televisions' life support

Wednesday, December 15

t.o.w. the best holiday ever

I'm Home!!!

*Bells will be ringing, lalala* Just got back early this morning form Newark and I am tired! But I'm still lagging behind the jet so I'll just blog anyway. Whoopi! By the way, thank god Taufik won, though he suddenly looks all cocky and arrogant. *I just don't please easy* =p

Day 1 - 27th Nov - Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey
I was up at about 8am. The whole house was deserted. For one moment, I thought everyone had left without me. Turns out my sister was sick, so they brought her to the docs. Yadda-yadda. Had to seal up the house, cover the sofas and all alone! Boo hoo. Waited for them to return and then packed into the MaxiCab to the airport. Standard airport procedures and I was in the plane at 12 noon.

You know what, the plane deserves a whole para itself. Gosh, maybe it's because I haven't been flying in an awful long time so I'm all out of tune. But, Executive Economy on SQ flights non-stop to New York ; pretty much better than any other locale Business Class flight. Haha. Let's start with the monitors. 9 inches people, 9 inches. Thats 23 cm of solid screen. It just looks huge in perspective to the things around you. We are of course talking about in-seat personal screens. A little coat hanger at the side, a drink holder and a rubbish bin. Yes, your very own rubbish bin so you don't have to stuff rubbish down the seat pocket with the magazines. Also, you know how those old aircraft haf 3 seats by the window. Well, this one has just 2, but about uses the same space as the old ones. So you can imagine the amount of extra space you have, width wise. Distance between the seat in front of you is also much bigger. Foot rest, leg rest (which is the big bulk of cushion that rises automatically so you can rest ur legs) *God, I'm editting now and I just read what was in the brackets and I cannot stop laughing. How self-explanatory is the word leg-rest?*. The recline on this seat is superb. At least for a Q class. Its about 45 degrees. Which is like four times that of the old jets. Ok. The headrest. The highlight of the entire flight. Remember how the old headrests were so uncomfortable if you were not tall enough or short enough. I mean, it was irregularly bent and totally provided nothing but discomfort? And also that silly piece of paper cloth that totally charges up your hair? Yup. Thats all gone. Whats here, is a totally adjustable leather headrest. Yup. So you can prop it up anyway you want it and really rest your head. God. I would kill for one of those in chair. Yup. That's the plane. Airbus something. Goodbye Boeing! Hahax. The inflight entertainment was about the same. Watched Terminal and that Jackie Chan Movie. Can't remember the name though. His name was Passerpartout. That I know. =p Watched all the comedies onboard. God, Will & Grace is really really funny. Haha. Now that Friends is over, I probably shall get it on that. Hahax. Ok.. The usual plane code. Slept, ate, watched. 18 hours and a lot of cups of water later. Bham! Newark Liberty International Airport.

Backtracked 13 hours due to the time difference. So was at Newark at about 5pm local time. Had a really hard time lugging the luggage to the car rental area. God, my butt almost got crushed by the elevator door and twice! Got lost trying to drive our way to the Hotel. God, the whole road is dimly lit and the signs and the exits and the turns are like 5 meters apart from each another. Amazingly tough to drive. Totally. Got lost. Found our way. Got lost again. But finally made our way there. Shagged. Slept. God! That's just 1 out of the 17 days! I'm just gonna post it and keep updating day by day. In case of a blogger mishap... Not entirely inconcievable.

Day 2 - 28th Nov - Woodbury Common, New York
Mom got duped. She was told the shops would be open at 5am for the Thanksgiving weekend. We woke up at 3.30am and made the 1 hr trip to Woodbury Common, North of New York. When we got there, it was stark. Not a soul except for the employees who were only preparing the shops for retail at 7am. 7am. Went to a nearby diner for breakfast. the 3 egg omelette was a killer. Can you imagine eating 3 eggs alone? Poof. I almost puked eating it. Went back and started shopping. More so tagging along with my mum. Only splurged on one store ; Gant Usa. Which is my favourite brand now. Haha. Stuff there are cheap though since its the factory outlets. Also bough two pairs of skechers shoes for which would cost less than the amount for one in Singapore. Thats about it. Didn't really buy much. It started to rain super heavily. I was pathetic. My shoes were wet. My socks were wet. My feet were wet. My feet were cold. So go figure. Hid in the car for an hour and slept and then walked around even more. Got some Nike socks that are real cheap and all. We were there from 5am to 7pm. Just managed to go to the stores we wanted. Not the entire area. Tiring day; despite the good purchases.

Day 3 - 29th Nov - Manhattan, New York
Took the New Jersey Transit bus service to Manhattan itself. In case everyone is wondering why we did not stay in Manhattan, its because the cheapest hotel there is probabaly gonna cost 180 US a night. The last time I checked, my family wasnt that rich anyway. So yeah, we saved about 80 bucks staying in New Jersey. And its actually really convenient to get into Manhattan anyway, other than the incessant traffic congestion in the Lincoln Tunnel, GWB Bridge & Holland Tunnel. Anyway, we met this old couple on the bus and they were telling us more about the bus service and all. So when we got to Manhattan at Port Authority, we went out to 42nd street. All of a sudden, this woman starts tugging at my arm. I did not remember knowing her and tried to shake her off while she was trying to say something that I couldn't entirely make out. You should see my face there and then. I was like. Get. Your. Filthy. Hands. Off. Me. For one moment, I actually thought she was a tramp trying to get some money. Turns out she was the old woman from the couple we met earlier and was trying to tell us where to get out bus back to the hotel. I must have made a hell of an impression.

We went to Madam Tussaud's and took a lot of pics. Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, that Australian model whose super tall, Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, The Rock, Martina Hingis, Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilovra, the Beatles, Gorbachev, Nelson Mandella, yadda yadda. Just in case you are wondering how, its Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum. You know, the one with entirely fake wax figurines. Yup. Anyway, I found out Tussaud, is pronounced as tu-so. Whoa. Walked a couple of streets down to 49th street to Radiocity Music Hall. I finally understand how far is 1 block as the Americans always say in their movies. *Its round the bend, 2 blocks down.* Yeah, now I know, a block isn't that long a distance anyway. Maybe 30 meters? Got our tickets for the Rockets show and went back to 43rd street to some Pizzeria that we found on the Discovery T&A channel. Had lunch and went back to the Rockets show and I actually slept during the silly show. I mean, it was warm, I was in layers and the lighting was terribly soothing. It was sleep-inducing. Not my fault, as usual. Anyway, I did catch some of the leg-lifting, so it wasn't entirely wasted. Then we went to Macy's, which is supposed to be the largest departmental store in the world. It actually isn't that big. I wonder why no one built a bigger one to get the namesake. Oh well.

Okaez, Aston, my dear friend who has suddenly become a reciever of huge gratuities from me, for reasons you will find out why later, had asked me to buy some Yankee stuff for him. So because of that, I purposely crossed the road and made a short detour to get to some Yankee store to buy him some stuff. Granted I did not find anything in there, I came out and there was my dad, pointing at some signboard. And there was the lovely Kimberley Locke's photo. Turns out she was performing at the restaurant there. And it took at least 10 seconds for me to realise the show was not over and that it was the next day. So hurray! Immediately zipped down to buy tickets and all. Oh gosh, Kimberley Locke. Live in person. Kimberley Locke, for crying out loud. I was so hyper that night from then on. Aston rocks. Decided to get him a present. =p

Day 4 - 30th Nov - Manhattan, New York
More Manhattan. Trump Tower, Central Park, The Plaza, Ground Zero, Madison Square Garden, Rockerfeller Center. If anyone is actually wondering why I did not visit the more prominent places like Statue of Liberty, Empire State and all , its because I already did 4 years ago. So now its more of the second tier places I guess. Oh well. Nothing much to say, except that I saw this banner at Ground Zero. "If a man can live in New York, he can live anywhere." Now, I interpreted this as how life in New York would toughen a person up to live anywhere. And I thought that was how it was supposed to be interpreted anyway. In a sense that life in New York isnt bad, its just tough. But when I came back and added that on my nick, someone asked me, "Is New York really that bad?" I mean, if you look at the sentence, you could actually say it in namely 2 ways. The sad one, like I would have, or the sarcastic one. So its kinda weird. None's wrong, I guess. Oh well. Went to Rockerfeller Center and saw everyone queueing up for the Christmas tree lightup. Managed to see Jessica Simpson, Nick Lachey & Clay Aiken. Lets just say it wasnt worth waiting in the damn cold for the colourful backshots we got to see. Hurried down a couple of streets to watch Kimberley Locke at B.B.Kings. It was such a great show. She sang some songs from her album, Idol journey, and even did a Diva medley. Woo hew! She also sang this song "Song For You". If anyone has it, please send it to me. Yeps. And she's actually quite funny. She cracks some good jokes. So it was an entirely enjoyable affair. All was perfect except that she exited the stage so fast I did not even get an autograph. Oh well, at least thats one of my *to-see-list*. So Yeah!

Day 5 - 1st Dec 2004 - New Jersey, New York
Went to this huge mall in New Jersey. Shopped a little and bought some gifts. Did not want to go back to New York just to see the Brooklyn Bridge so I stayed in New Jersey and went back to the hotel with mum and slept. Really slept.

Day 6 - 2nd Dec 2004 - Orlando, Florida
Drove to Flushing in Queens. We tried to avoid the heavy traffic in the Lincoln Tunnel but ended up jamming up on the GWB Bridge, then crossed the triborough bridge into the Bronx and then Queens. Ok, infocheck here. The city of New York, note New York City and not State is divided into a couple of areas. If I'm not wrong, cos' Im not entirely sure, there is Manhattan, Bronx, Queens & Brooklyn. Manhattan is the downtown I guess. The other 3 are known as the boroughs. So thats where you get the word triborough bridge. Go figure~ Got hopelessly lost and then thanks to me, finally found our way to United States Tennis Center, Home to the US Open. Woohew! Took some shots amidst the cold but did not get the chance to get into any of the courts. Boo hoo. Anyway, its winter, which idiot would be playing anyway? Hopped on the plane to Orlando and saw an air stewardess who looks remarkably like Fantasia. Reached Orlando and drove to the hotel. God, it is so much easier to drive in Orlando then in New York. Too tired to do anything so we just slept. For a Sunshine state, Florida is surprisingly cold.

Day 7 - 3rd Dec 2004 - Epcot Center, Orlando
I was bamboozled! Hoodulumped! Its a silly science center! Can you believe walking into a Science Center on holiday. Given that it had all the fan fare of a theme park. It was still absolutely borang. There was only ONE *greater than 10kmph* ride. So warning people, never visit EPCOT center. Not if you are an adrenaline junky like me. You should if you like great big, purple, giggly dinosaurs. And no, I'm not talking about Barney. There was this one ride, about a stupid dinosaur called Figment. And we took it like what, three, four times? No idea. My sister sucks. Ok, her idea. Spent the whole freaking day there. Oh yah, in the morning, we went for this TimeShare thing. Hmm, it does sound really good. If I have money to splurge. I totally would. Though I don't, so I shall just shut up. But the thought of no longer having to squeeze on tiny beds and staying in __________ inns (comfort inn, holiday inn, rennaisance inn) is totally rawkin'~

Day 8 - 4th Dec 2004 - Universal Studios, Orlando
Nothing much to blog about cos' its my second time here! Haha, even though the price is like 50 bucks for a person to get into the silly park. And then you compare to our very own Escape theme park and you think, what the hell? And then you step into the park, and you are like Whoa. Now, I haven't been to Escape for a long time, but I'm guessing there arent many rides that make use of 3D, or 4D for that matter nor do they have the Fastpass system. Hahax. So yeah, for what Universal has to offer, I'm thinking its worth it. More adrenaline junk here though. There was this one ride, from the Mummy movie, and we queued up for like 45 mins and finally got into the cart, ready for the ride of our lives *yeah, thats so cliche* and then 30 secs into the ride, we stalled. *Now thats not cliche*. So we were evidently pissed. And there was this broadcast telling us that the cart might move at anytime and we were all thinking, now thats drama and all were expecting to get jerked and start moving. That of course did not happen. No, no, big, purple, giggly dinosaurs to report about here. Though there was this huge, green smelly ogre.

Day 9 - 5th Dec 2004 - Miami, Florida
Drove about 200 miles south to Miami. Took like 7 hours to get there. Miami is far.

Day 10 - 6th Dec 2004 - Majesty of the Seas
Went to some high-end shopping center where we of course, did not buy no sqat. Then we went to Crandon Park Tennis Center, Home to the Nasdaq 100 Open in Miami, the 5th Grand Slam of the Tour! Woo hew! Took pictures. And just so people in tennis want to know, *cos' why would anyone else want to* the whole center is on an island! Whoa. And its probably connected by spits and tombolos and what not. Went to the port and took to the cruise. My very first cruise! And I love it! Haha. Its just so relaxing. Right, we took a Royal Carribean Cruise *Congratulations Kenneth, as the winner of this leg of your freaking life, you have won a cruise vacation to the Carribean onboard Royal Carribean Cruises' Majesty of the Seas* Woo Hew. Ok, anyway, I know that the cabins are supposed to be small. But redefine small for heavens sake. We had no space at all to place our luggage and the silly toilet, you could cover its length in about a step and a quart. But its actually quite cosy. Hahax. Anyway, Royal Caribbean Cruises totally rock. And the Royal Carribean Dance troupe rocks even more. They did a show on the first night on music from the 60s to 90s. Ok, shut up for now, but thats my genre! Woo hew, and they are really good dancers, fyi. Slacked abroad and had a total blast. Oh yah, fine dining. I haven't been to it for such a long time, so its fun to be ordering stuff when you know you don't really have to pay for it immediately. Or in my case, not pay at all.. Its like a high class buffet! Eat as much as you can! Woohew!

Day 11 - 7th Dec 2004 - Nassau, Bahamas
We docked and went down and explored the tiny island of Nassau. Nothing much to buy there except this way cool Del Sol Shirt that changes colour pending on what type of light you are exposed to. Nothing much here so we went to Paradise Island where you can actually find the Atlantis Hotel. Parents wanted to casino there, so I tagged along and they smuggled me in to play jackpot. Lost like shit at first, was like down 30 bucks, and then made a huge killing on this one machine, where I won like 700 credits. Queen of the Nile, woo hew! Lost back later and ended up earning 5 bucks =p You should have seen my face when I won. Classic, I tell you. Went back. Slept. The bed on the cruise is actually very comfortable.

Day 12 - 8th Dec 2004 - Majesty of the Seas
We actually tendered at CocoCay, an island privately owned by RCC. We din go down though. The though of bobbing around a tiny boat to get to an even tinier island was not very appealing. So we slacked onboard the ship! Was at the casino again, and lost 20 at the jackpot. Since, thats pretty much all I can play without getting caught. Read my book. By the way, I finished Deception Point & Angels & Demons during the hols, even started on Digital Fortress. So go figure! Played Bingo, where we lost 200 bucks but won a 95 dollar painting which I could probably sell for 95 cents. I like that person calling out the numbers though, Mo Money Marnie, as she so affectionately christens herself. So basically, we slacked! *by the way, my entries are getting shorter each day*

Day 13 - 9th Dec 2004 - Key West, Florida
Went down with this 5-tier chocolate ice cream cone and then this stupid gust of wind came and blew ice cream all over me and my bag. The hardships my bag had to endure *more later*. Again nothing much, bought another windchime to add to my defunct collection. Went back to the ship to watch Shrek 2. Haha, it was funny, and this black woman sitting near me had an even funnier laughter. I wouldnt laugh at the show, but I would laugh when she did, it was contagious. Slacked more, had dinner and then Bingo'ed more. Btw, on fine dining sessions, we meet such great people. We met a couple of Americans and its nice to listen to their stories. Yeps, although I had a dream one time and dreamt that I lashed at all of them for being extremely nasty. *I'm such a nice person.* There was another dance show, this time music from the 70s, or disco music, once again my genre. I really must say, these people are very entertaining. I liked the show a lot. A lot, a lot. Almost too much.

Day 14 - 10th Dec 2004 - Miami, Florida
Docked back at Miami and went shopping at this huge mall about an hour away from Miami. This is probably the largest mall I have ever been too. Literally. And it was packed. And just cos' they know you are sure to be tired from all the walking, they have seats on their trollies so you can be pulled about by a partner. Needless to say, we had a ton of fun doing that. Could not find anything fitting though, so did not buy anything except this huge Tennis Encyclopedia. Woo hoo.

Day 15 - 11th Dec 2004 - West Palm Beach, Florida
Finally, finally, finally!!! The day I have been waiting for since 2001 French Open Womens Singles Final, where I fell heads over hells in love with Jennifer!!! Drove a long time to get there and picked up by tickets under the name Kenneth Law. Went in and bham! Jim Courier, walked by me and I did not even notice. Mum was the one who shrieked and got his signature. Then had pictures taken with Jennifer (twice!), James Blake & Todd Martin. Had autographs from then, as well as Corina Morariu, Mardy Fish & Venus Williams. So I am so happy. Watched Blake beat Fish and then Jennifer & Jim team up against Venus & Todd in a JC's VS Tall Guys mixed doubles match. Very entertaining and all for a good course too! Anyway, there was this one guy, Jeff Morrison, I did not know he was a tennis player, he is like World No. 94. Thats still good, though not very well-known. So anyway, he was like, looking at me and I was looking at him, smiling at me while I was smiling at him, and all this while I was waiting to get autographs from players! I'm such an idiot. Anyway, he was a really nice guy, offered to help us take pictures and all. So yeah, I'm rooting for him cos' he is so friendly! That probabaly comes with being unknown, but yeah! So yeah, Jennifer totally rocks. The first picture was kinda screwed, so I went to find her and she was like, "It did not turn out well? Oh, ok, lets do it again!" apparently she knows I came in from Singapore to find her. God, I'm such a fan. So yeah! The best day ever! Am so going to print a huge photo and frame it and hang it in my room. Me & Jen! Picture that! No wait. Literally! Picture that!

Day 16 - 12th Dec 2004 - New Jersey, New York
Visited Miami South Beach minus its happening activities and hip life and then went back to New York. Almost got conned by the taxi company. I just want to get this whole entry over and done with, so im summarising, a lot. Who cares, I doubt anyone would read the whole entry, word for word anyway. Other than me that is.

Day 17 - 13th Dec 2004 - New York, New York
Went back to New York to get some gifts and buy some stuff. We were like in the Amazing Race! Cos this one bus that serves between our hotel and New York runs on a very limited schedule so we had very little time to do what we wanted in New York. So we rushed, literally rushed, running down blocks and avenues and finally reaching Port Authority to catch the bus. For what was worth, we were early! Yup, so thats it, when my bus left New York via the Lincoln Tunnel, that would probably be the last time I was in New York City, my favourite city, for a very long time, unless I... Hahax. Then packed our stuff and went to the airport for the flight home. Boo Hoo. Anyway, while queuing up to check in our lugguage, all 8 pieces, Mum met her friend, Dad met his friend and the two friends are not related! Talk about coincidence. Anyway, sadly, boarded the plane. But then I saw my leather headrest. And I was all pumped up again!

Day 18 - 14 Dec 2004 - Over Europe
I think I pretty muched slept this whole day away onboard. Oooo, that leather headrest.

Day 19 - 15 Dec 2004 - Singapore, Singapore
Watched a couple of movies, played some games. Bham, Singapore Changi International Airport.
I'm home!

So yeah, this holiday totally rocks. For reasons obvious. Meeting Jennifer Capriati and many other tennis stars was great, seeing Kimberley Locke perform life was huge and being at Flushing Meadows & Crandon Park was a blast. So yeah! And Double yeah! Cos' Im done!

kenn thwacked an asshat munchkin' at 9:37 PM