Day 33 of 102

Why is it that when shore excursions (or as Cunard markets them, shore experiences) are listed as sold out, more often than not, seats are available at the last minute. Today was no exception. Jo had acquired the last ticket for today’s trip, but this morning, on enquiring about further capacity, I was asked how many tickets I required. Thus, I joined one of two buses visiting the area of Putrajaya, approximately 50 kilometres from Port Kelang (Klang, local spelling), where we docked at around 7am. I had been here before in 2018, and the place was completely familiar. The Tours Office was surprisingly open for business this morning. I acquired my suddenly available ticket and eventually made my way through the terminal to where the coach was waiting. There was also a shuttle bus available for those who chose not to take a tour.

Our tour guide was a pleasant gentleman keen to impart as much information during the journey as he could in the time available. Unfortunately, as often is the case around here, his English was hard to hear clearly and comprehend, and annoyingly, never ending. Little pieces of information or of interest pointed out periodically is far better than wall to wall detail.

Nevertheless, in itself, the tour, I think, had the edge on the numerous trips to Kuala Lumpur that were on offer. I had been in 2018, and enjoyed seeing the old and present railway stations, and going up the K-L Tower, as opposed to the more famous Petronas Towers, which are bridged halfway up.

I hadn’t really heard of Putrajaya, officially described as an Intelligent Garden City, named after Malaysia’s first prime minister, the late Tunku, Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj. We would be taken to see the Palace of Justice, the Millennium Monument, various mosques, and other interesting sights, both from the road, and also during a short river cruise.

For some reason, being here reminded me of Edinburgh and Washington D.C.!

We would return to the ship rather later than scheduled. I understand the temperature was a mere 32°C. We had a fairly early Italian dinner, after which I returned to my room for an early night, while Jo went to the movies.

Many thanks for reading, David, 00.10, 13th Feb en route for Singapore.