You Look Funny....

Hindu Temple, KL

Welcome back!   It's time to study The Mysteries of the Far East here at the Yellow River Chronicles.  Many thanks for reading and sending your pithy reviews and commentary.  Based on your honest feedback I will sit up straight and try to fly right as we visit faire Kuala Lumpur and the nearby city of Malaka.

This spring, EP and I headed to Kuala Lumpur (known as "KL" in the region) in search of medallions.  As you may remember from our last adventure, EP and I now collect amulets from the temples we visit as a way of staying "lucky".  EP was also attending a business meeting, and I took the opportunity to search for good satay and other spicy street food.

Old Town, KL

Kl, as it turns out is a treasure trove of: a) great snacks and b) a diverse and complex mix of nationalities, cultures and architecture.  While Malaysia is a Muslim nation, there are Hindu temples, Christian churches, Muslim mosques and Buddhist temples located across the street from each other.  

Chinese Temple, Malaka

Malaka, an ancient coastal city near KL was founded as a sultanate in 1400 and has seen the Chinese, the Dutch, the Portugese, the British, and the Japanese all claim ownership at a point in time.  The extra room was always occupied in Malaka, it seems, until recently when they finally got the region back to themselves.

Malaka Day Trippers

And a fine country it is, by the way. The Muslim/Malay culture is very strong, well-mixed with a Chinese and an Indian influence.  Both have their respective "towns" in KL that are large tourist draws, strangely enough.  Why someone would go to KL to visit a Chinatown or Indiatown is a mystery to me.  I am looking forward to "Foreign Town" opening in the 'Hai so I can work there selling authentic American crafts like beer-can wind chimes, NASCAR t-shirts and Michael Jackson statuettes.


However, back to KL.  Women clothed in saris walk next to Chinese mainland princesses and folks in traditional Muslim garb and nobody seems to pay much attention to anyone else.  In KL, nobody looks....funny.  We were able to wander the streets, ride the monorail, score medallions at temples, unnoticed as part of the chaotic, hot, multicolored hive that is KL.

Street Scene, KL with diversity

Street scene, Shanghai

What made this all the more startling was...well, the Han factor back in the People's republic.  China is a mono-culture in comparison.  If you look at the digits, it is +90% Han, and more concentrated in the big cities.  Faire Shanghai is actually 99% Han. This means it has the relative cultural diversity of a James Taylor concert.  It also means if you are not Han, you will look funny in the chaotic, hot, uni-colored hive that is Shanghai.

There have been many situations where EP and I have been stopped by a group of Chinese tourists visiting Shanghai and asked to take a picture.  When we attempt to take the camera so we can photograph the group, after a comical camera wrestling match, we learn that, no, they don't want us to take their picture, they want a picture of us with them.  So EP and I have stood next to Grandpa and Grandpa Li, Mr. and Mrs. Wang, the Zhang family and others, doing our best to look funny.

Afternoon heat in KL

We returned from Malaysia impressed with their history of "getting along", a great curry buzz and with some very potent amulets of my favorite Hindu deity, Ganesh.  I have noticed a major increase in good fortune and a strong desire for Indian food.


Looking funny aside, by comparison our mainland friends are strong on "unity" but do not always view diversity in a positive light.  This sometimes has consequences for those citizens who are in the non-Han 10%.  We will leave it at that here behind the Great Firewall.  Thanks again for reading and we'll chat next week.