English

Here is a brief history lesson on the country of Malaysia.  Until 1956 Malaysia, then called Malaya, was a part of the British Commonwealth, and as a result there was a legacy of very British customs such as high tea and driving on the left side of the road.   Now Malay is recognized as the first language, and English is a close second in this country of diverse ethnicities, Malay, Chinese and Indian.  I often hear conversations among locals that merge in and out of English just like a driver changing lanes on these sinister (as in left handed) roads.  I have been amused to hear my friends use such words as horrid, spectacles and fortnight, words I have not heard since my very proper grandmother from Charleston died.
Speaking of traffic, I have started driving my neighbor Stephen who has helped me in so many ways to get settled here to his doctor's appointments since he has sciatica and can not drive.  Riding my motorbike on  the left side of the road is much easier than driving a car.  My tendency to keep too far to the left reminds me of a similar actions/reactions when I was 15 years old and learning to drive my mother's car.  As I sat behind the wheel for the first time this week I realized that I had never before driven a car in Asia.  I saw the achievement as a milestone.