After a good meal, we gathered in the lobby and prepared to head out for the day. Unlike previous mornings, today was unusually clear. The typical morning haze was noticeably thinner, resulting in a strong morning sun. Perhaps it had to do the decreased numbers of cars on the road. As today was the national election, it was a national holiday with many people taking the day off work to return to their home cities and vote. While this may seem unorthodox, many countries have people vote in their place of birth or home towns, as it is easiest to validate them and their vote. Fun Fact: nearly 7 million people work in Kuala Lumpur, but the cities total population is just over 1 million. Sounds like a lot of commuters, eh?
We departed the hotel and maneuvered the city streets to the monorail station. Unlike the previous day, the station was completely empty and we bought our tokens easily. Next stop: Chinatown!
On our bus ride, our guide mentioned the concept of Chinese "clan houses". In the colonial period of British rule of Malaysia, many Chinese emigrated to Malaysia in search of work and opportunities. Without a support network, it would have been nearly impossible. However, the Chinese established a support network of temples where people could come and obtain food and shelter while they searched for employment. Chinese who were not related by blood could come to a clan house of the same name (i.e. Li, Wu, Tan, etc.) and obtain shelter and support for a few weeks or a month. In turn, they would pledge resources and support to future immigrants. This continues on and is an important piece of Malaysia's cultural identity. I think of it as the beginnings of "paying it forward".
Chinatown was quiet, but some shops were open. A few merchants dusted off the steps in front of their booths and beckoned us to come and shop.
Before long, we navigated through Chinatown and headed to our next stop: a Hindu temple. The temple was squeezed between two office buildings. To be correct, it is more likely the temple was there first, and the offices built right up to the studs in the walls of the temple.
We lingered a bit, then proceeded to a nearby bazaar, the Kasturi Walk. We navigated the many stalls, filled with small trinkets and souvenirs. A few of the ladies in our group found interesting purses and shawls for gifts.
As the day wore on, it was time for lunch, so we were off to the local mall at KLCC, in the city center. You might notice that we spend quite a lot of time in the malls. Unlike the US, the costs of land, construction and labor cause interesting market dynamics. Rather than running all over the city to complete errands, it is easier and less expensive for people to come to a single location to do their shopping. Hence, shopping malls contain every variety of store and eatery for people to maximize their time.
Either way, the malls are a great place to keep cool and get a bite to eat. Ramona and I stopped by a lunch counter to get Lebanese wrap sandwiches - it was just what I needed to power through the day.
With lunch out of the way, we walked a few short steps to our next destination : the Petronas Twin Towers. This towering structure was awe-inspiring when we visited it two years ago at night. During the day, it does not disappoint, either.
Atop the skybridge, we could see much more of the city, spreading out for kilometers in all directions. Further up at the observation deck, we could really appreciate just how much of KL is covered in buildings and just how precious green space is.
Our visit complete, we returned to the monorail and proceeded back to our hotel. On the way, Ramona struck up a conversation with a young girl headed to work after voted, indicated by the indelible ink on her finger. She and Ramona shared a brief discussion and she was truly delighted to meet her guests from across the sea.
Back at the hotel, we loaded our luggage on the bus and soon departed for Sunway. Sunway University was a fun part of our last trip, thanks to its proximity to a large water park, hotel and resort. The short drive was uneventful, thanks to the limited number of cars on the roads. When we arrived, we divided up into a rooms and returned to the student common area for dinner.
At dinner, we workshoped an exercise "Obvious, Curious", where each student was instructed to show a picture from today's adventures of something obvious and something curious. It was a thought-provoking exercise, and inspired a lot of discussion about perception and point of view.
With dinner completed, Ramona and I headed to the Sunway mall to pick up a few things for our room. One of the nice things about having been here before, is the familiarity with our surroundings and knowing where to go!
Following the walk to the mall, we circled a few stores in the mall, piling on lots of lots of steps. On the day, I finished with more than 26,000 steps - nearly 10 miles!
To save my poor feet, we took a taxi back to our residence and soon called it a night.
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