I’m Not a Nomad — But I Tried Working in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

March 31 – April 2, 2023 / Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I’m a freelance web designer based in Japan.
To be honest, working while constantly moving from one place to another isn’t easy for me.

Still, there’s always been a quiet wish inside me —
to see if I could work while traveling abroad.

So this time, I decided to try again.
My destination was Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia —
a city full of heat, noise, and movement,
the complete opposite of the stillness I felt back in Beigang.

Arrival

I arrived at night from Kaohsiung.
My hotel was along Jalan Alor,

a street packed with food stalls, music, and people.
The air smelled of spices and charcoal.
It was lively — almost too lively.

I didn’t have the energy to explore,
so I just went straight to bed.

Morning and Daytime

The next morning, I took a walk to the park near the Petronas Twin Towers.
The air was heavy and humid.

I sat on a bench and tried to do a bit of work,
but mosquitoes showed up before I could really focus.

I left the park and walked to Pavilion, a large shopping mall.
Wandering around for a quiet spot,
I found a small juice stand.

I ordered a carrot juice — it tasted strange,
but somehow I finished it while working on my laptop.

Those small, odd moments often stay with me longer than the good ones.

Evening and Work Setup

In the evening, I went back to Jalan Alor.

I told myself I’d try local Malaysian food,
but ended up choosing Thai food instead.

After that, I had something called Nescafe —
a coffee so sweet I had to laugh.

Back at the hotel, I worked for a while.

This time I had brought a 13-inch MacBook Air and a 17-inch portable monitor —
wrapped in bubble wrap, set up with a plastic stand.
It looked a bit improvised, but it worked surprisingly well.
Having that second screen made design work much easier.