Well, I finally found an internet facility and it's practically across the road from where I'm staying! Yay, hooray! True, I'm only here for a few more days now and it's doubtful I'll get another chance to come back and update until I fly back to Perth, but still: Yay! Internet!

Hmm. Now what?

It took me ages to recover from Hong Kong. I feel so bad for the Munchkin but really, how I was, that was the best I could do at the time. I haven't travelled much and Hong Kong must be the only big city I've ever been to. I think I'd be happy to never see another one for the rest of this lifetime.

Really, I don't know how people do it. Maybe it's coz I've spent a fair sized chunk of my life on a beautiful, isolated, mostly virgin tropical island. Maybe it's coz I KNOW that quality of life can be so much better coz I've LIVED it. Maybe there are people who are born in cities and live in cities and die in cities and never have anything else to compare it to. You can argue with me all you like if you have a different opinion, but I saw it and felt it: The people of Hong Kong are the walking dead. Okay, that's a pretty full on statement for someone who was only there a few days and I have faith that if I lived there a while I would see what I couldn't see in such a short time span, and plus I was there in wintertime so maybe there's a bit more life in the warmer months. But, man...that place was zombietown. I entered Hong Kong in high spirits, looking forward to exploring a place I never thought I'd ever see. I left Hong Kong a shadow of my former self. It was like a heavy, musty curtain had been draped across the sun. It took me a tremendous amount of iron determination and a conjured memory of teenage rebelliousness for me to burn that curtain away.

And finally, it was the rains of Kuala Lumpur that washed away the remains.

If you ever come out to KL, don't forget to bring your bathers/swimmers/whatever u call them where u are and go to Sunway Lagoon. That's one theme park I wouldn't mind visiting again and again. Although it's got one of the worst slogans I've ever come across ("Feel the Fun". I guess their marketing budget was cut to make the waterfalls as realistic as possible. Which is fine by me, really. There's nothing worse than all hype and no substance) this theme park focuses not on consumerism but actually on having a good time (note this comparison to Disneyland...). Two thumbs up. I wish I had more thumbs. It started pouring down with rain a few hours into our time there but, as I said, it was something I needed. And after it cleared up we still managed to go on some of the dry park rides though, of course, they weren't all that dry by then. I really wanted to go on the Tomahawk ride but I would've had to go all on my lonesome. And it would've been stupid listening to me screaming by myself.

I like KL. The food is good and cheaper than chips, it's warm and most of the people are quite friendly and speak English to some degree. Oh, but the one thing I'm beginning to absolutely detest is being followed around by the shop attendants. They watch you like hawks. They silently hover at your side or just behind you and sometimes I wish I could be more careless and accidentally step hard on their toes. I always feel like turning around and saying "Can I help you?" which is what THEY'RE meant to be saying to me... but I get that that's the idea. At least I think it is. I think that they're trying to convey the "at your service" look. They probably don't think I'm the shifty type who needs watching all the time so I don't walk out with half the stock stuffed down my pants. But that is what it feels like.

I should probably say now that the reason why I'm able to waste this time on the internet is that Munchkin is spending time with her father, my first husband (shudder, shudder). I had no intention of seeing him at all and lounged about in our apartment suite la-di-dahing about to ensure I didn't bump into them. So of course when I finally decided it was safe to hit the streets I bumped into them. They didn't see me until I went over to say hello. Well, I had to, didn't I? I couldn't just sneak around them. Anyway, he seemed fine (I grudgingly admit). Fatter. He didn't look like he was going to kidnap her, which is a relief and lets me relax. I suppose I would have been worrying all this time if I hadn't seen him so I suppose it's a good thing that I did and I suppose I have to entertain the idea that he is human after all and not the idiot monster he used to be. But it's hard to shake the idea that he's an idiot. That sounds so mean. It makes me sad to think that I think like that.

Anyway, my hour's up, I've gotta go.

Later.

k.

ps, Terry Pratchett rocks.