I'm sitting at the airport ready to begin my long journey home.  The first trek will take me to Japan (7 hours) and then from Japan I will head to NYC (13 hours).  I had a wonderful time this year, and will miss all the wonderful things the local teachers are doing at SPB.  However, I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and eating some good old American food.

What a perfect way to end my trip - as I sit typing this, there is a clarinetist who is also waiting to board, and he is gracing us with some beautiful music.

Selamat jalan
Semoga selamat sampai tujuan

Happy travels and have a safe trip!

Fried Carrot Cake - no cake, no carrots, but turnips in a spicy sauce, and good old pig's feet

Another night, another trip to Jalan Alors - where the hawker stalls have everything

Frog ready to be grilled

Lobster ready to be grilled

Three rooms for elegant afternoon tea at the Majestic Hotel

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Afternoon Tea at the Majestic Hotel

As an early birthday present to Regina I took her to the Majestic for afternoon tea. She had never been to tea before so we were both pleasantly surprised at the delicacies offered.  Besides the traditional cucumber sandwiches and scones with clotted cream and jam, we also had a Malaysian twist.  Fried coconut balls, egg with chicken and ginger as well as fried wantons.  It was beautifully designed and executed and made for an enjoyable afternoon away from the incessant heat of Kuala Lumpur.

Afternoon tea at the Majestic Hotel

Built in 1932I n its heyday, The Hotel Majestic was the largest and grandest hotel in Kuala Lumpur, unrivaled for its prestige and luxury. Favured by the colonial elite and prominent visitors, she was the venue for extravagant parties, Sunday curry tiffin lunches and that most European of traditions, the tea dance.

Some of the delectable sweets at the Majestic Hotel

National Mosque of Malaysia

At the mosque, Regina and I were required to don robes (that were hot, polyester, and had been worn by how many others since last cleaned?).

However, what really amazed me was the massage chairs off to the side of the main prayer room.

National Mosque of Malaysia

This is the main prayer area within a massive compound.

Some of the beautiful art work found in the Islamic Art MuseumI

Illuminated Quran 

Minbar, or pulpit in the Islamic religions

mother of pearl handle dagger

Islamic Art Museum

This outstanding museum is home to one of best collections of Islamic decorative arts in the world. Aside from the quality of the exhibits, which include fabulous textiles, carpets, jewellery and calligraphy-inscribed pottery, the building itself is a stunner, with beautifully decorated domes and glazed tilework. 

Heritage buildings

This is the interior of the KTM headquarters in Kuala Lumpur- which is the railway system.
The second picture is the old central railway stop.  A newer, more modern central station is the hub.  This building houses a rail stop and its beauty still remains although few really visit.

Another day, another breakfast with signature drink teh tarik

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Nasi lemak  comes close to being Malaysia's national dish.  With its fluffy fragrant coconut rice, crispy fried anchovies and crunchy nuts, you can have it anywhere, at any time. Breakfast seemed the right time, along with the national drink teh tarik. Teh tarik literally means pulled tea and is made from black tea and condensed milk.  To obtain the froth the mixture is poured back and forth repeatedly between two metal containers from a height, giving it a thick frothy top. This process cools the tea to optimal drinking temperatures, and helps to thoroughly mix the tea with the condensed milk. Sweet, sweet, and sweet.

Jalan Alor fine dining

Jalan Alor is a street in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. During the day, there is not much activity but when the sun goes down, the street will be hustling and bustling with activity. It was once known as a red light district and remnants of those activities still exist. However, after several face lifts, the street has literally become a food haven. Rows and rows of hawker stalls  take up both sides of the road selling food that best represents Malaysia. This is ice cream rolls.

Another hawker selling ice cream on Jalan Alor

Guan Di Temple

One of the most impressive Chinese temples in Kuala Lumpur is the Guan Di Temple (also known as Kuan Ti Temple). It is  a beautiful Taoist temple, just 40 meters from the Hindu Temple (Sri Mahamariamman) .

The last picture on this page is of incense coiled to look like bells hanging from the ceiling. 

Sri Mahamariamman Temple

The Sri Mahamariamman temple is the oldest as well as the richest Hindu temple in Kuala Lumpur,  the capital city of Malaysia.The most remarkable feature of the temple is a structure which is similar to the shape of a human body with its head positioned towards the west and the feet pointing east.

banana leaf rice - Kuala Lumpur style

 Originally a South Indian speciality, a banana leaf rice meal typically has steamed white rice heaped onto a large piece of fresh banana leaf. Copious amounts of piquant fish, chicken or dhal curry are then ladled over the rice, complemented by side dishes of cooked vegetables, tofu and fried papadum crackers. I opted for the pure vegetarian banana leaf rice.  This was the first time Regina had real Indian food. While she enjoyed it - she thought all of Malaysian rice was "prickly" meaning not cooked the same as in Indonesia.  We had two Malaysian Indians come over to our table - one to tell us to eat with our hands- which I promptly did.  The other to tell us he appreciated other people trying Indian food.  

Batu Caves

Monkeys are everywhere at the cave site.  This one was looking for mid-morning snack in the trash can and obviously found something enjoyable as he licked the paper clean.