Today we needed to be out and early as we had to head far out to reach Batu Caves, a famous Hindu temple site — and one of Kuala Lumpur’s must-see sights. Since I was up and ready first, I decided to take a few photos of the place where we were staying.
You have to leave your shoes downstairs as no shoes are allowed into roomsThe place is quite clean though. These are the rooms downstairs.The dining room is downstairsThe kitchen is where you can make yourself toast and coffee/tea
As was the norm everywhere we stayed on this trip, once you are done with breakfast, you wash the dishes yourself and keep it back from where you took them.
The lobby/reception/living area has books, a TV and two computers with free internet serviceThey sell bottled water lower than what the 7-Elevens chargeThis is the sit-out area. Smoking is not allowed inside the rooms.This is where we sat yesterday night and had our dinnerNo elevator. You have take these stairs to go up.Upstairs, where our triple room was (Photograph by Loiyumba, taken yesterday)How appropriate our room number was ‘F1’ for this ‘F1 trip’ of oursThese are the bathrooms upstairs
Given that our triple room cost us around Rs. 4300 (RM297/$96/€68) for 3 nights, we couldn’t have been more happier with Irsia, given the location. Yes, the walls are a little thin and ventilation isn’t great, but if you are going to be spending more time inside hotel rooms, you best look at proper hotels. By the way, that is Rs. 4300 for all three of us — Rs. 1400 per person, for 3 nights in KL!
Once all three of us were ready and done with breakfast, we stepped out. We decided to take the monorail to get to KL Sentral.
The monorail station in front of Berjaya Times Square is called ImbiAt 9:30am, the station wasn’t all that crowded
The ride takes around 15-20 minutes with all the stops
Once at KL Sentral, we asked the information desk how to get to Batu Caves and were instructed to head downstairs to the train platforms. We bought our tickets (RM2/Rs. 30/$0.60) and headed down.
There are frequent trains to Batu Caves
Unfortunately, in the confusion of which train to get on, I accidentally stepped into the wrong train but was too late to step out as the doors closed with Ramesh and Loi still on the platform.
I got down at the old Kuala Lumpur Railway Station, which was the next stop
But by then, Ramesh and Loiyumba were in the right train and already ahead of me.
I soon got the next train and was on my way
The ride took nearly 30 minutes and by the time I arrived at the station (which by the way is the last stop), Ramesh and Loiyumba were already at the temple.
There is no entry fee for Batu CavesHanumanji’s presence isn’t the biggest hereSri Venkatachalapathi temple
This is a Chinese garden; I believe entry wasn’t free
Pigeons must hate kidsScratch that. Pigeons hate humans.
It was time for me go up, Ramesh and Loi were already in the cave
This statue of Lord Murugan is the biggest of its kind in the world272 steps to climbAlong the way (as was the norm on this trip), you’ll encounter plenty of monkeysAnd as usual, monkeys will try and grab stuff from you
But they are generally well behaved here
Once I reached the top, I met up with Ramesh and Loiyumba who were done and were ready to head back down. They said they would wait for me down below and so, I went in for my photography.
It only got better once insideThere were gaps in the ceiling through which water was dripping downThere are two temples in side the caveThis. apparently, is the ‘main temple’
This monkey was a spoilt one. When this Indian couple gave hims some food, he dropped it and picked up a burger instead.
I was glad I had my wide angle lens with me
Apparently they should have also mentioned ‘No Scribbling’I liked the photos I clicked in here
But even with a wide-angle lens, trying to capture the scale of the caves from the inside (without distortion) was near impossible, so I took a few multiple shots and merged them into one using Photoshop.
Vertical panorama comprised of 10 shots
Vertical panorama comprised of 11 shots
Vertical panorama comprised of 8 shots
I was trying to capture water dropping on to the stepsAfter nearly 20 minutes inside the cave, it was time for me head down
It was a cloudy day, so I couldn’t see the Petronas Towers from here. Actually, I’m not even sure if they are visible from up here.Vertical panorama comprised of 5 shots
Once down, I caught up with Loi and Ramesh and we decided to have lunch from here itself.
This is where we ate. There aren’t too many options actually.
Post lunch, we just sat outside for a while and observed the crowds. We were even approached by some PR team for Sony, and asked to pretend we were using Sony camcorders. In return for doing so, we asked them if we could keep them — but they said no. 🙂
Not sure if this couple were shooting for their wedding album or notI took one last look at Lord Murugan before leaving (This is a single shot)
This is the Batu Caves train station(Photograph by Loiyumba)In case you wanted to know the Malay words for public signs (Photograph by Loiyumba)Tandas = toilet (Photograph by Loiyumba)
We bought our tickets (RM2) and boarded our train.
It was a cloudy day, but we could still see the Petronas Towers from afar
If you were looking for nasty hotel in KL. (J/k, it’s quite fancy: http://www.dynasty.com.my/)(Photograph taken by Loi)
Once we got back to KL Sentral, we decided to head to the IKEA store as Ramesh was keen on picking up some stuff from there. The outlet was located in the area called Mutiara Damansara and we asked around on how to get there by bus. We waited at bus stop outside KL Sentral and hopped on to one that went that way.
The journey took us through a lot of residential areas in Kuala Lumpur.
(These were taken on my Nokia E72)
An hour long journey later, we were in Petaling Jaya. Even though it was a long journey, it was quite a relaxing one for me as I got to see residential areas outside of the CBD (Central Business District), something I wouldn’t have seen given where we were staying.
The IKEA store is right adjacent to this
Once we entered the IKEA store, we were hooked! There was soooooo much that we felt like picking up, but just couldn’t, because figuring out how to carry them home was something we couldn’t comprehend.
Regardless, we still picked up quite a bit of stuff and by the time were out, it was well past sunset.
Technically, the IKEA store is not in Kuala Lumpur, it’s in neighbouring district
Since we had quite a lot of stuff with us to carry, we decided to just take a cab.
Though bus only cost us RM2.60 for 3, taxi was much required to save time
And save time it did, the taxi took the highway from the IKEA store into KL and we were back in our rooms in just half-an-hour. (IKEA store directions)
For dinner, we decided to head to Kuala Lumpur’s China Town, which was also accessible via monorail.
From Imbi, the monorail stop for getting to China Town was only two stops away, at Maharajalela.
If you ask locals around for “Chinatown” and they don’t get it, just ask for Petaling street
Once inside, it was a just one street (probably covering two blocks) with a lot of stores and street shops. No vehicles allowed.
You have the usual gamut of fake goods, pirated CD/DVDs and clothesBut I didn’t really find anything particularly interesting about this ‘Chinatown’Plus, the prices were quite high considering the stuff they sold weren’t what you would call “genuine”
A lot of the t-shirts were from Thailand and so, cost a lot more than what I saw them for in Bangkok. Yes, you have to haggle, but even when Loi did so for a backpack, the price they came down to was still too high. We soon left Petaling Street.
And just as we left, it began to rain all of a sudden.
Fortunately we had umbrellas
We saw an Malay Indian restaurant and jumped in for a quick dinner.
The place was run by Malay Tamilians; food was simple and decent enough taste-wise
Ramesh didn’t find anything on the menu that was pure veg, so it was just myself & Loi. Once we were done, we headed back to Berjaya Times Square by taxi (cost RM5) as it was still raining.
It was dinner at Krispy Kreme for RameshIt stopped raining by midnight
We headed back to Irsia, calculated our daily expenses, sorted out who paid for what, and who owes whom how much — pretty much a daily routine for us on this trip, before hitting the sack.
I was quite happy with some of the photos I took inside Batu Caves and rate the caves highly as one of the “must see” sights in Kuala Lumpur. It only costs RM 2 for the one way journey to Batu Caves by train and is a nice break from the city.
Tomorrow morning, we planned to get up early (again) and head to Petronas Towers to try and get a ticket to visit the observation deck. We only had one more day left in the capital.
We decide to set out early as we had only a day in Penang. While the others got ready, I decided to take a few snaps of the place we were staying.
Old Penang Guesthouse is a restored building that retains the charms of the colonial era with rooms at rates from the current backpacker era.
This is the shower room and toilets upstairs
They have a ‘living room’ of sorts where you can watch TV & read the papers while you serve yourself breakfast
This is breakfast: toast, butter (but usually margarine) & fruits
I made list of things I wanted to eat when in MalaysiaYou’re instructed to walk softly at night as the flooring is all woodenThe dining areaThe skies were getting clearer
Once we were all ready, we soon stepped out to head to the harbour, which was walking distance from where we were staying.
There are a lot of budget hotels on Love Lane (that’s the name of the street we were on)
There’s a 7-Eleven very close to our guesthouse
Han Jiang ancestral temple
Nagore Durgha Sheriff mosque
Strolling through Georgetown reminded me of Fort Kochi (I need to put up those photos as well) in Kerala, with its heritage buildings by the sea.
Many places of worship in and around GeorgetownLim Kongsi Clan Temple; when we entered, there was this one dog ‘guarding’ the templeWhich came hopping all the way towards me and my camera. And then Loi patted it. Then it went and peed in the bushes.
Just walking past the many temples – be they Indian or Chinese, mosques etc. you get a sense of the religious harmony that exists in Malaysia. Of course, this was only the start.
We reached the road by the ferry terminal and made our way to the other side.
There’s a bus station near the ferry terminal
There’s a sea-facing restaurant at the end of this walkwayThat’s where the ferries dock
We stepped into a few travel agencies to inquire about ferry prices to Langkawi. Everywhere, it was the standard RM60 (Rs. 900/US$20/€15). It was the same price quoted by the guy at Old Penang Guesthouse, but fearing he may have been quoting a higher rate, we thought we’d ask near the ferry terminal itself.
We bought our tickets for the next day and continued our walk.
Georgetown’s landmark Queen Victoria Memorial ClocktowerA short distance from the clock tower, and you get the beautiful sea
This where we went next; entry is just RM 2 (Rs. 30)Statue honouring Sir Francis Light
Ramesh dishonouring Sir Francis Light statue
You can read about the history behind Fort Cornwallis on its Wikipedia page, but from a tourist’s point of view, its nothing spectacular. Then again, when the entry is just RM2, you shouldn’t be expecting much.
But we still hung around a bit longer
It was quite sunny
After checking out the fort for around 15 minutes, we made our way out.
Fort Cornwalis is right near the Town Hall grounds.
Town Hall & City Hall buildings in the backgroundThe esplanade is a nice place to laze under a tree on a sunny day
I wasn’t imitating Loi, it was sunny (Photograph by Ramesh)We continued our stroll along this path
Then, a young, kooky Japanese couple came excitedly towards us and asked us if we could pose for a photograph with them. Assuming they’re tourists wanting to pose with tourists from another country, we figured “Sure, why not”…
… and so we asked them for one for ourselves too!
They weren’t the only Japanese we came across. The Japanese were aplenty in Penang, we would later find out.
The building in the back is the Penang High Court
That was one big ‘nuclear’ cloud
We decided to walk towards the popular Gurney Drive.
Penang museum
The Eastern & Oriental hotel
We stopped here for a break as Ramesh was quite tired from all the walkingGurney Drive was over thereThe Mansion, a high end restaurantWe got back on to the main road
We even stopped by this food court for lunch but it was empty — and closedSo it was back to the main roadAnd a few minutes later, we were finally on Gurney driveA LOT of luxury apartments on this stretch
It took us more than 30 minutes of walking to get to Gurney Drive. If you think that’s too much (or can’t do it), just hail a cab.
Though there were many restaurants along this stretch, plan was to have lunch from the food court at the end of Gurney drive, which is a very popular local joint.
But first, we had to quench our thirst.
We entered the only major shopping mall on Gurney Drive, Gurney Plaza. They have the usual gamut of mall brands and about the same as far as eateries and coffee shops go. I don’t remember how or why, but we sat down at the Chili’s in Gurney Plaza for beer.
We ordered Guinness… and I stared at the ceiling… for some apparent reason. (Photo by Ramesh)The mall isn’t bad at all. We picked our Malaysia SIM cards from the 3rd floor which housed a lot of tech stores.Gurney Plaza shopping mall
The plan was to sit somewhere and have some beer along with lunch, but after the heavy mugs of Guinness and nachos we ordered, we were honestly quite full.
The food court was closed too. Seems like they only open at night.
This is the major roundabout at the end of Gurney drive
Post ‘lunch,’ we realized we still hadn’t seen any of Penang’s major attractions. So we boarded a local bus and headed to the main bus station.
The plan was to see Kek Lok Si temple and take the tram ride up Penang hill
The ride took nearly 20 minutes
Once at the Komtar bus terminal, we boarded a bus from Lane 1 that goes to Kek Lok Si temple.
This ride took another 30 minutes and was headed towards Penang hillPassed through mostly residential areas and housing colonies for the middle class
When we reached the town of Air Itam it was already well past 5pmBut there it was: Kek Lok Si Temple
Unfortunately, the locals told us that we were too late and it was closing time. Sucks.
So all we could do was zoom in and take photosSeemed like some renovation work was going onI really wanted to check out the biggest Buddhist temple in Penang…… but we still had to go further up to get to the temple.
So yeah, if you want to see Kek Lok Si temple, make sure you are here well before 6pm.
Instead of waiting around, we decided to head to Penang Hill (or Bukit Bendara as it called locally). So we hailed a cab as the locals said it would take us at least 15 minutes to walk it there.
The Chinese taxi driver quoted RM7 which sounded reasonable, so we got in
The journey barely took 5 minutes.
We soon reached the foot of Penang Hill and could see the tram line
But unfortunately (again)….
….Loi didn’t take the news too well
Turns out renovation work here as well. Couldn’t the taxi driver have told us it was closed? Of course he could have. But he didn’t… ‘cos he was a greedy b@#$%&*!
Disappointed at the turn of events, we decided to simply head back to town. Oddly enough, the very same bus we took to come here was waiting for departure near Penang hill.
As you can see, Kek Lok Si temple isn’t that far from here
The cultural mix in Malaysia is truly admirable
Passed through the same landmarksPenang State MosqueHmm, not that different from India isn’t it?
(Photograph by Loiyumba)Banjo is fried egg (Photograph by Loiyumba)
We got down near the ferry terminal but contemplated going back to the rooms just yet. I wanted to have dinner at Gurney drive, so from the ferry terminal bus station, we availed the Hop-on free bus.
The Hop-on buses follow a particular route
The Hop-on bus was taking a long route, so we got down at KOMTAR.
Komtar Tower — the tallest building in Penang (Photograph by Loi)
Once we reached KOMTAR, we checked out the adjoining mall.
The offerings are anything but glamourous. Not a high-end mall at all. Just the usual clothes, electronics, grey market goods, coffee shops etc.
We didn’t spend a whole lot of time in here
We boarded another bus to get to Gurney Drive.
We got down near Gurney Drive… or at least we thought it was near Gurney Drive.
We walked through a residential colony
Before finding ourselves behind Gurney Plaza
In the afternoon, Gurney Drive was quite empty…
… but the scene is quite different at night!
Beef. Looked yum.
As you can see from the above photos, lots of sea food available here
Very limited (to virtually no-existent) pure vegetarian options though.
Before we sat down for dinner, I wanted to check out another joint near the roundabout that I had seen during the day .
Saw the lobster sign and assumed it was another food court by the sea
But turns out it was a big ‘mid-to-high’ range restaurant. Looked nice but we didn’t want to spend too much and sit for long — because it was only going to be me & Loi eating. The vegetarian in our group Ramesh still had nothing to choose from.
Anybody notice the drain vent in the sea — or is that litter?
Once back at the food court, myself and Loi each ordered what we wanted.
I chose ‘raw oysters and egg’ scrambledLoi had his boiled meat on a stick. With some beer of course.
Us two had to eat first, and then head back to Gurney Plaza so that Ramesh could find some vegetarian to eat.
But Loi wasn’t done with his boiled meat. He wanted more! 🙂I had Soyabean curd with hot brown sugar sauce for dessert (RM1 = Rs. 15)
After we were finally done, we headed back to Gurney Plaza so that Ramesh could now eat.
We went back to our rooms by taxi.
Old Penang Guesthouse, next to Red Inn, next to a pub
But instead of calling it a night, I told the guys I wanted to roam around a bit more. So as Ramesh and Loi went back to the room, I walked on.
This temple was just across Old Penang Guesthouse
There are several budget hotels and guesthouses on Love Lane
The reason I wanted to walk around a bit more was because I wasn’t truly content with all that I saw today. I don’t think I can say I ‘saw’ Penang. I visited Penang, sure, but I don’t think I saw all there was to see.
We landed in Penang after 3 crazy days in glamourous Singapore. So obviously, everything felt a world apart. Throughout the day, every mall we went to, all we talked about was how much cooler Singapore felt. Well duh. Obviously its a unfair comparison… but given how little we actually got to experience in Penang, we could only feel disappointment.
When we were planning our trip, we knew before hand there wasn’t anything stunning to see in Penang. In many ways, it is true. Especially if you have travelled throughout South India, seen Singapore or Thailand, Penang really doesn’t offer anything great in terms of new experiences. Sure, I would have loved to have gone for the tram ride up on Penang hill… and seen Kek Lok Si temple all lit up at night. But we all wanted to even take a ride on Penang Bridge. I also realized Penang isn’t just the island, but there exists Province Wellesley with towns like Butterworth and other attractions on the mainland as well.
So clearly, there was a lot more to Penang than I thought.
I saw this ‘food garden’ which I thought I’d check out
Line dancing + food court = Not badNot enough space in tummy to try out everything edible Penang had to offer
This is the entrance
Ho Ping the food is safe to eat 😛
Yes, this street is named after Malabaris
(You can read about the history behind Kampung Malabar here . Besides me, I didn’t find any other ‘Malabari’ — it’s all Chinese)
Saw these outside, what I presume was a store dealing in sculpturesWhy didn’t anybody steal them? I dunno, probably too heavy to lift and run withGeorgetown is a UNESCO World heritage siteThe same road was wet yesterday
Penang is very easy on the pocket
Would I have liked to have stayed just another day longer? Yes. I was curious what was across Penang Bridge on the mainland to see. But alas, this was our last and only day in Penang.
Tomorrow, we were going to be heading across waters to another island — Langkawi!
After a tiring previous day (and only hitting the bed at 4am), I got up early to receive my parents from Bur Dubai bus stand as they were visiting from Abu Dhabi. Since today and tomorrow were all going to be ‘family time,’ we were going to be staying with my father’s friend, in his nice, posh little flat in Karama.
Once we all landed at my father’s friend’s place post-lunch, we rested for some time before heading out.
It was back to Dubai Mall for me — but for my parents, despite having lived in Abu Dhabi for nearly an year, it was going to be their first time experiencing Dubai Aquarium and At The Top of Burj Khalifa.
First up, the aquarium:
My father really enjoyed being this close to sea creatures
That’s what a stingray’s face looks like
Well, hello there!
For more photos and videos from inside Dubai Aquarium, check out my first post. Next up, we waited for our turn to go up the Burj Khalifa.
My parents at the At The Top gift shop
200+ storeys; 95kms – from where one can see the top of the spire; 12,000 slaves… sorry, labourers; 57 elevators; 500,000 tonnes – weight of the empty building
I had booked for an evening slot for the At The Top visit, hoping I could see Dubai all lit up. But as we got up, the sun was still very much above the horizon.
Regardless, my parents loved the viewDubai financial centerThat’s how many floors there still are above the observation deckThe sun setting over the yet to be completed The World islandsWatching the sun set from atop the world’s tallest building is a great idea
For more photos and videos from At The Top, check out my first post.
We finished our tour of Burj Khalifa, made our way out and to the Dubai Fountain site. The $200 million-plus Dubai Fountain is an attraction built on the artificial (duh) lake just outside Dubai Mall.
Built by the same people behind the famous Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas, Dubai obviously had to up the ante. So these fountains shoot water up higher, 500 feet high (150 metres)!
Shows are every half an hour between 6pm to 10pm. Here’s the show I saw: Since it’s free, and since I can’t afford to go to Las Vegas just yet, this was great!
Me and my folks in front of a massive concrete & steel Christmas tree
After the show, we made our way to the buses that drop visitors to the metro station.
Why, why would someone do that to a Porsche?Architectural beauty
The next day with my parents…
The next morning, I took my parents to Bur Dubai for some shopping and to show them around.
My father considering ‘post-retirement’ work
My father bothering some random Chinese dude for a photo
After showing them the souk station, I took them to the Hindu temple (photos of both can be seen in my first post).
Taking a break from all the walking
Pigeons by the creek
And with that, we were done. Took a taxi and headed back to my father’s colleague’s place. He offered to drop us off near Jebel Ali power station, where we had been invited for lunch by our relatives.
Inside Mr. Nandakumar’s Peugot
Once again, it was a drive on Sheikh Zayed Road.
Emirates Towers
Those guitars used to be where Dubai’s Hard Rock Cafe was
The view from my uncle’s flat near Jebel Ali power station, where he works
After lunch, we decided to check out Ibn Battuta Mall, which was nearby. This was the last major mall I had yet to see and the one my friends highly recommended, just because it was different.
The mall business in Dubai is, let’s just say, quite cut throat. For such a small state, Dubai has some of the largest malls in the world. And since just about every mall offers the same set of stores, mall operators come up with differentiators to draw the crowds in.
What’s the differentiator for Ibn Battuta Mall? For one (if you haven’t figured out already), it’s named after the great Muslim explorer Ibn Battuta. The entire mall is themed after his travels across China, India, Persia, Egypt, Tunisia, and Andalusia with a section dedicated to each zone.
We parked near the China entrance. Each of the sections have a lobby with a major attraction specific to that zone. This is what the China court looks like.
Panorama comprised of 6 shots
The main attraction here being a replica of a Chinese sailing ship supposedly used by Ibn Battuta in his travels.
Ibn Battuta Mall houses the only IMAX screen in Dubai
From China, we then moved on to India.
India Court’s big attraction
From India into Persia. Persia Court’s big attraction is a replica of a Starbucks Coffee outlet*.
*just kidding
From Persia, you have two paths to Egypt.
Both paths eventually meetThe Egypt Court houses a lot of history, facts and trivia about Ibn Battuta
And finally Andalusia.
Andalusia Court’s main attraction
With that, we had conquered all five regions of Ibn Battuta’s mall. So we made our journey back, passing by more displays.
Back in China Court
Ibn Battuta Mall truly is a must-see in my opinion. It was a good move on Nakheel Properties’ part to use a theme like this to set the mall apart from Dubai’s other shopping centers.
Once out of Ibn Battuta Mall, we wished our relatives goodbye and took the metro to Bur Dubai bus stand. I was heading back to Abu Dhabi.
The ride took nearly 30 minutes and by the time I arrived at the station (which by the way is the last stop), Ramesh and Loiyumba were already at the temple.
Once I reached the top, I met up with Ramesh and Loiyumba who were done and were ready to head back down. They said they would wait for me down below and so, I went in for my photography.
But even with a wide-angle lens, trying to capture the scale of the caves from the inside (without distortion) was near impossible, so I took a few multiple shots and merged them into one using Photoshop.
The journey took us through a lot of residential areas in Kuala Lumpur.
(These were taken on my Nokia E72)
An hour long journey later, we were in Petaling Jaya. Even though it was a long journey, it was quite a relaxing one for me as I got to see residential areas outside of the CBD (Central Business District), something I wouldn’t have seen given where we were staying.
From Imbi, the monorail stop for getting to China Town was only two stops away, at Maharajalela.
