Post festivities blues

I returned from an extended festivities break Monday. I was actually supposed to arrive on Sunday but the traffic situation on that day lunacy. We left Kota Bharu at 9 AM and started for Machang. The night before the television had informed us that there was a landslide somewhere on the Jeli – Grik highway so we decided to avoid taking that route. The Kuala Terengganu route is the longest so we thought we would avoid that too which leaves the Raub route. Things did not work out so well, a traffic jam was waiting for us when we got to Kok Lanas. It would not be accurate to call it a crawl either. There were times when we were stationary for up to 15 minutes at a time before crawling a few feet to stop again. It was about ten when we got to Kok Lanas and the trip from there to Machang usually takes less than an hour, that day we only arrived at Machang at 2.30 PM.

From the Machang crossroads, we saw that the road up the hill to Raub was just as packed and as stagnant as the one we were on. So we decided to take the Kuala Terengganu.
The KT route was a breeze which was a relief because our air-conditioning had broken down in the jam. We got to KT at around half past five and the weather was turning ugly. So we decided not to risk it and looked for a hotel to stay the night. We stayed at the Grand Continental. I have to say, I rather enjoyed out brief sojourn there. I could see the estuary expansion project progressing quite well.

The staff there helpfully pointed me towards the nearest car air-conditioning repair shop the next morning but after examining my car the mechanic said that it would take a few hours to repair my car and I decided to take the trip without the air-conditioning in hopes that we could make it back to KL before it rained.
We started out at 11 on Monday. At the Dungun junction, we took a break for coffee. A helpful policeman told me how to find the alternative route to KL bypassing Kuantan, via the new East Coast Highway.
When we got the Cheneh Baru, one of those new settlement towns along the road to Kuantan, we stopped for lunch. That turned out to be a big mistake. They charged overly much for a simple-lacking- in- taste lunch. We had Gulai kawah (beef) which turned out to be RM 20 and it wasn’t even that tasty. You can get one that is far far tastier in Bangi for about RM 5 or 7 for the same amount we had. They charged us RM 5 for chili friend ikan keli (catfish). In KL, similarly prepared catfish would be around RM 2.50 to RM 3. I guess they were indulging in a bout of rampant profiteering while ensuring that they will never get repeat business from people like us which I thought was incredibly stupid of them because the people who stopped there that day seemed like the sort who were on their way back to KL from their kampungs which means that come next festive season, they will probably be passing through the place again. On top of that, I am sure that, like me, these people will be telling their friends and relatives about the overcharging and these people will probably be avoiding the restaurant like the plague when they pass through there. I guess it’s a great way to drive the business in the ground.

The East Coast highway was brilliant, particularly after a few hours of driving along tiny FELDA settlement roads, even when these tiny roads have been recently resurfaced. We were rained on in the Karak hills but we got home fine at about 6.30.
Driving around the place this festival time proved to be exasperating at time especially when I encountered a significant number of drivers who did not seem to have all their faculties intact. One driver stopped on the tiny Tepus – Peringat road in Kelantan, at the point where the road is joined by the road from Ja’al. This man waved the people from the Ja’al road to join the main road. I thought, this made sense if he was turning into Ja’al and the road was blocked by the oncoming traffic but after five or six cars had passed, his intentions did not seem so obvious anymore and the cars behind me started honking, I joined in the chorus too. This man then stopped waving and drove on. This man caused a minor traffic jam for no apparent or decipherable reason. There were a few other minor acts of lunacy on the Kelantanese road but I’ll same then for later.