Wow, it's been a while...Stop 1: Ｋｕａｌａ Ｌｕｍｐｕｒ

Alright...so as most of you know, I have a horrible habit of updating few and far between, reason being I like events to happen before I think about them and write them down. Pardon the length of this entry: I'm going to try to limit my ranting to a paragraph per area. I want to share with you all my thoughts on my trips throughout China and Southeast Asia, the placement test (again), and school.　Ｓｅｅｉｎｇ　ａｓ　ｉｔ＇ｓ　ｔｈｅ　ｅｎｄ　ｏｆ　ｔｈｅ　ｙｅａｒ，　Ｉ＇ｌｌ　ｓｐｌｉｔ　ｉｔ　ｉｎｔｏ　４　ｐａｒｔｓ．．．ｍｙ　ｔｒｉｐｓ，　ｓｃｈｏｏｌ　ａｎｄ　ｔｈｅ　ｅｘｐｅｒｉｅｎｃｅ，　ａｎｄ　ｆｉｎａｌｌｌｙ　ａ　ｒｅｆｌｅｃｔｉｏｎ．．．

So, if you read my last posting, you would notice I had an itinerary all planned out. The first part of that itinerary was 广西。In one word: beautiful. There was a lot of scenery, especially in 桂林. However， 桂林 started to rain when we got there, so it was kind of a lost cause to do much anything. There were a lot of clear waters and stuff of that sort and I'm really glad to have had a chance to go there.　Ｏｎｅ　ｔｈｉｎｇ　ｔｈｏｕｇｈ：　ａ　ＬＯＴ　ｏｆ　ｃａｖｅｓ．　Ｔｈｅ　ｐｉｃｕｔｒｅｓ　ａｒｅ　ｕｐ　ａｔ　Ｐｈｏｔｏｂｕｃｋｅｔ　ｉｆ　ｙｏｕ　ｗａｎｔ　ｔｏ　ｓｅｅ　ｔｈｅｍ．

Nancy and I stayed an additional night in Guilin while waiting for our flight out of town. She was still somewhat weak from the day before, when we were in Yangshuo. She barely managed to eat a couple of bowls of 粥，or porridge and she slept most of the day. She’s a trooper, though, so she managed to recover in time for our flight and to be somewhat better for the rest of this part of our trip.

The next morning, we had to get up super early to take the flight to KL. I was really excited, not only because this was the first time I was visiting Malaysia, but also the first time I would get a different stamp on my passport (with the exception of the Chinese one, which I don’t really count since it’s for school) and the first time I’d be visiting Southeast Asia. Our plane was really comfortable with leather seats and the like. Problem is: you have to pay for EVERYTHING, as with most low cost carriers. This concept will be further explored in a bit.

Upon arrival, we had to go through the standard immigration and customs measures. The Malay stamp is pretty cool because it’s purple, but it’s not something I’d rave about. Anyway, we arrived at the LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) and went looking for our bags. I had gone to exchange money and we almost went outside thinking we’d find the luggage carousels. Instead, we had reached the exits and had to ask security where the carousels were. -_-’’ 我真马大哈，对不对? ;p!

吉隆坡欢迎我. 它的礼物：天气非常热！My welcome gift from Malaysia: hot weather! FINALLY!!! I can wear shorts again! I’m quite happy with that because we’d have to wear SO many layers of clothing in Beijing, so it’s finally time to wear less clothing and remind myself of California. The weather is also humid, though, so it’s back to a Beijing summer where you have to shower twice because you’re sweating so much. Nonetheless, Nancy and I had to take a bus from the LCCT terminal to the main one. Although it’s cheaper to take a bus straight to KL Sentral station, I’m now one to try out the trains for everything, so that was the plan. From the main terminal, we boarded the KLIA Ekspres to KL Sentral station, a 28 minute train ride costing RM35, RMB70, or about $10. As you can see from the video, I enjoyed it a lot. The scenery was amazing: palm trees galore, but that’s because the airport is in Sepang, which is in a different state than KL proper.

Upon arriving, the fun really began: KL Sentral is really, really nice, but we had to take the subway, which was also pretty cool. It’s about RMB2 per ride (RM1), but since the system is a bunch of lines that aren’t connected at all, every time you transfer, you have to pay. What a bummer. This is the time where I missed the 北京地铁 the most, because everything’s integrated, so the transfers are easy. In this case, Nancy and I had to take our luggage from KL Sentral to the RapidKL LRT for two stops. Afterwards, we took the escalators to ground level, paid another fare, and transferred to another RapidKL Line for a stop. It’s really stupid to not have the transfers be simpler, but I digress. At least this transfer beats Line 13 to Line 2 at 西直门 by far (actually, most any transfer beats that one). After walking, we finally reached Nancy’s hotel, which I would be staying at later in the week. We were SO happy to be out of the heat, and I was happy to get her settled. After that, I walked back to the LRT station and took the train for one ore stop to my hotel.

My hotel was a “limited service” hotel owned by the same company that I flew to KL in. In a nutshell, it’s pretty much a bed, a ceiling fan, and a bathroom. -_-’’ No TV, phone, room service, etc. Quite a bummer, but actually, it’s all I really needed because I was out most of the time. I did, however, purchase the Wi-Fi access, and it’s AWESOME to not need a VPN to log on to stuff that is banned for whatever reason.=) It was awesome to be able to go on Facebook, YouTube, and other sites freely.

Anyway, later that night and the next, I went to one of the reasons I even thought of coming to Kuala Lumpur and perhaps the most famous objects in the city: the Petronas Twin Towers. Now, it’s amazing to have the ability to see them in person, especially because Entrapment with Sean Connery featured them and that alone made me curious. Obviously, they’re best admired at night. They’re very beautiful (which is somewhat of a rarity in building). Just spectacular.

Anyway, along with the Petronas Towers, Nancy and I went to Suria KLCC, Kuala Lumpur’s shopping mall. Now, I do love to shop, but even so, I felt SUPER broke here. Lots of the luxury stores make their homes here, so you see Louis Vuitton, Parkson, Brioni, Isetan, etc. However, I did find some stores that were reasonably priced. No shopping for me, however. ;p, After Suria, we went and saw the KLCC Park, which is kind of a place to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and just find peace, serenity, and a lot of people exercising. ;p It was quite interesting.

That night, we went to Chinatown and its most famous street: Jalan Petaling, or Petaling Street. The most memorable thing about this street was not only the fact that I had to use Chinese once again (go figure), but the massage Nancy, Derrick and I all got. Since I fail to introduce people at the right times, Derrick is Nancy’s boyfriend. We actually met at her b-day party and we clicked since. He came along with us, but met us in KL from Macau.


First thing we did: a foot massage using the fish that eat off dead skin from your feet. The feeling: it tickled like crazy! Most of them attached themselves to where I wanted them to attach themselves, but others, not so much. My feet felt good afterwards, but they didn’t get as soft as I would expect. ;p. Go figure, I would be one to want that. Lol. Walking along Jalan Petaling, you could see so many vendors selling food, handbags, sunglasses, shirts, jeans, etc. Just fun to walk around and explore it a little better. After all that, back to the hotel for bed.

Next day, we decided to go back to Chinatown, but this time, to the Central Market. The Central Market is a historical place in KL, but pretty much, it serves to sell many different types of items. I t has most all of the cultures represented, from the Indians to the Chinese to the traditional Malays, there’s a lot of stuff to choose from. I stuck to buying a turquoise necklace and a Malaysia scroll that I could hang on my wall. I kind of wanted the Malay flag, but go figure, I’ll take what I can get, right? After that, we returned to our respective hotels for a bit of a break.

Later that night, we went to Merdeka Square (merdeka is freedom in Bahasa Malay), and after almost getting run over and lost, we ran into something else first: Masjid Negara, the National Mosque. For those of you who don’t know, Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country, but is very tolerant of other religions as it is guaranteed in the constitution. Law-wise, there’s two systems: Shari’a for those who are Muslim and declare that on their ID, and the general law for those of other religions. Anyway, Masjid Negara is a work of art, at least to me. The architecture is beautiful and at night, the lights cast a soft blue light on the “umbrella” style roof. Unfortunately, we weren’t dressed properly to go in (nor do I know any other rules for non-Muslims), so we instead kept walking down the street to Merdeka Square. It’s a very large and open space. From what the sign said, it used to be some exclusive cricket field during British rule, and it was the place where the Malaysian flag first rose after the end of British rule. Afterwards, back to bed and rest

The next morning, one of the first stops we made was the Batu Caves, which were awesome. Batu Caves is a Hindu temple in KL. The first thing we noticed was the steps leading up to the caves. There are approximately 260 steps. Although that doesn’t sound like a lot, let’s just say the steps were pretty steep.　Ｙｏｕ　ｈａｖｅ　ｔｏ　ｄｏｕｂｌｅ　ｏｒ　ｔｒｉｐｌｅ－ｓｔｅｐ　ａ　ｌｏｔ．　Ｈｅｈｅ．　Ｉｔ　ｗａｓ　ｇｒｅａｔ　ｔｏ　ｇｅｔ　ｔｏ　ｔｈｅ　ｔｏｐ　ａｎｄ　ｓｅｅ　ｐｅｏｐｌｅ　ｗｏｒｓｈｉｐｐｉｎｇ．　Ｊｕｓｔ　ａ　ｓｉｇｎ　ｏｆ　Ｍａｌａｙｓｉａ＇ｓ　ｔｏｌｅｒａｎｃｅ　ｆｏｒ　ｍｏｓｔ　ｏｔｈｅｒ　　ｒｅｌｉｇｉｏｎｓ．Ｔｈｅｒｅ　ｗｅｒｅ　ａｌｓｏ　ｍｏｎｋｅｙｓ　ｔｈｅｒｅ．．．ｒｅｍｉｎｄｅｄ　ｍｅ　ｏｆ　Ｃｕｒｉｏｕｓ　Ｇｅｏｒｇｅ．

Ｔｈｅ　ｌａｓｔ　ｍａｊｏｒ　ｓｔｏｐ　ｗｅ　ａｌｌ　ｔｏｏｋ　ｗａｓ　ｃａｌｌｅｄ　Ｇｅｎｔｉｎｇ　Ｈｉｇｈｌａｎｄｓ．　This is the only casino in Malaysia. As it's part of my major, I took a look at the scene there. A LOT of baccarat is played in these countries, as I noticed. The tables are filled with people playing this game. I had a good time with Derrick (we came out ahead) while Nancy went shopping. =)

I had to stay an additional night in KL before I left to Taiwan to meet Nancy and Derrick. It was great, although I'll miss our hangout: Station Kopitaim...which is right near their hotel. Their slushes were great..and cheap. About RM4 per drink. Hehe.

Next stop...Taipei!