Nov 05, 2006 12:19 PM
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(Updated Feb 05, 2010 12:17 PM)
Kuala Lumpur
Like most of the people (ambiguous assumption no. 1… geez), my tryst with Malaysiastarted from KL, the vibrant commercial capital. The city appears happening allround the day and it seems that it may get livelier as the night checks in, butby 10 or 11 pm, every single thing seems asleep except for a few pockets. Thiscity does sleep, and it is asleep until about 9 am in the morning. Picturesqueas it is, KL has a host of places where one can spend the day.
The numerous shopping malls and branded stores top the lists if you are aglamour enthusiast. The KLCC (KL City Centre) boasts of almost all the world’sfamous brands under its hood. When you’re tired, you can relax by the pond orin the garden right outside KLCC marvelling the skyscrapers all around andagain fixing your gaze at the Petronas twin towers which poke into the belly ofthe sky with the two poles which the other tall towers find unfair in the racefor their height.
A must visit for all the geeks, nerds and techies is the Plaza Low Yat, SungeiWang Plaza, the BB Plaza or the Berjaya Times Square (hell, KL can also haveone Times Square, okay?) to gain an insight into ones’ “bounded rationality”about technology, increasing complexities in life in the quest of making itironically simple! Everywhere, one will be in awe of the Malaysian version ofEnglish and the ease with which they have made the language feel at home.For instance, a taxi is a teksi, or a bus is a bas, and so on.One can refer to the Fajar Oxford dictionary for a deeper understanding of thislinguistic relationship – while relaxing in a Starbucks Kafé!
But a more careful effort reveals that the Malay language – the Bahasa – hasits roots in Sanskrit. The indigenous people of Malaysia are called Bumiputras,the Malaysian capital is called Putrajaya, etc. This Sanskrit/Indian cultural connection also reflects into the Malaysian rituals although itis an Islamic state and all the Bumiputras follow Islam as theirreligion. Malaysians make use of coconut and rice in their marriage rituals,very much like a traditional Hindu wedding. Each province of Malaysiastill has a Sultan to govern it, and his courtesans bow him in the namasteposition, joining both their hands and not with the traditional aadaab.The Sultans always wear a yellow robe which is considered to be pristine. Onecan find the importance of a yellow robe or a peetambar in any of thehindu scriptures. It’s a different matter that the pristine yellow issaffronised in Indiafor too long, politically. The point here, is not to prove the prevalence ofone over the other, but to find harmony among the diversity while we tend tochoose to pay more attention to the differences and unfortunately, fight overthem. To look for one of the traces of harmony, one can visit the palace of theSultan which is open to public on special days like the Eid, which iscalled Hariraya in Malaysia.Talking of Hariraya – it is celebrated every year with the Deepavaliand also called the Deeparaya festival. Of course Malaysia toohas its own share of differences which cause concern, but I shall choose toignore them here. Other places to visit in KL include Menara KL (KL Tower), theMusium Istana Budaya (Istana Budaya Museum), the Lake Titiwangsa, the birdpark, and the suburbs of Bangsar, Brickfields and the Bukit Bintang.
Bangsar is an affluent suburb in KL which owing to its night clubs andexpatriate pubs, tries to give the city a ‘never sleep’ feel. The pubs andnight clubs however are not as expensive as those in Bombayor Singapore.Zouk, Beach Club, 11:15 (yes, that’s a club), Passion, Thai Club, etc are someof the places which are famous among party-goers but notorious for the rowdynocturnal street-fights that take place there every night, of which you don’tjust remain a witness, but quite a bit more. Again, you have to beware of thetranssexuals who would lure you into buying drinks, spending on them and perhapsbeyond, until the time you really discover them! My favourite hangout?Finnegan’s. This Irish pub with its golden-green ambience is the most peacefulplace to unwind. Get a drink, pull a chair and enjoy the football match. Themusic is minimal, unlike those other Malaysian places where they play sick popsongs in the name of rock, and scream at the top of their voices.
Brickfields is an area with a large majority of Indians and one can find agood variety of North and South Indian food as well as some good looking Punjabansto stare at! Bukit Bintang on the other hand is a melting pot for Indians andChinese alike. You would also find a large number of people of Arabic andPersian origin, mostly from Lebanon,Syria, Iran and Libya in this part of the city.This would lead you to a conclusion, inescapably so, that Persian girls areamong the prettiest in the world! They all have big eyes and well sculpted lipsand noses. Their voices are as soft, rhythmic, round and full as the gurglingof the sheesha!
On the outskirts of KL, one can go to Midvalley which is a suburb made outof a large opulent shopping mall. A one stop shop where you can find just abouteverything at every price. And if you are hungry and wish to have a five stardinner for peanuts (or even for free), drop in to the Indian eatery Annalakshmi,where well-educated people serve you with awesome food, just because they havea passion to feed people, to feed us, and they love the satisfied smiles on ourfaces! The place is run on an ‘eat what you like, pay as you feel’ basis. Noone will ever bring you a bill for whatever you eat there, and you may evenchoose not to pay and they will still be glad because you offered them anopportunity to serve yourself. Isn’t this one of those kinds of places whichmakes this world more worth living in?
Next: Ah.. Malaysia- Malacca, etc.
