After a delicious breakfast of roti canei with ah pa, Linda, and her brother, I spent most of the day riding around Kuching. There was shopping (I snagged 3 sweet branded polo shirts for about 30 bucks), and there was a surprising trip to MacDonalds for a "Prosperity Burger." This... item... is apparently offered only at this time of year and is allegedly popular among the citizens of this charming city. Perhaps you have guessed that I do not quite understand why. It's not that the little sandwich is horrible. It's just quite unremarkable and somehow being sold in a place that has some of the most remarkable food I have ever tasted. Ah well. I'm grateful little brother wanted to provide me the experience. Not he, all of his friends, AND the whole Malaysian army could get me to eat another burger of prosperity so long as there is one food hawker still operating in Kuching. Just sayin'.
I grabbed a wonderful nap around mid afternoon and dreamt of the rain forest. Being here makes me really hear The Green calling out to me. I slept only a little while, but I felt so rejuvenated. It wasn't long before I was back in the car going somewhere. I've gotten used to this routine now. Someone will say it's time to go and off I go. I just sit there and enjoy the conversation and take in the view as we whiz around in between, and everything but over the top of and underneath the heavy traffic that seems to be typical here. One of my favorite things to watch is how the motorcycles and scooters sort of bubble up to the front of the queue at every intersection. They bob and weave freely between the cars once the traffic flow ceases for any reason until they themselves strike that invisible barrier formed of 1 part law and 1 part interest in survival. Once traffic resumes, off they go like carefree gnats. Another neat thing is how many of these are carrying more than two people, often one of them being an infant or child. Whatever floats your boat, folks. Not what I would call the ultimate form of safety though.
We went to see ah ma and ah kong too this evening. That stands for grandma and grandpa. I adore them and enjoy all of the stories and non-verbals that will always define them in my memory. And of course we had to eat another meal there. We had just eaten at Linda's folks' place as a family, so this one was kind of challenging. It was a good warm up for what we'll be doing in the morning though. Visit and eat and repeat. At least the food and company are great. I expect to survive it all just fine, but not without a little bit of discomfort. I'll take it as a challenge.
Around 2345 the serious fireworks started to get going. By midnight it felt like I was standing in the middle of an artillery test range. I have never seen such serious pyrotechnics being fired off by private citizens on such a wide scale. All up and down the street and in the surrounding neighborhoods... Big flashes and big thunder. Linda is a fireworks addict who rarely gets her fix, so I loved being with her as she thrilled to every blast. A couple of sectors of the neighborhood almost seemed to be in competition the way they seemed to take turns firing off the biggest salvos in our immediate area. The last major exchange didn't happen until almost 0100. Well done, people-who-will-spare-no-expense-to-show-everyone-that-no-expense-was-spared! I was grateful that the same intermittent rains that had been making the temperatures so bearable lately also minimized chances of secondary fires.
Tomorrow promises to be a day filled with visits and custom. There will be at least one "Lion Dance" that I will attend also. Being here is proof that being a stranger in a strange land can be one of the most delightful experiences a guy can have.
But you can keep your "Prosperity Burger" guys, sorry.
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