Although normally just narrating Norwegian news for Norway Today, I have decided to attempt a broader view of how Norwegians perceive the world , and maybe how we in return are perceived on my stay in Malaysia.
Malaysia has many things in common with Norway, shere landsize, diverse landscape and ethnics, dependency on natural resources, to name a few.
The differences are also huge from a Norwegian perspective – although the legal system is based on the English, the corruption is immense for a start.
The major ethnic are the Malay, who are compulsionary Muslim, but a large portion of the population are also Chinese – this is were my wife enter the story – alongside a sizeable chunk of Indians, brought in by the brits.
The upside of this cultural mix is that you have a fantastic food culture – period.
Getting there
Being fortunate to live in Stavanger, Norway I can fly hassle free via Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur (are you listening, KLM?). British Airways and Several Middle East carriers are available, if you want to torture yourself – but Singapore Airlines are simply the best – if you are very rich, of course.
I must admit to have no Idea to the best way to travel from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to the city, as friends and family provide much faster and better service, but the cost should not be abmyssal.
Daybook
Digressions aside, my wife and I, after shopping essential cheese at Sciphol, and making sure the pickled herring(!) was safely packed, had to make haste from Terminal D to F at Schiphol. If you didn’t do your daily walk yet, Schiphol is the place.
Did I mention that I recommend KLM? The flight was pleasant, the service was good, the special order of beef rendang recommendable, but the chicken buryiani was also a good choice for an inflight meal (I really ought to get paid for this, you know) – will as always recommend to spend a trifle more on legspace if you are taller than 6 ft 5”.
We rushed through imigrasion as my wife still holds a Malaysian passport, as we also did at the Schengen border due to my Norwegian one – use the system I say – averting the eyes of the customs officers.
On the other side we were greeted by our Chinese driver, exited at having his first “angh Mo” client (white person). after a little glitch,- taxi battery flat- we headed for home, some four hours drive south.
Again, being blessed with a Malaysian born Chinese wife, we stopped for a fantastic fish soup meal at an obscure restaurant of the main road that Michelin has not yet visited.
More Later
Pieter Wijnen for Norway (Malaysia) Today
