I made this video when I was bored in Kuala Lumpur. Briefly discusses why I was still in KL and then goes over some stuff to look for at any guest house before you check in, some “best management practices” to keep your stuff clean such as looking for bed bugs and then shows you the cheap ” budget hotel” in Kuala Lumpur.

This is video blog #2, starting to get a feel for it. I think it’s easier than say, blogging BUT you need to have some idea of what you wish to speak about or you will quickly fill the time with pointless rambling or just keep repeating yourself. Hence there is some bs rambling at the beginning. There is no “go get a coffee, come back and finish the thought.”

Regardless, I made this a few days ago and figured “if I spent the time to make this, might as well upload it”.

So yesterday, I took the bus for 39R to Singapore. Everything was cool and relaxed until I got to the Singapore border, that’s when stuff started getting stressful, the most tense ~5-10 minutes of my entire trip, let me elaborate.

First, my dad used to travel a lot when he was younger, I remember going through the US / Canada customs and never having a problem. On one of the many occasions I remember him once telling me that the only time he ever had any issues was when he was traveling alone, no real plans and slightly scruffy. I’m used to being clean cut, no facial hair (Movember is almost over) and well dressed. I’ve never had a problem anywhere, for anything, in fact, most times it’s been quite pleasant.

When you show up to a border, looking like a skid who doesn’t even resemble the photo on your passport anymore, it’s a very different scenario. I know it’s different but I can now relate to people who have had problems at borders, whether it’s for the country of origin of their passport, religious beliefs, their name, anything really.

I came into Singapore, I had no exit ticket booked and the guy was convinced I was not the gentleman pictured in my passport. The passport is 2 years old and I was heavier and very clean cut. Now, I’m thinner and well if you saw the video blog, quite scruffy if I don’t say so myself.

The guy kept looking at me and shaking his head, saying nope… He wanted to know why I was only coming for 5 days if I didn’t have a ticket booked yet. He asked me every detail he could from the passport and was just shaking his head saying … This picture does not look like you. I told him I only plan on staying for 5 days on my way to Bali because this place is expensive and yeah it is, especially if you go for a “night out on the town”.

If I did not have other ID, credit cards and the like, I think I’d still be in Malaysia. What’s weird is when we stopped at a rest stop, I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the mirror and even I remarked to myself “wow, I look different”.

Long story short he finally said, I don’t know and then just stared at me for about 30 seconds, didn’t know what to do, do I look away? At this point I was getting unnerved. Finally he said “okay” and stamp, stamp, stamp.

So I made it into Singapore. First thing I remarked was how clean and modern the place was. Right when I got dropped off I was going to jay-walk as the light was about 200M away, as I pondered it I looked up and there was a massive sign “No Jaywalking”. If you get caught discarding gum or a cigarette butt, it’s a $300 fine, second time is either $600, $1000 or community service, not sure as no one in the group I met has had that happen. That said, all of them have had a $300 offense, in fact it’s quite common.

If you go out for a “Night on the Town” be ready to bring your wallet. We went to the White Rabbit, MiMillotte(sp) and then Attica. White Rabbit was a great time and “Misty Rabbit” had come from France playing house music. The MiMillotte was dead but a super nice layout, finally we hit “Attica”.

Attica is arguably one of the funnest clubs I’ve ever been to in a while. It has 2 floors that I’m aware of, the lower one being hip-hop, the top one being house music. We went straight to the top floor and spent the rest of the night there, and a ludicrous amount of money. Drinks are $15 each, doubles $30. (Note: Talked to a local lady from here who said the place is only fun if you have a few drinks and are with a good crew, the way I was. Besides that she said it can be sleazy and lots of people go there looking to pick up or ladies looking to work. Being a germaphobe who doesn’t even like sharing drinks, I wouldn’t of noticed such things, you’ve been warned. Then again, aren’t most major night clubs like that?)

We partied with people from around the world, notably a big crew from India who were just hilarious even though there wasn’t that much talking going on.

Finally we checked out another club and when we left, it was light out. Ended the night with some breakfast and a swim. I will tell you now, going out for “drinks” in Singapore puts a new meaning to the term “better bring your wallet”. Having done it in a most egregious fashion, I don’t think I’ll go out again while here. If you’re traveling the globe you can afford to be discriminating in the activities you partake in, in different parts of the world. I.E If you want to speed, you go to Germany, if you want to dive, check out the islands in Thailand, gamble? You go to Vegas and so on…

This place has an incredibly safe and clean feel to it. That said, rent is also incredibly expensive and the majority of wages are lower than in North America and Europe. Also cars are often taxed 100%.

I could see myself living here, if I had an incredibly high paying job for a multinational corporation or say, a hedge fund. Apart from that, it’s nice to visit but it all depends on what you value. If you value clean, orderly and safe… Then it’s quite possibly heaven on earth, and isn’t it worth paying for what you value?

Either way, I plan on being here for a few days as it’s good to see an old friend again and I really like the feel to the place. On twitter and through friends I’m finding out some of the cooler things to do and see here and will investigate those.

I’m also considering going back to “Traditional Rob” aka clean cut and proper. When you’re on the thai islands, being all “out there” is good times and good fun, when in places like Singapore, you just feel like a scruff. That said, scruffy or not, how you handle yourself, how you interact with people plays a very large role as well. One can be a gentleman while looking disheveled or be a total douche bag donned in designer threads.

Good day,

P.S Always do your OWN homework, someone told me the exchange rate for Singapore dollars compared to Malaysian Ringgit and I based most purchasing decisions based on that, they were wrong, horribly wrong. Lesson learned.

Since the last update, I basically hung out and checked out the KL Tower in Kuala Lumpur, let me tell you about it.  Spent most of the day just chilling, relaxing. At about 11:30PM, I decided to go for a stroll through China Town for a late dinner. I went to this place, you can buy skewers of beef for $0.6R, delicious and the price is right. On the way back, I saw a bus stop and this sophisticated lady getting off.

I understood approaching a lady getting off a bus, in a strange city, late at night is slightly sketchy but for some reason I went up to her and asked where she was off to. She hesitantly replied that she was going to get a room. I informed her that China Town Hostels were dumps and prone to bed bugs and that across this major intersection about 500M away there is a nice budget hotel that is safe and clean enough. Knowing this must be much to absorb I said something to the effect of, the place is there, I know some guy approaching you getting off the bus is sketchy but hey, we`re out in the open, you can come if you want. I didn`t push, I didn`t pry. I had no agenda other then I was totally bored, this lady intrigued me and I wanted to help her find a hotel. She came with me.

She checked in and wanted to check out China Town. She came down from her room and asked if I still wanted to go to China Town, of course I quipped.

We strolled through China Town and showed her a bit of KL. After that she mentioned she wanted to check out the KL Tower the next day. I told her to kick my door when she wants to go, whatever time in the morning. Gentlemen do not ask a ladies room. If you plan on meeting someone again, tell them your room.

She kicked my door and we went for a stroll to the towers. The towers were quite cool. When you get there, it`s 38R to the top. If you`ve traveled the distance to make it to Kuala Lumpur, what is 38R to go to the top?

The view is great, we got lost on the way and it took us longer than it should of. You get an epic view of the Pretronas Towers and the rest of the city. KL is much larger than I had thought and it turns out our hotel was right near the tower, effectively we took the subway aka the long route.

Once done the towers, there is also a zoo with exotic animals. I will note that many people were thrilled to see “raccoons”. I am used to seeing raccoons, late at night, usually around the garbage. It goes to show “exotic” is relative. Whatever you’re used to is “old hat”, if it’s not where you’re from, its exotic.

Having woke up at 7AM to some Chinese lady yelling at her husband, I wasn’t overly thrilled with this “budget hotel” anymore. As a result, after we hit up China Town after the towers, I asked what time the next bus to Singapore was, the lady replied “in 25 minutes”.

As you know, I hate making plans. If I wanted “plans” I’d be working 9-5 with a fiance or a wife and kids on the way. Obviously that isn’t something I’m into right now and as a result, I’m traveling the world.

I ran upstairs and packed frantically, ran downstairs, bought my ticket and jumped on the bus. No sooner than I jumped on the bus, it was gone, a 6 hour trip through mainly jungle to Singapore.

I will say one thing, why do they make these buses sooooo cold you need a sweater? Ever been on one of the buses in these countries? It’s so cold it’s ridiculous.

Good day,

P.S: I will note that the more people I talk with, the more solo travelers I meet, the more people wouldn’t have it any other way. Everyone agrees that if you have the guts to “go at it alone” the most marvelous things happen that would never happen if you were in a group. If you travel alone, you are never alone, unless you want to be.

Had an eventful day, I will discuss it tomorrow.

Suffice to say, checked out some more stuff, escorted a sophisticated lady to the bus stop, then said “I’m sick of Kuala Lumpur” and it’s a 3 day weekend, no better time then to visit a friend. As a result, I checked what time the next bus to Singapore was… It left in 20 minutes, perfect, just my style.

In Asia, moustaches (sic) are good fun until at the Singapore border and they don’t believe you’re the gentleman in your passport photo…

Look for 2 updates tomorrow as I have MUCH to say. It’s my 1st night in Singapore, those of you that follow this blog know what that means.

Good evening,

So yeah, I’ve done nothing really so you’d think I have nothing to say? Wrong you are.

Let me tell you how things changed after I last updated. Remember that guy from Gaza drinking ridiculous quantities of Vodka? Well, I ran into him this morning…

He said his head hurt, and he felt really weird. He went to this place “Beach Club” or something like that in Kuala Lumpur, notorious for smoking local women “playing foreigners”. He told me he met this gang of women, they invited him to their home…

He said one of them must of put something in his drink because he woke up the next day, on the street, with his entire wallet emptied out except his cards.

At first the whole lot of us decided he was just too wasted, the guy was sloppy when he left, but wouldn’t you be? 3 beers I saw and 2/3-3/4 of a 26 of Vodka, Vaspuru or Vaspura or something like that if I reacall.

After he left, I was discussing this with the other Canadian, asked if he saw the guy today, so I filled him in, we agreed he was just “too drunk”.

This is when the “Doorman” steps in and fills us in on some of the “schemes” the local people play on often unlucky and often inebriated travelers. The most common mark according to the doorman are young European guys in their early 20′s, the GQ style or creepy old guys who should know better.

One game is “Cards”, they invite you to play blackjack when you’re drunk, they are all in on it somehow but you always leave no money, others involve something that I described above. Supposedly the women at this particular club are out of this world, the doorman said many men want to go there, he warns them but after they go inside… It’s their business. He told us a story of how a guy came in the next morning, almost in tears, somehow he lost 7000R in one of these card games.

How can someone lose 7000R and stay at a ~35R a night hotel? That simply blows my mind. Then again, I’ve had nights where I’m glad I didn’t get invited back…

That said, simple rules of common sense need to be mentioned, if you’re off your rocker, all sloppy and 5 beautiful women want to play cards with you, they don’t want to play cards with you, they want your money. Further more the good old “red ribbon deal”, if you just have to take the red ribbon off the gift and all your problems are solved, you’re being played.

I kinda got played last night. So this lady the one I mentioned who was with us, from here? Yeah well…

Gaza guy is hitting on her, she grabs my arm and says let’s get out of here, I said “I’m hungry, sure”. So we leave. At this point I find a place to eat (so glad I went to a cheap place). I’m like this place sounds good, you going to eat? She says “sure”.

So I get there, order a meal, she orders hers and a drink. We have the most boring conversation in the world and I’m just kinda looking at the ceiling like “why did I ever agree to leave with this lady!?”

About half way through the meal I start thinking … “Hey, I don’t see a purse on this lady, I don’t even see pockets in “dem jeans”".

So yeah, I end up buying this lady dinner, then as I’m leaving I see the owner / manager of the place and whisper in his ear “If you go to dinner with a girl, make sure she has a purse!”. Guy quips back “Watch it with her, she’s engaged to be married”. At this point I’m like, this is weird, oh and she told me she was a cutter as well. Creepy.

So she’s like “what do you want to do”, being the gentleman that I am I didn’t say “ditch you” so instead I said, let’s go back upstairs, I begin walking the stairs, she waits for elevator. As soon as that elevator came and she went in it, I came back downstairs and back onto the streets effectively “free” again.

So yeah, I got played too. It happens, it’s easy, gotta watch yourself as women (and men) can be scandalous.

This got me thinking about what the Brits said… They were remarking how ludicrous it is people are constantly getting their nails done, massages etc… While on the beach! That is your typical 2 week traveler style.

The gentleman said, isn’t not working, eating when you want, sleeping when you want, doing whatever you want and just “relaxing on a beach” enough!?

Made me think…

Good day,

P.S Made a video about this place today, but can’t even upload it due to this connection being sketchier then letting Andy Dick watch your kids.

Greetings,

Today I was feeling sorta touristy, when that happens I know it’s time to change, something. I figured I might as well check out the Pretronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I did just that, by taking the monorail for no more than 3.60R round trip.

The towers are cool, they are what they are really, massive office buildings housing a mall at the base that charges egregious fees for designer goods, yawn. I checked out the Prada store, they wanted 2020R for similar shoes, the soles were identical and the stitching near the same… Hmmmmmmmmm………

The monrail was easy to catch, they have stops all over the map. Don’t need to buy some silly “guide book”, just get a map from the hotel lobby and if you’re like me, ask the lovely lady or distinguished gentleman at the desk “how do I get to the twin towers”, they’ve been asked to the point of nausea , I’m sure and they will give you the most trustworthy directions.

The trip was easy, the monorail offered a plethora of smells like any type of public train does, yes?

When there, I saw this 50% off pasta from 12-2:30. I decided, should I be in that time I will eat some western food. Luckily and unluckily for me, it was 2:18.

So it came, it reminded me of the overpriced bs I used to buy at “Kelsey’s, Boston Pizza or even East Side Mario’s”. I scarfed it down and moments later my stomach went into contractions. I knew I was against the clock getting home.

Who would of thought, my first western food made my stomach turn when street meat does no harm, interesting, yes?

On that note, MacDonald’s is like a cult here. They even have VIP drive thru’s and you see the stickers on mercedes and bmw’s driving around. Almost as though “MacDonald’s” is cool, when really it’s just trash food sold to a customer who deserves what they’re getting, empty carbs and cheap meat.

Really, this type of food has already made most North Americans obese and lazy, why not tap into Asia? More people, they are leaner and more ambitious, seems like a good fit.

I’m checking out 1 more hotel to see if I can connect via FTP, maybe it’s my host but I’m not switching and maybe it’s a sign that it’s time to “get a move on”. In the event I find a hotel that let’s me “do my thing”. I will signup and work like I live here. The people here have such and admirable work ethic, it’s wearing off on me.

Who knows, all I know is “signs” are always subtle.

I’m off for another jaunt through China town, to buy fruit and eats from the streets and see who I run into and what type of madness may ensue.

Good day,

Update: Wrote this before checking out another budget hotel. The room isn’t as nice but the wifi is great, they have lockboxes and the price is only 35R. That said, it has no windows but these ones have bars anyways, effectively just “prolonging the suffering” should one find themselves in such an undesirable situation. Truth be told, I found out about this place from a British lady I struck up a conversation with on the sub way, turns out … It’s 200M from my current place, ha.

In China town I ran into a beautiful Finnish lady, let’s call her “The Queen of Haggling”. She picked up a polo suitcase to fit more goods into for only 60R, the opening price? 280R. She told the man someone promised her the same luggage for 50R and chatted with the guy for 30 min. He dropped price from 280 to 150, she said that’s still 100 too much, finally she left with an absolutely absurd bargain.

Goes to show, these street vendors have it all worked out. They figure you’ll try and bargain so why not set price so absurdly high that even when you “bargain and feel good” you’re still getting ripped off, eye opening.

We then chatted about different tourists we’ve met and how to make money stretch. I really enjoyed this conversation, this is just the “type of thing that happens” when you go out, by yourself with an open-mind to a public place. This can happen anywhere, even in your back yard.

So yeah, tomorrow, new place. It’s not as nice but it has way more atmosphere. A massive lounge with movies, people hanging out all over on wifi, seems like my kinda place. This current hotel has been sorta isolating. If I wanted to be isolated… I’d stay locked up in my office then my home for the winter months of Canada.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Today, I had the pleasure of taking the local bus to the Batu Caves, just outside of Kuala Lumpur. Wow, what a place?!? It’s a very famous temple, it has monkeys crawling all over the place, cheap eats nearby and one of the most prolific koi ponds I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing. I’ll have you know, when I eventually “settle down” I’ll build a koi pond so large, so deep, it will be magnificent.

I digress.

Alright, so you want to go to the Batu Caves? Good. Being the “let’s go loco style” kinda guy that I am. I decided to take the public bus to the Batu Caves. I caught the Bus on Jalan Tun HS Lee, right across from the “Bank of Bangkok”, smack in the middle of Kuala Lumpur and conveniently a ~8 minute walk from my hotel. The bus you want is #11, it comes every ~20-30 minutes and it costs 2.5R or ~ near 1$US. The bus took forever and was packed. The gentlemen near me left, this older gentlemen took the seat. I’ll get to him later, he was awesome.

Finally arrive, the temple is free and it is 272 stairs to the top. I *thought* I made an amazing video but guess I forgot to hit “record”, I have others but much to my chagrin, the “piece de resistance” is not there.

First thing you notice is a massive statue, you can’t miss it. Along there stairs there are a multitude of monkey’s, well, being monkey’s. I love monkeys, they are kinda like humans but forever teenagers or even kids, they just do their thing and don’t give a d@mn what you think. If you do not wish to be hassled by them, don’t bring food, it’s that simple.

I climbed to the top and once you get there, wow, what a place. it’s truly spectacular and big “thanks” to Hannah for recommending it to me. Once you are done looking at the main event, to the side there are the “dark caves”, I had to get some money changed so didn’t have 35R kicking around, if not probably would of taken it. I thought *I* was out of shape but I did those 272 stairs like it was nobodies business, didn’t even break a sweat, seriously. Saw some people pausing and asked if they were smokers, they said “no”, so I said “get to it!” and they ran the rest of the way.

At the bottom there is a massive Koi pond, anyone who knows me well knows I love koi ponds, they are so tranquil, so, I dunno, I just get mesmerized by the fish doing their thing, I will have one in my estate one day, mark my words. The pond leads to somewhere that charges money, I wasn’t in a spending money type mood so I spent nothing and just hung out near the entrance, luckily someone fed them and well look at the photo below, it was a “feeding frenzy”.

After that when you leave, say “no thanks” to all the cab drivers and when you leave the main gates, take a right. Keep walking until you get to a newspaper stand, past a bunch of floweresque (sic) type shops. (The awesome old guy told me this before we parted ways) I was lucky, the moment I got there the bus came. Talk about timing. Before I left, they had someone “hummmmming” on the microphone, I just stared at the statue in a total meditative state, it was enlightening. I am so glad I went, it was one of the coolest places I have been yet.

So yeah, round trip to Batu Caves cost me ~5R or less than $2. I also had some good vegetarian food for 5R, big plate, delicious.

Back to the older gentlemen, he sat next to me. I believe if you are “on the right path” in life, people come into your life and offer you wisdom if you’re open to it. We talked and chatted about many things. He was very wise and I learned much from him. I feel like on this trip, every once and a while when I’m not sure of things a “random sage” appears and fills me in, answers my questions and gives me answers and insights to future questions I may have but don’t realize it yet. Similar to when I got to Bangkok, the first guys name was lets say “Green Bay” and the second ones name was even “Sage”.

Before getting on the bus, I ran into this girl from Germany, she is paying 11R a night for a room. I said “yeah, but it’s some grimy hostel / dorm room right”, she got offended and quipped back, “it’s so awesome, it’s so great”, then she said she “lost” her camera and was going to the police station or something to see if anyone found it… hmmmmm. I told the older man I was paying 50R and he said that is quite reasonable and I bet 100X safer than the dump for 11R. Makes sense? He also said, think about it, if there was a way to aggregate the data, how much more likely are you to have your things stolen in a dorm for 11R a night or your own room with many amenities for 50R. That made me think… I remember the 150baht a night dorms in Bangkok, they are a hot bed for bed bugs, seriously. Also people traveling on tiny budgets and scrounging to make ends meet aren’t the people I wish to associate with. I’ve come on this trip to grow, see the world, stop having a boring life, meet new contacts, future associates and the like.

If you just wanted cheap accommodations, why even bother living in a nice part of town, why not just live in the ghetto? You don’t do that back home, do you? So why do it on the road? Also, if you are going to run into “down and out” people who need to steal to finance their trip, makes more sense for them to hang in the “low end” to pick the “low hanging fruit”, yes? If they paid 50R a night, they would have 1 night to “snag something”, at the 11R a night, they have 5 nights worth of stays to get same result. Sales men live by ABC – always be closing, travelers must live by ABT – always be thinking.

Either way, the gentleman was great, he said I should pay no more than 4-5R for lunch or dinner. He also said places without set prices tend to”jack the price” for foreigners, that makes sense to me.

On the way back I sat alone, then said “screw it” and went to talk to the 2 guys I saw at the temple, now at the back of the bus. They were Swiss, cool guys. There was a mildly creepy guy in front of us, when we started discussing where we were saying we switched to French and continued that for most of the conversation there after. Having a secret language is key when discussing “details” in strange places. We hit up the market in China town. For 1R you can get half a pineapple, for 1R you can get a 1/4 watermelon, I bought both. Also picked up a big bag of cashew nuts for 2R and a bag of dried ginger for 1R, ginger is my new “fight sickness fast” cure. I’m starting to “figure this place out”, I’m starting to really love it here.

I highly recommend you visit the Batu Caves regardless of your religious beliefs, it’s truly a spectacular sight and something I will remember forever. You also will never know who you’ll meet if you never go… You’ll never know unless you go.

It’s Monday morning where I’m from, I’m watching how hard so many people work here. The guy who works in my lobby works 24/7, the other night at 3AM, I was going to have a late dinner. I saw him sleeping and knew I’d have to “buzz in” to get back in… I said forget it and went to bed.  I have much to say on the topic of work ethic and how it varies from continent to continent but that is for another time, another day. I will say they are inspiring though, imagine sky diving with no backup parachute, imagine living where there is no welfare, if you don’t bank coin, you’re on the street… That’s life in MOST of the world.

Good day,

P.S For dinner, checked out this alley diner, was sure they have rats so put it off several times, but hey, everywhere has rats around here, anything from the street especially and this place is cheap. The dinner was delicious (7R), a rat scurried by my foot while waiting(knew it!), some guy came in selling tiger claws, wish I had my camera. On that note, I’d rather have the odd rat scurry past my leg than be trapped in the rat race, yes? Finally, gold is reaching new highs(subject to change at any moment of course), those stocks I bought after the bar were FSLR and my moustache (sic) is riding a massive grin.

Have a good week.

Apres my last update, I chilled out for a bit. Finally I was ready to crash again, at that exact moment I realized this lady from France I met in Koh Lanta was coming into town. She asked me where to stay etc, told her how to get to my place and we were going to meet up, have a drink, whatever. I have much respect for all solo travelers.

Being the gentleman that I am, I uproot myself from the bed in a near comatose state and went for a leisurely jaunt to the bus station. I love Kuala Lumpur, ok I just really like it but I`m a disheveled guy, with a moustache (sic), “he might be crazy” hair and a pair of aviators. (That said, who knows what’s around the next corner…)  I talked to some sisters from Sweden who do not like it, within 5 minutes of being here, this guy slapped her sisters `bottom` from the back of a motorcycle… They just don`t feel safe, I`ve heard that from a few ladies now, actually. On the topic of motorcycles, ladies, always keep your handbags on the shoulder AWAY from the street, many come by and snatch on back of motorcycles, if you’re a guy and your “murse” gets stolen, no sympathy here.

So I figure, hey, I`ll meet her at the station, I have nothing better to do and me being seriously `burnt out`at 5PM is no ones fault but my own. Cruise down there and start waiting, sit down, then the whole curb type thing starts to get packed, now I`m shoulder to shoulder with some local people, ahh this is traveling, this is living somewhere else. Most travelers I see here are in these huge packs, scared to look any which way. That or walking around like a total douche, reading their travel guide as though it was the holy grail for a guest house while almost getting smacked by oncoming traffic.

I have huge respect for travelers in the past, HUGE. The burly ladies and gentlemen who left with no maps, no way of calling home and no idea of what was safe or not. Today, so many people travel but I think they take these planned out routes, follow the same paths that some guide tells them and pay premium prices at guest houses that probably paid to get listed. That or the guy carrying the murse who wrote the book stayed there, the world is huge and every city is a world within a world. Why people follow these guides like some holy doctrine is beyond me.

I`d of thought Westerners would be more friendly here, after all there aren`t that many of us here in comparison, almost non existent in my age group. I pass by some and they just look freaked out like `don`t look anyone in the eyes`, really? I’ve been wandering around all over the place in proximity to my hotel. I’m going into strange food courts, at the top of shopping centers, a floor above the arcades where I stand out like a sore-thumb, gotten lost on the street at night and still, “no worries mate”.

So after waiting around for a while, I cruise through China town. Even during the day I’m finding myself disoriented, I can totally see how I got lost my first evening here, so many twists and turns. China Town is pretty cool and it has lots of good deals, if one were so inclined. It’s also a bastion of cheap street meat and cheap street eats, I love cheap street eats. Why pay $5US for this massive meal when you can get exactly what you want for say ~$2US? On that note, I’m hooked on fresh juice from the street, a decent size cup, orange being my favorite is only ~$0.33US.

In the China Town here you can buy anything from Prada shoes for $60US, Lacoste shoes for ~$25US(look below), movies like 2012 for ~$2.50US, designer handbags galore and everything in between. Remember, the quoted price is the “opening bid” don’t buy at market, throw your bid in and see if they accept. I saw the same pair of shoes in 2 locations. One was much superior quality and cheaper. I told the guy with the lesser quality ones I could get a better pair for cheaper around the corner, he replied “how much do you want to pay?” They also have tones of Hugo Boss, Gucci, Burberry laptop cases which appear to be a decent grade of leather.

On that note, trademarks are a joke these days. If you have a new company, don’t waste the registration fee, why?

• You have to pay to register a trademark
• You have to pay to enforce a trademark
• Most trademarks are only enforceable in country of registration
• Trademarks get no respect overseas
• Most things are produced overseas
• Trademarks are for say “Sony” with a $26.89 BILLION $ market cap on the NYSE.

As nice as much of the merchandise is, it’s still “expensive” and I’m not a mule. It’s expensive because it’s imported from China then marked up. Your “price” incorporates shipping costs as well as the vendors profit. I’m not a mule as in, why buy something more expensive in say Malaysia, then like a mule “carry it around the globe”, mules carrying things right? I’d rather keep my load light, if I were so inclined to purchase such said items, I’d do so in Hong Kong or China, 2 places I plan on attending on these travels anyways and much closer to / in the source.

Long story short, China Town is right near the bus station in the PUDU district and it’s worth checking out, if you aren’t traveling the globe and just hitting up Kuala Lumpur, yeah the deals are good, comparable to Thailand. Those Prada shoes I was looking at actually look really good and are made of leather, $60US(before performing the art of haggling) is much better than $590CDN+tax, yes? Then again if a shoe doesn’t feel comfortable, even $1US is too much to pay. The only time I can see a reason to buy “uncomfortable shoes” is if someone is an outfit freak and they need some specialized shoe to match some outfit they wear every now and then. If it’s for a daily wear, forget about it, seriously.

Right now, it’s ~11:30PM local time, I need to go buy tooth paste and a tooth brush. I just found my toothbrush on the floor, in the corner of the room, I’m no prude but I am prudent and the bristles are bent to #$@#. I think I’m going to go back to China town, peruse some movies and buy some cheap food, perhaps even have a drink at Reggae Bar. Come to think of it, If I were so inclined, I could eat and buy a movie for the night which isn’t released yet for less than a MacDonald’s Big Mac Combo, makes you think… On that note, the movie and meal will be less than 1 single beer here, also makes you think? Finally, I bought a round of tequilla shots(strongest I’ve ever tasted mind you) for myself and the 4 ladies I had the pleasure of partying with the other night, that was 50 ringgit, I could of bought those Lacoste shoes.

Good day,

I was helping a friend find a place and we came across this one, across from Reggae Bar, a bit dirty for my liking but to each their own, right? FYI, this budget hotel costs 25 ringgit a night and check out the lobby, while ignoring the staircase.

Ya, ya, I know I just posted this in one of my previous bloggeries but some of you fine ladies and gentlemen just subscribe to the videos, so here it is, once again.

I’m finding cheap aka budget hotels in KL range from ~20-200 ringgit a night, that said if you’re paying 200 ringgit a night for a place in Kuala Lumpur, it’s no longer a “budget hotel”, yes?

Below is another guest house I visited today, well more a backpacker hostel. It’s 35 ringgit a night. I’d much rather pay my 50 ringgit and have free wifi, with free wifi you save money as you aren’t always out of the room, usually drinking, eating and smoking, yes?

Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today started as every day for me starts, I got out of bed when I was good and ready. Truth be told, ended up staying up to the ungodly hour of 4AM last night, buying stocks after a night out, probably not the best idea but “only time will tell”. In true spirit of “you never know, unless you go” I “stumbled upon” a really cool guest house in Kuala Lumpur, I’m not staying there but it as cool.

Fell out of bed and into the clothes I wore the day before, who cares what clothes you wear, they’re only clothes. I had some good eats at the local buffet around the corner, my meal cost me ~$5 for a massive plate of well look below and a drink, not bad, yes?

After that I went on a mission, a to find out where I got lost last night and b to buy a laptop lock. I was going to buy one at best buy in Los Angeles but they were sold out, considering they sold me a crappy defective memory card for my digi cam, I’m glad I didn’t give them another dime of my arguably hard earned money.

You can’t fight fate, you got that? Whatever is going to happen is going to happen. Almost as though our lives are totally planned out, everyone’s life is just intertwined and playing along in a most majestic symphony. The catch is you have NO CLUE what will happen so you, at every stop, like a choose your own adventure book must make your decisions, ultimately at any given time in life, you can only make 1 decision. As a result things could be planned but you’d never know and regardless of mental indecision you will still end up doing something at any given time, yes? Let me elaborate.

So I leave the curry place, drop my aviators and I’m flying in my own world again. Go to cross the street but realize “too risky, better chill for a second.” I see this backpacker from somewhere in Europe gesture a “better wait a minute”. He takes the ear phone out of his ear and says “Hey, you were in Koh Tao right?” to which I quipped, “Soitenly (sic)”. Then he said that he remembered me from the ferry. What are the odds? I mean, had I stopped to tie my shoe, look at a store, anything… I think I like golf because it’s similar to life, golf is a game of inches, life is a game of seconds.

Turns out he is looking for a guest house and I, as per usual, have no plan, nothing I need to do and nothing but time on my side. As a result I say “let’s go find one” as I’m always on the lookout for a better deal, even when it appears I couldn’t care less.

We wander around, find the place I was yesterday, turns out it’s really close, I was just so disoriented from the path I took with the ladies that I had no clue and as a result, walked in totally the wrong way.

We look around, keep walking thinking I know where I’m going until I realize I have no clue, went back to reggae bar area to look from there. Directly across the street there is a place, look below.

So we decided hey, why not start here and proceed. This place is cheaper it’s 25ringgit a night, which is 50% of what I’m paying, I’m intrigued. The stairwell is well filthy and when we get there, wow, it’s like a zen garden.

Check out the place, it’s cool but the rooms are kinda like firetraps and the bed looked dirty. Frankly, if I’m paying under $20US a night for lodging or under ~$600 a month, that’s a good deal in my opinion. The little bit of mold in my room is no longer a concern whatsoever.

This place had a crazy variety of creatures from the depths of the sea. I love fish, I love marine animals, wow, why haven’t I done my diving license yet? I digress.

He takes the place and we roll back to Reggae Bar for a drink where I took the photo below. Bob had it all figured out, too bad he’s dead, RIP.

After that go through some mall of random kiosks, I want a sim card, a laptop lock and he wants to fix his camera, let’s call him … Mr. Blue. Mr. Blue and I peruse the place and I pick up a laptop lock for $7US, haha considering I still have my laptop, I’m glad I didn’t waste another dime in an over-priced American “big box bs store”.

Sim cards, this one guy wanted 30 ringgit, this lady I saw yesterday offered me the same deal for 10 ringgit, I was off to find the lady in a nice kiosk, in another mall with the great smile. I find her and I buy the card. They wanted my passport as they register all phones here, despite having it in my pocket I said, “no, I’m not giving you my passport”. She said, that’s cool what name do you want it registered to, so I gave one. That’s that, I now have a Malaysian phone. Side note, always be cautious crossing the street, it should be your #1 concern in some of these countries.

Then as I’m walking into this super market, this lady grabs my arm and starts rubbing cream on it. Suddenly I’m in a sales pitch. I’ll have you know I don’t buy any “skin care products”. Heck, I still have 90% of my sun tan lotion I bought 2 months ago, ok I bought Aloe Vera but when you’re fried, lobster red, what you gonna do? Long story short she’s rubbing it on my hand, it felt good haha, then my skin starts coming off, then she compares it to my other hand, what is this stuff.

She offers me all these deals I’m like no, no, no, no, no,no until finally she winks and offers me 1 vile for 10 ringgit, it started at 3 for 45. I said “sure”. I wonder if I can sell it on ebay? hmmmm.

I’m zoned out and tired as sin. It’s almost 9PM in Malaysia and dare I say, I think I’m going to go eat some curry and pass out. (Like that’s gonna happen) I can party any night, weeknights and weekends are a fantasy built for the workforce, I can sleep any night, I don’t have to make the most of any day because there is always tomorrow (unless I die of course).

Good day,