5 MAY KL ---- MELB

Our flight from KL to Melbourne is scheduled at 1:45pm. But as usual, for most of us who live in KL and do not own a private jet, the airport cab will pick you up as early as 3 hours before your flight's departure time. So, we have an airport limo awaiting us below our apartment at 10:30 am. Despite this, I still have enough time to go through 2 important things at home prior to leaving the house. First was the steam treatment to relieve the blockage of my sinuses, which had unexpectedly paid me a painful visit just 4 days ago, even though I have gone through the awful Endoscopic Functional Sinusitus surgery just merely 2 years ago. Secondly, a deep hydrating mask to combat skin dryness that always happen after a long distance flight.

After saying good bye to our apartment, we boarded into the cab and it swiftly drove into LDP. Barely 5 mins, we are stuck in a massive jam. The cabby said the traffic was totally clear when he drove in to pick us up 10 mins ago. So, I guess this is the typical sign that happens when fate knows you wanted a holiday so much, so here you are, another test to challenge your patience!

We were lucky to have a smart cabby who is determine to confront the fate. From Damansara, he navigated through KL before cutting into a highway that eventually led us to LCCT within an hour. Bravo!

After blowing my nose until it was almost peeled off and constantly applying Tiger Balm and Vicks Vaporub for a very long time, we boarded on an Air Asia X aircraft. Despite having narrower seats that can only recline for not more than 30 degrees, the overall aircraft looks brand new. This is the first time we opt for this airline for our longer distance journey. Previously, MAS or Singapore Airlines will always be our choice for journey that takes more than 4 hours. So, our 1st impression for it was not bad at all. Most importantly, this choice has save us a lot of money that enable us to extend our holiday to nearly a month.

Our pre-booked meal was nasi lemak. Since I have a full blown sinusitus inflamation, I can only munch on a not so exotic sandwich. Bernard happily enjoyed 2 shares of nasi lemak. Actually, he ate more than 2 shares when the mid-age lady sitting next to me offered him all the chicken and ikan bilis from her serving. She then started to complain that her husband purposely pre-ordered curry chicken nasi lemak for her even though he clearly knows that she is a vegetarian. Half way through the flight, she revealed that her rich husband is having an affair and......So, for the 2nd half of the flight, I became a counsellor who listen to all the bitterness in her marriage. So, the 1st lesson that I learn from this trip is do not marry a rich man with no wisdom. If you already did, suck away his money as much as you can!

After 7 and a half hour of 'men bashing' stories from the poor lady sitting next to me, I was extremely delighted to touch down at Tullemarine Airport at 11:45pm. The process of passing through the immigration, luggage collection and custom were smooth. With a pre-purchased Sky Bus ticket, we arrived at Southern Cross in the City by 12:30 am. What an impressive seamless connection!

After dragging our luggage 300m north in the cold morning wind, we arrived at Atlantis hotel, where we will be spending the night. We were delighted to find our room spacious, clean and tastefully decorated. The nice view of Victoria Harbour and Etihad Stadium was a nice bonus. We did not have a proper dinner as all shops nearby were closed and the nearest eateries still open at this hour was 1 km away. Obviously, our tired legs told us to stay in the room. After munching away the remaining 3 energy bars, we both collapse on the bed.