I'm in Malaysia for a quick 3-day sightseeing stopover before heading to Hong Kong for the final 6 days of my journey through Southeast Asia. Originally, the plan was to fly to Bangkok after KL, but I decided to skip it in favor of HK due to the recent escalation of violence there. A few quick notes:

- I tried chili crab in Singapore (a local specialty) and it was AMAZING. I'm not a seafood person AT ALL, but this was seriously very very good:

- Kuala Lumpur means "muddy city"

- There's a stronger Islamic influence in KL and Malaysia in general than I expected. I'd estimate that 85-90% of the women I've seen are fully clothed head to toe and wear scarves over their heads & hair. Islamic architecture is prevalent everywhere and is quite beautiful. Lots of mosques here too -- going to visit a few tomorrow.

- Had a full Malaysian meal tonight and was pretty impressed by a few things. First, the Malaysian version of Satay is *much* better than the rather boring (by comparison) Thai variant. Tons more flavor & complexity in the Malay style. Also tried Laska for the first time tonight -- went with the Assam Laska since I love Tamarind and spicy food -- and loved it. Really cool mixture of flavors that complemented one another well, resulting in a fabulous soupy entree. Not quite as amazing as the chili crab above, but still strongly recommended if you can find it!

- I cannot get over how stunning the Petronas Towers are at night. Whoever designed the lighting deserves a high-level artistic award. The lights seem both radiant and dim at the same time; they're almost neon/flourescent in a way. I could stare at them all evening and never get bored. Definitely my favorite skyscraper(s) in the world in terms of night beauty.

From the side streets:

Next stop: Hong Kong!