#17 Malaysia – Kuala Lumpur

When visiting Kuala Lumpur (KL) you can sense right away the fast moving pace like other big cities and the rapid advancement to modernity. There are many people in Kuala Lumpur, life is fast, and that makes traffic bad. Restaurants, malls and trains are overcrowded. The train system is not fully integrated and developed like Taiwan or Hong Kong. In KL there are 3 or 4 different train systems; I think it has to do with the fact that the train system was built recently and they had to compromise on the routes in order to minimize the total cost of creating such a big system. But this comes at the cost of convenience for the rider of the train. So you end up jumping from one system to another in order to reach the final destination. For instance, one day while trying to go to see one tourist attraction I had to take the monorail and then transfer to KTM Komuter train, then transfer to LRT train. In one instance the frequency of the monorail service was inadequate to carry all the passengers who were waiting on the platform, which contributed to a lot of frustration on the parts of the locals and the tourists.

Another thing I experienced and heard from other tourists I talked to, is the taxis in Kuala Lumpur, they always try not to use the meter although it’s illegal to do so but a lot of taxi drivers get away with it, to the point where it’s very common for them not to start the meter, but the 2 times I used a taxi I was able to find some drivers who were willing to start the meter, it only takes some patients and a little luck. Those drivers who will refuse to start the meter will charge 3-10 times what a taxi with meter will cost.
I felt Kuala Lumpur was just like any other big city, where greed, mistrust and superficial have taken over people lives. I came to sense that when I stopped by KLCC Suria shopping center which is located under the PETRONAS twin towers or when I was walking in the streets or taking the train. I also experienced greed when I went to buy a battery for the laptop, I asked 2 different stores for the battery, although they didn’t carry the battery but instead of pointing me to the right store which was just next door, they will try to tell me they can get it for and they will try to over charge me around 60-80 Ringgit (more than $20). In many instances like these I missed my time at the previous stop in Tioman Island and started to question how life can be in the name of modernity and capitalism. At the same time, I tried to remind myself to be open minded and learn from this journey.

The train in KL will cost less than 3 Ringgit (less than a dollar) so using a taxi is not necessary unless you’re in a rush. I also noticed that some train stations like KL Sentral have showers which cost around 5Ringgit (less than 2 dollars). It’s worth mentioning that many public toilets have attendants who usually sit on a table in front of the restrooms and will charge a little change in order for you to use the toilets, it doesn’t mean that the toilets are any cleaner.

Kuala Lumpur has a lot of culture diversity, you see so many people from so many nationalities which make it easy to communicate because almost everyone speaks English, and it’s very similar to Dubai in many aspects. In KL it’s easy to find ethnic food, so I enjoyed eating a lot of Indian/Pakistani meals.
I visited some of the tourists’ attractions and they are impressive, some are modern and others carry a wealth of culture and history. I got to see the Petronas twin towers, KL tower, Battu caves, and a couple of shopping centers like KLCC Suria and Times Square area. I also visited the National Mosque and the Islamic arts museum, they are both very impressive.