Day 22 - Arrived at Narita/Tokyo airport at 6:30AM, and settled in for a 12 hour lay over. They checked my bag and box all the way to DFW. This may turn out to be a bad thing. I had to clear immigration and customs and get a boarding pass, but the AA counter didn't open until noon, so I went and had noodles and seafood for breakfast. By the time the counter opened, my flight had been delayed 2 1/2 hours. I now depart at 9:45PM arriving at DFW around 5:30PM, the same day. I slept a few hours on a bench. I thought about taking a 40 min. high-speed train to downtown Tokyo, but it is ~40F outside and I'm not dressed for that.

I got tired of the airport and decided to explore Narita. Everyone was very helpful getting me there and back. I took the train into town to see the Naritasan Shinshoji Temple. This is a large Buddhist temple and school complex built in 920 AD.

There was a service going on in one of the temples. I took my shoes off and entered. Lots of chanting, drumming and fire. This place is dedicated to Fudomyo-o their god of fire. I then left looking for a late lunch. The 15 minute walk from the train was down a street lined with shops and restaurants. I stopped at a place whose specialty was fresh eel. After I saw how fresh, I moved on.

I then talked to a restaurant owner who was in traditional Japanese dress. She spoke very good English and convinced me to dine at her place. They too had eel, but I decided on a tempura plater that was outstanding.

Well this will be my last blog post, unless something exciting happens in the next three hours before my flight. Today Friday Feb. 4th, I have seen the sun rise and set on Japan, and will see it rise again on Friday Feb. 4th somewhere around the Aleutian Islands and see it setting again heading into Dallas. I hope you have enjoyed this, I know I have.

Day 21 - Get away day. There are lots of Chinese New Year activities around the hotel. The entire hotel staff is here and they have a gauntlet set up from the elevator to the front door. They are waiting to receive Hóng Bāo, which is money in a red envelope. There are performing groups in front of the hotel, that travel around putting on shows for Hóng Bāo.

This performance group was sponsored some rich guy who supposedly owned most of Bukit Bintang, that area around the hotel. His custom built Bufori Geneva was prominently parked out front.

It was then off to the airport for a 10:50PM flight to Tokyo. My limo driver told me about his 2 wives and 10 kids. He said this was common practice and that the government provides supports to families with 10+ kids. Besides a driver, he told me he sells fruit and is a part-time actor. I had a small issue at check due to the weight of my suitcase. I had to box up some items so that my bag was less than 32kg.

Day 20 - This is my last day at the plant. This was an incredible experience, but I am ready to get home. Here is a picture from the 5th floor office area looking back toward downtown KL where my hotel is located. The two side-by-side tall buildings are the Petronas Towers and to the left is the KL Tower, the tallest radio tower in the world. This was one of the few clear days since I arrived.

The activity in this town is coming to a halt as the Chinese New Year approaches. The travel to the plant is much quicker without traffic, but finding a taxi for the ride home is becoming a challenge. The guys at work took me out for dinner. They picked me up at the hotel and we went to an Irish Pub, Leornard's favorite. Note: I previously identified Leornard as a "Christian Malay". He informed me this is an oxymoron and that he is Indian Malaysian Christian. He also would like to be referred to as Leornard Bin Guinness. Here is a picture of the evenings entertainment. I though it was amusing that I was sitting in an Irish Pub in KL, Malaysia listening to two Chinese sing the Eagles' "Hotey Carifownia".

Day 19 - Looks like nasty weather in North Texas. I "Skyped" the family this evening (Tues. morning in Denison) and all were still in PJ's. Another busy day at work trying to wrap things up as best as possible. Today was a holiday in KL, tomorrow is a "mass vacation" day at TI and Thursday and Friday are national holidays in Malaysia; not much getting done. I am still going in tomorrow to meet with 4-5 people I haven't had time for as yet.

I went to lunch today with Kash and Guru. These two gentlemen along with Leornard who have been my main accomplices, and companions. These guys have really taken care of me and I am truly blessed to have met them; quality folks. Today we ate at a banana leaf restaurant, which is primarily Indian. They put a banana leaf on the table and start dishing out rice, vegetables, curry sauces, and other "unidentifiables". We also picked out a marinated chicken quarter on the way in which they fried for for us. You moosh it together while you eat with the fingers on your right hand, no utensils. The food was awesome. We ended with some brewed drinks which supposedly to help with digestion. When finished, you roll up your leaf toward you. This signifies that you like the food and will be back. Rolling your leaf away from you means you do not wish to come back, which is typically (symbolically) done at funerals.

Kash was my main contact during this trip and was upset his picture didn't make the blog. Here he is in front of Thurkah's Banana Leaf, what a stud!

Here is Kash and Guru at the table while being served; for some reason my banana leaf is 2X theirs.

Here is a picture from a few days ago of Leornard and Kash (on phone) at lunch. I don't want to leave Leornard out, the only Christian Malay I met on the trip and a great person, la.

Day 17 & 18 - Nothing much to report. The days are winding down and there are lots of meetings, visits, etc. Everyone seems to want a sit-down to pick my brain and I'm not sure why. I am more than happy to oblige; these are very personable people and I have made some good friends and would love nothing more than for them to succeed. I have been practicing my Malaysian-English or Malenglish, thanks to Leornard and Ganesh. The trick is to follow every statement with "la". As in " are we going to lunch, la?", "ye, la", or my twist when I observe something questionable, "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, la?"

Other than that, nothing exciting on the taxis to/from or dinner/supper.

Day 16 - I woke up early, and it is still raining. A workout and breakfast before 8:00, and then did some TI work for the next few hours. I haven't mentioned it, but I am communicating with the family via SKYPE and Google-Talk. SKYPE at the hotel is a little cumbersome, but Google-Talk is incredible. Both are free, and with phone calls at $3.00/minute, they are the way to go. We walked around this afternoon, still raining. I was in the room (22nd floor) and heard sirens, and looked out the window and saw three Mercedes ladder trucks pulling into the hotel. False alarm. One interesting sight was the guy pulling up on the little motorcycle with a FIRE logo; KL VFD?

Still raining so I went to my favorite eatery, the Lebanese restaurant at the hotel (they have 10 different restaurants). They had some girls paying traditional Chinese instruments in the atrium. They giggled when I clapped, but they deserved an ovation. This coming Thursday and Friday are national holidays, and the plant has declared a mass vacation on Wednesday. That doesn't leave many days left in my last work week. Still raining, and forecast for the next week. I think I'll turn in early.

Day 15 - Slept in a little, and then the two other TI US workers here and myself walked to the Chinese market. This like Canal Street in NYC with all of the bootleg, knock-off merchandise, but less cramped. I bought some Malaysian soccer jerseys and a T-Shirt for Audrey and Luke's hitting coach. When I got back to the hotel, I found out that shirts sizes in KL are a little different from the US. (see slipper picture from Tokyo). I hope somebody can wear these; what do you expect when you buy a Dry-Fit Nike jersey for less than $10US. McDonald's is a big hit here. You can get a window sticker for your car for VIP drive-thru service. It started raining on the way home and was still pouring when I went to bed.

Day 14 - Work and not much else. Lunch and dinner at a mall restaurant, food good but the stories are not so interesting. Here is picture of the street in front of my hotel with Chinese New Years decorations.

Day 13 - Besides work, the biggest excitement was a group lunch at a combination used car dealer/Yemen restaurant. This place was much more expensive than our normal lunch stops and not as tasty (IMHO). The fact that the place was crowded and it was a used car lot made the parking a challenge. After 15 minutes of moving puzzle pieces, we were parked. Phase II of the parking fun was trying to get out when you four cars deep. This wasn't a quick lunch. The car lot had an security guard with some type of sawed off shotgun watching over used sports car. They had a '07 Ferrari Spyder for RM 1,088,000.

Day 12 - More work. Some VP's and their respective posse's have arrived at the plant from the US for meetings, so we end up having a late lunch. The guys I am working with do not eat in the cafeteria, in fact I haven't even seen the cafeteria. I've instructed them to just take me to their normal eating establishments for lunch and they are impressed with my culinary bravery. The places aren't much to look at but they are relatively clean. Here is where we ate in Wednesday 1/25.

I was tempted by the man dishing up the chicken feet with mushrooms but I went with some pork and rice. You only see pork at Chinese restaurants; Muslims don't eat at Chinese restaurants.

Day 11 - Nothing new to report. Another US worker has arrived. I am now the experienced KL traveler; what a difference a week makes. Finding a cab after work is proving to be challenge. Many stop, but few want to hassle with the downtown traffic. We finally are picked up by a driver who tells us to call him "Brother Yes". He is a ~75 year old Chinese man who entertains us by singing some Elvis, Nat King Cole and even attempting a Yul Brenner impersonation from the Ten Commandments. This ride was worth the wait. Here is a picture from the ride with Brother Yes.

Day 11 - Work. This morning's taxi driver drove very fast; even passed up the motorcycles. He was doing 120 KPH in a 80 KPH zone. I had Chinese food for lunch and dinner. I need to take some pictures of the places I eat lunch; little open air shacks. Not much to look at but the food is tasty and I haven't needed Imodium.

Day 10 - It is Sunday here, and I couldn't find a Christian church in close proximity. I decided to walk today and visited the Petronas Towers, the KL Tower and an area called Central Market. The Petronas Towers were the tallest building in the world (1,483') until 2004. The KL tower is ~1300' tall. I took pictures of these, but no can find on my SD card. Pictures looking up at tall buildings aren't that impressive

The Central Market was a little disappointing, but the gov't buildings around it had some impressive architecture. One place at the market had fish that would chew on your feet; 10RM for 5

minutes. Didn't look too clean; I passed.

My walking tour was supposed to be 12 km (7.5 miles) but getting lost a few times, it was a little more. The Malays must be a very tense people because there are store after store of women wanting to give you a massage. I ended up putting my head phones in so that I could more easily ignore them.

Day 9 - My first Saturday in KL. I took a 20 minute taxi to the Stadium Putra before noon to watch the semifinals of the Proton Malaysian Open; professional badminton. This is a major sport in Malaysia. There was a lot of anticipation to see Malaysia's world #1 Lee Chong Wei. After four hours of doubles, mixed doubles, etc., and ~2 hours before Lee Chong Wei's match, I decided to leave. I got to the hotel in time to see him win; much better view in TV.

I then walked across the street to the Pavilion Shopping Center to get a
pint at Malones from "G"(my personal bartender) and noticed something was different about the crowd. Not only was it super crowded but they were mostly Yanks. It turns out that the Nimitz class supercarrier the USS Carl Vinson, call sign "Golden Eagle" had docked and 5000 of our finest were in town for three days. "Vis Per Mare" means "Strength from the Sea."

Day 8 - Typical start to the day, although my right knee isn't functioning too well after tweaking it during the mad dash to the train yesterday at the Batu Caves. This morning's taxi driver was wanting me to pay him cash instead of charging to my room to avoid the 10% he pays to the Marriott. He kept whining for a few miles until I punched him in the head with my big old hairy knuckles. He then proceeded to drive through town instead of using the highway. This 15 minute ride lasted almost and hour and was 35RM ($12US) instead of the typical 25RM.

Nothing else of note, except for my laundry. I don't know what I expected, but everything came back folded, banded with a heat seal plastic cover. Only $79US for 6 shirts, socks, undies and a couple pairs of jeans. I am definitely under paying the laundry attendent at home.

Day 7 - Today is a national holiday; Thaipusam. This is a Hindu holy day where they perform penance by body piercing or carrying a jug of milk on their head. I'd take the jug option. The local festival is at Batu Caves where they will also honor a gold statue of Lord Muruga . This the biggest statue of Muruga in the world, if you were wondering.

I am told not to miss this, and I am glad I didn't. WOW! Talk about people watching. I took a taxi to the train station and then rode to Batu Caves. There are a couple hundred thousand people there; shoulder to shoulder and 95 degrees. The smell of spoiled milk that has sloshed from their silver jugs gets your attention.

The procession of people climbs 276 steps into the cave to complete their pilgrimage and to make offerings to various Hindu gods. It is shoulder to shoulder, plodding along through the stench of soured milk. You can't take pictures fast enough. I got there early and when I started heading down the line for the climb was almost a mile long.

I assume the local fishing store does great business selling hooks. They also have a shish kabob skewer throught their cheeks, the one guy had limes on his skewer. I like the "Citrus Fruit" theme. The train ride back was a relief although we were squeezed together so tight you could count your neighbor's pocket change.

Day 4-5-6 - Breakfast each morning at the hotel. It's an Indian, Japanese, Malayan and Western buffet. There must be fifty different dishes; some good and some not so much. Then a 15 min. taxi to work and taxi home at ~6:00. The taxi rides home can be pretty long; lots of traffic, but the drivers are more intersting than the hotel taxis. I've had one Muslim driver that listened to some Iman ranting, a Chinese driver jamming on some type of country music and a very talkative Chinese driver who was listening to Asian rap. His English was limited; mostly curse words. "F-this F-that, I'm sorry I don't speak much English".

KL is a very diverse city. It is probably 60% Malay with the rest split between Chinese and Indian. It is a predominantly Muslim country, but Thursday is a national holiday celebrating Thaipusam, a Hindu holy day. I'll be back to work at the plant on Friday.

Day 3 - I'm not sure if this is day 2 or 4 at this point. The 14 hour time difference is taking its toll. The Marriott is an extremely nice hotel; big beds and appropriately sized night gowns.















I spent the day walking around. There are no straight or perpendicular streets or signs with street names so it is hard to tell if you are on Jalan Raja Chulan or Jalan Bukit Bintang. I ended up on Jalan Yap Kwan Seng and had to back-track. I spent a few hours at the Kompleks Budaya Kraf (Craft Center) looking at and talking with locals artists and bought lots of stuff.

After a walk back to the hotel in the rain, I hooked up with a co-worker (St. Gen native & UMR'83) for an evening of Rolla-like commiserating and dinner.


Craft Center

Day 2 - I had a short 8 hr flight to KL this time on Japan AL. A smaller plane (767 v. 777) but I had a whole row to myself and the beer was free. :) Checked into the the JW Marriott and crashed.


The Tokyo airport did have intersting comodes. I'm not sure what the proper mount or dismount was for this fixture so I waited for the plane.

Day 1 - The first day was was a non-stop flight from DFW to Tokyo. I left snowy north Texas at 12:15PM on the 13th and landed in Japan at 4:43PM on the 14th. The seats were a little cramped, finally became an issue somewhere over the Alluetian Islands. I sat next to a school teacher from Chile who was on her way to Hanoi for vacation.

Arrived in Tokyo Narita airport and stayed the night at the Nikko Narita. Nice place with small rooms; just a bed and a bathroom. I was able to get one arm in the night gown on the bed. I didn't fit in the slippers either. The little fellows must look cute in this outfit.