'What does he have that I don't?' Malaysian man misses dinner to help Singaporean fix bike in Johor

One Singaporean cyclist admitted that he would not spend two hours of his time to help a stranger. 

But in an Instagram video shared on Dec 12, Joel Liu said that he was grateful to have met such a Good Samaritan during an overnight trip in Malaysia. 

The 24-year-old, who started his journey in Singapore, was caught in a bind after the tyres on his bicycle punctured in Kota Tinggi in Johor. 

With nowhere to stay as the sun was setting, Liu walked 3km to the "nearest human civilisation" — a convenience store in a kampung.

He met Faz, whom "somehow knows everyone in the kampung", remarked Liu. 

Faz called a family friend, who secured a spot at a campsite for Liu for the night. 

Liu said that another local from the village, Isa, then arrived at the store. 

"[After] learning of my situation, he sat down with me to try first aid on my bike using all sorts of homemade solutions we could think of," he said, adding that the Malaysian even made several trips home on his own motorcycle to retrieve more tools. 

Isa spent two hours on Liu’s bike, to no avail. 

It was at this point that Liu resigned to walk another 7km to the campsite. 

"But no, Isa went back home on his bike… came back with his van and tossed my bike in the van and drove me to the campsite," he said. 

Liu said that he was even treated to dinner when the pair stopped by a burger stall. 

He then found out that Isa had missed his family’s dinner. 

"It’s okay, I’ll just eat the leftovers later," Liu recounted Isa saying. 

Reflecting on the kindness from strangers during his trip, Liu said: "We often think of people living in developing areas as having less."

"But that day I honestly felt like I was the one missing out on something," he quipped.

"What does he have that I don’t?"

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chingshijie@asiaone.com