Outing:The Beginning & The Ending

After painstaking efforts from me and the branch manager secretary (we didn’t form a formal committee) and sleepless nights in Pontianak because I was worried about the weather (that’s why I prayed a lot so we can have a sunny day), we finally had our outing – after so many years without.

No money from the headquarters, we were only given the fund for our periodic gathering for the next 3 periods. I was very disappointed with that. We had never had any outing for the last five years. But, what the ##!!! We all needed to refresh our minds, not to mention some people are leaving by the end of this month. Who knows who’d leave the branch next? The decision to continue with the plan was a difficult one. First, no fund, Second, no one wanted to lend a hand for the preparation. Third, what to do or what place to go to was difficult to choose. Fourth, I was buried by work and targets. All these factors combined, I did expect complications.

After holding a poll, we decided to go to Fantasy Land. First complication already because many elderly refused to join. Gotta work something out so I can lure these people to join. My dream was to have a simple plan, plenty of prizes, good food and lastly, the committee must have fun too. I figured the prizes could change their minds and I was right. Next problem was the transportation because we had to order that fast since we’re planning it on a long holiday. Though the number of participant was just 25, I ordered a big bus through the help of my distant uncle. Next is food and we managed to order a generous amount of heavy snacks : apple pie, long john, roti kombinasi and arem-arem and a box of rice, cap cay, grilled chicken, sambal goreng kentang and banana for lunch. We anticipated the heat so everybody would get two bottles of mineral water.

Prizes! That’s next on our list. We went to an old market and were successful to buy pan, thermos, glass thermos, melamine glasses, and food container. All with bargainable prices.

The number of the participants kept on increasing day by day. A day before the H day, we listed 55 people. The event went on smoothly. No rain. Except that we missed the schedule for the Fantasy Land. We got initial info that it’d be open at 13.30, when in fact it was open at 11.00. Well, no plan is perfect. So we rushed to the bus and went to the park earlier than planned.

There is a new system they applied as a trial. We can ride by taking a ticket with the time on it. That way, we can manage our time and do not spend too much time waiting for a ride. This was applied only to several rides. I hope they’ll apply that to some others soon. I saw the banner about ISO 9001. Maybe they’re trying to obtain that certificate. Cool!

What rides did I take? Well, for starters, I took the Bianglala. I could take a rest during the ride since I was already tired from the heat and the earlier activities. Then I had the swing boat, Kora-Kora. My! I took that ride ten years ago and I didn’t feel a thing at that time. It was quite different the last time. I almost lost my chest, not my heart, my CHEST!!! My heart beat so fast after the ride. I almost couldn't take it. So sad to think that perhaps I won’t be able to ride that again in the next five years. It’s a good thing I rode that. :-)

Arung Jeram was my next ride and riding the merry-go-round was my last ride. In the first ride, the lamp was off in the beginning but it was on suddenly after 30 seconds. Surprised by the sudden lights, I really felt like I was in fantasy land. That’s why I took it TWICE. Not on the horse, I was on the bench. What? You thought I was a child inside and rode on one of the wooden horses? Not really THAT childlike, hehehehe.