Fun in KL

As I have said before, my host family is very tightly knit, so when I get to hang out with my friends it is a treat!  Last weekend all of the YES (aka American) exchange students got to hang out KL (Kuala Lumpur) with YES returnees (Malaysians who have stayed in the USA).  It was a lot of fun, we got to hang out for awhile and compare our experiences, go to a traditional Malaysian restaurant, go shopping at KLCC and see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt 2 in theatres!  It was so much fun to be crazy and loud around my friends, share hugs, and be sarcastic.  The reason this is so refreshing is because in general Malays are very quite, serious, don't hug, and hate sarcasm.  It is very hard for us (well me, at least) to act like this for very long, so when we can be ourselves it is a huge relief.  I am used to a very active and 'loud' life style, so being trapped at home without activity for weeks at a time makes me go insane! 

We got to go shopping at KLCC, which is a real treat.  KLCC is actually located in the Petronas towers (one of the 5 tallest buildings in the world), and has a HUGE shopping mall.  The shopping is unlike anything I have ever experienced before, and I can easily see why people come from all over the world to go shopping here.  Each mall has at least 5 floors, a several book stores, hundreds of  clothing stores, a theatre (or two), a bowling alley, multiple music and gaming stores, cooking stores, dozens of restaurants and sometimes even an ice skating rink.  One could easily spend ALL day in one of the malls and still only cover a few of the floors. 

The Petronas towers with the KLCC mall

KLCC

KLCC



Skating rink in the mall

 Outside of the YES students, I am getting along really well with the other exchange student in out state, Facundino.  He is from Argentina and has been in Malaysia since January.  It is extremely interesting to hear about his experiences so far, and I can practice my Spanish with him.  His host family owns a restaurant, and my parents are good friends with his parents, so we go to his restaurant a couple of times a week.  That way we get good company and delicious food.

Dinner including blue rice and fish chips

Red chili chicken with rice, delicious but SPICY