No disasters second time around

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Day 307: Friday 1st May - Returning to the scene of my disaster

When I arrived in Kuala Lumpur yesterday afternoon, I’m set on heading straight out to have a look at the Batu Caves on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. That is before the guy on the desk at my hostel, when he can be bothered to finally pay me some attention, tells me that it would be better to visit it in the morning. He is saying this because it is rush hour outside and the Batu Caves are 13km from the city centre. I am thinking he is right because I am not in the mood to rush out as I’m tired after getting little sleep last night as I stayed up to watch the football. Not only am I going to take it easy tonight but I’ve decided that Melaka is going to have to be scratched from my planned itinerary for my remaining two weeks in Malaysia. It would be too rushed, and I want to make the most out of the places I do visit. The hostel is packed as it was first time around and they didn’t get my email asking to reserve a dorm so I have to do with a private room. This works to my advantage actually. Prices are about the same for a private room in KL as what they were for a dorm in some places in Borneo. It also means I can get my head down without getting disturbed.

My long sleep is curtailed at 7am by some noisy Irish girls in reception. You’ve got to love the Irish but they aren’t the nationality I would choose to be enquiring at the front desk if they are any vacancies in the early morning. An ability to maintain the peace and the quiet isn’t one of the strong points of the Irish! With paper thin walls, and being just down the corridor, I’ve got no chance of getting back to sleep. One thing it does do is get me up and out of bed early. I’ve got a lot to pack in to my day and this will be my one and only full day in the capital. My first sightseeing attraction of the day is Batu Caves, on the outskirts of the city. The limestone outcrop in which the Batu Caves belong is an oddity, it rises from a flat plain and is the only rock outcrop around. The Batu Caves is a system of three caves, but the most famous is Temple Cave, because it contains a Hindu shrine guarded by a 43 metre-high statue of Lord Muragan, the highest in the world. The gold coloured statue is mightily impressive and the highlight but almost as fascinating is watching the Hindu devotees inside the cave once you climb the 272 steps. I don’t know if I feel a spirituality in the huge cavern, but there is a definite energy inside. There are a few shrines within the cave as well as a few dozen macaques running around in an excited fashion. With some good fortune in catching buses to and from the caves the journey didn’t take me as long as I expected and I’m back in the city by 10:30am.

Kuala Lumpur is a hard city to negotiate on foot so there is no point making it any more difficult for myself. Pulling out my tourist map I decide that my next destination will be the area around Merdeka Square, as it is closest and from there I will follow the highway south taking in the national mosque, the old railway station and the national museum. The Merdeka Square is at the heart of the colonial district, flanked by the Selangor Club; a charming mock-Tudor building and the stately Moorish styled Sultan Abdul Samad building. It is a historic location, for it was here on 31st August 1957 that the Union Jack was lowered, marking the end of the colonial era and the birth of a nation. The Malaysian flag flies proudly on top of a huge flagpole in the square. The architecture in this area is impressive and a series of contrasts. As well as the colonial and Moorish styles mentioned the high court and Jamek Mosque buildings are also notable. I walk to the national mosque, which is one of Southeast Asia’s largest mosques. It is a modern building and an imposing structure but it doesn’t impress me as much as the buildings around the Merdeka Square. I continue walking south to the Moorish styled old railway station, and end my city tour of Kuala Lumpur at the national museum.

I like to learn the history of the countries I visit and the national museum is particularly good in this respect. The four galleries take you from ancient history tens of thousands of years ago, to the colonial period and finish with the first 50 years history of Malaysia. It wasn’t the British that first ruled in what is now Malaysia. The Portuguese captured the crucial trading port of Melaka in 1511 and held it until they were defeated by the Dutch in 1641. Melaka was seen by the colonial powers as being of huge strategic importance due to its location on the east-west trade route in the Straits of Malacca. One Portuguese writer said that controlling Melaka was tantamount to controlling world trade. Learning about Melaka’s history makes me disappointed that I won’t be able to make it to Malaysia’s third city but I suppose you can’t see everything. In 1824, a treaty was agreed between the Dutch and the British which saw the British gain control of Melaka in exchange for the island of Sumatra, to the west of the Straits of Melaka. Gaining Melaka helped the British strengthen their hold to the East of the Straits. In the 1780’s the British had seized control of Penang in North-West Malaysia through the East India Company. In 1819, they added Singapore to their portfolio, and Melaka was the third of their Straits settlements. Over the course of the next 100 years they gained control of the rest of what it now Malaysia. The King of Thailand gave them some of the northern states in the early twentieth century and the British signed a deal with the ruling sultan’s for the other states in peninsula Malaysia late in the nineteenth century. The Brookes occupied Sarawak and the North Borneo Company which was a British interest, was in charge in what is now Sabah. After a successful campaign over a few decades, merdeka (independence) was granted in 1957, and the country federated in 1963.

Having finished my city tour at 2pm, I return to the hostel and call Tropical Adventures to see what the latest is with the 300RM they owe me. They admit it is due, which is the first step but they still need to work out how they will get me the money. If I ever do see the cash it will be a bonus. I shelter from the heat of the day before heading out on a shopping trip in the late afternoon. If anyone ever finds themselves in Kuala Lumpur needing to buy hiking boots then I’m your man. I visit 4 of KL’s main shopping malls, all at least 5 stories high and find only three shops that stock what I need. Two of those shops are branches of Timberland and their cheapest boots are 500RM (£100), which is more than I’d pay back in the UK. Just as I’m starting to give up hope and contemplating seeing how long my current ripped boots will last me, I find a better option in a department store for only 320RM (£60) which is more like what you’d pay in the UK. Job done, I buy a few items of clothing to replace items in my bag which have seen better days or are unsuitable for the heat and humidity of Asia.

I finish my shopping trip through the Golden Triangle in the Suria mall at the foot of the Petronas Towers. This mall wouldn’t look out of place anywhere in the western world and hosts many of the top designer labels in the world. Shopping in what is known as the Golden Triangle in KL has opened my eyes to how developed Malaysia is. Maybe not quite as wealthy as its neighbours Singapore and Brunei, but I bet it is the third richest country in the region after these two. The Petronas Towers are a sight to behold, lit up in the dark. I walk out through the mall to the gardens behind to get the best view of the illuminated twin towers. I am retracing my steps of 4 weeks ago, which was the start of a disaster of an afternoon when I got scammed. I am wondering how I will react, how will I feel. As it is I feel nothing, I am simply in awe at the gleaming structure of steel and glass, the icon of the city, of the country and a truly awesome sight. The only time I do feel any emotions is on my walk back into the mall. I wish I had taken the same steps four weeks ago instead of getting in the taxi with the two girls. However, returning here has proved that the healing process is complete, my time in Borneo has seen to that.

I don’t get back to my hostel until 10pm. It’s been a long day walking around KL, but it has been hugely enjoyable. Although I have a massive reason not to like this city, I can’t help being partial to it. As well as seeing the Grand Prix on my first visit which was a lot of fun, my day today has added to the positive impression I have of the city.

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Comments

[Alexandra]

Hiking boot
Hi. where do you buy that 360Rm boot?