Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (short layover) 2017

Several 24 h layovers in Kuala Lumpur (2017)

Recommendations:

• Old China Cafe restaurant in downtown Kuala Lumpur
• If short of time, Uber is a reasonable and faster transport, but there is a wide public transport network as well

Places visited:

• Batu Caves
• Petronas Towers (KLCC)
• Dowtown (Perdana Botanic Gardens, Merdeka square and surroundings)
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a) Batu Caves:

• You can reach Batu Caves by public transport (Komuter to Batu Caves)
• Entrance is free
• Limestone caves which host one of the most important Hindu temples outside India
• Location of the annual festival of Thaipusam for Hindus
• Dedicated to Lord Murugan, lord of war, whose impressive iconin statue is in the entrance of the caves
  
• Reaching the caves require almost 300 steps where you can find plenty of monkeys (do not show them food!) and vegetation, as well as nice views of the city
  
  
  
  
• Once inside the caves there are several Hindu respresentations and the cave is beuatiful
  
  
  
  

b) Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC):

• You can reach KLCC by public transport (LRT to KLCC)
• Iconic Petronas Towers are found here
  
• I did not visit the observation deck, which can be visited from Tuesday to Sunday (monday closed as of 2017) for RM85 (approx €22)
• I heard that is better to visit Menara telecommunications tower for half price and better views, but I did not visit neither of them
• What I liked most about this area was KLCC park, nice area where best photos of Petronas towers are taken
  
  
  
  
  

c1) Perdana Botanic Gardens:

• In dowtown these Botanic Gardens can be visited free of cost
• It is a relaxing area a bit separate from the busy city

• The National Mosque of Malaysia is nearby and can also visited at some fixed timings
  
  
  
  

c2) Merdeka square and surroundings:

• Independence square where the Malaysian flag is rised
  
• Several relevant buildings are found such as Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad (several Ministeries here):
  
• or Kuala Lumpur City Gallery (I did not have time to see the gallery itself but I was told by a local that is a nice colorful gallery for whoever loves art):
  
  

• Nearby you can find Jamek mosque, one of the oldest mosques in Kuala Lumpur:
  

• A few streets after there is Chinatown, where you can find all kind of clothes and souvenirs. Roof has been added in part of it in order to be more "tourist friendly"
  
  
  
  
  

• Not far away there is a popular local street called Alor street, where street food night market takes place daily. It resembles somehow Khao San Road in Bangkok. However, I visited during the day and in Ramadan so obviously it was almost empty but I had the feeling it might be nice at night
  

• To finish my day properly, I met some colleagues for a late lunch in Old China Cafe. This popular restaurant combines Malaysian and Chinese tradition, is highly recommended in several websites, food was very nice and I personally recommend it as well (photo was taken pretty late but it was hard to find available table before 3pm):
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• I would especially recommend two dishes: Brinjal Belachan (kind of eggplant stew) and Chui Pei Tofu (crispy tofu which was delicious for someone like me who very rarely had eaten tofu before)
• Also, as a particularity, the blue rice you see in the photo is naturally made with blue orchid

• I spent a lovely day in Kuala Lumpur, hope it helps!