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Malaysia!
It was rather surreal getting on an airplane and not flying home, but to a new country. That all went well. Air Asia is constantly expanding, so the plane was new, practically freshly removed from it's shrink-wrap. A two hour flight, and then Voila - new country! I keep finding I'm subconciously forcing myself to 'get' it. Like I'll find myself thinking "I'm brushing my teeth in MALAYSIA" or "this is a MALAYSIAN orange". I did this the first couple of days in Indonesia too. Malaysia is at least twenty times the size of Bali. And KL is big! It's a major city! Of course. I knew this. But it's different to feel it. To smell the sewers and study the tube maps and get lost in a giant shopping mall. Some of the language is the same as Indonesia but we are cautious to use the words we've learned as we're not sure which words are the same and which are different. Having said this, however, the couple of times we have said in Bahasa Indonesian/Malay a simple Thankyou or Excuse Me or She's Shy (probably our most useful phrase - for when someone says hello to Abbey and she hides), we are met with surprise and delight. Apparently tourists don't generally attempt the local language here. But given the incredible mix of cultures and religions and languages, well it's no wonder. Everything from the food to the architecture is influenced by Indian, Chinese, Arabian, British, Dutch and Persian cultures. Hindu temples next to Muslim Mosques near whitewashed Mock Tudor in Chinatown. Yeah, so it's big. It's the end if our second full day here and we've barely made a dent on the city. It's also hot. Over 30 degrees. We have learned to move slowly, carry lots of water, and take advantage of air-conditioned spaces. We've hit the tourist stuff. We went up the Menara KL tower and pointed at the two-headed turtle in the attached zoo. We went to the aquarium and wandered around Chinatown. We took pictures of ourselves with the Petronas towers (deciding to skip the 7am queues to go up to the skybridge, in favour of the higher observation deck in the Menara tower). We scuttled like tiny ants in the enormous Suria KLCC mall and pointed at all the familiar stores - Starbucks, the Gap, The Body Shop, Gucci, Toys-R-Us, Marks & Spencers, etc....every store you can think of, it's here. Kinda creepy, in a way. But we're enjoying ourselves. The contrast is refreshing. Tomorrow we aim to head out of town and visit something a bit different - the Batu Caves...a Hindu shrine set in giant cavernous caves. Also a major tourist attraction, but a Must-See, according to a friendly Austrian we met in Munduk. Well, it's gone 11pm, I'm toasty with wine (our first bottle in two months!), and I should sleep. More soon. xo
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Jane Lovin' your updates, Jen!