Chinese Visa hell

Trip Start Jan 02, 2008
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63
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Trip End Jun 17, 2008


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Where I stayed
Kameleon Travellers Lodge
(Kuala Lumpur hotels)

Flag of Malaysia  , Wilayah Persekutuan,
Thursday, May 8, 2008

I feel like I spent the majority of my time in KL, at or going to and from the Chinese embassy.  I had a nightmare getting my visa.  Partially it was my own fault, because I forgot to take my flight tickets with me on the first day, although most countries you can get away without.  I went back the following day with everything they had told me to bring, but then they tell me I also need proof of a hotel booking.  I don't even know when I'm going into China, nevermind where I'm going to stay.  I considered making up a friend I could stay with, but they wanted a letter from them.  Decided I could solve the problem by just booking a hotel on the Internet, but that didn't turn out to be that easy, because suddenly every Internet cafe in KL had vanished or was closed.  The clock was ticking, because the embassy closed at 11.35am and I couldn't apply for my visa a day later...it was now or never.  I searched the area for the Internet....nothing.  I jumped in a taxi and told him to take me to the nearest Internet cafe...he took me to a cafe without internet.  I was so mad and getting really frantic.  It took me over an hour to find somewhere and I booked the first hostel I could find, on a random date I thought I'd be in China.  I'll probably end up cancelling it anyway.  It's a complete farce!  I get back to the embassy and the queue is now massive.  I got to the front at 11.31am...4 minutes to spare...talk about cutting it fine!  Luckily they accept everything, but I have to pay double to get a rush job for the next day.  Picking it up was fine, apart from a mini panic when my debit card didn't work and I had no cash to pay for my visa.  Thankfully it was just a problem with one bank, otherwise I really would have been buggered.  China had better be worth all this effort!

I didn't have much luck with sight seeing either.  I attempted to go up the Petronas Towers 3 times, but failed.  Day 1...they are closed on Mondays.  Day 2...you have to arrive there early because they only issue a certain number of tickets each day with set time slots.  I knew this but got held up at the embassy, so when I arrived it was a 4 hour wait.  Day 3...arrived there at 8.30am and already the queue was huge.  I couldn't wait because I had to go to the bloody embassy again, so by the time I got back the only time slots available were at the end of the day.  I gave up.  I've seen plenty of city views from high buildings, I'm sure this one cant be much different.

The hostel I stayed in was a dive.  My room wasn't too bad, but the bathroom stunk of urine.  So far I'm not sounding too positive about my time in KL, but I did have fun.  Just to stick to the negative things for a little longer...I discovered that I've lost half of my travelers cheques.  It could have happened anytime in the last 3 months, because I just have them for back-up, so hadn't noticed they were missing.  At least it's not cash and I can just cancel them.  Although I am curious to what happened to them, because I kept them in a safe place, they couldn't have just fallen out.

Onto the positive things now.  The food was great.  Or I should probably say the Indian food was great.  The population is divided between Malay, Indian and Chinese, so the food is a mix of these.  The Malay food was nothing special for a veggie.  It was often buffet style, a plate of rice with a choice of fried bean-sprouts or cabbage.  I stayed away from the Chinese food, because I'm sure my choice would be even more limited.  For breakfast I tried the street food and found myself getting something florescent green every time...they have a thing about green food colouring.  They also have a thing about sugar...they put it in everything.  Getting tea without sugar is a challenge, not because they don't understand, because they don't think it's possible!

I walked miles and miles around KL, exploring Little India, China town and the markets.  Chow Kit Market is very local selling mainly food, worth going to for the experience.  Central Market is very touristy, but they sell some nice stuff and it's worth going to for the a/c.  The night market on Jalan Petaling sells mainly knock-off crap, worth going to if you want to haggle for a fake watch. 

I attempted to walk to the Museum of Islamic Art, but it is surrounded by motorways and if you approach it from the wrong direction, like me, you will get yourself trapped.  I was having difficulties finding my way with my crap map, so I asked a man for directions and he told me to get a taxi because it was dangerous.  I ignored him...surely it would be possible to walk to a museum safely.  It isn't.  I should have listened to him.  I got myself trapped in a motorway maze and ended up running across 10 lanes of traffic.  Realised my life was in danger, so I got a taxi and the driver just laughed at me for attempting the walk.  I got to the museum after 2 1/2 hours of trying to find it.  It was completely empty, not surprising, since it's hardly the easiest place to get to. 

I mastered how to use the public transport.  I got the bus to Batu Caves (several caves with Hindu shrines inside).  It was impressive, but I think I've seen enough temples and caves to last me a lifetime, so I wasn't blown away.  I got the metro back and forward from the embassy, so I used it quite a bit!  It's simple to use, but not very convenient, because none of the lines are linked together, so you're continuously buying new tickets and trying to find your next connection.  I experienced morning rush hour on the subway and was really shocked at how orderly it was.  No pushing and shoving.  No trying to squeeze onto a train when it's already full.  Everyone stood in a single file queue, patiently waiting in silence.  Even on the train people were standing in neat lines and there was even room to turn around.

On my last night I met up with CK, Gabriel and Berend again.  I had dinner in the suburbs of KL, then Gabriel took me back into the city on his bike...such a great ride and I got a tour of KL at night.  Then I tagged along with a big group of Berend's friends for a night of Salsa dancing.  Lots of fun and met some great people.
 
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