Parking woes and power transfer

TAKE an amble through downtown Kuching and you may be pleasantly surprised at what the city’s historic centre has to offer.

I was walking along Carpenter Street the other day, which has changed a lot over the years but still retains a certain charm. The bookstore where I used to get schoolbooks and the occasional Enid Blyton story is long gone, while hip new bars and backpackers’ lodges have opened by the dozen. But some old-school tinsmiths, goldsmiths and rattan furniture-makers still ply their trade in quaint little shops and the famous Kim Joo kolomee coffeeshop continues to thrive.