Having checked in to the Metro Hotel (just a 5-10 minute walk from the train station), I unpack, take a shower then wander next door to the Husen Café for a hot Kopi and a Roti Chanai - ah, back in Malaysia once more.

I find a laundry in the YMCA centre just over the road and thinking it is self service, I just wander in towards the machines at the back.   But its actually run by a local deaf society and the lady points out what I must do. Leaving my washing there I go back to KL Sentral and book a pre-paid taxi for the trip to Utama Dental.   33 ringgits......about $11. The taxi ride takes almost an hour and although I have given the exact street address and even a small map to the driver he is having great difficulty in finding it. He doesn't fill me with confidence when he checks the map with the aid of a magnifying glass......while still driving !

After apparently going around in circles for about 20 minutes he takes out some tablet - IPad or something similar - and using what I assume was GPS makes positive sounding grunts and takes me to the right place.   It has taken him a full hour. I am to learn on later trips that it is only a half hour ride if you know where you are going.

The exterior of the dental clinic doesn't give me much confidence either and I even consider aborting the mission. The entrance is a dodgy-looking doorway leading up some narrow dodgy-looking stairs in a street filled with dubious looking-establishments. Summoning up the last of my courage I wander upstairs.   The clinic is much smaller than what I was expecting and the waiting room is under going renovation. The staff however seem very professional and are friendly and helpful.

My appointment was for 2:00pm but its closer to 3:00 before I get in as he is running behind. After an initial discussion I am send for x-rays and then impressions are taken of my upper and lower gums.   From this they create a surgical guide. The dental surgeon has asked if can hang around for a while to have a scan done so he can determine if the proposed treatment will be practical. Around 5:00, and after having the surgical guide temporarily inserted, I am sent for a CRT scan.   The results are promising, I am told although there will need to be some small bone grafts required to support the implants once they are in place.   I am booked in for surgery at 11:00 the next day.

My plan to get back to KL Sentral is to catch the train as the traffic and the road-works were driving me insane on the way here.   The receptionists tells me that it will be difficult to get a taxi to the train station at this time of the day (as its now 6:00pm) so their driver will take me to the place where I will be able to get a taxi. OK, sounds good. However, when I get outside all the "driver" does is hail me a cab from out in the street. Good effort, pal ! The traffic is crap (again) and it takes half an hour to get to the train station and then another 20 minutes on the train. I'm hoping that with some better instructions I can get a cab driver to get me to the clinic quicker tomorrow.

I've just got enough time to go and collect my laundry from the deaf folks and then get "growled" at when I try to say thanks in the traditional Thai fashion with both palms pressed together. The old lady shakes her head and with a tooth-less smile reminds me that the Malay way is a touch of the head and a touch of the heart. I do as instructed, return a not quite so tooth-less smile and hurry off before I get in any more trouble.

I finish the evening off with a meal in a Indian restaurant opposite KL Sentral. Merthi Pakora for entrée and unlike the onion-based pakora I am used to, these are green chillies coated in spices before being deep-fried. Now I enjoy hot food but WOW. Two Carlsbergs are required to help quell the flames in my mouth. Chicken Biryani for a main and I'm out of there for 47 ringgits (about $16).