M-whY

Bus service to Kuala Lumpur, often just referred to as KL, ran several times an hour. I could pretty much just show up and get a ticket. This was good, because I took my sweet time getting ready in the morning. Breakfast was some roti canai (pronounced roti cha-nai) at an Indian cafe across the street. Afterwards I hit up the internet cafe to update my blog and scan world news headlines. I wasn't ready to hit the road until noon.

A breeze coming in from the sea made Melaka a bit more bearable than Singapore, but it was still hot. I had an idea where to catch the bus, but didn't know the exact location. After wandering around for some time, I decided to just cave in and take a taxi. At the bus terminal, there were several bus lines to KL. I didn't have to wait at all; I was on a bus pretty much as soon as I got off the cab.

I thought the rainy season wasn't until later in the year, but it turns out I was mistaken. Monsoon season isn't until later. (Even more reason to cover finish southeast asia by July.) Rainy season starts in May, and so for the next couple months, I can expect showers lasting a couple hours each day. While on the bus, it started pouring, and continued even after we reached KL. I didn't feel like venturing far in the rain, hence I picked a hostel just across the street from the bus station.

I checked in and took a nap, waiting for the rain to stop. Eventually it did, and I ventured out to see what I could find. A significant percentage of the Malaysian population is of Chinese and Indian descent, and so it's not uncommon to find Chinatown's and Little India's wherever you go. My hostel happened to be right near Chinatown. I walked down the crowded street, filled with stalls selling everything from watches to shoes to bags to perfume. Several stands hawked pirated movies. Star Wars Ep III is coming out soon. I wonder how long before I'll start seeing it on the streets!

I had RM40 (40 Malaysian ringgit) on me, equivalent to about US$10. Stuff here is pretty cheap, and I probably could've gotten by another day on that amount. However, I figured I might as well withdraw some cash while I'm out and about.

At the Kota Raya shopping complex, I found an ATM. I inserted my debit card and waited for the 'Please enter your PIN' message.

Five seconds passed, then ten, then fifteen. Nothing happened. 30 seconds, 45 seconds... still nothing. I called a security guard over for assistance.

"You put your card in?" he asked.

"Yeah, and nothing's happening."

As I spoke, the 'Please insert your card' message changed... to 'Temporarily out of service.'

Uhh, ok... You're out of service... but give me my damn card back!

I mashed the 'Cancel', 'Clear', and 'Accept' buttons. But the stupid thing wouldn't respond.

"You're going to have to come back tomorrow morning and call the bank," said the security guard.

Shit.

"There's nothing you can do?"

"No, the banks are closed, you'll have to try again tomorrow."

I guess if I'm going to lose my debit card, there's no better place to lose it than in an ATM machine. Still, I really didn't want to just leave my card there. Who knows when, and if, I'll get it back?

I could've thrown a fit. But sometime while growing up, I learned that tantrums really don't solve anything. They have even less effect on inanimate objects, like this card swallowing machine. Instead, I returned to my hostel and called it a night.

Man, what a pain in the ass.

Thanks to everyone for their support and comments! Knowing people are reading keeps me motivated to continue the updates!