5 days left, 5 days Kuala Lumpur. We got here pretty drowsy, having gotten up at four. Checked in in Sri Tiara Residences at 11.00, went straight to Mid Valley, the biggest mall of KL, to eat some real old fashioned junk food. And then the day was pretty much over. It rained and thundered and Marie-Lou, of course, freaked out as usual. We had a swim in the pool.  In the evening I head back to Mid Valley, to Thai Odyssey, for a mega Thai massage! Expensive compared to Asian prices, cheap compared to European ones. But this was the real deal, with harmonic music, beautiful decoration, a hacky sack to cover your eyes, and green tea before and after. And, most important of all: a trained ‘therapist’. And, on top of that, no noise! No Australians shouting we’ve been to Bali 21 times! (Obviously this was in Bali. It would be pretty stupid to shout having been in Bali 21 times when you are in KL), no crying babies, no crappy music from the Bob Marley bar next door, no masseuses calling each other names or chatting above your head about whatever, and no brutal insisting for obligatory tips either. Mere bliss, I tell you, mere bliss!

We finally get to visit a city aquarium, (We were twice waiting in line in Bangkok and finally left.) This one, on the lower floors of the Petrona Towers, carries the original name Aquaria KLCC. And, although too pricey, it was fun. The kids loved it.  But we had to swear to Marie-Lou that the sharks, being behind glass and all, couldn’t touch her. As that didn’t really convince her, we told her that of all the different kind of sharks, only two or so are actually dangerous. That didn’t convince her either. I have to admit though, you walk through this glass tunnel and a big ass shark hovers just about your head, row upon row of teeth and two penises shaking in your face … it is impressive. The mantas (I think they were mantas, small ones.) were gracious and the piranhas fearsome. The shrimp were gorgeous and the jelly fish delightful.

This afternoon we went looking for a Sri Lankan Buddhist temple: the Maha Vihara. It turned out to be a bit boring.We saw one monk, and a devotee walking circles around a Buddha statue. No mysterious nor zen atmosphere. Luckily the monsters had fun on an small rusty playground.

But we walked through Brickfield, the Indian quarter of KL. Loved it. It took a ten minute walk from our place along a two lane road, and we entered another world. Colors, smells, and more colors. Blue Ganesh and red Shiva statues. The bus stands and even the sidewalks festive. The women elegant in their sarongs. the men and their moustaches. Billboards of movies with violent villains. A samosa seller, big guy, pretends to kidnap Marie-Lou’s doll. A drunk lying flat out on the boardwalk, another one puking his guts out. Flower strings, restaurants with dahl, roti channai, tandoori and biryani rice. A guard with a riot gun in front of a jewelry and gold store, a woman all smiles drawing henna tattoos on the monsters’ hands. It was a trial for them to keep their little paws still afterwards, a whole hour for the designs to dry … all in the shadows of KL’s skyscrapers. We had Moghulmahal deliver Indian food. A bashful Sikh guy brought us aloo gobi, garlic and cheese naan, tark dahl, malai kofta. A delicious ending to a nice day.