We had such a homey experience in Kuala Lumpur. In fact, here we felt more like “real”people than we have in months. (Real people of course meaning those with things like “homes”and “jobs.” Things that are sounding more and more foreign to us 😉 ) Life on the road is grand, we can’t complain. We absolutely love getting out and exploring the world (hence the actually doing it), but every once in a while we really just want to throw on a pair of sweatpants, order a pizza and watch a movie on Netflix while we sit on the couch all day. Our couch. This does not happen on the road. So we took a week to stay in Kuala Lumpur and rented a downtown studio through Airbnb, as a means to do two things: first, to catch up on blogging, bills, taxes and all things life and WiFi related after a packed trip through Southeast Asia and before an even more packed trip through Nepal and Central Asia. And second, as a way to feel kinda like normal people for a while. So our first day in town, we woke up, grabbed coffees, and walked to the supermarket! We were so giddy, walking around and gleefully filling our cart with cereal, milk, cheese, crackers and wine. I’m not even kidding; I was ecstatic doing the dishes, because for the first time in four months, I had dishes to do! And I could make my own dinner! Ah, it was wonderful.

::groceries!!!::

::cooking!::

Also contributing to the feeling of homey-ness, we had a fantastic evening with a friend of Alan’s mother who is living with her husband in KL. They invited us over for a dinner party, which was the first time we attended a home-cooked dinner party since before Thanksgiving. It was greatly appreciated and we loved getting the ex-pat’s insight to the area. It was one of those small world coincidences, which was even more small world feeling when another friend of hers – from Alan’s hometown! – visited a few days later and the four of us went out to explore KL together. Teeny tiny world, it is.

::possibly the most exciting thing that happened to us in KL… the laundry lady turned my undies into little panty packages::

Our friendly hosts guided us to the spot for our first experience being massaged by the blind, which was lovely and cheap, but more hilarious than anything. Alan’s masseuse was a chatty one, opining on such things as how Alan “looked” young, by which he meant 40s. (It’s OK, those with sight know he really looks 20-something 😉 ). He may or may not have also compared Alan to Chuck Norris, among other entertaining tid-bits. We shared a room and Jenni could barely stop giggling listening to all this. Then Jenni’s masseuse took a phone call and never stopped massaging. Albeit one-handed, but she never skipped a beat. Impressive, if not entirely zen-like. Also, two blind men walked in while Jenni was changing. Now there’s a situation that causes a disconnect between your rational brain and impulses.

Afterwards we grabbed a solid Indian lunch at Anjappar in Brickfields. Always a good decision to eat Indian food in a restaurant where you are the only non-Indians present. We also learned a little bit about how to maneuver your way through the city via malls and air-conditioned walkways so as to minimize your time out sweating in the hot humid streets. While some of the trains are air-conditioned, the above-ground monorail was quite hot and overall we thought the public transit, as with much of the city, felt somewhat less modern than Singapore or Hong Kong (that said, it’s super cheap and fairly easy to navigate). This theme extended to the overall vibe of the city for us. While KL has a reputation for being very modern (the Petronas Towers were the tallest buildings in the world for a while, and they remain the tallest twin buildings), and it is very much a developed city with malls that rival (perhaps even put to shame) those you’d find in any western metropolis, after visiting Hong Kong and Singapore on this trip we were actually struck with the opposite impression. It is somewhat less modern than we’d expected. You do still see the mixing of old and new, finding hawker stalls a hop, skip and a jump away from the Ferragamo at the Suria Mall at the base of the Petronas Towers, and of course the decidedly less modern Chinatown and Little India neighborhoods nestled in amongst skyscrapers (Malaysia is predominantly a blend of Malay, Chinese and Indian).

Aside from these excursions spent with our new friends, we did little exploring (opting instead for aforementioned couch, cereal and wine and cheese), but we did check out the KL Hop-On Hop-Off bus to orient ourselves to the area, which conveniently stopped right nearby our apartment. It took us around to many of KL’s highlights, and we alighted at Central Market as well as Merdeka Square. And our last night we did manage to go out after dark to compare two bars known for their views of the Petronas Towers. The verdict: SkyBar at Traders Hotel trumps Marini’s on 57.

Practical Info

We were warned repeatedly about KL’s motorcycle bag snatchers, so take caution. You should also bring an umbrella (or buy a cheap one here) or raincoat as it poured (torrential downpours!) our first five days sometime between 4-6 pm, and our last day it began around 2 pm.

Note that KL Sentral and KLCC are different places. Our friends said that BFM is a great radio station. Time Out Kuala Lumpur is likely a good resource. When I lived in NY, it was my nightlife bible. It is worth noting here that we heard good things about Fraser’s Hill (and Shahzan Inn there), which is a couple hours away.

Transportation: The airport is quite a hub (and is the hub for Air Asia). We arrived after midnight and took a taxi which cost 112MYR, reflecting a 50% surcharge in effect from 12-6 am. It took about 45 minutes to KLCC. You can also take a train or bus (8MYR each) to KL Sentral (different from KLCC). And if you’re headed back from the city to the airport, you can check in (and check bags) at KL Sentral and then take a train. Our taxi from the city to the airport at 5 am cost 100MYR (you could probably find a cheaper one if you tried) and again took about 45 minutes.

Public transport is said to be very good here. We took the subway from KLCC to KL Sentral and it was painless and cheap at 1.60MYR each. We also took the monorail from KL Sentral back to Bukit Bintang which allowed us to see a bit more though it was crowded and hot (despite A/C). It cost 2.10MYR each. As with most places, you need your token to exit. I’m told taxis are cheap but often dishonest and may refuse to use the meter.

Accommodation: We stayed at an Airbnb apartment near KLCC. There are many luxury hotels and prices tend to be a lot lower than what you might find in other cities. We saw high-end chains for under $150/night. While we didn’t see the whole city, it seems like staying around KLCC or Bukit Bintang is probably a good bet, or possibly Bangsar though I’m less informed on this. I think there are more backpacker options in other neighborhoods. KLCC felt very safe, and there is a small running track in the park.

Food and Drinks: We went to the grocery store (Cold Storage at Suria KLCC) and ate many meals in our apartment. We dined one night at Healy Mac’s, a popular Irish bar on Jalan Ramlee. It was not bad, and the pint of Guinness was welcome (114MYR for salad, pizza, Guiness, sangria). Sushi dinner in the Isetan food court of Suria KLCC was pretty good and reasonable. Our Indian lunch at Anjappar (an international chain) in Brickfields was very good and inexpensive (about 12 MYR most mains).

Jalan Alor is a popular food street. There are tons of food courts in shopping centers and elsewhere. Lot 10 is said to be good. While perhaps pricier, the food court at Suria looked great. We heard Little Penang Kafe there is good. Old China Cafe is another eatery recommended to us.

We barely dabbled in the nightlife, but I’m told it is abundant in Kuala Lumpur. Our one (early) nighttime jaunt took us to Marini’s on 57 and SkyBar at Traders Hotel. We were a little underwhelmed by Marini’s bar area. There is a dress code and a wee bit of snootiness, and the music and vibe were so-so. The views of the Petronas Towers are nice, but you are so close that it’s hard to fully appreciate the grandeur. The restaurant and lounge may be nicer. We preferred SkyBar, which at least on Monday night played tunes like Marley, CCR and Clapton. We just missed that happy hour as it ended at 8 pm, but I think the bartender said Wednesday night is ladies night with free margaritas all night. Make a reservation or put your name down on arrival for one of the window seats, where you’ll find spot-on views of the towers plus the light/fountain show at Lake Symphony.

Changkat Bukit Bintang is lined with bars. There are a handful more on Jalan Ramlee right by our apartment. Zouk is a popular club. I think the Bangsar area has a bit of nightlife.

Activities: If you like to shop, you will not be bored. There are malls and stores everywhere. One day we took the Hop-On Hop-Off bus around the city. It is a nice way to orient yourself, though it can get pretty crowded (and if you’re standing and can’t easily look out the window, it’s less enjoyable). It costs 45MYR for 24 hours or 79MYR for 48 hours. You cannot board with a beverage, unless it’s bottled water (or maybe anything in a closed bottle?).

Central Market was formerly a functioning wet market, nowadays it houses varied craft shops and some F&B options. Kasturi Walk is a covered way alongside the Central Market, and I saw a sign advertising cultural performances every Monday-Saturday at 9 pm and a martial arts performance every Sunday at 9 pm. The other place we disembarked from the bus was Merdeka Square. It is here that the Malaysian flag was raised for the first time in 1957 to replace the Union Jack. The 95-meter flagpole at one end anchors an enormous flag. The attractive Sultan Abdul Samad building (housing government offices) is here.

I thought the blind massage was great, and cheap at 35MYR for 45 minutes. They also do reflexology.

Since we don’t have any particular insight to add on most attractions here, I’ll just list some out for you to consider. The bird and butterfly parks; National Mosque; Masjid Jamek; National Museum; Sin Sze Si Ya Temple; The Annexe Gallery; Brickfields (we still can’t tell if this is the same as Little India?); Chinatown and Petaling Street; Petronas Towers; KL Tower. Outside the city but I think reachable on public transportation are the Batu Caves.

March 25 – April 1, 2014 (Tuesday-Tuesday)