My Travels - Sydney/Brisbane
Current mood: nostalgic
Category: Travel and Places
I travelled to Sydney, Australia way back... many many moons ago..
I went there with someone whom I will now call "the good samaritan". In short I shall call him GS. The best nickname given, considering the all adverse happenings!!!... but.. hey .. thats another story...!!...
Our flight from Kuala Lumpur was via Singapore as we had to catch the Quantas flight in Singapore. On the flight I noticed how busy the stewardesses were and they did not even had time to smile at you.. what more to listen to your requests. Anyway we had a good flight except that before landing in Sydney, we noticed our plane circling over Sydney once too often which puzzled us passengers. After disembarking, we were told after the plane took off from Singapore, workers found a plane tyre on the runaway and they reckoned it could come from the few planes that had taken off earlier. Before landing they had to make sure the tyre was not from our plane. How they managed to see if the tyres were all there.. only they knew.....Oh well... at least I had a good many delightful views of Sydney from air since I was at the window seat.
I had a good time in Sydney, having dinner at Sydney revolving tower, visiting Manly Beach, Seaworld and shopping at the many grand shopping malls. Not forgetting Sydney Bridge and Opera House. GS had to attend a meeting in Brisbane and we took a shaky flight to Brisbane as the wind was very strong and we had an almost screeching landing, shaking everybodys heart and soul. We rented a car and checked into an apartment not far from Surfers Paradise. It was off season and so Surfers Paradise was almost deserted. We drove most of the time to several places and we noticed most of the shop owners in Brisbane/Surfers Paradise were Japs.
One Sunday, GS and I drove all the way to Coolangata Golf Club as he was an ardent golfer and enthusiast - ( being a single handicapper). We walked around a bit and took photographs and talked to some golfers and then we decided to drive back to our apartment. On the way there were many warehouse shopping outlets and stopping at one, we found many interesting and reasonably priced items and goods. GS fell in love with the good choice of golf sets and then he realised that he had forgotten to cash our travellers cheque. Oh dear... and it was Sunday and he did not have his credit card with him. Forget my Amex, I was not going to mess up my budget ..lol :P. GS was about to forget the whole idea when we chanced upon a casino along the highway.with a big sign..."we accept travellers cheque". Well we stopped at the casino with the intention of cashing the cheque, which we did, and were so glad...! Before we left, GS suggested we looked around the casino as I would never had the chance to do so since Malaysia's only casino banned all muslim to enter. So I relented with the intention just to look around. That was my first experience in a casino. It was a hugh hugh hall with so many gamblers and busybodies like us..walking around ... so many tables and smart dressed croupiers. I stopped and watched these people betting, playing whatever they called it. I was then and am not now well versed. After walking around I made my way to one table where a group had gathered...I heard a loud voice amidst the sounds of laughters and conversations...it was a voice of a chineseman.. he was thin not that overly smart in dressing but his tone of voice exuded excited grunts and screams..he bellowed..."I am from Hongkong...today is my day.. am winning, winning...come play play...I'm rich" and everyone around was grinning and giving him encouragement.
He was in a frenzy. I believe he was winning and winning and winning and everyone was motivating and prompting him .. and he was carried away with joy, laughter and oh well.. the human nature.. arrogance...
After watching for a while and not knowing how the game was played, I decided to watch the next table where a small asian, most probably a Malaysian...haha was hunched playing religiously.... As I watched the quiet man seemed to stop playing and as quietly as he had played, he quietly reached into his bag and showed to me his winnings...lots and lots of chips. .of different colours and value, I believe.. well I did not know what was what but from his gait and action .. I knew this quiet unassuming man had won a lot... I smiled at him and turned my attention back to the Man from Hongkong!!
It was a totally different scene now.. Not many people were around him and most had quietly left. I walked to see what was happening and realised that this man had just lost a lot lot lot of money. His face turned ashen and he dismissed himself.. ... "aiyaaa... all gone, finished, bankrupt!!!" My mouth opened and I looked again at him...there was a tinge of regret on him face, a face that was just less than an hour ago... radiated and beamed with excitement and thrill... He removed himself silently and the few people moved away, some gave him sympathetic look, some sacarstic look and yet some indifferent look...I looked at him with full pity and realisation.
It was like I have learnt a good lesson that day in the casino. Human behaviours in several circumstances.. one was loud, arrogant, when he was at the top, the other was quiet yet winning effortlessly without the drums and trumpets..and when one lost...it was really sad looking at a man's face who had lost it all....
And the crowds... they cheered and they jeered..they cheered a man from wealth to poverty... and moved away when he was nothing ..
We left the casino...still thinking about the "Man from Hongkong".
"Wow did u see that" I asked GS. "Nobody wanted to be around him when he lost... he was practically alone!"
C'est la vie! was his short reply...!
We left Brisbane for Singapore/Kuala Lumpur a few days later... but the small lesson I learnt in front of my eyes was one of the experiences I would not forget!!
Hey Sydney/Brisbane... anymore lesson???
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