Advertisement
Published: October 19th 2008
Edit Blog Post
a rare sight
the city without the jams Still wounded by my memories of Ton Sai but steadfast in my resolve to keep on moving I headed for the bright lights and big city of Kuala Lumpur in the hope that I would succumb to the extravagances of the big smoke and forget the past.
I was looking for hedonism to drown my sorrows, hoping to find it in the seedy dens and back streets of the lanes and alleyways of KL. What I found instead was a sparkling city of wide streets and skyscrapers, illuminated clubs and brand spanking new restaurants. To say I was disappointed would be an inordinately large understatement. So, in its stead I searched for a bar where I could have a quiet drink in the company of strangers listening to the soulful sounds of reggae and jazz. With this in mind I headed out to Chinatown to the Reggae Bar. What I found was a blatant breach of the trade description act. The bar was dark and dingy and loud! The people unpleasant, the drinks expensive and the atmosphere woeful at best. Not to be outdone however I settled in at the bar and ordered a gin and orange juice. Yuck! The
juice was straight out of a can and the gin a poor substitute that even a hobo would reject.
Nursing a headache and a sorry heart I walked back to my hotel hoping tomorrow would bring a brighter day. The following day I checked out and moved into the digs next door where the rates were affordable and the presence of a common room promised a chance of conversation and company. Within an hour I had been rewarded as the disappointments of last night gave way to smiling faces and a hospitable atmosphere. I settled in quite nicely and had expectations of nothing more beyond. Unknown to me at the time I was to later meet two wonderful people who brought me back from the brink of despondency and showed me the other side of Kuala Lumpur.
Like most big cities that can invoke loneliness and desperation without the company of others KL could only be enjoyed at its best with friends and chance encounters. On my way back home from visiting the Petronas Towers I stopped off at a bar which was seemingly o.k. by not possessing the usual ingredients I have unfortunately discovered in Malaysian bars:
Din parodying as music, large tele screens showing football nonstop and a really bad crowd.
I noticed a young fella on his own and wanted to talk to him having been denied this pleasure thus far in the city, bar a few fleeting share of words. Inviting him to join me we ended up in a discourse on the perils and pitfalls of living in Dubai. Working in that fair city of repression and mystery he divulged to me that he absolutely hated it and was looking forward to returning home to Oz for a wee holiday, to where he was headed that very day. He was ever so tempted to jack in his flight until the following day and stay in my company but I reminded him that he was due to board in less than three hours! KL was just a pit stop, a respite from the airways. It was a shame.
But that encounter wasn't to be the only delightful thing to have happened in KL. Back at the guesthouse I met Trevan from the States and his impossibly stunning, albeit temporary girlfriend, Ghazaleh from Iran. They were both great company and together we ventured
into the night in search of a club. You have to pay a cover charge at most of the venues here. Although they are levied against the men the cost is so high it pretty much equates to a payment for all and not wishing to be sucked into that we looked for a club that didn't charge. The place we went to, though well decked out and vibrant in colour, was practically empty and lacked atmosphere but that didn't stop Ghazaleh and I from dancing.
At 3am we called it a night and as I was staying in a dorm room had to skulk back into my room without waking a soul while searching for all my paraphernalia in the dark to wash the night off my face and settle into deep slumber.
The next day was hazy at best and was spent for the most part indoors to heal my sore head and weary feet. And as it always goes I discovered that Ghazaleh and Trevan were leaving that day to the Perinthian Islands and once again, the friends that I had made, left. The night was lonely without them so I quickly took to my bed to welcome an early start the following morning when I would be flying to Borneo.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.158s; Tpl: 0.016s; cc: 11; qc: 53; dbt: 0.0829s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Travel'n On Radio Show
non-member comment
Radio Show interview
Hello, this entry really intrigued me. I'd like to learn more about what you're doing and possibly have you on our radio show. Please visit www.traveln-on.com to learn more about us and arrange a time to chat with me or our producer (contact info can be found on the About Us page). Best, Tonya Fitzpatrick