Take the step! Walk the unknown!

There is a crematorium near my house. It is not an active crematorium as no new cremation happens here but people come by to connect with their family members cremated here. I walked in by mistake and it was a good mistake I guess because the place was really peaceful, the breeze was strong, there a very big green patch almost like a golf course, birds chirping, trees swaying, flowers making the place smell very good.

There were very few people. I kept walking and found a broken fence leading to a park, the park I planned to visit when I left my house. There is a Gurkha camp near by and there are areas which not everyone is allowed access to. As I crossed the broken fence to enter this green stretch, a jogging lane with greenery all around, I was wondering if I am not supposed to be here. I had my camera in my pocket so I marched on. I had a great time doing evening photography in this quiet, almost forest like park.

By now, I had no idea where I was but I could see a temple and a church not very far from where I was. I decided to march on and entered a very quiet residential area. The roads had an uphill-downhill structure because of the hilly nature of the terrain. It reminded me of the San Francisco cable car ride which also runs on such uphill-downhill stretch. The temple was closed by the time I got there. It was dark already in this quiet stretch. There were no people.

A few meters before the main road was this garage home of sorts. No lights were on. As I got closer a huge dog started barking. Time to tell you guys that I am more scared of dogs than I am of ghosts. You can see a dog run towards you with anger in his eyes but you can't see a ghost. I think this is why intimidation is such a strong tactic used in battles / competitions. It creates this fear in the mind of the opponent. It starts a battle between the opponent's will power and this new born fear. If fear wins, the opponent loses. I lost today. The dog made me go back and take the longer lane to the main road.

I am happy I took this new lane because I came across a neat food joint called Old Village Cafe. The place had nice decor, pictures of Singapore from the 30s, the 60s, etc on the wall. There was a small group of men sitting waiting for their team to arrive. I later found out that they were construction supervisors and had arranged a post-project team dinner. The construction workers started walking in this fancy place which they usually wouldn't visit. The fancy decor instantly put a smile on their faces as they walked in. The Indian workers, a group of 4, sat in a separate group. The rest of the workers, about 30, Chinese, occupied the rest of the seats.

I ordered soft boiled eggs and garlic bread when my tea was served. I had no idea that soft boiled eggs are actually not fully boiled. I cracked open one and it was, like the menu said, soft boiled. It was still liquid, the white body then the yellow yolk made its way to the bottom of my bowl. I usually make an omelet with this form when I am home but I wasn't home. I don't like eating eggs in this form but I braved myself, added vinegar and pepper and finished eating. The garlic bread was soft and very tasty and the tea had a very good aroma. I enjoyed my meal / snack at this nice cafe and saw very happy faces all around. The team of workers was having a good time eating great food cooked for them and even the staff was very bright and full of cheer and smile.

I promised myself I will visit this cafe again. I also promised myself that I will walk the unknown in my free time and in my life. There is a fear that the unknown might not take you to the best destination but if the journey is beautiful then it is worth the walk. Today's journey was extremely beautiful and the destination was great too. Tomorrow's journey might be...umm...I don't know but I will walk, I will walk the unknown.