Right after a hearty breakfast of local and international food at “The Compass Rose”, we went to enjoy some water activities at the crystal lagoon! The first activity was “Standing Pedal”. It was like canoeing, just that you get to stand up instead of sit. It took me a while before I was able to stand up. It still felt like I was going to topple over at any second. However, when I shut my eyes, I was able to stand up, and it was not scary anymore. In fact, pedalling my way through the water became a breeze! However, it was tiring to pedal with my sister sitting on the same board.
Our next activity was called “Cable tube”. My first impression was that it was a slow and boring ride. I laughed when I saw some people fall out of it. However, when it was my turn with my father, I regretted mocking at them. When the ride sped off, I almost fell off the tube. I clung onto the handlebars for my dear life! Eventually, I fell out of the tube. That would be the only time I fell out. For the full ten minutes, I could feel the adrenaline rush through my body! You definitely want to try this out!
We were famished after the water activities, so, we went for dinner at a Kelong Seafood restaurant. It was a bit troublesome to reach there. You had to take a cab to somewhere near the sea and then afterwards a boat ride in the mangroves to the restaurant! The food was very average. When we were done with our meal, we took the boat ride back. During the ride, my surroundings suddenly turned dark. Within moments it became hardly visible. Yet strangely, part of the sky in front of us was an eerie red glow. Aside from the soft rumble of the boat’s engine, I could also hear the crickets stridulating. It felt tranquil. The cloudless sky with blood-red glow made the scene scary yet gorgeous. It was so beautiful. I felt so confused. Several passengers gasped and kept on taking photos. I also wanted to take a photo, but my father stopped me and instead told me to enjoy the moment and capture this image in my mind.
When I got back to the hotel, I was so tired I fell asleep the moment I laid on my bed. Out of the blue, I could hear some commotion happening in the room. I woke up to see my mother smiling, holding a cake with several strangers singing a birthday song. I then realized they were wishing her a happy birthday! This must be a surprise planned by my father! Afterwards, I gave her a birthday card I painstakingly drew by myself. Seeing her contented face, I felt satisfied knowing that my hard work paid off.
Howie Chia
25 November 2019
Comments