KUALA LUMPUR - MY KINDA TOWN

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I love KL. The capital of Malaysia is a relatively new city, first founded in the 1850's with the discovery of tin.

KL is easy & I like easy. It has an efficient transport system, almost on the same lines (so to speak) as Singapore. It's cheap & much faster than a taxi which can come to a gridlocked halt during rain or peak hour. And it always feels like peak hour in KL.

Shopaholics are well catered for and everything from very reasonably priced name brands to cheap faux brands are on offer in malls & markets across town. One massive shopping mall, Times Square, has a roller coaster inside.

Petaling Market in Chinatown is famous for its faux everything. A must-see tourist attraction, best seen at night when all the red lanterns are lit and the atmosphere is fun & crowded. Not the best Chinese food in town funnily enough. The best Chinese food is in Jalan Alor.

A whole street of mostly Chinese cuisine where the restaurants spill out into the street, filled with delicious & exotic aromas. Pick any restaurant, they are all excellent.

KL is a diners delight with a rich array of choice due to its many ethnic groups dominated by the Chinese & lndian. And it's all as cheap as chips. The lndian food is literally gob smacking. Truly traditional and untamed.

Malays make up about 60% of the population whom are all Muslim. But all religions are practiced & accepted. Mosques, temples, pagodas & churches add to the spectacle of KL.

Alcohol is more expensive in Malaysia than in other neighbouring nations.. This may be due to it being an Islamic country but l am assuming, One of the many reasons I love KL is the free drinks on Ladies Nights around the city. The best being at the Sky Bar at the top of the Traders Hotel. Every Wednesday evening between 6-9pm, free Sangria is poured for all the ladies. The bar offers by far, the best view of the Petronas Towers in KL. It's worth going even if you pay for the high price-tag drinks. But it's even better when they are free & it includes a million dollar view!

Petronas Towers are the icon of the city & dominate the skyline. They are of Islamic design and in 1998 they were the tallest buildings in the world. Viewed from anywhere in the city, they demand your attention.

I also love KL because most people speak English, being once an English colony. Bahasa Malay is their national language but Mandarin, Tamil & English are widely spoken. I like easy.

I also like the fact that the sun doesn't rise until 7am. So civilized! The days & nights are equally about 12 hours most of the year round. I love equatorial Asia. Also civilized are shopping hours, generally from 10am to 10pm, 7 days a week. Malaysians are definitely consumers and the malls & markets are busy every night with locals & tourists.

Kuala Lunpur hosts an awesome night life though good live music is difficult to find.

All round, KL would have to be one of my favourite cities.. There is always something happening. And due to the diversity of ethnic cultures, there are so very many colourful & fascinating festivals to celebrate. It's a 24 hr city & there is nothing it doesn't offer

I usually suggest anyone coming to visit Asia for the first time, to start in KL. It's a good balance of Eastern & Western culture. Less of a culture shock than flying directly into Delhi or Bangkok. And the money is Ringett which is 3RM to the dollar. No huge maths or need of calculators to do the conversion.

Because of the amazingly reasonable prices offered by Air Asia, KL is fast becoming the hub of SE Asia. The Air Asia terminal moved to the KL International Airport last week. It's sort of become my second home. It's my kind of town. KL is easy. And l like easy!

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