If you asked a majority of Americans to point out Malaysia on a map they would have no clue where it was, even I would have struggled a year ago. When planning our trip to Southeast Asia we were originally planning on bussing and training it all the way from Singapore up to Bangkok, with a few stops in between. Malaysia was one of these. In the end the only train we ended up taking was an overnight sleeper train from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia and Southeast Asia’s newest capital. The thought of riding a rickety old bus cramped full of livestock and people for 20+ hours, added with no AC and 100 degree heat did not sound appealing, so we ended up flying onward after Kuala Lumpur.
The sleeper train was well worth the adventure though. It was pretty luxurious for a sleeper train in southeast Asia-blankets and pillows included, along with curtains that closed and night-lights. I think the coolest part of taking the train from Singapore to KL was border control. We first had to take a fast train to cross the border into Malaysia before boarding our sleeper train in Johor Baharu, Malaysia. And before boarding the fast train we were walked through border control, gaining an exit stamp from Singapore and then walking 100 meters to another room where we went through Malaysian border control and gained our entry stamp into Malaysia-all without leaving the same building and in a matter of minutes. Pretty cool right?
Petronas Towers
While I wasn’t too sure what to expect from Malaysia, it hadn’t really entered my mind as somewhere to travel to until we decided to use it as a pit stop on the way from Singapore to Thailand, it really surprised me as a country. Very similar to Singapore in ways, Malaysia is one of the more developed countries in Southeast Asia and also one of the newest. When you look at Kuala Lumpur and all the looming skyscrapers and towers it’s pretty amazing to think that none of it existed 50 years ago. The city has boomed fast and has some of the world’s coolest architecture.
KLCC Park
While we only had a little over 24 hours in KL, we managed to see most of the city. Another day would have been helpful to see some of the sites outside of the city, but it made the perfect pit stop. The number one attraction to see in KL is the impressive Petronas Towers, better known in KL as the twin towers. Like something out of a sci-fi movie the towers are the tallest twin towers in the world and from 1998 to 2004 were the tallest buildings in the world at 88 stories, now surpassed by Taipei 101. The Petronas towers were named after the Petronas Oil Company who occupies the offices of tower 1. At the base of the towers is upscale Suria KLCC, one of the largest shopping malls in Malaysia. The towers are surrounded by the KLCC Park spanning 17 acres including KL’s famous fountains and multiple walking and running pathways, making KL’s title of Southeast Asia’s Garden City well earned. We spent most of our time around the towers, enjoying the air conditioned shopping mall and admiring the nightly lightshow that takes place at the fountains.
Fountain Show
For being such a new city, KL has an impeccable public transportation system. Efficient, clean and cheap we found our way around fairly easily, only getting lost once in our search for a renowned curry restaurant. Malaysian food is heavily influenced by the large Indian population, but has an extra spicy flair to it. We found it to be some of the better food that we encountered on our travels.
If given the chance I would head back to Malaysia to experience more of what this growing country has to offer. 24 hours was not nearly enough time!
Au Pair Down Under 