This is for the people I know who’ve lost close ones in recent weeks, and for all those who know what it feels like to lose someone. WARNING: do not read without kleenex to hand. Do not stand at my grave and weep, I am not there, I do not sleep. I am in a…
Month: June 2008
Malaysia, Part 13: Formula 1 Malay style
To read Malaysia part 14, click here. To read Malaysia part 12, click here. Leaving Melaka was far from straightforward. There were no buses, as we’d hoped, to take us to the Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) outside KL, at least, not if we wanted to make a zillion stops en route. There wasn’t a…
One Night in Paris and London
Monsieur trots off to Paris for work. I stay in London. Yesterday morning on the way to the tube, Monsieur and I preview our days ahead. “Darling,” I say, “you’re so lucky. You’re going to Paris for meetings, have a cocktail event in the Louvre tonight, you’re staying in a lovely hotel with very soft beds and really…
London Bloggers: School in Session!
Last night I joined fellow bloggers for another rendezvous of the London Bloggers Meetup Group. After some humming and hah-ing about which venue to assemble at, we found ourselves back at the Coach & Horses in Soho, for a night of blog-ducation. M3Mobile sponsored the evening, buying beers for the first twenty-ish people. I must…
Tiziano Terzani -War correspondent turned ‘Kamikaze for Peace’
This is a photo of a quote by the late writer, Tiziano Terzani, whose book The Fortune Teller Told Me, has made quite an impression on many who’ve known the Far East. I can’t quite make out all the words on the hoarding in the photo, but towards the end he says something about “reaffirming the…
Malaysia Part 12: In search of bound feet shoes
Back in London, I had been planning our Malaysian itinerary when something in the guidebook caught my eye: “Wah Aik, 103 Jalan Kubu. Renowned for making silk shoes for bound feet. With foot binding no longer practised, the shoes are now lined up in the window as souvenirs, at a mere RM75 per pair.” I…
Epic Blogs 2: Christian Skoda, A nomad forever…
I first found Christian Skoda’s site, Nomad4ever, when researching some future travel plans. The name intrigued me. A nomad forever? I had to find out more. There, I discovered a man after my own heart; someone who believes there is more to life than the mythical 9 to 5 (more like 9am to 9pm, if…
Malaysia Part 11 – In the Night Market
Melaka was livelier in the dark than she had been in the daylight. Once we’d bade farewell to Cedric, we walked across to Jonker Street, past the miniature windmill surrounded by a perfect bed of flowers that would look more appropriate in Disneyland. It was a very different place to the one we’d left that…
Malaysia part 10 – Cedric makes Melaka
Owning a rickshaw is serious business in Malaysia. It’s not just about cycling your heart out as you transport passengers from A to B in exchange for Ringgits. You need and an eye for clashing colours, a friend in the plastic flower business and Lawrence Llewellyn Bowen flair; anything to make your ‘shaw stand out from…
Epic Blog Series – 1. All The Dumb Things
Ever since I started blogging, I’ve found it fascinating and enriching to get to know some other bloggers. One of my first blog-pals is Razzbuffnik, who writes All The Dumb Things. The reasons I’d recommend visiting his site include his fantastic photos, covering every sort of subject from seventies’ Cambodia to a firebreathing Razz and…
London bites – Street Hawker
London is full of wonderful places to eat, both with or without Michelin stars, but as most Londoners will attest, some of the best eateries are local secrets. Street Hawker is one of ours. Located so close to Maida Vale tube stop that it might as well be part of the station, Street Hawker is tiny,…
Wrong number
For a while now, I’ve been receiving midnight calls from a stranger. The calls come from a withheld number, so I always pick up in case it’s a family emergency; my mother has a withheld number, too. The first call, at 1am on a Sunday night, told me everything I need to know about this…
Epicurienne 