The Ferry Ride

Back when I was a young boy, a trip to Penang from Kepala Batas would mean a trip on the ferry. The First Penang Bridge was only opened in 1985, and since then the ferry was reserved for those who prefer to take a motorcycle or cross by foot. But a tragedy in 1989 when a section of the old Butterworth Jetty fell down due to overcrowding made the ferry ride less popular.

Nowadays, almost everyone - unless you're making the journey on foot - would be using the bridge. We now have two bridges, but traffic was still a problem especially getting on and off the bridge.

When I was in primary school, my parents tended to take us across to Penang on foot as he was not keen to find parking spot and wading through the heavy traffic. We would take either the bus or a taxi from Kepala Batas - still a tiny town then - to Butterworth Jetty. Walk across into the ferry, enjoy the 20 minutes ride before alighting in Georgetown and took another bus to the shopping malls.

On our last trip to Penang, I took my boys on the ferry again. I suspect that there was only a small number of ferry still in service at the wait at the jetty was quite long. The ride took about 15 minutes, and all of us actually got out from our van to enjoy the crossing. It was nice to feel the wind brushing our space, and not to mention the smell of diesel ..... memories ....

Definitely worth a ride if you were not on a rush. Since we took the trip from Georgetown to Butterworth, I was not sure how much the cost of the crossing. You'd have to pay for a single way from the mainland. Not sure how patient I would be if I was short for time.

Steady Start

The post-holiday commotion was slowly setting in. Meetings and deadline to sort out. Managed to rummage through my home office to get it tidied up, but still plenty needed doing. Will need to shop for some tables and other small stuffs before the weekend.

Idlan and Irfan had been complaining of being bored after all the excitement of the Penang trip. Suffice to say that if they had their way, they would still be there now. But Daddy had to work ...

We also need to do up Idlan's room for a bit. He needs a small TV after we moved his Wii U back to his room. It was previously in Irfan's as the TV was there. Now, both of them had their own rooms, we could spent some time doing a bit of decorating.

Both of them could do with proper study desks, but that would have to wait. I can't afford another Moll table just yet ... not with their school fees due soon.

This morning was a slow one. Started of at Subang and saw my patients there before a quiet breakfast at Bawang Merah - after 6 weeks, missing the nasi lemak. Then another rather quiet and smooth ride to Park City. The two patients scheduled did not turn up. Probably still in their Raya mood. Had time to do a bit of blogging, as I was sure this afternoon would be a busy one. Nothing lined up for lunch - although there was a lunch talk at Subang. Maybe I just check what my boys were up to at the apartment first ...

Back to KL

It was a great idea to drive on Monday instead of during the weekend. Traffic was smooth, and we managed to get back to KL before the rush hour started. Now unpacked and about to hit the showers. Anita had made the orders for deliveries. That would be dinner for tonight.

Will be back to clinic tomorrow morning, and the usual mad first day back. Expect some aggravation. And I have a few meetings already lined up ....

For tonight, I would have to get the photographs I took in Penang and my blog in order. Early night of course and going through the emails.

All Good Things ...

After four nights, it was finally time to - reluctantly - say goodbye to Penang and this genuinely superb hotel. The boys were already making noise about extending for another day, but unfortunately I have clinic tomorrow.

The helped with the packing this morning, after we had breakfast. It was enough time still for me for a brief walk after Subuh. While walking around Love Lane - about 10 minutes away - I stumbled across a camera crew shooting a scene. We had to stay quiet for a couple of moments before allowed to cross. When I did, I noticed that one of the lady behind the camera was an old acquaintance.

Breakfast before setting off ...Can't really argue when they carry all three sports channelsA brief chat then, she had to go back to work. While I had to walk to the hotel to join Anita and the boys for breakfast. The weather was certainly very nice this morning, as if not letting us go .....

Goodbye Penang. Goodbye Eastern & Oriental ...

Setting Off

Finally, the packing was done. But not before realising that a few things were amiss - such as my pants. That meant a stop in Gombak before setting off proper.

We finally rearranged the seating in the MPV - losing the last row and pushing back the middle row - into a four seat configuration. The boys actually ended up sleeping on the floor!

The journey back to Penang was a smooth one, although the stops were still pretty packed. We decided against making any pit stops, a straight drive to Penang, via the new bridge. We were already at the hotel by 3.30.

The room was already ready, and before we knew it, we were already unpacking. More about the rooms later ...