A Life Far Removed from Durian Trees

Arggghhhhhhhh! Internet has been very slow these last few days and this is why: Undersea cable breaks cut Internet in Mideast, Asia

- Malaysian restaurant found! - Shipment has arrived! The Malaysian restaurant. Oh yes, baby! Tucked away somewhere near the Old College, with no sign outside yet (“waiting for that licence”), this is like a Malaysian gerai . Opened in March. Authentic Malaysian food (more northern because the cook is the owner’s Thai wife); local prices; outdoor setting; can do takeaways; most of the customers are Msian students (all guys so far), Indonesians, Yemenia staff, Msian businessmen in town, and locals who’ve been to Msia. It’s basically a villa with the restaurant in the compound. The owner, a guy from Sarawak who used to work as a trader, lives on the upper floor of the house with his family – wife and two kids who are studying locally. They rent out the lower floor to students and someone gives English lessons. They grow kai lan and strawberries in the garden. Lots of ‘Visit Malaysia’ posters and brochures – donated by the tourism board because after all, it’s the ‘Malaysian Tourist Rest...

I recently joined Facebook, after years of being wary of leaving an e-trail that will forever be cached somewhere. What the heck... I must say, it's an excellent way to look up people from the past. I spent hours looking at friends' profiles, their friends, and their friends, etc. and found SO many people that I know/knew/completely forgot about! Most of my friends are married with kids. A few have passed away. It's funny how people from different circles know each other from elsewhere. All that browsing and catching up with long-lost friends have made me somewhat pensive, thinking about the past, present and future all at once. Would I let people who've hurt me in the past into my life again, and vice versa? I've certainly changed - at least, I think so. With past regrets, how would I have done things differently? Would old friends look at me now and expect me to have achieved more/less in life? Where should we be now, as thirty-somethings? If I were to compare my ...

I don't really read motivational/love-makes-the-world-go-round/cheesy messages from people but this is a good one... A Mayonnaise Jar and Two Cups of Coffee A professor teaches his students a lesson about what's really important in life. By Laura Bankston When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember this story about a mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee... A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The professor next picked up a box of sand and po...

Found it! Finally decided on a sofa set at Turkish City, in the Al Asbahi area. It'll be made locally and delivered in a week. We picked a pattern and sent a chair from the dining table so they could match the wood. It's a little kitcsh but I'm happy we found something comfy, in the same colour scheme, nice pattern (S' choice) and not overkill. Our driver M was impressed by S' negotiations skills, and couldn't believe the discount we got. "Boss, I learn a lot from you. Next time I go buy furniture, you come with me." Next project: carpets & curtains. But that should be easy. Our shipment should leave the UK soon, by air freight, and customs here usually takes a day (vs. 4 months++ in Angola) so I'm optimistic for December. Ten days until we go on holiday! And then a few weeks of work and the year is over. Can't believe how quickly it's gone by...

Did quite a few things over the weekend. On Thursday mornings, I go to a pottery class. Here's my first creation. It's made from Yemeni clay and should be done next week. It'll be sent to a local kiln when it's done. I find it really therapeutic, especially after sitting in front of a computer all week, crunching numbers and writing market reports. Afterwards, we went to KFC for lunch - S' favourite restaurant in the entire world (really!). They even had Hot & Spicy! Slightly different from Msian Hot & Spicy but still pretty good. Very clean, bright and airy. There is a Baskin & Robbins and a nice park next door. On the way home, we drove by the new Al Saleh Mosque, which is absolutely beautiful. At night it's lit up beautifully as well. I haven't been inside yet. It was officially opened this last Friday. Some famous sheikhs from Saudi Arabia came - we saw their convoy making its way from the Movenpick Hotel to the mosque on Friday. We were at t...

Hmm...a little disappointing. First of all, the sushi "spread" was tucked away in a little corner on the eighth floor of the Sheraton Hotel and you had to eat it in the smoke-infested Hollywood Club, which is what you would call a nightclub in Malaysia. Secondly, there were only about 10 sushi items available, six of them containing crab sticks, which S hates. But otherwise, the fish was fresh. Then, at about 8 p.m. a Filipino band with two very sexy (and talented) singers comes on stage so if you're hoping for a quiet, romantic meal, this ain't it! On top of all that, the clientele at the pub are horny blokey guys who are openly ogling the Filipina singers. Between songs, the ladies would walk the floor, flirt with them and rub their bald heads. After dinner, not keen to go back to a TV-less house, I watched S play pool...by himself. Are we lame??? S said if there was one thing he learned at university, it was how to play pool. And I think he's good. The Sheraton...