Oh no! I’ve missed a day, so I will make a quick belated entry.
Friday morning started with a very groggy me lounging in bed half-awake, trying to will myself up when I got a call from Mizu. Thinking it was my alarm, I picked up the object ringing at me and pressed something, apparently picking up. I read the screen and wondered why Mizu’s name appeared when it dawned on me that I had picked up the phone. Confused, I spoke into it and found him speaking back to me, telling me he’d be there in just a few minutes. I rushed to get ready and woke up Typea as planned, so he could help lock up after I went out. It took some stuffing, but we managed to get all my luggage in the car, all the while wondering how we managed to do it the first time around, even with a full car. With that, we were off to pick up Zen and meet Starfish at the airport.
I can't believe this is the only picture I took in the airport.
I checked in with no problems and even had 5 kg to spare in one of my bags, so I added some more to it from my carry-on. The four of us got some breakfast together and then said our goodbyes as I headed in. Once I made it through the passport check, I waved to my little sending party and went to my gate. I enjoyed the free internet they had and sent an e-mail to Panda before I boarded the plane for the first leg of the trip. I had been given an emergency exit window seat for more leg room, but I hadn’t realized that the window would be so far away when I had agreed to it, so I regretted my decision. The trip to Tokyo was fast and painless and soon enough it was time to get off, go through security, and reboard the plane with a fresh crew.
This time I asked for any other window seat and the air hostess got a guy to switch seats with me. I had a nice chat with the people sitting next to me and then enjoyed a few movies before taking a nap. Unfortunately, much of the latter part of the ride was suffered in discomfort as the girl sitting behind me put her knees up on the back of my chair and began to move around constantly, kicking, kneeing, and pushing the seat annoyingly. I decided to take it as an erratic massage or a broken massage chair of sorts. I didn’t know if bringing it up would just make it worse, so I just kept moving around every time she did. I definitely liked her best when she was asleep. At least I figured out why my chair wouldn’t lean back at first when I tried earlier on.
Looks like an upside-down dolphin. Where are we?
After way too long, we had breakfast and began our descent into LAX. I watched the scenery pass by, trying to spot the UCLA campus or anything else I may recognize, but I couldn’t tell which cluster of tall buildings was downtown and everything else looked unrecognizable. Coming out, I found Tom Bradley International Terminal to be under construction – yet another thing that looked foreign to me. However, once I got out to the street, I was back in my comfort zone, familiar with the area and accent, content with the sunshine and temperature, and ready to be on my way. I patiently waited for Panda for about 40 minutes (he couldn’t get off work too early) and happily spotted him 15 minutes early! We loaded up my stuff and I clung to him, thrilled to be able to feel him again. He’s gotten thinner from the busy, stressful days lately, but gosh, he looks good dressed up.
We got some Quizno’s for lunch and ran a few errands before crashing at his place, which I got to see for the first time. I was given a card and key so I can let myself in as needed and he read his card to me, as we like to do. We don’t have an anniversary day, but it’s about that time, so he got me a Happy Anniversary card. 🙂 I gave him the tie and cuff links I bought him and promised him his other gift the next time I see him, since that one was buried somewhere in my luggage. We got to hang out for a few hours before my mom came to pick me up and get dinner. I spent the rest of the night unpacking and telling my mom stories about all the things I had acquired (which really wasn’t much). Strangely, I don’t feel like I was gone for so long. Everything is pretty much as it was and I immediately fell back into most of my old life patterns. Things do smell different though.
It’s hard to believe I’ve been here for five months and even harder to believe I’m about to leave on Friday. Thankfully, there’s lots to do so I don’t have much time to mull over it all. On the one hand I’ve missed Panda for nearly 150 days and I can’t wait to see him, touch him again. It’s been too long of pretending I could touch him and feel him hug me through the webcam. On the other hand, the people here are amazing and have taken great care of me. Plus, I’m just getting around to exploring Singapore! It’s a pity it’s ending already, but I can’t help but look forward to who and what I have waiting for me back home.
Each one has its significance to me (and may not be the most practical, but I was going for more meaningful…): for Zen, a pair of silver dragons because that just seems fitting for an influential man; for Mizu, a pair of gold electric guitars because he truly is a rock star (in so many ways); for Typea, a pair of blue and sea green golf clubs in their bags (or whatever it’s called) for his enjoyment of the game and the lifestyle it represents; for Marylin, a pink cover with a pretty peacock for her growing involvement in the beauty industry; and for Starfish, a cool blue cover with an elegant flower for her cool head and classiness as well as the spray I mentioned above because she loves VS. As for the elephants, I figured that Mac would want the purple one (actually why I bought that particular pack, though I liked it because I like purple too) and Lorry would appreciate the green one (a bit of an inside joke on that one, for all his Greenness). Skim was the only wild card, who could go for the pretty light blue one or the more royal blue one, or maybe even the bright white one.
Wow, what an eventful day. It started off quite well, with calls from Mizu announcing a pleasant surprise: I would get company on my way to the airport and even be given a ride! That meant that I could sleep in a little and enjoy some extra rest. By and by it came time to leave, so I took my stuff downstairs and hopped in the car. We got to the airport with plenty of time to spare and ate some lunch, casually chatting until it was time to check in. Mizu and Zen then went on their way and I prepared my documents for the counter.
Mizu kindly drove me to the bus departure and I got myself a ticket on a nice luxury vehicle. We had some time before its departure, so I exchanged some money and then got some dessert to snack on. Soon enough, it was time to board the bus and Mizu sent me on my way. I settled in to the large comfy seat and watched the landscape whizz by as we headed off. The rest of the trip was scattered with movie-watching and naps on and off, briefly interrupted twice to get off and go through immigration and customs. It was very comfortable save for the cold air blasting overhead, which left me shivering towards the end of the trip.
It was a nice overcast day for the most part, which kept things cool. Thankfully, the rain stayed away though and allowed us to enjoy a very nice time at the park. Apparently a lot of people are blood donors because the place was packed! From the bus that took us from Boon Lay to the park to the line to get in, we could tell it was going to be a crowded place. It was still great fun though, as we made our way from penguins to flamingos to macaws to hawks to ostriches, and so much more! There was even this beastly creature that was huge and rather ugly, with remnants of a dino-like crown protruding from his head. Along the way, we came across a pelican feeding, where we were told about the seven types of pelicans in existence, and then got to see an entertaining bird show with all kinds of fun tricks.
At the end of our trip, we took the tram for one more spin around the park and headed out to meet up with some of Mizu’s friends. We stopped by the gift shop hoping to find a cute penguin pen to bring back to Starfish, but they didn’t have any. 🙁 We also came across this free pearl offer (where they would extract it in front of you), but it was only for real ticketholders. 🙁 I was so sad because I really wanted one so I could bring something back to Chatty to thank her. Oh well. We then squeezed back onto the bus to take us to the MRT and took a nice long ride to Ang Mo Kio to wait for Mizu’s buddies. Typea’s been using my iPod touch to play Tap Tap Revenge (it’s like DDR but with your fingers on the touchscreen), which Mizu also enjoys, so we played a few rounds challenging each other as we sipped on some drinks.
