I'm back from Bali with theboyfie! It was such a whirlwind

Never knew so many things about the place before, and picked up some Indonesian slangs too! 

Ohwell, always a new experience. Will blog about it soon!
 

Anyway, here's the story for today!

Remember this post? The sequel is finally here

 

Chilled out with thefockers at Esplanade
 

 

Wanted to kill time as we were about 2 hours earlier before the estimated time of departure.

And that's SO TYPICAL of my family. They're always tip top round the clock early hmm..
 

Sat around the playground and open field to people watch

before we lugged our baggage up towards Swettenham Pier
 

 

Whilst walking there, I caught sight of our iconic clock tower just before the Jelutong Expressway.

Sometimes, I need to be reminded of how beautiful my hometown is, being away from it for too long.

I use to take the 12 o' clock turn at this roundabout every morning back in college!
 

 

So after a 10 minute walk under the sweltering afternoon sun, we finally arrived the harbour.

 

And yes! Our cruise ship is in sight in the near distance

 

 

Picha with it! Fo shure
 

 

When I got inside the harbour, a surge of pleasantness arose within me.

Since when did our Swettenham pier turned into such an impressive state?

Newly painted walls, a renovated interior, impeccable cleanliness and new-improved facilities were just staring right back at me. Whoa!
 

 

After shutting up my hung-open jaw, I joined the rest checking into the cruise ship

 

We were getting nearer and nearer!

Can't wait to see what's in store for us inside. Here are some piccies as I was walking along the dock
 

 

 

So pretty! Let's just hope it boasts something similar inside, if not better!

 

There wasn't much of a queue on the bridge when we arrived. Oh the perks of an early bird!
 

 

It's nice how sailors and crewmen would salute and wish this lil missy here an enjoyable cruise, flashing their best service-industry smiles. Ooohyay Sure I'll have fun.
 

1700HRS | Boarding boarding!

 

As I turned my back I was startled to see this
 

whoaaa. kid. do you really need that huge bolster for just  a one nighter?

It's not a camp you know. LOL
 

 

Anyway, guess what was the 1st thing I saw upon entering the lobby!?

How smart. Using mascots to pique the interests of soft-toy maniacs like me

And those of children too. ROFL
 

 

And and.. using framed blown-up photographs of very good looking ship engineers.

FILF anyone? hohoho

Beats Ikea's Swedish meatballs anytime. LOL i kid!
 

 

Walked up to the 7th deck where the rooms were.

If I ain't wrong, there were 14 decks altogether! Not all are rooms though, they've huge lounges and many entertainment spots
 

Like.. the *cough* casino *cough* *cough*

 

The rooms were pretty tiny but cosy all the same
 

Bunk beds! So old skool
 

 

 

Not for the claustrophobic! Bwahahahaha

 

 

After putting our luggage down and freshened up, we were all ushered to dinner.

The corridors and walkway to the dining area were pretty neat and brightly lit
 

 

 

I wanted to sit at one of these tables but thefockers insisted on sitting inside lol
 

 

1800HRS | Dinner!

Dinner was ala buffet style… but its variety and taste leaves a lot to be desired
 

I only found the decor and food plating (especially the dessert table) presentable enough to be pictured though

Not like I'm expecting anything near 5 Star but this will do for a rather bland and simple meal.

Back from running around taking pictures, I look like a frumpy housewife here I know.
 

 

Anyway, we had our family time over dinner and realized that our favorite thing served today was..

FRUITS. Ohyes, loved 'em pineapples! LOL
 

 

For after dinner digestion, thefockers took a short walk around the ship to explore its decks and found me by the huge glass window panes. I was admiring the view from the middle of the sea before the sun set.

 

That's Penang Bridge, farewell Penang! We've set sail
 

 

 

Camwhored in many unimaginable places. The elevator, the bar, the engine, the balcony.. everywhere!
 

 

We then decided to venture upstairs to the highest deck!

It was so breezy up there I bet whoever had an open umbrella at that moment would probably have it windswept by now

Crikey. My pink bow almost flew off my head!
 

 

 

Tiny me!!

 

 

The sun was beginning to set

 

 

Cousin Shaun joined in my camwhore spree

 

 

Windier and windier!!

 

 

1930HRS | By the sunset with cousin Shaun and cousin Meng

 

 

Back in the rooms, we showered and got ourselves ready for the entertainment zones.

Oh and, most of us had difficulty with flushing the toilet.

Expose!
 

 

When my uncle and cousins took so long in the bathroom, I asked out loud, "Bet you can't find where to flush ey?? HAHA".

And true enough, I was right!
 

Wasn't telling until they made me! The flush button was so tiny and hidden I couldn't spot it at 1st sight either.

Aight. Enough of bathroom bedtime stories.
 

 

Chillin fo a bit by the lounge over some dodgy gameshow

We left soon after we were done with our drinks
 

 

Walking towards Sunset boulevard where the casino was.

That's mom turning her back on me! (pun unintended)

 

Passed some convenience shops and souvenir outlets on the way but seriously, almost everything was exorbitantly priced.

But karaoke joints, massage parlours, cafes and restaurants were aplenty!

Outside waiting for gramps to buy her shawl

She bought one just like mine but in a shade of violet instead
 

 

2200HRS | Casino de Cruise!

So we finally arrived the casino and to our surprise, it was rather huge!

They served hot Milo and coffee to all the stakeholders for the night, much like the casino in Genting Highlands. Once we hit international waters, the casino tables opened and tills of chips, cards and steel balls were running all night.
 

No photos allowed though. Oh, I won up to 250 bucks in Baccarat and Russian Roulette but lost them all back again. There there, this is where greed does not pay. If I would have left with my winnings, I'd be 250 bucks richer. Bummer!
 

Felt bored after so many rounds so I went outside for a break.

Spotted the crewmembers fixing up the Christmas tree!
  

Yes I know it's January now and no, they were not lagging in their festivity awareness, if you were wondering. This cruise trip with thefockers was in late December Was too caught up with other blogposts to blog this one hehe
 

And there was another Christmas tree already up!

 

Now, this was really huge and filled up the entire middle pillar of the ship.
 

 

0000HRS | Did not bring my bikini 'cos I couldn't swim at that moment. Just had another new tattoo done few days before (will blog about this too!)
 

So I was really… really.. REALLY BORED.
 

 

Played in the casino for so long, had a few rounds at the arcade, explored almost the entire cruise ship, made friends with random people, took pictures, had some drinks by the bar and really, at 1 o' clock in the morning, there is really nothing to do on a ship, is there?
 

Whatever you do, don't tell me I should be sleeping.
 

 

So I walked around all alone to the upper deck again to enjoy the cool night breeze
 

 

It was pretty scary aboard a ship in the dead of the night all alone. But then again, it takes you out of the

hustle and bustle of city life and bring about a certain sense of tranquility for the moment.
 

 

Just my iPod and I. Nothing else kept me company except the stale moisture of air around me and the mild, salty smell of the sea surrounding me. It was pindrop silence and I could really fall asleep here on this deckchair.
 

 

Except I *thankfully* had my camera with me so I had fun taking pictures of random things, myself included.

 

0200HRS | I was assuming that the rest of thefockers were all asleep by now.

They're all early risers, so I bet they've gone to bed early as well.
 

But luckily, the couzzies found me chilling by myself on the deckchair!

They were feeling bored to death too so we headed to the cafe for some late night bites

 

0300HRS | And then it was goodnight.

0800HRS | Breakfast began!

Breakfast, in contrast to dinner, was delish

 

As the ship was beginning to sail back towards the harbour, thefockers and I went to the back of the ship to catch the waves

 

Deep blue sea!
 

 

1000HRS | Arrival!

So we have arrived back on land. *kisses the ground
And left to Gurney Hotel to continue our holiday soon after

Your typical poser picture.

Was hiding in the shaded area  while thefockers played pingpong LOL

 

All in all, my verdict is that  the one-day cruise wasn't exactly an exhilarating experience but should you want some quality time off with your family and friends, this is a good idea .

There isn't really much to do but if you could enjoy the casino, breeze, time and relaxation together… in a place away from home, that would be something new.
 

Heck, there's no data nor cellular transmission for cellphones in the middle of the sea anyway so you can rest assure all of you won't be bugged by work calls or other obligatory bullshit *grins*

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 12th, 2011 at 4:09 pm and is filed under Art, Family, Personal, Photography, Travels/Holidays. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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