Hill walking is another popular exercise as are morning exercises in the parks where Tai Chi and other exercise routines are followed in the cool of the early morning. Not surprisingly there are many HASH runs all over Malaysia as the original HASH was held at the Spotted Dog or – to use its more formal name – The Royal Selangor Club in KL.
Travel within Malaysia is another popular pastime since the country offers a great variety of attractions at the hill stations and coastal resorts. For travel further a field budget airlines give easy access to the rest of Asia and Australia. Singapore and Thailand are both an easy drive away and it is simple to take one’s car to either. At the border crossing for Thailand it is necessary to buy third party insurance (50 pence for each day to be spent in Thailand). Malaysia also hosts various major international sporting events including Formula 1 racing at the Sepang circuit near Kuala Lumpur, power boat racing, horse jumping, squash, motor bike racing, yachting and world cup golf. There are also plenty of regional sporting events. For those who like to participate, particularly golfers, Malaysia has a lot to offer. There are many golf courses scattered across the country some offering fairly exclusive memberships and others open to anyone. The green fees tend to be much lower than other countries.
There are also many country clubs, in and around major cities which offer a wide range of activities and most offer temporary membership to allow newcomers to visit as well as reciprocal memberships. People who enjoy playing tennis, squash or badminton will find little problem finding a place to play and a group to join.
Sailing is growing in popularity and the government allows boats to be imported free of any duties and mooring charges are also very reasonable. More and more marinas are being built around the country. For divers Malaysia offers some of the best dive spots in the world especially off the coast of Sabah and around Redang Island off the east coast of peninsular Malaysia.
Malaysians are great football fans and avidly follow English Premier League teams. Astro, the local satellite TV service, regularly screens live EPL matches as well as the rugby Six Nations Championships and other popular sports events live.