Journey to Kota Bharu with a three year old toddler

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KL to Orlando is 40 hours door to door. KL to KB took 5 hours door to door. We barely survived the KL-KB journey. Does KL-Orlando mean we’d be attempting suicide? Because I’m not ready to die. Nuh-uh *shaking head*

We left the house at noon. Got a taxi to KL Sentral to check-in and headed off to KLIA via the ERL where Tee insisted the train went chuga-chuga-choo-choo-chuga-chuga-choo-choo and I dissented that it went swooooooooooosh……..as it was a high speed electric train. We argued for an hour about this till we finally arrived at the Asian Cafe at KLIA for lunch.

Never ever go there. It was a first and last time visit for us. For RM40, we got a fried mee hoon (vermicelli) with chilli kembong (not salmon or cod, I assure you) fish, an egg and rotten ladies fingers, a teh tarik that tasted like laundry detergent (as it came out of a machine) and an orange juice (which was really cordial). I don’t mind paying for good food but when I have to pay for absolutely DISGUSTING food, I get a little outraged. To the point where I feel like forcing those cafe owners to try eating some cat poo, because really, there isn’t a difference. Yet, the Asian Cafe is almost always packed with Asians as it is the only place where Asian food is available (or has the best most selection of Asian anyway). Why do people put up with such crap?! *shudders*

Thankfully, Tee sat beside the Hubs on the plane and I caught a snooze albeit a fake one as that teeny weeny mouse voice just did not shut up the entire trip there. It was 3.30pm. She should have passed out from exhaustion by now, but no. She was bright and chirpy as ever, asking away, from when we would be arriving to would she be getting a wobbly bicycle from Kong-Kong (he promised her a bicycle) to why she can’t sit on a wheelchair instead of her stroller……..

Kong-Kong was late in picking us up from the airport and Tee offered all solutions to get us to Ama’s house. Let’s hop to Ama’s house! We can take a bus! Walk? How about you cawwy me on your shoulders, Mommy?

A flustered Kong-Kong finally arrived announcing that our Prime Minister, Badawi, was in town hence the big traffic jam in Kota Bharu. Yet instead of taking us straight home, he brought us to bicycle Heaven (Kota Bharu’s version!). Told Tee to enter and choose anything she wanted and not to consult Mommy or Daddy in her choice. I was praying she didn’t go for one of those battery operated movable cars, praying she would make a quick decision and praying we could just get home so I could dive into the shower. She surprised us by choosing a blue bicycle very quickly and despite us trying to sway her mind to the other few bikes she’d tried on, she still wanted the blue one with a little basket. So blue bicycle it was.

We finally arrived at Kong-Kong’s house and I slumped over like a woman shot in the head. With a giant torpedo.

So imagine Kuala Lumpur to Orlando……with the stopovers and transits, with the sore bums from extended flight hours, with the discomfort, with the jetlag……..I already know it’s going to be more pain than a holiday.

*sigh*

RM40,000 to pay for pain??? There must be something seriously wrong with us.

And no matter how much we plan, we inadvertently forget and leave something of importance behind. Like Tee’s head. Or her smelly bolster.