I think KL is a very multicultural place. And it's such a fun place too. People are very western, but polite, and friendly too!
Having arrived in penninsular Malaysia from Malaysian Borneo, the difference is massive. Borneo is still far more developed than i imagined it to be but Malaysia is so western I can't get over it. They all speak english, even those who have nothing to do with tourists speak english. I was having lunch today in a sushi restaurant in the food court of a very posh shopping mall at the foot of the twin towers, watching the sushi float past me on the conveyer belt and listening in to four Malaysian women out for lunch and some shopping. They all looked Malaysian, one had a muslim head scarf, and they were all chatting away in english they could have fitted in anywhere, London or New York, it was like they were from sex and the city, four girls out for lunch! They caught me smiling at them as they were laughing and said that they had been on a shopping spree, they didn't plan on it but it just happened! How familiar!
The population here is 70%Malaysian, then Chinese, then Indian, and a fair few westerners and blow me down there's some black folk here too - I stared like it was the first time i'd seen a black man! Didn't mean to but I was sure he must be just a very dark Indian! It's been four whole months since I last saw a non-white, non-asian!
70% of the economy however is in Chinese hands. And I think I have met as many Chinese as I have Malay.
Everyone dresses very well, and very western - leg warmers in 30degrees and high humidity anyone? And shopping seems to be the national sport. The malls are the national stadiums. There aren't really shops along the streets like we have on our high streets, there are just huge big shopping complexes, bigger than I have seen in the UK. And the nice ones are really nice! Beautiful lavish entrances and the lovely breeze of a/c as you walk in. I accidently found myself in one just after arriving in KL at about 2 in the afternoon and didn't find my way out until it was dark! 7 o'clock i made it back out to find it dark and raining. But i'll tell you what, it's good exercise walking round those places, I was shattered. Whoever says shopping is not a sport was a man who had never shopped in a Malaysian mall.
I was also hugely excited to find TOPSHOP!!!! But less excited to find that the biggest size they stock here is a size 12 and that having enjoyed all the fab food on my travels, i am no longer a british size 12. Oh shit. And I was even less happy to discover that in Malaysian shops a size 12 is an XL, and asking for an XXL is just way too humiliating an experience, so I'll drown my sorrows with a latte and a muffin from the food court, yum!
Guess I'd better mention Borneo! What an adventure, and what a lovely place. It is more developed than I thought it would be, but the transport links are rubbish! People seem to have a fairly good standard of living in the cities but outside the cities everything is very basic.
But the real attraction of Borneo is the Orang-Utans, the people of the forest. Orang = people, utan = forest. And they are such fun to watch. I went to the sanctuary in Sabah, the northern part of Borneo, where they raise orphaned babies and then try to rehab them and release them back into the jungle. When they are old enough they stop living in cages and are put back into the jungle and fed twice a day. As they get more comfortable fending for themselves they are moved further into the forest until they no longer come back for food or shelter. In Sepilok rehab centre the orang utans were waiting for the keepers to arrive with the food, one even came and sat on the railing just in front of all the tourists! They are quite slow-moving and this makes them appear very graceful. I also went to another sanctuary in Sarawak, southern malaysian Borneo, just outside the capital city of Kuching. Yes, I went 3 times to see the Orang-utans, I got a little obsessed! And I loved this other centre. The keepers called the Orang-utans with an orang-utan styleeee call, and in they swung on the trees. First two small females, who grabbed some bananas and then scarpered as they heard Big Ritchie approaching! Big Ritchie, or just Ritchie to any non-Scots, is the dominant male at the centre, and the poor trees were giving under his weight as he made his way slowly to the feeding platfrom. He is about 100kg, about 1.4m tall, but with an arm span of more than 2m! And dominant males have more than 7 times an adult male humans strength, they could literally rip you in two. He has these large skin flaps on his cheeks to make him more handsome to the lady orang-utans, but how he ever gets close enough to them for the girls to be impressed is a mystery if he continues to make an entrance like that and scare them all away!
Anyhoo, am feeling tired so will write more about Borneo another time, off for a wee walk before bed. Night night, x
Friday, 23 January 2009
Sunday, 4 January 2009
N. Thailand
I spent a couple of weeks in the north of Thailand and I met the most wonderful people. It's funny how when you meet people you know right away if you are going to get on.
I stayed with Susannon and Albert in a small Lisu (one of the hill tribes, who originate from Tibet and Nepal but now live around the Thai/Myanmar border) village for 6 days, just reading and relaxing. Albert is from the US and Susannon is part of the tribe. They live in a traditional teak house and live a very peaceful life in the village. It was lovely to be a part of it for a few days. Susannon is now a Christian and she took me to the Lisu Christmas party, which was basically a stage set up in a field, with a marquee roof for the audience and some straw to sit on. The Pastor gave him sermon and then several groups from the village got up on stage and sang songs or danced. It was so cute! It was the most Xmassy i felt the whole time, sitting on the straw in the cold night. I could have done with a nice cosy fire to go home to! But the only fire is the one outside they cook on, so i went home and curled up under my 5 blankets!! Northern Thailand is pretty cold in the winter!
And after this I went to Pai. A small town which is full of tourists - both western and Thai. On the first day (Xmas day) I met this old hippy guy - long hair, bright pink shorts, from California... Anyway somehow i couldn't escape him until after dinner when i had to go and call home to say merry Xmas! But the next day i went to mama's yoga class and it's the first time there have ever been more guys in my yoga class than girls! There were only 3 of us - me, Simon (English) and Brad (Aussie). They had met a few days before in a restaurant and asked me after class if i wanted to to for a cycle to the hot springs along the road - of course i did! Brad introduced me to his other half, Nick, and in those few minutes i had made some great friends for the rest of my time in Pai! They were so lovely and the next day Cassie was at yoga so she joined our little gang and then we were complete!!
It is so nice to meet people who you can really talk to and who you just understand. It doesn't seem to happen very often in life, and travelling I've met a lot of people but not many who I honestly think i will see again. But I really hope to see these guys again. They made Pai what it was - and it was fab!
And again today, I joined a group to go around the Kinabalu NP here in Borneo and there were 3 Aussie couples in the group - all middle-aged. One of the guys had had a stroke, he couldn't speak and walked slowly but without a stick, and his wife was so patient, and treated him exactly as she would have before the stroke, it is so nice to see. Sometimes people are just living their life without realising how well they do it, and how much respect they deserve for coping with the traumas they have gone through. And one of the other couples were both teachers, and really interesting people who both obviously loved their jobs and were so happy together and complimented each other so well, and it's nice to see that!
So anyhoo, I'm in Borneo now and it's stunning! Spent New Year in Singapore (where funnily enough i met more Scots than i have on the rest of my trip! We don't seem to travel round these parts much... The Dutch are definitely in the lead!). Singapore was a real shock to the system. It was like being in Europe, but where everyone is Chinese but speaks in English!? They have an overland/subway system, the MRT, and it in clean, modern and oh so quiet, i reckon it could compete with the tube for quietness. Nobody talks.
Singapore really does feel western. It is clean, tidy and efficient. And they love to shop! I have never seen so many shopping malls lining the streets! And so I figured i would go and do something i haven't done since going travelling - go to the cinema!!! It was great! Will Smith rocks!
Everywhere is air-conditioned - and so they all dress like us even though it's 30degrees and 90%humidity outside.
It seemed to me like a city of couples. And I took a walk around the city on my last night and walked along the harbour and it was just lined with couples - couples holding hands, couples kissing, couples sitting by the water, couples, couples, couples!!! But at least they show affection to each other, in some arts of SE Asia they don't even seem to touch. And in India they don't even acknowledge each other, men and women interact as little as possible. So I guess that was an improvement.
But it also made me realise how much more at home i feel in that society. In a culture where men and women can have a conversation where the first question isn't "are you married?". And that i really like western toilets, and soap being provided to wash your hands. I like wide tree-lined streets and being in cafes where the main customers are locals not foreigners (because they are the only ones who can afford it!). I like being in a society where everyone feels equal, where they all earn a fair wage, and can afford to spend S$5 on a coffee. And I like being able to walk around the city. It isn't too big, and not too small either. It was fun for a few days to be back to a reality i am familiar with. But my wallet didn't like it! Thank goodness I'm not much of a shopper or it could have been dangerous!
And now I'm in Malaysian Borneo and the digs and food are cheaper but there are so many things I want to see and do here that my budget is going out the window - oh well, I might never be here again, so I'm not gonna miss out!
I stayed with Susannon and Albert in a small Lisu (one of the hill tribes, who originate from Tibet and Nepal but now live around the Thai/Myanmar border) village for 6 days, just reading and relaxing. Albert is from the US and Susannon is part of the tribe. They live in a traditional teak house and live a very peaceful life in the village. It was lovely to be a part of it for a few days. Susannon is now a Christian and she took me to the Lisu Christmas party, which was basically a stage set up in a field, with a marquee roof for the audience and some straw to sit on. The Pastor gave him sermon and then several groups from the village got up on stage and sang songs or danced. It was so cute! It was the most Xmassy i felt the whole time, sitting on the straw in the cold night. I could have done with a nice cosy fire to go home to! But the only fire is the one outside they cook on, so i went home and curled up under my 5 blankets!! Northern Thailand is pretty cold in the winter!
And after this I went to Pai. A small town which is full of tourists - both western and Thai. On the first day (Xmas day) I met this old hippy guy - long hair, bright pink shorts, from California... Anyway somehow i couldn't escape him until after dinner when i had to go and call home to say merry Xmas! But the next day i went to mama's yoga class and it's the first time there have ever been more guys in my yoga class than girls! There were only 3 of us - me, Simon (English) and Brad (Aussie). They had met a few days before in a restaurant and asked me after class if i wanted to to for a cycle to the hot springs along the road - of course i did! Brad introduced me to his other half, Nick, and in those few minutes i had made some great friends for the rest of my time in Pai! They were so lovely and the next day Cassie was at yoga so she joined our little gang and then we were complete!!
It is so nice to meet people who you can really talk to and who you just understand. It doesn't seem to happen very often in life, and travelling I've met a lot of people but not many who I honestly think i will see again. But I really hope to see these guys again. They made Pai what it was - and it was fab!
And again today, I joined a group to go around the Kinabalu NP here in Borneo and there were 3 Aussie couples in the group - all middle-aged. One of the guys had had a stroke, he couldn't speak and walked slowly but without a stick, and his wife was so patient, and treated him exactly as she would have before the stroke, it is so nice to see. Sometimes people are just living their life without realising how well they do it, and how much respect they deserve for coping with the traumas they have gone through. And one of the other couples were both teachers, and really interesting people who both obviously loved their jobs and were so happy together and complimented each other so well, and it's nice to see that!
So anyhoo, I'm in Borneo now and it's stunning! Spent New Year in Singapore (where funnily enough i met more Scots than i have on the rest of my trip! We don't seem to travel round these parts much... The Dutch are definitely in the lead!). Singapore was a real shock to the system. It was like being in Europe, but where everyone is Chinese but speaks in English!? They have an overland/subway system, the MRT, and it in clean, modern and oh so quiet, i reckon it could compete with the tube for quietness. Nobody talks.
Singapore really does feel western. It is clean, tidy and efficient. And they love to shop! I have never seen so many shopping malls lining the streets! And so I figured i would go and do something i haven't done since going travelling - go to the cinema!!! It was great! Will Smith rocks!
Everywhere is air-conditioned - and so they all dress like us even though it's 30degrees and 90%humidity outside.
It seemed to me like a city of couples. And I took a walk around the city on my last night and walked along the harbour and it was just lined with couples - couples holding hands, couples kissing, couples sitting by the water, couples, couples, couples!!! But at least they show affection to each other, in some arts of SE Asia they don't even seem to touch. And in India they don't even acknowledge each other, men and women interact as little as possible. So I guess that was an improvement.
But it also made me realise how much more at home i feel in that society. In a culture where men and women can have a conversation where the first question isn't "are you married?". And that i really like western toilets, and soap being provided to wash your hands. I like wide tree-lined streets and being in cafes where the main customers are locals not foreigners (because they are the only ones who can afford it!). I like being in a society where everyone feels equal, where they all earn a fair wage, and can afford to spend S$5 on a coffee. And I like being able to walk around the city. It isn't too big, and not too small either. It was fun for a few days to be back to a reality i am familiar with. But my wallet didn't like it! Thank goodness I'm not much of a shopper or it could have been dangerous!
And now I'm in Malaysian Borneo and the digs and food are cheaper but there are so many things I want to see and do here that my budget is going out the window - oh well, I might never be here again, so I'm not gonna miss out!
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