One way ticket to Kluang 22nd May 2011

Waiting and Praying for tickets.. 0630am at Tanjong Pagar Train Station

We are going to Kluang!

This was an impromptu ride which almost never happened....but we said we wanted to do.  Matt had been going to the train station for several days to secure the tickets but was getting no where. Sat evening, I recieved a text from Matt...let's just go on Sunday early morning and "po"= try our luck.  So we did. 5 turned up at 0630.....bleary eyed at Tanjong Pagar Train station...  There was already a long queue forming and Matt looked worried.... but finally we got the tickets! Heng har!

Tickets but no seat .... oh well...

tickets!

Looking around the Tanjong Pagar Station which was due to be stop operation 1st July, I felt sad to see it go...and very glad I managed to take a train from this place. Things will change and I hope it is for the better....

watching the world zoom by

nice...

2hr train ride... and we reached Kluang!

So this started the fun adventure to Kluang.... The train trip cost $15 one way and took 2 hours.  Reached Kluang around noon time and had the nice coffee at the Kluang train station. Matt headed to the counter to buy the return tickets... and either it was 3pm or none...  In a democratic process, we voted on the decision and result was 4 to 1....ride bicycle back lor...easy one lah.....  Horror!!!! It was supposed to be a leisurely ride . Anyway, in an act of bravo, I said..."ok lor..  how bad can it get..."  Having foldies was great, we roamed around the town and saw some really old houses and industries.
There was this old rattan furniture shop and old shoe maker which we chatted for sometime. You could see that this wasn't ur usual tourist old spot... but it was really old and crummy. But totally real...  nice conversations with the shoe maker who told me how he took over the business from his father and he has being doing this for the past 40-50 years. 

Matt upon knowing there is no return train tickets... " oh goody, we can really ride!"

my new ride!

What's a trip without food right? ... with the local knowledge from the shoe maker, he told us to try the Kluang's Bar ku teh..."guaranteed very good one".  We followed his directions... and it was delicious! We even had the Ter kar (pig legs), something I don't usually eat.... but it was goooood!  Riding around... then we stopped at at newer kopitiam to have snacks and dessert.... Load up on Carbs for the long ride home... :)

Rattan shop

Kluang's hunk!

Pork legs.. super soft and delicious!

Kluang Bar Ku teh! The best!

shoe lasts

imagine how many shoes he made..

Super low morale.. and GL can still take photo!..  Photo credits by KC

Smiling helps when the going gets tough!

At 0430pm, we started riding back in Singapore direction. Patrick assured me :" dun worry...very near one lah... under 90km"  Funny thing is we saw a road sign "Johor Baru - 120km"...wahhh.. win already lor...  Still one crank at a time, with support from the cool dudes (Patrick, KC,Matt and GL)....we conquered one slope after another.  The view back to Singapore was lovely.. palm plantations, and the ever changing colors of the sky. At one point it was all red... but I was too tired to stop and take a photo...  Cars and bikes zoomed pass us, thumbs up and smiling... "this crazy idiots on folding bicycles...." We waved back, smiling, sweating.... we will get there...eventually.

The skies soon turned dark, pitch dark. Luckily most of us had lights...only champion who didn't was GL. He was really in for a leisure ride. Slippers and bermudas. No water bottle, no lights, shorter seat post, no helmet. Best of all, his flamingo London was creaking after all the pedalling... and wobbling left and ride. Still we rode on.... finally after 7.5 hours later... we saw the bright lights of the Woodlands Customs....I was sooooo happy! 

Crazy we may be... but we made it!  Thank you, Patrick, KC, Matt and GL who stood by me as I pedaled like a turtle. I was the last one, lagging behind... but u folks never once complained!  Bums burning and knees hurting like crazy... I smiled... what a leisurely ride! 

More photos here

****Memories refreshed on 19th Sept 2014.
It was really a moment of "enlightement".... we cleared customs after Midnight. Luckily got a cab that too me and Matt to Tanjong Pagar where I park my van. 
I asked Mr Taxi uncle, "Uncle can u please drive up the multi storey to 4 floor?" He turned around and look at me with the thought bubble... "this siao eh trying to be farny is it...." I guess I look so pathetic that he turn back and continue to drive.... I literally crawled to my van.
Dunno how I managed to drive... but eventually I reached home. The showering bit was PAINNNNNful........ My bum was rubbed real good and you can imagine how it felt when showering... I even used my girl bum rash cream. Then I remembered Uncle K.C. who looked at me intently during the ride... and said the words... "the slopes are ur friends...and in times like this... u will dig deep into urself..." Some Yoda -ish advice.
Ya right... more like the saddle digging deeper into my AXX... hahah wonderful memories