Redang with Jordan

(19 July 2007 – 22 July 2007)

1st Day
We left the house at about 3:45 am. Pei Lu was in our car. Yoke Kheng drove the other car with Kenny and Sahaya as passengers. The journey was good. Jordan behaved well. He was still in his pyjamas. We had a short toilet break along the highway, then no more break until Kemaman. We stopped at the famous Hai Peng Kopitiam for breakfast – it was about 7:30 am.

We arrived at the Kuala Terengganu Jetty at 10:30 am and boarded the ferry straight away. We were the last on board but had the whole front deck all to ourselves. The journey took one and a half hour. Jordan had a good view of the sea.

The bus from the Berjaya Redang Beach Resort picked us up, and upon arrival at the resort, we were welcome with a drink. After checking in, Seng Chor went for his first dive. Jordan roamed about in the room – playing with (throwing) his toys. Later, he slept until Seng Chor woke him up for a dip in the swimming pool. Seng Chor also took him to the sea. Jordan loved the pool but not the sea. He was a bit scared. He was also afraid to walk on the sand.

For dinner, we ate at a Malay restaurant just outside the resort. It was not a pleasant dinner. Food was ok but the cashier was horrible. Yoke Kheng was even charged 50 cents for her little bowl of chili.


2nd Day
It drizzled in the morning.
Seng Chor left for his second diving trip before 8 am.
As soon as Seng Chor returned, Jordan woke up. It was after 10:30 am. I rested well.

Seng Chor baby sat while I played card games in the next room.

At about 1:45 pm, Seng Chor went for his third dive.

At 4:30 pm, I went for the Ayura Signature Massage (90 minutes).
“The signature massage took me back to the traditional art of healing and renewal where a heated poultice of aromatic herbs and spices is applied on the meridian points of the body to soothe sore muscles, followed by an invigorating massage to ease joint pains with Oriental Spice aromatherapy blend.”

It was my first ‘real’ massage. The last time I had a massage was during my confinement, at home. This is my first massage in a resort, and definitely not the last. I felt like a queen. On arrival, I was escorted into a room. It has a bathroom with a nice shower area. The bed for massage was in the hall. The room was filled with a soothing music. I was asked to change, while the lady waited outside. Next, she washed my feet with warm water. It reminded me of the time when some of the ladies in the church took turns to wash each other feet to symbolize servanthood. It felt good. Then, the massage began – legs, hands, body, shoulder and head. It was wonderful. I didn’t realize that the time was up. I thought it was just 1 hour, but it was 90 minutes already.

My leg muscles ache a bit after that, but it didn’t last long. It was my first body massage after all. There were no other body aches – so the lady has done a good job.


3rd Day
It was the fourth and final dive for Seng Chor in the morning. It was drizzling.
Kenny, Sahaya and Pei Lu went for snorkeling. Yoke Kheng had a stroll on the beach and around the resort. I stayed in the room.

Jordan woke up at almost 12 noon! Super sleep!

Seng Chor, Yoke Kheng, Kenny, Sahaya and I played board games after lunch. Kenny brought Careers and Rat Race, and Yoke Kheng borrowed Cashflow from Xian Jiek. I got to play Careers and Cashflow. I enjoyed Careers more.

“Careers is a board game first manufactured by Parker Brothers in 1955, which has been reprinted from time to time up to the present day. It was devised by the sociologist James Cooke Brown. Victory conditions consist of a minimum amount of fame, happiness and money that the player must gain. Players set their own victory conditions before the game begins, the total of which must be sixty (or one hundred, recommended when only two are playing).

The board consists of a square with an outer track and several minor loops (called occupation paths), each of which starts and ends at a space on the outer track. Some fame, happiness and money ("victory points") can be obtained on the outer track. These victory points can be obtained more quickly on the occupation paths. Each occupation path has more opportunities for certain types of victory points than others (e.g., in Hollywood there are many opportunities to get fame points). Each occupation also has certain minimum entry requirements.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Careers_(board_game)

Seng Chor won the game, followed by Sahaya. I was close. I just need to accumulate more fame points (stars).

Later, Yoke Kheng, Kenny, Sahaya and I played Cashflow and Sahaya won.


4th Day (Sunday)
Jordan woke up early – 7 am. Probably he thought that we were going to church. Hehehe!
We checked out at 12 noon, and left the resort at 12:30 pm. The ferry was packed this time. But we still managed to find good seats at the front deck.

We arrived Kuala Terengganu at about 2:30 pm, and stopped over at KFC for lunch.

The next stop was at the Hai Peng Kopitiam at Kemaman. It was crowded. I saw a crew of cameraman and thought that they were filming a movie or just taking a break there. Yoke Kheng managed to get a table for us at the side. We placed our orders. I ordered bread with peanut butter and banana, and ice blended coffee. Behind us, there were people smoking. So, Seng Chor suggested that we move to the table inside, which was just vacated. There were 2 other tables next to us – one on the left and the other on the right. Interestingly, one of the crew members approached us, and said that they are from the Malaysia Tourism Board. They were filming for a Merdeka Day advertisement in conjunction with the Visit Malaysia 2007. They requested us to sing the song, “Rasa Sayang”. Wow! This will be my second time on tv. I would say that we sang well. What could go wrong? Absolutely nothing. We had 2 worship leaders with us. As we sang, Seng Chor was carrying Jordan, and Jordan was enjoying a love letter that came with my coffee. Oh, what a privilege! The Teohs will be on tv!

After filming us, they filmed the shop owner and his staff. They also sang, “Rasa Sayang”. They didn’t sing well initially, and was asked to start again. Hehehe!

The advertisement will be on aired from 15 August onwards in TV1, 2, 3 and Astro – probably for a month. So, watch out for it. I must get the tape ready for recording.

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It was a wonderful trip for the Teohs:
• First island trip for Jordan
• First ferry ride for Jordan
• First ‘swim’ for Jordan in the pool and sea
• First body massage for me
• First bicycle ride for me and Jordan
• First time for the Teohs to ride on one bicycle
• First advertisement filming for the family