Sing 7. Big Ol' Rant

I was obviously an angry young man when I wrote this, but in the interests of journalistic integrity (ha!) I thought I'd include it. NJL 7/10/6

Anyway, I was asked the other day what I thought of the Malaysian concept of service. To which I naturally replied, "what concept?"

It's not that service here is bad. Service is actually very good in most cases. When it exists. Which is rare.

For example, the dodgy DVD seller who told me, without anyone asking him to, of his other stock, not on display, that I was also welcome to purchase. Or the pimp who hung out on Jalan Sultan Ismail, between my hotel and the restaurants, who asked me every time I passed whether I wanted a girl. Such unsolicited helpfullness is "good" service.

But contrast that to the taxi drivers who just ignore you standing at the taxi stop waving frantically, and when they do pick you up they have no idea where your destination is (ie, the twin building, 27 storey international hotel about 1,500m up the road, on the corner of Jalan Ampang and Jalan Sultan Ismail. What do you mean you don't know where Jalan Sultan Ismail is? It's a major road with a mono-rail running its length. Do you even know where we are now? No, turn *right*, in the direction I've been pointing all the time. Now turn *left* back onto Jalan Ampang, otherwise we're going back to where we started and where's the point in that, or can't you fathom that concept either? What do you mean I can't have a receipt? Of course I can. Every legal taxi has receipts. Fine, no receipt, no fare). Or the waitress who comes by to ask what you'd like (a menu, please), says "certainly, sir" and then forgets. Each time.

Or even my contact at the bank. I'd ask him for a power extension cord and he'd say something in Bahasa Malaysia to the girls that contained the phrase "power cord" and it would never show up. I think what he was saying was "Roza, I'm just going to say the words 'power extension cord'. Please ignore them, and do nothing."

I'm told all this stems from a Malaysian/Indonesian desire to tell you what you want to hear. Singaporeans tell it like it is. Yeah well that's nice, but who's more developed and who's living in filth?