Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Life in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia


So, some things the same, some things a little different. I know I haven’t experienced all of Malaysia, but where we are living I find things fairly familiar. Everything has an English translation on it: street signs, food packaging, books, products in the stores. Everyone I have interacted with seems to know enough English to be able to communicate with me. Clothing (with the exception of the occasional traditional outfits) is very western (not cowboys, American). Rarely do I see a female with her head covered. I recognize some of the plants and some plants that are hard to grow in the US grow wild here. We have what I’ve been calling our Jack and the Beanstalk tree just outside the kitchen window. It is about a yard across and about 35 to 40 feet tall. I have heard one cat, but have neither seen nor heard any dogs. There is one particularly interesting bird I keep hearing, but have yet to get a visual on it. Along with the traditional Malaysian food, I have also seen Wendy’s, Pizza Hut and Kenny Rogers (our first meal here), San Francisco Steak House (Father’s Day meal) and McDonald’s (in fact, they deliver). They tell me, however, not to expect the food from these restaurants to taste the same as it does at home. We also spotted a Borders store which caused Jeff to see if he could get some extra work while he was here.

Driving is a little different. First of all, this is a former British Colony so all the driving is done on the “wrong” (left) side of the road. Your mind seems to adjust to this okay until you come to a intersection – then it freaky. There are hardly any SUV’s or pickup trucks, all small compacts (some really, really small compacts). Some of the auto manufacturers are familiar like Toyota, but all the model names are different from there American counterparts. There are a lot of motor bike and scooters on the road also, they have the privilege of weaving through traffic at stop lights so they can get to the front of the pack, only to be overtaken by the cars once we get going again. They say that they are going to get a car so Jeff can run us around here in the local area – Yipes!

We posted a few pics earlier, but let’s go into a little more detail describing the flat where we are living. We are on the second floor of a 6 flat unit. To enter our flat you must unlock 4 locks. The first is at the top of the stairs. It is a gate of sorts with a padlock. Next, there is another gate at the door with a key and a padlock. Then, finally, the actual door is unlocked. You lock everything back each time you come or go. Then, ironically it seems to me, you leave your shoes outside. I bring mine in anyway. So, as you enter, shoes off, you go barefoot, or wear slippers which are there at the door waiting for you. There is no carpet. All the floors are tile. Lighting is florescent bulbs exposed on the wall. No lamps. There are outlets (different voltage-converter needed), but you have to turn them on to use them (little switches at the top). There are fans in each room (except kitchen) and an “air-con” unit in most.

The only place there is hot water is in the bathroom shower (also must be turned on). This has not been a problem since we only take cold showers to try to cool off. Nonetheless, after I get out of my cold shower the mirror is fogged up. ?? Did I mention it is hot and humid here? Another anomaly with the bathroom is that it (the whole thing) typically stays wet (all ceramic tile). The ladies who were helping set up the flat were confused as to why the bathmat went just outside the shower (It usually is placed just outside the bathroom door in the hall). It’s like a huge shower that also holds a sink and toilet. There are drains and hoses everywhere. They will go into the bathroom and hose their feet down right there in the floor. So the bathroom floor is a couple of inches lower than the rest of the house. Again, to keep the water confined.

The kitchen is interesting as well. No hot water, remember? So, we wash our dishes, rinse them and then pour boiled water over them to sterilize them. Typically, Malaysian kitchens have no stove/oven. For real. Dr. Biles had a cook top installed and we have a toaster oven. Funny to me is the lack of any cooling in the kitchen. No fan and no ac. Well, actually, I guess it’s not so strange for them because they do not cook. (So the kitchen never gets any hotter than the rest of the house.) They eat EVERY meal out, or buy it and bring it in. They just don’t cook. As I understand it, it’s cheaper for them to do it this way. The refrigerator is made by Toshiba and is a pygmy. It’s about half the size of a normal one at home. We have a washer, but no dryer. We hang things up to dry.

We feel blessed to be here. Some of life is so different – some of it the same. The sights and smells change some but the needs of people do not. Pray for us that we can clearly communicate those things which do change, the eternal things that cross all ethnic groups and all cultures. We love you!

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