Landing in KL

Hellllllllllo Kuala Lumpur, or KL to those of us in the know. KL is the capital city of Malaysia and it is fantastic. Whenever I stepped off the plane in Dubai I felt like I was taking a giant step back into the past. In KL, I feel like I'm leaping into the future. The city is vibrant, the people are nice - they smile, laugh, and are helpful. It wasn't until I arrived here that I realized I never heard people laughing in Dubai. A lot of people move to Dubai out of necessity. They are earning money to send back home or to create a nest egg. There's very little sense of community and most people can't wait to get home. In KL, people are here because they love it. I love it!

But I have no time to run through the streets with my arms opened wide. We must get down to work and my job is to try and find an apartment. I spend days apartment hunting. My husband and I don't want a place that will be a hassle, so condo living is for us. We are hoping to take lots of long weekends and breaks so we can explore this part of the world. We don't want a big place we have to clean or a garden we need to look after. I see lovely flats in the suburbs of Bangsar and Mont Kiara, but it's obvious pretty quickly that it's necessary to have a car to get around. We want to stick to mass transit, so I limit my search to KLCC - Kuala Lumpur City Centre. There's a lot to choose from. The economic downturn has reached all the way to Malaysia and a lot of expats have left or have found their housing budget slashed. That said, after living in NYC, London, and Dubai the rent here is peanuts! You can get a nice 2 bedroom apartment in the suburbs with a pool, gym, and tennis court for around RM 3000. The exchange rate at the moment is RM 3.7 for $1 US.

The apartments in the centre of the city are a little smaller and the amenities aren't quite as nice for the price, but we compromise. We take a place in the Parkview. The location is excellent. We can walk everywhere. It's a little noisy due to some nightclubs nearby, but our landlord Mrs. Chong is working to soundproof our place.

Just outside our door is a row of hawker stands. You can fill up on a buffet lunch for RM4. That's less than $1.10!! The food in Malaysia is unbelievably delicious and I plan eat it all!