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Rumble in the Jungle
11:12
As the train whisks me away from Kuala Lumpur, I thought I'd fill you in on the happenings in this city. Despite many warnings against staying here too long, Rachel and I actually ended up extending our stay. We arrived on the pimpin'est coach after ridiculous border beaurocracy, intense heat and swarms of bitting insects - didn't create a great first impression!
Dropped off in the centre of town at 5 a.m, we were a little surprised Asia had managed not only to keep to a schedule but actually be early! It was a miracle, unwelcome being kicked off our bus at such an ungodly hour but a miracle nonetheless!
Our experience therefore, began on the deserted streets of Kuala Lumpur. Issue number one, I had no money left in the bank, issue number two, rachels cards weren't working and issue number three despite being recommended a hostel by Kat and Robbie - we had no clue where it was! Once Rachel got her card working, Malaysia provided us with a sign...a big red sign intact, with an arrow...pointing straight to said hostel! Stood at the doorway to Reggae Guest House, a fourth issue presented itself when the man at the end of the intercom said there was no room at the inn. We ended up in 'Penginapan Pengembara Backpackers Travellers Lodge' - 'Hovel Hotel' for short! We stayed for 5 hours, used their Internet and booked the 'Classic Inn Budget Hotel', a charming little hotel kept meticulously clean by the friendly and welcoming staff in an awesome location! Due to moderate fatigue the day was written off, we did pop over the road to watch 'Clash of the Titans' which was what it was but we liked it!
The following day began early as we head to the Petronas Towers to bag one of the 1640 daily free tickets, sounds like a lot. We arrived at 9.30 a.m. - just an hour after doors opened and there were only around 300 tickets left! We booked onto the 6:15 p.m. slot, had a quick photoshoot outside and hopped on the monorail to Chow Kit Market. Now if you remember, I said Chatuchuk Market in Bangkok was an assault on every sense - Chow Kit declared full on war on my nose. I don't generally gag at smells but my word they were coming thick and fast with a pungence you could chew on! Surprisingly this seemed to lend itself to trying some of the food stalls, I tried a delicious samosa wannabe and Rachel bought some cakes clearly laced with E numbers!
With the delights of Chow Kit still fresh in my belly and searing my nostrils, we head to KL Sentral Train Station and booked our train to Singapore for the mighty sum of £8! Done and dusted, we head out in the blistering heat to the 'Lake Gardens' - the lungs of the city. We had a mamoth walk through a near on jungle albeit on a road, the surrounding flora was very surreal! Eventually, after much complaining from myself, we found the Bird Park which if you ever go to Kuala Lumpur you should definitely do. The park is split into 4 zones, each zone home to different birds - pretty standard stuff I know BUT many of the birds aren't caged, they just go about their daily lives as you saunter on by, it was incredible. We were also treated to the Bird Show, clearly aimed at kids but if you know me at all you'll know that that also means it was perfect for me - the culmination of this bird show was that I got to feed an eagle as it swooped out of a tree (I'm not going to lie, I was petrified it was just goin to go for my face!)
Suitably entertained and enthralled we still had the best part of the day to come, our trip up the towers! After a lot of to do about nothing and a video aimed at shameless self promotion for the Petronas company, we began our ascent up to the Sky Bridge in a lift travelling at 6 meters per second! Definite ear popping. Now at the Sky Bridge I'd hate to say I was disappoited but it wasn't as spectacular as I'd anticipated...of the 83 available floors, you only reach the 44th. It was an experience and it was free and I'd definitely recommend it but I don't think I'd go again! The end of a fantastic day was wrapped up quite nicely with dinner and drinks in China Town!
Our penultimate day was spent partially in Malaysia's biggest indoor theme park. Little did we know that the only ride worth doing was the rollercoaster, the rest of the park was crap! Still it's an experience to check off the list! The rest of the day was spent shopping in Times Square where I bought a horrendously gay shirt and a new bag. We napped and killed some time at the cinema, it was perfect staying just across the street!
Our final day in KL was a little bit wet. We took a stroll to China Town to do a little shopping but the heavens opened and we got stuck in Reggae Bar for several hours. It's insane, the weather and surroundings here are so similar to what I remember in the Amazon, just with a few more skyscrapers!! Malaysia has impressed me and I definitely recommend it and want to come back to see more...
Dropped off in the centre of town at 5 a.m, we were a little surprised Asia had managed not only to keep to a schedule but actually be early! It was a miracle, unwelcome being kicked off our bus at such an ungodly hour but a miracle nonetheless!
Our experience therefore, began on the deserted streets of Kuala Lumpur. Issue number one, I had no money left in the bank, issue number two, rachels cards weren't working and issue number three despite being recommended a hostel by Kat and Robbie - we had no clue where it was! Once Rachel got her card working, Malaysia provided us with a sign...a big red sign intact, with an arrow...pointing straight to said hostel! Stood at the doorway to Reggae Guest House, a fourth issue presented itself when the man at the end of the intercom said there was no room at the inn. We ended up in 'Penginapan Pengembara Backpackers Travellers Lodge' - 'Hovel Hotel' for short! We stayed for 5 hours, used their Internet and booked the 'Classic Inn Budget Hotel', a charming little hotel kept meticulously clean by the friendly and welcoming staff in an awesome location! Due to moderate fatigue the day was written off, we did pop over the road to watch 'Clash of the Titans' which was what it was but we liked it!
Our palatial room
The following day began early as we head to the Petronas Towers to bag one of the 1640 daily free tickets, sounds like a lot. We arrived at 9.30 a.m. - just an hour after doors opened and there were only around 300 tickets left! We booked onto the 6:15 p.m. slot, had a quick photoshoot outside and hopped on the monorail to Chow Kit Market. Now if you remember, I said Chatuchuk Market in Bangkok was an assault on every sense - Chow Kit declared full on war on my nose. I don't generally gag at smells but my word they were coming thick and fast with a pungence you could chew on! Surprisingly this seemed to lend itself to trying some of the food stalls, I tried a delicious samosa wannabe and Rachel bought some cakes clearly laced with E numbers!
Obligatory tourist photo!
With the delights of Chow Kit still fresh in my belly and searing my nostrils, we head to KL Sentral Train Station and booked our train to Singapore for the mighty sum of £8! Done and dusted, we head out in the blistering heat to the 'Lake Gardens' - the lungs of the city. We had a mamoth walk through a near on jungle albeit on a road, the surrounding flora was very surreal! Eventually, after much complaining from myself, we found the Bird Park which if you ever go to Kuala Lumpur you should definitely do. The park is split into 4 zones, each zone home to different birds - pretty standard stuff I know BUT many of the birds aren't caged, they just go about their daily lives as you saunter on by, it was incredible. We were also treated to the Bird Show, clearly aimed at kids but if you know me at all you'll know that that also means it was perfect for me - the culmination of this bird show was that I got to feed an eagle as it swooped out of a tree (I'm not going to lie, I was petrified it was just goin to go for my face!)
"Feed the birds, tuppence a baaaag"
Suitably entertained and enthralled we still had the best part of the day to come, our trip up the towers! After a lot of to do about nothing and a video aimed at shameless self promotion for the Petronas company, we began our ascent up to the Sky Bridge in a lift travelling at 6 meters per second! Definite ear popping. Now at the Sky Bridge I'd hate to say I was disappoited but it wasn't as spectacular as I'd anticipated...of the 83 available floors, you only reach the 44th. It was an experience and it was free and I'd definitely recommend it but I don't think I'd go again! The end of a fantastic day was wrapped up quite nicely with dinner and drinks in China Town!
Sky Bridge
Our penultimate day was spent partially in Malaysia's biggest indoor theme park. Little did we know that the only ride worth doing was the rollercoaster, the rest of the park was crap! Still it's an experience to check off the list! The rest of the day was spent shopping in Times Square where I bought a horrendously gay shirt and a new bag. We napped and killed some time at the cinema, it was perfect staying just across the street!
'World's Worst Theme Park'
Our final day in KL was a little bit wet. We took a stroll to China Town to do a little shopping but the heavens opened and we got stuck in Reggae Bar for several hours. It's insane, the weather and surroundings here are so similar to what I remember in the Amazon, just with a few more skyscrapers!! Malaysia has impressed me and I definitely recommend it and want to come back to see more...
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