they are, they just don't seem to understand what natural beauty is. One of my most favoured spot was just before the climb up the Mantin Hill, along the old KL-Seremban road. It had small rolling hills which was sparsely decorated with trees, making it look more like the Swiss Alps, which off course, I have only seen pictures off, especially in the movie 'The Sound of Music'.

Another, is the East-West Highway which though not as scenic, is still beautiful nonetheless simply because it cuts through virgin jungle. Though once wild animals do cross the road, such scenes maybe rare now - I don't know as I have not been that way for more than 10 years now. And as much as I love the natural beauty of the jungle and hills, the drive along Terengganu coastal road should be rewarding enough, simply for vastness of the ocean scene of the South China Sea. Looking at the ocean alone, is simply breathtaking and takes the weight from one's mind, which incidentally, I was told by a pious man to do so to ease the mind. I believe he quoted it from a hadith about the sky actually, but one which I cannot recall for now.

But if ever I were to rate a highway which is scenic and eerily beautiful, then it must be the Santa Barbara Highway. Recovering from a personal trauma, I had butterflies in my stomach driving through it. The highway snakes through high cliffs almost all the way along the coast, which gives one the feeling of a dangerous romance with death. At times, thick fog would cover the landscape, giving one the thought of reaching the ends of the earth. Though it was a much welcome relief to reach the end of the highway, the memories of it lingers deep in my mind, and my stomach still churns at just the thought of driving through. Still, there is a longing to return. Perhaps when I do so, it will not be as striking; traveling a life, one should always come out the better.

ps. would have prefered Albert Hammond, but the audio was not satisfactory. But, ain't that life?

20 comments:

Bebee said...

Salam Cak,

Ten years is a long time to not be somewhere as close as Teganung, but who am i to say...just thought i should caution u to be sure to get out of the highway at Kuantan. Don't take the Kemamang-Jabor road if u really like the beaches and the blue, blue sea...Needless to say, welcome to my "country":)

Unknown said...

Salam Shah...

have a safe journey... you describe well the scenic beauty along the highways... saujana mata memandang, gitu?

take care.

Anonymous said...

the city, the harbour, the coastline

eh, singgah di Solvang tak??

huhuhu!!

menggamit memori ler lu ni

lorr ingatkan dah happening

kt KT..

Anonymous said...

oppsie

camne tertinggal lak

the 1st line tu

wa nak kata

santa barbara tu facinating

dok CA ke dolu??

LA?? SF?? SD??

Tijuana?? huahaha!!

Anonymous said...

whoppsie 'fascinating' hehe

erk.. ade cikgu henglish ke??

haus ler

dah 3 komeng

telan ayor lior jer ni

meh le carrot susu se.. (^_^)

Ydiana said...

Hello Shah

Salam. My unforgetable memory of hiway travelling. First time with 2 other girls by car from Michigan to New York, but took a wrong turn in opposite direction entah ke mana. Pastu panic semacam, buat illegal uturn between block dividers. Sampai kat Buffalo, tidur kat 5 star hotel, tapi dalam kerete kat car park. Budget travel la katakan. Then singgah Niagara Falls. Next days tak sanggup tido dalam kete lagi, sakit badan, pi tidur kat motel on the way to Corning. Masa tu baru tengok citer friday the 13th pulak, motel tu sebelah kubur lagi. Kat New York, excited sakan sebab jumpa pump attendan sebiji macam Lionel Richie. Hehehe.. Itu saja yang den ingat setakat ni, sekian, wassallam.

Anyway, have a safe and enjoyable trip and back home. :)

Anonymous said...

salam shah,
oh terima kasih yang amat tu shah.
dah lama tak dengar 99 miles from LA. dulu in my primary years, saya ada cassette albert hammond. balik sekolah saya akan dengar, really sit down and listen to him. bila part dia nyanyi 'the wind shield is covered with rain', i will try very hard to do part voicing. heehehe...
have a safe trip shah!

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

My fondest memory of driving was when a few friends and I took the famous Route 66 to relive the mass exodus of people escaping the drought. All it took was one wrong turn and we ended up in Alor Star. For the love of me I don't know how that happened.

Have a safe trip, enjoy the view, humour your mother and you don't have to look for any chicks there in KT, back in KL pun ada kan?

cakapaje said...

Wa'alaikumusalam bebee,

Glad I was not able to make to KP meeting as there were things that cropped up in the last minute - my end. However, Houston said 'Its a Go!' :)

Er...I was in Ganu a couple of years or so back, its just the East-West Highway I've not been to for a long time. And thanks, I'll be sure to follow your tip, insyAllah.

ps. Are your country maidens away already? Just want to be sure its safe for me to go there, lol! ;)

cakapaje said...

Wa'alaikumusalam Queen Raden,

Saujana mata memandang, begitulah kisahnya. And thank you for the wishes ;)

cakapaje said...

Salam mk,

Lor...den dok kek tongah Baja tu ha! Paneh dan mendidih...borpoluh den dibueknyo ;)

Ydiana said...

Oh yes, lagi satu insiden yang den baru ingat.

Either before or after Niagara Falls, silap lagi. Sibuk baca map, tapi tak aleh2, nampak signboard Welcome to Canada. Kitorang pun cepat2 pusing. Nak masuk US balik kena immigration tahan 4 jam. Passport tak bawak, student card tinggal. Depa dok call our uni to verify our 'alien'status. hahaha . Nasib baik tak masok lokap as illegal immigrant. Naya tu.

So, I hope you wont make that illegal trip to Thailand, Kang tersangkut kat sane tu, lagi haru..

cakapaje said...

Wa'alaikumusalam ydiana,

Hmm...we must sit down and compare notes, it would be more fun, don't you think? ;)

Thank you for the wishes.

cakapaje said...

Wa'alaikumusalam Accia,

Alhamdulillah, seronok dapat tahu ada juga lagi fan Alber Hammond dan lagu tu...den cuba main kek gitar, tak jadi pun :( Tapi den suko bonau lagu tu...haunting!

cakapaje said...

Accia,

ps. Thanks for the wishes ;)

cakapaje said...

Salam Cikgu,

Lol! Drought? Route 66? InsyAllah, I'll play a Manhattan Transfer for you when I get back ;)

I will, do as you advised. Thank you for that and the wishes.

cakapaje said...

ydiana,

lol! Tapi dapat status illegal immigrant boleh apply wakty amnesty period!

Thailand, huh? Now, that's a very tempting thought, lol! ;)

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

aiseh, aku terlambat ke? confirm tertinggal.

but seriously, i love traveling long-distance via our NKVE highways. not sure if we should thanks cikgu and docTA's retired best friend or not but always make sure to cherish all the long trip journeys. and the RnR are not bad either. once me and my wheelchair buddy lepak at one of the RnRs pukul 5 pagi while on our trip to a friend's house. cekik tak ingat dunia...at the same time cuci mata tgk awek2 korea turun bas, mesti on the way pegi cameron highlands la tu.

have a pleasant trip, shah. salam kat pn Hawa.

cakapaje said...

Salam kerpie,

lol! Looks like you were left behind ala Home Alone, ;) But hey, its the thoughts that counts.

Thank you for the wishes and the salam bro :)