2022
Have you ever had the chance to meet those friends in person whom you've talked to a lot virtually, formed deep friendships with, and even gone out of your way to help, but never had the opportunity to meet in real life?
Just a few days ago, I had this opportunity. I met some of my best friends for the first time in my life, whom I've been friends with for 7 years, and from whom I've learned a lot since joining the local guides program.
I can't quite express the joy I felt because meeting dear @StephenAbraham, @Haseeb , most wanted @AdrianLunsong 😁, and other amazing people was something I've always wished for. I had met Haseeb before in Karachi and Malaysia, but every time I meet him, it feels like I'm spending time with him for the first ti
Among these friends are @SumaiyaZafrin , @nabeeltirmazi ,and @PavelSarwar , with whom I've had long chats, shared a lot, but meeting them in person for the first time was a strange and joyful feeli
This plan became possible by a Pakistani electrical cable company called Universal Cables to invite all its dealers from Pakistan to Kuala Lumpur for a convention and award ceremony. I am grateful to them for that.
As soon as we reached Kuala Lumpur airport, we were taken to Penang where I still have beautiful memories with my friend @OmerAli , where we had to stay for 2 nights, and then immediately to Genting Highlands for another 2-night stay, which I'll talk about separately later.
Returning from Genting to Kuala Lumpur, there was a lot of excitement because after 4 days in Malaysia, I was finally going to meet my friends, who were the essence and real purpose of this whole trip for me.
We reached our hotel Swiss Garden around 5 pm, and within an hour, we attended the award ceremony. Just then, I got a call from my dear friend Haseeb saying he had arrived at the hotel and was waiting for me downstairs.
If you don't know about Haseeb, let me tell you that he can be called the founder of the local guides community in Pakistan. Haseeb and other friends worked hard to establish the local guides community in 2017, and we are reaping its benefits today. If I truly consider someone as my teacher and mentor in the Local Guides program, then for me, it's Haseeb.
To make it easier for the local guides community in Malaysia to communicate, Stephen created a temporary messenger group. It helped us to coordinate with each other more conveniently. I want to appreciate his efforts to make this wonderful event happen.
According to the program, Haseeb took me to Lalaport Mall where I was supposed to meet my other friends.
I saw Stephen and Adrian sitting there together with beautiful lights shining around them. They were busy talking to each other. I hurriedly approached them and met them with great excitement. It was a very emotional moment for me because I was meeting these two friends with whom I had exchanged thousands of words in the past 7 years through chats and countless virtual meetings. These moments will be very memorable for me. (Adrian, especially I was remembering the video song and all conversations which we created together for 5th anniversary of Connect 😍)
I met Nabeel Tirmizi Bhai there, who is not only an excellent speaker but also someone from whom I always learn something new during our conversations.
Shortly after, Sumaiya, Pavel, and Zarjis Islam arrived. It was my first meeting with Sumaiya and Pavel, although we had been having quite a few conversations on different topics. Pavel had also benefited participants greatly with his insightful discussions during our virtual meetup series by @JaneBurunina and me "Accessible Bangladesh" on accessibility and inclusion.
We decided to have dinner at the Malaysian restaurant "The Cage Lalaport" in the same mall and continue our conversations there.
The restaurant was designed like a boxing ring, which I really liked. After ordering food, our discussion kept going, covering useful information about Google Maps, along with lots of laughter and jokes.
Before organizing this event, I was asked if I preferred going to a Pakistani restaurant, but based on my habit, I explained that when I visit a new country like Malaysia, I prefer to explore its cuisine first. Just like I did in Indonesia and Turkey. Otherwise, most of our electrical group members were inclined to stick to Pakistani and Indian food even in Malaysia, which, according to me, doesn't fully explore the culture of a place.
The buffet dinner was amazing, and my dear friend Haseeb Bhai sponsored the entire dinner.
After dinner, we went to the ring area, put on boxing gloves, and took many fun and funny photos.
The amazing meetup ended with big hugs because some friends planned to meet again in the next 2 days, which I'll talk about in my next posts. Stephen Bhai gave me two bags filled with gifts that were really great, and I love them. Adrian also gave me gifts from Goloco, and Sumaiya gave me gifts which she brought from Japan through connect moderators, which were fantastic. I brought these beautiful gifts back to Pakistan with me, along with lovely memories.
This was a big opportunity for me to meet these friends whom I've always dreamed of meeting. I hope, God willing, I'll soon get to meet all my other friends, either at an event or by visiting each of their countries one by one InshaAllah. It's really important to me to meet all my connect moderator friends and local guide friends because the time I spend with them means a lot to me.
Oooooh.. what is this amazing recap post @KashifMisidia ?!?! 😂 So great to finally meet you in person and thanks for your amazing friendship and support through the years!! The cover photo also reminds me of Avengers assembling to make the world a better place!! 😅 Thanks for this post and for the fond memories!! Also, it was really great to meet the other Local Guides who are based in Kuala Lumpur!!!
Wow this is awesome @KashifMisidia bhai. Glad to see you having fun with global Local Guides. Friends without borders.
Keep it up!
