Hello All!

Now then now then.....it is currently chucking it down outside so here is the next installment from me.

I left my house, had a short walk up the road and got into the first taxi that drove by. It turned out that the driver wanted to have a bit of a chat about the weather, airports and good and evil amongst other things...after discovering that he had attempted to murder his father after invoking the devil....spending time in jail etc....he really got me with the part where he turned into a snake and then started barking and growling (barking is bloody right).

By the end of the day we were sat in my cousins (in a way) house in Kuala Lumpur. It had been about 4 years since Paula, Steve, Lauren, my mum and I had all been together (part of the group had not even been born then). Paula and Steve live in Damansara Heights in a gorgeous place overlooking the city.

Kuala Lumpur consists of Malays, Chinese and Indian people therefore Muslims, Buddists and Hindus. The 'whites' are considered the 'Others'. When wandering around K.L. I do feel pretty conspicuous but always safe.

On day one Paula, my mum and I drove to Carcosa Seri Negara for afternoon tea. It is the most historic colonial hotel in K.L., is over 100 years old and is made from two mansions. We drove there basking in the luxury of air-con and promptly sweated buckets before we opened up the doors to the hotel. The inside of the place is decked out with native orchids, massive displays of flowers and the scent of jasmine which floats out of the teapots in to the air. Sitting in the most tasteful yet flowery room I've ever seen, we drank rose petal tea, Oolong and peach tea and cherry and almond tea and sampled the degustation platters. I felt drunk on all the sugar after being there for an hour! We chatted for hours and hours and caught up it was great fun. Mum was pretty tired so P and I stayed up and had a few drinks and lots more chat on the balcony.

We spent an afternoon at an open house as the Malays were celebrating Aidilfitri, the end of Ramadan. A lot of the houses the ex-pats and Malays live in are in guarded 'villages' where soldiers grant permission after phoning the house of the person you intent visiting. This place we went to was pretty easy-going but did have lots of security cameras every where, not sure if I would be comfy with that.....Anyway, on to Pete 'ten-pints' house where we met lots of Paula and Steves friends and had lots of local dishes that An made for us. One thing that I noticed about the Malays is the hospitality with which you are always received. Petes wife An greeted us warmly, gracefully and calmly (not quite sure how she did that will 40 people and 10 curries on the go). We had been asked to arrive 'later' so that the family had left before the fun began! We met lots of lovely people and then headed home for some MORE food that Lin our maid had cooked for us. It is impolite not to eatwhen it is on offer, so we obliged with another small plate. Later that evening P and I headed to Azruls house, which is in the thick of KLCC (K.L. City Centre). Azrul is a friend of Paulas who did an entirely different kind of open house. Instead of there being ex-pats with on or two non-white faces, it was P and I who were in the minority. What a cracking evening!! I spent the evening with such lovely people and so many stories, discussions and laughter took place. The most hilarious you-had-to-have-been-there story took place on Azruls 70's chair....Between that and Raj and his pineapple biscuits my cheeks were in agony.

The girlies had a day of pedicures, shopping and coffees which was good fun. We had dinner in Chinatown and the hustle and bustle was fantastic. I tried stingray which is possibly my new favourite fish (sorry to all the divers). We also had a look around the shops in Chinatown but all the cheap copies were actually melting in the heat. The traders were trying to show us that they were real leather but wher they lit their lighters next to the bags they just sort of warped.

Up in the telecom tower we got a great view of the city. We could see the parks we had been walking in, the buildings we had srivedn past, the areas we ate in it was spectacular yet still spacious. As it turned to dusk the view was lovely as all the sparkling lights appeared on some of the buildings.

We got to photograph this view again when the girls had a night out at Skybar in the Traders hotel. It was funny as the bar is openair on the 36th floor and there is a swimming pool in the middle of the room. The walkways on either side are pretty slim so high-heels make fun a clammy trip to the bathroom! We treated outselves to lychee rose martinis, french martinis, cloud9 and kiwi-las. Bloody nightmare cannot believe P thought we would like it....As the cocktails flowed, the music got louder and each trip to the toilet was almost that. Thankfully, we all managed to stay dry but there is always next time! P and I were just playful enough to arouse a laugh here and there.....we seemed to get funnier the closer we got to ground level. I will not embarrass anyone (MUM) here......

We had a night in Groove bar with one of the most amazing bands I have hear in a very long time playing. We ate tapas (well all the others did but I could not eat because of a demonic-dentist who made me distressed and damaged for a short while). It was still a great evening though but too hot to sleep. I think thats why P constantly administers Bombays, and there is no point in aruguing she had a knife or at least a drawing of one anyway......

So thats my story for now when I do more you will get more.

Before I do though, BIG love and thanks to Paula, Steve for having us both. Thanks to mum or visiting me (yeah I know I am worth it) and to P for all the chat and love. Love to you both.

Cheers to everyone else but especially Raj, Azrul and An.

Tip of the hat for entertainment has to go to Lauren.

More news soon. Thankx for reading and love to all!!

Shaznay xxx