week five | kuala lumpur, malaysia

I’d really like to think of myself as a ‘yes’ person and my trip to KL probably proves just that. When my lovely big sis asked me to join her at the 2014 ISUM summit to be her right hand gal I pretty much booked my flights on the spot. It’s not the first time I’ve been to KL but it’s the first time in a long time (I think I was about 12 when I last went) and it was for a very different reason.

Living through a slightly stressful couple of days before I departed meant that I hadn’t really given much thought to what to expect. I knew it would be hot, and it certainly was; however it is a very different heat compared to Thailand. The sun really burns and for some reason KL’s skies rained big hot raindrops at least once a day for my entire trip.

Before I begin with what actually brought me to KL I wanted to quickly mention a perfect little café that we visited on day two. Pulp is absolutely perfect. It’s built into an old paper factory (oh hello) and they sell their own home brew cold press and so many other seriously good coffee choices. If you are in KL please go, Pulp is perfect and I’ll be looking from afar with longing eyes for years to come.

Now I was in  KL to attend and assist at the 2014 ISUM Summit, a gathering of pretty much all the greatest people on earth; over 200 people who live and breath urban community development. There were workshops, panel discussions on women in development and leadership, guest speakers like John Perkins and Jayakumar Christian plus many other truly exceptional people. It was like playing a who’s, who of authors of books on my bookshelf!  The conference both inspired and excited me - for my future working within the development field alongside some of the most humble, kind, passionate and interesting people I could ever hope to be surrounded by. With days jam packed with running around the summit and evenings filled with conversation about anything and everything under the sun, it was a perfect way to recharge and refocus.

KL is a very interesting place. We spent most of our time in the little India part of town and I couldn’t help but compare it to my home in Bangkok. Some things were exactly the same, and some things couldn’t be more different. Malaysia is essentially an Islamic country and that impacted us girls far more then any of us has probably expected. We often felt uncomfortable and it felt a little unsafe to go out alone after dark. There was also a noticeable difference in how we women were treated in comparison to our male friends.

Over all it was the people who made this trip. Being there to help and being able to meet and spend time with some seriously superb people was an incredible experience. On our last night C and I treated ourselves to a sky bar drink with a view of the famous Petronas Twin Towers and we reflected on how lucky we are that this is our life. As I sat there surrounded by love and filled with excitement with what’s to come I couldn’t help but be amazed, I’m just so blessed. 

TRIP RATING: 5/5 CHCKEN BIRIYANI’S