Memory Lane: Our Malaysia Vacation

When my husband got deployed in 2008 for almost 7 months, we were blessed to be given the chance to see each other halfway through the deployment.  When he found out they were going to have a stopover in Malaysia for a couple of days, my husband immediately talked to me and asked me if I want to fly to Kuala Lumpur to see him even just for 3 days.  Of course, why would I say no?  I haven't seen him for almost four months that time, and we both missed each other, so I said yes.  I had school that week, so I had to write an excuse letter.  I left Sunday, so technically, I was only absent from my classes for two days.

Anyway, we talked about the trip through e-mails, and the next day, he bought me a round trip ticket.  He said, that was one of his birthday gifts for me.  And since I will be arriving at the hotel before him, he arranged a hotel transportation for me to get picked up from the airport.  When everything was ready, that Sunday, after attending church service, I went home to grab my stuff, and headed back out to go to the airport.  I believe, my flight didn't leave until past 7 at night.

At the airport, I started feeling anxious, excited, and nervous.  It was my first out-of-the-country trip, and I was all by myself.  I was worried that I might not be able to get into Malaysia because the immigration might not grant me VISA.  I was praying that everything will turn out just fine.  That all I wanted was to be with my husband.

Thanks be to God, everything went well.  When I arrived in Malaysia, the immigration officer only asked me one question, "How long do you intend to stay here?"  I answered, "Three days."  Then, she stamped my passport and told me I was good to go.  I let out a huge sigh of relief.  I felt bad, though, because the other lady I was with on the same flight, got held at the airport.  I asked her why before I had to tell her I needed to go because the car was waiting for me outside.  She told me, they thought they found something in her suitcase through the x-ray scanner.  But she assured me that there was nothing, so she'd be out there soon enough.  I said goodbye to her, and proceeded on my way out.  Good thing, the driver had a piece of paper with my complete name on it, that's why I was able to find him right away.  He was an Indian national, and he was very kind.  I remember his name still - Nabeel.

The drive from the airport to the hotel in Kuala Lumpur almost took 2 and a half hours.  So, by the time I got there, I was so dead tired.  I checked in, went to our room, and passed out.  The next thing I know, I was awaken by a phone call, asking for my identification, and if I was in the right room.  I kind of felt nervous because I didn't what was going on.  My husband wasn't there yet.  Then, the hotel receptionist said that they will send someone over to verify my information.  I got scared.  I wanted to cry, but I held back.  I knew in my heart I didn't do anything stupid for me to get in trouble.

When I heard the doorbell, I slowly walked my way to the door and looked to check who was outside, through the peephole.  To my surprise, nobody was there, so I slowly opened the door, leaving the safety lock, just in case.  I almost passed out when out of nowhere, my husband showed up!  It was him all along, playing prank on me.  He made the receptionist call our room just to see how I'd react.  Heavens, I almost wanted to kick his cute butt for doing such thing.   But, the minute he held me in his arms, I felt at peace.  I couldn't contain the happiness and love I felt at that very exact moment.  We held each other tightly, and he gave me kiss.


We stayed in our room for a couple of hours before we decided to join his other teammates who were having lunch at the pub downstairs.  Most of them, I think, checked in at the same hotel.  It was fun meeting everyone my husband was working with in that deployment.  They were all so nice to me.

After that, we went out for a walk, did a little shopping, and went to see the Petronas Twin Towers.  We had dinner at an Indian restaurant, then, we headed back to the hotel.  We went to one of their bars there and played pool.  I was only there for 3 days, so we both made every moment count.

On the night of my flight back, my husband made a reservation at their famous Bintang Revolving Restaurant, right at the very top floor of the hotel (18th floor, if I'm not mistaken).  It offers a breath-taking view of Kuala Lumpur's city skyline.  Though I really enjoyed our time there, it was a sad moment at the same time, because we were about to leave each other again.  I wanted to stop the clock from turning so I could spend more time with him.  But, I had to go.

After dinner, we went back to our room, spent more time there, then, he took me to the airport.  For the first time, it was his turn to send me off.  It has always been me every time he had to return home from visiting me in the Philippines.  I cried my heart out while inside the plane.  Good thing, I sat at the very back.  Nobody really saw me crying, except for two Arab guys who were seated right across from me.  But they were so nice that they even asked me if I was all right.

I got back home at almost 7 in the morning.  It was raining.  It felt as if the sky was crying with me.  I was supposed to go back to school that day, but I decided to stay home.  I was so down and tired, I didn't want to be around anybody else.  I stayed in my room pretty much the whole day.  My husband called me that night checking up on me, and we both cried while talking on the phone.

I really had no idea how tough deployment can be, until I experienced that.  That's why, to those who have their spouses with them 24/7, be grateful!  Don't take them for granted.  You'll never really know what you've been missing, until it is gone.  Time wasted can never be brought back.  So, spend time with the ones you love and never let one single moment pass by without letting them know how much you love them, and how much they mean to you.

Here soon, my husband will get deployed again.  I don't know what to expect this time because it will be a totally different story.  We have kids now.  Whereas, before, it was just me and I was home with my family.  I can only pray for the best and for us to make it just fine through one more deployment.