Some Days Are Never Forgotten

Shuiab greets us with his sunshine smile as we embark upon his incredibly blue SUV. Leaving behind Georgetown - Penang we are getting ready for the next part of our Malaysian trip: Cameron Highlands. Images of endlessly green plantations and descriptions of daring jungle treks run through my head as I recall the pre-trip research we did and which got us here.
"Let me confirm, it should take us 2-3 hours to get there" Noor my trip partner asks Shuaib with a knowing smile indicating she already knows the answer. "Yes, 3 hours max" he chirrups. "Good, this should give us enough time when we arrive to do our excursion bookings for the next 2 days, and today we can walk around exploring the town" she details to me.
We arrive 8 hours later.
It was a long national holiday and it looked like the whole country decided to spend this precious break uphill. The whole country was gathered on one, winding, one-way, never ending mountain road. The whole country plus the three of us in the middle.
We had been on the road for 2 hours before we came to a complete stop, complemented with a sigh from Shuiab. "Is everything alright?" I ask. "Yeah its fine, we just arrived on the wrong day, it's a national holiday and everyone is here. I'd forgotten about that" he smiles back to two sets of eyes blankly staring at him as we realize what we just got into. It is only in retrospect now that we know that, what seemed like an inconvenient road trip was indeed a revelation. On the endless road to the Cameron Highlands, we had nothing left but patience and with that patience acquired a new meaning.
It was patience that brought to my attention the way Shuhaib managed to maintain his cheerful self all the way through, entertaining himself with music, side talks with us, and complete strangers passing by. Closely watching him I came to the firm realization that happiness is indeed a state of mind and not a circumstance.
Patience made me eagerly wait for every new turn on the road getting us higher, surprising me with a newer and more stunning view of the highlands every time.
Because of patience and lack of anything but, I can still vividly remember the taste of buttered corn cobs we had from a street vendor on the way. Being the first meal in 7 hours, we savored every single corn grain, our taste buds becoming more appreciative than ever.
It is the slow motion of patience that makes you look closer, feel closer, and taste closer. And closer is always more beautiful .