Two Girls in Malaysia

As I mentioned in my previous blog about Thailand , my 25th birthday holds special significance for me. For this milestone celebration, I chose to explore Malaysia with my best friend from school, Sadhvi. I’ve often found myself gravitating towards trips with my girlfriends, perhaps because life’s unpredictable journey might limit our opportunities to spend quality time together later on. The adventures of a ‘romantic couple’ can always wait to be penned down in another chapter 🙂

Although this vacation took place in December 2015, I’m only now documenting it as I’ve recently embarked on my blogging journey.

Our journey began in Kuala Lumpur, where we planned to spend our first day at Genting Highlands, a hill resort nestled within the Titiwangsa Mountains. En route to Genting, we made a pit stop at Batu Caves in Selangor, just an hour away from the airport. At the entrance looms the world’s tallest statue of Lord Murugan, the Hindu God of war. Murugan holds a special place of worship among Tamil-speaking populations in regions such as Tamil Nadu in India, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Réunion.

Just an hour after landing in the country, we found ourselves climbing the 272-step staircase leading to the Batu Caves. These limestone caves house Hindu shrines, adding a spiritual dimension to our adventure right from the start!

We spent some time exploring the caves, soaking in the cool air and witnessing the prayer ceremonies taking place within the vast caverns. Then, we descended the 272 steps and embarked on a scenic 45-minute drive to the Genting foothill, where our next adventure awaited: a cable car ride to our hotel.

The Skyway cable car ride offers breathtaking views of the place.

We reached The First World Hotel which is the largest hotel of Genting Resort, comprising two colorful tower blocks that house about 6000 budget rooms overlooking the outdoor theme park at Genting Highlands.

While gambling may be the main attraction for many visitors to Genting, it also boasts a theme park that offers entertainment for children. After a refreshing rest, we ventured out to explore the hotel and its surroundings. With the holiday season approaching, the hotel was adorned with festive decorations, adding to its charm.

The walk down from the hotel offered picturesque views of the place. It was green everywhere 🙂

The next day, we set out for Kuala Lumpur – Malaysia’s capital city. I was happy about the location of our hotel. Our room faced the Petrona Towers and The Kuala Lumpur Tower, what else can you ask for when you’re in KL?

It was time to explore the Petrona Towers – the tallest twin towers in the world. The Skybridge that connects the two towers is the highest two story bridge in the world.

The Skybridge sits on the 41^st floor of the towers, the view of the city from here is beautiful. A lot of people halt here to take some pictures. Observation Deck is on the 86^th floor where we enjoyed a 360 degree view of the city lights.

Kuala Lumpur Tower, also known as Menara Kuala Lumpur is another attraction of the city.  Built in 1995, it does not share the popularity or stand as tall as the Petronas Twin Towers, but it has an open deck at 300m, access to which is weather dependent.

Here (if you dare) you can take a picture in the sky box, which puts nothing but glass between you and the ground below.

At night we came back to the hotel and Sadhvi got me a little cheese cake for my 25th Birthday 🙂 It was amazing to celebrate a milestone birthday with someone you’ve known almost all your life! Sadhvi has been my best friend since we were 12, one that has lived crazy teenage years with me, kept my secrets for all these years and one that I still call for suggestions and advice.

Next day, we took a half day city tour. This was an interesting tour that blends old-world character with a modern metropolis. An informative guide pointed out the contrast between Indo-Moorish architecture and ultra-modern edifices like the old and new King’s Palace and Merdeka (Independence) square against a growing city skyline dominated by the Petronas Twin Towers.

Mederka square has been the usual venue for the annual Merdeka Parade (National Day Parade). It was here the Union Flag was lowered and the Malayan flag hoisted for the first time at midnight on 31 August 1957. We sat around looking at the architecture of the place in that bright sunny day.

The King’s Palace or Istana Negara was built in 1928. The area is fenced up and at the front of the gate are two guard posts where members of the Royal Calvary guard the entrance. The entrance is prohibited but you can take a picture of the palace placing your camera inside the bars of the gate (If you have skinny hands like me, that is 😉) 

The palace is not open to the public and the main entrance with the mounted royal guard at the gate is one of the main attractions for visitors to the Istana.

The National Monument was our next stop which was built to recognize and honor those who gave up their lives in struggle for freedom, principally against the Japanese occupation during World War II and the Malayan Emergency, which lasted from 1948 until 1960. Within the National Monument grounds is one of the world’s largest free-standing bronze sculptures.

The Malay inscription “Untok mengingati jasa pahlawan-pahlawan yang gugor” means “To remember the service of warriors who have fallen.”

The sculpture that stands as a centerpiece of the monument is 15 meters (49.21 feet) tall and is made of bronze.

This beautiful sculpture depicts a group of soldiers, with two slumped at the base and one holding the Malaysian national flag aloft. Each of the bronze figures symbolizes leadership, suffering, unity, vigilance, strength, courage and sacrifice.

Our final stop of the half day tour was Beryl’s Chocolate Kingdom which is a showroom-cum-museum. Beryl’s uses only the highest quality cocoa beans from Ghana to make the best chocolate in Malaysia.

We tasted a few chocolates for free before buying them. One chocolate however was bought by Sadhvi without tasting – the famous Durian. Now if you’ve heard about Durian, you’ll know that people either love Durian or hate it. Durian is actually a fruit, the smell of which evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust.

I can only describe the odour as rotten onions and raw sewage. We had to throw the chocolate away after tasting – the taste lingered on our tongues for quite some time. Definitely not trying it again.

In the evening, we visited the I-City theme park in Shah Alam, because I wanted to be somewhere with lights and fireworks and a Ferris Wheel and because Sadhvi could not say a NO to the birthday girl 🙂

I-City has many attractions, its always better to check the website before purchasing the tickets.

We went for Spacewalk which is an elevated rail ride through the Enchanted Forest of digital lights to explore the entire place planning which rides we should go to.

Disco ride was fun, at first it looked kiddish but after the first few seconds I was continuously laughing with excitement until the ride finally stopped. If you ever plan to visit ICity, DO NOT miss this ride. Its not scary or challenging but it is a lot of fun. 🙂

We enjoyed a few more rides that were really for children but we didn’t care.

Snowalk -This is a 50,000 sq ft snow educational showcase with life-sized ice sculptures and thrilling rides in a below 5 degree Celsius arctic environment. It features a play zone for fun activities such as snowman-making, ice-sliding and tobogganing.

The sculptures and themes, as well as the lighting decoration in i-City change periodically. Hence, there will always be something new for visitors to see and enjoy.

Petaling Street also known as Jalan Petaling, the shopping haven in  Chinatown was last on the list because shopping is not a priority for every girl 🙂

From souvenirs and toys to apparel, shoes, luggage bags, watches, tech gadgets, and mobile accessories, along with replica branded bags and counterfeit sportswear and designer clothing, this street offers a plethora of options. Prices tend to be inflated, so bargaining is recommended unless the items are already priced very low. During our visit, we purchased a few perfumes, some inexpensive t-shirts, and some souvenirs.

Despite the commercial atmosphere, the shops along this street also offer a charming mix of old and new. Many of them contain restaurants, cafes, and shops, while some even house backpacking hostels.

For those considering backpacking in Kuala Lumpur, staying in one of the hostels here can provide an authentic local experience and a convenient location.

We came across some beautiful Temples here in Chinatown.

Chan See Shu Yuen, Kuan Ti Temple, Kuan Yin  and Sin Sze Si Ya Temple are the main ones.

Unfortunately, due to time constraints, we missed out on exploring the beautiful beaches of Malaysia. However, we managed to visit several other noteworthy places during our brief stay.

Have you been to Malaysia? Do recommend some more places to see the next time I am there.

Thanks for stopping by