Chinese New Year 2010 - Trip to JB

This year's Chinese New Year holiday was different for me. I did not have to go for house visits at all because my father was busy and my mother was overseas. I didn't really mind because I knew I would only be annoyed by relatives who would ask me the same "Do you have a girlfriend?" and "When are you finding a new job?" questions again every year.

I ended up spending most of my time at home playing games. The only program I had was to go to Johor Bahru on Sunday night to visit my mother who is there on a business trip. This may sound strange but, as far as I can remember, this was my first time going to JB. (My parents took me to KL and Genting when I was very young so it did not leave an impression.)

My guardian, Lim would be coming along too as he would be driving me there. We left for JB on Sunday night at around 11:45 pm (to avoid the traffic, he says). True enough, there weren't many cars crossing the Causeway and we reached the New York Hotel in JB in a little more than an hour.

The hotel was actually in quite a 'ulu' area with a whole row of car workshops right in front. We met up with my mother and had a late-night supper at the hotel's restaurant (which surprisingly was still opened at this time). We chatted a lot and went back to our rooms.

On Monday morning, we woke up to a buffet breakfast at the hotel's restaurant again. The plan was actually to go shopping at Pelangi Plaza nearby but since it was the CNY holidays, only a fraction of the stores were open. The shopping centre was deserted. Doh.


We then went to the massage parlour/spa near the hotel. My mother says she always recommends her business friends to this place for a massage whenever she is in JB. I had a full-body massage which took an hour. It was actually quite painful as it felt as though the PRC masseuse was grinding my body with her knuckles, elbows and (in my mind) a rolling pin. With spikes. When it was over, I didn't dare to look in the mirror; I might be blue & black all over.

Unfortunately, I could not take any pics of the massage parlour as it might be an invasion of privacy (other guests were lying around). haha.


After that, we went to the cafe next door for lunch and ice-cream. We chatted a bit more before it was time to go. My mother's next stop would be KL after she settles stuff in JB.

The journey back to Singapore was much longer this time due to the looooong line of vehicles at the customs and Causeway. It look close to 2 hours.

Nevertheless, it was a short, fun trip and it was nice to see my mother again since my Hong Kong vacation.