JOURNAL | Lunch, Coffee and Last Day In Bukit Bintang

Lunch, Coffee and Last Day In Bukit Bintang

I woke up the next day feeling refreshed (last night I walked all the way to the Petronas Towers, and it was so humid, I got tired walking). I know that the breakfast starts at 8am, so I went down the dinig hall. Cory, the American guy was not on his bed anymore. I think he got up around 4am.

30 June 2016. Thursday

When I reached the dining hall, I found Cory sitting by the couch. Said good morning to him and had my coffee and toast. Not many people yet, so it was quiet. At my back was another Filipino backpacker detailing his travels to many parts of the world. But apart from me, the other Filipino guy at the back and one Chinese girl busy talking on her tablet; there weren't many Asians. In fact, most of the guests are caucasians. Not that it bothers me. Actually it made me feel glad that Malaysia sure looks like a travel destination for many tourist (something the Philippines has yet to emulate).

***

Later after breakfast, I found myself at the long dining table with Cory and we were talking about him (just because I don't like to talk about myself). I found out that he's a Buddhist, from the US. He's now traveling from one Asian country to another, teaching English.

A few hours later, the other backpackers started showing up. There was this guy from California, his accent was so interesting. It sounded like a person who just got up from bed, trying to stretch his words. So he and Cory were talking in English, but they had two distinct accents. Cory had the more neutral one, and the other guy (forgot his name) was the stretch-y accent, while I was busy uploading my pics to the Internet. Another lady from the UK started whining how she had no plan whatsoever in Malaysia, blah blah blah... and the funny thing was the accent really kept my ears glued to their discussion.

Isn't it amazing how each individual would be talking in English and would have their unique quality to it. It only shows how dynamic cultures can be. 

***

I asked Cory if he'll be interested to join me for lunch and he agreed. So out we were.

It so happens that Cory had to Malaysia several times and he had been to this exact place before. So I let him lead way, while he asked me what food I fancy eating. I had nothing particular in mind, but I thought of Thai food (yes, Thai food in Malaysia). Unfortunately, we couldn't find a Thai restaurant so we settled in a Chinese restaurant.

Cory is vegetarian, so he only ordered fried rice. I ordered the bakute, something similar to Filipinos' bulalo. In the middle of our meal, we talked about politics, economics, religion and all sorts of intellectual topics. It sparked my interest especially on the subject of global recession following the recent BrExit, the Trump presidential bid, the territorial disputes in many parts of the world. And finally we ended up discussing about Karma and Buddhism.

You will read more about the Karma and Buddhism discussion here:

The Virtue of Being Good, From A Buddhist Perspective

He was even so nice to send me the link of a popular meditation center. Link below:

http://www.dhamma.org/en-US/index

We planned to have dinner later that night but didn't push through as I couldn't find him. He left early in the morning.

***

Salsa Dancing in Kuala Lumpur

My Malaysian friend Fiza recommended to go to Havana for salsa dancing, so after walking for a few minutes, I found the club but they were not playing salsa tonight. Luckily there was a nearby bar that had a band playing latin songs, not really salsa but at least there was some latin flair to their repertoire. That was enough.

And because I wasn't drinking beer anymore, I had to contend with red wine. My only mistake was that I expected something nice for the price I paid, but the red wine tasted so cheap, almost like it was diluted in water. I'm not wine expert, but it doesn't take a genius to figure whether wine is good or not. Anyhow, I had limited options. I ended up asking for a second glass.

The wooden floor was empty. The band started playing at 10pm, and by 11pm, only three couple were there. I had no choice but to dance alone, never mind what the other people will say. They don't know me anyway.  

When the band took a break, the bongo player approached me and told me that I danced well. I was only too glad. At close to midnight, the number of customers started coming. There were now a lot of people dancing on the floor, but it was mostly samba and reggaeton. I left at half past 12mn. Went straight to the hostel and called it a night.

Tomorrow I leave for Oman. Tomorrow marks the real chapter.