At times, I couldn’t conceal my envy towards some of my ex-schoolmates who are going to the places out of our country for furthering study, building up career or having a vacation. The reason is simple. I never got to it. Though I was born in United Kingdom but nothing remains fresh in my memory. When I first knew my husband would be studying abroad, I divulged to him how jealous I was. I had once told him I really wanted to go there, and then he convinced me to bring me there on the day we were called as husband and wife. He never breaks his promise. He married me and he brought me here. The moment I landed my foot in Kansai Airport, Osaka, I couldn’t believe it was really happening. It was like you were throwing yourself into your imagination, then been trapped there at the same time you wouldn’t wish to be returned to reality. I nearly forgot that it was a reality.

Kansai Airport is one of WORLD'S BEST AIRPORT IN 2009, plus it won the category of the cleanest airport washrooms (LONDON - 9th June 2009). It is an international airport situated on an artificial island in the middle of Osaka Bay, 38 km southwest of Ōsaka Station, off the shore of the cities of Sennan and Izumisano and the town of Tajiri in Osaka Prefecture, Japan.The World Airport Awards™ are based on the results from 8.6 million questionnaires completed by airline passengers in 2008/9, covering more than 190 airports worldwide (LONDON - 9th June 2009). I am proud to see KLIA is one of them! ;)

I learnt the specialty of this airport is it has the longest airport terminal in the world, at a total length of 1.7 km from end to end. It has a sophisticated people mover system called the Wing Shuttle, which moves passengers from one end of the pier to the other.


There I was, in Kansai Airport, stood unaccompanied with an apprehensive looking face. I was detained by a guard who could only speak Japanese for not filling in the provided yellowish form which most of questions spotlighted about Influenza. Then, I’d to scan my face with both left and right point fingers passed the green laser. I put a smile as soon as I came out the main entrance up to waiting area, I was so confident he was there to smile back to me. I hate him the moment I realized I was smiling alone like an idiot. I thought I was in a wrong side.I eyed around to capture the shape of a man to welcoming me with all smiles that I miss dearly. The last time, he left me all smiles after pulling me over his chest to allow my lips touch his cheeks. Excitement moved into a bit of anger. He wasn’t there.

Did he know I was frozen in the flight for more than 5 hours, waiting for his hands to warm me? And his smile to cheer me up? There’s a bucket of Kentucky Fried chicken I bought before I entered the boarding gate and I held it everywhere I went.

I followed my feet approaching the glassy door which connected to the twin building. I stopped on my foot when I felt someone tapped my shoulder, I turned my head. It was a policeman! He showed his tag to prove that he was a real policeman. I got jitters that I almost told him that yes! I am a foreigner, you can see from a piece of cloth on my head, but please, let me go, I don’t bring any drugs and I am not an illegal foreigner. Please. Let me go. I was just too speechless to say even a word.

“You speak Japanese or English?”. God, I heaved a sigh of relieve he wasn’t speaking Japanese like the guard who had stopped me before.

“No, I can only speak English”. I replied to him with a very clear voice.

His English sounds Japanese while my English sounds Malay. Yet, he was quick on the uptake of my words while I was so slow on the uptake of his. He had to repeat the same words for many times to make me understand. A few minutes after the short conversation, he let me go with some of my details he wrote in his tiny notebook. How I wished my husband comes and saves me, chases the police away at that very moment. Once again, I hate him for not coming.

I managed to take a seat at two rows of blue cuisine just behind me. I took one beside three men next to me. They were busily talking about the things I couldn’t catch on. From their accent, they were from somewhere in Thailand. I was like a kid lost her mama. My eyes stared at the lift which has transparent wall, it"s going up and down. At the same time, my palm rest under my chin. Blur and confused. I didn’t really count how many minutes flew by till he appeared at my left side.

“Sorry, sorry, I lost my way dear”.

“I’ve been waiting all alone for so long”.

My husband grabbed my hands, held them tight, kissed and hugged before leading me to my dream car. The car which I`d never imagined I would sit inside it. Caldina.

I pray one day the car will be shipped off to Malaysia, InsyaAllah :), for the time being, our financial condition is not stable enough so we just put hope against hope.