Relativity of Perceptions

We were at Sunway Pyramid today. The place has changed a lot since the last time I was there, which to put it into perspective, was only about 4 months ago. They have opened a new wing now called Pyramid 2, in extension of the old wing of the shopping centre. It made us feel disoriented a little bit, and we were suppossed to meet up with the rest of my family for lunch. My father and brother DD were with me, wifey and Insyirah. We called our sister, Lili up to find out where they were.

DD: Where are you guys? We have just entered the building.

Lili: We are in a food court.

DD: Which food court?

Lili: I am not quite sure where this is. But the food court is near McDonald's.

DD: Righty ho. We'll see you there.

So we looked for the direction to the food court. Even asked a couple of Sunway Pyramid janitors and security guards for the way. Apparently we had parked in the new wing, so I had no idea where we were going and the places were not familiar to me. After walking for about 10 minutes in that huge place, we found a food court located within Jusco's. I was feeling kinda hungry by that time, and the smell of hot plate sizzling noodle instantly caught my attention. Yummy...

Wifey: But kak Lili says the food court is near McDonald's. And I know McDonald's is located in the old wing (Pyramid 1).

So we went to ask the security guard who was standing near us.

Guard: Pyramid 1 is that way bang. About 10 minutes walk through that path that connects the 2 wings.

I was already drooling over the hot plate, so you could understand I was feeling a little upset to find out we were not there yet. So we continued walking for another 10 minutes that seemed longer when you're walking with a hungry tummy and finally arrived at McDonald's.

Me: Hmmm... I don't see any food court.

DD: Let's try calling them...

We tried calling them for the next 10 minutes but to no avail. Reception must have been bad where they were. My tummy was growling again... Not knowing where to go and where they were, we just stood around and looking down at people skating at the ice rink. A while later, my phone rang.

Affeedz: I am sorry but the reception is very bad where we are. We are in the food court LOCATED WITHIN JUSCO's. It is in the new wing of Sunway Pyramid.

Me: Wha...? But I thought Lili said the food court is near McDonald's? We were already there at the food court about 10 minutes ago, but since we couldn't find any Mcdonald's there, we made our way here instead.

Affeedz: I don't know how it could be near McDonald's. It is in a totally different building altogether!

Me: Oh well. Since we're here, I think we might as well eat here. I can't walk any further until I eat something.

Affeedz: Ok la.. so we'll see you there after we're done. We've already bought our lunches.

We met up with them after about 20 minutes. I asked my sister why did she say the food court was near McDonald's?

Lili: Isn't it near? It is only 10 minutes away from McDonald's...

Morals of the story:

1. Perception of distance is subjective, and open to different interpretations by different people. 10 minutes walking distance might be short to some people, while my idea of near is if the place is right next door.

2. Be specific when you're asking for direction. General description like 'it is very near', or 'only a few minutes away' are recipes to getting you lost. Ask for exact address, or an exact landmark like the name of the building next to it, etc.