The next day after the Reggae Bar night a few of us from the hostel decided to just walk KL and see what we could. Someone had a map, we had a girl from Hong Kong with us that spoke Chinese (Kit) in case needed back-up and I had a camera…what else does one need for a successful day out, right? It was one of the hardest walking days I did in Malaysia and my feet were killing me but it was worth it as we covered a lot of ground in one day. We went to the Islamic Art Museum, tried to find the National Museum, saw the National Mosque (we weren’t allowed inside), stumbled into the National Museum of Textiles which wasn’t even opened yet (don’t ask me how as we got ran out of the place) and a few other places but the highlight I think was going back to China town with someone who speaks Chinese.
There was a nice Hindu and Chinese Temple there and while at the Chinese Buddhist temple Alice (from Holland) decided to get her fortune read. Was great having Kit there as she was able to translate everything and walk Alice through the steps. I just walked around, took pictures and laughed at Alice’s dismay. Basically the whole set is this:
- In front of the Chinese statue thingy you get on your knees and make a prayer while shaking a wooden tube full of sticks, that has a number on each stick. You keep praying/shaking until one of the sticks falls out. Whatever number is on it is your fortune card number.
- Then you go to a wall that has the fortune cards all lined up and grab the card with your number.
- You take the card to the Chinese fortune card reader guy who explains it to you
- Then pay a little money to him as an offering and your good to go
Easy enough said and was funny watching a Western do it for the first time but Kit was great at explaining it all. When Alice grabbed the fortune card Kit took it and read it over real quick (it was in all Chinese letters) and then frowned. She raced back real quick to the wall and started looking through them again. Dumbfound Alice and I both looked at each other, as to say “What gives?” Kit came back shaking her head and said that it wasn’t going to be a good fortune. That she tried to see if all the cards were the same for that number, which they were.
I asked if Alice drew the death card or something but it wasn’t that bad. Alice just got told that whatever job comes her way (which she is jobless at the moment) to take it. That the job will suck and nothing will be better until January. Wasn’t as bad as the death card but sounded kind of bleak. I told Alice thats a great sign to keep traveling because what’s he point of going home to a crappy job, with no hope of it getting better until January. Needless to say after Alice’s bad fortune read I didn’t need to put a hex’s on myself either, so opted out on having my fortune read. Personally I’m a Karma man myself!
Forget Obligation Go Global…it’s my odyssey!
T-roy
by T-roy
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