My husband was away on business and Manila had yet another school holiday - walang pasok - (seriously, how many are we up to now? 1,000? 1,000,000- that sounds about right) due to ASEAN conference, all the hotels I wanted to visit were booked so I did what any reckless mother would do and booked tickets to visit a friend in KL. I am actually still tired as I write this post. I knew traveling with three kids would be difficult but I also knew it would be an adventure and it was!

Clean, Efficient, Not Quite As Friendly

These are the words that come to mind when I think about our visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia two weeks ago. My first impression was how clean the roads and parks were, how easily everything flowed (sometimes even a little too fast, like when crossing the streets - move it pedestrians!) and I did notice that people aren't as friendly as Filipinos. That is not to say that Malaysians aren't kind or friendly, because they are, but Filipinos are the universal winners of friendliness. Each city has their trade-offs, Manila can't have it all (although, I wouldn't object to a nice city center and more well kept parks! Oh and maybe efficient traffic).

As soon as my boy saw the green he instantly ran, his body was called to it. I love childlike wonder that is set aflame with a simple field of green

Kuala Lumpur City Center Park

My resident friend Sunny has lived in Malaysia for four years and, being so spoilt, she is only a few blocks away from this glorious play center! I didn't do much travel research about KL because I knew we wouldn't have much time as we were only in Malaysia for five nights and one of them was at Legoland. Plus, I was going to let my friend play tour guide. KLCC Park was one of the few things I had seen online and was one of two attractions I had wanted to see. The second attraction was the Petronas Towers which stalk the park so we couldn't get away from them even if we tried. Rough life. But seriously, the park was amazing and the Petronas Towers were remarkable.

The most glorious public water fountain.

The Splash Pad was closed this particular day but is usually open for children (no adults).

Batu Caves

Our last day I was beat from single-momming it and told Sunny we should just stay home. Luckily, she is a persuasive, bold friend and told me we must go to Batu Caves. I'm not kidding, getting to this lavish place was a measly twenty minute drive! Efficiency at it's finest. We were a bit intimated by the near 300 stairs to the top but we conquered that business like a boss, a fat ugly whiney boss, but we did it! The caves themselves are large and impressive. Batu Caves was easy to get to and had a huge pay off.

Definitely do not bring any type of food with you to Batu Caves as you will be robbed by a monkey. They aren't physical but they are aggressive and will search your bags for food. We watched one particular monkey steal a large bag of chips, open it with its mouth and proceed to enjoy his reward.

Inside the caves there are two different points of observation.

Say cheese!

As thrilling as traveling is, it can also be ugly. I love sharing highlights but don’t be fooled that it’s all pretty pictures and smiley faces, because it ain’t. If anyone ever says otherwise, don’t trust them! You’re lucky you can’t smell my hot sweaty mess through your screen. Things you didn’t see on social media: delayed flights, exhaustion, vomit- so much barf and dirty clothes, yells, tears, tantrums. And my personal favorite, Oz peeing in a cup at a playground (unbeknownst to me) and in a water bottle on a three hour bus ride (known to me). *Adults also sometimes throw tantrums and shed tears.

I AM WOMAN HEAR ME ROAR!

Salamt Sunny!

Sunny and I met in Manila in 2009. She was my Mania Momma back in the day and took great care of me. Living abroad can be difficult but it's perks are just as rewarding.

Sunny is also fortunate enough to have a helper from the Philippines, Ate Marilyn! We loved making chikka and my boys LOVED having an Ate to play with. It was quite comforting to have a Pinoy friend while in a foreign country, the familarity soothed me.

And that my friends is how I traveled to a foreign country solo with three kids and did not die. Joke lang, it was awesome! Malaysia, you are impressive.