Thursday, September 18, 2008

Malaysia- Land of Glass Towers, Beaches, Mountains, National Parks

Hi Everyone,
After a long time, let me take you to a city of glass towers, beaches, mountains & national parks. A place where you will love to eat, relax & enjoy the serene beauty of nature.....Thats Malaysia for you......
Whats This? Malaysia- a land of glass towers, superb beaches, mountains and national parks in Asia. Its the most pleasant, hassle-free countries to visit in southeast Asia.

Located Where? Malaysia is one of the most pleasant, hassle-free countries to visit in southeast Asia. Malaysia lies entirely in the equatorial zone. Peninsular Malaysia forms part of the Sunda Shield. Its Triassic fold-mountain belt, the spine of the Peninsula, continues from eastern Burma through Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, the Banka and Billiton Islands, and eastwards into Indonesian Borneo.

How do we Reach There? Malaysia's main international airport is at Sepang, 75km (47mi) south of Kuala Lumpur. Most tourists either fly into Sepang or arrive overland from Thailand or Singapore. However, Penang also has international flights, and Kuching in Sarawak and Tawau in Sabah have flights to/from Kalimantan. Departure tax (around US$40.00 ) will be included in the ticket price. Malaysian Airline System (MAS) and Air Asia are the main domestic airlines, servicing both the peninsula and Sabah and Sarawak. It's cheaper to fly to East Malaysia from Johor Bahru than from KL

Best time to visit: It's hot and humid year-round in Malaysia with temperatures rarely dropping below 20°C (68°F), even at night, and usually climbing to 30°C (86°F) or more during the day. It's best to avoid the November to January rainy season on peninsular Malaysia's east coast if you want to enjoy the beaches.

Major Attractions :
Batu Caves (Ipoh Road): Just north of Kuala Lumpur is the impressive Batu Caves. A flight of 272 steps leads up to Temple Cave. Beyond the towering main cavern, the space opens to an atrium-like cave at the rear. Many visitors are more spellbound by the monkeys that scale the vertical cliff faces than by the shrines which are dwarfed by the scale of the cave. The whole spectacle has been enhanced of late by an enormous golden statue of Muruga, also known as Lord Subramaniam, to whom the caves are dedicated. Each year in late January or early February up to a million pilgrims visit here during the three days of Thaipusam.

Lake Gardens (JIn Parlimen, Lake Gardens district, Kuala Lumpur): These 92ha (227ac) of manicured gardens lie west of Merdeka Sq and were once home to the ranking British official. There's a butterfly park, planetarium, insect museum, walk-in aviary, orchid garden and hibiscus garden. You can also hire boats on Tasik Perdana (Premier Lake).


Sepilok Orang-Utan Rehabilitation Centre (Sepilok ): One of only four orang-utan sanctuaries in the world, Sepilok is among Sabah's top tourist attractions - so much so that the atmosphere can be a bit like a circus or a zoo. A visit to Sepilok can be a memorable experience. "Orang Utan" which means "man of the forest" in Malaysian.

Taman Negara National Park (Three boats daily from Kuala Tembeling to Kuala Tahan): This magnificent wild area is a haven for endangered species such as elephants, tigers, leopards and rhinos, but numbers are low and sightings of anything more exotic than snakes, lizards, monkeys, small deer, and perhaps tapir, are rare. Traditionally, the park was only accessible by river. These days there's a road, but the boat trip is still recommended for the full Taman Negara experience.The jungle at Taman Negara is dense but sightings are never guaranteed. The jungle here is claimed to be the oldest in the world none of the Ice Ages had any effect here.

Kuala Lumpur (KL): is an intriguing mix of architecture throughout the city; elegant colonial buildings contrast with soaring modern edifices such as the twin Petronas Towers. Its a bustling metropolis with one of the world's tallest buildings. KL is hot and humid almost all the time with overnight lows rarely sinking below 20°C (70°F) and maximums rising above 30°C (86°F) on most days.Rainfall is variable and falls all year round.


The major attractions in KL are Aquaria KLCC, Badan Warisan Malaysia, Bazaar Baru Market, Buddhist Maha Vihar, Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve, Butterfly Reserve, Chan She Shu Yuen Temple, Choon Wan Kong, Chulan Tower, Civil Service Memorial, Cosmo's World, Deer Park, Dharma Realm Guan Yin Sagely Monastery, Galeri Petronas.


The famous places to shop around in KL are Avenue K, Ayurvedium, Bangsar Village I & II, Berjaya Times Square, Central Market, Chow Kit Clothes Market, Curve, Dive Station, Escentials, Imbi Plaza.




The numerous night markets scattered around the city are crowded and atmospheric. On the west of Kuala Lumpur you can find Actors Studio Bangsar famous for theatre & comedy, the Chinese Assembly Hall famous for traditional theatre, performance, music, Dewan Filharmonik Petronas famous for classical music jazz/blues traditional music, and Digi Imax Theatre for cinema. For enjoying bars you can visit the Bar Flam, Bar Upstairs, Beach Club Café, Bed, Black Hole, Blue Boy, Ceylon Bar, Chinatown Liquor Shop.

Melaka City: One of Malaysia's most sought after destinations, is the small city-state of Melaka. The temperature in Melaka ranges from 21°C (70°F) to 33°C (91°F) and average humidity exceeds 82%. There is rain throughout the year, with September to November the wettest months.Melaka is 144km (89mi) from Kuala Lumpur and just 94km (58mi) from Port Dickson. Most travellers arrive and depart from Melaka overland, as the airport outside town does not handle domestic flights. Melaka is easy to navigate and compact enough to explore on foot, bicycle or trishaw (bicycle rickshaw).Taking to Melaka's streets by trishaw is a popular tourist option. Melaka's airport is at Batu Berendam. The famous places to visit here are Baba-Nonya Heritage Museum, St Paul's Church a religious/spiritual cemetery hill , Stadthuys a government museum.



Penang's: sprawling main centre, Georgetown, has impressive colonial architecture, temples, lively Chinese culture, great shopping and even better food. Penang is well known for being the "food paradise" of Malaysia & has a tropical climate, with incredibly consistent temperatures year-round. Average monthly highs range from 30°C to 31°C (86-88°F) for the whole year; average monthly lows are between 23°C and 24°C (74-75°F). Penang's mainland strip of Seberang Perai is easily accessed by road and rail from other parts of the peninsula. Butterworth is the transport hub and the departure point for ferries to Pulau Penang, which is also linked to the mainland by road-bridgeThe famous places here to visit are Alpha Utara Gallery an art gallery, Khoo Kongsi, Kek Lok Si Temple, Snake Temple, & Penang Hill.
Precautions: The islands and coastal areas of Eastern Sabah are considered very dangerous for foreigners, who are at high risk of being kidnapped by terrorist groups.



General Info / Tips: The Official language spoken here is Malay.
Currency- Name -Malaysian Ringgit, Symbol -RM

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