Most likely confrontational, but I mean no harm, my opinion is just that

     Today is an odd day. Woke up to a pack of feral dogs fighting in the hills behind my apartment, I felt horrible because I could hear one yelping. The office was extremely quite all day. There was some big client meet and great/schmooze/network thing that a bunch of people attended in the am, and a funeral for a former co-worker in the pm. I didn't go to the funeral, I don't know the person and I thought it would be rude to show up to a funeral (never mind depressing). Although it is of interest to note that the woman died of food poisoning. She was in the hospital for some time, but still it is rare for something like this to happen. It's also not the way to go (trust me on this one). I feel bad for her family and friends. Thus it was pretty much the interns and the newer expats in the afternoon. I'm quite tired from staring at a computer screen, moving lines around/fixing diagrams and plans all day. I need to be out and about. I need to be active. That's where I struggle with architecture. Always have really. The modern day attachment to computers scares me in many ways.

     After work I was going to go to yoga, but my tummy doesn't feel well (the mee goreng I had for lunch was quite spicy). I'm also trying to save some money, as tomorrow I'm going with a few co-workers to the largest pasar malam (night market) in Malaysia tomorrow night.

     There are a few new interns at work now. Four guys from Saudi Arabia have joined the company for three weeks. They are extremely shy/stick to themselves, but the other interns keep asking them to lunch to get them to come out of their shells so to speak. It is tough to do when only 2 of them are comfortable speaking English, although one speaks quite well. There is a lot of translating that goes on (I'm currently helping out on the same competition). It's been interesting working with them, I would love to know what they think about taking directions from two women. The guy who speaks good English (whose name is, interestingly enough, Osama) has been surprisingly open in terms of speaking about the Arab world and life in Saudi Arabia.

     If there is one thing I've learned about Arab culture it is that I will never be able to wrap my head around it. I understand some things, on a very superficial level. Whether I agree with them or not is a different story. I have been told that the woman is seen as a fruit or a flower. If it is left out in the open with no protection, the flies (or men) will swarm around it and ruin it. Therefore, women need to be protected. On one level this is rather charming, but on another, doesn't that give men the excuse to act like flies? If not, then why is it every time someone speaks about the Arab world the differences of the sexes is brought up? My friend's sister (who is Iranian) put it nicely saying that she questions Islam because in the modern world it seems to have become a discussion about the differences and rights of men and women. Religion shouldn't be about these issues. I agree. However, it is not my place to preach, say, or do anything about the way other cultures and religions go about their business. I was not born into that society, culture, country, region, race, whatever you want to call it. I can't possibly understand the issues surrounding it, and quite honestly, it isn't my business. Yes I'm a woman, but I'm an American woman, brought up within a different social construct. I have no right to do anything more than state my opinion within the context in which I have been brought up in. In essence, it is not my place, nor do I want it to be.

     With all of that being said, the guys who work with me have not treated me with any disrespect or rudeness whatsoever.  If anything, they are shy which comes across as intimidated by the fact that men and women who are not related or married hang out together. When I put myself in their shoes, there are definitely things they couldn't understand about my culture as well. It goes both ways. I give them credit for hanging out with the other interns at lunch and they seem to be opening up a bit. They came all this way and my hope is that when they go back they at least learn something about each of us or at least Malaysia.

     Today at lunch I told O the importance of the West and the Middle East (people, not government) making an effort to learn from one other. It's so important because due to our respective media, we don't get any sense of reality of each other's lives, homes, and culture. Both sides just hear about the worst situations and stories, not about reality. Propaganda is rampant and the only way to begin to understand each other's cultures is to experience and learn about them. The conversation went from that to our economies and job markets. I found it surprising that they have similar employment issues as we do back home. Both countries are going to experience a severe brain drain if something isn't done soon. Theirs goes one step further to say that the only jobs that can be found are those with foreign companies. These companies only employ foreign workers. If a local workforce is hired, it's for the shit jobs no one else wants. So think about this for a second folks. Obviously the people are going to develop a distrust of the west if the western corporations are coming in and essentially denying their equally qualified workforce a chance at a job. I would be pissed too.

    Another interest (especially to those back in the states) is the oil prices. I asked them (as well as the Malaysians) how much they pay for gas. In Saudi Arabia gas is $0.15 per liter...there are about 4 liters in a gallon making a grand total of $0.60 per gallon...astounding. Seriously astounding. How much do you pay in California these days? On that same token, a Big Mac in Saudi Arabia costs roughly $6 from what I've been told. I suppose you could call that a trade off....wait...probably not. In Malaysia gas is roughly RM 2 and change per liter which is about $2.60 a gallon. That is still significantly cheaper than what most Americans pay to fill up. Both nations are a part of OPEC. Crazy isn't it? I'm not suggesting that cheaper oil prices are good or anything like that. I think that a rising price is a good thing because people need to stop being dependent on a limited resource with negative environmental impacts, but weening the world off an oil dependency is no easy task, and I have no solution.


     That's all for today.


-M

  

     Today is an odd day. Woke up to a pack of feral dogs fighting in the hills behind my apartment, I felt horrible because I could hear one yelping. The office was extremely quite all day. There was some big client meet and great/schmooze/network thing that a bunch of people attended in the am, and a funeral for a former co-worker in the pm. I didn't go to the funeral, I don't know the person and I thought it would be rude to show up to a funeral (never mind depressing). Although it is of interest to note that the woman died of food poisoning. She was in the hospital for some time, but still it is rare for something like this to happen. It's also not the way to go (trust me on this one). I feel bad for her family and friends. Thus it was pretty much the interns and the newer expats in the afternoon. I'm quite tired from staring at a computer screen, moving lines around/fixing diagrams and plans all day. I need to be out and about. I need to be active. That's where I struggle with architecture. Always have really. The modern day attachment to computers scares me in many ways.

     After work I was going to go to yoga, but my tummy doesn't feel well (the mee goreng I had for lunch was quite spicy). I'm also trying to save some money, as tomorrow I'm going with a few co-workers to the largest pasar malam (night market) in Malaysia tomorrow night.

     There are a few new interns at work now. Four guys from Saudi Arabia have joined the company for three weeks. They are extremely shy/stick to themselves, but the other interns keep asking them to lunch to get them to come out of their shells so to speak. It is tough to do when only 2 of them are comfortable speaking English, although one speaks quite well. There is a lot of translating that goes on (I'm currently helping out on the same competition). It's been interesting working with them, I would love to know what they think about taking directions from two women. The guy who speaks good English (whose name is, interestingly enough, Osama) has been surprisingly open in terms of speaking about the Arab world and life in Saudi Arabia.

     If there is one thing I've learned about Arab culture it is that I will never be able to wrap my head around it. I understand some things, on a very superficial level. Whether I agree with them or not is a different story. I have been told that the woman is seen as a fruit or a flower. If it is left out in the open with no protection, the flies (or men) will swarm around it and ruin it. Therefore, women need to be protected. On one level this is rather charming, but on another, doesn't that give men the excuse to act like flies? If not, then why is it every time someone speaks about the Arab world the differences of the sexes is brought up? My friend's sister (who is Iranian) put it nicely saying that she questions Islam because in the modern world it seems to have become a discussion about the differences and rights of men and women. Religion shouldn't be about these issues. I agree. However, it is not my place to preach, say, or do anything about the way other cultures and religions go about their business. I was not born into that society, culture, country, region, race, whatever you want to call it. I can't possibly understand the issues surrounding it, and quite honestly, it isn't my business. Yes I'm a woman, but I'm an American woman, brought up within a different social construct. I have no right to do anything more than state my opinion within the context in which I have been brought up in. In essence, it is not my place, nor do I want it to be.

     With all of that being said, the guys who work with me have not treated me with any disrespect or rudeness whatsoever.  If anything, they are shy which comes across as intimidated by the fact that men and women who are not related or married hang out together. When I put myself in their shoes, there are definitely things they couldn't understand about my culture as well. It goes both ways. I give them credit for hanging out with the other interns at lunch and they seem to be opening up a bit. They came all this way and my hope is that when they go back they at least learn something about each of us or at least Malaysia.

     Today at lunch I told O the importance of the West and the Middle East (people, not government) making an effort to learn from one other. It's so important because due to our respective media, we don't get any sense of reality of each other's lives, homes, and culture. Both sides just hear about the worst situations and stories, not about reality. Propaganda is rampant and the only way to begin to understand each other's cultures is to experience and learn about them. The conversation went from that to our economies and job markets. I found it surprising that they have similar employment issues as we do back home. Both countries are going to experience a severe brain drain if something isn't done soon. Theirs goes one step further to say that the only jobs that can be found are those with foreign companies. These companies only employ foreign workers. If a local workforce is hired, it's for the shit jobs no one else wants. So think about this for a second folks. Obviously the people are going to develop a distrust of the west if the western corporations are coming in and essentially denying their equally qualified workforce a chance at a job. I would be pissed too.

    Another interest (especially to those back in the states) is the oil prices. I asked them (as well as the Malaysians) how much they pay for gas. In Saudi Arabia gas is $0.15 per liter...there are about 4 liters in a gallon making a grand total of $0.60 per gallon...astounding. Seriously astounding. How much do you pay in California these days? On that same token, a Big Mac in Saudi Arabia costs roughly $6 from what I've been told. I suppose you could call that a trade off....wait...probably not. In Malaysia gas is roughly RM 2 and change per liter which is about $2.60 a gallon. That is still significantly cheaper than what most Americans pay to fill up. Both nations are a part of OPEC. Crazy isn't it? I'm not suggesting that cheaper oil prices are good or anything like that. I think that a rising price is a good thing because people need to stop being dependent on a limited resource with negative environmental impacts, but weening the world off an oil dependency is no easy task, and I have no solution.


     That's all for today.


-M

  

     Today is an odd day. Woke up to a pack of feral dogs fighting in the hills behind my apartment, I felt horrible because I could hear one yelping. The office was extremely quite all day. There was some big client meet and great/schmooze/network thing that a bunch of people attended in the am, and a funeral for a former co-worker in the pm. I didn't go to the funeral, I don't know the person and I thought it would be rude to show up to a funeral (never mind depressing). Although it is of interest to note that the woman died of food poisoning. She was in the hospital for some time, but still it is rare for something like this to happen. It's also not the way to go (trust me on this one). I feel bad for her family and friends. Thus it was pretty much the interns and the newer expats in the afternoon. I'm quite tired from staring at a computer screen, moving lines around/fixing diagrams and plans all day. I need to be out and about. I need to be active. That's where I struggle with architecture. Always have really. The modern day attachment to computers scares me in many ways.

     After work I was going to go to yoga, but my tummy doesn't feel well (the mee goreng I had for lunch was quite spicy). I'm also trying to save some money, as tomorrow I'm going with a few co-workers to the largest pasar malam (night market) in Malaysia tomorrow night.

     There are a few new interns at work now. Four guys from Saudi Arabia have joined the company for three weeks. They are extremely shy/stick to themselves, but the other interns keep asking them to lunch to get them to come out of their shells so to speak. It is tough to do when only 2 of them are comfortable speaking English, although one speaks quite well. There is a lot of translating that goes on (I'm currently helping out on the same competition). It's been interesting working with them, I would love to know what they think about taking directions from two women. The guy who speaks good English (whose name is, interestingly enough, Osama) has been surprisingly open in terms of speaking about the Arab world and life in Saudi Arabia.

     If there is one thing I've learned about Arab culture it is that I will never be able to wrap my head around it. I understand some things, on a very superficial level. Whether I agree with them or not is a different story. I have been told that the woman is seen as a fruit or a flower. If it is left out in the open with no protection, the flies (or men) will swarm around it and ruin it. Therefore, women need to be protected. On one level this is rather charming, but on another, doesn't that give men the excuse to act like flies? If not, then why is it every time someone speaks about the Arab world the differences of the sexes is brought up? My friend's sister (who is Iranian) put it nicely saying that she questions Islam because in the modern world it seems to have become a discussion about the differences and rights of men and women. Religion shouldn't be about these issues. I agree. However, it is not my place to preach, say, or do anything about the way other cultures and religions go about their business. I was not born into that society, culture, country, region, race, whatever you want to call it. I can't possibly understand the issues surrounding it, and quite honestly, it isn't my business. Yes I'm a woman, but I'm an American woman, brought up within a different social construct. I have no right to do anything more than state my opinion within the context in which I have been brought up in. In essence, it is not my place, nor do I want it to be.

     With all of that being said, the guys who work with me have not treated me with any disrespect or rudeness whatsoever.  If anything, they are shy which comes across as intimidated by the fact that men and women who are not related or married hang out together. When I put myself in their shoes, there are definitely things they couldn't understand about my culture as well. It goes both ways. I give them credit for hanging out with the other interns at lunch and they seem to be opening up a bit. They came all this way and my hope is that when they go back they at least learn something about each of us or at least Malaysia.

     Today at lunch I told O the importance of the West and the Middle East (people, not government) making an effort to learn from one other. It's so important because due to our respective media, we don't get any sense of reality of each other's lives, homes, and culture. Both sides just hear about the worst situations and stories, not about reality. Propaganda is rampant and the only way to begin to understand each other's cultures is to experience and learn about them. The conversation went from that to our economies and job markets. I found it surprising that they have similar employment issues as we do back home. Both countries are going to experience a severe brain drain if something isn't done soon. Theirs goes one step further to say that the only jobs that can be found are those with foreign companies. These companies only employ foreign workers. If a local workforce is hired, it's for the shit jobs no one else wants. So think about this for a second folks. Obviously the people are going to develop a distrust of the west if the western corporations are coming in and essentially denying their equally qualified workforce a chance at a job. I would be pissed too.

    Another interest (especially to those back in the states) is the oil prices. I asked them (as well as the Malaysians) how much they pay for gas. In Saudi Arabia gas is $0.15 per liter...there are about 4 liters in a gallon making a grand total of $0.60 per gallon...astounding. Seriously astounding. How much do you pay in California these days? On that same token, a Big Mac in Saudi Arabia costs roughly $6 from what I've been told. I suppose you could call that a trade off....wait...probably not. In Malaysia gas is roughly RM 2 and change per liter which is about $2.60 a gallon. That is still significantly cheaper than what most Americans pay to fill up. Both nations are a part of OPEC. Crazy isn't it? I'm not suggesting that cheaper oil prices are good or anything like that. I think that a rising price is a good thing because people need to stop being dependent on a limited resource with negative environmental impacts, but weening the world off an oil dependency is no easy task, and I have no solution.


     That's all for today.


-M

  

     Today is an odd day. Woke up to a pack of feral dogs fighting in the hills behind my apartment, I felt horrible because I could hear one yelping. The office was extremely quite all day. There was some big client meet and great/schmooze/network thing that a bunch of people attended in the am, and a funeral for a former co-worker in the pm. I didn't go to the funeral, I don't know the person and I thought it would be rude to show up to a funeral (never mind depressing). Although it is of interest to note that the woman died of food poisoning. She was in the hospital for some time, but still it is rare for something like this to happen. It's also not the way to go (trust me on this one). I feel bad for her family and friends. Thus it was pretty much the interns and the newer expats in the afternoon. I'm quite tired from staring at a computer screen, moving lines around/fixing diagrams and plans all day. I need to be out and about. I need to be active. That's where I struggle with architecture. Always have really. The modern day attachment to computers scares me in many ways.

     After work I was going to go to yoga, but my tummy doesn't feel well (the mee goreng I had for lunch was quite spicy). I'm also trying to save some money, as tomorrow I'm going with a few co-workers to the largest pasar malam (night market) in Malaysia tomorrow night.

     There are a few new interns at work now. Four guys from Saudi Arabia have joined the company for three weeks. They are extremely shy/stick to themselves, but the other interns keep asking them to lunch to get them to come out of their shells so to speak. It is tough to do when only 2 of them are comfortable speaking English, although one speaks quite well. There is a lot of translating that goes on (I'm currently helping out on the same competition). It's been interesting working with them, I would love to know what they think about taking directions from two women. The guy who speaks good English (whose name is, interestingly enough, Osama) has been surprisingly open in terms of speaking about the Arab world and life in Saudi Arabia.

     If there is one thing I've learned about Arab culture it is that I will never be able to wrap my head around it. I understand some things, on a very superficial level. Whether I agree with them or not is a different story. I have been told that the woman is seen as a fruit or a flower. If it is left out in the open with no protection, the flies (or men) will swarm around it and ruin it. Therefore, women need to be protected. On one level this is rather charming, but on another, doesn't that give men the excuse to act like flies? If not, then why is it every time someone speaks about the Arab world the differences of the sexes is brought up? My friend's sister (who is Iranian) put it nicely saying that she questions Islam because in the modern world it seems to have become a discussion about the differences and rights of men and women. Religion shouldn't be about these issues. I agree. However, it is not my place to preach, say, or do anything about the way other cultures and religions go about their business. I was not born into that society, culture, country, region, race, whatever you want to call it. I can't possibly understand the issues surrounding it, and quite honestly, it isn't my business. Yes I'm a woman, but I'm an American woman, brought up within a different social construct. I have no right to do anything more than state my opinion within the context in which I have been brought up in. In essence, it is not my place, nor do I want it to be.

     With all of that being said, the guys who work with me have not treated me with any disrespect or rudeness whatsoever.  If anything, they are shy which comes across as intimidated by the fact that men and women who are not related or married hang out together. When I put myself in their shoes, there are definitely things they couldn't understand about my culture as well. It goes both ways. I give them credit for hanging out with the other interns at lunch and they seem to be opening up a bit. They came all this way and my hope is that when they go back they at least learn something about each of us or at least Malaysia.

     Today at lunch I told O the importance of the West and the Middle East (people, not government) making an effort to learn from one other. It's so important because due to our respective media, we don't get any sense of reality of each other's lives, homes, and culture. Both sides just hear about the worst situations and stories, not about reality. Propaganda is rampant and the only way to begin to understand each other's cultures is to experience and learn about them. The conversation went from that to our economies and job markets. I found it surprising that they have similar employment issues as we do back home. Both countries are going to experience a severe brain drain if something isn't done soon. Theirs goes one step further to say that the only jobs that can be found are those with foreign companies. These companies only employ foreign workers. If a local workforce is hired, it's for the shit jobs no one else wants. So think about this for a second folks. Obviously the people are going to develop a distrust of the west if the western corporations are coming in and essentially denying their equally qualified workforce a chance at a job. I would be pissed too.

    Another interest (especially to those back in the states) is the oil prices. I asked them (as well as the Malaysians) how much they pay for gas. In Saudi Arabia gas is $0.15 per liter...there are about 4 liters in a gallon making a grand total of $0.60 per gallon...astounding. Seriously astounding. How much do you pay in California these days? On that same token, a Big Mac in Saudi Arabia costs roughly $6 from what I've been told. I suppose you could call that a trade off....wait...probably not. In Malaysia gas is roughly RM 2 and change per liter which is about $2.60 a gallon. That is still significantly cheaper than what most Americans pay to fill up. Both nations are a part of OPEC. Crazy isn't it? I'm not suggesting that cheaper oil prices are good or anything like that. I think that a rising price is a good thing because people need to stop being dependent on a limited resource with negative environmental impacts, but weening the world off an oil dependency is no easy task, and I have no solution.


     That's all for today.


-M

  

The dashboard melted but we still have the radio

     I had some big plans for a super long post with some work updates and some type of soap box speech, but then I opened up the page and decided those thoughts would wait for another day. Honestly, I don't feel much like talking about work because it's Sunday.

     This weekend was quite relaxing. Friday my flatmates and I went clubbing (I know it doesn't sound relaxing...but whatever). Apparently the place we went to usually has a younger crowd, which would explain a lot. Dudes here aren't afraid to come up and talk to a girls only group, but they don't talk too much, and most obviously use the fact that they are a local as some type of pickup line. Not too surprising, but hilarious none the less. It was hip-hop night. Everyone seemed quite shy, but C, F, and I had some steam to blow off, so we hit the stage quite early and got the whole thing rolling. We danced, and the DJ cracked me up b/c he had a CU Boulder football jersey on. I appreciate his attempt at American culture, however if you know anything about American College Football you would know that the Buffs do in fact, suck (and I go to school there, so I don't wanna hear otherwise hehe...). Thus the shirt was worn for the cool factor, when it is in fact, not that cool. I did see a guy at the mall today in a Packers jersey (read: much more appropriate).

     After some awesome dancing and a few awkward globish (simple English) 'conversations' we had enough and did the thing you must do after going out in SEA...go to a hawker center. We headed out to a 24 hr Mamak place (cuz banana leaf was closed and we wanted Indian food) and then home. I had a kick ass time and would have had pictures if the club wasn't raided by the religious police the week before and they allowed cameras.

     Yes, clubs and bars around here, for whatever reason, need to be occasionally broken up by the cops so all of the Muslims inside them can be rounded up and thrown in jail. Sorry, but this I have a problem with. First of all, it ruins it for the people who aren't involved in the conflict, second of all, you can go to a club and not drink (although I don't know many who do), and thirdly mind your damn business. It should be the parents' job anyway to make sure their child is behaving. Once someone is old enough to make their own decisions they should be allowed to do what they want and practice religion however they want. We weighed our options and figured that it would be ridiculous to waste your time busting the same place two weeks in a row. Thankfully no cops showed up, or I may have have spoken a little too much of my mind.

     Although I didn't have a hangover or anything the next day I was tired. I met G for lunch in Kelana Jaya. We ate at a tasty Indonesian/Malay place. I tried chendol for the first time. Chendol pretty much looks and sounds like a garbage disposal to most westerners. However the combo of sweet syrup, coconut milk, frozen corn, colored chendol (I really don't know how to explain it, see the photo), and kidney beans over shaved ice actually works. I can't really explain how, but it does. I also had Sarawak Laksa (again sorry for spelling). I thought it was going to be too much heat to handle, but it was quite nice. Spicy in a flavorful way and delicious. We talked for quite a bit then we decided to head back. However, G mentioned reflexology (a Chinese practice) so we decided to stop. Basically you get a 5 hour foot massage where they use nerve endings in your feet that are supposedly attached to your organs somehow and the point is to help heal what ails you. If there is anything I've learned from Asia it's the Chinese know what they are talking about when it comes to traditional medicine. Not to mention my feet definitely needed some TLC, as I walk most everywhere. Afterwards, I sluggishly made my way back to KL and home all happy and relaxed.

     C and I grabbed dinner at the Lebanese place one stop on the LRT down from us. We had some awesome falafel and apple mint shisha. Essentially, one could not ask for a more relaxing Saturday. We were late to a party at a co-worker's place. When we showed up I was completely under-dressed and too relaxed to really feel like partying. All I wanted to do was sleep. It wasn't that the party sucked or anything, I simply wasn't into it. So I left shortly after and crashed in bed.

     Awoke early today to go to church with A, my 'host mom' from earlier in the summer. It was the last mass that the father would give at the perish so I went to support her. Now I've been to the Vatican where they broadcast mass in Italian/Latin (it was a while ago so I'm not so sure as to which language it was...I mean Latin with an Italian accent sounds pretty much like Italian). However, I've never seen mass in 4 different languages. The readings, Homily, and song switched between English, Tamil, Mandarin, and Bahasa Malaysia. Most of the time they projected English subtitles. I was surprised at how much Bahasa Malaysia I could understand. Afterwards I bought some food at the church sale and came back home. I booked my flight to Bali (Jul 28th till Aug 1st), did various chores, then headed down to the pool for a workout. The sun/pool combo took a lot out of me so I took a nap. I awoke to a thunderstorm, but it looked as if the rain had passed so I headed out to get groceries. I have had a craving for french fries all day, so I splurged on some (not from McDonalds). Of course once I got out the door of the mall it started pouring. I only live about a 7 min walk from the mall, so a cab seemed like a waste. I enjoyed the downpour, although I wasn't too happy about even soggier groceries.

     Pretty much just been taking care of house work here today. It's what I needed though. I've either been go go go go, working, or trying to recover from a cold; so a weekend to just take it easy was a must. Next weekend I'm headed to the jungle (sort of...I mean jungle is everywhere, so it's not deep jungle, but a just-outside-of-town place) with a bunch of CSers plus C. I'm pretty excited. Not too sure what this week will bring with work, but hopefully it isn't too overwhelming.

Time to make some dinners...need to eat the food I have and tone down the spending =).

-M

cendol....pronounced 'chen-dol'

Reflexology 

Durian season is upon us...if anyone wants to go hit me up

Kinda blurry, but the horse wanted to be on the bridge.

     I had some big plans for a super long post with some work updates and some type of soap box speech, but then I opened up the page and decided those thoughts would wait for another day. Honestly, I don't feel much like talking about work because it's Sunday.

     This weekend was quite relaxing. Friday my flatmates and I went clubbing (I know it doesn't sound relaxing...but whatever). Apparently the place we went to usually has a younger crowd, which would explain a lot. Dudes here aren't afraid to come up and talk to a girls only group, but they don't talk too much, and most obviously use the fact that they are a local as some type of pickup line. Not too surprising, but hilarious none the less. It was hip-hop night. Everyone seemed quite shy, but C, F, and I had some steam to blow off, so we hit the stage quite early and got the whole thing rolling. We danced, and the DJ cracked me up b/c he had a CU Boulder football jersey on. I appreciate his attempt at American culture, however if you know anything about American College Football you would know that the Buffs do in fact, suck (and I go to school there, so I don't wanna hear otherwise hehe...). Thus the shirt was worn for the cool factor, when it is in fact, not that cool. I did see a guy at the mall today in a Packers jersey (read: much more appropriate).

     After some awesome dancing and a few awkward globish (simple English) 'conversations' we had enough and did the thing you must do after going out in SEA...go to a hawker center. We headed out to a 24 hr Mamak place (cuz banana leaf was closed and we wanted Indian food) and then home. I had a kick ass time and would have had pictures if the club wasn't raided by the religious police the week before and they allowed cameras.

     Yes, clubs and bars around here, for whatever reason, need to be occasionally broken up by the cops so all of the Muslims inside them can be rounded up and thrown in jail. Sorry, but this I have a problem with. First of all, it ruins it for the people who aren't involved in the conflict, second of all, you can go to a club and not drink (although I don't know many who do), and thirdly mind your damn business. It should be the parents' job anyway to make sure their child is behaving. Once someone is old enough to make their own decisions they should be allowed to do what they want and practice religion however they want. We weighed our options and figured that it would be ridiculous to waste your time busting the same place two weeks in a row. Thankfully no cops showed up, or I may have have spoken a little too much of my mind.

     Although I didn't have a hangover or anything the next day I was tired. I met G for lunch in Kelana Jaya. We ate at a tasty Indonesian/Malay place. I tried chendol for the first time. Chendol pretty much looks and sounds like a garbage disposal to most westerners. However the combo of sweet syrup, coconut milk, frozen corn, colored chendol (I really don't know how to explain it, see the photo), and kidney beans over shaved ice actually works. I can't really explain how, but it does. I also had Sarawak Laksa (again sorry for spelling). I thought it was going to be too much heat to handle, but it was quite nice. Spicy in a flavorful way and delicious. We talked for quite a bit then we decided to head back. However, G mentioned reflexology (a Chinese practice) so we decided to stop. Basically you get a 5 hour foot massage where they use nerve endings in your feet that are supposedly attached to your organs somehow and the point is to help heal what ails you. If there is anything I've learned from Asia it's the Chinese know what they are talking about when it comes to traditional medicine. Not to mention my feet definitely needed some TLC, as I walk most everywhere. Afterwards, I sluggishly made my way back to KL and home all happy and relaxed.

     C and I grabbed dinner at the Lebanese place one stop on the LRT down from us. We had some awesome falafel and apple mint shisha. Essentially, one could not ask for a more relaxing Saturday. We were late to a party at a co-worker's place. When we showed up I was completely under-dressed and too relaxed to really feel like partying. All I wanted to do was sleep. It wasn't that the party sucked or anything, I simply wasn't into it. So I left shortly after and crashed in bed.

     Awoke early today to go to church with A, my 'host mom' from earlier in the summer. It was the last mass that the father would give at the perish so I went to support her. Now I've been to the Vatican where they broadcast mass in Italian/Latin (it was a while ago so I'm not so sure as to which language it was...I mean Latin with an Italian accent sounds pretty much like Italian). However, I've never seen mass in 4 different languages. The readings, Homily, and song switched between English, Tamil, Mandarin, and Bahasa Malaysia. Most of the time they projected English subtitles. I was surprised at how much Bahasa Malaysia I could understand. Afterwards I bought some food at the church sale and came back home. I booked my flight to Bali (Jul 28th till Aug 1st), did various chores, then headed down to the pool for a workout. The sun/pool combo took a lot out of me so I took a nap. I awoke to a thunderstorm, but it looked as if the rain had passed so I headed out to get groceries. I have had a craving for french fries all day, so I splurged on some (not from McDonalds). Of course once I got out the door of the mall it started pouring. I only live about a 7 min walk from the mall, so a cab seemed like a waste. I enjoyed the downpour, although I wasn't too happy about even soggier groceries.

     Pretty much just been taking care of house work here today. It's what I needed though. I've either been go go go go, working, or trying to recover from a cold; so a weekend to just take it easy was a must. Next weekend I'm headed to the jungle (sort of...I mean jungle is everywhere, so it's not deep jungle, but a just-outside-of-town place) with a bunch of CSers plus C. I'm pretty excited. Not too sure what this week will bring with work, but hopefully it isn't too overwhelming.

Time to make some dinners...need to eat the food I have and tone down the spending =).

-M

cendol....pronounced 'chen-dol'

Reflexology 

Durian season is upon us...if anyone wants to go hit me up

Kinda blurry, but the horse wanted to be on the bridge.

     I had some big plans for a super long post with some work updates and some type of soap box speech, but then I opened up the page and decided those thoughts would wait for another day. Honestly, I don't feel much like talking about work because it's Sunday.

     This weekend was quite relaxing. Friday my flatmates and I went clubbing (I know it doesn't sound relaxing...but whatever). Apparently the place we went to usually has a younger crowd, which would explain a lot. Dudes here aren't afraid to come up and talk to a girls only group, but they don't talk too much, and most obviously use the fact that they are a local as some type of pickup line. Not too surprising, but hilarious none the less. It was hip-hop night. Everyone seemed quite shy, but C, F, and I had some steam to blow off, so we hit the stage quite early and got the whole thing rolling. We danced, and the DJ cracked me up b/c he had a CU Boulder football jersey on. I appreciate his attempt at American culture, however if you know anything about American College Football you would know that the Buffs do in fact, suck (and I go to school there, so I don't wanna hear otherwise hehe...). Thus the shirt was worn for the cool factor, when it is in fact, not that cool. I did see a guy at the mall today in a Packers jersey (read: much more appropriate).

     After some awesome dancing and a few awkward globish (simple English) 'conversations' we had enough and did the thing you must do after going out in SEA...go to a hawker center. We headed out to a 24 hr Mamak place (cuz banana leaf was closed and we wanted Indian food) and then home. I had a kick ass time and would have had pictures if the club wasn't raided by the religious police the week before and they allowed cameras.

     Yes, clubs and bars around here, for whatever reason, need to be occasionally broken up by the cops so all of the Muslims inside them can be rounded up and thrown in jail. Sorry, but this I have a problem with. First of all, it ruins it for the people who aren't involved in the conflict, second of all, you can go to a club and not drink (although I don't know many who do), and thirdly mind your damn business. It should be the parents' job anyway to make sure their child is behaving. Once someone is old enough to make their own decisions they should be allowed to do what they want and practice religion however they want. We weighed our options and figured that it would be ridiculous to waste your time busting the same place two weeks in a row. Thankfully no cops showed up, or I may have have spoken a little too much of my mind.

     Although I didn't have a hangover or anything the next day I was tired. I met G for lunch in Kelana Jaya. We ate at a tasty Indonesian/Malay place. I tried chendol for the first time. Chendol pretty much looks and sounds like a garbage disposal to most westerners. However the combo of sweet syrup, coconut milk, frozen corn, colored chendol (I really don't know how to explain it, see the photo), and kidney beans over shaved ice actually works. I can't really explain how, but it does. I also had Sarawak Laksa (again sorry for spelling). I thought it was going to be too much heat to handle, but it was quite nice. Spicy in a flavorful way and delicious. We talked for quite a bit then we decided to head back. However, G mentioned reflexology (a Chinese practice) so we decided to stop. Basically you get a 5 hour foot massage where they use nerve endings in your feet that are supposedly attached to your organs somehow and the point is to help heal what ails you. If there is anything I've learned from Asia it's the Chinese know what they are talking about when it comes to traditional medicine. Not to mention my feet definitely needed some TLC, as I walk most everywhere. Afterwards, I sluggishly made my way back to KL and home all happy and relaxed.

     C and I grabbed dinner at the Lebanese place one stop on the LRT down from us. We had some awesome falafel and apple mint shisha. Essentially, one could not ask for a more relaxing Saturday. We were late to a party at a co-worker's place. When we showed up I was completely under-dressed and too relaxed to really feel like partying. All I wanted to do was sleep. It wasn't that the party sucked or anything, I simply wasn't into it. So I left shortly after and crashed in bed.

     Awoke early today to go to church with A, my 'host mom' from earlier in the summer. It was the last mass that the father would give at the perish so I went to support her. Now I've been to the Vatican where they broadcast mass in Italian/Latin (it was a while ago so I'm not so sure as to which language it was...I mean Latin with an Italian accent sounds pretty much like Italian). However, I've never seen mass in 4 different languages. The readings, Homily, and song switched between English, Tamil, Mandarin, and Bahasa Malaysia. Most of the time they projected English subtitles. I was surprised at how much Bahasa Malaysia I could understand. Afterwards I bought some food at the church sale and came back home. I booked my flight to Bali (Jul 28th till Aug 1st), did various chores, then headed down to the pool for a workout. The sun/pool combo took a lot out of me so I took a nap. I awoke to a thunderstorm, but it looked as if the rain had passed so I headed out to get groceries. I have had a craving for french fries all day, so I splurged on some (not from McDonalds). Of course once I got out the door of the mall it started pouring. I only live about a 7 min walk from the mall, so a cab seemed like a waste. I enjoyed the downpour, although I wasn't too happy about even soggier groceries.

     Pretty much just been taking care of house work here today. It's what I needed though. I've either been go go go go, working, or trying to recover from a cold; so a weekend to just take it easy was a must. Next weekend I'm headed to the jungle (sort of...I mean jungle is everywhere, so it's not deep jungle, but a just-outside-of-town place) with a bunch of CSers plus C. I'm pretty excited. Not too sure what this week will bring with work, but hopefully it isn't too overwhelming.

Time to make some dinners...need to eat the food I have and tone down the spending =).

-M

cendol....pronounced 'chen-dol'

Reflexology 

Durian season is upon us...if anyone wants to go hit me up

Kinda blurry, but the horse wanted to be on the bridge.

     I had some big plans for a super long post with some work updates and some type of soap box speech, but then I opened up the page and decided those thoughts would wait for another day. Honestly, I don't feel much like talking about work because it's Sunday.

     This weekend was quite relaxing. Friday my flatmates and I went clubbing (I know it doesn't sound relaxing...but whatever). Apparently the place we went to usually has a younger crowd, which would explain a lot. Dudes here aren't afraid to come up and talk to a girls only group, but they don't talk too much, and most obviously use the fact that they are a local as some type of pickup line. Not too surprising, but hilarious none the less. It was hip-hop night. Everyone seemed quite shy, but C, F, and I had some steam to blow off, so we hit the stage quite early and got the whole thing rolling. We danced, and the DJ cracked me up b/c he had a CU Boulder football jersey on. I appreciate his attempt at American culture, however if you know anything about American College Football you would know that the Buffs do in fact, suck (and I go to school there, so I don't wanna hear otherwise hehe...). Thus the shirt was worn for the cool factor, when it is in fact, not that cool. I did see a guy at the mall today in a Packers jersey (read: much more appropriate).

     After some awesome dancing and a few awkward globish (simple English) 'conversations' we had enough and did the thing you must do after going out in SEA...go to a hawker center. We headed out to a 24 hr Mamak place (cuz banana leaf was closed and we wanted Indian food) and then home. I had a kick ass time and would have had pictures if the club wasn't raided by the religious police the week before and they allowed cameras.

     Yes, clubs and bars around here, for whatever reason, need to be occasionally broken up by the cops so all of the Muslims inside them can be rounded up and thrown in jail. Sorry, but this I have a problem with. First of all, it ruins it for the people who aren't involved in the conflict, second of all, you can go to a club and not drink (although I don't know many who do), and thirdly mind your damn business. It should be the parents' job anyway to make sure their child is behaving. Once someone is old enough to make their own decisions they should be allowed to do what they want and practice religion however they want. We weighed our options and figured that it would be ridiculous to waste your time busting the same place two weeks in a row. Thankfully no cops showed up, or I may have have spoken a little too much of my mind.

     Although I didn't have a hangover or anything the next day I was tired. I met G for lunch in Kelana Jaya. We ate at a tasty Indonesian/Malay place. I tried chendol for the first time. Chendol pretty much looks and sounds like a garbage disposal to most westerners. However the combo of sweet syrup, coconut milk, frozen corn, colored chendol (I really don't know how to explain it, see the photo), and kidney beans over shaved ice actually works. I can't really explain how, but it does. I also had Sarawak Laksa (again sorry for spelling). I thought it was going to be too much heat to handle, but it was quite nice. Spicy in a flavorful way and delicious. We talked for quite a bit then we decided to head back. However, G mentioned reflexology (a Chinese practice) so we decided to stop. Basically you get a 5 hour foot massage where they use nerve endings in your feet that are supposedly attached to your organs somehow and the point is to help heal what ails you. If there is anything I've learned from Asia it's the Chinese know what they are talking about when it comes to traditional medicine. Not to mention my feet definitely needed some TLC, as I walk most everywhere. Afterwards, I sluggishly made my way back to KL and home all happy and relaxed.

     C and I grabbed dinner at the Lebanese place one stop on the LRT down from us. We had some awesome falafel and apple mint shisha. Essentially, one could not ask for a more relaxing Saturday. We were late to a party at a co-worker's place. When we showed up I was completely under-dressed and too relaxed to really feel like partying. All I wanted to do was sleep. It wasn't that the party sucked or anything, I simply wasn't into it. So I left shortly after and crashed in bed.

     Awoke early today to go to church with A, my 'host mom' from earlier in the summer. It was the last mass that the father would give at the perish so I went to support her. Now I've been to the Vatican where they broadcast mass in Italian/Latin (it was a while ago so I'm not so sure as to which language it was...I mean Latin with an Italian accent sounds pretty much like Italian). However, I've never seen mass in 4 different languages. The readings, Homily, and song switched between English, Tamil, Mandarin, and Bahasa Malaysia. Most of the time they projected English subtitles. I was surprised at how much Bahasa Malaysia I could understand. Afterwards I bought some food at the church sale and came back home. I booked my flight to Bali (Jul 28th till Aug 1st), did various chores, then headed down to the pool for a workout. The sun/pool combo took a lot out of me so I took a nap. I awoke to a thunderstorm, but it looked as if the rain had passed so I headed out to get groceries. I have had a craving for french fries all day, so I splurged on some (not from McDonalds). Of course once I got out the door of the mall it started pouring. I only live about a 7 min walk from the mall, so a cab seemed like a waste. I enjoyed the downpour, although I wasn't too happy about even soggier groceries.

     Pretty much just been taking care of house work here today. It's what I needed though. I've either been go go go go, working, or trying to recover from a cold; so a weekend to just take it easy was a must. Next weekend I'm headed to the jungle (sort of...I mean jungle is everywhere, so it's not deep jungle, but a just-outside-of-town place) with a bunch of CSers plus C. I'm pretty excited. Not too sure what this week will bring with work, but hopefully it isn't too overwhelming.

Time to make some dinners...need to eat the food I have and tone down the spending =).

-M

cendol....pronounced 'chen-dol'

Reflexology 

Durian season is upon us...if anyone wants to go hit me up

Kinda blurry, but the horse wanted to be on the bridge.

Notes on Sustainability

Please excuse the odd formatting and any blatent spelling errors. This computer doesn't pick up on English errors all that well.

     

                       I am quite bored at work right now. I have been working on this presentation to the office for quite some time now, and I’m bored with it. Although it is interesting, I’ve just been looking at it for too long. The presentation compares LEED to GBI. LEED is the US-based green building standard and GBI is the Malaysian one. It is interesting, because sustainability seems to be half-hearted here. I am surprised and not at the same time. Although there are many luxuries of a developed nation, as a whole, Malaysia is still a developing place. It is also no secret that much of the rainforest here has been, well, raped and turned into palm oil plantations with most of the oldest rainforests in the world gone forever. Sad, yes, but at the same time, people who are struggling to make it in a rapidly developing world and be able to compete on a global market often have no other option. As a whole, Malaysia treats their forests better than Indonesia. However, I knew this before I got here so it’s nothing new to me.

          The Amazon has a similar problem. It’s sad and it’s wrong, but corruption in the government leads to exploitation without thought of long-term consequence regardless of development level as a whole.

          There are some surprising things of note though. Every take-away meal is complete with a Styrofoam box and a small plastic back. Two things that are virtually indestructible. I didn’t notice this until I came here, but in the US there is much more cardboard/paper disposable containers and sturdy corn-based take-away boxes are becoming the norm. Granted these things cannot be recycled if they are stained with oils and food, however, they do decompose. I think that given its food culture, Malaysia should adopt a more sustainable means of doing the whole take-away thing. Especially since recycling is practically non-existent here. It’s actually cheaper, and I don’t really understand why you need a plastic bag when you can just hold the carton in your hand.

§  However, they are more energy conscious here in the home.

·         Fans, tvs, lights, ect are not left on when no one is home. This includes air con. It goes even further, where typical homes only have air con in bedrooms and if you are wealthy enough in the living room (although it is only on when occupied). Furthermore, because MY does not follow the IBC (international building code) corridors and hallways of public places/residences (excluding malls) are naturally ventilated.

·         Every outlet has an on/off switch. This stops the small amount of electricity from flowing through your appliances even when they are turned off (and also the obvious reason of child safety).

·         I’ve also noticed that hot tap water is hard to come by, as is cold. It’s room temperature, saving on the energy costs of heating and cooling water. The standard shower also uses instant hot water.

o   Yet even still, faucets and water appliances are leaky and rarely turn off immediately.

§  I suppose overall it has its ups and downs just like the USA. However, sustainability in design (aside from throwing on a green roof or green element somewhere) seems to be an afterthought at best. Orientation is considered, as well as natural light, but in terms of energy saving strategies and the like I don’t see too much of it.

            In terms of my week, it has been simply work, gym, and catching up on things from back home/working out my trip to Bali. I went out to dinner at a Mamak (Indian) place and had some delicious roti (unleven bread, comes with some spicy dips) with a bunch of CSers in Bukit Bitang. BB is essentially a techy’s wet dream. There are stores selling all kinds of electronics at discounted prices. I need to go there at some point to get my point and shoot fixed (yes, I found it...in the depths of my dirty laundry of all places…). However, I had a limited amount of time so I just had dinner. In a frenzy to get home in time to talk to MB (we hadn’t talked in a really long time) I forgot to pay. Fortunately, I’ll be seeing my CS buddies soon at a meet up in a jungle lodge so I’ll be sure to pay them back. I don’t like owing people money though. Thanks a bunch for covering for me E!

Don't ask why this is bulleted, or formatted weird. Just take it for what it is lah.

TGIF party in, party in (Q was singing that song this morning and it is still stuck in my head...but I guess that's what I get for teasing him all the time.)

-M

Please excuse the odd formatting and any blatent spelling errors. This computer doesn't pick up on English errors all that well.

     

                       I am quite bored at work right now. I have been working on this presentation to the office for quite some time now, and I’m bored with it. Although it is interesting, I’ve just been looking at it for too long. The presentation compares LEED to GBI. LEED is the US-based green building standard and GBI is the Malaysian one. It is interesting, because sustainability seems to be half-hearted here. I am surprised and not at the same time. Although there are many luxuries of a developed nation, as a whole, Malaysia is still a developing place. It is also no secret that much of the rainforest here has been, well, raped and turned into palm oil plantations with most of the oldest rainforests in the world gone forever. Sad, yes, but at the same time, people who are struggling to make it in a rapidly developing world and be able to compete on a global market often have no other option. As a whole, Malaysia treats their forests better than Indonesia. However, I knew this before I got here so it’s nothing new to me.

          The Amazon has a similar problem. It’s sad and it’s wrong, but corruption in the government leads to exploitation without thought of long-term consequence regardless of development level as a whole.

          There are some surprising things of note though. Every take-away meal is complete with a Styrofoam box and a small plastic back. Two things that are virtually indestructible. I didn’t notice this until I came here, but in the US there is much more cardboard/paper disposable containers and sturdy corn-based take-away boxes are becoming the norm. Granted these things cannot be recycled if they are stained with oils and food, however, they do decompose. I think that given its food culture, Malaysia should adopt a more sustainable means of doing the whole take-away thing. Especially since recycling is practically non-existent here. It’s actually cheaper, and I don’t really understand why you need a plastic bag when you can just hold the carton in your hand.

§  However, they are more energy conscious here in the home.

·         Fans, tvs, lights, ect are not left on when no one is home. This includes air con. It goes even further, where typical homes only have air con in bedrooms and if you are wealthy enough in the living room (although it is only on when occupied). Furthermore, because MY does not follow the IBC (international building code) corridors and hallways of public places/residences (excluding malls) are naturally ventilated.

·         Every outlet has an on/off switch. This stops the small amount of electricity from flowing through your appliances even when they are turned off (and also the obvious reason of child safety).

·         I’ve also noticed that hot tap water is hard to come by, as is cold. It’s room temperature, saving on the energy costs of heating and cooling water. The standard shower also uses instant hot water.

o   Yet even still, faucets and water appliances are leaky and rarely turn off immediately.

§  I suppose overall it has its ups and downs just like the USA. However, sustainability in design (aside from throwing on a green roof or green element somewhere) seems to be an afterthought at best. Orientation is considered, as well as natural light, but in terms of energy saving strategies and the like I don’t see too much of it.

            In terms of my week, it has been simply work, gym, and catching up on things from back home/working out my trip to Bali. I went out to dinner at a Mamak (Indian) place and had some delicious roti (unleven bread, comes with some spicy dips) with a bunch of CSers in Bukit Bitang. BB is essentially a techy’s wet dream. There are stores selling all kinds of electronics at discounted prices. I need to go there at some point to get my point and shoot fixed (yes, I found it...in the depths of my dirty laundry of all places…). However, I had a limited amount of time so I just had dinner. In a frenzy to get home in time to talk to MB (we hadn’t talked in a really long time) I forgot to pay. Fortunately, I’ll be seeing my CS buddies soon at a meet up in a jungle lodge so I’ll be sure to pay them back. I don’t like owing people money though. Thanks a bunch for covering for me E!

Don't ask why this is bulleted, or formatted weird. Just take it for what it is lah.

TGIF party in, party in (Q was singing that song this morning and it is still stuck in my head...but I guess that's what I get for teasing him all the time.)

-M

Please excuse the odd formatting and any blatent spelling errors. This computer doesn't pick up on English errors all that well.

     

                       I am quite bored at work right now. I have been working on this presentation to the office for quite some time now, and I’m bored with it. Although it is interesting, I’ve just been looking at it for too long. The presentation compares LEED to GBI. LEED is the US-based green building standard and GBI is the Malaysian one. It is interesting, because sustainability seems to be half-hearted here. I am surprised and not at the same time. Although there are many luxuries of a developed nation, as a whole, Malaysia is still a developing place. It is also no secret that much of the rainforest here has been, well, raped and turned into palm oil plantations with most of the oldest rainforests in the world gone forever. Sad, yes, but at the same time, people who are struggling to make it in a rapidly developing world and be able to compete on a global market often have no other option. As a whole, Malaysia treats their forests better than Indonesia. However, I knew this before I got here so it’s nothing new to me.

          The Amazon has a similar problem. It’s sad and it’s wrong, but corruption in the government leads to exploitation without thought of long-term consequence regardless of development level as a whole.

          There are some surprising things of note though. Every take-away meal is complete with a Styrofoam box and a small plastic back. Two things that are virtually indestructible. I didn’t notice this until I came here, but in the US there is much more cardboard/paper disposable containers and sturdy corn-based take-away boxes are becoming the norm. Granted these things cannot be recycled if they are stained with oils and food, however, they do decompose. I think that given its food culture, Malaysia should adopt a more sustainable means of doing the whole take-away thing. Especially since recycling is practically non-existent here. It’s actually cheaper, and I don’t really understand why you need a plastic bag when you can just hold the carton in your hand.

§  However, they are more energy conscious here in the home.

·         Fans, tvs, lights, ect are not left on when no one is home. This includes air con. It goes even further, where typical homes only have air con in bedrooms and if you are wealthy enough in the living room (although it is only on when occupied). Furthermore, because MY does not follow the IBC (international building code) corridors and hallways of public places/residences (excluding malls) are naturally ventilated.

·         Every outlet has an on/off switch. This stops the small amount of electricity from flowing through your appliances even when they are turned off (and also the obvious reason of child safety).

·         I’ve also noticed that hot tap water is hard to come by, as is cold. It’s room temperature, saving on the energy costs of heating and cooling water. The standard shower also uses instant hot water.

o   Yet even still, faucets and water appliances are leaky and rarely turn off immediately.

§  I suppose overall it has its ups and downs just like the USA. However, sustainability in design (aside from throwing on a green roof or green element somewhere) seems to be an afterthought at best. Orientation is considered, as well as natural light, but in terms of energy saving strategies and the like I don’t see too much of it.

            In terms of my week, it has been simply work, gym, and catching up on things from back home/working out my trip to Bali. I went out to dinner at a Mamak (Indian) place and had some delicious roti (unleven bread, comes with some spicy dips) with a bunch of CSers in Bukit Bitang. BB is essentially a techy’s wet dream. There are stores selling all kinds of electronics at discounted prices. I need to go there at some point to get my point and shoot fixed (yes, I found it...in the depths of my dirty laundry of all places…). However, I had a limited amount of time so I just had dinner. In a frenzy to get home in time to talk to MB (we hadn’t talked in a really long time) I forgot to pay. Fortunately, I’ll be seeing my CS buddies soon at a meet up in a jungle lodge so I’ll be sure to pay them back. I don’t like owing people money though. Thanks a bunch for covering for me E!

Don't ask why this is bulleted, or formatted weird. Just take it for what it is lah.

TGIF party in, party in (Q was singing that song this morning and it is still stuck in my head...but I guess that's what I get for teasing him all the time.)

-M

Please excuse the odd formatting and any blatent spelling errors. This computer doesn't pick up on English errors all that well.

     

                       I am quite bored at work right now. I have been working on this presentation to the office for quite some time now, and I’m bored with it. Although it is interesting, I’ve just been looking at it for too long. The presentation compares LEED to GBI. LEED is the US-based green building standard and GBI is the Malaysian one. It is interesting, because sustainability seems to be half-hearted here. I am surprised and not at the same time. Although there are many luxuries of a developed nation, as a whole, Malaysia is still a developing place. It is also no secret that much of the rainforest here has been, well, raped and turned into palm oil plantations with most of the oldest rainforests in the world gone forever. Sad, yes, but at the same time, people who are struggling to make it in a rapidly developing world and be able to compete on a global market often have no other option. As a whole, Malaysia treats their forests better than Indonesia. However, I knew this before I got here so it’s nothing new to me.

          The Amazon has a similar problem. It’s sad and it’s wrong, but corruption in the government leads to exploitation without thought of long-term consequence regardless of development level as a whole.

          There are some surprising things of note though. Every take-away meal is complete with a Styrofoam box and a small plastic back. Two things that are virtually indestructible. I didn’t notice this until I came here, but in the US there is much more cardboard/paper disposable containers and sturdy corn-based take-away boxes are becoming the norm. Granted these things cannot be recycled if they are stained with oils and food, however, they do decompose. I think that given its food culture, Malaysia should adopt a more sustainable means of doing the whole take-away thing. Especially since recycling is practically non-existent here. It’s actually cheaper, and I don’t really understand why you need a plastic bag when you can just hold the carton in your hand.

§  However, they are more energy conscious here in the home.

·         Fans, tvs, lights, ect are not left on when no one is home. This includes air con. It goes even further, where typical homes only have air con in bedrooms and if you are wealthy enough in the living room (although it is only on when occupied). Furthermore, because MY does not follow the IBC (international building code) corridors and hallways of public places/residences (excluding malls) are naturally ventilated.

·         Every outlet has an on/off switch. This stops the small amount of electricity from flowing through your appliances even when they are turned off (and also the obvious reason of child safety).

·         I’ve also noticed that hot tap water is hard to come by, as is cold. It’s room temperature, saving on the energy costs of heating and cooling water. The standard shower also uses instant hot water.

o   Yet even still, faucets and water appliances are leaky and rarely turn off immediately.

§  I suppose overall it has its ups and downs just like the USA. However, sustainability in design (aside from throwing on a green roof or green element somewhere) seems to be an afterthought at best. Orientation is considered, as well as natural light, but in terms of energy saving strategies and the like I don’t see too much of it.

            In terms of my week, it has been simply work, gym, and catching up on things from back home/working out my trip to Bali. I went out to dinner at a Mamak (Indian) place and had some delicious roti (unleven bread, comes with some spicy dips) with a bunch of CSers in Bukit Bitang. BB is essentially a techy’s wet dream. There are stores selling all kinds of electronics at discounted prices. I need to go there at some point to get my point and shoot fixed (yes, I found it...in the depths of my dirty laundry of all places…). However, I had a limited amount of time so I just had dinner. In a frenzy to get home in time to talk to MB (we hadn’t talked in a really long time) I forgot to pay. Fortunately, I’ll be seeing my CS buddies soon at a meet up in a jungle lodge so I’ll be sure to pay them back. I don’t like owing people money though. Thanks a bunch for covering for me E!

Don't ask why this is bulleted, or formatted weird. Just take it for what it is lah.

TGIF party in, party in (Q was singing that song this morning and it is still stuck in my head...but I guess that's what I get for teasing him all the time.)

-M

Singapore and some more

     After a large beer with S and sharing a cab home (the LRT was having one of its freak-outs and not running) I made some pasta and I am currently on the couch relaxing after a tiring Monday. It wasn't stressful or anything, just still tired from the weekend (so my apologies for the lack sense this post will most likely make).

     Singapore was a great time. I met so many awesome people it made my trip. I ended up staying with my host on the first night, R for the whole trip. He was one of those people that you meet in life who you truly feel like you've known for ever (I've only met two other people in my life like this). He hails from Egypt, and if you've known me for an extended period of time, you know that Egypt has been on the top of my places-to-go list for over a decade. Needless to say, we had lots to talk about. I am fascinated by Egyptian culture and now I have an even better reason to make a visit some day. We got along quite well and it was awesome to have him show me around.

     After I arrived and dropped my stuff off at R's car, I headed down to the Esplanade to check out the architecture and meet up with Y from TB. Y is so sweet, we grabbed ice cream at Marina Bay Resort and wandered around. Discussed about life, travel, and what not. I hope she (and, of course, R) come to visit me at some point (if you are reading this, you are always welcome). Either here or back in CO. Y and I were going to meet up on Saturday, but our plans didn't match up in the end.

     For dinner I met up with a bunch of CSers in Little India for some amazing Indian food (MSG free, which is a plus in these parts). There were a bunch of guys from India talking about their country, and they not only convinced me with their comments, but with their fun personalities. I've always been skeptical about going ever since my stomach had its issues in Mongolia, but honestly they've beyond convinced me. I was told multiple times that it is either a place you love or never go back. If I can get over the food/stomach thing I'm pretty positive I'll love it. I enjoy places far removed from what I am used to. Money is, of course, an issue so maybe one of these days.

     After dinner all of us headed over to Chinatown to get some cheap beers at the hawker center there. The lady who served us was like the Chinese mother I never had. You can probably picture her in your head. She gave us some discounts and even offered us free 'peanuts' (aka garbanzo beans). When I got a road soda and a water to go she gave me one of the lowest bows I've ever seen in appreciation. It was, in a nutshell, cute. However, between the huge group of us, we did buy plenty of beers, I would be thankful too.

     The next stop was Clark Quay, where all the bars/clubs are, we chilled out on the bridge, drank some more, hung out, and my camera got passed around. It is a lively place where people essentially just hang out and drink with club music booming in the background. It's the kind of place I like to be, casual and a place for good conversation. Got home late and slept in some.

     The next day R and I had Kaya toast (toast with coconut jam, butter, and soft boiled egg...basically the best thing ever for breakfast) with some dim sum. We played with the dogs (he has three mutts, loved them, as I obviously miss my own doggy at home). Next we putted around Chinatown where I bought some souvenirs. Next we went to Arab Street and had a long lunch with shesha. We had some really good conversations about culture, religion, travel, and enjoying life. We were going to go to Little India, but a relaxing lunch seemed like a better option. Next we stopped by La Salle (at this point it was night). The place made you feel like you were in a rendering.

     That night I went to one of the best parties I've been to. It was one of those things that you wouldn't have known about unless you lived there. It was a beach party at Saratosa Island. Admission was free and you could BYOB (which we did, 2 bottles of FABULOUS vodka for the group, a tube of glow sticks, three squirt guns, and light up bunny ears). There were fire dancers, a pool, kites with LED lights, a kick ass DJ, and a ton of people. Although I'm usually not  fan of this type of clubby party thing, I've been craving a big dance party with a large group of people (CSers all came) and there is nothing better than dancing on the beach in the moonlight. We stayed out quite late, got back, grabbed some food, and passed out.

     The next morning I awoke with no hangover (enhancing the awesomeness of the vodka) and R gave me a ride to the bus station. I slept the whole way home. Singapore was so much different than I expected it to be. Yes it is, at times, too clean. There are a lot of fake people hanging about. It also has a large number of foreigners which shouldn't have surprised me, but did. Furthermore, especially coming from Malaysia, it was expensive. However with all of that being said, the architecture kicks ass, the food is better than the rave reviews give it, and the people I met there were so great. It is a very cosmopolitan city. Similar to KL I can see myself living there for a year or so. I actually found this surprising because the two places are extremely different. I really wish I had a better way to explain it, but I don't. Feelings are feelings, they often don't have explanations. If I wasn't making Malaysian wages I'd try to go back.

     When I got back to KL, it did feel good to be back. There is something about KL that I can relate to. Government and laws aside, I enjoy the sometimes non-sensical way of things here. Although I'm constantly terrified of j-walking across Jalan Ampang I secretly like the thrill. Once again, I don't really know where I'm going with this, which is why this post is quite hard to write. Most people around here seem to like one or the other, but I like them both. They should mix and have a love child city.

    Well it's time to get away from the computer. One last thing, I think I've decided where I'm going to go next month. The CSers are meeting in Bali at the end of July and I hope it works out. Flights seem cheap and Bali is a place I've always wanted to visit. Here are some pics before I sign off...

Mer-lion and spaceship Marina 

Marina Bay

Chinatown

Clark Quay

V doing the coconut tree climb

Da Bridge

Chinese Medicine shop

Render world

Beach party

-M

     After a large beer with S and sharing a cab home (the LRT was having one of its freak-outs and not running) I made some pasta and I am currently on the couch relaxing after a tiring Monday. It wasn't stressful or anything, just still tired from the weekend (so my apologies for the lack sense this post will most likely make).

     Singapore was a great time. I met so many awesome people it made my trip. I ended up staying with my host on the first night, R for the whole trip. He was one of those people that you meet in life who you truly feel like you've known for ever (I've only met two other people in my life like this). He hails from Egypt, and if you've known me for an extended period of time, you know that Egypt has been on the top of my places-to-go list for over a decade. Needless to say, we had lots to talk about. I am fascinated by Egyptian culture and now I have an even better reason to make a visit some day. We got along quite well and it was awesome to have him show me around.

     After I arrived and dropped my stuff off at R's car, I headed down to the Esplanade to check out the architecture and meet up with Y from TB. Y is so sweet, we grabbed ice cream at Marina Bay Resort and wandered around. Discussed about life, travel, and what not. I hope she (and, of course, R) come to visit me at some point (if you are reading this, you are always welcome). Either here or back in CO. Y and I were going to meet up on Saturday, but our plans didn't match up in the end.

     For dinner I met up with a bunch of CSers in Little India for some amazing Indian food (MSG free, which is a plus in these parts). There were a bunch of guys from India talking about their country, and they not only convinced me with their comments, but with their fun personalities. I've always been skeptical about going ever since my stomach had its issues in Mongolia, but honestly they've beyond convinced me. I was told multiple times that it is either a place you love or never go back. If I can get over the food/stomach thing I'm pretty positive I'll love it. I enjoy places far removed from what I am used to. Money is, of course, an issue so maybe one of these days.

     After dinner all of us headed over to Chinatown to get some cheap beers at the hawker center there. The lady who served us was like the Chinese mother I never had. You can probably picture her in your head. She gave us some discounts and even offered us free 'peanuts' (aka garbanzo beans). When I got a road soda and a water to go she gave me one of the lowest bows I've ever seen in appreciation. It was, in a nutshell, cute. However, between the huge group of us, we did buy plenty of beers, I would be thankful too.

     The next stop was Clark Quay, where all the bars/clubs are, we chilled out on the bridge, drank some more, hung out, and my camera got passed around. It is a lively place where people essentially just hang out and drink with club music booming in the background. It's the kind of place I like to be, casual and a place for good conversation. Got home late and slept in some.

     The next day R and I had Kaya toast (toast with coconut jam, butter, and soft boiled egg...basically the best thing ever for breakfast) with some dim sum. We played with the dogs (he has three mutts, loved them, as I obviously miss my own doggy at home). Next we putted around Chinatown where I bought some souvenirs. Next we went to Arab Street and had a long lunch with shesha. We had some really good conversations about culture, religion, travel, and enjoying life. We were going to go to Little India, but a relaxing lunch seemed like a better option. Next we stopped by La Salle (at this point it was night). The place made you feel like you were in a rendering.

     That night I went to one of the best parties I've been to. It was one of those things that you wouldn't have known about unless you lived there. It was a beach party at Saratosa Island. Admission was free and you could BYOB (which we did, 2 bottles of FABULOUS vodka for the group, a tube of glow sticks, three squirt guns, and light up bunny ears). There were fire dancers, a pool, kites with LED lights, a kick ass DJ, and a ton of people. Although I'm usually not  fan of this type of clubby party thing, I've been craving a big dance party with a large group of people (CSers all came) and there is nothing better than dancing on the beach in the moonlight. We stayed out quite late, got back, grabbed some food, and passed out.

     The next morning I awoke with no hangover (enhancing the awesomeness of the vodka) and R gave me a ride to the bus station. I slept the whole way home. Singapore was so much different than I expected it to be. Yes it is, at times, too clean. There are a lot of fake people hanging about. It also has a large number of foreigners which shouldn't have surprised me, but did. Furthermore, especially coming from Malaysia, it was expensive. However with all of that being said, the architecture kicks ass, the food is better than the rave reviews give it, and the people I met there were so great. It is a very cosmopolitan city. Similar to KL I can see myself living there for a year or so. I actually found this surprising because the two places are extremely different. I really wish I had a better way to explain it, but I don't. Feelings are feelings, they often don't have explanations. If I wasn't making Malaysian wages I'd try to go back.

     When I got back to KL, it did feel good to be back. There is something about KL that I can relate to. Government and laws aside, I enjoy the sometimes non-sensical way of things here. Although I'm constantly terrified of j-walking across Jalan Ampang I secretly like the thrill. Once again, I don't really know where I'm going with this, which is why this post is quite hard to write. Most people around here seem to like one or the other, but I like them both. They should mix and have a love child city.

    Well it's time to get away from the computer. One last thing, I think I've decided where I'm going to go next month. The CSers are meeting in Bali at the end of July and I hope it works out. Flights seem cheap and Bali is a place I've always wanted to visit. Here are some pics before I sign off...

Mer-lion and spaceship Marina 

Marina Bay

Chinatown

Clark Quay

V doing the coconut tree climb

Da Bridge

Chinese Medicine shop

Render world

Beach party

-M

     After a large beer with S and sharing a cab home (the LRT was having one of its freak-outs and not running) I made some pasta and I am currently on the couch relaxing after a tiring Monday. It wasn't stressful or anything, just still tired from the weekend (so my apologies for the lack sense this post will most likely make).

     Singapore was a great time. I met so many awesome people it made my trip. I ended up staying with my host on the first night, R for the whole trip. He was one of those people that you meet in life who you truly feel like you've known for ever (I've only met two other people in my life like this). He hails from Egypt, and if you've known me for an extended period of time, you know that Egypt has been on the top of my places-to-go list for over a decade. Needless to say, we had lots to talk about. I am fascinated by Egyptian culture and now I have an even better reason to make a visit some day. We got along quite well and it was awesome to have him show me around.

     After I arrived and dropped my stuff off at R's car, I headed down to the Esplanade to check out the architecture and meet up with Y from TB. Y is so sweet, we grabbed ice cream at Marina Bay Resort and wandered around. Discussed about life, travel, and what not. I hope she (and, of course, R) come to visit me at some point (if you are reading this, you are always welcome). Either here or back in CO. Y and I were going to meet up on Saturday, but our plans didn't match up in the end.

     For dinner I met up with a bunch of CSers in Little India for some amazing Indian food (MSG free, which is a plus in these parts). There were a bunch of guys from India talking about their country, and they not only convinced me with their comments, but with their fun personalities. I've always been skeptical about going ever since my stomach had its issues in Mongolia, but honestly they've beyond convinced me. I was told multiple times that it is either a place you love or never go back. If I can get over the food/stomach thing I'm pretty positive I'll love it. I enjoy places far removed from what I am used to. Money is, of course, an issue so maybe one of these days.

     After dinner all of us headed over to Chinatown to get some cheap beers at the hawker center there. The lady who served us was like the Chinese mother I never had. You can probably picture her in your head. She gave us some discounts and even offered us free 'peanuts' (aka garbanzo beans). When I got a road soda and a water to go she gave me one of the lowest bows I've ever seen in appreciation. It was, in a nutshell, cute. However, between the huge group of us, we did buy plenty of beers, I would be thankful too.

     The next stop was Clark Quay, where all the bars/clubs are, we chilled out on the bridge, drank some more, hung out, and my camera got passed around. It is a lively place where people essentially just hang out and drink with club music booming in the background. It's the kind of place I like to be, casual and a place for good conversation. Got home late and slept in some.

     The next day R and I had Kaya toast (toast with coconut jam, butter, and soft boiled egg...basically the best thing ever for breakfast) with some dim sum. We played with the dogs (he has three mutts, loved them, as I obviously miss my own doggy at home). Next we putted around Chinatown where I bought some souvenirs. Next we went to Arab Street and had a long lunch with shesha. We had some really good conversations about culture, religion, travel, and enjoying life. We were going to go to Little India, but a relaxing lunch seemed like a better option. Next we stopped by La Salle (at this point it was night). The place made you feel like you were in a rendering.

     That night I went to one of the best parties I've been to. It was one of those things that you wouldn't have known about unless you lived there. It was a beach party at Saratosa Island. Admission was free and you could BYOB (which we did, 2 bottles of FABULOUS vodka for the group, a tube of glow sticks, three squirt guns, and light up bunny ears). There were fire dancers, a pool, kites with LED lights, a kick ass DJ, and a ton of people. Although I'm usually not  fan of this type of clubby party thing, I've been craving a big dance party with a large group of people (CSers all came) and there is nothing better than dancing on the beach in the moonlight. We stayed out quite late, got back, grabbed some food, and passed out.

     The next morning I awoke with no hangover (enhancing the awesomeness of the vodka) and R gave me a ride to the bus station. I slept the whole way home. Singapore was so much different than I expected it to be. Yes it is, at times, too clean. There are a lot of fake people hanging about. It also has a large number of foreigners which shouldn't have surprised me, but did. Furthermore, especially coming from Malaysia, it was expensive. However with all of that being said, the architecture kicks ass, the food is better than the rave reviews give it, and the people I met there were so great. It is a very cosmopolitan city. Similar to KL I can see myself living there for a year or so. I actually found this surprising because the two places are extremely different. I really wish I had a better way to explain it, but I don't. Feelings are feelings, they often don't have explanations. If I wasn't making Malaysian wages I'd try to go back.

     When I got back to KL, it did feel good to be back. There is something about KL that I can relate to. Government and laws aside, I enjoy the sometimes non-sensical way of things here. Although I'm constantly terrified of j-walking across Jalan Ampang I secretly like the thrill. Once again, I don't really know where I'm going with this, which is why this post is quite hard to write. Most people around here seem to like one or the other, but I like them both. They should mix and have a love child city.

    Well it's time to get away from the computer. One last thing, I think I've decided where I'm going to go next month. The CSers are meeting in Bali at the end of July and I hope it works out. Flights seem cheap and Bali is a place I've always wanted to visit. Here are some pics before I sign off...

Mer-lion and spaceship Marina 

Marina Bay

Chinatown

Clark Quay

V doing the coconut tree climb

Da Bridge

Chinese Medicine shop

Render world

Beach party

-M

     After a large beer with S and sharing a cab home (the LRT was having one of its freak-outs and not running) I made some pasta and I am currently on the couch relaxing after a tiring Monday. It wasn't stressful or anything, just still tired from the weekend (so my apologies for the lack sense this post will most likely make).

     Singapore was a great time. I met so many awesome people it made my trip. I ended up staying with my host on the first night, R for the whole trip. He was one of those people that you meet in life who you truly feel like you've known for ever (I've only met two other people in my life like this). He hails from Egypt, and if you've known me for an extended period of time, you know that Egypt has been on the top of my places-to-go list for over a decade. Needless to say, we had lots to talk about. I am fascinated by Egyptian culture and now I have an even better reason to make a visit some day. We got along quite well and it was awesome to have him show me around.

     After I arrived and dropped my stuff off at R's car, I headed down to the Esplanade to check out the architecture and meet up with Y from TB. Y is so sweet, we grabbed ice cream at Marina Bay Resort and wandered around. Discussed about life, travel, and what not. I hope she (and, of course, R) come to visit me at some point (if you are reading this, you are always welcome). Either here or back in CO. Y and I were going to meet up on Saturday, but our plans didn't match up in the end.

     For dinner I met up with a bunch of CSers in Little India for some amazing Indian food (MSG free, which is a plus in these parts). There were a bunch of guys from India talking about their country, and they not only convinced me with their comments, but with their fun personalities. I've always been skeptical about going ever since my stomach had its issues in Mongolia, but honestly they've beyond convinced me. I was told multiple times that it is either a place you love or never go back. If I can get over the food/stomach thing I'm pretty positive I'll love it. I enjoy places far removed from what I am used to. Money is, of course, an issue so maybe one of these days.

     After dinner all of us headed over to Chinatown to get some cheap beers at the hawker center there. The lady who served us was like the Chinese mother I never had. You can probably picture her in your head. She gave us some discounts and even offered us free 'peanuts' (aka garbanzo beans). When I got a road soda and a water to go she gave me one of the lowest bows I've ever seen in appreciation. It was, in a nutshell, cute. However, between the huge group of us, we did buy plenty of beers, I would be thankful too.

     The next stop was Clark Quay, where all the bars/clubs are, we chilled out on the bridge, drank some more, hung out, and my camera got passed around. It is a lively place where people essentially just hang out and drink with club music booming in the background. It's the kind of place I like to be, casual and a place for good conversation. Got home late and slept in some.

     The next day R and I had Kaya toast (toast with coconut jam, butter, and soft boiled egg...basically the best thing ever for breakfast) with some dim sum. We played with the dogs (he has three mutts, loved them, as I obviously miss my own doggy at home). Next we putted around Chinatown where I bought some souvenirs. Next we went to Arab Street and had a long lunch with shesha. We had some really good conversations about culture, religion, travel, and enjoying life. We were going to go to Little India, but a relaxing lunch seemed like a better option. Next we stopped by La Salle (at this point it was night). The place made you feel like you were in a rendering.

     That night I went to one of the best parties I've been to. It was one of those things that you wouldn't have known about unless you lived there. It was a beach party at Saratosa Island. Admission was free and you could BYOB (which we did, 2 bottles of FABULOUS vodka for the group, a tube of glow sticks, three squirt guns, and light up bunny ears). There were fire dancers, a pool, kites with LED lights, a kick ass DJ, and a ton of people. Although I'm usually not  fan of this type of clubby party thing, I've been craving a big dance party with a large group of people (CSers all came) and there is nothing better than dancing on the beach in the moonlight. We stayed out quite late, got back, grabbed some food, and passed out.

     The next morning I awoke with no hangover (enhancing the awesomeness of the vodka) and R gave me a ride to the bus station. I slept the whole way home. Singapore was so much different than I expected it to be. Yes it is, at times, too clean. There are a lot of fake people hanging about. It also has a large number of foreigners which shouldn't have surprised me, but did. Furthermore, especially coming from Malaysia, it was expensive. However with all of that being said, the architecture kicks ass, the food is better than the rave reviews give it, and the people I met there were so great. It is a very cosmopolitan city. Similar to KL I can see myself living there for a year or so. I actually found this surprising because the two places are extremely different. I really wish I had a better way to explain it, but I don't. Feelings are feelings, they often don't have explanations. If I wasn't making Malaysian wages I'd try to go back.

     When I got back to KL, it did feel good to be back. There is something about KL that I can relate to. Government and laws aside, I enjoy the sometimes non-sensical way of things here. Although I'm constantly terrified of j-walking across Jalan Ampang I secretly like the thrill. Once again, I don't really know where I'm going with this, which is why this post is quite hard to write. Most people around here seem to like one or the other, but I like them both. They should mix and have a love child city.

    Well it's time to get away from the computer. One last thing, I think I've decided where I'm going to go next month. The CSers are meeting in Bali at the end of July and I hope it works out. Flights seem cheap and Bali is a place I've always wanted to visit. Here are some pics before I sign off...

Mer-lion and spaceship Marina 

Marina Bay

Chinatown

Clark Quay

V doing the coconut tree climb

Da Bridge

Chinese Medicine shop

Render world

Beach party

-M

Happy Father's Day Dad!

     I'm back from Singapore. After having a long weekend of walking around, eating, and partying with some great people I'm quite tired so I'll update on my trip another day. I just wanted to give a shout out to my dad as it's father's day (well not quite yet for him). My dad is a great guy and he's always been there for me. I see him and how happy he is with his life and with his job and I really admire him for that. There are so many people out there who go through life in a robot-like way, and he is not one of them. He truly tries to seize every moment he can. Even when we don't see eye-to-eye on certain issues (usually pertaining to worldly issues) I admire the fact that he can still maintain an open mind, or at least listen to what I have to say. Dad, you're awesome. Hopefully I will see you here in KL soon.

Love,

-M

     I'm back from Singapore. After having a long weekend of walking around, eating, and partying with some great people I'm quite tired so I'll update on my trip another day. I just wanted to give a shout out to my dad as it's father's day (well not quite yet for him). My dad is a great guy and he's always been there for me. I see him and how happy he is with his life and with his job and I really admire him for that. There are so many people out there who go through life in a robot-like way, and he is not one of them. He truly tries to seize every moment he can. Even when we don't see eye-to-eye on certain issues (usually pertaining to worldly issues) I admire the fact that he can still maintain an open mind, or at least listen to what I have to say. Dad, you're awesome. Hopefully I will see you here in KL soon.

Love,

-M

     I'm back from Singapore. After having a long weekend of walking around, eating, and partying with some great people I'm quite tired so I'll update on my trip another day. I just wanted to give a shout out to my dad as it's father's day (well not quite yet for him). My dad is a great guy and he's always been there for me. I see him and how happy he is with his life and with his job and I really admire him for that. There are so many people out there who go through life in a robot-like way, and he is not one of them. He truly tries to seize every moment he can. Even when we don't see eye-to-eye on certain issues (usually pertaining to worldly issues) I admire the fact that he can still maintain an open mind, or at least listen to what I have to say. Dad, you're awesome. Hopefully I will see you here in KL soon.

Love,

-M

     I'm back from Singapore. After having a long weekend of walking around, eating, and partying with some great people I'm quite tired so I'll update on my trip another day. I just wanted to give a shout out to my dad as it's father's day (well not quite yet for him). My dad is a great guy and he's always been there for me. I see him and how happy he is with his life and with his job and I really admire him for that. There are so many people out there who go through life in a robot-like way, and he is not one of them. He truly tries to seize every moment he can. Even when we don't see eye-to-eye on certain issues (usually pertaining to worldly issues) I admire the fact that he can still maintain an open mind, or at least listen to what I have to say. Dad, you're awesome. Hopefully I will see you here in KL soon.

Love,

-M

TaDah!!!!

     Finished the competition and watched it as the parchment paper containing three weeks of nothing but work flew out the door at the last minute. It was crazy. Essentially the competition submittal is at about the level of a regular studio submittal (except the plans are slightly less detailed...well the sections are single-lined at least) done in a matter of 3.5 weeks. For those of you who don't know, that's three months of work crammed into three weeks, with only 3 people working on it until last week. Yesterday it seemed the whole office was in on it (granted I sit by all the 3d guys - and gal). Some had been there all night, I was lucky enough to leave by 9.30 or so. We all got a bit loopy the last final days, the situation resembled something like the last few nights before jury. I must admit though, it was quite cool to see the final products. Even cooler to not have to stare at them anymore and send them away.

    After the boards went out, a bunch of us went out for food. The place has no name, except for 'behind the parking lot.' They served Malay food. Although I wasn't exactly hungry for spicy food at 10:45 in the morning, I grabbed a plate anyway because I wanted to try what I could. I pretty much loaded my plate with bite sized portions of different sauces and curries, as well as a sweet ayam (chicken) drumstick. Of course, it all tasted yummy. I had some sayur (veggies) with a little bit of chili in it, but it wasn't supposed to be spicy. However, my luck proved to be, once again, surprising and I bit right into a chili seed. My mouth went aflame. Never had I eaten anything so spicy. The unexpected factor didn't help matters. My mouth hurt so bad I was tearing up. Of course, all my Malaysian co-workers were laughing at me. I found it funny as well, I mean here I am, this weird white girl sitting in this rinky-dink (just the way I like it) food stall in an old parking lot, behind a crumbling wall, putting things on my plate that I was told would be spicy and I bite into the one thing that even I know is not spicy and my mouth lights up with heat. Whatever, you win some you lose some. 

     I also had some sauce made from fermented Durian and I liked it a lot. The smell of Durian (albeit it smells like sewage meets wet newspaper) really doesn't bother me all that much. Maybe it's because I'm in a city and almost expect nasty smells at times. It isn't something I'd wear as perfume, but it isn't the worst thing I've smelled either. I'd still like to try some, I know my time will come, my room mate, F, loves it.

     Speaking of F, she took me out to Banana Leaf rice on Sunday night. Best meal I've had so far hands down. The place is pretty well known in KL. It was the first time I was hungry all weekend, and I thought that with a cold some spice might help decongest me a little bit. It worked like a charm and I've been feeling better ever since. Still not well enough to go to the gym, but I'm well enough to make it through the day without medication.

     I got the rest of the day off after lunch so I ran a few errands (cashing paycheck, buying stamps, buying my bus ticket to Singapore) and then did some reading up on travel. I'm not too sure where I'm going to go in late July. Maybe Seim Reap to see Ankor Wat? I keep getting mixed reviews about Cambodia though. Laos I think is out because I've heard too many negative things. I don't have time to see Vietnam or Thailand (unless i just went to one place, but is there really a point to that?) Korea is too expensive, and I'm not going to Bali or Borneo with MB (we will be back for that next year). I'm not too sure what will end up happening, but I'm open to suggestions.

   The only thing I have left to do is to head to Bukit Butang to Lowyatt in order to see if I can get my point and shoot fixed before the weekend. I've been told by enough people that I have a 'rip me off' tatoo stamped to my forehead so if I don't want to pay a lot to fix it I should go with someone who knows the place. The problem is, the one person I know just pulled an all-nighter so I'm not about to ask him. The other person who could help needs to help my roomie study for the bar so I don't want to disturb him either. We shall see what happens. 

     Anyways, I'm off, I'll try to post up some pictures on Flickr today. Going to talk to the fams tomorrow. 

Laters!

-M

     Finished the competition and watched it as the parchment paper containing three weeks of nothing but work flew out the door at the last minute. It was crazy. Essentially the competition submittal is at about the level of a regular studio submittal (except the plans are slightly less detailed...well the sections are single-lined at least) done in a matter of 3.5 weeks. For those of you who don't know, that's three months of work crammed into three weeks, with only 3 people working on it until last week. Yesterday it seemed the whole office was in on it (granted I sit by all the 3d guys - and gal). Some had been there all night, I was lucky enough to leave by 9.30 or so. We all got a bit loopy the last final days, the situation resembled something like the last few nights before jury. I must admit though, it was quite cool to see the final products. Even cooler to not have to stare at them anymore and send them away.

    After the boards went out, a bunch of us went out for food. The place has no name, except for 'behind the parking lot.' They served Malay food. Although I wasn't exactly hungry for spicy food at 10:45 in the morning, I grabbed a plate anyway because I wanted to try what I could. I pretty much loaded my plate with bite sized portions of different sauces and curries, as well as a sweet ayam (chicken) drumstick. Of course, it all tasted yummy. I had some sayur (veggies) with a little bit of chili in it, but it wasn't supposed to be spicy. However, my luck proved to be, once again, surprising and I bit right into a chili seed. My mouth went aflame. Never had I eaten anything so spicy. The unexpected factor didn't help matters. My mouth hurt so bad I was tearing up. Of course, all my Malaysian co-workers were laughing at me. I found it funny as well, I mean here I am, this weird white girl sitting in this rinky-dink (just the way I like it) food stall in an old parking lot, behind a crumbling wall, putting things on my plate that I was told would be spicy and I bite into the one thing that even I know is not spicy and my mouth lights up with heat. Whatever, you win some you lose some. 

     I also had some sauce made from fermented Durian and I liked it a lot. The smell of Durian (albeit it smells like sewage meets wet newspaper) really doesn't bother me all that much. Maybe it's because I'm in a city and almost expect nasty smells at times. It isn't something I'd wear as perfume, but it isn't the worst thing I've smelled either. I'd still like to try some, I know my time will come, my room mate, F, loves it.

     Speaking of F, she took me out to Banana Leaf rice on Sunday night. Best meal I've had so far hands down. The place is pretty well known in KL. It was the first time I was hungry all weekend, and I thought that with a cold some spice might help decongest me a little bit. It worked like a charm and I've been feeling better ever since. Still not well enough to go to the gym, but I'm well enough to make it through the day without medication.

     I got the rest of the day off after lunch so I ran a few errands (cashing paycheck, buying stamps, buying my bus ticket to Singapore) and then did some reading up on travel. I'm not too sure where I'm going to go in late July. Maybe Seim Reap to see Ankor Wat? I keep getting mixed reviews about Cambodia though. Laos I think is out because I've heard too many negative things. I don't have time to see Vietnam or Thailand (unless i just went to one place, but is there really a point to that?) Korea is too expensive, and I'm not going to Bali or Borneo with MB (we will be back for that next year). I'm not too sure what will end up happening, but I'm open to suggestions.

   The only thing I have left to do is to head to Bukit Butang to Lowyatt in order to see if I can get my point and shoot fixed before the weekend. I've been told by enough people that I have a 'rip me off' tatoo stamped to my forehead so if I don't want to pay a lot to fix it I should go with someone who knows the place. The problem is, the one person I know just pulled an all-nighter so I'm not about to ask him. The other person who could help needs to help my roomie study for the bar so I don't want to disturb him either. We shall see what happens. 

     Anyways, I'm off, I'll try to post up some pictures on Flickr today. Going to talk to the fams tomorrow. 

Laters!

-M

     Finished the competition and watched it as the parchment paper containing three weeks of nothing but work flew out the door at the last minute. It was crazy. Essentially the competition submittal is at about the level of a regular studio submittal (except the plans are slightly less detailed...well the sections are single-lined at least) done in a matter of 3.5 weeks. For those of you who don't know, that's three months of work crammed into three weeks, with only 3 people working on it until last week. Yesterday it seemed the whole office was in on it (granted I sit by all the 3d guys - and gal). Some had been there all night, I was lucky enough to leave by 9.30 or so. We all got a bit loopy the last final days, the situation resembled something like the last few nights before jury. I must admit though, it was quite cool to see the final products. Even cooler to not have to stare at them anymore and send them away.

    After the boards went out, a bunch of us went out for food. The place has no name, except for 'behind the parking lot.' They served Malay food. Although I wasn't exactly hungry for spicy food at 10:45 in the morning, I grabbed a plate anyway because I wanted to try what I could. I pretty much loaded my plate with bite sized portions of different sauces and curries, as well as a sweet ayam (chicken) drumstick. Of course, it all tasted yummy. I had some sayur (veggies) with a little bit of chili in it, but it wasn't supposed to be spicy. However, my luck proved to be, once again, surprising and I bit right into a chili seed. My mouth went aflame. Never had I eaten anything so spicy. The unexpected factor didn't help matters. My mouth hurt so bad I was tearing up. Of course, all my Malaysian co-workers were laughing at me. I found it funny as well, I mean here I am, this weird white girl sitting in this rinky-dink (just the way I like it) food stall in an old parking lot, behind a crumbling wall, putting things on my plate that I was told would be spicy and I bite into the one thing that even I know is not spicy and my mouth lights up with heat. Whatever, you win some you lose some. 

     I also had some sauce made from fermented Durian and I liked it a lot. The smell of Durian (albeit it smells like sewage meets wet newspaper) really doesn't bother me all that much. Maybe it's because I'm in a city and almost expect nasty smells at times. It isn't something I'd wear as perfume, but it isn't the worst thing I've smelled either. I'd still like to try some, I know my time will come, my room mate, F, loves it.

     Speaking of F, she took me out to Banana Leaf rice on Sunday night. Best meal I've had so far hands down. The place is pretty well known in KL. It was the first time I was hungry all weekend, and I thought that with a cold some spice might help decongest me a little bit. It worked like a charm and I've been feeling better ever since. Still not well enough to go to the gym, but I'm well enough to make it through the day without medication.

     I got the rest of the day off after lunch so I ran a few errands (cashing paycheck, buying stamps, buying my bus ticket to Singapore) and then did some reading up on travel. I'm not too sure where I'm going to go in late July. Maybe Seim Reap to see Ankor Wat? I keep getting mixed reviews about Cambodia though. Laos I think is out because I've heard too many negative things. I don't have time to see Vietnam or Thailand (unless i just went to one place, but is there really a point to that?) Korea is too expensive, and I'm not going to Bali or Borneo with MB (we will be back for that next year). I'm not too sure what will end up happening, but I'm open to suggestions.

   The only thing I have left to do is to head to Bukit Butang to Lowyatt in order to see if I can get my point and shoot fixed before the weekend. I've been told by enough people that I have a 'rip me off' tatoo stamped to my forehead so if I don't want to pay a lot to fix it I should go with someone who knows the place. The problem is, the one person I know just pulled an all-nighter so I'm not about to ask him. The other person who could help needs to help my roomie study for the bar so I don't want to disturb him either. We shall see what happens. 

     Anyways, I'm off, I'll try to post up some pictures on Flickr today. Going to talk to the fams tomorrow. 

Laters!

-M

     Finished the competition and watched it as the parchment paper containing three weeks of nothing but work flew out the door at the last minute. It was crazy. Essentially the competition submittal is at about the level of a regular studio submittal (except the plans are slightly less detailed...well the sections are single-lined at least) done in a matter of 3.5 weeks. For those of you who don't know, that's three months of work crammed into three weeks, with only 3 people working on it until last week. Yesterday it seemed the whole office was in on it (granted I sit by all the 3d guys - and gal). Some had been there all night, I was lucky enough to leave by 9.30 or so. We all got a bit loopy the last final days, the situation resembled something like the last few nights before jury. I must admit though, it was quite cool to see the final products. Even cooler to not have to stare at them anymore and send them away.

    After the boards went out, a bunch of us went out for food. The place has no name, except for 'behind the parking lot.' They served Malay food. Although I wasn't exactly hungry for spicy food at 10:45 in the morning, I grabbed a plate anyway because I wanted to try what I could. I pretty much loaded my plate with bite sized portions of different sauces and curries, as well as a sweet ayam (chicken) drumstick. Of course, it all tasted yummy. I had some sayur (veggies) with a little bit of chili in it, but it wasn't supposed to be spicy. However, my luck proved to be, once again, surprising and I bit right into a chili seed. My mouth went aflame. Never had I eaten anything so spicy. The unexpected factor didn't help matters. My mouth hurt so bad I was tearing up. Of course, all my Malaysian co-workers were laughing at me. I found it funny as well, I mean here I am, this weird white girl sitting in this rinky-dink (just the way I like it) food stall in an old parking lot, behind a crumbling wall, putting things on my plate that I was told would be spicy and I bite into the one thing that even I know is not spicy and my mouth lights up with heat. Whatever, you win some you lose some. 

     I also had some sauce made from fermented Durian and I liked it a lot. The smell of Durian (albeit it smells like sewage meets wet newspaper) really doesn't bother me all that much. Maybe it's because I'm in a city and almost expect nasty smells at times. It isn't something I'd wear as perfume, but it isn't the worst thing I've smelled either. I'd still like to try some, I know my time will come, my room mate, F, loves it.

     Speaking of F, she took me out to Banana Leaf rice on Sunday night. Best meal I've had so far hands down. The place is pretty well known in KL. It was the first time I was hungry all weekend, and I thought that with a cold some spice might help decongest me a little bit. It worked like a charm and I've been feeling better ever since. Still not well enough to go to the gym, but I'm well enough to make it through the day without medication.

     I got the rest of the day off after lunch so I ran a few errands (cashing paycheck, buying stamps, buying my bus ticket to Singapore) and then did some reading up on travel. I'm not too sure where I'm going to go in late July. Maybe Seim Reap to see Ankor Wat? I keep getting mixed reviews about Cambodia though. Laos I think is out because I've heard too many negative things. I don't have time to see Vietnam or Thailand (unless i just went to one place, but is there really a point to that?) Korea is too expensive, and I'm not going to Bali or Borneo with MB (we will be back for that next year). I'm not too sure what will end up happening, but I'm open to suggestions.

   The only thing I have left to do is to head to Bukit Butang to Lowyatt in order to see if I can get my point and shoot fixed before the weekend. I've been told by enough people that I have a 'rip me off' tatoo stamped to my forehead so if I don't want to pay a lot to fix it I should go with someone who knows the place. The problem is, the one person I know just pulled an all-nighter so I'm not about to ask him. The other person who could help needs to help my roomie study for the bar so I don't want to disturb him either. We shall see what happens. 

     Anyways, I'm off, I'll try to post up some pictures on Flickr today. Going to talk to the fams tomorrow. 

Laters!

-M

Some things worth mentioning...

An excerpt from my handwritten journal...edited and added to a bit:

     Would you like to hear about Kuala Lumpur? KL is a place where you can ride an elevator with a Chinese 20-something wearing a red sickle and hammer t-shirt. Kuala lumpur is a place where sitting by the pool in a bikini while the call to prayer hums beautifully in the background isn't out of the norm. Kuala Lumpur is a place where traditionally conflicting views and groups exist with relatively little civil unrest (in comparison to other parts of the world). Granted no place is perfect, but this city (government aside) and it's people have something the world can learn from. Aside from the year-round heat (I'm a seasons kind of gal) I find it to be quite a livable place. The culture here obviously takes some getting used to, but this is to be expected.

     One thing I keep on hearing around here is your lifestyle and religion is a choice (unfortunately, this does not hold true for all lifestyles). Gays in particular are facing quite a lot of difficulty here. They even went to the extreme to ban showing Glee after this season because of it's 'provocative' view of gay life. Not that I think being gay is a choice, because I don't, but it should go without saying that aside from some of Europe and North America, the world is slow to accept gay society. One day I hope. Anyways, I digress, I've asked Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and seculars alike about religion and I keep hearing the words 'personal choice.' Granted, this is being said without Jewish input, but in a Muslim country a jewish community, if existent, remains underground. It is a complicated age-old issue that I, nor anyone else not born into it could possibly understand beyond a superficial level so I'll refrain from further comment. The government may think a bit differently as well, but just like any other country in the world, there is a significant difference between government and people. If you haven't figured that out by now, please do yourself a favor and get out from under the rock you've been hiding under and talk to people different than yourself. Seriously. Do you really want people to think you are exactly like - insert name of least favorite moronic politician of choice here - and truly believes the crap that he or she belches out to the world? Didn't think so.

     Choice, however, is not something that Westerners, particularly Americans associate with something like Islam. However, as an educated, open-minded American such as myself, I've learned better than that. I've also adapted a healthy distrust for American media. Our media is just as propaganda driven, censored, and biased as any other country we chose to demonize (with the exception being North Korea, which takes the concept of control to a whole new level).  The difference from some other countries being we have the freedom (in both an abstract and monetary manner) to find out what is really going on. You want to know what a place is really like? Go there. Go there and immerse yourself in it. Don't have the money, time, not willing to give it all up to chance, or prefer not to wander aimlessly into a war zone (don't blame you on the latter). Well, the internet is the next best thing. Get away from the big-named news sources and their over-headed companies (maybe start there if you are new at this) and find the real story. Read blogs, check out sites like VBS, read local papers/blogs in other countries, read personal accounts, anything really. There is so more than what we are being told. Just come to honest terms with the fact that CNN, Fox, BBC, ect feed you crap that the government or some other large corporation wants you to hear.

     For example, they demonize Iran. I have yet to meet a mean Iranian that isn't willing to share things about his or her country with me. By the way, the place has seasons, markets, houses, paved roads, and normal life. It isn't some mountain/desert hybrid shit hole filled with Jihadist crazies the way the American news media makes it out to be. Sure extremism probably exists there (and yes there is censorship) and so does poverty, but those things are everywhere; including our own backyards. These things are facts of life in every nation so get over it.

Now for a quick closer:

     What people really need to do in this day and age is get out there and realize that we are more alike than we are different. If you have the means, grow a pair and go for it. I'm not talking about going on some sheltered vacay where you never leave the comfort of the resort, get your hands dirty and talk to people. Ask them what they think (or if you think that might be offensive, mention you are curious about X because you know nothing about it so what is the opinion of the general population). People are more than willing to share if you show interest. Don't let government stop you. Seriously, if you listened to every tiny travel tidbit on the State Department website, you would reconsider leaving your own home to go to the supermarket, let alone the country. American government exercises more control than it lets on, so exercise your freedom and see for yourself.

     Still feeling sick, no better or worse than last night (which means I'm running at maybe 50%, 65% at best). Worked this weekend and slept. Ate soup with garlic added. Neeeeeeeed to get better asap! I also need to get my bus tickets to Singapore and find a place to stay...ie find a couch!

-M

An excerpt from my handwritten journal...edited and added to a bit:

     Would you like to hear about Kuala Lumpur? KL is a place where you can ride an elevator with a Chinese 20-something wearing a red sickle and hammer t-shirt. Kuala lumpur is a place where sitting by the pool in a bikini while the call to prayer hums beautifully in the background isn't out of the norm. Kuala Lumpur is a place where traditionally conflicting views and groups exist with relatively little civil unrest (in comparison to other parts of the world). Granted no place is perfect, but this city (government aside) and it's people have something the world can learn from. Aside from the year-round heat (I'm a seasons kind of gal) I find it to be quite a livable place. The culture here obviously takes some getting used to, but this is to be expected.

     One thing I keep on hearing around here is your lifestyle and religion is a choice (unfortunately, this does not hold true for all lifestyles). Gays in particular are facing quite a lot of difficulty here. They even went to the extreme to ban showing Glee after this season because of it's 'provocative' view of gay life. Not that I think being gay is a choice, because I don't, but it should go without saying that aside from some of Europe and North America, the world is slow to accept gay society. One day I hope. Anyways, I digress, I've asked Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and seculars alike about religion and I keep hearing the words 'personal choice.' Granted, this is being said without Jewish input, but in a Muslim country a jewish community, if existent, remains underground. It is a complicated age-old issue that I, nor anyone else not born into it could possibly understand beyond a superficial level so I'll refrain from further comment. The government may think a bit differently as well, but just like any other country in the world, there is a significant difference between government and people. If you haven't figured that out by now, please do yourself a favor and get out from under the rock you've been hiding under and talk to people different than yourself. Seriously. Do you really want people to think you are exactly like - insert name of least favorite moronic politician of choice here - and truly believes the crap that he or she belches out to the world? Didn't think so.

     Choice, however, is not something that Westerners, particularly Americans associate with something like Islam. However, as an educated, open-minded American such as myself, I've learned better than that. I've also adapted a healthy distrust for American media. Our media is just as propaganda driven, censored, and biased as any other country we chose to demonize (with the exception being North Korea, which takes the concept of control to a whole new level).  The difference from some other countries being we have the freedom (in both an abstract and monetary manner) to find out what is really going on. You want to know what a place is really like? Go there. Go there and immerse yourself in it. Don't have the money, time, not willing to give it all up to chance, or prefer not to wander aimlessly into a war zone (don't blame you on the latter). Well, the internet is the next best thing. Get away from the big-named news sources and their over-headed companies (maybe start there if you are new at this) and find the real story. Read blogs, check out sites like VBS, read local papers/blogs in other countries, read personal accounts, anything really. There is so more than what we are being told. Just come to honest terms with the fact that CNN, Fox, BBC, ect feed you crap that the government or some other large corporation wants you to hear.

     For example, they demonize Iran. I have yet to meet a mean Iranian that isn't willing to share things about his or her country with me. By the way, the place has seasons, markets, houses, paved roads, and normal life. It isn't some mountain/desert hybrid shit hole filled with Jihadist crazies the way the American news media makes it out to be. Sure extremism probably exists there (and yes there is censorship) and so does poverty, but those things are everywhere; including our own backyards. These things are facts of life in every nation so get over it.

Now for a quick closer:

     What people really need to do in this day and age is get out there and realize that we are more alike than we are different. If you have the means, grow a pair and go for it. I'm not talking about going on some sheltered vacay where you never leave the comfort of the resort, get your hands dirty and talk to people. Ask them what they think (or if you think that might be offensive, mention you are curious about X because you know nothing about it so what is the opinion of the general population). People are more than willing to share if you show interest. Don't let government stop you. Seriously, if you listened to every tiny travel tidbit on the State Department website, you would reconsider leaving your own home to go to the supermarket, let alone the country. American government exercises more control than it lets on, so exercise your freedom and see for yourself.

     Still feeling sick, no better or worse than last night (which means I'm running at maybe 50%, 65% at best). Worked this weekend and slept. Ate soup with garlic added. Neeeeeeeed to get better asap! I also need to get my bus tickets to Singapore and find a place to stay...ie find a couch!

-M

An excerpt from my handwritten journal...edited and added to a bit:

     Would you like to hear about Kuala Lumpur? KL is a place where you can ride an elevator with a Chinese 20-something wearing a red sickle and hammer t-shirt. Kuala lumpur is a place where sitting by the pool in a bikini while the call to prayer hums beautifully in the background isn't out of the norm. Kuala Lumpur is a place where traditionally conflicting views and groups exist with relatively little civil unrest (in comparison to other parts of the world). Granted no place is perfect, but this city (government aside) and it's people have something the world can learn from. Aside from the year-round heat (I'm a seasons kind of gal) I find it to be quite a livable place. The culture here obviously takes some getting used to, but this is to be expected.

     One thing I keep on hearing around here is your lifestyle and religion is a choice (unfortunately, this does not hold true for all lifestyles). Gays in particular are facing quite a lot of difficulty here. They even went to the extreme to ban showing Glee after this season because of it's 'provocative' view of gay life. Not that I think being gay is a choice, because I don't, but it should go without saying that aside from some of Europe and North America, the world is slow to accept gay society. One day I hope. Anyways, I digress, I've asked Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and seculars alike about religion and I keep hearing the words 'personal choice.' Granted, this is being said without Jewish input, but in a Muslim country a jewish community, if existent, remains underground. It is a complicated age-old issue that I, nor anyone else not born into it could possibly understand beyond a superficial level so I'll refrain from further comment. The government may think a bit differently as well, but just like any other country in the world, there is a significant difference between government and people. If you haven't figured that out by now, please do yourself a favor and get out from under the rock you've been hiding under and talk to people different than yourself. Seriously. Do you really want people to think you are exactly like - insert name of least favorite moronic politician of choice here - and truly believes the crap that he or she belches out to the world? Didn't think so.

     Choice, however, is not something that Westerners, particularly Americans associate with something like Islam. However, as an educated, open-minded American such as myself, I've learned better than that. I've also adapted a healthy distrust for American media. Our media is just as propaganda driven, censored, and biased as any other country we chose to demonize (with the exception being North Korea, which takes the concept of control to a whole new level).  The difference from some other countries being we have the freedom (in both an abstract and monetary manner) to find out what is really going on. You want to know what a place is really like? Go there. Go there and immerse yourself in it. Don't have the money, time, not willing to give it all up to chance, or prefer not to wander aimlessly into a war zone (don't blame you on the latter). Well, the internet is the next best thing. Get away from the big-named news sources and their over-headed companies (maybe start there if you are new at this) and find the real story. Read blogs, check out sites like VBS, read local papers/blogs in other countries, read personal accounts, anything really. There is so more than what we are being told. Just come to honest terms with the fact that CNN, Fox, BBC, ect feed you crap that the government or some other large corporation wants you to hear.

     For example, they demonize Iran. I have yet to meet a mean Iranian that isn't willing to share things about his or her country with me. By the way, the place has seasons, markets, houses, paved roads, and normal life. It isn't some mountain/desert hybrid shit hole filled with Jihadist crazies the way the American news media makes it out to be. Sure extremism probably exists there (and yes there is censorship) and so does poverty, but those things are everywhere; including our own backyards. These things are facts of life in every nation so get over it.

Now for a quick closer:

     What people really need to do in this day and age is get out there and realize that we are more alike than we are different. If you have the means, grow a pair and go for it. I'm not talking about going on some sheltered vacay where you never leave the comfort of the resort, get your hands dirty and talk to people. Ask them what they think (or if you think that might be offensive, mention you are curious about X because you know nothing about it so what is the opinion of the general population). People are more than willing to share if you show interest. Don't let government stop you. Seriously, if you listened to every tiny travel tidbit on the State Department website, you would reconsider leaving your own home to go to the supermarket, let alone the country. American government exercises more control than it lets on, so exercise your freedom and see for yourself.

     Still feeling sick, no better or worse than last night (which means I'm running at maybe 50%, 65% at best). Worked this weekend and slept. Ate soup with garlic added. Neeeeeeeed to get better asap! I also need to get my bus tickets to Singapore and find a place to stay...ie find a couch!

-M

An excerpt from my handwritten journal...edited and added to a bit:

     Would you like to hear about Kuala Lumpur? KL is a place where you can ride an elevator with a Chinese 20-something wearing a red sickle and hammer t-shirt. Kuala lumpur is a place where sitting by the pool in a bikini while the call to prayer hums beautifully in the background isn't out of the norm. Kuala Lumpur is a place where traditionally conflicting views and groups exist with relatively little civil unrest (in comparison to other parts of the world). Granted no place is perfect, but this city (government aside) and it's people have something the world can learn from. Aside from the year-round heat (I'm a seasons kind of gal) I find it to be quite a livable place. The culture here obviously takes some getting used to, but this is to be expected.

     One thing I keep on hearing around here is your lifestyle and religion is a choice (unfortunately, this does not hold true for all lifestyles). Gays in particular are facing quite a lot of difficulty here. They even went to the extreme to ban showing Glee after this season because of it's 'provocative' view of gay life. Not that I think being gay is a choice, because I don't, but it should go without saying that aside from some of Europe and North America, the world is slow to accept gay society. One day I hope. Anyways, I digress, I've asked Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and seculars alike about religion and I keep hearing the words 'personal choice.' Granted, this is being said without Jewish input, but in a Muslim country a jewish community, if existent, remains underground. It is a complicated age-old issue that I, nor anyone else not born into it could possibly understand beyond a superficial level so I'll refrain from further comment. The government may think a bit differently as well, but just like any other country in the world, there is a significant difference between government and people. If you haven't figured that out by now, please do yourself a favor and get out from under the rock you've been hiding under and talk to people different than yourself. Seriously. Do you really want people to think you are exactly like - insert name of least favorite moronic politician of choice here - and truly believes the crap that he or she belches out to the world? Didn't think so.

     Choice, however, is not something that Westerners, particularly Americans associate with something like Islam. However, as an educated, open-minded American such as myself, I've learned better than that. I've also adapted a healthy distrust for American media. Our media is just as propaganda driven, censored, and biased as any other country we chose to demonize (with the exception being North Korea, which takes the concept of control to a whole new level).  The difference from some other countries being we have the freedom (in both an abstract and monetary manner) to find out what is really going on. You want to know what a place is really like? Go there. Go there and immerse yourself in it. Don't have the money, time, not willing to give it all up to chance, or prefer not to wander aimlessly into a war zone (don't blame you on the latter). Well, the internet is the next best thing. Get away from the big-named news sources and their over-headed companies (maybe start there if you are new at this) and find the real story. Read blogs, check out sites like VBS, read local papers/blogs in other countries, read personal accounts, anything really. There is so more than what we are being told. Just come to honest terms with the fact that CNN, Fox, BBC, ect feed you crap that the government or some other large corporation wants you to hear.

     For example, they demonize Iran. I have yet to meet a mean Iranian that isn't willing to share things about his or her country with me. By the way, the place has seasons, markets, houses, paved roads, and normal life. It isn't some mountain/desert hybrid shit hole filled with Jihadist crazies the way the American news media makes it out to be. Sure extremism probably exists there (and yes there is censorship) and so does poverty, but those things are everywhere; including our own backyards. These things are facts of life in every nation so get over it.

Now for a quick closer:

     What people really need to do in this day and age is get out there and realize that we are more alike than we are different. If you have the means, grow a pair and go for it. I'm not talking about going on some sheltered vacay where you never leave the comfort of the resort, get your hands dirty and talk to people. Ask them what they think (or if you think that might be offensive, mention you are curious about X because you know nothing about it so what is the opinion of the general population). People are more than willing to share if you show interest. Don't let government stop you. Seriously, if you listened to every tiny travel tidbit on the State Department website, you would reconsider leaving your own home to go to the supermarket, let alone the country. American government exercises more control than it lets on, so exercise your freedom and see for yourself.

     Still feeling sick, no better or worse than last night (which means I'm running at maybe 50%, 65% at best). Worked this weekend and slept. Ate soup with garlic added. Neeeeeeeed to get better asap! I also need to get my bus tickets to Singapore and find a place to stay...ie find a couch!

-M

Sakit =(

     Getting sick sucks. Being sick away from home (abroad or in-country) sucks more. I am, of course, feeling a bit under the weather. Last night I had some tasty char keow teow (I'm almost positive I butchered that spelling, but that's how you pronounce it). After eating I noticed I got a pretty bad sore throat. No biggy, I thought, probably just the MSG. Well MSG induced sore throats do take some time to go away, but I awoke in the middle of the night with my throat still sore. Perfect timing of course. I awoke in the morning with a headache and sore throat. By mid-day I think I started to run a temperature, although it's quite hard to tell here. I also have the aches, but I can't tell if the pain is from sitting at a desk staring at lines on Illustrator/soreness of the back lingering from yoga, or an oncoming fever. I'm not dying, and there is no need to contact the embassy (trust me, I know what that feels like...), but it doesn't change the fact that I feel pretty crappy. I blame working long hours and not taking any down time. Today I was supposed to go to Chilis and meet up with G (my friend from Klang, who I've been wanting to see ever since I left, but we keep missing each other) and some new people from TB (Travel Buddy). Yes I know Chilis is an American restaurant, but it would be my first western meal out since I left so leave me alone =). Plus, it's a bumping place from what I've seen (always a line). Instead I got a smoothie and am currently eating some bread and brewing chamomile with honey. I've always known that a tablespoon of honey helps your throat, but I don't like honey plain (it's a texture thing) so G told me to mix it with hot water (genius). I'm hoping to get some rest and feel better tomorrow, as I have to work all weekend.

     I am going to make this post short because I don't feel much like doing well...anything. Hopefully my plans for the weekend don't get ruined. This weekend Diplo is coming to town and tickets are cheap so I planned to go with a good crowd of CSers after I went with A, my host, to her Eurasian club. However, if I'm still feeling crappy I won't be able to do much of anything, as work will suck the slightest bit of life out of me. I also have to figure out my Singapore trip this weekend. I've been talking to some TBs as well as some CSers in order to figure out what's going on. Plus, G will be there so I'm really looking forward to it. I'm also trying to figure out a long-ish weekend getaway to Cambodia in late July early Aug to go see the Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. Needless to say I've got some planning I need to make time for as well.

     Anyways, the water for my tea is boiling, so I best be going.

-M

PS...I know I've been bad with pictures, uploading is slow here and Flickr says I've reached my limit...so patience.

     Getting sick sucks. Being sick away from home (abroad or in-country) sucks more. I am, of course, feeling a bit under the weather. Last night I had some tasty char keow teow (I'm almost positive I butchered that spelling, but that's how you pronounce it). After eating I noticed I got a pretty bad sore throat. No biggy, I thought, probably just the MSG. Well MSG induced sore throats do take some time to go away, but I awoke in the middle of the night with my throat still sore. Perfect timing of course. I awoke in the morning with a headache and sore throat. By mid-day I think I started to run a temperature, although it's quite hard to tell here. I also have the aches, but I can't tell if the pain is from sitting at a desk staring at lines on Illustrator/soreness of the back lingering from yoga, or an oncoming fever. I'm not dying, and there is no need to contact the embassy (trust me, I know what that feels like...), but it doesn't change the fact that I feel pretty crappy. I blame working long hours and not taking any down time. Today I was supposed to go to Chilis and meet up with G (my friend from Klang, who I've been wanting to see ever since I left, but we keep missing each other) and some new people from TB (Travel Buddy). Yes I know Chilis is an American restaurant, but it would be my first western meal out since I left so leave me alone =). Plus, it's a bumping place from what I've seen (always a line). Instead I got a smoothie and am currently eating some bread and brewing chamomile with honey. I've always known that a tablespoon of honey helps your throat, but I don't like honey plain (it's a texture thing) so G told me to mix it with hot water (genius). I'm hoping to get some rest and feel better tomorrow, as I have to work all weekend.

     I am going to make this post short because I don't feel much like doing well...anything. Hopefully my plans for the weekend don't get ruined. This weekend Diplo is coming to town and tickets are cheap so I planned to go with a good crowd of CSers after I went with A, my host, to her Eurasian club. However, if I'm still feeling crappy I won't be able to do much of anything, as work will suck the slightest bit of life out of me. I also have to figure out my Singapore trip this weekend. I've been talking to some TBs as well as some CSers in order to figure out what's going on. Plus, G will be there so I'm really looking forward to it. I'm also trying to figure out a long-ish weekend getaway to Cambodia in late July early Aug to go see the Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. Needless to say I've got some planning I need to make time for as well.

     Anyways, the water for my tea is boiling, so I best be going.

-M

PS...I know I've been bad with pictures, uploading is slow here and Flickr says I've reached my limit...so patience.

     Getting sick sucks. Being sick away from home (abroad or in-country) sucks more. I am, of course, feeling a bit under the weather. Last night I had some tasty char keow teow (I'm almost positive I butchered that spelling, but that's how you pronounce it). After eating I noticed I got a pretty bad sore throat. No biggy, I thought, probably just the MSG. Well MSG induced sore throats do take some time to go away, but I awoke in the middle of the night with my throat still sore. Perfect timing of course. I awoke in the morning with a headache and sore throat. By mid-day I think I started to run a temperature, although it's quite hard to tell here. I also have the aches, but I can't tell if the pain is from sitting at a desk staring at lines on Illustrator/soreness of the back lingering from yoga, or an oncoming fever. I'm not dying, and there is no need to contact the embassy (trust me, I know what that feels like...), but it doesn't change the fact that I feel pretty crappy. I blame working long hours and not taking any down time. Today I was supposed to go to Chilis and meet up with G (my friend from Klang, who I've been wanting to see ever since I left, but we keep missing each other) and some new people from TB (Travel Buddy). Yes I know Chilis is an American restaurant, but it would be my first western meal out since I left so leave me alone =). Plus, it's a bumping place from what I've seen (always a line). Instead I got a smoothie and am currently eating some bread and brewing chamomile with honey. I've always known that a tablespoon of honey helps your throat, but I don't like honey plain (it's a texture thing) so G told me to mix it with hot water (genius). I'm hoping to get some rest and feel better tomorrow, as I have to work all weekend.

     I am going to make this post short because I don't feel much like doing well...anything. Hopefully my plans for the weekend don't get ruined. This weekend Diplo is coming to town and tickets are cheap so I planned to go with a good crowd of CSers after I went with A, my host, to her Eurasian club. However, if I'm still feeling crappy I won't be able to do much of anything, as work will suck the slightest bit of life out of me. I also have to figure out my Singapore trip this weekend. I've been talking to some TBs as well as some CSers in order to figure out what's going on. Plus, G will be there so I'm really looking forward to it. I'm also trying to figure out a long-ish weekend getaway to Cambodia in late July early Aug to go see the Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. Needless to say I've got some planning I need to make time for as well.

     Anyways, the water for my tea is boiling, so I best be going.

-M

PS...I know I've been bad with pictures, uploading is slow here and Flickr says I've reached my limit...so patience.

     Getting sick sucks. Being sick away from home (abroad or in-country) sucks more. I am, of course, feeling a bit under the weather. Last night I had some tasty char keow teow (I'm almost positive I butchered that spelling, but that's how you pronounce it). After eating I noticed I got a pretty bad sore throat. No biggy, I thought, probably just the MSG. Well MSG induced sore throats do take some time to go away, but I awoke in the middle of the night with my throat still sore. Perfect timing of course. I awoke in the morning with a headache and sore throat. By mid-day I think I started to run a temperature, although it's quite hard to tell here. I also have the aches, but I can't tell if the pain is from sitting at a desk staring at lines on Illustrator/soreness of the back lingering from yoga, or an oncoming fever. I'm not dying, and there is no need to contact the embassy (trust me, I know what that feels like...), but it doesn't change the fact that I feel pretty crappy. I blame working long hours and not taking any down time. Today I was supposed to go to Chilis and meet up with G (my friend from Klang, who I've been wanting to see ever since I left, but we keep missing each other) and some new people from TB (Travel Buddy). Yes I know Chilis is an American restaurant, but it would be my first western meal out since I left so leave me alone =). Plus, it's a bumping place from what I've seen (always a line). Instead I got a smoothie and am currently eating some bread and brewing chamomile with honey. I've always known that a tablespoon of honey helps your throat, but I don't like honey plain (it's a texture thing) so G told me to mix it with hot water (genius). I'm hoping to get some rest and feel better tomorrow, as I have to work all weekend.

     I am going to make this post short because I don't feel much like doing well...anything. Hopefully my plans for the weekend don't get ruined. This weekend Diplo is coming to town and tickets are cheap so I planned to go with a good crowd of CSers after I went with A, my host, to her Eurasian club. However, if I'm still feeling crappy I won't be able to do much of anything, as work will suck the slightest bit of life out of me. I also have to figure out my Singapore trip this weekend. I've been talking to some TBs as well as some CSers in order to figure out what's going on. Plus, G will be there so I'm really looking forward to it. I'm also trying to figure out a long-ish weekend getaway to Cambodia in late July early Aug to go see the Angkor Wat and Siem Reap. Needless to say I've got some planning I need to make time for as well.

     Anyways, the water for my tea is boiling, so I best be going.

-M

PS...I know I've been bad with pictures, uploading is slow here and Flickr says I've reached my limit...so patience.

Definitely a case of the Mondays...

     Today was not my day. Actually, the last two days at work were quite like this. I got home today a little earlier than yesterday which was nice, but it has been frustrating. Essentially, I just don't see eye to eye with my boss for this project. This situation, as I'm sure you are all aware, is quite normal. However, this being my first official office job, figuring out how to deal with it has its ups and downs. Don't get me wrong, she's a good designer; it is simply a classic clash of form vs. function. I'm more of a function person, she's more of a form lady. It makes working on this competition quite difficult. You have good days and you have bad days, today was a bad day. Tomorrow will be easier. I think I'm just going to try to focus on getting the presentation ready because designing just isn't working out for me right now. But why you ask? Aren't you an architect? Well, technically no, I'm an intern, and yes I do like to design, but we are at a stage where things need to get done and my ideas just don't co-incide with the design. So in order to contribute in a positive manner I'm content with making diagrams and getting a coherent presentation together. I also don't mind sitting back and observing the rest of the design in order to learn a viewpoint different than my own; contributing where I feel it is absolutely necessary to discussions. Just got to take it one day at a time and stay positive. The deadline is in a week. I think the core of the team feels quite the same way, a little on the burnt-out end of the spectrum. Both of the new helpers on the team commented on the low team morale. At least I know I'm not alone.

     This weekend (aside from working Sunday afternoon/night) was spent being a tourist. It actually helped me settle in a lot better. I feel like I know a bit more of what goes on around here and I'm starting to meet more people. On Saturday I went out on my own. It was the king's birthday and I tried to find the festivities in all the wrong places, but I saw quite a bit of touristy parts of the city. I went down to Chinatown and Pasar Seni (Central Market...it might be Sini...I'm too tired to look it up). I got one of those fish massages, where you dip your legs in a large fish tank and the "Doctor Fish" as they are called eat all the dead skin away. It tickles like crazy (and I'm not very ticklish) for the first few minutes and then it feels like soft scratches or something along those lines. A totally unique experience. Afterwards it feels awesome. Your feet and legs feel so refreshed and surprisingly clean. I'd do it again and highly recommend it. I window shopped for a bit, got some fresh mango at a fruit stand, and then went to Chinatown to find MB a present. I bargained my way to what I wanted which was exciting. It's pretty easy. The price they initially offer is quite tempting if you convert it to dollars, so I probably could have done better, but I only ended up paying a Ringgit or two more than I wanted to. After this I went to the food stalls and sat down to journal for a bit. I ended up talking with these two British girls and had lunch with them. It was some amazing Peking duck, although I'm sure the real thing in China is better still. I didn't care, because nothing beats crispy skin and duck fat over rice.

    After lunch I wandered around a bit more and visited a small Buddhist temple. I made an offering and sat there in meditation for a while. I'm currently learning about the 8 Fold Path to Enlightenment so it was kinda cool to start to recognize symbols and meanings in the temple. Plus, I saw it as a chance to get in touch with the world and the present. Literally right across the street and maybe 10 meters down there was a Hindu temple. I am fascinated by the ornate-ness of the Hindu religion, as well as the colors and beauty that surround the Hindu culture. It was my first time actually inside a Hindu place of worship. Although it was quite small I did spend a lot of time staring at the statues. Shiva was depicted with quite large boobs, which I am assuming is a symbol of nurturing, but I found it rather distracting (I know I know, I'm like a 10 year old boy). You can't wear your shoes in Hindu temples, so I left mine outside and of course I stepped in pigeon poo. Fortunately there was a place to wash your feet. I guess I'll know in a few days if I get some type of weird infection or something.

     After that I tried to get a taxi to go to Independence Square because I couldn't gage how far it was by my map and there is no city grid here so navigating is quite hard. I should have known when the taxi driver refused to use his meter that I would be ripped off, but at this point I was sweating like crazy and sitting in the air con left my don't-rip-me-off attitude out in the heat. I got totally ripped off, which made me a bit upset, because I know better, but whatever, at least next time I will know how to walk there. It was completely dead (it used to be the place where most of the political activity was, but most of it has been moved to a new city called Putrajaya - coincidentally where my competition project is). Aside from the old buildings and large flagpole it was kinda blah. I was going to go to the national mosque after that, but the cabbie had aggravated me so I left the area. Plus, I want to go national mosque with an actual Muslim so they can explain things to me, so I'll explore that part of town another time.

     I decided that it was still too early to return home, even though it was the hottest part of the day, so I headed over to Little India. That area is a complete CF. Crowded, people everywhere, people shouting at you, no room to move in between street stalls, and nothing really that special. I was going to sit down and get a snack from the Mamak stalls, but it was hotter under the tents than it was outside, so I window shopped in the colorful Sari stores instead. There are also a LOT of gold jewelry stores, which was quite interesting to see. Also, and like Chinatown, there were a LOT of knock offs/junk/un-identifiable chochkies (or however you spell it). Consumerism is a funny thing. The only thing I got there was a much needed bottle of water. I sat around in the shade/air con of the LRT station before heading home.

     I quickly took a shower and then headed back out to explore my neighborhood a bit more and then grab some groceries. I stumbled upon a Carrefour and I was curious to know if it was a grocery place or what so I went it. Carrefour is essentially a Wal-Mart on speed/steroids with a much better food selection. It was a bit overwhelming, but since I had walked through an entire parking lot (they are LARGE here), a parking lot market (random?) and circled a small mall to get there I got my groceries and a few household items there. It was actually pretty entertaining. They blasted peppy top-40s music and I found it a bit funny to see all of these women covered up while tapping their feet to that S&M song. They also had a live fish section (for food, not pets) and half a cow hanging from a hook with the other half chopped up into various cuts on a table on the side. The store had very little organization aside from the aisles, but things like toys were sandwiched in between storage containers and rat poison. I managed to make it out of there spending very little money. Just grabbing some pasta, breakfast items, beer, and food containers.

     That evening F, my roomie, graciously cooked me dinner and I ate with her and her boyfriend D. D is such a gentleman. Seriously. He served us food, refilled our food and cleaned up. He says he does it because he can't cook, but I have never had a guy I hardly met fill up my plate for me. He is Hindu, and the next day I was going to the Batu Caves so I was asking him questions about the festival that goes on there (Google it, I'm getting sssssuuuuuppppppper tired and it takes a while to explain, but don't say I didn't warn you, it's quite gory. Guys pull heavy blocks to shrines of different gods through hooks pierced throughout their bodies).

     The next day I went to my first CS event to the Batu Caves. It was a blast. I met a lot of cool people from all walks of life. I really look forward to hanging out with them more as the summer goes on. The hospitality here is quite amazing and the Malaysians who are a little more outgoing really make an effort to make you feel at home. Those that are shy (which is normal here) are just as nice, you just have to make the effort to get to know them. It was fun to hang out with people from all over, and all over KL as well. I hope to travel and go on more adventures with them in the future. The Batu Caves are a sight to behold. It is obviously very touristy, but at the same time, it is the most sacred Hindu site in Malaysia, so there were a lot of people there to worship as well. There were a few weddings, where it is considered an honor (to the newly-weds) if you are from far, far away to get your picture taken with the bride and groom (see Flickr in the next few days, I'm uploading soon) and wish them a happy marriage. The colors and ornate nature of the wedding outfits are breathtaking. Batu Caves are high up, about 300 and something narrow, steep steps up the side of a mountain. Be prepared to be attacked by monkeys on the way up. I brought the end pieces of my bread to give to the monkeys (because I don't eat them and I don't want to waste food). Being around monkeys is not a new thing for me (I've been to the Amazon) and I know how clever/rough they can be so I engaged in a friendly tug of war with one.

     After sweating it out up to the caves, we headed down. As we were debating where to eat lunch we got to witness someone on a religious pilgrimage who was asking the gods for a favor. In order to do this, you roll down the main entrance, then crawl on your hands and knees up all the steps and pray the whole way there. Trust me, this is NOT an easy task (don't forget the climate conditions), and you could see in her face her determination and dedication to the task at hand. Truly an amazing thing to witness.

  We were waiting for a couple to come back down, so we had some fresh coconuts, then headed to lunch at Teman Melati. We ate at a place called Virgin Chicken (which is the way they cook it I guess), near where my host family lives. I had a great time eating and exchanging travel stories and suggestions. I've got some travel plans in the works, which is something to look forward to after all of this competition business is done. I found out that there are a few other people I know heading to Singapore the same weekend I am, so hopefully I can meet up with them.

    Anyways, this is getting WAYYYYYY too long, so I'm going to get going to bed. I have made it my mission to take at least a half-hour out of my overtime day tomorrow to do some yoga. Hopefully it will keep me centered and refreshed for the long week ahead!

-M

Batu Caves

News paper article...

Monkey...obviously

True dedication - after the first stage of rolling

     Today was not my day. Actually, the last two days at work were quite like this. I got home today a little earlier than yesterday which was nice, but it has been frustrating. Essentially, I just don't see eye to eye with my boss for this project. This situation, as I'm sure you are all aware, is quite normal. However, this being my first official office job, figuring out how to deal with it has its ups and downs. Don't get me wrong, she's a good designer; it is simply a classic clash of form vs. function. I'm more of a function person, she's more of a form lady. It makes working on this competition quite difficult. You have good days and you have bad days, today was a bad day. Tomorrow will be easier. I think I'm just going to try to focus on getting the presentation ready because designing just isn't working out for me right now. But why you ask? Aren't you an architect? Well, technically no, I'm an intern, and yes I do like to design, but we are at a stage where things need to get done and my ideas just don't co-incide with the design. So in order to contribute in a positive manner I'm content with making diagrams and getting a coherent presentation together. I also don't mind sitting back and observing the rest of the design in order to learn a viewpoint different than my own; contributing where I feel it is absolutely necessary to discussions. Just got to take it one day at a time and stay positive. The deadline is in a week. I think the core of the team feels quite the same way, a little on the burnt-out end of the spectrum. Both of the new helpers on the team commented on the low team morale. At least I know I'm not alone.

     This weekend (aside from working Sunday afternoon/night) was spent being a tourist. It actually helped me settle in a lot better. I feel like I know a bit more of what goes on around here and I'm starting to meet more people. On Saturday I went out on my own. It was the king's birthday and I tried to find the festivities in all the wrong places, but I saw quite a bit of touristy parts of the city. I went down to Chinatown and Pasar Seni (Central Market...it might be Sini...I'm too tired to look it up). I got one of those fish massages, where you dip your legs in a large fish tank and the "Doctor Fish" as they are called eat all the dead skin away. It tickles like crazy (and I'm not very ticklish) for the first few minutes and then it feels like soft scratches or something along those lines. A totally unique experience. Afterwards it feels awesome. Your feet and legs feel so refreshed and surprisingly clean. I'd do it again and highly recommend it. I window shopped for a bit, got some fresh mango at a fruit stand, and then went to Chinatown to find MB a present. I bargained my way to what I wanted which was exciting. It's pretty easy. The price they initially offer is quite tempting if you convert it to dollars, so I probably could have done better, but I only ended up paying a Ringgit or two more than I wanted to. After this I went to the food stalls and sat down to journal for a bit. I ended up talking with these two British girls and had lunch with them. It was some amazing Peking duck, although I'm sure the real thing in China is better still. I didn't care, because nothing beats crispy skin and duck fat over rice.

    After lunch I wandered around a bit more and visited a small Buddhist temple. I made an offering and sat there in meditation for a while. I'm currently learning about the 8 Fold Path to Enlightenment so it was kinda cool to start to recognize symbols and meanings in the temple. Plus, I saw it as a chance to get in touch with the world and the present. Literally right across the street and maybe 10 meters down there was a Hindu temple. I am fascinated by the ornate-ness of the Hindu religion, as well as the colors and beauty that surround the Hindu culture. It was my first time actually inside a Hindu place of worship. Although it was quite small I did spend a lot of time staring at the statues. Shiva was depicted with quite large boobs, which I am assuming is a symbol of nurturing, but I found it rather distracting (I know I know, I'm like a 10 year old boy). You can't wear your shoes in Hindu temples, so I left mine outside and of course I stepped in pigeon poo. Fortunately there was a place to wash your feet. I guess I'll know in a few days if I get some type of weird infection or something.

     After that I tried to get a taxi to go to Independence Square because I couldn't gage how far it was by my map and there is no city grid here so navigating is quite hard. I should have known when the taxi driver refused to use his meter that I would be ripped off, but at this point I was sweating like crazy and sitting in the air con left my don't-rip-me-off attitude out in the heat. I got totally ripped off, which made me a bit upset, because I know better, but whatever, at least next time I will know how to walk there. It was completely dead (it used to be the place where most of the political activity was, but most of it has been moved to a new city called Putrajaya - coincidentally where my competition project is). Aside from the old buildings and large flagpole it was kinda blah. I was going to go to the national mosque after that, but the cabbie had aggravated me so I left the area. Plus, I want to go national mosque with an actual Muslim so they can explain things to me, so I'll explore that part of town another time.

     I decided that it was still too early to return home, even though it was the hottest part of the day, so I headed over to Little India. That area is a complete CF. Crowded, people everywhere, people shouting at you, no room to move in between street stalls, and nothing really that special. I was going to sit down and get a snack from the Mamak stalls, but it was hotter under the tents than it was outside, so I window shopped in the colorful Sari stores instead. There are also a LOT of gold jewelry stores, which was quite interesting to see. Also, and like Chinatown, there were a LOT of knock offs/junk/un-identifiable chochkies (or however you spell it). Consumerism is a funny thing. The only thing I got there was a much needed bottle of water. I sat around in the shade/air con of the LRT station before heading home.

     I quickly took a shower and then headed back out to explore my neighborhood a bit more and then grab some groceries. I stumbled upon a Carrefour and I was curious to know if it was a grocery place or what so I went it. Carrefour is essentially a Wal-Mart on speed/steroids with a much better food selection. It was a bit overwhelming, but since I had walked through an entire parking lot (they are LARGE here), a parking lot market (random?) and circled a small mall to get there I got my groceries and a few household items there. It was actually pretty entertaining. They blasted peppy top-40s music and I found it a bit funny to see all of these women covered up while tapping their feet to that S&M song. They also had a live fish section (for food, not pets) and half a cow hanging from a hook with the other half chopped up into various cuts on a table on the side. The store had very little organization aside from the aisles, but things like toys were sandwiched in between storage containers and rat poison. I managed to make it out of there spending very little money. Just grabbing some pasta, breakfast items, beer, and food containers.

     That evening F, my roomie, graciously cooked me dinner and I ate with her and her boyfriend D. D is such a gentleman. Seriously. He served us food, refilled our food and cleaned up. He says he does it because he can't cook, but I have never had a guy I hardly met fill up my plate for me. He is Hindu, and the next day I was going to the Batu Caves so I was asking him questions about the festival that goes on there (Google it, I'm getting sssssuuuuuppppppper tired and it takes a while to explain, but don't say I didn't warn you, it's quite gory. Guys pull heavy blocks to shrines of different gods through hooks pierced throughout their bodies).

     The next day I went to my first CS event to the Batu Caves. It was a blast. I met a lot of cool people from all walks of life. I really look forward to hanging out with them more as the summer goes on. The hospitality here is quite amazing and the Malaysians who are a little more outgoing really make an effort to make you feel at home. Those that are shy (which is normal here) are just as nice, you just have to make the effort to get to know them. It was fun to hang out with people from all over, and all over KL as well. I hope to travel and go on more adventures with them in the future. The Batu Caves are a sight to behold. It is obviously very touristy, but at the same time, it is the most sacred Hindu site in Malaysia, so there were a lot of people there to worship as well. There were a few weddings, where it is considered an honor (to the newly-weds) if you are from far, far away to get your picture taken with the bride and groom (see Flickr in the next few days, I'm uploading soon) and wish them a happy marriage. The colors and ornate nature of the wedding outfits are breathtaking. Batu Caves are high up, about 300 and something narrow, steep steps up the side of a mountain. Be prepared to be attacked by monkeys on the way up. I brought the end pieces of my bread to give to the monkeys (because I don't eat them and I don't want to waste food). Being around monkeys is not a new thing for me (I've been to the Amazon) and I know how clever/rough they can be so I engaged in a friendly tug of war with one.

     After sweating it out up to the caves, we headed down. As we were debating where to eat lunch we got to witness someone on a religious pilgrimage who was asking the gods for a favor. In order to do this, you roll down the main entrance, then crawl on your hands and knees up all the steps and pray the whole way there. Trust me, this is NOT an easy task (don't forget the climate conditions), and you could see in her face her determination and dedication to the task at hand. Truly an amazing thing to witness.

  We were waiting for a couple to come back down, so we had some fresh coconuts, then headed to lunch at Teman Melati. We ate at a place called Virgin Chicken (which is the way they cook it I guess), near where my host family lives. I had a great time eating and exchanging travel stories and suggestions. I've got some travel plans in the works, which is something to look forward to after all of this competition business is done. I found out that there are a few other people I know heading to Singapore the same weekend I am, so hopefully I can meet up with them.

    Anyways, this is getting WAYYYYYY too long, so I'm going to get going to bed. I have made it my mission to take at least a half-hour out of my overtime day tomorrow to do some yoga. Hopefully it will keep me centered and refreshed for the long week ahead!

-M

Batu Caves

News paper article...

Monkey...obviously

True dedication - after the first stage of rolling

     Today was not my day. Actually, the last two days at work were quite like this. I got home today a little earlier than yesterday which was nice, but it has been frustrating. Essentially, I just don't see eye to eye with my boss for this project. This situation, as I'm sure you are all aware, is quite normal. However, this being my first official office job, figuring out how to deal with it has its ups and downs. Don't get me wrong, she's a good designer; it is simply a classic clash of form vs. function. I'm more of a function person, she's more of a form lady. It makes working on this competition quite difficult. You have good days and you have bad days, today was a bad day. Tomorrow will be easier. I think I'm just going to try to focus on getting the presentation ready because designing just isn't working out for me right now. But why you ask? Aren't you an architect? Well, technically no, I'm an intern, and yes I do like to design, but we are at a stage where things need to get done and my ideas just don't co-incide with the design. So in order to contribute in a positive manner I'm content with making diagrams and getting a coherent presentation together. I also don't mind sitting back and observing the rest of the design in order to learn a viewpoint different than my own; contributing where I feel it is absolutely necessary to discussions. Just got to take it one day at a time and stay positive. The deadline is in a week. I think the core of the team feels quite the same way, a little on the burnt-out end of the spectrum. Both of the new helpers on the team commented on the low team morale. At least I know I'm not alone.

     This weekend (aside from working Sunday afternoon/night) was spent being a tourist. It actually helped me settle in a lot better. I feel like I know a bit more of what goes on around here and I'm starting to meet more people. On Saturday I went out on my own. It was the king's birthday and I tried to find the festivities in all the wrong places, but I saw quite a bit of touristy parts of the city. I went down to Chinatown and Pasar Seni (Central Market...it might be Sini...I'm too tired to look it up). I got one of those fish massages, where you dip your legs in a large fish tank and the "Doctor Fish" as they are called eat all the dead skin away. It tickles like crazy (and I'm not very ticklish) for the first few minutes and then it feels like soft scratches or something along those lines. A totally unique experience. Afterwards it feels awesome. Your feet and legs feel so refreshed and surprisingly clean. I'd do it again and highly recommend it. I window shopped for a bit, got some fresh mango at a fruit stand, and then went to Chinatown to find MB a present. I bargained my way to what I wanted which was exciting. It's pretty easy. The price they initially offer is quite tempting if you convert it to dollars, so I probably could have done better, but I only ended up paying a Ringgit or two more than I wanted to. After this I went to the food stalls and sat down to journal for a bit. I ended up talking with these two British girls and had lunch with them. It was some amazing Peking duck, although I'm sure the real thing in China is better still. I didn't care, because nothing beats crispy skin and duck fat over rice.

    After lunch I wandered around a bit more and visited a small Buddhist temple. I made an offering and sat there in meditation for a while. I'm currently learning about the 8 Fold Path to Enlightenment so it was kinda cool to start to recognize symbols and meanings in the temple. Plus, I saw it as a chance to get in touch with the world and the present. Literally right across the street and maybe 10 meters down there was a Hindu temple. I am fascinated by the ornate-ness of the Hindu religion, as well as the colors and beauty that surround the Hindu culture. It was my first time actually inside a Hindu place of worship. Although it was quite small I did spend a lot of time staring at the statues. Shiva was depicted with quite large boobs, which I am assuming is a symbol of nurturing, but I found it rather distracting (I know I know, I'm like a 10 year old boy). You can't wear your shoes in Hindu temples, so I left mine outside and of course I stepped in pigeon poo. Fortunately there was a place to wash your feet. I guess I'll know in a few days if I get some type of weird infection or something.

     After that I tried to get a taxi to go to Independence Square because I couldn't gage how far it was by my map and there is no city grid here so navigating is quite hard. I should have known when the taxi driver refused to use his meter that I would be ripped off, but at this point I was sweating like crazy and sitting in the air con left my don't-rip-me-off attitude out in the heat. I got totally ripped off, which made me a bit upset, because I know better, but whatever, at least next time I will know how to walk there. It was completely dead (it used to be the place where most of the political activity was, but most of it has been moved to a new city called Putrajaya - coincidentally where my competition project is). Aside from the old buildings and large flagpole it was kinda blah. I was going to go to the national mosque after that, but the cabbie had aggravated me so I left the area. Plus, I want to go national mosque with an actual Muslim so they can explain things to me, so I'll explore that part of town another time.

     I decided that it was still too early to return home, even though it was the hottest part of the day, so I headed over to Little India. That area is a complete CF. Crowded, people everywhere, people shouting at you, no room to move in between street stalls, and nothing really that special. I was going to sit down and get a snack from the Mamak stalls, but it was hotter under the tents than it was outside, so I window shopped in the colorful Sari stores instead. There are also a LOT of gold jewelry stores, which was quite interesting to see. Also, and like Chinatown, there were a LOT of knock offs/junk/un-identifiable chochkies (or however you spell it). Consumerism is a funny thing. The only thing I got there was a much needed bottle of water. I sat around in the shade/air con of the LRT station before heading home.

     I quickly took a shower and then headed back out to explore my neighborhood a bit more and then grab some groceries. I stumbled upon a Carrefour and I was curious to know if it was a grocery place or what so I went it. Carrefour is essentially a Wal-Mart on speed/steroids with a much better food selection. It was a bit overwhelming, but since I had walked through an entire parking lot (they are LARGE here), a parking lot market (random?) and circled a small mall to get there I got my groceries and a few household items there. It was actually pretty entertaining. They blasted peppy top-40s music and I found it a bit funny to see all of these women covered up while tapping their feet to that S&M song. They also had a live fish section (for food, not pets) and half a cow hanging from a hook with the other half chopped up into various cuts on a table on the side. The store had very little organization aside from the aisles, but things like toys were sandwiched in between storage containers and rat poison. I managed to make it out of there spending very little money. Just grabbing some pasta, breakfast items, beer, and food containers.

     That evening F, my roomie, graciously cooked me dinner and I ate with her and her boyfriend D. D is such a gentleman. Seriously. He served us food, refilled our food and cleaned up. He says he does it because he can't cook, but I have never had a guy I hardly met fill up my plate for me. He is Hindu, and the next day I was going to the Batu Caves so I was asking him questions about the festival that goes on there (Google it, I'm getting sssssuuuuuppppppper tired and it takes a while to explain, but don't say I didn't warn you, it's quite gory. Guys pull heavy blocks to shrines of different gods through hooks pierced throughout their bodies).

     The next day I went to my first CS event to the Batu Caves. It was a blast. I met a lot of cool people from all walks of life. I really look forward to hanging out with them more as the summer goes on. The hospitality here is quite amazing and the Malaysians who are a little more outgoing really make an effort to make you feel at home. Those that are shy (which is normal here) are just as nice, you just have to make the effort to get to know them. It was fun to hang out with people from all over, and all over KL as well. I hope to travel and go on more adventures with them in the future. The Batu Caves are a sight to behold. It is obviously very touristy, but at the same time, it is the most sacred Hindu site in Malaysia, so there were a lot of people there to worship as well. There were a few weddings, where it is considered an honor (to the newly-weds) if you are from far, far away to get your picture taken with the bride and groom (see Flickr in the next few days, I'm uploading soon) and wish them a happy marriage. The colors and ornate nature of the wedding outfits are breathtaking. Batu Caves are high up, about 300 and something narrow, steep steps up the side of a mountain. Be prepared to be attacked by monkeys on the way up. I brought the end pieces of my bread to give to the monkeys (because I don't eat them and I don't want to waste food). Being around monkeys is not a new thing for me (I've been to the Amazon) and I know how clever/rough they can be so I engaged in a friendly tug of war with one.

     After sweating it out up to the caves, we headed down. As we were debating where to eat lunch we got to witness someone on a religious pilgrimage who was asking the gods for a favor. In order to do this, you roll down the main entrance, then crawl on your hands and knees up all the steps and pray the whole way there. Trust me, this is NOT an easy task (don't forget the climate conditions), and you could see in her face her determination and dedication to the task at hand. Truly an amazing thing to witness.

  We were waiting for a couple to come back down, so we had some fresh coconuts, then headed to lunch at Teman Melati. We ate at a place called Virgin Chicken (which is the way they cook it I guess), near where my host family lives. I had a great time eating and exchanging travel stories and suggestions. I've got some travel plans in the works, which is something to look forward to after all of this competition business is done. I found out that there are a few other people I know heading to Singapore the same weekend I am, so hopefully I can meet up with them.

    Anyways, this is getting WAYYYYYY too long, so I'm going to get going to bed. I have made it my mission to take at least a half-hour out of my overtime day tomorrow to do some yoga. Hopefully it will keep me centered and refreshed for the long week ahead!

-M

Batu Caves

News paper article...

Monkey...obviously

True dedication - after the first stage of rolling

     Today was not my day. Actually, the last two days at work were quite like this. I got home today a little earlier than yesterday which was nice, but it has been frustrating. Essentially, I just don't see eye to eye with my boss for this project. This situation, as I'm sure you are all aware, is quite normal. However, this being my first official office job, figuring out how to deal with it has its ups and downs. Don't get me wrong, she's a good designer; it is simply a classic clash of form vs. function. I'm more of a function person, she's more of a form lady. It makes working on this competition quite difficult. You have good days and you have bad days, today was a bad day. Tomorrow will be easier. I think I'm just going to try to focus on getting the presentation ready because designing just isn't working out for me right now. But why you ask? Aren't you an architect? Well, technically no, I'm an intern, and yes I do like to design, but we are at a stage where things need to get done and my ideas just don't co-incide with the design. So in order to contribute in a positive manner I'm content with making diagrams and getting a coherent presentation together. I also don't mind sitting back and observing the rest of the design in order to learn a viewpoint different than my own; contributing where I feel it is absolutely necessary to discussions. Just got to take it one day at a time and stay positive. The deadline is in a week. I think the core of the team feels quite the same way, a little on the burnt-out end of the spectrum. Both of the new helpers on the team commented on the low team morale. At least I know I'm not alone.

     This weekend (aside from working Sunday afternoon/night) was spent being a tourist. It actually helped me settle in a lot better. I feel like I know a bit more of what goes on around here and I'm starting to meet more people. On Saturday I went out on my own. It was the king's birthday and I tried to find the festivities in all the wrong places, but I saw quite a bit of touristy parts of the city. I went down to Chinatown and Pasar Seni (Central Market...it might be Sini...I'm too tired to look it up). I got one of those fish massages, where you dip your legs in a large fish tank and the "Doctor Fish" as they are called eat all the dead skin away. It tickles like crazy (and I'm not very ticklish) for the first few minutes and then it feels like soft scratches or something along those lines. A totally unique experience. Afterwards it feels awesome. Your feet and legs feel so refreshed and surprisingly clean. I'd do it again and highly recommend it. I window shopped for a bit, got some fresh mango at a fruit stand, and then went to Chinatown to find MB a present. I bargained my way to what I wanted which was exciting. It's pretty easy. The price they initially offer is quite tempting if you convert it to dollars, so I probably could have done better, but I only ended up paying a Ringgit or two more than I wanted to. After this I went to the food stalls and sat down to journal for a bit. I ended up talking with these two British girls and had lunch with them. It was some amazing Peking duck, although I'm sure the real thing in China is better still. I didn't care, because nothing beats crispy skin and duck fat over rice.

    After lunch I wandered around a bit more and visited a small Buddhist temple. I made an offering and sat there in meditation for a while. I'm currently learning about the 8 Fold Path to Enlightenment so it was kinda cool to start to recognize symbols and meanings in the temple. Plus, I saw it as a chance to get in touch with the world and the present. Literally right across the street and maybe 10 meters down there was a Hindu temple. I am fascinated by the ornate-ness of the Hindu religion, as well as the colors and beauty that surround the Hindu culture. It was my first time actually inside a Hindu place of worship. Although it was quite small I did spend a lot of time staring at the statues. Shiva was depicted with quite large boobs, which I am assuming is a symbol of nurturing, but I found it rather distracting (I know I know, I'm like a 10 year old boy). You can't wear your shoes in Hindu temples, so I left mine outside and of course I stepped in pigeon poo. Fortunately there was a place to wash your feet. I guess I'll know in a few days if I get some type of weird infection or something.

     After that I tried to get a taxi to go to Independence Square because I couldn't gage how far it was by my map and there is no city grid here so navigating is quite hard. I should have known when the taxi driver refused to use his meter that I would be ripped off, but at this point I was sweating like crazy and sitting in the air con left my don't-rip-me-off attitude out in the heat. I got totally ripped off, which made me a bit upset, because I know better, but whatever, at least next time I will know how to walk there. It was completely dead (it used to be the place where most of the political activity was, but most of it has been moved to a new city called Putrajaya - coincidentally where my competition project is). Aside from the old buildings and large flagpole it was kinda blah. I was going to go to the national mosque after that, but the cabbie had aggravated me so I left the area. Plus, I want to go national mosque with an actual Muslim so they can explain things to me, so I'll explore that part of town another time.

     I decided that it was still too early to return home, even though it was the hottest part of the day, so I headed over to Little India. That area is a complete CF. Crowded, people everywhere, people shouting at you, no room to move in between street stalls, and nothing really that special. I was going to sit down and get a snack from the Mamak stalls, but it was hotter under the tents than it was outside, so I window shopped in the colorful Sari stores instead. There are also a LOT of gold jewelry stores, which was quite interesting to see. Also, and like Chinatown, there were a LOT of knock offs/junk/un-identifiable chochkies (or however you spell it). Consumerism is a funny thing. The only thing I got there was a much needed bottle of water. I sat around in the shade/air con of the LRT station before heading home.

     I quickly took a shower and then headed back out to explore my neighborhood a bit more and then grab some groceries. I stumbled upon a Carrefour and I was curious to know if it was a grocery place or what so I went it. Carrefour is essentially a Wal-Mart on speed/steroids with a much better food selection. It was a bit overwhelming, but since I had walked through an entire parking lot (they are LARGE here), a parking lot market (random?) and circled a small mall to get there I got my groceries and a few household items there. It was actually pretty entertaining. They blasted peppy top-40s music and I found it a bit funny to see all of these women covered up while tapping their feet to that S&M song. They also had a live fish section (for food, not pets) and half a cow hanging from a hook with the other half chopped up into various cuts on a table on the side. The store had very little organization aside from the aisles, but things like toys were sandwiched in between storage containers and rat poison. I managed to make it out of there spending very little money. Just grabbing some pasta, breakfast items, beer, and food containers.

     That evening F, my roomie, graciously cooked me dinner and I ate with her and her boyfriend D. D is such a gentleman. Seriously. He served us food, refilled our food and cleaned up. He says he does it because he can't cook, but I have never had a guy I hardly met fill up my plate for me. He is Hindu, and the next day I was going to the Batu Caves so I was asking him questions about the festival that goes on there (Google it, I'm getting sssssuuuuuppppppper tired and it takes a while to explain, but don't say I didn't warn you, it's quite gory. Guys pull heavy blocks to shrines of different gods through hooks pierced throughout their bodies).

     The next day I went to my first CS event to the Batu Caves. It was a blast. I met a lot of cool people from all walks of life. I really look forward to hanging out with them more as the summer goes on. The hospitality here is quite amazing and the Malaysians who are a little more outgoing really make an effort to make you feel at home. Those that are shy (which is normal here) are just as nice, you just have to make the effort to get to know them. It was fun to hang out with people from all over, and all over KL as well. I hope to travel and go on more adventures with them in the future. The Batu Caves are a sight to behold. It is obviously very touristy, but at the same time, it is the most sacred Hindu site in Malaysia, so there were a lot of people there to worship as well. There were a few weddings, where it is considered an honor (to the newly-weds) if you are from far, far away to get your picture taken with the bride and groom (see Flickr in the next few days, I'm uploading soon) and wish them a happy marriage. The colors and ornate nature of the wedding outfits are breathtaking. Batu Caves are high up, about 300 and something narrow, steep steps up the side of a mountain. Be prepared to be attacked by monkeys on the way up. I brought the end pieces of my bread to give to the monkeys (because I don't eat them and I don't want to waste food). Being around monkeys is not a new thing for me (I've been to the Amazon) and I know how clever/rough they can be so I engaged in a friendly tug of war with one.

     After sweating it out up to the caves, we headed down. As we were debating where to eat lunch we got to witness someone on a religious pilgrimage who was asking the gods for a favor. In order to do this, you roll down the main entrance, then crawl on your hands and knees up all the steps and pray the whole way there. Trust me, this is NOT an easy task (don't forget the climate conditions), and you could see in her face her determination and dedication to the task at hand. Truly an amazing thing to witness.

  We were waiting for a couple to come back down, so we had some fresh coconuts, then headed to lunch at Teman Melati. We ate at a place called Virgin Chicken (which is the way they cook it I guess), near where my host family lives. I had a great time eating and exchanging travel stories and suggestions. I've got some travel plans in the works, which is something to look forward to after all of this competition business is done. I found out that there are a few other people I know heading to Singapore the same weekend I am, so hopefully I can meet up with them.

    Anyways, this is getting WAYYYYYY too long, so I'm going to get going to bed. I have made it my mission to take at least a half-hour out of my overtime day tomorrow to do some yoga. Hopefully it will keep me centered and refreshed for the long week ahead!

-M

Batu Caves

News paper article...

Monkey...obviously

True dedication - after the first stage of rolling

Tall Tiger and instant noodles...

     Once again, it's been a while and once again, to no surprise, I've been busier than ever. The competition is in full swing, and to be honest, I need a break from it. Granted this is me coming off of a 10 and 12 hour day, a 6 day work week, and another 6 day week to go. Being thrown into the deep end of the lop-sided frying pan is not only beginning to take its toll on me, but has also begun to wear away at my enjoyment of architecture. It's kind of like the week before jury week...for 3 consecutive weeks. Not to mention the principal in charge of the project is a night owl (when it comes to working, surprisingly, I am the complete opposite). On the plus side, I can say I am getting to know AutoCAD inside and out. For those of you who may be surprised that I didn't know CAD, my school (and firms in Colorado) teach/require Revit. Basically, I'm reversed in the sense that I know Revit but am relatively shaky in CAD. We have a new intern, Q (phonetically it should be a K) although he mainly builds models because he is a first-year in undergrad. Some may find it depressing that I'm staying in, eating instant noodles, sipping a Tiger beer, and blogging on a Friday night; but honestly, this is exactly what I want to be doing right now. I'm dead tired from the week and it just finished raining, so the humidity is at an energy-zapping high.

     Anyways, enough about work, there is more to life than the office (although it hasn't seemed that way quite yet). I finally met my third roomate - C. She's from South Africa, which is quite cool in my opinion. Every South African I have ever met has been super awesome and a lot of fun to be around. She is here with her mom (who is on holiday) and although I showed her around, she won't officially be moving in until Sunday. Yesterday I went out for Lebanese food and shisha (Americans usually call it: hukah), in Asia, with her (a South African) and my co-worker S, who lives a train stop over, from Columbia. If that isn't a sign of the times I don't know what is. In KL, such situations are quite typical. 'International' almost seems to be an understatement. The food was amazing, some of the best falafel I've had in ages.

      A few days prior I went to yoga with a group of gals from the office. It's a Tuesday tradition, something not to be missed. I'm not too good at yoga, but I love it anyway. After a 2 day journey to Malaysia, it was just what my body needed. I also stopped by the REAL Chinatown (not the touristy one near the National Mosque), a small strip of streets in the district of Wangsa Maju to go to a Chinese hawker center. A hawker center is basically a large strip of street vendors selling various food items at low, low prices. I got some spicy pork, spicy fish balls, some type of vegetable, and rice all for $1.20 US. The rule is to pick the most packed stall and go for it. Don't ask what you're eating, follow your nose and figure out what it is when you eat it. It was a leap of faith on my part, the first time I ventured into an adjacent neighborhood (I really don't live in a touristy part of town, but where actual locals live) and went for it. Given my past experience in Mongolia, food still remains a point of nervousness, especially street food when no one is there to re-assure me about it. These places are definitely not Halal, and as much as I appreciate the cleanliness of Halal, the smell of pork was a welcomed familiarity (and one I couldn't pass up). I was going to stick around and eat there, however mosquitos (colloquially called mozzies) were happily gnawing away at my ankles so I returned to the safety of my 19th floor apartment. I plan on taking C and S there next week for some tasty authentic Chinese (complete with MSG and all).

     Today, as it goes with every Friday, I got to enjoy a long lunch (we get more time so the Muslim community can attend Friday prayers). I was invited by M, a co-worker, to go to this Japanese restaurant for lunch. It was soooo so so good! Japanese food is my favorite kind of food (tied with several other Asian culinary delights) so I had a great time. It was also kinda cool because I was the only true foreigner. It was good to get to know some of the other people I haven't really spent a whole lot of time with in the office. They also gave me some confidence to speak more Bahasa Melayu; meaning they admitted they could understand me. They also asked really cute questions like if I'd eat raw fish or if I was 'suffering' from eating Japanese food. Granted there were things in my lunch I hadn't tried, but who can complain about Udon noodles and tempura fried soft shelled crab? I explained that sushi and Japanese food is quite popular in the US, and pretty un-typically of your average American home, my boyfriend and I loved cooking Asian food. They suggested I try Durian, which I have been told is in season. Of course, I would love to try it, but I think I would prefer to eat it with someone who likes it as well, just in case I don't like it. It is considered quite rude to waste food here, which is something us Westerners could learn from.

     I talk about food a lot, mostly because lunch and dinner are my only breaks from work as of yet. Fortunately I have the excuse of a visa run coming up after my 14th deadline for the competition so I should get some much deserved time (and weekends) off for a bit and be able to report on more exciting things than just work work work work. I have made some plans for the weekend aside from an almost full day at the office on Sunday. I'll report back if those things go as planned.

     Anyways, I can smell myself, which is always a bad sign, so I'm going to hop in the shower and settle down to bed with a good book until I pass out from exhaustion. With any luck, I'll update at the end of the weekend. If karma really acts in my favor, I'll have pictures from the weekend (I've posted others from my adventures on Flickr...although I must admit they aren't my best).

Good night (or good morning)

-M

     Once again, it's been a while and once again, to no surprise, I've been busier than ever. The competition is in full swing, and to be honest, I need a break from it. Granted this is me coming off of a 10 and 12 hour day, a 6 day work week, and another 6 day week to go. Being thrown into the deep end of the lop-sided frying pan is not only beginning to take its toll on me, but has also begun to wear away at my enjoyment of architecture. It's kind of like the week before jury week...for 3 consecutive weeks. Not to mention the principal in charge of the project is a night owl (when it comes to working, surprisingly, I am the complete opposite). On the plus side, I can say I am getting to know AutoCAD inside and out. For those of you who may be surprised that I didn't know CAD, my school (and firms in Colorado) teach/require Revit. Basically, I'm reversed in the sense that I know Revit but am relatively shaky in CAD. We have a new intern, Q (phonetically it should be a K) although he mainly builds models because he is a first-year in undergrad. Some may find it depressing that I'm staying in, eating instant noodles, sipping a Tiger beer, and blogging on a Friday night; but honestly, this is exactly what I want to be doing right now. I'm dead tired from the week and it just finished raining, so the humidity is at an energy-zapping high.

     Anyways, enough about work, there is more to life than the office (although it hasn't seemed that way quite yet). I finally met my third roomate - C. She's from South Africa, which is quite cool in my opinion. Every South African I have ever met has been super awesome and a lot of fun to be around. She is here with her mom (who is on holiday) and although I showed her around, she won't officially be moving in until Sunday. Yesterday I went out for Lebanese food and shisha (Americans usually call it: hukah), in Asia, with her (a South African) and my co-worker S, who lives a train stop over, from Columbia. If that isn't a sign of the times I don't know what is. In KL, such situations are quite typical. 'International' almost seems to be an understatement. The food was amazing, some of the best falafel I've had in ages.

      A few days prior I went to yoga with a group of gals from the office. It's a Tuesday tradition, something not to be missed. I'm not too good at yoga, but I love it anyway. After a 2 day journey to Malaysia, it was just what my body needed. I also stopped by the REAL Chinatown (not the touristy one near the National Mosque), a small strip of streets in the district of Wangsa Maju to go to a Chinese hawker center. A hawker center is basically a large strip of street vendors selling various food items at low, low prices. I got some spicy pork, spicy fish balls, some type of vegetable, and rice all for $1.20 US. The rule is to pick the most packed stall and go for it. Don't ask what you're eating, follow your nose and figure out what it is when you eat it. It was a leap of faith on my part, the first time I ventured into an adjacent neighborhood (I really don't live in a touristy part of town, but where actual locals live) and went for it. Given my past experience in Mongolia, food still remains a point of nervousness, especially street food when no one is there to re-assure me about it. These places are definitely not Halal, and as much as I appreciate the cleanliness of Halal, the smell of pork was a welcomed familiarity (and one I couldn't pass up). I was going to stick around and eat there, however mosquitos (colloquially called mozzies) were happily gnawing away at my ankles so I returned to the safety of my 19th floor apartment. I plan on taking C and S there next week for some tasty authentic Chinese (complete with MSG and all).

     Today, as it goes with every Friday, I got to enjoy a long lunch (we get more time so the Muslim community can attend Friday prayers). I was invited by M, a co-worker, to go to this Japanese restaurant for lunch. It was soooo so so good! Japanese food is my favorite kind of food (tied with several other Asian culinary delights) so I had a great time. It was also kinda cool because I was the only true foreigner. It was good to get to know some of the other people I haven't really spent a whole lot of time with in the office. They also gave me some confidence to speak more Bahasa Melayu; meaning they admitted they could understand me. They also asked really cute questions like if I'd eat raw fish or if I was 'suffering' from eating Japanese food. Granted there were things in my lunch I hadn't tried, but who can complain about Udon noodles and tempura fried soft shelled crab? I explained that sushi and Japanese food is quite popular in the US, and pretty un-typically of your average American home, my boyfriend and I loved cooking Asian food. They suggested I try Durian, which I have been told is in season. Of course, I would love to try it, but I think I would prefer to eat it with someone who likes it as well, just in case I don't like it. It is considered quite rude to waste food here, which is something us Westerners could learn from.

     I talk about food a lot, mostly because lunch and dinner are my only breaks from work as of yet. Fortunately I have the excuse of a visa run coming up after my 14th deadline for the competition so I should get some much deserved time (and weekends) off for a bit and be able to report on more exciting things than just work work work work. I have made some plans for the weekend aside from an almost full day at the office on Sunday. I'll report back if those things go as planned.

     Anyways, I can smell myself, which is always a bad sign, so I'm going to hop in the shower and settle down to bed with a good book until I pass out from exhaustion. With any luck, I'll update at the end of the weekend. If karma really acts in my favor, I'll have pictures from the weekend (I've posted others from my adventures on Flickr...although I must admit they aren't my best).

Good night (or good morning)

-M

     Once again, it's been a while and once again, to no surprise, I've been busier than ever. The competition is in full swing, and to be honest, I need a break from it. Granted this is me coming off of a 10 and 12 hour day, a 6 day work week, and another 6 day week to go. Being thrown into the deep end of the lop-sided frying pan is not only beginning to take its toll on me, but has also begun to wear away at my enjoyment of architecture. It's kind of like the week before jury week...for 3 consecutive weeks. Not to mention the principal in charge of the project is a night owl (when it comes to working, surprisingly, I am the complete opposite). On the plus side, I can say I am getting to know AutoCAD inside and out. For those of you who may be surprised that I didn't know CAD, my school (and firms in Colorado) teach/require Revit. Basically, I'm reversed in the sense that I know Revit but am relatively shaky in CAD. We have a new intern, Q (phonetically it should be a K) although he mainly builds models because he is a first-year in undergrad. Some may find it depressing that I'm staying in, eating instant noodles, sipping a Tiger beer, and blogging on a Friday night; but honestly, this is exactly what I want to be doing right now. I'm dead tired from the week and it just finished raining, so the humidity is at an energy-zapping high.

     Anyways, enough about work, there is more to life than the office (although it hasn't seemed that way quite yet). I finally met my third roomate - C. She's from South Africa, which is quite cool in my opinion. Every South African I have ever met has been super awesome and a lot of fun to be around. She is here with her mom (who is on holiday) and although I showed her around, she won't officially be moving in until Sunday. Yesterday I went out for Lebanese food and shisha (Americans usually call it: hukah), in Asia, with her (a South African) and my co-worker S, who lives a train stop over, from Columbia. If that isn't a sign of the times I don't know what is. In KL, such situations are quite typical. 'International' almost seems to be an understatement. The food was amazing, some of the best falafel I've had in ages.

      A few days prior I went to yoga with a group of gals from the office. It's a Tuesday tradition, something not to be missed. I'm not too good at yoga, but I love it anyway. After a 2 day journey to Malaysia, it was just what my body needed. I also stopped by the REAL Chinatown (not the touristy one near the National Mosque), a small strip of streets in the district of Wangsa Maju to go to a Chinese hawker center. A hawker center is basically a large strip of street vendors selling various food items at low, low prices. I got some spicy pork, spicy fish balls, some type of vegetable, and rice all for $1.20 US. The rule is to pick the most packed stall and go for it. Don't ask what you're eating, follow your nose and figure out what it is when you eat it. It was a leap of faith on my part, the first time I ventured into an adjacent neighborhood (I really don't live in a touristy part of town, but where actual locals live) and went for it. Given my past experience in Mongolia, food still remains a point of nervousness, especially street food when no one is there to re-assure me about it. These places are definitely not Halal, and as much as I appreciate the cleanliness of Halal, the smell of pork was a welcomed familiarity (and one I couldn't pass up). I was going to stick around and eat there, however mosquitos (colloquially called mozzies) were happily gnawing away at my ankles so I returned to the safety of my 19th floor apartment. I plan on taking C and S there next week for some tasty authentic Chinese (complete with MSG and all).

     Today, as it goes with every Friday, I got to enjoy a long lunch (we get more time so the Muslim community can attend Friday prayers). I was invited by M, a co-worker, to go to this Japanese restaurant for lunch. It was soooo so so good! Japanese food is my favorite kind of food (tied with several other Asian culinary delights) so I had a great time. It was also kinda cool because I was the only true foreigner. It was good to get to know some of the other people I haven't really spent a whole lot of time with in the office. They also gave me some confidence to speak more Bahasa Melayu; meaning they admitted they could understand me. They also asked really cute questions like if I'd eat raw fish or if I was 'suffering' from eating Japanese food. Granted there were things in my lunch I hadn't tried, but who can complain about Udon noodles and tempura fried soft shelled crab? I explained that sushi and Japanese food is quite popular in the US, and pretty un-typically of your average American home, my boyfriend and I loved cooking Asian food. They suggested I try Durian, which I have been told is in season. Of course, I would love to try it, but I think I would prefer to eat it with someone who likes it as well, just in case I don't like it. It is considered quite rude to waste food here, which is something us Westerners could learn from.

     I talk about food a lot, mostly because lunch and dinner are my only breaks from work as of yet. Fortunately I have the excuse of a visa run coming up after my 14th deadline for the competition so I should get some much deserved time (and weekends) off for a bit and be able to report on more exciting things than just work work work work. I have made some plans for the weekend aside from an almost full day at the office on Sunday. I'll report back if those things go as planned.

     Anyways, I can smell myself, which is always a bad sign, so I'm going to hop in the shower and settle down to bed with a good book until I pass out from exhaustion. With any luck, I'll update at the end of the weekend. If karma really acts in my favor, I'll have pictures from the weekend (I've posted others from my adventures on Flickr...although I must admit they aren't my best).

Good night (or good morning)

-M

     Once again, it's been a while and once again, to no surprise, I've been busier than ever. The competition is in full swing, and to be honest, I need a break from it. Granted this is me coming off of a 10 and 12 hour day, a 6 day work week, and another 6 day week to go. Being thrown into the deep end of the lop-sided frying pan is not only beginning to take its toll on me, but has also begun to wear away at my enjoyment of architecture. It's kind of like the week before jury week...for 3 consecutive weeks. Not to mention the principal in charge of the project is a night owl (when it comes to working, surprisingly, I am the complete opposite). On the plus side, I can say I am getting to know AutoCAD inside and out. For those of you who may be surprised that I didn't know CAD, my school (and firms in Colorado) teach/require Revit. Basically, I'm reversed in the sense that I know Revit but am relatively shaky in CAD. We have a new intern, Q (phonetically it should be a K) although he mainly builds models because he is a first-year in undergrad. Some may find it depressing that I'm staying in, eating instant noodles, sipping a Tiger beer, and blogging on a Friday night; but honestly, this is exactly what I want to be doing right now. I'm dead tired from the week and it just finished raining, so the humidity is at an energy-zapping high.

     Anyways, enough about work, there is more to life than the office (although it hasn't seemed that way quite yet). I finally met my third roomate - C. She's from South Africa, which is quite cool in my opinion. Every South African I have ever met has been super awesome and a lot of fun to be around. She is here with her mom (who is on holiday) and although I showed her around, she won't officially be moving in until Sunday. Yesterday I went out for Lebanese food and shisha (Americans usually call it: hukah), in Asia, with her (a South African) and my co-worker S, who lives a train stop over, from Columbia. If that isn't a sign of the times I don't know what is. In KL, such situations are quite typical. 'International' almost seems to be an understatement. The food was amazing, some of the best falafel I've had in ages.

      A few days prior I went to yoga with a group of gals from the office. It's a Tuesday tradition, something not to be missed. I'm not too good at yoga, but I love it anyway. After a 2 day journey to Malaysia, it was just what my body needed. I also stopped by the REAL Chinatown (not the touristy one near the National Mosque), a small strip of streets in the district of Wangsa Maju to go to a Chinese hawker center. A hawker center is basically a large strip of street vendors selling various food items at low, low prices. I got some spicy pork, spicy fish balls, some type of vegetable, and rice all for $1.20 US. The rule is to pick the most packed stall and go for it. Don't ask what you're eating, follow your nose and figure out what it is when you eat it. It was a leap of faith on my part, the first time I ventured into an adjacent neighborhood (I really don't live in a touristy part of town, but where actual locals live) and went for it. Given my past experience in Mongolia, food still remains a point of nervousness, especially street food when no one is there to re-assure me about it. These places are definitely not Halal, and as much as I appreciate the cleanliness of Halal, the smell of pork was a welcomed familiarity (and one I couldn't pass up). I was going to stick around and eat there, however mosquitos (colloquially called mozzies) were happily gnawing away at my ankles so I returned to the safety of my 19th floor apartment. I plan on taking C and S there next week for some tasty authentic Chinese (complete with MSG and all).

     Today, as it goes with every Friday, I got to enjoy a long lunch (we get more time so the Muslim community can attend Friday prayers). I was invited by M, a co-worker, to go to this Japanese restaurant for lunch. It was soooo so so good! Japanese food is my favorite kind of food (tied with several other Asian culinary delights) so I had a great time. It was also kinda cool because I was the only true foreigner. It was good to get to know some of the other people I haven't really spent a whole lot of time with in the office. They also gave me some confidence to speak more Bahasa Melayu; meaning they admitted they could understand me. They also asked really cute questions like if I'd eat raw fish or if I was 'suffering' from eating Japanese food. Granted there were things in my lunch I hadn't tried, but who can complain about Udon noodles and tempura fried soft shelled crab? I explained that sushi and Japanese food is quite popular in the US, and pretty un-typically of your average American home, my boyfriend and I loved cooking Asian food. They suggested I try Durian, which I have been told is in season. Of course, I would love to try it, but I think I would prefer to eat it with someone who likes it as well, just in case I don't like it. It is considered quite rude to waste food here, which is something us Westerners could learn from.

     I talk about food a lot, mostly because lunch and dinner are my only breaks from work as of yet. Fortunately I have the excuse of a visa run coming up after my 14th deadline for the competition so I should get some much deserved time (and weekends) off for a bit and be able to report on more exciting things than just work work work work. I have made some plans for the weekend aside from an almost full day at the office on Sunday. I'll report back if those things go as planned.

     Anyways, I can smell myself, which is always a bad sign, so I'm going to hop in the shower and settle down to bed with a good book until I pass out from exhaustion. With any luck, I'll update at the end of the weekend. If karma really acts in my favor, I'll have pictures from the weekend (I've posted others from my adventures on Flickr...although I must admit they aren't my best).

Good night (or good morning)

-M