~{nilheadimage~=141595~} 
On Sunday our trip out of the apartment consisted of going to find the Rock...

This is the rock after which Rock Road is named, and an article by ~{link~= https://kuchinginandout.com/2020/03/29/wong-and-the-spirit-road/ ~;text~=Tony Sebastian~;target~=sebastian~} (the one I've quoted several times in this blog), said it was near "2nd mile" (the British customarily delineated the main road leading out of a city by mile number).

It was an atmospheric kind of morning, as we trotted along part of the Bukit Hantu circuit, and then past the graves of Rock Road:

~{nilimage~=141606~;dir~=H~;alt~=dawn~}
~{nilimage~=141605~;dir~=V~;alt~=grave~}
And we did indeed manage to find the Rock -- once we'd realized we were looking not for a tall, craggy thing, but rather for a broad, flat thing. It does seem to be the only such excrescence for miles around...

~{nilimage~=141598~;dir~=H~;alt~=rock~;caption~=The Rock, looking towards the ~{link~= https://dayakdaily.com/new-hindu-temple-masterpiece-in-borneo-a-new-landmark-tourist-attraction/ ~;text~=new Sri Maha Mariamman Hindu temple~;target~=temple~} that is currently under construction~}
~{nilimage~=141599~;dir~=V~;alt~=shrine~;caption~=The little shrine at the top~}
Thaipusam was this week. This celebration is not generally a big deal in Sarawak. But because of Spikes and his ravages, it's been ~{link~= https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/photos/2021/01/27/thaipusam-in-2021/  ~;text~=a much smaller deal~;target~=kltp~} in the rest of Malaysia too, which has been ~{link~= https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/leisure/2021/01/29/sree-and-the-thaipusam-cobra/  ~;text~=very sad~;target~=sad~} for many.

Still, I enjoyed reading more about this ~{link~= https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/leisure/2021/01/28/the-types-of-kavadi-you-see-during-thaipusam/ ~;text~=tradition~;target~=kavadi~}, and looking at the ~{link~= https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/photos/2021/01/27/thaipusam-in-2021/  ~;text~=photos~;target~=kltp~}, which -- despite the bizarre lack of crowds -- took me back to the time we attended KL's Thaipusam procession in ~{nilpost~=609~;text~=2017~;target~=thaipusam~}.

~{nilimage~=123835~;dir~=V~;alt~=chariot~;caption~=A couple of nostalgic photos from back then~}
~{nilimage~=123827~;dir~=H~;alt~=crowd~}
Inspired by this article on ~{link~= https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2021/jan/21/10-inspiring-hobbies-taken-up-by-readers-during-lockdown ~;text~=lockdown pursuits~;target~=time-lapse~}, we embarked on some experimental time-lapse photography. This is the view from our balcony at 18.50 for a week (Monday's is at the top):

~{nilimage~=141592~;dir~=H~;alt~=tl1~}
~{nilimage~=141593~;dir~=H~;alt~=tl2~}
~{nilimage~=141594~;dir~=H~;alt~=tl3~}
~{nilimage~=141596~;dir~=H~;alt~=tl5~}
~{nilimage~=141608~;dir~=H~;alt~=tl6~}
~{nilimage~=141609~;dir~=H~;alt~=tl7~}
Well, if you can't have variety, you have to celebrate sameness, no?

The CMCO has been extended to 14 February, by the way, so there's still lots of Staying In to contend with. By then we'll be in the Year of the Ox... I hope to heaven it brings humanity better fortune than the goddam Year of the Plague Rat did...

~{nilimage~=141604~;dir~=V~;alt~=cow~}
And finally, it's been raining again. Heavy overnight downpours disturb our sleep. Umbrellas have to be ready at breakfast-time. It's good if you're frog-hunting, though...

~{nilimage~=141612~;dir~=H~;alt~=text~}
~{nilimage~=141611~;dir~=H~;alt~=egret~}