You know how it is human nature to do the things that we are told not to? I happened upon this notice in Jusco, Kinta City, last evening, which says, “PLEASE DON’T PUT TROLLEY HERE I THANK YOU” but that was exactly what people did, by parking a couple of trolleys there.

There was once a very good marketing strategy by a car manufacturer at the launch of a new model, where the new car was placed in an enclosure sort of like a garage but there were holes all around the walls. There were also notices telling people not to peep inside but that made people so curious that they peeped in. The company successfully promoted their new car with reverse psychology!

Kinta City is currently having a Christmas Castle Maze for children in conjunction with the year end school holidays and Christmas.

Even though these balloon sculptures are for the kids’ entertainment, adults are also just as captivated by the way these balloons shaped the castle, snowmen, Santa Claus, reindeers, Christmas trees and other decorations.

Of course I took the opportunity to shoot some photos and I am glad to say that they turned out pretty well as you could see from this series of photos. My previous post on balloon sculptures received warm response from readers so of course I am not going to let this chance slip away. In fact, I have photos of Mickey Mouse balloon sculptures but have yet to find time to put my thoughts in words.

I wonder if this Christmas Castle Maze is only available here in Kinta City, Ipoh, or if you could also find it elsewhere, like Tebrau City, for example. I HOPE that the management would be a little more creative and not bring us the same events in every venue and at the same time too!

Oh yes, I had to take these photos from the outside of the maze as only shoppers who had proof of receipts for minimum purchase of RM50 or so and registered for the event are allowed entry. Pretty as this is, I wouldn’t be so silly as to make purchases just to qualify entrance.

If you are in Ipoh, I think it’s a great opportunity to take your young kids there and take some photos. I particularly like Santa Claus, the snowmen and candy decorations on the huge Christmas tree.

Better hurry; this is just a short event and will conclude in a day or two. I can’t remember exactly when, though.

I bumped into a friend a couple of evenings ago. Since leaving school, we bumped into each other twice only and each time, she was the one who called me first because I couldn’t recognise her too well. This time, she is pregnant and her face is a little bloated, that’s why. Anyway, I am surprised that she could recognise me because I swear that I have changed quite a bit myself since leaving school.

It’s surprising that even though we are both in Ipoh, through the years since leaving high school, we have only came across each other twice but every time I see her, I remember the fun times we had in primary school.

When we were in Primary 6, we used to run our own beauty pageants and this friend would always be Miss Venezuela while I was Miss Greenland. I don’t even know why I chose Greenland as my country but hey, I love to be different. I remember winning one of these pageants as Miss Greenland and I was even given a tiara but I don’t know where it is now. It has been years.

Every time I see my old friends, or read about them, I feel nostalgic. It’s a pity that we could no longer be like the old times. The only thing constant in life is change. We did not even have much to say but I took the opportunity to wish her Happy Deepavali because the next time I see her could be years later or maybe not at all. And it is strange because of the fact that we are both still in Ipoh.

Over the years, I do sometimes bump into people I went to school with at the mall or somewhere in town. I pretend not to recognise them if they do not call me first. I feel like I am no longer a part of their lives because we now have different priorities pursuing different things in life. Maybe when we are older, I would feel the need to cling on to my old friends and their memories. Or maybe I would feel like that part of my life no longer exists.