Malaysia #2: Kuala Lumpur

Next we went back to Kuala Lumpur (or KL, as it is called in Malaysia). The airport, like Bangalore, is way outside the city. The roads were excellent but we experienced jams as we got closer to the city center. While the traffic crawls close to the city center and the tourist/ mall/ office areas, everyone follows lane discipline and you never hear cars honking.

 

The first day in KL, we had the Petronas Towers visit booked. Since we didn’t know the walking route from the hotel and didn’t know how bad KL jams are, we took a cab. Bad idea. Anyways, we got to the Towers on time. The towers are right next to a very popular mall, so we made more trips to the mall on other days. Those times, we walked to avoid the jam - it took a predictable 15 minutes.

 

The view from the Petronas Towers was a bit disappointing. Why? While the Towers are very tall, KL is full of high-rise buildings, many right next to the Towers. So wherever you look, your view is obstructed by the other buildings. Totally unlike the Eiffel Tower, where the view is excellent because all the other buildings in the city are not tall.

 

There is another tall tower called KL Tower. It is located away from everything else, and the view from there is thus unobstructed and hence so much better. If you want to see the KL skyline and landscape, this is the tower to go to. It also has a glass bridge that goes around the tower at a height of 100 feet, upon which we walked (while attached to a safety harness). I would have liked the bridge to have been closer to the top of the tower, this altitude was a bit too tame. We also had high tea at the revolving restaurant at the top of the tower.

 

We also went to Batu Caves, about 15 minutes by taxi. It is famous for its colorful steps (unfortunately, they were not so colorful when we went with many flights being repainted) leading to the temple of Lord Murugan. It is a pilgrimage place for Tamil Hindus, and a tourist spot for the rest. It is guarded by a huge statue of Lord Murugan at the front. At the top of the 272 steps are a couple of temples and limestone caves. Definitely worth the climb.

 

In a later blog, I will cover other general, non-tourist’y observations about KL.

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