Blog 4 - Malaysia

Having said goodbye to Lisa and Steve, I headed out of the complex and walked through the government apartments towards the food court pausing briefly at one of the exercise stations for a few stretches.

I just love the quote written on this one  ....

'A positive attitude may not solve all your problems ….. but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort!'

Once I had stretched, I picked up a few supplies in the shopping area before checking in with the bus operator office to confirm my seat and to receive my ticket.

At the bus stop other people had began to gather and I was pleased to meet fellow travelers on their way to Kuala Lumpa.

As each bus pulled up I eagerly stepped forward only to be told, not this one, next one by the friendly drivers behind the wheels.

Twenty minutes later I was sitting on the most amazing and wonderfully padded, virtual bed reclining seat heading out of Singapore.

The ride was suppose to take five hours, but at the border the Christmas holidays had packed the place out, while we waited in the sprawling traffic jam I introduced myself to the lady sitting in front of me

Asifah was from Malaysia but was married to a man from Singapore. Even though they were married she didn't have permission to live and work in Singapore and so she commuted to see him during her days off.

She explained that the hold up was because of the holidays and even though the actual passport control was fine, the traffic jam for the poor coach drivers was always horrendous. Friends of hers had waited six hours the day before just to cross the causeway!!

Two hours passed before we were finally on the way, the five hours had just turned into seven but I had made a friend!

The coach was set up with a single row of seats down the left hand side and double seating behind the driver on the right. My seat was single seat 2, one seat from the front (which was occupied by Asifah) and the views were fantastic.

Two hours later we stopped for a ten minute break at a large roadside restaurant. Everywhere in Malaysia and Singapore the food courts are abundant and this one was no exception.

An enclosed restaurant stood at one end of the bus stop in front of which street vendors had set up stalls selling delights such as grilled sweetcorn, baked sweet potatoes and roasted peanuts.

The food court, slightly to the right, boasted food from China, Malaysia, ice creams, fresh juices, a bakers and sweet stall as well as phone and phone accessories and a huge supermarket at the end. People filled the tables, stall people moved back and forth bringing extra drinks or clearing plates, smells and smoke wafted out of the door way as fresh grilled foods were cooked to order.

I settled on just ice-cream but Asifah had other ideas and treated me to some delicious dough balls soaked in honey!!

Five minutes later we heard the bus signal its readiness for departure and headed back for the second part of our journey.

Traveling through Malaysia by bus means you are tied to the motorways but it does allow you to gaze out of the large windows for hours on end.

The huge palm plantations stretched for miles over the surrounding hills with small encampments of houses occasionally spotted through the trees.

Every now and again the tall minarets of a mosque, or the ornate roof of a temple broke through the tree line yet my overwhelming impression of Malaysia was greenery.

Miles and miles of jungle and palm plantations.

Palm oil is Malaysia's biggest export.

As we neared Kuala Lumpa the traffic slowed. Eventually the three lanes of slow moving buses, trucks and cars halted as a seemingly endless solid wall of stationary traffic blocked the way. “Holiday time” shrugged the driver and got out his phone.

The rest of us relaxed, chatted, exchanged addresses and talked about our plans. After what seamed like an hour (but was probably only 20 minutes) the traffic began to crawl forward. It was now 3pm, my expected time of arrival and my Host, Simheswara, would be expecting me at the drop off point. I tried to call but my phone just repeated a message about “No Outgoing Calls Accepted” and cut out. I tried sending a text but it wouldn't send. I sat back to wait, slightly apprehensive that things were now out of my control.

By 3.30pm we were moving along nicely on the motorway and my phone rang. “Hello Mataji, where are you?” I had no idea but I informed Simheswara that we were running about 2 hours late and I would be there as soon as I could. “OK, we will see you at 5pm” he replied and hung up.

Ten minutes later we hit the second major traffic jam and stopped.

This time we really did wait an hour before the traffic began to move.


 My 5pm arrival was looking less and less likely but I had no means to contact anyone!

I waited for the next phone call that came at 5.15pm. “Mataji, you are nearly here?”

 I asked the driver how long he thought we would be yet his reply of 2 hours surprised me as we were already entering a build up area. I relayed the message down the phone.

 “Oh dear Mataji, the last bus to the farm leaves at 6pm!”

I reassured him that I would be able to find a hotel and would catch the bus to the farm in the morning. This had been my initial plan but Simheswara had insisted on meeting me in KL

He had to leave, he said and was most concerned about leaving me behind. I reassured him I would be fine and we said goodbye.

I now had no dead line, no one waiting and a huge weight lifted from my shoulders.

Given a dead line, whether externally imposed like a train departure, or self imposed like a promise and my mind becomes committed to fulfilling that dead line, fulfilling my word.

If I can not reach it, or if things beyond my control alter the circumstances, I mentally punish myself and feel all the guilt associated with letting someone down.

I was now alone again in the world with no one to look after but myself and the joy was amazing.

At 7.15 I was standing on the pavement at Time Square in KL without a clue as to where to go. All around me were huge towering city blocks while the streets were full of people, all busy and all rushing around.

Above me enormous flashing neon signs illuminated the surrounding buildings while loud music poured from the many shop entrances.

I spotted a sign saying “Bus Depot” and headed in its direction. Within five minutes I was lost! The buildings all looked the same, the signs varied but the theme was the same, Buy Buy Buy, you Need Need Need!!

I found a security guard lounging happily at a large department store entrance.

“Excuse me, do you know where I catch the bus to Lanchang?” I enquired.

“Titiwangsa,” he replied smiling.

I smiled back. “How I get to Titiwangsa, please?”, my smile was broad.

 “MRT” he beamed at me. He was obviously a man of few words.

I tried a blank look of confusion. “The MRT is where?”

I purposely kept my question short in case we were having a language problem. He pointed to a sign just behind me. The letters 'MRT =>' were written in large print with an even bigger arrow pointing to the stairs . I turned back to him, smiled and said Thank you. “No problem. You are most welcome.” he grinned in perfectly clear English.

At the MRT I began my questions again but this time I went immediately into the confused lady plan. The ticket lady was most helpful and gave me a small round blue disc(?), yet it was the young boy who got me through the revolving ticket gate, having shown me where to put this blue disc, and onto the correct platform that I will remain most grateful to.

Four stops later I got off the MRT at Titiwangsa. Finding the bus depot was easy as it was across the road from the MRT and could be seen from the station platform!

In the distance I spotted Petronas Towers, their evening lights illuminating them against the evening sky. It was a sight that I had only seen in books before.

I enquired about the bus to Lanchang for the morning. Again everyone was most helpful and I was informed that the first bus was at 8am with a bus leaving every two hours until 6pm, the trip, they added, took about two hours. I had a plan!

One hundred meters down the road I found a Hotel advertising single rooms for 80Rms (5Rms = £1) with free internet. Asking to see the room first I was shown a private and clean room over looking the road with not only air con but also an overhead fan and a window that opened. It was just what I was looking for, clean, private and with a view to watch the world pass by.

I showered before asking the boys at reception to connect up my laptop to their internet for me (the confused lady routine was working so well it was a shame to drop it).

I checked my messages, sent one off to Simheswara to say I was safe in a hotel by the bus stop and headed out into the night.

I walked past restaurant after restaurant with Seven Eleven stores in between.

At the end of the road I turned to walk back again, only to see the two towers illuminated in all their glorious lighting framed between the towering buildings surrounding me.

I smiled broadly, I was in KL, I had a plan and life was good.

Still smiling I sat down at a table outside a tiny Indian restaurant and listened attentively as the owner described all the vegetarian dishes.

I ordered some food and while people nodded and smiled, I ate and enjoyed the night.

P.S. Later that evening as I sat in my room I tried again to make a call with my phone. Eventually I found someone to talk to instead of just an automated recording and was informed that I hadn't requested a roaming status for my Singapore Sim. When I asked if I could request one now, I was told I could only request the roaming status while I was still in Singapore.

It seemed a long way to go to make a phone call so I packed the phone away!

I had internet, what more did I need??

Blog 3 - Life in a Condominium

I have never really contemplated high rise living. Open spaces, green fields, fresh air and trees are the usual basics I look for when choosing a home.

Singapore however, is a new city in a rather small country. Land is at a premium and the main direction to build is UP!

I was surprised to learn that most of the building in Singapore are no older than fifty years old so fast has been its development and although the apartment blocks tower over everything a huge amount of detail has been given to the spaces in-between.

There are two types of high rise apartments available to those wishing to settle in the country, government and private.

Each are housed in huge towering blocks but the private blocks are arranged around a complex of pools,

recreational facilities that include gyms, steam rooms and gathering areas.

Private blocks also tend to have small private entrances to each apartment.

The government apartments, on the other hand, have long covered walkways

and verandas that link each level of apartments to their neighbours.

They may not have a pool but they do have wonderfully organised areas, each designed to get people out of their flats and down into the communal areas below to meet and chat.

Picnic areas and BBQs are available for use free of charge.

Amazing mini out door gyms grace the gardens.

There are machines for legs,

for arms,

for toning,

stretching,

and strengthening.

They even come with instructions!

Feet massaging walks wind their way around flower beds.

Apparently walking along these pebbles bare footed is the best way to stimulate the pressure points in the soles of your feet!

Play areas with seating abound.

And like the private apartments, each set of blocks has a large gathering area

that can be used free of change for functions, meetings or group activities such as Tai Chi, coffee morning etc.

Trees and greenery are located in every available space and the walk ways between are all covered.

All this is provided as part of your lease. The areas around the government blocks are maintained by the government contractors, while the private condo's have their own in house contractors.

Cleaners are supplied as part of your rent to clean the walkways, lifts, car parking areas and stairs. The grounds whether private or not are all immaculately clean.

It is a system that, after the initial shock of being so high along with so many other people, really works.

They have even worked out how to dry high rise washing!!

Each morning these recreational areas fill with people as they begin their day. Some sit and chat before heading off to work, others stretch and lunge, others read or watch.

As the sun rises in the sky the areas become quieter as people take advantage of the shade. When the rains arrive people move from place to place protected by the covered walkways.

Everything seems to have its own designated area! Shops are gathered together.

Even the different religions are gathered into a specific religious communal space.Churches stand next to temples that are backed with mosques. Every one smiles, everyone seems at peace.

In the evenings, huge food halls come alive in these various shopping areas. Tiny stalls open up around a large seating area serving, Indian, Malaysian, Chinese along with other food and drinks.

Waiters come and clear the tables returning colour coded table wear to the correct shops. For S$1.50 or less you can have a tasty plate of food. For S$5 you get a feast!

Different dishes can be purchased from different stalls yet all can be brought together at the table to be shared or devoured.

No steamy cooking at home, no washing up, no shopping for unusual ingredients, all you have to do is wander around, chose whatever the mood dictates and you can eat with friends and family from 50p upwards. It is no wonder the food courts get so busy at night.

For the next week we all settled into a nice routine. In the morning Steve would go off to work while Lisa and I would go for a short walk to the shops for whatever it was we had decided we needed.

This was usually followed by a bit of Tai Chi at one of our outdoor mini gyms,

Followed with dip into the heated jacuzzi before, if I was feeling brave, a swim in the cool water of the pool.

After the warmth of the heated pool the main one always gave you an initial shiver but once you were in it was refreshing and delightful.

Lunch consisted mainly of salad or fresh fruit and ice-cream with the occasional stir fry thrown in on cooler days, while the afternoons were spent either in the pool as the rain poured down from the heavens

(it is the rainy season so at 2pm each day it rains for about two hours)

or curled up on the settee to watch some cable TV, or playing backgammon, dice and cards until Steve arrived home.

When the rains came they literally poured down in sheets and then as quickly as it starts the clouds would break up and the clear blue sky would return as the paving stones steamed far below us!

Evenings were spent in the food courts before a spot of reading or PC work and bed.

As blissful as all this was, and as happy as I was to see Lisa in her new home, I wasn't really needed yet so by the end of the week, as the Christmas decorations filled the trees, I was ready for a spot of exploring.

I inquired about trains up to KL but with the Christmas holidays ALL the trains on line were booked until January 5^th!! I even crossed the causeway border to see if I could catch a Malaysian train but even though the lady at the Train Station was very helpful, again everything was booked until January!

As a side note, the MRT to the border, the bus across into Malaysia, the Train station inquiries and the return trip cost S£5 and took three hours. It was a great way to spend a rainy afternoon!!

Eventually I found a coach that left from the food courts by Lisa and Steve's apartment that went all the way to KL for S$26 (£13)

My bag was packed with what I needed (my winter travel clothes, some books and boots I left at Lisa and Steve's) and with a final hug I was ready to go.

Through the Workaway web site I had been invited to help out at a farm in Lanchang. I planned to be away until January 5^th when I would catch the train back to JB where I would help out at a nursery for a further week. The plan then was for me to pop back in Singapore the weekend of the 9^th just to check on Lisa and the bump, and as long as she was OK I would pop back across the border to the nursery for another week.

I had a plan, I had a bag, I was off to see Malaysia!!