The airport was very nice.
I got a visa on arrival that was completely hassle free. I also managed to get a SIM and exchange
money before I even picked up my bags. I
like ease of access in airports, more countries should practice this.
 |
| outside my hotel |
It is quite a way from the airport to the city center, so
even though my flight got in a little bit after 8, I still didn’t get to my
hotel until 11pm. You know the usual
waiting game, and the airport bus went to several places before it dropped me
off in Padu, close to the city center.
What I didn’t know was that the
Pudu area is not the best place to be coming into so late. Of course I had no idea, I did very little
research when I was booking this part of my trip, because it wasn’t even
supposed to happen. It all happened
because I almost over stayed my visa in Indonesia. So instead of six hours in Kuala Lumpur I
ended up with 27. This was still not
enough time to do everything I would have really liked, but enough to see the
city sites.
Walking to the guest house was a bit sketchy. I had propositions from the cab drivers and
lots of cat calls. I could blame this on
my cute dress I was wearing, but let’s call it what it is: disrespect toward
women. I have been among friends in most
of the countries you would expect this.
The last time I encountered blatant disrespect on that level was when I
was 17, in Argentina. I usually would
just walk strong and flip them off (which I did once or twice), but when you
don’t know where you are going sometimes you have to ask for directions. When I got to my guest house the man at the
desk was lovely, and showed me my room.
My room was small and a little worn, but you get what you pay for. The shared bathroom/shower was more than a
bit dirty. *sigh* Research Miriah,
usually you are so good at it. So after
locking my door I got a great 8 hours of sleep.
The morning consisted of getting out! But really, I washed
up and ate some toast, then beelined it to China town. I really liked walking around the market, especially
the meat portion. It smelled very interesting. Not like rotten meat, just like raw
things. I’m glad I went so early in the
morning as well, not all the venders were open, leaving me little to no
hawking. Yay!!!
After that walk it was time to find an Indian restraint my
friend suggested. That took a bit of
work, but on my way of getting lost I found some lovely old colonial
buildings. The are Neo Moorish, and were built by the British in the early 20th century. Basically Kaulua Lumpur is a hodge podge of many different kinds of architecture because of all the different influences it had over the ages. A tourist center was located in this British area,
and the lady inside headed me in the right direction. I guess there were quite a few museums in the area.
Following that
detour, it only took me asking for directions two more times before I found
heaven. Jai Hind was a hole in the
wall. I usually wouldn’t have stopped,
but it was recommended, and for good reason.
I got dale, aloo paratha, and tea taik.
Or in laymen’s terms; lentil curry, potato flat bread and milk tea. It also came with a neat little side of
pickled eggplant and a yogurt curry sauce that had a bit of a kick. I think I ate it all in 5 minutes, and could
have eaten another plate full. 
Afterward was another stroll, this time around little
India. In this area they were mostly selling
hijabs and other Muslim women’s wear.
That got a bit boring, even though it was colorful, so I headed up to
the Kuala Lumpur tower.
I heard the Kuala Lumpur tower was better than going to the twin towers, even
though it was pricier. Getting there was
strange. It was surrounded by a park, so
I thought I could just have a lovely stroll through the park up to the tower,
but I was incorrect in assuming this.
There is only one entrance to the tower and it requires going all the
way around, and then up a hill. Once I
got up there it was grand though. In the
lobby they had these spectacular ceilings, it looked like cut mirrors. The elevator operator told us that it was a
gift from Iran and made from sugar, glue and water. Pretty nifty stuff. At the top the view was spectacular. I was lucky it was a sunny day, you could see
for miles and there was only a little bit of interference from pollution and
atmosphere. I saw the towers, the
sultan’s palace and the mountains. I
recommend everyone to go there.
I hung out there for
quite a while and then headed to the mall.
I know it’s a bit lame, but air-conditioning is a lovely thing. In the mall I discovered (with help) an
amazing book store. This is the
equivalent of Barns and Nobles. I was in
love! I haven’t seen a book store with
more than a small selection of English books in years. (For some reason I never have time to go when
I’m home). I picked up only one
book
and some art supplies.
I also found and
Auntie Anne’s in the mall, while looking for the post office. Mmmm…. How could I pass that up? They didn’t have yellow mustard, but gave me
spicy cheese instead. Meh, I just ate
the buttery goodness solo. The last
thing of the day was to find a nail salon. Wedding nails are important too!
They day was nearly over, so it was time to head back to the
hotel to pick up my bags. My daytime
journey was much more satisfying than the night time one. The staff was super nice and helpful. Although I would never stay there again
because of the location, they earn brownie points for being so amiable. I love a happy staff who are just as excited
as you are to get your trip going and swap stories.
I headed out to the bus stop, which was 10 minutes
away. So I arrived quite early to get my
ticket and make sure everything was in order to get to the airport on
time. While I was waiting, I was messing
around on my phone and the bus left. I was
sitting right in front of the guys I booked the ticket with! Luckily there was
a bit of traffic, so the bus stopped a block away and let me on. Sometimes I am not the most observant
person. Now it was off to Australia and
hoping I didn’t smell too bad when Amanda and Monique picked me up.
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