Malaysia, Part 2

The last few weeks have been preparing the truck, researching the route ahead and generally getting things in order. I’ve been lucky enough to be staying at a friend’s apartment, which has been a great base. Going to numerous shops and workshops in various parts of Kuala Lumpur and spending time with friends has given me a good insight into the way that people live here.

One of the things I did was rust-proofing the truck. I don’t think two long trips in recent months, (one from Belgium to Australia and the other from Australia to Malaysia) did any good to the rust on the truck. I have bought very bright spotlights  and improved the existing headlights on the truck, bought tarpaulins, ropes and various other bits and pieces for the long trip ahead.

One of the stranger things I’ve done is to go fishing/prawn fishing in various lakes at specially assigned fishing ponds around Kuala Lumpur, usually after midnight as that was the only time my friends are available as they work long hours each day. It seems to be a favourite past time in Kuala Lumpur for some people and it is surprising how many people you can find at 3am at these fishing ponds.

A few days ago I was invited to the studios of Les Copaque, the producers of the popular animated children’s series Upin and Ipin. It was interesting to tour their studio and to see how the show is produced. Gone are the days of thousands of sketches by hand, everything is now done by computer. The owner talked to us, (I was with a group of bloggers) about the history of the company, how it runs and what their future plans are. They have done very well in South-East Asia and have their eyes set further afield. Don’t be surprised if you see one of their shows on a TV screen near you soon if you live outside of the SE Asia area.

Yesterday I went to DB Schenker and collected the balloon. I was a little apprehensive after the balloon hadn’t arrived from the Philippines after a few weeks. I was very happy to hear when it had arrived into Kuala Lumpur. The balloon and truck were reunited after two months apart, and possibly won’t be separated again for quite a long time.

I was planning to do a flight over Putrajaya tomorrow, but the security authority weren’t fast enough in giving the permission for us to do it, ( I was going to fly with another balloon). I still hope to do a couple more flights before I leave in a couple of weeks.

The next two weeks will be a busy time as I plan my visit for Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. The preparations are going well.