Kickin' it in Kuala Lumpur

November 23, 2013

Where did the last week go???  Man, time flies when you are having fun exploring new cities!  Omar, Matt, Rhiannon and I spent a good 3 days walking around Kuala Lumpur to take in the sights, get a feel for the city, and find hidden gems.  KL is a fun mix of modern and old from sky scrapers to historic China Town.

 

This karaoke bar doesn’t mess around.  

Mmmmm . . . hmmm . . .  no surprise there.

The outside of Sri Maha Mariammam Hindu Temple in historic China Town.  Built in 1873.

And the inside.

The Guan Di Temple, built in 1888, and named after the God of War, Guan Di - China’s greatest warrior.

One of the many allies in China Town filled with vendors and food stalls and mayhem.

Our sweet guest house in KL.  One of those gems we just found wandering around.

The KL Tower at night - better views than Petronas Towers apparently.  Not that we would know - we were too cheap to do either!

The Bukit Bintang area is the place to go for dinner.

We chose a food stall where you pick your veggies, tofu or meat and either grill it, fry it, or boil it before dumping peanut sauce on it.  Yum!

Ahhh . . . .

The City Gallery maintains a giant miniature (pun intended) of the entire city of KL - 50 ft. wide!

And here is the artist in charge of making miniature sky scrapers for the museum.

Found in the toilet stalls here- apparently western toilets are confusing for squat toilet users!

Omar and I in front of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, built in 1894 - the previous home to the government.

Self portrait in front of the National Mosque.

So easy being vegan here!

One of the Petronas Towers.  It was the tallest building in the world with 88 floors until 2004.

We found a wonderful tea house while wondering around - yum black sesame balls and almond tea!

I took an awesome 2.5 hour yoga class with Lingham, the President of Yoga Federation of Malaysia.  He taught us how to do acro yoga.

So much fun!

And you can’t leave KL without a trip to Batu Caves - an enormous Hindu shrine just outside the city.  376 steps to the top!

Just like the mall in America

Yesterday, we went to a mall at the Petronas Towers. Ali decided she needed a haircut and the mall was where she wanted to go. This mall might be one of the fanciest malls in Malaysia with stores like Cartier and Tiffany's. Like most malls though it had electronics, gadget stores, hair salons and even a McDonald's. The salon was the reason we went there after all, so here is Ali getting a haircut. 

Meanwhile, I had some free time to look at camera shops and have a chat with my mom. I shared with my mother how much this mall was just like being in the states: the stores, the lights, and even the food court. 

So I made my way to a Jamba Juice look alike and ordered a fresh coconut to quench my thirst. The girl behind the counter is a young girl just like the teenagers at the malls in America. She is wearing a hijab, but I don't even notice the veils anymore with them being so common in Malaysia. It was when she pulled a giant machete that she got my attention.  That is when I realized I was not in Kansas. She proceeded to give the coconut a few swift and decisive hits.

She proceeded to pry it open with the tip of the blade very casually. 

Next, she handed me a coconut ready to drink with a brief reminder that no matter how much it looks like it, I am not in America and a warning for men not to mess with Malay girls. 

As for Ali's haircut:

Beautiful as ever and now with hair more manageable for boat life. 

The State of Johor

We had a great tour of the southern state of Malaysia called Johor.  In a mixture of new and old, where jungle meets brand new buildings, here is our pictorial tour of Johor. We skipped some tourist attractions like Lego Land and Hello Kitty Town.  

 

 

Danga Bay Marina is a luxury destination in Malaysia. It is located next to seafood restaurants and fancy bars. This multistory lobster makes sure that nobody gets confused on what is being served here.

 

Here is Ali climbing to the top of Gangung Panti. The last bit to the top is called the wall and we had to climb our way up. Note those super fashionable leech socks. Leeches are the zombies of the parasite world. Once they sense you, they just keep coming your way. While I did not have any bite me I did had one crawl up on my camera lens.

 

The Sail Malaysia rally started with a  tour of Johor’s state buildings. The state has a sultan as well as a democratically elected parliament. The parliament meets here and it is built like a palace. I guess it has to look like a palace since the sultan has to preside the meetings. Absolutely beautiful buildings.

 

Then we went to a pineapple farm. It is a museum and research center.

 

There we found beautiful tasty pineapples.

 

 

Then we were off to the southmost point in continental Asia. Deserving of a big monument.

 

That’s it. If we keep going further south we fall in the water.

 

We were received in a village with traditional dances and lunch.

 

Of course Ali was asked to come up and dance.

 

Next we were taken to a fishing village - we were received with more dances. 

 

Traditional Malysian dancers waiting to go on stage for their next performance.

 

The Malay girls like big Omar!

 

The next day we were invited to a feast and more dancing. 

 

These performers had some of the most intricate outfits and jewelry I have seen so far. I struggled to get good pictures of this dancing troop but the outfits were amazing.

 

Dreamy girl wondering what sushi to pick up from an endless line of dishes parading next to her. Our days off were spent at the mall and we even went to the movies. What a splurge.

 

And so we leave Danga Bay. This is a causeway that unites Malaysia to Singapor. I spent the morning steering the ship in between both countries and off to our next destination.

 

The Rally Begins!

November 12, 2013

We came back from Kota Tinggi with time to relax before the Sail Malaysia Rally kicked off with full effect - technical meetings, dances, food and tours.  They crammed a lot in, but we had a great time!

All we could eat delicious vegi Indian food with fresh squeezed juice for 6 bucks… total!

You might think this is unusual - 3D nail art - but not the case here!  Love it!

The administrative buildings of Johor Bahru.  There are 11 states and 11 sultans here in Malaysia.

Yep!!! - Still the government buildings.

Did you know a dragon fruit grows on a cactus?

Yum dragon fruit!

We went to a pineapple plantation and museum as it is huge export of Johor Bahru.

Red pineapples - who knew???

The tour took us to another National Park.

It was a mangrove forest.

Roar!!!

Well that was a surprise!

It’s Muddy, the mud skipper!  (Come on - who remembers Ren and Stimpy?)

Here is most of the Sail Malaysia gang . . . we are the ones without grey hair.

Juice to go.  They really love plastic bags here in Asia.

This was our second village of the tour and second dance performance of the day.

Omar’s got the music inside.