So we're off on another big journey.


Of course, when you arrive at the airport, you wonder if you should ever set foot outside your own door, given it's such a scary place out there...


But we persisted.

These days, because we first have to get off our big island, the No. 1 stop on a big journey is KL. (We do have different ideas on how to travel from Borneo next time, but this time we're sticking to tradition.)

And if you're not often in KL, you have to make the absolute most of it. So it's been a fast-and-furious but really enjoyable few days.

We've spent time:

-- Catching up with friends over bak kut teh.

-- Enjoying, from the top of their building, what must be the best rooftop view in KL.



-- Taking in two exhibitions at the Ilham Gallery. Currently they have The Body and the Body Politic in the main hall.






The sub-exhibition is Domestic Bliss.




Regardless of the theme, I always LOVE the way artists make me look at things differently, and really long to be able to incorporate that fresh vision into my writing.

-- Listening, still at the Ilham Gallery, to Saidah Rastam on the history of Melaka. I didn't necessarily agree with all her points, but she raises many important questions... What do you do to ensure that historically important and strategic cities face the future while not losing the past? Who should decide on the nitty-gritty of what goes and what stays? What is the role of "mega-projects" backed by foreign investment, and who should oversee them? I look forward to reading more on the project she co-founded (Melaka In Fact).



-- Attending our first MPO concert for over a year. And what a belter it was. Five Beethoven overtures, followed by Shostakovitch's 12th symphony, entitled The Year 1917. To the best of my recollection, my entire acquaintance with Shostakovitch is owed to the MPO. I've loved all the symphonies, but this one was particularly engaging and invigorating.


-- Appreciating a home-cooked Sri Lankan lunch with another set of friends.


-- Taking in the musical Chess, in which a friend was playing the role of Walter. Staged by the Bentley Music Academy out in Mutiara Damansara, in collaboration with an Australian university, it was a great show, full of energy, and very professionally realized.

-- Getting our protein rations for the month by ordering a meat platter at The Barn (note to future self: these things are really for four people...)

So... this afternoon we take our tired eyes and throats back to the airport, leaving our former home behind again for a while. We tried to pack in a bit too much this weekend, but still, it's been very, very enjoyable.