June 5
Travel day to Krabi, Thailand. Walked around for a few hours looking for a guidebook to Malaysia. Should have bought the cheap one I saw in Cambodia for $4.50. Bought it used at a used bookstore for $12. I usually don’t cut it this close. I was grateful to have a guidebook. Also, the book included Singapore and Brunei. I was planning on seeing Singapore but not Brunei.
I noticed many women covering their heads here. I was closing in on Muslim territory. I have never been to a Muslim country before.
June 6
I flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I was surprised at how prevalent English is there. I detected a strong British influence. I felt like I could connect with these people, since most knew English.
I had a week before flying from KL to Indonesia. I wanted to see both Malaysia and Singapore in that time. The problem is that KL is in the middle of Malaysia. I wanted to hit three cities so I could feel I “did” Malaysia. I decided to head north first, then down south to Singapore, then back north to KL. First up was the Cameron Highlands, north of Kuala Lumpur.
My flight landed in the early afternoon. I went directly to the main bus station. I asked around for the next Cameron Highlands bus, but the last one had already left for the day. Shucks. I had to stay in KL tonight.
I walked across the street to the Pudu Hostel and found a basic room there for $10/night. I walked around that evening and had a honey lemon iced tea and chicken tikka masala for cheap. I like KL 