This morning Agung picked me up from Dash around 9am and we made the 45 minute journey to the airport. When I arrived and I payed my bill for the week and gave him a tip. He thanked me for the week and told me to send all my friends. He is a man of few words, excellent navigator and very sweet. I checked in my luggage and made my way through immigration to grab some lunch. Shortly after that I boarded my flight to Malaysia. I was quite surprised about spaciousness of the aircraft. I am flying Malindo Air. The inside reminds me of a Southwest plane. I survived boarding and there is a seat in between us! Typically I select or purchase my seat beforehand. I like the aisle seat because if I don’t move, no one moves. Also, I buy a row that has the window purchased but not the middle. No one intentionally buys the middle unless they can’t help it. I listened to the most recent episode of Ratchet and Respectable by Demetria L. Lucas.
It with a smooth ride with a chicken snack and water. Upon exiting immigration I caught a Grab. It was about an hour ride to the city. It’s beautiful with tall sky scrapers. I can spot the famous buildings. We arrived at KL Journal Hotel. It’s a boutique hotel and has an appealing lobby. I was checked in and provided all pertinent information along with two welcome drink vouchers. I went up to the roof top which has a bar and pool to have an iced latte. Afterwards I returned to my room to settle in by unpacking, pulling out outfits, plugging in electronics, storing valuables in the safe and showered to have my first evening out. I seem to be in the mix of everything. Also there are rats the size of cats here. I walked over to the shopping mall and found some cute pieces in H&M. And they are cheap as dirt. The exchange rate $1 to RM 4. For about $13 I got a dress and some pants.
I was originally looking for the Museum of Illusions, but stumbled upon the Selfie Museum. While standing in line to pay the girl in front of me spoke. After a brief introduction we decided to be picture buddies. I had left Trey by tripod in the room (again) and didn’t think I would need it. Jess (@thewayfaringdiary) and I had a great time making our way through the dessert themed rooms, snapping photos and enjoying ice cream. We exchanged contact information and went our separate ways.
I dropped by Sephora looking for some Nars products (no luck) and wandered the streets before settling on some Lebanese food at Al Amar Express. I had cheese rolls, Hommos with chicken shawarma and of course Gin and tonic. I roamed the streets for a while checking out performances, vendors and henna art. I think my most surprising thing is the number of Muslims visiting and seeming to live here. I am sure they think I’m crazy because I keep smiling at them. It’s natural because that’s just me and my current environment in Doha. On the way home I spotted a 24 hour laundromat next to my hotel. Score!
This morning I got up early and took care of my dirty clothes. I despise traveling with dirty clothes and it adds ounces to luggage. I made it down to breakfast this morning. It was a mixture of toast and dim sum. This was my first time trying it. It’s a bread/dough cone shaped food with a surprise in the middle. Not sure if I’m fan yet, but it’s not bad. I’m not finding this hop on hop off as good as other cities. While it is air conditioned, there is no wifi or headphones with a narrative of what you are seeing. I made stops at Petronas Twin Towers and KL Tower Observatory first. While at the observatory it began to rain and storm so I used this time to grab lunch. I’m actually thankful I didn’t go to the Eco Forest because I would have been soaked and mad. I finally made my way back to the bus. I must have been sleepy on the ride because I took a nap and when I woke up I thought I missed my stop and was doing the loop over. Upon arriving back I walked around town a little and then took a great nap. I left around 9:30 to grab dinner. I went to the same place as last night. It’s quick and really good. Tonight I had the chicken shawarma platter.
I slept in today, because it’s vacation and I’ve found that I don’t like to pack in too much on the end of a trip. I headed up to the roof for an iced latte and some lunch before heading out to the Batu Caves. It seems to rain everyday around noon. Hopefully it will pass by 2 so I can catch the bus. I purchased an umbrella. No need to be mad when I get wet and it could have been avoided. The brochure says it’s 11 km out of the city. However, it was nice to take in sites. It wasn’t a really bad ride. If there were no traffic it would be much faster. The Batu Caves is home to Kuala Lumpur’s most frequented tourist attractions. It is a limestone hill comprising three major caves and a number of smaller ones… And gangsta monkey’s. I saw a dude sit in the ground and the monkey came up to get a snack. First of all, I would never sit on the ground there. Unless you plan on climbing up the steps, there’s nothing here to really do. There are plenty of vendors and henna art. After getting my photos, I went ahead and got a henna design. In the past when I’ve tried it, it didn’t take. This must be really good! It turned out great. We headed back to the city for drop off.
After a long nap I pulled myself together for a last night out. I really wanted to check out Changkat Bukit Bintang area. It is filled with restaurants, bars, clubs, loud music and people. I found a cute dress in a LARGE at H&M and a cross body that reads “BLACK” in white letters. I walked the streets and settled on Brix for some food, drinks and shisha. After getting here I realized I would have been sad if I would have slept the night away. It was a good night out.
Tomorrow I will grab a latte and sit by the pool before catching my flight to Doha. It’s been real y’all. Traveling is all I ever wanted to do and I’m making dreams come true. Until the next trip around the globe. ✌🏾️
Side note – I now eat fries with mayo. Don’t judge me.
Jet Set Melanin 