Up, up and away to Kuala Lumpur

Selamat Datang Malaysia!!! That's "Welcome to Malaysia" in Malay by the way. Rhyming?!?

Anyway, the past few weeks have been a whirlwind of events. Things I wanted didn't turn out the way I expected them and it had caused so much stress that facing everyday was a struggle. And I just know that I needed to get away. Even just for a little while. Fortunately, this Malaysian trip with my mom, my sister and our friend came at the right moment.

We flew to Malaysia via an Air Asia - Zest Air flight. If you know my mother, you are probably aware that she never ever rides budget airlines. She thinks that having no free food on board is a crime against passenger's rights. Fortunately, she still agreed to try this airline. Air Asia/Zest Air was actually okay. Despite the small leg room, the seats were relatively comfortable and the food on board was affordable. And what I like about this airline is that the flight delay was not that long.

We arrived in Kuala Lumpur's LCCT around 10:30 am. However, we were able to get out of the airport around 11:30 am. Why the delay? For one, there was a very very long queue for the immigration. I don't know if it was just because it was a weekend, but there were only few immigration officers and there were around a hundred of tourists queuing. Despite the fast process, it still took us a long time. Another reason for the delay was that we played "hide and seek" with our luggage. Apparently, when you take a long time getting your baggage from the belt, the baggage personnel would take it out and just drop your bag on the floor. Thus, we still had to check every nook just to find our bag. From the airport, we rode a bus to KL Sentral, the transit point of the city. From there, we took a taxi to Bukit Bintang where our hotel is located.

We stayed in Classic Inn Premium which was just across the Berjaya Time Square and the Imbi station of the KL Monorail. The hotel was small but it was actually clean and cozy. There were also four Filipino crew which made us feel more comfortable and at home. The breakfast was limited and meager but its better than nothing.  My sister arrived a day before so we just met her in the hotel.

photo courtesy of agoda.com

On our first day in Malaysia, we went to Putrajaya. Putrajaya is the federal administrative center of Malaysia. Meaning, most of the government offices are located in this city. You can reach it via the KLIA transit and would take about 20 minutes. This is the same transit that you can ride in when you're on your way to the 2 airports. What I like about the KLIA transit is that despite it being expensive, it is super fast and it is not too crowded.

When we arrived in Putrajaya, we paid for a 2 hour taxi tour which cost around 65-70 MYR.  It was actually worth it since the places were far apart and  it would probably take us some time to get to every places we want to go to.

(L-R) Wawasan Bridge and Pedestrian Bridge

The Seri Gemilang bridge is a ceremonial bridge that connects the Heritage Square and the Putrajaya International Convention Center (PICC). This bridge also serves as the main entrance to the main island.

A Putrajaya trip would not be complete if you don't visit the Masjid Putra or the Putra Mosque. Masjid Putra is the principal mosque of the city and is constructed with rose-tinted granite. The mosque can accommodate as much as 15,000 worshippers. Just like any religious places, you have to wear appropriate clothing. This is a sign of respecting their religious places. To be able to enter the interior of the mosque, one would have to wear a robe rented out by the staff. As we do not want pay 2 MYR for a robe, we just decided to take a picture of the exterior.

 

Adjacent to the Masjid Putra is the Perdana Putra which is the Prime Minister's Department Complex. Perdana Putra houses the various national government agencies of Malaysia. The structural design of the complex is influenced by Malay, Islamic and European cultures.

We also dropped by the Istana Kehakiman or the Palace of Justice. This government building houses the judicial department of the country. The courtyard of the Palace is so big that many national events are held here.

When we were done with our Putrajaya tour, we went back to Kuala Lumpur. As it was already 7 PM when we arrived in KL, we decided to have our dinner. From the Bukit Bintang monorail station, we walked to Jalan Alor. This street host a lot of hawkers stalls and restaurant. Here you will see an array of local and international cuisines. This place reminds of Makansutra in Singapore and Mercato in the Philippines.

After dinner, we walked all the way to the famous Petronas Twin Towers. It was a very very long walk. It was so long, I was already getting hungry again along the way. However, as we got nearer to the towers, it made me realized that the long walk was worth it. The Petronas Towers looked more magical at night. The towers used to be the tallest building in the world but was already surpassed by other buildings.

It was a first day of vacation spent wisely. Somehow, I was able to forget my frustration. As we reached our hotel, I went straight to bed. Next stop, Batu Caves and Malacca.