Kuala Lumpur: Wings, Discs, and Shots. Mmm...

I have to admit it; after leaving the islands, I was really looking forward to checking out Kuala Lumpur.  The capital of Malaysia, "KL" is a city that is aggressively seeking to join the ranks of the first tier of cities of the world.  Ever since 1998, when the iconic Petronus Towers skyscraper opened as the (temporarily at least) tallest building in the world, the city has been dramatically raising its game - upgrading its infrastructure and image.

And it's worked.  The city is an absolutely fantastic place to wander around, with an intoxicating mix of Malay, Indian, and Chinese cultures, all with a backdrop of 21st century technology.

The best part, though, is that KL hasn't lost its soul, or unique sense of self, in the process.  Whenever I wandered around, even in the most basic of street vendors or the poshest of malls, the city had a great energy, plus I definitely got a sense of the pride that the Malays feel for their country.

I was looking to setting up shop for a bit, as my plan was to actually spend a few days here, split between the touristy thing and getting to play in an ultimate frisbee tournament of all things.

After catching an early morning ferry from the islands, then a bus to Kota Bharu, my flight arrived  at KL's LCC terminal for low-cost airlines (think RyanAir's Luton).  Fierce competition meant that an immaculate air-conditioned bus drove the 70km for about $2.25.  (Grumble:  the bus company back in SF that takes me to my parents' could take notes... for the same distance, they charge $26!!!)

Right, I headed to the cool district of Bukit Bintang.  Sweating in the serious heat, I dropped my stuff at Red Palm Hostel, a cheap and cheerful hostel, with fantastic staff, clean rooms, and the only downside of seriously thin walls.  But, hey, for about ten quid a night, who can argue?

Then, it was time for dinner.  Now, especially in Asia, I normally try to check out some of the more upscale options, since the dollar goes so much farther.

In this case though, it was all about the street food.  Jin Alor is a street jam-packed with dozens of mostly Chinese eateries, with everything from the freshest of seafood to the oddest of animal product entrees, all for a song.

Lonely Planet steered me to an absolutely fantastic eatery called Wong Ah Wah – with legendary BBQ Chinese chicken wings.  Basically, you just flag down a waiter, hold up the number of fingers for the number of wings, plus mention “big beer”.  Then, add a polite “tamira kasih” (thank you), and wait for culinary goodness.

And... they're THAT good.  I ended up going here 4 nights in a row.

Stuffed, it was an early night, where back at the hostel with superb air conditioning, I had an unusual problem of it being TOO cold.  In Asia, that's a nice  issue to have!

The second day was my big 'tourist day', since most of the other days would be taken up with ultimate.  I got up early to wander up to the Petronus Towers in order to get tickets for the skybridge connecting them.  Sure, it's cliched, but what the heck – I really wanted to get inside this amazing office building/mall named after the nation's massive oil company.

Alas, everyone else seemed to have the same idea, so even an hour before opening, there was a massive queue (uh, that's “line” to us Yanks).  But, eventually, I got through and my ticket for a 30 minute slot in the later afternoon.

All sorted, I got down to some serious wandering.

First stop was the Indian quarter and Central Market.  Lonely Planet came through again, suggesting a meandering walk that started in some of the oldest buildings in KL, then over to the massive Independence Plaza, where the Malaysian flag first replaced the British Union Jack.  On a 50 meter flagpole, that's not a trivial matter!  As a side note, their flag's red/white stripes kept throwing me for a loop – there are definite similarities between the American flag and theirs; I'm curious to know if there was a story behind that.

Then, after finding a little Taoist temple tucked down an alley...

...it was time to hit the tourist handicrafts area.  Miraculously, I somehow avoided the temptation to buy anything for my backpack.

My feet, however, demanded some love.  Walking past a stall advertising “Doctor Fish”, I had to give it a shot.  For a pound, my feet were treated to 10 minutes of serious nibbling by hundreds of tiny fish, who each took bits of dead skin.

Sure, it sounded freaky, but it actually turned out to feel really, really good.  Um, that was after, of course, I squealed like a little girl and kept laughing at the sensation...



The rest of the afternoon took me to an amazing Islamic-inspired skyscraper, which stands elegantly above the hectic KL skyline...

… before a solid wander throughout Chinatown.  Dodging touts with all sorts of designer knock-offs, I had to stock up on things for the “Wacky Green” ultimate party the next night.  KL didn't let me down, as I found a garish feathered mask, a grass Hawaiian skirt, and a hideous green striped knock-off Polo shirt, all for about $10.  Sweeeet.

And... I came across this outfit - winner of "What the @#$! were you thinking making this???" award.  Scarily bad taste:

After dodging the afternoon rain storm, and hitting up the rare liquor store for gin & tonic makings for the tourney, I headed out to finally go to the Skybridge viewing platform at the Petronus Towers.  Great views of course, although the self-congratulatory corporate promo video we had to watch beforehand was a bit much.

And to refuel after all that viewing, what else to do but view some more?  There's a rooftop bar called SkyBar at a hotel nearby that has cold Guinness (2 for 1 no less!) and a great vista...

A much-needed shower, some more wings, and then it was time to meet my teammates for the weekend at a local Irish pub.

My friend Kim in London used to live in Bangkok, so she arranged for me to play with the team at the Malaysian Open.  They were bringing two teams, the SoiDawgz and SoiCowboyz (soi = street in Thai), and needed another lazy handler.  Perfect.

Great bunch of folks, and several of us ended up closing the pub down with a fierce game of “Bawwwk”.  Confused?  Just watch the video:



Then, it was time for a whopping 4 hours sleep before our early wake-up call and bus ride to the tournament.

As for the tournament itself, it was a blast.  Twenty teams from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Australia, playing on immaculate pitches at a private school.

The only downside is that I re-tweaked my injured calf muscle, so could only hobble around on offense, and if we ever turned it over and had to play defense, let's just say I was a liability...

But, two days of ultimate were great, punctuated by copious amounts of drinking on the sidelines.  I brought some gin & tonics, and the team introduced me to the tradition of “Apple Pie” shots.  Think vanilla vodka, apple juice, cinnamon, and whipped cream poured into your mouth.  Shake vigorously and swallow.  Deee-licious.

As an introduction to Asian ultimate, playing in 95 degree heat with 90% humidity was... humbling.  It seemed that no matter how much liquid you kept drinking, you just sweated it all out.  Coming back into town, I was wiped out, and committed the rookie blunder of “taking a brief nap” before the party... waking up at 3 in the morning.

So, no party for me – plus serious heckling from the team the next day...

We ended up winning only one of our games, but at least it was the last one – a super spirited and fun match against a local Malaysian team.

After that, it was beers and G&T's watching the final, before saying good-bye to all my new teammates.

Another night in KL with more chicken wings (I know – I just couldn't resist), before crashing early.

Next stop?  The colonial city of Melaka...