Malaysia

Hello, here we are again - in anther city. Left my home town, Kuantan, in an over-sold express bus. We felt good when we got the "last 2 tickets" because it was the last day of school holidays. When we got into the bus, there were a few more "last 2 tickets" got sold after us. Anyway, Le and I were appropriately seated - right at the back over the engine compartment. In cold winter months, people would kill for these two hot seats, but Malaysia does not have winter - just hot and sticky all year round. The bus was like riding a sampan on a bad stormy monsoon day. The road and ali-the-kami-kaze-Shoemaka's driving didn't help - certainly helped the young fella sitting in front spewing out what he ate.


(a Malay celebration in traditional costumes)




It was good to catch up with my folks last week. They certainly spoilt us with food and local fruits. One of our favourite Malaysian fruits is the Durian and my sister-in-law has been feeding us with this heavenly fruit which smells like shit and tastes like heaven, as it is commonly known. We ate them in days and in the evenings.


(Take it from me, the Durians are yummy.)




(Got there before dawn and started the praying and offering)

Early April is the Toaists' Ching Beng (All Soles Day). Once a year, family members go and tidy up (clearing scrubs, painting, etc) the graves and to make offerings to the dead. For four or five nights we were folding the paper origami resembling olden days gold and silver ingots while reminiscensing old stories - all in good humor. On the day of the offering, the families would go to the graves and pray and sending the gold and silver ingots (together with the paper shirts and whatever one cares to send) to the other world by express post, ie burning . In the process, apart from polluting the country side, more old stories were exchanged - does not matter the stories were re-cycleed every year; it is a good tradition. With all the gold and silver ingots, the recepients on the other side must be pretty well off. Do I believe in all this stuff? Of course I do, for the same reason I believe in Santa Claus, and believe me, he is real.

(Nights of hard work folding the gold and silver ingots being sent by express post to the other world.)









(off to the next grave)





Le eventually got her dental work done in time and completing her marathon trip KL-Kuantan-Johor Bahru/Singapore-KL-Kuantan and eventually Johor Bahru in 5 days and covered google mileage. She now has the Mclean smile with a ring of confidence to meet the next challenge - 4 big bags, backpacks, camera, laptop, etc going across the forever busy Causeway into Singapore Changi Airport.

(Look at that McLean smile - a ring of confidence!!)
And, London here we come.