Bright Lights, Little City

So, now we embark on a new adventure, one that begins in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  Jetlagged and a bit dazed by the newness of it all, these pics were taken with my iPhone, as we wandered around trying to gain a sense of our new home.

Will this new city become as beloved as Jakarta?  I can’t yet say.  I will say that there are some notable differences between the two.

1. For one, although smaller than Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur feels (surprisingly) more crowded.  Go to most upscale malls in The Big Durian and you’ll have space to roam.  When visiting a few of the malls here, I’ve been elbow to elbow with busy shoppers.

2.  They weren’t kidding about the diversity factor.  Sadly, I don’t yet have pictures to demonstrate the incredible cultural diversity that thrives here. KL it seems, has taken multiculturalism to a whole other level, arguably omniculturalism.  Walking around you hear layers of languages, and see people from all over the globe. (Random Tangent:  I went to a movie and it was subtitled with both Mandarin and Malay).

3.  They really do love to eat here.  This is perhaps the only point I have (somewhat) proper documentation of, but day or night, there is always an awe inspiring and unbelievably comprehensive  selection of mouthwatering treats to choose from.

4.  It seems like they are building another city on top of this one.  By that I mean that construction is rampant.  Everywhere you look it seems like there are large cranes and construction workers diligently working their magic.  I’m not sure if this is a good or bad thing, but I will say that it is definitely a loud phenomenon.

Before moving to Jakarta, people warned me that it was polluted (that observation is relative to the other places you’ve lived, and having spent some time in China, I’d say Jakarta’s air quality was sparkling), that it was dirty (well, that one might be a bit on the true side), that the city wasn’t a pleasant place to live and that Singapore would become your gateway back to civilization — none of which proved true.  I grew to enjoy the chaotic and virtually always friendly nature of the city and those who called it home (I only went to Singapore once…it was nice, but I’d choose Bali for a retreat any day).  Reaching the point where I didn’t want to leave Jakarta was a process.  But, a few months into our tenure,  I realized that I wasn’t giving the city a fair chance and if I changed my expectations and recalibrated my perspective  I could learn a lot and have a good time doing so.  I also came to recognize that you can’t let the negative experiences of others  adulterate your adventure.

So here I am, starting over.  This time with a far more open mind and heart (that’s really what I came away with after 3 years in Indonesia).  I am intimidated by this new landscape, and the sadness of leaving the little life I carved out for myself, but I refuse to be overwhelmed.  Four (humble) observations made, and hopefully four hundred more to come.