Tag Archives: Malaysia

Buka Jam 7-11

Buka Jam 7-11

Buka Jam 7-11

It’s the 7-11 that’s next to the hotel where I’m staying in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It’s in a busy part of town, n the edge of Chinatown. They have beer in this 7-11, but it sells for a minimum of $2 a can up. I can’t wait to get back to the states where I can get good beer for half-a-dollar a can. No wonder we have so many alcoholics in America.

KL Sentral

KL Sentral

KL Sentral

It’s my old friend KL Sentral. It’s the central transportation hub in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Here is where you can catch a train or the subway or a bus or a shuttle to the airport. I’m headed one stop north to Pasar Seni, the Cental Market where I like to stay in a cheap hotel full of backpackers. Unfortunately, my friend Mr. Lee sold the hotel this year. I wish him luck in his new endeavors.

Inside the Bus

Inside the Bus

Inside the Bus

Usually, I can get a really good position in the bus right behind the driver. I’ve noticed that the Chinese, in general, do not like to ride in the front of anything that moves such as subway trains, cars and buses. I attributed it to their fear of crashing in a vehicle. Dale Earnhardt, the aren’t. Then again, maybe Dale should have taken a clue from the Chinese and been a little more afraid of crashing. Anyway, I wish I could have gotten some better shot so the bus being about 2 inches off of the bumper of someone else. The Chinese have a style of driving to which I couldn’t become accustomed. In my opinion, they’re simply really, really bad drivers. To elaborate, let me tell you that, as someone who drives a Big Rig, I’ve met drivers in America from Russia, Easter Europe, Africa, Mexico, Central America, South America, Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia. The Aussies don’t drive in the U.S. because the make too much money back home. But, I’ve never met a Chinese trucker in America. I’d never thought about that before I came to China. I realized that one day when I was in a parking lot watching a bunch of guys with big, shiny, expensive cars try to parallel park. I thought to myself that they could never drive a Big Rig and it was then that I realized I’d never seen a Chinese drive one.

KLIA Info

KLIA Info

KLIA Info

This was the KLIA Information counter. They gave out information, but not good information. You had to go back and ask more questions. Maybe it would have been more accurate to say that they gave incomplete information. After three tries I got the information I needed. Both times I went back I got a little more information until, eventually, I got it all. One thing I’ve learned about information centers is that, if you want more time to be able to do your nails and make personal calls while you’re working at an information center, the last thing you want to do is give out good information. People will like your information and they will come back for more.

KL Entertainment

KL Entertainment

KL Entertainment

They were having a fair at the central market. For 3 days they had continuous live entertainment on stage these guys were, apparently, local headliners. They drew a really big crowd. I stopped and watched them for a while. They were pretty good.

Airport Express- KL

Airport Express- KL

Airport Express- KL

This is the airport express. It cost me about $11 to ride it to the airport. I could have gotten there for a dollar if I had been willing to ride the local subway (elevated train, actually) to one of the outlying stops on the line and than caught a local bus to the airport. I would have been tempted had the flight I wanted to catch not been taking me home. It was very important that I go home.

Frogs in Malaysia

Frogs in Malaysia

Frogs in Malaysia

I’m walking down the street. I see a bunch of frogs in a couple of aquariums. I’ve been in Asia long enough to get a good idea of what’s going on. I walk up to the guy in front of the restaurant and point at the frogs. He pulls out a menu. It seems I could have gotten my choice of frogs, named it, then had it cooked to order for about $2. The $2 for frog legs, and the rest of the frog as well, I considered a bargain. Picking out the frog and naming it was going a bit further than I wanted. Again, food really is fresher in Asia.

KL Monorail

KL Monorail

KL Monorail

This is the KL Monorail.. It’s sorta like the elevated trains, only a little snootier. It goes to all the nicer sections of town and only has two cars and it has more seats. It’s ridden by a higher class of clientele as it costs a little more than the regular trains. It’s slower than the regular trains, too. You get a more leisurely ride, I guess. All in all I prefer the monorail. It’s also less crowded at rush hour.

Melaka River

Melaka River

Melaka River

A nice, lazy river flows through Melaka, Malaysia. It was my first real introduction to the seductivity of the city. My first orientation to the city came at the large bus station, Melaka Sentral and bus #17, the bus that brings in the tourists like me who take day trips to Melaka. The river is a nice touch and helps to give a little orientation to an otherwise disorienting city.