Showing posts with label Kuala Lumpur. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kuala Lumpur. Show all posts

Malaysia-Singapore | Trip Highlights, Itinerary, Expenses

I've written here several posts about our 2012 summer adventures in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) and Singapore. It was such an awesome trip, a thrilling adventure; we rode (trains, buses, cabs), we walked, we climbed, we visited places; some are interesting, some are not. With this trip too, I smiled, I cried, I freaked out! But all these made this escapade a very memorable one; indeed, an unforgettable experience!

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

A trip to KL would never be complete without visiting their skyscrapers, the KL Tower and the Petronas Twin Towers. These towers, specifically the Petronas Twin Towers symbolize Malaysia's progress and development. And it draws tourists from all around the world, this twin towers being one of the world's tallest structures. There are other interesting landmarks here worth checking out too and these include among others, the Istana Negara, Masjid Negara and Tugu Negara.

If you're a food lover, street dining in Jalan Alor in the Bukit Bintang area is a must-try experience. Jalan Alor offers a dining experience of different cuisines from Malay, Thai and Chinese, a one-stop-dining experience actually.

If you're into temples and willing to climb 272 steps to get into it, you may want to visit the Batu Caves Temple, a Hindu temple at the far north of the city famous for its 140-feet Lord Muruga statue, the tallest statue of Hindu deity in Malaysia. However, if you're one of those travelers who like to shop till you drop, you may want to visit the Chinatown in Jalan Petaling, a street market where you can haggle and shop for less. These are some of the interesting places we've visited in KL; if you want to read more about our adventures in these places, you may click the link to read more about them.

Anyway, for a more detailed account of our adventures in KL, here's our itinerary and actual expenses. I'm not the type who prepares itinerary beforehand; all I do whenever I'm planning a trip is check out interesting places, list down these places and then decide  on where to go and what to do when I'm already there. But I learned to take note of the actual places I visited and the actual expenses I incurred, so here it goes:


Singapore

Singapore is the smallest country in Asia but despite its size, it is the third richest country in the world, next to  Qatar and Luxembourg. And being one of the richest countries in the world, living here is expensive, much more touring it. If in Malaysia, I spent less than four thousand pesos roaming around and visiting KL's famous attractions, here in Singapore I spent more than twice of what I spent in KL.

Anyway, Singapore is famous for its themed-parks and a visit to this city/country usually entails going to these themed-parks. For our SG escapade, we visited Sentosa Island where I experienced crying while riding the cable car. It is also where I freaked out for riding the skyride, a floating chairlift that gives panoramic view of the Sentosa Island. We've also availed of a one day tour to Universal Studios Singapore, enjoying out different rides from a kiddie-ride Madagascar Crate Adventure to a more thrilling adult ride Battlestar Gallactica. We also tried riding the Singapore Flyer, a giant ferris wheel that gives a panoramic view of the Marina Bay and the surrounding area. For a detailed account of our adventures in SG, you may click the links and read more about them. By the way, following are our itinerary and actual expenses:


~ oo00oo ~

These itineraries do not reflect our overall expenses for our KL and SG escapades but I hope this post somehow gives you an idea of how much a tour to these two countries would cost. I didn't include the cost of our package tour as I know it's a little bit expensive if compared to a DIY airline and hotel bookings, especially nowadays that a lot of seat sales are offered by airline companies.

~ oo00oo ~

Date of Visit: May 6 - 10, 2012
Note: Currency conversions are just estimates, only the expenses in MYR and SGD are actual.

Malaysia | Aquaria KLCC Tour

Aquaria KLCC
As I've mentioned in my Petronas Twin Towers post, we didn't avail ourselves of a tour to the twin towers' observation deck since we've done that in KL Tower. Instead, we visited Aquaria KLCC because my friends wanted to check out this oceanarium. I've already visited an oceanarium before (Manila Ocean Park) so I'm not that excited with Aquaria but since I have nothing else to do, I agreed to join them. So after more or less three hours of window shopping and roaming around Jalan Petaling, we went to KLCC (Kuala Lumpur Convention Center).

Everything in KLCC seems classy; this being the home to the stylish and high-end shopping center Suria KLCC and the high and mighty Petronas Twin Towers. But since we don't have money for luxurious shopping (purita us...hehe!), we didn't roam around Suria. Instead, we went straight to Aquaria.

But before we started our tour, we first had our lunch at the KLCC food center. Seeing an asian food stall, we chose to buy our foods there thinking that it would taste like our foods here in Manila. It turned out the food still has the Malaysian twist - spicy that is, super, to the max! One of my friends had to buy her foods twice because she can't stand the spicy food she got on her first order. She ordered the second time, and though the crew said it's a "little spicy", she still find her order to be too spicy.

set value meal - the beef tastes like our caldereta
This set meal was my order, a bit spicy but since I love spicy foods, I was able to enjoy it. For those who are not into spicy foods, please note that a "little spicy" (by Malaysian crew's standard) might be too spicy for you so better ask for a meal that is not spicy at all. Anyway, after this super hot lunch, we then proceeded to Aquaria.

Aquaria KLCC is a state-of-the-art oceanarium located in KLCC adjacent to Petronas Twin Towers. It showcases a variety of marine life forms and some land-based creatures occupying an area of around 60,000 square-foot. Like Manila Ocean Park, it features several aquariums of different sizes with various marine life species in it. It also has a transparent tunnel where you can view up close some wild marine creatures like sharks, stingrays, sea turtles and other marine life forms.

Now, let's start our Aquaria KLCC tour. :P Our first stop: touch pool section where everyone is allowed to touch marine life forms like horseshoe crab, starfish, sea cucumber, bamboo shark, etc.; I didn't dare touch them though. :P

Horseshoe Crab
starfish and sea cucumber

Next stop: electric zone where the exhibited creatures (electric eel, electric catfish, elephant-nose fish) discharged electricity to defend themselves; so if you happen to see them in the wild, stay away or you'll be toasted. :P

electric eel
electric catfish

Next stop: the stream, home to land and aquatic animals like otters and rodents.

Nutria(?) , semi-aquatic rodent
Next stop: jewels of the jungle, a section where various life forms that are usually found in the jungle can be seen including exhibits of butterflies and other insects.

green snake! checked the net to find out what type of snake this is but I got scared just by looking at the photos so never mind ;)
butterflies!!!
Next stop: flooded forest, the section where school of fishes in a lighted tube tanks can be found.

red-tailed fish

And last but not the least: the oceanarium, a 90-meter transparent tunnel with a walkalator where you can  view up-close the various wild marine animals like sharks, giant stingrays, sea turtles, etc.

sea turtle and shark
the scary shark!
End of the tour, hope you enjoyed...hehe!

~ oo00oo ~

Aquaria Schedule and Fees:
Schedule: 11AM - 8PM (weekdays M-F); 1030AM - 8PM (weekends/holidays); 7PM (last admission)
Admission Fee (non-Malaysian): RM45 (adult); RM35 (children); RM25 (senior citizen)

Date of Visit: May 8, 2012

KL Summer Adventure: Shopping in Jalan Petaling - KL Chinatown

Chinatown - Jalan Petaling
I see traveling as almost synonymous to shopping! Why? Because whenever we travel (local or international), we also tend to shop, not necessarily for ourselves but for our love ones and friends back home. And by shopping, I don't just mean buying expensive items from malls or shopping centers; it also includes shopping on bazaars and/or street or night markets. That's why whenever we travel, we also look for bazaars and bargain shops where we can haggle and shop for less.

Malaysia | The Towering Towers of Kuala Lumpur

Petronas Twin Towers and KL Tower, at night!
For those who have visited Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur specifically, I'll bet that the towering structures of KL were part of their itinerary. I guess, no visit to KL would be complete without seeing and taking photographs of at least the Petronas Twin Towers or the KL Tower, if not both. And of course, we are no different; KL Tower and Petronas Twin Towers are part of our KL Summer Adventure itinerary. ☺

After our tiring climb to the Batu Caves, we headed back to the city's central district, this time via KTM Komuter train (there is a KTM station in Batu Caves). We alighted at the KL Sentral Station, first lost but later found our way to LRT Kelana Jaya Line. According to the rail map we have, one can transfer from one rail line to another via the KL Sentral Station; sad to say, we didn't find our way to the LRT line. We asked for directions but maybe because of some misunderstanding, the locals inadvertently led us to the exit so we ended up leaving the KL Sentral station and walking our way to LRT Kelana Jaya Line - Pasar Seni station. One station away from KL Sentral, on foot, imagine that!

At the LRT Pasar Seni station, we bought tickets for Dang Wangi Station. At the Dang Wangi exit, we caught a glimpse of the KL Tower, our next destination. Again, we asked for directions going to the tower. The local whom we asked for directions said that KL Tower is just around 500 meters away so instead of taking a cab, AGAIN we walked our way to the tower; we don't get tired, we are superwomen...hahaha!

Menara Kuala Lumpur (KL Tower)

KL Tower - daytime!
Menara Kuala Lumpur, more popularly known as Kuala Lumpur Tower or KL Tower is a communications tower located in Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve. The tower stands at 421 meters (around 1,381 feet), it is the sixth tallest telecommunications tower in the world and the only tower situated in a forest reserve, a reserve located at the heart of the city. (source: KL tourism flyers)

KL Tower has an observation deck where one can have a 360-degree view of Kuala Lumpur and the surrounding regions. To get to the deck, one has to avail of one of several packages available. For us, we bought just the basic package worth RM45 (PhP612, as of posting date) which includes a visit to the observation deck and a choice between pony ride or KL animal zone (there are 3 choices actually but I forgot the other one); we chose KL animal zone.

We rode the elevator going to the observation deck; the elevator was so fast, we reached the observation deck in no time. I didn't time the ride though, but I remember focusing on the height-indicator of the elevator and I saw the number changing so fast, a few blinks and we're already on the deck. ;)

At the observation deck, we were welcomed by the staff and were given an audio player and a headset that we can listen to while watching and seeing the breathtaking view of Kuala Lumpur outside. The audio player talks about the view that you would see in every window of the viewing deck.

It's sunset time when we reached the deck. As the sunset creeps in, the golden color of the sky and flickering lights of the city below add to its charm, the view is simply breathtaking. Unfortunately, the reflecting light from inside the tower prevented me from taking more photos.

Kuala Lumpur, as seen from the KL Tower observation deck
Menara Kuala Lumpur, as seen from the Petronas grounds
KL Tower souvenir photos ;)
After the viewing deck, we went to KL animal zone, an enclosure area that serves as mini zoo where several types of animals can be seen. If you have kids, this zone is a perfect add-on to a KL Tower package.

We're all tired and hungry after our visit to KL Tower. On our way there, we saw KFC, so we traced our steps back and went there for our dinner. We're supposed to go straight to the hotel after dinner but as we left KFC, we saw from afar the amazing twin towers. I'd like to photograph the twin towers during the night so I asked my friends if we could go there. Though tired, they all agreed. And again, we asked a local for directions going to Petronas. As the local tells us the direction, a man appeared and overheard our conversation. Guess who the man is? A Filipino! Yes, we met a Pinoy in KL, an OFW, who gladly pointed us to the right direction. And since he's Pinoy, we spoke in Tagalog; thus, we didn't have a hard time understanding his instructions. And off we went to Petronas, on foot AGAIN, I should add (we're superwomen remember, we never get tired, hahaha!).

Menara Berkembar Petronas (Petronas Twin Towers)

Petronas Twin Towers - nighttime
Menara Berkembar Petronas or more popularly known as the Petronas Twin Towers symbolizes innovation and progress in Malaysia; it epitomizes that of luxury and grandiose. And though not the world's tallest building now, Petronas, standing at 1,483 feet, remains to be the world's tallest twin structures (source: KL tourism flyers).

Standing high and mighty from afar, I can't help but be captivated with its beauty. I'm tired, me and my friends were all tired, but the magnificent beauty of these towers seemed so inviting, we can't help but get close to it like moths to a light. However, unlike moths that could get burned whenever they get too close to a light, these towers, with its bright light, seemed to guard and keep us on its watch. Until 11PM, we sat there at the corner of Jalan Ramlee and Jalan Ampang, looking at them, constantly clicking our cameras, captivated and in awe of its majestic beauty. Only when we realized that it's already too late did we get up and started to leave for our hotel.

We're supposed to go up the Petronas observation deck the next morning but since we already had a view of Malaysia from the KL Tower, we opted to rest some more and just explore more of Petronas before our visit to Aquaria the day.

Anyway, here are some photos of Petronas Twin Towers, the building and its interior, taken during our next day visit.

Petronas Twin Towers
 
magnetic
Mercedes' Formula 1 racing car (prototype)
suspended Petronas Mercedes Formula 1 cars, real prototypes

~ oo00oo ~

KL Tower Observation Deck, Schedule and Fee
Schedule: 9:00AM - 10:00PM daily
Fee (for non-Malaysians): all parks entrance - RM55 for adults, RM45 for kids; basic package - RM45 for adults, RM30 for kids; guided tour - RM70 for adults, RM60 for kids
Note: You can't get good enough photos at night, if you want to capture Malaysia from the KL Tower, visit during daytime.

Petronas Observation Deck, Schedule and Fee
Schedule: 9:00AM - 7:00PM, everyday except Mondays
Fee (for non-Malaysians): RM50 for adults, RM25 for kids
Note: Need to be at the ticketing center on or before 5AM to secure tickets, only a limited number of tickets were sold per day, this according to our tour guide.

~ oo00oo ~
KL Summer Adventure Series:
  * Street Dining at Jalan Alor (Day 1)
  * Accommodations at Hotel Alpha Genesis
  * The City Tour (Day 2)
  * 272 Steps to Batu Caves Temple (Day 2)
  * The Towering Towers of Kuala Lumpur (Day 2)
  * Shopping in Jalan Petaling - KL Chinatown (Day 3)

~ oo00oo ~

Date of Visit: May 7 - 8, 2012
Total Expenses: RM61.40 (around PhP835, as of posting date)

Malaysia | 272 Steps to Batu Caves Temple

140-ft Lord Muruga statue in Batu Caves
After our KL city tour, we asked our driver/guide to drop us off at our hotel so we could freshen up a bit before our next adventure - the Batu Caves. In this adventure, we're on our own, no driver/guide to help us and bring us there. So before we left the hotel, we check out some flyers and ask the receptionist for directions going to Batu Caves.

From our hotel, there are several ways to go to Batu Caves - we can take a taxi going there, take the KL Monorail and KTM Komuter, or simply avail ourselves of a Batu Caves tour from tour operators in the hotel, which of course is more expensive. In the end, we opted for a taxi ride since we thought we could save time by taking a taxi rather than spending time looking for and transferring from KL Monorail to KTM Komuter Train; anyway we are four in the group and the comfort of just sitting inside a taxi cab without worrying about directions could compensate for the higher fare. (in short: maarte lang...hehe!)

Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur City Tour

Kuala Lumpur, or simply KL, is Malaysia's capital city, the country's hub for commerce and finance. It is the home to breathtaking modern mega structures; a home to about 1.6 million people of different races and cultures. (source: KL tourism flyers) When I set foot on KL last summer, it feels like I am still in Metro Manila, our country's capital region; except that it's more densely populated here and that they, of course, have that towering twin towers! :D

Anyway, I've mentioned in my previous posts that our KL-SG adventure last summer was on a package tour; and just like any other package tour, it includes a free half day tour to some of the city's interesting attractions. In KL, our city tour includes a visit to the Istana Negara (National Palace), Tugu Negara (National Monument), Masjid Negara (National Mosque), leather factory/store, batik (a cloth printed with various patterns) shop, and chocolate factory.

Istana Negara (National Palace)

Istana Negara or National Palace is the official residence of the Yang de-Pertuan Agong, the king or head of state of Malaysia. Located along Jalan Duta in Kuala Lumpur, this Istana Negara is the newly-built official residence of the King, replacing the old Istana Negara along Jalan Istana. It has an imposing gateway which is guarded by the Malay Regiment and palace guards. The palace is not open for tourists though, so people just flocked the main gate for photo-ops. ;)

Istana Negara (National Palace)

Malaysia | Accommodations at Hotel Alpha Genesis

For our 3-days/2-nights adventure in Malaysia, we stayed at Hotel Alpha Genesis, a business boutique hotel located at No. 45, Tengkat Tong Shin, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur. The hotel is just a few minutes walk (15-20 minutes, they say) to the two famous attractions in Kuala Lumpur; the tallest twin towers and the sixth tallest telecommunications tower of the world - the Petronas Twin Towers and the KL Tower, respectively. Also, the hotel is just 10-minutes walk to the KL Monorail - Bukit Bintang Station. It is also just 2-blocks away from the famous Jalan Alor where we had our first dining experience in KL. Also near the hotel is a 24-hour convenience store (just in front of the hotel) and several bars and restaurants.

Hotel Alpha Genesis - Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Malaysia | Street Dining at Jalan Alor KL

Summer time is adventure time...in another country! ;) Last summer, I joined a friend (and her friends) in their summer adventure in Malaysia and Singapore. We bought a 5D/5N package tour, 3 days in Malaysia and 3 days in Singapore. *wink-wink* :D

We left Manila at around 2:10PM via Cebu Pacific Air and reached Kuala Lumpur at around 6:00PM. Since it was a package tour, airport-hotel transfer was provided so we have a ride to our hotel. During the trip to the hotel, I asked the driver what Malaysian food should we try but he discouraged us and said that Malaysian food is full of fats, we might not like it (our driver looks like an Indian, maybe that's why...hehe!). However, he was kind enough to show us the famous Jalan Alor, which is just walking distance from our hotel.

Jalan Alor - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Jalan Alor is a street in Bukit Bintang area lined up with hawker stalls and restaurants. There are also those food carts like what we have here in the Philippines that offer dimsum and barbecue products. But instead of "isaw" (chicken intestine), "tokneneng" (quail eggs), "adidas" (chicken feet), etc., they have prawns, meats, and different kinds of dimsum on the carts. Fruit  stalls also lined up the street. There's so many restaurants, stalls and food choices here, it's so hard to choose where and what to eat. Anyway, we ended up trying Dragon View Restaurant, one of the Chinese restaurants in Jalan Alor.

Eager to try out a new dish, I ordered fried cockles koey teow. I didn't understand then the restaurant staff when she explained what koey teow is so I also ordered roaster mix chicken rice, a set meal of roasted chicken, pork and another meat (I forgot what it was) with rice and a can of sprite (RM3.50, around PhP46.00, expensive right?) for drinks. My friends, who are afraid of trying out dishes they don't know, also ordered roaster mixed chicken rice. When our orders arrived, I found out that koey teow is a stir-fried flat noodles with cockles, shrimps and bean sprouts (wow, carbo-loading itech...hehe!). It tasted good by the way, and one order could serve 2 - 3 persons (for RM6, around PhP80, it's fair enough).☺

Fried Cockles Koey Teow - RM6
Roaster Mix Chicken Rice - RM8.50
Restoran Dragon View - Jalan Alor, Kuala Lumpur
Street Dining - Jalan Alor, Kuala Lumpur
Street Foods - Jalan Alor, Kuala Lumpur
Street Foods - Jalan, Alor, Kuala Lumpur
Street Foods - Jalan Alor, Kuala Lumpur
Jalan Alor is a must-visit destination in Kuala Lumpur especially for food lovers looking for food varieties at a reasonable price, check it out when you visit Malaysia. More of our KL summer adventures next time. See you around... ☺

~ oo00oo ~
KL Summer Adventure Series:
  * Street Dining at Jalan Alor (Day 1)
  * Accommodations at Hotel Alpha Genesis
  * The City Tour (Day 2)
  * 272 Steps to Batu Caves Temple (Day 2)
  * The Towering Towers of Kuala Lumpur (Day 2)
  * Shopping in Jalan Petaling - KL Chinatown (Day 3)

~ oo00oo ~

Date of Visit: May 6, 2012
Total Expenses for this dinner: RM18.00 (around PhP238.00)

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