Going to Singapore/Malaysia

Quoting Scott Howard regarding Going to
Singapore/Malaysia in a message dated 24 Mar 2004 10:15:00 GMT:

In rec.travel.air mag3 wrote:
Specifically, I travel with a laptop and DVD movies which (according to their
website) have to be submitted for censorship checks. The regulating board
for films (the MDA) even has a separate website where you can check to see
if a particular film has passed censorship testing. Apparently, you don't want
to be caught with "objectionable" films.

Unless you give them a reason to care, they wont.

That's just it. I'm not sure constitutes a "reason to care" from their
viewpoint. But from what I'm hearing, it takes "quite a bit" for them to
"care."

I did a day-trip to JB,
Malaysia and came back with some.. umm.. "cheap" VCDs and DVD. Singapore
customs showed the some interest due to the quantity (about 10 VCDs, 3
DVDs) but once they realised I wasn't from Singapore they just waved me
through. If I'd been a Singapore/Malaysian national, or if I'd been
taking in more then they might have acted differently.

But the point is, they *did* check. It's not like they "didn't bother to
look," right?

Singapore is _very_ strict, but only if you do something wrong.

Again, that's just it. What constitutes "wrong?" The slightest little thing,
or does it have to be pretty serious for them to care?

Look, I didn't mean to take the thread in this direction. I'm not as terribly
concerned as it may seem. I just needed to get a sense of just how strict they
really are. When I get comfortable in knowing how they are, I'll be just fine.
It's how I became with such places as NRT, HKG etc., even though NRT still
likes to do a mini Shake & Bake on me.

What I really wanted to know in this thread was if anyone had experience with
Sri-Lankan Airlines, and are they any good??? :-)



__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

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Quoting AJC regarding Going to Singapore/Malaysia in a message
dated Wed, 24 Mar 2004 11:46:26 +0100:

Now of course, as you pointed out, actual "Shake and Bake" inspections rarely
occur, and unless you look like a "drug smuggler" (whatever that looks like -
and which I *don't* think I look like), they will just wave you through. But
I have a few things not going in my favor. I'm single, a male, traveling alone
with a laptop and two large pullman size suitcases but claiming to be "on
vacation," for no more than a week, which I am, but convince them of that.
For the past two years I've been hit with a mini "Shake and Bake" each time
I've entered NRT (they check one bag at random and then let me go). Let's just
say it's not worth the risk to me. I'd rather have the paperwork I need.


NRT is Tokyo, Japan, what has that got to do with Sinagpore?

Not much. But it's where I've had my most recent experiences with Customs, and
it's the only country that "Shake and Bake's" me on a regular basis, at least
to some extent. And, until recently, I wouldn't have considered them a "strict"
country for enforcement even with similar medication laws etc.

My point in all this is, I don't know yet where I stand with Singapore or
Malaysia. Once I go through them and get to know where they're at, I'll be a
lot more comfortable with what to expect.

If you
have a transit room at SIN just leave your suspect goods there and go
in to town. When I do it I just enter with passport, ticket, boarding
card, it really is very simple.

No, it's not that simple. The itinerary calls for me to arrive in SIN and then
go immediately to Kuala Lumpur for 4 days, and then come back to SIN for
another three days before going back home. So I really can't "leave suspect
goods" at the transit hotel. But it really doesn't matter. I won't be bringing
in anything *that* suspect.

As I said to Scott, I'm really not as concerned as it seems. I just wanted some
opinions as to how strict the authorities really are, and I've gotten some
opinions here, which I appreciate. I'll go through them these two times, and
then, I'll know what to expect.


These are the available flights for a date chosen at random, but
typically daily for MH and SQ services:

SIN KUL APR/27 0700 -

SIN KUL 0630 0725 SQ 102 F4 P4 A4 S9 Y9 E9 B9 M9 W9 H9 772
SIN KUL 0650 0745 MH 602 FA YA LA 734
SIN KUL 0740 0840 UL 316 JA YA MA BA HA KA QA LA VA 330
SIN KUL 0830 0925 SQ 106 F4 A4 Y9 B4 M0 W4 Q4 N4 V0 P4 772
SIN KUL 0925 1020 AI 447 JA CA DA WA YA BA HA KA LA MA 310
SIN KUL 1005 1100 MH 604 FA YA LA 330
SIN KUL 1235 1330 SQ 110 F4 A4 Y9 B4 M4 W4 Q4 N0 V0 P4 772
SIN KUL 1345 1440 MH 606 FA YA LA 330
-------------------- SEPARATOR
------------------------------------------------------------
SIN KUL 1455 1550 SQ 112 F4 P4 A4 S9 Y9 E9 B9 M9 W9 H9 772
SIN KUL 1700 1755 SQ 116 F4 A2 Y9 B4 M4 W4 Q4 N0 V0 P2 772
SIN KUL 1725 1820 MH 608 FA YA LA 330
SIN KUL 1940 2040 JL 721 CA DA IA YA BA MA KC NR QA XR 767
SIN KUL 2000 2055 SQ 118 F4 P3 A3 S9 Y9 E9 B9 M9 W9 H9 772
SIN KUL 2110 2205 MH 610 FLIGHT CANCELLED 330
--==++AJC++==--

OK Thanks. I'll check these out.



__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

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Quoting Miguel Cruz regarding Going to Singapore/Malaysia in
a message dated Wed, 24 Mar 2004 14:31:14 GMT:

I've passed through Singapore and Malaysia border formalities more times
than I can count and have never had any hassles, laptop or no. I doubt there
are any actively controlled borders on the planet (i.e., leaving out the
Belgium-Luxembourg frontier) that are less trouble for a foreigner.

HKG. I've never had any trouble there.

Now of course, as you pointed out, actual "Shake and Bake" inspections
rarely occur, and unless you look like a "drug smuggler" (whatever that
looks like - and which I *don't* think I look like), they will just wave
you through.

I might - talk, dark, and scruffy. But I still get the wave.

OK, We'll see how it goes.


__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

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Quoting mag3 regarding Going to
Singapore/Malaysia in a message dated Tue, 09 Mar 2004 23:13:49 -0500:

OK - Have set up an Itinerary for Singapore/Malaysia for later this year. Have
some questions for those in the know as follows:


FINAL UPDATE: Thanks to all who helped, and to AJC for the SQ schedule, of
which I availed myself nicely. I think I wasn't seeing the morning flights
before because I chose "ALL DAY" for the time selection instead of "Morning."
Weird, but...

My only problem now is, since I booked the flight *before* I registered to be a
Kris Flyer (didn't know if I wanted to be a KF when I made the booking), now I
can't see the itinerary when I log onto the KF page and their Tech support
people say they can't link it!!! UGGGHH!!! I thought perhaps I could link it
myself like I can on the CO website but no such luck! Ah well, live and learn.


Thanks again.


__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

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Taking drugs into Singapore or Malaysia will get you the death sentence.
There is no exception to the rule. (Sometimes wish they would do this
here As well)

Our agent in Malaysia will not accept publicity DVD's or videos
as they have to be watched in their entirety to prevent pornography that
would offend Moslem morality. At one time satellite broadcast were
banned in Malaysia for the same reason. There was an article in the
Malaysian Straights Times suggesting that woks over 12 inch diameter
were to be banned as they might be used to receive satellite broadcasts.

I was told that the Singapore customs would confiscate pirate CD's and
software from the J.B. market if they found it. However there was plenty
of it around in the Singapore computer area.
--
John Grove

Quoting John Grove regarding Going to
Singapore/Malaysia in a message dated Tue, 30 Mar 2004 10:21:50 +0100:

Taking drugs into Singapore or Malaysia will get you the death sentence.
There is no exception to the rule. (Sometimes wish they would do this
here As well)

Well, trafficking certain drugs in certain quantities will render a death
sentence. As long as the meds are for personal use and accompanied by the
appropriate documentation, I'm now confident I won't have any problems.

It's just that now I have to go through the extra hassle of getting my doctor
to write a letter of authorization for the meds I take. But I suppose it's much
less hassle than dealing with the rotan cane!

Our agent in Malaysia will not accept publicity DVD's or videos
as they have to be watched in their entirety to prevent pornography that
would offend Moslem morality. At one time satellite broadcast were
banned in Malaysia for the same reason.

I'm wondering though if the average tourist gets the same kind of scruitny
comming through customs. From what I'm hearing here, it doesn't appear so.
We'll see soon enough. I'm not worried about this one though - I can censor
myself well in advance.

There was an article in the
Malaysian Straights Times suggesting that woks over 12 inch diameter
were to be banned as they might be used to receive satellite broadcasts.

Ah, interesting! I tell ya, something about "necessity being the mother of
invention!"

I was told that the Singapore customs would confiscate pirate CD's and
software from the J.B. market if they found it. However there was plenty
of it around in the Singapore computer area.

Again, not a concern. I'm all legit there and have no need to buy sofware or
pirated CDs.


__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

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Remove all asterisks and the *hates*spam* to get true address.)

"mag3" schreef in bericht
news

I'm wondering though if the average tourist gets the same kind of scruitny
comming through customs. From what I'm hearing here, it doesn't appear so.

I have been to Malaysia 6 times in the last 3 years, and to Singapore 5
times, and I have always been waved through at customs.

Sjoerd

On Wed, 31 Mar 2004 07:28:42 +0200, "Sjoerd"
wrote:


"mag3" schreef in bericht
news

I'm wondering though if the average tourist gets the same kind of scruitny
comming through customs. From what I'm hearing here, it doesn't appear so.

I have been to Malaysia 6 times in the last 3 years, and to Singapore 5
times, and I have always been waved through at customs.

Sjoerd



you musta looked like one of them slant-eyed singaporians.

An excerpt on the twin tower tourist info from AllMalaysia.Net
(http://allmalaysia.dynalias.net/allm...sp?id=10000052)

TOURIST INFO: LRT: KLCC. Open Tuesdays-Sundays (Closed on Mondays).
Morning session 10am - 12:45pm (12:15pm on Fridays)
Afternoon session 3pm - 4:45pm

The good news is it's FREE. The bad news is there're only 800 timed
tickets a day and it's given out on a first-come, first-served basis.
Also, after having waited all that time for a free ticket, you only
get to ascend to the 41st floor (170m) and you can only stay inside
for 10 minutes. If you are visiting the Petronas Twin Tower Skybridge
during a weekend, you will probably need to stand in line 30-60
minutes before they start giving out tickets. They start giving out
tickets at 9:15am and the first tickets are for a 10am visit. The
second round of tickets are given out at 2:30pm for a 3pm visit so if
you miss the morning session, get in line early (I mean, EARLY) for
the afternoon session. So make sure you get in line as the lines can
be very long (up to 2 hours queue) during the weekends (on one visit,
it snaked out the doors of the Towers and around the central court
area). Weekday mornings are fine. You can walk right up to the counter
and get timed tickets for an hour later, no problem. Don't quote me on
that though especially if a public holiday falls on a weekday.

TIP: If the lines are just way too long and you don't have many days
in KL, go to the KL Tower instead. It has far better views (personal
opinion) and it hardly gets overly crowded even on weekends. It's not
free though (RM8 per adult) and it's harder to get to (the LRT doesn't
go there). In my opinion, the only novelty in visiting the Skybridge
is the coolness of being in a bridge suspended 170m above the city.
The views are obstructed, and not as grandiose and all-around as the
views from the KL Tower. Still it is rather cool and you should do it
at least once. Have fun!

Hope it helps.







mag3 wrote in message . ..
OK - Have set up an Itinerary for Singapore/Malaysia for later this year. Have
some questions for those in the know as follows:

1) Arrival - I'll be arriving at Changi Airport shortly after midnight but
turning right around to get on the KTMB "Express Rakyat" train for KL
at 08:30am. It seems not to make sense to check into an expensive
hotel just for 3 hours or so. Is is possible to go directly to the
train station (on Keppel Rd I assume) and wait there 6 hours for the
8:30am departure or is the station closed at that hour of the morning?
If it is closed, then can anyone recommed a safe/secure hotel with very
close proximity to the train station (ie. walking distance with a
bit of luggage)?

2) Alternatively, is there a similar hotel either in or within a short
walking distance (with luggage) of Changi Airport? I would
then take the taxi directly to the railway station that morning.
(I assume I can't use the "transit" hotel since that's "airside.")


3) While in KL - Are the Petronas twin towers open to the public for
tourism? Is photography permitted?


The rest I'll figure out later. Thanks very much.



__________________________________

Regards,
Arnold.

(E-mail address altered, to prevent spamming. :-|
Remove all asterisks and the *hates*spam* to get true address.)