Imagine The Best It Could Be, Then Times It By Ten.
My uncle said it about Disney World when I was nineteen. Thirty-five years later I handed the same line to Malaysia — then remembered you still have to put a wash on.
They Think You’re Still On Holiday.
My brother rang at 2am. My mother thinks Thailand is a holiday from my holiday. Life seven hours ahead of everyone who loves you, and the one thing they actually want.
Moving Abroad When You Are a Loner (And Why It Might Suit You Perfectly)
Every guide says build your network and join the meetups. I did almost none of it and it has been the best few years of my life. Here is what actually happens instead.
My Dad Said “Boss.” Turns Out So Does All of Malaysia.
A Cockney word I inherited from my father, and never thought about once in fifty years, turned out to be the standard greeting seven thousand miles away.
Who Should Not Move to Malaysia
Every blog written from abroad is quietly arguing that you should come too. This one is not. Four honest reasons to stay where you are, and the one reason to go.
She Said It Was Unbearable. I Said It Was Rather Nice. Same Afternoon.
How long it really takes to acclimatise to Malaysian heat, why two people react completely differently to the same air, and the daylight change nobody warns you about.
Nobody Ever Told Me Chinese Food Has a Breakfast
In England, going for a Chinese is a night out. Then you move to Asia and discover it also has a breakfast, and a lunch, and that you never once wondered.
What RM3,500 a Month Actually Gets You in Kuala Lumpur
One bedroom, 34th floor, RM3,500 a month. Pool, gym, sauna. The pool is the nicest I’ve swum in and almost nobody uses it. Here’s what that money really buys.
I Hadn’t Left Britain in 22 Years. Then I Moved to Malaysia.
The last time I went on holiday my daughter was six. She’s about to turn thirty. Then I skipped the fortnight in Spain and moved to the other side of the world.