Back in Malaysia
Wednesday, May 16th, 2007You are probably wondering why my location states that I am back in Kuala Lumpur. Well, while hanging out in Cambodia I was chatting with my friend Shawn (the one I visited in Singapore). He has a DJ gig in Bali, Indonesia this weekend and in attempt to wrap up all the loose ends and visit the places I originally planned before I head home, I am on my way there now.
I would have flown direct from Siem Reap to Bali but I ran out of passport pages and needed to get to the US embassy and flying through Kuala Lumpur was the cheapest way. I actually arrived at customs in Cambodia with no pages left and I had to bribe the customs agent in order to put the visa over a previous stamp.
I arrived back in Kuala Lumpur yesterday afternoon but the American embassy was closed so I headed there this morning. It was pouring rain and there was a long line on the outside of the building filled with Malaysians hoping to get an interview for their work visas and immigration. After a few security checkpoints I was back home in the United States for a brief while. I was bumped ahead of everyone in the building. I actually felt somewhat guilty. You have all these Malaysians dressed in their business suits and ties and nice clothing all probably feeling extremely nervous about what was ahead of them hoping for the chance to get to plea their case for why they should be approved to enter America. Here I am in my camoflauge cargo shorts, t-shirt and flip flops cutting ahead of the line to get extra pages added to my passport.
It was interesting overhearing some of the questions that the embassy staff were asking.
Staff: “Do you know anyone in New York?”
Malay: “No”
Staff: “Well, where exactly do you plan on staying when you get there?”
I was in and out in a matter of 30 minutes or so. I now have a full set of pages to continue my travels. Indonesia’s visa requires a full clear page so I am glad I got this taken care of. I don’t know if a bribe would have worked.
I fly to Bali tomorrow afternoon and at this point I’m not sure if I am going to spend just 1 week and then fly home from there or if I am going to go for an extra week. I think I will figure it out once I see what Bali has to offer.
Joey