One of the disconcerting features of driving in the Malaysian capital is the manner in which what appear to be major highways can suddenly turn into badly lit minor lanes seemingly going nowhere in particular. And then, with similar alacrity, they so often take it upon themselves to become real roads all over again. And sometimes not.
Having spent most of my life in major cities I tend to assume a certain evenness of illumination as a kind of right - the ways things ought to be. KL teaches you otherwise. I am reminded of the fact that the lighting in London was notoriously uneven in the late nineteenth century. Peter Ackroyd's book on the capital has a fascinating chapter on this.
Our victory over the night is only recent and remains partial. There's something oddly reassuring in that. Though not for the faint-hearted, or short-sighted.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment