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Unfinished beauty

Today I wanted to go to Kellie’s Castle, an incomplete castle built by a Scottish businessman around 1915.  I did that after another dimsum breakfast as my first one didn’t disappoint in terms of the quality and quantity of fillings. The castle is about 30 minutes by car from Ipoh but took me 2 hours […]

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Geriatric doctor

A geriatric doctor, not a geriatrician I needed to see the doctor to check on my fluey ears and chest. There were plenty of choices around the hotel but upon enquiry some of them were “specialists” of various kinds. Strange that they’re not marked as such … perhaps the doctors have had experienced in various […]

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An easy day gone wrong

Above: Poached chicken and beansprouts, and rice noodle soup topped with shredded chicken, are two of Ipoh’s famous dishes.. I landed at KLIA LCCT 20 minutes ahead of schedule on AirAsia. I had booked online a bus to Ipoh allowing for 2h30 in between. So I had a leisurely lunch. I kept an eye out […]

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Joy and magic of flying

Above:  Taking the boat back to the apartment. After an early breakfast, I taxied out to Supadio International Airport. I had to wait briefly for check-in to open even though it was 90 minutes prior to the flight. We were delayed for about half hour. The MASWings flight was very empty despite the zero-fare promotion […]

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Well-deserved lazy day

Above:  “Pondan” is a brand of cake mix here but just across the border, it means “transvestite”. After a great buffet breakfast at the hotel, I ventured out. Nothing much was open being a Sunday morning. I found Carrefour and spent some time in there. I believe supermarkets offer an interesting insight into local life. […]

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Borneo’s Killing Fields

Being normally an extremely heavy sleeper, I was surprised to have slept lightly through the night. I wandered out and found few choices for breakfast. With a long and rough day anticipated, I passed on the satay and opted for a selection of cakes. After breakfast, I investigated options for getting to Mandor where some […]

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Far-flung Chinese outpost

My travel (pronounced truffle) picked me up at 1300 for the 3 hour (USD7) journey north to Singkawang. With a lunch stop and traffic, it took 4 hours. The scenery comprised forests, rice paddies, coconut groves, Kerala-like canals, homes surrounded by black water canals with people swimming and washing in them, and the brown sea […]

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Life by the river

I woke at 0400; the result of retiring too early last night and the early wakeup yesterday. I popped half a sleeping pill and that took me back into dreamland till 0700. I enquired with the hotel about onward travel to Singkawang. As the bus station here is out-of-town (which requires a separate bus or […]

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Ghosts of women who die during pregnancy

With a 0715 bus departure, I had to wake early to catch a taxi to the bus station called Kuching Sentral which is on the outskirts of town, next to the airport. I hopped into the taxi five minutes before 0600 not knowing that it was only five minutes till the 50% night surcharge was […]

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TCM 3 (Consultation)

Above:  Christmas programmes on TV on the life of Jesus carry this warning. Jesus is also a prophet in Islam – which means he should not be depicted and the storyline may differ from that in the Quran. Two days after the second treatment I felt that my middle back wasn’t too good. The benefits […]

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