Discovering the types of food you could get in Malaysia was an adventure we both enjoyed! Food seems to be available anytime... anywhere! Stalls just spring up, especially at night, selling all sorts of tummy tucker!

The Nasi Lemak was something I had to try...a breakfast dish consisting of rice, peanuts, crunchy dried fish, cucumber and a curry sauce. To a Western stomach, this was not the stuff of my dreams...but it's something that has to be tried!

A little more in line with our idea of the morning meal was Roti Canai - lovely flaky, layered "bread" stretched and cooked on a round grill and served with a dipping sauce of daal. Variations of this Indian dish have struck up, no doubt to please the Western palate - "Roti Bakar" became another favourite - bread more like we know it, toasted with a wonderfully sweet sauce in the middle. Then we discovered some other deviations: the traditional style "roti" was served with a dipping sauce of condensed milk, or stuffed with a banana mixture! Addictive to the tastes of sweet-seeking tourists!

"Porridge" was a bit of a discovery! In hospital for several days and unable to eat anything, Andrew was quite excited when the doctor said he could have some "porridge" for breakfast. Not, we discovered the "Uncle Toby's" variety...not even the "no name" brand of oats. Porridge was simply rice... watery rice. All was not lost however, as the doctor also allowed him to enjoy it with soy sauce! Mmmmm. Andrew, however, opted for a "sprinkle" of sugar. Such was the thrill of eating again, he actually enjoyed it! By the second, third and fourth servings he was a little less thrilled!

Fond of eggs, the Malaysians seem to be! Quite often we ordered a meal such as noodles, and found a fried egg perched on top. Delicious curry puffs, but then another bite found a strange texture....of course - boiled egg! A plate of sizzling noodles, drenched in a dark brown sauce and served on a hotplate. Delicious - but under the noodles lurked a fried egg just waiting to be discovered!

The Nyonya style of food was much spoken about and when we found the Nyonya Museum in Malacca closed for lunch, we went to the adjoining cafe to wait. There we had terrific food - Andrew had the Popiah the spring rolls with tasty fillings, wrapped in a soft covering. I had the Nyonya Laksa which made me cough and splutter with the first mouthful, until I realized that the chilli was mostly floating on the top and if I dug deeper I got less of the burn and more of the flavour! Delicious!

Many Malaysians eat with their right hand and it is amazing to sit in a K.F.C. outlet and watch each dainty right hand delicately separating the chicken from the bone. Malaysian fingers work with dexterity and speed to manipulate all sorts of foods with apparent ease. An interesting social comment was made at a Disney display in the Makota Shopping Centre. Here children were "educated" on table manners and given a certificate at the end of the session. A princess-style lady instructed and guided children through the use of the implements laid out on the table in front of them. It was nothing to worry about, she said, that one little girl was having difficulty extending her little finger as she drank from a tea cup! A cringe moment occured, however, when she declared that it was important to use a knife and fork because eating with the hands was dirty.

The shopping centres themselves, abound with all things western - where a coffee at Starbucks or and ice-cream at Baskin and Robbins costs more than four hours wages for a waitress.