:: d a n n y ::: March 2007

The long awaited day has finally arrived since I parted with Hong Yi on the 10th of December 2006. After endless hours on the phone, connecting to the distant and somewhat foreign land of Sabah where the trees reign and the reception is poor, it seems surreal that she is actually sitting beside me. I must say it has been an interesting past 3 months as I wasn't really used to the long distance thing, but it was well worth it.

Beep beep. Damn. Alarm clock, 6am. Oh wait, I have to pick up princess from the airport at 7am. Shower. Get dressed. Make sure I look good, hehe. Drive to the airport. Stuck in traffic. Panic. Arrive at the international terminal at 7.10am. Check board for flight number. Brunei airlines arrives at 7.25am. Relief. Look left, look right, look forward. Repeat.

8.10am. So as I was waiting, there comes princess strutting out in style, carefully poised as she pushes her trolley full of luggage. Stumble. Oops! Hehe, I saw that! Quickly she recovered and continued her elegant walk towards the assembly area. I stealthily stood next to her as she continued to circle her head, in search of someone. Seconds later, she found that someone and I extended my arms, inviting her to feel each other's heartbeat. Damn guitar. I was expecting a soft surface for my arms to wrap around, but I guess her shoulder guitar bag got in the way. Oh well, can't complain.

The first moment I saw her was bliss. Seeing her digitally on my 22" computer monitor is incomparable to seeing her in real life. The way she smiles, the way she laughs and the way she that is. I guess my monitor doesn't do that. Funny though how I picked out a bar code sticker stuck to her hair while we were walking to my car. Wonder what price she registers.

Its a real shame that I have to continue working for my summer vacation work experience for the next few days which means I won't get to spend time with her during the day time. Grrr! Ah well, at least she's keeping herself busy with her cousins and her Sydney friends. Its amazing how many accommodation offers she received while she was here.

Day One: I was planning to bring her to a restaurant in Bondi for dinner but auntie Elaine snapped her before me! Unfortunate too that I finished work late because I went to work late that morning, hehe. After munching down my meat pie, corncobs and potatoes, I hurried to Maroubra to pick her up and take her out to cockle bay wharf. Funny how auntie Elaine offered her house for us to hang out. Politely I declined and dashed out the door. Well, not exactly dashed but I thought of it. I wanted some a-lone time, hehe.

Whilst driving around Chinatown looking for a park, we drove down I think it was Goulbourn street (where Golden Century is) where we saw lots of flashing lights, policemen and camera men. Somewhere among the sea of on lookers, we saw a glimpse of two bloodied bodies lying on the floor. OH MY GOSH! What a way to start the first night. Grrr!!! Quickly I conjured up a memory erase spell and cast it on Hong Yi. Well in my mind anyway. Finally decided to park at Wilsons parking and head over the bridge to cockle bay wharf where we enjoyed drinks and ice cream at the Blackbird café. After that, we walked around the darling harbour before finding a spot to sit and talk, with the colours of the city light reflecting off the soft ripples of the water.

Day Two: Beep beep. 7.30am. Work. Gay! Fast forward. Drove to Ant's place around 7pm as she's been hanging out with him during the day. She had the sleepy look on her face. Kind off hot, hehe. Drove to Artamon, to 'Sexy Steak' otherwise known as Yakiniku for some Japanese. Met up with Jacqui, Shez and Mark. Vicki, Carina (my sis), Noelle and David was there as well. We had raw salmon and kingfish, as well as karaage chicken. Also had these barbeque things which I have no idea what they're called. Perhaps Shez will be able to fill you in as she's the one who ordered. Jacqui introduced me to the 'rain dance' as well. Haha, no not the weather nor the Korean performer. Symbolic meaning :) Anyway, the food was ABSOLUTELY delicious. Hoi-shi!

After eating to our hearts content, we bid farewell and especially to Shez who obviously has had too much to drink although I could've sworn we didn't order any alcoholic drinks. Drove back to Ant's place but Ant hasn't arrived yet as he was dropping off other people. So we decided to walk to the park nearby and hang out. Bzzzzz....smack! Damn mosquitoes. Copped a few bites on my left arm. Hopefully they didn't get to princess before me! Haha, just kidding :P

Day Three: Beep beep. 7.42am. Last day of work. Woohoo! Gay. Fast forward. Go back from work around 6.15pm. Showered. Looked hot. Catch a train to Eastwood for Korean at Mi Rac. Snooze. Wake up. Snooze. Damn train rides are boring. Snooze. Ring ring. Princess calls, allllllright :) Got off the train and asked the station dude where's Rowe Street. Apparently it runs on both side of the station. Asked him again where's the Korean side. According to him both sides are Korean. Obviously he's wrong. If you didn't know, apparently at Eastwood station there's a Korean side and a Chinese side. Called Wei for directions. Power walked. Hot princess waiting for me by the side of the road. Stealth mode. Our eyes met. Prolonged hug. No guitar bag this time, yesss!

So I arrived an hour later than the appointed time and everyone was still waiting for me. That was pretty cool. Whole bunch of student life who went to MYC was there, as well as other people I'm too lazy to mention now. Getting sleepy typing this :S Had some really nice Korean food which Wei ordered and I have no idea what they're called. Spicy as well. Nose dripping-licious!

After dinner we headed back to Wei's place for some ice cream where we all hung out for a bit before Wei booted everyone else out as she had to work the next morning. However, Hong Yi and I were allowed to crashed over and this time Wei wasn't the third wheel by herself. Jane (her housemate) was there as well! We chatted for a bit and went through some photos on Wei's computer before it was time for her to hit the sack (life of a working class person). Hong Yi slipped into something more comfy, a oversized t-shirt. I thought I'd never say this, but wow she looks hot in it, haha. There's just something magically about a girl in an oversized t-shirt. I can't explain it. We went to the backyard and laid on the brick laid steps, gazing into starry sky. When asked if I knew about astronomy, I quickly pretended I did and presented some of my bogus theories. I got caught out quickly too, hehe. Smack! Scratch. Damn ants. Headed back into the house and safe on the sofa. That's all you need to know :)

Day Four: Beep beep. 8am. Work. Oh wait, I don't have work. Woohoo! Had to wake up early as Wei had to go to work but she had already left, and Jane had to go to the city. Hong Yi sat on my bed as I was in the process of waking up. Its true that waking up is a process. Had a quick breakfast before we drove to Mellor's place as he was going to drive us all to the city. Went into Mellor's place for a bit as he had some stuff to print out before we hit the road.

Got dropped off at Sydney Uni and I showed her a glimpse of what my university was like. I could tell she liked it, hehe. Gave her the tour and showed her where some of my lectures took place when I was in first and second year. Headed back to my place for a quick shower while she mingled with my house mates, Rach and Tiffo. After that, we drove back to her to auntie's place where we hung out for a bit. Apparently you need an engineering degree to figure out some display settings on a tv which I had the privilege of configuring her auntie's tv as she had problems viewing it in wide screen mode. I felt so useful, hehe. Got to hang out a bit with Chris (Hong Yi's childhood friend, auntie Elaine's son) as well. We then had lunch at a Thai place at Kingsford with Chris and Norman, and then headed back to my place to grab her shoes. The plot thickens.

Speedily we made for the train to circular quay at Redfern station. Phew. Only a 3 minute wait. 3.45pm. Darn, need to be at that place by 4pm. Got off at circular quay. Walked along George Street. Climbed a flight of stairs which led to Campbell Street. Walked up another flight of stairs which led to the undesired destination. Crap. Don't know where I'm going. Called Ji Hao. Walked further down Campbell Street. Under the bridge. Crap, where's this place?!? Dialled some numbers. Walked 20m back to where we were before. Ah, the entrance.

So yeah, the surprise was that I was taking her to the Sydney Harbour bridge climb for her belated 21st birthday present. After all that walking and panicking about whether we'd make it in time, my back t-shirt got a bit wet from sweat. Yuck. She too was sweating. The sweat drops that trickled down her soft cheeks glistened, leaving trails of lustrous patterns across her face. Wow, hot again. I can't explain it, hehe. We proceeded to the change rooms where it was just a spacious area, with curtains that could be pulled across a certain area of the room. We had to strip down to our undergarments to wear the dorky jump suits they provided us, and all of us were encouraged to share change areas wherever possible. Hehe, well we didn't share just to let you know. Don't think it would've been very appropriate :P

We then continued to the equipment area where we were briefed about safety and various devices was attached to our suits. By the way, the climb group was just us two and a company group that was working for an engineering company called Transfield. Our climbed leader teased us a lot such as informing us the engagement statistics on the bridge climb. It was such an exhilarating experience climbing up the harbour bridge with someone special. We had a scenic 360 degree breathtaking view from the bridge. The Queen Elizabeth was also there to greet us. You just have to experience it to understand what I mean. It kind of puts into perspective on how little we are in this very big world. Yet despite how insignificant we might feel about ourselves, we are significant before God's eyes.

As we made a descent on our climb, I managed to have a little chat with one of the company group members. I told them that I was studying engineering and will be looking for a graduate position for next year. One of the them immediately offered to give her business card so that I could apply to their company for a graduate position. Wow, climb the harbour bridge with a hot chick and getting a possible job prospect at the same time. God, you are amazing.

After a 3 and a half hour experience, I am buggered. Remember that we were awake since 8 something in the morning. Hungry and tired, we needed food. Off to pancakes on the rocks for some ribs and pancakes. I got beef ribs while she got the pork ribs, accompanied by our ice lemon tea and apply juice drinks. By the end of it, I was so bloated from ribs and could only manage a couple of ribs from her plate as she couldn't finish it. Then our Hot 'N' Troppo dessert came, which was delicious. Mmmm...what a yummy night.

We strolled along the quay enjoying the night lights, the salty breeze and the gentle crashes of the water. There were a couple of acoustic guitarists basking, playing romantic love tunes. We finally settled down on a bench near the ferry wharf, keeping each other warm and exchanged gazes and words for some time. The night was still young, but our energy levels were not. We then made our way back to my place, then drove to Ant's place to watch some Heroes. She fell asleep. I watched her breathe softly and gently. Beautiful. After a couple of hours, I took her home back to Maroubra. Before we bid goodnight to each other, we rested on each other in a standing position, arms around.

Day Five: Beep beep. 1.30pm. Wow, that's the latest I woke up on a while. Did my laundry and ironing before heading out to Maroubra to help her with her luggage. Chris' parents were there as well as his house mate, Byron. Auntie Elaine offered me some rock melon which was cold, sweet and juicy. Mmmm, nice and refreshing. Byron asked me if I came over just to help her pack. Haha, now that was funny. Chris' parents were there as well. I couldn't really explain to him what my primary purpose was. Felt awkward, hehe. Said that I was taking her out later on as well, hehe. After that, I began to load her luggage into the boot of my car before saying our goodbyes.

Next stop, my parent's place. Upon arrival, I could smell and taste the familiar saltiness in the air again. I introduced her to my mum, Jeff and my brother. She then gave my mum some pineapple tarts and some Sabah tea. The pineapple tarts were quite nice. My mum then started to ask the usual formal questions to find out more about Hong Yi. After a few minutes, it seemed like it was more like an interview as my mum asked questions, and she answered. Hehe, hope Hong Yi wasn't too freaked out. I then gave her the tour of the house and the backyard. As I was in the middle of explaining to her about something, I got lost in thought and words as I just stared at her. Hehe, kind of funny. We then headed to the Signature café at Brighton le Sands for a nice meal, overlooking the Botany bay.

When we got back, I took her for a walk along Dolls Point beach which is like one minute away from my parent's place. It was a bit windy as well that evening, but I guess I became her jacket for her, hehe :) We walked along the shoreline, feeling the cool wind brushing against our face and the thought of her flying back to Melbourne kicked in for me. Oh how I wished I was like Hiro Nakaruma from Heroes where I could stop time. But I'm not in a tv show am I? Hehe. We sat on a bench and gazed into the starry night once again. I've waited two and a half months for this, and now its going to come to an end in two hours. Beep beep. 9pm. Darn, have to take her to the airport now.

Well, terminal 2 seems pretty empty. In fact, no one. Checked her flight itinerary. Terminal 3. Ah. She checked in at around 9.40pm. Gate opens at 10.05pm. I have 25 minutes left with her. Once again we found a bench seat in the airport terminal, reminiscing the times we spent together for the past week. We were locked arm in arm, and I gazed into her eyes many times. Before she disappeared into the tube which leads to the air plane, I gave her a few more hugs and said my goodbyes. She was gone.

A sense of calm and peace came over me as I walked back to my car and I thanked God for giving me this opportunity and time to spend with her. This is definitely not the end, but only a glimpse of the beginning. Hopefully I'll get to see her again in Melbourne, but I need to find a job first, hehe. Pray for me :)