Tuesday 5 April - KL to Dubai

Here I am sitting in a food court in KL and due to head to the airport in a couple of hours. It’s supposed to have wi-fi access but as seems so often the case I must be holding my tongue the wrong way and it won’t connect, so I’m having to write this offline for now.  At least it is cool here, as we really don’t want to get hot and sweaty with 7 hours on a plane ahead of us.  It seemed quite mild this morning being just below 30, but it has heated up and is now comfortably over 30 outside.

Our normal eatery in KL

We’ve bought a few last goodies from a store to use up some ringgits, and have left enough for a coffee at the airport, and if we do have one there, it would be our first proper coffee since NZ. Local coffee is almost all instant, and with plenty of milk and sugar. Oh for the coffees of Europe, even though they are not a patch on the rich NZ versions.

Final impressions of Malaysia? From what small part of it we have seen, it feels a bit like a cross between Singapore and Thailand. A bit more organised and tidy than Thailand, but without the buzz and excitement, and not as up-market  as Singapore. So in a bit of a no man’s land really. I’d have to say I prefer the more raw, noisy, exciting Asian places like Thailand, Bali and Singapore. The locals are great. Always friendly and ready with a smile. And the mix of cultures has been interesting, especially when it comes to food! Highlights? The KL bird park, the pre-WWII architecture, food, and the charm of Malacca.

Strange to say though, I’ve had my fill of fried rice and char kuay teow for a while. A Vietnamese meal of fresh greens would go down a treat, or a piece of crunchy bread with a soft cheese and tomato slices.

Out to the airport, and into check-in. We thought we’d try asking if there was a chance of an upgrade, and to our surprise there was a lot of discussion, phonecalls and faffing about, and our seat numbers were changed! Things were looking hopeful. Onto the plane for seats 16A and B, and very close but no bananas! We had been given the first row behind business, which gave us plenty of legroom but not business itself. However because the doorway through to business was extra wide and I could move into the vacant 16C, I could stretch my feet right out in front and under the separator curtain. At least my feet travelled business-class from KL to Dubai!

Arrived at 10:20pm in Dubai, through passport control and a bit of a wait for the shuttle to the emirates hotel for the free night you get if you have over 9 hours wait in Dubai. It was rather nice to settle into a big clean bed for a night to break the long haul from KL to Rome.