Malaysia. Truly Asia.
My family went on a short trip to Malaysia, and I am amazed at the progress of that country. I can still remember Michelle Yeoh endorsing Malaysia with the tagline "Truly Asia".
Before I go to the Malaysian tidbits I learned from our funny, talkative tour guide, let me give an overview of some of the landmarks we visited: Genting Highlands (theme park with casino in the mountains), Sunway Lagoon (theme park / mall / hotel), National Mosque, Batu Caves (Hindu place of worship), Melaka (historical city outside KL), Kuala Lumpur city tour, Petronas Towers (photostop only), Royal Selangor Pewter (pewter factory), King's Palace (also got to watch a parade), chocolate factory, and Eye on Malaysia (rode the European-built, air-conditioned ferris wheel). We also watched a cultural show at Restauran Seri Melayu which served a buffet of native Malay food.
Pictures are uploaded at: http://www.bubbleshare.com/album/344780.1aaa7321336
Malaysian Tidbits:
1. Malaysia is a multi-racial country with population 26 million, composed mainly of Malay, Chinese, and Indians. You might also see some black Portuguese.
2. Education is free (including books)! Public schools and private schools (not free, not very many around) offer the same curriculum as regulated by the government, thus public schools are the popular choice.
3. Public hospitals charge only RM 1 for check-up and medicines.
4. Palm oil is their #1 export.
5. Bus fare is only RM 2 for the whole day.
6. Cars are expensive due to tax, but their national car brand Proton is cheaper than other cars to protect their own. A corolla may cost ~RM 103,000 in Malaysia - not so cheap, huh?
7. Car loans can take up to 9 years with low 2.4% interest.
8. Insurance and banks are guaranteed. So far they have 9 local banks now due to mergers taking place to avoid bankruptcy.
9. To solve the squatters problem, government built low-cost houses for rent at RM 124 a month including utilities and maintenance. The disabled are prioritized on floors 1-2, while senior citizens are placed in floors 3-5. The upper floors are for the rest. Restrictions include no aircon or aquariums allowed.
10. Malaysian passports need no visa to go to Europe. However, losing a passport can take up to 5 years to replace, or worse, they can go on forever without a passport.
11. Penalty for not carrying the national ID is RM 500. Soon their ID number will also be their bank account number but this will take some time to sync.
12. No more communists. Another problem solved by their government.
13. Cheapest ride from KL to Singapore is RM 40; better, wider coaches with TV would cost RM 100. It costs RM 80 from KL to the airport.
14. Future plans include building a bullet train that will take passengers from KL to Singapore in only 90 minutes.
We can see where their taxes go.
Addendum: By the way, you can actually exchange Philippine peso to Malaysian ringgit so you don't have to bring dollars but you can if you want. And the exchange rate in the airport is pretty much the same as outside - that's how their government regulates.
Sneak preview of pictures:
L-R clockwise: Photostop at the world-famous Petronas twin towers; standing on a hanging bridge at Sunway Lagoon; posing in front of a miniature Eiffel Tower at Genting Highlands; and riding a cable car to Genting Highlands.
And now for some yummy chocolates from the chocolate factory...
Click HERE for more pictures of places we visited. See the world's largest beer mug as recorded in the Guiness Book of Records or the huge golden Hindu god statue and more sights. Enjoy the virtual tour of Malaysia :-)