I taught you tempe, you gave me sushi.

Ikan kering???

Meat? *shook*

Can it be...sushi?

Yeah, sushi!

Salam.

Another Saturday, and we let our hearts make our minds up and our feet carry our outlines, out of the gate with crouching warnings of coming rain. Hey, it has been almost three weeks of near-drought here on the island, and in my twitter I posted that the Sun blessed Penang with a bit more heat compared to other territories across the country. I have to not to mind being sun-tanned. I am, 60%.


Lucky that I brought my umbrella.


In 10 minutes we were sitting on the twin metal bars of the bus stop, enjoying the breeze and the drowsiness of waiting for a Rapid to stop and give us a lift all the way to QB. Three weeks peeked inside our rooms, said hi, and gave us a full load of sack with seeds to plant. I mean full load of assignments to start running with. And driving with. Yeah, fieldwork. I love it.

But nights of staying up and sleeping late turned me more and more panda day by day, so we thought that it'd be good to give ourselves some treat for the indisputable commitment in getting the jobs running. So without any scent of allowance in our accounts and plenty of coins (for the bus ride), we turned our heads to the mall, where we can have some exercises for the feet as well as the eyes, but not the hands. Mind me.

The ride was so comfortable these girls fell asleep. Pelangi Malam and Nadia, from left.

Okay, so I got them captured and we reached QB. I was hungry, told Wida.


"Nak x ak ajaq hang mkn sushi?"


I curved my lips in a declining manner, it spelled 'NOOOO...!!'

For real, I never tasted sushi before. The last time I had a close encounter with the delicacy was during my visit to Malacca in a school trip-that was eight years ago, when I was 13. I'm catching train #21 this year, so that makes it eight years ago. The group of boys who grabbed a taste of sushis in Mahkota Parade yelled near the bus; and it went like this:


"THAT'LL BE THE LAST TIME I'D EVER GO NEAR A SUSHI!!!"


-which made me vow not to touch one.

But you see, fellows, as we grow older, we get braver. Please, do not get me wrong, I mean positive ballon d'essais. Like savouring a sushi. I have been curling against it because the boys made me believe that it taste awful. But c'mon, why not give it a try? By the way, I don't know what type of sushi did they swallowed, and I don't even know if they were just teasing the others so that we won't go near. Realizing that I had pointed out reasons relevant to the present time, here I made a deal with Wida.

"Em..blh x cmni,ak rs skt, pastu klu ak x blh, ak bg ko. Blh x?"

"Boleh," was her confident reply. Together with a convincing nod. Yeah, she didn't mind. We drink from each other's container so-the deal was fine.

What I had in mind was not to bite the food, it'd certainly be impolite to do so should I came unable to consume it. Considering, and half considering, we agreed to the deal in three seconds. Deal.

I followed her into Jusco, where I thought sushi lovers would call it heaven of sushis. There, Wida showed me around, pointed me several different types of sushis-this and that, here and there-that's were I saw interesting ones like this one below;

Lotus shaped, plus cucumber and if I'm not mistaken crabs, (I'm a beginner who hardly recognize without the help of my addicted friend Wida,)

...and finally picked one out of the thirty times dozens of them sushis! I picked out 'grilled salmon' which appealed to my eyes as a favourable start for I still can't take raw fish down my throat, I'm yet to fit myself into it.

Wida got herself a complete, simple meal of sushi which combined rice, unagi, egg and veges inside the cute red polystyrene container;



...and I got myself a cute grilled salmon sushi-wrapped together in the seaweed was salmon+lemon topped rice-which cost me RM 1.00. Aw can you just believe it? I never thought that there's such food priced RM 1.00! There was the time when Nasi Lemak cost us RM 1.00, but that was way long ago, so long ago I was still a non-stop babbling little child running up and down the house making noises and playing around. That was long ago. If we are to find another stall that sells Nasi Lemak for RM 1.00, I'd cry the tears of joy.

Okay, this is why. The allowance isn't in yet. So I became a super saver. I am Mr. Eugene Krabs now! :)

The sushi. Obvious to be my first experience. What I did was killing the time, and unsure of a reason why I should anyway. No one would eat my sushi until I got a bit of it, made a deal.

This is the sauce. Soy sauce plus wasabi. Wait whaaaat? W-a-s-a-b-i...?

"Alamak," I said to Wida, pointing to the green thing she pressed out of a packet. "Tu wasabi kan?"

"Ha'ah,"


There you go...

But I took it a challenge to myself, and it'd be a shame to back off then. I said okay, dipped a bit of the sushi into the sauce, put it into my mouth and........







...ah.




"Cemane rase die?"


I was silent.

The other three in front of me stared and analyzed my expression.


"Ok," I started to giggle.

"Nape muke Hystrix lain?" asked Su.

"Rase mcm petrol!"


I laughed of the weird taste, which I didn't expect. How would it turn to taste like car's fuel?? Supposed to be hot, but it wasn't! It tasted like, like...


Petrol!


Uh, fine.


Wida laughed hard at the awkwardness I exhibited by the look on my face, but it didn't matter! I tasted sushi and it's not that awful really! It just gave you a bit of fusion, take it an alternative to daily meal in campus, shall we?

THIS, is the person responsible for making me challenge myself. Wida the sushi lover! ;)

Me, still standing after the challenge.

Good time together, from left; Pelangi Malam, Nadia, Su, Wida, and me.

Near the entrance. QB decorated its central court with the theme of Retro CNY, which I find very attractive.

Too bad I failed to snap a view of the main stage, depicting a 70's post independence Malayan town because there was this break dance battle of the same retro concept. Too crowded, yet it is a splendid idea! The trishaw at the entrance, the one behind Wida in the earlier photo's one of the attraction. At 8, we're already waiting for the bus to campus.



"Ak ajo ko mkn tempe, ko ajo ak mkn sushi ye?"

"Hehe!"

I nod my head upon saying that I had a wonderful time indeed. I hope they did too! :)

-Here this post on sushi ends.-

***

01:57 a.m.

(What's this fire drill all about? I was about to finish my last sentence and sleep, but the alarm sent everyone out the room looking blur. Except me, the midnight blogger. Went out in my black jacket, looked down to the parking area to see no one gathering for roll call or anything irrelevant at this dead of night and...nothing. Back to my room to add a little bit more to this post as a closure. Earlier there were screams, the allowance is in, said Waniey, and now fire alarm. For nothing. Who played with it?)

Now I'm going to sleep, with the hope not to hear anything more but my alarm tone in a few hours time, hope so!

So good day pal, rise and shine, for tomorrow is today! :D



p/s: Yeah. We'll see if it's true that the allowance's in next morning. Good thing. Wida and me really need a good night sleep now, we'll be driving around to schools tomorrow for the field work, together with Jujue and Nadia. May He ease us for this first task, amin! Best wishes to you too! ;)

Some of us TESOL 3-ian Chalkies. From left; Thoyba, Jujue (in blue kurung), Papa Pipi (in black), Pyan, Hystrix (farthest in purple), Lara, Fiqah, Diba (far right) and Mama Natrah. The best shot for the day. Credit for Diela, the photographer and everyone, for pose ideas. <3>