Malaysia 2014 - Kicking off in KL!

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It seemed fitting that we arrived in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, on New Year's Eve 2013. After all, January 1st would mark the beginning of 'Visit Malaysia Year' 2014. I had explored this diverse city before, in 2010 with my Dad when we visited for 6 days. I had caught the Malaysia travel bug for sure, with all the locals telling us places we 'should' visit in the rest of the country.



My fiancé and I wanted to escape the inflated summer prices of Australia and take an end of year holiday overseas. Requirements were - must have great food, great snorkeling, offer us a unique experience and be great value. When Air Asia were offering return flights to KL for $600 per person we decided to take the trip to Malaysia. The really tough part was then choosing where we would spend our time.



This will all depend of the time of year you visit. We would have loved to visit the Perhenthian Islands (lots of people have told us this is easily the best spot for relaxing by the beach and snorkeling crystal clear waters) but the islands are actually closes during December and January. Research revealed the whole west coast of Malaysia was pretty much a no-go zone during Monsoon Season, with great reviews coming from the east coast during the same time. Langkawi was an easy choice, being so close to Thailand and boasting lots of great beaches. Penang was chosen a side stop to Langkawi, with the food being famed as the best in the country. Choosing our unique experience(where to see Orang Utans) was a little harder... There's the popular Kota Kinabalu where you can day trip out to the forrest, also a base for great snorkeling. Sandakan another popular spot. We decided on Kuching, for reasons I will go into further in my Kuching entry.



The trip with Air Asia was fine, nothing spectacular to report this time around. I would urge Air Asia travelers to pre-book their meals so they can get exactly what they want and get it a little bit cheaper. The Low Cost Carrier terminal is old and quite rundown - a very different experience to arriving at KLIA. Nevertheless, for 8RM we jumped on an ice cold airconditioned bus into KL Sentral and took the monorail to our hotel door for 1.40RM ($3.25AUD) - not bad for an hour journey!



My parents booked us in to the Accor hotel 'The Renaissance' as our Christmas gift - primarily for the great views of the Petronas Towers and Lifestyle Level benefits. The location was also fab, right beside the Bukit Nanas Monorail station and a 5minute walk to KLCC. We were on the 22nd floor of the East Wing and while our room didn't face the towers, the Lifestyle Lounge had great views. Every afternoon we spent our cocktail hour there from 5:30, sipping on a few beverages and nibbling on delicious treats.



We had contemplated walking over to KLCC park to watch the fireworks but the hotel staff assured us there was a great view from the Lifestyle lounge. Unfortunately this wasn't the case and we were facing the business entrance side of the towers, as opposed to the park side where all the fireworks were happening. We were only able to see the ones that were higher than the surrounding small hotels (which wasn't too many). I guess we were expecting a spectacle but KL's New Year fireworks didn't seem much more than the Brisbane EKKA.



New Years' Day marked a full day of city exploring for the pair of us which was exciting considering it was Matt's first time in Malaysia. A short stroll saw us at KLCC's doorstep and we checked out some of the brands up for grabs that aren't available back home. Then it was off on the KL Rapid trains to Masjid Jamek, purely for a glimpse at market offerings, textiles and jewelry. If fabric is your scene then this is a must do whilst you are in KL. If market bargains are your game, Petaling Street /China Town will have more to offer than Masjid Jamek. We will be returning to KL at the end of our trip where we will be staying just off China Town - the market mecca 😊



After cocktail hour it was off to the traditional Malaysian restaurant highly rated by Time Out KL and our hotel - Bijan, in the Golden Triangle precinct. I had a good go at my spicy Lamb Rendang and Matt loved his Sambal Chicken. The restaurant was a lovely intimate setting - a definite change to the usual hustle and bustle of hawker fare in KL! Flavours were great (a bit spicy for me personally, but my belly is a pansy) and service was top notch. While prices were definitely a little higher than your standard restaurant (alcoholic drinks, 2 entrees and 2 mains came in at 190 RM / $70 AUD) the secluded setting, cleanliness, beautiful decor, reasonable prices and great service more than made up for it.



We then took a 5 minute walk down Jalan Ceylon past all the packed pubs and bars (if you can't find anything that tickles your fancy here you are one boring individual). This also takes you to the top of Jalan Alor, touted one of KL's best streets for hawker fare. A complete juxtaposition to Bijan, you will find buskers singing Alanis Morisette at full blast and taxis driving mere inches away from your table. Nevertheless a blissfully chaotic cultural experience you just can't match anywhere else in KL (by my wanderings at least)!



It was a little sad to jump in a taxi and head back to Renaissance but we had to be up early for our flight to Borneo the next morning. Besides, three more days in KL before we head home 😊 Talk then, much love xoxo AG

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Photos

Visit Malaysia 2014!
It was a huge launch for the 'Visit Malaysia' year campaign - even graced the cover of the AirAsia in-flight mag

Petronas Towers
The view from the Executive Level at Renaissance Hotel

THE Food!
Best to pick up some kind of 'food guide' at the Airport or your Hotel - you need to "learn the lingo" stat!

Street Food
Some of the many culinary choices at Jalan Alor

Textiles
Browsing around the Masjid Jamek area