Stop Seven, Kuala Lumpur 2/06/2015 to 7/06/2015
(Written by Him)
(Written by Him)
| In recent times more and more Irish people are passing through Kuala Lumpur than ever before. The airports of KL and Dubai are the lay-over destinations for those flying between London and Australia. So while most of us are now broadly aware of KL far less have ventured outside of its impressive airport. We did, spending 6 days in one of the world's most amazing cities! Malaysia's capital city, Kuala Lumpur (literally translated as "muddy estuary") has come along way from its humble beginnings as a 19th century Chinese mining territory. This unlucky settlement was destroyed by both fire and flood in 1881. A British man, Frank Sweetenham designed a new layout for the town and ordered the rebuilding of destroyed buildings be made out of brick and tile, modelled on Southern Chinese architecture. By 1886 the town was chosen to be the capital of the newly formed Federated Malay states (under British rule) and was in turn settled by a mix of peoples all having some vested interest including, Chinese, Indian Muslims and of course the British ruling class. |  6th Airport and still smiling! |
Having travelled back to KL airport arrivals lounge after the wonderful AVANI resort, we took the 28 minute express train into KL Sentral, the main connection hub in the heart of the city. Our first real experience of Kuala Lumpur came from chatting with our taxi driver as we sped through the rain to our hotel. "Everyone comes here except for Americans, we are Islamic and they think if you have a beard you are going to blow them up". The jovial stereotyping continued until we reached our hotel by which time we certainly knew the best and worst of the KL cultural meting pot, at least from one perspective. After checking in to our new digs we took an evening walk around our immediate area to get our bearings. Our hotel was on a primarily Indian street with shops selling flowery garlands for Hindu celebrations and an array of curry houses and cheap jewellers.
| Through the nearby central market housing indigenous handicrafts we unintentionally stumbled across a guide book restaurant recommendation. Restoran Yusoof dan Zakhir is a large canteen style eatery cooking traditional mamak food - Indian Islamic. No pork and everything Halal with the all male staff wearing the traditional kufi hats. We were quickly shown to a table and presented with the well worn single-page menus. While we went by the written descriptions this first night we did not restrain ourselves the other two nights we returned to Yusoof's! |  |
 | It really is a place where one should simply let their eyes and nose lead them: in one corner was the tandoori station - a huge clay cauldron, roasting hot where naan was flung in from baking stones and generously spice rubbed chicken joints were cooked on long skewers to the most awesome shade of dark red perfection; behind tandoori man stood the curry king, a huge & happy Indian-Malay barricaded behind trays of the best smelling curries - lamb, chicken, beef or fish, he heaps some rice on the centre of your plate before encouraging you to help yourself. Together with naans and roti of every description, dahl dips on the side, the food in this place was fantastic and the best I have had since our trip began. I was more than a little enthusiastic. The teh-tarik (local tea with condensed milk served hot or cold) flowed very easily and when it came to the bill we were delighted at how reasonable the price was. |
| You may have noticed that we were thoroughly impressed by KL's multiculturalism. This diversity was most noticeable in the style of women's fashion. In a country that is approx. 80% Muslim we were immediately aware of the significant volume of hijabs and niqabs, something we just didn't see in Vietnam. The colours and the variety of ways to wear these head pieces transformed this religious symbol into something very chic. We were so taken with them that herself went into an Islamic "Penneys" equivalent and bought some of these versatile garments. The shop was very busy with Muslim women only and for the first time in Malaysia we certainly got some looks. |  |
 | I waited outside with the other men wearing their long white dress-like Muslim clothes and hats. We had to YouTube how to properly wear what she had bought. We also couldn't help but be distracted by the stunning Indian clothes on display around the city. Women wearing full length Saris and Salwars in the most magnificent shades of deep purple, pink & turquoise, complete with bindis and costume broaches, passed us on their way home from work. The younger Indian women also had nose piercings and henna decorations on their hands and arms making them look beautifully mysterious and otherworldly. We made a mental note to pick up some of these pieces when ever we saw them.  |
On the morning of day two we set off on foot for Merdeka Square. This significant patch of grass has a checkered history. Literally translated as "Independence square" or "Freedom Square" it was here in 1957 that the Union Jack was lowered for the last time and the Malaysian flag run up the 95 metre flag pole, one of the highest in the world. Up to that point the British colonials had used the site for their cricket practice. The square is used for the annual Malay independence day parade as well as various minor festivals and events. The weather was exceptionally hot this morning but the square is well equipped with shady stone gazebos and impressive aerial water features all providing cooler spots for tourists and locals alike to admire the area comfortably out of the direct heat. Across from the square stands the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, now used by a Government Ministry, this beautiful Indian Muslim style building is very eye catching and certainly took up as much of our photo storage as the square itself. Nestled beside the square and old main rail station is the KL City Gallery. This attraction boasts one of the more well known photo ops with a large, red I "heart" KL sculpture out front where visitors can be snapped lounging on the letters in uncomfortable poses. Check ours out!
Inside the gallery is a brief history of KL and upstairs the spectacular model of the entire city (40ft by 50ft) which forms the basis of a light show and is the first of its kind in SE Asia. I thought the show itself was a little bland, a screen at the back listing slick facts about the city while areas of the model where awkwardly and dimly lit in synchronization. It was not until the main lights came back on that we could fully appreciate the scale and intricacy of the model city. We quickly broke the "no photo" rule when no one was looking. Returning downstairs we could see the model makers, working in a large glass walled room.
 | That afternoon we hit Chinatown. A bustling, jam-packed area of about 4 streets, each adorned with long strings of red Chinese lanterns where street vendors pile in on top of each other vying for your attention. The good humoured vendors called to passers-by to 'come haggle with me'. Rather than feeling hassled and ripped off, the whole experience was taken in good jest and very enjoyable. Out of what must have been 200 stalls the vast majority were selling the same t-shirts, "genuine copy" handbags, pens, sunglasses and watches. We had come for the food and to see the Chinese culture being preserved at such a distance from their home. Of course such lofty pursuits devolved rapidly into haggling for handbags and souvenirs, Lets just say a few bargains were had! Herself was born to haggle. The experience was well worth the visit however and in fact we ended up re-visiting the area before leaving KL. |
There were some real Chinese gems to be found such as sticky pork skin slices and chicken feet. Most of the restaurants were run by second generation Chinese who will talk to each other in Mandarin instead of the local Malay. The food was as Chinese as you would get anywhere and for lunch we munched our way through real prawn crackers, blackened chili chicken, egg fried rice, fried pork noodles and Chinese chicken satay. Even though we ordered small portions we still had to leave food behind. We headed back to the Central market for a quick browse on the way home. She decided to further the Indian experience with a henna tattoo from finger tip to elbow. Having negotiated the deal with Indian-Malay granny, it was her nephew that applied the quirky design in just 5 minutes.
| The following day we were meeting an old Malaysian friend, Hong, for lunch. Having lived together in first year college, herself and Hong had not seen each other in 10 years. To make our 12:30 date we set off early to fit in Menara KL (KL tower). Completed in 1995 this huge tower used for telecommunication transmission is the 7th largest tower of its kind in the world and offers the highest viewing point in Kuala Lumpur. We took the free goKL City bus, a short walk and then a free 2 minute shuttle bus from the entrance gate to the door of the tower itself. From hotel to attraction for free, KL was looking better and better. We bought a ticket for the observation deck and the aquarium which sits at the bottom of the tower (next to the mini zoo no less). |  |
There is a tree growing beside the tower which sums up the attitude of this eco-conscious super city. The Jelutong tree is a rare species, this one over 100 years old. In order to keep the tree in its original position the tower location was shifted and soldier piles were installed during the tower's construction to protect the tree at an additional cost of RM 430,000. We took the lift to the observation platform which brings guests up the 22 stories in just 54 seconds. The views as you would expect are exceptional and there really is no other way to comprehend the scale and the height of KL. The pictures describe the scene better than I ever could. The aquarium felt very much like an afterthought compared to the tower but I like aquariums and this one satisfied my proclivities.
| With 30 minutes to spare before lunch we popped into the Weld shopping mall for a nosey. Even this small centre, away from the main shopping district of Bukit Bintang felt impressive with its many levels and open courtyard-style central column. We met Hong across from her office, a huge banking centre, and hopped on the free bus to The Pavillion. Across a skywalk and down at least 5 escalators we reached the basement floor food court. The place was enormous with at least 5 restaurants for every type of food you could think of. We walked for a long time, still never reaching the end of this vast array, until we came to Madam Kwan's Malaysian Restaurant (where the lady herself can sometimes be spotted). |  |
This was the place to try local food our host assured. Armed with our menu recommendations we ordered nasi lemak (chicken drumsticks with coconut rice in a delicious deep red spice sauce), sardine and noodle broth, and seafood and flat noodle stir-fry. For dessert we had the locally named "ABC" which is flavoured crushed ice, sitting on top of smooth jelly with tiny sweet vegetables like corn and peas in the bottom. It was so different but exactly what you would crave on a hot day. We chatted about life in KL with Hong and after getting some great insider info we hugged our goodbyes and wandered around this huge and expensive shopping world for another hour. Scared off by the prices (more expensive than the EU due to taxes), we hopped on the free bus back 'home'.
| We had set aside the next day for the Golden Triangle area. Although this district includes The Pavilion centre today we were heading for Petronas Towers. These twin skyscrapers are the tallest in the world but they do not dominate the KL skyline when sat amongst so many other very tall buildings. Getting to the towers was almost as impressive as the towers themselves. We took the free bus to one of the city rail stations where we expected to hop on the monorail line to bring us the rest of the way. |  |
We entered the rail station and were able to immediately begin following signs for the towers. It wasn't until we had walked for about 5 minutes that we realised we were going to be able to take this skywalk all the way to the towers without any additional transport. A trip that would have taken 30 minutes to walk through the city streets in the heat was made so pleasurable by a cool, airy skywalk built as the crow flys directly to the attraction (overground and then underground). Again completely free trip from hotel to destination. So tourist friendly. The towers double as offices as well as tourist attraction. The ground floor is dedicated to Petronas souvenirs and outside, fountains & huge water features create excellent photo backdrops. We snapped as many shots of each other as we could in between many groups of other tourists.
 | That afternoon we headed back to KL tower to the level above the observation deck we had already visited heading for the revolving restaurant (Atmosphere 360). A huge buffet of Indian, Chinese, Western and Malay cuisine was spread along the centre static island. From there diners step on to the revolving area where the tables and chairs are spread out in front of the 360 degree window views over the city. A full rotation takes one hour. As we entered the restaurant we were asked not only for our names but the name of our hotel and the room number! I had to ask the reasoning at that point and the girl said it was because so many people lost their belongings in the restaurant. It was not until we sat down at our table that we finally understood how easily such a thing could happen. As we put our bags on the floor beside our table and started to tuck into our buffet, the floor beneath us kept moving, while the floor beneath our bags was stationary. Without realising it, our bags had drifted to the empty table beside us in a matter of minutes. Lesson learned! |
Eating while revolving is a "should try" experience but it certainly has the potential to create nausea. I found it easier to do one or the other so between courses I enjoyed the views but while eating it was firmly eyes down. A rare experience, worth the extra $$. The food, staff and of course views were excellent.
Our last day in KL was one of highs & lows, and I am not talking about towers this time! We planned to take the hop on - hop off bus around the wider city area getting off at two sites for a closer look. KL maintains the world's largest covered bird park at 29.5 acres, tropical species galore flying freely within this massive walk-in aviary.
| The other area we selected was Little India in Brickfields, the historical site where the brick and tile used to re-build KL under Sweetenham's direction was manufactured. We got up early and made the short walk to Merdeka Square where the bus stopped. This day however the square was closed to traffic facilitating a music event. Local info confirmed the bus would stop close-by and we should wait at a particular junction. After almost an hour in the searing heat...you guessed it, no bus. |  |
Frustrated we walked around looking for someone better informed. A nearby shop told us the bus stopped at the other end of the square! Full of renewed optimism off we went. Another hour later and still no bus. Optimism had soured in the relentless heat to absolute frustration. The day was slipping away. In the end we had to approach two separate taxis before the second would take us to the main KL tourist office where the bus made its first stop. The morning felt completely wasted at the time but in fact during those hours that we waited we saw a Muslim photo shoot, spoke with an extremely nice Chinese-Malay man who looked 50 but claimed to be a shocking 70 years old. We also spoke with some Chinese women handing out flyers describing the persecution a certain demographic was battling in China. The privilege of protesting and disseminating such information is a right these women could not exercise in their home country, here they had freedom of speech.
 | Finally on the bus we enjoyed the open top tour immensely and quickly left the morning's troubles behind us. We now only had time for one stop however and we opted for Little India. From the bus stop in Brickfields the main street stretches out in front, running from a large elephant style fountain (a symbol for overcoming one's obstacles) past shops selling beautifully coloured fabrics, Indian clothes & jewellery, vegetable stands and vast welcoming eateries. There is also a series of yellow arches with pink tinge along the footpath which really lifts the area and gives it a vibrant and exciting feel. Herself was like a spritely hare out of the traps, immediately hitting the shops with gusto. The Indian culture is displayed most prominently through female fashion and most of the shops only sold items for women. We looked at over-priced saris, bindi make-up, delicate embellished pumps and arrays of rings, piercings and necklaces. |
My interests were also indulged as we grabbed a table in a busy canteen, downing mango lassis, mutton masala, roti canni and banana rice with heaps of assorted veg sides. While everyone around us ate with their fingers (right hand only), I still felt transported to Bangalore for an hour, despite my fork and spoon.
Hopping back on the bus we finished the rest of the city tour. The bus stopped for an extended 10 minute pick-up outside the bird park, just enough time for everyone to snap a few monkeys swinging freely onto the footpath and road adjacent to their climbing area. It was a very unexpected treat to get up close to these native animals when we hadn't even planned on the stop. On we rolled, past the very impressive state mosque and planetarium. A very nice little girl, wearing her hijab in the car next to us waved madly as we sat in traffic together while at the same time the Indian kids on the seats in front of us were trying to sing the theme song from Disney's "Frozen" in perfect unison. Kuala Lumpur, what a cool city!
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