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MALAYSIA

Mar
2004-09-14 16:33:03

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to pick up our bicycles. The cargo master did not want to hand over our bicycles at the platform, so we wait till the cargo van is pulled to this station. After an hour hanging around and having a 'local' breakfast existing of curry with rice and coffee, we pick up our bicycles and head for Chinatown. Everything is closed due to the holidays and we find a guesthouse in the middle of Chinatown at the 6th floor of a building. Luckily our bicycles fit into the elevator so we don't have to carry them up. Of course the owner offers us some mandarins. After a quick tour through a closed Chinatown and a visit to the highest building(s) in the world (at this moment) the Petronas twin towers we are ready to leave tomorrow.

N.B. The Petronas towers (452m) were a bit smaller than the NY twin towers (541m), but in 2004 the Shanghai World Financial Centre (460m), the Taipei 101 tower (508m) are ready and in 2008 the Centre of India Tower (677m) (speculative).

19/01/2004 Unlike the Chinese cities, KL's industry doesn't reach further than 30km from the city centre. But unlike Bangkok's heavy traffic, this city centre (with less traffic) is more difficult to escape from even on a holiday like today. If only we had bought a good map of the city to get out, most roads are one-way and look like a bobsled slope: left and right are fenced by half a meter high brick walls or fences and impossible to cross with bicycles to go in the other direction if you need to.

On route we find out that it’s difficult to find a guesthouse instead of a holiday resort that are packed along the coast. At Port Dickson we take a lunch and look at our map. There must be a sleeping place in the next couple of towns now we are out of the holiday-area. After 120km, and no luck so far, we decide to look out for alternative sleeping places (forest or rice field huts). We even consider continuing all the way to Malacca, which lies at 184km. Luckily after ...