Like royal. (PART IV)

On the 3rd day in Honeymoon Island,
we had an 'outing'.

Honeymoon King & Queen arranged for all
to board their ship and took us to another island nearby.

That island is called 'Egg Island'.
Sounds so weird right?
But according to them, if you take a picture
of the island from a plane, its shape resembles....
AN EGG! (well, a no-brainer there)

Anyway, in a horizontal view,
this is how Egg Island looks like:





It's a really small island, probably take you 15 minutes
to walk round the entire island. Yup, THAT small.
I think it's more like a HUGE pile of sand in the sea,
not so much an island. HAHA.

It's also super crowded.
Lots of Phuket's tourists go there for 'outings'.
Some were playing beach volley, some were sunbathing,
some were swimming around the island,
some were just chilling out at the bar.
BUT most of us who went there felt a bit bored.

I mean, it's nice that they took us island hopping,
but many of the reps still have yet to present their work.
So, a lot of them couldn't fully enjoy.

Not only that, because we didn't know what to expect,
or had any clue what was on the Egg Island,
MANY of us didn't bring $$!

So, we sat there and just 'look at'
people enjoying their corn on the cob,
ice creams, beer, fresh juice,
trying on swim wears, sarongs etc.
Without $$, we couldn't savour or
buy any items on the Egg Island.

This is where I'll tell you a little about
Honeymoon Queen.

She's such a sweetie.
Even though she's rich,
(well, her husband IS a millionaire / billionaire after all)
there wasn't a hint of arrogance in her.

Maybe it's a Thai thing.
She was really hospitable to all of us
throughout our entire stay in Phuket.

When she found out a lot of us didn't bring $$,
she quickly announced this to us,
"We have baht (Thai currency)! We have baht.
Don't worry. What you want we'll buy".

She then whispered something in Thai to her staff
(our helpers). Like I said before this, all the country reps
were assigned a Thai helper. Mine was Orawan.

Right after she spoke to them,
our helpers came and told us to just
POINT at what we want, they will buy for us.

Wow, what a statement.
POINT at what we want,
they will BUY.
(Aww... How I wish my fiance will say this to me in a mall!)

I was wondering,
if I POINT at Egg Island,
does that mean Honeymoon Queen
will buy the island for me?
HAHAHAHA....

Anyway, I wasn't greedy,
I merely 'pointed' at a Wall's ice cream.

An hour or so after, we hopped back into our ship
and journeyed back to Honeymoon Island.
Just in time for dinner.

Let me show you the ambience we enjoyed
while having our dinner:









This is EXACTLY what I saw. I didn't photoshop or
did anything to the picture.

To prove to you I didn't retouch it, I've included another
picture of the sunset with the other country reps in it.
The lady in red is a representative of
an ad agency in Shanghai, China.



Dinner was buffet style.




Check out the food. Hhmmm... YUMs!










Now, let me tell you a little bit about Honeymoon King.
He's a brilliant man. Not as friendly as his wife,
but still very hospitable.

Remember when I first arrived on the island,
I was alone, and I had lunch with Orawan?

Our conversation went a little bit like this:

Me: Orawan, I came here by speed boat,
How are the others going to come here?
(So many of them!) By speed boats too?

Orawan: No... Mr. Kun XXXX (referring to Honeymoon King)
owns a ship, they'll come here with that.
You came alone, so we used the speed boat.

Me: Oh, so Mr. Kun XXXX (Honeymoon King)
will be coming with them on the ship too?

Orawan: No no no! (She looked shocked when I said that)
(HAHAHA... And I was shocked that she was shocked!)

Orawan goes on to say:
"Mr. Kun XXXX is the owner of the island.
He is very important. So, he'll come FROM THE SKY."



FROM THE SKY? WHAT THE?!!
This was what Orawan meant.








HELICOPTER!
I took this after Honeymoon King and Queen arrived.
His pilot was cleaning the helicopter.


SERIOUSLY!
Now you understand why I named them
Honeymoon 'King' and 'Queen'.

Fuh-yoh! This was what I felt after witnessing their arrival:
We COMMONERS travel by land or sea.
For the REALLY IMPORTANT people,
they must descend from the sky.

Below are some close ups of the helicopter.





They used the helicopter quite often.
I think on the 2nd day,
they took the helicopter to Phuket for lunch.
(While we, the COMMONERS ate on the island). Haha.

Every time the helicopter comes near,
there'll be a surge of strong wind,
something like a baby typhoon.
The trees and plants will sway left, right and centre,
And my hair will look super messed up after. Haha.


Anyway, just before they landed,
I took the opportunity to take this series of photos:






From afar, it looked like an insect
that's going to land on the flower, right?









I must say,
I had on heck of a trip in Phuket.
Even though it's work-related,
it felt more like an eye-opening 'holiday'.

I have to thank the person who made
this trip so much fun.
He is none other than - the Honeymoon King.

Now, to end this four-part post,
I've decided to give your eyes a little treat.

Allow me to show you a glimpse of the
owner of Honeymoon Island (also owner of
the helicopter, the ship, a worldwide business
and many many more things!)

Ladies and gentleman,
I present you,
Mr. Kun Honeymoon King.

(Picture taken while we were on the way to Egg Island)

Pssst... He shared the ride with us on the ship,
because Egg Island doesn't have a helipad!
HAHAHA.

Like royal. (PART III)

I've always had an eye for strange things.
When I look at an object or place, very often,
I'll discover things that 'normal people' don't notice.

For example,
one fine morning, on the Honeymoon Island,
I decided to go for a morning walk near my chalet.

The faint sound of the nearby waves gently hitting
the seashore was super therapeutic and calming.

Suddenly, I decided to look up. This is what I saw:


Two love birds on the roof of my chalet.
Maybe they too are on a honeymoon. Hehe.


For the presentation,
I was scheduled to be the second to present.
Having worked till late for weeks preparing for it,
It took only about 20 minutes to present.
Was super relieved when it was over. It went pretty well.

Anyway, I was happy I get to sit back and
enjoy the rest of my trip while others still
feel nervous about their presentation.

From the 2nd day onwards,
I didn't bother using the buggy dy.
The resort has limited buggies to cater to everyone.
So, I opted for a bicycle instead.
Haha. Yup. Cycled here, there, and everywhere
on the island for 4 days. It was fun. And great exercise too.

See my red bike? =)



On the 3rd day, I woke up late.
Rushed out of my room, and
cycled like a mad woman to grab a quick breakfast
before going to the conference hall.

Below is the seaside restaurant
where I had most of my meals.



While I was busy stuffing bacons and scrambled eggs
into my mouth, suddenly, I heard 'Honeymoon King's' wife,
(let's call her - 'Honeymoon Queen') shouting.

"Dolphins, dolphins!"

Time stood still for a while.
It took me a few seconds to register what she was saying.
Then, I looked out into the ocean at where she pointed,

There, I saw them.
Not just one, not two, not three....
but SEVEN dolphins.

It was such a great moment.
My only regret was not having
my camera with me to capture the moment.

The dolphins were swimming so near to the restaurant!
Cute greyish blue creatures
in the light bluish green ocean.
Nice.

Needless to say, I was glad I woke up late that day.
(I saw them again after I finished my breakfast.
They were hanging around the red round floats -
probably playing with them, like water volleyball).

It was my first time seeing dolphins.
And at such a short distance! God is so good to me.
=)


Anyway, the climax of my 'business trip'
will be posted in Part IV (the last part of Like royal).
Till then, enjoy the pictures of the island:


A corridor from the conference hall to the pool area.
If you look closely, you'll see a tree grown
in between one of the beams.
Told you I notice weird things. Haha.



A 'gazebo-looking' building by the poolside.



Pool area.


On the 2nd day of my trip, I was super semangat.
Woke up at 5am, wanted to watch the sunrise.
(But silly lah, I later realised that I was on the
wrong side of the island!) HAHA.

While waiting for the sun, I took the below pictures:







I named this last picture 'Devil-In-Disguise Chalet'.
Check out its fiery 'eyes' (windows) and 'horns'.

Please... No More...

WHAT!
I just found out that Malaysia is playing Chelsea tonight.

Why can't they just lay low?
And not have these sort of 'friendly' matches anymore?

So embarassing.
I have never heard them won before you know?
When was the last time they win a match?
1950s? 1960s? Does anyone know?

Anyway, I want to be proud to be Malaysian-lah.
But if we lose to Chelsea like 10 - 0 how?
WHERE TO FREAKIN' HIDE MY FACE?

Argh... fingers crossed that
Chelsea players will save us a little face.
"Please don't score so many goals ah..."

On my way to work, the radio DJs wanted to discuss
10 ways Malaysia can win Chelsea tonight.

In my opinion,
there's only THREE ways Malaysia can win:

1. Chelsea kicks the ball into their own goal. (Realistic mistake)
2. In our dreams. (Unrealistic hope)
3. Miracle. (Unlikely incident)



* UPDATE
Oh, goodies.
Just got news that Chelsea beat Malaysia (2 - 0). Not too bad.

Like royal. (PART II)

Like I said in Part I,
the island is not small.


The picture above shows you the distance
from the jetty to the lobby.


Behind the lobby is a small hill.
You need to hike to get over to the other side.
The people who works there told me that's the side
where the sun rises every morning.
And the beach there is a lot nicer.
Quieter.


Did I hike to see the beautiful side of the island?
Nope. Couldn't be bothered.
HAHA. It was so darn hot ok?
I'm happy just exploring one side of the island,
this side also not bad what, got sunset mah.
Haha.


Once given the keys to my room,
they escorted me to the buggy again.
(You'll keep hearing me talk about the buggy,
because it's really QUITE far to walk from my room to
the conference hall).


Anyway, let me show you my 'room'.
Turns out, ROOM 2102 really means CHALET 2102!




Yes.
That whole block you're looking at was where I stayed.
ME ALONE. ONLY.
I was given the freakin' WHOLE CHALET to myself..
WOOHOO!


Upon entering the chalet, this is what you'll see:




Hmmm... it's a bit small in the picture, but if you
look carefully, you'll see a fresh fruit platter
on the table next to my bed.


Ahh... I'm sure you can tell by now that I had fun.


Anyway, the chalet came with a TV and a fridge
(all packed with water & soft drinks for me to drink
to my heart's content. At NO CHARGE of course).


Behind the wall where my bed is located,
is the walk-in wardrobe. Next to it is the toilet.
A relatively huge toilet.


Also, here's what I found out later on:
Some Creative Directors or Marketing Directors
from other agencies had to share rooms & beds!


BUT me, the little nobody, the only representative
from Malaysia had the whole chalet to myself.
Ahhh... Feels soooo good remembering that now.
Who says you have to be a big shot to enjoy a bigger space?


Anyway, after changing to something more 'island-friendly,
I called the lobby to send someone to pick me up for lunch.
Lazy to walk mah. Haha. Too much.
I could really get used to this kind of VVIP treatment.


Lunch was served by the seaside.
The thai lady who was assigned to take care of me
is called Orawan. That lunch, she ate with me.


Speaking of that seaside restaurant.
I had a spectacular 'unexpected' encounter there which
I must must must tell you. But will only let you know
what happened in the my next post.


During lunch,
Orawan told me briefly about my client, her boss,
the owner of the island - Kun XXX
(for his privacy, I won't reveal his name)
Let me give him a name - Honeymoon King.
Haha.


Initially I thought 'Kun' is my client's surname,
but Orawan explained to me that in Thai,
'Kun' is used to address someone you really respect
but don't know very well.


It is NOT an equivalent of 'Mr.' or 'Miss' because I heard
some Thai personnels greeting someone like this,
"Mr. Kun Benjamin".




The climax of my trip will be told
when I write about my meeting with the
Honeymoon King.


Trust me. It's really DRAMA one.
You'd never expect it.


Will tell you more and post more pictures in Part III.
Stay tuned.

Absence.

Oh great.
Just when I kicked start the engine
to blog regularly again, I fell sick.

It all started 2 days ago.
I had a sneezing frenzy since the morning.
By noon, I couldn't take it anymore.
My trash bin was packed with my mucus-inhabited tissues.
So I went downstairs to the clinic in my office building,
to consult a doctor.

This clinic is part of my office's panel doctor.
Meaning, when I go, I just have to give them
my name and office I'm working in.
No need to pay (they'll bill my office direct).

Here's my experience with the doctor
that's on duty that day/hour
(they have a few doctors rotating shift).

Doc: Hi, what's wrong with you?
Me: (AREN'T YOU SUPPOSED TO TELL ME!?)
I'm having a sneezing frenzy. Maybe flu is coming?

Doc: Oh! Must be allergy.
Me: Allergy to what?
(MIND YOU, he jumped to this conclusion
even before taking my blood pressure!)
Doc: Oh, could be anything. Anything also can cause allergy.
I have that problem also.

* WHAT! Seriously, I felt like he's just making assumptions.
I think I'm allergic to you, DOCTOR!

While taking my BP, he tested my temperature.

Doc: See? Everything is normal.
Me: Sniff sniff. But I really don't feel too well.

Doc: You don't have fever. You just have allergy.
Since you're scared, I'll give you flu medicine.
But I don't think you're sick.

Me: Can I have the rest of the day off?
Doc: You only have allergy lah. It's not contagious.
You want to have half day off
even if you're not so sick ah?

JUDGMENTAL like nobody's business.
My eyes were watery.
My nose was running like a tap.
My body felt hot inside cold outside.
And I'm sweating in AIR-CON ROOM!
Tell me! HOW CAN I NOT BE SICK?

You think I'm SO FREE to come down here to
CHEAT YOU OF A PATHETIC HALF-DAY MC?

I finally got half-day off.
That evening,
my body felt like it's being roasted on fire.
I broke into cold sweat from head to toe.
My whole body was aching.
And I only managed to sleep at 3am.
If this is not sick, tell me what it is!
IDIOTIC, UNSCRUPULOUS DOCTOR!




The next day (yesterday),
I couldn't get up from my bed.
My whole body was aching like mad.
And my world was spinning in my head.

Slept until noon.
Then fiance brought me to see my
favourite doctor nearby my place.

First thing he said when he saw me is this:

Good doc: Hi, long time no see! Very good!
Me: I laughed and said not so good lah.
(Refrained myself from telling him
my horrible encounter the day before)

Good doc: Let me check your pulse.

IMPORTANT:
Did you notice, he didn't ask me this:
"What's wrong with you?"

He then took out his gadgets.
All electronic and high-tech looking.
Pretty cool stuff.
Well, he's a young doctor, so I think
young people prefer high-tech stuff.

That aside,
after he checked my pulse and BP,
he said this:

Good doc: Oh! You BP is a bit low.
You should feel a bit dizzy.
Are you dizzy?
Me: (OH PRAISE THE LORD! I'm not crazy)
Yup, I am.

Good doc: Hmmm... heartbeat is rather fast.
This tells me your body is fighting.
Should be a virus attack.
Let me check your temperature.

Took out another electronic device,
tapped my neck left and right, and said:

Good doc: Temperature is a bit low.
Is your body aching all over?
Me: (OH THANK YOU for diagnosing correctly)
Yeah, I am. But keep sweating.

Good doc: Yes. It's normal.
All these are symptoms of viral fever.
Your body is fighting.
So, you'd feel dizzy, and your body will
sweat, ache, and even though your body temp is cold,
inside you'll feel very hot. (WHOA! BINGO!)

Do you have sorethroat?
Let me check.

After showing him my throat, he said:
A bit red.
Take more Vitamin Cs.
It'll help the fight.
If your body lose this fight,
you should anticipate high fever.
But LET'S PREVENT THIS.

Ok. we're done.
I'll write you an MC.
(Do I have to beg and argue for an MC?
NO! Why? Because this is a DOCTOR, not an ASSUMER)

I waited outside for my medicine.
When they called my name, I was feeling apprehensive.
Coz I saw so many medicine!
* But no antibiotic (I noticed he rarely gives that).

5 packs of medicine in total.
I saw some are imported from Australia and Singapore.
Wah, quickly check purse to see if got enough cash.

But when the nurse handed me the bill,
I was pleasantly surprised. RM50!
(I was expecting an exorbitant price)

My gosh! It's the normal price!
Some doctors who are so-so charges even more,
and gives local cheapskate medicine
(the ones in SS2 usually charges RM50 - RM60).

Ahh... my purse felt good after leaving that clinic.
And so did my body. =)

This good doc has restored my faith
in the medical industry once again.

* If you want to know where his clinic is,
let me know.

Weird people inspire blog posts.

I can't stand weird people.
In fact, this post is the result of my encounter with one of them.

(Even though I'm also not the most
'normal' human being around).

One Sunday,
after a good dose of praise & worship + sermon,
I waited for fiance after service while he answers nature's call,
Outside the hall was a huge 'after-church-service crowd'.

I stood there while staring into thin air
(Super tired due to lack of sleep).

Suddenly,
an unfamiliar voice called my name.

Before I can make out the source of the voice,
a lady whom I barely knew emerged from the crowd,
ran towards me, and said,
"Hey! I didn't know you got engaged."

DUDE! That was in February!
And who are you anyway?

Then, it all happened so quick.

Next thing you know,
without saying anything else, she grabbed my hand.
Stared at my engagement ring for a good 3 seconds or so.
Then let go of my hand and WENT OFF!

WHAT THE!
Pffttt!! So rude ok? No manners!
I can't stand weird people!

Like royal. (PART I)

An 'event' which I think is 'blogworthy'
was my trip to Phuket.
It wasn't a holiday but a business trip.
My first overseas trip representing my agency.

A very special client from Thailand
requested my company to send two representatives
to present fresh TVC ideas in
his new private island in Phuket.

Yes. You heard me right.
PRIVATE island.

So freakin' rich that he bought the island for himself.
(I thought these kind of purchase are only
popular amongst Hollywood celebrities).
Guess I'm wrong. Ha!

Anyway, he named the island "Honeymoon".
Haha.

So, besides my company, other agencies
from around the world that handles
his account were also invited.

According to his email, he specifically requested for
a GM and/or Creative Director or Group Head.

Who ended up going in the end?
Nope. Not the high-ranking big shot
but me - the erm, Copywriter.
And yes, I went ALONE.

Haha.
Don't ask me why my company decided
to send me. And me only.
My client actually offered to pay for everything for TWO.
Yet, company still decided to only send one representative.

Oh well, good also lah.
I got an all-expense-paid trip to a private island.
YIPPIE! So, off I went.

When I arrived at airport,
a thai lady assigned to take care of me
was already there.

She escorted me straight to the jetty,
Then, I was told we'll be going to the
private island by speed boat.

Speed boat! *Gulp.

Being a Sabahan,
islands are nothing foreign to me.
Back in my hometown, we also take speed boats
to the nearby islands.

But I was feeling stupid because I felt 'overdressed'.
Kept thinking I should have worn t-shirt and shorts lah.

This was the equation in my head:
SPEED BOAT = SPLASHING SEA WATER ALL OVER.
I thought I'd be soaked by the time I reach the island.

But when I arrived at the jetty,
that 'speed boat' turned out to be quite different
from what I expected.

It came with zipped-up transparent PVC 'windows'.
Much more luxurious and a little like the ones
you see in movies. Ahh... Classy.

Outcome:
Not a single drop of seawater landed on me.

About half an hour later, I arrived at Honeymoonn Island.
A lady in traditional Thai costume
was standing at the jetty, waiting for me.
She placed a flower ring around my neck,
and said, "Welcome to Honeymood Island."

Seriously, that moment felt like a scene
from the Amazing Race or something.
Haha. So funny.

She handed me a golden plate with lots of
cut-out bread cubes, pointed at the fish in the sea,
motioning me to help myself with feeding the fishies.

I glanced down.
That was when I realised just how
crystal clear the water was.
It was amazing.

After throwing a couple of handfuls of bread into the sea,
I hopped onto a buggy, which they used to
chauffeur me to the lobby.

The island isn't very big.
But it's definitely NOT small (more on that in next post).

Minutes after I arrived, I realised that 8 other countries
have sent their reps to that presentation.
I was the first to arrive.

So, I had the island to myself
for a few hours before they come.
Loved every minute of it.
=)


Psst... Stay tuned for Part II.