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Untitled Tuesday (traveling day)/Wednesday
The Declaration card you have to read to present to immigration when you arrive in Malaysia says "Be forewarned death for drug traffickers under Malaysian law." Not in Kansas anymore.
Late flight, and I don't arrive at my hotel until midnight. I booked it over the internet, the Florida Hotel. Fitting since I'm from America. It got good ratings and, of course, it was cheap. The review said it was clean and convenient. Sounded good to me, and at midnight I wasn't about to be too picky. The hallways were a bit musty, but the room was good enough. And most importantly the AC worked. Kuala Lumpur, like many Asian cities, is hot and humid, even at midnight.
I decided to sleep in until 8am and then took off to enjoy the exotic city of Kuala Lumpur. This is the most culturally diverse city I've ever been to. It's 60%!m(MISSING)uslim and 40%!e(MISSING)verything else. And the Islamic influence can't go unnoticed. Dress runs the spectrum from conservative, totally veiled garb, to shorts, tank tops, and sandals. Cell phones are everywhere, just like everywhere else I've ever been. There are upscale shopping malls with
top designers, vendors cooking meals on the sidewalk, and the ever-present McDonalds'/7-Eleven/KFC/and, of yeah, STARBUCKS!!! (I have a "funny" story to tell about that later).
First stop, the Petronas Towers, the tallest twin towers in the world. It was an easy train ride and stopped underneath the building. At 9:30am I stood in line to get my ticket for 1pm. My next stop, between 9:30am and 1 pm, was Bantu Caves, an old (1800's) Hindu shrine/temple with over 200 steps to climb into the cave. Was there enough time to see it and get back? I wasn't sure. I felt like I was in the "Amazing Race" race-around-the-world reality show (actually Bantu Caves was featured during one of their episodes and that's how I got the idea to want to see it).
I hopped on the train to the end of the line. I was told (read on internet) to hail a taxi to take me to the caves. The internet travelers site that I looked up said I'd pay between 12 and 20 ringots (RM- Malaysian money). I got it for RM10. It was a quick 10 minute ride up the highway. The entrance was free (you
must know by now how I like my free stuff), but I paid RM10 to see a movie about the site. By the way, RM10 is roughly equilavent to $US 3. Everything is cheap here, except for the Java Chip Frappuccino, which seems to be $US 4 no matter where I go. Back to the caves.
There's a big festival here, Thaipusam Festival, when worshippers come from all over and do what ever they do. One of the things they do, and don't ask me why, is that some pierce their tongues and cheeks with skewers. A few put hooks (and not just one or two) in their upper body and hang things from them. OUCH! Maximum strength Tylenol vendors must be popular around that time of year. Not for the faint of heart. Needless to say the festival wasn't taking place while I was there. Actually, it was rather quiet, the way I like it.
After watching the movie I made my way up the steps. Monkeys hang around the stairs looking for hand outs. I got a few pics of them eating, sitting, and even one with its baby. Although I don't think the baby was
too happy with the whole situation. It was an interesting place.
My taxi driver on the way back to the station claimed his great grandfather helped build the temple. He also said, half way to the station mind you, that he "said" the price would be RM10 to the station (the price we agreed to before I got in) but he "meant" RM15. I told him that I "said" RM10, and I "meant" RM10. He was a very friendly, entertaining, and gregarious guy though so I gave him RM13 (a US dollar difference of $US 1). It was the principal you know. Also (sidebar) he wasn't going to pick me up, the first driver I asked wouldn't take me (I'm guessing it was too far), but his sister-in-law was in the car with him and it was she that told him to take me.
On to Petronas Towers. Did I make it?
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