Of Krabi and being a Graduate

Three ulcers in the mouth, sunburn spots the size of China, fish bites throughout my body, a slight fever, throbbing in the head, endless coughs, and a nose that runs – ‘pitiful’ doesn’t even begin to describe my current state!

And despite all that, I’m blissfully glad to have gone to Krabi. Sometimes, being in the media pays off handsomely, and in spite of the tons of work screaming to be done, I’m pretty darn glad. From snorkeling to kayaking, to elephant tours, it’s all there.

Rock climbers however would be more familiar with Krabi. Gorgeous environments and fantastic natural rock formations make Krabi an instant hit with climbers everywhere. And the fact that it’s so accessible with Air Asia now will see more people flying to Krabi.

But more on that in future posts, now I’m still grappling with the fact that I’ve graduated, an odd feeling to have. It wouldn’t be this strange if we had the USM convocation within the NEXT FEW DAYS of graduation! But a year on and the hype has died somewhat. Couple this with us graduating in a campus we’ve never step foot into and you’ve got yourself an unenthusiastic batch of graduates!

Arriving several days before the actual convocation, graduates must sit for a briefing, just to get an idea of how things are done. Amazingly, they have a video presentation showing what to wear, and what not to wear. Poor unwilling looking actors stand there in suits or jeans, and of course, they do the typical model turn around. What caught my eye however was this “Kesilapan-Kesilapan Graduan Terdahulu”.


Most of them are sound of mind and well, pretty logical – don’t be late, don’t bring handphones into the hall, wear the mortar board neatly, etc.


But an order to not have stomach aches is frankly disturbing – when you gotta go, you gotta go!


The front of this huge hall where the convocations is to take place, is dominated by a stage fit for a king…royal yellow floods the carpets, three speaking podiums on all sides, and fresh flowers decorating the top.


The flowers do not simply appear out of thin air. Diligent workers toil to keep re-stocking on old and dying ones.


Watching on is the head of traffic control in USM, Mr. Kalmit (I’m guessing from the name on his vest). Either way, you don’t want to mess with him.

I had a day in between the briefing and the actual convocation, which left me time enough to re-explore my second home.


‘Chendul’ here is presumably good, judging from the thumbs up I get from surrounding locals. And at RM1.50, you have very little to lose!


Yes, ‘Chendul’ may just be shaved ice with more colouring than some people’s hair, but getting it right to the tee is an art on it’s own. Besides…


If it’s good enough for Ah-Phua and Aunty Rosey, it’s good enough for me.


And wherever in the world you may be, you’ll never forget the sinful pleasure of having your ‘Char Koay Teow’, a dish you could sniff from a mile away, hinting at the cockerels, prawns, and crispy bean sprout on it. One helpful word of advice, the angrier the cook, the better it tastes :)


Penang Island enjoys a constant flow of tourist all year round. Some say it’s the friendly locals others the food. But I think it’s because everything here is so dang cheap.


And if you’ve money to burn and lungs of steel to withstand the poisonous air, a trishaw is the way to go!


(Though I doubt I’m doing the trishaw industry much service with this picture.) You know what they say…when you’ve gotta to go…you’ve gotta go.

It’s been a while since I last came to Penang, and I was surprise to discover this natural hill where you climb/trek all the way up to find yourself overlooking the island.


On top of that (no pun intended) a gym built with the donations of health enthusiasts and pain lovers alike sits at the top.


There I was half panting from the climb when others trek up, and work out at the same time! There’s also a boiling cauldron with some tea on the side to quench your thirst. Visitors are encouraged to trek up carrying bottles of water up for others to use…I wasn’t too charitable here.


The hill had a sizable amount of rubber trees from which people tap from. We saw quite a few climbing down.


And all this gorgeous nature is yours…for free. Non conservationists will never understand until they immerse themselves in these natural environments.

Anyway the convocation took place without much fanfare. It was admittedly a proud moment, but I knew it wouldn’t be my last convo – I’m determined to do more than a mere degree.

One of the highlights however has to be the studio picture taking session – to see professionals at work is nice. To see the thousands of equipment lying around is nicer by far.

So this is me, an official graduate from the school of communication.


And this is me bored of conventional studio pictures with all the formalities and fake smiles with fidgety poses…



My parents were extremely supportive. I’m secretly more attractive with a wig I think.

Can’t believe Monday’s here so soon.

Weekends aren’t what they used to be.