Don't just dream in your sleep

I sat drinking my sweet Malaysian White coffee, which tasted like hot condensed milk and cinnamon and watched the hustle and bustle of the busy street in front of me. I walked past this food stall earlier on in the evening and Amid, a young Malaysian boy had convinced me to sit down and try a samosa. The samosa was a wonderful blend of crispy pastry, perfectly cooked vegetables and a spicy kick, it had me hooked. I had been sat at the stall for a couple of hours now, sampling different titbits every half hour or so and I had no intention of moving anytime soon. Even though it was coming up to midnight there were still plenty of cars travelling down the road, sounding their horns sharply with people on bikes swerving around them and dodging in and out of the gaps constantly, making me nervous each time. The street was lined with stalls like the one I was sat at, selling a variety of local foods, combining traditional Malay with Chinese and Indian. Pancake stalls were also set up, making the whole street smell a beautiful combination of sweet vanilla and mouthwatering spices. Smoke billowed up from one of the stalls a few down, filling the otherwise clear night sky with grey white clouds, immediately Amid nudged me, pointed at the smoke and confidently nodding his head said, "good shrimp there." I wasn't convince and exchanged 1 ringgit for another fried pastry treat where I was, still unable to believe that was all it cost, pennies! The Reggae bar opposite had a live band playing and the Bob Marley's classics were filling the street with laid back jazz beats. As the evening went on and the food stalls began to close down the pungent and distinctive smell that always come from Reggae bars drifted out and began to take over. The elderly driver next to me had given up bargaining with tourists to take a ride and had instead climbed down from his bicycle and in to the brightly decorated chair attached at the rear, pulled his well worn hat over his weathered face and taken a nap, his foot still tapping lightly to the sound of the music. I had one final look around, taking everything in and wanting to hold it all deep inside me as if etching this evening in to my body and then I walked the short walk down the narrow dust filled road to the hostel.