I will ponder this as I write.
As I arrived at the Malaka bus depot I met a English couple from up north. We found the local bus to the city and found a hostel.
After we arrived and found a hostel I jumped on a bike and followed one of the hostel workers down to the coast for some kite running. I grabbed a kite, soared it once, in 2 minuets it plowed down into the earth. I tried once, twice three times more. All to similar levels of success. So I figured 'hey, leave this complicated stuff to proffesionals, proffesionals and small children. So I played ball with the Hostel workers until it got too dark to see. We then wandered back into town, picked a few others up and went out for dinner.
We went to little India and I had a very nice, but very spicy -by my standards- served up on a huge pineapple leaf.
The next day I had a lazy day. I wandered into the residential part of town. I found a market where I bought a delicious pancake. Filled with chopped nuts and chocolate. It was soo good but in all honesty it was so thick it resembled a Victoria sponge more than a pancake!
I also found a church singing gospel music so I went in there and had a chat with some people and wandered along the river. Stopping now and again to read. I was warned at one point to be careful as some people around may try to rob me. I would have taken the advise a little better if the small man telling me this didn't have a large shiney coin in his left ear.
That evening Rich, Bek and I bought a bottle of vodka for £4 and wandered through the night market. The night market was cool but full of stinky Dorian fruit goods. There is also a huge stage in the middle of a junction solely for Karioke!
The old timers were loving getting up there and howling some chinease songs. A couple of people even got the urge to get up there as backing dancers. Including one lady who clearly didn't have her dentures in, that didn't stop her grooving and twirling, oh no!
I decided to have a rest day on my last full day in Malica. On my travels I had seen a large gym very close to my hostel with some very funny exhibits outside. Right outside the gym door was a 20ft gold statue of an Asian bodybuilder who was crowned Mr Universe in 1954. There was another bust of this chap, equally gaudy flexing his muscles and a gold barbel on a squat rack with 513kg written on the side. After lifting this huge weight -to the shock and awe of two chinease tourists who had agreed to take my photo- I suspect it was closer to 15-20kgs. I hammed it up all the same to get a real hilarious reaction out of the lads who ohhed as I labourously dropped the bar back into its rack.
I then went into the gym and had a really good, hard, workout.
I then returned to the hostel to meet a few new room mates. Yazmine from Zurich and Lila and Leiva from Holland. Yazmine hadn't eaten so we went out for some food then a walk around the river bank and up the Main Street to the gym. Where I had told them about my Herculean efforts for the chinease spectators earlier.
Whilst we were posing for timed photos infront of the bust a little old man came out and greeted us. He asked us in a very soft voice if we liked the statue. We said we did very much. A big grin spread wide across his face nearly connecting his ears. He elaborated on this smile. The statue, was a statue of him, when he was 19!
Gan Boon Leong was the 1954 Mr Universe. At the grand age of 84 he had now hosted the Mr Universe contest from his gym three times, he had several honorary degrees and doctorates and has been issued the key to the city of Yangoon (Burma). Even last week he had just returned from Hungary for an important meeting.
He invited us enthusiastically into his office, below the gym. Here he showed us photos of the famous people he had met. Trophys he had awarded and certificates he had achieved.
This man was really inspiring. From a small town in South Malaysia, with only a lot of hard work and enthusiasm he had travelled the world, changed the lives of the people around him and gained international recognition. He now runs his gym not for profit making a net loss most months but refuses to increase the price as he wants to keep it a space everyone can enjoy and utilise as he once did.
P.s. The guys sleeping on me got off the bus after the third paragraph so no more awkward spooning!
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