It was about four and a half years ago when I visited Kuala Lumpur and a few other parts of Malaysia. I was 22 at the time. Life was very different. I had just completed my graduation in Saudi Arabia. But since the institute was affiliated with Binary University, Malaysia I would get my degree from there. We had the option of attending the graduation ceremony in Malaysia or staying in the Kingdom and getting our degrees sent to us.
It had been a long time since we had a family vacation abroad so we decided to attend the graduation ceremony in Puchong, Malaysia. The plan was to attend my graduation ceremony then spend a week or two more there to explore the country. We wouldn’t have enough time to visit multiple locations so we decided we would explore the capital Kuala Lumpur alone after the graduation ceremony.
From my graduation ceremony in Malaysia in 2018.
Weather in Malaysia
Its climate is said to be equatorial due to its location in close proximity to the equator. The weather is generally hot and humid throughout the year. The best time to visit the country is considered between December to April. However, since I couldn’t reschedule my graduation we booked our flight to Malaysia in August.
The Airport
We got down at Kuala Lumpur International Airport which was absolutely beautiful. A great piece of modern architecture, well built with all the millennial amenities. It even had see-through glass on its roof and upper parts of certain side walls through which you could see the sky and greenery outside which looked absolutely majestic. We then headed to our hotel. There was barely any energy left to do much that day so we decided to pack it in and call it a day.
The Graduation Day
A few days later was my graduation. Me and my buddy along with our families attended the occasion. It was an incredible feeling when your name gets called up and you walk on stage in the robe with the special hot on and receive the degree. We both were also part of the group photo as well. Afterwards, there was a dinner for the students that graduated and their families. We were treated to some incredible local cuisines and dishes. Apparently, seafood was in popular demand for the occasion. The food was great and so was the day.
The Rest of Our Trip
After the incredible graduation ceremony we had a week left to explore the capital. We visited numerous places there. The Petronas Twin Towers, Menara KL, the famous caves in Selangor, various malls, aquariums, etc. We even bought some memorabilia and some Malaysia themed clothing too.
Malaysian Culture
There were numerous parallels I could draw from the U.A.E., particularly Dubai. The architectural obsession with tall buildings and modern infrastructure, the presence of an Islamic culture owing to a muslim majority(however, freedom of religion is granted by their constitution) , presence of a large subcontinental populace, etc. The country possesses a very diverse culture and demographic.
Planning Our Trips
Food
We’d plan where to go the night before or sometimes early in the mornings, be out the whole day and retire back to our hotel room at night. We’d have dinner packed from a restaurant near the hotel and eat it in our room. As for during the day we’d go out at whatever restaurant or mall Kuala Lumpur had that we could find. Also, owing to the great number of subcontinental people living in the nation it was easy to find Indian food.Â
Transport
They even have an app service called ‘Grab’ for taxis which is basically a local equivalent of Uber. It is great for tourists as it has algorithms for price. Hence, lesser chances of being fooled with regards to taxi fares. It’s especially beneficial for families travelling together like it was for us.
Public Transport such as buses are a great option for individual travels as they cost less than cabs. They also normally have popular locations on their routes.
Sightseeing
Petronas Twin Towers
Coming to sight seeing, we visited the Petronas Twin Towers, which are also the world’s largest twin towers as well. It was near our hotel as well (In fact, we even had a view of the towers from our hotel room.) They were a marvellous spectacle to behold. It was a very popular attraction and many tourists were there with us. The observation deck is there on the 86th floor as well as the SkyBridge on the 41st floor to cross towers and admire the beauty of the city from an elevated viewpoint.
A side view of the Petronas Twin Towers from an elevated position.
Menara Kuala Lumpur
The Menara Kuala Lumpur also known as the Kuala Lumpur Tower was another attraction we visited. The tower was beautiful and we even visited the observation deck at the top. There was a long queue but we didn’t mind as that meant plenty of time to take lots of photos on the inside. We finally got on the deck. It was exhilarating as well as a bit scary. It was transparent so you could see all the way down. We took photos of the city from there as well as photos of ourselves on the deck.
A photo from on top of the Kuala Lumpur Tower.
Batu Caves
We also visited the Batu Caves. Outside it was a giant statue of Lord Murugan, right next to the thousands of staircases needing to be climbed to visit the caves(Okay they were only 272 as per the official numbers but still). There were Hindu temples in the region as well. The famous caves are made of limestone and are known for their beauty. Also there was a lot of greenery on the mountains and if I remember correctly a few monkeys too!
Other places we visited
We also visited a large Aquarium, the name of which I cannot recall at present. But it had a wide range of marine life from small, tiny fishes to big ones too. The aquarium fish were a treat to see. It was quite a long walk. We even visited numerous malls and shopping centres( though we didn’t really buy much we were mostly there to explore.) We were almost on a search to determine the best shopping mall Kuala Lumpur had to offer.
A photo of me at an aquarium in Kuala Lumpur( and an angry crab in the background)
Another one from our visit to the aquarium.
Final Thoughts
It was an amazing adventure, one which I never wanted to end but, alas, it did eventually. It concluded as any other trip to a foreign country, with a visit to the airport and a flight. It was a great holiday and I learned a lot not just about Malaysia or Kuala Lumpur but travelling in general. We may have left Malaysia but its memories definitely haven’t left us.
Author bio– I am Srishti Kapoor from the “Lowest Flight Fares”- A US-based online travel firm dealing with thousands of airlines to offer the best travel experience to our esteemed customers.