They say, "Pictures Speak a Thousand Words"

So i was on MSN this morning chatting with MyAlbinoNugget [whom i haven't seen since i packed up my things in KL in December 2007 because i needed a break from... everything]. She was commenting on the previous photos i uploaded from my birthday getaway and asked whether i agreed that i look different. I couldn't help but giggle when she said i looked "ladee like" and how i had "proper girly hair". I could only rebut with "well... it's like every other asian girl".

I guess at one point my solution to cutting away my past was to literally chop off my down-to-my-waist hair. A strange satisfaction that seemed to take weight of my shoulders and create a new façade. Never mind that it did nothing to fix what was going on in the inside.

Then it just got shorter and even shorter.

I remember at one point i'd tell my hairdresser to cut it in such a way that i could style it like Astro Boy. But more importantly it should be cut so i could tuck my hair neatly under my cap. After all, wearing a cap was part of my weekend boyish attire back then and i wouldn't dare leaving home without it.

She continued on trying to pinpoint the differences, "...it's layered... n it has texture..." And out of nowhere she said, "and your smile is different..."

I laughed. Had my cookie-cut smile changed?

"Maybe it's because i've never seen u happy".

...

And then it dawned on me, could she be right? Is that what was so different?

I've done my part in burying my past and made every effort to fight my daemons head on. And miraculously i have climbed out of the dark hole and have grown to appreciate everything much more.

After all, my current posts are no longer plagued with anger, frustration and intoxicated dribble. And after many years, i am feeling strangely different.

At 29, i am calm.

This feeling is one that i'm not quite accustomed to but one i could surely get used to. Have the stars and planets aligned themselves and are finally giving me a break? A little fearful that this can all be ripped away from me, i wake up each morning pinching myself to assure myself that this is in fact real.

But my gawd, has it been one hell of a journey!

Maybe i was the one of the lucky ones. Maybe i am proof that things are possible. And maybe by believing deep down inside there must be more to Life than what was, was what kept my head above the water.

And finally, i can smile when i listen to Michael Bublé's That's Life and not be irritated envious of his optimism.

29 + One Less Layer of Skin

Even though we were gone for only 30 hours, we managed to fill it with a lot of things. Everything seemed perfectly planned however there wasn't that feeling that we were pressed for time. I managed to take a ridiculous amount of photos. 450 to be exact. Some were of samples of the hotels' collateral, others were random tourist shots and interesting compositions. But i'll save you the boredom of going through all the shots and picked a few out for you.

So here it is, our journey began at 2:24pm by which time i still had no idea where we were going. After J punched in the address of our destination in his Navi, only then did i know which city we were heading to: Königswinter. The temperature hovered around 18˙C [the warmest it's been in months] and for a change i didn't wear my coat outside.


I started the journey with a mini bottle of Sekt [a German sparking wine] and some cheese sandwiches. Throughout the drive i still had no idea where we were going to stay. I'm not sure if you remember but last year in June when i was living in Bonn, we drove to Drachenfels which is in Königswinter, so all i knew was there was castle on a mountain and one of my classmates who did the German Intensive course with, lived there with her husband.


Eventually we got to this base of this mountain. J drove up to the guardhouse and there i was thinking we were lost and was only making a U-Turn, the Security guard greets us and says we need to pay 3 Euro to go up, then J busts out that we have a room!

"Are we there yet?"

Suddenly, i was so excited. I didn't pay attention to the sign that was at the front so i was constantly repeating myself and looking out the window waiting to see what the hotel looked like. And only after driving nearly 8 minutes up a steep and very windy road, we got there.

And there it was, the Steigenberger Grandhotel Petersberg...


The hotel was located on top of a mountain and according to the photo display, UN Conferences, Presidents, Queens and very important leaders of the World have visited/stayed there. The place dates back to the early 1900's and they even had an eagle-eye view of the whole property. It was massive.


On one of the other mountains, you could even see the Drachenfels castle [it's the structure in the middle mound in the picture above].


The view was impressive. On a clear day one could see as far as Cologne, which is a good 35 km away! The room we picked was based on the view and that it had a rainfall shower head with an interesting drainage system and the floor was heated. The bed was nice and if i could, i would have stuffed their duvet in my roll-away bag... it was super comfy!


Dinner was booked at 7:30pm and a 3-course meal was served. But because i still don't eat flesh, i was able to swap the beef for some kind of fish which oddly enough, tasted very similar to Scallops. They call it Skrei. It was actually really nice.


After dinner we took a stroll outside to have a look at the lights but i'm guessing at that height the wind has nowhere to go but straight at you. Needless to say we were freezing so we went back inside. Just in time to get changed to check out the indoor pool and Sauna.

Of course we had to check out the indoor pool. After all, no holiday would be complete without a quick dip in the water. We made full use of the fluffy white bathrobes and as many poolside towels as we desired.

They even had instructions on the "proper" way to use the Sauna.


It was rather small but i guess people don't really go up there to swim. They had a strong jet inside the pool so you could do laps without actually going anywhere. No i don't have a picture of me swimming, instead i have this...


The next morning there was the breakfast buffet...

and a short walk around the property to look at the view...


And shortly before 1pm's late check-out, i opened my birthday present that Little L and J bought for me. A cute little diamond studded star pendent to add to my now collection.


Then we were back into the car and off to our next destination. Just when i thought the amazing view, 3-course meal, fancy hotel stay, indoor pool and Sauna was it... J surprised me with more.
That's the hotel from the bottom of the mountain!

Then we were off to Bonn and were booked in for a treatment at Juba Wellness Centre. With no concept of Time and with no other plans, we managed to spend 5 and a half hours in there! The package J booked included a Couples' exfolient scrubbing session, a 30-minute back massage, full-use of the relaxation area with steam bath and sauna.


So the lady gave us our bathrobes and white slippers then told us to wait in the wellness area. When it was time the lady brought us to where the treatment was going to be done. The instructions involved smearing this special brown mud-like substance all over our bodies. Then after 15 minutes later the enclosed space filled up with steam, of which time we were supposed to scrub these fine seeds all over. I guess this was the exfoliant part. At one point it got so steamy, i could barely see J who was only an arms' length away.


After the session was over we showered off what was left on our skin. And after the steam had escaped the miniature room, we saw the mess we left and no doubt it looked gross. But my gawd, the end results were amazing though, i've never felt so soft! I would even say as soft as a baby's bottom.


The 30-minute back massage was absolutely luscious but of course it was over way too fast. The rest of the time we spent relaxing in their designated area and took advantage of their Sauna. We were going to check out the Steam room but each time we wanted to go, some naked person decided to go in. Yes, it was my first time in a unisex wellness centre and let's just say it was an interesting experience.

But i had an amazing time with J and it had been awhile since i felt that relaxed!

The funny part was, the Wellness centre was only a few blocks from the old place that my sister and i used to live at. I used to walk past the hotel every day when i was living in Bonn and i never knew Juba was there.