Kuala Lumpur - Shopping Paradise

With Malaysia being only a short hop from Singapore, we decided to go to Kuala Lumpur (KL) for 3 days via a Greyhound-like bus. The bus ride takes you over a causeway and onto the Malaysian penisular. At the Malaysia border, all passengers duly get off the bus, and make their way to the immigration office to get their passports stamped. Afterwards, we all get back onto the bus and continue for another 3 more hours along the Malaysia’s west coast, past endless palm trees and lots of abandoned green fields.

The view of our ride to KL on the bus

Upon arriving in KL, we were struck with the same problem we had everywhere, having to find our way to the hotel. This time, it was more difficult for us because we had no idea where we were dropped off at. We only knew that we were at the entrance of a hotel, where most of the passengers seemed to be checking into except for us. We asked the hotel counter for help on directions to our hotel and all he told us to do was to take a taxi. Being backpackers, we don’t have the luxury of taking a taxi as that would cut into our costs. With determination, we chose a direction and walked towards it in hopes of finding a Metro station. Within minutes, we were walking in the underground pathway to the metro. Glad and relieved, we went to the ticket counter to purchase our tickets to the hotel. I asked the man which station we need to go to for our hotel and in response I heard, “Dang Bangi” I had the most confused look on my face and asked him to repeat. The second time, he screamed “DANG WANGI” So even more confused, I noted it down and asked Kenny what he heard and he said the same, “Dang something” So with tickets in our hand, we went for the closest exit to the trains and tried to look for a map. And sure enough, there it was “Dang Wangi” on the map. What a name for a metro station.

The traffic in KL is chaotic and walking down the streets, which are largely pavement-free, is dangerous. Just because you see the green light doesn’t mean you get to go. However, there is one positive thing about the street traffic in KL. All traffic lights have electronic countdowns telling you long it will be before the lights change or better yet before you look twice to cross. It was definitely a large contrast from Singapore. Here in KL, you can be sitting on the streets eating dinner and a huge van would whiz by you leaving you and your food in fumes.

Do you see how close the car is to the table?

According to Malaysians, eating out and shopping are their favourite pastimes. This is because food and the clothes here are ludicrously cheap. If you live in the area known as the Golden Triangle, like we did, you are bound to walk into a mall at every corner. It was definitely shopping paradise there. Clothes were dirt cheap as so was everything else. Malls consisted of at least more than 4 floors of clothes, watches, electronics, and computers. It was like “Pacific Mall” but on a grander level. It is as hustle & bustle inside the malls as it is outside on the streets.

Cosmo Shopping Mall

At the mall near the Petrona Towers

There was this one store in a mall that was quite unusual and different. It was called “EC Express Cut”. It was perfect timing to try this out as Kenny’s hair was reaching beyond it’s fro limits. As we entered, only the person that is cutting his hair gets to sit on the numbered bench so that they will know who is next. When it was Kenny’s turn, they asked him to pay first which cost only 12 Ringgits ($3.00 CAD). Kenny explains to the hairdresser how he wants his haircut, and the hairdresser clips away. After a little more than 10 minutes, the haircut is finished and Kenny even gets the hairbrush they used on him. One would think that no one would go to this express cut place but in fact, the whole time that Kenny was there, 4 other people came in to get their haircut. However, as we got back to the hotel, we noticed that Kenny’s hair was cut unevenly. The top side of his hair was lopsided. One side was longer than the other. Luckily it wasn’t too noticeable, but what do you expect for a haircut that costs less than $5.00 CAD. Haa haaa

Food was everywhere. We found all kinds of fruits and vegetables. Durian again was another big time seller in KL. I only say this because of the sign that we found at our hotel lobby. Look below. It was too hilarious. I still can't understand what is so good about durian. The fruit stinks and tastes like poo…(not to offend anyone out there that loves it). Sorry can’t appreciate this exotic fruit.

KL was not just all about eating and shopping, there were the beautiful Petronas Towers that dominated the skyline. The Petrona Towers are the world’s tallest buildings in the Southern Hemisphere. It is 453 metres in height consisting of 88 storeys. There is a skybridge that connects the two towers built on Floors 41 & 42. Unlike most skyscrapers however, the towers have a unique shape brought about from the floorplans which are built in the shape of two squares, tilted at an angle to form an eight-pointed star. This design was based on geometric patterns found commonly in architecture of Islamic heritage. The towers are also shiny metal and glass, rather than the bland old concrete of most skyscrapers. It was definitely a beautiful sight, especially at night when it is all lit up.

. Inside the connecting skybridge

The City of Surprises

It was 3pm when we landed at Singapore airport. We were greeted by a balmy afternoon with a temperature of 28 degrees. The humidity hit us in the face as we exited the airport looking for the Metro to connect us to our hotel. It was a definite change from the dry heat that we were use to in Melbourne.

At the airport before entering Customs

We loved everything in and about Singapore except for its weather. The weather there was too humid. The humidity caused oily faces, clothes that stuck to our bodies, and really poofy fro hair. Showers were like heaven to us. But besides the weather, the city was very clean, greenery everywhere and a sense of security.

Well as you may have already read from our last blog that we stayed in Singapore for Chinese New Year (CNY). It was amazing. CNY is so much more festive than it is in Canada. There are tons of people everywhere. There was this huge countdown in Chinatown with firecrackers and fireworks to bring in the New Year. People were everywhere, buying flowers, candies, fruits, and all sorts of other items for the temple. With CNY being a 7-day festival, there were three different festivals going on all at the same time. There was the CNY festival in Chinatown, the “Hung Bao” festival by the River, and the Chingay Parade Festival. What was even more amazing was the amount of people at each of these festivals. It always seemed like there were millions of people attending each of these events. There was not one time that Kenny and I were able to walk freely about. The worst one of them was at the Chingay Parade. It rained on the day the Chingay Parade took place. It rained hard for awhile, then stopped and got really humid. So what does rain and humidity cause? Well it is the cause for “sour” stink. Well if you are all wondering what sour stink is like, it is like wet dirty socks in pickle sauce. As Kenny and I walked along the street to try to find a good place to see the parade, there was always sparks of the sour stink. It was horrible. At one point it got so bad that I almost vomited. Imagine being stuck in a crowd with the sour stink with no where to move but forward with the crowd. Yup, it wasn’t a pleasant experience. But besides the sour stink, the parade was actually quite nice. It was sure different since it was a night parade and all of the floats were illuminated.

CNY in Chinatown

Many stalls were selling these bamboo plants

Pomello Fruits

The crowd gathering for the countdown 3 hours before 12 midnight. Crazy!!

We were finally on our way to get a spot for the countdown

Ended up across the street. Guess that is what happens when you dont line up early!!

Chinese New Year at the Hung Bao River Festival

There were illuminated animals from the Chinese horoscope all over the festival. But trying to find your own to take a picture with is the hard part.

People gathering for the Chingay Parade an hour before the parade starts

Bad picture of the parade because we couldn't get a good spot to take the pics.

However, I think the best part of Singapore for us were the various amounts of hawker stands everywhere. Hawker stands and food courts are backpacker’s haven. It offers delicious food at a cheap cost. Yes, as I have mentioned before, it may not offer the best clean quality but heck, Kenny and I haven’t gotten any stomach flu’s or sickness yet. So it’s safe to eat plus being backpackers we really can’t afford anything more than hawker style. On every corner of the street, there were food stalls and food courts. Every imaginable item you can think of was sold on the streets. They had fishball noodles, beef satay, congee, fried rice (Kenny’s favourite), and all sorts of seafood dishes (fried crab). Each food item never cost more than $5 SGD which is equivalent to $3-4 CAD. Singaporeans love food. You constantly see them eating all the time, except for in the subway. In the subway, no food or drinks are allowed and if seen eating or drinking, you would be fined $1000 SGD immediately. I think Kenny ate like 7 meals a day. He wanted to try everything that was offered. Did I also mention that Singaporeans love their Durians. Durians are everywhere. Imagine the stench or as others would say the aroma of Durians all over the streets. There is not one time that we step out of our hotel and not smell Durian.

Look at all the Durian!!!!!!

Having a refreshing Lime drink from a bag!!

Grilled Stingray. Yummy!!!

Ok, I must also mention here Kenny’s obsession with this one Chinese dessert called “Chin Bo Lurn” It is a sweet soup with ginko nuts, dried longan, tapioca, and a mixture of other beans. When Kenny saw this dessert, it was like a moment in the movies when the little girl sees a triple scoop ice cream in her hand and is about to lick all scoops at one time. Ever since Kenny found this dessert, it was game over. Everywhere we went, he kept asking for the “Chin Bo Lurn” dish. If the hawker place didn’t have it, he didn’t want to eat there. He was nuts about it. I think the whole time we were in Singapore, that was all I heard: “Where is my Chin Bo Lurn?”

Shopping in Singapore is also really good. Even with their 5% GST, their goods and clothes are still cheaper than it is in Canada. This is the part that really sucks for me though. Being backpackers, we really couldn’t buy any souvenirs or other things for ourselves because we didn’t want to lug it with us in our packs on our next destinations. Trust me, our packs each are already 15 kg, with the extra things that I wanted to buy in SP, I think I would break my back. It was so sad not being able to buy anything. That is why I always hated going into the shops knowing that I can only see and not buy….boo hoo. But if I ever get a chance, I think I will return to Singapore with an empty luggage and buy the rest there. Haa haaa

One of the many malls in Singapore. This one specialized in Electronics but half of the stores were closed because of CNY.

Going to Singapore is not the same without visiting the their country’s symbol – The Merlion. You heard me right, Merlion. It is a half lion, half mermaid. See picture below. No trip is the same without going to a Bar at the Raffles Hotel. It is the home of the Singapore Sling. It is where the drink was ever first created. Ok, that night, we decided to go and have a drink before we ate dinner as we weren’t hungry yet. So we went to the bar, I ordered a Singapore Sling and Kenny ordered the Million Dollar Cocktail. After gulping down our drinks (I think we were really thirsty too), I noticed Kenny’s face getting really really red. Not only did it turn red, but he just sat in his chair, staring into space. He then turns to me and says, “I need food. I think I am a little buzzed from this drink.” Just as he said that, I was also feeling a little buzzed as well. I couldn’t stop laughing at Kenny’s face as he staggers up from his chair. After a few minutes, we managed to get ourselves out of our chairs, and stumble over to the subway as we were laughing to ourselves to get to the closest hawker place to get some food in ourselves. Man I guess that is what you get for not having drank for such a long time. Haa haa

Singapore's Merlion in Sentosa (an island off the coast of Singapore)

The city's version of the Merlion

Our cocktail drinks. The tall one is Singapore sling and the other is the million dollar drink

Ok, I have to admit, I did have one bad experience in Singapore. It was the time Kenny and I decided watch the movie “Fearless” with Jet Li. (Let me tell you that they have movie times running from 12 noon to 3 am in the morning. Who goes to watch a movie at 3 am, I guess someone does or else they wouldn’t sell it) Well, first of all the movie wasn’t too good to begin with. The whole time I was there, it reminded me of the time I watched a Chinese movie at Market Village. Asians will be Asians no matter which country you are in. During the movie, there was this couple beside us that kept talking the whole time. It seemed like the girlfriend didn’t get the movie or something and the boyfriend had to explain every single thing that was happening. What’s worse than this was the girlfriend decides to play with her mobile. She begins to do some text message on her mobile. Now you all know that once the mobile is flipped open, the bright light comes on. So in the corner of my eye, there is this huge bright light illuminating, with the semi-bad movie in front of me. It was just a horrible experience and I don’t think I will ever go into another Chinese theatre. I think I rather just buy the pirated copies and watch in the comfort of my own home….

The Beach at Sentosa Island

The Pink Dolphin Show at Sentosa Island

The Flower show on Sentosa Island

The Tiger cat we saw at the Night Safari

At the Haw Par Villa (Tiger Balm Garden)

Really odd statue found inside the Tiger Balm Garden

The riverside of Singapore at Night

At one of the many temples in Singapore. Look at the crowd of people trying to worship.

This is called the Esplanade Theatres but the local Singaporeans call it the Durian because of it similarities.

The Fountain of Wealth. They say that if you put your hand out to the top of the water and walk around it 3 times, your wishes will come true

Green Rolling Hills

Right now, we are sitting in a double decker bus at the Malaysia and Singapore border, waiting for a few more people to clear customs before we embark on our 4 hour journey to Kuala Lumpur (KL). So I figure I would catch up on my writing and tell you a bit of our adventure in New Zealand.

One of the things that immediately struck us as we arrived in New Zealand was how remarkably familiar it seemed. Due to our time and cost constraints, we only visited the North Island of New Zealand. The scenery of the North Island was strikingly similar to Vancouver. If it wasn’t for the occasional palm tree or giant ferns popping out in front of you, you could be forgiven for thinking that after traveling half way around the world, you had arrived in the western side of Canada. With its mountains, clear blue sky, and greenery everywhere, it was much like Canada. The only striking difference was the enormous amount of green rolling hills with sheep everywhere. From far, it looked like white fluffy flowers growing on the green hills.

We arrived in Auckland and took a 2.5 hour bus ride out to a stinky town called Rotorua. We have been warned from travelers that Rotorua was a stinky town, however, when we arrived, we didn’t think it was too stinky. We thought Banff was a lot stinkier. But why is Rotorua so stinky? Well, because it is the site of substantial volcanic activity – bubbling mud pools and steaming geysers, all of which creates a pungent stench of rotten eggs (hydrogen sulphide). Despite the stink, Rotorua is still New Zealand’s #1 tourist attraction.

The Artists' Palette - a mixture of different minerals mixed together to create the different colours.

The Lady Geyser that shoots up when soap is poured into the volcano hole.

A bubbling mud pool

When we heard of bubbling mud pools, we instantly wanted to indulge in a real mud bath. So we headed out to a cheerful place called “Hell’s Gate”. It is here that is the hottest point on earth, hence its name. It is the closest to the Earth’s Core. We must admit, it STANK a lot here. There were a few points on the walking trail where it stank so much, that you couldn’t even breathe and stop to take a photo. So like two hippos, we wallowed in the mud before rinsing off with ICE cold water and then dipping in the hot spa until we wrinkled like prunes. They say that one should only bathe in the mud pool for no more than 20 minutes to allow the pores to open up. Then you must rinse off with ice cold water to close up the pores and then relax in the spa. I have to say, I never would have imagined bathing in mud would get you feeling so clean with such baby smooth skin. (Too bad it only lasts for a few days). Perhaps hippos are onto something.

Soaking in the Spa!

From Rotorua, we joined a one day tour out to Hobbiton town. This is where the Lord of the Rings movie was shot. When Peter Jackson was looking for a location to shoot the movie, he needed to find a place that had a very large tree with a lake beside it. He flew around New Zealand, spotted a sheep and cattle farm that had what he wanted. He knocked on the door of the farm and said that he wanted to use their farm to shoot the movie. The farmer of course, didn’t know who Peter Jackson was and even asked him to come back in 2 hours because he was watching a cricket game. Now, the farmer is retired with a huge tourist business that has been running for over 2 years. Not bad! We really enjoyed this tour because it goes into detail of how the movie was shot and the extent of money that was spent on producing this movie. Here in the pictures you can see the few remaining hobbit holes, and the strings on the tree from the party scene in the first movie of the LOTR. Guess what this was? (Hint, it was found everywhere on the farm. Answer at the bottom)

Do you see the party strings on the tree?!

The remaining 17 hobbit holes

The tree with the lake

My Favourite sheep on the farm. Meet Snowy!

We decided to bus it back to Auckland from Rotorua with a stop at Waitomo. Waitomo was a small town outside of Rotorua that had caves which were full of an array of stalactites and stalagmites, with millions of glowworms. Being in a pitch black cave full of glowworms, it was a fascinating sight because they light up the ceiling of the caves like the Milky Way of tiny blue lights. Too bad they are sensitive to bright light and couldn’t take any pictures of it. Can you believe glowworms are just maggots?!

After a sleepy 3 hour bus ride, we finally arrived in the City of Sails – Auckland. It was amazing. It was so beautiful with its harbour, the sailboats sailing across the water, and the mix of old and new buildings. The air was clean and crisp. We definitely were able to picture ourselves living here. Imagine, jogging by the harbour every morning, watching the sunset on your own sailboat, or going out fishing on the weekends. Too bad, Auckland just doesn’t have too much job opportunities there. The total population in New Zealand is 4 million and 1.3 million lives in Auckland. Most of the New Zealanders leave Auckland and migrate to Australia for better job opportunities. I know this because most of the people that I have worked with at Shell when I was in Melbourne came from Auckland and told me how they lived there for a few years and had to leave for better jobs. The city was just lively by day and night. There are two dormant volcanoes that we climbed up on to get a better view of the city. Breathtaking!!!

One of the dormant volcano in Auckland - Mount Eden

Sunset by the harbour in Auckland

Ok while walking on Queen street in Auckland, we found this huge hawker place. Various food stalls selling a variety of Thai, Indian, Vietnamese and Chinese cuisines. As we sat in the food court, we realized that in Asia, we would mainly be eating at hawker stands like this. It was practice for our stomachs. (Just to let you know that while eating at a hawker place in Singapore, and there are hawker stands at every corner in Singapore, I found a fly in my bowl of soup..yummy) Can’t expect quality clean food for cheap prices. And when I say its cheap, its dirt cheap.

Hawker place in Auckland

Me choosing which hawker stand to eat from in Singapore

The dinner you see in the picture above, was for only $5 SGD. Sweet!!!

Well we spent Chinese New Year in Singapore and it was amazing. There were fireworks, fire crackers, red lanterns and millions of people all walking along the streets buying flowers, candies, and food. There was not one street that was empty. At one point, it got so crowded, I think I stood in one spot for 5 minutes, before we could move forward again. Colours of red and gold were everywhere. The noise of people and music was just overwhelming. We even saw people standing on ladders using megaphones selling whatever they were selling. We saw vendors selling ointments of all kind that can cure all. For example, there was this one guy that was selling this ointment that can cure headaches, arthritis, back and shoulder pain, and migraines. And guess what, people go for it. He almost sold out on his ointment. Haa haaa!!!
And I can never forget, the smell of Durian. It was everywhere. Trust me, if you don’t like the smell of durian, like me, it takes a bit of time to getting use to. But, hey the Singaporeans here LOVE it.

Well battery on laptop is running out soon, so going to sign off now and write more on SP and KL later…..More to come!!!! At this point of our trip, we are totally enjoying it a lot more than our first part. I think its mainly because being Asian, we don’t feel so out of place. On our first part of the trip, we always felt like “who does not belong?”

Chinese New Year Celebrations in Singapore

You see all of the gold and red colours!

Fireworks during the CNY

Answer: it is used to scrape the bottom of your shoe as there are a lot of poo everywhere on the farm land.