Join me in Malaysia - Day One! - The Martha Stewart Blog

May 25, 2010

Join me in Malaysia - Day One!

As you may know, I am presently traveling in Malaysia, having been invited here by Tourism Malaysia, who wanted me to see this extraordinary country and experience the fascinating culture and the delicious cuisine. I am touring with my niece, Sophie Herbert and my good friend, Memrie Lewis. We've been very, very busy meeting outstanding and gracious people, exploring amazing sites in and around Kuala Lumpur, and also seeing the incredible wildlife in the rainforest of Borneo. That leg of the journey has been sponsored by The Sabah Tourism Board. I managed to slow down just long enough to send these photos home for posting on my blog. Please enjoy Day One in Malaysia with much more to follow.

: Back at our hotel – Kuala Lumpur from our 38th floor terrace

: Sunset, as seen from our patio of the Ritz Carlton. The KL tower is on the left.

: Then, off for our first dinner in Malaysia at Mandi-Mandi Restaurant. This is a group of restaurants right in the jungle within city limits.

: My favorite beverage so far – fresh coconut water in a soft, green coconut – so refreshing and delicious.

: Grilled sea bass served with sambal belacan sauce – a spicy chili sauce

: Celebrating Memrie’s birthday, which was just before we left for Malaysia

: Memrie was feted with yet another birthday cake – her celebration actually spanned more than one week!

: Chef Zakary Pelaccio and Jori Jayne Emde of New York’s wonderful Malaysian restaurants, the Fatty Crab and Fatty ‘Cue, are traveling with us.

: 35 hours later – Our welcoming group from the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian Airlines’ excellent staff made the flight so enjoyable. On the right is Datin Normasila Musa, who briefed us on protocol and travel program.

: The gorgeous Kuala Lumpur airport – designed by renowned Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa – has enclosed sections of rain forest. This airport is huge, unique, and easily navigated.

: Majestic columns surrounding the airport rain forest emulate palm trees.

: Kuala Lumpur from afar on our way from the airport to the Ritz Carlton Hotel – From the highway, one glimpses the Petronas Towers – At 88 stories, they are the tallest twin buildings in the world – the needle is the KL Observatory Tower.

: At the impressive Ritz Carlton Hotel, I was welcomed by the General Manager, Steve Cokkinias, who presented a gorgeous bouquet. We had a fabulous stay!

: Malaysia is famous for its selection of fruit! This lovely arrangemnt welcomed us in our complimentary suite at the Ritz Carlton.

: We had an hour to freshen up before leaving to meet the Queen of Malaysia. Here we are waiting to meet Her Majesty, at her personal residence, Istana Terengganu. From left to right – Amy Hamidon, guest, Memrie, two friends, and me.

: There were extraordinary flower arrangements at the Queen’s residence!

: I agreed to say a word, or two, of thanks to Her Majesty.

: A presentation of gifts at the Queen’s party – I was presented with superb examples of songket weaving while, I gave Her Majesty some of my books.

: My niece, Sophie Herbert and my friend, Memrie Lewis accompanied me on the trip to Malaysia.

: Sophie and I had excellent seats in business class from Los Angeles to Kuala Lumpur via Taipei.

: A view of Taipei after 22 hours of travel.

: We ate delicious noodle soup at the Taipei airport – $6 a bowl.

: These are food and wine bloggers – Michael Reiss & Diane Sukiennik – www.foodandwineaccess.com – also en route to Malaysia.

: Jori, Zack, Memrie, and Normasila in an elevator at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. So happy to be here!

: Even the exterior of the airport is beautiful.

: Our fearless police escort, Mr. Abu Bakar – in Malaysia, they call these escorts ‘outriders’ – we all wanted to take him home to NYC to negotiate traffic for us.

: Here I am with Dr. June Ngo, director and designer for the Queen’s Yayasan Tuanku Nur Zahirah organization. This program has given a new life to traditional songket weaving – intricately woven sarongs and scarves, like those behind us.

: A closeup detail of one kind of songket weaving

: Here is Sophie singing at the tea party. When I mentioned to the Queen that Sophie sang, she generously requested that Sophie do so. Sophie borrowed an electric guitar from the combo that was playing during the tea party.

: A formal portrait of us all at the tea given by Her Majesty in my honor. The Queen is to my right – A mother of four, she is vivacious and caring and very beautiful.