Our driver from Genting to KL hotel,
who was very chatty and helpful, provided us with information of the area and
pointed out several aboriginal (BhoomiPutra) dwellings. Upon learning Taman
Nagara and Kota Kinabalu were our initial destination choices for the Malaysia
trip, he recommended FRIM (Forest Research Institute Malaysia) located on the
outskirts of KL. It is a 486-ha site located 16 KM northwest of KL surrounded
by the Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve and popular with campers, bird watchers,
jungle trekkers, and nature photographers (commercial photography involves
charges). The area features a canopy walkway, picnic area, botanical gardens
and arboreta, wetland area, Malay traditional houses, camping site, nature
trails, and silicified wood displays. Accommodation other than camping is not
available and so day-trips are the best option, for those not into camping. Batu
caves did not happen during this transfer either as we were well past closing
times.
Mandarin Court Hotel check-in went
smoothly although the facility itself was nothing special. We relied on room
service for dinner. The food though comforting did not justify the price –
three basic conji’s and one satay chicken for around 70 ringgits. The breakfast
at the hotel the next morning had limited selection – one kind of pastry, one
variety of juice, noodles, fried rice, bread, sausage, eggs, etc.
Our itinerary for the day included
the half-day city tour with pickup scheduled for 8:45 AM. First stop was at the
National Craft Center – a meeting point. After a half hour wait amid some
confusion about the three tour buses and who is going where in which bus, the
tour started around 10 AM. The tour stops were at: Petronas twin-tower photo
stop, visits to the national museum and the national monument, and a photo stop
at the national palace. The national museum (Muzium Negara) is a huge structure
that features traditional Malay and modern features. It is three-storied and
houses four main galleries along with a central hall with intricate carved
panels on the ceiling. The ground floor has the geographic and natural history
of Malay Peninsula from the Stone Age to the Iron Age. The second floor
features colonial history up to independence. The central hall houses temporary
exhibitions and it had exhibits in the transportation theme during our visit.
The museum grounds feature a couple of additional galleries: National Sports
Gallery and the Natural History Gallery. Other attractions on the museum
grounds include several transportation themed historic items such as the Melaka
Bullock Cart, Kitson & Co Steam Locomotive, and a Tin Dredge along with
Istana Satu, an original-size old Terengganu timber palace. The national
monument is a stunning sculpture representing those who died in Malaysia’s
struggle for freedom and is the world’s tallest bronze freestanding sculpture
grouping. The monument replaced the original national monument, which was a
cenotaph, in 1966. Currently, the cenotaph is located at the entrance to the
national monument. The tour finished around 12:30 PM and we were dropped off
near the national monument.
We did a walking tour of Little
India and Chinatown in the afternoon. Little India, which has nothing in common
with the present-day India, is a huge let-down while Chinatown is definitely
worth a visit. Little India has on offer very poor quality Indian restaurants
and street vendors representative of 60s India. Our plan for lunch was to try
an Indian restaurant in Little India but instead we chose an Indonesian place
in the Chinatown area. Food and pricing was OK – Nasi Goreng Ayam, Nasi Uduk
Komplit, Mie Ayam, Mie Goreng, and The Muk. A friend invited us to a Chinese
restaurant at the Hilton for the evening dinner – excellent food and
selections. Desserts were especially yummy – Ice Kachi Air-Batu-Campur –
condensed milk, palm sugar syrup, roasted peanuts, red beans, corn, cubes of
cincau, jelly made from black grass herb, mixed with shaved ice.
The next morning was free for us to
explore as the scheduled pickup was only at 11:30 AM. We walked to Chinatown
and shopped for some Malaysian themed T-shirts (kids’ sizes under 10 Ringgits
each). We returned to the hotel and walked in the opposite direction to Time
Square – about 20 minutes on foot from our hotel. The kids cooled off with Slurpee at the 7-11 nearby. The driver for the transfer to airport was again
half hour late – had to call the emergency contact number one last time. We were dropped off at the airport (about an
hour drive) by around 12:30 PM for the 3PM flight. Lunch was at the local
pizzeria just outside the entrance to the terminal – very average pizza. The departure lounge at the LCCT terminal is
pretty good and has several shopping options. We did minor chocolate shopping
at the lounge – American and other foreign branded chocolates appeared pricey
compared to local brands.
Air Asia food options were again
very limited. But, they were very good with on time departure and arrival of their
flights. We had opted for carry-on baggage only which was a blessing as we were
spared the waiting for the baggage to arrive – amazingly, we were out of the
airport in less than half hour once we arrived in Nedumbassery International
airport. Air Asia flights brought back memories of our trips in the USA on
Southwest Airlines – no frills but very efficient operation with economical
pricing – just the way we like it.
Related Posts:
Last Updated: 10/2012.
Related Posts:
Last Updated: 10/2012.