Merdeka Parade In Kemaman, Terengganu

---

Small Talk: Happy Birthday, Sharon!

---

National's Independence Day is usually a day for me to sleep till the sun burns my butt. But for the nation's 51st birthday, it was different.


Different for I've been to the organising district for the Merdeka Day parade. In my entire life, I've never been to any bloody parade until then and mind you, walking in a group with thousands pairs of eyes watching at you as if they're taking you as laughing stock isn't nice.

Horribly embarrassing, I'd say.



All the Lower Sixth Form students must be there unless you've got reasonable excuse.

Like let's say, your mom's step-sister's grandson's cousin's faraway relative from maybe somewhere near Fiji is going to marry. And yes, you're excused.

At 6pm of August 30th, we took off from school in a bus which the driver himself doesn't obey his own rules.


I believe you get the picture of what he did in his bus now.

Tanggongjawab. Gong kao beh si.



There in Kemaman, we were placed at SMK Kijal where we spent a terrible night there in their hostel. So terrible you'd rather attend National Service. And worst of all, we didn't get enough sleep that night.

The next morning, we were told to get ready by 5am and yes we did that just to find ourselves waiting like some dumbarses waiting for tahi bintang outside the hostel.


To make things worse, breakfast was not served properly.

The canteen staff freaking provided us with some poorly made bread and eggs. They didn't even put some butter or margarine for us!

Niamah, they must have thought we were preparing for puasa as well.

We were then sent to the place where we'd be starting the parade with some hundreds other contingents from the whole Terengganu.


We started to line up even before 7am.

Someone who I presumed was the MC grabbed the mic and announced that the parade would start at 7.30am. It was 7am. So we waited as other contingents started to fill the road.



I'm not sure but I think this is typical Malaysian attitude.


Kanasai, 7.41am liao still didn't start yet. So Malaysian.

While waiting, I did what I do best.


First I took Ah Bong The Genius' kind-looking face.


Then, Cheng Hao the tall and handsome bloke.


Jun Rong aka Rony who has got sexy tiny eyes.

Not forgetting our squad's commando...


...who looked as if he's pharking pissed with the delay.



Before the parade started around eight-something in the morning, our beloved Menteri Besar of Terengganu Dato' Seri Ahmad Said proudly presented his speech.

Nien said his voice doesn't match his face, which concludes that we should never judge a book by its cover.

Nothing was interesting from the speech but there was something interesting on the stage.


Notice the banner on the stage?

There were all five faces of the Prime Ministers - from Tunku Abdul Rahman, the nation's very first Prime Minister who also made the independence of Malaya (now Malaysia) possible, to the current Pak Lah.

On the other side of the banner, the only face printed there was Mr Ahmad Said's face. Where are the faces of ex-Menteri Besar of Terengganu, I wondered.

You know, for example, the specky?


Later, we started the parade. It's like parading to hell when some bystanders kept telling us that our steps were wrong and that we marched suckily in a rude manner.

Oh, so that is how they celebrate Merdeka Day. Now I see.


I could see many things through the 3km journey on foot.


Like some hooligans who climbed over the cement wall to watch us that made me felt as if we were some superstars from Russia parading for peace.

Then we walked past a building that looked like our very own Cathay Cinema building which is now a worthless warehouse.


It is actually a family futsal indoor pitch in the old building.

Engrish is everywhere English is.

The walk got further and as we walked closer to the end, the famous kopitiam here almost successfully lure us there to ruin the parade.

The best coffee in town

Wonder why the spectators were looking at my camera... Likes to get snapped so much ah?


People are getting creative nowadays.


Welcome to Skybox Karaoke. A karaoke centre where you can sing as if you're flying high in the sky.

So, do you give free Sky Juice to the customers ah?


Our walk ended pretty soon but not the parade itself. Our school brass band was still rooting at the starting point where we left about an hour ago. Imagine that.

We then spent some time hanging around the place until Pancaragam Swadaya finally arrived.


The year's national champions and they were certainly what everyone was anticipating for - even the YBs themselves.


Yen Ming (Yenshen's younger brother) is the new Drum Major after Lim Viking, who won the national level Best Drum Major award and guess what: He is only fifteen!


And he looked perfectly smart that morning.



So smart he outshone the state gahmen's Mercedes Benz E200 sedans.



Pancaragam Swadaya closed the curtain of the parade and they then emerged as the winner of Best Brass Band and Overall Champions of the parade. And they freaking won RM9000 altogether!

It must be the best Merdeka Day for the band.


Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka! We cried.


But do you know the real meaning of Merdeka?


Happy 51st Merdeka, Malaysia.