Chlidonias Goes To Asia, part seven: 2024-2025

lintworm said:
This is going to be awesome :). This thread already has all the ingredients for fantastic species and even more fantastic hickups along the way :).
Click to expand...
Speaking of hiccups in the trip.

I landed in Asia early this morning. I had flown from New Zealand to Sydney with Emirates - they were the "cheapest" airline for my time frame at NZ$346 (!). It was my first time flying with them, and I approve.

I spent two days in Sydney, the main reasons for the stop-over being to visit Featherdale Wildlife Park for the first time, and to try and see a Red-necked Avocet which have so far eluded me. I found an avocet - just one - at Olympic Park so thumbs up for that. The Powerful Owls at Centennial Park and Botanic Gardens remained unseen however.

Then I flew to Malaysia via Singapore with Scoot, a budget branch of Singapore Air. I used them for the first time in 2019. They are fine - they are a budget airline so you get what you pay for.

It was when I landed in Malaysia that the trip ran into its first hurdle. And not a simple hurdle either!

After passing through immigration and collecting my pack I went to an ATM to get out some cash. Open my wallet - where's my bank card? Oh... darn.

There was some momentary confusion while I tried to process that it was missing, looking through the wallet again, then in my trouser pockets and my bag's pockets just in case it had impossibly moved. Nope, it was gone. The last place I had used it was a Subway shop at the wharf in Sydney, on the way to the airport. I must have left it there. This was not good.

Fortunately I had brought a back-up card, although it is a simple eftpos card so I can use it to get cash from ATMs but because it doesn't have a chip it can't be used for online purchases like flights or whatever. I put it in the ATM and a message came up on the screen saying something along the lines of "your card cannot be read, please contact your bank". This was even more not good. I tried the next ATM. Same result.

I finished clearing Customs because there was no point being stuck between points, and once in the public area called up Kiwibank. Luckily I had installed Skype on my phone and laptop before leaving home because you can use it to make international phone calls for a fraction of a cent per minute. The problem I had was several-fold - firstly (obviously) the back-up card wasn't working so I had literally no way to get any cash, and secondly I couldn't really cancel my missing card because that was the one attached to my phone apps (AliPay, WePay, and Google Pay) and the back-up eftpos card can't be attached (because it doesn't have a chip), and if I did cancel it I had no way to get a replacement (they can courier a new one but internationally isn't really workable when you're not based in one place).

The lady on the phone was really helpful, although limited in what she could do. For the back-up eftpos card she said it can only be used in ATMs with a Cirrus logo - I tried a third ATM which was nearby which had a Cirrus logo (all of them had Cirrus logos), still the same message. She couldn't see any reason on her system as to why it shouldn't work, so suggested trying other ATMs and maybe it would work somewhere, or use it for an eftpos transaction in a shop and get cash out at the same time (not really something that works in Asia though). A dead end basically.

For the problem of the lost card she said to transfer all my money into my savings account because the debit card only works off the primary account (i.e. if someone tried to use it there won't be any available money in it). It's not even close to ideal but at least I can keep it attached to the phone. It's going to be a pain though because basically every time I make a transaction through the phone (e.g. all the time in China!) I will first have to transfer money from one account to the other.

Once I had exhausted possibilities with the help-line I still had no way to get cash. I couldn't leave the airport in either direction when I had no money. I took a wander and tried the currency exchange kiosks in case they had eftpos (they don't - they only exchange cash directly), and nobody knows what eftpos is here anyway. One lady did say there was a bank on level 3 of the terminal. They might have some ideas. Up to level 3 I went and found the Maybank counter. There were some of their ATMs next to it. Might as well try again. The first ATM looked promising - it actually went through the process of asking for pin number and cash amount before spitting out a docket saying transaction rejected. I tried the next ATM, this time trying for 600 Ringgits in case the 1000 Ringgits of my last attempt was too high. Success! It's probably worth pointing out that this was almost four hours after I had landed. Four hours of mental torture.

I didn't know if my card working in this ATM was a fluke or if the previous ATMs were just duds, so I thought I'd better get out more cash. Didn't work! I mean, the card itself worked, but the transaction was rejected because apparently I had gone over my number of allowable daily transactions. I don't know if that was because all the failed attempts counted, or if this card only allows one transaction a day. But at least it worked. I'm going to try and get out more cash when I can and at least that way I can take it to China and exchange it for Yuan. I'll be losing money at each step but better than not having any!


There were more money-related issues before leaving the airport. I had been worried about what I'd been reading about China being largely cashless now, but it seems Malaysia is going that way also. Down at the bus counters they don't take cash at all, only cards or phone payments (but not mine apparently!). I asked the guy at the ticket machines and he said I could pay cash at the counter despite the signs saying "cashless only". At the counter the lady said they don't take cash. I went back to the first guy and he said yes, you can pay cash at the counter. Back to the counter. No, only cashless. First guy tells me yes pay cash for a coupon. Back to the counter. Yes, she says, you can pay cash for a coupon. She just looked blankly at me when I said she had twice told me she didn't take cash. I was a bit irritable by this point of the morning!

When I got to KL Sentral from where I would be catching a train to Bukit Fraser, I discovered that the entire train network is also cashless. It's ridiculous. There was another guy at the ticket counter in the same boat as me, oddly enough, with having lost his bank card and his Google Pay not working for their system. The level of apathy at the counters was frustrating too, just a statement of "no cash" and "oh well, find another way to travel then". One girl did finally tell me I could buy a Touch 'n Go card with cash and then use that to get onto the trains. So I was finally underway.

I'm at Bukit Fraser now, for the next few nights before I head off to China. I had booked the hotel here in advance, which isn't something I normally do for Bukit Fraser but I'm glad I did because it meant it was already paid for. The taxi ride up here from Kuala Kubu Bahru is now 150 Ringgits.

When I arrived I googled the Subway shop at Circular Quay to find their phone number and gave them a call. They hadn't seen my card. I have a feeling it was stolen out of my bag on the flight between Singapore and Malaysia. I usually have my carry-on bag padlocked but on this one flight I had forgotten to do so. I can't think of any other way the card could have disappeared.


I have no idea how the rest of this trip is going to go...
 
Just stumbled across this thread (I'm not as frequent a user as I once was) and I was quite excited to see what drama ensued... Now that I've read the first entry I'm hoping there's no more drama for a while!

Safe travels mate, looking forward to hearing some success stories down the line! :)

Oh yeah, pretty sure you told me (back in the pre-pandemic times) that the Americas were your next big trip, why the change of heart? Did it boil down to too much to see, not enough time and money?
 
Chlidonias said:
Speaking of hiccups in the trip.

I landed in Asia early this morning. I had flown from New Zealand to Sydney with Emirates - they were the "cheapest" airline for my time frame at NZ$346 (!). It was my first time flying with them, and I approve.

I spent two days in Sydney, the main reasons for the stop-over being to visit Featherdale Wildlife Park for the first time, and to try and see a Red-necked Avocet which have so far eluded me. I found an avocet - just one - at Olympic Park so thumbs up for that. The Powerful Owls at Centennial Park and Botanic Gardens remained unseen however.

Then I flew to Malaysia via Singapore with Scoot, a budget branch of Singapore Air. I used them for the first time in 2019. They are fine - they are a budget airline so you get what you pay for.

It was when I landed in Malaysia that the trip ran into its first hurdle. And not a simple hurdle either!

After passing through immigration and collecting my pack I went to an ATM to get out some cash. Open my wallet - where's my bank card? Oh... darn.

There was some momentary confusion while I tried to process that it was missing, looking through the wallet again, then in my trouser pockets and my bag's pockets just in case it had impossibly moved. Nope, it was gone. The last place I had used it was a Subway shop at the wharf in Sydney, on the way to the airport. I must have left it there. This was not good.

Fortunately I had brought a back-up card, although it is a simple eftpos card so I can use it to get cash from ATMs but because it doesn't have a chip it can't be used for online purchases like flights or whatever. I put it in the ATM and a message came up on the screen saying something along the lines of "your card cannot be read, please contact your bank". This was even more not good. I tried the next ATM. Same result.

I finished clearing Customs because there was no point being stuck between points, and once in the public area called up Kiwibank. Luckily I had installed Skype on my phone and laptop before leaving home because you can use it to make international phone calls for a fraction of a cent per minute. The problem I had was several-fold - firstly (obviously) the back-up card wasn't working so I had literally no way to get any cash, and secondly I couldn't really cancel my missing card because that was the one attached to my phone apps (AliPay, WePay, and Google Pay) and the back-up eftpos card can't be attached (because it doesn't have a chip), and if I did cancel it I had no way to get a replacement (they can courier a new one but internationally isn't really workable when you're not based in one place).

The lady on the phone was really helpful, although limited in what she could do. For the back-up eftpos card she said it can only be used in ATMs with a Cirrus logo - I tried a third ATM which was nearby which had a Cirrus logo (all of them had Cirrus logos), still the same message. She couldn't see any reason on her system as to why it shouldn't work, so suggested trying other ATMs and maybe it would work somewhere, or use it for an eftpos transaction in a shop and get cash out at the same time (not really something that works in Asia though). A dead end basically.

For the problem of the lost card she said to transfer all my money into my savings account because the debit card only works off the primary account (i.e. if someone tried to use it there won't be any available money in it). It's not even close to ideal but at least I can keep it attached to the phone. It's going to be a pain though because basically every time I make a transaction through the phone (e.g. all the time in China!) I will first have to transfer money from one account to the other.

Once I had exhausted possibilities with the help-line I still had no way to get cash. I couldn't leave the airport in either direction when I had no money. I took a wander and tried the currency exchange kiosks in case they had eftpos (they don't - they only exchange cash directly), and nobody knows what eftpos is here anyway. One lady did say there was a bank on level 3 of the terminal. They might have some ideas. Up to level 3 I went and found the Maybank counter. There were some of their ATMs next to it. Might as well try again. The first ATM looked promising - it actually went through the process of asking for pin number and cash amount before spitting out a docket saying transaction rejected. I tried the next ATM, this time trying for 600 Ringgits in case the 1000 Ringgits of my last attempt was too high. Success! It's probably worth pointing out that this was almost four hours after I had landed. Four hours of mental torture.

I didn't know if my card working in this ATM was a fluke or if the previous ATMs were just duds, so I thought I'd better get out more cash. Didn't work! I mean, the card itself worked, but the transaction was rejected because apparently I had gone over my number of allowable daily transactions. I don't know if that was because all the failed attempts counted, or if this card only allows one transaction a day. But at least it worked. I'm going to try and get out more cash when I can and at least that way I can take it to China and exchange it for Yuan. I'll be losing money at each step but better than not having any!


There were more money-related issues before leaving the airport. I had been worried about what I'd been reading about China being largely cashless now, but it seems Malaysia is going that way also. Down at the bus counters they don't take cash at all, only cards or phone payments (but not mine apparently!). I asked the guy at the ticket machines and he said I could pay cash at the counter despite the signs saying "cashless only". At the counter the lady said they don't take cash. I went back to the first guy and he said yes, you can pay cash at the counter. Back to the counter. No, only cashless. First guy tells me yes pay cash for a coupon. Back to the counter. Yes, she says, you can pay cash for a coupon. She just looked blankly at me when I said she had twice told me she didn't take cash. I was a bit irritable by this point of the morning!

When I got to KL Sentral from where I would be catching a train to Bukit Fraser, I discovered that the entire train network is also cashless. It's ridiculous. There was another guy at the ticket counter in the same boat as me, oddly enough, with having lost his bank card and his Google Pay not working for their system. The level of apathy at the counters was frustrating too, just a statement of "no cash" and "oh well, find another way to travel then". One girl did finally tell me I could buy a Touch 'n Go card with cash and then use that to get onto the trains. So I was finally underway.

I'm at Bukit Fraser now, for the next few nights before I head off to China. I had booked the hotel here in advance, which isn't something I normally do for Bukit Fraser but I'm glad I did because it meant it was already paid for. The taxi ride up here from Kuala Kubu Bahru is now 150 Ringgits.

When I arrived I googled the Subway shop at Circular Quay to find their phone number and gave them a call. They hadn't seen my card. I have a feeling it was stolen out of my bag on the flight between Singapore and Malaysia. I usually have my carry-on bag padlocked but on this one flight I had forgotten to do so. I can't think of any other way the card could have disappeared.


I have no idea how the rest of this trip is going to go...
Click to expand...

God. I'd have curled up in a heap on the floor I think...

Looking forward to your latest adventure though. I still haven't forgotten your hilarious(?) encounter with that wildlife tour rep. in Sri Lanka when you went with a different company.
 
Chlidonias said:
Speaking of hiccups in the trip.

I landed in Asia early this morning. I had flown from New Zealand to Sydney with Emirates - they were the "cheapest" airline for my time frame at NZ$346 (!). It was my first time flying with them, and I approve.

I spent two days in Sydney, the main reasons for the stop-over being to visit Featherdale Wildlife Park for the first time, and to try and see a Red-necked Avocet which have so far eluded me. I found an avocet - just one - at Olympic Park so thumbs up for that. The Powerful Owls at Centennial Park and Botanic Gardens remained unseen however.

Then I flew to Malaysia via Singapore with Scoot, a budget branch of Singapore Air. I used them for the first time in 2019. They are fine - they are a budget airline so you get what you pay for.

It was when I landed in Malaysia that the trip ran into its first hurdle. And not a simple hurdle either!

After passing through immigration and collecting my pack I went to an ATM to get out some cash. Open my wallet - where's my bank card? Oh... darn.

There was some momentary confusion while I tried to process that it was missing, looking through the wallet again, then in my trouser pockets and my bag's pockets just in case it had impossibly moved. Nope, it was gone. The last place I had used it was a Subway shop at the wharf in Sydney, on the way to the airport. I must have left it there. This was not good.

Fortunately I had brought a back-up card, although it is a simple eftpos card so I can use it to get cash from ATMs but because it doesn't have a chip it can't be used for online purchases like flights or whatever. I put it in the ATM and a message came up on the screen saying something along the lines of "your card cannot be read, please contact your bank". This was even more not good. I tried the next ATM. Same result.

I finished clearing Customs because there was no point being stuck between points, and once in the public area called up Kiwibank. Luckily I had installed Skype on my phone and laptop before leaving home because you can use it to make international phone calls for a fraction of a cent per minute. The problem I had was several-fold - firstly (obviously) the back-up card wasn't working so I had literally no way to get any cash, and secondly I couldn't really cancel my missing card because that was the one attached to my phone apps (AliPay, WePay, and Google Pay) and the back-up eftpos card can't be attached (because it doesn't have a chip), and if I did cancel it I had no way to get a replacement (they can courier a new one but internationally isn't really workable when you're not based in one place).

The lady on the phone was really helpful, although limited in what she could do. For the back-up eftpos card she said it can only be used in ATMs with a Cirrus logo - I tried a third ATM which was nearby which had a Cirrus logo (all of them had Cirrus logos), still the same message. She couldn't see any reason on her system as to why it shouldn't work, so suggested trying other ATMs and maybe it would work somewhere, or use it for an eftpos transaction in a shop and get cash out at the same time (not really something that works in Asia though). A dead end basically.

For the problem of the lost card she said to transfer all my money into my savings account because the debit card only works off the primary account (i.e. if someone tried to use it there won't be any available money in it). It's not even close to ideal but at least I can keep it attached to the phone. It's going to be a pain though because basically every time I make a transaction through the phone (e.g. all the time in China!) I will first have to transfer money from one account to the other.

Once I had exhausted possibilities with the help-line I still had no way to get cash. I couldn't leave the airport in either direction when I had no money. I took a wander and tried the currency exchange kiosks in case they had eftpos (they don't - they only exchange cash directly), and nobody knows what eftpos is here anyway. One lady did say there was a bank on level 3 of the terminal. They might have some ideas. Up to level 3 I went and found the Maybank counter. There were some of their ATMs next to it. Might as well try again. The first ATM looked promising - it actually went through the process of asking for pin number and cash amount before spitting out a docket saying transaction rejected. I tried the next ATM, this time trying for 600 Ringgits in case the 1000 Ringgits of my last attempt was too high. Success! It's probably worth pointing out that this was almost four hours after I had landed. Four hours of mental torture.

I didn't know if my card working in this ATM was a fluke or if the previous ATMs were just duds, so I thought I'd better get out more cash. Didn't work! I mean, the card itself worked, but the transaction was rejected because apparently I had gone over my number of allowable daily transactions. I don't know if that was because all the failed attempts counted, or if this card only allows one transaction a day. But at least it worked. I'm going to try and get out more cash when I can and at least that way I can take it to China and exchange it for Yuan. I'll be losing money at each step but better than not having any!


There were more money-related issues before leaving the airport. I had been worried about what I'd been reading about China being largely cashless now, but it seems Malaysia is going that way also. Down at the bus counters they don't take cash at all, only cards or phone payments (but not mine apparently!). I asked the guy at the ticket machines and he said I could pay cash at the counter despite the signs saying "cashless only". At the counter the lady said they don't take cash. I went back to the first guy and he said yes, you can pay cash at the counter. Back to the counter. No, only cashless. First guy tells me yes pay cash for a coupon. Back to the counter. Yes, she says, you can pay cash for a coupon. She just looked blankly at me when I said she had twice told me she didn't take cash. I was a bit irritable by this point of the morning!

When I got to KL Sentral from where I would be catching a train to Bukit Fraser, I discovered that the entire train network is also cashless. It's ridiculous. There was another guy at the ticket counter in the same boat as me, oddly enough, with having lost his bank card and his Google Pay not working for their system. The level of apathy at the counters was frustrating too, just a statement of "no cash" and "oh well, find another way to travel then". One girl did finally tell me I could buy a Touch 'n Go card with cash and then use that to get onto the trains. So I was finally underway.

I'm at Bukit Fraser now, for the next few nights before I head off to China. I had booked the hotel here in advance, which isn't something I normally do for Bukit Fraser but I'm glad I did because it meant it was already paid for. The taxi ride up here from Kuala Kubu Bahru is now 150 Ringgits.

When I arrived I googled the Subway shop at Circular Quay to find their phone number and gave them a call. They hadn't seen my card. I have a feeling it was stolen out of my bag on the flight between Singapore and Malaysia. I usually have my carry-on bag padlocked but on this one flight I had forgotten to do so. I can't think of any other way the card could have disappeared.


I have no idea how the rest of this trip is going to go...
Click to expand...

That wasn't exactly what I meant with a fantastic hiccup, this is a bit too much, even for a trip of yours.... Any chance of getting a new card sent to you from New Zealand along the way? It really sounds like a pain in the *ss...
 
lintworm said:
That wasn't exactly what I meant with a fantastic hiccup, this is a bit too much, even for a trip of yours.... Any chance of getting a new card sent to you from New Zealand along the way? It really sounds like a pain in the *ss...
Click to expand...
Not really - I would need an address to send it where I knew I was going to be at a given point (the only place I have set is my first stop in Japan), and there is no telling how long it would take - having worked for a courier company an international parcel could take a week or it could take two months. Plus, importantly, the current card (attached to the phone) would need to be cancelled before a new one is issued and sent, meaning I'd be kind of stuck where China is concerned.

I have no clue how badly things are going to go from now. It might be that I have to stop in one place to wait for a new card to be sent to me, if it comes to that. But I don't feasibly see how that could be China - I'd have to just quit China and wait in Thailand or somewhere. I may even, if things get impossible, just end up going home and starting over with a new trip when I get that sorted out.

There aren't really any good scenarios there.
 
Brum said:
Oh yeah, pretty sure you told me (back in the pre-pandemic times) that the Americas were your next big trip, why the change of heart? Did it boil down to too much to see, not enough time and money?
Click to expand...
It was supposed to be the Americas, but while I was planning it out (during covid) I kept thinking about the places I still wanted to go in Asia and it gradually just turned into an Asian trip. I doubt I'll ever leave this part of the world, to be honest.
 
Oh man, that sucks!

I'm sure you've already thought through your options, but on the off chance this hasn't occurred to you, is there any way you could set up a new account locally, maybe in KL, and transfer some amount of money to yourself? I guess this would require non-citizens/residents to be able to set up bank accounts and have it so that the new card gets issued quite quickly. But it avoids international postage or the need to cancel your NZ card in the meantime. And maybe change the associated card to the various Chinese money apps to this new card?
 
Just with some random googling, most of the countries around you (Malaysia, Singapore, China, Thailand) seem to require you to have some sort of non-tourist visa to open a bank account locally. Hong Kong seems to allow anyone who's there legally to just open a bank account so depending on where in China you arrive maybe there's something there?

Anyway, good luck with sorting something out!
 
Chlidonias said:
Not really - I would need an address to send it where I knew I was going to be at a given point (the only place I have set is my first stop in Japan), and there is no telling how long it would take - having worked for a courier company an international parcel could take a week or it could take two months. Plus, importantly, the current card (attached to the phone) would need to be cancelled before a new one is issued and sent, meaning I'd be kind of stuck where China is concerned.

I have no clue how badly things are going to go from now. It might be that I have to stop in one place to wait for a new card to be sent to me, if it comes to that. But I don't feasibly see how that could be China - I'd have to just quit China and wait in Thailand or somewhere. I may even, if things get impossible, just end up going home and starting over with a new trip when I get that sorted out.

There aren't really any good scenarios there.
Click to expand...

1. I'm really sorry to hear about all of the troubles at the start of the trip. I hope that things start to smooth out and you can relax and enjoy the trip.

2. Does your bank in New Zealand have a partner bank in Thailand where you can physically go and pick up a new card? What is happening to you must surely be something that your bank has to deal with on a regular basis (i.e., people needing a new ATM card in an emergency at remote locations).
 
What a mad start and a good job you’re a seasoned traveller as that’s a nightmare. I hope it works out and it’s been great to hear about the birds so far. Look forward to the next update - I hope you have less dramas to deal with and can find a route around the card issue!
 
Chlidonias said:
Speaking of hiccups in the trip.

I landed in Asia early this morning. I had flown from New Zealand to Sydney with Emirates - they were the "cheapest" airline for my time frame at NZ$346 (!). It was my first time flying with them, and I approve.

I spent two days in Sydney, the main reasons for the stop-over being to visit Featherdale Wildlife Park for the first time, and to try and see a Red-necked Avocet which have so far eluded me. I found an avocet - just one - at Olympic Park so thumbs up for that. The Powerful Owls at Centennial Park and Botanic Gardens remained unseen however.

Then I flew to Malaysia via Singapore with Scoot, a budget branch of Singapore Air. I used them for the first time in 2019. They are fine - they are a budget airline so you get what you pay for.

It was when I landed in Malaysia that the trip ran into its first hurdle. And not a simple hurdle either!

After passing through immigration and collecting my pack I went to an ATM to get out some cash. Open my wallet - where's my bank card? Oh... darn.

There was some momentary confusion while I tried to process that it was missing, looking through the wallet again, then in my trouser pockets and my bag's pockets just in case it had impossibly moved. Nope, it was gone. The last place I had used it was a Subway shop at the wharf in Sydney, on the way to the airport. I must have left it there. This was not good.

Fortunately I had brought a back-up card, although it is a simple eftpos card so I can use it to get cash from ATMs but because it doesn't have a chip it can't be used for online purchases like flights or whatever. I put it in the ATM and a message came up on the screen saying something along the lines of "your card cannot be read, please contact your bank". This was even more not good. I tried the next ATM. Same result.

I finished clearing Customs because there was no point being stuck between points, and once in the public area called up Kiwibank. Luckily I had installed Skype on my phone and laptop before leaving home because you can use it to make international phone calls for a fraction of a cent per minute. The problem I had was several-fold - firstly (obviously) the back-up card wasn't working so I had literally no way to get any cash, and secondly I couldn't really cancel my missing card because that was the one attached to my phone apps (AliPay, WePay, and Google Pay) and the back-up eftpos card can't be attached (because it doesn't have a chip), and if I did cancel it I had no way to get a replacement (they can courier a new one but internationally isn't really workable when you're not based in one place).

The lady on the phone was really helpful, although limited in what she could do. For the back-up eftpos card she said it can only be used in ATMs with a Cirrus logo - I tried a third ATM which was nearby which had a Cirrus logo (all of them had Cirrus logos), still the same message. She couldn't see any reason on her system as to why it shouldn't work, so suggested trying other ATMs and maybe it would work somewhere, or use it for an eftpos transaction in a shop and get cash out at the same time (not really something that works in Asia though). A dead end basically.

For the problem of the lost card she said to transfer all my money into my savings account because the debit card only works off the primary account (i.e. if someone tried to use it there won't be any available money in it). It's not even close to ideal but at least I can keep it attached to the phone. It's going to be a pain though because basically every time I make a transaction through the phone (e.g. all the time in China!) I will first have to transfer money from one account to the other.

Once I had exhausted possibilities with the help-line I still had no way to get cash. I couldn't leave the airport in either direction when I had no money. I took a wander and tried the currency exchange kiosks in case they had eftpos (they don't - they only exchange cash directly), and nobody knows what eftpos is here anyway. One lady did say there was a bank on level 3 of the terminal. They might have some ideas. Up to level 3 I went and found the Maybank counter. There were some of their ATMs next to it. Might as well try again. The first ATM looked promising - it actually went through the process of asking for pin number and cash amount before spitting out a docket saying transaction rejected. I tried the next ATM, this time trying for 600 Ringgits in case the 1000 Ringgits of my last attempt was too high. Success! It's probably worth pointing out that this was almost four hours after I had landed. Four hours of mental torture.

I didn't know if my card working in this ATM was a fluke or if the previous ATMs were just duds, so I thought I'd better get out more cash. Didn't work! I mean, the card itself worked, but the transaction was rejected because apparently I had gone over my number of allowable daily transactions. I don't know if that was because all the failed attempts counted, or if this card only allows one transaction a day. But at least it worked. I'm going to try and get out more cash when I can and at least that way I can take it to China and exchange it for Yuan. I'll be losing money at each step but better than not having any!


There were more money-related issues before leaving the airport. I had been worried about what I'd been reading about China being largely cashless now, but it seems Malaysia is going that way also. Down at the bus counters they don't take cash at all, only cards or phone payments (but not mine apparently!). I asked the guy at the ticket machines and he said I could pay cash at the counter despite the signs saying "cashless only". At the counter the lady said they don't take cash. I went back to the first guy and he said yes, you can pay cash at the counter. Back to the counter. No, only cashless. First guy tells me yes pay cash for a coupon. Back to the counter. Yes, she says, you can pay cash for a coupon. She just looked blankly at me when I said she had twice told me she didn't take cash. I was a bit irritable by this point of the morning!

When I got to KL Sentral from where I would be catching a train to Bukit Fraser, I discovered that the entire train network is also cashless. It's ridiculous. There was another guy at the ticket counter in the same boat as me, oddly enough, with having lost his bank card and his Google Pay not working for their system. The level of apathy at the counters was frustrating too, just a statement of "no cash" and "oh well, find another way to travel then". One girl did finally tell me I could buy a Touch 'n Go card with cash and then use that to get onto the trains. So I was finally underway.

I'm at Bukit Fraser now, for the next few nights before I head off to China. I had booked the hotel here in advance, which isn't something I normally do for Bukit Fraser but I'm glad I did because it meant it was already paid for. The taxi ride up here from Kuala Kubu Bahru is now 150 Ringgits.

When I arrived I googled the Subway shop at Circular Quay to find their phone number and gave them a call. They hadn't seen my card. I have a feeling it was stolen out of my bag on the flight between Singapore and Malaysia. I usually have my carry-on bag padlocked but on this one flight I had forgotten to do so. I can't think of any other way the card could have disappeared.


I have no idea how the rest of this trip is going to go...
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Welcome to Malaysia!
Looks like you had a bad start, but hope you enjoy Asia!
 
LaughingDove said:
Oh man, that sucks!

I'm sure you've already thought through your options, but on the off chance this hasn't occurred to you, is there any way you could set up a new account locally, maybe in KL, and transfer some amount of money to yourself? I guess this would require non-citizens/residents to be able to set up bank accounts and have it so that the new card gets issued quite quickly. But it avoids international postage or the need to cancel your NZ card in the meantime. And maybe change the associated card to the various Chinese money apps to this new card?
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LaughingDove said:
Just with some random googling, most of the countries around you (Malaysia, Singapore, China, Thailand) seem to require you to have some sort of non-tourist visa to open a bank account locally. Hong Kong seems to allow anyone who's there legally to just open a bank account so depending on where in China you arrive maybe there's something there?

Anyway, good luck with sorting something out!
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I don't think that's feasible. KL is a non-starter - I'm only in Malaysia for a few days and only passing through KL on the way to and from the airport from Bukit Fraser, and there is no physical bank in Bukit Fraser. I wouldn't think a short-term tourist could open a bank account here anyway, and a card wouldn't be issued on the spot. The possibility of a tourist opening a Chinese bank account is also not a good one.
 
DavidBrown said:
1. I'm really sorry to hear about all of the troubles at the start of the trip. I hope that things start to smooth out and you can relax and enjoy the trip.

2. Does your bank in New Zealand have a partner bank in Thailand where you can physically go and pick up a new card? What is happening to you must surely be something that your bank has to deal with on a regular basis (i.e., people needing a new ATM card in an emergency at remote locations).
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I had to call the bank again today (haven't had much birding time at Bukit Fraser because every time I call there are waiting times and so forth). They don't have any partner banks. A person travelling around is kind of out of luck if they lose their card.

I do know my card was definitely stolen though, and almost certainly on the plane as I suspected, because I asked the bank person if they could see any declined transactions and there were two yesterday. I can't remember the exact amounts, but the first attempt was for around NZ$2200 to a Vietnamese company (looks like a shop from the name she told me) and the second for about NZ$900 to a hotel. Both were declined due to insufficient funds (because I had already moved all my money to another account). So at least I know having the money in that other account is safe, and luckily I had discovered the card was missing immediately upon arrival instead of in the evening or sometime later!
 
Chlidonias said:
I had to call the bank again today (haven't had much birding time at Bukit Fraser because every time I call there are waiting times and so forth). They don't have any partner banks. A person travelling around is kind of out of luck if they lose their card.

I do know my card was definitely stolen though, and almost certainly on the plane as I suspected, because I asked the bank person if they could see any declined transactions and there were two yesterday. I can't remember the exact amounts, but the first attempt was for around NZ$2200 to a Vietnamese company (looks like a shop from the name she told me) and the second for about NZ$900 to a hotel. Both were declined due to insufficient funds (because I had already moved all my money to another account). So at least I know having the money in that other account is safe, and luckily I had discovered the card was missing immediately upon arrival instead of in the evening or sometime later!
Click to expand...

Good to hear that you were able to intercept any purchases on the stolen card before they happened. Good luck on the trip.
 
Bukit Fraser, Malaysia

Second stop-over after Sydney on my way to China was Bukit Fraser in Malaysia. I’ve been here a number of times (I think this might be my sixth time) because it is such a great place and it is easily reached from Kuala Lumpur. It’s not the cheapest place to get to or stay, but it is easy. From the airport you just take a bus or train to KL Sentral station, and then a train from there to Kuala Kubu Bharu about 1.5 hours away, and then a taxi for an hour to Bukit Fraser. The taxi is the most expensive bit, partly because it is about a 40km trip (80km round-trip from the driver’s point of view) but also partly because there is usually only one or two drivers at the KKB station so you don’t have any leverage for bargaining. You don’t have any other way to get up there, so you have to pay their price. This time I paid 150 Ringgits (roughly NZ$60, US$34, 32 Euros). Luckily there was an Australian lady I met up there who was going back to KL on the same day as me so we shared a taxi back and only paid 50 Ringgits each.

This visit wasn’t very productive. Most of the time it was drizzling, and in mountain forest when it’s drizzling that means fog. When it’s foggy the birds are not only less active but also much less identifiable even when they are around. I also didn’t do any spotlighting, mostly on account of the fog. I did unexpectedly get a life-bird (i.e. one I have never seen before) on the second day when a spiderhunter flew into a nearby tree. I expected it to be a Little Spiderhunter but it proved instead to be a Thick-billed Spiderhunter.

The main bird I was hoping to see, however, was a Malayan Laughing Thrush. This is like my Bukit Fraser nemesis bird. It is endemic to the Malaysian highlands and despite being to Bukit Fraser many times I have never been able to find one. I had read that they are getting harder to find, but that wasn’t much help for me given I had never found one in the first place. I spent each morning along Richmond Road which was supposed to be a place they are regularly seen, but no luck. On my last afternoon I took a wander up the road behind the food court, which leads past Allan’s Water (a small lake originally intended as a reservoir for the village). There was a little flock of Chestnut-capped Laughing Thrushes foraging in the trees. I was watching them when a larger bird suddenly popped up from the undergrowth – a Malayan Laughing Thrush! Quite a bit larger than I expected (in comparison to the Chestnut-cappeds) and also much more attractive than pictures on the internet would suggest.


That’s just a short entry for this part of the trip. There is a bird and mammal list here: Zoochat Big Year 2024

Each day was much more patchy than a normal visit to Bukit Fraser would be due to the weather and having to keep calling my bank’s helpline. My back-up eftpos card (the one which wouldn’t work at ATMs when I first arrived at KL airport) has now worked three times at Maybank ATMs, so there “should” be no issues with it in China. Just in case I now have about 2000 Ringgits (c.NZ$760) in cash in my wallet. I figure if Chinese ATMs don’t like my card then at least I can exchange the Ringgits for Yuan, and if I don’t need to exchange it I’m always going to be back in Malaysia so I can use it then. Hopefully my next post won’t be “so… my wallet was stolen...”

I fly out to Kunming in about four hours, with Air Asia, landing there at 1.25am.
 
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As may have been surmised by my posting about the Kunming Zoo (Kunming Zoo species list, 30 November 2024 [Kunming Zoo]) I arrived safely in China. I need to get back in the rhythm of writing while travelling - it isn't easy when everything is happening all at once - so this will just be a quick post and when I have time I will write a proper account of what I have done in Kunming over the last three days.

Most important thing out of the way first - the Alipay and WePay apps both work perfectly which is a relief. I'd much rather worry about something beforehand and then find it runs smoothly, than not give it a thought and end up falling on my face. The AliPay didn't ID-verify once I hit China, as I hoped it would, but because WePay works then I have less worry over that. If the foreign version of AliPay isn't ID-verified it stops working after reaching US$2000 in expenditure, so what I was going to do was try and pay all larger amounts (such as hotels and trains) in cash to stretch it out, and then just try to get by with cash alone if I had to at the end. Now I can use WePay to lessen the amount I'm spending with AliPay.

I did get out 1000 Yuan from an ATM at the airport when I arrived, both to check that my back-up eftpos card would work in a Chinese ATM and to have cash if the payment apps on the phone didn't work. So now I have the equivalent of about NZ$1000 in cash on my person (the 2000 Ringgits from Malaysia and the 1000 Yuan). I'll be using the Yuan here and there while still keeping some for back-up, and the Ringgits will just stay in my bag until I'm back in Malaysia (or potentially if I need it I can exchange it in Japan or where-ever).

The metro mini-app on AliPay would not work for me for the Kunming metro system. When trying to register a box comes up for either ID Card or Passport, but only the ID Card option was clickable. That might be something to do with the AliPay not being verified, or it might just be a bug. Didn't matter anyway, the Kunming metro is extremely easy to navigate and the ticket machines are no trouble to use.

The Google Translate app is a real help! I'm not used to having such a thing when I travel so I keep forgetting about it, but it really does make things easier when I remember it's there.

The 12306 Railway app is rubbish. As with AliPay it wouldn't verify my passport so that had to wait until I was in China. I tried verifying it again yesterday with no luck - it just says "the system is busy". So I went to one of the train stations today to get that done. As I previously mentioned, you can't take a train anywhere in China without your passport being verified in their system. From what I'd read online doing this at the station is therefore necessary but also excruciatingly slow, and also that actually boarding trains can take hours because of all the security and queues. Neither of these is the case in Kunming at least. The lady at the counter took my passport, filled out the details on her screen and it was done in a couple of minutes. Then she booked a train for me for tomorrow to Dali - I asked how long before departure to be there and she said half an hour. I tried the app to see if it says I'm now verified but it is "busy". So I just tried their website on my laptop while writing this and I am indeed now characterised as "Verified". Going forward I'll probably just buy my train tickets at the stations though, because the app sucks and I can't pay for the tickets over my laptop on account of not having my debit card any more.

Now here's a photo of some dinosaurs at the Kunming airport:

full
 
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