Arabia meets Asia?

Kuala Lumpur is awesome. Like Singapore and Hong Kong, there are plenty of upscale shops and ritzy eateries, but as we had hoped, KL is where deals can be found. The most striking thing about KL is the diversity of ethnicity and religion. ~60% Malay, ~30% Chinese, ~8% Indian and the rest others with a mix of Buddhist, Christian and Muslim religions. Look to your left and you might see a Christian, Chinese twenty something in a miniskirt and short sleeved top. Look to your right as a Muslim woman in a Berkah strolls past you, so is the norm for KL. A city of 1.3 million, there are plenty of green spaces, with enough palm trees to rival Palm Beach.

With a late start -- one must take their time to enjoy dessert after all -- we walked along the street in front of the hotel looking in designer shops and browsing the brand new mall that is conveniently across from our hotel. Perhaps you would like a watch from the Tag Heuer store, some clothing at Givenchy or a new bag at Louis Vuitton? Not so fast, even with a favorable exchange rate, the real stuff is still expensive. Looks like it is still the Central Market for us! We plan to visit Central Market and the Chinatown bazaar tomorrow.

KL, like Singapore, it is warm and wet. The outdoor coffee shops have found the solution to the midday heat - fans. Outdoor fans are set up, some with mist, that blow around the sitting areas making it nice and cool even on the hottest of days.

Through the hotel we arranged a half day tour to get a good idea of what this city is about. As it was a Sunday and the last day of a holiday there was not a lot of traffic which made for a pleasant ride around the city, stopping at Twin Tower, the Kings Palace, National Museum and the Railway Station to name a few sights on our tour. We also got to see where the poor live in government housing (near the old, rundown prison).

When traveling to a new destination, it’s always good to have a tour. The tour helped us realize that we were within walking distance of the shops and most attractions. Therefore if coming to KL, I would highly recommend staying at the ultra modern Westin, or if you want old school posh, there is a Marriot right next door which seems pretty nice too.

After the tour we went straight to our down the road eatery lecka lecka. With outdoor couches, lots of candles and hookah, it’s your neighborhood cafe, super sized and chilled out. KL has not gotten on the worldwide smoking ban movement, which means in most locations you can still smoke indoors. That along with the bargaining you can do on almost EVERYTHING gives KL the look of a modern progressive city with some antiquated attitudes and ways of life.

I like it here. I wasn’t disappointed with Hong Kong, but it was different than I thought it would be. Singapore, great to be back but much more crowded than I remember three years ago, but KL… maybe because it is new to me, maybe because it’s ethnically diverse, maybe because it’s more out there, I don’t know but I really like it and can see myself coming back… soon.