Kuala Lumpur’s evolution from tin prospector’s jungle shack to shimmering 21st century high-rise metropolis is testimony to man’s power over nature, but if you take a peak at the city from the heights of Menara KL, you quickly realise that nature is all around. In fact Kuala Lumpur is one of the greenest cities in Southeast Asia boasting beautiful parks, inner city walkways, plus an abundance of arts attractions, exquisite eateries, markets and fashionable shopping malls.
In its rush to modernise, KL has seen many of its beautiful buildings demolished, but this green city still has an impressive number of colonial-era buildings and these can be found in the most atmospheric and colourful quarters, such as Chinatown, Little India and Kampung Baru; the bustling centres of KL’s Chinese, Malay and Indian communities.
It is perhaps this multi-cultural mix that makes KL such a fascinating place – one minute you can be lighting incense in a Chinese temple and the next you might be taking off your shoes and heading into a Mosque or Hindu Shrine. What’s more, you can eat like a king in KL and the nightlife rivals anywhere in Southeast Asia. And yet, for all its cosmopolitan pizzazz, KL also has it’s tranquil side – a city where you can relax in lush green parks or quickly escape to rolling countryside in the surrounding state of Selangor.
Kuala Lumpur’s colonial centre is Merdeka Square near the ‘muddy confluence’ of the two rivers from which the city takes its name. Southeast from Merkdeka is Chinatown famed for its night markets and cheap accommodation, and west from Chinatown is the Masjid Negara (National Mosque); KL’s historical train station and the tranquil Lake Gardens. South of the gardens is KL Sentral, the new train terminus for both national and international connections as well as the main connection to KL International Airport (KLIA).
Being close to equator, KL can be very hot and humid and therefore not the best city in which to be walking long distances. However, the city centre is surprisingly compact and despite the heat, walking is probably the best option to get a feel for your surroundings. In fact, it’s often quicker to go by foot than to catch a cab or the Metro and many of the sites you’ll want to see are within close proximity to one another, thus helping to cut down on your travel time.
Of course one of the main attractions that everyone wants to see these days is the huge Petronas Towers, dominating the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC), which also includes a park, a convention and shopping centre, as well as a world-class concert hall. Opened to the general public in 1998, the 88-storey steel clad twin towers rise to a height of 451.9m and are the headquarters of Malaysia’s national oil and gas company Petronas as well as a number of other companies, including Al Jazeera’s Asian broadcasting centre.
In KL’s Chinatown you’ll find just wandering around the stalls and little markets is an experience in itself, but one site definitely worth paying a visiting to is the multi-coloured Sri Mahamariamman Temple, a large ornate South Indian Shrine that houses an impressive silver chariot. During the Thaipusam festival in January and February, the chariot is paraded through the streets to the Batu Caves. Other attractions in Chinatown include the Taoist Sze Ya Temple and close by is the Central Market offering opportunities for shopping and a bite to eat.
KL’s Lake Gardens is one place you won’t want to miss. Lying at the edge of the city’s central area around landscaped hills, the lush green 92-hectare gardens contain a host of attractions, the highlight of which is the Bird Park, a huge walk-in aviary with over 160 species of mostly Southeast Asian birds. In addition, some 6,000 butterflies flutter through the appropriately named Butterfly Park and you can exit through an insect gallery and marvel at the size of the huge spiders the likes of which can be found in the Cameron Highlands.
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