East Eats West

Kanyakumari - the tip of India

Picture: The Gandhi memorial at the very southern tip of India.

Kanyakumari, the southern tip of India, where the gulf of Bengal, the Arabian and the Indian seas meet, is a mystic place in the eyes of many Indians. This is where the ashes of Gandhi were given to the sea. Several holy men and poets lived in the city (more of a big village) and Hindu temples, mosques and churches were errected in their honour. Despite its spiritual significance the city is a bit of a disappointment as it mass-caters to Indian pilgrims. The dearth of decent hotels and restaurants and the oversupply of sea shells, plastic gods and colorful garlands are in stark contrast to the wild sea that claimed eight thousand lives in the tsunami of 2006. Should you be into geographical extremes, visit Kanyakumari, otherwise stick to Kerala's backwaters (I only saw one Western couple in four days).   

 

Welcome to the Indian jungle

Picture: The entrance to the Southern Indian Jungle reserve, including Indiana Jones style Jeep.

Between Trivandum and the southern tip of Kanyakumari one finds a forrest reserve with a dense jungle and a man-made lake. The reserve is also home to tribes people who live without electricity in little huts. We visited the jungle on a rainy day, got soaked on the boat but didn't see any wild tigers or elephants. Instead we saw a hydro-powerplant from the 60ies that looked like out of the TV series "Lost". I will never forget the seven hours on pot-holed streets and muddy river-crossings! The tribes people sold us baked tapioka with coconut and a spice chutney for lunch, it felt like ambrosia!    

  

  

 

Rattle, horn and shake on Indian roads

Picture: Anything goes on Indian roads as long as you honk!

Probably it is futile to explain without sounds the thrills of Indian road traffic. Honking is mandatory by law in case of overtaking and passing. However, due to a raise in income more and more Indians take to the roads and the result is an increase in road deaths. A government official recommended in a newspaper to keep a "reasonable speed" and that "120km/h is definitely too fast". The article was unclear if the official was only talking about the highways or roads in general. The most basic road-rule, like in other Asian countries, is big beats small and breaking just costs time. In any case, anything is possible as long as you do it clearly and without sudden haste.
 

Kitchen towel skirt for men

Picture: Rear-view of a tucked-up Indian lungi skirt, just watch the sea-breeze!

A very common dress for men in South India is the leg-covering lungi. A lungi is basically a kitchen-towel-like white or colored sheet that is worn like a skirt. For extra ventilation men tuck the ends in so that they become like shorts. Different Indian states have different ways of draping it. Long or short, I stubbornly refused to wear one.

 

Elevated gambling in Singapore

Picture: Space-ship docking station at 200m above ground, the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore.

Singapore used to be a port of vices, invested by pirates, harbor of sins and love was for sale at every corner. Then the British put an end to it and the Singaporeans took it to another level by banning chewing gums and skateboarding. For a long-time the Singapore government also banned gambling. But not any longer! On June 23, with a delay due to funding problems, the spectacular Sands Marina Bay casino opened. The delay of the 5.9bn USD project was caused by the near bankruptcy of Sands, due to the financial crisis. The casino with hotel and Sky Park, a garden elevated 200m above ground that hosts a 150m infinity pool, is now open and offers a view of Indonesia, Malaysia and the whole Singapore island. Apparently one can see Java from the top platform and the casino is already humming and jiving. Let's see if Singapore can offer "clean" gambling and keep the ladies of desire at bay! 

http://www.marinabaysands.com/

 

Vietnamese beef pho in Kuala Lumpur

Picture: Brings back fond memories of Hanoi, beef pho! 

Kuala Lumpur has a staggering choice of Asian food: Malaysian steamboat (a do-it-yourself soup), the roti chanai bread, Chinese Dim Sum (dumplings) or the local variety Laksa noodle soup. One of the best restaurants in town is the Vietnamese Sao Nam restaurant, off Arabian street and Bukit Bintang. The northern Vietnamese beef noodle (beef pho) is extraordinary! 

http://www.saonam.com.my/

  
 

Does an iPad make your brain unfocused?

In a recent article in the International Herald Tribune ("Too much information? For a wired life, a rewired brain.") people were portrayed to spend their whole day multi-tasking, using iPhone, PCs  and iPads. The article concludes that heavy multi-tasking is so distracting that people are not in the here and now anymore. They become more stressed and have trouble shutting out irrelevant information. Apparently as multi-taskers become more sensitive to information, they even become addicted to it: every new sms, e-mail, tweet or RSS feed is eagerly devoured, and quickly forgotten. However, being human means paying attention to each other, to care, not to multi-task and tick of to-do-lists. Therefore think twice before buying your new iPad (or choose a Zafu for meditation instead)!

No frills hotel at Kuala Lumpur budget airport

Picture: Air-conditioning costs extra and space is rare at Tune Hotel, LCCT.

The ever growing AirAsia budget airline has expanded into budget hotels with its new hotel at the Kuala Lumpur Budget airport. For less than 30 USD a night I got a small room with shower and air-condition (that costs extra). The bed was reasonably big and the bathroom tiny. The downside of the hotel is the noisy air-con and it already shows signs of wear-and-tear, shortly after opening. PS: Never mind the cockroaches. 

Make a booking at the Tune Hotel's website: http://www.tunehotels.com/