Reflecting Back on 2011

So – 2011 happened to be another eventful year for me. So many things happened in my life within that period of 12 months I don’t think I can ever go details about them.So reversing back to the beginning of the year, my life suddenly took a major turn when I got transferred to KL after spending the last 5 years or so in my homeland of Sabah. Oh well, I think I’ve been open about admitting how I like city life – I mean BIG city life – so I actually took the transfer offer with open arms. I like Sabah and all the towns and the cities that it has, there’s no doubt about it but I guess that little nemo that I once was has grown up too big now that it needs a bigger aquarium.Surprisingly, or rather not really surprisingly, KL didn’t really change me that much, at least in the way that I keep myself actively involved in a lot of OUTDOOR activities (not indoor activities WTF). Somehow I managed to adapt myself to all the hustle and bustle of the city in no time at all that I actually found the traffic jams quite therapeutic after awhile. Heh.

I knew right from the beginning that I would have to conquer Bukit Tabur first and foremost or I can never get a good night sleep. It didn’t feel good having to drive past the hill every day to work when I could imagine the sinister look on its rugged face – challenging my manhood to get on top of its mounds so that I could finally have my inner peace. Sure enough – I came, I saw, I conquered Bukit Tabur – once and for all.

Another accomplishment that is probably worth mentioning in that sense is my wee-hour climb to the top of Broga Hill in Semenyih. It might not be the best time to get up there especially when KL was suffocating from the haze brought about by the wind from our neighboring country but yet it was still an accomplishment  of some kind.

2011 had also witnessed the continuation of my active participation in marathons. Taking off the virginity of my new running shoes at the Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2011, I knew Mrs. NB would keep wanting for more.

And sure enough, I later ran for that tiny little run of PIKOM Charity Run 2011 – a run that was intended to raise the fund for National Cancer Society of Malaysia. 6 KM might be a short distance for some people but I’m pretty sure I saw somebody passed out and had to be immediately wheeled off to a waiting ambulance.  That really tells how exercises can make a huge difference.

That was actually more like a warm-up for another run that I participated in one week later – The Putrajaya Night Marathon 2011. It was certainly one of the best marathons I’ve ever joined may be because I didn’t have to go through the pressure of doing something that I’m not good at which is to wake up in the wee hour of the morning and be at the starting line before the flag-off.

Of course the climax of it all was the Angkor Wat Half-Marathon 2011 and there wasn’t a better way of wrapping up my 2011 marathon saga than running across the ancient city with centuries old temples here and there along the way.

Moving to KL means I can always think of ideas to widen my traveling horizon in this part of Malaysia other than Sabah where I had spent the last four years or so scaling almost every corner of. What appeared to be so difficult to do back then suddenly opened itself up and I could finally take my mom to a road trip to our very own UNESCO World Heritage Sites – The Historical City of Malacca and Penang The Pearl Island.

Oh well, there’s something so special about bringing your own mom to a road trip when you pay for all the expenses. The last and only road trip here in KL happened when I had just graduated from UM and she was actually the one who paid for the car rental WTF. The furthermost we went to was Shah Alam and I couldn’t even afford to buy petrol and she had to pay for it summore WTF.

All these things about road trips with mom might be nothing but I know it would be one those times that I’m gonna miss most 20 years from now.

Despite all the uncertainties brought about by the change of work base and all, 2011 had witnessed again how I ticked a few more countries off the list of ‘First Time Visits’. I took my chance of buying a cheap return ticket to the beautiful island of Bali during one of Air Asia’s promotional fares and before I knew, I was already on a flight heading towards what was considered the most beautiful island in the world ONCE.

Although it wasn’t the best beginning of my trip when my camera was almost taken away by some corrupt immigration officer at the Bali Airport, the island didn’t let my first impression ruin my holiday and I returned to Malaysia with a whole bundle of good memories in Bali with me.

2011 had also witnessed how I finally fulfilled my dream of visiting one of the most famous monuments in the world – The Taj Mahal. I mean, who could have expected that what I had seen and heard so much about was finally there right before my eyes that I could actually touch and even lick it if I wanted to?

Then I had come to find out that India isn’t all about Taj Mahal ALONE but there are so many things there that most of us here in Malaysia don’t know any shit of existence of. I mean, I’ve been to quite a number of castles in Europe but I don’t remember being mesmerized as much as I was when I visited the Amber Palace in Jaipur. India is certainly a country that is full of surprises.

Then what appeared to be more like a mere participation of another marathon turned to be one of my travel highlights this year. For one the trip had brought me to a second visit to Bangkok – three years after my first visit there back in 2009.It would be the first country that I had visited twice apart from the stone’s throw away Singapore and believe me, there’s something so exhilarating about visiting a country for a second time. It’s like you reflect on yourself as a younger guy with all the lack of traveling experiences and so easily fallen into the pettiest of rip-offs and you’d smile at yourself when they come back to your memory – one by one.And then – what I had no interest of visiting before came as the biggest surprise to me  last year when I finally visited it. CAMBODIA is certainly one of the most underrated countries in South East Asia – probably because people tend to look at it as a country that can only be proud of its past but is now nothing but ruin of temples and all.

NO. No. No. NO. There is so much about Cambodia than just the richness of its history and the remnants of its early civilization. The people, the culture and certainly the food – Cambodia has it all. I haven’t really blogged about my recent trip to Cambodia so I’ve got a few posts lined up to prove to you why Cambodia is so much worth visiting.

OK, what else? Ohhh, the end of 2011 marked another year of my single-mingle-ness and having said that I am proud to announce that I’ve been girlfriend-less for a record of 5 years now.Uhuks! 

That is so long I think I’ve already lost all the skills – on how to make the first move, how to stay romantic around women (I believe squinting the eyes was part of it WTF!) and keep my voice low, probably in a faked huskiness or something. You can say that I’m some kind of celibate who has to continuously tell his little brother to hang on right there until he found the right match for him WTF. LOL!

As much as I hate to admit it, I’d blame it on my constant urge of traveling and I can’t imagine having to spend a big chuck of my fortune on candle light dinners, cinema tickets, Valentine’s presents, petrol to keep my car going on a date and not to mention the surge in phone bills just to keep updated with a girlfriend. You know how I can keep all the money and use them for another travel trip or two. Heh.OK, that was a joke. Of course I’m still open for business but I just don’t really pursue may be because – Say there you go again – I’m not ready for commitment YET. Who knows if this New Year is going to change something? 😉

So that’s about it. 2011 would sure be quickly forgotten as a number but the memories that it carries would certainly be remembered for such a long long time.  Having said that, I’m more than ready to rock 2012. Com’on! Bring it on!