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18 | FireFlyz
WANDER
AlisonHughes takes a trip downmemory lane
as she revisitsMalaysia after a half century of
being away.
M
ost
of my childhood was spent in the Far East and I
had been dreaming of returning there for quite some
time. In 1957 I travelled with my parents and brother
from Southampton, United Kingdom to Singapore
by boat (planes could not fly that distance then) and
then by train to Kuala Lumpur, where my father used to work as a
pilot on the airbase.
Instantly familiar
Fast-forward to 2016 and I found myself travelling to Singapore once
again, this time by airbus with a friend who had also had a Far-Eastern
childhood. We had been planning this trip for over a year and on my
list of places to see weremy old childhood haunts: Singapore, Malacca,
Kuala Lumpur, Pangkor Laut and Ipoh.
Yes, it is true that Singapore is now an ultra-modern city with amaz-
ing architecture, the rubber plantations are long gone and the house
where I lived too, but I could still recognise the village of Jalan Kayu,
even though its backdrop is now high-rise buildings instead of trees.
And more importantly the scents, tastes and colours were instantly
familiar. Walking through the Botanic Gardens, the bright purples and
yellows of the orchids brought back memories of my mother buying
her weekly flowers from the ‘orchid man’. The fresh pineapple that
I had for breakfast reminded me that this was our family’s normal
afternoon snack, served with salt.
I Have
Missed You
Sunbeds at the
ready Emerald Bay
The beauty of the
Botanic Gardens
in Singapore
Firefly flies to
Singapore and
Ipoh fromvarious
destinations.
Information on flight
routes and schedules
can be found at
www.fireflyz.com.my