Going a little insane

The past 2 weeks have been uneventful. The highlights were the rare occasions of going out with the entire family from my mom’s side to eat, the entire family from my dad’s side to do the same, and meeting up with some old friends for drinks and food, while sneaking in the occasional trip to the cybercafe or futsal game. Due to sheer boredom, I have also visited the malls a few times (choosing to take the local buses for the most part, which are fun because it’s like I am still backpacking), the first few to hunt for affordable books and the odd clothing item. I’ve learned that “affordable” isn’t such a common word in Malaysia anymore.

Examples: Lonely Planet guidebooks are $15-20 more than if I bought it new in America. A $70 Lacoste polo shirt back in the USA would cost $100 here. A pair of jeans at GAP would cost $100 when most go for $50 back in the USA. The alternative would be to buy non-branded items or buy knock-offs in Petaling Street (Be careful to examine the sizing properly, I had to learn the hard way). No wonder Malaysian visitors always end up buying suitcases full of clothing when they visit the USA, I can’t blame them.

I haven’t been taking many pictures of Malaysia because I’ve taken quite a few during my last trip back, especially of the food so I am too lazy to repeat them. Malaysia’s such a common sight to me that I don’t really find much that catches my attention. I haven’t been on a tear, eating everything up in sight, unlike my last trip back.

After my last trip in 2008, I vowed never to stay for more than 2 weeks on my next trip. I have been here for 2 weeks already with another 1.5 weeks to go and it’s torture. Friends and family are busy with their lives and I keep trying to think of ways to pass my time. I wanted to fly off to East Malaysia and visit for a few days but I failed miserably in my planning and tickets are now too expensive and the timing too tight. I thought of taking a bus to the east coast but it’s the monsoon season there and it’s been raining almost every day. So much for lying by the beach and checking out sea turtles. Seriously, next time I come back, I am not staying for more than 2 weeks. I used to say “I am paying $1200 to fly back, I might as well make it worth it.” But nothing is worth my sanity.