Malaysia Attractions | Singapore Travel Photo Blog @ travelerfolio.com

Kek Lok Si Air Itam

I wish I could stay on for a few more days to explore Kuala Lumpur since I hadn’t been there for years but we had to drive back to Penang island to catch the flight back to Singapore two days later.

Back in Penang, we continued to indulge in more authentic local eats on a Monday morning at Air Itam market. There were many market-goers around, probably cos it was Malaysia National Day, a public holiday. Or is the market always crowded in the morning?

It was quite unusual for someone who kept snapping away in this local market area. Obviously, I looked like a tourist. No, not all Singapore tourists are so engrossed in taking pics this way, unless… if you are a travel blogger?? So nowadays, whenever I see people taking photos, especially aiming at food before eating, I would think they might have a blog. XD

It’s so convenient. You don’t need to find parking lot and can just buy groceries along the way on a scooter, just like MacDonald’s Drive Thru’. =D

Fresh chicken.

This friendly uncle took out a harmless-looking little snake from the container and posed this shot for me. Well, I guess, those snakes are for consumption. :S Or could it be for “animal liberation”?

A cage of turtles. apparently, are for someone’s dining table. Hey maybe that’s for “animal liberation”. Also, live fish in buckets of water.

We came to Air Itam for the famous “Kio Kar” curry mee! I bet Penangites know about this stall along the roadside manned by the two (or three?) old aunties who cook curry using charcoal stove. All the ingredients and pots are placed on the floor. While sitting on stools, the friendly ladies would prepare the food for the customers. It’s not easy to find seats as there are only a few tables along the busy street.

I was a little surprised when my order came. It wasn’t quite like the curry mee with thick red curry gravy that I know of. The curry has little coconut milk in it so it tastes like soup to me. If you like it more spicy, stir the chilli paste into the gravy. The bowl is topped with cuttle fish and tau pok (fried bean curd).

Old wooden chopsticks, perhaps, older than you!

Perched against a hill slope in Air Itam, Kek Lok Si (极乐寺) is the largest Buddhist temple in Southeast Asia. The magnificent temple also houses a columbarium with niches to store cremation urns. Those marble niches at the top floor facing the city and the sea are the most expensive: one niche costs up to RM30,ooo (~US$8700).

A panoramic view of Penang from Kek Lok Si Temple. Scroll Left->Right.

We see this beautiful sunset everyday from a room in the house.

Posted by eunice Posted in Malaysia, Penang Comments (11)

KL City sights & food

After a night at Genting Highlands, we drove back to Kuala Lumpur (KL) city. Though KL is merely a 30min flight from Singapore, I haven’t been there for many years. To me, KL is a bustling city with people everywhere, many shopping malls around and traffic jams!

Somehow, as we stepped out of Sungei Wang Plaza, the city scene reminded me of Taipei and Hong Kong.

Sungei Wang Plaza is a few storeys high and filled with many small shops mainly selling apparels. Some say there are good bargains in the plaza; the locals say otherwise. Apparently, many shoppers are tourists like us. Anyway, I couldn’t get anything from there except a big blueberry muffin from Famous Amos! Nice!

There are also a few very big malls in KL where the locals frequent: Mid Valley Megamall, 1 Utama Shopping Centre and Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall.

That’s the monorail station in KL. Clean, swift, convenient…. During our stay in Malaysia, we were pretty surprised to see many people wearing masks to protect themselves against H1N1; we don’t really see that often in Singapore.

You can’t miss the Petronas Twin Towers in KL cos you will see them looming over the city once you get into the capital. Currently, the Twin Towers are the tallest twin buildings in the world. They used to be the world’s tallest building before being surpassed by Taipei 101.

At the Twin Towers, you can shop in KLCC which features many luxurious boutiques. FYI, the food court in KLCC is pricey: A normal meal of rice with 3 side dishes can cost RM15!

We could appreciate the day view of the KL Tower and the Twin Towers from afar at a relative’s unit on the 8th floor. During special occasions like the New Year Countdown, the family can enjoy the spectacular firework display at the Twin Tower right through their windows. How nice!

At night, both the KL Tower and the Twin Towers are glowing gorgeously. In fact, KL Tower is the 5th tallest freestanding tower in the world.

Rows of little red roof houses in KL, as cosy as can be.

When night falls…

We put up a night at Pearl International Hotel. I’m not going to mention much about the hotel itself. It’s just an average 4-star hotel that cost us RM238 per night. However, the food at the coffee shop located at a short walking distance away from the left of the hotel (entrance) are good enough for our return!

The Portugese stingray is not just good but great! It’s not as oily as those cook on hot plate yet it’s hot and spicy. The dish offers a lot lady’s fingers too. OMG I’m craving for it now.

Also, try the ”chee cheong fun” (rice sheet roll) wrapped with meat like shrimps! The “chee cheong fun” is really soft and it melts in your mouth!

Toasted “Tau Pok” sandwich with some veggies like bean sprouts and shredded cucumber mixed with sweet prawn paste! Tau Pok = Chinese deep fried tofu. It may look simple but the toasted “Tau Pok” is warm and crisp!

Teh C Special, with 3 colours. The iced tea does not only look appealing; it’s refreshing and unique.

We had our lunch at an eatery famous for their Nasi Lemak – Village Park Restaurant, located at Uptown Damansara. It’s one of the best Nasi Lemak I’ve ever eaten before. The plate of fragrance coconut rice goes well with their famous fried chicken and other side dishes too. It’s definitely worth trying.

Address: 5, Jalan SS21/37, Damansara Utama, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. The restaurant is open daily: 7am – 8pm; 7am – 6 pm on Sunday & Public Holiday.

Posted by eunice Posted in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Comments (12)

Cave Exploration

We hiked up to Panching (Charas) limestone cave and did not have enough of it yet, and continued to follow the trail up to the highest cave above us. From far, we really couldn’t see what lied ahead of us and we had to be mindful with every step as they are uneven and slippery too. But since we had already been so far, from Singapore to Mersing, then drove up to Sungai Lembing town in Kuantan, Pahang in Malaysia, why gave up? No big deal though.

That’s the cave entrance.

Panoramic photo of the limestone cave, with drawings, algae, water dripping… I took this shot from inside the cave. No one was around except my family members. Most of them didn’t want to come up to this higher spot as the ground was slippery. Feeling creepy as I look at those details on this cave picture.

Scroll right-left to view the panoramic cave photo.

My dad nearly slipped and fell in this cave. Fortunately, he was pretty agile on his feet and managed to grab hold of some big rocks at the side. It’s safer to walk sideway down the slippery slope. Read More »

Posted by eunice Posted in Kuantan, Malaysia Comments (27)

Caves Expedition

Malaysia has many caves scattered around the country and is a haven for cave explorers. We drove a long way to Kuantan, the capital of Pahang, the third largest state of Malaysia, and visited Panching Caves at Sungai Lembing town.

Panching Cave (aka Charas Cave according to sources) is a limestone cavern with unique rock formations and is not only visited by tourists but archaeologists and geographers. It is actually a Thai-Buddhist cave temple with the enthralling statue of the 9 metres reclining Buddha.

Surprisingly, there is an admission fee to visit Panching cave. For an adult, you pay RM2. For a child, you pay RM1. Read More »

Posted by eunice Posted in Kuantan, Malaysia Comments (19)

UNESCO World Heritage 2008: Georgetown

Added another UNESCO World Heritage site into my list of travelled places. Georgetown, the historic capital of Penang island, is listed by UNESCO in 2008 for its unique architectural and cultural townscape.

The City Hall colony building in white. It was a stormy day with huge waves hitting the wall. Fyi, the devastating Indian Ocean Tsunami hit Penang in 2004.

The City Hall and the Old Town Hall are well-preserved British colonial buildings since 1903. It was drizzling, a bad weather for us to take any photo. Look at the puddles of water on the field.

Queen Victoria Clock Tower was presented to Penang by a local millionaire in 1897.

This semi-spherical sculpture is located next to the Clock Tower.

Kapitan Keling Mosque was built in the early 19th century and is the most prominent historic mosque in Read More »

Posted by eunice Posted in Malaysia, Penang Comments (19)

The Largest Aquarium in South East Asia – CTY

Chew Thean Yeang (周天央) or better known as CTY Aquarium is the largest live fish shop in South East Asia. You not only see a great variety of fishes here but also many kind of exotic animals. (Address: 82 Burmah Road, Penang)

There are alot of beautiful fishes here but photo-taking is not allowed.

Yet, don’t know why, my cellphone camera automatically snapped this photo of a very big catfish.

I didn’t get the name of this species. It looks like a tortoise with thorns and a shell covered with algae. Can anyone help me on this? It’s weird! (Update: This is an alligator snapping turtle! It eats fishes! Thx to Ah Shui)