By Wow! I cannot believe a week has already passed of us living in KL. We have already done so much in this past week, that it makes me extremely excited to think of all we are going to get to do in the next 3 years! It has been a whirlwind since we landed last Wednesday (at 2am!), but I am enjoying every minute of it! We have been in temporary housing the past week, and will be here another week until we get furniture in our new condo. The furniture shopping has been a task in itself, trying to figure out what we NEED, the best price, etc. but we finally decided to go with a company that deals strictly with ex-pats and rent furniture to fill our massive 3,400 square foot place. The rest of our furniture should be arriving mid-April. (Cannot wait for that…I miss MY bed!)
Our temporary housing is right outside the KLCC (City Center) area, and very close to our new place. We love the area! We are within walking distance of all kinds of restaurants, shopping, grocery stores, the mass transit system, bars, and of course, great people watching! I have also figured out how Uber works over here, and it has been a life saver. We decided not to have a car over here for a couple reasons. #1: Everything is opposite for us. They drive on the right side of the car, on the left side of the road. I’m sure we could try to learn, but with all the easy modes of transportation, we figured we wouldn’t need to. #2: The driving is absolutely insane here. There is so much traffic, traffic rules and signs are merely “suggestions” to people here and they do not seem to follow them, and the motorbike drivers weave in and out and seem to have a death wish as they fly by. It is scary, and crazy just riding in a car, I cannot imagine driving. LOL!
Another task that has been so different, but so much fun for us is grocery shopping. Yes, I said grocery shopping is FUN! Of course, it is hard to find brands we are used to, and when you do find them it is double the price of what it is back home, but we didn’t move across the world to eat Cheetos. We moved to embrace a new culture, and that includes their cuisines. When you can walk into a grocery store (which are set up very Western) and see a man with a machete chopping fresh coconuts, one man squeezing fresh mango and pomegranate juice, and others bringing fresh fish that they literally just caught to the fish counter, that is really neat. That is something you just do not get in the States. Malaysia is also known for their night markets, where you can buy fresh fruits, vegetables and spices so we are going to have to check that out as well.
Through all the settling in, jet lag, errands, and coping with the fact that we literally just left all of our friends and family and are now living on the other side of the world…we were able to play tourists in our new home town. We visited the beautiful Lake Gardens park, which is a tropical paradise located right in the city limits of KL. We had a great time getting outside, embracing the hot weather (and I mean HOT), and looking at all the beautiful trees and flowers in the park.
The next day, we decided to check out KL’s vibrant Chinatown. It was quite the sight! The main street is called Petaling Street, and they have just about everything you could ever need. The sensory overload took over yet again, with intoxicating smells (both good and bad), bright colors of lanterns, goods for sale, fresh flowers and the mouthwatering tastes of amazing dim sum and steamed buns. It was also my first time in a wet market…and all I can say is “whoa”. The wet market is WET. It is also dark, smelly, and crowded. The wet market is where all of the raw meat is sold, and it is all on display dripping blood, ready for purchase. There are live chickens in cages waiting to be slaughtered. Let’s just say this market is not for the faint of heart. I am told this is quite typical and I will see this many more times as I travel through SE Asia…guess I will have to get “used” to it. After winding through the alleys of Chinatown, we spotted a beautiful Quin Tee temple. I love how we can “spot a temple” while walking on the street now! We went inside to take some photos, and were so impressed that once inside all the busy noise from the streets outside went away. It was incredibly peaceful, and an amazing sight to see.
As you can see, we have had quite the first week as ex-pats. We have already made new friends (who we are super excited to get to know better), started settling in to a new routine and a new job (Luke!), played tourists, tried new cuisines, and booked a trip to Australia. We are looking to joining ex-pat organizations and doing a food tour in our new city next weekend. There is so much to look forward to! We are incredibly lucky to say we live here, and are trying to soak it all in, always remembering our motto, “Stay Positive and Love Your Life”.
Happy travels,
Courtney
OFF THE BEATEN 'EX-PAT'H 
We felt as if we traversed the city with you and loved the tour.
You get an A+ for your organization and flow of your blog😍😍😍
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Courtney, you are doing a great job of explaining your new country and customs! I look forward to reading your blog!❤
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