the most developed one

Lelde/07/05/08
here I'm sitting in an Internet cafe in Kuala Lumupr - the capital of Malaysia. we've been in this country since 24th of April. We went to to a few lovely places before arriving here. One of those places was an island, can't remember the name of it.
The way we got there was rather scary and I think i wont take speed boats ever in my life (if I can help it), the weather was moody that day and we arrived at the port quite late and our only option, if we didn't want to stay overnight in the little town, was to take the last speed boat to the island. Decisions, decisions...after not being able to decide we somehow got tickets to the boat and the journey which usually takes half an hour, began. We left at 6pm and arrived at 8pm - which was fine - as long as we arrived... :)
It was rainy and dark and the sea was covered in waves... Quite an experience, I was holding onto the seat next to me and thinking of how lethal it might be for us if the boat flips and crashes, even though it's on water. It was an adventure I'm happy is over and done with :) We started our day at 5am that day- all the time on the move, so we were pretty exausted by the time we reached the island only to find out that we will have to cross the island with our backpack in complete darkness to get to beach we wanted to stay at, as, because of the waves, they couldn't stop the boat there :)
Anyways the island was gorgeous! Rather expensive (it really surprised me as I expected prices to be lower than in Thailand). But even in such conditions it's possible to find some relatively cheap places, so we stayed in a little bungalow, overlooking the sea up on the hill for 25RM (8$) per night. Unfortunately we couldn't find a cheap place to eat and, as we didn't have enough time to prepare properly, we didn't have any supplies from the mainland.
And, god, we saw the hugest lizard ever!!! When we went to have lunch the owner of the place showed the monster who lived (as it seemed) under one of their bungalows. it was the size of a grown up crocodile - really hudge!!!! On a little island like that - such an enormous lizard - I was really impressed! :)
We left the island after 3 nights and carried on our journey south east ( we decided to skip the National park - Taman Negara- a really tempting place to go, but we weren't well equiped for such a trip and even though i believe it would be somethiong magnificent to see, i didn't really felt like forcing myself into that wild , tough, sweaty jungle. Kind of not my cup of tea, or so i think as I have to make excuses for myself for chickening out :)))
Our next stop worth mentioning was Cherating - a little town near the beach. On our first day i doubted there were any people around at all as there was nobody on the beach, nobody swimming, it seemed almost like a goast town... The situation changed towards the weekend when it was a national holiday for Malaysians - crowds and crowds of families and their relatives and friends stormed into the place!
We met up with a lovely and interesting companion from Russia, so we speny countless hours sitting in local cafes, drinking various drinks (non-alchocolic, mind, as beer prices are quite unfairly high :). So we haven't had any of it since entering Malaysia - not bad! :)
Relaxation and peace - that's what I want from this time traveling, but we have been racing (with rare exception) ever sice we started this trip. So much to see, so little time etc. But I have realised that i would prefer to see less, but to see more - if that makes sense. I would rather explore one country , than try to fit in 3 countries in that time. But some people have different views, some people like to be on a move constantly and then , it's rather hard to agree on an itinary and compromise....So, we decided to do a bit of traveling apart- Steven got an extended Indonesian visa (paid twice as much for an extra 5 days) and rushed up North to enter Indonesia - Sumatra from there. I have 8 days left in Malaysia ( I can't enter Indonesia earlier that 14-th of may as I can only get 30 days on arrival. But for Malaysia I got 90 days stay with no charge!!! - cool! - I like this country!!!) I'm not used to being on my own, i miss Steven badly, but it's rather an interesting experience and I think it's usefull as well :))
Anyways, malaysia is a very developed and civilized country, wealthy as well and completely Ismalic. kuala Lumpur is a great city, so much different and so much better and more interesting than Bangkok (which, if things haven't changed, Jan, is still mainly a big market:)). Malaysia gained it's independance 50 years ago and in this short time they have managed to build a nice, well planned, modern and stylish capital, with lots of green areas.( I think the cities' a bit older)
And the people in this country seem very friendly. You can see such cultural diversity on the streets of KL- Indians, Chinese, musulmans - with all their colourfull clothing and culture. And all of them live peacefully side by side. We are staying at a hostel which hasn't opened yet -it will be 4 story guesthouse - a paradise for backpackers in a week or so and so, to promote the place, they offered 3 nights for free on the upper floor where the dorms are located (the only place completed), anyways - one of the guys who works there said a very beautiful thing on the night when we arrived - we were standing on a roof and looking at lights of KL, and he said - This land doesn't belong to me, it belongs to the God and everybody can enjoy this land. Everybody can come and live there, if they don't do something bad....
All this nationalism we have, it's so not healthy. My land! My country! You don't belong here! You're not allowed here! It's mine!!!!! If we could just be less possessive, the world might be indeed a better place to live.
I wont publish it today, so probably by the time you read it I might be in Indonesia already...
I miss home and I can't wait to go back!!! My lovely , lovely country!!!!

---

---