Was it the Christmas dinner? Or was it the 'not-so-well-done' fried egg I had for lunch? Or perhaps it was the toxic water I swallowed in Kuta? Whatever the cause, my stomach and body wasn't happy at all. As I told you in the previous post, I was pretty stupid and went shopping and surfing in the heat, even though I was suffering from fever, dizziness and dehydration. After spending a whole day in Bali waiting for our flight, we arrived Kuala Lumpur (KL) at two in the morning, where we spent another night at the airport, this time on a bench though... I woke up the next morning feeling very dizzy and having stomach cramps. We stumbled around the airport for a while, being a bit worried as I had discovered blood in the diarrhea. (Maybe too much information.) Anyway, we got to Chinatown where we checked in at the worst hostel we've been staying in on this trip. For the rest of that day I wasn't feeling any better, but we decided to stay there overnight (after consulting our medic friend, Tore, on phone from Norway) and pay a visit to a doctor in the morning. Katrine was also feeling a bit sick, but fortunately she was feeling better than me. By the way, it is pretty nice to travel around with a personal nurse;)
The first picture shows the view from our hospital room. It was quite nice at midnight when the fireworks started. The Petronas Twin Towers are world famous, both for their height and architecture.
The next day we went to the emergency room at one of Malaysia's better hospitals. One hour later I was receiving fluids and antibiotic through a tube while enjoying the view of KL's skyline from my private room on the seventh floor. We got an extra bed for Katrine, and that's how Glenewagles Medical Center was to be our 'hotel' for the next two nights, one of them being New Years Eve! I had probably been food poisoned in Indonesia and I was very dehydrated when we arrived the hospital. (Later we found out that I had dysentery.) We went for a couple of 'home leaves', which we spent window shopping at some of KL's many huge shopping malls. This made us feel even more dizzy, so it didn't take long before we crawled back into our hospital beds. New Years Eve was spent in bed watching the Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy on TV. Not the most exiting start of the new year, but definitely memorable. When we were 'released' from the hospital it was time for real shopping and sightseeing. Actually, before we left the hospital, Katrine was also prescribed some antibiotic. So, high on nasty bacterias and antibiotic we jumped on a tour bus to take us around the city. We went to see the majestic Petronas Twin Towers, made some great bargains in Jalan Petaling (the market in Chinatown) and walked up the 227 steps to the famous Batu Caves.
The next day we went to the emergency room at one of Malaysia's better hospitals. One hour later I was receiving fluids and antibiotic through a tube while enjoying the view of KL's skyline from my private room on the seventh floor. We got an extra bed for Katrine, and that's how Glenewagles Medical Center was to be our 'hotel' for the next two nights, one of them being New Years Eve! I had probably been food poisoned in Indonesia and I was very dehydrated when we arrived the hospital. (Later we found out that I had dysentery.) We went for a couple of 'home leaves', which we spent window shopping at some of KL's many huge shopping malls. This made us feel even more dizzy, so it didn't take long before we crawled back into our hospital beds. New Years Eve was spent in bed watching the Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy on TV. Not the most exiting start of the new year, but definitely memorable. When we were 'released' from the hospital it was time for real shopping and sightseeing. Actually, before we left the hospital, Katrine was also prescribed some antibiotic. So, high on nasty bacterias and antibiotic we jumped on a tour bus to take us around the city. We went to see the majestic Petronas Twin Towers, made some great bargains in Jalan Petaling (the market in Chinatown) and walked up the 227 steps to the famous Batu Caves.
KL is a nice city. It is very multicultural and has a somehow calm atmosphere, for a big city. Our stay here was a bit hectic as we moved six (!) times and stayed in five different places (including the airport) in seven days. One of these places being a nice Arabic 'home stay' in the Arabic Square. Our stay became longer than we had planned for, but KL is definitely not the worst place to get stuck for a few days, and especially if you need medical treatment. It is not cheap though, so I am glad I have travel insurance. (I have already been refunded everything!)
From KL we took one of Malaysia's luxurious buses (only three seats in each row and great space for your legs) to Alor Setar, from where we caught a taxi to Kuala Kedah and then with boat to the island of Langkawi. Langkawi (situated on the north west coast) is one of Malaysia's hottest tourist spots, and it has a lot to offer, including tax-free shopping... However, we didn't feel like doing too much the two days we were there, except laying on its fine white sand beaches, swim in the warm, clear ocean, and eat fried rice. We rented a sea kayak for a couple of hours just to get some exercise and to get to a small island with a beautiful beach. We stayed in Pantai Chenang, on the western part of the island, so we enjoyed beautiful sunsets.
The white sand beaches in Langkawi
The sunset made us a little bit corny....
From Malaysia we headed into Thailand...the adventure continues exclusively on torsteinsworld
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1 comment:
I would say that I certainly had the real Thai experience
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