KUALA LUMPUR

 KUALA LUMPUR

We left on Monday 6th Dec to KL before heading off to Australia on Saturday. We had been informed that the trip would take 6 hrs, which seemed to be about right as the trip to Melaka had taken four hours. Well, four and a half hours later we were told this is the end of the line, you are in KL. Turns out the bus station in central KL is being renovated so the buses terminate well outside. We had a lot of luggage (because we were flying back to Oz) so we took a taxi into town. There were four of us as the crew off Ajax, Heather and Mark, were spending the week in KL with us. Taxis are cheap here and the 30 min trip cost us 50 ringgit or $ 18.00. We had booked our hotel online and while we weren’t expecting luxury, not at $23.00 a night, we did expect to get a room with a view. Any view, not necessarily a pretty view, but at the very least a view of some sort. Apparently windows need to be specially requested and paid for accordingly. Yes, you guessed it, no window! The rest was clean and tidy, not flash but reasonable for what we were paying, just no window.

CELL NO 805

The first evening was spent settling in, sorting out where we wanted to go and finding the local supermarket and food court. As everywhere else in Malaysia the local food is cheap and good, typically a meal will cost you $2-3.00. If you want western food then you are looking at about $4-5.00.

The next morning we were all up bright and early and off to the tourist information centre to make sure we wouldn’t miss anything. Seems there is plenty to see in KL starting with the Petronus Towers. They were very impressive indeed, with lots of stainless steel everywhere.

PETRONUS TOWERS

The twin towers stand 452 meters high, and are the highest twin towers in the world. They became the highest building in the world when they were completed in 1997 and continued that way until 2003. The towers were constructed simultaneously, and incorporate a skybridge at level 41 and 42. There are 88 floors, thew lower 6 levels given over to upmarket shops and a full size concert theatre. Huge cranes were used to lift and place the bridge into position and such was the engineering that it slotted in perfectly. 

Public transport is fantastic in KL, there are GO cards which you can use and refill as day cards. This cost us 10.00 RM per day ($3.30) which allowed us to travel on the LRT (light rail transit) the RRT (rapid rail transport) the monorail and the buses.

HERE COMES THE TRAIN

The monorail and the buses have drivers, but the LRT and RRT are all automatic. It is good fun as you can stand and look out the front window.

VIEW FROM THE LRT

It gets a bit scary when another train comes along on the other rail. We rode from one end of the line to the other just sightseeing. We did the same on the monorail, stopping at various stations for coffee and lunch.

END OF THE LINE

While the system is good it is not perfect, it was always wait and see if we all got through, but usually one of us got stranded either coming in or going out. It all added to the fun of traipsing around the city. Everyone in KL speaks very good English, which makes life very easy but does not further my knowledge of Malaysian. Indonesian and Malaysian are very similar, just some words are pronounced differently.

CULTURAL CENTRE

We spent the afternoon at various museums and turned into our cells for an early night.

KL MUSEUM

Thursday we were all up early to go to the Batu Caves, it is 13 km out of KL, and the new Kommuter train stops there. Our GO card did not cover the trip so we were forced to buy a ticket. Well, we had to ask twice to make sure we heard correctly as she charged us a whole 2.00 RM each!! Boy, Australia could certainly learn a thing or two about public transport from the Malaysians.

BATU CAVES

The Batu Caves were carved out of limestone 400 million years ago. There are 272 steps to climb to reach the entrance, and a further 64 inside. The ceilings are over 300 ft high and further inside the cave there is a large hole that lets in light and rain creating a mini garden on the cliff sides. The caves were discovered over 100 years ago and the largest was made into a Hindu temple. This temple plays a very important role in Hindu religious ceremonies in Malaysia.

GOLDEN HINDU GOD

Monkeys abound at the caves, and you can buy food for them if you wish. They can get quite aggressive, but they are used to being chased away, so as long as you stay assertive they will scamper off.

MONKEY BUSINESS

After climbing up and down all those stairs it was time for coffee and some food. We decided to try the vegetarian Indian restaurant, and sampled various dishes and drank two cups of delicious coffee.

MUM AND BABE

After lunch it was back onto the train and off to the Selangor Pewter Factory. Established in 1885 by a Chinese immigrant to Malaysia they export hand made pewter items to more than twenty countries around the world. Tours are free and personalised; we were just with the four of us.

PEWTER WORKER

The workers are all highly skilled; one lady had been there over 40 years hammering those little dents in pewter mugs. She does about 8 to 10 per day. Can you imagine doing that for forty years! We all had a go at it and needless to say we did not do very well. It takes more than a year to learn how to put dents in pewter mugs.

CARE FOR A BEER?

Friday it was off to Petaling Street to the Chinese market to do our Christmas shopping before heading home to Australia. Great bargains are to be had if you are prepared to join in the national pastime of haggling over the price. I enjoy the challenge and the bargain, and got some good deals. I did pay too much for one item, but still paid a lot less than I would have in Australia so I’m still ahead. The rest of the afternoon was spent packing and then the four of us went out for dinner.

KL BY NIGHT

Saturday morning it was off to the airport for our Air Asia flight direct to Melbourne. We had a wonderful time in KL and look forward to returning to Malaysia in January to continue our adventures.

I would also like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a wonderful Christmas and a very Happy New Year.