Before coming to Malaysia I had never been to Asia. All 50 states in the U.S. are different from one another but the states of Malaysia are especially different from each other. They even speak different types of Malay in different areas of the country. It was difficult to know what to expect when I arrived. So far, I have been staying in a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. This area of the country is the most similar to America and has the most English speakers.
However, I have already learned so much about Malaysian culture. For example, breakfast food here includes foods that we might not see in the mornings in America. Rice, soup, fried noodles, sandwiches and salads are all served for breakfast. On the other hand, eggs are a breakfast food in America but in Malaysia they are served all day long in many different dishes, in many different ways. This is important because food is a big part of Malaysian culture.
In fact, a common greeting in Malay is: sudah makan awak. It means “Have you eaten?” but in Malaysia that is how to ask someone “How are you?”. How do you think your friends or family would respond if you asked them this question?
