We got to the airport in Kajang at almost 10 p.m. but we got to our AirBnB around 1 a.m. because we had to get some cash and a sim card. The first Grab driver we booked cancelled after waiting for him for about 15 minutes. We booked another Grab and the driver came around midnight.

It’s nice to connect to locals. The people at church were very welcoming. Lelan showed them the letter from one of the elders in his church in Kansas. He also mentioned about the Malaysian guy who used to go to their church. They really made my husband and I feel at home. It’s good that Lelan and some people there have friends in common. We were 15 minutes late for the service. (It started at 8:45 a.m.) They were already having their breakfast fellowship when we got there. They offered us some bread and coffee.

Some of them approached us and spoke with us. Before we left, Chin Ai and Guna Lim asked us about our itinerary and we said we haven’t really pinned down our schedule but my husband mentioned about smoked ducks and they offered to take us there. Since it was already lunch time when we got to the restaurant, they decided to have lunch with us. They paid for the smoked duck and the coconut milkshakes.

They also offered their place for us to rest before taking us to Chinatown. They lent us their socket for our phone charger because the sockets here in Malaysia are different from what we have in the Philippines. At around 2:30, we left Kajang to go to Kuala Lumpur. They first drove us to Chinatown on Petaling Street.

The weather was nice. It was sunny and warm. It rained for a while and then it was sunny again. We walked to Petronas Towers from Chinatown. We inquired if the viewing deck is open tonight. (The tickets were sold out for tonight, unfortunately.) There were a lot of people in Petronas. Guna said that he’d never been to Petronas with that much people. It’s probably because of the New Year’s Eve celebration. We walked back to the parking lot to return to Chin Ai and Guna’s house to fetch the kids.

They took us to an Indian restaurant in Kajang (their treat!), went back to their place to freshen up (long day!), then went back to church for the Watch Night at 9 p.m. It lasted for an hour and then we hung around a bit to talk to other believers there. Some of them gave recommendations about places to visit and food to try here.

It got dark at 8 p.m. I remember it gets dark at 8 p.m. in Hong Kong, too. In the Philippines, it’s already dark outside at 6 p.m. It’s just nice to see the difference. 🙂 I noticed that the roads here are wider and people drive faster (compared to my country). The driver’s seat is on the right side of the car and they drive on the left side of the road. It’s the opposite in the Philippines. Malaysia was colonized by the British for over 100 years so that explains their road system. Malaysia is also kind of a melting pot because there’s a mix of Malays, Chinese, and Indians. The major religion is Islam.

It’s Sunday today and Chin Ai and Guna should be relaxing but they chose to spend their whole day with us. They were very generous with their time and resources. They drove us around and served as our “tour guides” — for free! I think they gave us much information than we could learn from a hired tour guide. We are beyond grateful. I’m glad we connected with believers here.

Kajang Gospel Center

Lunch

To Chin Ai and Dagu’s house

Petaling Street

To the train station

Petronas Towers

Back to the parking lot

Dinner c/o the Lims

Watch Night (Kajang Pusang Gospel Center)

Back to our AirBnb

Called my family in the Philippines to greet them a happy new year