Destination Malaysia – Day Four: Dance Monkey, Dance

It’s hard to tell if the jet lag is responsible for my almost hourly wake-ups at night, or if it’s the gallons of water we have been drinking, trying to stay hydrated in the oppressive heat of Kuala Lumpur. It’s also hard to fathom that Malaysia gets hotter than this, but it does — that’s the nature of an equatorial climate though.

It seems difficult to imagine, but this really is the most ideal time of the year to run the Malaysian GP. Sure there is the torrential rain that comes with the 90ºF temperature and its 50% humidity, but the summer months are even hotter. With track temperatures approaching 130ºF now already, we would have riders dropping like flies in June, July, and August.

It’s an attribute that comes with the track, just like how Qatar has its lights, Phillip Island has its mercurial weather patterns, and Laguna Seca has its Corkscrew turn. It is a part of what makes Sepang International Circuit a special venue, and part of what tests the mettle of the riders.

We wouldn’t know any of this first-hand though, as we have yet to be at the track so far in this trip. I have to remind myself that we are playing tourist for our Malaysian hosts, here more to experience the country than to report on the grand prix (thankfully, A&R has David and Tony for that job).

Instead Day Four sees us soaking up some more staples of KL culture, and of course us four American journalists singing for our supper…almost literally.

I should have mentioned earlier that accompanying me on this trip are three other colleagues, from Motorcycle-USA, Cycle News, and Motorcycle.com. We began this morning headed to the Batu Caves, which are large caverns of limestone that are not too far from downtown Kuala Lumpur.

We have just missed Diwali, which is a bit of to-do here at the Batu Caves, as the landmark plays host to one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside of India. Just a day after the festival, which includes a good degree of self-flagellation, we saw still some pilgrims at the holy shrines for Lord Murugan, whose giant golden statue welcomed us at the cave’s entrance.

A climb of 272 steps brings us to the mouth of the cave, where one can gaze at the limestone stalactites ahead and the city view behind. Cool water drips down the cavern, which is a refreshing reprieve from the heat, and at the end of the cave, a small expanse is seemingly home to the cynomolgus monkeys that reside here. Unsuspecting travelers with food, you have been warned that there are pickpockets about.

Our next stop brought us to the pewter smithing land of Royal Selangor, the largest producer to pewter goods in the world. The factory is an interesting stop, and of course features a showroom and shop at the end of the tour. That being said though, there is an interesting history for the company, which has its roots starting in China, and later coming to Malaysia in the 19th century.

Getting a chance to try our hand working the metal, readers can rest assured that Asphalt & Rubber will continue to be my full-time job. The hour-long tour was perhaps a testament to the skill that goes into working metal from raw ore to finished product.

It doesn’t take a MotoGP journalist long to make the connection between the fine works we saw in the Royal Selangor (truly exquisite pieces) to the metal-workings found on GP machinery. I can imagine there is a similar satisfaction for custom motorcycle builders, who spend hours pounding a flat piece of metal into a gas tank, seat pan, or fender. Here’s to the builders.

For a random factoid, the trophies for the Malaysian Grand Prix this weekend have been made by Royal Selangor — hand-crafted by locals craftsmen just an hour away from the track — in case you wanted to judge this Malay company’s work for yourself.

That was the extent of our sightseeing for the day, as we had a rather extensive “briefing” on Malaysia and Malaysian tourism ahead of us in the afternoon. A reminder that our trip was being paid for by the Malaysian government, our group joked about the “time-share” nature of this “vacation” given to us.

I won’t bore you with the night’s details, though it is worth mentioning the growing trend of Malaysia’s tourism attraction. The country is a melting pot of different Asian cultures, something I touched on yesterday when describing the food. Predominantly Muslim, Malaysia plays hosts to many Hindus and Buddhists as well.

It is hard to find a drink here, because of the influence of Islam, though the country is decisively moderate. It is this balance of cultures that has likely attributed to Malaysia’s growing popularity as a destination, and the country is keen on putting itself on the map.

To that end, it’s readily apparent that the government has its hands in making sure world-venue events, like MotoGP and Formula One, come to this tiny country.