Lizard Paradise

By Sreeram Yashasvi V

sticky haven

isn’t it ironic that an island crittering with flora and fauna,

loves itself a high concentration of concrete wonders?

soaring ambitions anchored,

by the ghosts of the ships,

of the east india company.

a foot in asia and the second in oceania,

two islands under the spell of threes!

land of threes

three founding races,

three founding regions,

three founding religions,

three federal territories,

three founding languages,

three pillars of leadership,

three-tiered roofs on houses,

three-coloured hibiscus,

merdeka, merdeka, merdeka!

land of palm

plantations across the land clustered together,

their crenulated tips, dense and featherweight,

like the coiled wings of an insect swarm, rapt,

holding still against the muggy night breeze.

an insidious silence engulfing the swarms,

ghostlike witnesses to humans and machines,

omnipresent across the terrain of the land,

from penang to port dickson, klang to kuantan,

scattered across the persekutuan!

rolling hills

an arboresque ecosystem,

the new order gobbling up,

light, space and thunder.

their steely, glassy veneers,

jutting over the rolling hills,

pushing them under.

the towers frolicking,

with the misty clouds,

whose water is essential,

for the survival of life,

on the hills down and under!

cities

petronas towers

two springlike columns of glass and steel stand proud,

crowded in by young runts, shinier, taller and loud.

a dizzying symmetry of sharp edges and smooth curves,

adorning the glittering skyline, with its jagged tips,

still it stands a sheer marvel, the twin towers,

forever steeped into the gilded pantheon,

of the golden peninsula above down under!

tamarind square

a supple, infinite eight pulled so taut,

risking becoming another unappealing,

functional digital clock face eight,

the numbing greys springing to life,

with deep green tinted adornments.

the taut concrete edges brimming

with microcosms of human ambition,

the enterprising spirit wafting through,

its knotty corridors, ramps and staircases,

a brutalist malaysian landmark for the ages!

cyberjaya

the ambitious hub,

for binary adventures,

southwest of the capital.

cocooned in stacked slabs,

of concrete, silicon and wood,

amidst the sweltering sun,

and hissing lizards.

a manifestation of the,

ambition to leapfrog,

into the information era,

standing on the shoulders of,

the petroleum giants!

food

match kitkat

camo green it is,

bittersweet taste, no sparkle,

kit goes matcha kat!

nasi lemak

a bento plate spread,

rice, cucumber, chutney, meat,

delight of textures!

veggie chicken

a truth in a lie,

a delightful substitute,

braised tofu it is!

By Sreeram Yashasvi V