today, I am publishing the last post about our adventures in SE Asia. You can read the parts about Thailand HERE and HERE, about Singapore HERE and about Penang (Malaysia Pt. 1) HERE.
As written in the Penang post, we started off early from George Town to Kuala Lumpur with a bus. The 4-hour drive was the most comfortable bus drive of my life! The seats were huge, like armchairs, and you could lean them backwards for a nice nap. The speed of the bus can be compared with an airplane, just kidding, but it was actually so fast, that whenever I looked out the window I saw us passing everyone by on the highway. The driver was a really funny guy talking on the phone the whole time, probably he had also a second job in a call centre. I booked the tickets online, but there were only a few people on the bus with us, so if you are travelling the same distance as we did, there is no need to buy them in advance.
After arriving to Kuala Lumpur, we took the metro to the Central Market and our guesthouse (Submarine Guesthouse Central Market), where we were staying for three nights, was right around the corner. The room size was normal, we got fresh water and towels. Showers were small, but for the money we paid, it was all perfect. If I remember it correctly, they also had a little kitchen. But why cook in Asia, if they have so many street markets with delicious food?!
We started the day with exploring the culturally diverse city districts. We stopped at some Chinese temples, where I accidentally rang a bell and a woman came out of no where looking at us; Hindu temples and the Petaling Street market, known for their fake goods (like belts, watches, bags) and good food.On the next day, rain surprised us. This was the only rainy day in our whole 25-day trip! But we seized the opportunity and went to the aquarium. I was really excited when I could finally walk under the glass tunnel and observe fish and other water creatures swimming above my head. Then we, of course, had to make some pictures with the Petronas towers, sadly their observation point was closed due to renovation, so we could only see them from the outside. We spent the rest of the day in shopping centres, because the weather was really unstable; taking pictures with Superman and Batman figures (since the movie Batman vs. Superman premiered in that week). Waking up to nice weather the next day was really pleasant, so we took a trip to the Batu caves, known for the famous gigantic statue of Lord Murugan. What can I say, the hot sunny humid weather combined with a trillion of steps was not such a good idea, but really rewarding when we got to the top. Inside you go into a cave with a small Hindu temple, which leads to the other side and opens up to the sky (with no exit, so you have to walk all the way back). You also need to be very careful with food and drinks there because the monkeys show no mercy. A lady got robbed by one and she did not only have food inside the bag, but also some other things and she was too afraid to take it from the monkey. After some bottles of water and kitty petting, we decided to go into another cave. Inside, there was a whole story build up with statues, which reminded me a bit of a Christmassy Christ Crib arrangement. What the story was about, no one of us knew, since we did not recognise any Hindu characters. Back in Kuala Lumpur, we visited a mosque and some other sights that were still on our list (and sadly, Burger King, because we just had to sit under an air con for some time). On our last day, we checked out and went for an easy walk to the botanic gardens, stopping at the magnificent national mosque and the famous KL tower. My favourite little (hidden) spot was the Central market. It looks like a building but when you step inside, there are little shops where you can buy everything, from souvenirs to make up, and the prices are very low. This is where we spent our last money before going home. Oh, and it is air conditioned (a big plus while travelling across SE Asia).
In the afternoon, we took the metro to the main train station and a bus to the airport, leaving our crazy Asian adventures behind. I still cannot decide which city or sight was my favourite, because everything was so special and different from what we have in Europe. If I had to pick, my favourite in Bangkok was The Golden Mount; on Phuket the Patong beach and a food market in a hidden street (with cosy lights and live music in the evening - and the best crocodile skewers); in Singapore the Gardens by the bay; on Penang the Monkey beach and in Kuala Lumpur Batu caves. It was an unbelievable experience and I am really looking forward to our next big trip (probably Japan in 2019). Until then, I hope we save enough money, since we are still continuing with our normal trips across Europe. I will always stay optimistic and once we have full-time jobs, there is nothing stopping us anymore.
Thank you so much for reading, I hope you have enjoyed the posts about our trip to Asia. What follows next, is a surprise.
Love, Julija
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