Petronas towers

March 28th, 2013

Bangkok, Thailand

Song of the Day: Canon in D by Pachelbel

Mood: Sore after a full day in a classroom of 8-12 year olds

Petronas towers

The Petronas towers stand in the center of KL. They were the tallest building in the world from 1998 to 2003 and remain the largest twin towers in the world.

Source: Wiki

They are a key part of the city skyline.

They overlook a beautiful park complete with fountains

A tourist's first view is from the sky bridge on the 42nd floor and then he or she can go to the 86th for the top view. Even from the sky bridge, you can tell how high up you are:

Then you realize how tall the towers are when you get to the top

Brief aside for neat gizmo

The introductory video is projected onto smoke

Top of the world

Everybody wants to be the best and prove that they are the best. On the 85th floor, there is a gallery of all the tallest buildings in the world from the Trump (423m) to the Burj Khalifa (828m)

 

The Petronas towers panel is correctly placed between the International Commerce Center in Hong Kong and the Zifeng Tower in Nanjing, but the scale is completely changed for that panel:

Petronas at 452m is a mere 2m taller than Zifeng (450m)

This panel makes it look massive and is totally misleading. This reminds me of how people often pick and choose parameters to support a point they are trying to make. 80% of drivers in the US think they are above average drivers. In Minnesota, we say that every child is above average. Realizing illusory superiority is important for maintaining humility on a personal level. As well, always question people who claim they should rank highly, and ensure the criteria that inform their conclusion are acceptable.

Practical jokes

I don't like practical jokes because they can go wrong so easily, but I seem to forget this rule once every year or two. The latest bout of amnesia occurred while my new friend and I were taking pictures of the Petronas Towers from afar. We saw and bought Guy Fawkes masks to surprise the Nation Builder at her office after her meeting ended at 10:30pm. She wouldn't be scared because she would realize it was us right away based on our clothes and body types. We would laugh and everything would be great. What could possibly go wrong!?!

Almost there...

Well, it turns out a lot can go wrong. Instead of being at her desk, my friend was walking through the hallway. I passed by a window, and she only caught a glimpse of me. Obviously if you were at your office alone and you saw a masked man, you would be concerned. Unfortunately, when she called out asking who's there, we were going to the back door and could not respond. We made it to her desk, but didn't find her there. We realized that she had rationally made a break for it. Unsurprisingly, when we called her and she realized what happened, she was not amused.

Not funny guys

I am officially back in retirement from practical jokes.

Impressions of Kuala Lumpur

March 27th, 2013

Bangkok, Thailand

Song of the Day: Total Praise by Richard Smallwood

Mood: Refreshed

The nation builder

My favorite part about Kuala Lumpur was spending time with the Nation Builder and her friends. First, I enjoyed their kindness. They fully welcomed me into their plans and community while I was there.

 

Second, their energy was contagious and I enjoyed being around smart and capable young professionals. They are the future leaders of Kuala Lumpur and their drive made me further realize how much fun it would be to be fully immersed in a community of people who are like me.

The Nation Builder is incredibly talented and ambitious. She improves the quality of education in low-income communities through her job. In addition, she co-founded a national internship program as well as a dating service in Kuala Lumpur (not to mention a lot of informal networking). As far as I could tell, she slept fewer than five hours per night, but woke up ready to tackle the day. When I was getting ready for a traditional Malaysian breakfast, she was already moving and shaking.

Random awesomeness

Each culture has its own peculiarities and I love traveling because I can delight in the differences. For example, when you approach a traffic flag waver in KL, everything looks typical.

But when you see a sculpted face and stiff hair, you realize that the person isn't a person at all. It is actually a store mannequin that has been automated to wave its hand up and down.

I'm sorry, this is the best picture I have. Just trust me... 

Another interesting aspect is that the number 4 is unlucky in Chinese and Malaysian cultures. In America, buildings often skip the 13th floor. In Malaysia, oftentimes when a floor ends in 4 it is changed to 3A.

All around the world, people like this building supervisor have a sense of humor

The culture

In Malaysia, the people speak Malay. However, since the country used to be controlled by the British, many, many people speak English fluently.

It was interesting to see the combination of the old and the new. In one part of town, you can experience a market for traditional art and culture at the Central Market. You can even pick up a pair of Aladdin pants

On the river next to it, there is modern street art

Islam

Malaysia is an Islamic country. By constitution, the President must be Malay. To be Malay, one must be Muslim. In America, we separate ethnicity and religion, but here they are one and the same. Islam permeates all areas of the culture from the clothes to the architecture.

The Islamic Arts Museum is famous

There is a mosque in the middle of the city center 

However, not all the people are Muslim and the society has evolved accordingly. There is a dual court system where some people are subject to common law and others are judged according to Sharia law. One big consequence is that if you marry a Muslim, you are required by law to convert to Islam. Yet, if you do, you are now subject to Sharia law. Under Sharia law, anyone who converts from Islam receives the death penalty. Although this is often enforced in the Middle East, it is rarely enforced in Malaysia. Even so, many interracial or interreligious couples flee the country if they can afford it. In the words of one person from Kuala Lumpur, "We haven't had our civil rights movement yet."

As of now, the country is about 60% Malay, 23% Chinese, and 7% Indian.

It makes me appreciate how much freedom we have (and take for granted) in America. 

Kuala Lumpur Bird Park

March 24th, 2013

Tokyo, Japan

Song of the Day: Still fly by the Big Tymers

Mood: Content

Kuala Lumpur bird park

My favorite activity in KL was going to world's largest open air bird park. The scenery was beautiful and the birds amazing.

Even the plants were birds

My new job = bird tamer

My Malay Eagle Owl friend

Indian Blue Peafowl

Babies! 

Flamingoes

 

For nearly five minutes, the flamingo on the left kept trying to eat from the communal bowl. However, he was continuously rebuffed by the flamingo on the upper right:

Finally, they became friends

Ostrich and the emus

This ostrich was king of the pen. He chased the smaller emus around to assert his dominance

Birds with big beaks

Pelican pair

Milky stork eating lunch

Sacred ibis

Hornbills

Southern ground hornbill

Colorful birds

Rainbow lorikeet

Yes, even birds like to wrestle

Lovebird

 

Green winged macaw

Chattering lorry

Mealy amazon

America!

Big feet

Whitish birds

Yellow sulphur crested cockatoo

The best of the rest

This is what a zombie bird would look like