March 19, 2008

I've reread some of my posts and I've filled everyone in on what we've been doing so today I figured I'd let you know about some of my observances. I've mentioned before that the government here is run by the Muslim-based party and one of their campaigns is "Aren't we courteous?" I am assuming that because Malaysia is such an ecletic mix of races and religions, the government trys to stress being nice and tolerant to one another. Is this true? In some cases this is true, I mean there aren't people walking around speaking to everyone they meet with huge grins on their faces- it's not Willy Wonkaville- but the general idea is "If you don't bother me, I won't bother you". Courtesy is completely forgotten of course when you're dealing with traffic. Whether it be if you're driving, riding a scooter, a bus, or even getting on and off the subway. It's every man for himself. They have no concept of forming " a single-filed line" or queue as it's called here. Where ever you fit in, you get in. I've already mentioned my adventure riding in the car with Jim and how the other drivers are, but the people on motor scooters are worse. They don't abide by any traffic laws, they dart in and out between cars, ride on the sidewalk, and run red lights. I may have mentioned this story to some, but I got nailed by a guy on a scooter last week. I was crossing the street in the pedestrian crosswalk, and as I was about to step onto the sidewalk, the guy on the scooter just ran right into me because he was about to run the red light. He looked at me like it was all my fault and I wasn't hurt, I was more angry and shocked if anything. So now when I cross the street I look like a squirrel running in traffic dodging anything and everything. They really don't enforce their traffic laws, the only time a see a police officer pulling anyone over is when there is a really bad accident, mostly involving scooters. So much for courtesy!

My next observance is all about fashion!! Now I know that I've mentioned the number of malls that Jim and I have visited and it's not because we are shopaholics, it's because of the number of malls present here. A mall in Malaysia is not only a place to shop, it's a place to be seen, congregate, socialize and it offers free air-conditioning which draws a lot families. The malls differ also by what they offer. I've noticed some malls where the shops are mostly individually owned stores so each store can be completely different, whereas the other malls are all designer. I've been noticing the women lately and designer seems to be the route that most of them take, and here I am looking for common practical clothing and shoes. Indian women seem the most practical of the 3 main ethnic groups here ( Indian, Chinese, & Muslim Malay). Typically they wear sandals, loose pants and tunic tops, and of course their hair is usually a long braid and then they wear their bindi on their forehead ( little red dot, possibly accommpanied by a rhinestone). Chinese women are all about brand names: Gucci, Hilfiger, Dolce & Gabbana, Tods, you name it they have to have it. Whether their knock-offs or not is really hard to tell. The demand for brand names here is very high so it's really easy to find either the real thing or a very well made fake. Why you would buy the real thing when there is a comparable knock-off that's cheaper is beyond me, yet the malls are filled with designer stores everywhere. The last group of Muslim-Malay is the most surprising to me. When I was riding the subway I noticed that 2/3 of the people riding with me were Muslim women. Now I know when I lived back home, my idea of the Islamic garb that they wear was very drab, usually black from head to foot. That's usually what's depicted in the reports that we see. Oh so not the truth!!! Here's what I know: Women's dress in Islamic culture is based on a principle of female modesty. Customs of the time, place, and social class of the women might influence what she might wear. Some options include hijab, that is to say the head scarf must be worn at all times no matter what, but the women can wear a variety of clothing elsewhere. Some wear loose flowing clothing, a lot of teenagers wear jeans and a blouse but the head scarf is always present. Others may choose the traditional burka, completely covered head to toe. Here's what surprises me, Muslims women take great care in what they wear. I've seen some of the best dressed Muslim women ever!! If they chooses just the hijab, it's a very pretty, ornate scarf with something sparkly on it and it usually matches their shirt. The ones that choose the burka look very elegant and poised, the fabric is usually something soft like silk or organza and it also coordinates with their head scarf and probably has a print. And the whole world unites with...SHOES!!!! If you ever visit and you weren't already shoe crazy you soon will be by the time you return home. Very few women wear gym shoes, that's mostly reserved for the teenagers and if you're actually going to exercise. It's mostly sandals, kitten heels, high heels, espadrilles, wedges, mules...you name it I've seen it. I don't see how they walk around all day in them but everyone appears comfortable. The busiest store this past weekend at Mid-Valley mall was a shoe store having a 50% off sale, there was literally a line going out the door of either people trying to go in or people going out. I wanted to look but I highly doubted that my size would have been available. If I could give out any advice to the women that live here, it would be PLEASE please, please, go get a pedicure!! The number of shoes that I've seen equals the number of raggedy toes I've seen. LOL!!! As for men's fashion there are an equal number of men's stores to women' s stores although they are more conservative. The only exception being young Chinese men, they may primp just as much as their women counterparts. I'm actually envious of some of their hairstyles although when it comes to dressing themselves I think they may do it with the lights off because some of their combinations are ridiculous! I saw a guy wearing plaid pants that were dark with stripes of burgundy and blue in them wearing a bright green and yellow soccer styled shirt...c'mon!!!

The only other thing I want to comment on is the amount of discipline here. 5 times a day you can hear the call to prayer ringing around the city. All muslims must pray 5 times a day no matter where they are and on Friday's around 1:30 pm there is the mandatory prayer that I think most perform in the mosques because people will park anywhere and everywhere around that time even double, triple park. The children are also very well behaved, occasionally in mall we would see one get spanked for acting up, but even their spanking would cause someone at home to get reported to the police. The exception being expats kids who I assume are using the "time out" method. Also I've been reading the paper and when I read how someone was recently found guilty in a criminal matter there's usually jailtime and a certain number of strokes with the rotan, commonly known as caning. I've watched a video on line of a caning and depending on your crime determines how many "licks" you will receive. The video I saw involved a guy getting 20. They stand you up against a wall naked spread eagled like you're about to be frisked and then they put this canvas like material over your butt only it has a piece cut out to expose it, the executioner has a couple of trial swings and then he just has at it, each stroke about 15 sec. apart and each one producing cut-like welts. By the end of 20 strokes he was bloody and then they take you to an infirmary and patch you up. They say that 20 strokes is probably the maximum anyone receives and it's probably because the person did something really heinous like child rape. There was a man who smuggled in 3 lbs of marijuana into the country and he received the death penalty. The government states that it's a deterrent to crime and makes people think twice before they actually commit the crime. Too bad hitting a pedestrian on a motor scooter isn't a crime...yet.

Well those are some of the things rattling in my head for today. I was interrupted because the power went out on the block due to thunderstorms today so I haven't adventured anywhere in 3 days, tomorrow will be different.