I like to think Malaysians are generally a patriotic bunch; at least the ones I know are. We always talk about the beauty of our country – the abundance of good food, the beautiful sights, picturesque islands and of course, our hospitality.
Not everyone agrees with me though. At least not the cab driver who took me to dinner at La Mar in Mandarin Oriental Miami.
“Where you from?”
“Malaysia.”
“MALAYSIA? Yo where’s your plane?! What’s wrong with your government? Where’s all the money?!”
(feel free to insert a WTF emoji on my behalf)
I was caught by surprise and to a certain extent, embarrassed. The cab driver has never been to our beautiful country and all he knows about Malaysia is a missing plane and poor governing. The journey to my dinner place took 20 minutes and he spoke about all he knew about Malaysia – mostly negative.
What he doesn’t know about our country is how amazing (most of) our people are and how much we love Malaysia. It’s a pity really, how our country is making headlines for all the wrong things and carrying a Malaysian passport seems to be a bane (you go through extra questioning at the airport) rather than pride.
It wasn’t only the cab driver that had this opinion about Malaysia. A head waiter at the clubhouse my granduncle frequents had the same thoughts and his first sentence to me was, “What happened to your 370?”
And the counter staff at Macy’s when I was registering for a privilege card, AND my chauffeur who took me to the venue of Haig Club Miami. We were caught in traffic so I spent a good 30 minutes trying to convince him that our country isn’t all that bad. At least I think it’s not that dreadful.
What about you? Have you encountered what I have when you travel abroad? Do share your experiences with me! 🙂
6 comments
our currency….i just traveled to Bangkok. All the money changer in Bangkok do not accept our MYR…feel pity and shame.
Wah serious ah Pei San? Then I better change Thai baht before I go. 🙁
It’s easy to say love Malaysia but when the non bumiputera people is treated as second class citizens and no real democracy, is this a true Malaysia?
I have been living abroad for the last 17 years, the only thing I miss about Malaysia is the food.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts Kash. 🙂
Left Malaysia over 15 years ago, best decision I’ve ever made.
Don’t missed the food, enjoy the privilege of being treated respectfully regardless of race and freedom of speech, equal rights and integrity (may not be entirely ideal, but, way better!)
In fact, when I returned to Malaysia on some of my business trips, I encountered rude, arrogant, hateful, discriminating remarks.
No empathy of any kind towards the poor, handicapped, or lesser value of any life form.
As many countries as I’ve travelled, this is by far one of the worst place for any business arrangement of any kind.
Thanks but no thanks.
I love Malaysia, every time I go to Thailand and Singapore from Washington, D.C. I keep looking for an opportunity to get back to KL…Most Americans are clueless about the world they live in except what they see and hear in the news…So your experience was no surprise. My experience there in KL was wonderful…People were very kind and made my stay memorable.