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My feet are hurting. My city walking boots seem ruined. (They weren't, though.)
Anyway, I had a slow day and took a look at the Muzium Negara.
It really is a tacky museum, as my guidebook had warned me. Nevertheless,
it showed at least a reasonably interesting display of Malaysia's
fauna and flora. I had hoped to see the amok catcher, a reportedly
rather crude device with which you catch someone running amok
(1) but I didn't find it.
Other than that, I did some people watching. I heard people
discuss whether "she" should really polish "his"
shoes (so that he looks good in the office), I watched how marketing
targets muslim women for hair shampoo (2), and I wondered once
more how "Asian Values" will hold up against the aggressive
Western emphasis on individuality and the forms it takes in Asia,
at least Malaysia.
So much for a calm Sunday.
(1) As far as I know, the term "amok" was created
in Indonesia for people who had gone mad and behaved wildly (forgot
what the specific reasons were at its time).
(2) Religious muslim women show their hair only to their husband. I think the same holds true for orthodox jewish women. Anyone correct me if I'm wrong.
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