The KL Wrap-Up

It's now been a week since our safe return from Kuala Lumpur and Malaysia so it's about time to attempt to tell the rest of the tales of the trip. The training went well with Josh getting to meet lots of new people and make more connections with folks from all over the world including Finland, Germany, Spain, UK, Japan, China and even a few from the US. The training meant long days of lecture and discussion and a few nights of dinners and further discussion.

Kristi got a bit of a surprise after we were settled at the Marriott when a Gillette connection popped into range and made contact. Farah McDill happened to be passing through Kuala Lumpur on her (long) way back home from living and working in New Zealand and Antarctica (yes, you read that correctly - somebody has to live at McMurdo Station to keep the penguins company!) Kristi and Farah were able to meet and ended up exploring the city together, scoping everything out so that we could be efficient on the weekend with the limited time we had. Kristi and Farah had a few successful trips through the markets and gardens and also were able to experience some of the foods and amazing weather that KL had to offer. By the time that Josh was done with class on Friday afternoon a plan had been made to see everything we could before our flight on Saturday night.

The afternoon started after class when we were able to stop for a quick look of the Putrajaya Mosque - just in time for afternoon prayers. It is an amazing creation with multiple minarets and a beautiful courtyard at the entrance. Not wanting to disrupt and having a full plate of sights to see, we took off to get checked into our hotel and drop off the bags. A new Aussie friend from the class decided to join our excursion for the afternoon before his flight Friday night. The four of us (Greg, Farah and us) set off first for food, then for sights. Next stop the central market to pick up lunch and some final souvenirs (success!) and then it was on to see the city from above at Skybar with a stunning view of the Petronas Towers at sunset (another success!). A bit of timing drama to get Greg off to the airport for his flight, some rain and rumbling tummies and already it was dinnertime. We decided it was time to track down some Indian food and enjoyed a great meal of curries and Tiger beer before calling it a night.

Saturday morning we awoke bright and early to visit the Petronas Towers, pick up our viewing tickets and take in the sights. Of course though we were early, a horde of other tourists were earlier and we took our place at the end of the line. The line moved fairly quickly and after an hour or so we were at the front of the line and had our choice of times. Since the early slots had all gone, we decided to come back in mid-afternoon for the tour and start out with some other terrestrial sights first. We visited the central garden in Kuala Lumpur to see the greener part of the concrete jungle. There were weddings throughout the park, with a photo shoot in the orchids and another near the lake. The colors were splendid and even though not everything was in bloom it still seemed to be an eruption of blossoms around every corner of the Orchid Garden. The Butterfly Garden was also a unique place and Josh had a fun adventure tracking down all the beautiful flying creatures (as well as some other non-flying ones). Kristi was a great spotter and it was a tough task to pick only a few photos to share with everyone on Flickr. Before we knew it the time had come to return to the towers for our viewing. For as much as we looked forward to the time it was a bit short and quick with only 10 minutes on the sky bridge to look around. We made the most of it and took as many photos as possible and it is actually worth a visit if you are in the area.

Last but not least was a visit to Chinatown for more shopping and at least a look at some of the wares on offer. Colorful and boisterous does not even come close to describing the controlled mayhem of Petaling Street. Dodging one more rain shower we parted ways with Farah and made our way to the airport. The flight went quickly and we were soon home to laundry, grocery shopping and work to follow. We had a great experience that prepared us for future travels in Asia as well as allowing us to make more friends which is always a treat.