Malaysia Area History and Customs Essay

Introduction

From beautiful beaches, fascinating history and culture, vibrant metropolis, to breathtaking wildlife and nature, and amazing cuisines, Malaysia is uniquely placed above all other Asian countries as the best tourist destination in the continent. Getting to learn the different cultures of Malay, Chinese, Indian and European, and how they are all infused and widely accepted in Malaysia is the primary reasons I chose Malaysia. Malaysia is also believed to be the capital shopping center of Asia and sometimes comparable to Dubai. I plan to visit various destinations like the capital city, Kuala Lumpur, which is famous for its skyscrapers, old colonial buildings, and Cameron Islands among other famous beautiful sandy beaches, and unique and diverse cuisines available in the country.

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Area History and Customs

Location and Geography

Malaysia is physically divided into the west and the east with the western part falling on the Southern tip of the Malay Peninsula and stretches from the Thai border to the Island of Singapore while the eastern part falls on the northern end of Borneo with its territories of Sabah and Sarawak (Kembangkuning, 2012). The mountain range Banjaran Titiwangsa divides the Malaysian Peninsula into the west and the east. Most large cities, industries and immigrant groups are located on the west coast with the east coast is less populated, more agricultural and generally considered more Malay than the other parts of the country. Kuala Lumpur is the federal capital of Malaysia, but plans are underway to move it to Putra Jaya (Kembangkuning, 2012).

Demography

The country is sparsely populated compared to its size with a population of 23 million people with eighty percent of them living on the Peninsula (Kembangkuning, 2012). Malaysia has a diverse ethnicity with 60% of the population being Malay, 25% of Chinese descent, 10% of Indian origin and 5% being classified as others. The history of how this demography came to be is unique with Malay leaders in the 1930s and 1940s organizing their communities with the intention of reducing immigration, but after independence, Borneo territories were added to Malaya as a means of suppressing the increasing populations of the Chinese and Indians (Koh and Ho, 2009).

Linguistic Affiliation

In 1967, Malay became the sole national language of Malaysia (Kembangkuning, 2012). The Austronesian language was also widely used in most parts of the country with English also being widely spoken as it was the administrative language of the British colonizers. Other popular languages include Cantonese, Hokkien and Mandarin being spoken by many Chinese Malaysians while most Indian Malaysians speak Tamil (Kembangkuning, 2012).

History of the Emergence of the Nation

Malaysia emerged out of the territories colonized by the British in the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century with the British representatives using force and deceit to gain access to these territories (Koh and Ho, 2009). Chinese and Indian Immigrants came in as labor while the majority of the Malay people worked in small holdings and rice cultivations. The Japanese occupation of Southeast Asia from 1942 to 1945 awakened the political climate of Malaysia which led to protests against the British (Koh and Ho, 2009). These protests in combination with the Chinese communist rebellion of 1948 led to the development of the Federation of Malaya which later gained independence in 1957 and 1963, with the addition of Singapore and the northern Borneo territories, the federation became Malaysia (Koh and Ho, 2009). Difficulties emerged in integrating Singapore into Malaysia, and this prompted Malaysia to grant Singapore its independence in 1965.

Food in Daily Life and its use in Ceremonial Occasions

Malaysia has one of the most exquisite cuisines in the world due to its diversity, and it combines Malay cooking techniques with the Chinese and also the Indian methods (Kembangkuning, 2012). Rice and noodles are universal across all cultures with spicy dishes being a favorite across all cultures. Tropical fruits grow in abundance, and a local favorite is a durian, known for its spiked shell and fermented flesh which has a pungent smell (Kembangkuning, 2012). Tea and coffee are usually prepared for guests with snacks also being offered. Holidays and cultural events see families invite members of different cultures to enjoy food which is seen as evidence of Malaysian national amity (Kembangkuning, 2012).

Customs and Laws to be Aware of as a Tourist

Despite its unique mix of Malay, Chinese, Indian and European cultures, Malaysia remains a powerful Muslim country with an estimated 60% of the population being predominantly Muslim (Travel Insurance Direct, 2017). With this in mind, any visitor should be aware of the Sharia laws when visiting the country to avoid breaking the law. As a visitor, one is expected to maintain an appropriate dress code and behavior by the Sharia laws.

In 2002, bikinis were banned in the states of Terengganu and Kelantan as wearing them was indecent. In 2016, a group of Australian tourists was arrested for wearing bikinis at the F1 Grand Prix (Travel Insurance Direct, 2017) and they spent four days in jail before pleading guilty to charges of indecent public exposure.

The Dangerous Drugs Act of 1952 has made possession, and use of heroin, cocaine, morphine, opium, and cannabis illegal which can result to punishment through whipping, imprisonment and also jail time (Travel Insurance Direct, 2017).

The LGBTQI travelers might find their stay in Malaysia a bit difficult as the country does not allow cross-dressing or homosexuality. Generally, couples are advised to avoid public displays of affection of any kind as this will not be accepted by the community in Malaysia (Travel Insurance Direct, 2017).

Tourist Attractions

Malaysia is a beautiful country with many attractions that will cater towards anyone's desires and fulfill all their wildest dreams. One of the major reasons why I chose to visit Malaysia was the sandy beaches of Pulau Redang Island surrounded by crystal clear waters of the South Chinese Sea (Wonderful Malaysia). The island is located on the east side of peninsular Malaysia within the Terengganu Marine Park a few kilometers from the city of Kuala Terengganu. There are various activities that one can undertake while on the island and they include; diving in the clear waters, snorkeling is also a major activity on the island as it has a diverse population of healthy coral reefs (Wonderful Malaysia). The island also has luxurious resorts and world class restaurants that offer unique and diverse cuisines native to the region. The ambiance found on the island due to its small population is perfect for nature walks in the jungle but one has to make sure they carry mosquito repellant so as to avoid contracting malaria (STA Travel, 2013).

There are numerous cultural attractions in Malaysia including George Town in Penang which is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is the backbone of Malaysian culture and history (STA Travel, 2013). The town is full of beautiful and unique architecture, "classical churches, Buddhist and Hindu temples and grand mosques" (STA Travel, 2013). The town has various tourist attraction sites like indigo-blue Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion and also the ornate Kek Lok Si Temple which are all accessible via foot or by the use of brightly-colored trishaw rides. Another attraction found in George Town is the snake temple and as the name suggests, there are thousands of snakes found there and the snakes are welcomed by the locals (STA Travel, 2013)

Kuala Lumpur is the metropolis centre of Malaysia with amazing sky scrapers like the Petronas Towers which are recognized worldwide and provide the best view of the city (STA Travel, 2013). The city also offers a wide variety of shopping choices from modern malls to shops and street markets and on the forefront is the Central Market with stalls designed in a manner that is all inclusive of all the cultures available in the country with Malay stalls at Lorong Melayu, Chinese stalls at Straits Chinese and Indian stalls at Lorong India (Travelvui, 2017). The flea market at Amcorp Mall which sells second-hand goods like clothes, shoes, books, artwork and treasures at low and affordable prices is another tourist attraction in the city. For the fashion and beauty lovers, a visit to the Sungei Wang Plaza will prove useful and exciting as it has a wide variety of youthful and trendy clothes, salons where one can get a haircut at an affordable price and also a money exchange plaza where a majority of money exchangers are located (Travelvui, 2017).

The University of Malaya in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia have developed a program known as the Malaysia International Camp whose main goal is to "create opportunities for the youth to be immersed in intercultural environment and cultures through activities that facilitate the transmission of traditional knowledge and values while also nurturing the relationship between the youth" (Intercultural Friendship Society). This is a nice initiative which helps young people understand their own cultures and also other people's culture so that they can develop a sense of tolerance and appreciation for the cultural diversity that is in Malaysia.

Overview of Tourism Development

According to the text "Economic Impacts of Tourism in Malaysia" (UKessays, 2015), tourism and foreign exchange are the second largest contributors to economic growth of Malaysia after natural resources which is the largest contributor to the economy of the country. The campaign of 1999 dubbed "Malaysia Truly Asia" has contributed into bringing about 7.9 million tourists to the country with RM 12.9 billion in revenue with the numbers increasing to 23.6 million tourists and revenue of RM 53.4 billion in 2009 (UKessays, 2015). Malaysia's travel and tourism sector contributed 13.4% to the country's Growth Domestic Product with fluctuations having been observed in previous years. In 2012, international tourist arrivals reached an all time high of 1,035 billion which is a 4% growth from the previous year (Saleh, 2014).

In 2012, Malaysia was ranked 9th as the best tourist destination country (Saleh, 2014). The major tourist markets for Malaysia include ASEAN nations like Singapore, Indonesia, China, Thailand and Brueri. Tourism development has been majorly spearheaded by the government which has formulated laws and also provided the required legal frame to ensure that tourism in the country continues to grow (Bhuryan et al, 2013). This has led to the development of two bodies whose role is to oversee all matters tourism in the country and they include; Ministry of Tourism which is responsible for planning, monitoring and coordinating with the government on matters tourism in the country, the other body is Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board also known as Tourism Malaysia whose role is to "market and promote tourism aspects and suggest investment opportunities" (Bhuryan et al, 2013).

Infrastructure related to tourism in Malaysia includes; airports, hotels, ports, railways, attractions, zoo, farms, shopping malls, hypermarkets, ethnic stores, exclusive boutiques and duty free shops (Bhuryan et al, 2013). There are various high standard hotels located in Malaysia and they include brands like Shangri-la, Hilton Hotels, Sheraton, Marriott, Westin and Hard Rock just to name a few. Malaysia has a total of seven international airports which play a huge role in connecting the country to the rest of the world and they accommodate major airlines like KLM, British Airways, Emirates, Japan Airlines, Northwest, Lufthansa and Qatar Airways including many others (Bhuryan et al, 2013). There are plans b...