On 30 Aug 2003 04:31:34 -0700, frisbieinstein@yahoo.com (Patrick
Powers) wrote:
>suebo wrote in message news:<940215.1062184554@britishexpats.com>...
>> Thanks for the post Pan, I am heading back there in November for a
>> holiday and people are trying to tell me it is not safe.
>
>
>I found Malaysia more peaceful and safe than the United States.
I tend to agree. Despite some sensational crimes that have been
reported in the Malaysian press recently, there's less crime there.
There's just a little crime on the East Coast, for example, where
there used to be virtually none, but the likelihood that you'll be the
object of a crime if you have a modicum of good sense is quite low.
Nor did I feel the least bit endangered in KL.
> I was
>there during the colonization of Iraq. When I said I was from America
>occasionally people would look a bit unhappy, but no one ever said
>anything. Two Swedish girls I met were harrassed slightly for wearing
>t-shirts and shorts on the east coast.
I think the Swedish girls were ill-advised to wear that outfit in that
part of the country. I noticed many tourists in Kota Bharu wearing
shorts, and I think that's unintentionally disrespectful. When you go
to the East Coast of Malaysia, you certainly don't have to wear a
kerchief if you're a woman, but I highly recommend long pants for both
men and women or a long (at least below the ankle) skirt for a woman.
I always wear 100% cotton long pants and don't find them very hot. The
bottoms can and should be rolled up as necessary, as you'll notice the
locals do. But dressing in a way that's respectful of the culture of
wherever you're visiting is something I'd like more visitors to
consider.
If you really want to wear a bikini, go to a place like Pulau Kapas or
another essentially unpopulated island where the staff are so used to
that that they no longer pay attention, but never think about wearing
a bikini in Kuala Terengganu, where the effect would be like walking
naked through Times Square.
One thing that was immediately apparent to me on my return to New York
is that women here typically wear outfits that show their figure,
whereas most Malaysian women wear outfits that, though often
beautiful, do not show their figure such that you can see the size and
shape of their breasts, for example. That's particularly true of
Muslim women, of course, and I did see some Chinese Malaysians wearing
miniskirts - but not on the East Coast.
>Malaysia costs more than other SE Asia countries though, and not as
>pretty either, so while I liked it and the people were nice it is not
>all that good of a deal I think.
Depends what you're interested in. It's a unique country.
Michael
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