For a truly Asian experience...

When I reached KL (as Kuala Lumpur is fondly known), it was drizzling. In my hotel room, raindrops on the window glass refracted the colourful lights of the city, creating an illusion of a colourfully painted tapestry. I tried to spot the building of which I had heard much about — the Petronas Twin Towers. And lo, there it was, at a distance!

After breakfast, I left for the Petronas, which claims to be the tallest multistoried skyscraper in the world. It is 452 m in height with 88 floors. Its construction was inspired by the five pillars of Islam, and is now the symbol of Malaysia’s progress. The two towers are joined by a horizontal bridge at the 40th floor. It’s an experience I could not miss, and when I was on the bridge, I felt delirious.

My next stop was the National Monument, where I saw a bronze statue designed by renowned architect Felix de Weldon. This statue, which is 15.6 m in height, was erected in 1966 to honour the country’s martyrs. A fountain with cool drops of water flying in the air keeps the enclosure cool. The National Mosque in KL is also equally impressive.

Amongst the traditional constructions in KL, I liked the Sultan Abdul Samad Building the best, which was built during the British rule in 1897 to house their offices. It has a clock tower which is 40 m high. Istana Negara, the official residence of the Sultan of Malaysia, located near a small hill on the outskirts of the city, is also a must-see. Guards on horseback adorn the two sides of the main entrance. It’s a treat to watch the immaculately dressed smart guards’ changing-ceremony at the main entrance. Remnants of a demolished Hindu temple in the green and beautiful Bhujang valley, a little away from KL, is also worth a visit.   

Shopping malls and plazas are a specialty of KL. They are all centrally air-conditioned and stocked with a variety of goods. Sogo and Suria shopping plazas are a class by themselves. While Suria, situated just by the side of Petronas, has a number of specialty shops and fashion boutiques, Sogo has a grand restaurant whose mini-porch and the doorway have glittering gold work on them.

To be in KL and not experience the train journey would have rendered my tour incomplete. So, I booked a night train to Singapore in an economy second class sleeper, which was very comfortable.

But, why the name Kuala Lumpur? In Malay language, kuala is a confluence of rivers (in this case, that of Kelang and Gombak rivers) and lumpur is muddy water, which could have been the state of affairs once upon a time. Where there was muddy water once is a beautifully developed capital of a robust country, humming with life, justifying its ‘truly Asia’ claim.