Malaysia Travel

Malaysia

Malaysia is a country divided in two parts, one is located on the Asian mainland, while the second part is roughly 400 miles to the east
sharing the large island of Borneo along with Brunei and Indonesia. The country is officially a Muslim nation, but also has a large
population of Buddhists followed by several other religions. Malaysia is a stable and peaceful country located just north of the equator.
Its large cities, nightlife, rainforests, and tropical beaches attract tourists from around the world.

Malaysia Links

The small island of Penang is located on the western part of Malaysia in the straight of Malacca. The island is famous for its many temples,
great beaches and its city of Georgetown. You can see some of the high rise buildings above and nice condominiums found throughout the
island. The picture on the right was taking from Penang Hill, the island's highest point over 800 meters. As it was the rainy season, the view
was mostly blocked by clouds and overcast.

The temple above is known as Kek Lok Si, translated from Chinese as Temple of Supreme Bliss. The temple is by far the most popular and
arguably the most beautiful in Penang. Kek Lok Si is a large complex with several large buildings and dozens of rooms. Kek Lok Si is not an
ancient temple having been built in 1890 with other additions still continuing today. The temple remains very important to the Chinese
population in Malaysia, with several major festivals taking place at Kek Lok Si each year.

Other temples from different cultures except in Penang such as the Thai temple above. Known as Wat Chayamangkalaram and also as the
Sleeping Buddha temple, it is the home of the third largest reclining Buddha in the world!

The most unique temple in Penang and my favorite for that matter is the Snake
Temple, also called Temple of Azure Cloud. It is the only temple in the world that
holds poisonous vipers, some which are free to roam around. On the left is a
viper that appears to be praying. It is one of the several poisonous snakes that are
free in the temple. The larger one on the right is in a cage.

Rainforests in Malaysia are just outside of the equator and many scientists agree that since they are so close the
rainforests may have been unaffected by previous ice ages that impacted other forests more severely. In other words
the rainforests in Malaysia are considered to be the oldest in the world. Above are clouds moving in on a rainforest, on
a tree near the ground is a colorful centipede. The thing didn't stay long and was fast so it came out blurry.

The colorful birds on the left are known as Chestnut-headed Bee-eaters. In a tree right next to the birds are dusky
leaf monkeys , notice their extremely long tails.

Malaysia - Children Feeding Animals At The Zoo

Malaysia has a strong economy and symbolizes it with its KL Tower and the Petronas Towers which briefly had the title of being the highest
building in the world. The KL tower is seen to the left and stands close to 500 meters. An elevator ride to the observation deck is possible
and gives you a great view of the city. To properly see the Petronas towers you're better off going directly to them and at night when they are
more attractive. On the right are the towers, the upper left shows KL tower. The two city photos were taken from the observation deck.

The city of Kuala Lumpur is a large and colorful with high rise buildings extending for miles. The photo on the right
shows the Petronas towers, you can see how much taller it is than the surrounding buildings.

Malaysia has a democratic style government but is still ruled by a King. Above is the King's palace in Kuala Lumpur,
with a Malay soldier guarding the main entrance. There are a few festivals throughout the year that take place at the
palace. Outside the festivals it is forbidden to visit the place so my only photos came from outside the gates.

Kuala Lumpur is an international city that is mostly composed of Malays, Indians, and Chinese, but it also has people from all parts of the
world. Above is one of the monorails pulling into the station, on the right is an Iraqi restaurant in the downtown area.

For the most part Kuala Lumpur is a clean city, but some parts of it are extremely dirty. I trekked through one part of the city at 2am and
passed by 3 or 4 giant rats and many huge cockroaches that were living in piles of trash. The shopping districts and downtown areas are well
taken care of however. Above are photos of the main shopping districts in Kuala Lumpur, here you can find your western chains like
Starbucks and Planet Hollywood, but fortunately there are many unique shops here found only in Malaysia, and very cheap!

Another good place to visit in the capital is the zoo. Malaysia and many other parts of Southeast Asia are home to
tigers, but since they can be difficult to find in the wild and a bit dangerous, your best bet is to see them in the zoo.
Apparently in Malaysia's national zoo you're allowed to feed the animals as to the left.

These pictures were all taken from different parts of the
country but show some Malaysia's main ethnic groups,
Malaysians, Chinese and Indians. Just about everyone I
talked to who was Indian or Chinese complained about
the Malaysian government, saying how they are basically
second class citizens. At one point everyone was equal,
but apparently in the late 90s the government changed the
laws giving Muslims huge tax breaks, benefits and required
all businesses to be owned by a Muslims. The Chinese
and Indians who have been part of Malaysia for hundreds
of years are now forced to give away their businesses or
share them with a Muslim partner. Above are some
Muslim Malay girls; upper right is a Chinese man selling
food, and to the right is an Indian couple who has just wed.

One of the most interesting places to visit in Peninsular Malaysia are the Batu
Caves. The caves are formed in the steep mountains and have many religious
temples built inside. On the left you can see the huge statue next to the steep
staircase that leads up to Batu Caves. Inside the main cave there are some
smaller religious structures and a final Hindu temple at the very top. At the end
of the stairs there is the dark cave which is home to many bats and other
animals. There are educational tours through the cave as well as adventure
tours lasting several hours. Above are some monkeys who were in Batu Cave.

I visited Malaysia in the rainy season in October. Usually the days are overcast but occasionally in the morning you can get some breaks in
the clouds. Just about every day I was here it rained, fortunately the storms never lasted more than 30 minutes. On the left is a man putting on
his raincoat and getting his umbrella out as a brief storm rolls in. On the right is creek flowing muddy water in a forest just after heavy rains.

ianandwendy.com


Your name:



Your email address:



Your Country:



Comments:

Post a question, reply or comment about traveling in Malaysia.

Patricia from UK: Just returned from three wonderful weeks in Malaysia - a week in Kuala Lumpur and two weeks on
Langkawi. The KLIA train from the airport into the city is probably the most impressive airport transport I have ever
traveled on, as were the smaller shuttle trains serving the inter city. Taxis on Langkawi island were good value for
money. The friendly drivers drove, stopped and waited wherever we wanted. Self drive would be easy and trouble free.
Not aware of any local bus transport. Many boat trips of varying degrees of luxury to see and spend time on
the islands. Many ferries from the island to various mainland destinations.