Culture
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Kuala Lumpur
Merdeka 118 loomed over Chinatown like some grounded alien spaceship: mysterious, unearthly, immense. The world’s second tallest building thrust an imperious spire towards heaven – homage, we’d learn, to Tunku Abdul Rahman, first Prime Minister of independent Malaysia, whose raised… Continue reading
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Scorched Earth: Across the Tongariro
“You’ll be starting your walk a little later today.” The kuia was short and sturdy. Her lips, darkened by the moko that crept from her mouth to her chin, were stretched into a smile, but her eyes were fierce in… Continue reading
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Waitangi
The Waitangi Treaty Grounds are a suitably impressive setting for the birthplace of a nation. Pristine lawns flow down to the sun-speckled waters of the Bay of Islands, while in the distance the pretty white buildings of Russell – once… Continue reading
Dead Academic 