A Relaxed Trip

Think back on your most memorable road trip.

I’ve taken lots of road trips and most have been amazing, save one or two. It’s a little impossible for me to say which has been the most memorable because they’ve all been special and people I love.

The most recent road trip was in October 2024 with a good friend. We were headed to the island city of Penang from Kuala Lumpur. It wasn’t a complicated trip and we were both tired from hectic schedules.

We planned to leave the city really early in the morning and we stuck to it. It was still dark! The drive was smooth as we’d managed to bypass the workday traffic.

We had planned to stop for breakfast in an idyllic town called Ipoh. It was simply lovely enjoying a kopitiam-styled breakfast! Yummy. The lines to the restaurant were testament to its reviews for being a wonderful place for local delights.

After we ate, we decided to look for one of the shops where we could get local treats. What trip would be complete without snacks on hand. We hopped back into our car, armed with the GPS and without too much difficulty, located the shop. Parking was anywhere by the road, which felt like we’d been transported back in time.

The shop was simply brilliant! Nothing too fancy, but with lots of treats and more of those long lines that made us realise that they were a good gauge of whether a place is good or not. We overbought!

Once we were armed with goodies, we decided to head off to Penang. We did get lost a little, which wasn’t too bad because we got to see some really old-styled houses. The change of pace was made apparent.

On our way to Penang, we could see black rain clouds forming. For a bit it felt like we were trying to outrun them. But they did catch up with us at various points.

At our final destination, it was sheer bliss looking out at the sea from our room and spending time by the pool – and simply relaxing. Everything was just lovely.

I’m writing about it because we stayed true to our plans to relax. This isn’t always easy when we go on a break – and I’m thankful that my friend and I did this. I felt so very rejuvenated after our trip!