On Our Way to Kuala Lumpur

The following morning E seemed fine: a little warmer than usual and sporting remnants of his cough (courtesy of a chest infection from a few weeks earlier). We decided we’d go ahead with our travel plans.

Our itinerary was following:

Auckland to Singapore (10-hour flight for which I had been preparing for a month: I raided a few $2 Dollar stores and stocked up on all sorts of stuff that would keep E busy and us sane); an overnight stay in Singapore; a morning flight to Kuala Lumpur; 4 nights in KL (two of the days Eric was supposed to teach a class while E and I explored the city); a flight back to Singapore; a ferry ride to Bintan Island: CLUB MED, HERE WE COME!; 7 nights at Club Med (with E booked into Petit Club); a ferry ride back to Singapore; 2 nights in Singapore; a 10-hour flight back to Auckland.

Ten hours on a plane for a 2.5 year old is a long, I repeat, a LOOOONG time! I need to admit that we did not go through too much of $2.00 stuff (new Barney and Thomas DVDs were sufficient for most of the flight). E was actually quite good (those who know me, will surely understand that this admission is not a common one coming out of my mouth). However, he did seem to develop a bit of a fever and started complaining about his tummy. 30 minutes before we landed, he threw up. Interestingly enough, after this brief episode, his temperature went back to normal (thankfully since the flight attendants freaked out fearing swine flu and had us take his temperature). And thus we were allowed into the country. E seemed fine again.

We stayed over-night at the airport hotel and actually were glad we were not continuing our journey to Kuala Lumpur until the following morning. E woke up at 3:30am so he and I took off to explore the airport while Eric slept in.









In order to catch our plane, we needed to switch terminals. Once we arrived at our gate, I realized my attire (tank top and shorts) was completely inappropriate. I had read about the Malaysian customs and was certainly ready to respect the culture... once we actually got there! Suffice it to say, I got plenty of looks (disapproving, curious, condescending... all sorts). E was a pill too: crawling under the chairs, invading other people's spaces, screaming at the top of his voice and slapping Eric who tried to curb him. We must have confirmed all preconceptions and stereotypes about Westerners: indecent women, spoilt and unruly kids, and husbands who just did not have it under control!

We managed to survive the flight even though E was much less cooperative than on the long flight the day before (sleep deprivation and not feeling 100% did not help, I assume).