The last time we came together for a reunion, I was in my late 50’s…and this time around, I’m over 60 already…and I guess most, if not all of us, have “progressed” accordingly.
Previously, they used to have a gathering every four years but they said that we were all growing old and opportunities to meet like this would be getting fewer and fewer so it was unanimously agreed then that we would have one every two years. Well, at that previous gathering, I was “asked” to organise the next one – I was told that it would not be too difficult. I would just have to fix the date and venue and everything and announce to everyone in our yahoo group…and everyone would come running. Dream on! Only a few responded – the others did not make a sound.
I was waiting for the school’s old students’ association to fix the date for their annual dinner (usually around the Ching Ming Festival)and we could have ours the night before so that those coming home from afar – there were people home from Australia and New Zealand – would be able to attend both and at the same time, visit their ancestral tombs to pay their respects. So there we were – the 5th time since they started this thing – the reunion of the Class of 1969, Sacred Heart Secondary School, Sibu…and the Form 6 of 1971…
What I did not realise till much later was the fact that the date we had chosen happened to be Good Friday. That was why we arranged with the hotel people to have an almost meat-free menu as some/a few would be abstaining from meat.
There were these very nice salty-crusty prawns…
– so very fragrant with the garlic, Bombay onions, curry leaves and all. They were so nice that my daughter kept going back for more.
The sweet and sour fish fillet…
…was very good too – it could do with a little bit more tomato sauce, I thought but on the whole, it was fine. I am glad the fish fillet was not those frozen till bland and tasteless ones.
By special request, we had midin (wild jungle fern)…
– prepared in two different ways, one plain with garlic and the other with sambal belacan (dried fermented prawn paste). This disappeared in a matter of seconds, believe you me!
We also made sure that this was in the buffet spread – the cangkuk manis fried with egg…
…for the benefit of the deprived lot (from overseas, especially) who would not get to eat it unless they come back home to Sibu.
Other than the mixed vegetables…
…there was also the fried noodles…
…and of course, we insisted on there being no meat in it, and we asked for plain rice instead of fried rice for this same reason.
There was the Sarawak’s own daging masak hitam…
…for those who are not abstaining on this auspicious date in the Christian/Catholic calendar and for the chicken curry…
I asked that they put more potatoes in it.
All in all, everyone was delighted with the food and it was very reasonably -priced at RM20 per head for a minimum of 50 persons at the restaurant on the 1st Floor of this hotel here in Sibu…
Unfortunately, the response had not been very good and somebody proposed that other than the invited guests, family members coming along to the event wouldn’t have to pay as well so eventually, everyone had to fork out quite a bit – RM50 each to make up the minimum requirement.
I went to get a cake for the reunion that morning…
…but they would not accept last-minute orders for a large one so in the end, I bought two medium-sized ones instead and asked that they did the icing with the words that I wrote out nicely for them. Good grief! That looked horrendous and to think that I had to pay RM2 EACH for that! Tsk! Tsk! I could have designed something and printed it out on a colour printer to place on top of the cakes – I am sure that would look a whole lot nicer and more presentable.
Thankfully, the Japanese baked cotton cheese cake that I had picked was very nice…
…and everybody loved it and I guess that was what would matter most.
Well, it certainly was a delightful evening with all the nice food and cake and the company was great and everyone had fun singing…
…their hearts out…
…and there was dancing too…
It was just too bad that it being a long weekend plus it was during the school holidays, many had gone out of town so were not able to join the function. Hopefully, the next time around, in 2015, the response would be a lot better than this.
Well, a big thank you to all those who joined and came to make the evening a really successful and enjoyable one and thank you, Robert, for bringing one whole carton of wine – that certainly helped in no small measure to loosen everyone’s vocal chords so much so that they sang way past closing time. Luckily, the hotel people were nice enough to let us go on and on a while longer. LOL!!! See you all again in 2015 !
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
wow….that’s very nice! I wonder whether I will had such reunion when I reached my 60s. Lots of nice food too… the prawns looks great!
The food was really good, choice of venue was perfect – karaoke sound system superb… I would host events there again, that’s for sure…if I can get 50 people. LOL!!!
Wow Arthur! I echo what Christoper said… Did you take pictures for all the past gatherings? I suggest you compile the group photos and put them side by side to see the “progress”…
A wonderful idea to have such reunion… Other than a few of them, I have lost contact with most of my ex-classmates. But I guess it’s not difficult to connect everyone with the help of internet social media tools.
Keep it going….
You can click the link to see my blogpost on the previous one – I guess we still look the same, more or less. I was not at the 1st three – somebody told me but somehow, they never got back to me so I was not around then. Glad that we are still in touch, still good friends. People our age sure need all the love we can get.
Lost contacts with my primary school classmates the moment we left school. What a pity there’s no social media then.
Oh, Melissa changed hairstyle? Refreshing change.
Mountain spring water, gravity feed…may not be very clean especially on dry days – so she cut her hair, easier to wash and take care. Well, you can try and trace them via Facebook now….I do that all the time.
Wow, what a nice reunion with great food and great company. Looking good with that ckecked shirt. Happy reunion and many more to come.
That old shirt! Bought it way before I retried in 2007, just imagine that…and I have not bought anything new since – just lots of t-shirts that people gave me. 😉
That was a very nice reunion. And oh, the food looks wonderful. I have lost touch with all my classmates but found one who is also a food blogger. It must be so much fun catching up with old friends.
It certainly is. All the good vibes all around, happy smiling faces – I am looking forward to the next reunion already, can’t wait!
0.o Must not be easy to maintain such good relationships with each other… everyone should have enjoyed themselves that night. and Oh! daging masak hitam <<< ada putih, kuning, atau jingga tak? 😛
There is merah – ayam masak merah… That’s West Malaysian/Malay…which is basically tomato sauce and rempah and I would say that our masak hitam is a whole lot nicer – nicer than rendang too! When I was in the UK on a short course, I cooked it and my West Malaysian counterparts scoffed at it (and they even asked if I actually meant masak merah)- the name, the appearance, everything…and when they tried, they all wanted the recipe. There!!!
Just ask those who have come to Sibu/Sarawak and tried it – Shereen, you there?
Claire, you all had that at my house – I remember Andy enjoyed it sooooooo much and had plates of rice with it!!!! https://suituapui.wordpress.com/2012/03/17/make-yourself-at-home/
And smallkucing – I bought some for them to share and eat with the kompia I bought…and she told me the rest never had the chance to try as it was so nice she and her family ate it all!!!!
Obviously, you’ve never heard of it, much less tasted it, young man – do listen to those in the know when they drop by later.
I’m totally with you.. daging masak hitam BEST!!! .. along with midin extra belacan and the sea cucumber soup 🙂
So when are you coming again? Any plans yet? So much for you to try…
wow, what a great reunion that was!! how many years?? the numbers are too huge, so let me find my calculator, 2013-1969=44 years!! and our Food Mayor was so handsome that day, nice shirt and slack, and he also got his hair done properly!! i must use save this photo for future use in my blog~~ 😀
p/s: you looked so shy beside that lady, hahaha, was she your crush back in those days?? haha~~ 😀
Ummm…all the nice words, what are you up to? *eyes SK suspiciously* LOL!!!! Me shy? No lah…I was singing back-up, not one to steal the limelight mah…. Nope, no romantic stories to share here, I’m afraid. 😉
err, why suspicious?? i always find nice things to say, i don’t comment to criticize people lah, that is very MAPOTI you know?? hahaha~~
So you’re saying I’m MAPOTI lah? Not that I care one bit. Hehehehehehehe!!!!
i didn’t say you are MAPOTI, i said those who comment to criticize people are MAPOTI, are you one of those?? 😀
I’m not? Hehehehehehe!!!! 😉
The food looks absolutely scrumptious! I just bought a curry leaf plant. Hopefully it works well so that I can have prawns cooked with curry leaves. I love Melissa’s new haircut. It suits her very well.
She used to keep her hair like that all her life – then she started keeping it long. I think I prefer it short like this. Hope your curry leaf plant grows well…enough for you to use in your cooking. 😉
Uiks…more men in the association than ladies wor…no meal back to sibu is complete without Midin.. and am sure Claire will support me. 🙂
My school boys’ school lah…you’ll read about that in the post day after tomorrow. Ooi!!! People ask you to comment in masak hitam and you comment on midin.
Hmm, reunion is always good. I just want to have reunion with my primary school friends. The memories in primary are still strong until now. I miss them.
Go ahead. Keep those ties that bind… They sure mean a lot through the passage of time in one’s life.
Silly excuse again, I don’t have time. Maybe after my studies I would arrange one.
Come back and see my post on Sunday – food for thought… We should always make time to do what we want…while we can.
STP so young! 😉
The lady I met at the airport yesterday is 65. ^^
And she’s old? That’s not much different, just a few years…and you say I’m young?
Wow… I would love to go to one of these reunions if someone were to organize! 🙂 Singing and dancing is what I love.. 🙂 by the way, first time seeing you wearing something colourful, Arthur.. Nice wor!
My wardrobe is always so boring, you mean? Hehehehehe!!!! I prefer t-shirts – more comfortable. Hey!!! You’re supposed to say something about that masak hitam – you people never read the comments and my replies, is it? 😦
wow…your gathering is so happening. In a hotel with buffet style somemore. We left school nearly 17 years and we are going to have our first ever gathering soon. haha…. But not all can attend. I think only 6 or 7 of us. Not too bad already.
Aiyor…6 or 7, so miserable!!!
Its a nice reunion. Especially when you can gather all the kawan lama. Not all but most of them… 😉
Yes, make the most of it while we still can – some of us had already passed on, yunno…which comes as no surprise – we’re no spring chicken anymore.
Such a nice reunion gathering! Must be fun to catch up with each other! Best of all, can eat and sing together! 😉
Yes. At our stage in life, everything else is secondary… Nothing like spending happy moments with friends and loved ones, enjoying whatever we still can enjoy…
Such a fun reunion! Organised a similar one recently but it was for my dad and his students. Somehow his students managed to track me down and requested for a gathering with dad who was either their coach or PE teacher some time during their school days.
Now I am thinking of doing one for dad and his ex colleagues too….
Ahhhhh!!!! That’s nice. So sweet of your dad’s students. I thought of doing that next year – get as many of my ex-students as possible to join the alumni’s annual reunion dinner…and see how many tables I can get. I wonder how many of them would bother to show up… 😦
ooo, this is great. i actually haven’t seen most of my classmates, class of 93, in many years. guess i just drifted apart from them, even though quite a few of them are facebook friends now, but everyone kinda lives far apart, and there’s no push to have reunions yet 😀
93? Oh gosh!!! You are so young!!!
Interesting and fun night, I would say. Love those buffet food, price is reasonable. I wish I can have this type of gathering every two years in my hometown. When the cake was cut, it looks good and yummy.
Yes, my favourite in town – very very nice…just that the icing was so miserable. What’s stopping you? Get in touch with your old schoolmates and get together – it will be so much fun.
Hmmm…the cake looks delicious but it will be nice to have some decos,maybe.ahhahah
I think the buffet spread was good. All the dishes are my fav! hehehehe
Quay Po bought it to try the first morning she was in Sibu and she loved it – I think your plane had not landed at the time. Bakery near the hotel where you all were staying – my favourite for Japanese baked cotton cheese cake.
The food is superb! And cheap, too. I gotta admit, my eyes are more on the cake, hehe.
Come to Sibu and I can get you one – this one’s medium – 9 inches. They have smaller ones…and even oval ones, not so big. Available anytime…and very nice!
Nice gathering with nice foods…
Yes, it was a whole lot of fun, had a really great time. Looking forward to the next one… 🙂
that was cute, it’s nice that you still manage to do such event
after all these years!
Yes, and the turn out was pretty good…after all these years.
anyway the food looks yummy and healthy! now it remind me that i haven’t had my dinner yet haha
So late? Must have regular meals at regular times to avoid health problems e.g gastric pain and the like.
I have not been to my school reunion since I left school!!! And here you are, still going strong after all these years. *wiping tears*
The buffet spread at RM20 per person is very reasonable. But I’ll stay away from the mic. I’m tone deaf >_<
You are? Eeeee….then you must sing a duet with Huai Bin!!! I can imagine how you two would sound. Muahahahahahahahaha!!!!!
To tell the truth, so far I have not been to any school nor Uni reunion dinner since I graduated, Just like Merryn…lol *shame shame*
I suppose when you’re all as old as me, you would want to look back and “bring on back the good times” but not right now – your lives are too happening to waste recalling all those days gone by.
But during Uni time, before we graduated and follow our own path. I’m part of the organizer to organize our course mate night! Held in Penang. Each of us have to pay RM60 – food, plus game and lucky draw. We even have a couple mini door gift set. Cos everyone have to bring their partner.
The response was not so good so I decided not to have all those lucky draws, door gifts and whatever – just make it informal, casual…get together, eat and chat and sing and dance and have fun, that’s all.
Nah… RM20 for that buffet spread… couldn’t be. RM50 still ok for me.. So many food wor. Curry chicken plus more potatoes not cheap though… some how the midin and cangkuk manis is probably cheap…
The best part was – when everyone had had enough, the hotel people packed the leftover food in doggie bags – not one thing in one big bag – but in little bags, each serving enough for two or three in one sitting…so everyone could choose and take what they liked home. I took a bag of the fried mee…and before anybody else made their move, I sapu-ed all the prawns – 3 bags! My daughter loved it a lot mah. Muahahahahahahaha!!!!!
Arthur nice checked shirt eh…smart lor
Awwwww….that old thing! LOL!!!
Haha! You look dashing in the shirt, I must agree with Angeline!
What did you sing?
This one? “The Rose” – Bette Midler or maybe you know the version by Westlife…or maybe you don’t – you’re not into that kind of songs. LOL!!!
What!!! They charged you 2 bucks for writing those words on the cakes? Day light robbery!!! You have ‘aged’ well compared to your other classmates.. must be the collagen and genes, hor.
…all the fat stretching the skin. Hehehehehehe!!!! Never mind, pay for the cream, not the work. 😦
The food looks good 🙂 my grade school classmates were planning for a reunion probably next year. Hopefully i can join them…it’s like 19 years since we last saw each other 🙂
You should. Always good to keep close ties with old friends. Really sad to grow old only to find that you’ve lost track of everyone you met and knew along the way…and other than the few immediate members of the family, you’re quite alone in this world.
So, this was the form 5 class 1969 reunion. Great to be able to gather after all these years. We try to get together annually for our form 5 class but usually a small group will only attend. But my school’s alumni is organising a big reunion this year – each table costing rm1200!
Btw, the cake looks delicious except the writing on the icing IS horrendous!
Yes, it was sooooo…Chinese. LOL!!! Not nice at all really…but thankfully, it tasted great. Wow!!! RM120 per person…but then again, I think that’s more or less the going price for one table there. Ours at the alumni’s dinner that night was RM45 per head…so much cheaper here.