The Travelling Mama: Kuala Lumpur Malaysia ~ Day 1 (part 1)

We have been to Malaysia before, but only in Johor Bahru (JB). You've guest it correctly; We were there for Legoland Themepark. My boys were huge Lego fans, back when they younger so, "Yes we've been to Legoland Malaysia a lot".

However, JB is located at the southernmost end of Malaysia and was actually nearer Singapore, than Kuala Lumpur (KL), so we have been to Malaysia before is really an understatement.

For this trip (though we failed to visit the coastal states of Malaysia), I could now confidently brag that I have visited Malaysia.

We flew to KL from Manila via Air Asia. We got a wee morning flight and arrived at KLIA (KL International Airport at 5 am. We figured we won't be allowed hotel check-in as it was too early so we arranged for a private airport pick up cum KL city tour. No Day zero (0) for these tourists!

Today's order of business, upon arrival:

Get Malaysian Ringgit (MYR). We bought some MYR from Manila, but rates weren't very good so we decided to get the rest via ATM withdrawal. Surprisingly the rates we got via ATM withdrawal was better than the rates we bought our MYR in Manila by about P0.20.
Pick-up our local sims which we purchased via Klook.

Sim card pick-up was at this little store, took a while for us to find it.

We got Digi Telecomm's Pre-paid Cards. Speed-wise good in the metro area but got a bit spotty in Cameron Highlands (CH). Although per our CH guide, signal is really bad in the area, regardless of service provider.

Get breakfast.
Wait for our driver cum tour guide.

Breakfast was at Old Town White Coffee Cafe.

Our driver/tour guide arrived at 7am, just right after we finished breakfast. Perfect timing.

Now off to our first day Malaysian adventure.

Batu Caves
The King's Palace (Istana Negara)
National Mosque (Masjid Negara)
Independence Square (Merdeka Square)
KL Gallery
Chinatown
KL Tower
Lunch at Wanjo
Hardrock Cafe

*Our tour included Central Market and Petronas Tower however, the Malaysian heat was just unbearable. The sun was scorching and so we had to skip Central Market and Petronas Tower for today.

We arrived at Batu Caves about 8am (Arriving early was a good thing as we get to see the place before the crowd flocks in).

Batu Caves is located at Selangor and is a place of pilgrimage for Tamil Hindus.

Batu Caves has three main caves featuring temples and Hindu shrines.

Its main attraction is the large statue of the Hindu God at the entrance, next to a 272 steps rainbow staircase. You would see pigeons and monkeys frolic around the area.

TIPS: Remember to be careful with your things, I heard the monkeys can get pretty naughty at time.

Yup... we made it!

Now, prepping for the walk down.

Going up was hard, but the coming down was quite scarry. The steps were steep and one wrong step, could cause you to tumble down or fall (Not a pretty sight at all, and no way to begin our Day 1 in Malaysia)

Next Stop is the King's Palace (Istana Negara).

The King's Palace is the official residence of the Malaysian monarch.

The National Mosque (Masjid Negara).

The Masjid Negara is Malaysia's National Mosque and official headquarters of Islam in country. It is also the largest mosque in KL with a capacity of 15,000 people.

I personally find the use of mix of contemporary and traditional Islam design interesting.

With one of the mosque guides...

Having one around to help you understand the history and uniqueness of the mosque is actually pleasant.

Next stop is the Independence Square (Merdeka Square)

It is here at the Merdeka Square that the Malaysian flag was raised for the first time on

August 31, 1957.

KL kilometer zero marker...

There are many nice old buildings in the area ~ all picture worthy.

Right beside to the Merdeka Square is the KL Gallery ~

a cool photo stop with a huge "I heart KL sign".

The KL Gallery is an art gallery next to a cafe. Would be a perfect place to cool down from the harsh-harsh sun.

We then passed by Malaysia's River of Life ~ The River of Life actually is a convergence of KL's two main rivers, the Klang River and Gombak River. It flows through KL, Selangor and into the Straits of Malacca.

The KL Tower ~ This tower is 421 meters tall and offers one of the best view of the KL. However, it was getting really hot and humid at this point and we were not in the real mood to go up (Remember? We literally just landed in KL a few hours ago, So "NO".).

Though humid, will not pass a chance to see KL's Chinatown ~ off to Petaling Street we go! I wanted to see how it differ from Manila's Chinatown.

We saw vendors selling imitation designer clothes, bags, shoes ~ everything.

My husband got these huge mangoes, for later, but we did not do any shopping.

We decided to postpone our souvenir hunting for another day!

Lunch was at Wanjo, Kampung Baru. My husband was in the mood for Nasi Lemak (a Malaysian coconut milk rice served with sambal).

My husband got his wish! However, I am not a real fan of anything spicy so, I did not finish my order (he finished everything for me though), however the mango shake I ordered was an absolute refreshment!

We dropped by the Hard Rock Cafe located at the ground floor of the Wisma Concorde Hotel to buy souvenir shirts before finally to our home in KL.

Our home in KL ~ "Pavillion Hotel".

We arrived at 1:30pm, check-in was at 3pm. We were so tired (and sleepy) at this point ~ we didn't mind waiting at the lobby.

My big boy, readying to nap (sitting down). I think this pressured the reception counter a bit, we were allowed to enter our room early. But, kidding aside, the early check-in is really appreciated! Very good customer service.