Day 54, Summer in Asia, Kuala Lampur, Malaysia
It often feels like we’ve spent a good chunk of our lives in airports, albeit a wide variety of them in interesting countries. Today and tomorrow we are flying to New Zealand from Myanmar. First, we did a 4-hour hop to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, then another 8-hour flight to the Gold Coast, Australia, then 4 more hours to Auckland. Anything less than 12 hours doesn’t seem all that long to us anymore.
We spent a week in Kuala Lumpur on our world trip, but it was Kier’s first time here and the layover was for an entire day. I stayed at the airport with Madi so she would do some work and so Kier and Paul wouldn’t have to carry backpacks into the city. Before they went, we grabbed few bowls of airport ramen, my food of choice when traveling, if I can find some. We also took advantage of a breath of wifi.
We’re at the point where we’ve been in these hub airports so often we know where the good sleeping chairs are, best charging stations, our favorite restaurants. In this one you have to stay in the main section after the primary security screening and before the secondary one, if you want to eat at a restaurant.
Got some sweet potato fries and guacamole at the Living Room. I appreciate great comfy places in airports that try to mimic cozy and homey.
Also did a little spice shopping.
Leaving Malaysia officially ends the Asian part of our summer. We visited: Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Singapore, Myanmar, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The only two countries in Southeast Asia we didn’t get to are Brunei and Timor-Leste.
Even though the countries aren’t far from each other geographically, each of the cultures was surprisingly unique. Some countries like Thailand have become mainstream tourist destinations, while in Myanmar we could go for long periods of time not seeing other foreigners. Few things make you feel more immersed in a culture.
I’m always curious about the dog culture in any country we visit. Sometimes it’s heartbreaking. The poverty of the people naturally trickles down to poverty for animals. But attitudes towards dogs differ from country to country. In Vietnam, there were no street dogs. Draw your own conclusions as to why. In Myanmar, in the area where we were staying near the Shwendagon Pagoda, there were so many street dogs living amongst the food carts and pop-up sidewalk cart restaurants. In Guatemala the, street dogs are often treated poorly and they are fearful of most interactions with people. They are used to being kicked, hit with brooms and sticks, and having rocks thrown at them. When you raise a hand to pet them, they will often flinch, cower, and prepare for a scary interaction. The street dogs in Burma, in contrast, live much more harmoniously with the people. They are used to being pet, fed, and from what we saw, treated well by the people they live with. I did my part to feed the street dogs when I could, but their numbers are large.
After our day in Kuala Lumpur, we boarded a flight for the Gold Coast, Australia. Sometimes your meal comes in a tray, and you don’t mind a bit.
