Malaysia

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We were only in Malaysia a few days because we spent most of our SE Asia time in Thailand. We still managed to take in some major sights that were historically significant and interesting...

Wed, 25 - Fri 27th January

GEORGETOWN

Georgetown is on the island of Penang, just across from Butterworth on the mainland. We decided to go to Georgetown after reading that it features some of the best of nineteenth century colonial buildings in the world.

The sights were very impressive. Many were naturally from the British colonial times. These included the administrative buildings and the governor's mansion, which have now been converted into local administration. We toured Fort Cornwallis and learned how strategic Georgetown was in the advancement of the British Empire. It provided a place for refuelling and rearming between India and China. The British government however was slow to see this and it was the highly influential East India Company that were the first to exploit this attribute, forever changing the course of development for an otherwise insignificant island in the Straits of Melaka.

It was also exciting to see St George's Church, the first Anglican Church in SE Asia. Plaques explained that the Bishop of India dedicated it in 1818, India being the geographically closest diocese. In the church yard we found the touching memorial to Sir Francis Light, the first royal governor, who from the inscription seemed to be well respected by both the British and locals alike. It was great to see that this church is still highly active with Alpha groups, and many other outreach ministries.

The city also had a number of Chinese buildings as the area has the highest concentration of Chinese in Malaysia! We toured some Chinese areas of the city and visited a temple which got us into the atmosphere of the Chinese New Year which was approaching.

All in all, Georgetown has a very rustic yet approachable feel to it. It seems, however, that they are still depending on 18th century sewage ducts in the street. We were not quite so fortunate with our accommodation in Georgetown as we have been in other parts of Asia. There was another interesting tenant residing there at the time, which we referred to as Templeton in the hope of making him seem less menacing (see the novel 'Charlotte's Web' for more details)! We coped for two nights then headed for Kuala Lumpur ...

Fri 27th - Sun 29th January

KUALA LUMPUR (KL)

Malaysia's capital city is very impressive. We enjoyed our stay there except for the heavy, humid heat which overwhelms the experience. Most cafes on the street spray water droplets into the air to cool their customers down; air conditioners blast inside all public buildings.

We went to the Petronas Towers and took the lift up to the 44th floor to walk onto the skybridge. We walked many miles in KL. We took the sky train a few times but most of the city is best accessed by foot. We visited China Town, a big city park, and the unique gothic-style train station designed by British architect A. B. Hubbock and built in 1910.

KL has other remnants of the colonial days of which we tried to capture the atmosphere as we walked around the Padang (the 'green' where the British governor and company would socialise and enjoy a game of cricket). The old Royal Selangor Club is still there and apparently just as exclusive as it was in those days. Another Anglican (and happily still active) church stands in the corner of the Padang and with only that view you could easily be forgiven for thinking you had walked into a beautiful English village on a hot summer afternoon at the turn of the 20th century.

We removed ourselves from this time warp and joined the chaotic masses at the KL bus station trying to find a seat on a bus to Singapore ...

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Photos

The Petronas Towers, KL