And the materialist crown goes to…
My walkabout accidentally turned into a pilgrimage to 21st-century bazaars during the last three weeks in Asia. There was no way I could prepare myself for a full-blown shopping attack from the countries which strived to be the best of the best providers for all our “needs.”
What is Fahrenheit? Is it the documentary about 9/11? No lah. It’s a shopping mall lah.
Can I park my car at Lot 10? No lah. Lot 10 is not a parking lot. It’s shopping mall lah.
Is KLCC (Kuala Lumpur City Center) a city center like the old town, with things to see? No lah. Another shopping mall lah.
What can I do at Times Square? Is it like a square where I can walk around? Yes, lah. You walk around shopping malls lah.
Why do you call it “Golden Triangle?” Because it is an area which connects all main shopping malls lah.
Is there anything to do in KL? Yes, lah. Shopping lah.
A friend told me she would pick me in front of Pavilion in the evening. I was about to ask her what it was, whether it was a former resident of some Chinese or Malay royal family like the many pavilions I visited in China, but I soon knocked myself out of the silliness as I already had an idea about Pavilion. Having lunch, then having desert, then watching people sleep, then watching people watching other people in mall became boring so I walked outside. It rained after an hour, thus I stopped at a nice coffee lounge to avoid the rain. I sent my friend an sms telling her to meet me at Coffee Beans in Low Yat instead of Pavilion. I didn’t bother to categorize to her Low Yat (restaurant, bar, park etc..) as I was sure she should know what it was.
And don’t forget to visit KL’s must-see attraction, the Petronas Twin Tower, the tallest of its kind in the world. Now after you have stared lovingly at it, snapped hundreds of photos in front it and taken a deep breath to appreciate its sheer height, please answer my riddle.
“What sit underneath KL’s Twin Tower?” Don’t answer it wrong lah.
When God distributed urban planners and city designers, he must have forgotten to stop in Kuala Lumpur. Please Malaysians, don’t hate me. 🙂
I felt claustrophobic for the first time under the onslaught of shopping malls as if walls and roofs were closing in on me, which actually they were. My one-day existence in KL can be wrapped in one word “mall”. I felt so miserable in a city destined to become the world leader in the art of exchange money and stuff. “Since 2000, the Ministry of Tourism of Malaysia has kick-started the mega sale event for all shopping in Malaysia. The mega sale event is held thrice in a year—in March, May, and December — all shopping malls are encouraged to participate to boost Kuala Lumpur as a leading shopping destination.”
Note: “Lah” is an extra words meaning nothing which Singaporeans and Malaysians (mostly Chinese) insert at the end of the sentence or a word. It was quite amusing to hear them speak like that. Some use it sparingly, but some put it in everything they say.
Kuala Lumpur wouldn’t despair me this much if right before my arrival, I didn’t spend a week shopping in the so-called “heavenly” Singapore, a week before that experience a shopping hell in Hong Kong, and an entire month before that traveling in China, a country buried in stuff and stuff.
I'm a motivation explorer, personality type hacker, behavioral investigator and storyteller. I help startup founders, entrepreneurs, and corporate managers to understand themselves, the people they manage and how to get the best of their people. Specialty is in psychological personality types and brain-based methods. When I don't do the above, I hop around planet Earth with TravelJo.com to learn the Art and Science of people from everywhere and to give you all the free travel and tips and advice in many cool destinations.
My name is Cindy, also rhymes with travel junkie. A friend said I was probably a gipsy in my previous life. One of my many secret missions in life is to convert you to run off every once in awhile.
