Kuala Lumpur

T’was the middle of vacation
And all through the house
All the heaters were running
To warm up the …
Freezing people within!

I do believe we left the land of the freezing sun at the perfect time. The cold was seeping into our bones and we all needed to be warmed…While Nancy and Dave returned to the sea and sun in Santa Barbara, we headed to the sea and sun in Malaysia.
Just the name, Kuala Lumpur, conjures up pictures of mystery and the exotic and indeed we found it. Our friend Robert helped us through the first hurdle…the mystery of getting past the myriad of taxi drivers, all attempting to give us a ride…and for MANY different prices. They followed you like porters on a train, each hoping you’d change your mind as they changed the price, each trying to out bargain the other. We’d have fallen for the first ruse if we hadn’t had Robert along to keep us moving.
While Jeff and Robert took off for a day in the electronic stores, Maria and I tackled the subway system for a trip into Kuala Lumpur, through a mosque, street markets and finally the famous Petronus Towers.
Malaysia represents a mixture of many different peoples and beliefs…Indians, Malays, Chinese, Hindis, Muslims, Christians and tourists to cover just a few. It’s remarkable to walk down the street and see the confusing swirl of colors and costumes and listen to the blending of the languages and the smells! The foods were sumptuous!
They allow all people to come and view the gardens around the mosque…and they even provide the head scarves and a long robe so that you’re appropriately attired to enter. It’s interesting…the women need to be covered but the men could wear shorts or whatever and they were fine.