Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
I did something crazy when I was in SE Asia. I flew from Laos to Bangkok and when I landed I went straight to the ticket counter.
Me: When is the next flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and how much is the ticker?
She: Two hours and $100
Me: Aisle seat, please.
I bought the ticket, booked a hotel while I was in the immigration line, ordered airport transport at the gate, got confirmation as they closed the plane door. Let me backup a bit. I was supposed to fly from Bangkok to Krabi to experience six days of Thai beach life. But I’m not really a beach person. So when I landed in Bangkok, I decided to go to another country instead. The planner in me freaked out for a few minutes, but I must admit, making such a spontaneous decision was exhilarating.
For about $375 for airfare, 3 nights hotel and RT airport transfer, I went to Malaysia. I spent another $50 on a t-shirt, magnets, one GRAB ride, a visit to the top of the Petronas Towers and dinner for two - I treated a young solo traveler, Junio, who I met and toured the sites with while there. He had a SIM, so I didn't need to buy one, but if I did buy one it was about $8 for a month.
Kuala Lumpur ( KL) is pretty diverse: the people are Chinese, Indian and Malay and is predominantly Muslim, but has a significant Hindu population. It is HOT! What kinda hot Fran? One-level-above-the-bowels-of-hell kinda hot. And so humid that raindrops fall out of nowhere and then disappear.
ACCOMMODATIONS
CitizenM in Bukit Butang neighborhood. Because I was SO last minute, I just went with a brand I knew, that also had 9+ ratings on Booking.com. Plus I knew they had great internet for my video calls.
ACTIVITIES and EXCURSIONS
The Bukit Bintang neighborhood and area where the hotel is located is pretty vibrant: night markets, curry houses, Chinatown and lots of high-end shopping, so I spent most of my time there.
PETRONAS Towers - the tallest twin towers in the world. There's a mall attached that has all the top designers' stores. FABULOUS. The entry fee is expensive at RM 98 or $20.
Batu Caves and temples- there is a popular set of Hindu temples, built into caves on the outskirts of KL. To access the caves, there are more than 300steps accessible by public transportation. It was free to enter the temples. Junio and I took a 30-minute GRAB ride to get there- RM 14 - about $3.50.
To finish the day, we headed to the Jalan Bilai neighborhood to view the street art. The most famous place for street art in Malaysia is Penang. I will have to go there on another trip to Malaysia.
CULTURE and CONNECTION
I found the people of Kuala Lumpur to be very helpful, asking if I needed help when I looked lost. On the last night in KL, there were heavy thunderstorms. Our waitress ordered a cab for us on her app, then walked us outside to the pickup spot, hailed the cab and opened the door for us and sent us on our way.
I had a fun time on my pop-up trip to KL. I'm not sure I would have enjoyed myself as much if I hadn't met Junio. Serendipitous connections is one of the joys of travel.
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