The straits of Melaka

So my little sojourn in Kuala Lumpur came to end in a hungover morning. Hoegaarden, Guinness and Laphroiag being blamed sorely I proceeded to a temporary make shift bus terminal called Bukit Jalil. Temporary and makeshift is the primary impression the place makes in one’s mind with large sheds and tarpaulins covering some twenty odd buses.

And therefore a two hour bus ride later I was at Melaka.

As the British would say, it’s a charming little town. Quiet, largely bored with everything.

Things to do in Melaka – go to Jonker’s street. Visit the only joint to have featured in the lonely planet – the Geographer Café. Drink down another Hoegaarden with batter fried calamari. Hop down the road to this roadside Chinese joint and have a Tiger beer with pork. Proceed up the road to a chicken with rice ball joint and proceed to consume them with relish.

Settle in to a nice boat to take the river cruise – a 45 minute up and down through the river which is pretty as can be. Better at night since the graffiti on the walls of the buildings on either side is lit up as is Kumpung Morten, a riverside village.

Try to ignore the rain pelting down on you. I missed Portuguese street because of that rain.

I will have to come back here over a weekend sometime, there was a pub with an open mike night that I couldn’t visit due to companion constraints. Companion restraints rather…

I’m off to Singapore. Pictures will follow.

Update - I'm in Singapore. Happy joy!

Chamarajpet to China...

... or KLPD part 2

So the day began on a good note... bbq cheeseburger whist wistfully watching folks gorge on KFC at 8.30AM. Yeah the time when one hears the last fading notes of the suprabhatam and is hurrying to work. That time. Beef burgers and KFC. As the most important meal of the day. Need I really say any more. Things largely went downhill from thence, with mostly boring conference lectures barring one on stem cells (incidentally those little buggers are so big, folks have begun randomly injecting them around in the hope that they'll prove to be a Lazarus Pit). By evening once all was done I headed out the Central Market(Est circa 1888, much after Mangal Pandey refused beef and began it all) which is close to but not at KL Sentral. It's just off the Pasar Seni station and en route one finds this off the Pasar Seni station.

and for a better view...

Apparently Melaka, where I'm headed to next has bigger and better ones.

That apart, the central market is like Malaysia's partially regulated handicraft emporium, not unlike the Cauvery in home sweet home. So many, "I'm sorry I'm not looking for a batik sarong with a matching shirt", later I escaped and moved to Petaling Street. Where if you have a cycle you cannot be petaling because it's too crowded, la.
So this is Chinatown. What a trip that joint is. As usual fake china made goods at potentially rock-bottom prices if you have the time and energy to bargain. Street side restaurants with beer and pork. And the occasional accost from a commercial sex worker (I wanted to say whore but it's kinda politically incorrect).
Now if I'd only remembered to eat Haagen Dazs...
Anyway the day ended with Hoegaarden, Guinness, chicken and pork. And Laphroaig.
I could potentially die and go to heaven but I still have Melaka and Singapore to write about.

KL diary...

... or KLPD part 1

Yeah ok sue me, my phone's camera sucks and I'm too cheap to buy a real camera. The 5800 is a waste of a phone if you're looking for any kind of picture quality. Actually it's a waste of a phone if you're looking for anything.
That apart I'm in KL, Kuala Lumpur for the uninitiated, the capital of Malaysia for the geographically challenged and for the few who've tried to call, I'm not at home and am a proud user of Maxis 3G.
I'm in KL on work (would you believe that) and today work is almost done so I shall begin to wax eloquent about the joint.
At first sight, it's deceptively like home. Hot and humid, a mess of an immigration counter, positively scary looking cab drivers, Indian restaurants and of course Tamil.
Then the drive from the airport changes everything. Gas stations with attached 7-11 type stores open all night, an awesome road system, well planned city and all that. It's been a good two days. For brevity and due to a fast failing memory (remember my bad phone camera? it's why I prefer to write) here are some of the salient points that I'd like to remember...
- 2.30 AM day 1. Drive with cab driver who says the following,
Teksi driver - you from India? Bengalore? where is that? north India?
Me - no south, near Chennai (much as it pains my heart)
Teksi driver - but you're not dark?
Me - I was but I haven't seen too much sunlight in the last 3 years...
Teksi driver - Aaaaah! ok. So you know Priyanka Chopra?
Me - we used to play hide and seek as kids but now that she's a big actress and all that we've lost touch...
Teksi driver - Really? I read in the news paper that she's looking for husband. Maybe you get lucky la... hahahahahaha
Me - facepalm.

Then did some cool d-i-y travel from Kl Sentral to KLCC, and gaped astonished at the subway entrance and exit gates that swallowed up my ticket and let me in and out and felt like it was the whole town mouse, country mouse deal all over again. Anyway KLCC is a beast of a convention center and beautifully done up.

The conference goes on for another day and honestly barring some strange names and stranger people who would effectively be in abundance at a November (as opposed to august) gathering of brain surgeons nothing spectacularly interesting's been happening except for meeting the who's who and all that.

But then again discovered that Starbucks in 10RM a cappuccino and Carlsberg's 7RM. Do the math.
8.30 AM Day 2 KLCC - saw people licking their fingers at KFC.

Agar firdous...

The food's of course fabulous.
The conference  banquet featured octopi. Chicken kebab and the the most amazing red snapper, steamed Cantonese style. I'm threatening to like fish...

More in the next update - Melaka