Malaysia

In and around Kuala Lumpur

The most iconic place in Malaysia is the Petronas Twin Towers. The Petronas Twin Towers is located in the central of Kuala Lumpur and it is one of the tallest buildings in the world. The building was built for commercial use for offices for multinational companies. The Petronas Twin Towers also has a shopping centre, park, the Petronas Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre and Science Centre. There is a double decker sky bridge that connects the two towers together. 

  Malaysia is well known for their street food markets and bustling street life. A place that you should check out is Jalan Petaling (Petaling Street). This street is the Chinatown of Kuala Lumpur and sell local Malaysian food such as Hokkien Mee, curried rice and noodles and laksa. There is a local Malaysian drink called Teh Tarik which is tea with condensed milk. There are tables and chairs outside on the street for people to eat at, tourists can experience the difference in cultural eating. Petaling Street also has street and flea markets selling many different goods like food, clothing and souvenirs. It is a good place to go to for a bargain. 

If you are interested in Malaysia's local culture and religion, you should check out some of the temples around Malaysia. They are all very unique, beautiful and has lots of colourful details and designs surrounding the temples. The temple that I went to is the Sri Mahamariamman Temple which is close to Petaling Street. This Hindu temple is the oldest and richest temple in Malaysia. It has a strong cultural and national heritage for Indian immigrants to worship the Hindu Gods. The temple is tall at 22.9 metres and has a unique roof structure covered with interesting colourful statues of many Hindu gods and horse chariots. 

Another religious place in Malaysia that you could look at is the Batu Caves. The Batu Caves is a popular tourist destination because of its iconic giant gold statue, the Murugan Statue. The Batu Caves is a Hindu shrine on the side of a limestone hill. There are 272 steps up to the Batu Caves. There are a lot of monkeys around the gold statue and the steps. They are not scared of humans, they enjoy playing on the steps and may follow you up and down the stairs. There are locals who sell food to tourists and other locals to feed the monkeys. Inside the cave, there are many Hindu statues and paintings. There are also fruit bats living in the caves. Every year, people would hold festivals and pilgrimages for Hindu Malaysians at the caves.  

The Kuala Lumpur Bird Park is another place that you should check out. The bird park has many exotic tropical species from the macaw, toucan, peacock and even the rainbow lorikeets. The bird park is fun for children because they can see different birds up close, they have bird shows where the birds perform their tricks and there are opportunities to touch and feed the tropical birds. The aviary showcases many birds of vibrant colours which makes it a great photo opportunity. There is a section in the bird park where they let tourists and visitors to take photos holding the exotic birds.