Visit KL

Recently a forum friend of mine (Saki) from Australia dropped by KL for a  visit. 


I suppose one's knowledge of KL's attractions will be tested when a foreign friend who's eager to have a cultural experience comes to town! Saki arrived on a Friday afternoon and checked into a hostel (Sunshine Bedz) on Jalan Bukit Bintang. Saki's review of the hostel was that it's clean, and strategically located near the Bukit Bintang monorail station; plus McDonald's is just around the corner! :D We met up for dinner with Faizal, another forum friend (a Malaysian) at Grandmama's, Pavilion, then browsed Tokyo Street before heading home. 


On Saturday morning, we headed out to Gombak and met up with Faizal and 2 of my colleagues for breakfast. Breakfast was at a family warung and we'd nasi lemak + rendang + chicken curry. 
Breakfast!


Batu Caves was next on the agenda - you can't miss the iconic 42.7m tall statue of Lord Murugan. There are 2 temples on the grounds - one is at ground level, where we pay homage to Lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed deity. We then climbed 272 steps to the temple within Batu Caves. Monkeys clamber up and down easily - do not feed them unless you want a monkey on your back (literally). A feeling of peace descended upon me (I kid you not) the minute we reached the temple; I mean this is where millions of devotees come to pay their respects. 
The temple within Batu Caves


Entrance at top of Batu Caves


Batu Caves

A splendid sight

Lord Murugan statue


272 Steps up

We took a slight detour to the Dark Cave near the top of the steps. For Malaysians, it's RM35/entry but you can enter for RM25 if you flash your MyKad. We took the Educational Tour; it was interesting - the guide covered the history of the Dark Cave, the rock formations, the flora and fauna within the cave, as well as conservation efforts to protect the ecosystem unique to the cave. We caught a glimpse of the long-legged centipede and our guide showed us the tiny spiny millipede. Check out the official site here.
Spiny millipede

Long-legged centipede

After getting down to earth, we had coconuts! Then it was on to lunch in KL. We had traditional Indian banana leave rice. Saki was reluctant to eat with his bare hands but once he wore down the apalam, he dug in with his fingers and it was a new experience for him. We walked down Petaling Street and ducked into a Chinese temple for a bit before heading out to Dataran Merdeka. We entered the KL City Gallery which had a wonderful display of KL landmark buildings, the history of the city as well as a lovely gift shop! 
I Luv KL


Indian lunch


Sultan Abdul Samad building

We adjourned to dinner where I took Saki to Bangsar for Hokkien mee and satay. He loved the pickled green chili as well as the fried pork lard - I was happy to see him enjoyng himself! :) Unfortunately durians were nowhere to be found so that eating experience is postponed! We managed to eat some curry puffs and then it was back home for a good night's rest. I was occupied the next day so Saki went solo to the Petronas Twin Towers. He flew back to Australia on Monday. 
Petronas Twin Towers

I would love to visit other attractions in KL, such as the Muzium Negara, the National Mosque, the Parks (Deer Park, Butterfly Park) as well as the Thean Hou temple. It's interesting to see my hometown through the eyes of a foreigner - you'll never know what new gems you might find! ;)

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