Magical Malaysia (2023) – Part 1

I had the opportunity to visit Malaysia again after my last trip in July 2019. This time, I stayed from December 2 to December 26. I chose Turkish Airlines for my journey, departed from Copenhagen Airport (CPH) for Istanbul Airport (IST). After less than an hour layover in Istanbul, I took the second long journey leg towards the east. Upon reaching Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL), I transferred to a Malaysia Airlines flight (codeshare with Turkish Airlines) headed for Penang International Airport (PEN). Upon arrival, my mother and my sister’s family picked me up and dropped me off at my apartment, a place where I hadn’t slept in nearly 5 years.

I fell ill from the second day until my last day in Malaysia. By the fourth day, I had to seek medical help at the hospital due to a heatstroke. Fortunately, tests for COVID-19 and dengue were negative. A midnight x-ray ruled out pneumonia. Despite battling an on-and-off fever, losing my voice, and enduring a persistent cough that caused chest pain, I pushed through and stuck to my plans: meeting people for outdoor activities.

During my stay at my mother’s in the countryside, I made it a habit to get up at 5:30 every morning, ensuring I caught the sunrise. Some days, I waited for sunset. The only exceptions were the day I returned from the hospital and the final day of my stay when continuous rainfall continued for two days.

The first person I met was Diyana. Our first destination? Queensbay Mall! We opted for Zus Coffee, a local brand gradually gaining ground over Starbucks (thanks to a boycott due to war). Afterwards, it was for some casual window shopping. For dinner, we had authentic Malay cuisine, which turned out to be delightfully spicy! To cap off the night, we treated ourselves to a foot massage. There were fits of laughter, even from the two masseuse, when a funny incident occurred (Diyana, you remember the details!)

End of part 1. So, what’s next?