The Beijing Olympic Torch in Malaysia...

The happening on April 21, 2008. It was not an ordinary Monday in my city of Kuala Lumpur. For that day the Torch Relay is happening in Kuala Lumpur on it long journey back to Beijing for the Olympic comes August 8, 2008. Not to missed this probably once in a lifetime happening I decided that I want to be part of the wonderful event in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. The relay in Kuala Lumpur started at the Dataran Merdeka [Independence Square] at two in the afternoon and worm around the city and then end at the KLCC, the PETRONAS Twin Tower. What better place for the torch to be, the icon of Malaysia. I was not being able to follow the relay so I decided to just wait for its arrival at the KLCC, just beside the pond. So I left home at just past three and after parking my car at the basement of KLCC went straight to the first floor. As I arrived there the whole area is throng with people which includes Chinese students who are studying in the Universities in and around Kuala Lumpur. Thousands of them had arrived here to be part of the ceremony. I mingle with them and took a few snaps with these happy and cheerful people in that moment in times. These students are indeed proud to be here among the many Malaysian who are here today to watch this historical event. I was fascinated to the colorful scene and captured it with my camera. Everyone seems to be taking photos, mostly using the cell phone camera. A technology that made image taking simple. We wait not knowing when the torch would arrive. I enquire and was told that by a young lady that the relay team would arrive a 6.00PM.

So it is the waiting game. The crowd is getting bigger. After awhile I decided to go up to a better place to view the whole celebration. I thought of a place that I know. It is the bookstore Kinokuniya. I went up and from there could see more and more people congregated below, just like me waiting for the torch to arrive. While there a person nearby enquire whether I am a blogger and I say yes. Soon the stranger became friend and we chat on various subjects to whilst the time away. Then went to the Coffee Club at the mezzanine floor to have coffee and continue to chats. It was nice meeting this executive of a Multinational Company. He says his name is James Chong and would soon retire from the company. As a veteran retiree myself I welcome him to the club and talk on the beauty of retirement.

We then went back to the bookstore below and continue to watch. It was real nice to see so many cheerful people around. It is as thought we all are celebrating an event that is dear to all of us. We just chats and I told my new found friend James that I have taken all the images I need for my blog and what I need is just an image of a person holding the torch on the relay. A young chap heard our conversation and said that he got some snaps in his cell phone camera. I have a look and he says that I can have any of the images. I selected one and he says that it would be easy if I could give him my email address. With that he sends that image to me. I thank Shaun for that. The image that Shaun took is on the left. Thanks to him I had a good image of the torch on the relay. It was taken at the beginning of the relay at Dataran Merdeka. It was indeed nice of him to have given the image to me, a total stranger in the midst of the crowd. Thanks Shaun for that image.

At 6.00PM we began to see the relay approaching the KLCC. So without much ado I took as much snaps as possible. It was raining then and it was really not possible to get a good shot. Anyway it was just nice to see the torch arrived at its final destination without any unwarranted incidents like those that happened in other countries along the ways of the relay. This shows that the Malaysian society understand the true meaning of the Torch Relay and made their contributions to the Beijing Olympic a memorable one. Everyone en route did their best to cheer the runners and with that the relay in Malaysia was incident free. Thanks to the good nature of Malaysian for been so sporting. The arrival of the torch was greeted with the pomp and splendor to the sound of Malaysian drums, the Malaysian way. The crowds cheer the success of the relay and eventually dispersed, happy that this historical even in Kuala Lumpur went very well indeed.

After a while James and me decided to walk down for another cup of coffee and as we got down we met a couple, a stranger and eventually somehow got to talking with us. The atmosphere of the events makes everyone happy so it was just easy to strike a conversation and that's what we did. We just chat about blogging. This man with a white beard says that he reads blogs and happy to meet me. So we continue to chats on various subjects and he thanks all blogger for the change that blogger contribute in the March 8 election. So with him and his spouse no longer strangers I ask his spouse to take a snap of us. The image on the left shows us in a happy mood.

I am taking this opportunity to thanks all those good people at the relay ceremony especially those Chinese students who allowing me to snaps their images for my blog. Thanks also to all the good people who chats with me, especially to James and the China man with the white beard for becoming my friends. A total strangers in the midst of the crowds that just became friends in that spur of the magic movement in times. It was indeed an enjoyable day where everyone was there to participate and enjoy that historical event. That Torch Relay of the Beijing Olympic in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. Oh! What a wonderful day. I did have a great time. Have a nice day..