Author archive
12 September 2008
Today I left Vientiane at 1340 flying Lao Airlines to Xieng Khouang (Phonsavan). Coming in to land 30 mins later was interesting. The countryside with pock-marked by craters, some filled with water. This is the most-bombed province in the most-bombed country in the world (says the Mines Action Group information. The US bombarded the area […]
11 September 2008
It is my last night here in Vientiane and my last night with my Couchsurfing host Patrick. We hit town for a nice dinner by the Mekong, looking over at Thailand on the other side. Then to a roof top bar for a few beers and margaritas. He has been most hospitable … his maid […]
10 September 2008
Today, I continued my exploration of Vientiane, which means City of Sandalwood. It was a hot and sweaty affair.
9 September 2008
I woke early for my 0905 flight from Kuala Lumpur to Vientiane before taking the bus to the airport. The Air Asia hub at KL’s low-cost carrier terminal was abuzz with activity … the departures board overflowed with flights. It is interesting to see that their brand is well-recognised amongst some Ozzies now with some […]
8 September 2008
Just before noon, I flew to Malaysia’s “big smoke” and capital Kuala Lumpur. Air Asia’s sister-company, had amazing deals with rooms at MYR35 (about USD10). The room and stylish ensuite itself was only about USD3 but you pay for your air-conditioning by buying credits which was another USD3 … plus I loaned a towel for […]
5 September 2008
Mooncakes are my favourite Chinese sweet apart from oni (a concoction of mashed taro/yam with lard and sugar). They are eaten during the eighth lunar month in the lead-up to the Moon Cake Festival (aka Mid-Autumn Festival) … supposedly secret messages passed in these cakes helped overthrow an oppressive regime. And then there was something about […]
4 September 2008
Above: Bunga kantan or torch ginger flower. A fragrant addition to some Malaysian dishes. Today we celebrated Mum’s birthday again. It felt like only weeks ago that we did this on a bigger scale but that was 9 months ago … when we celebrated it on her passport date-of-birth … but now we’re doing it […]
3 September 2008
My time in Kuching coincides with Ramadhan. The downside is that good Malay food is hard to find during the day … but the night markets come alive before sunset as people break their fast. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to patronise the goodies at the night markets due to other commitments and rainy nights. […]
31 August 2008
Today, as Malaysians, we celebrate our National Day. Fifty one years since we were released from the clutches of a foreign power and came together as a nation. Errr … actually that’s not quite right. 31 August 1957 which is fifty one years, as of today, refers to the independence of Malaya from British Rule. […]
30 August 2008
Today I fly from Macau at 1035 to my hometown Kuching, on the Malaysian part of Borneo, for some family time. AirAsia recently introduced direct flights from Macau to Kuching and this trip was initiated to make use of this new link. International flights from Kuching are limited and the occasional new routes don’t seem […]