Attending Justin Lo's concert was one of the promises I made with WL ever since we were together. Justin's last concert in Malaysia was back in 2008 & I missed cuz nobody was interested to go with me. I, or should I say we, didn't expect he would return for another concert. He had been a little quiet for the past 1-2 years other than making headlines for being involved in a fight with our local singer, Gary Chaw in Hong Kong with the latter landing a kick on Justin's groin. Gary apologised publicly & the two best buds were back to good terms.
Okay, enough of the showbiz gossips. When it was announced that Justin will be back for a concert at Genting, we jumped at the opportunity to make reservation right away. It costs RM368 inclusive of one pair of RM130 tickets to the concert & free breakfast for two.
WL didn't want to drive for fear of damaging his already old car. So, we'd decided to be more adventurous & took the Genting bus at 1U to Gohtong Jaya station then boarded the cable car up to the highest peak. My heart was thumping hard because the cable car carriage was letting out loud, cranky noise as it prepared for lift-off through the cables. The same question kept running in my mind. What if the cable snaps off? o.O Oh, the horror!
My heart nearly dropped when the carriage lifted off & suspended mid-air, rising slowly - with occasional wobbles - up the steep slopes of the highland.
The view outside the carriage got even scarier as it ascended the hills. The tropical rainforest is right below us & trees grew as tall as few hundred feet. Look down & you'll see that the forest seemed endless. To ease our anxiety due to acrophobia, we attempted forcing a smile in front of the camera.
When the carriage arrived our destination, we heaved a sigh of relief that we were finally back on solid ground. Wow, what an experience that was! We headed to First World Hotel to check in & were overwhelmed with the huge crowd waiting for their turns. Guests of different nationalities can be seen - Chinese, Middle Easterns, Indians, South Africans, etc. It took us more than an hour to finally check in to our room. WL forgotten to request for a queen-size bed & we ended up having to accept a twin single bedroom even though we booked for a deluxe room. It's still better than sleeping in a superior room which is awfully small.
After napping & shower, we were all set to go for a walk to enjoy the chilly air outdoors. The concert is scheduled to commence at 8pm & we were told by the staff at the ticketing counter to enter the Arena of Stars by 7.30pm. This means dinner has to be early or else we'll be late for the concert. We dined at a Hainan Kitchen for a quick meal of chicken rice & lamb stew. Not that both dishes tasted good & it was darn expensive - as expected from every F&B outlet in Genting. Next, it was time to hit the outdoors while it was still bright. How I love the cold breeze~ If only KL is as cooling every day.
We entered the concert hall at 7.30pm however, the concert is still empty & nowhere near occupied. We sat quite far from the stage but still able to catch Justin in action. He should be about 5cm tall from our view which is much better than the Alan Tam & Hacken Lee concert we went last year. While waiting, we were bored & started camwhoring as usual XD.
The clock struck 8pm but the concert was delayed for about 10 minutes to allow the other concert-goers to find their seats. Little did we expect that the hall was filled up within minutes & it was close to 95% full. Despite the small hall that could only accommodate 6,000 people, it's still quite a feat to command such strong crowd. I supposed many people just love Justin. =)
The concert started with the singer elevated from underground, belting one of his older hits. He looked exactly like the last time I saw him 3 years ago, only a little pudgier now XD. He wore his cap as always but seemed to be spotted without any hair. No sideburns or stubs. Seemed to me that he shaved his head bald, which I felt, is a good feat for his severely receding hairline.
He wasn't much of a dancer but he still made an effort to showcase his dancing prowess. The crowd went wild when he & his dancers sashayed on the stage to Wonder Girls' infectious Nobody & continuously pumping in actions for Super Junior's Sorry, Sorry. So darn hilarious! It was one of his songs called 30 Days with meaningful lyrics made me tear as he sang with full emotion. WL thought that I cried for the singer but it wasn't true at all. The lyrics were touching as I tried to imagine WL saying each word in the song to me. Well, he sang to me several times in the car but somehow he couldn't express the feelings as strong as how it should be. Baby, don't get me wrong ya. Nothing beats having you saying it to me & I really appreciate your effort. Love you! ♥
All good things must come to an end. The concert ended with a standing ovation from the crowd after he fulfilled a three-song encore for us. I'd say he did pretty good fan service too when he called on a fan to join him on stage during his performance. Lucky gal! Boy, we were starving as soon as we left the hall & quickly sat down for a quick bite. WL had his Burger King that he was pinning for, at last XD. Took a snapshot of us with satisfying grins plastered all over our face before we returned to our room for a good night's rest.
The next morning was passing by quickly as we rushed for free breakfast at First World Cafe. Worst buffet breakfast I've ever had cuz it felt like fighting for prison food. No offence but we didn't feel at ease eating our sausages & ham. :/ We left the highlands at late noon, descending the hills through cable car again. Upon boarding the bus heading back to 1U, we bumped into this old lady seating one row behind the driver's seat.
She was being loud & chatty with another elderly man sitting in front of me. At first, we ignored her but we couldn't help overhearing her exceptionally loud voice. This lady was narrating proudly on her pastimes during the weekends - travelling to Genting early morning to gamble & then taking the evening bus home. When being asked why her husband didn't offer to drive up to the highlands, of which she nonchalantly replied that her husband finds it costly to fund her weekly escapades & preferred her to settle it herself. She even added that she would be so bored to death if told to stay at home instead of gambling. Me & WL exchanged looks - both finally understood with our very own ears how Genting can remain so prosperous despite its rundown facilities.
Above all, both of us were truly satisfied with the outcome of the concert. Mainly because we adore Justin's song so much that it was natural we watched the show together. It's not the case in which only one of us fancy Justin which makes things a whole lot easier for us =) The one & only scary part is travelling to Genting during 7th month of the lunar calendar. -.-"