Ni hau ma!!! Selamat datang!
(How are you) (Welcome)
(Chinese) (Malay)
Well here we are again...on yet another episode of my adventures from the Far East. Many things have happened since I last time I wrote. This time, it has been more exciting than the previous ones as the past week has been the celebration of the Chinese New Year or the Beginning of the New Lunar Year. In contrast to the traditional New Years celebration from the Western countries, this time of the year is more family oriented. The celebrations started on Tuesday evening. Even though the celebration lasts for 15 days, family and relatives usually spend the first 2 days of the new year visiting each other. Some peculiar thing also is that visiting members usually bring 2 oranges with them and exchange them with someone for 2 other oranges. This goes on as they visit other relatives or friends. The oranges are given in pairs because it is believe that happiness comes in pair. It is more widely known as the Spring Festival because it starts from the beginning of spring ( the first 24 terms in coordination with the changes in nature). Its origin is too old to be traced. There are many legends surrounding this festivity, however all agree that the word Nian, which in modern Chinese solely means "year", was originally the name of the monster beast that started to prey on people the night before the beginning of the new year, according to the Chinese calendar. Then appear a man who subdued Nian. Before the man disappeared with the beast, he told the people to put up red paper decorations on their windows and doors every end of the year to scare away Nian in case it sneaked back again because red was the color the beast feared the most.. From then on, the tradition of observing the conquest of Nian was carried from generation to generation. The term "Guo Nian", which then meant "Survive the Nian" becomes today "Celebrate the (New) Year" as the word "guo" in Chinese has both the meaning of "pass-over" and "observe". The custom of putting up red paper and lighting firecrackers to scare away Nian is still around. However, these days, people perform these rituals to add excitement to the celebration. If you were to walk around the city of Singapore you will see the majority of the stores decorated in this manner along with a sign that says "Gong Xi Fa Cai" - which means something like Prosperous New Year. So from Singapore, "Gong Xi Fa Cai" to you all!
On Tuesday night before the Chinese New Year, a friend and I decided to go to Chinatown and really experience what it is all about. It was amazingly packed. You could barely walk from one place to another. You can see a picture of what it is all about on my photo album.
Chinatown is nicely decorated for this time of the year and the whole area is filled with tents or shops that people set up in order to either sell merchandise, produce (fruits, et al.), among others. You can definitely do some shopping there, but knowing that I was heading out to Kuala Lumpur the very next day, I decided to hold off as I would get more bang for the buck in Malaysia.
So yes, my most recent trip was to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur is an amazing city, not much different from Singapore, just a bit more dirty, but very similar. Malaysia was first colonized by the Portuguese in 1511. In 1641, the Dutch took over. Then traded to the British and handed back to the Dutch and then controlled by the British. Then in 1942, the Japanese invaded and took over. After World War II, the British regained power for a short period. By 1957, Malaysia had gained its independence and had pronounced its new Prime Minister. Throughout this period, Kuala Lumpur (KL) was founded in the 1850s due to tin and rubber mining. At one point in time, both of these industries were about 55 % of the world production. This, however, is no longer a catalyst for the economy. Malaysia has slowly transitioned into an industrial and manufacturing economy. In Malay, Kuala means "point at where rivers meet" and Lumpur means "muddy". So as you can see it is not an appealing name, nevertheless its a nice city. The government has set itself a goal to improve the lifestyle of its citizens. Before independence, 59% of Malay were below the poverty line. It is currently at a 7.9% and the government has targeted a 0% goal. There are about 22 million people of which 65% are Malay, 20% are Chinese, 10% are Indian and the rest (5%) are from all over.
While in KL, I did a tour of the country side. We visited a pewter factory, rubber plantation, and the Batu Caves. The caves are a place of worship for the Hindu. They come here and about 800,000 to over 1 million gather for a Hindu celebration in February. During this celebration, they perform prayers and fall into a state of trance - some even pierce their bodies to repent for their sins...however they do not bleed or suffer pain because of the trance.
One delicacy you have to taste if you come to the area - is the Dorian fruit. Its smell is horrendous. It tastes like heaven but smells like hell. It is also referred to as the two-handed fruit - because you need one hand to hold and eat the fruit and the other hand to cover your nose. It is said to be like eating custard in the toilet!!!
Anyway, that was pretty much what I learned from my tour. After the tour I decided to try my luck in the infamous shopping district of Chinatown. This place is known for its wide variety of shopping goods at very good prices. From imitation Rolex, to VCD (Video CD - similar to a DVD but not digital) to backpacks and purses to fruits and vegetables. All set up on the street enclose by their setup tents to protect you (or better yet, them) from the sun or rain. Spent there a few hours and my god can you bargain. Tip if you ever come here, if they give you a price for an item, say $50 chances are you will probably be able to get it for $25. Believe me...no need to go higher. You will eventually be able to buy it at that price or even lower. Hey, it worked for me.
Well, the next day, I opted to tour the City Center by foot. In KL City Center, there exists two landmarks - Kuala Lumpur Tower and the Petronas Twin Towers. The Kuala Lumpur Tower is similar to a needle point tower. It overlooks the whole city and has a rotating floor at its peak. However, the Petronas Twin Towers is a true landmark. You can see pictures on the same website stated above. The twin towers, also seen in the movie Entrapment (that is if you were able to take your eyes off Catherine Zeta-Jones's body). The towers are both 88 levels of office space and rise up to 452 meters. The architect was Argentinian Cesar Pelli. The 2 towers are joined by a sky bridge which you can visit free of charge. The sky bridge is at about 171 meters high and the view is magnificent (on a clear day of course).
On a different note, I have 6 weeks left in Singapore. Actually only 5 more work weeks. There is one week in February were I will be in Spain due to my next project. Yes, I have been booked by my project already starting in the middle of March through the end of the year. My next project will take me back to the Western Hemisphere. I will be located in Monterey, Mexico - so people, make plans to come visit me if you like. This in fact is great news as I will be closer to my home as well as my significant other. Yes, as you will see from my website - and I say this now since I know some will ask - she is the lovely person in my life. Hopefully you will all get to meet her soon.
Well, I hope you enjoyed reading this and have the opportunity to see the places I have visited. Please feel free to let me know what you think.
I wish you all the best and hope to see you all soon.
Until then, please take care of yourselves,
cheerios,
-Nicolas
Selamat Jalan!!!
(Goodbye!!!)
(Malay)