The Grand Finale!

Uhm...a 'grand finale' did actually have a whole lot difference compared to the preliminary one. No, i am not referring to the toughness of the question and all, .. i just couldn't explain it, but everything seems to tensed up and got really serious here. At least that's how i felt. For starters, there is only 9 finalist candidate chosen from a pool of at least 30-40 peoples from the preliminary round. Yes, that's how tough it is..maybe i did fairly good and with some luck i got through to the final round. Thank god! Secondly, unlike the first time i attended the interview, where they told me to come to their HR Department all by myself with nothing but a roughly out-of-proportion hand drawn map, this time round, i was provided a 'free' return flight ticket from KLIA to Changi Airport and inclusive of 3 days 2 nights stay at a chosen hotel there. Why 'free' and not free? Well, i said 'free' because it wasn't exactly free in a sense that it was applicable only to the ticket fare EXCLUDING the fuel surcharge and airport taxes, so in the end i have to fork out additional 300 bucks for the ride, but hey, it's worth it :). Why 3 days 2 nights? Apparently, the final interview procedure took longer time than the first one, and in case you got through the final, you still need to proceed to the final hurdle; the medical test. Nightmare. Otherwise, you can just tapao your bag and go back after the first night. A little cruel yes, but painfully true.

The plane i was boarding on was the Boeing 772 (or 777-200) and it was a rather pleasant ride, except for an embarassing moment when i was playing with my personal remote control by randomly pressing the button, not realizing that it's the 'flight-attendant call' button. I pressed it not only one time, but several times as i was amazed by the repeatedly ding ding ding sound by each press of the button on my the remote control. Okay, call me stupid. So when one of the flight attendant came, i knew what does the 'ding' sound actually meant. With a very warm smile, she greeted me and asked if i required any assistance. My heart was pounding madly and i was desperately trying to come up with a logical answer. Heck, no way im going to tell her that i was playing with the button. Out of a sudden, a not-so-brilliant idea came out from nowhere, and i decided to tell her that i accidentaly pressed the button when i was adjusting myself on the seat. Yeah right, accidentaly pressed the button for 5-6 times consecutively. Anyway, she probably knew that i was lying and simply node, still maintaining her smile, telling me it was okay and walked away. "Great!", i thought myself. "Can't even stay still for a short 45 minutes ride." I didnt touch anything else for the rest of the journey.

On the evening of 26th June 2007 i found myself at the entrance/exit door(whatever you want to call it) of the Changi Airport, took me a while to find the cab service. Hiring a cab was a hitch as they were loads of them and the next thing i know, i was already on my way to the hotel. Upon reaching the hotel, next thing to do is of course, check-in, and it's very straightforward as well. I only told them my name and that i was sent here by SIA, they quickly passed me the room key and told me that my other room mate has arrived earlier than me.

Without bothering to ask who or when, i thanked them and made my way up.....up and further down to my room, knock a few times. No answer. Insert my own card key and got in. Neat. Nobody is around, except for his bag and some clothes here and there. Hop up to my bed and lie down and dozed off for a while. Everything was just too comfy! ZzzzZzzzzz....

-To be continued...-