In light of the recent aviation tragedies of MH17 and MH 370, many outsiders have taken a rather pitiful view on our homeland. However, did you that not everything in Malaysia is tragedy and disaster?
Here are 4 Things about our Tanah Air that everyone ought to know :
"Go on, I'm intrigued..."
Whenever you visit a country, the majority of the locals are bound to fit into a single cookie-cutter mould. Indians in India. Arabs in the Middle East etc..... Not in Malaysia! You see, the population is a composite of three major races : the Malays, Chinese and Indians; as well as other indigenous races such as the Iban and Kadazandusun. Think of it as the USA of Southeast Asia. Funny thing is, Malaysians only call themselves Malaysians when they are outside the country, otherwise they call themselves Chinese, Indians, Malays & "dan lain-lain".
Siapa bilang gadis Malaysia tak menawan.....
#2 THE CUISINE
Oh deary me, where should I begin? Food is, after all what makes the 30 million of us tick. Food is such an integral part of Malaysian culture that almost every conversation will begin with "Dah makan?"(Have you eaten?). Frankly, the local cuisine by itself should be a reason why foreigners should visit. You want some authentic Indian thosaai ? Head to one of the thousands of mamak stalls, where the prices are cheap and hygine is all but a myth. Craving for something closer to home, Malay rendang perhaps. We got you covered ! Oh, and don't forget about our national dish and drink : nasi lemak and teh tarik (literally fatty rice and pulled tea). The food here is seriously cheap and restaurants are everywhere. No wonder the obesity rate is rising.
Nasi lemak and teh tarik. LOOK AT IT! Such magnificence...(drools)
The climate in Malaysia can be described perfectly in three words : so ******* hot. Ok, so it may not be that hot here, but the crazy year-long humidity seems to amplify our BOSPH (buckets of sweat per hour). Not only that, the weather here is as unpredictable as the plot of a Quentin Tarantino film. It's entirely possible for a day to be a blazing 35 degrees, just for a flash flood to occur the next day. (Thanks, global warming!)
" Dude, where's my ca... oh, nevermind."
Sure the Constitution puts Malay as the official language, but the NATIONAL language is actually Manglish. Manglish is a Malaysian speaking style with many similarities with the Singaporean Singlish. It is a distorted usage of English that is mainly spoken between the locals. Locals rarely speak to a foreigners or traveler using Manglish. It may seem a little embarrassing and inappropriate for a local to speak to a foreigner in Manglish as it is not proper usage of the English language. Furthermore, a foreigner may not understand and frown upon Manglish usage. The best thing about Manglish is the abundant usage of the prefix 'lah'. It used to put emphasis on the preceding sentence. You understand or not? I say man, just stop and look at this one down there, lah!
So very educating, lioa!
Well, that seems to cover the basics on this magnificent country. We hope you have learned something new from this post. Perhaps you could visit us sometime in the future, so you could see Malaysia in all it's tropical glory. 'Till then, ciao!
This article is Dr.M-approved.
