Stef_barti_taking_picture_at_272_steps_batu_cave_traveling_solo

I Will Never Visit Kuala Lumpur Ever Again- Solo Female Travel

I literally just got back from Malaysia and couldn’t wait to write this blog post and report my unexpected experience.

For sake of transparency, I want to say that this won’t be one of those posts touting the benefits of visiting Malaysia.

The internet is already packed with them. On my blog I am dedicated and committed to keeping it as real as possible.

The web sometimes feels quite uniform but the reality is that we don’t all love the same thing (obviously).🙃

petronas_tower_city_view_kuala_lumpur — A view of the Petronas Tower

In the travel realm, sometimes someone will love a place yet someone else might find that this same place didn’t resonate with them at all.

So I think you all know where I am going with this.

It’s time to address the elephant in the room.

I did not like Kuala Lumpur.

OMG! I just said it 🙀

Like is a bit of a lukewarm term.

I will go as far as saying that I really hated Kuala Lumpur.

Now I don’t go around throwing the word hate easily.

Whitening_skin_beauty_product_at_Kuala_lumpur_market — They also have a strong obsession with skin whitening. It was so hard for me to find regular non-bleaching purposes beauty products

Because I am all about maintaining positivity in my life. Most importantly, spreading uplifting vibes.

So I really made sure to wait it out and let the initial emotions run their course.

Naturally I also did what most millennial and GenZ women travellers would do when facing challenging times.

I turned to the internet and scouted online forums. I couldn’t possibly be the only person to feel this way and not like Kuala Lumpur.

Thankfully, I managed to find this other article from a fellow traveler who also hated his Malaysian trip. I felt better instantly.

It’s days like these that make me feel so grateful for the internet. It truly does bring us together and makes us feel less lonely.

Yet after all this, I still felt that nagging pull so that is when I knew there was no way around it.

I had to write this article and add my perspective to the mix. `

Representation matters and that’s why it is so important for us to share our stories.

My reasons why I did not like Kuala Lumpur

The locals are so incredibly rude

Kuala_lumpur_local_dish_with_eggs — Every evening, I’d get the same meal from the restaurant below my rental to avoid dealing with people as much as possible . ( Fried rice with eggs.)

My goodness I did not expect this at all.

I was totally blindsided.

I travel a lot and thankfully people are generally warm and welcoming. I would say that this is only the second time that I run into this problem.

The other time being in Budapest, Hungary. But we will keep Budapest for another day. 🤭

So in Kuala Lumpur, people were just absolutely rude.

From taxi drivers never saying “Hi” or “good morning” to overt rudeness.

I wondered if this was a mix of religious background and cultural.

No, the goal is not to shame any religions at all. But what I mean is that Malaysia is a Muslim country and they are very conservative.

So this got me wondering.

drink_selection_at_the_supermarket — On the bright side, the no alcohol drink selection was very diverse

Is me being a woman the reason why taxi drivers couldn’t even say good morning?

Not to cry wolf but I found it hard to believe they wouldn’t have the common decency to greet their fellow male passengers.

🤔

I still don’t know if it is related at all.

Because one morning, I had a taxi driver actually greet me and I was so shocked that it took me a few seconds than usual to grasp the situation and reply.

Then again, as someone who is accustomed to life in another Muslim country, the United Arab Emirates, I never encountered such rudeness before.

So I had to come to the conclusion that it had nothing to do with religion. People were just mean and rude just because that seemed to be the overall nature.

Kuala Lumpur is depressing

I am firm believer that each city has a soul.

And this is the main reason why I travel.

Because we can all watch Youtube videos covering various landmarks. But at the end of the day, you have to be physically present to feel a city’s soul.

And I am sorry to say but the second I landed in Kuala Lumpur, it was giving sad and depressing vibes right away.

Now of course, I get that life is definitely challenging and many locals are dealing with financial hardships.

Yet, I also travel to other challenging countries throughout South America and the Caribbean.

You know, places where life is really hard.

Yet, you still don’t have this doom’s day heavy feel everywhere you go.

Kuala Lumpur is blessed with a beautiful landscape and so many greenery. There are infinite palm trees everywhere you go, this is still not enough to give the place a lively energy.

It’s just non stop raining

Petronas_tower_view_at_night — Night time view of the Petronas tower

Now maybe this also contributes to the general sadness.

It rains a lot.

One second , you see a bright blue sunny sky and then the next second it’s pouring down on you.

This makes it a little bit challenging to plan out not only appropriate outfits but also various activities. Of course, people survive and it can be done.

It just puts a little damper on your day if you don’t learn to adapt and go with the flow.

Lack of “savoir vivre”/ Lack of care and consideration for others

selfie — Not going to lie fam, but it gets tough

As a French person, I just couldn’t find a better term to explain this sad societal phenomenon.

In a way, it is the continuation of people just being overall rude.

I think it is so important to have common decorum to ensure that communal life is as smooth as possible. Otherwise it’s chaos and the wild wild West.

I am saying this to segue into a major pet peeve of mine.

The second I arrived in Kuala Lumpur, I noticed this lack of care for others.

I absolutely despise it when people have a lack of consideration for others.

And this can show up in so many different ways.

But I know I can’t be the only one that gets livid when people are scrolling through tik tok with their cell phone volume on loud.

Am I the only one? 🙋🏾‍♀️

I guess some people never heard of headphones before or just too obnoxiously into themselves and with zero empathy for others.

Anyways, I encountered this behaviour so much over there that It felt like the norm.

What’s the real problem with Kuala Lumpur though?

Is Kuala Lumpur racist? sexist? or is it a case of colourism?

I guess it is a mix of everything .

I don’t think my experience was purely a case of racism per se.

I think it’s just plain rudeness in all its form and glory.

People kept scoring extremely poorly in courtesy. Hospitality is lacking or non existent.

There is also definitely some colourism.

I mean, I really struggled to find body lotion and beauty products without those infamous ” whitening agents” in them. 🤦🏽‍♀️

How to make the best of your stay

Like I love to say, it is what it is. So let’s talk how to survive your stay there

Use Grab Taxi

Stef Barti inside a uber taxi in albufeira — Sigh, I’m lazy. I always Uber and Bolt everywhere ( in Faro )

I have no shame in this.

I am a total comfort queen when it comes to travel logistics and transportation.

Unless I am on a specific tour or cultural expeditions like this time I was visiting the Mexican Pyramids of Teotihuacan, usually I am not one to take the bus.

So make your life easier in Kuala Lumpur and use their Taxi app Grab. I

t is really good and I recommend it. I always use those taxi services especially after that Taxi I flagged in the streets of Istanbul tried to scam me so badly.

Limit your interactions with the locals

Do this by automating things as much as possible

Yes I know this is messed up.

I am one of those people who travel for culture and the local people.

But sorry to say this, Kuala Lumpur just ain’t where it’s at when it comes to this.

Again, it is what it is! 🤷🏽‍♀️

Adjust your expectations

KL is like Dubai !?!

solo female travelers posing in front of the museum of the future in Dubai — My friend from Canada came to visit me and didn’t want to leave (Museum of the future)

Now Kuala Lumpur gets compared to Dubai and the UAE a lot.

But oh boy, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

People love to hate on Dubai but the truth is customer service is top tier in the UAE. Definitely an area where KL can learn a thing or two.

What to do in Kuala Lumpur

Batu_caves_sign — Those big signs are pretty much customary all around the world nowadays

I think by now it’s quite obvious where I stand when it comes to the Malaysian capital. KL.

But let’s say that you just have have to be there for a little while.

On my side, I didn’t plan to go there.

Malaysia was never on my travel wish list, I am not going to lie about that.

I was actually coming from Bali and my connection got delayed.

So I thought it was a good idea to take this opportunity to explore KL.

Big mistake but I am also grateful for the experience.

Sometimes, I wonder if the fact that I was coming from Bali set up unrealistic expectations for KL. But I really don’t think so.

At the end of the day, kindness is kindness.

Stef_barti_solo_female_traveling_taking_selfie_at_the_batu_caves — I asked the sweet Chinese tourist who was also traveling solo if she could take a picture of me 🙂
ofc, there’s the usual creepy behaviour, staring nonstop for 5 min / Then they wonder why I feel the need to advocate for women and women solo traveling

The Best thing to do in Kuala Lumpur

If you are going to be stuck in KL, I recommend you check out the Batu caves.

By now it should be obvious that I found the list of things to do in KL extremely boring. But the Batu caves were the only thing that seemed worthy, especially that it is so easily reachable.

I recommend ordering a Grab on the app to go there.

It’s open daily and from 7am to 10 pm.

Batu_caves_temple — One of the Hindu temples in the Batu Caves vicinity

I hopped into my grab, then got there within 20 minutes. I don’t remember exactly but I don’t think the Grab taxi fare was more than 10 USD.

I went around 10 am . It wasn’t terribly packed and I was blessed by a dry open sky during the visit period.

I was worried the 272 stairs would be too slippery, so I am happy It wasn’t raining for that time window.

inside_the_big_batu_cave_birdeye_view — This is what it looks like when you step inside

Depending on your fitness level, it doesn’t really take too long to climb either.

I did it in like 15 min and that is stopping plenty of time for the obligatory pictures and videos.

In the top area, you will get higher into the cave and that’s where there is a colony of monkeys around.

Do keep your wits about yourself as they can get cheeky and have been known to grab people’s stuff from time to time. 🤭

batu_caves_monkey_colony — Lots of monkeys to be found in the Batu cave

Then I took another grab and went back home.

That was the extent of the sightseeing for KL for me 🤭

Now the caves were beautiful but still a tiny bit underwhelming.

Batu_cave_formation — The view when you look up

I think they feel so much more enigmatic on social media and on the internet overall.

I would definitely not travel specifically to KL just to visit them.

At the same time, it’s worth stopping by if you are in the area on a layover or something.

What to skip in Kuala Lumpur

food_tour_I_dont_recommend — I usually love to do food tours but decided to give this one a hard pass. A girl wasn’t trying to end in a Malaysian hospital for food poisoning

As a major foodie as in food is life.

I always like to do a food tour when I travel to places. From fine dining to hole in a wall, I like it all.

I’m saying this so you know I am not an a*hole or a snob 🤭

So I really wanted to do the supposed “chef food tour “that you see all over tripadvisor.

But after checking out the pictures from the tour and some of the reviews, I decided I wasn’t interested in giving KL yet another reason to disappoint me.

Should you still visit the Malaysian capital?

Kuala_lumpur_city_view — A concrete city jungle . Too bad it was so unwelcoming and unpleasant

I mean 🤭

In case it wasn’t obvious enough after this almost 2000 words rant on Kuala Lumpur, sorry but issa no for me.

I would say it’s a hard pass. 🤷🏽‍♀️

Of course, don’t take my words for it.

Everyone’s experience is different and if you still feel compelled to go, then you should.

You never know, you might have the best travel time of your life.

As for me, if someone is asking me personally, I do not recommend it.

Kuala_lumpur_lush_garden — One thing I noticed is that there is lots of greenery everywhere

Nature is often a major reason that people bring up when they try to promote KL.

But. I would rather go to Bali. It’s nearby and they have a similar and extremely diverse if not better landscape.

You’ll find good to very decent infrastructure.

Most importantly, they are super welcoming to tourist and extremely warm people.

So that’s it folks!

It’s a wrap and this concludes my KL review based on my very own personal travel experience there.

Sun_setting_over_kuala_lumpur_city_view_solo_woman_travel_stef_barti — A very dramatic sky from my rental

More resources for solo women travellers

Even if I didn’t enjoy my experience in Kuala Lumpur, I will always encourage women to go on their own solo travel adventures.

The good news is that I always have amazing experiences 99% of the time.

Ladies trip in Armenia, solo female traveling — Women Empowering women: With the lovely ladies at Yerevan’s Republic Square – Next women tours coming up

Women Group travel

Like I said, most of the time my solo travels happen without any incident and I come back with nothing but positive things to say.

Yet real life also has its own challenges and that is why I also started putting together women travel group tours.

Us girlies living our best life & having breakfast at a restaurant in Belgrade

Women embodiment Dance retreat

For my spiritual or mindful girlies looking for something different, I will also be hosting a somatic transformational dance retreat in the beautiful Mediterranean.

I know the world can feel harsh, discriminatory or sexist at times, but this is an even greater reason for us to come together and spread more love and healing energy. 🩷

picture of stef barti dancing in garden and smiling

Podcast

I also want to share the following episode from my women’s podcast. It went viral and I think not only is it a wonderful resource but it also adds more depth and perspective.

Stef Barti Brunching in Abu Dhabi — Don’t let anything dim your light girlies – Brunch in Abu Dhabi

Moreover, I just really like to leave things on a positive uplifting note.

Safe travels to everyone.

Most importantly, stay safe

🤗