When Olawale Suleiman Ayinla first landed in Kuala Lumpur International Airport in 2007, his first encounter with a Malaysian was a woman who asked if she could pat his afro-style hair.

“She asked in such a friendly manner, I couldn’t say no,” smiled Ayinla, a 48-year-old father of one.

An accountant by training, Ayinla has travelled to Spain, the United Kingdom, Brazil and Thailand before coming to Malaysia on a business trip to develop medical tourism targeting the Nigerian market. Today, he resides in Subang with his family.

“I spent my first two weeks in Malaysia just exploring.

“My first destination was Bukit Bintang, where I had my first taste of Malaysian food; it was catfish in chilli paste on white rice, for only RM5. I found it at the foodcourt in the basement of a shopping centre,” recalled Ayinla, who grew up in Kwara, Nigeria.

Thanks to this positive experience with Malay cuisine, Ayinla has developed an affinity for sambal belacan and even a certain level of familiarity with the fare of various states, including Kelantanese and Minang dishes.

But when the yearning for home-cooked food hits, he points out that there is no lack of Nigerian foodstuff readily found at Giant in Subang Jaya and Bandar Mahkota in Cheras, IOI Mall in Puchong and the Chow Kit market.

He also took time to chill out in Genting Highlands.

Very sociable by nature, he has little problem fitting in with the locals.

As the second of seven children and the eldest son, Ayinla says the experience from his younger days in Europe and South-East Asia has prepared him for the multicultural diversity in Malaysia.

He runs his own business in event management.

“To be accepted, one must learn to embrace the culture of others. When you do this, it is easy to find acceptance,” said Ayinla from his experience of doing business with Malaysians.

To destress from work, Ayinla started off by playing basketball but an ankle injury forced him to resort to morning walks and cycling in his neighbourhood.

Still, he insists nothing beats dancing, which he does for 40 minutes as part of his workout routine at home, to either hip-hop music or samba.

With his love of music and dancing, he confesses to enjoying the clubbing scene although he has cut back markedly since he has a six-year-old son.

He has a few favourite clubs around the Klang Valley, and for his birthday last year, he was thrown a surprise bash at one of those clubs before a more family-oriented celebration at home later.

While Ayinla is enjoying life in Malaysia, he is also eager to make make new friends and establish connections with fellow Nigerians who are just getting to know Malaysia.

He constantly organises “suya” sessions — like a satay party — at his house.

source:thestar.com.my