Ah…A Mall!

I managed to take a quick break from work today and went for a little walk around the hotel. It was a pretty walk as it was around a park and leafy boulevards. Crossing the road, however, was quite a heart-stopper. First, the traffic was in the opposite direction from that in KL and remember…organised chaos! So cars are zipping all around at top speeds regardless of whether the lights were green or not! So, several times, I ran across their huge 4 lane roads whenever I saw a local crossing! They don’t have sidewalks either so I was initially pretty freaked out to be walking by the side of the road with cars zipping just a hairs-breadth away! Was it safe? Well, I guess it was but still there’s always that freaky paranoia when walking alone.

I followed the map the hotel gave me to a supposed nearby mall and yes, being a typical girl…I got lost! *rolls eyes* I went straight instead of turning left and found myself at a brown-grey shabby building which had Reebok on it, under some graffiti. Everything else was empty and the windows looked broken and abandoned. That was when I started getting quite scared. Asking passerbys was quite useless as they simply didn’t understand English! I turned back, tried to get my bearings and soon I was on the right track! :)

After a long walk, there it was, a Western-style mall! Complete with an ice-skating rink in the middle of it, albeit much smaller than the one in Sunway Pyramid. I was truly surprised to find it filled with famous brands from Calvin Klein to Moschino, they had it all! There was even a hypermarket which I took a stroll in and was pretty surprised to see how expensive the things were, even basic groceries. A little old lady I saw was buying a pack of 4 small chicken drumsticks for approximately US$2.50 equivalent. It’s an oil-rich country now with lots of money flying around but I do wonder how the less wealthy cope with their annual inflation of 9%!

I had to rush back soon after for a meeting and unable to stomach the walk back, I opted for a taxi and got terribly ripped off! :( I paid KTZ1,000 or US$10 for a taxi ride back to the hotel which was just behind the park opposite! Ouch, indeed! But the mall was really quite interesting and worth that little jaunt, even if it costed me so much to get back!

August 10, 2007 | Filed Under  

Comments

3 Responses to “Ah…A Mall!”

  1. may on August 11th, 2007 9:13 am

    cab charges are just as expensive here. I always think twice before hailing one — it’s the bus for me, to save money!

    no pix of the mall? I think it’s time you got one of those disposable cameras and clicked away!

    PE says: Oh yes, I remember taking a cab once when we were rushing to our exam venue. The cab stopped and ala Malaysian style, we leaned in to ask if he would take us to XYZ. He said, “Come in, I’ll take you anywhere you want to go!” Haha…such a refreshing change from the surly drivers here!

  2. Aurelia on August 11th, 2007 10:48 am

    Ah, now we know PE kena kon in taxi fares same as how the tourists here kena kon Sungai Wang to KLCC = RM20. My heart goes out to you, PE! Hugs!!

    PE says: Yalor, kena con :(

  3. rinnah on August 13th, 2007 12:07 pm

    Oooer… I guess taxi drivers are the same all over the world!

    And malls are fun! Heh.

    PE says: They are! Just looking for ways to rip tourists off!

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