kuala lumpur

My first scare...

SO, a warning to all you pregnant women out there: dont over-exert yourself - pulling a ligament is no laughing matter! Lunchtime in KL and I was feeling something akin to a strain or cramp in my lower abdomen - nothing to write home about, I thought, and continued walking...
Cue two hours later, and were sitting outside Maharajalela station and I cant stand up anymore. The pain is spreading up to and past the right of my navel and becoming more intense. Dan and I abandoned our plans to find Chinatown, and headed off to Asian Heritage Row (near Medan Tuanku station) to try to find a coffee shop/bar.

WHAT A GREAT STREET!

By this stage I couldnt sit on a stool and had to recline on a sofa, getting more and more panicked about the increasing amount of pain. After one drink I just had to head home to lie down, where the pain kept increasing, even at rest.
I ended up in tears, as much out of a total lack of understanding for what was going on in my body than the pain, and had to call the doctor... at which point I totally broke down.
After a reasonable consultation, an explanation of what to look out for (in case it was premature labour) and a lot of reassurance that it was probably a strained ligament I calmed down, and we eventually made it out to a very quiet but lovely dinner.

LESSON: They dont tell you to take it easy for nothing...

graffiti - malay style...

the magical durian

Delicious! So, the only thing that youre not allowed to bring into the hotel in Langkawi is Durian...

Whos a pretty boy, then?

A pic of Nitin and I, taken in his local bar, on the waterfront in Manly...

Reichstag...

Parliament's collection in the Reichstag is absolutely mindblowing... Jenny Holzer, Anselm Keifer and more... Here are some examples of the work - the greatest of which is the building itself, as transformed by Norman Foster for the opening in the late 90s.

Standing solitary, this is an original piece of the old tunnel connecting the Reichstag with the buildings next door - there is a conspiracy theory (with quite a lot of weight) that Göring went through the tunnel to set fire to the building in 1933, blaming the Communists and leaving the way open for a Nazi political victory a couple of days later.

hello to sean and claire!!

Berlinertastic!!! Met up with Sean and Claire in Berlin, where they took me to a huge dancehall come pizza parlour/bar... It was swing night and we were surrounded by about 60 people in a sweaty dancing frenzy: from 18 to 80 everyone was cutting their moves on the dancefloor... They sold an artwork of there's a few days later and took me out for brunch at Gorki Park - an amazing Russian Cafe... read all about it here and here.