Malaysia Day 2 - Batu Caves

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After barely catching enough sleep due to the change in time zones, I was to go with Jo Ann and her friends to Batu Caves for the day. She came to fetch me from my hostel at around 7am and then gathered everyone else up. I became acquainted with Aqid and Afiz, and of course, Faizal again, and the first thing we all did was head for breakfast. We had local food, of course - something called nasi lemak, with beef rendang and teh tarik. Pretty spicy and delicious.

Then we went to the Batu Caves, which was truly amazing stuff. There was this temple to the side where we had to take our shoes off to enter. Surrounding the place also, were monkeys. I had never seen monkeys like that on the street before, I am not too sure if they were domestic. Still it made the place that much more interesting.

We climbed the big set of stairs, past the giant golden statue, and appreciated the scenery from within the caves. Inside the cave they had souvenir shops and a temple - a temple where many people come to pray at certain times of the year. The nature was stunning though. We took a tour of the dark part of the caves where we had to carry flashlights, and had a guide show us through and tell us about its secrets.

It was a pleasant visit, definitely a fascinating place, within easy reach of Kuala Lumpur. We parted ways with Afiz and Faizal, then headed back into town with Jo Ann and Aqid. It was time to eat again, and this time I tried something a little more exotic. I was taken to a Southern Indian restaurant, where we were to try banana leaf rice, something you're supposed to eat with your hands. That's right, we weren't given and spoons or forks - this was a hands on dish! I was a bit reluctant to try it at first, prefering good hygiene, but I made sure I washed my hands with the anti-bacterial soap provided and eventually, tried it out. After all, a big aspect of immersing yourself in another country's culture is to try something you normally wouldn't do. Never be afraid to try new things; otherwise, you could regret it. And right now, I don't.

We walked around Chinatown, then Jo Ann herself took me back to my hostel so I could rest for a bit.

After a few hours, I met up with Jo Ann again at Bangsar station. We headed out for one last time to have dinner at yet another local restaurant. It's really nice to have a friend in another country; it gives you a whole different experience that other foreigners would normally miss out on. Having friends in another country forces you to experience the culture more. I'd have to say, that simply because of Jo Ann, Malaysia has been the most culturally rewarding place I have visited. She was very keen to get me to try just about everything. And tonight, we had hokkien mee with pickled green chilli. I was all over it.

Unfortunately we didnt get to try Durian, apparently a really disgusting fruit that Jo Ann wanted me to try. It was out of season. Oh well. Still, today was a great day, and I'm thankful for everything I have learnt.

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