We can confirm that Malaysians don't begin their day as late as the average Thai, and they make far more noise in this train at least! A gaggle of bubbly, veiled women shout and laugh from 5.30am until we reluctantly rise. There's a lovely guy looking after everything including bringing us a flask of boiling water to make drinks! Border formalities at 10am are easy, although they take our temperatures for swine-flu screening. We note that some of the formal words are like phonetic English - a mark of the (fairly recent) colonialism. The green, unspoilt scenery of Malaysia unfurls out of the train window as we enjoy our breakfast: a banana leaf stuffed with rice, fish, chilis and tomato: gorgeous! We arrive 2 hrs late, having been informed of the 1hr time difference, and easily
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