MKA  Consultancy

Malaysia is the most stable democracy in South East Asia, an incredibly beautiful country, a constitutional monarchy, where different ethnic groups, cultures and religions really blend together to live up to the slogan that can be seen in TV commercials about the country – “Malaysia, Truly Asia”. This is a country you will never get tired of, a country that continously can offer you new experiences, a country where you will be welcomed by a smiling population.

 

Malaysia consists of the Malay peninsula in the West and the two states of Sarawak and Sabah on Borneo in the East. The country is bordering to Thailand in the North and Singapore in the South and on Borneo to Indonesia. On an area a little bit smaller than Sweden, 25 million people live. And yet Malaysia does not feel like a crowded place. On the contrary, the country boasts of some of the largest rain forests outside of the Amazonas. You can visit the huge national park Taman Negara and experience the rain forest and its wonders at close distance. Also on Borneo, there are large jungles where you can visit the native population, whose ancestors were head hunters, and you can stay with these people in their long houses. On Borneo, there are fantastic cave systems including the world’s largest cave, Sarawak Chamber, that is said to be able to house 40 Jumbo 747 Jets. On Borneo, you can also climb Malaysia’s highest mountain, Mount Kinabalu, 4095 meters high.

 

Malaysia is a country where tropical greenery is always present, even in the modern main city of Kuala Lumpur. Here, old historical buildings are mixed with modern architecture. One of the land marks of Kuala Lumpur is the Petronas Towers, one of the three tallest buildings in the world, 451 meters tall. Life in this city is bustling and colourful. The supply and range of shopping is enormous and you can shop in everything from street markets to large super modern shopping malls. Take for example Sunway Pyramid in the suburb of Sunway City. We do not know how many shops there are in this huge shopping center, but we do know that there are about 90 restaurants and in addition about 30 fast food establishments. It is easy to get lost here, and if you do, we suggest that you move towards the center of the shopping mall towards the ice hockey rink where people skate from morning till evening. From here, you should be able to find your direction. It is easy to forget where you parked your car in the different garages of this mall. If you do, you can get assistance from the motor cycle riding parking attendants who will ask you to sit up on the motor cycle and you will be driven around the garages until your car is found. This happened to us.

 

In and around Kuala Lumpur, there are many express ways. In the beginning, this may be a bit confusing because you may get lost, not knowing which express way you are driving on. But the signing is quite good and after some time you normally will find your way. From Kuala Lumpur, there is one express way going north to Thailand and one going south to Singapore (it takes three to four hours to drive to Singapore). There is also an express way going to Kuantan on the East cost and one going to Port Klang on the West coast.

 

The islands around Malaysia are really worth a chapter of their own. On the West coast, you have islands like Langkawi and Pulau Pangkor (and of course Penang), visited by many tourists. On the East coast, you have many, also less known, islands with wonderful 27 degrees chrystal clear water, sandy white beaches, often surrounded by coral reefs with a beautiful and fascinating under water life. Here you can snorkel, bring a piece of bread and crush it in your hand and you may have hundreds of colourful fishes almost eating out of your hand. If you want to scuba dive, we recommend Sabah or Labuan where you can find many ship wreckages. Also, people interested in fishing can find plentiful in Malaysia, whether you want to go out deep sea fishing or if you want to go fishing in the rivers and lakes in the country.

 

If you want to go away on a day trip from Kuala Lumpur, you have a lot of choices. You may want to take the train or a car to Port Klang and then a small fast ferry to Pulau Ketam, Crab Island, and enjoy a wonderful sea food lunch in an authentic environment. Or if you want to gamble, you can go up to the casino at Genting Highlands. If you want to play golf or just simply relax in a cooler environment, you can go up to Frasier’s Hill. If you decide to stay the night there, you should bring a sweater for the cool evening and later in the evening you may want to start a log fire in the fire place that most houses have up there. If you want to swim in the sea, you can drive one hour south to the beach resort of Port Dickson. If you go a bit further south, you come to the historical city of Melaka where you may want to spend the afternoon browsing through the many antique shops of the city. If you are in KL in April, you can go to Sepang by the international airport to watch Malaysia’s Grand Prix, the Formula 1 race that takes place every year just outside KL. Yet, these suggestions are only a handful of things to do in the Kuala Lumpur area.

 

Malaysia is truly a multicultural society. Of the population of 25 million people, 57% are Malays while Chinese, Indians and other ethnic groups make up the rest. During the last 20 years, Malaysia has also become a very international society. This can be seen not least by the fact that there are around 45 international schools in the country. Islam is the official religion but the country has full freedom of religion. In Melaka, you find the oldest catholic congregation in the country with its church, St Francis Xavier dating back to 1710. Chinese and Indian religions are being practised throughout the country. Mosques intermingle with Chinese Pagoda temples, Hindu temple towers, Buddhist pagodas and church steeples, all within fish eye view distances.

 

This mixture of cultures has also lead to a fantastic gastronomical environment. There are probably few places in the world where you can get so good and varied food as in Malaysia. Besides Malay, Chinese and Indian food, you find food from all corners of the world. You can eat everything from expensive dinners in the luxury hotels in the city center of KL to inexpensive food in food markets and street stalls. When you have been living some time in Malaysia, you will probably fall in love with the food in the street markets.

 

The cost of living in Malaysia is quite low. UBS Bank of Switzerland has made a study, showing that among 71 investigated world cities, Kuala Lumpur had the lowest cost of living. The prices for villas and apartments are also very reasonable compared to European levels. Besides, you often get a lot more for the money here, things you may not normally think about. Malaysians have become an excercising people, and in many apartment buildings you will also find a gym, squash and tennis courts as well as a swimming pool for the residents. Many people also join golf clubs or other social clubs. There are more than 200 golf clubs in Malaysia. Membership fees start as low as MYR 10,000 and green fees are usually very reasonable.

 

The country has over a period of many years had a very good and stable economic development. The government is getting a large part of its income from the country’s abundant natural resources, oil, palm oil, natural rubber and timber. Malaysia has a very positive business climate. As a consequence, a large well to do middle class has emerged. The unemployment rate has for many years been very low, and this is probably one reason why the crime rate is relatively low.

 

Also a few words about the climate: Malaysia enjoys a tropical climate (sometimes referred to as an equatorial climate) with a warm humid climate all year round. Temperatures vary between 23 to 33 degrees and rain fall varies between 2000 mm to 2500 mm on a yearly basis.

 

What is Malaysia? We have tried to show a bit of the country but feel that we only touched on the surface. There are so many more things to see and do in this country. Welcome to Malaysia and see for yourself!