Malaysia Part I: Arrival in Kuala Lumpur

Two weeks ago, I shipped out to Malaysia for the Pchum Ben holiday. In a word, the trip was fantastic. But this being a blog, I'm guessing that just a word won't do. Over the next few entries I'll try to provide the details of my trip. I hope you enjoy.

Leaving Phnom Penh on the Friday afternoon before Pchum Ben was quite amusing. At the airport were close to a dozen people I knew, heading off for Thailand and Laos. There were very few westerners on my flight to Kuala Lumpur, but I happened to know a couple of them through a friend. The AirAsia flight, although a little late, was uneventful aside from the fact that I sat next to a very flirtatious Cambodian woman and her mother. That was a little bizarre.

Upon arriving in Kuala Lumpur, I made it through customs without a problem (though everyone seems to take a long look at that Afghanistan visa…) and got my pack and joined the other people I knew to share a cab into town. We first stopped at an ATM which was, of course, broken. As we waited for it to be fixed, a passerby informed us that there more ATMs inside. When I stepped over the red velvet barrier surrounding the ATM line, however, I knocked down the whole series of stands – perhaps about ten. Not even an hour in Malaysia, and I’m already causing trouble, not a good sign of things to come.

After successfully taking money out, we found our cab and began the long journey into town (for some reason, the Malaysian authorities decided to put the airport 60km from Kuala Lumpur). My travel companions were meeting a friend and I decided to tag along hoping he would have a suggestion of a cheap place to stay.

The infrastructure leaving the airport was very impressive. Lit ten-lane highways with a speed limit of 110km/j (the “j” stands for jam, hour in Malay). As we got closer to town, high-rise apartment buildings dotted the landscape and we could see the beautiful Petronas Towers and the Telekom Malaysia tower.

We arrived in Kuala Lumpur a bit after 10pm and I set off looking for a guesthouse following recommendations. I first stopped at some of the specific ones that were suggested. All three were fully booked. But each was helpful in pointing out other guesthouses in the area that may have vacancies. One guesthouse owner even used her cell phone to call a few different places to see what was available close by. I followed her advice and stayed at a mediocre place called Trekker Lodge in a dorm (all that was available).

Before crashing for the night, I booked a bus and boat to Taman Negara, my destination the following morning.

I woke up early on Saturday morning and headed to an ATM to take a bit more money out. Diagonally across the street from my guesthouse was a small food stall, busy with people getting their morning coffee. As I passed by, I was greeted by a handful of transvestites (or “man-ladies” as the locals call them) and was invited to join them. I politely declined much to their disappointment. Returning from the ATM, I was again solicited for company (and even chased!). I uncomfortably headed back to the guesthouse where I caught a minivan to the bus station.

Since I was a bit early, I had a little time to wander around Chinatown. The streets were not yet bustling, but many vendors were setting up their stalls and shops and the food stalls – with noodles, soups, and fried goods (like donuts and curry puffs) – were preparing for the morning onslaught. I also stumbled upon a bizarre second-hand market in a very narrow alley. A mix of Malay, Indian, and Chinese men (Malaysia's diversity amazed me throughout my trip) - huddled over blankets spread on the ground selling the most random assortment of goods I've ever seen assembled in one place. On a piece of cloth of only a few square feet one individual seller would have jeans, DVDs, antique-like trinkets, car parts, and a hodgepodge of other items, none of which looked particularly appealing. With the bus leaving shortly, I headed back to the station and got ready for my trip to the oldest rainforest in the world.