Singlewomenbackpacker

I landed in Kuala Lumpur at 11pm and as a single woman traveller, I knew I had to be cautious so decided to call the hotel to confirm my booking. As I fumbled with the pay phone, which had instructions written in Bahasa, a lady stepped forward and offered to help. Through signs, she guided me through my first phone call in Malaysia. When I heard the phone ring on the other end, I looked at her with grateful eyes and we smiled. Thinking back, I believe that is when I fell in love with Malaysia. Early next morning I set out to explore. As I wandered aimlessly through the streets, I saw vegetables and groceries that I had never seen before – sea weed, durian, mangosteen… an endless list of local delicacies. At the local Chinese temple hundreds of baskets were hanging above the entrance door, each with a piece of paper. Mei Xing, a girl I met there told me that these were prayers that were left hanging for a day. Enlightened I stepped out, and nearly bumped into a couple who was getting their pre wedding photo-shoot done. They truly represented Malaysia and its multi -culturalism. The groom was a Sri Lankan Tamil and the bride Chinese. He had in his hand a floral wedding garland, typical to Tamil weddings, and she had a Chinese umbrella. Their wedding pictures they told me, was going to represent both their heritage. Will it be a Chines or a Tamil wedding, I wonder. Aghast, the bride answered, “Neither!!” In the night the city takes on a new look. Street sides eating places come alive with smells that can drag even the strictest dieter towards it. Here I made more friends - a Malay lady Leena and her colleagues, who were working for the World Broadcasting Channel. She asked me if I would go on camera and speak about my Malaysian experience. To the rolling camera I said, “It is easy to feel lost in a large city like Kuala Lumpur, where the language, cuisine and the customs are so very different from mine. But it is easier to make friends.”