Asia, Kuala Lumpur. Incredible. Life, people, everything is so different here. I feel different. No, I am not doing drugs, but I think the fact that I haven't slept since I woke up yesterday at 11:00 might contribute to this feeling. Just this morning - which already feels a million years away - we had a terrible fit of giggles without even a drop of alcohol. But let me start at the beginning...

Getting off the plane was the easiest part of the whole journey. Finding the bus to KL, the hostel, is an entirely different manner. Everybody is so friendly, helpful, it's incredible. Just yesterday when we were heading out to Batu Caves and couldn't find the bus, conductors escorted us from one terminal to another, helping finding the right connection, making sure we arrive safely. Buses (bas). Buses are almost like taxis, there is a driver and a guy selling the tickets. He holds onto the open door, seeing if somebody wants to hop on. The bus will slow down, even honk, yell out to ask us if we want to come along, and only after many apologies and thanks do they believe that no, we really do want to walk. Although there are official bus stops, you can wave down any bus to create an instant stop. Incredible.


Of the gazillion taxis roaming the city in hunt for clients, each and every one will sound the horn, yell out "teksi", and again, shake their head in disbelief that we want to walk. You really feel like an outsider here. Everyone, even in KL, turns around, looks at you like you are some strange mythical being, especially if you are a girl, and even more so if you are blond. Shopkeepers invite you inside, entrepreneurs tell to sell you their crap. It's best just to ignore them, not even look. It feels really rude at first, but you get used to it and is the custom.

The traffic is horrible. This city isn't made for pedestrians. Waiting for the green man takes minutes and the roads are full of honking cars, buses and especially small bikes. When the light turns finally green an animated green man is shown quickly walking. The last 10-15 seconds he - or is it a she? - breaks into a sprint. Just as Borderwijk "Padlizsán" said, it's best just to carefully look around, take a big breath, start waving your hands and quickly cross the road. I survived.

Malay food is like playing the lottery. You have no idea what you get till you try it, and even then you're not sure if it was walking, flying or crawling. I cannot believe it, but I've eaten from simple road-side food-stalls that you wouldn't even approach in Europe, had the most disgusting tea ever, and really, just having a blast with every meal. Every day I am surprised the diarrhea is at bay, but this is just so much fun. I've had Malay, Chinese, Indian, Arab, Thai and god knows what. The only thing I stick to, is drinking bottled water. Just to be safe.

The weather is horrible. 30-32 degrees, blisteringly hot sun - especially lately - and so much humidity it is a heavy weight on everything you do. After a few minutes you start to sweat, and are in a constant search of shade. Shops, restaurants, transportation is more than welcome with their blessed air-conditioning. Hell, even fans are great. The weather turns considerably better after the sun goes down around 7, but even at 4AM you can feel it is hot outside. Better not to do anything extraneous activities, just leisurely stroll around. Time really starts to blur together. I never know what time it is... I love it!


Ok, now the boring stuff. What did I do?

After arriving on Thursday I went in search of the hostel. Once again I have found the place in the best neighbourhood. The "slums" are a minute away, the girls invite you in for massage - and more - at every turn and the rubbish is rampant. Strangely enough the hostel is one of the best I have ever had. Clean, cool, lovely stuff and even free breakfast. After dropping my stuff about which I was told 5 minutes into KL that "You look funny mister" and taking a shower - which you will be more than happy to do every time you enter or exit your hostel - I had a stroll around the town. Without a map I set out skywise to the Petronas Towers that led me through the slums with curious eyes exploring this stranger all the way. The next day I hooked up with one of my roomies and decided to buy a camera together. If you can, buy your camera in Holland, or wherever you are, don't believe what anyone tells you, it's not cheaper here. To the contrary! We spent half a day going in and out of shops, haggled for about an hour with the shopkeeper and then finally paid as much as I would've paid in the Netherlands. I have learned a lot from Singapore and don't buy the "special price for you mister" "just today" "ok, I talk to my boss, this is our price" crap anymore. Poor Laura - my roomie - would've paid at least RM200 more if it were up to her. I think I'm getting better all the time... and like it. Awesome!

In the meantime we explored the centre, KL Tower, Petronas Towers, China Town, Little India, etc. but the city isn't that exciting. It's great if this is your first stop in Asia, but pretty much forgettable. Friday I think we did something, it's not so clear anymore. More of the same but now with the camera to take pictures :)


Football. I cannot believe how much football lives here. Even though Malaysia is far, far away from competing, every restaurant, pub, club has all the matches broadcast in HD. Even the late ones, starting at 2:30AM. People watch mesmerized, cheer for every goal and in general just enjoy themselves. There are even huge outdoor screens and we just sat outside on the concrete watching Japan - Netherlands. People parked their cars, their bikes and a whole crowd enjoyed the match in the open air. This is so much fun. So, anyways.

Saturday we went into town exploring the places we left out. The cooler evening air caught us at the NED-JAP match at Merdakan Square. Afterwards we turned around and attended a Malay open concert "Musik, Musik, Inspirasi". More strolling, enjoying the evening sights, going into pubs for drinks. We had to stay awake until 2:30AM for the Denmark match as Laura is part Danish. The pubs closed with us at 5AM and we walked over to the Petronas Towers. You can get free tickets to the skywalk at a height of 140m but it's best to be there around 7AM. So why sleep, just stay awake, right? Thinking we would be waaaay early and just check out the premises before coming back a few hours later we were shocked to see a line already in front of the closed doors. A scattering of bags signalled the reserved places in line and we just giggled for an hour orso like two little kids after their first taste of alcohol. Incredible. The view was ok.

But the wait, the line, all the sleepy people arriving at 7AM thinking how early they were was the best part. We just laughed at all of them and couldn't stop. Yes, we were tired.


By now it is Sunday and which idiot would go to sleep at 10AM? Nobody, so we decided to visit Batu Caves. Around 15KM to the north of KL there is a 200m high limestone formation. 272 steps lead up to the huge open cave formation. Its ceiling is more than 100m high and the insides are filled with Hindu shrines. The scorching sun, and heat, the huge Buddha at the entrance, but most likely our fatigue made it really special. Monkeys run up and down the stairs, attracting hordes of pictures, scavenging for food from your bag if you aren't careful. Really beautiful. We waved down a bus and went home...


We all know that life is not a game. There is no reset button, no second tries, something done once, is done forever. And maybe gone forever. So is my hair. I am getting used to it but still feels really strange. Really liberating as well. No more worrying about how it looks, which shampoo to use and I really feel a lot cooler. You can decide how horrible it is :)

Do remember; I had to argue with the barber for about ten minutes before he understood what I wanted. "Short, yes". "Yes, short, very short". He puts his thumb and index finger 2 centimetres apart. "Short". "No" - I say, really short and I push both this fingers together. "Yes, short" - and he now has his fingers 1cm apart. How hard can this be? I even wanted him to take a before and after picture, but he just smiled, said "Yes, yes" but didn't understand. Finally I gave up. So, just remember this took me a lot of effort to get right!