The photo below of a tree is really a cunning disguise. Can you guess what it is???

A photo, courtesy of John

Well, after 24 days of breakfasting at the Sheraton, Hans and I arrived after night shift to find little satchels of Australia's favourite spread, Vegemite. I was still feeling a bit crook in the guts but since it was nearly a month without Vegemite (which I try to have on a daily basis) I couldn't resist some on a couple of pieces of toast. When I awoke later on I was amazed that I felt 10 foot tall and bulletproof and my guts had returned to normal. A tip for Aussie travellers - always take some Vegemite with you wherever you go, and use it to cure any bugs you may pick up on your travels.
 

Hans and Noor, standing in front of the Proton Perdana V6

 



Me and Noor, the most laid back cabbie in KL

Shatish, who doesn't mind a beer!!!

 

 

 

Hans "doing a Lynndie" to a sacrificial goat!!

 

Morrie tucking in!!

It would seem my free webhost won't allow me to link photos to here. I will try and sort it out.

Well I got into work today and the images have reappeared. If I have any more drama, Chris has kindly offered to host the images for me.

On the weekend some of the lads from work took us out for a traditional Indian "sekfun" (big feed). We had a feast that would have fed 20 people easily and there were only 7 of us. Shatish took some food home with him, there was plenty left. We had fish head curry,mutton,crab,beef,prawns and dove!!. Hans took some photos, I will post these at a later date. While we were eating a truck pulled up with 3 goats on the back. They were dragged out to the back of the restaurant and tied up. We were told by Eddy that these goats were to be sacrificed the next day and would feed the whole community. This is done twice a year I think and doesn't really have Government approval, although a blind eye is turned. Hans "did a Lynndie" with the sacrificial goats, once again I will post a photo later.

After the feast we went to Chow Kit which is the sleazy part of K.L. We saw some lady boys, some of which looked pretty nice but repulsed me anyway. We then went to Bangsar, the Beverley Hills of K.L. We saw the "beautiful people" in Ferraris, Maseratis, Lotuses etc.  We had a few beers at a sidewalk bar, except for Hugh who earlier caught a taxi back to the Hotel. We then went on the search for some illegal street bike racing. Apparently the youngsters here form gangs and race like mad on their scooters. The winner "wins" a girl for the week and she will do anything the winner wants, for himself and his gang. A bit weird really. Anyway, there was no races on Saturday night as the police were out and about with road blocks. If you get pulled over the police are more than prepared to let you off if you are willing to pay the "fine" on the spot. We were told that those unwilling to pay the "fine" would be taken to the cells and, as well as the original offence, would be charged with a whole host of other offences to clear the backlog of cases that they have. Eddy told us that sometimes the police may frisk you and "find" a small bag of ganja, you would then be charged with possession and also some other drug related cases that they want cleared up.

On Sunday, Hans, Gerard and myself went back to Chow Kit to check out the markets. I bought a pair of Dockers and a pair of Kickers for the princely sum of $25 - bargain. We went for a swim in the arvo, went for a pizza (which was crap) and then back to the Hotel.

On our second day here we went to the Batu Caves, it is 272 very steep steps from bottom to top. In the 90% humidity and 30 degree plus temperatures it was quite a struggle for a bloke as unfit as myself! Check the picture below:


All over the place there are loads of Macaque monkeys, you have to be careful as they are tame and attracted to shiny objects - see a photo of a couple of the cheeky blighters below:

Merdeka is the Malaysian word for "freedom". On the stroke of midnight on 31st August, 1957, the Union Jack was lowered for the last time and the new Malaysian flag was raised. We were lucky enough to be here for the 47th Merdeka celebrations. The whole EDS crew here went to the "Hard Rock" cafe in Kuala Lumpur for a steak, which was reasonably priced by Australian standards, and a few beers. We then made our way through the crowds to gather at the foot of the twin Petronas Towers. There were so many people there that we all decided to head back to the hotel, with the exception of Hego, who went off to do his own thing.

On Tuesday, Gerard, Hans and myself took a taxi to the Genting Highlands. The rise in altitude meant a drop in temperature, something we were grateful for, the humidity in K.L. is oppressive at times. Located in the Genting Highlands is the world's fastest and South-East Asia's longest cable car system, pictured below.


The cable car takes you to the top of the mountain, where you see the Hotel pictured below. Inside the hotel complex is a casino (we were refused entry due to not having a collared shirt, probably a good thing), an indoor theme park and an outdoor theme park as well. We didn't go on any rides, as they were mainly for kids.