Getting down and dirty in Taman Negara
I was very, very uncomfortable. The cave was dark, I could slip on the rocks anytime and fall to my death and worst of all, I had just touched something soft and sticky. I...
Category: stories
Time to sleep
It was one of those days. I’d already seen the man in the waiting lounge, his bright red shirt impossible to miss. His eyes were staring at me, watching my every move. I checked...
Remembering
I’d always suspected I was a sentimental fool but now I know for sure. I’m not exactly a hoarder, but I like keeping stuff, especially things which remind me of my travels. A few...
Malacca
When my grandfather went into a coma in November 2002, one of my first thoughts was that he would still be able to hear me. That’s what people say about someone in a...
Cappadocia
We’re not on Earth anymore, I told an invisible Toto inside my head. All around me were spires and hills of volcanic rock, some standing on their own, some in clusters,...
Roman trails
I had walked right smack into an Italian tussle. Two gladiators were brandishing swords and shouting at each other. The taller man, who was particularly loud, looked as though he was ready to eat...
On the T56 from Xian to Beijing
Somewhere in a flat or house in China is a Lonely Planet phrasebook in Mandarin which used to belong to me. It has ‘Anis Ibrahim, Feb 2005’ written in a big, happy...
The Seniwati Art Gallery, Bali
If you’re a male artist wanting to make it big in Bali, there’s one art gallery that will never accept your work no matter how talented you are. Not now, not ever. You’re just...
Spin cycle in a zorb
It all started with a push. “Are you ready?” the guy asked. I gave him the thumbs-up. With that, he pushed me down the hill, a big grin on his face. As...
Hit by a fluke
It was the strangest backpackers’ hostel I’d ever seen. Everyone was in their 60s. None of the usual scruffy, young types I could relate to and have meaningful conversations with. The music...
