Category Archives: Malaysia
KL photo fixations: the Petronas twin towers and the urban-scape
Greetings from Ubud. We were in Kuala Lumpur until a few days ago, but the change of atmosphere we got when we arrived in Bali was so drastic that it now feels like it was ages ago when we left the huge capital city of Malaysia on our first Air Asia flight to Denpasar.
Due to its relative youngness – it was only founded in 1857, and became capital city 100 years later – KL has a modern soul which reflects in its architectural look, in the efficiency of its well thought-out transportation system, and in the abundance of shopping centres. Did anyone mention to you that KL is a paradise for the shopping-addict? I actually got mad when I found out that there was a shopping centre (Low Yat Plaza, in the heart of the golden triangle, near Bukit Bintang) with only technolgy, camera and IT shops 
Tall buldings are all over the place in town and sometimes you feel so small compared to what’s around you – I got the same feeling when walking in the streets of downtown Manhattan during my trip to New York last year. So my first KL photo obsession was with capturing the view of these buildings from the street level looking up. Here are some of the shots I took into town.
The second photo obsession I got was Dataran Merdeka (Independence square) and the view from there – an important landmark in Malay history, independence was proclaimed here and the Malayan flag hoisted for the first time at midnight on August 31st, in 1957. When we got there in one of our sightseeing walks, there was such a great light and a nice view of the skyline that I spent a couple of hours trying different compositions.
My third and most time-consuming photo obsession was with the Petronas Twin Towers. Designed by architect Cesar Pelli, the towers incorporate modern looking visual elements as well as islamic symbols. For instance, the concept of the floor plan is based on an eight-point star made of two overlapping squares. In Islam this shape is referred to as Rub el Hizb. “Architecturally – I read from the official leaflet – these forms reflect important Islamic principles of ‘Unity within unity, harmony, stability and rationality’”. Eight semi-circles were added to the innner angles of the star points as more floor space was needed. In the final design the floor plan had 16 protrusions, the eight points of the star and the eight semi-circles.
Completed and opened to the public in 1998, the Petronas twin towers are today the most photographed and recognizable among KL’s landmarks. With their 452 metres of height they used to be the tallest building in the world, but in 2004 they were surpassed by the Taipei 101 tower (509 metres). In 2010 the Taipei 101 tower lost the title of tallest building to the 828-metres tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
The Petronas twin towers dominate KL’s skyline and they can be seen by almost anywhere in and around the city. To get a good close-up view it is possible to hang out at the park around the towers, or you can have a walk into the KLCC Suria shopping centre, which occupies the first floors of the towers and features a couple of non-expensive food courts.
It is also possible to access the two-story skybridge that connects the two towers (41st and 42nd floor, 170 metres above the street level) and the observation deck at the 86th floor. But to do that you have to buy the ticket early in the morning (there’s only a limited number of visitors allowed every day, and visitors are allowed in only for a limited amount of time).
We went to start the queue one morning at 7.30 and the space in front of the ticket counter was already packed full of people. The ticket counter opened at 8.30 and by the time we got to buy the ticket the only slot available to do both the skybridge and the observation deck was at 6pm. Not bad for us, as that’s the time of the day when there’s the best and most dramatic light if you want to take pictures
During our stay in KL we kept coming back to the towers from time to time so to have the opportunity to shoot the buildings under different types of light. The culmination of this photo fixation was when we actually got into the skybridge and the observation deck. I was right about the type of light that I would get at 6pm and the views were amazing.
Here are some of the pictures I took, including pictures of the view from the towers – I hope you enjoy them.
Click on the photos to enlarge them and see them at a slightly better quality
Georgetown: Melting pot and foodies’ heaven
Unlike the other countries we’ve visited in this trip we didn’t do much research or reading about Malaysia before arriving, so we knew very little about this country and we didn’t know what to expect.
Once we got to Georgetown we found out that the guesthouse we had booked online the day before was well outside the backpacking district in a posh part of town between Jalan Burma and Gurney drive, a scenic sea front promenade with many upmarket restaurants, hotels, skyscrapers and shopping centres. However, our guesthouse was not expensive at all, it was nice and cosy and the staff was brilliant.
The seafront at Gurney Drive (Persiaran Gurney)
With the historical centre (UNESCO heritage site since 2008) not so close, and with other attractions being out of town, we had to find an alternative to expensive taxis to keep our budget down while moving from one place to another. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that there was a public bus system (Rapid Penang) – a very organized and efficient one indeed! Buses are so clean and modern, and some of them also have wi-fi. Would you believe it?
The Rapid Penang bus station near Weld Quay in Georgetown
During our stay we learned that Malay people are about 50% of the population and the remaining 50% are mainly Indian and Chinese. Chinese are the owners of the economy and entrepreneurship is their second nature. An Indian-Malay told us and during Chinese new year the country stops, because Chinese people own most businesses and they don’t work during this period.
Muslim Malay women.
A typical Chinese building in the historical centre of Georgetown
The other major component of the Malay society are Indians – most come from the state of Tamil Nadu in the south, and many of them are Muslim.
The owner of Lakshmi video in Little India, in the UNESCO heritage area
An Indian Muslim praying into Kapitan Keling Mosque in the city centre
Pulau Pinang (this is the Malay name for Penang, the island where Georgetown is), like all Malaysia, is a big melting pot and this diversity is reflected in its cuisine. Locals will tell you they have the best food in Malaysia, and if you say, like we did, that you’ve heard that Kuala Lumpur is also supposed to have good food, they’ll tell you that you won’t find KL’s food good after having tried Penang’s delicacies.
Normally we would have done a lot of sightseeing (we did some of course) but our stay took inevitably (and rightly so) an intense gastronomic twist. Therefore we spent 4 days exploring… the food markets!!
The Georgetown town hall
The Han Jiang ancestral temple of the Penang Teochew Association
A red shed at the Chinese settlement in the Weld Quay jetties
The front of a house in the Chinese settlement in Weld Quay
One of the minarets of Kapitan Keling Mosque
The floating mosque on the way to Batu Ferringhi
What we will remember the most about Georgetown are the numerous food courts (the Hawkers centres), the fusion Indian, Chinese, Malay dishes, with their smell of spices and of course extra kilos we gained there.
Georgetown eateries you shouldn’t miss out on
Of course there are many places to go for food. The places below are, among the ones that were recommended to us by locals and other travellers, the ones that we tried and loved. Make sure you get a copy of ‘Penang Food Trail’, a free map for foodies, with restaurants and the types of specialities they offer. The map also includes a section with photos and notes about typical local dishes, including desserts.
One last note about Hawker centres. These are open air, street restaurants with many different food stalls. Usually there’ll be only one stall serving drinks and a few selling desserts (don’t miss Ice Kacang and Cendol, and if you are adventurous try durian at least once). Our main tip is to eat small portion of many dishes to maximise variety – there is only a limited number of lunches and dinners you can have but a limitless range of exotic delicacies to try!
Gurney drive hawker centre
Quite outside the historical centre, we wouldn’t have known about this night food market if we didn’t take this out-of-the-way guesthouse. Looi, the guesthouse owner, recommended this place to us and we went there for dinner on our first night in Georgetown. What a great way to get introduced to Penang’s food.
The Gurney drive hawker centre
To see Gurney drive hawker centre on the map click here
Red garden food court
This is the most famous food hawker centre in Georgetown, straight in the middle of the action in Jalan Penang, centre of gravity of the backpacking and local night-life.
Live Chinese music show at the Red Garden food court
The cendol we had at one of the food stalls in the Red Garden food court
To see Red Garden food court on the map click here
Lorong baru (new lane), off Macalister street (Jalan Macalister)
We’d seen many food hawker centres in Macalister street from the bus on our way into town. On our last night we decided to give this one a try and it was worth – definitely.
Preparing Char Koay Kak at the new lane night food market
The Ais Kacang we had at the first stall in new lane
Chee Cheong Fun, a dish featuring an interesting mix of sweet, savoury and spicy
To see Lorong Baru on the map click here
Sri Weld food court
Even though this food market is in the historical centre not many tourists end up here. We were lucky enough to try the delicious food they some of the stalls have. But don’t go there at night, as this food court is only open for lunch.
Hawker food at Sri Weld food court
To see Sri Weld food court on the map click here
Little India
If you’ve been to India before, the smell of incense mixed with notes of curries and spices, Hindi music coming out loud from sari shops and images of Hindu deities are guaranteed to give an emotional twist. Try one of the many Indian restaurants in lebuh Queen, lebuh King or lebuh Bishop. Look for Nasi Kandar restaurants – in these restaurants you’ll get a plate with plain rice which you will be able to ‘decorate’ with as many types of curry (and meat or fish) as you want.
Indian restarant in the heart of Little India
To see little India on the map click here
Oh… did I mention we tried Durian too?
A street food seller opening our first Durian
Finally eating the 'king of all fruits' as the Asian call it. After eating it I understood why they say it smells like hell and tastes like heaven
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