KL (Week 103.5) — Mika's Photos

Beat daylight to the airport by several hours. Posing with the new thermos that saved me B80 for an awful Burger King coffee.

The trouble with "priority boarding" when you have to take a shuttle to the plane... is that you can board the bus first, and that's about it.

Air Asia is usually relegated to parking in the middle of a lot, and bussing its passengers out to meet the plane.

When we stepped on, we were greeted by a cabin filled with white smoke. Not a good start.

A really sad meal of vegetarian fried rice with "chicken" satay. I'm glad the company paid for it.

The KL International Airport is about an hour outside KL itself, and completely surrounded by palm plantations (for the country's famous palm oil production).

Approaching the city, at long last.

The lobby of my hotel -- Fraser Suits -- which is so new it hadn't officially opened yet. (Perhaps the reason for such good rates?)

Did I mention the hotel is new? They were only unpacking the lobby's iMacs as I checked in.

My lovely room. It had a full kitchenette, complete with 2-plate burner, all appliances by Electrolux, and a full set of crockery for two.

Better equipped than our apartment in Bangkok, hands down.

The only thing missing was a little dining table. If you did cook your meals, you'd have to eat at a knee-height coffee table.

There's a huge glass window between the bedroom and the shower. I only discovered the blind on the 3rd day.

I don't have a clue what any of these four remotes was for.

A happy KL sidewalk.

Downtown KL has a small monorail running through it, which Bangkok's BTS puts to shame.

Streets are much wider (and shadier) than in Bangkok. In the background, the KL tower.

One of the 9 monorail stations. Instinctively, I climbed up the stairs to cross the street -- only to discover that people cross at street level in this city.

A big cross-walk near our KL office. Notice the very wide green meridian going down the middle of the major street.

Look what has a branch directly across the street from our office!

After meeting up, Nicole took me to lunch at a vegetarian restaurant nearby.

It's similar to cheap eateries here in Bangkok, except you serve yourself.

I had a giant bowl of Singapore noodles (a suggested specialty) and an Indian-style milk tea.

My helpful local tour guide and her delicious looking (but not vegetarian) curry bowl!

This meal is several steps up from Air Asia's!

This poor motorbike has seen better days. There are far fewer on the roads here than in Bangkok.

Nicole's cute little car. It's a national brand, and you see them all over. It's parked next to a brother, in fact.

From a walkway that leads to one of many posh malls in the area.

Here, the monorail tracks take a turn toward Times Square, which rivals Central World as SE Asia's largest mall.

On the ground floor of the mall is an old friend -- Papa John's! Haven't seen him since Boston!

And Borders, complete with Starbucks Cafe. It's like reuniting with long-lost buddies.

This atrium is only one of several zones of the shopping complex.

There's also an amusement park, complete with a 5-storey, 3-inversion coaster... that I didn't ride.

Like a kid outside a candy store. Good thing admission was prohibitively expensive.

At the city's request, famous food hawkers from throughout Malaysia have opened branches in a single downtown location.

Lots of Malay and Chinese delicacies.

Inari stuffed with various seafood salads -- something I'd never seen before.

Malaysia's own brand of cup noodles.

Pavilion, a posh mall on par with Siam Paragon.

My first dinner in Malaysia is Korean, at the mall's food court.

Lots of people dine alone -- I blend right in.

A huge fair in the mall's central atrium - perhaps in celebration of the 2-week school holiday.

A colourful fountain outside the mall is nicely lit at night.

Lots of mall-goers were sitting, watching the football on a huge screen.

Football fever! Even people without proper seats stopped to watch.

No shortage of construction in the heart of KL's downtown!

Everything is lit up -- from the buildings to the palm trees.

There's a strip of bars not far from the hotel zone.

The pool on the 18th floor has a great view of the night skyline.

A great view for doing laps!

Day 1 of the expo, at the huge KL Convention Center.

With Da, fellow visitor from Bangkok, and Cathleen, a KL-based member of the sales team.

The convention center overlooks a beautiful, large park in the middle of the city.

The park is beautifully landscaped, and features a jogging track, swimming pool for kids, several huge playgrounds, and lots of shade.

During lunch, going on a walk through the park.

KL's newest icon -- the Petronas Twin Towers, the world's tallest buildings from 1998 to 2004.

The park's kiddie pools and a well-kept, tile-lined pond that snakes throughout the park.

A huge set of multiple playgrounds.

At the base of the towers is yet another mall, this one completed in 1999 (but extremely well-maintained).

The center of the nice pond, with its "dancing fountain". Many people sit here for lunch.

That afternoon, Nicole speaks on one of the panels held at the seminar in conjunction with the expo.

It was a huge, 9-person panel, which meant almost no talk time for each.

In the back corner of Isetan, "Special Size" shoes ... for ME!

Excited by our lucky find, and my two resulting purchases.

Indian dinner -- cold but delicious, perhaps because I hadn't had Indian in so long?

My dinner companions -- two new pairs of shoes.

The fountains are still a popular hang-out spot, even after dark.

No doubt the twin towers are photogenic at night.

Many people would lie on the ground, to try to fit both a person and the complete towers into the frame. Ridiculous.

How much electricity does this downtown area consume each night?

The shot everyone takes.

The skybridge -- the highest point that tourists can visit.

The next morning, out for a stroll just after light. Can you tell what this is a queue for?

The monorail is "cute" compared to the BTS.

The street lights are still on. It doesn't get light until after 7am.

The cute station doesn't need to be too big -- there are only 4 doors to accomodate.

Inside, even the decor is sad compared to the BTS. It felt wobbly -- like an old airport monorail.

In the opposite direction, the train is filled with commuters at rush hour. The peak frequency is still only 1 train / 5 mins.

Like a little inch worm crawling along.

There are lots of sandwich sellers at breakfast -- just like in Bangkok.

But you can also find curry rice for only RM 1.5 (less than 50 cents US).

Finally passing a mosque. This one is notorious for having your shoes stolen.

An office building influenced by Islamic architecture.

Two giant chilies, in the lobby of a new "green certified" hotel.

Lunch from a Kebab Store -- although it's a veggie wrap inside.

No wonder people laugh when they see our team.

The convention center is bordered by several lovely flower beds.

A captivating fountain.

More flowers, these with an iconic backdrop.

Downtown at night -- plenty of people were on foot.

A street performer. I didn't see his request for money in exchange for a photo.

Da shops for souvenirs. The shop was empty when we left.

Dinner at a Malaysian restaurant. Here, Da's beautifully-presented chicken curry dish.

My GIANT omelette (and coconut rice).

AHHHHHH! Krispy Kreme!!!!!

Gleeful, with the half-dozen assorted that I will attempt to bring back to Bangkok.

Traveling back to our hotel's neighbourhood,with all her purchases. (I was carrying a bag for her, too.)

My early breakfast, before heading out to the airport.

Breakfast #2, at an extremely popular "white" coffee-and-toast joint.

They specialize in "white" coffee (in the foreground) and toast -- an interesting combination.

Well, the box made it home. But what about the contents? Drumroll please...

FINE! Just as lovely as when the box was sealed. Note the special World Cup-edition donut.

Someone's convinced the football looks like a face. Do you see it?

Serendipity.