ISKL Old School Reunion, January, 2009, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

LeeAnn's Blog

LeeAnn Letourneau, Class of '74, ISKL from '69 to '74

01/06/09
This is where I will be sharing my thoughts and memories. Maybe some photos depending on how much free time I have. All the photos will be posted and linked after I return.
01/10/09
At least I think it's Jan.10th. Got in to Hong Kong about 5 1/2 hours ago. I'm glad we did this KL reunion now as the flight was so damn long, Met up with Louise Hobbs (Alexander) and her hubby Jerry and son Simon.

My timing is a bit off. It's now 3:15 a.m. but with the little sleep I got I still feel wide awake.

Anyway.We tried to find a place close by for some makan and beer. Ended up in some kind of karaoke place where it was all over the tv but no one in the place was singing. Some people had mikes but...They were also shaking dice in cups like yatchzee, but it wasn't. Drinks menu in Chinese and English, food menu only in Chinese. Had some Carlsberg on draft, and one of the staff came over with a transalted food menu. Not much to choose from but it was okay. Think greasy spoon in Vancouver, Tomorrow we will meet around 9 or 9:30 for breaky then head off for the day. All want to do the Star Ferry over to HK, then the tram to the top of the mountain. Play it by ear after that.

We landed in the dark,but I could tell it was a different approach. The cab ride here astounded me. Highways, overpasses, bridges...Once you get in to Kowloon, the overhead signs remind you where you are,But the names on the signs are international. I was glad to land in a part that didn't have the Gucci and Gap signs.

Oh, and it's cold here. I knew it could be, but thought after the c...y winter we had in Vancouver it would be better, Glad I brought the fleece,

So good to see Lou again, and meet Jerry and Simon for the first time.

01/10/09
Woke up at 7 a.m. tired as heck. Can't figure out how to turn the a/c off or the heat on. Also can't figure out how to work the TV. Two clickers but only one channel in Chinese. Hmmm. To work the lights here you have to put your door key in a slot at the door, good idea for saving electricity but bad for me when I stumbled around in the dark to find the phone to tell the front desk I had no lights. I'm really out of practice for this!

So Lou, Jerry (hubby) and Simon (son) and me are going to meet up around 9:30 for breaky. Probably just hit the McDonald's on our way to take the Star ferry over to Hong Kong then the tram to the top (Victoria peak).


01/10/09 10:20 p.m.
Had a nice leisurley day. The sun was out and as long as you weren't in the shade it wasn't too cold. The Star ferry is just as it always was. The smells are the same, perhaps not so much garbage smell though. The tram up the peak is pretty steep, our necks felt like they were going to snap off. The view was spectacular. Back to the hotel and a rest. Went out for dinner to a place a couple of doors down from the hotel. Good food. I thought we should try the soft shell crabs which turned out to be a mistake. It was dipped in egg then deep fried. Not very tasty and no one liked them. Oh well, you have to try everything once. Now basically repacked and heading to bed. We leave the hotel tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. for the airport for our 12:55 flight. About four hours after take off we'll finally be in KL. One more sleep!!

Jerry, Louise (Hobbs '75) and Simon Alexander                                        Me and Louise















































01/11/09 5:20 a.m.
Could not sleep. Wide awake at 2 a.m. after only about 3 hours. You think I'm excited about getting to KL? Or could it be that I can't get the damn light to turn off??
I got them to send up two more blankets yesterday, as I can't get the heat to come on (blows cold) and even with the system turned off it's freezing in here. It was cozy under the extra blankets and at least I didn't have to cover up my head as well.


01/12/2009 7:35 a.m.
When Louise and I got off the plane, we hugged each other and said "We're home." More on that later.

We got lost in the KL airport, dumb tourists. We were following the orange arraws but for some reason they weren't clear to us and we almost got on another plane (kidding, we were heading to another wing of departure gates). Got back on track and it was quick to get through immigration and customs. We were the only arrival at that time. Toni Mullen (ISKL's Alumni Director) and Matt Smith (2003 grad) were there to meet us. Matt has been hired by ISKL for 3 months to do some video work for them. Part of that is filming some of the reunion stuff, as well as Oral Histories for the school. So you will have to dredge up the old memories. Lou and I headed for the washroom in the airport (I know, you don't really want to read about potty breaks, but there is a point to this one). I closed the door on my stall and there was a cockroach. As if to say "Welcome home!".

To the hotel for a quick check in and change. On the drive in, we had no idea where we were, nothing looked familiar.
I was floored by the room. Louise and I are in the west wing, with a view of the "space needle", not sure what it's really called (KL Tower). I forgot how many staff most places have here in KL. People to open your car door, people to take your luggage out, people to open the hotel door, people to greet you as you go in the door, and then the reverse as you leave.

Went downstairs to meet Toni and Matt in the bar for a beverage before her husband got there to pick us up. The hotel has Anchor beer! I was told it is hard to find here. Aaahh, it was good! When we were out the front of the hotel we could see the Towers lighting up in the dusk of evening. I think if you are staying in the east wing of the hotel you will see them out your window. Then Toni's husband and son (Rob and Todd) picked us up and we went for a quick beer before heading to Jalan Alure (spelling?) for some makan. John Ishii ('75) and his wife Diana joined us. We walked there from where we had driven to for a quick beverage, about 5 blocks or so. I really thought I would be melting in the heat and humidity but oddly it felt normal. Perhaps the brain has some coping system to deal with memories that affect how the body responds. Like it just remembers. Louise and her family felt it on the coolish side being from deep south Texas. So this is where the "we're home" above comes in. The smells brought it all back. Sewage, garbage, satay, diesel fumes. The sights: crowded streets, beggars, hawkers trying to get you to eat at their place, the cars not wanting to let you cross and pretending you run you down. It all felt like home. Louise's hubby Jerry and son Simon loved every minute of it. And the food! We ate Chinese, bagus makan lah! And the dreaded toilet. Two foot prints and a hole in the ground with a bucket of water and a scoop. Rob Mullen's favorite place isn't open on Sunday so we tried another one. I forgot the menus are actual pictures of the food. Diana Ishii is from Hong Kong and speaks Chinese (not sure what dialect) and was able to get it all straightened out for us. Even though the staff spoke English, it's always good to have someone to make sure we get what we order.

On the walk back to the hotel John and Diana asked if we wanted to stop in for a drink, but we were all pooped and Matt, Toni and Rob had to work the next day. As do Louise and I. Got back around 10:30. I got to sleep about 11:30 and had a good sleep, just not enough and was awake at 4;30. Hopefully I will have time for a nap tonight. Have a meeting with the hotel for a walk through at 9 a.m. then to print off stuff and buy stuff for the reunion, meet with the t-shirt company and bus tour company, etc.

















01/12/2009 4:40 p.m.
Louise, Toni and I met at 9:00 with our Event Manager at the hotel. Went up to see the pool where the reception will be and it looks so inviting. There are plenty of lounge chairs, chairs and tables, and a bar! Then we headed off with Jerry (Lou's hubby if you've forgotten) to do some of the running around we needed to do. Picked up the sim cards for the phones (don't have the phone numbers yet, but we will later), exchanged some money (make sure you take your passport if you're exchanging money.) and picked up a few groceries (beer and wine in there too). Went to KLCC which is walking distance from the hotel. A couple of banks, money exchange, places to buy sim cards for your cell phone, grocery store, high end shops but also some craft stores, food courts offering all kinds of cuisine, restaurants. One side has a nice park with fountains and green space, and there's a coffee shop out there too. Back to the hotel and I had some cream crackers with peanut butter - remember we used to get those at the canteen? I had a nap (really needed that!), Lou is reviewing my files at some point. Tonight I will meet up with the Alexanders, playing it by ear, no rush tonight.

5:50 p.m.
I just noticed it is raining. This morning Toni said it would rain today. Time out for the basketball game until the rain stops and we can dry off the court. What did we use, old potato sacks?

01/13/2009 5:55 a.m.
Last night I went up to the Alexander's room and we had a couple of Anchors before heading for dinner. Since it was raining and we still don't know where the hell we are, we ate in one of the hotel restaurants, Temptations (East Wing, where the brunch will be). A buffet for 85 RM. Everything from seafood to Malay to Chinese to E Indian to Mediterranean, fresh cooked noodles and BBQ to your taste. Makes you wonder how good the dishes can be as they are so diverse but it was fairly good. Then Lou came up to the room so we could start printing off a few things for the reunion. Toni has loaned us her printer for a couple of days. She will also be bringing a scanner and a couple of laptops for the hospitality room. If you are bringing KL momentos we can scan them so you don't have to leave them in KL. I got to bed around midnight and  I managed to sleep for about 5 hours, so I am making progress.

01/14/2009 6:15 a.m.
Louise and I did not get out of the hotel yesterday. Had breakfast around 9, saw the hospitality room, organized a bunch of files, did some planning for today, met with Toni Mullen, printed some files, snipped and stuffed name tags x 2, met with the t-shirt vendor, organized the t-shirts as to who gets what. Oh, managed to eat in there as well at some point.

Today will start at 10 a.m. when we meet with Toni to go running around again. We're hoping we have a bit of downtime before the registration desk starts at 4:00 p.m. today. You better hope we do so we have time for a shower! We will have two more registrations, one on Thursday at 4:00 p.m. and one on Friday at 9:00 a.m. These will be shorter as there are functions scheduled following them. If you won't be able to make those we will hook up with you at some point to get your stuff to you. The hospitality room is Boardroom 1, which is accessed between the east and west wings of the hotel. If you need to reach us, call the operator and ask to be patched through to our room (Alexander or Letourneau). We will have a schedule of events sheet for you in the boardroom, that has our cell numbers listed and the dates/times of the functions. A little hard to grasp, but if you are calling from a cell to a land line, you have to add 03 in front of the number. Same applies if you are calling from a land line to a cell.

I haven't mentioned this in my blog yet. While still in Vancouver, I had an email from the t-shirt vendor. The company that was to sew our shirts was out of business when he went to pick up the shirts. Store empty, vendor nowhere to be found, something about a gambling debt. Luckily, our vendor had some pre-made shirts, just not in the colors we wanted and the fabric and fit is a bit different. So it appears the new shirts are the sizes we are used to in North America with these men's sizes. The logo was supposed to be on the left front, now it's on the back. But it all turned out in the end and Louise and I are pleased with the outcome. We have learned that when in KL you have to roll with the punches.

01/15/2009 6:00 a.m.
Yes, I was awake at 4:00 a.m. again, but got a good 6 hours of sleep.

I headed down for breakfast. Yesterday I had the full deal, and the beef bacon was interesting as was the turkey ham and the "meat" loaf and "sausages". They try really hard to make it taste like pork for us westerners. NOT! But everything else was good. I stayed away from the nasi lemak and other assorted Malay, Chinese and Indian dishes. I just thought my stomach wasn't ready for that for breakfast. Ate with Lou yesterday. I digress, back to today. Tony Lie '73 and wife Ronda were there at a table so I joined them. As people were coming in to the restaurant we were wondering if we should know them. I did recognize Gerrie Greathouse '71. I was running late for meeting up with Lou and Toni so couldn't stop to say hello.

So we met with Toni and Louise, Jerry and I headed out in Toni's small Volvo which was already half full of coolers. Crazy bus drivers, crazy cab drivers, crazy moped drivers. It all seemed perfectly normal to us! On the way, there was a demonstration outside the Phillipine Embassy, one sign in English read "stop forced deportation". Demonstrators and Police and photographers. We locked our doors, silly tourists. The store was only about 10 minutes away, but trying to turn right (remember, driving is on the left side here) took almost as long, see "crazy drivers above". Can't remember the name of the store, Hock Choo's or something like that. Stopped for a cappucino (sp?) and an apple fritter something. Tasted good, not too sweet for me.  Took 3 grocery carts (baby sized by N American standards) and piled them high with beer, pop, water, snacks and fruit. I tried to find snacks that you can only find in KL. Remember the peanuts in the cell pack? Some of those dried plums with some kind of coating on them? Some peanuts with dried anchovies, prawn crackers (still my favorite), some tapioca chips. I let Lou pick out the fruit, I'm not a fruit eater. Some of those small bananas, green and red grapes, some kind of something that looks like lychee but isn't, some teeny apples that aren't. Maybe Lou can remember what they are called. Pay for the veg's there (a seperate shop in the grocery store) and a huge (well, I hate bugs so they are all huge) bug crawled out. Then to pay for the groceries and try to get them all in the car. We then bought the ice bags (about 1/2 the size I'm used to) which had to be put at Jerry's feet and my shins. Ahh, felt good. The sun was shining and beating down on us, it was noon. I started to feel it, Lou, Jerry and Toni didn't notice it at all. Had to have two luggage trolleys to get it all in to the hosptality room (HR). When the bags of ice were hung up, they were dripping all over. Spent some time getting things in the coolers, setting up the food, the lap tops (ISKL has loaned us two for the HR, as well as a scanner and DVD player and printer). Back up to the room for a bit of relaxing (about an hour!), then Lou and Simon arrived and we carted down the "grab bags". ISKL has been sooooo generous. I won't tell you what is in them yet as not all alumni have checked in yet so I don't want to spoil it for them.

Cindy Desjardins '76, hubby Boris and Norm Desjardins '71 had already left a note that they were here and out doing tourist things. People started dropping in and registering. Cindy and Norm, above. Gerrie Greathouse '71 with hubby George. Eva Estberger '73, still as beautiful as ever. Bengt Estberger '76. Tony Lie was just mentioning Eva and Bengt's names when the door opened and there they were. I'm not joking about that! Tony Lie (mentioned above). Sharon Andre, boyfriend Rob and good friend Michele. When Sharon came in to the HR I said "boy you look familiar". Ayman Tawil '74. Little Akiko Hirota '75, still as bubbly and fun as ever. Kendra Smith '75 (how does she stay so tanned in Kansas City?). Most everyone headed out to dinner with Toni, she was intrigued by this new little Malay restaurant close by. We were going to meet by the pool for drinks around 9, but Lou said there was a private party there and it was drizzling. Just as well, I was in bed at 10. Oh, I had three more apples in my room, so the Alexanders got more fruit. Got bitten by mosquitos or somthing while in the lobby outside the HR. They must like my thick Canadian blood. We did get a note that they were spraying yesterday to keep the bug population in control, I think they all went to the ground floor instead.

Forgot to tell you, on January 13th I got an email with the subject "Sign me up re-union! David Lloyd - 5th - 8th grade classmate for ISKL Class of 1974." Keep in mind that no one has had any contact with David '74 since he left KL in 1970. He has been living in Singapore for the past 6 years and his kids attend SAS (BOOOOOOO!). His daughter is in a swim meet at ISKL this weekend. So he went to the ISKL website to find the school's address and stumbled on the reunion info. He and his wife Judy will join us for the ISKL reception on Saturday night and the Sunday brunch.

Then, last night I see someone has signed my Class of '74 guestbook. It was Carol Cavaness ('71?). Her email address stopped working so long ago that I don't even have her contact information in my contacts anymore. It's almost like when we get together there's a special signal that other alumni pick up on and start to get in touch again. Weird, I know.

So, today I will see what's up. I will pop in to the HR around 8, then head for some breaky, then the HR again. I'd like to head to KLCC or Chinatown today, but there is still plenty of time to do that. We also want Peter Doornbos and Tony Storey to get here and maybe they can get us to Batu Road so we can get our bearings! Next registration starts at 4 p.m. so will be back down about 3:30, then at 5:30 the pool side reception starts. I'm hoping it doesn't rain as then it will be moved inside. Not sure what we'll do after that, life in KL is an adventure! Oh, I'm also going to post a link (on the main page of this website) to Simon Alexander's blog. It's an interesting perspective, coming from a first timer. I had to laugh when I read "a Chinese pigeon shit...". You'll enjoy it too.

01/16/2009 6:55 a.m.

I'm tired but happy as a pig in sh.. I will blog more later, right now I'm trying to psych myself up for a 12 hour day at the school. I'm the type that likes to have a couple of hours of "downtime" (nap) in the afternoon. Details will come later (or tomorrow), but just know it is wonderful being with all the alumni and being home. We got confirmation from Martin Fischer (73) that he will be hosting the next reunion in Nashville, TN, USA in 2012. So start saving your pennies and get there!

01/18/2009 8:00 a.m.

I should not have let this go for two days without writing, as now I can't remember all the details. So, back to Friday the 16th. ISKL picked us up in buses at the hotel, and we drove to the Melawati campus, the Elementary school. We were greeted with signs and drums. Over 600 students there! When I left in 1974 we had around 350 students from K thru 12. We broke in to smaller groups and some 5th grade leaders showed us the school. Very much open air like ours was, except the classrooms are air conditioned. Then we were driven to the Ampang campus, Secondary school. Around 1000 in there. Greeted by signs and drums, orchid leis, lime juice. A short speech and some juniors took us on a tour. Same concept, open air with a/c in the classrooms. I won't be posting too many photos yet as a lot of them need to be edited and I don't have the software for it on the little netbook. I'll post a link on the main page when I have them on the net, after I get home on the 27th.
































Had a quick lunch in the cafeteria. Then to the Robert B Gaw Theatre. The Malaysian National Anthem and a song, Welcome from the head of the Board. Toni had put together a slide show of photos of Randy and Dave Kenney spoke. I'm hoping they will send me a CD so I can get it to his family. Some jazz music, a short speech from a fellow who is on the alumni council 2009, A slide show showing the history of the school (Toni has given us that on CD). Headmaster welcome speech. I've forgotten the order and the names, but we really felt welcomed home. Those were the words that brought me to tears (and a few others as well), Welcome home. Toni has started an annual award called "Alumni Panther Pride", and I am officially the first alumni to win it. "The first annual Distinguished Alumni Panther Pride Award, an award given to that “alumnus/a who exemplifies the highest standards and influences of the ISKL community, or has helped advance the future of ISKL or alumni community”." Hah, now I'm in the history books! The Booster Hut was opened specifically for us, and I bought a hoodie, two t-shirts and two water mugs. Every Class year has a plaque posted in the halls, starting with 1968. There are no records prior to '68 but Patti Ishii is '67 and may have got some names to Toni so we'll see if we get another plaque up there. My camera didn't take very good photos, but Ayman Tawil '74 took them and will send them to me. Then began the oral histories. Matt Smith '03 was hired to film stuff for the school and was asked to also do this. I went in to do mine after a lot had already been done. Your name, Class, years attended. How your time was at ISKL, how your re-entry was, how ISKL shaped what you do today, etc. You could talk about anything, but we did need some prompting. Then the big debate caught on film, who threw Roger Ramjet (Tomkins) from the train? Dave and Tony Lie had been debating that the previous night. Tony swears he didn't do it, Dave Kenney swears he did. Kidding of course. But, Tony was standing right next to Roger when he flew off the train. A fair amount of us stayed in that room listening to others stories. It was very theraputic (sp?), a lot of alum felt that way. The common theme? How hard it was to re-enter you supposed home country. We think Toni  will put those on a CD for us. Then we had dinner (stalls night, can you say YUM?) and beverages (yes, wine and Tiger beer!). Then back to the hotel.

That whole day was so special for every one of us. Some alum have never come to a reunion, and for them to hear their feelings being spoken by a fellow alum brought you to the realization "Hey, I'm not alone. Someone else understands me.". Very powerful.

I'm sure I've missed something but if I remember it I will post it as I write.

It's now 8:30 a.m. and I need to head down to the HR. Brunch is at 10:00 then we have downtime for the rest of the day except some people will head to the RSGC courtesy of Alfie Eu at around 3:30. Not sure yet if I will go as I was a Lake Club brat. More later.

Still Sunday January 18, 2009, now 3:45 p.m.

Breakfast of Champions


























Back to Saturday January 17th now. What day is it today?? Lou and I keep asking ourselves that. We had the City tour in the morning and the bus was full. It was nice to get some bearings, but it was driving through the Lake Gardens then seeing the old railway station that we used to leave for SAS from that finally clicked it all into place. We asked our guide if we could stop by the old school site and he was happy to oblige. Dave Kenney got him started in the right direction (Bank Negara) and although the round about looks different we knew it was THE round about. Had to stop and ask the guards to let us walk up the road. The old PDW (Public Works) in now behind a gate. They must have thought we were all a bunch of kooks. Turns out Peter Doornbos, Tony Storey and Debbie Krajenbrink had just been there. Took a group photo in front of where we thought the driveway/french class buildings were. David phoned John Kingston who was then kicking himself for not coming. They then agreed to drive us down to the soccer field. Peter posted photos of that a couple of years ago. Still a field that now has concrete bleachers. I didn't get off the bus, but guess who was at the field? Peter, Tony, and Debbie. Drove by Batu Road, it's one way now so we didn't drive down it, but looking down the street the buildings and shops look a lot older. Saw Central Market and Petaling Street, so now we know they are all walking distance. Lou and I will do that trip tomorrow, hoping Jerry and Simon come with us. So guess who forgot her camera? Dumb tourist. So I will be relying on others to get their photos to me. Passed by St. John's Catherdral for those of you good Catholics (myself included) who attended there. Norm Desjardins remembered he was an altar boy there after seeing it. Back to the hotel for lunch then some departed for the Batu Caves tour. I had a nap.

That night ISKL was having their faculty get together pool side at the Ren and we were invited as their guests. A whole heck of a lot of people there. And we got to see Mrs. Mahendran (we can call her Joanne now! and she didn't remember me being so short), Mrs. (Saras) Sundram, Mrs. (Elsa) Leong, Albert and Jenney Daniels. I forgot to mention they were at ISKL the day before. I was walking up to the security gate to go inside the school and heard "LeeAnn", it was Albert and he recognized me right away. Group photo around 9:15. I hope the school photographer got better photos than any of us did. Too dark, flash not right. It's posted here and on facebook, I won't be able to do any photo editing until I get home. Not telling you any names yet so you can play a guessing game until then.










































There's ISKL alumni not from our reunion in here as well, and some people missing: Ayman Tawil; Tzu-Yin Chui; Paul Barr; Sharon Andre; Sarah Ross. We also took individual class photos but I don't have any for that, I'll get them from the other alumni.

Back to the HR and next thing I knew it was 2:00 a.m.

On to today, Sunday 01/18/2009.
Opened up the HR about 8:30 a.m. Then up to brunch. We had our own section upstairs as there were too many of us to fit in the section of the restaurant they were going to set aside for us. Dave Kenney showed up late, I was hoping he would say a few things as I am not a good talker. So I had to get up and do it. Thanked Dave for thinking of the idea and pushing me to do it. Thanked Sally Tait for volunteering to look into hotels for us. Thanked Toni Mullen and ISKL for their support and of course all the alumni for attending. Gave Toni some gifts wrapped beautifully and with great care (plastic shopping bags). Some wine and some good old Canadian smoked salmon, salmon pate and of course maple syrup. Back down to the HR for a while and all of a sudden it was 3:00 p.m. Lou and I were thinking of heading pool side but I haven't yet. Tried to have a nap but too much is going on in the head.

At 3:30 a bunch of people were going to the RSGC courtesy of Alfie Eu.

When we were at ISKL there is a trophy case and I saw my All Star trophy from the Hong Kong tournament in December '72. I donated that to the school a couple of years ago when I saw Toni in Vancouver. Tony Storey has also donated some of his swimming trophies. They are going to have to get an alumni section for the trophies now.

Tony had another good idea for the photos, have a spot where everyone can upload their photos then people can download the ones they want. I haven't talked to Peter Doornbos yet about it, but I'm thinking I will put him in charge.

Time to see what Lou et al are up to, it's time for a Tiger.

01/19/2009 7:40 a.m.
Yesterday I met Louise and Jerry by the pool. Cindy Desjardins and hubby Boris were there and joined us, then Linda Randell and hubby Jim as well. I had full intentions of having a swim, even had my suit on, but the water was cold and it was overcast with a bit of a breeze. So we had a few drinks, margaritas, singapore slings, pina coladas. Not sure there was much lime juice in the margaritas. No umbrella, but the other drinks had pineapple slices. Back to the HR to hand around, then we went back up to have some dinner at the pool. I know, I know. We are getting out today for some non hotel food, I promise! People are starting to leave already so it is starting to get sad. Kendra Smith yesterday, Akiko Hirota last night, Ayman and Tzu-Yin on Saturday.























Proof that we sat by the pool and had a drink.

Now off to open the HR, then a leisurely breafast then we meet up for some shopping at Central Market and Petaling St. Some alumni had the dead skin on their feet eaten off by little fish. Hmmm, how ticklish are your feet? I plan to have my fortune read by Master Chan. More later.

Still Monday, now 3:30 p.m.
Posting these photos now and will write about them later.





















































01/20/2009 11:00 a.m.

Louise, Jerry, Simon, Martin Fischer, Linda Randell and I headed out to Central market yesterday (01/19) about 10 a.m. Bought some blouses, earrings, trinkets, etc. Then met up for for the Cute Fish Spa (above). Simon and Linda Randell did the big fish first. Linda is ticklish and the photos Martin took of her will be hilarious. You get used to it after a while. When Simon put his feet in he had fish shoes there were so many of them. Louise and I did the small fish. I'm not ticklish but it was an odd sensation at first, then you get used to having your big toe sucked, the little sucking on the rest of your feet and it is very much like a mini massage. Jerry then did the large fish, Linda joined us with the small fish. Apparently I have the same bad feet as Simon, as I had a huge amount of fish at my feet compared to Louise and Linda. Simon then did the hand fish. Then to lunch in a Thai restaurant on the second floor (Martin went back to the hotel). Another 1/2 hour of shopping. I could not find a batik shirt anywhere. There was one, but it was more a poncho style. Found out later that Peter Ho's is across the street with tons of batik stuff. Back to the hotel around 2 for a shower. Took the monorail, 1.30 MYR, cheap. But had to walk a block and a half to get to it from Central Market then a couple of blocks from the Dang Wangi stop to the hotel. Not a long walk but when you're not used the heat and humidity it seems like miles. I made it without melting into a puddle. The bus picked us up at 4:30 for a cocktail reception at the headmaster's house, Paul Chmelik and his wife Betsy. Only a five minute bus ride there. Joanne Mahendran was there so we got to speak to her in a quieter setting than on Saturday night. Great lady, no need to be scared of her anymore! Back on the bus at 7:00 and it took over 20 minutes to get back to the hotel, that's how bad the traffic is here. More  time in the hospitality room, then hit the hay fairly early. I've been getting a sore throat every day and last night was particulary bad. I'm thinking it is the a/c, I'm not the only one having this problem but most aren't affected. Don't use a/c a lot in Vancouver!


















So today, 01/20. Went down and opened up the HR about 8:00 a.m. then met the Pt. Dickson bus tour and made sure the alumni got on the bus. They are off for a full day and will have the chance to swim or go jet skiing or on a banana boat etc. Lou and I will head down to the pool for a relaxing day. We were going to go back to Central Market then to Petaling Street, but we figure we will do more shopping in Penang then we have a couple of days back in KL after Penang to pick up anything we still need. Georgia leaves this afternoon but she will join us for a bit. Tonight we have to finish packing up the HR as well as our own rooms as we leave at  7 a.m. tomorrow. Looking forward to the Orangutan sanctuary on the way up and then the beach. Sarah Ross gave me a bottle of champagne from France with strict orders to drink it in Penang on the beach. Yes ma'am, don't have to tell me twice! Just a small group going up so it will be great. I announced I'm going to para-sail (never done it in my life) and Simon said he will go with me. Jim Findley and wife Cora will join us.

I forgot to mention that Ayman Tawil and Wing Kwong had the idea of sending me some flowers and a cake. They were delivered to the school on the Friday but Toni brought them to the hotel on Saturday. Beautiful flowers, great cake. Thanks so much you two!

Also forgot that Corrie Rector (F) could not make the reunion but she asked her daughter Liesbet (attended in the '70's, Class of 85, and now Faculty) to give me a big hug. Thanks!

Off to the pool and maybe a margerita (sp?) in a bit!

01/20/2009 now 5:30 p.m.
Said goodbye to Georgia and her Mom Marilyn today. Getting sadder as the days pass and more people leave. Settled up the bills for the reunion and my hotel ibill (leaving tomorrow 7:00 a.m., yuck). Trying to sort out what to take to Penang and what to leave here, I know I'll forget something! Luckily we're back at the Ren on Friday so if I forget anything in the room it will be here when I get back. I wasn't going to log on just now, but holy monsoon! I saw a flash of lightning then the heavens opened up (well, the clouds). Pounding against the window so you can't ignore it like the small rains they've had since we've been here. When we visited the King's Palace on the City tour, our guide Lawrence (great guy) said they normally don't have to water the plants because they get enough rainfall every day or two. It hadn't rained enough in the last four days so they had to water the plants. Well, they're getting enough now. We may have to cancel our dinner plans of going to the stalls at the Concord (I think it's ex Merlin or Federal) tonight after Toni Mullen gets here. But, does anyone remember the lightning here? I hated lightning, but I do remember the light show it put on when we lived in Damansara. Now, to my room. They cleaning service here is wonderful. However, it's too wonderful. I brought up two unused plastic cups to use when I have my drinks in my room. Thrown out. Then they take away my plate and knife. So today I had the privacy card in the door, went down for a drink with Lou in the HR. Come up an hour later and no privace card in my door. Look over to the room two doors away, privacy card in their door that wasn't there when I left. Hmmm, seems pretty silly to me when you just have to phone the desk to get one. Which I did and it was delivered in 5 minutes. Back to packing.

Still 01/20/2009, now 11:12 p.m.
My internet runs out soon, so I will try to make this brief. More friends to say goodbye to. However, Toni met us at about 7 p.m. in the HR and some of us went out for dinner with her to one of her favorite restaurants. Chinese, but Chinese the way we remember it. YUM. There was Bengt, Eva, Cindy and Boris, Louise, Jerry and Simon, me and Toni. The atmosphere is what we remember but it was like seeing it through a child's eyes, full of wonderment and glee.

I assume I will be able to get internet in Penang. Really looking forward to stopping at the orang utan sanctuary on the way up. If I don't forget my camera...

01/23/2009 3:55 p.m.

Sorry I've haven't been updating this. We left for Penang on Wednesday the 21st at 7 a.m. Only 8 of us on this huge bus. Jim Findley and wife Cora, John Gourley and wife Wenda, Louise, Jerry, and Simon, and me. We had a rest stop, can you pee in a hole in the ground? Cora and I tried to get coffee at the gas station. One machine, like our vending machines, but I wanted black no milk no sugar. Cora and I both tasted it and it was sweet. It must all come out one hose and the leftover milk and sugar from the previous coffees must come with the coffee.

Next stop was the Orang Utan sanctuary. A small boat over to the island. On the island, the humans are in the cages. The orang utans so have an electric fence to keep them away from the cage and to stop them from getting off the island when the water level is low. They can't swim. One big guy, Mike, 27 years old I think, has many wives. I didn't realize they got so big. Apparently the bigger the cheek jowels the more attractive they are. One guy picked up a stick and put it under the fence and was using it as a lever to try to get out. Smart enough to use a stick so not to get shocked, not smart enough to know there's food on his side of the fence. They have the whole island to roam. They train them and care for them and eventuallly plan to release them back into the wild, once they can keep them healthy (a lot of babies die of infections) and they get a bigger population. The way Mike is going that shouldn't be too long!
Below: Mike                                                                        A 3 month old.





















Arrived in Penang around 4 and checked in. 3 Star on the beach front. We thought wow, this looks better than a 3 star. Then we got to our rooms... Everything was clean, but let me put it to you this way, I wore my flip flops in the shower. All part of the adventure. We met on the beach for some beers. \The bus picked us up for dinner, went to an area where the stalls are. I have chipati with chicken. The chicken was cold and my head immediately thought uh oh and psyched my stomach into thinking it wasn't feeling well. Walked the stalls and ran into Lorena McGuinness (Danner's wife) and gave her the camera they had left in Singapore but shipped to me in KL (they left a day earlier than us and it hadn't been delivered yet). Back to the hotel for an early night (well, 10:00 p.m.). The next morning the rest of them headed off for a bus tour of Georgetown and some temples, Little India, etc. Lou and I stayed back. I slept till 9:30, a first for me. Met with Lou and we hung out at the beach all day. About 8 feet from the bar and a bartender that walked the beers over to you. I went for a few dips in the ocean and sat in the sun for about 15 minutes, holy face burn.

































                                                                                                      John Gourley (standing), Simon Alexander













After the gang got back and settled in, we broke open the champagne that Sarah Ross so kindly gave me, then a bottle of bubbly that John Gourley had (I think Danner gave it to him?). A short walk to some great Chinese food, then back to the hotel for "Salsa" night. Hmmm, must have been the name of the band. Danner and Lorena joined us there. We drank a few "towers" of beer, I should have taken a photo and were up way too late, 2:00 a.m. Off to bed and up for a 7:30 a.m. bus ride back. Needless to say, most of us snoozed on the way back.

Now we've said goodbye to Jim and Cora, they leave at midnight tonight and have gone to a hotel closer to the airport. John and Wenda are in town for a couple more nights at another hotel. We might run in to them as Wenda has decided to do the fish spa and Lou and I have to get back to Central Market for some more shopping.

Not sure what is up for tonight but I expect it to be a mellow evening with a few drinks and some dinner.

01/24/2009 3:45 p.m.

It was a mellow night. We are in the "club level" according to our hotel keys. They have snacks and coffee, juices etc. there all day, with free alcoholic beverages from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. A few tiger beer and a few appetizers later, we were back in our rooms by 8:00. We think it was salmon night, as well as Beatles night. Same songs over and over so they must only have 1 CD. Nice view from the 25th floor. Louise is loving the views even when we're driving or bussing to Penang as where they live near Brownsville TX is flat, flat, flat. To me, being from Vancouver, they are hills, not mountains. But a nice change as well.

This morning I ran up for a couple of cappucinos to go (got a razzing from Dave Kenney, Peter Doornbos and Tony Storey for that) then unpacked both suitcases and re-packed to see if I needed to buy another suitcase. I think I'm okay, even after buying MORE stuff.

Met up with Louise and Jerry and we cabbed to Central Market. Spent about 3 hours out in total. I bought more stuff, they bought more stuff. I'm glad I have the expansion zipper on the check in bag. Had a quick lunch at the food court, anything you want, even "western" food. Lou and I decided to hit the lavatory there instead of possibly having to go in Petaling. 0.50 MYR to get in. And then no toilet paper. When in KL... After Central Market we walked to Petaling Street to say "we've been there" and buy a Tiger beer t-shirt. Just crossing the street was a nightmare, but the heat coming up from the tiles on the sidewalk and the heat from the buses really got to me. People and mopeds everywhere. Passed a few stores on the way with seedy looking characters standing out front. All 3 of us not only saw it, we felt it. Hmmm, can we rob these dumb tourists? Got there safely though. Petaling is a good street to shop on if you want t-shirts, sneakers, watches, bags, etc. Not much arts and crafts there, and we have pretty much bought what we want so back in a cab to the hotel. Very nice cab driver. Tried to charge us 30 ringgitt when it's only 15. Jerry set him straight. But he was nice and chatty. Told us to make sure we buy things for ourselves, not just for other people.

We will have another mellow night tonight, just like last night. Tomorrow we will cab to ISKL so Lou can see it, meet up with Toni then she will drive us to her house for a BBQ.

























Still Saturday Jan. 24th, now 8:30 p.m.

So, I asked Lou tonight if she knew why the t.p. was covered in metal. We had our random guesses, but neither of us remember this nor have a clue why. Not just KL, but Hong Kong as well. Does this mean we won't be able to pull too much off the roll? The cockroaches can't steal it for their nests (although I haven't seen a cockroach in any of the hotel rooms)? Does the t.p. fluff up in the a/c? Mind you, I've only seen it in the hotels, the rest of the washrooms don't have t.p. so no metal needed there. Here's a photo.














Same day, 11:30 p.m.

I have been deliberately not mentioning my dog through all my vacation. But can I just say that I miss her and post a photo? Oh, you don't have a say.

























01/25/2009 11:15 a.m.

My last day in KL. If I was sad with everyone leaving I'm even sadder that I am leaving. Peter Doornbos is going to see how much interest there will be for another one in KL in 6 years. Trust me, I won't be organizing that one, Peter will do the job if there's enough interest. Had a leisurely morning and breakfast. Now I will probably sit by the pool for a couple of hours before we have to get ready to go to the school to meet Toni (so Louise can see it) then to Toni's for dinner. Not a nice looking day out there, even though it monsooned last night, but I'm sure it is still warm, for me anyway.

So I forgot, as I'm sure we all did, about the Kiblat sign in the hotel room. They were also in Hong Kong. This indicates the direction of the Kaabah in the
room.





I'm all packed except for the last minute things. I managed to stuff it all in and don't need to buy another suitcase. Everything is so cheap here that I am nowhere near my limit of CAD 750. However, all the clothes I bought are obviously light weight and I am returning to a colder than usual winter in Vancouver. I'll just have to layer to keep warm. Finally found a batik blouse yesterday, even though I had scoured Central Market previously there was one "aisle" I had missed.

Still Sunday Jan. 25th, now 10:10 p.m.

Lou's hubby Jerry and son Simon headed off for some more shopping around noon so Lou and I sat in lounge chairs by the pool under a palm tree. No coconuts in that one. Had a drink and Lou had lunch pool side. Took a teksi to Ampang campus (Secondary school) so Lou could see it. Toni Mullen met us there. Different feeling with no kids there. It was almost like I could hear the faint echoes of kids past in the halls. I realized this school has the same feel as ours. Except concrete vs. wood, a/c vs. none, turf field vs. cow pasture... Seriously though, it was nice to see the open air concept of the hallways and gathering places and lockers. Toni already had photos of our trip up on the board. Then we went over to Toni and Rob's for a BBQ. There were some other alum there and some teachers. We had our first pork since leaving North America. I don't eat a lot of pork, for no particular reason, but when it isn't an option you really do notice that it is missing. I watched the birds and looked at the flowers and trees. It was overcast so no stars, but I wonder if there would be stars like we used to see when there was just a tiny city. After dinner it rained, so I called Lou over and we stood in the rain for a bit. Warm rain. Some of you are used to that but I haven't felt it since I left in '74. The smell of the rain on the dirt was so familiar. Your brain is an amazing organ (is it an organ?).

Toni drove us back to the hotel. Tearful goodbyes (well, ok, it was only my tears).

I don't leave the hotel until 10:30 a.m. tomorrow so I might write more on the blog if I think of anything. Lou, Jerry, Simon and I will probably all be in the Hong Kong airport on Tuesday around the same time. I leave Monday with one night in HK. They leave Tuesday with a stopover in the HK airport. Then we take separate flights home.

01/26/2009 7:45 a.m.

Well, the morning matches my mood. Gray and overcast. So sad to put all this behind me. As I said, it was sad enough watching everyone leave, never mind leaving KL. I've accomplished what I wanted to do while in KL, and while it was very rewarding at the time now I feel like I need to do it all again. No wonder so many TCK's make it back overseas to live and work. It just feels right somehow. You know, the government has a "silver hair" program for retirees, so you never know...

Same day, 7:15 p.m.

Back in Hong Kong. Left Lou, Jerry and Simon in KL, we will probably all be in the Hong Kong airport tomorrow afternoon as our flights leave around the same time (me to Vancouver, they to Los Angeles). They chose to spend the time between flights at the airport. I chose to push it off a day. That's a looooong flight. I'm hoping that all the people in Hong Kong are now here for tomorrow's big celebration of Chinese New Year and won't be flying. It would be nice to have some room to lounge on the flight. I had a window seat from KL to HK, and asked her if there were some empty seats she could put me in. Apparently not. So, me and a tourist guide in the two seats and four empty seats in the middle of the plane. Hmmmm, did the guide figure to move over? Well, eventually. After lunch he went to the bathroom then sat in the empty aisle seat. That was all I needed and spread out in the two seats. Not sure if he meant to come back or not but oh well. Perhaps now I'm an ugly tourist in his eyes. So there is one thing I certainly don't miss about Asia. The idea that if there is an inch of space between the person behind you and you, they think they will get there sooner if there is no inch of space between you.

Another thing to vent about - I actually even had a lady at the Ren buffet try to steal my toast that I had been patiently standing there for. Only reason she backed down is I called her on it. I wonder how often she (and others) get away with that behaviour. I assume she was a tourist and not a local. I have found myself a lot more tolerant of behavior I would not tolerate in Vancouver. When in KL.... and when in Vancouver...

Wow, it sure is boring here without the Alexanders. I'm not going to venture out of the hotel tonight as I'm not sure what to expect with this being the first day of the New Year celebration.

01/28/09 Found my missing blog entries so these are out of order a bit:

Monday Jan. 26th, 9:00 p.m., I'm now in HK.

Oh cr_p. Not sure what the heck I did but I lost a couple of blog entries. Somewhere between KL and now, but I did write more stuff, a whole lot of it. Well, I won't try to remember it all now.

Tuesday Jan. 27th, 6:45 a.m.
So what entries did I lose? I said goodbye to the Alexanders yesterday in KL. We will most likely meet up in the HK airport this afternoon. HK is boring without them, as I didn't go out last night at all. I had enough snacks for dinner and didn't know what I might face with Chinese New Year beginning.

I'll tell you one thing I won't miss about Asia. The sardine mentality. Like standing in line basically touching the person in front is going to get them to the front of the line faster. Hands on hips, slowly rotate the torso to the right and then the left. Oh, sorry, did my elbow hit you? I actually learned that maneuver in Italy believe it or not. Another thing I won't miss? The men gawking at your breasts. Now I remember why I slouch! Surprisingly, I saw very few bugs anywhere in Asia. Ants here and there, a couple of cockroaches, a few mosquitoes got to me. But no where near the quantities that I remember.

So my HK hotel room is exactly like the room I had on the way here. Still no heat, had to order an extra blanket. Hard bed. But, I figured out how to get that darn light turned off. Didn't seem to help much as I was still awake a few times last night. So what is with the hard mattresses? Is it because we booked the cheap USD 99 rooms so we get the old amah's rooms? Mind you, I used to stay at the Miramar or the Hilton back in the day and I'm sure they had softer beds. Shouldn't complain, it's clean and relatively inexpensive and close to several things.

Still not sure what I will do this morning. Got a late check out time of 1:30 so I don't have to be in the airport too early for my 4:45 flight. I doubt many shops will be open today. Apparently this is THE day for Chinese New Year. Mrs. Kenney (Joy and Dave's Mom) had a man and wife that keep in touch with her every Christmas. They own a shop here on Nathan Road. I thought I might wander down there to see about a pair of jade earrings. But I'll look at the map first to see how far it is before I go.

You sure didn't know it was the first celebration day of the New Year when I arrived. I expected fireworks, more lighting displays, more traffic. Nope,all quiet on the HK front. Glad I'm leaving before it starts thought. I thought my flight might be half empty with no Chinese flying out of HK today but it doesn't look like it. On the flight from KL, I asked them for a window or to put me where there wasn't someone beside me. Apparently that wasn't possible according to the agent. So, me and a tour operator in the window/aisle, absolutely no one in the four seats in the middle of the plane. Don't know why he didn't move right away, but after lunch he did and then I could spread out on the two seats. He gave me a bit of a funny look, maybe he was planning on coming back to the seat after the trays were gone. Oh well, now I might be a rude tourist.

Speaking of rude tourists. At the Ren in KL, some woman tried to steal my toast I had been patiently waiting for. I said something and she backed off. Now that is a rude tourist. Her, not me.

I did find towards the end of my time in KL, about the last week, that I was walking differently. Not sure if it was because I was so relaxed or a remembered thing by that brain again. I was carrying a new purse that reminds me of the purses we used to have, that hang down to your butt and you walk with a certain rythm using those. At least I used to walk that way.

Still Tuesday, now 11:15 a.m.

Hong Kong is a ghost town. Hardly any foot or vehicle traffic. A lot of shops are closed. No sense in walking to Nathan Road after seeing that. Weather is cool here, but I had a hoodie on and was fine. Some guy in a suit on the corner saying something about buying flowers. Not sure if he wanted to buy me some or what, no flower shop that I could see. He might have been the same guy that kept asking Jerry to come in to the shop to buy cheap electronics.

Still Tuesday, now 5:30 p.m. Pacific time

Got in to YVR about a half hour early. That was quickly negated by the line up for immigration. Visitors? One line, about 30 people. Residents? One line, about 300 people. Only in Canada, eh? (That's an old advertising line for Red Rose tea, it seemed appropriate.) Maybe we could learn a thing or two from Malaysia and Hong Kong. I don't remember seeing a line up that long or a line up take that long. So out to get a cab, about an inch of freakin' snow on the ground and it's only 1C (about 32.5F). Get to work and there's an inch of snow on my car. Go inside and my co-worker calls Teeka out of the office and she knows me instantly. She was so excited to see me it was worth the snow. Back home and get settled in about 2 p.m. Lie on the couch for a quick nap. Wake up thinking the view looks a lot like from my apt. in Vancouver and the coffee table looks a lot like mine in Vancouver. It took me about 10 minutes to fully realize where I was.

So now begins the process of getting back to Vancouver time. Luckily I don't go back to work until Feb. 9th. I'm downloading the photos as I type this and will edit a few to get uploaded on facebook. I will also be posting them (and some of yours) on webshots will be linked on the Class of '74 website and facebook. Just not tonight!

This is my last blog entry. Wow, that sounds so final and so sad.

So in signing off, I just want to reiterate how much I enjoyed each and every one of you and your family/guests. And if you aren't on facebook yet I'll be sedning you an invitation if I haven't already. Peter Doornbos is thinking of 2015 in KL again, so will be looking for how much interest there is. And don't forget Nashville 2012.

Cheers!


































































The HR. It looks like this at certain times of the day.
This page was last updated: August 3, 2009