boon's log 0505.04 supplementary A: Encounter with the...

... streetwalker (literally).

IL and I were at Gurney Plaza, with her sister on Thaipusam day. The ladies had an appointment with Dermalogica. It was ~10:45 AM. So, I was left wandering around the plaza as I was waiting for the Photo shop to open, to send some of my photos to be developed.

So, there I was, on the 3rd floor walking towards the Hot Market area. There was a bench in front of the Hot Market (near the ascending escalator), and there sat 3 ladies in their early 40s, I guess. As I approached the bench, one of them started staring at my legs! I found it a little odd but it did not really bother me. What happened afterwards did...

As I was passing the bench, the lady sitting on the left-most (with deep and dark eye-rings, and looked really fatigued), half-whispered to me...

"Halo, satu jam, lima puluh lima ringgit?"
("Hello, one hour, fifty five ringgits?")

It did not strike me immediately at that point of time, but as I walked further, and went up the escalator, it hit me...

"WHAT the...?!"

It was Thaipusam, it was 11AM in the morning, I'm in Gurney Plaza - Penang's most acclaimed shopping mall... I could not believe my ears. I was dumbfounded, flabbergasted

Anyway I proceeded to SenQ as I needed to check out some prices. The thought about the encounter was still ringing in the mind...

So, taking my chances of being perceived as an interested customer, I decided to go down again to that same spot to determine whether what I heard was... indeed what I heard. So, after a few moments, I went down to that same bench again, but the three ladies were no longer there anymore. Left to a new location? Or "serving" customers?

Told some friends about it. Here are some of their "caring" feedback...

"Should have bargained with her-lah! Lima puluh boleh ka?""
("Should have bargained with her-lah! Can you make it fifty ringgit?")

"Lima puluh lima untuk kesemua tiga orang kah?"
("Is fifty five ringgit for all the three of you?")

"Tempat you atau tempat I?"
("Your place or mine?")

Such "Caring" friends I have... Anyways, this will definitely go into the record books for the "Most Awkward question asked in a Family Mall"

boon out...