Kuala Lumpur

We spoke to the locals and checked the internet to determine what the places were not to miss in Kuala Lumpur and the best way to get there. We decided to take a taxi to the Seremban bus station rather than taking the local bus and spend a good part of the day getting to Kuala Lumpur. We took an express bus to Kuala Lumpur from Seremban. It was an experience in itself with the driver of a big greyhound like bus driving down the shoulder and cutting people off. Upon arrival we asked a passenger how to get to the Twin Towers (AKA Petronas Towers) and he pointed us to the LRT. We had seen the towers from the bus but when we stepped out of the LRT station we were in awe of the 2 monstrous towers joined by a skywalk. After taking a few pictures we headed inside to sign up for a tour. 45 minutes later we were in an fast express elevator to the 42nd floor were we spent 10 minutes walking across the sky bridge and taking lots of photos. This is the bridge & twin towers in the James Bond movie.  We then took another elevator to the 83 floor where we switched elevators and went on to the 86th floor of the 88 floor twin towers. What a view!  

After the tour & some lunch we visited the grounds which included a kids park, lots of fountains & pools. We got a great picture of the towers with the Chinese New Years decorations at the bottom.

Our next visit was the Aquarium with tons of different species of fish. They have a tunnel you walk through with manta rays,

huge fish, sharks

and monstrous turtles

all swimming beside you and above you.  We enjoyed it so much we went through twice. We took the MRT to our hotel

The next day we visited the Batu caves taking the KLM train to get there. The caves were formed 400 million years ago and were discovered in 1860 by the Chinese who mined the guano for their vegetable gardens. There are 272 steps up to the caves. 

They are made of limestone and there are holes in top to allow light in. We took a tour of the Dark Caves and learned about the delicately balanced eco system with the beetles, snails, spiders, centipedes and millipedes. They all live on the guano from the bats. We actually only saw dead bats as they won't let you shine your lights up at the bats as they are currently raising their young. There was one cave we weren't allowed in that had snakes and other creatures. Our guide, Zarris was excellent and sent us a picture taken in July when the sun streams in at one end of the cave. 

We spent the rest of the day visiting the Sultan Abdule Samad building and Independence Square where they have a flag raising ceremony each year on Independence Day to celebrate Malaysia's independence in 1957. We visit the Masjid Jamek Mosque and took a ride on the MRT. 

The next day we visited the Bird Park, 29 acres of park that has part of it covered by netting so you have the birds flying at you and sharing the pathways with you. The peacocks were displaying their tail feathers everywhere. I caught 2 doing it at the same time.

We saw owls, emu, ostriches and flamingos and other birds fighting over the fish left for them.

A salamander even got in the act. Macaws, reas and parrots of many different colours entertained us with their shrill cries and antics. 

Our next visit was to the orchid garden which was disappointing because very few were in bloom as it is winter here. We then visited the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia which has exhibits from The Malay, Chinese, Indian and Islamic cultures. There were textiles, pottery,

armaments, clothing, money, calligraphy and models of many mosques from around the world. 

To experience the bus & the train from Kuala Lumpur to Seremban we took the train back.