Kota Bharu of a Ramadan evening is very atmospheric. Once the sun has slipped behind the opposite bank of the river, little families and groups start to spread out mats and colonize benches, ready to break their fast together. Lonely Planet having failed to correctly map the evening food stalls, we failed to find them. But we did get dusky glimpses of many of the city's fine old buildings, and sussed out the rest of the night market. We finally opted to eat at a place by the river. Fairly standard food, but at least we could look out over the dark water, taking in the flashes of lightning playing over the purple sky and the occasional burst of mid-Ramadan fireworks.

(The following night we did locate the food stalls. It was all a little frantic, and I didn't spot the traditional stuff I was expecting. No blue rice for miles around... But there are plenty of basic roadside places, at one of which we shared a plate of chopped up popiah, fishballs, and vegetable patty, laced with a tasty spicy sauce.)

KB is a city of Jawi script, Islamic design elements, including large decorative Qurans on large decorative Quran stands, and green PAS flags. Some of the kopitiams and stalls display notices saying they won't serve Muslims during daylight hours in Ramadan, which I've not noticed round here (although Nigel did witness someone being denied service until she'd proved, by way of her ID card, that she wasn't Muslim).

There's a fine crop of museums here. At the Muzium Negeri Kelantan there is an excellent exhibition of Islamic arts from China. Pride of place goes to a pair of gold and silver Quran sections. These are engraved plates (of gold or silver), hinged, which concertina into a stack. Stunning. There are also beautiful ceramics -- very Chinese-looking objects decorated with Islamic calligraphy. Upstairs, you can see exhibitions on Kelantan arts and crafts, including very ornate kites in different shapes, the martial art called silat, and wayang kulit -- but very different from what I'm used to, with brighter painting and almost translucent bodies. Various other kinds of games and performances were mentioned, most taking place "after the harvest".

The Istana Jahar is a beautiful building, all dark wood and delicate fretwork and airy balcony. Inside there are lots of exhibitions on the different ceremonials that mark the royal passage through life -- marriage, various stages of pregnancy, birth, circumcision. As always, I don't remember much of the detail. Suffice it to say it was all very yellow and shiny, and some ceremonials involve plump, table-ready chickens while some don't.

Adjacent is the Balai Senjata, with displays of keris, and other tiny lethal weapons you can conceal in the folds of your clothing (or in your hair, if you're a woman).

The War Museum generously gave us a 0.05-ringgit discount, as we had nothing but a 50-ringgit and a heap of coins that we had to shake out of various recesses. It is located in what was an old bank (taken over by the Japanese secret police during the war). After the defeat of the British, Kelantan was first administered directly by the Japanese, and then handed over to the Thais. There are some quite graphic photos on display: Japanese ex-commanders stand with nooses round their necks; a Japanese soldier bayonets the body of someone who may or may not be already dead; an anti-British hero of the early 20th century lies dead, shot through the head; his body is then strung up by the ankles... Shocking images act as stark reminders of the obscenity of war and colonization.

Now I've not quite finished, as we explored the area north of KB, up towards Tumpat, and that will be my third post. But on a practical note, we had a very pleasant room at The Crystal Lodge, and can thoroughly recommend Firefly. Courteous, efficient, professional service, bang on time -- and they fly into Subang airport, which is pretty much next door. Twenty ringgit for a taxi, and in 15 minutes we were home. The absolute first time we've been home on time after a public holiday...