Back from JB and relieved

I've just gotten back from JB after a one day trip. The day started with us meeting at Woodlands interchange at 11. None of us, at that time, anticipated that it would be an adrenaline-filled day. We were more concerned about getting past the inefficient JB checkpoint.

Our past experience hasn't been exactly pleasant. We took about 30 to 40 mins getting past customs the last time round. Therefore, we were pleasantly surprised when we got past the customs in just 20 mins. We headed straight to City Square afterwards. There had been a robbery case in City Square a few weeks back. Naturally, we were on high alert as we roamed the mall. I remember a spokesman for City Square saying that there were 10+ security guards deployed at the mall. I didn't see a single security guard around for the 4 hours that I was there. I think they were plain-clothes security guards. We lunched at Hasheed's Restaurant. The fish head curry was great. And it was cheap. In fact, almost everything in JB is cheap. Even the fines are cheap. After lunch was shopping. Wai San and I were interested in some shoes. The shoes looked great. Of course, they were also cheap. 50-80 ringgit. Works out to 22-30plus S$. It sounds like a good deal. But we soon discovered that the largest size they've got was 9.5. That's the thing about buying things in JB. Things are often too good to be true. Like the shirt i bought the last time round that shrank from M to XS. It's supposedly Billabong but it's more like Billabonk. Shahid was the only one who managed to buy something there, 2 shirts. After that frustrating shopping, we made our way to another shopping centre besides City Square. I forgot the name of that building. It's not worth remembering. There's only one reason we went there. Only one shop there that we were interested in. The shop that we went the last time. The shop we affectionately call "The sports shop" because none of us can remember its name. We bought 2 shirts there. We attempted to bargain. But the shop owner was a tough bargainer. Our persistence paid off. He relented. Discount of 90 cents for each shirt(from 49.90 to 49). Good for a cup of coffee, he says. Without milk or sugar, he added. Disappointed and also amused by his discounts, we searched for a taxi to bring us to Pelangi, our last destination. We tried to look for a honest taxi driver. We really did. Walked down the whole row of cabs and scrutinised all their faces. None looked decent. We took a chance with the first cab in the queue. It was a mistake we would all come to regret. A mistake that we had no chance to avoid. For the cabbie took off straight after we got in and charged us 6 ringgit. The driver doesn't believe in meters. Our previous ride with the meter on registered a fare of 4 ringgit for the same journey. We were taken aback but we couldn't do anything. The taxi was already cruising as we tried to absorb the shock of that impact. Naturally, we cursed amongst ourselves. Our anger led to a plan. A plan to get back at the driver. A counterattack. He was like Bayern Munich in the 99 champions' league final. Throwing all his might at us, believing we would crumble under his pressure and give in. We were Manchester United. Shocked by his lead. But never surrendering. As the taxi stopped in front of Pelangi Plaza, the driver, Govindasamy, as we later learnt, felt victorious. Like leading 1-0 with only a minute of extra time left. It must be all over. Victory was in his hands. As we all knew, Sheringham popped up with a goal for Man Utd in that extra minute. Wai San did a Sheringham as he handed over a stack of 1 ringgit notes to Govindasamy. As he counted the notes, we got out of the cab. He then realised that we only gave him 4 ringgit. 1-1! What a blow! All of us then did a Solskjaer when we walked straight into the Plaza. 2-1! We've won it. Unbelievable. It has always been a case of JBians cheating Singaporeans, never the other way round. We had beaten all odds. Govindasamy's reaction was like Kuffour after the final whistle. Letting out a cry of frustration in an attempt to turn back time. But like Kuffour, deep in his heart, he knew. He knew nothing he did can change the result. However, unlike Manchester United, we felt fear after winning. We were scared of reprisals. Afraid that Govindasamy would activate his army of taxi drivers to take revenge. We steered clear of the first storey and went straight to the highest storey. We took cover there for some time before creeping back to the first floor after checking that there's no sign of Govin. We shopped around for a while before walking to a nearby food centre for our dinner. We were not going to take any more chances with taxis. What if Govin was our driver again? We hadagood dinner. Too good, in fact. So good that we felt guilty. Guilty for jeopardising our health with all that sinful food. Of course, needless to say, it was cheap as well. Trudging along with our expanded waistlines, we made our way back to the Plaza before taking a taxi back to the checkpoint. The taxi drove through many dark alleys. For moments, I felt I was going to get kidnapped. Luckily, that didn't happen. And thankfully, we didn't see Govin again. We crossed over safely. Except for a minor incident where i got caught with 2 sticks of chewing gum. I was caught but I wasn't scared. I was just glad to be back. Back in Singapore. Where everything is not cheap but at least the cabbies are honest.