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Published: August 25th 2012
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You must all be tired by the blogs about Peru and Bolivia, so to give you a break here's one about a couple travelling in Southeast Asia. I know, I know, the irony.
Anyway, back in KL once again, can't even remember if it's my third or fourth time. To me this city is the proto-capital of Southeast Asia, for it encompasses all that SEA represents. Its sights, sounds and smells are Malaysia's sights, sounds and smells, and walking around town, our senses are overflowing with what by now have become very familiar sensations. The prayer call of the muezzin at 5am, bus horns, relentless car alarms, Bollywood music in the Indian mamaks. There's the reek of rotten eggs from the open sewers and gutters you pass, the smell of chicken wings roasting on massive charcoal grills, the scent of fragrant curries and sweet coconut milk, the asphyxiating clouds of exhaust fumes hanging in the air, the stifling humidity and the burning, merciless sun. The freezing air-con on the train contrasts the latter. So do Malaysia's people, they contrast each other, yet still continue living in relative peace, despite all the covert resentments and unspoken hatred, the jealousies and stereotyping,
the inequality and disadvantages, and the ocassionally violent history.
What they do have in common is their love for food and family, and their worshipping of the almighty ringgit. Money comes first, and if you have it, you spend it and make sure everybody knows and sees. More than ever, status symbols rule (now that more and more Malaysians are finding sudden, and some long-deserved, wealth), from useless but shiny and oversized SUVs to the latest techy gadgets and expensive clothes. Understatement is a foreign concept.
Take the Royal Selangor Pewter Factory, for example. You can buy yourself silly in the shop adjacent to the factory with glitzy stuff made from pewter. It's nice to look at, and it makes for good presents, say for a wedding or a big birthday, provided that you are inclined to buy your peers expensive shit they don't need and that they are impressed by pricy, vain gifts. Some of the things they sell are actually useful, I hear you say, like the teapots, for example. But are you really gonna put a 250€-teapot to its intended use, or are you gonna keep on using the cheapy glass-teapot that's been your workhorse
for the last few years?
Be that as it may, Malaysia continues to be one of my favourite countries. The moment I get my first roti canai and teh tarik after a long time, I get all warm and fuzzy on the inside. Being back and walking the familiar streets of KL, especially Chinatown, may not be a new travel experience, but sometimes revisiting places you've already been to can be equally or even more rewarding. You discover new things, find that you remember this and that, you feel more comfortable and at ease. Dare I say, it almost feels like coming home?
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A.S
non-member comment
Enjoy your time in Malaysia
Liking the phrase "it almost feels like coming home?" Enjoy Malaysia and those pics of street views and cheap foods are exactly what I have in my collection of travel pics as well. ;D Keep exploring and safe travels! A.S