May 20, 2010: Thursday
Today we are going sightseeing in KL, finally! The main forum is still going on, but the Marketplace is now finished and taken down. The room has no trace left ... amazing - it looks like a regular, boring assembly room. Months and months of sweat and sleepless nights and planning (on WIEF's part) and it's over in two days . . .
I have breakfast with Reem and Fazil and we have an inspiring discussion about moving forward, expanding the Marketplace, and building a database of professional Muslim artists for individuals to tap into when looking for mentorship, apprenticeships, and references. Reem and I decide to meet up in NYC when I'm back in the States to start compiling the database. I'm so motivated about this project, and to work with Reem, who I respect on so many levels - mainly for her experience in the professional art world in this case.
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It's raining slightly; the downpour hasn't begun yet so we head first to Masjid Negara (The National Mosque), a modern mosque built in the 60's design by a British and two Malaysian architects. It's humbly refined, with a low roof, open and airy surrounded by reflecting pools and cool interiors. We pray Dhuhr and walk around to take pictures. I see a group of the most beautiful little girls. I take a picture of two, and the rest of them come running like little chicks; it's so breathtaking, the beauty on their faces. Makes me smile to recall it. I snap a few pics, as does Reem, and literally - each and every one of them come up to me, shake my hand and put our embraced hands to their forehead, and then they do the same to Reem. By the last endearing handshake both Reem and I are in tears and smiles. SubhanAllah, the children convey so much respect and dignity in their gesture, it makes you want to be a better person.
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Pic above by Reem Hussein
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We stop at a place to eat and by the time we get back in the car, it is pouring down rain. Quickly we slip into the Islamic Art Muzium, not too far away, and pay our entry fees. It is thundering and lightning and raining waterfalls of rain. It's fantastic. I lay down on the floor, right underneath the concave dome, curving inward to recall the necessity of looking inward to move outward, in life. It feels like a blessing to be here when the weather is such. The walls of the lobby are glazed, white, sleek and cold; a perfect ambience with the waterfalls outside. The others lay down as well and pretty soon there are four or five of us (Americans of course) laying on the floor of the lobby for a while, staring up, taking pictures . . . I buy a couple postcards and a beautiful simple journal after my walk through the floors of the museum, after which we head back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.
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Dinner is being hosted by Marketplace artists Ariff Awaluddin and Soraya Talismail, who own and run a restaurant called Kokopelli Traveller's Bistro, about twenty minutes away from KL. The food is amazing, of course, and they have all kinds - Western, Italian, Malaysian, Chinese, etc. The highlight of my night is picking up noodles with chopsticks, which is not something I've ever been able to do before. Fazil instructs me :) I still can't get the food in my mouth with the chopsticks though; that'll be lesson number two!
Pics below are taken by Khair Hamzah and/or Reem Hussein, used without their permission ;)
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