I have to go back to Vietnam tomorrow :o( I'm looking forward to getting back I guess but I've got that feeling you get at the end of a holiday where you just don't want it to end. I've definitely adjusted to the tropical heat and i'm no doubt going to feel cold back in Hanoi, even though by British standards it's really not that cold there right now. One thing I'm not going to miss is the tropical rain though! Winters in Hanoi are dry so it will be nice to be able to go out without expecting to get rained on.

That said, yesterday was the first day of my trip that its not rained at all. I arrived really late on Monday eve - by the time I cleared immigration and got the bus into the city it was nearly 1am by the time I checked into the hostel. I half expected it to be closed by the time I got there but I guess as this part of the city is pretty much open 24 hours (having worked out that jam means hours in Malay the signs in restaurants etc advertising 24 jam suddenly make so much more sense!) the hostel is too. It''s the same place I stayed in a few years ago but its changed since then. They've taken over the next door building too and the place is a bit of a maze, plus I don't remember the beds being this uncomfortable last time. The bunks are really wobbly and that gets kinda annoying after a while. Still, the place is right in the centre and despite being a little rough around the edges at least its safe.

I didn't get much sleep that first night as I was on the top bunk and the bed kept wobbling so much I thought I'd be rolled off. Also, the fan kept rotating to blow cool air at my feet and legs every so often. That in itself wasn't a problem but it made my liner rise up then fall back down onto my legs. That drove me round the bend after a while. I think I got about 3 hours sleep in the end and I gave up when I woke up for the millionth time at 6.30 and got out of bed to head to the Petronas Towers. I got there about 7.15 and already there was a bit of a queue. By the time the ticket counter opened at 8.30 the queue was massive and I was grateful for the early start. I was able to get a ticket to go up at 9.15 and so hardly had to wait at all compared to the last time I went up and had to wait ages for the privilege of doing so! I guess the view's not changed much since last time but as its free, why not? Also the towers are right next to the shopping centre that has stores like Topshop and Marks and Sparks so I was planning to head there anyway. There is also a park outside where I sat for a bit waiting for stuff to open. Stupid Chinese new year means a lot of things opened later or closed earlier yesterday as they celebrate it here too, just not to the extent as in Vietnam.

When I was done there I headed to a different shopping centre after hearing a rumour about a Dorothy Perkins store there. This turned out to be fact and made me very happy indeed! I then went to yet another centre to see what 9 floors of retail could resent to me - turns out not that much as a lot of the shops were places I'd already been to in other centres or shops I wouldn't want to go to anyway. There was a Borders there though and I picked up a few books I've been after for a while. I also got a couple of books in Brunei for a bargain price of a pound each so am taking a somewhat heavier bag back to Vietnam. When I'm done with them I'll be able to take them to the book exchanges and get more in return as they are new copies and so in the long term its a good investment! As I was leaving the centre I passed a crowd of people waiting around for something so I decided to join them as I was in no hurry to get anywhere. It turned out they were waiting for a lion dance. Some guys started banging drums then two guys in a Chinese lion costume came along and jumped all over the place. It was actually pretty impressive as they were jumping for post to post and hanging off them, all whilst keeping together and keeping hold of the lion suit!

Yesterday evening I decided to go to the KL tower. I didn't go last time but I do like city views so I made my way there. I got there when it was still light and went up to watch the sun set and see the city by night. The ticket also provided entry to a few attractions at the base of the tower. The first I went to was the winter garden - basically a lot of statues of snowmen and penguins and random Christmas scenes. I then went to the animal centre which was a bit of a random mix of animals, but there was a very cool parrot there. I figured it was worth seeing these things as I guess I'd paid for them with my ticket.

This morning I got a bus to the outskirts of KL and went to some caves. The main cave is reached by climbing up 275 steps that they have thoughtfully numbered just to taunt you as you ascend. There were some monkeys along the stairs though who didn't appear to be scared of people so they got pretty close which was cool. In the cave there are some Hindu temples and the like and some more monkeys so it was worth the effort needed to climb the stairs.

The bus back from the caves stopped right in the middle of Chinatown so I went to the central market for a look around. I didn't really want to buy anything available so I decided to leave, only to find that it was tipping it down. I decided that this was a sign that I should go and get something to eat instead so I had a disappointing Thai curry. The standard has been set by the amazing curry I had in Brunei and this place didn't;t even come close in matching it. The rain hadn't stopped in this time either and was showing no signs of stopping so I gave up waiting and ran to the station. I was only in the rain for a minute or two but I was absolutely soaked by the time I got back under cover. Am not looking forward to when this sort of rain hits Hanoi.

I headed back over to KLCC tonight to do my shopping - I was just browsing for most of the day yesterday trying to decide what to buy with my limited funds - and went out into the park to see the Petronas towers lit up at night. Of course when I was the other side of the park the heavens opened again and I got drenched for the second time today. I now have two sets of clothes drying at the hostel! The good thing to this tropical heat is that things dry so quickly they will be dry in time for me to pack tomorrow. Thats pretty much all I intend to do tomorrow - its probably going to be a pain as I've accumulated a few books and some clothes these apst couple of days, as well as the cushion I got in Brunei. I did buy that mainly for the cover so I guess I could leave the actual cushion behind and just take the coer with me if I get desperate! I have to go to the airport about 11.30 so I'm going to try and find some decent food before I go - shouldn't be too hard with the food street the next street along from the hostel. There is so much choice there it will no doubt take me forever to decide on my last meal before Vietnamese noodles become the staple again!

cushion