Kuala Lumpur

[ilbonito]

Kuala Lumpur is a bit of an underrated city. Its airport is the hub to SouthEast Asia's own Easyjet-style budget carrier, Air Asia, making it an increasingly important transport hub. Yet for many travellers, myself included, it has been easy to treat the city as an airport lounge, a stepping stone to the allure of Bangkok to the North, or Singapore just a few hours South.

Which is unfair because KL is itself a complex and colourful city. It is the centre of all economic and political power in Malaysia, peopled sometimes uneasily by its three races; the Malay Muslims who dominate politics and enjoy special, apartheid-like priveleges, the wealthier ethnic Chinese who make up a full forty percent of the population, and a ten percent minority of Indians, mostly dark-skinned Tamils from the South. All of these groups have left their mark on the city; from the vibrant, flower-garlanded streets of Brickfields (an Indian area) with its screaming Bollywood posters (like the one above) and brilliant saris, to the pastel-colored headscarves favored by Malay women that dot the city crowds, to the blaring of Cantopop hits and the aroma of egg noodles cooking in Chinatown.

It is an increasingly prosperous, forward looking place; a city of mosques and freeways, skyscrapers, extravagant new suburban developments, monorails - but it is still gritty in places, a bit rough around the edges. And all this wrapped up in a mostly English-speaking package.

In fact of the three major South East Asian capitals (I've not been to Jakarta) I would place Bangkok first for travellers, then KL and then Singapore (which is not to dismiss Singapore, I think that can be a fun city too). But Kuala Lumpur still has a bit more character, its not quite as polished as Singapore nor as chaotic as Bangkok.



For most budget travellers the main target in KL is the city's Chinatown, a still grungy and vibrant quarter of old colonial shophouses, sooty 1970s blocks, markets, laneways and hostels. The main street, Jalan Petaling, has been tarted up for tourists to the point of being inauthentic, but just around the corner there are warren-like little alleyways and the kind of no-frills, plastic and concrete outdoor foodcourts seemingly favoured by Chinese everywhere. Although it is (surprise, surprise) mostly Chinese, the area is also home to several riotous Indian temples and even more interesting a small Chitty community; a group of people born of intermarriage between Malays and Indians with a Creole culture mixing elements of the two, much as the better known Peranakan, or Nonya people, have done with Chinese and Malay cultures.



But as is so characteristic (and thrilling) of Southeast Asia, a short walk will take you out of the heart of the old Chinatown to a monorail station by a gaudy temple, and you can be whisked away straight into the heart of modern KL EBukit Bintang, Malaysia's pocket Shibuya (and Roppongi,combined) or a tamer, toned down version of Bangkok's Silom. Here there are traffic jams all night, brightly lit bars (and shady sidestreets), luxury hotels and illuminated signs in Arabic for Persian Gulf tourists, and leafy green streets where the international expat community dwells in expensive condos and dines in cute little cafes.

[ilbonito]

One of the most interesting facets of KL was in its role as a dynamic centre for modern Islamic architecture. It started with the British who built bizarre, Moghul inspired turreted train stations and post offices


And then when Malaysia became independent in the 1960s it asserted its identity with a new national mosque; a still-beautiful oasis of airy colonades, and modern lines.

Then in the 1980s and 90s, when Malaysia flourished as the super-capitalist, pro-Western, pluralistic face of Islamic modernism, KL blossomed with towers like the minaret-inspired Petronas twins and my favourite buildings, the stunning Dayabhumi Centre, like an Arabic folded screen in concrete. Its just beautiful.

[ilbonito]

[ilbonito]

The single, standout sight in KL, in my opinion, is the Batu Caves; a huge system of caverns honeycombed through a limestone cliff, that rises abruptly at the edge of the city (you can get there in 40 minutes on a local bus). The caves are spectacular in themselves, but all the more so for being a sacred Hindhu site. A shrine lies within the innermost cavern and a huge golden statue of Murgha, a relatively obscure Hindhu deity, stands watch over the flight of 270 stairs leading up to the entrance; a pathway ambushed by marauding, super-aggressive monkeys on the lookout for snacks.


Inside, the caves are spectacular; soaring cathedral-sized spaces with stalactities dripping from the ceiling and little jungly cracks with sunlight peeking in, over jungle vines. At sunset, bats pour out of their hiding places in the limestone fissures and into the night sky over the city, while inside worshippers beat gongs and burn holy incense.

The Batu Caves are also the scene for one of the world's most spectacular festivals, one that happened (as they so often do when you are travelling) the week after I was in town. I only realised when I was wandering through an Indian district, looking for an internet cafe. ( I found one by the way, with walls, carpet and upholstery all a bright blue, full of Tamil boys playing network games and singing along to Michael Jackson's "Liberian girl" on the radio).



The shops were decorated with special banners, like this one "Selamat Hari (happy) Thaipusam" . Thaipusam is a Hindu ritual celebrated with special fervour in South East Asia. In Kuala Lumpur especially, it draws vast, colorful crowd to chant and offer flowers and incense. But the most famous aspect of the celebration is the many worshippers who go into trances, and apparently feeling no pain, skewer their faces with metallic spikes or blades. Hooks are inserted into the backs of the entranced celebrants, who pull huge ceremonial chariots behind them. And yet, they feel no pain and do not bleed.

During these grotesque, mysterious, riotously exotic celebrations a million people - some human pincushions, others dancing in trances, others just there to pray or watch - crowd into the Batu Caves to the city's premier Hindu shrine. The cavern might be huge but still, a million people in a cave? It makes me claustrophobic just thinking about it ...

[bixaorellana]

Ilbonito, every time I read one of your beautifully written articles, devouring the informative, artistic, and/or whimsical photographs and absorbing the wealth of information, I think, "Okay, this is it -- this is his best yet." But every time, with each new presentation, you breathe life and interest into some new corner of the globe.

The contrasts within the first group of pictures really grabbed me -- the attractive street and sidewalk in front of the battered building with the movie poster; the elegance of Western-style facades of another era painted with jolly, jarring pastels and backing up to skyscrapers; the dowdy buildings downtown with that flatly sleek illuminated and illustrated expanse at the end of the street -- all wonderful.

The new architecture is very fine and appropriate. In that group of pictures, I really love the one with the traffic signal.

Batu -- linguisitically linked to bat, or is that coincidence? Gad, those stairs! Your pic with the monkey is marvelous. Do you need a guide to go into the caves, or do they let people just wander in?

Have to disagree about the festivals happening the week after one visits. In my experience, it's always the week before, so I can't even change my plans in order to participate.

I sense you may have more to add to this -- sure hope so!

[Deleted]

I absolutely must find my photos of my stay in the "KL Station Hotel" inside the Kuala Lumpur train station -- one of the most amazing hotels in which I have ever stayed. Of course it has been renovated into a magnificent luxury hotel since I was there, but I have proof of its past!

Your reports are always fascinating, ilbonito.

[Deleted]

Jun 19, 2010 11:46:59 GMT ilbonito said:

the Malay Muslims who dominate politics and enjoy special, apartheid-like priveleges, the wealthier ethnic Chinese who make up a full forty percent of the population, and a ten percent minority of Indians, mostly dark-skinned Tamils from the South. All of these groups have left their mark on the city; from the vibrant, flower-garlanded streets of Brickfields (an Indian area) with its screaming Bollywood posters (like the one above) and brilliant saris, to the pastel-colored headscarves favored by Malay women that dot the city crowds, to the blaring of Cantopop hits and the aroma of egg noodles cooking in Chinatown.

Just fascinating, ilbonito. And always, your knowledge and description of the country is outstanding. I found it interesting to read of the various cultures in Kuala Lumpur.

[auntieannie]

oh, yes, the Hindus love their cave temples, their long fleet of stairs and their festivals... that's for sure.
I find it compelling to visit these joyous temples, but couldn't agree more on avoiding them during festivals. I would not be able to relax enough.

[ilbonito]

[ilbonito]

Just West of the city’s central train station lie the Lake Gardens, a vast tropical green space filled with lakes (of course), museums, monuments and gardens, with views over the city’s striking Islam-meets-Wall Street skyline.

There is one of the world’s best bird parks in a huge, netted valley filled with all varieties of exotic birds, like the majestic native hornbill:




And this rather odd sign at the entrance ( I like the disclaimer: “bird does not actually have teeth”):



And there is also a deerpark in the gardens for the tiny mousedeer (its Malay name “kancil” means simply “small”), a cute rodent-sized deer made all the more bizarre by having little fangs. In Malay folklore, it plays a similar role to the fox; a wily, sly creature that can outsmart bigger and stronger things.



But the craziest wildlife I saw in KL was, unexpectedly, in the heart of the the city’s entertainment district, climbing up the wall of a five star hotel in Bukit Bintang. This snail was HUGE! Look at my phone next to it for perspective. A reminder that only 150 years ago all this concrete jungle was a real one …

[Deleted]

That last message in #8 is actually quite common in many areas of the world. A lot of people accustomed to squat (Turkish) toilets climb up on the seat to squat with often quite messy results. We even had a problem in my office a couple of times. It was disgusting.

[ilbonito]

One of the things that I had noticed in KL was the weird fashion sense of the city’s many, many motorcyclists. Whizzing through the stalled traffic typical of cities that grew to fast, there are legions of motorcyclists wearing an unofficial uniform of jacket on backwards. Why was that? I was stumped. Protection against pollution? But my taxi driver had the answer: laziness. In Malaysia, most motorcycle drivers go short distances, he said. While they are on the bikes they need the jackets to keep warm, but as soon as they stop the tropical sun makes them too sticky and humid. And instead of bothering to zip them or button them on or off, this way they can slip them off with no effort!

[ilbonito]

Malaysian street art:

[fumobici]

Fantastic photos and commentary- again.

[bixaorellana]

;D ;D for the contact lens center sign! Didn't you post some other Great Gatsby style photo on a different thread? Oh yeah -- it was the thread about the artists painting the favelas.

The mouse deer ~~ was ever a creature better named?! I like the 2nd snail pic, where he's "reaching out to touch someone." (<-- may be a US reference)

I don't think it's lazy of the motorcyclists to put their jackets on backwards -- it simply logical. They get more wind protection that way and in a hot, sticky climate it really is a pain to peel off long-sleeved or -legged garments.

I am reading Paul Theroux's Ghost Train to the Eastern Star with great enjoyment. As he reports on his travels, he describes places that I "know" from the great reports anyporters have posted. Right before logging on just now, I came to his description of leaving in a train:

Pulling away from Kuala Lumpur, I could see the city like a mirage hovering at treetop level, a capriccio of spires -- jungle and palms in the foreground, the otherworldly skyscrapers showing in the mist, silvery in all the green, a fantasy skyline.

[hwinpp]

Thanks for this, my place of birth ;D

In my opinion KL is a secret gem of all the big towns of SEA. Completely underestimated by tourists.

Batu means 'mile', the unit for measuring distance. I used to live at Batu Tiga (3rd mile), Old Klang Road ;D

Those monkeys sure are aggressive. I hate them.

[ilbonito]

hwinpp, KL must have changed a lot - how often do you go back? Do you miss it (you must miss the food at least!!)

[hwinpp]

The funny thing is that I get there less now than when I was still living in Europe.

The last longer period of time I lived there was from March '79 to Dec. '79. After that it was just for holidays, when I used to base myself at my aunt's house and travel.

Last time I was there was actually on an 8 hour stopover on my way to Melbourne in April. Of course I called a cousin and went for 'makan' in town.

What I've noticed is that over the years my haunts have changed.

While I was staying at my aunt's place I'd go to town for food or drinks, now I stay in the suburbs, my aunt's gone and I stay with a cousin.

Yep, the food in Malaysia, there's nothing like it anywhere else.

[fumobici]

I don't think I've ever even seen a Malay restaurant.

[hwinpp]

Malay restaurants would be difficult to find, I'd agree. If at all in Europe probably in the UK.

Malaysian restaurants, OTOH, should be found in most of the capitals at least, they're nearly always Chinese, sometimes Indian.

The Malays are an ethnicity. Most of them came over from Sumatra, around a thousand years ago. Malaysians are made up of several different ethnicities, Malays, Chinese, Indians and 'negritos', the actual inhabitants of the peninsula.

[Deleted]

My Singaporean friends who moved to Vancouver are of Malay extraction, so I probably ate some Malay favorites when I used to visit them in Singapore, without knowing which ones...

[hwinpp]

I quite like Malay food, especially the satay (saté), the curries and the mutton dishes.

Their noodles are a bit insipid and the chicken dishes aren't that great either.

Fish is good but the dishes aren't that plentiful. They don't like eating shells or shellfish that much, in fact it's limited to the swimming/ flowery/ blue crab.

[ilbonito]

My Malaysian friend (who is extreeeemely wealthy) took me out one night in KL to what he promised was the best restaurant in town. I had visions of chandeliers and starched-collared waiters. It ended up being on plastic seats in a dimly lit alleyway in Chinatown, where cockroaches quite visibly roamed the walls, but it was packed, many of the cars parked nearby were BMWs and the flat noodles and deep fried pork fat was undeniably delicious!

[Deleted]

If cockroaches were also on the menu, at least you could be sure that they were fresh.

[Deleted]

And there is also a deerpark in the gardens for the tiny mousedeer (its Malay name “kancil” means simply “small”), a cute rodent-sized deer made all the more bizarre by having little fangs. In Malay folklore, it plays a similar role to the fox; a wily, sly creature that can outsmart bigger and stronger things.

What an unusual looking animal. I've never seen anything like it. And yes, that slug thing is huge!

[ilbonito]

This is today's paper. I remember seeing the murals on those walls. I was told at the time it was the biggest mural in the world.


Historic murals lost as Malaysian jail wall is razed
JULIA ZAPPEI, KUALA LUMPUR
June 24, 2010


BULLDOZERS have torn down a boundary wall famed for murals mostly painted by anonymous convicts at a 115-year-old Malaysian prison that once held World War II Allied soldiers.

Hundreds watched as excavators broke through the eastern wall of Pudu Jail on Monday night, leaving many heritage-lovers aghast at the loss of an historic structure for commercial development.

Authorities began tearing down structures inside the sprawling complex on the edge of Kuala Lumpur's most famous shopping area, Bukit Bintang, last year. But that was done away from public gaze and did not attract as much attention as the demolition of the mural wall.


The central courtyard of Malaysia's historic Pudu Jail in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: Reuters
Pudu Jail is notorious for having housed Allied prisoners in the Japanese invasion of the Malaya peninsula. After World War II, the prison housed common criminals and some were executed there.

Many prisoners with artistic flair were deployed to paint murals depicting scenes of nature on the outside of the wall.

Despite fading because of age and the elements, the murals remained a tourist attraction for many years.

''Sadly, the custodians of our nation's heritage have not seen fit to respond to the many different voices which have spoken up against the demolition of Pudu Jail,'' The Heritage of Malaysia Trust said on its website. It said that despite having ''a brutal and insalubrious story'', the jail was part of Malaysia's penal history.

The government refused to turn the prison into a museum, saying the land was needed to make an underpass to ease congestion and to build apartments, hotels and offices over the next 10 years.

[hwinpp]

It stands on prime real estate. It's got a gruesome history. They've been saying they'll tear it down for over a decade. I took a tour there in the early 90s, saw the gallows, the whips, the chairs to which people were bound to be whipped, the cells.

I won't miss it.

[Deleted]

Not everything needs to be saved, and this doesn't appear to be indispensable.

[ilbonito]

Malaysia putsits own spin on "X Factor" or "Pop Idol" shows with "SuperImam!"

Cut and pasted from a news site below:

When 10 young Malaysian men signed up to compete in the latest reality show in town, little did they know they would face gruesome death. Their first challenge was to bathe and bury a body - one infected with the Aids virus - that had lain in the morgue unclaimed for one month — all before judges on national TV. A Malaysian cable station has given a reality show makeover to its Islamic programming, and it's taking this moderate Muslim-majority country by storm.

The show, called "Imam Muda" or "Young Leader," is halfway through a 10-week run. With its blend of doctrine and drama, it is a natural fit for Malaysia, a Southeast Asian nation that has tried to defend its Islamic traditions while also welcoming high-tech industry and Western culture. It's these parallel strains in society that the program taps so successfully.

The producers say they want to find a leader for these times, a pious but progressive Muslim who can prove that religion remains relevant to Malaysian youths despite the influence of Western pop culture. Even the prizes combine both worlds: An all-expenses-paid pilgrimage to Mecca and a car.

Clip (dubbed into German, though)