Speedy's

My heart skips more than a beat when i finally look up after taking a deep breath. It was not for the lack of breath but more in disbelieve. I could not believe that after 34 years, i am finally standing in front of the one place on earth that i have always wanted to come back to. Home!

Memories come flooding back as i walk step by step up those age old steps leading to Speedy's. Steps taken by my father and his father before him. It was an emotional homecoming. I was happy to be back and sad that i stand alone on the steps leading up Speedy's but deep inside my heart i knew my ah kung & ah poh is with me.

The front of the Resthouse with steps leading to the lounge area where my ah kung's second in command ah kung ah deh took the orders and brought the food out to the guest. Busy times would see him balancing 3 plates on each arm and he had long arms as he served the guest in his black pants and starched white shirt. If you can't imagine that, go to Colliseum if it's still there.

The kitchen is directly in front of the water tank to the left of the picture. That was where my ah kung & ah poh cooked up their best for the mat sallehs who were regular guest at Speedy's. Standing here i can smell the wood fire they used to cook the dishes with on those iron stoves. The smell of bacon & eggs, fries and of course the chicken chop & pork chop waft the air. The eggs sizzling on the hot pans. Hmm...it maybe 34 years but it sure smells like it's on the stove now. The room to the far left was where i cut my toe opening a bottle of chocolates my aunty put in a jam jar. I still have the scar on my right toe to show for my misadventure.

The green patch on the right used to be a fertile ground with cabbages, vege, long beans & gourds hanging from trellises. My ah poh's garden. On the left is the kitchen's window & back door from which I once flew out. My ah kung was busy cooking and i was bugging him for something or other and he, being of short temper picked me up and threw me out the window muttering under his breath. My very first experience with gravity. I believe i can fly...

Walking around it and seeing the dilapidated condition of the resthouse brought a sadness over me. Speedy's was never grand but it had warmth. It's walls filled with laughter, joy & tears, stories told over candlelight and tea & hot chocolate sipped next to the fireplace on a cold cold night. The smell of fried bacon, chicken & pork chops, custard & scrambled eggs fill the kitchen walls and dining halls. The sound of crickets, hornbills, elephants, bears & the occasional roar of the tiger can be heard in the valley below. I lived here with love and i loved..here.

Mist fills the valley and begin to rise as the temperature drops. I take one last look at my beloved Speedy's and bid it adieu promising to return again. My heart and feet is heavy. I reluctantly turn and head back downhill to where my mom is waiting. I feel a beautiful sadness wash over me.

I will return.