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I’m a Johor boy born and bred. I studied in USJ 12 years ago, but recently, I moved to back to Klang Valley to find work.
Despite having not lived in Klang Valley for more than eight years, it was definitely a big change from back then. Life’s more hectic here whereas in JB it can be considered ‘relek relek’ .
I wanted to know if my experience was a common one, so I talked to 5 more non-KL people to find out more about their experiences after moving to KL.
1. Traffic is always bad regardless of where you are in KL
Back in JB, I had never known traffic jams could last an hour until I came up to study in KL. In JB, the whole city is not too big, and any drive lasting more than 20 minutes is considered a long drive!
But this does not apply to traffic in Klang Valley.
“Traffic is always terrible regardless where you are in KL city – too many cars nowadays and despite improved services, still a dearth of public transportation,” said *Mike, who hails from Segamat, Johor, but has been residing in KL for the past 15 years.
Gina originates from Sarawak and has lived in KL for the past decade. She told me that there are constant traffic jams in KL, except during festive periods or the long weekends.
It’s only during festive seasons like Chinese New Year, where her hometown of Bintulu is congested with jams because people go home for reunion meals.
2. Food does not have the same “homey” flavour in KL
Out of the entire five non-KL people that I spoke to (including myself), we all still preferred our hometown’s respective foods because it gave us a sense of belonging.
Anand has been living and working in KL for more than about four years now, but he still longs for the nasi kandar there – white rice served with a multitude of delicious meat, seafood, and vegetables dishes and a big spread of gravies – in Sg. Petani, Kedah.
There might be similar variations sold in the Klang Valley, but it just isn’t as delicious as the ones from his hometown.
Meanwhile, for KP, he can easily reel off a list of his favourite foods from Malacca.
“I grew up with the familiar taste of ayam pongteh, satay celup, and the array of Eurasian dishes on offer,” he said without pausing for breath.
As for me, the JB boy in me often stumps KL people because Johor is famous for two types of noodle dishes: Laksa Johor and Mee Rebus.
These two dishes are not widely available in every part of KL, but even if there was a restaurant chain selling Johor cuisine in KL, it just will not taste the same.
3. People are often friendlier, but less genuine in KL
In KL, the folk here are busy with their hectic lives that bonding with their neighbours or a simple “hello” cannot be afforded anymore.
For Gina, she feels that there is always a sense of community in smaller towns, like how neighbours exchange food during festivities, or the neighbourhood kids playing sports together.
In KL, people are so busy with their hectic lives that they struggle to find time to bond with their neighbours.
“KL people might be friendlier, but it is often not genuine,” Gina told me. She felt that the people in her hometown are more genuine.
For me, in my experience of having worked in Singapore, it is largely similar to KL. There is really only hustle and bustle and no time to for friendly camaraderie as in the old days.
4. Cost of living increases but your salary remains the same in KL
As human beings, we are bound to have stress in our daily lives. But when moving to KL to live, there is a higher level unlike anywhere else, both in terms of social lives here and the additional costs incurred whilst living here.
Bigger pay doesn’t mean bigger savings; it only means bigger debts and fewer savings.
“Harga barang-barang naik, tapi gaji tak naik. Gaji naik, tapi kos-kos of living also naik,” shared Ben, an office worker. (“The price of goods goes up, but your salary doesn’t. And even if your salary goes up, your cost of living goes up with it.”)
Ben told me that while he has been working in Klang Valley for more than two decades, the amount of stress almost outweighs his earnings and life’s luxuries.
“High cost of living could be one of the factors for people feeling overwhelmed sometimes, especially those raising young ones and having families,” said Ben.
Not to say smaller towns do not incur stress, but in smaller towns, you won’t feel it so much. Whereas in KL, sometimes the only way to keep up with inflation and price increases is to jump between companies or take on a side hustle.
5. The crime rate is higher in KL, but people don’t watch out for their neighbors.
Crime happens everywhere whether in KL or smaller towns, but in smaller towns, news spreads faster by word of mouth.
“My grandmother was once robbed of her silver earrings right in front of our house in Ipoh. It was never shared on Facebook or the newspapers, but word traveled fast and everyone in the neighborhood knew about it. The uncles banded together and held neighborhood patrols for 2 months after that,” shared Gabriel, whose hometown is in Gunung Rapat.
Many like Gabriel were worried about the crime rate in KL before they moved there, but speaking as a Johor boy, that didn’t faze me.
Johor Bahru was once the nation’s city with the highest crime rate in the 2000s, so moving to KL didn’t feel particularly unsafe for me. Instead, what I find unsettling is how people tend to ignore each other when a crime is taking place.
“Can you actually head back to your kampung after you’ve tasted city life?”
“Can you actually head back to your kampung after you’ve tasted city life?” I posed this question to the people I spoke to.
Gina’s dream is to earn enough here, and move back to Sarawak to retire there one day.
But in the case of Ben, it is unlikely that he will move back to his hometown because he is staying in KL for his children’s education.
“Maybe a small percentage can give it all up, but I bet a larger demographic will still want the city life, as it’s trendy and modern and idealistic,” shared Ben.
In fact, most of them will rather not move back to their hometowns because KL has much more to offer in terms of education and career opportunities.
On the flipside, Reza, a banker, told me that lifestyle inflation is real.
“You think once you get that promotion, you will save more, but you just end up spending more,” she mused. “Being in the city means you have more to spend on. It’s a never ending cycle of getting excited about shiny new things to buy.”
Reza told me that she sees herself in her 40s, still doing the same thing, just that all the activities, possessions, cycles, are more expensive and more premium. But the human experience of desire, lack of fulfillment, searching for meaning, is still the same.
As for myself, as I have just begun my career here, I don’t think a move back to Johor Bahru is something I will consider anytime soon.
The past experiences of living in KL has helped me to be familiar with it, and I am sure there will be more places to discover during my time living here.
After all, we are all still living in Malaysia. Tanah tumpahnya darahku.
Do you have a personal story to share? Email us at hello@inreallife.my
For more articles on living in KL, read more:
https://inreallife.my/ive-been-a-foreigner-in-malaysia-for-a-decade-heres-why-im-leaving/
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