Wow!! (Malaysia)

Member Name: Natbabes-x

Product:	Malaysia
Date:	17/12/08 (46 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: History, Culture

Disadvantages: None

I'm not quite sure how to review such a beautiful country so I'm going to tell you about my experience and hope that you enjoy reading it as much as i enjoyed living it ..

I have been to Malaysia four times, my father lives there (in Malacca) with his partner, a Malay citizen, and each time i have loved it more!

The last time i went was September 2008, we stayed in Kuala Lumpur for the first 2 nights and we stayed at the infamous Petronas Twin Towers Hotel. All i can say is "wow"!! We walked along the "bridge" between the towers and the view was just amazing!!

Kuala Lumpur is a shopping paradise but really, apart from seeing the lovely architecture and enjoying the culture, that's about it in KL.

Back to the shops, you will find every designer name you have ever heard of there, from Marc Jacobs to Juicy, Armani to Balenciaga along with some other names you may recognise, Toni & Guy, Topshop, The Body Shop, Mango etc., the shopping malls are super clean, no rubbish, no dirty floors and super cool also (almost too cold in some parts!), they have security guards everywhere and in most of them, you're not allowed to take photos, don't ask me why because i don't know - that's just what i got told!

There are loads of choices of places to eat, from typical western food - Planet Hollywood, McDonalds and KFC to local delicacies - seafood cooked fresh, sticky rice wrapped in vine leaves, fish paste wrapped in vine leaves (tried it and yes, it was vile but at least i had a go!!).

To be quite honest, the shops, the food and the Twin Towers - that's KL all covered really. Lets start on my most favourite place, Malacca

Malacca is about 90 minutes drive from Kuala Lumpur and it is an old port city, considering the amount of history here, it's not a very touristy place!! I loved visiting the old harbour, the church's, china town .. it was just such great fun and so interesting!! They have what they call "bike-shaws" which is basically a bike, with a carriage attached in which up to two people can ride in (whilst being moved by the person peddling the bike), there are hundreds of these and they love taking British tourists around and showing them the sights!! Some are so imaginative with their decoration of their bike-shaws with speakers, lights, flowers, one even had a Manchester United T-Shirt on it!!

The food is quite similar to KL, you get the typical western food at one end of the scale and then at the other end there is the little "shacks" where you eat for a pound! Yes, they are dirty but you may aswell try it, if only for the experience!!

I loved eating at a place called The Bamboo hut, it sold local food and also had some western food like steak (which was lovely) and burgers!! They had a live band most nights but they were rather poor and got annoying after a while!!

One thing to mention about Malaysia is that you need to be prepared to be pestered in shops!! The shop assistants get paid very little and work on commission so they pounce as soon as you walk in the shop and WONT leave you alone, they stand so close that you feel claustrophobic!! You do get used to this though and if you ask politely most will leave you alone if you promise to go to them should you want to purchase anything!

Another things about Malaysia is the heat, its very oppressive and sticky but everywhere is air conditioned so it doesn't really become a problem unless you are out and about!! During rainy season it will rain for about 10-15 minutes then stop, and start again a couple of hours later. Its nothing like over here where it rains for days on end!!

I hope that i have reviewed Malaysia well and made you want to go there, you wont regret it!!

Summary: A great place to visit, i cant wait to go again