Hi there. Remember me? :)
I know it’s been a while. The short + simple answer is that I’ve been busy and focusing my time on freelancing work. The more complicated answer is that I’ve been uninspired to write and that because I’m spending most days working now, I feel like that there’s just not too much to write about anymore.
Which is unfair because I really do love Kuala Lumpur a lot, so there should be no excuse for not sharing all about it. (And I miss blogging too… though I think my mom misses it more :P)
So instead of coming back into Blogland with a long explanation of my absence (we’ll save it for another day), I’m going to talk a little bit about the city that I’ve decided to make my home for the moment.
I really knew nothing about Kuala Lumpur before coming here. And I had my own image of what a third-world capital city looks like (bad, I know). But everything I imagined about it was completely turned on its head and I was totally captivated.
Here are just a few of the things I love about KL, with some random pictures (I gotta say that KL is not a very photogenic city so I haven’t been taking much photos, but I may take some later and update this post).
Ultimate city of contrasts
Kuala Lumpur is the ultimate city of contrasts. Luxury high-rise condos with infinity pools are right next to shabby ramshackle shophouses. Girls in headscarves walk right next to girls in tiny tanks and shorts. It’s set in a strict Muslim country where I hear the prayer calls a few times a day from my room, but it’s a city where the alcohol flows freely and morals are loose.
I see it as an insanely modern city (in many ways, even more so than Los Angeles!) and yet still distinctively Southeast Asian with a strong local culture. There are ritzy skyscrapers and shopping centers, but also the night markets and streetside dining that make this part of the world so unique. There’s no doubt about it that KL is one of the most electrifying cities I’ve ever visited.
Cultural diversity
Malaysia is a melting pot of different cultures that beautifully (or maybe not quite so beautifully sometimes) coexist alongside each other. It’s made up mainly of 3 ethnicities: Malay, Chinese, and Indian. Each with their own set of traditions and religions.
This means that there are mosques with their minarets pointed high into the sky, Indian temples with colorful statues stacked atop each other, and Chinese temples topped with dragons. This also means that a numerous number of cultural holidays are celebrated every year.
all decked out for Chinese New Year, which is a huge deal here
And of course, this cultural diversity means…
Amazing food. Of all kinds.
KL is a food mecca. From the mamaks (Muslim-Indian eateries that are open 24/7) to Chinese coffee shops (this means a food court with different vendors), the local food is amazing with endless dishes to try. And then add on to that food from all around the world, and the options are literally limitless.
In most other Asian countries, foods such as pasta, pizza, eggs benedict, etc. are considered “Western food”. And yes when I travel, I get the craving for stuff like that occasionally, but unfortunately, most of them leave much to be desired (ahem… looking at you, Taipei). But because of the Western influence on Malaysia, those types of “Western food” are considered as just normal local food here, and are standard in pretty much all the cafes. And they’re done very well.
1. snow ice dessert // 2. fancy french toast // 3. Chinese pork noodles // 4. pretty smoked salmon salad // 5. fusion spaghetti with chicken rendang // 6. nasi lemak // 7. New York style pizza // 8. curry laksa // 9. crispy roast pork
But it doesn’t just stop there: Mexican, Middle Eastern, Korean, Japanese are all easily found. And also due to its location in SEA, there’s an abundance of authentic Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesia cuisine as well. There’s seriously nothing to crave because this city has EVERY kind of food imaginable. There’s even a very decent In-N-Out copycat (okay it’s from Taipei first but the one in KL is better)!
There’s also a huge variety of dining options, from outdoor food courts to sit-down restaurants to ultra-fine dining to hipster cafes where chefs churn out creative fusion dishes. There’s even a burgeoning gourmet food truck scene, which I need to slowly chase.
I’m serious when I say that KL is the MOST exciting and international city I’ve ever been to when it comes to food.
famous food street Jalan Alor
It’s a city that never sleeps
Forget New York City, KL is the city that never sleeps. Bars stay open until practically daybreak (not that I’m cool enough to partake anymore in that kind of activity… I’m boring). You can find food literally 24/7 around the clock, and not just the fast food drive-through variety.
But this kind of late night going-out is not relegated to only the young partying crowd. It’s not a strange thing to see entire families (with grannies and very young children!) having a full meal at an outdoors food court at 1 am. I still get a kick out of it. Don’t these kids have bedtimes?!
Incredible malls
Hanging out in malls is everyone’s favorite pastime here. At first, I thought it was weird because there’s only so many times you can go to the mall before getting bored! But after a few months here, I understand why.
There are only two weather scenarios here: 1) hot, sunny, and humid, or 2) pouring torrential rain with thunder and lightning. In both of these scenarios, the mall is the best place to be in.
But the malls are pretty amazing places in KL. First of all, there is literally a mall maybe every 5 minutes (not even exaggerating) so you’ll probably have a hard time running out of new ones to explore. But there are only a handful of the popular big malls, and they’re some of the biggest in the world. Between the hundreds of shops (international brands and local), dozens of restaurants and cafes, bookstores, and movie theaters, you can easily spend a day there avoiding the heat or rain.
I find the shopping to be very fair too. Prices are on par with the US prices, so it’s not like that you’re going to be overpaying for an H&M shirt.
So yeah, hanging out in malls in pretty much my favorite weekend pastime now too, though honestly, only because there’s nothing else to do. If you’re from KL and happen to be reading this – what else is there to do on weekends??
This is just a quick little introduction to Kuala Lumpur to hopefully let you understand it a bit if you know nothing about it (like me before I arrived). I think if you’re visiting, you have to spend more than a couple of days here to get to really explore it and see it beyond just the Petronas Towers and Changkat bar street. It’s a city that has surprised me at every turn and I’m so looking forward to discovering new things about it. I’m already keeping a list of weird and wonderful facts I’ve learned so I will share it once I’ve gathered enough!
And lastly, thank you to everyone who left such encouraging comments on my last post. I apologize for the long absence and thank you so much for being patient while I sort things out and adjust to this new chapter in my life!
Kuala Lumpur definitely sounds like a fascinating place from your description. I would surely enjoy the food there! Thanks for linking up with us :)
Thanks Van! KL is seriously one of the more interesting places I’ve ever been to. It’s absolutely nothing like I imagined, and yes, the food is seriously the BEST!!
I, for one, was THRILLED to see your post linked up today!!! Great to hear your “voice” again. Hope your freelancing stuff is going well? KL looks AMAZING.
Thanks Swags!! I’m excited to be back blogging too!!! Freelancing is keeping me busy, but I’m going to make time to blog still, because I miss it. :) KL is a really really cool city. It’s a really good place to live in because there is seriously everything here!
I’m pretty sure you’re the first American I know who says “And they’re done very well” for our western food. But then you’re also the first American I know who isn’t a full time engineer/manager who dislikes traveling out of the States. I always hear “the western food here is crap and nothing like the authentic stuff we get in America” and have been conditioned to think that it must be true and that my tongue is broken for not being able to distinguish the differences. Now I think perhaps it was their biased mind that is the problem.
Have you tried steak here? If you haven’t, do me a favor and try it. I’d like to see if there is any American who will not say “eating steak in Malaysia is like eating a slab of rubber!”. :/
Hahahah I haven’t tried steak yet, but I shall try and report. ;) Though i’m a little bit nervous from your talking about it before. But seriously, I think the western food (or just normal cafe food to you guys) is really good here! Pizza is such a guilty pleasure of mine and I’m so happy that there’s really good pizza here! What are your American coworkers eating that they don’t like?? Maybe the stuff in Penang is not as good because it’s not as international as KL? Or maybe I’ve just been traveling for so long that I can’t remember what the food was like back in the States? :P
Well, you’re right. If we talk about international food standards, Penang certainly come up short versus KL. Not that the Penangites (Penang locals) will ever admit it. Thing is, I brought them to Chili’s, which I thought was quite close to Chili’s in the States, but more often than not they end up less than impressed with their quesadillas, pastas and (no matter how I warned them off it) steaks. It was always “but the taste is weird, is that even guacamole??” that sort of comments.
One thing I told them was to stop being polite and say the food is nice even if it isn’t, because people here take their comments literally. Whenever the managers take them out for lunch, they end up in a fancy looking, hilltop western food joint manned by an old Chinese geezer EVERY SINGLE TIME because they went there once many years ago, some idiot said the steak there was good (it wasn’t) and the managers thought they hit jackpot, and the rest is (sad) history.
Hahahah they probably don’t want to say it sucks because your boss is paying for it, so it’s not very nice to be like ‘thanks for lunch but the food sucked’.
And I don’t think Chili’s is very good (haven’t eaten there here, but I am kinda curious now). It’s like one of the most unhealthiest restaurants in America!
Hello! I am glad to read one of your posts again! Cheers from California. I would go to Kuala Lumpur only for the food. I have actually checked fares but the prices never align with the timing.
Thanks so much Ruth!! Ahhh if you ever come over this way, let me know (since I’m making it a home base) and I would be glad to meet up and show you around. I really like the food here because there’s soooo much variety, you can never get bored or wonder what to eat. I haven’t been to Penang yet, though I hear Penang is like the local/street food capital of Malaysia.
Welp, you’ve sold me on KL! I’m curious to see how it would stack up to Singapore, the only other SE Asian city I’ve visited (which I deeply fell in love with). Glad to hear you’re enjoying KL life… it looks wonderful there with so much to discover.
Hi Cynthia!! :) I honestly like KL wayyyy more than Singapore. But then again, I have a couple of local friends here who show me around, and I didn’t in Singapore, which makes a huge difference. But still, I feel like Singapore is too clean and “perfect” and KL is more exciting. And the food is much more flavorful in KL too because I hear Singaporeans have more of a bland palate.
very interesting!
Thanks Tanja. :)
Hi there! Just want to say hi and so glad to see you blogging again. I’ve been reading your blog for quite a while and really enjoyed them. I’m so happy for you to have settled into a new life/routine. Look forward to reading more about your new adventures!
Hi Kelly, thank you so much for taking the time to comment and say hi! I really have missed blogging and I’m ready to get back (slowly) into it. I will definitely share more about KL as I explore it! :)
I MISSED YOU! Was so happy to see this post pop up, and of course to read about the amazing city you describe. You’ve kind of won me over! I always think a city with contrasts is so interesting and teaches you a lot too. I also love the sound of the melting pot – the best kind of cities are those ;) Lots of love to you, I hope freelancing is treating you well!
Hehe thanks Marcella! I really missed blogging too and seeing what everyone is up to! Freelancing is keeping me pretty busy but I want to make time to blog still (seriously… how do you have a job + blog so much??). I think you would really love KL too if you were to make it back to this side of the world again!
Wow, this is a place I’ve never even thought about traveling to, but now that you’ve talked it up and made the food sound SO good, I really want to visit! It sounds like you’re adjusting well and getting to explore lots. Keep on keepin’ on, girl. :)
I hope you can come visit someday, and I”ll show you around! I never really thought about visiting it either, I think until I started making friend with a Malaysian blogger and learned more about it through his blog. And then I came for the food of course! But stayed because it’s such a fun and livable city and the perfect place for a home base. I will definitely share more about KL as I explore more!
It’s so awesome to see you around again! I’ve missed reading about you’re adventures. KL sounds like a really awesome place, damn I’m so excited to see Asia one day! Really exciting.
If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of freelancing work have you been doing? (I like to hear so I can think of ideas for my own travelling future)
I don’t mind! I plan to write a post about it actually.. I’m not a pro or anything, but just some helpful tips for people who have had absolutely zero freelancing experience like me. Basically, I use Upwork. It’s a site where clients can post work and freelancers can search for jobs and apply. I’ve been doing writing or editing jobs, but I mainly I have one long term client, which is great because then I don’t to worry about always searching for a new job. I’ll a post all about it!
And I really really hope you get to come to Asia someday! The good thing about being here too is that you can make a lot less and still live very nicely!
Thanks for the information, I’ll be sure to check the website out, since I’m thinking of doing something similar. That’s what I keep thinking about when I think about going to Asia, that all all the tasty tropical fruit!
I need a guide on how you always choose the most perfect foodie places!! So nice to have “met” your new adopted city. Cant wait to read more about your adventures. Thanks for linking up!
Luckily, I have a local friend here who takes me around. But it’s really not hard to find good food in KL! Maybe it’s just me, but I seriously think almost everything is good, haha!
What a great post! I think you summarized KL perfectly. Granted, I only visited for a week, but you captured all the funny, odd juxtapositions that I saw. I was in love with the food (of course!) and found the mall culture to be very strange. Best of luck with all your work and living in KL. :)
Thank you Lauren! KL is such an interesting city and I’m excited to explore it more. The mall culture is so weird but totally makes sense! When I first got here, whenever I asked locals what is there to do in KL… everyone was just like “ummmm eat, drink, or go to the mall” haha!
Welcome back! I only had a couple days in KL but also loved what I saw of the cultural diversity and oh my nom, the food. I’d happily return in a heartbeat to eat my way around!
Thanks Jessi! The food is seriously the best here because there’s everything! If you ever come back, I would love to show you around!
I’m just now getting around to catching up from my long summer break. That’s great that you’ve moved to KL. When my husband got an offer to work in Malaysia, I pictured a kind of backwards, 3rd world place. While Penang is not quite as happening as KL, it definitely had enough for a Westerner like me to be able to live there long-term. Have you tried La Mexicana? Delicious, authentic interior Mexican food. And do people always assume that you are native Malaysian Chinese and complement you on your English? It used to happen to me all.the.time.
I’m embarrassed to say that I kind of pictured the same kind of 3rd world place. I was SO surprised that KL is so modern and trendy! I haven’t tried La Mexicana yet, but I will definitely check that out!!! I totally trust you since you’re from Texas ;). I’ve tried a few other Mexican places but they all didn’t quite hit the mark. Haha no one has actually thought I’m local. As soon as I speak, they know I’m not from here. But I get a LOT from uber drivers who think I’m Korean (with Japanese being a close second).
And welcome back to the blog world. :) It’s nice to take a much needed break!