First day in Malaysia :D

I don't even know where to start :D Ears, nose, eyes, taste - complete sensory overload! :D

Malaysia, or more precisely Georgetown in Penang, is just completely different! Therefore, even more exciting. The accommodation through Airbnb was a very good choice, I feel really comfortable and often chat with the two hosts in the evenings. Their cat Ally is a bit shy, but really cute!

As you can tell, I still don't know where to start, I could tell you about 50,000 different things :D

Yesterday after arriving, on the advice of my hosts Peter and Mei, I immediately went to the Kek Lok Si Temple; so I got on a bus and hoped that I knew where to get off.

Bus rides actually deserve a separate article ;) The bus only stops if you stick your arm out with your palm facing down and wave it up and down, otherwise it just keeps going :D I went to the driver, said where I wanted to go, and the next question was immediately: Where do you come from? ;) It is not uncommon here in general for me to be the only European-looking traveler. In general, there are not many tourists here at this time and you just stand out. Well, what can I say ;) Basic rule on buses: Have change ready, because there is no change on buses. There are also simply slots next to the driver where you put the money. Banknotes start at 1RM (Ringgit, but people here also say dollars), 1RM is currently about 22 cents. My ride cost 2RM. I can't believe some of the prices here sometimes. And I also have a hard time estimating them. I have a lot of banknotes in my pocket, but they only add up to about 20 euros. A completely different world ;) Back to the bus: luckily I had attentive fellow passengers, I would never have recognized where I had to get off, but an older lady opposite me just waved her hands somehow and said Temple, Temple :) So many helpful people here!

The streets here are also more made for cars, you walk at the side of the road hoping not to be hit by one of the motorcycles or similar. At the beginning I really had to concentrate, given the abundance of cars, the noise, sounds, smells, etc., but now I'm quite good at 'run as fast as you can when you see a free spot :D' or 'What does red or green mean anyway?' 

In the evening I enjoyed the famous street food of Penang. Small hawkers, meaning street food stalls, are everywhere. But don't think of something modern like in our country. I often don't know what I'm ordering, but so far everything has been delicious :D I always just say: No meat, no seafood and hope that's what I get in the end ;) In the dishes below, there's usually always meat or fish, I just always order them without, so I can still try the 'national dishes'.

Back at the accommodation, I evaluated my day with Peter and Mei and they gave me many more tips and I grilled them about the Malay language. I was initially surprised that there are no characters and often different languages flow into each other due to the many influences in Penang and Malaysia in general. That's why the food is so great here, it combines Indian, Chinese, Malay, etc.

Why am I talking about food again? :D

And Malay is often an English word, spoken exactly the same way, but spelled differently, for example bas or kastams. I think you get it, right? ;)

And when the locals here speak English with me, it's also really interesting. There's always a kind of 'la' at the end of the word. So 'ok-la' or 'no-la' :D I love it :)

Yesterday I went to bed with a lot of impressions and I'm looking forward to the next few days!