Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia): small stopover before New Zealand
When you take the round-the-world ticket, there are mandatory stopovers, because the airline alliance in question does not operate a particular flight live. Kuala Lumpur is one of them. As we take Malaysia Airlines from Singapore to Auckland, Kuala Lumpur has been added to our itinerary. For 20€/person, this stopover can be transformed into a stopover. So why not?
We are very tired when we arrive in Kuala Lumpur and the hot humid climate not helping, we take an Uber from the airport (the Klia Express costs more at two than an Uber) and spend the whole day sleeping and eating at our hotel (it is very good luckily)
We are happy to be able to roam with our Singapore Starhub (Happy Prepaid) SIM card. In short, for 13$SG we could cover three countries (Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia) for 10 days, with 3GB
The next day, feeling a little guilty for being so unproductive, we try to get out. We have lunch in a restaurant next door before taking the train to Batu Caves
The Black Cave is on the left as you exit the subway. It is a cellar with scenes from Rama’s life. A very nice waterfall inside embellishes the place
We continue towards the main statue which is unfortunately under construction. It is very impressive
I let JB climb the 200 or so steps up to the main cellar while I rest downstairs sipping a coconut. I can’t stand the heat! Plus, as Malaysia is a Muslim country, I’m covered from neck to ankle. Long live spring in New Zealand!
Someone hands JB a sand jump. Not understanding what it’s for, he refuses to catch him sniffing out a scam. He will understand later that it’s for site work. There is no lift so all the materials are assembled by hand. As it represents a lot of work, the tourists are solicited
Many monkeys are waiting all along the stairs. Not aggressive but it is better not to have food in your bag. The cave itself isn’t extraordinary, the view from above isn’t extraordinary either, but the cave on the left, to be done with a guide, a helmet with a lamp on the head (in caving mode), seems interesting
We take the subway to go to the Petronas Twin Towers. On the way, it rains ropes, we hear loud thunder for 30 minutes. We have to take refuge in an Indian canteen while waiting for the rain to calm down. One will never repeat it enough: it is always necessary to have an umbrella on oneself in Asia
The ticket for the footbridge between the two Petronas towers is expensive (85RM per person) and I tell you in advance, you don’t necessarily get your money’s worth. The view is neither beautiful nor impressive. We have to admit that we are becoming demanding, just one year ago we were in New York at the top of the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center with a breathtaking view of Manhattan and Central Park. For this price you get 10 minutes on the catwalk and 15 minutes on the 86th floor
In the evening we eat at the famous Chinatown street filled with restaurants, barbecue and seafood. But we fall in love with a Vietnamese restaurant (I already miss Vietnamese food)
During the order, tree branches fell on us and could have smashed our skulls and knocked the waiter out if we weren’t sitting under some kind of roof in jail. Having seen several broken branches after the heavy rain earlier, I had made up my mind that we should avoid trees
The next day, we spend our last hours in Asia before our flight to New Zealand to take advantage of the low price of Malaysia: in this case a good Japanese restaurant at a very affordable price
And a small tour in the largest high-tech shopping mall in Malaysia. All the phone brands have a stand there, there are a lot of repairmen and a huge store with cables of all lengths and equipment for gamers at low prices. In short paradise!
We have been trying for several months to find a solution to secure Wifi connections and increase speed. JB opts for a wifi router at 20€ while I fall for a mini tripod GoPro. One day we’ll do an article on gadgets to take on a trip. We’re very gadgets but everything we bring is used almost every day.
