Road Trip Through Pictures Day 1

Till today, I am still amazed that we managed to pull this road trip off with such minimal amount of planning, so many options, being too indecisive, the list goes on. First road trip in the UK. Yay!

Initially, we'd planned to leave early afternoon but changed our plans again after listening to the advice of the taxi driver on our way to collect our rented car. To avoid the rush hour at Bristol and Birmingham, we left at 6pm instead of 2pm that day.

Up to the last minute before leaving, we were still hunting for accommodations to stay in Cornwall, still deciding between driving to Cornwall or driving to Dover to catch a ferry to Calais, France for only 55 pounds return, but in the end, due to limitations of the car insurance, we decided to stick to Cornwall.

We collected JT from Chester, SM and T from Runcorn and off we went!

As the night got late, all of us were starving and I have no idea why all that we wanted at that time was KFC and nothing else. I think we've stopped at 2 service stations just be disappointed that there wasn't a KFC or the branch was closed. Finally, as we turned into Bristol, we found our KFC which was still opened! Not slightly tempted by the buffet restaurant next door, we approached this Drive-through KFC, or should I call it Reverse-through.

We were so hungry that we drove past the menu, drove past the order point, straight to the collection counter only to be directed back to the start to place our orders. Did we make another turn? No, S decided that we should have Reverse-through KFC that night. Not only that, we exchanged our bottle of Coke to Tango as the Coke wasn't cold enough, We reversed another time to get more sauces. If this wasn't reverse-through, I don't know what you'll call it.

As it was already late, the restaurant wasn't opened. So, we had our first meal of the trip in the car. Somehow, the KFC tasted more delicious that way. Must be the momentum from all that reversing. Hehehe.

We decided to spend the night in Bristol as it would give us a chance to explore the city the next morning and it wasn't a good idea to drive all the way down to Cornwall. Lucky for BT who suggested Cabot Circus hotel, we managed to find a really good deal.

Really nice accommodation.

This post is for warming up as there's much more to come. Day 2 post is going to be looooonnnggg....Keep reading.

I opened my kitchen door and found

My flatmate making curry puff and a whole plate of Roti Jala and sauce to go with it! Even though I've taken my dinner earlier before my nap, given this situation, I terpaksa (was forced to) have a second round of dinner.

Such lovely surprises. I don't mind having another surprise tomorrow, and the day after, and 2 days after, and.........hehehehe. They really made my day. Thank you so much.

Hibernation still in process. Will update blog when energy level allows me to.

What I'd reflected so far...

I reflected that staying in one place for too long affects my ability to reflect as it no longer stimulates reflection.

Therefore, I set off on a journey in search for the lost secret to reflection. I reflected that....

...the bridge between my reality and fantasy was so concrete that I could barely differentiate them

...there was a reason why I went back to the same place to settle the unfinished business

...gigantic obstacles can appear like tiny blocks if you change your perspective

...some situations can be so inviting but scary at the same time

...making the wrong turn in life can lead you back to the starting point again

...having lighthouses without lighting them do nothing to guide lost ships

...sometimes we appear confident but panicking like crazy inside

...there are different ways and speed of going from one end to another

...having breaks in between is so effective in rejuvenating motivation

...it doesn't really matter which goes on first as long as we're happy with the outcome

...sometimes we're just short of the right timing to cross over obstacles

...strong foundation is the secret to being the last one standing

...too much of anything is bad for health

...the end of a journey doesn't mean that my journey has ended

...there is always a link between the past, present and future

...I've been writing a lot of nonsense and you have read until the end. Go studylah!

Back in Liverpool, is it the end yet?

Well, not really. Another trip down to Stratford-upon-avon waiting for me in 5 hours time. If anyone wants to experience what is trip overdose, please contact me and I'll give you the full itinerary.

It's only been a 3 days and 3 nights road trip but I think we managed to squeeze a 7 days trip into 3. I can really say this time, 'What a trip!'

I think I better sleep now. Need to recharge for tomorrow, settle the accounts for the trip and organise the transfer of photos. If only medicine is as exciting as traveling. That's why I'm a full time traveler/blogger and part time medical student for the past 4.7 years. This title will be changing soon, but most probably only the last part of it.

In cornwall

In St. Ives at the moment. The last 55 hours has been really hectic and exciting. My journey so far covered Bristol, Bath, Stonehenge, a haunted house (will tell you more in the next post), Eden project and St. Ives. There'll be at least another 24 hours before I can lie in my own bed for a few hours before I celebrate Shakespear's birthday. That'll just leave me 1 more day to hibernate before making the start of the last rotation. Why are holidays always too short?

To pack or not to pack, that is the question

Here I am, reading the latest updates of flights, the current activity of Eyjafjallajokull volcano (please don't make me pronounce the name), refreshing Ryanair's website at least once every hour, wondering if I should pack my bag or not. Haih......

What will be my fate on Monday? Will the skies be clear? Will the airports be packed with travelers again? Will the planes take off? What if I manage to fly out of the UK but not back in again? Skip a few days of term? That doesn't sound too bad.

Any suggestions for Plan B? Road trip around the UK instead? Alton towers? Cornwall? Go down to London to watch Phantom of the Opera?

Maybe I'll end up with Plan C: 1 week hibernation

Mother nature, why of all times, of all volcanoes, of all wind directions?

Ice Skating in Cymru

I can't remember when was the last time I went ice skating. Most probably more than 5 years ago. We went all the way to North Wales for it. Thanks to K and A who drove us in their cars, we reached there in 40 minutes.

Before we hit the ice. I still dislike the designs of shoes which has anything to do with snow or ice. They're just too narrow and too tight. It has to be tight in order to control the balance but end up hurting my poor feet.

Taking the first step was the hardest as I totally had no confidence that I wouldn't slip. After a few rounds, I got the hang of it and on my last round, I could go quite fast and turned to stop. I really admire the young kids skiing so steadily on the ice doing all sorts of tricks. Wished that I was young again and not that afraid of falling. My friends had a good time too. Some true beginners, others already at pro level.

Final group photo before we left the ice. I didn't fall this time! Muahahaha. Already made to swear that I wouldn't reveal the winner of most falls.

We headed to Chung Kiu for lunch as most of us were already starving after all that adrenaline and missed breakfast. This restaurant is next to the sea with nice views.

Waiting to be seated.

Dim sum. We ordered so much and even the waitress was impressed that we managed to clean the table. Food was not bad but don't order any of the curry dishes as they tasted so bland. Imagine eating curry which is tasteless and not spicy. 

Groupie

Now, the waiting and wishing game begins. Recent volcanic eruption in Iceland caused all flights to/from the UK to be canceled due to the huge amounts of volcanic ash emitted into the sky. I'm seriously hoping that it'll be cleared by Sunday early morning. Plan B is to hibernate at home for a whole week. Wish me luck.

Till then.

Birthday Dinner at Italian Club Fish

We gathered at The Italian Club Fish to celebrate F's birthday on a Tuesday evening. It is one of the new restaurant on Bold Street which I haven't tried yet. I liked the atmosphere inside. The layout was simple with black and white pictures of movie stars on the walls and it feels really cosy inside.

Meeting up with old friends again. I think we only meet at occasions. It's getting more and more difficult to gather everyone nowadays.

Saute de Maurizio is highly recommended. It is a saute of different shellfish and white fish served with ciabatta bread. The other dishes were not bad too. Feedback for the lobster with spaghetti wasn't that good. Not that fresh, really small half portion of lobster. Other than that, good food.

Happy birthday F!

When it came to paying, all of us almost ended up doing the dishes for the whole of next week as A forgotten what was his pin number. We were all in suspense....but he managed to get it right the first time.

Final group picture. Will miss this group when I go back to Malaysia.

Next up, ice-skating. Did I fall? Who held the record for most falls?

Bungee Jumping at Middlesbrough

I think it took us about an hour to reach Middlesbrough from Newcastle by train. We stayed at Ibis hotel there which was a simple and clean hotel.

Initially, we wanted to go our for dinner, but due to bad weather conditions and extreme laziness, we had our meals indoors.

From Cheese & Garlic Dough Balls, Lasagne, Chicken Satay Noodles, Butternut Squash & Lentil Stew to Vegetarian curry with Naan bread. I would say that the food was not bad at all and reasonably priced.

Day of the Jump

We headed off quite early to get to the Transporter Bridge. Got loss on the way as well, but thanks to owners of Blackberry and iPhone, we managed to get there on time.

I started getting a bit nervous when I saw the actual bridge and how tall it was. Thought of why did I spend 60 pounds on jumping off a bridge came to my mind. It's like paying to torture myself with fear.

M and I registered and we were allowed to climb up at the same time. Initially we were placed at different time slots but in the end, at least we had each other for comfort prior to the jump. We were weighed to determine which rope to use while we were up there. I didn't really like it as they used a permanent market to write the weight on the back of my hand, so I'm reminded that I've gained every time I looked at my hand.

Wearing the harness. It was tied so tight around my waist that I thought I would have difficulty breathing later on.

Last picture of us before we started our ascend. Just look at the height of the bridge. My nervousness got worse that that time.

It was scary at first when we started climbing the stair, but by halfway, M and I got so tired that we stopped getting nervous and just wanted to reach the top as soon as possible. (I didn't pay for this × 1). I think they should install a lift or something. I'm just being lazy here.

Finally, the top. We were weighed again, confirmed by the additional of a circle around the marked weight on my hand. Harnesses checked. Another ankle harness fastened right before being sitted on a small stool at the start of the jumping platform. M and I were too busy trying to decide who jumps first by scissors, paper, rock. In the end, I went first.

Had 2 latches fastened, one to my waist, and another to my ankle. The jump master tried giving me reassurance at that point, asking me how was I feeling. I think my mind just went into denial mode as I wasn't that scared.......yet. I wobbled to the edge of the platform.....tried to steal a peek down....ok, now I am really scared.

'Look into the distance. Focus on one point. Have you dived before?'

'Yes.'

'It's the same as diving. You go forward as if you're going towards that point, ok?'

'Keep your chin up at all times. Don't worry. You're in safe hands'

'I'm going to count 3,2,1 and you'll jump'

'Wait, don't count yet, I'm not ready', but he didn't listen to me.......'S***', I thought to myself.

'3!'

.

.

.

.

'2!'

.

.

.

.

.

.'1!'

Here goes nothing!

With the loud sound of wind blowing against my ears, the whole world spinning. I couldn't even tell if I was still falling or was I already bouncing back up. Now I know what's the feeling of free fall, the feeling of being pulled by gravity. Being one of the balls thrown off the Leaning Tower of Pisa. (Sorry, that was just one of the memory of the experiment I studied in secondary school)

I was bracing myself for the impact when I reached the lowest point, but surprisingly, I didn't feel anything at all! Weird.

After bouncing up and down a few more times, my world stopped spinning. It was over within seconds. Not long enough for me to even feel any fear. I think I was more confused trying to figure out my bearings than worried about the rope or risk of retina detachment etc.

The irony is, I was more afraid of dropping into the water as I could feel my ankle harness slipping and why is the speed boat so slow in fetching me. I don't want to get wet! ( I didn't pay for this × 2)

Finally, after a few attempts, I managed to catch hold of the plastic stick that he held out to me. They lowered me down safely into the small speed boat and brought me back to safe land.

I had to climb from the small speed boat onto this bigger boat. The steps were so steep and ( I didn't pay for this × 3). It was more difficult than jumping off the edge just now.

After that, I had to climb up the steep ladders which was so far away from the ship. I seriously didn't want to get wet that day. ( I didn't pay for this × 4)

As I got onto solid ground safely, it was M's turn to jump. She was given this Bungee jump voucher for her birthday present last year and only used it after almost a year. I was somehow convince/dragged into jumping with her. You jump, I jump....too bad neither of us is a guy.

M's jump. She told me that she was trying to recite a poem while she was jumping. What a random thing to do. Maybe try proposing to your loved one on the way down, but practice to do that under 3 seconds first or the jump will be wasted. Hahahahaha.

The heroines of the day.

I finally did something outrageous before I turn 25. I was telling myself I better do this while I'm still young. But hey, I think 50 is still young nowadays.

We both bought the T-shirt, DVD and photo of the jump as souvenirs.

The jumpers and their spectators aka video and camera persons.

We made our way back to the town but all the shops were closed on Easter Sunday! Noooo.....not the best time to go sight-seeing.

The town hall.

Groupie

Luckily Walkabout, an Australian pub was opened for business. I was starving after all that adrenaline.

M and I had Kangaroo curry as it was buy one curry and get the next for 1 pound. So cheap. The texture was a bit like beef but after being cooked with the curry, I couldn't really taste it. While waiting for our food to come, we played Cho Dai Di and the loser had to eat an Easter egg as nobody liked the Cadbury creme eggs.

We then shifted to another restaurant as the rest of the group wanted something different. It was also my sifu's day of breaking her no meat fast for Lent. We ended up in Barnacles Fish and Chips.

From jacket potatoe to fish and chips. I wouldn't say that this is the best fish and chips as the fish was soaking in oil and you can see the oil dripping. Not the healthiest meal. Luckily I had my Kangaroo curry before this.

As no shops were opened, and we had to kill another 3.5 hours, we went back to Walkabout for desserts.

I loved the toffee pudding and chocolate cake. Both came with vanilla ice-cream but I asked it to be separated as I was allergic to vanilla. I miss the toffee pudding now. It was served warm and the texture was so soft, the taste was just nice, not too sweet or bitter, accompanied by the delicious toffee smell.

Last photo of Walkabout before we headed back to the train station and go our separate ways.

Next up, Birthday dinner at Italian Club Fish, Liverpool. Hope that you've enjoyed this post as much as I did blogging about my bungee experience. Go try it before you're too old. Hahahaa.