Dreamweaver21

Hi everyone,

I will be traveling to Asia in January for ~12 days and I'm between the above two countries as my top destinations. Which one would you recommend? I am mostly interested in food, culture, and architecture; natural sights are a plus, but not a priority. Shopping and nightlife do not matter much. I have chosen these two countries in the region, even if they are not places that a lot of people visit, because they are fairly developed, traveling between places will be very easy and English is generally spoken by locals, unlike, for example, Vietnam. I have been to Asia before, in Japan, but I am not ready yet to go to the more chaotic or underdeveloped places there


I have some concerns about these destinations though

-Malaysia: is it a good idea to be in a Muslim country with everything happening in Gaza? I'm not very familiar with the country's politics or how probable an extremist incident can be, but I am a bit concerned

-Taiwan: Cities, particularly Taipei, can be a bit ugly, as the buildings do not seem to be well-maintained and are a bit old. I do not think KL is especially beautiful, but the colonial buildings there seem to have been maintained pretty well. I'm also getting the feeling that I do not have much time left when I can still visit the country before China gets really aggressive, and feel that I HAVE to go there now or I will not have the opportunity later.

So, any recommendations?

crellston

You seem to be under some misapprehensions regarding travel in Asia. Lots of people visit Malaysia and English is widely spoken in Vietnam. Those points aside, given your stated interests , either country would suit.

I have travelled extensively over most parts of Malaysia over the last 25 years or so. Over that time it has become increasingly Islamic though I would still describe it as multi cultural rather than an Islamic country. An intriguing mixture of Chinese, Islamic and Malay cultures which make for one of the best and most varied cuisines in the world.

If concerned, I would avoid the eastern side of peninsula Malaysia which is way more Islamic than the west coast and Borneo. I doubt the situation in Gaza and Israel will have any impact on travellers, though that could change if/when there is any major escalation in the war. Extremist incidents have happened and their attitudes to human rights leaves a lot to be desired but this is unlikely to impact tourists. I would agree that KL is not the most beautiful city in Asia. The colonial building are nice enough but I wouldn't visit just for those. There are however many other cities worth visiting for all sorts of different architecture. Georgetown on Penang is one of my favourite locations in the country.

Unlike the many months I have spent wandering around Malaysia, I have only spent around 10 days in Taiwan split between Taipei and Hualien. Not sure I would describe Taipei as ugly, just a normal major asian city. Lots of pockets of traditional Chinese temples worth seeing and the street/market food is amongst the best in the world. Wonderful, welcoming people. Who knows what will happen with China's intentions in Taiwan (or the rest of the region for that matter!).

January is a good time weather wise for most of Malaysia but is the coldest month in Taiwan if that matters to you.

yestravel

I just got back 3 weeks in Taiwan and its a nice country. I found Taipei rather boring relative to other Asian capitals I have been to but the rest of the country did not disappoint. Depending upon your interests there is lots of great scenery and hiking, a coast to explore and several other nice cities. The people are freindly and welcoming. Not sure where you are from, but very few westerners and we heard American voices maybe 3 times in 3 weeks.I went to Taiwan for the exact reason you are thinking about going. Younger peopel almost all speak some English and we got by with google translate on our won. Happy to answer any questions you may have.

Just been to Penang and Kuala Lumpar so cant really speak to Malaysia -- we liked our time in those two cities.