theFISHBOWL: First Day in KL! (pics added)

Wow, what an adventure the last 2 days. We started our journey at DFW on Monday, March 12th. Checking in to the airport with 7 large black travel trunks, a carry-on suitcase, and our carry-on bags.. was surprisingly easy! It was around lunchtime so we decided on one last bbq meal (Madison's choice!), then boarded our flight to Japan.

Madison was an angel on the flight from DFW to Narita. However, she only slept about 2.5 hours then played/watched movies the rest of the flight, which was 11 hours. Needless to say I didn't sleep because I was worried she'd wiggle past me and wander the plane. We were both the worst versions of ourselves when we got to Narita.. tired, restless from being on the place, hungry, etc. It was only 38 degrees in Narita, and we waited outside for the hotel shuttle for 40+ minutes. By the time we got to the hotel I just wanted a quick dinner for Mads but nothing is "quick" in Asia. The (empty) restaurant took forever, then brought her a plate of the following: 2 mini cheeseburgers covered in a dark mushroom sauce, fried shrimp, rice cake, steamed veggies, and a curry mixture of something. This was considered their "kids meal" - she didn't take a single bite, and I didn't blame her. I felt bad for being so ill-prepared with food options for her, but I just didn't know what to expect. I paid the bill and she was asleep by the time I laid her in bed.

Our wake-up call came at 3am, when the Dallas alarm company kept calling my phone to tell me a burgler alarm when off twice in the house. I was so groggy and have no idea what I said to the dispatcher, but it must have included telling her to send the police. She called back 2 minutes later to tell me our alarm permit was expired so the police will not go to the house. At this point I was lethargic, Madison was now wide awake and ready to play, and I couldn't reach Ryan. I called my mom in tears and asked her to call Ryan's hotel in KL and tell him to call me. She calmed me down and said she'd handle it. I put an ipad movie on for Mads, put my eye cover back on, and fell asleep for a few more hours. I'm not usually an emotional person but that all just sent me over the edge. Of course Mads fell back asleep around 7:00am, when we were supposed to be getting up to go back to the airport. This is going to be an interesting day!

Got to the airport early, checked-in okay (after they told me I had to have a visa to fly and since I didn't I could come back tomorrow - um, right!) That lady didn't have a chance against me - I was tired, emotional, and anxious to get to KL, but somehow I was able to pull my patience out of somewhere and "negotiate" with her. Good news is, we got an entire row of seats on the plane and I was able to get Mads to lay down and sleep the majority of the 8 hr flight. I took a picture of the "kids meal" I ordered 4 days prior to our flight, which consisted of very strange things.

We finally landed in KL, and that walk off the plane was something I'll never forget. The humid air hits you in the face like a steam shower, and it looks/feels like we landed in a rainforest. All we had to do at this point was get through immigration and Ryan would be waiting on the other side. I know I was anxious to see him, but it seemed like it took forever to get through the line! When we got to baggage claim our large pile of travel trunks were waiting for us, so I rounded up a few guys to load them on carts. The customs officer stood next to me the whole time and kept asking me questions about what was in the trunks, why I was there with so much luggage, etc.. He threatened that he had a right to scan each of the trunks due to the size and quantity, and told him to feel free... while praying he didn't do it bc I just wanted to get out of there to see Ryan. We lucked out.

We saw Ryan right away and Madison was so excited (he was too!). It was great to be together again! It took about 45 minutes to get to the city, so we were able to get caught up on the journey. We got checked in to the hotel, then went for an evening walk around downtown to find some dinner. There's a huge indoor/outdoor mall across the street from our hotel, so we walked around and soaked it all in. There were SO many people, so many food outlets, and it was all just visually stunning. Even though I had on jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt, the night air was cool because of the constant breeze here. Ryan was right... this place really is paradise! The adventure begins...

Views from our hotel balcony (enclosed lanai), of the Pavilion mall. It was huge! Traffic is even crazy at midnight on a weekday.