Asia and Rugby

So, one time, an American, an Englishman, an Indian, a Brazilian, and an Australian went to an Irish bar in Malaysia to watch the biggest rugby match ever...

I'm sure there is some kind of really funny joke in there somewhere, but that was my reality this week.  After starting the week in Melbourne, I spent the rest of it in company meetings in Kuala Lumpur (KL).  True to the international nature of my firm, there were many nationalities there and that was just among the "Australians", not to mention the Koreans and Chinese present.

Flying across Australia from southeast to northwest (KL is northwest of Australia) showed how barren and uninhabitable much of Australia is.

KL itself is an interesting balance of cultures.  It is an Islamic country with a number of women covered in full burqas with just a small slit for the eyes on one extreme while also having a number of practitioners of the "oldest profession" if the crowd at the popular expat bar my group went to was any indication.  Malaysia gained independence from Britain in 1957 so English is taught in schools and widely spoken and the alphabet uses Roman letters, so it is easy to get around and has many ultra-modern amenities.  The food also has a reputation for excellence that didn't disappoint from the seemingly national dish of satay to more exotic tastes of stingray and "beyond" (not sure if one of the dishes at the Chinese restaurant was standard Malaysian or a Chinese import, sorry Jackson).

Wednesday was game 3 of the State of Origin rugby series which is the annual Rugby League showdown between New South Wales and Queensland.  It is among the biggest sporting events in Australia and probably the most well known rugby league game in the world. It's gotten so big that it was even being broadcast live in the U.S. this year as the announcers reported multiple times (I'm sure you all watched it at 6am Weds morning on Fox Soccer Channel).  QL has won 5 years in a row, but the series was tied 1-1 going into the deciding game.  One of the Aussies seriously considered canceling coming to the meeting to watch the game at home with his mates.  "Unfortunately" for us, The Blues got blown out by the Maroons (pronounced Marones for whatever reason) but it was still quite the multicultural experience watching it with all those nationalities!  As the headline in the Sydney paper said "Wait Until Next Year".

KL also boasts the world's tallest twin towers in the Petronas Towers (no glowing magical stags, however, for you Harry Potter fans) at 1483 feet.  They are majestic during the day and even more beautiful with the way they are lit up at night.  The base of the building also contains a large upscale mall with all of the exotic stores of Asia, such as Gap, Banana Republic, and Durham's own Burt's  Bees.